Game of Thrones Fan Fic Rec and Idea Thread. All Men/Canon Must Die

Luminous said:
Thinking on a possible crossover fic with Ranger's Apprentice, but I'm not sure what it should focus on. Having Araluen Rangers up north running around with Jon and Sam could be fun; but the War of Five Kings is my favorite part of the series so I'd like to write focusing on that.

Oh, maybe Will and Co get involved in Robert's rebellion?
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Gonna be completely straight with you, Rangers would gel more with wildlings given how much shittier every single one of the lords/kings/etc in Westeros are than the Araluen equivalents. Or they'd start a literal peasant rebellion to overthrow the current order.

Do remember that most of the 'bad shit' we hear about wildlings is heard through the Northern characters, who know nothing of them except those that make it past the Wall, and the Night's Watch, a band of rapers and killers who have spent several thousand years doing whatever they want to the wildlings because the law doesn't extend north of the Wall and the wildlings have bronze, bone and stone to the Night's Watch's steel. Unreliable narrators abound.

IMO 'wildlings abducting women' is more often just a murderous/abusive/abandoned husband/father/etc trying to cover the fact that his wife left him/is buried in the garden, and what raids do happen are less 'the evil barbarians are evil' and more 'centuries long blood feud started by the obvious consequences of filling a paramilitary group with murderers, thieves and rapists'.
 
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Shane_357 said:
Gonna be completely straight with you, Rangers would gel more with wildlings given how much shittier every single one of the lords/kings/etc in Westeros are than the Araluen equivalents. Or they'd start a literal peasant rebellion to overthrow the current order.

Do remember that most of the 'bad shit' we hear about wildlings is heard through the Northern characters, who know nothing of them except those that make it past the Wall, and the Night's Watch, a band of rapers and killers who have spent several thousand years doing whatever they want to the wildlings because the law doesn't extend north of the Wall and the wildlings have bronze, bone and stone to the Night's Watch's steel. Unreliable narrators abound.

IMO 'wildlings abducting women' is more often just a murderous/abusive/abandoned husband/father/etc trying to cover the fact that his wife left him/is buried in the garden, and what raids do happen are less 'the evil barbarians are evil' and more 'centuries long blood feud started by the obvious consequences of filling a paramilitary group with murderers, thieves and rapists'.
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I mean, I don't totally disagree with you but like Will straight up gave a dude to the Skandians to enslave. RA books are YA fiction but the characters do some questionable stuff, the books just tend not to dwell on it and change the focus.
 
Luminous said:
I mean, I don't totally disagree with you but like Will straight up gave a dude to the Skandians to enslave. RA books are YA fiction but the characters do some questionable stuff, the books just tend not to dwell on it and change the focus.
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Yes there's questionable shit, but I don't think they'll last long before they decide 'fuck it' and murder the lords and kings. After all, they're not their rulers.
 
The Seed is (not) Strong?

Rohanne Lanntell was not a lucky woman.

A girl of 17 years, she was utterly unremarkable. Daughter of an offshoot line of an offshoot line of House Lannister of Lannisport, the only gold left to her was her hair, spun gold worthy of any Lannister of the Rock, and the only jewels her eyes, a blazing emerald, bright and sparkling.

She was no rare beauty; passing fair at most, and she had worked for three years in Casterly Rock, a kitchen's assistant for the garrison.

Rohanne Lanntell was not a lucky woman.

Lord Tywin desired to hold a tourney, a grand affair to celebrate the nameday of his twin children - and more pertinently, to show that Lannisport was rebuilt, the Lannister Fleet renewed, after the Greyjoy Rebellion. And so - to complement such a grand undertaking - serving staff were required, and Lord Tywin would not have his table - the King's table - served by commonborn rabble.

And so Rohanne Lanntell - of indifferent, but undeniably noble lineage - was plucked from the Kitchens, and placed before the King.

As a red rag to a bull, this girl who looked like his wife in the dim light, but did not argue with him, did not speak. Eyes like dinnerplates, protestations so weak they could be ignored, sobs with the good grace to be inaudible until the King had bestowed his royal favour upon her and left her crumpled against the wall where he had pinned her.

