A Champion of Light and Lions (Cersei Lannister x OC)

18 - Behind Bars Of Feathers

The newly reestablished Faith Militant wasted no time in following Cersei's hint and arresting Loras Tyrell on charge of fornication. Margaery was furious, of course, pleading with Tommen to help her brother, but he was powerless against their holy order. The king could not put himself above the gods, after all.

Cersei was mightily satisfied with herself. So far, it seemed like her plan was coming to fruition perfectly, with no sign of negative consequences yet.

"Didn't I tell you it would be fine?", she sighed as she let herself fall back onto the bed that night.

I smiled mildly, propped up on my elbows next to her, and rested the back of my head against the plush headboard. "You did. I'm still not sure I agree, but for now..." I laughed as she cuffed my arm, lifting my head again to look down at her. "Hey, what was that for?"

"Being a killjoy", she replied, grinning. "Just let me have this. It won't be long now before Margaery decides to confront the sparrows herself and draws unwanted attention to herself. And once they expose her sins, her marriage to Tommen can be annulled, and I'll have my son and my crown back at last. Whatever happens after that, I'll deal with it."

"We will." I took her hand, my thumb running circles over its back.

She rolled onto her side, facing me. "Thank you for sticking with me in this, in spite of the doubts I know you have."

"Always", I replied, edging closer to her. "That's what partners are for. Whether we agree on something or not, we see it through together." I kissed her forehead. "You're stuck with me now."

She grinned. "Wouldn't want it any other way, darling."

With both of us still smiling wide, my tongue slipped easily into her mouth when our lips met. I was not usually one for passionate acts like this, but with her... It was so easy to let go, to lose myself in the magic of the moment and explore our love without inhibitions.

When we parted again, breathless, Cersei suddenly jumped up. "Oh, I nearly forgot! I received quite an interesting letter from Baelish earlier, I was supposed to write back to him immediately. I want that raven to go out first thing tomorrow morning - time is of the essence." She climbed off the bed and walked over to the desk, picking up an inkpot and a quill.

"Baelish?", I asked sharply, the name suddenly making sense of a loose end I had almost dismissed as a problem for another day. "I think... I saw something about him in the flames last night, when I prayed for guidance concerning the sparrow situation. I didn't realize it might be about him until you mentioned him just now, but... there was a bird - a mockingbird, I realize now - flying in the snow."

"He's in the North right now", Cersei said slowly, turning around in her chair to look at me. "He found Sansa Stark. She has married Roose Bolton's bastard son - well, I suppose he's been legitimized now. Stannis is in the North too, planning to move against the Boltons. Baelish has requested permission to take the army of the Vale there to fight whoever survives their battle and become Warden of the North. I think I will approve it. If he secures the North for us, we'll have one less kingdom to worry about - quite a large one at that."

I nodded. "I agree, controlling another kingdom is a good move. But be careful - never fully trust Baelish. In my vision, I was told that the mockingbird has betrayed you once before, and he will do it again before his life's flame flickers out. Keep an eye on him."

"Only a fool would trust Littlefinger", she replied. "Betrayal is practically his middle name. He's an opportunist who only serves his own gain. The trick to getting him to work for you is to make sure you're more useful to him than everyone else."