Wakeless Weaver

The gates groaned as they opened, the slow movement peeved Viserra off. But she waited impatiently to get her first real glimpse of River

run. A retinue was waiting for them alongside Kermit Tully. Viserra hardly saw them though, she was too busy trying to get a good look at the castle. She’d seen it from above but a dragon’s eye view was very different from hers.

“Lady Viserra, we are most delighted to welcome you to Riverrun.”

Loreth knocked his shoulder into hers and she finally pulled her eyes towards the young man in front of her. He sported a green doublet that looked good with his bright red hair. Freckles dotted his face but they were not offputting. He stood four or five inches taller than her but had an affable air about him.

“Thank you, lord…?”

“Kermit, my lady.”

So Elmo had sent his heir to greet her.

“Yes, well let us be off. I’ve had a long ride to get here and I’m anxious to see more of Riverrun.”

“Of course.” He offered his arm and reluctantly she took it.

Loreth followed closely behind her and she found herself sending love to her mother for insisting he accompany her. The castle was beautiful but it was foreign. The sandstone walls reminded her of the red keep though it was much brighter here. She could hear water rushing off somewhere in the distance but couldn’t see the source of it.

“Tell me, Lord Kermit, how’s the fishing here?”

The man beside her paused for a moment as if a little shocked by her question.

“Do you like to fish, princess?”

“Oh yes. I’ve done plenty of fishing on Dragonstone, though I imagine it's a much different process here.”

Viserra had spent much time on boats fishing with her siblings and sometimes she would sneak off alone to fish the shores. She enjoyed any activity that was calm and required patience. The reward of catching a fish was well worth the effort.

“I assure you, we have some of the best fishing in the riverlands. Though I wouldn’t have pegged you for the fishing type. I could take you sometime, if you’d like.”

They passed into the main keep and she was excited by the various tapestries hanging on the walls. A brilliant and large one of a fish splashing in the water was occupying her attention so much she nearly forgot the man beside her.

“Yes, I would very much like that.”

Inside, she could hear laughter and shouts coming from the main hall, presumably where everyone was eating but Kermit steered her away from there. Instead they took a side hall and arrived in front of two large Pine doors. Kermit knocked three times before the doors opened.

The three of them entered, having lost the rest of their accompaniment somewhere along the way.

“Princess Viserra Targaryen.” He announced before leaving her with ser Loreth and closing the doors behind him.

“Ah, you’ve made it at last. Please sit.”

She’d never laid eyes on the lord of Riverrun but his resemblance to Kermit was unmistakable. He was stouter but not what anyone would call thick. He had an easy smile and his hair was a deeper auburn than his sons.

“I hope the journey was easy?”

She nodded, “Yes, it was an easy trip. Easy enough that I made you a few drawings from atop Phantom.”

She pulled out the slips of paper she’d carefully torn from her journal and handed them over. She watched keenly as he looked them over, seeing which ones he favored. He stared at the one of Riverrun the longest as she knew he would.

“These are amazing, princess. And to think you did them from dragonback! I thank you very kindly. Your mother spoke fondly of your sharp eyes and I see she speaks true. Few have captured the grandeur of the riverlands as you have here.”

She blushed at the compliment and tried to take it to heart. Elmo seemed sincere so she chose to believe he meant it earnestly. She could never be too sure of what anyone said to her, afraid they were only flattering her to get in good with her mother.

“Thank you, Lord Tully.”

“Please call me Elmo.”

So she did. “Thank you, Elmo. Riverrun is quite beautiful. I am most fond of the splashing fish tapestry I saw on my way in.”

His smile grew twice as big at her words.

“My wife weaved that, I’ll be sure to let her know. Perhaps she could show you sometime, help you make one of your own.”

Viserra was positively buzzing at the idea of watching and learning weaving. She did some sewing but it wasn’t a big interest in her home seeing as she was surrounded by her brothers most days.

“I would very much like that.”

