LION'S LEGACY
46. Flea Bottom
That day, in his free time, Robb stood on the shores of Blackwater Bay, a few Queensguard knights standing with him as he worked on the boat he had been making for some months now out of boredom. Usually, Olyvar assisted him, but he was too busy saying goodbye to all of his siblings and friends at court in preparation to leave.
Annalys soon walked over, accompanied by Edric and Edmyn. "You're at it again, aren't you?" She suddenly spoke up, causing Robb to stop what he was doing to turn to look at his wife, who was making her way over to him.
"Yes, I am, my love. And I will continue to be at it until it's finished," Robb responded, making his way over to Annalys with a smile on his face.
"Which one of the children is it for exactly? You've been working on it for months," Annalys found herself asking and before she could add any more to her comment, Robb cupped her face in his hands and silenced her concerns with a kiss.
He pulled away from Annalys, who was on the verge of asking again. However, she interrupted by Robb once more, who was clearly doing it on purpose. "Shall we go to bed?" He found himself asking Annalys, both to change the subject and to spend some time with her alone.
"We have more important things to do than build boats and make love, my love!" Annalys exclaimed in a joking tone, yet it still sounded as though she was a bit annoyed.
"We?" Robb questioned, playfully rolling his eyes as he made his way back over to the boat, "You haven't helped in the slightest, Annalys," He paused, jokingly throwing a towel at her, "And since when did I become the carefree one in this marriage?"
Annalys gave Robb an annoyed look while her husband smiled at her in amusement. "You're quite uptight and worrisome lately," He commented, earning an eye roll from his wife, "I thought that was my job."
"It is both of our jobs to make sure our daughter's wedding is perfect, Robb," Annalys complained, making her way over to him.
"What still needs to be done, then?" Robb found himself asking Annalys, who was unable to answer, "Exactly. You're worrying about nothing, Annalys. Torra and Aden will be happily married in three days time and all will be right in the world."
"There's a reason we always marry in secret, Robb," Annalys spoke up and Robb turned to his wife to see the uneasy look on her face, "You and I don't have good luck with weddings, remember?"
In truth, Annalys had a point. The Red Wedding and the Purple Wedding were perfect examples of that.
"It's different now," Robb argued in a calm tone, moving back over to Annalys as he gave her an assuring look, "Houses Lannisters and Stark are the saviors of Westeros. The people love us. No one would dare ruin the peace we have given the kingdoms when we've done nothing wrong, especially not at a wedding."
"I still have a bad feeling about the people of the Reach--" Annalys began to complain, but Robb was quick to argue.
"It's been more than two years since Lyanna killed Lord Redwyne in that trial by combat. If the Reach was planning vengeance, they would have done it by now, my love," Robb reminded Annalys and despite still feeling uneasy, she knew he had a point.
"Perhaps you have a point..." Annalys trailed off and Robb began to smile.
"I know I have a point," Robb replied, earning a playful eye roll from his wife.
"You're quite sure of yourself," Annalys playfully responded, smiling up at Robb.
"I am," Robb answered and wasted no time leaning forward to kiss his wife.
The majority of the Queensguard rolled their eyes, looking away from the married couple. Ser Rickard and Ser Edmyn, however, turned to each other with an amused look.
Edric noticed the duo and rolled his eyes in annoyance, knowing all about their bet on how long it would take for Annalys to get pregnant again.
Of course, Edric knew Annalys didn't plan on getting pregnant again, but he didn't tell the duo that, finding it amusing on how Ser Rickard and Ser Edmyn were betting on something that would never actually occur.
______
The next morning, Robb was sitting in the dining room with Joanna, the only one who seemed to be free and able to have breakfast with him. Because of that, he did something he knew would piss off the other children. He ended up having all desserts for breakfast alongside his youngest daughter.
They sat at the dining room table, plates of candied plums, candied almonds, lemon cakes, and honey cakes.
Of course, little Edric was with them as well and he sat on his father's lap as they all ate the different desserts.
"It's so good," Joanna gushed as she tasted the lemon cakes for the first time, "I believe this is going to be my new favorite."
"They're your aunt Sansa's favorite, you know," Robb informed Joanna, smiling at his youngest daughter, "She used to eat these constantly when she and I were children."
"You never talk about her much," Joanna pointed out, giving her father a curiously look, "Where is she?"
