Musings at Midnight, Part 1
Army Camp of the Targaryen-Supporters
(Jaime Lannister POV)
He sighed as he finished the final Sentence and put the Book aside, taking care not to close it and ruin the Ink.
Jaime shook his Head as he stood up and walked out of his tent, the cold air of the night biting into his skin. But Gods, he needed a breath of fresh air before he could go to rest.
As he walked through the Camp, he noticed the Men of the Westerlands standing Guard bowing their Heads in respect as he walked past. His Men, now... That thought weighed heavily on his mind.
Thinking back to his book, Jaime still couldn't believe the sheer madness of the Story he had put together. It certainly wasn't what he had imagined when he left King's Landing all those years ago for Essos. Being kidnapped and sold into Slavery by Illyrio Mopatis, being held Prisoner by Pirates, meeting Prince Viserys Targaryen, growing to respect him over a mad Journey through the Ruins of Old Valyria, swearing Loyalty and eventually befriending him... And now, he had followed him back to Westeros, had ascended to the Title of Lord of the Westerlands despite his life-long Efforts to avoid it and was preparing to lead his Men into Battle against the Usurper Robert Baratheon in a second Battle of the Trident.
He could only shake his head at the thought of how Maesters in the far Future would probably discard his Book as ludicrous Exaggerations.
Jaime sighed. He still wanted to be angry at Viserys for putting him into his current Position, even if only temporarily...but he couldn't. His King...no, his Friend had made too many good Points to stay mad at him. Oh, he still planned to give the Rock to Tyrion the first Chance he got once the War was over...but he was also determined to at make his sort Time as Ruler of the Westerlands at least a successful one through helping Viserys to win the Throne.
"Greetings, Lord Lannister."
A Voice tore him away from his musings. He looked up and saw that, without even realizing it, he had reached the Edge of the Camp. The Field opened to give a beautiful View on the Trident, clearly visible under the light of the Moon and the Stars in this cloudless night. And next to him stood none other then Lord Eddard Stark.
Lord Stark looked very different from the man who had stromed into the Throneroom, saw him sitting on the Iron Throne and furiously called him a Kingslayer all those years ago. He looked older, wiser, more mature and far more serious. But perhaps the greatest Difference...there was no disdain anymore in his Voice and eyes when he looked at Jaime.
After an awkward Silence, Jaime cleared his throat. "...Greetings, Lord Stark. I did not expect to meet you here."
Lord Stark sighed. "Same to you. But isn't this just the time for the Strange and Unexpected to happen?"
Jaime couldn't exactly disagree with him there. The two Men looked in silence over the Fields a while longer, before Lord Stark once again spoke up.
"...Lord Lannister...I think I owe you an Apology."
Jaime blinked in confusion and looked at the Lord of the North. "...Come again?"
Lord Stark hesitated for a second before he continued. "...When, all those years ago, I called you Kingslayer and demanded that you should be punished for betraying and killing your King...I truly believed that I was justified. That you had cravenly abandoned your Duty once it became clear that your side had lost the War. But..." He shook his head. "But after all that King Viserys told me...that you did it to save King's Landing and it's People from the last cruel Plan of a mad Monster...I can see now that I was wrong about you."
"...Were you, though?", asked Jaime quietly. "I may have killed Aerys to prevent the Murder of half a Million innocent People...but what did I do then? Instead of fulfilling my Oath to the Rest of the Royal Family and shield them from harm, I just sat down on the Throne like a smug Bastard while Gregor Clegane and Amory Lorch murdered them. You may have been wrong about my Motives...but you were right when you said that i was unworthy of being a Kingsguard."
"Was that why you left?", Lord Stark asked.
"Partly, yes. It was a mixture of guilt, shame, a desire to find a Place in this World...and perhaps my wish to control my own Destiny." Jaime chuckled humorlessly. "Well, It got my wish...and, ironically, it landed me in the exact same Position where I never wanted to be: Lord of the Westerlands. A Position that I am wholly unsuited for!"
Lord Stark's eyes seemed to soften a bit. "...I understand what you mean, Lord Lannister."
Jaime nearly gave a snide retort...but then he remembered Lord Starks own History. His Father and older Brother murdered on the same day and he, a young boy, suddenly and unexpectedly being burdened with the responsibility of ruling a Kingdom and leading it into War, something taht he likely never expected or wanted... Yes, he probably understood better then most how he felt.
"...Be that as it may...I am here now. And I will not fail in my Duties again." Jaime's hand grasped Brightroars hilt, the Valyrian Sword hanging at his side. "I will fight for my King and help free Westeros from another Mad King's Tyranny."
Lord Stark looked across the Trident with an unreadable expression. "...Indeed, Lord Lannister. That will be the Duty of all of us tomorrow", he said softly.