It was Ser Tygett's widow who took pity on the girl - perhaps because her goodbrother had so little for her - and took her into her Household. She served as Lady's Maid to the Lady Darlessa Marbrand until her pregnancy began to slow her, and then she served not at all.

And nine months past the Tourney, with her screams ringing through the halls of Casterly Rock, Rohanne Lanntell bore twins. The King's bastards - of this there could be no doubt - came forth into the world with their mother's eyes, their mother's hair, but their father's strength.

Rohanne Lanntell was not a lucky woman, but Darlessa Marbrand was a kind one. Both mother and babes made their way north, to the Ashemark, where her brother Damon took them in, found Rohanne Lanntell a place in his stables - such a fallen woman could not, of course, prepare his food - and the babes stayed with her, a boy and a girl.

And in this way, three years passed. Across the continent, in King's Landing, the Hand grew suspicious. Books were handed to him and bastards paraded before him. The Hand was suspicious, but the old Falcon was not subtle, and soon whispers reached the Queen, that the Hand believed King Robert's seed to be supernaturally strong, cast aspersions upon her.

And so she was forced, holding back nausea, to seek assistance from a woman she would have slain, had she the ability to do so in the Ashemark.

Rohanne Lanntell was not a lucky woman. With two children of three, she arrived in King's Landing a fortnight after the Crown Prince's nameday tourney - the Queen and her children having left the city, unwilling to see such an insulting reminder of the King's disrespect - just in time for the Hand to die.

And so she remained in the Red Keep, accommodated by the Queen's careless command, ignored by all and sundry.

The fun thing about "all his bastards look like him" is that when your criteria for "his bastards" is "look like him" you aren't actually proving anything one way or the other.
 
It would be interesting to see what Ned would make of this - or Stannis. There's certainly a lot of potential there.
 
Reposting for SB and AH

Was bored so I made this Ruler Game thing. Feel free to rip it apart.

Our divergence point from canon is that Rhaegar, while delving into his research of magic and the arcane, uncovered some long forgotten scrolls detailing ritualistic spells that would supposably help prevent death and preserve life, enacting them on Lyanna in an effort to reduce the chances of her, or more importantly in his opinion, "Visenya", dying while in labor.

It worked in a way, just not in the fashion he would have expected, nor wanted....

King on the Iron Throne: Robert Baratheon [1]
Queen on the Iron Throne: Lyanna Stark [2]
-Prince Rickard Baratheon [3]
-Princess Myrcalla Baratheon [4]
-Prince Eddard Baratheon [5]

Small Council
Hand of the King: Eddard Stark [6]
Master of Coin: Kevin Lannister [7]
Master of Laws: Stannis Baratheon [8]
Master of Whispers: Queen Lyanna Stark
Master of Ships: Wyman Manderly [9]
Grand Maester: Qyburn [10]
Kingsguard:
-Lord Commander Barristan Selmy [11]
-Ser Ruthven Strongmore [12]
-"Ser" Sandor Clegane [13]
-Ser Mandon Moore
-Ser Arys Oakheart
-Ser Meryn Trant
-Ser Varny Bannerworth

Lords Paramount
Lord of the North: Lord Eddard Stark [14]
Lord of the Reach: Lord Mace Tyrell [15]
Lord of the Stormlands: Lord Stannis Baratheon
Lord of the Westerlands: Lord Tywin Lannister [16]
Lord of the Riverlands: Lord Hoster Tully
Lord of the Vale: Lord Robert Arryn [17]
Lord of the Iron Islands: Lord Theon Greyjoy [18]
Prince of Dorne: Prince Doran Martell

1- Save for the recent death of his foster father King Robert couldn't be happier, with a loving wife, strong children, and his best friend by his side, what could possibly go wrong? Just don't bring up any of the unfounded rumors about his wife or kids if you want your head to remain on your body.
2- Being undead? Drinking blood? Shifting into the skins of bats and wolves? Practicing dark sorceries? A second Bloodraven? What absurd rumors the smallfolk come up with!

