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THE RED KEEP ( KING'S LANDING )
THE PALACE IS SILENT AS ISOLDE WALKS BACK TO HER CHAMBERS ONE NIGHT.
The hallways are eerily quiet as she makes her way down them, not even a lantern to guide her, and she shivers in her thin silk dress.
She arrives at her door but pauses before entering. Her mind has been weighed down the past few days, a tension has spread between her and her siblings, and it's beginning to put a strain on her heart. Isolde loves her brother and sister, there's no doubt about that — but sometimes she just feels so separate from them, so different, that she can't help but wonder if they love her as much as they love each other.
The relationship between Margaery and Isolde has always been strange; they were close as children — but as they grew older, so did the distance between them, until gradually they spent more time apart than together. Now, as Margaery flourishes in her young adult years whilst Isolde almost cowers in the shadow of her regal sister, they are less in sync than they used to be — a fact which saddens Isolde deeply, though she knows she can't deny its truth.
Loras, however, has always been there for Isolde, despite their difference in age, and has vowed to show his youngest sister the same amount of adoration and attention that he gives Margaery. There have been so many nights that he would comfort Isolde if she woke from a nightmare, staying with her and holding her tight, helping her drift off to sleep before either of their parents even had the chance to wake from their own peaceful slumber. He has always been gentle with her, always relenting before a feud could brew between them, maybe that's why Isolde feels so unnerved by their lack of communication since arriving in King's Landing.
Perhaps that's also the reason she finds herself turning away from her door and walking further down the hall, stopping in front of her brother's room instead. She raises her hand to knock, but before her knuckles can connect with the dark wood it swings open, revealing a stormy eyed blonde man, whose startled expression mirrors her own. He flashes her an awkward smile then quickly pushes past her and practically flies down the corridor, leaving Isolde to stare at the back of his retreating figure in bewilderment. "Isolde?" She brings her attention back to the room in front of her as her brother appears in the doorway.
"May I come in?" She asks hesitantly, to which he replies with a nod and small smile, opening the door for her to enter. She ponders for a moment, then realises why the man looked so familiar. Her mind flashes back to barely a week prior when she first arrived in the Great Hall, and saw the young knight standing next to the throne. "Who was that I saw leaving your room just now?" She asks curiously as he walks over to the table, pulling up a chair and sitting down. She remains standing.