"Living in the North," Robb informed Joanna, looking almost saddened, "When your mother became Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, she gave Sansa the Dreadfort for her own. She married some lord I do not know and I haven't much of her since."
"Why?" Joanna asked, a deeply confused look on her face.
"I wish I knew," Robb admitted, beginning to smile softly, "Who would have thought, though. Sansa, who always wanted to be a Southerner is now a Lady of the North while I, a person who was always a Northerner, is now a Lord of the South."
"A King, you mean," Joanna corrected her father, her smile soon fading, "Mother feels uneasy about the wedding. Do you think something will happen? Do you think something will happen to us? Will I be harmed?"
Robb sighed, wasting no time shaking his head as he looked at his youngest daughter. "You, my daughter, are the daughter of the Young Wolf and the Great Lioness. You will marry some highborn lord and you help him rule his castle. You will have some children, live a happy life, and always be kept safe, no matter what. As will your siblings. You will all live happy lives. Nothing will take that away from you. I promise."
Joanna began to smile, nodding her head in understanding.
Just then, Annalys walked into the dining room, smiling at the sight of Robb with their youngest daughter and their youngest son. "Good morning," She greeted the trio, causing each of them to turn to look at her, even little Edric.
She smiled, walking closer to them. She pressed a kiss to Joanna and Edric's forehead as a form of greeting before looking toward Robb, who had baby Edric sitting on his lap.
"Morning, my love," Robb greeted Annalys, who responded with a kiss on the lips.
"I suppose some of it could still be considered fruits," She remarked, referring to the fact that they were eating nothing but sweets for breakfast.
"None of the other children decided to show up for breakfast today. I thought it was necessary to reward the ones who came," Robb explained with a smile on his face, "Our lovely firstborns think it's allowed for them to skip breakfast to bed commoners and get drunk while the others wish to cause trouble wherever they go."
Annalys quietly chuckled, shaking her head at his words. "You should take to Lyanna and Eddard," She encouraged him in a calm tone, "I don't think it's wise for them to be doing such things, especially Eddard. At this rate, he'll have a bastard in due time and I don't condone that."
Robb sighed in defeat, nodding his head in agreement. Annalys wasted no time taking a seat beside them, picking up a candied plum for herself.
She exchanged a look with Robb, both of them smiling in satisfaction.
____
That morning, Lyanna was sitting in her chambers, groaning as she sat at her table, clutching her head. The curtains helped her in blocking the sunlight from shining in, but it still didn't help with the headache she woke up with after drinking so much the night before.
She had been so saddened by Olyvar's departure, as was Eddard's. They ended up drinking until they fell asleep, wanting to make themselves forget that there was a chance they'd never see their brother again.
While Eddard was able to go on with his day that morning, as if he didn't drink as much as he did the night before, Lyanna was forced to endure a horrendous hangover.
Eddard was like his mother in that aspect, able to drink so much without having to deal with the consequences the morning after.
Just then, a glass was placed in front of her. She looked up and frowned, only to find it was her father standing before her.
She turned to glance back at the glass, which seemed to be filled with different unknown ingredients. "Take this," He encouraged her in a calm tone, "It will help with what you're feeling after drinking so much last night."
"I-I don't need it," Lyanna quickly argued, not wanting to admit to her father about being drunk the night before.
"It wasn't a request, Lyanna," Robb suddenly replied in a stern tone, much to Lyanna's dismay, "Qyburn made it. He used to make them for your mother. If you're going to spend the day with your siblings outside these walls, you must take this."
Lyanna sighed in frustration, finally deciding to agree. "If I take this concoction, will you promise to stop worrying?"
"I'm your father, Lyanna, I'll always worry," Robb reminded Lyanna, who knew he had a point there.
Lyanna lifted up the glass, immediately drinking the entire contents of it, despite it tasting like shit. She then placed it back down on the table and stood up, smiling sarcastically at her father. "There? Happy?" She questioned, her tone becoming playful, "Or were you planning on hovering over me until the end of time, Father?"
"Well, the end of time is a bit extreme..." Robb jokingly trailed off, playfully rolling his eyes.
Lyanna chuckled softly, shaking her head. She placed a hand on her father's shoulder, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. "Thank you," She replied, just before walking out of the room.