Her effectiveness as Mistress of Whispers after the unexpected disappearance of the Spider has nothing to do with such fanciful nonsense either! In more important news, she's recently helped broker a betrothal between the Crown Prince Rickard and Margaery Tyrell, hopefully helping to keep the realm binded together under the Baratheon Dynasty and heal the lingering wounds of the Rebellion.
3- 13 year old Prince Rickard is kind, gallant, chivalrous, the spitting image of his kingly father and quietly absolutely despises himself for what he is....
4- Rickard's twin sister, Myrcalla, is in turn much more comfortable in her skin. Her problems come in with her absolutely dreading one day having to fulfill her "responsibilities" as a noble woman and royal princess.

Her mother's warnings about repeating her own youthful mistakes have gone largely ignored. Why would she go and run off with some prince. She doesn't even- she doesn't even.... Well, well that's one thing she quite doesn't understand about herself.

At least for the time being she's been allowed to stay in Winterfell with her northern cousins (well aside from her "cousin" Jon who's now squiring with Ser Ruthven), though with strict orders from her mother to be discreet. She's already thick as thieves with cousin Sansa!
5- Little Prince Eddard is a sweet, kind little boy who you should pray not to come across when he's hungry...
6- Eddard Stark has begrudgingly accepted being named Hand of the King after the sudden death of Jon Arryn. Has currently been looking into the string of disappearances Jon and Stannis were apparently investigating before his death.

He's not exactly happy about his sister's insistence on bringing Jon with them to Kings Landing. Gods forbid if Robert were to find out...
7- After Petyr Baelish's sudden disappearance months ago, Tywin successfully badgered Robert into having his brother named as the new Master of Coin.
8- Shortly following Jon's unexpected passing, Stannis without apparent reason fled back to Storm's End. Robert for his part thinks he's just bitter about being passed over as Hand. For the time being, Renly Baratheon is acting Master of Laws, though the Queen apparently wants Roose Bolton for the job.
9- Stannis initially doubled as both Master of Laws and Ships for the first couple of years of Robert's reign though he was eventually replaced by the Lord of White Harbor.
10- The Citadel was not happy about that renegade lunatic somehow managing to gain the Queen's favor.
11- Ser Barristan is deeply frustrated that no one is listening to his warnings about Strongmore and Bannerworth.
12- Initially a stormlander knight of little renown before a chance meeting with the Queen would drastically change things for him. Widely considered more personally loyal to the Queen then the King, along with Bannerworth, and subject to some deeply disturbing rumors beyond that.

Now has Stark's bastard son squiring for him.
13- Just a killer with fancy armor the Queen just so happened to take a liking to if you asked Sandor himself.
14- Robb is currently acting Warden of the North in his father's absence.
15- With his daughter and the Crown Prince betrothed, and the general strengthening of Tyrell influence in court, Mace Tyrell couldn't be happier.
16- Despite getting Jamie back and his daughter married to the prince's brother, Tywin remains deeply bitter about not getting his blood on the Throne.

As absolutely ridiculous and unhinged as his son-in-law's letters about the queen and her children being undead demons from the Seven Hells, they might provide something of an opportunity...
17- Young Robin Arryn currently has his mother acting as regent for him, but with her constant rambling about the queen being a literal demon who murdered Littlefinger, the Lords of the Vale might move to change that soon.
18- Currently a "ward" of Casterly Rock with Jamie Lannister acting as de-facto ruler of the islands in his stead, who in turn has pawned off most of the actual administrative work to Tyrion. Tywin's response to Stafford's death during Balon's short lived rebellion was nothing short of horrifying.
 
So I was talking about Daena the Defiant with @ScottishMongol and like… she's weird? She disappears from the narrative completely after the coronation of Viserys II, and her epithet - the Defiant - is slightly odd.

See, her "defiance" is that she refuses to name the father of her son, but… why? Who is she hiding that from? Baelor? Baelor's dead whilst Daemon's about a month old, that wouldn't be a long enough trend for her to pick up a name for it that would last, like, at all.

Viserys II then, right? Except he ruled for barely a year before he died under mysterious circumstances, so that doesn't really follow either?

There's really only one King she could plausibly be "denying" by refusing to name the father of Daemon Waters. Aegon.

But like… why, right? We know he knows who Daemon's father is - its him! He recognises the boy as his own, even! So we need to unpack the specifics of Daemon's siring, I think.

Firstly - Daena was confined to the Maidenvault. She successfully escapes it three times - one of which is the fateful time when Daemon was conceived, presumably.

