LION'S LEGACY
65. Trigger
Since they couldn't be contained at the war camp any longer, Annalys and Robb were brought to a holdfast where one hundred guards accompanied them.
Harrenhall was under siege, which meant they could no longer stay there. Annalys was standing in the room she had been confined to with Robb. Robb was sitting on a chair in silence, drops of blood covering his face with a bruise under his eye.
He had put up quite the fight against the men in the war camp, revealing him to be just as much of a danger to others as Annalys was, if not more now.
Annalys was impressed, to say the least, but she wouldn't dare admit that.
She made her way over to Robb, a look of boredom on her face. She sat next to him, trying to contain her sadness as she began to think of Lyanna and the rest of her children.
Noticing the heartbroken expression his wife wore, Robb lifted his hand and stroked her face affectionately.
She stared up at him, an uneasy look on her face. He, too, looked uneasy as he leaned forward to kiss her. However, before his lips could touch hers, she moved away, tears beginning to fill her eyes.
He sighed but understood her reaction. He couldn't blame her after all that she had gone through, far more than he had, that was for sure.
"Margaery is a prideful woman, she'll keep us alive once we're brought to King's Landing," Robb found himself speaking up, deciding to disregard what he just happened, "Lord Leyton is only allowing us to be brought there because he believes Margaery will kill us, but she won't. She'll want to gloat on the fact that you've been captured. Lord Hightower already has what he wants. He has Lyanna and the crowns. He doesn't need us anymore."
"You must marry her, Robb," Annalys pleaded as she stood up, tears in her eyes.
Appalled, Robb scoffed and rose from her seat. "Are you mad!" He asked her disbelief, a hint of anger in her eyes, "I'd rather die than marry that bitch. She took everything from us. She may want to have me, but she will never succeed. I am yours as you are mine. Always and forever. Don't you remember that vow?"
"What's more important, Robb?" Annalys asked Robb softly, "Your love for me or the survival of our children?"
Robb remained silent, a saddened look on their face since they knew what both of their answers would be. Their children. It was the right answer, too.
"Our baby girl will be in the hands of the enemy. You must protect her. To do so you must marry Margaery. I may not die immediately after arriving at the capital, but I won't survive for long after that," She explained, trying her hardest not to cry, "You can survive. You may marry Margaery and protect our daughter from being corrupted by the enemy."
"No, no," Robb argued, shaking his head in disapproval, "I won't, Annalys."
"Please," Annalys cried out, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks, "I'm begging you. I will die, but it doesn't mean you have to die alongside me."
"I'm not some broodmare to be sold by you, Annalys!" Robb complained loudly, "She wants to fuck me to have children who are Starks. There's no way I will bed her."
Annalys remained silent, the thought of Robb bedding Margaery paining her, despite it clearly having to happening if he were to marry her.
Robb began to move toward Annalys, satisfied with her reaction. It was all he needed to convince her that he shouldn't marry Margaery and make her drop the idea altogether once and for all.
"Think about it, Annalys. Do you really want to die knowing I'll be fucking Margaery and giving her children?" He purposely taunted her.
"Stop, Robb. It must be done. I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of changing my mind," She complained, trying her hardest to ignore his comments, "Don't make this harder than it already is."
Robb knew what he was doing. Annalys wanted to give up so badly, not thinking of the consequences of her death would be. She was so willing to have Robb cast her aside to marry Margaery in order to survive, but did she realize what it would mean? What a marriage consisted of?
"Do you really want to die knowing that, Annalys?" Robb continued on as he stopped in front of Annalys, "Do you want to die with the image of me fucking Margaery in our old chambers, in our old bed stuck in your mind?" He asked, leaning toward Annalys, "The same bed we used to make love in."
"Stop," Annalys demanded, tears beginning to form in her eyes, "You must."
