It had been three days since they had arrived at Harrenhal, and it had been the most relaxed they had been since their wedding night. It was a pleasant change, but it would all change tonight, as the opening feast was to be held in a little under two hours. Arya had spent most of the day in bed, and Jaime had spent his day wandering around their rooms, reading reports from couriers from Casterly Rock on the daily goings on of their home, but spending most of his time waiting on his wife hand and foot.
After they ate lunch the two had taken a nice long bath together, and while Jaime took a nap, Arya called in her ladies to help her get ready for the dinner. Which led to this moment, almost two hours before the feast, with Arya sitting on a chair in front of the vanity while Krystine did her hair, and Jaime sitting on the edge of their bed staring at her.
"What?" Arya asked him, feeling a tad uncomfortable.
"What?" Jaime asked, a smirk growing on his face as he tried to play ignorant. He knew she didn't like it when he stared at her, he just couldn't help it.
"You know what. Why are you staring at me?"
"A man cannot stare at his gorgeous wife? If I had known that rule I wouldn't have gotten married." He felt the smirk on his face grow as her face morphed into a scowl, and he couldn't help but be reminded of a kitten, instead of the lioness she was rumored to be.
"Oh hush Jaime. Would you go pick out my dress? I got stuck between three when I was looking at them earlier." They had been doing this since they discovered that she was pregnant. For some reason, her pregnancy had caused her to get distracted very easily, and made her very unsure of herself whenever she was forced to make a decision. So, Jaime told her that if she narrowed down her choices, whether it was her outfit, her hair, what book she wanted to read, or anything else, he would make the decisions for her. In his mind it was the least he could do, she was growing a human, why couldn't he help her with the simple daily tasks?
"Of course my love." He said without hesitation before rising and proceeding to her wardrobe, that was considerably smaller than the one she had at home, but she and her ladies had made due. After making his choice he turned around and brought it to their bed, which he laid it out on so that it wouldn't wrinkle. After resuming his position on her bed he continued to watch her.
"I'm surprised we haven't seen any of your siblings, I had heard they arrived the day after we did." Jaime said, he had been holding in the question all day, as he didn't want to hurt her feelings, but it confused him, especially after she spoke of how much she loved her siblings. He did notice her shoulders slump a little at his question, and immediately cursed himself for making her upset.
"Yes well, I would assume they are a tad disappointed with me due to whatever Ned reported back to them. He was upset with me when he left, because of how... much my feelings for you had grown, and how unashamed I was to admit them." At this point, Krystine had finished her lady's hair, and feeling an important discussion brewing, she decided it would be best for her to step out for the couple to talk.
"I'll be outside if you need me My Lady." Krystine said softly before pulling away from her lady's hair and walking out the door after receiving a small nod from Arya. Arya was disappointed that her siblings seemed to be upset with her, but Jaime was her husband, why should they be upset that she was able to find love with the person she would spend the rest of her life with?
"Well that is insane, why the hell would they care if you, my wife, have feelings for me, your husband? It is beyond asinine and it make absolutely no sense at all. Do you want me to have words with them love? Because I will, you are mine, and I am yours, and if they have a problem with that well then they can just got rot in the deepest pit of the seven hells." Jaime was furious. He knew that the Lannisters and the Starks had never really gotten on, but they were married for gods sake! Was she supposed to act like a Stark of the North and freeze him out for the rest of her life? What kind of life would that be?
Arya looked behind her to the now pacing Jaime, she had never seen him so upset. His face was red, and his hair that was before perfectly done was now falling around his face as he continuously ran his hands through it. She felt herself standing to meet him before she had really made the decision to do so. She walked right up to him, and put her hands on his face, pulling it down to meet hers. She pressed her forehead up against his and held him there. For the first few seconds his breathing was still erratic and he refused to touch her, almost like he was afraid to touch her, that he would hurt her, she knew he wouldn't, and she was proved right when a few more moments went by before his arms wrapped around her and pulled her as close to him as he could. Her now obvious pregnancy bump was a small hinderance but neither seemed to care. Once Jaime had her wrapped in his arms he felt all of the anger leave him in one large wave. She was his rock, and she somehow always managed to make him forget everything when she was in his arms. With a sigh he finally allowed himself to relax, and moved his head to the crook between her neck and he shoulder where he left it, and continued to breathe, trying to calm himself down.
"Jaime, my love, my life, I was always going to love you, you are the love of my life. And if they have a problem with that... then obviously they don't love me as much as I love them, because if they did they would see that you make me happier than I have ever been, and I ever hoped I could be. And if I am being honest, yes, it does hurt. But I have you, and this little one on the way, and they will only make me unhappy. So don't worry about them. Worry about me, and being here with me, and worry about the baby if you want to. But I don't want to worry about you going off to fight with my brothers about something that in a few months, I won't even care about. Okay?" Jaime felt himself agreeing with her a split second after she finished speaking, and gently nodded his head against her. Arya felt it, and immediately felt a smile grace her face before she pulled away. Jaime let a groan rip out of his mouth and the loss of her touch, and didn't regret it because shortly after he heard the distinct bell-like laughter of his wife.