“Then it's settled. As much as I would love to continue our conversation, I fear I’ve been away from the feast too long. I can’t let those rascals alone for a second or I’ll be breaking up a brawl. Marianna, please show princess Viserra to her quarters. I’m sure you’ll want to freshen up. I have a room nearby for your guard. Feel free to come down and join the festivities if you wish though I won’t hold it against you if you’d like a quieter time tonight. We will meet on the morrow to discuss more pressing matters.”

“Of course, thank you Elmo.”

Viserra and Loreth followed the young maid up a flight of stairs. The halls were full of light, there were double the amount of windows here compared to the Red keep. Outside one of the windows she could see a waterwheel turning, ivy growing alongside it. She decided she liked Riverrun even if it was full of strangers.

Marianna opened the doors to her room and gestured her in. Inside it was decorated in rich blues and tones of seafoam green. One wall sported a tapestry of a large oak tree, leaves billowing in a summer breeze.

“If you need anything, princess, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’ve already drawn you a bath and the guards have brought your trunk up already. If you decide to come down for dinner, Oreth can lead you.”

A small guard no taller than her waved from out in the hall and she waved back.

“Thank you, Marianna. I appreciate your help.”

She gave a small bow and then showed Loreth to his room, directly across from hers. Then she was alone at last. Before she did anything else, she wrote a quick scroll to her mother.

Dear Mother,

Lord Elmo seems to be a very nice man and Riverrun is beautiful. I have arrived and settled in. Our journey was quite uneventful and no bad weather impeded our progress. I have yet to meet with any of the quarreling lords but I’m sure the days ahead will be full of equal parts chaos and wonder. I am glad you sent me on this trip and I hope to do you proud. Please update me on things back home, I know you are busy but I cannot stand the thought of you all alone.

With love, your daughter Viserra.

P.S. Tell Joffrey that I plan to catch the biggest fish yet. There are many places to cast here and I wish he could see them and join me. I miss you all terribly already.

She rolled the letter up and sealed it before setting it aside. She would send it first thing in the morning. Her thoughts turned to her other brothers as she undid her braids and got undressed. What was Jace doing right now? Was he in danger? Did the Dornish lords treat him well? She worried about him. The situation must be dire for the ruling lord of Dorne to reach out to his mother, they did not respect her authority as Queen. What could have them so desperate to reach out to her? She knew Jace could handle himself and was far better equipped to deal with diplomatic problems than she was. But it was strange not knowing what he was up to. She knew Luke would be in his element and safe as could be with Corlys and Rhaenys. He was probably thinking about fishing as much as she was.

She bathed quickly and called upon the maids to help her dress. She’d picked a cream dress trimmed in gold. It was something fancy Daemon had gotten for her on one of his trips and she hadn’t had a chance to wear it. She did her own hair though, preferring to do her usual style of two long braids. She didn’t wear any jewelry besides simple pearl earrings. Though she’d brought plenty with her, she didn’t want to arrive sparkling and gaudy. She wanted to get a sense for the kind of style typically worn by ladies in the riverlands before adorning herself.

It was hard to know how to interact with other ladies. Viserra felt like they had some secret guide book they all used to communicate and she’d never gotten a copy. Rhaena had tried several times to explain the inner workings of making conversation with other ladies but it never stuck. Viserra would rather spend her time in the library or on top of Phantom. She misliked feeling out of place and no matter what she did she always felt left out. Being a crown princess didn’t make matters any easier. People would lie to her about their intentions or she would miss some joke everyone else obviously understood. It was maddening trying to figure people out.

That’s why she took much longer than necessary smoothing out her collar and making sure not a single hair was out of place. People could tell she was different and not in a royal way. Worse, she didn’t look like a typical Targaryen. She didn’t even look much like her brothers either. She was some odd mishmash of both, fitting in with neither.