"Or perhaps it would happen on that table near the balcony that has such a great view of Blackwater Bay and the sky," Robb went on, much to Annalys' frustration, "You and I both know of all the deeds that happened on that table. You, bent over the table, the skirt of your pretty little southern dresses pulled up to your waist, me standing behind you, my hands roaming your front and stopping at your breasts, your moans so loud that the Red Cloaks can hear us down the hall..." He trailed off, his tone becoming both taunting and mocking in order to piss Annalys off, "Perhaps Margaery will do the same. Does that satisfy you, my love? To know that after you die, I will be bedding your worst enemy, giving her my seed with many wolf pups being born just nine moons later?"
"Robb, I said, stop—Ah!" Before Annalys could finish shouting at Robb, she cried out in pain, clutching her belly.
She slowly looked up at Robb, shaking her head frantically as she felt water drip down her thigh. "No, no, no," She pleaded, beginning to sob.
Robb stared at Annalys in horror, realizing what he had done. "No," He muttered softly, guilt consuming his expression.
"The baby..." She trailed off, genuine fear in her eyes, "She's coming."
Robb and Annalys exchanged a fearful and worried look with each other, knowing what was yet to occur. The anger she felt toward Robb due to his taunting had diminished, but Robb's guilt had not.
This was his fault. He triggered it. He stressed her out and now they had less time before they were due to travel to King's Landing.
Annalys' pregnancy had been the only thing stopping the men from escorting them both to the capital. They didn't want to risk her going into labor on the way there.
Annalys tried to contain her cries in order to not give herself away to the guards. She couldn't stop the loud yell that escaped her lips, however, when she became closer and closer to giving birth.
Before they could react, the doors opened and three men entered, knowing what was happening. They began to move toward Annalys and Robb quickly rushed forward.
"No!" Robb shouted in protest, rushing at the men before punching one in the face and the other in the stomach.
However, as he began to fight them off, three more entered and moved toward Annalys.
"No, no, please," She pleaded, shaking her eyes as she began to cry, "Don't do this. Don't take my baby."
She slowly began to back up, but due to being unable to defend herself in such a state, they grabbed onto her and began to drag her out of the room, Robb trying his hardest to fight all the men that entered the room to stop him.
_____
At Casterly Rock, Lyanna sat in her room with Theon, who had been forced by the girl to keep her company. "Why do you hate my father, Greyjoy?" She suddenly asked and Theon turned to her with a look of disbelief.
"I've never hated him," He confessed softly, shaking his head in disagreement.
Hearing Theon's words, Lyanna frowned in confusion. "Then why did you betray him?"
"Your grandfather raised me, he was like a father to me, but he wasn't my father by blood. I was Ned Stark's hostage after the Greyjoy Rebellion, but I was kindly called a ward. Your father sent me to Pyke to ask for an alliance with my father Balon Greyjoy. My whole life, I wanted to be loved and accepted by my family. When I returned to Pyke, I thought they'd allow me in with open arms, but they didn't. They were clearly not like the Starks and Balon Greyjoy was not Ned Stark. I wanted a family and I thought taking Winterfell would prove to my father that I was still a Greyjoy when they called me a Stark. I didn't take Winterfell to betray your father, I did it to impress my father to prove to him that I was still a Greyjoy."
"My mother was right, then," Lyanna suddenly revealed, causing Theon to turn to her with a confused look.
"What?" He found himself asking, not knowing what she meant.
"My mother told my father the same when he demanded to keep you here at Casterly Rock instead of freeing you like she wanted him to," She explained and Theon was taken aback by the revelation.
He thought Annalys hated him.
"Your father always knew what was right. Even when he, Jon, and I were all young and stupid, he always knew. Every step he took, it was always the right step," Theon explained, much to Lyanna's amusement.
"I don't think that's true," Lyanna found herself complaining, "His first one was sending you to Pyke."
Ashamed, Theon looked down at the ground.
Lyanna, on the other hand, began to smile. "I'm fucking with you, Theon," She spoke up, causing Theon to practically sigh in relief since he thought Lyanna was yearning to pick a fight.
