moonlight10
patreon
Lannister : Chapter 37: Vicious Discussion
🕑 Added 2025-05-13 14:34:01 +0000 UTC
( Cersei Lannister POV )
The space between the Prince's Tourney stands and those for the King's Tourney was about half a mile across, and it was a mess of tents, banners, hastily erected stables, outhouses, and more, all spread across the field haphazardly below King's Landing's walls with little thought to order or practicality.
All of the above were painted in the bright colors and patterns of different Coats of Arms, from the greatest of high lords, and even the King's own tents, all the way down to the lowly hedge knights who sought to do well in the tourney and earn the patronage of a more significant patron.
Thousands of men, women, and quite a lot of children milled about the area after the Prince's tourney, perusing food stands set up by enterprising merchants or playing in terribly unfair tourney games designed to cheat children out of their halfpennies. Mummers performed small skits or played cheerful music to draw crowds and donations, and all across the tourney there was an air of good fun and cheerful entertainment.
Of course, nobody would pick Cersei, her brilliant gold hair covered up by a scarf, out from the larger crowd of children at the tourney. Indeed, no one would notice that she was moving between the tents with an intent that most of them lacked, shadowing behind her younger brother as he made his way towards the stands.
Of course, she was also taking significant pains not to be spotted. Back a long way, she had actually lost Callum and Ser Clegane once or twice, as they meandered through the tent city, but it helped that she knew where they were going, so she was able to head them off and catch up to them by cutting through the alleys between the-
"It's not fair, mother!" Cersei blinked, pausing between steps as she heard a shout from the tent next to her. Green and gold and quite large… was this House Tyrell's tent? Curious, she stopped to press her ear against the folds. "Why do I have to lose?"
Cersei thought back for a moment, she recognized the voice, it was- ah, from the feast, that was Mace Tyrell, the other boy besides Jaime who'd been good in the tourney.
"Hush boy, there's nothing to be gained by winning." And that was Lady Olenna! What were they scheming now? Cersei did want to catch up to her brother, but she was also eager to hear what the Tyrells were up to… well, she could wait a minute, they were supposed to meet that Wh- Princess Elia in the Martell box anyway. "Can't you see that? It doesn't serve our purposes at all."
"It serves mine!" Mace protested angrily. "You already forced me to fight in the Prince's Tourney instead of the King's, now you're telling me to lose it on purpose?" he sounded exasperated, and Cersei's eyes narrowed. Mace Tyrell had been going to fight in the King's tourney?
"It isn't worth it if it starts a grudge with the Lannisters." Lady Olenna said sternly, just on the other side of the fabric from Cersei. "You've already done well enough, you'll be a knight in good time, don't let your love of glory get ahead of your thinking mind."
Cersei had to hold her gasp in with her hand, Lady Olenna was telling Mace to throw the tourney so that Jaime could win! She shook her head, hurrying away quickly. She had to tell- No, no she couldn't tell Jaime! If he knew then he would hate it more than anything. She couldn't really understand why they were doing that though, obviously, it would be bad if Mace beat Jaime, but it's not like Father would get mad at them for beating him in a tourney melee, that was just how tourneys were.
Nobody got mad at Ser Arthur Dayne for winning every joust in the past ten years that he participated in. She didn't think it was likely that they were simply that afraid of her father either. The Tyrells weren't the most important great house, but they were still strong enough that it would be foolish to pick a fight with them over something so petty, not unless Mace beat Jaime and really rubbed it in in front of the crowd, which seemed unlikely.
Cersei puzzled at the Tyrell's motivations as she finally managed to make it over to the stands. Immediately, she popped into the wooden framed structure and started moving towards the door of House Martell's box, easily recognizable from the sunburst banners around it.
Seeing that the door was shut, but the box level in the stands was empty, she crept up beside the door and pressed her ear to the crack, aided by the old wood of the tourney stands with plentiful gaps in the paneling.
"...lucky you're not talking to my father, Princess Elia." Callum's voice was quiet and tense, and Cersei felt her fingers tighten against her palm into a fist. Callum shouldn't sound like that, he should sound excited as he talks about some new toy he's working on in his workshop at dinner. "I'm glad he was willing to let me handle this."
"I… suppose I appreciate that." Princess Elia sounded contrite, but Cersei didn't trust it. She might be trying to deceive him with a false act of repentance. Cersei knew that some of the maids got away with cheating on their husbands by pretending to repent before the seven, but then went on to cheat and cheat again. Cersei wouldn't let that happen to Callum. "I… Callum I hope you will accept my apology, I was caught in the moment during the feast, and I forgot myself."
"Caught in the moment with Prince Rhaegar?" Callum asked, sounding a bit bitter. Cersei cheered him on in her head, hoping that Callum would really lay into her for acting as if it was nothing, for offering a paltry apology when she should be falling on her knees and begging and- "I suppose that's understandable. From when we spoke at Casterly Rock, he's just what you want isn't he?"
'No, No Callum! You're falling for her Dornish wiles!' Cersei cursed her luck, of course, her brother would be too soft to see through the lies. He was trying to see it through her eyes like a woman again. He needed to be assertive, and force her to admit the scale of her error properly!