Secondly - Daemon was conceived in the same year as Baelor Breakspear, 170 AC. Given the antipathy from certain parts of the royal family - Aegon IV, specifically - towards the Princess Myriah Martell - the conception of a pureblooded Valyrian child at the same time is plausibly readable as a deliberate slight.

The combination of these two points paints, to me, a pretty unhappy portrait of the conception of Daemon Waters, right? Like, Daena is a prisoner trapped in the Red Keep, and her ability to parley freedom is broadly in question. We know from Cassella Vaith that Aegon isn't above taking advantage of women imprisoned in the Red Keep, and we know from Naerys and also, like, everything, that he isn't above attempting to father children to make some nasty point.

So we have Aegon IV Targaryen either coercing or outright forcing his cousin to bear his child, the perfect pureblooded Targaryen child he's always wanted, and then we have Daena, a wilful Targaryen princess who idolised her father, sought the throne denied to her by her sex and refused to be cowed or quiet.

And we have her being called "the Defiant" for refusing to name the father of her son. Let's presume this was to keep him from Aegon, refusing to let Aegon use her son in his vile games against his trueborn son. And like, Aegon knows he's the father; it's not like Daena was having sex with any other men in the Maidenvault, right? It must've been infuriating; she's leaving who the father of his son is open for debate! People might assume its a non-Valyrian, even a smallfolk! His ego, neither small nor robust, would take a bruising from this.

And kinslaying never stopped Aegon before - he pretty clearly killed Viserys II to seize power - so like, for my money, that's how and why Princess Daena the Defiant died - King Aegon IV killed her so he could recognise Daemon Waters as his son, to spite Daeron II.
 
veteranMortal said:
So I was talking about Daena the Defiant with @ScottishMongol and like… she's weird? She disappears from the narrative completely after the coronation of Viserys II, and her epithet - the Defiant - is slightly odd.

See, her "defiance" is that she refuses to name the father of her son, but… why? Who is she hiding that from? Baelor? Baelor's dead whilst Daemon's about a month old, that wouldn't be a long enough trend for her to pick up a name for it that would last, like, at all.

Viserys II then, right? Except he ruled for barely a year before he died under mysterious circumstances, so that doesn't really follow either?

There's really only one King she could plausibly be "denying" by refusing to name the father of Daemon Waters. Aegon.

But like… why, right? We know he knows who Daemon's father is - its him! He recognises the boy as his own, even! So we need to unpack the specifics of Daemon's siring, I think.

Firstly - Daena was confined to the Maidenvault. She successfully escapes it three times - one of which is the fateful time when Daemon was conceived, presumably.

Secondly - Daemon was conceived in the same year as Baelor Breakspear, 170 AC. Given the antipathy from certain parts of the royal family - Aegon IV, specifically - towards the Princess Myriah Martell - the conception of a pureblooded Valyrian child at the same time is plausibly readable as a deliberate slight.

The combination of these two points paints, to me, a pretty unhappy portrait of the conception of Daemon Waters, right? Like, Daena is a prisoner trapped in the Red Keep, and her ability to parley freedom is broadly in question. We know from Cassella Vaith that Aegon isn't above taking advantage of women imprisoned in the Red Keep, and we know from Naerys and also, like, everything, that he isn't above attempting to father children to make some nasty point.

So we have Aegon IV Targaryen either coercing or outright forcing his cousin to bear his child, the perfect pureblooded Targaryen child he's always wanted, and then we have Daena, a wilful Targaryen princess who idolised her father, sought the throne denied to her by her sex and refused to be cowed or quiet.

And we have her being called "the Defiant" for refusing to name the father of her son. Let's presume this was to keep him from Aegon, refusing to let Aegon use her son in his vile games against his trueborn son. And like, Aegon knows he's the father; it's not like Daena was having sex with any other men in the Maidenvault, right? It must've been infuriating; she's leaving who the father of his son is open for debate! People might assume its a non-Valyrian, even a smallfolk! His ego, neither small nor robust, would take a bruising from this.