"From what I've heard, you always do what is right," Theon remarked and Lyanna was quick to prove him from.
"No. It may seem that way from the outside, but I promise you, it's not true. I've done plenty of things that I regret," She explained and Theon immediately felt guilty.
"Not compared to me, you haven't." He admitted softly.
"You're right. Not compared to you," She ageed with Theon, who slowly nodded in understanding.
"I've always wanted to do the right thing, you know. Be the right kind of person. But I never knew what that truly meant. It always seemed like there was always an impossible choice to make." He confessed to Lyanna, which was something he had never told any one else.
"From what I've learned, Ned Stark, my grandfather, was more of a father to you than your own," She pointed out and Theon nodded in agreement.
"He was."
"Yet you betrayed him. Betrayed my grandfather's memory," Lyanna continued on and Theon hadn't the slightest clue what she was doing.
One moment, she was being nice, the next it seemed as though she was trying to pick a fight with him.
"I did."
Lyanna sighed in defeat, noticing how ashamed Theon looked, which wasn't her intention. "But I bet you've never lost him, though. He's apart of you, just like he's apart of my father, and Uncle Jon, and Aunt Sansa, and the rest of them." She explained, causing Theon to shake his head.
"But the things I've done--"
"It's not my place to forgive you for all of it, Theon. That was my father's job, but what I can forgive, I do. You don't need to choose, Theon. You're a Greyjoy and you're a Stark. Just like my mother is a Stark and a Lannister. As am I." She explained as she began to smile and soon enough, Theon began to do the same.
He watched, however, as Lyanna uneasily looked toward the window. "It's almost dark. You must go. He'll be coming," She demanded and Theon opened his mouth to argue, "Go. I've been dealing with it for months and have survived. Tonight I will do the same."
Theon continued to stare at Lyanna, hesitant to leave.
"Please," Lyanna pleaded in a whisper, "You're the only true friend I have around here. The only family. I refuse to lose you, Theon. You must leave."
Theon's eyes widened slightly at Lyanna's words. Did she just call him family?
A saddened look on his face, Theon hesitantly nodded and walked toward the door, his heart practically breaking at the thought of what Arthur would do to Lyanna that night.
What he didn't understand was how all that Arthur was doing seemed to affect him more than it did Lyanna.
He prayed for the day he'd have an opportunity to save her. Lyanna wasn't just Robb's daughter to him, he was a girl he began to care for like family after all these months of having no one but her to speak to.
He had been utterly alone for years, until Lyanna came. He cared for her and not in a romantic way, of course. He felt protective over her, but he just wondered, how was someone like him supposed to protect Lyanna, the girl that everyone in Westeros wanted to get their hands on?
He knew he'd have to figure it out soon, before Arthur caught on to Lyanna's trick with the moon tea that stopped her from falling pregnant with his child.
Even if he didn't catch on, something in him would make him snap due to the fact that he had been bedding her constantly for months now, yet she hadn't fallen pregnant. He'll think she was barren, which would have her end up with a fate worse than if she were to fall pregnant and have his child.
_____
In Vaes Dothrak, Joanna laid on the bed of furs in her tent with Najo. They were both nude and Najo had his arm wrapped around his wife as she went on with trying to convince him that they should take Westeros, to have their son sitting on the Iron Throne.
"The Stallion Who Mounts The World has no need for iron chairs, my love," Najo complained, much to Joanna's frustration since she knew the conversation with her stubborn husband was getting nowhere.
She soon realized that he was just as thick-headed as she was, which was a problem when she attempted to get her way.
"The prophecy states that the stallion rides to the end of the world," She argued in a calm tone, "There are thousands of ships in the Free Cities. Wooden horses that fly across the sea."
"Let's speak no more of wooden horses and iron chairs," He complained, earning an annoyed look from his wife while he smiled in amusement
"It's not a chair, my love. It's a..." She trailed off, not knowing the word in Dothraki, which led to her speaking in the common tongue, "Throne."