"He-" Elia choked a little bit. "No-I…" she paused and Cersei could hear the quivering in her voice even through the door. "Y-you're right. I-I'm sorry, he's just… he's what I've dreamed about since I was a little girl."
Cersei felt her blood run hot with rage, her fingernails digging into her palm. She was admitting to something like that! Telling Callum that? If Her husband breathed a word of dreaming of some other woman she'd hate him for the rest of his life! She might even kill him!
Cersei blinked as the fact that she was supposed to Marry Prince Rhaegar, the other half of the couple involved in this scandal, caught up with her. W-was he dreaming of Princess Elia too? She didn't want to marry him if he was! She'd have to tell Father to check-
"I thought so." Callum's voice brought Cersei back to reality and sent her concern right back up through the roof as well. You should be angry, Callum! Angry! "So, what do you want to do then? It would be painful I think, for both our houses to break our betrothal, but if you're that certain Prince Rhaegar is the man you want-"
"N-no! It was a slip, nothing more!" Elia said, and Cersei blinked as she sounded much more panicked now. It was gratifying hearing that tone in her voice. "As I said, I lost myself, it shall never happen again!"
"Is that true, Princess Elia? How can I be sure of it?" Cersei blinked, for a moment there, Callum had sounded like Father, though his tone softened after a moment. "I mean it, I want to know. I don't want to spit on my mother's wishes any more than you do yours." Cersei felt disappointment again. Her brother just couldn't get it, he had been so close to holding her over a barrel and forcing concessions out of her, or better yet making her suffer. "I was familiar with their correspondence you know, I was at my mother's side a lot before she died."
"I… I did not." Elia admitted. "I… do not want to break my word, or my mother's, what you say is true." the quiver was back as she continued. "I… you… I promise I will be faithful, Callum, I besmirched your honor and my own with the way I behaved at the feast. I will never do so again, I can be true to that at least, for my heart has been scarred this morning, and I do not seek to feel this pain twice." Princess Elia sighed. "I will banish fantasies of knights and handsome men from my heart then, and accept that I am to be with you, as you are."
The tone of her voice left little in doubt when she said 'as you are'. The derision, the disappointment, the dismissal of Callum as a viable husband and a man.
That was too far.
Cersei saw red, her heartbeat thundering in her ears as she kicked the door to the private box open in a blind fury. Inside, Elia, Callum, and Ser Clegane were barely turning to face her before she was spitting invective at the princess. "You shut your mouth you blind snake in the grass!" she pointed straight at the rather shocked-looking Princess Elia.
"Lady Cersei-" Ser Clegane was first to stand, but Cersei wasn't done, not even near done.
"You dare speak badly to Callum to his face! Just because he's too womanly to argue with you? You act like you're doing him a favor when you've wronged him and twisted your words to lie and deceive?" Cersei didn't slow down an inch as Callum raised his hands to try to calm her. "The second time you see him and you go chasing after the Prince at Dinner? DREAMING ABOUT HIM?" Cersei was screaming now. "I ought to rip your filthy Dornish tongue from your head for the lies you're feeding my brother! Tear it out and feed it to pigs!"
She only stopped because she ran out of breath, panting as she held a finger of accusation at Elia like a shining spearpoint of justice. The woman shocked speechless (no doubt by the truth of her words) as Ser Clegane shuffled forward, placing a hand on Cersei's shoulder. "Er, Lady Cersei, you shouldn't be here for-"
"Ser Clegane!" She turned her glare up at the man, and he actually paused for a second. "You are here to protect Callum's person, but obviously he needs someone to protect his wellbeing also, lest he listen to all of this woman's pretty lies!"
Cersei stared up at the knight, and the knight stared down at her, his hand planted firmly on her shoulder.
"Alright-" Callum said, breaking the stalemate as they both turned to look at him. "I think this conversation has been derailed a bit, I'm not as interested in punishment as I am a plan to move-" Cersei prepared herself to comfort Callum properly as he spoke his calm platitudes but she felt her anger spike again as Princess Elia suddenly regained her control and interrupted him.
"I did not lie!" Princess Elia snapped. "I have not lied or deceived Callum, not once!" she stood up. "I could have! I could have pretended that I liked him better, or that I did not like Rhaegar so much! I could have lied right to his face but I did not!" The Dornishwoman rose to her feet, towering over Cersei as she marched over to look down on her.
"It is one thing to be angry with me because I do not like your brother, but it is quite another to accuse me of deceiving him!" Cersei saw tears forming at the edge of the Woman's eyes. Fake no doubt, trying to make Callum pity her even as she glared down balefully at Cersei as if Princess Elia was in the right and she was in the wrong.
Cersei stared right up into the woman's glare, Ser Clegane's hand still on her shoulder, but long forgotten from her mind. Green eyes met Hazel in a battle of wills.
Then she punched Princess Elia Martell in the stomach, hard.
It was oh-so gratifying to watch the much taller woman grab her diaphragm in pain, gasping as all the air was forced out of her throat. So gratifying in fact that Cersei didn't notice the other hand coming around towards her face.
The slap was about as hard as Cersei had never been hit, and she staggered back, a red mark already rising on her fair skin as her back hit the back wall of the Martell box, hatred still burning in her eyes like wildfire.
Then Ser Clegane finally managed to get himself between them, and it was all a mess after that.
