Dark Past, Bright Future (A Tyrion Lannister Love Story)

Caught in a Lie; the Hunt for Liam

Tyrion had been searching for Liam for a few days with no luck. If he had known why the boy was taken, he would have found the task easier. After the third day, Tyrion was ready to give up. He knew that he'd have to tell Lyra that her son was gone. Alyss stayed behind while Tyrion went down to the dungeon the day he decided to tell Lyra. It was not a happy meeting.

"WHAT?!" Lyra cried the moment the words passed through Tyrion's lips. "My son is missing and you are just now telling me?! You promised me that you would look after them!" Tyrion shrank away from her. He wasn't afraid of much, but Lyra's temper was a thing to behold. The lioness protecting her cub was nothing compared to the rage painted on Lyra's face at the moment.

"Ser Jaime!" she snapped, turning her head away from Tyrion. The youngest Lannister's heart sank to his shoes. Lyra was so angry, Tyrion was certain she would never forgive him. All hope he had for the two of them flew away. Jaime took a careful step toward the cell, worried that Lyra's ire would now be directed at him.

"I demand to see the queen." Jaime didn't argue and neither did Tyrion. Jaime simply let Lyra out of her cell and beckoned her to follow. With a glare at Tyrion, Lyra left her cell and followed after Jaime. The anger was radiating off the woman as the trio made their way to the throne room where Queen Daenerys was.

"Ser Jaime, Lord Hand, what is the meaning of this?" the queen asked. Both men opened and closed their mouths repeatedly, unsure of how to answer. Emboldened by concern and fury, Lyra stepped forward and curtsied. "Please, Your Grace. I know I am a prisoner, accused of something I am innocent of, but now I beseech you. Let me go. My son...my s-son-" Lyra cut off when the tears came flowing freely.

Lyra nearly sank to the ground, but Jaime caught her. At this point, Daenerys rose from her throne and came down to where the trio was standing. "What has happened, Lord Tyrion?" Tyrion sighed. The guilt was weighing down on him. "Lyra's son was taken for nights ago. I have been unsuccessful in my search for the boy, just as I was for the one who accused Lyra."

"Please, Your Grace," Lyra's soft voice pleaded, "Please let me go find my son. My children are all I have left." Tyrion looked to see that Lyra had a firm grip on Jaime's cloak and had to fight the jealousy coursing through him. He'd brought this on himself when he failed to protect Liam. Daenerys nodded once. "Yes. You must find your son." Lyra let go of Jaime and gave the queen a watery smile. "Thank you, Your Grace." Lyra turned to leave them room, with Jaime on her heels. "Lyra, I-" Tyrion started but Lyra's glare cut him off. "We will talk about this later. Now, I'm going to find my son. You can go back to Alyss and see if you can do a better job of keeping her safe than you did Liam."

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"I'm also learning how to use a blade. Uncle Jaime is teaching me," Liam told Mila proudly. Mila groaned. For nearly four straight days, Liam had been talking non-stop when he was awake. How did Tyrion deal with this? The thought of Tyrion kept Mila from flying off the handle. Once again, she had hired someone to do her dirty work. This time, a messenger to get a notice to Tyrion. A ransom note for his son.

Liam frowned when Mila didn't seem to understand the importance of his fighting lessons. He'd been talking to her mostly because he was bored. Actually, he rather liked Mila, despite the fact that she wouldn't let him go home. But, he did miss his sister and his mother. He even missed Tyrion. He'd been telling Mila for three days straight that Tyrion was his father and he was starting to believe it himself. The thought made him smile. It would be nice to have a father again.

"I miss my father. When can I go back?" Liam asked, making Mila stop pacing. "You can go back when, and only when, your father comes to me." Liam quirked a brow. "You don't know my mother. She will be after you too and, if I were you, I would not want to be anywhere near King's Landing when she does." Mila rolled her eyes and responded, "Your mother does not frighten me."

Liam was silent for a few moments. It was true that his mother was not a particularly scary woman, but she could be quite frightening when she wanted to be. Then, Liam remembered that Tyrion asked about a black-haired woman as well as whispered conversations between Tyrion, Jaime and Littlefinger about someone called "Mila". Liam cocked his head to the side. Mila was the name of the woman that had attacked his mother. His eyes widened in realization and, for the first time since the situation began, Liam felt afraid.

He would never show it though. So, instead, he smiled and said, "I think you're lying. I think my mother does frighten you. She scares you so much, you attacked her. You told the Queen that she was a traitor and had her thrown in the dungeon." Mila whipped around to face the boy with a devious smirk."Lyra is your mother? Well this is a surprise. And, it means that you have been lying to me. Tyrion Lannister isn't your father after all." Liam swallowed thickly, knowing he'd been caught in his lie.