She took a deep breath and pulled her door open, sliding out and into the hall quietly. Then she walked to Loreth’s door and knocked a few times before waiting patiently for him to answer. While she waited she tried to calm her frantic heart. She couldn’t remember the last time, if ever, she’d been alone in a new situation. Someone was always there with her, telling her how to act or what to say. It was both exciting and frightening to be on her own. Especially in a place full of people she didn’t know. She wracked her brain to try and remember if she’d met any ladies from the riverlands but came up blank. It’s not as if she had many ladies in waiting anyway and the ones she did seemed disinterested in her. She didn’t want to talk about boys or court gossip. She couldn’t recite many songs or know much about fashion. So they were polite to her but not beyond a surface level.

Luckily Loreth opened his door before she could have an existential crisis on being a freak who only liked history and politics.

“Princess.” He greeted her. “Have you decided to head down after all?”

She nodded pleased that he was still wearing his plum cloak.

“I can’t have them saying I’m a coward can I? ‘Oh the princess hid in her room all night! She didn’t even bother to say hello.’ What would they think of me?”

Loreth smiled at her impression of gossiping lords and ladies.

“I don’t think anyone would begrudge you a good night's rest, princess. But I know you cannot stand to stay in one place for very long. Very well, let us be on our way.”

Shanda was up before dawn and slipped out of her room undiscovered. Benjicot lay sleeping peacefully and for a moment she had loomed over him. His face had been lax and his hair askew. She was so angry with him she considered dumping the pitcher left out for hand washing on him. But as that would’ve interrupted her plans, she simply slunk out of the room. Luckily for her Robb was nowhere to be found and for that she said a thank you to the gods. She had enough going on without that sharp eyed man trailing her.

In the halls she wandered slowly taking note of every dark corner and window around her. She wouldn’t have much time to map this place during the day and she was already behind. People who had a permanent presence in court would have a much better lay of the land than her and that was unacceptable. Jaehaerys had been kind enough to provide her with a list of every lord and lady invited for this gathering. Something she’d managed to keep hidden from Benjicot. She slipped the list out of the pocket sewn into the top of her dress and smoothed it out.

Only two names really concerned her at the moment. Both houses Grey and Mooten were here and that was the lucky break she’d been waiting for. Bellena was guaranteed to be here if anyone from house Mooten was. No way would she miss an opportunity to be in the thick of it. And since house Grey was present it meant her nosey aunt Harra was here and that was basically a gods send. There was nothing, quite literally nothing, her aunt didn’t know about. The problem was trying to figure out what she was going to trade for any pertinent information. She’d been stuck in an information deficit since going to live at Raventree. Her blood boiled again at the thought of her husband. He was going to be an issue.

So caught up in looking at the list she didn’t see the person she collided with, nearly knocking her to the ground. She quickly hid the list behind her and looked up.

“Oh thank the gods. Martyn, where have you been?”

“Looking for you obviously. I knew you’d be out here somewhere.”

“Come on.” She grabbed his hand and the two of them were off.

She didn’t know exactly where she was going, only that the two of them needed to get as far away from their wing of the castle as possible before Benjicot woke up. Familiar enough with how any castle worked, she opened the first storeroom she found and pulled her brother inside.

“Here.” She thrust the list at him. “I need you to hold onto this.”

Martyn frowned but took the list from her anyway.

“Why am I holding onto this?”

“Because my dear husband has absolutely lost his mind. He’s a fucking animal. He basically attacked me after you left last night.”

She’d begun pacing, hands pulling her hair tight against her scalp.

“Shanda what do you mean?”

She looked up to find Martyn positively pissed. It wasn’t often he showed any strong emotion. She watched him shove the folded list into his pocket before approaching her. He placed his hands on her shoulders comforting her.

“He threatened me, Martyn. He’s always been controlling but this was different. He acted like a brute, manhandling me. He made me tell him what the King wanted.”

Her brother's expression grew darker the longer she talked.

