The Long Winter | Jaime Lannister X Stark OC | GOT/ASOIAF

King In All But Name

They stayed in Harrenhal long after the Northerners had left, awaiting the party from Casterly Rock to join them before going on to King's Landing. 

Giana would rather not have waited for her sister at all; the very idea of Cersei still made her blood boil, after hearing from her father what she'd done concerning the Starks, yet she would have to spend weeks in the woman's company. She had always disliked her sister, but never as much as Cersei hated her. Now she suspected that hatred was mutual.

It was rather amusing, however, to see the cold greeting her father gave Cersei upon her arrival. Giana felt a stab of satisfaction when Tyrion gleefully told her that the two guards who followed their sister wherever she went were clearly chosen by their father, not by her, and would not obey if Cersei told them to leave.

Joffrey was as vile as ever, of course. Being ousted from the throne had not humbled him one bit, and he still ranted about how he would have taken the heads of Loreon Storm and every single one of the Starks, instead of making peace with them. He wasn't shy about his opinions, either.

"And how did you suppose your grandfather do that given everyone has just signed a peace treaty?" Loreon had asked him, amused, as they all ate together the evening of their arrival. Lord Tywin's orders, of course, or no one would have come. "This is why you're not allowed to be king," 

Jaime, Tyrion and Myrcella all laughed, whilst Tommen and Giana cracked a smile. And though Giana's father was clearly displeased with the fact that his grandson would only be prince consort to Shireen rather than the ruling monarch - he likely viewed it as a problem he planned to correct in the future - at the same time even he seemed slightly relieved that this cruel, stupid boy would not be the most powerful man in the Seven Kingdoms.

"Who asked you, bastard?" Joffrey snarled viciously. "Your head should be on a pike on the walls of this castle, yet here you sit at dinner with us," 

One look at Cersei showed she thought much the same thing.

"I'm Lord Regent of the realm," Her son had grinned, more Robert's son than any of Cersei's golden-haired brood. "And Lord of Storm's End, even though I am a bastard. And it's funny that you in particular name me so,"

That earned him a disapproving glare from Lord Tywin, and a murderous one from Cersei. It seemed to go right over Joffrey's head, though Tyrion snorted and Jaime choked on the wine he'd just taken a sip of.

"Speaking of bastards," Joffrey turned triumphantly to Jaime. "I heard you sired two of them on that grim-faced Stark bitch, uncle. What did you see in that one? Obviously she was a whore, but I'm sure you could have paid for a better-looking one,"

Dead silence, though Cersei didn't even bother hiding her smirk.

Then Jaime smiled, so cold that it cut like a knife.

"Rosennis Stark was a lady, nephew. Though I've had one whore who was better-looking, I tend to find such women lacking,"

Tyrion laughed so hard at that he nearly fell off his chair. Giana gave up trying to keep a straight face and joined him, leaning against her little brother for support. Loreon was grinning, Myrcella looked half-horrified, half-amused whilst Cersei's gleaming smile had fixed in place, her eyes promising bloody vengeance. Jaime held her stare.

Joffrey simply looked confused, and unhappy they were laughing, presumably at his expense. 

"Bet she didn't look such a lady when Roose Bolton stabbed her in the heart," He snapped, reactive as ever. 

It took everyone a moment to realise what he'd said, but when they did, silence fell across the table. Oh Cersei, you fool, why did you tell him?