And kinslaying never stopped Aegon before - he pretty clearly killed Viserys II to seize power - so like, for my money, that's how and why Princess Daena the Defiant died - King Aegon IV killed her so he could recognise Daemon Waters as his son, to spite Daeron II.
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I've always taken it to be Baelor's child with his insane fast after the pregnancy
 
This makes so much sense, and also makes so much sense on how Aegon meets Barba Bracken and makes Daena's best friend and handmaid in the Vault into his new mistress- stripping Daena of the possible protection she could have gathered around herself with the few supporters that could have backed her claim against that of Viserys II. Drawing in the ambitious Lord Bracken only to destroy him later.


God, Viserys II was just Roose Bolton with silver hair at the end. And the Unworthy was his Ramsay Snow that he let step over him to gain absolute power, and a position in which nothing in the Realm would stop him from sating his whims and cruelties and in fact would help him continue to do so.
 
Forgot to unwatch this thread after bailing on ASOIAF, so popped in just to get the alerts done before I go...
Tyrell said:
I've always taken it to be Baelor's child with his insane fast after the pregnancy
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...but I've actually always kinda been fond of this theory, but as much as I like it, I don't think it's the real deal. I think VeteranMortal up there has it right, but I think the mechanism of how it went down is a little different; still coerced, but a little different of a flavor. See, Daena is a sort of wild child in the setting; we know she was an expert rider, a hunter and generally athletic. She's not the kind of woman that's going to take being locked up in a box like the Maidenvault or her bedchamber before that well, and I wouldn't be surprised if she starts to get very desperate. We know that she at least tried to sneak out a few times (we get a line on the wiki about her wearing her dragon pendant under her clothes when disguised as a peasant - that disguise sounds like an escape attempt), but as far as we know she never made it out that far.

Next, we've got Aegon. One thing that I noticed about him whilst working on a Northern Dragoness (before it got canned like the rest of the stories when I stopped writing for ASOIAF) is that he has a very...transactional approach to his relationships with women; there's never anything like romance or the like involved, none of the deep pinings and courtships that we tend to see in other parts of GRRM's work, but instead the sense that Aegon treats every last woman he sleeps with as some form of prostitute - he gives y, receives xxx. We see this again and again: he is in a position of enormous influence and power over Vaith which gives him the ability to destroy everything she loves during the conquest, and so she ends up his "mistress" (read: sex slave) and he provides protection in exchange, and then we have that situation with the hills between the Brackens and Blackwoods that corresponds with his mistresses from both houses, and we outright have it said that Aegon tried to "buy" Megette from her husband.

So, we've got an Aegon who seems to see every single woman he encounters as a prostitute, just with different ways to buy them. On the other hand, we have a Daena who desperately wants to get out of the Red Keep.

It isn't hard to imagine what happens next. Aegon offers her freedom in exchange for "services" rendered. Daena, desperate to get out and perhaps feeling like she has no other way out (and that Baelor could be alive for a long, long time), sells herself to Aegon in exchange for a shot at freedom.

Here's the kicker: we know that Daena never got out til Baelor died. Considering the piece of work that Aegon actually is? I wouldn't be surprised if he never actually tried to uphold his particular end of that bargain - it'd be more "I'm working on it" and "I just need this one last thing" or "we had a setback, give me a bit longer", with Daena's hopes of getting out just dying that little bit more each time. Eventually she ends up pregnant, and Aegon leverages his control over her door (and that desperate, fadign hope to get out of the Red Keep) to keep Daemon's parentage quiet, lest Baelor come down on him like a ton of bricks, but this goes differently than Aegon expects and Baelor dies and we get the canon situation.

That seems a tidy way of setting it up, and shows the entire situation as a disaster from multiple directions: Baelor strips his sister of her agency under the excuse of it being for her own good, she becomes desperate, and Aegon takes advantage of her in her moment of need - with no one else around to give even the slightest hope of getting out, she feels like she has no other choice but to comply. Aegon never holds up his end of the bargain; he's just selling her a fantasy of escape in exchange. It is an uncomfortably realistic situation (I myself am a victim of sexual abuse, and I have heard stories very similar to this in support groups - it is disgustingly easy for someone with control over someone else's movements to take that straight to the darkest possible corner, and that's why women with impaired mobility are at such horrific risk in these kind of situations), and one that fits perfectly with the Aegon that we know in the books and the kind of feel that I get from the entire situation. There's room for interpretation on the exact mechanisms of how it went down, but it is definitely something shady as fuck.

