Milk Of The Poppy {Tyrion Lannister} [ON HOLD]

Chapter Five

Morlyna shifted on the bed, her eyes opening slightly. The Maester smiled down at her upon seeing her eyes open. 

"Ah, you're awake, my Lady."

"Was I asleep long?"

"You only slept for an hour, dear girl. Your leg was in bad shape when Jon brought you in."

"I'll have to thank him when I see him. Am I okay to leave Maester?"

"You are, but try not to walk much, and take some milk of the poppy with you. I know you dislike taking it, but it's for the best right now, my Lady."

"I understand Maester. Thank you." 

Morlyna sat up and watched with tired eyes as the Maester left her to her own devices. She placed her foot on the floor and picked up the steel leg. The blood was gone, but years of bleeding had left it stained all the same. With a sigh, she pushed the metal pins into the flesh of the misshaped stump. She whimpered quietly to herself, as blood welled up around the new puncture wounds. 

The girl stood, her balance wavering as she clung to a table. She swallowed thickly as she put pressure on the steel leg. Morlyna made her way over to the medicines, where she picked up a vial of the milk of the poppy she had carried with her when she was a small child. She rubbed her thumb over the beautiful metal work that surrounded it, before attaching it to a thin, but sturdy chain that wrapped around her waist and acted as a belt. The vial attached easily, as they were made to go with each other when Morlyna had only been five years old.

She made her way out of the room and towards the keep, where she could change. She held the stone walls as she walked, careful not to put too much pressure on her leg. She heard voices down the hall, that prompted her to move a little faster. When she got to her chambers, she unlocked the door and stepped in quickly.

Morlyna collapsed to the floor as pain seized her leg once more. The muscles were spasming underneath her skin, and her eye twitched with the pain. She carefully unpinned the leg and set it to the side, a sigh of relief sounded through the chambers. Leaving the steel leg on the floor, she stood and hopped her way towards her clothes. 

She changed slowly, having to do it herself. When balance was an issue, she would sit, and do the rest. The girl groaned at her inability to tie the ribbons of her dress in the proper manner and knew that she would have to wait for Jon to help her, as he often did before escorting her to meals. She sat on her bed and waited for her brother to arrive. She had been reading when the knock came.

"Come in." Morlyna called. 

The door opened and in came Jon. He made his way towards her, only to trip over the leg that had remained on the floor. Morlyna laughed as he grumbled to himself. Setting her book down, she stood on her leg and turned around, grabbing the bedpost. Jon came up behind her and tied the ribbons of her dress in their proper manner, being careful not to touch her any way that a brother shouldn't. 

Just as Morlyna wasn't ignorant about what was said about her, Jon was not ignorant of what was said about the two siblings. Some whispered of an incestuous relationship between the two, and he hated that that was what people thought. He loved his sister dearly, but the thought of her in any way other than being his sister was disturbing and unthinkable. Yet, he couldn't blame them for their thoughts. He and Morlyna were extremely close. More than most siblings ever were. Had they been birthed by the same mother, they would have surely been twins, they were so close. Morlyna thanked Jon, before taking a seat on her bed once more. She looked at the steel leg, still on the floor, with frustration. 

"Why don't you wear the wooden one tonight, Lyna? The one with the leather straps."

"It's not sturdy enough anymore, Jon. Besides, I've grown an inch since the last time I wore it." 

"Yet you're still so short." Morlyna laughed and knocked Jon with her shoulder in response.

Sighing, she gestured to the steel leg. "Would you mind?" 

Jon shook his head and stood. He retrieved the leg and handed it to her before he looked away. Morlyna lifted the skirts of her dress and put the leg in place. Pushing the pins in place, she watched the blood well up, before dring. She fixed her skirts and stood, holding onto Jon's elbow for support. 

The two walked into the great hall, where festivities were being had. Jon left her to the table where their siblings were sat and helped her sit on the bench beside Robb who nodded at the two. Jon pressed a kiss to Morlyna's forehead before leaving the hall to spar with a hay dummy. 

She sighed while watching her brother leave before she turned her attention to the food. She put some on her plate and focused on eating. The girl barely noticed when her uncle Benjen came in, but what she did notice was the hand that fell on her shoulder. She looked up and so the glowering eyes of her mother looking down at her. 

"Have you eaten, dear daughter?" Morlyna nodded silently. "Then it is time to go. We don't want to risk insulting the royal family, and they have yet to see you.  

Morlyna frowned. "Yes, Mother."

The girl stood and picked up two rolls of bread before leaving the festivities to find her brother. She found the young man talking with Tyrion Lannister. She came up beside Jon just as the Wall was mentioned, but she made no comment on it. Instead, she handed Jon one of the rolls of bread and leaned against him as he spoke with Lord Tyrion.

"You, you're Ned Stark's bastard aren't you?" Tyrion asked, knowing full well the answer.

Jon gave no reply and instead, he pressed a kiss to his half-sister's forehead and walked away, leaving Morlyna in the company of the Lord for a few moments of silence before he spoke once more.

"Did I offend you?  Sorry. You are the bastard, though?" 

Morlyna leaned against a post, tuning out their conversation. It wasn't her place to listen in. Her face twitched slightly in pain that could make even some of the toughest of people cry. She opened the vial of milk of the poppy and took three drops past her lips before putting the lid back on. Jon watched her in silent worry but continued to listen to Lord Tyrion. 

As Tyrion began to walk away, he stopped in front of Morlyna. "May I borrow your sister for a walk?" 

Jon looked to his sister for a look of denial but found none. "Of course my Lord." he said, then turning his attention to Morlyna, he spoke once more, "Careful of your leg, 'Lyna. Remember your limits, though you claim to have none."

"Of course, Jon." 

Tyrion was momentarily astounded by her soft, sweet voice. It reminded him almost of honey-sweetened milk, warmed on an open flame. With those final words, Morlyna and Tyrion walked away in silence. Tyrion made a wordless offer of his wineskin to the girl, which she graciously accepted. She took the red alcohol past her lips, swallowing quickly before handing it back. They walked a few more minutes before taking a seat on a stone bench, near enough to the main hall to hear some of the festivities, though the pair themselves sat silently.