Wish You The Best / Jaime Lannister / Tywin Lannister

23. Your Move

"What are they doing here?"

"Protecting me, I assume. Will you let me in?" Cersei questioned.

" No, I don't think so." Tyrion countered through the door.

" If I wanted to kill you, do you think I'd let a wooden door stop me?" Cersei pondered. Tyrion considered that

"They stay outside."

"I'm not afraid of you, little brother." Cersei assured him. He grabbed an axe and opened the cautiously, he closed and secured it quickly behind her.

"Why are you here?" Tyrion demanded but there was another little knock on the door. Tyrion scowled back at her. Cersei stared innocently. "WHO IS IT?" 

"Zaria." Her voice was small behind the door. "Tyrion?" Tyrion opened the door slightly and zaria peered in hesitantly. "Um... I can come back." She assured. 

"No, you will be my witness, and body guard." Tyrion decided. 

"Oh Tyrion your face," Zaria knelt before him. "Does it hurt terribly?"

"Terribly." Tyrion agreed. 

" I wanted to see your face as well." Cersei agreed.  "They said you'd lost your nose, but it's not as gruesome as all that." Cersei realized.

"I wanted to see you." Zaria clarified. "Check on you."

"Thank you Zaria, you are the sister I always wanted." Tyrion agreed. He turned stiffly to Cersei. "The man who cut me lost more than his nose."

"I should hope so. The rebels came for Joffrey's head, they lost their own. Thanks to Father." Cersei added.

"Thanks to Father. Of course, it wasn't a rebel who tried to kill me." Tyrion informed her.

" No? Curious." Cersei shrugged. "Bit of a comedown from chamber of the Hand. But then I don't suppose you need much room."

"Grand Maester Pycelle made the same joke. You must be proud to be as funny as a man whose balls brush his knees." Tyrion seethed.

"THis is a family meeting." Zaria realized. 

"Which you are not." Cersei agreed. 

"I have paper work that says otherwise." Zaria countered. "Lady Zaria Lannister, lady of casterly rock." Zaria smiled resting her hand clasped hands on her baby bump. "Your move, Cersei." 

"Do you know how long it's going to take us to get to King's Landing walking through fields and forests?"

"Yes." Brienne answered.  She occasionally pushed Jaime forward.

"It will take forever!" Arthur declared. "I will be 20 by the time we get there." 

"You hear that? His mother will have missed so many name days, she wont even know who Arthur is." Jaime decided. 

"What?" Arthur demanded. 

"I'm kidding a mother knows." Jaime assured. " So how shall we pass the time?" Jaime pondered.

"By putting one foot in front of the other." Brienne suggested.

"We could run." Arthur suggested. "Or get horses. That would be better." 

"We walk." Brienne corrected. 

"It's going to be a very dull walk." Arthur mumbled, Jaime smiled trying to reach out for him before realizing his hands were still bound. 

" I'm here to take you both to King's Landing and bring back Lady Stark's daughters in exchange. Dull is fine."

"You know, it doesn't matter how loyal a servant you are, no one enjoys the company of a humorless mute. Trust me on this. People have been serving me since I was born. You think Lady Stark is going to want a giant towheaded plank following her around for the rest of her life? A week's journey with you and she'll order you to fall on your sword." Jaime informed her.

"If Lady Stark is unhappy with any aspect of my service, I'm sure she'll let me know. She's an honest woman." Brienne countered.

" All the good it's done her." Jaime murmured. "I have to piss." 

"I could use a break." Arthur agreed. 

"Relieve yourself." Brienne instructed. Jaime gestured to his hands. 

"Unless you want to hold it, but I dont think my wife would like that." Jaime added. Brienne cut him free and Arthur plopped down pulling off a shoe pulling the little pebbles from his sole. 

"How did you come into Lady Stark's service? There's something we can talk about." Jaime remarked relieving himself on a tree.

" Not your concern, Kingslayer."

"It had to be recently. You weren't with her at Winterfell." Jaime realized.

" How would you know?"

" Because I visited Winterfell. I would have noticed your dour head smacking into the archways." Jaime informed her. She yanked harshly on his leash.

"move." She demanded.

" Were you pledged to Stannis?" Jaime countered stuffing himself back into his pants. He looked to Arthur and he shoved his shoe on quickly and tried to get a few paces ahead of them. 

" Gods, no."

" Ah, Renly. Really? He wasn't fit to rule over anything more important than a 12-course meal." Jaime informed her.

" Shut your mouth." Brienne hissed.

" Why? I lived with him at court since he was a boy, don't forget. Could hardly escape the little tulip. Skipping down the corridors in his embroidered silks. I knew him far better than you."

" I knew him as well as anyone. As a member of his Kingsguard, he trusted me with everything. He would have been a wonderful king." Brienne corrected.

"Sounds like you quite fancied him." Jaime pushed.

" I did not fancy him." She grumbled.

" Oh, gods, you did." Jaime realized.

"Sorry lady, i'm more his type.'' Arthur chuckled under his breath. 

 "Did you ever tell him? No, of course not. You weren't Renly's type, I'm afraid." Jaime agreed, she yanked on him again.  " He preferred curly-haired little girls like Loras Tyrell. You're far too much man for him." Jaime assured her.

"I'm not interested in foul rumors."

" Unless they're about me. It's all true about Renly. His proclivities were the worst kept secret at court. It's a shame the throne isn't made out of cocks. They'd have never got him off it."

" Shut your mouth!" She shouted shoving him against a tree her face close to his. Arthur stared wide eyed. Jaime's gaze shifted to him in a silent instruction to get ready to run. 

" I don't blame him. And I don't blame you, either. We don't get to choose who we love."

"Beloved family." Arthur cut in and Brienne released jaime just a bit. 

'Where are you headed?" an old man questioned. Arthur moved to Jaime's side. 

" South. You?" Brienne answered.

"Riverrun. Staying off the kingsroad, are you? They get you no matter where you go. You can't win." The man answered.

" No, you really can't." Jaime agreed.

"Looks like you're safe enough, though. Meaning no offense, my lady, but I wouldn't tangle with you. Seven blessings to you." The man added.

" And you." Brienne agreed.

" He knows who I am." Jaime murmured as the man glanced back at them.

"He doesn't." Brienne corrected.

' Maybe you're right. But what if you're not? What if he tells someone?"

'We will never make it home." Arthur informed Brienne in case her silence meant stupidity. 

"We're not doing it. He's an innocent man." Brienne countered.

"More innocent than Lady Stark's daughters?"