Of Lions, Wolves, and Dragons (Jon Snow)

8. Decisions

Joellyn sat by Ned Stark's bedside.  She could not believe what had happened between him and Jaime.  She had told Jaime to not be rash.  She supposed that he didn't make the promise to not be rash, but this seemed borderline suicidal.  She had heard Cersei screaming earlier about how Catelyn had captured Tyrion.  Not that Cersei actually cared about Tyrion, but it was an insult to the Lannister family to capture him.  Then she was told about the fight that had happened between Jaime and Ned Stark and she began yelling some more about the Stark family and how the Starks needed to be punished.  Joellyn didn't know what to feel right now.  She felt trapped in an impossible situation.  She was beyond upset that Catelyn had captured Tyrion, especially since no one seemd to know the motive behind her actions.  But Joellyn was also upset that Ned Stark was laying in bed after being given milk of the poppy to put him to sleep to allow the maester to work on him.  Jaime went too far.  Ned should never have been touched, much less injured like this.

Sansa and Arya had been the hardest part of this whole situation.  When the girls were in the room earlier, it was like watching two people fall apart.  No matter how much the maester assured the girls that he would wake up, they could not be comforted.  Joellyn tried to explain what happened, but she struggled to be able to tell them.  All she could get out was, "Lady Catelyn captured my brother, Tyrion.  My brother Jaime told me about it, but he did not know the motive.  When he left me, he said he was going to talk to your father to figure out why this had happened.  I do not know why my brother did this."  The girls looked at her with pain in their eyes, but it was not anger.  At least not anger with her.  Sansa and Arya had been understanding with her.  Joellyn explained that she was concerned for Tyrion, but she would have never believed Jaime would do this and that she was praying for their father's recovery.  Both girls ended up hugging her as they left, thanking her for watching over him.

Soon, King Robert and Cersei came to Ned's room.  Upon seeing her in there, Robert greeted her kindly, but Cersei was less kind, "What do you mean by being in here?  This man is responsible for one of our brothers being captured and the other fleeing the city."

Joellyn wanted to reply, but Robert spoke before she got a chance to, "Gods, you are a trying woman.  I'm sure she wants to know the facts of the situation just like we do.  And don't forget that she is to marry Ned's son.  She'll be wanting to update him on his father's condition, won't you girl?"

Joellyn nodded, but Cersei continued to glare at her saying, "I want you out.  We're here to speak with him when he wakes and you have no business here.  Be gone."

Joellyn was in no mood to argue, so she simply stood and left the room.  She would come back and check on Ned later.  She began wandering through the Keep to try to find something or someone to occupy her time.  Eventually, she ffound her way to Sansa's room and sat with her.  They exchanged a few words about Ned's condition and some polite pleasantries, but they ultimately just sat in each other's company.  Sansa was doing some needlework and Joellyn found a book to read.  There was at least some comfort for both of them in being in the company of someone they cared for, even if they were not speaking to each other.  They were joined by the septa also, and she tried to make conversation with Sansa, but she was not having it and ended up being rather rude.  It was understandable for her to be in a bad mood, but she was rude nonetheless.

Joellyn was saved from the awkwardness of an argument between Sansa and her septa when there was a knock at the door and Joffrey came into the room.  He spoke to Sansa saying, "My lady. I fear I have behaved monstrously these past few weeks.  With your permission?"

He handed her a necklace, which she accepted gratefully saying, "It's beautiful, like the one your mother wears."

Joellyn excused herself before she had to hear any more.  Joffrey could turn on the charm when he needed to, but he would always be a cruel, angry boy.  Sansa was living in her perfect world again, though, so she would allow Sansa to enjoy the perfection before it came crashing down on her again.  She decided to go back to Lord Stark's room to check on him and see how he was recovering.  She was expecting a letter from Robb any day now, so she wanted to be able to be honest with him about what happened and how his father's condition was.  Ned Stark, however, was not in his room.  The only other logical places for him to be were the Throne Room or the Council Chambers.  She would not be able to make it to the Council Chambers, but she could at least go to the Throne Room and see if she could find Ned there.