After a month of travel, we finally arrive in King's Landing. This city has more than a million inhabitants, each poorer than the previous one, apart from the nobles who reside in the Red Keep, the royal fortress.
We enter the courtyard of the castle, a beautiful place that has nothing to do with the rest of the city. It's like we're in two totally different places, which never met.
I get off my horse and allow Arrow to get off the cariole. She could not make the trip ashore; she would have sown panic in the streets. It must be good for her to find land.
A man whose name I do not know comes to my father to take him to his very first Small Council. This is where all decisions are made, from repairing a road to preparing for war. These five men have the whole Kingdom in their hands.
"We're gonna like it here" I'll tell my sister once our dad's gone.
"The streets stink" rant Sansa as if it would affect me personally.
"You don't live on the street, as far as I know. Stop sulking, the castle is huge, don't you want to explore it?"
"He killed Lady."
I help Arya down, pretending not to hear our sister. These events happened weeks ago and, while I fully understand his anger, Ned has nothing to do with it. He just gave Lady an honorable death. The only person to blame is Joffrey but his blond hair and blue eyes made Sansa lose all sense of discernment.
"It's unfair" she adds. "They could have taken Arrow!"
"You're going too far! Move on, Sansa. You're not a child anymore."
In fact, she is. But we are no longer at home. Sansa's whims will no longer be ignored. She will be mocked if she does not behave like the lady she swears to be.
"Help them settle into their apartments." I say to Septa Mordane and Jory. "I will pay a short visit to the Concil."
Jory, the voice of reason, tries to stop me but I pretend not to hear and enter the castle. Everything here is bigger, more beautiful. Every brick has a story.
When I arrive in front of the two large doors of the throne room, the guards posted in front of them open them without a sound. I'm surprised they're not trying to keep me out. Perhaps they recognized the House Stark crest or their commanding officer described me line by line.
In the middle of the room, looking opposite, stands Jaime Lannister in his shining armor of the Royal Guard. Jaime became a member when he was very young thanks to his father, Tywin, at the time Hand of Aerys Targaryen. During the sacking of King's Landing, the Mad King ordered the destruction of the city by fire. Jaime, present at the events, decided to do what everyone would have liked to do at the time, he planted his blade in the back of King Aerys.
While the early years of his reign had been peaceful, Aerys Targaryen had quickly become psychotic, paranoid. He burned alive anyone who refused to follow his rules. My grandfather and uncle died in this room.
Despite the service rendered to the whole kingdom, Jaime was called «regicide», reminding everyone that he had betrayed his oath.
"Ser Jaime."
The knight turns to me with a smile on his face. He, unlike us, hardly stopped on his way to the capital. He arrived several days ago.
"Lady Diana" he greets me. "Welcome home."
"Is that how you see this place? A "home"?"
"My old home was not much more welcoming."
I have never seen Casterly Rock, but it was described to me as imposing, or even terrifying. Built on the mountain, it is home to one of the largest gold mines in the country, which partly explains the immense wealth of the Lannisters.
"Will I like it here?" I ask.
"I'm afraid not."
"And you? Do you?"
"I spend my days at the door of a wine-drunk king with low-life whores."
"I take that as a yes!"
The Iron Throne stands before me. Forged with the swords of the enemies of Aegon the Conqueror, a true relic of the Targaryen dynasty, the most coveted seat of all the Seven Kingdoms. And yet, it remains a simple chair.
"So that's it..."
Jaime, behind me, laughs. I don't know if he's mocking me or anyone who has given and will give their lives to sit on this.
"You wanted to spy on the Small Concil, didn't you?"
I turn to him, a little mischievous smile on my lips.
"And I still want it. If I may..."
"My lady." he says, introducing me to the door in an exaggerated bow.
After a gentle head movement, I head for the doors leading to the Council Chamber. The two guards open them, as before, without trying to stop me. I have no problem with that, on the contrary, I know now that I can go wherever I want.
The five men turn to me, surprised to see a woman appears. One of them catches my eye. He is not much taller than me, his dark hair is dotted with silver threads, he has a mustache and a goatee well cut.
If I remember Tyrion's stories correctly, this is Petyr Baelish, also known as Littlefinger. He is one of the most important men in this city. Not only because he is the Master of Coin but because the biggest brothel in the capital belongs to him.
