Book Three: Chapter Two

The walls of the castle rise around them, towering to cut through the deep blue of the sky. Ivy curls up the walls, striking against the red brick, and Eunbi casts her gaze over the angular towers and fortresses with reluctant admiration. The castle is built to withstand the longest siege and the most violent of weapons, and she knows that if King Thelonious had not agreed to a peace treaty, the northern army would have languished outside these walls for years before finally being defeated.

A sharp tug on the heavy pauldron around her shoulders jerks her back to reality, and she winces as Chaewon checks the straps fastening the plate armour to her body with harsh fingers. The squire who had dressed her earlier is a trusted son of one of her lords, but still Chaewon insists on checking the armour herself. In each rough tug, Eunbi can feel her cousin’s fury, which she had expressed so eloquently in words Chaewon would not want Yunjin to hear when she had told her of her plan to train with the king. Never mind the opportunity to improve relations between the two kingdoms, Chaewon is sure that this is a trap to have her unceremoniously killed, and so half of her Queensguard are gathered to watch them, their swords at their hips. Lady Yunjin is with them, eagerly exploring the rack of weapons, and Liberty lingers close to her, while Honour, Valour and Spirit prowl the training grounds restlessly, startling the southern attendants. The latter wolf, with his black merle pelt almost as dark as Honour, is the direwolf she sees the least, more likely than his siblings to disappear into the woods for weeks on end and appear only when she is facing her biggest challenges. When he had appeared from the woods on the journey south, she had realised with a sinking heart what a struggle this trip would be. Even now, Spirit seems unhappy in the light of day, his fur prickling.

“This is lunacy, I hope you know that,” Chaewon mutters, low in , as she checks a strap on Eunbi’s chest plate, and Eunbi resists the urge to snap at her.

“Your fears are unfounded when I have you all to protect me,” She points out, as calmly as she is able, and Chaewon snorts dryly.

“We are still outnumbered in this city.” Her eyes meet Eunbi’s again, and they are dark with meaning when she cautions. “Do not let the north fall because of your wrath Eunbi.”

The words spark a fury in her stomach and she yanks herself away from Chaewon’s fussing hands, fixing her with a glower as her squire scurries up to her side with her sword. “You know I would never.”

A ripple of excitement passes over the field, and when Eunbi turns, she sees the king approaching, an excited smile upon his face. He is accompanied by several of his small council, which Measter Yunho had informed her is filled to the brim with Lannister sympathisers. The few ladies who had wandered their way onto the field to watch them train whisper to one another gleefully when he sends them a dashing smile, and though the attendants try to flutter around him, he sends them away with a flick of his hand. He is already armoured in beautiful gilded southern armour, which Eunbi is sure has never seen a day of fighting, and he gives her a cheerful smile as he approaches.

She meets him in the centre of the field, managing to smile in return, but the king does not seem to notice her reluctance.

“A beautiful day to spar, is it not?” He is practically glowing, and she can’t help but feel endeared to him in a strange, childish sort of way.

“It is indeed.”

“I hope you’re well rested, your majesty,” He jibes her playfully and she arches an eyebrow. “I intend on fighting as hard as any northerner today.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Eunbi nods her approval, “Shall we begin?”

Their swords ring out through the clearing as they clash together, accompanied by the low comments exchanged between ladies, soldiers and servants. It is a slow, steady fight, the sort experienced between two rivals new to one another and feeling out the other’s style and weaknesses. Fighting Kimm is a strangely familiar experience, and it takes several blows for Eunbi to realise that she is remembering the many blows she exchanged with southern fighters during the war that was her father’s and became her own. There is something in his step, in the swing of his sword and the strength and timing of his blows that tells her that he was trained by knights instead of soldiers. Still, he is a good fighter, and clearly enjoying himself immensely, if the beam on his face and the flushed, happy exertion in his cheeks is anything to go by.

“You fight very well,” He puffs out between blows, and it takes her a moment to realise that he is talking to her. “I had heard stories- but they do you- no justice.”

“Thank you,” She answers, shortly, and in her surprise, he is able to twist his sword cleverly and send hers flying from her hands. Behind her, she hears her Queensguard leap forwards and the growl of her wolves, but Kimm simply laughs and steps away, wiping at the sweat on his forehead.

“I need the rest,” He tells her, good naturedly, and ushers forward the attendant who carries goblets of weak, cold mead for them to drink. “Thank you for agreeing to spar with me, your majesty.”

“You enjoy it more than your other kingly duties?” She asks as they take a moment to rest under the beating southern sun.

“I confess I do.” He wrinkles his nose, and it draws a reluctant smile from her. “I’m fortunate to have patient advisors, I am not used to being king yet.” He falters, glancing at her uncertainly. “I shouldn’t say such things to you, I suppose.”

“No,” She shrugs lightly, though of course he shouldn’t. “I understand more than most how you feel. I too was made queen before I was ready.”

“How did you find your footing?” He is so earnest that she is taken aback. Truly, she realises, looking at his upturned face in the sunlight, he is nought but a boy at heart, who wants only to hunt and fight and go home to a good meal and a pretty wife. The final thought tugs at her heart and she swallows her mead.

“I surrounded myself with people I trusted, and listened to my instincts.” She says, at last.

He nods thoughtfully, his brows creasing. “I am lucky to be marrying someone whose heart and mind I trust so completely,” He smiles at his words and Eunbi feels her blood turn to ice as he says, “And who is so beautiful.”