"Throne," He repeated after the girl and Joanna nodded in agreement.
"Yes, a throne. It's a iron chair for a Khal to sit on..." She trailed off, beginning to smile, "Or like my mother, a Khaleesi."
Najo smiled softly at how happy Joanna seemed to be when speaking about the iron throne. However, he turned to look at her and leaned forward, kissing her quickly before sitting up. "A Khal does not need a chair to sit upon, only a horse."
"Don't you want more lands, more people to rule over?" Joanna asked, causing Najo to turn to face her, "Across the Narrow Sea, there is exactly that."
Najo remained silent for a long moment, deciding that for once, he was going speaking in the common tongue. "Father died across Narrow Sea. Many men of khalasar died. I, Khal Najo, not let more Dothraki men die in cursed lands," He explained and Joanna got the gist of what he was saying.
His father died fighting for Daenerys in Westeros. All of the current khalasar's fathers and uncles died. Najo refused to let the rest of them die off as well.
She understood that, but it didn't mean she wasn't disappointed that she wouldn't be able to return home again.
If her husband were to die here, she'd be forced to join the Dosh Khaleen, which was a group of women who were the widows of slain khals.
Noticing the saddened look on her face, Najo stepped forward. He stopped in front of Joanna, crouching down next to her. He cupped her face in his hands before kissing her passionately. She immediately kissed back and just as she thought they were going back to bed as she hoped for them to, he pulled away and stood back up.
She sighed in defeat, watching as the tent to rule like he always did.
His stubbornness was the only thing she didn't enjoy about her new husband. She and her siblings had been born with the same stubbornness their mother had, which was far worse than their father's.
Now that she was married to someone as stubborn as her, Joanna realized why her mother and father clashed heads about so many damn things. It was difficult to be married to someone as stubborn as you were.
_____
At the Stark encampment, it was nighttime and Allyria sat alone, drinking a small cup of wine. She heard footsteps nearby, causing her to frown and turn her head.
She sighed in annoyance, however, when she saw it was Olyvar. "If Eddard sent you, you can tell him to kindly fuck off."
Olyvar shook his head. He began to chuckle, mockingly lifting his hands in surrender as he took a seat next to her.
"I am here by my own accord, might I tell you," He complained, causing Allyria to playfully roll her eyes, "I must ask, though. Why did you tell my brother that you didn't love him when you actually do?"
"I don't love him," Allyria argued and Olyvar scoffed loudly.
"You're shitty liar," Olyvar retorted and Allyria began to glare at him due to him seeing right through her.
"And you're an ass," Allyria complained, earning a smirk from Olyvar.
"Well, I am my father's son," He playfully remarked, much to Allyria's annoyance.
"More like your mother's son," She muttered under her breath, knowing that even if Olyvar wasn't Annalys' by blood, she raised him. Just like she did with Torra.
"How would you know what my mother was like? Eddard said you never met her," Olyvar found himself asking, giving Allyria a taunting look, "Unless you met her after you met Eddard."
Allyria was about to lie to Olyvar, only to have her eyes widen in alarm. She gasped, staring at the boy in disbelief. "You know," She softly whispered as she stood up from her seat and backed away from Olyvar, "How in the seven hells do you know!"
Olyvar sighed, rising from his seat. "I had a lot of time to think since I left Castle Black. The first thing that gave it away was the fact that even though there was stories about how each of my siblings died, all of them were actually alive. Who's to say the same couldn't be said about my mother and father? The Reachmen are so intent on raiding the Riverlands instead of the Westerlands and the North. They continue to guard Harrenhal. It's as though they're trying to protect something. Or someone."
Olyvar began to move toward Allyria, who felt uneasy. "Now, my brother told me about how the Reachmen were trying to get to you. He didn't seem to wonder why they wanted you in the first place, but I think I know. You saw something they didn't want you to see. Something that could risk everything. I know you love my brother, yet you told him you didn't. You've been avoiding him for weeks, trying to speak to him the least you can since arriving at Winterfell with him. I dare say you're keeping something from him and I believe it's the fact that my mother is alive. Am I correct?"