As Jaime bade Eddard Stark a good night and made his way back to his tent, he couldn't help but feel that the Ruler of the North, despite his outward calm, had much weighing down on his mind as well...
(Eddard Stark POV)
After Jaime Lannister had left, his eyes once again returned to the Trident...and most of all, the faint Glimmer of Camping Fires that could be seen in the distance. He thought about what the new Lord of the Westerlands had told him. To Ned, it was clear taht he had severely misjudged Jaime's character all those years ago, despite his own Words. Far from being just a cowardly Opportunist and Traitor, the man had proven himself a true Knight and Hero by now.
Then again...it wouldn't be the first time he had been wrong about other People, now wouldn't it? Fromis Sister Lyanna to Rhaegar Targaryen and Jaime Lannister, he had realized that much of what he thought to be true had been proven false. And, of course...
Once more, sorrow filled his heart when he thought about the Man who ruled the Seven Kingdoms today, at least in Name. Not sorrow for the Monster he had become, but for the Man he had once been. Robert Baratheon, his best Friend ever since their first days at the Eyrie in the Vale of Arryn.
He still remembered the day where they first met. Their Spars. Their growing Friendship and Camaraderie. The Rides through the Vale at the side of their Foster Father Jon Arryn. The day when he learned of the cruel Murder of his Father and Brother at the Hands of Aerys II. and the apparent kidnapping of his dear Sister. How Robert had firmly grasped his arms and vowed that he would not rest until his Family was avenged and his Sister saved.
He remembered how they rode to War side by side, how they reunited during the Battle of the Bells and then marched to the Trident. He remembered standing in the knee-deep Waters, felling Reachmen left and right with eyes, when he saw Robert smashing Prince Rhaegar's chest in with his mighty Warhammer. He remembered the Triumph he felt on the ride to King's Landing, knowing that his Father and Brother would soon be avenged and his Sister rescued!
And then...the Sack of King's Landing. The muder of Elia and her Children. Robert standing over the Corpses of the babys and disdainfully calling them 'Dragonspawn', pardoning their Muderers. His obvious hatred an Paranoia. The Tower of Joy. The fight against the Kingsguard. The deaths of his Friends and his Sister. Him being forced to hide Jon's true Heritage, knowing that his Sisters son would be killed the second he found out.
Then...Pyke. The day he realized once and for all that the Man he once called his Brother in all but blood was gone forever. This monstrous Atrocity made him fear for the first time that, in the end, they had replaced one mad King with another. A fear that had been confirmed by the Horror of the Dragon Screams.
Over the last years, he had learned to...compromise. Had learned that, in order to keep his Family and the North save, sometimes even Honor had to be cast aside in favor of doing what was necessary. As time went on, he had found himself more and more on the side of the Targaryen Exiles. And now, tomorrow, he would fight against his former best Friend AND his Foster Father to restore the Son of the very King he had fought to depose on the Throne.
Life worked in strange ways. And the Gods, whether Old or New, had to take cruel amusement in the Irony of it all.
Ned's eyes once again came to rest on the fires of the enemy Camp in the Distance. He wondered what Robert and Jon Arryn were thinking now. Were they confident? Angry? Afraid? Did they, perhaps, feel even a sliver of remorse and sorrow to about how thing had ended up this way?
...Would either of the three of them still be alive after tomorrow?
Once more, Ned closed his eyes. A single tear rolled down his cheek as he remembered the joyful days of his Youth.
How did it all go so wrong...?
A.N.: Aaaaaaand SCENE!! I'm honestly proud of this one. Expect the next part sometime tomorrow. That one will be dealing with Bobby, Jon Arryn and (maybe) Viserys and Ser Barristan.
I REALLY liked writing this part. I think that Ned, after undergoing his Character Development in this Quest and learning the truth about Aerys' last Plan, would come to realize that maybe Jaime had been, at least to a degree, justified in his Actions...while Jaime, after HIS Character Development, would come to admit that Ned still had been right about some things he accused him off, if for the wrong Reasons. I enjoyed writing the Scene between the two of them.
And then, of course, there's Ned. Sweet merciful Old and New Gods, Ned...
Not gonna lie, he is one of the Characters in this Quest I feel the most sorry for. Yes, he is doing the right thing here, morally as well as pragmatically...but he is still siding against his former best Friend and Foster Father. He had to watch how the Robert Baratheon he knew and loved like a Brother essentially died and was replaced by a Monster no better then the Man who murdered his Father and Brother. And now, he has to assist the Son of that Man to put down this Monster that wears his old Friend's skin and talks in his Voice.
Not to mention that I have little doubt of how future Historians, no matter who wins this War, will likely portray him as a ruthless, opportunistic Schemer whose Loyalty was as fragile and fleeting as Dust in the Wind and who betrayed two Kings in a row, one of them his former best Friend. But that last one could just me being cynical...
Overall, I hope you enjoyed this one. See ya tomorrow with Part 2!