“Shall we?” Quickly, she discards the goblet of mead and pulls her sword from its scabbard with a trill of metal.

Their second fight is more brutal than the first, because each time Eunbi looks at him she can only imagine his hands on Sakura, his lips pressing to hers and whispering sweet nothings into her ears. What a fool she had been, she thinks with every swing of her sword, to think that Sakura’s pretty words were true, that her kind touches and smiling lips were only for Eunbi. A woman like Sakura has learnt to make the best of every situation and what better situation than marrying a handsome, young heir to the throne of the south. Her sword comes down with an almighty crash and the prince is thrown to the ground so bodily that there is an exclamation of terror from those watching. It is only this that stops her sword from delivering the deathly blow, and she is frightened to see that her hands are shaking when she drops her weapon and holds them out to help the king back to his feet.

She barely hears him laugh and say, heartily, “We shall have a tourney in your honour, your majesty! Perhaps you and I could ride against each other? We are clearly so well matched.”

When Chaewon escorts her back to the castle, she looks into her cousin’s eyes and knows that Chaewon was right about everything. From now on, she vows to feel nothing for Lady Sakura of House Tyrell.

---

Nako comes to her early that morning and as she helps her dress, she tells Sakura the location and names of the mother and son in hurried words under her breath and seems half terrified of the words that come out of . Sakura is immensely glad for the distraction; she’s been awake since sunrise thinking of the foolish sparring sure to be going on between Eunbi and Kimm in the yard. When Kimm had told her of his plans to train with the northern queen, she had tried to persuade him not to attend, had even asked him to join her for breakfast with a hand lingering on his arm and a flutter of her eyelashes, but he had merely laughed her off and promised to find her when they were done. She had tossed and turned all night deciding whether to go and watch them, but she knows that if she were there she would not be able to stop herself from calling out- and perhaps for the wrong person.

Nako’s information gives her a much needed distraction, and she despatches Hyewon to inform Yuri and ask the blacksmith to watch the address that Nako gave them throughout the day. She is barely aware of Kimm’s excited grin and chatter throughout their lunch together, and she walks the rest of the day in an agitated daze, agreeing to wedding plans and greeting the nobles filtering in from the four corners of the land to attend their nuptials.

Hyewon returns to her when night has long since fallen, and Sakura slips into the plain clothes Nako had left for her, sweeping a drab cloak over her shoulders. They have long since perfected the art of slipping from the castle unseen using the hidden tunnels in the walls, and emerging into the dim streets of Flea Bottom is no longer the shock of relief that it once was. Hyewon takes the lead, guiding her through the crowded streets with ease. It has been some time since Sakura last came to Flea Bottom, the slums where the poorest of Kings Landing live hand to mouth, but she has not quickly forgotten it. Here the smell of Kings Landing, that putrid stink of people living too closely together, is stronger than anywhere else, and it takes a few minutes for both women to be able to breathe it in. The castle walls rise in the distance, but from here they seem a world away.

There is little of the fine balls and wondrous feasts that fill the castle in these cramped, dark streets. Here, misery reigns supreme, death a master of all things, and they are forced to crowd against crumbling walls when fights break out between drunken men on the streets and women begin to scream at each other like alley cats. The dirt covers the cobble stones such that it at their boots and covers nearly an inch of Sakura’s hem, and she doesn’t stop to wonder about what they’re stepping in. Hyewon leads the way through winding alleys until they are suddenly joined by a third figure. Yuri falls into step next to them as naturally as breathing and tells them all that she had learnt in short, sharp words.

The small rooms that the mother and son live in are over the top of a carpenter’s shop, and the carpenter happily takes the money the Lannister soldiers give him to not ask any questions about the young woman and babe inhabiting the one room upstairs. The woman barely leaves, and soldiers bring scant food and water to the door for her to take to her babe. Soldiers have been standing guard all day, but Yuri says that they are bored and easily distracted. No one comes to look in on the woman, and they grouch loudly about the uselessness of their task.

They pause a street away from the carpenter’s shop, and Yuri looks at Sakura sharply.

“Are you sure you want to do this? It’s no job for the future queen.”

The words pull a scowl onto her face and in the face of disapproval she only becomes more certain.

“I need to speak to her myself.” She tells her firmly, and Yuri must sense her annoyance because she doesn’t press any further. “How are we going to get to her?”

“Daehwi and Jisung are going to create a distraction, they’re just waiting on my signal.” At Sakura’s nod, Yuri turns out to the street and whistles sharply three times. There are a few moments of silence, and Sakura is beginning to feel a flicker of uncertainty when a sudden crash shatters through the night air. Everyone turns, and as they look down the street they hear a man shout furiously and a herd of no less than twenty pigs go trampling through the street. People throw themselves to one side as the animals rush to get away from their captor, and city guards lounging on street corners and enjoying the comforts of es curse and take off after the swine.

The sight draws a smile from Sakura, despite herself, and the three of them use the distraction to slip around the corner and up to the door beside the dark carpenter’s shop. There are no guards around, as everyone in Flea Bottom turns to watch the pigs cause havoc, and Sakura bangs heavily at the door, hoping that the girl is not asleep.

“I’ll stay here, listen for my signal in case the guards come back.” Yuri instructs and Sakura