But being real, GRRM' ain't gonna want to try and account for Daena in any future work when she's absent from so much, so he's just going to take the easy option and write her out of the story right after Daemon's arrival by having her die in childbirth or something.
 
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Arranged Stones (A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones)
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The wine tasted like shit.

It often did these days. Swill didn't even numb him the same. Didn't matter who made it or how old it was, it was horse piss as far as he was concerned.

He still drank.

He needed it.

"Fucking woman." He'd call her a bitch but he couldn't disrespect Ned like that, especially not when that wife of his apparently pulled off something amazing.

At least, according to Jon Arynn it was. Happy occasions not just for the Starks and the North but for all the Seven Kingdoms. Robert saw it in a different light.

Broken dreams. That's what it was, broken dreams and yet another lost chance. The bright future he always envisioned once again out of his reach, streaming like sand out from his fingers. It was nearly Lyanna all over again.

All because Ned's wife just had to be proactive and did the best for her children.

All because Robb Stark was betrothed. To a Northern lass at that, the daughter of one of his father's major bannermen. The Man-something-or-others.

And, despite what many would claim, Robert wasn't completely uneducated. It was a move Ned needed to make after marrying a woman from the southern lands. He needed to strengthen the ties to his holdings, especially given the rumors of the boy's strong Tully looks.

It was understandable, forgivable even. Something that could have been easily fixed too.

If Sansa Stark hasn't been betrothed as well. To the crippled heir of the Tyrell. The daughter of Lord Paramount marrying the heir of another, a political worry for some but a strong match all the same.

Both of the most acceptable, or at the very least the ones that would garner the least objections from Cersi, were taken. Snatched up before he could even make his offer. True both Houses had more Trueborn readily available but they were all so young, their prospects not nearly as high. It would take too long and if they did range it Cersi would claim they could do better, creating a fuss that would bleed the ears of both families.

Sansa and Robb were his only real hopes.

But how could he object? How could he do more than grumble?

Despite how he wished to join his House with Ned's he couldn't break such fine matches. Oh, he most certainly could. He was the king. But it would be wrong to do that to Ned, hurt their relationship more than it already was.

All because the Old Lion and his dog brought him what was left of some dragon whelps.

He poured himself some more wine at the memory. What he felt that day in the storm of his rage and hate… he would not regret those feelings but he would regret how Ned looked at him that day.

Some of the wine spilled from the goblet, wasting away on the table and floor.

"Gods damn it." He cursed, though there was no heart in it. No roar, joy, or emotion. "It was a couple of little bastards, Ned."

A couple of bastards who ruined one of the few good things he had left in his life. Something he may now never repair.

A couple of bastards…

A couple of bastards…

Robert stood up, wobbling on his feet and spilling more wine as the thought came to him. He always got his best ideas after his fifth cup anyway, didn't need much more now.

He still took a celebratory swig as he sped to his door, Jon Arryn's names on his lips as he roared for paper and ravens.

A couple of bastards had tainted his brotherhood but, maybe, a couple of bastards could help repair it. Their Houses could still be united and everything would be good again.

Finally.


An:
Quick write up on how Jon Snow could be engaged to Mya Stone. I'm not sure about the matches I made for the two elder Stark children and I know that an Arya/Tommen match or a Bran/Myrcella could happen but, again, quick write up. I could probably rewrite it so that all the Stark kids outside of Rickard have a match set up (probably Jojen for Arya) but eh.

I do like the idea of Cat playing
ultra matchmaker for her kids. The butterflies could be fun.
 
TheDivineDemon said:
Arranged Stones (A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones)
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The wine tasted like shit.

It often did these days. Swill didn't even numb him the same. Didn't matter who made it or how old it was, it was horse piss as far as he was concerned.

He still drank.

He needed it.

"Fucking woman." He'd call her a bitch but he couldn't disrespect Ned like that, especially not when that wife of his apparently pulled off something amazing.

At least, according to Jon Arynn it was. Happy occasions not just for the Starks and the North but for all the Seven Kingdoms. Robert saw it in a different light.

Broken dreams. That's what it was, broken dreams and yet another lost chance. The bright future he always envisioned once again out of his reach, streaming like sand out from his fingers. It was nearly Lyanna all over again.