Allyria's eyes widened in disbelief. He pieced it all together. Everything.
Allyria was right. Olyvar was his mother's son, even if in truth, Annalys was not his mother my blood. Each child had a part of Annalys in them and this was what Olyvar had inherited.
Her cleverness, her intelligent ways of piecing everything together in ways no one else could. The ability to be ten steps ahead of everyone and predict everything before it even happened.
He didn't come to speak to Allyria for Eddard, he did it to get the truth and that was exactly what he got.
"She's alive," Allyria confirmed, but of course, Olyvar wasn't shocked.
"What did you see? Why did they let you go in the first place?" Olyvar asked in a cold tone, which was a tone Allyria had never heard out of the lively boy who seemed to be Eddard's wingman wherever he went after their reunion.
"They were going to rape me. The Queen saved me, she traded me for her after she heard that Eddard was alive. They cut off her hand in retaliation," She explained, beginning to cry while Olyvar's eyes filled with tears as well, "I should have told Eddard, but she made me promise. She made me promise not to tell him because she knew he'd try to be the hero."
"W-Why are they keeping her alive?" Olyvar found himself asking, tears beginning to spill down his cheeks as he became horrified by everything he was being told.
"She's pregnant," She managed to get out, beginning to cry as well, "I heard one of the men say it. They're keeping her alive in order for her to have the baby. They want the baby if it's a girl to be betrothed to Margaery's son," She paused, giving Olyvar a guilty look, "I should have told Eddard, I know. But she made me promise and I knew she was right. Eddard would try to be the hero and he'd get himself killed. You were right. I love Eddard and I knew couldn't let him get killed because of that. I'm sorry, I--"
Before she could finish, Olyvar hugged her, both of them beginning to cry for two different reasons. Allyria was consumed with guilt and feared she'd lose the man she grew to love. Olyvar, on the other hand, was absolutely devasted at the revelation that his mother was alive and going through hell while all her children believed her to be dead.
Olyvar was the first child to learn the truth and that was the best thing that could have happened.
He wasn't impulsive and rash like the others. He was calculating and didn't let his anger consume him.
"I won't tell him," Olyvar managed to get out, forcing him to speak in a calm tone, "My mother didn't want him to know and she was right. If we go after her, we'll get ourselves killed. We're still be outnumbered. If we take the Rock and get Lyanna, we'll have the rightful heir and the Lannister armies on our side. We will be able to beat them and save my mother."
Allyria remained silent, slowly nodding her head in agreement. He was right, but it surprised her that he was willing to keep the secret.
Olyvar began to wonder, however, if his mother was alive, surely his father was as well, right?
From a distance, Eddard was making his way through the Stark encampment. He suddenly stopped, however, when his eyes locked on Allyria and Olyvar. They were hugging each other and despite that considered nothing big, it concerned him.
After all, what reason would there be for Olyvar hugging the girl that broke his brother's heart and rejected him?
Unless...
Eddard found himself being consumed with fury, clearly getting the wrong idea. He began to think that Allyria had rejected him because she was with Olyvar, despite that being far from the truth.
And due to that assumption, it would cause more problems in the future than the marriage between Eddard and Allyria could have.
Was it worth it, though?
For Olyvar and Allyria to keep such a secret from Eddard and let him believe something far from the truth instead?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
If it wasn't obvious what Robb was doing, he was trying to trigger Annalys' jealousy of Margaery in order to finally convince her to give up this idea of Robb marrying her once and for all. (He knows that Annalys is far too stubborn to be convinced in doing so unless it's her own idea to do so)
Joanna is trying to convince her husband to cross the Narrow Sea and OMG Olyvar found out about Annalys and Robb being alive!!!
He's the first child to know now.