Lone Wolf || Tyrion Lannister

Chapter Twelve

Anari smiled at Shae as she held tie the last lace on Anari's dress. She wore a simple yet elegant mahogany dress with silver accents. As usual, though, she wore her boots under the dress. Shae had helped Anari brush and braid her hair in her usual style while she wore her direwolf pendant.

"Thank you, Shae," Anari said. "Please clean up a bit in here and have some food brought here for lunch." She ordered softly. Shae nodded in return as Anari left her chambers to begin her day. It had been a few days since Shae had begun working for Anari.

During those few days, Anari had taught Shae what she needed to do and what was to be expected of her. Tyrion had been right when he said that Anari was kind and smart. Shae had seen it first hand, and since their meeting, things had gotten better between the two.

Anari didn't trust Shae as much as she did Marleya, though, the woman was proving to be decent enough so far. However, Anari still kept a close eye on her just in case. If it weren't for the people there, Anari thought that King's landing may have been a nice place to be.

The weather seemed nice enough. While Anari had grown used to the coldness and harshness of Winterfell, she was starting to like the warmth of the sun and nicer weather in general. As she made her way down the hall, though, Anari could hear two ladies whispering as they passed her.

"I hear there was a big battle last night," one of them, a brunette, said. The other woman, a blonde, nodded along.

"They say that Robb Stark came during the night and destroyed the Lannister forces at Oxcross," Their words made Anari smile as she continued on. Reaching up, Anari touched the pendant her brother had given her. It gave her hope, while Oxcross was still quite far away; so far Robb had won every battle.

If he could keep winning, then he could come to King's Landing and bring her and Sansa home. They could find Arya, and they could all be together again. Anari decided to take a walk through the gardens, smiling at the smell of the fresh blooms. Walking over to a bush, she leaned down to smell one of them.

As she walked, Anari spotted a small bush of pale blue flowers. Wandering closer, Anari knew what they were. Her fingers ran over the soft petals of one of the roses as she couldn't help but think of Winterfell and how beautiful the blue flowers looked when they bloomed.

She also couldn't help but think of her Aunt Lyanna as she picked the rose and brought it to her nose to inhale its sweet scent. How Anari longed to go home, the winter rose smelled of her home, and all Anari wanted was to be there again.

Closing her eyes, Anari fought a wave of emotion. Robb was coming for them; he would win this war and bring them home. She had every ounce of confidence in her brother. As she began to leave the garden, a different set of whispers caught her attention.

"I hear the King has summoned the court," someone whispered.

"Really? What for?" An eager voice questioned.

"I heard that the King isn't happy about their loss in the battle," the first lady continued. Anari's view was blocked, but she could still clearly hear their voices. "They say that King Joffrey is going to punish his new bride. He has her in the throne room now."

Upon hearing that, Anari's eyes widened. Lifting her skirts, she ran from the gardens, the blue rose falling from her grasp. Anari's heart pounded as she moved as quickly as she could to the throne room. Entering through a side door, she fought to catch her breath as she took in the sight before her.

"Your Grace, whatever my traitor brother has done, I had no part," Sansa pleaded from where she knelt. "You know that!" The desperation in Sansa's voice was clear as she looked to the court for her sister. Oh, how Sansa wished Anari was there to help her. "I beg you, please-"