All because Ned's wife just had to be proactive and did the best for her children.

All because Robb Stark was betrothed. To a Northern lass at that, the daughter of one of his father's major bannermen. The Man-something-or-others.

And, despite what many would claim, Robert wasn't completely uneducated. It was a move Ned needed to make after marrying a woman from the southern lands. He needed to strengthen the ties to his holdings, especially given the rumors of the boy's strong Tully looks.

It was understandable, forgivable even. Something that could have been easily fixed too.

If Sansa Stark hasn't been betrothed as well. To the crippled heir of the Tyrell. The daughter of Lord Paramount marrying the heir of another, a political worry for some but a strong match all the same.

Both of the most acceptable, or at the very least the ones that would garner the least objections from Cersi, were taken. Snatched up before he could even make his offer. True both Houses had more Trueborn readily available but they were all so young, their prospects not nearly as high. It would take too long and if they did range it Cersi would claim they could do better, creating a fuss that would bleed the ears of both families.

Sansa and Robb were his only real hopes.

But how could he object? How could he do more than grumble?

Despite how he wished to join his House with Ned's he couldn't break such fine matches. Oh, he most certainly could. He was the king. But it would be wrong to do that to Ned, hurt their relationship more than it already was.

All because the Old Lion and his dog brought him what was left of some dragon whelps.

He poured himself some more wine at the memory. What he felt that day in the storm of his rage and hate… he would not regret those feelings but he would regret how Ned looked at him that day.

Some of the wine spilled from the goblet, wasting away on the table and floor.

"Gods damn it." He cursed, though there was no heart in it. No roar, joy, or emotion. "It was a couple of little bastards, Ned."

A couple of bastards who ruined one of the few good things he had left in his life. Something he may now never repair.

A couple of bastards…

A couple of bastards…

Robert stood up, wobbling on his feet and spilling more wine as the thought came to him. He always got his best ideas after his fifth cup anyway, didn't need much more now.

He still took a celebratory swig as he sped to his door, Jon Arryn's names on his lips as he roared for paper and ravens.

A couple of bastards had tainted his brotherhood but, maybe, a couple of bastards could help repair it. Their Houses could still be united and everything would be good again.

Finally.


An:
Quick write up on how Jon Snow could be engaged to Mya Stone. I'm not sure about the matches I made for the two elder Stark children and I know that an Arya/Tommen match or a Bran/Myrcella could happen but, again, quick write up. I could probably rewrite it so that all the Stark kids outside of Rickard have a match set up (probably Jojen for Arya) but eh.

I do like the idea of Cat playing
ultra matchmaker for her kids. The butterflies could be fun.
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I don't think the Willas match works; maybe Loras would be better, or someone along those lines. Willas is in his thirties, I don't think Ned or Cat would betroth Sansa to him.
 
veteranMortal said:
I don't think the Willas match works; maybe Loras would be better, or someone along those lines. Willas is in his thirties, I don't think Ned or Cat would betroth Sansa to him.
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Willas is said to be "twice" Sansa's age. He's in his early to mid-20s. Notably, Oleanna explicitly does think that is too much of an age gap, but, IIRC, the Tyrells' secret marriage plan still does go ahead, which is then foiled by Sansa's marriage to Tyrion.

And while the Starks are "the good guys", they are "good" in a very setting-conventional sense. All honour and stuff, but not really questioning the social structures. They might find someone in his mid-20s still a palatable match for Sansa, especially if he is the heir of the by far largest and richest of the Seven Kingdoms. Though, I guess, OTOH, there is the fact that Garlan got married even before his older brother, which is unusual. It might be Willas is deemed unsuitable by many on account of his physical handicap.
 
veteranMortal said:
I don't think the Willas match works; maybe Loras would be better, or someone along those lines. Willas is in his thirties, I don't think Ned or Cat would betroth Sansa to him.
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Susano said:
Willas is said to be "twice" Sansa's age. He's in his early to mid-20s.
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Quick wiki walk has Sansa's birth in 286 and Willas anywhere between 273 and 276. So, anywhere between 10 to 13 years ago difference. Not ideal but not the worst in the setting (looks at Frey).
 
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