bonus chapters | alternate ending
𝕷yra Baratheon loved one thing more than anything, dancing.
That was something she had never been able to do whilst she was in Winterfell, where large dances for all the Northern houses were rare. In fact, Lyra could only recall having ever gone to one ball and it had been on her sixteenth birthday, where her mother had organised a ball to introduce Lyra to the noble men of the Northern Houses. She had loved the dancing, but hated the other parts of the ball.
Lyra could also remember, in the year before she married Joffrey, the talks with Margaery about the harvest moon ball that they used to hold. She had dreamed of being able to dance with Joffrey in the dim light, having him swing her around. She would have loved being able to do that with him, but the Tyrell house had been destroyed in the war before the long winter.
She supposed that she could have also danced with Joffrey at their wedding, but they had been too busy trying to get Sansa out of the city and thus, she hadn't been able to. Lyra supposed, if she had to think back on those years, the one thing that she would most definitely want to revisit would be hers and Joffrey's wedding. She would tell herself to cherish that first kiss with him, the moments that she was able to have him all to herself before everything went wrong.
She'd remind herself to cherish all of it.
But now, as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, Lyra was allowed to do the one thing that she had dreamt of doing for as long as she could remember. She was allowed to hold a royal ball, to spend her night dancing with her family, laughing and remembering all those that she loved and held dear to her. Invitations had been sent, replies had been noted and preparations had been well underway.
Now the night of it all was finally here, and Lyra was awash with nerves. She wanted this to be perfect. She wanted this memory to be perfect, so that she could think back on it all with a fond smile as she grew older.
"You look beautiful." Arah straightened Lyra's crown on her head, before letting her hands fall onto the woman's shoulders. "Absolutely stunning."
"You are too kind to me," Lyra squeezed the older woman's hand. Arah, a full fledged lady of the court, was still one of the few that Lyra trusted with helping her prepare for these events. If Margaery was alive, she would have been sitting in with Sansa, Myrcella and Arah on Lyra's meetings, but for now it had just been the four of them. None of them had any planning experience, but they'd managed the best they could, and Lyra hoped that it would work out well in the end. "Tylar will not be able to keep his eyes off of you."
"I am his wife, so I should hope so." Arah and Lyra both chuckled, before the queen finally stood from her seat to smooth out her dress. Her handmaids, who waited at the door, clapped and grinned at the sight of her.
"You two should also go and get ready. I will be down in the main hall in thirty minutes." Lyra turned to smile at the two teenagers, both of who looked at her with wide eyes. "Go on. You can have the night off."
"Thank you, Your Grace." The eldest dipped into a low curtsy, the other following suit, before they both rushed off in a mess of giggles and gossiping. Lyra chuckled, before calling for Elia.
The large wolf was now closer to her shoulder height, which was truly scary, but Lyra had managed to brush her fur through and force a dark blue ribbon round her neck in place of a collar. She would most likely sleep through the entire thing, or watch the children, but Lyra had wanted her wolf to be part of this.
Turning, Lyra admired the dress in the mirror. It was perfect. A shade of blue that matched the sapphires of her crown, and the necklace that Joffrey had gifted to her all those years earlier. Every step she took, it shimmered in the light, and though the neckline was mildly lower than Lyra was used to, she felt beautiful.
"Come, we should meet with Sansa and Myrcella." Lyra turned to Arah, hooking their arms together as they left the royal chambers. Her guards followed her in an instance, walking along behind them with Elia.
Normally, this was Tylar's job, but Lyra had sent him off to get ready. He would, for once, not be in armour for tonight's affair.
As they grew closer to the main hall, Lyra's nerves grew, until both of her sisters came into view. Myrcella was dressed in pale pink, her blonde hair braided away from her face, twisted upwards. Sansa was laughing at something she said, dressed in silver, her hair in a similar style to Lyra's.
"You both look beautiful." Lyra called, causing the pair to curtsy quickly before hurrying over to embrace her. "My two little sisters, all grown up."
"We've been grown up for years." Myrcella muttered. "We are both adults."
"You'll always be my younger sisters." Lyra cooed. The four of them spent the next few minutes admiring the others outfits, cooing and complementing the others as they twisted and turned. Finally, Elia seemed to grow impatient, nudging at Lyra's shoulder. Arah and Myrcella left first, walking into the hall as Sansa hooked her arm through her sisters.
"Margaery would love this." Lyra nodded. "She'd command all the attention in that hall."
"She did always like to have everyone's eyes on her." Lyra nodded at the thought of her friend, smiling sadly. It never got easier, losing people that was. She still missed them with all her heart. "The best we can do is honour her memory, and have a wonderful time tonight. That would make her very happy."
Sansa nodded, before following the others into the hall. Lyra took a deep breath, stroking Elia's head as she wished for Joffrey's presence by her side. But, he wasn't there.
She missed him.
"Finally, introducing Queen Lyra Baratheon, first of her name." Lyra pushed a smile onto her face, stepping into the Throne Room as the courtiers bowed for her. It took a moment, before the music started up once more and chatter filled the room, bouncing off the walls.
Lyra took a moment to admire it all, the large braziers, the musicians, the colours and the people - all of it. This was everything that she had dreamed of when she was younger, and that made her smile.
"Mama." Turning, Lyra found her eldest son rushing towards her. The nine year old was smiling, pushing his crown back onto his head as it slipped. "It's amazing! There's so many people in here, I've never seen it so busy."
"I'm glad you like it, Little Lion." Lyra crouched, smoothing her son's doublet out and pressing a kiss to his cheek. "You're looking very handsome."
