The she-wolf and the lion

Chapter 123 - one of his happiest days

"That was one of his happiest days, when he was free to be betrothed to his lady Lyra", Tyrion adds.
"I remember, he came to tell me about it right after it had happened, I was in the paddock with my horse Prince of Winter and Jaime's Wind-Sweeper, they were both but yearlings then", Rhaegar says. "I was 20, Jaime and your late sister were 17 and you were but 10, it was 2 years before he was captured by Benjen and Eddard Stark."
"I remember that lord Benjen and my father made a deal to keep the news about the pending betrothal a secret from my brother and lady Lyra, because our houses were at war, my brother was fighting in that war, as were the lords of house Stark", Tyrion says. "When the war ended in victory for house Stark and in my brother's capture, my father made sure that it would be Lyra who tortured him, because he knew she wouldn't kill Jaime, she would quite possibly inflict sexual torture upon him but she wouldn't kill him."
"But did the lords know that lady Lyra would fall in love with him?" Rhaegar asks.
"I believe they suspected that she would fall in love with him", Tyrion says. "If she hadn't already."
"I see", Rhaegar says.
"Cersei was furious about it, and thought that Lyra had cut Jaime when she saw the marks on him, but she hadn't, she had whipped him, and I think Cersei had forgotten that Jaime had been to war and had been marked from that", Tyrion says.
"Lyra told me that Cersei had said something like "my Jaime never sounded like that", to the septa, and that the septa had asked her how she knew what Jaime sounded like when he found his sexual release and Cersei told her that she'd heard Jaime when he pleasured himself when they were young", Rhaegar says.
"Ah yes, I remember that, I laughed so hard I pissed myself when I was told about that", Tyrion says reminiscing of that day, even though now long ago, still fresh in Tyrion's mind. "My lord father had to call on my servants to escort me to my rooms, especially when the words 'men don't always sound the same pleasuring themselves as they do when with a lover', were uttered."
"You mentioned some other moments in your brother's life as the happiest in his life, and in yours, I gather", Rhaegar says.
"Yes, now, let me think...oh yes, of course his wedding day, the day his heir, our nephew lord Daemon, was born, the day our second nephew lord Gerion was born and the day our niece lady Jariella was born and the day our third nephew young lord Jason was born", Tyrion says.
"He really loves his children", Rhaegar says with a smile.
"He really does, his wife and children are his everything, he even changed tradition when his heir was born, the tradition isn't for the father of the child to be present in the room during childbirth, but Jaime just smiled and asked which one of the women would propose to keep him out of the room and burst into the room and rushed up to Lyra's side", Tyrion says and Rhaegar booms with laughter. "He repeated it all over again when Gerion, Jariella and Jason were born."

Rhaegar turns to a servant.
"Bring food and wine for the hand and myself", Rhaegar says.
"Yes, your grace", the servant says, scurrying out of the Great Hall to bring food and drink for the king and his hand.

The servant along with two others returns after half an hour with food and wine for Rhaegar and Tyrion and they spend some time together talking, eating and drinking.
"You mentioned that you yourself and lady Sansa were possibly expecting too, are you or was it false alarm?" Rhaegar asks.
"We are expecting, lady Sansa is with child, we had letters sent to Winterfell and Casterly Rock yesterday", Tyrion says with a smile.
"Well, then I suppose congratulations are in order", Rhaegar says, raising his wine goblet to his royal advisor. "Do you know what the sex of the child is?"
"Lady Sansa told me that grand maester Pycelle believes the child is a boy, your grace", Tyrion says with a smile.
"Then congratulations are most definitely in order, my dear friend", Rhaegar says.