"Come on Jaime, we have to get dressed or we are going to be late. I'll go get Krystine, you go get dressed in the bathroom okay?" He smiled down at her and nodded before leaning in to press a soft kiss to her cheek.
"I love you too darling." He mumbled quickly before pulling away and giving her a little wink, which she laughed at as he walked away into the bathroom to get dressed. A short fifteen minutes later the couple was dressed and ready to begin the long walk from their quarters to the great hall where the feast had started about twenty minutes before.
When they finally arrived, they were stopped at the door by the servant who was giving the introductions. He banged a long wooden staff on the floor, to which all of the people in the hall - which looked to be most of the guests, so the couple was indeed late - quieted down quickly.
"May I present, Lord Jaime Lannister Lord of Casterly Rock and Warden of the West, and his wife Lady Arya Lannister." He banged his staff on the ground twice more and the people in attendance began to talk and eat once more. The servant began to talk to them before they could leave.
"My Lord, My Lady, if you would follow Mr. Wallace here to your seats." Jaime gave the man a nod, and proceeded to follow the younger servant that had been hiding behind the man towards the front of the room, to a table right in front of the table for the Whents. After Jaime thanked the servant, and gave him a gold dragon for his efforts. The servant smiled brightly at them, and before he left he heard Jaime call out to him.
"Boy, please make sure that we always have full glasses of water please, and if you would, sample the water before giving it to us. My wife is pregnant you see, and if the water tastes strange, I would prefer she does not drink it." The servant nodded hastily and responded even quicker.
"Of course My Lord, I will be right back." Jaime nodded at him before looking down at Arya and giving her a comforting smile. Even if the boy said he tasted the water, Jaime knew he would be sampling her glasses as well, just to be safe. He knew, rationally, that this was a time of peace so he shouldn't be too concerned with his new wife being poisoned, but he also only knew personally a few of the people there, and half of those people hated him and his family, so he felt it was a possibility. A possibility he couldn't risk. When Jaime finally tore himself out of his thoughts and looked at the table they had been assigned to, he recognized the emblems sewn onto a few of their doublets. Closest to him, to the center isle, was a man of House Dustin, a man from Hornwood, a man from Mormont, and men from Manderly. Further down the table, sat Eddard Stark, and next to him a dark brooding man, who Jaime assumed was Arya's eldest brother, Brandon, and on Brandon's other side was a woman, wearing a bright blue dress, who Jaime assumed was Lyanna. And across from those three, he saw a younger man, who looked a lot like the eldest, so he assumed that was Benjen. There was empty space next to Benjen, so Jaime steered them in that direction.
When they arrived, Jaime hesitated for a moment, feeling a wave of uncertainty over take him. Until the woman, Lyanna, smiled at them.
"Arya! It is so good to see you! I am assuming that this is your husband? Jaime?" She gracefully stood up and leaned across the table, which seemed to take a lot of effort as the table was rather large and there were two of her brothers in the way, so that she could hug Arya. When she finally reached her sister, Jaime noticed that she froze for a moment, before pulling away.
"You're pregnant?" Lyanna asked Arya, seeming very shocked. Arya felt herself blush in embarrassment as all of her brothers, who had been staring at her impassively, now glared at her with shock, anger, and a little bit of hurt in their eyes. Jaime felt himself bristle, ready to defend his wife, even after she had asked him not to. But he felt her little hand squeeze his arm, and when he looked down she threw a quick smile his way before answering her sister.
"Yes, I am. It has been more than four months since we married sister. It is not to incredibly shocking, so please. Let us have dinner, and we can catch up tomorrow, at the tourney." Arya's tone left no room for argument, so Lyanna simply nodded and sat down beside her brother. Jaime and Arya hesitated for another moment before Lyanna looked up at them and realized why.
"Oh! Please do sit down, you are family. You deserve to be here with us." Jaime felt himself roll his eyes at that word. Deserve. But instead of commenting, he simply helped Arya step over the bench and sit beside Benjen, before he sat down to her right. Once they were both settled Arya cleared her throat, and decided she should introduce her siblings to her husband, even though she thought he had already figured it out.
"Jaime?" Arya asked softly, squeezing his hand to get his attention, as he was looking for the server, Mr. Wallace. Jaime automatically looked over at her, looking for anything wrong.
"Yes love? What is it?" He protectively wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him, and Arya couldn't help but chuckle at him. The couple failed to notice that the Stark siblings had all noticed this exchange and were giving each other looks of confusion, which they quickly hid when Arya looked back at them.
"Jaime, this is my sister, Lyanna, and next to her is my eldest brother Brandon, and of course you have already met Ned, and this is obviously, is Benjen, the youngest, well, besides me." Arya said, gesturing at each sibling as she introduced them. Jaime nodded at each in turn, and when she finished talking decided to greet them all.
"It's nice to meet you. I have heard a lot about all of you. Sadly, I cannot introduce you all to my family, as my brother and father are at Casterly Rock and my sister is at Dragonstone, but hopefully you will all meet one day." While speaking Arya noticed that Jaime had used his 'Lord voice' as she called it. The polite voice that he used when talking to people he either didn't really know, or didn't really like. Normally it bothered her, because it made him seem harsh, but she couldn't find it in herself to mind this time.