"And you're looking beautiful." Mikael grinned, a smile so similar to his father's. Lyra chuckled, before standing and holding her hand out for the boy as she made the rounds, saying hello and welcoming everyone she could.
Mikael grew tired half way through, rushing off to Elia's side so that he could sit with the large wolf. Lyra was not too worried. She could see them sitting by her throne.
"Well, this is a wonderful birthday celebration for you, My Love." At the nickname, Lyra turned, beaming at the sight of her husband. Joffrey was looking around with a half-smile on his face, before he turned his gaze back onto his wife's. "Happy Birthday."
"Thank you." Joffrey leant down to press the briefest of kisses to Lyra's lips, smiling at her. "I thought you couldn't make it."
"The meeting cut short. I wasn't going to miss this, not when I know how hard you worked to get everything sorted." Joffrey linked their arms together, squeezing gently as Lyra leant into his side. "Have I mentioned how beautiful you look?"
"Not yet, you haven't."
"Let me remedy that." Joffrey leant closer to her ear. "You look radiant, my queen. Not even the stars could compare to you and they truly try."
"Joff..."
"No words can truly describe how utterly in awe I am of you. You look beautiful every day, but tonight, you outshine even the gods." Joffrey reluctantly pulled away from her, "and I am the incredible lucky fool who asks if he can have your first dance."
He bowed, letting his lips touch her knuckles in the formal way, as Lyra grinned and curtsied.
"You are the only person I ever want to dance with." Joffrey smiled at that, as the dance floor around them cleared so that the king could have the first dance with his queen. "Thank you, for dancing with me."
Lyra knew that Joffrey did not enjoy being put on spectacle in front of hundreds of people. He hated tourneys, court, all of this, but yet he was dancing with her as if no one else watched them.
"If my wife wishes to dance, then I will always dance with her." Joffrey muttered. "Do not worry about what is going through my mind, I wish for you to be happy and I know how much you love dancing and how much you've missed it. I know how much you've missed doing the things you love because of me."
"Joff, you've been injured." Lyra let her hand graze over his shoulder and the left side of his body which had all been horrifically injured when the clock tower had nearly crushed him. It was due to one singular Kings Guard, who had thrown Joffrey out of harms way that the man was still alive today. It had been at the cost of a broken leg that had taken years to heal properly, leaving Joffrey limping for a good while. It was only recently that he had been able to get back into doing what he enjoyed; riding, sword fighting and hunting. "Do not blame yourself for that. I am just so thankful that you are here, because if you were not, then I do not know what I would do. I can not imagine living without you."
"It takes more than a clock tower to kill me." Joffrey pulled her closer, twirling her around once more as she clung to him. "I could not leave you. Ever. Remember, the only way we will not be together is if you leave me."
"I did promise to only stay for the food."
"That is why I never let their be food at the event. It would give you a chance to run away." Joffrey joked as Lyra laughed loudly, more than content to spend the rest of her night in her husband's arms.
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The next morning, Lyra slept well into the morning, curled in her husband's arms. She enjoyed mornings like this, where she could sleepily press kisses to his lips, curl into his hug and enjoy the rare few moments of peace that she got with her family.
"You are so warm. Don't get up." Lyra pulled Joffrey closer as he shuffled around in their bed.
"Lyra, it is nearly noon. We do have work."
"It can wait."
"You know it can't." Joffrey pushed her hair back from her head, chuckling at the half-hearted glare that she was sending his way. "I love you, but if I let you sleep we would not be moving for days."
"What is so bad about that?"
"Our children would miss us." There was a scrabbling in the room outside, as Lyra chuckled and shook her head.
"You summoned them."
"I did." Joffrey laughed, standing from the bed to open the door to their chambers. "Children."
"Da!" Lyra turned onto her front, smiling as she watched Joffrey scoop Margaery and Lukys into his arms, pressing kisses across their faces as they giggled and cheered. Tommas had slipped past the trio, struggling to climb onto his parents bed so that he could throw himself into his mother's arms, sucking on his thumb.
Lyra cooed gently, before holding her other arm out for Mikael to join. He was older now, but still adored being able to cling to his mother. Both boys tightened their grip on her, before Joffrey slumped down beside them with the other two.
"What are you all doing awake?" Lyra questioned, reaching up to run a hand through her daughter's hair.
"Elia woke us." Margaery lisped as the large wolf came padding in, clambering onto the bed and slumping across their feet with a huff. "She wanted cuddles."
"I can see that." Joffrey gave the wolf a gentle prod as Elia ignored her. Joffrey turned to his wife with a knowing look.
"Elia and I are not the same. We do not share a brain."
"I beg to differ." Joffrey pressed a kiss to his wife's head, before letting go of Margaery and Lukys and grabbing onto the large direwolf. Elia protested for a moment, growling before finally allowing Joffrey to pull her up to lay in between them. Lyra grinned, letting her children run back into their father's arms as she cuddled Elia closer.
"My good girl." Elia huffed in agreement, the pair watching as Joffrey spoke to the four children, his tone soft as they laughed and cheered. As Joffrey sat upright, Lyra caught a glimpse of the scars covering his shoulder and back.
She did not want to think of what would have happened if Joffrey was two metres to his left, thankful that the gods had allowed her husband to live and see his family grow. She could not imagine her life without him.
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Hiya,
So this au is a mix of if Joffrey lived and also an idea I had about Lyra and Joffrey being at a ball. So, if Joffrey was two metres to the left, he would have survived, and he and Lyra are still the absolute sweetest. Also, you got family cuddles at the end because I said so.
Let me know what you think,
Love Li xx