DEFILING HONOR - aemond targaryen (DISCONTINUED)

vii. a knight

'Kiyara!' She was just walking back to her chambers when Ser Aurane Pyle called out to her. The maid turned around but not before she hid the purse with money the Queen gave her in her skirt pocket. The maid's face was flushed and her hair untidy, but Kiyara did not want to worry the knight so she put on the best fake smile she could muster. But the boy was not stupid. She might have forgotten how she looked like when she was about to cry, but Aurane certainly did not. That view was engraved in his brain. He wanted her to laugh and smile and look at him with those mischievous eyes.

'How did it go over?'
'I should not talk about it-'
'You think I don't know about the hefty sum of gold coins they have tried to buy your silence with?' The girl looked around cautiously, she did not want anyone to hear and spread the word. She was in deep trouble already; she did not need to lose her tongue too.

'Please, Ser, don't talk so loud and openly about this matter. I am grateful for your help that night, if I could I would repay you some- Wait a minute! Here-' she handed him the gold coins. '-you can take it. All of it. Now we can forget about what you saw, what you heard and what you were questioned about.' Kiyara's eyes glistened with tears, she wanted to keep everybody safe, she was such a shameful woman, putting all her close friends in danger. And she did not like how he implied she had a choice in this matter.
Ser Aurane threw away the purse. A loud ringing sound of coins running all around the hall cut through the silence. The knight took her hands in his and put them on his chest.

'You really think I would take money from you? Do you really think I did it because I wanted something in return? Oh, my sweet Kiyara, I did it for you. For you to get away from that abusive of a cunt, who dares to call himself a prince. He is no more than just dishonourable scum, who hurts women and takes their virtues for his enjoyment.' The girl trembled with fear, her dark eyes burned with salty tears. What if somebody heard them? Her voice quieted down to a whisper.

'Ser, please be silent. What if-'
'I do not care if anybody hears. Kiyara, I have an offer for you. Come to my home. I can bring you to my father's estate; you can work there and be safe. The worst that ever happened there was an invasion of mice. You will be safe there. And in a few years...' I could get you to forget the Targaryen prince and make you fall in love with me - that is what he wanted to say...
The girl staggered back, her hands still clasped in his. She was shaking her head no; she did not understand the full meaning of the words he said. She felt her blood running through her veins, she wanted to get away. With her fingertips she could feel his fast heartbeat, it did not calm her like it used to.

'No, no, no, no!' her voice gradually got louder until she was yelling to his face. Kiyara got herself out of his grasp and ran towards the servants' rooms.

Aurane stood there like a stone statue, he did not move for a while. He then picked up the leather purse and walked the other way. Even though he was more than a decent knight, he was in too much emotional distress to notice a dark figure lurking in one of the nooks.

Kiyara has held her tongue tightly, she did not utter a word when her roommates questioned her about her whereabouts. They thought she went out to the town with Aurane, which was partly true, she did indeed spend some time with the noble knight, but they knew nothing about how the Queen brought her to her chambers and paid for her silence, which at this point was quite pointless. Apparently, more than a few people knew about what was happening behind closed doors of the second-born prince of King Viserys.

----

The next night a knight appeared by their door. He was sent by Aemond. This time neither Darla nor Elle protested, they just cast looks of pity on Kiyara. The peasant requested for the messenger to be patient, she needed to get ready. The man covered by shadows just groaned but complied with her request. The girl then combed her hair softly, took out a new nightgown and Elle helped her to put on a new perfume the older girl bought the day before.