"Diana?" wonders, Ned. "What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to meet the noble lords of the Council, Father."
By smiling much more than usual, I make sure to be pleasant to them and, like that, to be able to stay at least today.
"Gentlemen" said my father. "This is my eldest daughter, Lady Diana Stark."
The first man to rise to greet me is Varys. He is the Master of Whisperers, he knows everything about everyone. He looks somewhat like a monk with his bald skull and long tunic.
"I am honored to meet you, Lady Diana."
"Lord Varys."
"We have learned about the troubles you encountered on the Royal Road, and we all pray that the prince Joffrey will fully recover."
"What a pity you didn't pray for the butcher's son."
I then reach out to Renly, but he has a little bit of a pull back. He's not the first man I meet to have any— concerns with the ladies. So, I just bow and smile.
"You are my future uncle, Lord Renly."
He relaxes and smiles at me. Renly is King Robert's youngest brother, and therefore Joffrey's uncle.
When my skin meets Littlefinger's, my whole body is covered with a chill and a feeling of intense heat.
"My lady" he just says before sitting down.
"I guess you must be thrilled" Varys says behind me.
"Thrilled?" I repeat without understanding.
"To marry the prince Joffrey."
"Thrilled is not the first word that comes to mind."
♐︎
During that meeting, I learned a lot of very interesting things.
First, Robert almost never takes part in decisions concerning the minor affairs of the kingdom. But, as for major decisions requiring great expense, he would tend not to listen to advice and would make rash decisions.
Second, because of these decisions, the crown has six million debts. Half was lent by the Lannisters and, as the saying goes, "a Lannister always pays his debts". The other part of the money was borrowed from the Iron Bank in Braavos. Baelish justified himself by saying that his job was to find money. He had better start creating it.
♐︎
It has been a week since we arrived in King's Landing, and I am beginning to believe that I would never get used to life here. My father is constantly busy with state affairs, condemning me to spend time with Joffrey. Every day that passes, the prince presents himself to me with a new personality, proof that he is not there for pleasure.
As I entered the courtyard of the castle, a man from the ford approached me, a parchment in hand. This one is decorated with a mockingbird, emblem of the house Baelish.
The guard leads me through the streets of the capital to a large house that I recognize as the famous Brothel of Baelish which Tyrion praised me. I walk up the stairs to Littlefinger's office alone. This has nothing to do with Winterfell's. Absolutely everything here looks more expensive.
"Mother?!"
My mother, the woman who refused to look at me in the eyes one last time, the woman who has not left Bran's bedside in a month, stands in the middle of the room with Littlefinger, Varys and Ser Rodrick.
"How dare you bring my daughter here, in this... this place?" cried my mother to Baelish without even turning her eyes to me.
"Mother" I repeat. "Mother, look at me!"
But Catelyn stays turned. I understand now that I will never see my mother again. I lost her almost two months ago, when Brandon fell from that tower.
"What are you doing here?" I take it again. "Ser Rodrick?"
"Your mother and I travelled to warn your father of danger, my lady."
"What danger are you talking about?"
"Shortly after you left, a man broke into your brother's room and tried to kill him. Lady Catelyn stopped him."
I approach them without trying to talk to my mother. I know the contact has been lost and I will not try to find him. I have too much to lose.
"Is this the weapon?" I ask by pointing at the dagger Varys is holding in his hands.
"Valyrian steel" he replies.
"Far too valuable for a mercenary. Do you know who it belongs to?"
"Unfortunately, I have to say no."
Behind us, Lord Baelish begins to laugh. I do not know yet if I hate this man or if, on the contrary, I adore him. All I know is that I can never trust him, no matter what he does to earn my trust.
"Well, it is a historic day" he says. "Something that you don't know and that I do. There's only one dagger like this in all the Seven Kingdoms. It's mine."
"Yours?!" I exclaim at the same time as my mother.
"At least it was mine until the tournament for Prince Joffrey's birthday. I bet for Jaime Lannister, like any man in his right mind would. When the Flower Knight knocked him down, I lost that dagger."
"Who won it?" asks Catelyn.
"Tyrion Lannister, the gnome."