____
Lyanna was in the slums of King's Landing, spending time alone. She and her siblings enjoyed spending time in King's Landing, but outside the Red Keep. It allowed them to get to know the people of the city and most of the time, the people didn't even know they were standing before royalty.
Lyanna liked it the most out of her siblings. She was able to reside amongst the smallfolk without anyone suspecting she was the heir to the Iron Throne. She was good at adapting to any situation.
A boy walked up to her, but Lyanna didn't look up from the book she was reading. "Are you new to the city?" He asked and Lyanna wanted to laugh at the fact that it was the boy's attempt of flirting.
"No, I've lived in Flea Bottom my entire life," Lyanna in a calm tone, giving him a small, yet fake smile.
"I've seen you around lately, you know," He continued on and Lyanna couldn't help but feel bad that the boy would never have a chance with her.
Not because he was lowborn, but because he was a boy.
"You're always alone, reading a book or performing some other activity on your own," He continued, earning a small sigh from Lyanna, "I didn't think anyone enjoyed being alone."
"I do," Lyanna confessed in a calm tone, "It's the only time I can have some peace and quiet with seven siblings."
"What is your name?" The boy asked instantly and for some reason, Lyanna immediately knew something wasn't right.
Why did he immediately ask for her name while they were still talking about siblings?
"Jeyne," She answered in a calm tone and for a split second, she noticed the boy frown before forcing himself to maintain his calm expression.
"Lyanna!" Joanna called out, causing Lyanna to sigh in frustration since her sister had blown her cover.
She turned, watching as Joanna ran toward her as fast as she could. "You better come quick," She pleaded, causing Lyanna to turn to give the unknown boy a quick look before following after Joanna as she ran off.
The boy watched Lyanna and Joanna intently as they ran off, sighing in defeat.
The two girls ran all the way toward a crowd that had formed in the middle of one of the streets of King's Landing. They pushed through the crowd, looking ahead to see Rickard and Torrhen fighting five boys from Flea Bottom. The boys were older than the princes, most likely Olyvar, Eddard, and Lyanna's age. Presumably, they did not know the two boys they were beating up were princes, however.
No one in their right mind would dare lay a hand on a prince, or even Olyvar for that matter, fearing the wrath of the Great Lioness.
Lyanna looked ahead, giving Torrhen a disapproving look as they locked eyes briefly before the Stark boy was pulled to the ground by three of the other boys.
"Those fucking idiots," Lyanna muttered under her breath before turning to Joanna with a questioning look, "What did they do this time?"
Joanna shrugged, not knowing the answer. "It all happened so fast," She confessed in a calm tone, "One moment, I was going to buy an apple from a nearby stand and the next, I turn and see Torrhen and Rickard fighting these boys."
Lyanna sighed in frustration, on the verge of intervening when she saw Eddard and Olyvar pushing through the crowds. Eddard was the first to lunge forward, tackling one of the boys to the ground.
Olyvar stepped forward, but didn't take part at first. However, when one of the boys stepped forward, on the verge of punching him, Olyvar ducked to avoid the punch before kicking the boy in the stomach, which sent him straight to the ground.
Lyanna watched the scene for a moment, witnessing as her brothers got their asses handed to them. It wasn't their fault. At first, there had been only five boys fighting Torrhen and Rickard. Now that Eddard and Olyvar jumped in, however, at five more boys decided to take part in the fight as well.
Her brothers put up a pretty good fight until four boys targetted Olyvar only. Not seeing that as a fair fight, Lyanna sighed in frustration before walking forward. She walked toward two of the boys, gripping onto their hair. They winced and tried to swing at her, only to end up with their heads smashed together.
They groaned, falling to the ground. Two more of the boys fighting her brothers stepped toward her, oblivious to the fact that she was their future queen. They insulted her numerous times, hoping that it would distract her, but it didn't.
She punched one of them in the face and as another came toward her, she ducked, which led to him accidentally punching the boy next to him. She ended up knocking out one of them, but before she could continue on, the sounds of horses caused the crowds that had formed around them to disperse and run off.
Lyanna groaned, turning her head to see Edric and Edmyn approaching them, wearing their Queensguard helmets, which seemed to have everyone running off. The boys that had been fighting the princess and the princes either ran off or laid unconscious on the ground, earning an eye roll from Lyanna.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I'll be updating twice today cuz why not 😂🤷🏻♀️