A Beast's Heart (english version)

55.

We had fallen asleep with the last rays of sunlight of the previous day and I awoke with the first sign of dawn. No nightmare had plagued me, no I had finally been able to sleep peacefully again.
With my eyes still a little blurry, I looked around, slowly realising the room and the warm chest beneath me. In my sleep I had laid my head on Tywin's chest, I felt his hand soft and warm on my back. Again I closed my eyes for a moment, enjoying the silence and the soft snoring of the lion. I suppressed a laugh and raised my head. Completely still he lay there, visibly more relaxed than usual. Carefully I freed myself from his half embrace and rose. He stirred briefly, turned on his side and went back to sleep. I threw my robe back on and slipped outside. No one should know that I had stayed with him! I didn't want half the court to tear their mouths apart about my lion.
Your lion?
I stopped in the middle of a corridor and stared into space for a moment. My lion... Unofficially, we were... Yes, what were we actually? Definitely more than lord and servant, that much was certain!
I almost ran straight into a maid. She was carrying a mountain of dirty laundry in a large basket in front of her, and I hurriedly took a step to the side to avoid her. She disappeared around the corner and I kept running. It felt like hours before I finally reached my chamber. The castle was huge and I had no idea where I was until I finally reached my destination. I closed the door behind me and took a breath for a moment. Although I had received a few astonished looks from soldiers and other servants, I was not addressed except for the obligatory polite "Morning". Why should they address you, I asked myself in my mind. You just got up early and started working already, what's the big deal?
I pulled a new robe out of the small wardrobe and slipped into it. I had to postpone the bath until a later, quiet minute. After all, the lion would soon awaken and I was willing to wake him. I would not let myself be deprived of that...

The kitchen was not quite as huge as in Harrenhal, but still damn big. Three maids had gathered around the fireplace and I couldn't help thinking of Margaret. I missed her growled "morning." Here I was new and strange again, not knowing how to deal with the other maids. So I just went to the pantry by myself and returned to the fireplace with a piece of ham.
"You're new here, aren't you?" one of the maids asked abruptly and I nodded, "I thought so, otherwise you would have known that breakfast would be served later. So you'll have to live with your hunger for now. Take that away again."
I looked at her, my blue-grey eyes boring into her brown ones. The red hair was already greying at the roots. I couldn't suppress my amused snort.
"The ham was not meant for me. Lord Tywin is used to being woken up with a ready-made breakfast, besides, he didn't eat anything last night and he had instructed me to help watch his eating routine."
Of course, that was a complete lie, but why should I tell them the truth?
"Can you even handle it?" asked a second maid. She was corpulently built, her voice raspier than many a man's. If I didn't know better, I would have guessed she was more of a fishwife. I didn't let myself be put off, I turned and turned the ham in the small pan. I already disliked her very much. I merely glanced at her and asked only one counter question.
"Do you think I would stand here and do it myself if I couldn't?"
"What is your name?" asked the third maid. She appeared to be about my age, her roundish face framed by dark blonde curls.
"Lena," I answered curtly, "And you?"
"I'm Yara," the young one replied, pointing to the other two, "And these are Elysa and Leonore."
Elysa, the corpulent one with the manly voice, rolled her eyes and dropped back onto her stool.
"Now that you've introduced us so nicely, I'd suggest you go ahead and fetch some flour and water so we can bake some fresh bread right away. Hurry, hurry, or do you want to grow tight here?"
Yara gave me an annoyed look, then took off running. I looked for a plate and put the finished ham on it.
"Let me see," Leonore asked, immediately eyeing Tywin's breakfast, "Not bad.... Who taught you that?"
"My mother," I replied curtly, feeling a painful tug in my chest again at the memory.
"Is she also a maid at court?" continued Leonore. A very curious person. I snorted softly and lowered my head.
"No. She died when I was little."
"And your father?"
The question came from Elysa. Had I ended up in an interrogation here?
"I'm sorry, but I have to go now. Lord Tywin must be hungry by now."
I saw the displeasure in the pairs of eyes of the two maids, but I didn't care. Why should I do them the favour of telling my life story? I didn't know them, I didn't trust them. They had to satisfy their curiosity with someone else. Besides, I was simply not willing to reopen old wounds, when they were now so slowly trying to heal....