Myrcella looked up from her book as the door opened and Robb entered. He rubbed his eyes and sat down opposite her. She took a moment to admire her husband, the blue and gold really brought out the colour of his eyes and highlighted his physical qualities. There was a flush in her cheeks as she thought about what they'd been doing this morning. She pushed it away and asked.
"How did it go?"
Robb looked at her and said. "We've received word from Ser Wendel that they've arrived on Pyke."
Myrcella frowned. "Theon didn't send the letter himself?"
Robb shook his head. "I think that he may have gotten caught up in being reunited with his family. Ser Wendel mentioned they were greeted by Theon's sister Asha, and that they've not yet met with Lord Balon."
Myrcella felt her frown deepen. "That does not seem normal."
"Indeed not. But then the Ironborn are not normal. Perhaps there will be a meeting down the line." Robb replied.
Myrcella hummed and then asked. "Are you having second thoughts?" She knew that her husband and grandfather had debated who to send to Pyke to get the Ironborn involved. Robb had from the start said he wanted Theon to go, whilst grandfather had pointed out that someone else who didn't have an investment should be sent. Robb had eventually won, but she wondered if he was regretting it now.
"I…I do not know. I want to trust Theon. I want to think that our brotherhood means more to him than whatever nonsense might be fed to him on Pyke. But at the same time I wonder if the Ironborn may try and force him into something." Robb replied.
"Force him into what?" Myrcella asked, though the answer was obvious.
Robb exhaled. "I don't know. But something in me is telling me that Theon might be tempted into doing something that he will regret. It's why I agreed to sending Piper and Manderly. I know Manderly will keep Theon in line if he strays."
Myrcella raised an eyebrow. "How?"
Robb snorted. "You don't want to know."
Myrcella snorted in response and decided to turn the conversation to another topic. "Did you talk about the plan to move out with Lord Tywin?" Robb had told her yesterday that he wanted to move out onto King's Landing within the week, to prevent more tension breaking out between the various armies that made up their force. She agreed with him on that. They needed to maintain unity.
"I did." Robb said.
"And?" Myrcella asked.
"He agreed, he will be riding out with the Westermen in two days' time. The northern and rivermen army shall be following a day after that." Robb said. "He will send out a small party under the command of Ser Kevan to seek out Joffrey's forces to negotiate a surrender on their part." Robb said.
"Joffrey will never agree to that." Myrcella said. She knew her brother, he'd rather die than surrender.
"It does not hurt to try." Robb said.
"I also spoke to him about your mother." Robb continued. "He said that she should be offered the chance to return to the Rock when all is said and done, or to retire to the Silent Sisters. Which do you think she should take?"
"The Silent Sisters." Myrcella said immediately. "Anything else and she will continue to cause trouble. If Tommen is going to be grandfather's heir, he needs the chance to grow away from Mother. And that's the best way to ensure it."
Robb nodded. "I will keep that in mind."
Myrcella smiled and then decided to take the plunge. "There was something I wanted to tell you."
Robb raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"I'm with child." Myrcella said.
The cell was dark and dingy and it stank of piss and something worse-maybe shit, maybe blood-he found himself chuckling softly at the turn. He had escaped one dark and dingy cell for another. But at least he was alive. At least he had removed himself from the pit of fire that was Dragonstone.
Tyrion exhaled. Dragonstone, that was a fiery pit that he never wanted to go to again. He had known that that fool Stannis was in hook to someone. He had just never thought it would be a woman. And a foreign woman at that.
Stannis had been told by this woman that he needed to sacrifice someone of Royal Blood to get the conditions needed to leave the island. At first, the man had seemed to want to sacrifice his nephew Edric Storm-though the boy remained at Storm's End-but he'd turned to Tyrion.
Tyrion had been rescued at the eleventh hour by Davos Seaworth, Stannis' right-hand man. The boat he'd been put on was small and had capsized once it had gotten to King's Landing. He'd woken up in this cell.
The cell gate opened, and a figure appeared. He knew who it was even in the darkness.
"Sister."
"Where did you come from?" Cersei demanded.
"Dragonstone." Tyrion replied.
"Why?" Cersei demanded.
"Because I didn't want to end up as a sacrifice." Tyrion said.
"Sacrifice?" Cersei asked.
"Stannis Baratheon has been convinced that a human sacrifice is needed to ensure he can win the throne." Tyrion said.
Cersei snorted. "You're telling me that Stannis Baratheon, a man who does not believe in any God, has been convinced that human sacrifice is needed. Who is it that told him this?"
"A woman." Tyrion said.
Cersei snorted again but then asked. "How did you end up on Dragonstone?"
"I was on a ship home when the ship was seized." Tyrion said. "It seems that Stannis wanted me to confirm something for him." He wondered how his sister would respond to what he was going to say next.
"And what was that?" Cersei asked.
"Whether or not Joffrey, Myrcella and Tommen are Jaime's." Tyrion said. He still wasn't sure, he knew that Jaime and Cersei had slept together when they were younger, but he didn't think Jaime was that stupid to do it now when they were adults. Cersei was an idiot and always had been, but Jaime had some sense.
"And what did you tell him?" Cersei asked softly.
"I asked him what evidence he had and when he presented it, I told him he was an idiot. He didn't like that." Tyrion replied.
"So, you have some family loyalty at least." Cersei said.
"You do know you can't win." Tyrion said then.
"What do you mean?" The woman asked.
"Stannis isn't your greatest threat; Myrcella and her husband are. They beat Jaime, and if the rumours I heard before I fled Dragonstone, they have got Jaime and father on their side. This place won't last for too long without Father." Tyrion said.
He didn't get the exasperation he had come to expect from Cersei, instead she sighed. "I know, but what else can I do? Joffrey does not want to negotiate."
Tyrion looked at his sister in the darkness, he couldn't see her expression, but he knew what he felt. Joffrey was a threat and a danger. "He can be removed if needed. Joffrey is a danger to everyone, including you."
His sister simply said. "Then we shall take that danger and handle it appropriately. Joffrey is the King, and he is my son."
The gate shut and the darkness returned. Tyrion exhaled and whispered to himself. "Thank goodness Myrcella has more of Jaime in her than you."