After a few more moments of awkward silence the servant that Jaime had paid arrived with glasses of water for the couple. He set it down quickly before leaning down to whisper is Jaime's ear that yes, he had tested the water and there had been no effects. Jaime nodded at him in thanks, which Mr. Wallace took as a dismissal before leaving to lean against the wall nearest the two Lannisters so he could see when they needed something. Jaime was thankful that the man had sampled it, but he still felt the need to check, so he took a sip from his glass, and, tasting nothing off, gave his glass to his wife, while he took hers. The Stark siblings noticed this strange act by the Lord of Lannister but did not comment on it. When the sound of that stick banging on the ground occurred, all six of them turned to face the entrance, where they saw something shocking.
It was the Mad King, Aerys II Targaryen. He looked horrible, his hair was so long it was tucked into the belt around his waist, and he walked bent over, leaning heavily on a cane and his back had a ghastly hump on it. Beyond that, his nails were so long, they had begun to curl in on themselves, and Arya could not help but wonder how they had not snapped off yet.
"May I present, King Aerys Targeryen the Second of His Name. King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm." The servant banged his staff on the ground again, twice and everyone watched as a servant began to lead the King to the high table, where he would be sat in the middle, as he claimed the right to at every event he attended. It was only when he was seated that the conversation began again, but it was quieter this time, hushed, as they did not want to set off the Mad King's anger. About three minutes of silence at the Stark table later, there was another bang. Again everyone turned to see who it was.
"May I present, Princess Elia Martell and her ladies." The staff banged again as the Dornish princess turned Targaryen strode into the feast without her husband, trailed by ten of her ladies maids, including the famous Ashara Dayne, the sister to Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning. Arya knew for a fact that Ned was infatuated with the violet eyed beauty, but, apparently so were most unattached men. Arya could not help but glance up at her husband, to assess if he was one of those men, but he was not even looking at the woman, instead he was eating his food, and after a moment he glanced up at Arya, as if to make sure she was still alright.
"Are you okay love? You should be eating, you haven't eaten for at least six hours, you are probably hungry." Arya felt herself smile at the man she was so in love with before she nodded and started eating what had been put on her plate by Jaime earlier. When Arya looked up again she noticed that Elia had sat to the right of the King, with one chair separating them, presumably for her husband, who had yet to appear. The question was answered when, once again, the staff banging on the floor could be heard. Everyone again, turned to look to see who had arrived.
"May I present, Rhaegar Targeryen, Prince of Dragonstone, and Heir to the Seven Kingdoms." The man banged the staff on the ground twice, yet again. As the silver haired prince strode into the hall wearing his usual black attire with a red cape streaming out behind him. Arya felt her eyes role at the arrogance protruding from the man, and when she turned to look back at her family, she saw that Lyanna's eyes were glued to the man. Arya felt her eyes narrow at her sister as he strode by their table, and sent her a quick kick to the shin when Lyanna almost felt out of her chair so she could remain looking at him. It was at that moment that Arya noticed that shy looking man seating to Lyanna's right. When Lyanna turned around in a rage to scold whoever it was that had kicked her, Arya interrupted her so that she wouldn't draw attention to the fact that she was gaping after a married man.
"Lyanna who is this?" Arya asked, gesturing with her head at the mysterious man beside her sister. Lyanna's face broke out into a smile as she began to answer, forgetting about the bruise forming on her shin.
"This is the Knight of the Laughing Tree, Howland Reed. He is one of father's bannermen, a crannogman." Arya smiled at the man, crannogmen did not usually attend tourneys, especially not ones held in the South. But, he was still one of her father's bannermen, so that made him part of their family.
"It is nice to meet you Ser, what-" Arya was cut off as the staff banged against the ground once again, and when they turned to look they saw that there were multiple people to be introduced this time, but it did not look like they were together, as the first person was someone they all knew well.
"May I present, Lord Robert Baratheon, Lord Paramount of the Stormlands and Lord of Storm's End." The staff hit the ground twice. The hulking Robert Baratheon swaggered in, and was led to the table on the other side of the aisle as theirs, but Arya was sure she would see him at some point. The staff banged once more.
"May I present, Lord Walter Whent, Lord of Harrenhal, and his wife, Lady Shella Whent." The staff banged again twice as their hosts began the walk to their seats at the head table. The staff banged once more.
"May I present, the guest of honor, Lady Sarya Whent, the reigning Queen of Love and Beauty for this Tourney at Harrenhal in the year 283 AC. Her honor will be defended by her four brothers, Lord Walter, Lord Jarad, Lord Donnal, and Lord Harrin as well as her Uncle, Ser Oswell a Knight of the Kingsguard. May the feast, and this tourney, begin." The man banged his staff on the ground, three times this time, and everyone knew it would not bang again. The woman, Sarya, began to walk up to her seat, the the left of the King. Arya could not help but notice how shy this woman was, and knew she would not last long as the Queen of Love and Beauty.