Golden Lioness [Game of Thrones] COMPLETED!

CHAPTER ONE

"Sleep well the night before a battle, but do not forget to share a glass of wine with your comrades."

- Jaime 

"Tyrion," Joanna called to her brother. The man in front of her didn't respond, his eyes barely attempted to open. With a roll of her eyes, she rose to her feet. "Tyrion," Joanna tried again. Luckily, Tyrion's eyes flickered open for a moment.

"You're too loud," he croaked to Joanna, absently reaching for his glass of wine, eyes closed. His stubby hand grazed the cup, although not well enough, as it fell to the floor with a clang. "And you're too loud," he spoke to the cup.

"Tyrion, you need to go to bed," she told him as she bent down for the cup. He shushed her in response. "It's an important day tomorrow," Joanna tried again. "We'll probably make it to Winterfell by midday."

"Who told you that?" Tyrion slurred, eyes still shut, but his mind was waking up.

"No one," Joanna replied. She knew this game, she had been playing it with her older brother for years. If her truthful answers to his questions impressed him, he would comply with what she asked for. "I was reading the map, we're less than a day's ride from the castle," she stated, making Tyrion think for a moment. His brows knotted while he breathed heavily.

"Fine," was all he said, however, it brought a light to Joanna's face. Tyrion climbed onto his cramped legs as he muttered nonsense. He spent a moment stretching his legs and waddled to his bed, not bothering to strip off the day's clothes and fell into the mound of straw and cloth. That'll do, she thought to herself. Quietly, Joanna rose to her feet, a sense of peace fell over her when Tyrion began to snore softly. With a quick glance at the table that she and Tyrion had been situated at for the past few hours, she chose to swipe her half empty glass of wine from the table. I need this, Joanna thought as she dumped the liquid into her throat, swallowing thickly. And I'll need even more if I'm going to survive tomorrow.

 With force, she slammed the glass back down on the table, earning a light groan from Tyrion, interrupting his snores.  She walked out the door, long skirts in hand, helping her not to fall on the uneven planks of stairs below her as she trod underneath the assisting moonlight. Joanna's slippered feet soon met the dirt .

The soil under her feet felt different from the south. It was softer somehow. It wasn't sunbaked like some of the parks in Kingslanding or littered with rocks and grass patches like Lannisport. Although the surface was soft, it was sturdy. When Joanna kicked the dirt, it did not fly like the recently turned earth in High Garden. Pebbles and dust sputtered from where she kicked. Not even the dust was anything like she'd seen in Dorne. Like most things in the North, as Joanna had noticed during the month or so travelling to Winterfell, the earth was plain, grey tinted brown, and firm, different from the rest of Westeros.

Soon, Joanna was climbing up the crooked stairs of the inn across the road. Tyrion insisted that he spend the night in one of the rooms that the tavern had offered. His choices for where he laid his head, he claimed, depended on where the closest glass of wine was, but Joanna had a hunch that he did not wish to spend any more time with the royal party than necessary. She understood her brother's distaste for them. Although Tywin had proclaimed her a true Lannister on her eighth name day, the knights, ladies in waiting, and even the kitchen staff still whispered when she walked by. 

She shared the room at the inn with her young niece, Myrcella, and Myrcella's lady in waiting. Both of the girls were asleep as Joanna made her quiet entrance, shutting the door behind herself, wincing when it whined slightly. She loved her niece as if Myrcella was her young sister. However, Joanna knew the young princess could be quite the beast without enough sleep. 

Joanna crawled onto the straw mattress after changing out of the day's clothes. As she began to settle in, a light burp escaped her mouth from the wine coursing through her system. She excused herself and luckily no one responded. Joanna sighed, regretting drinking so much wine, as tomorrow was an important day. The young woman was to meet her next possible suitor. 

A shiver raced through her body, shaking her from head to foot. Joanna pulled the wool blankets up to her ears. Not only was the North hard, grey, and different from the rest of Westeros, it was cold. 

"Winter is coming," she whispered to herself, reviewing the Stark words as she dozed off. "And it's going to be mine." 

A/N 

WHAT UPPPP broskies. Welcome to my first ever fanfic that I've published!! It's not the best or the nicest but I'm trying. Also its super slow in the beggining but it picks upp trust me broskeies

I hope you guys have a wonderful day that's full of love and flowers, with bumblebees and smiles. 

Love y'alllllll