“I didn’t tell him everything but that's why I need you to hold onto the list. I can’t have him find it. He’s already going to be wroth when he wakes and finds our bed empty.”

“Are you okay? Did he hurt you? Do I need to kill him?”

She nearly laughed at the last question. Martyn wouldn’t stand a chance against Benjicot but it was the thought that counted.

“I’m okay, don’t worry. I’m going to get him back, I just haven’t figured out how yet.”

“If I can help in any way let me know. We’re Brackens, remember? We can do anything together.”

She smiled sadly at him and pulled him in for a hug.

“I love you, Martyn and I’ve missed you more than words can say.”

He squeezed her back and pulled away to look at her. “I’ve missed you double, Shan.”

“Bellena is here.” She said rapidly changing the subject. They had work to do after all. “We need to speak with her soon, without our Blackwood companions.”

He nodded and then relayed fantastic news. “I’ve already seen Aunt Harra.”

Her eyes bulged out of her head. “By the gods why didn’t you say so? That’s amazing, Martyn. What did she say?”

“Cordial greetings and all, you know Harra. But she did ask after you and then winked at me.”

“Oh so she definitely knows something worth hearing then.”

He nodded and a smile finally graced his lips. “My thoughts exactly. She’s invited us for afternoon tea, the invitation was not open either she made that clear.”

Shanda could scream she was so elated. Finally something was going her way. In the back of her mind wariness rose up but she shoved it aside. She was desperate enough to give Harra anything she wanted. She’d give her her first born if that’s what it took.

“Do you suppose Beck is here as well?”

“I sincerely doubt she’d leave the house without him. He is the heir after all.”

Shanda nodded, that was true.

“Come on. We better get out of here before someone sees us and rumors start flying. Fancy a walk about the gardens? I’ve heard they’re a sight to see.”

“I’ll walk wherever you want dear sister.”

He slipped his hand into hers and she squeezed it in response. The two of them were going to figure this whole mystery out and come out on top. She would make sure of it through any means. And if her stupid miserable husband had anything to say about it. Well, gods help him then. He would need it.

***

Benjicot woke slowly, languidly stretching out in the bed. He reached over to grab his wife but his fingers came up empty. He sat up quickly and looked around the room.

“Shanda? Are you in here?”

Silence followed.

“Fuck.”

He stood and began throwing on some pants. He felt bad about his behavior last night. He’d drank way too much with Alysanne but that was no excuse. He already felt like he was being pulled in too many directions and then here his wife came, smug as ever and ignoring him. He could admit he overreacted. But now she was gone and the gods only knew what she was up to.

Halfway to buttoning his frock up he heard a knock on the door.

“Just a moment.”

The knocking intensified.

“Aye, I said just a minute!”

The door swung open to reveal a very displeased Alysanne.

“Gods Aly, you couldn’t give me a second to finish dressing?”

“I take it your bed was empty this morning as well?”

He frowned and ran a hand through his hair.

“Obviously.”

Aly strode in and threw herself down into a chair. “What are we going to do with them?”

Shame poured over him at the question.

“Did you get anything useful out of Martyn?”

She shook her head, lips pursed as if she didn’t want to talk about it.

“Well I may have overreacted.”

“What did you do?” She hissed.

“Oh come on, as if you didn’t get me drunk beforehand!”

“Maybe but I didn’t tell you to piss her off!”

“I’m good at that.” He grumbled before sitting down beside her.

“She told me the king agreed with her. Can you believe it? Said he wanted her to look into things, see if anything turns up.”

Shock briefly overtook her face before she frowned again.

“Well that’s concerning. If she is onto something it means things are worse than we feared.”

Before he could answer, Robb knocked and entered.

“Benji I did what you asked an—“

He stopped when he spotted Alysanne, throwing Benjicot a questioning look.

“Close the door before you continue.”

He was going to have to tell Alysanne at some point. He motioned for Robb to join them at the table.

“After you left, I watched the birds like you asked.”

Benjicot stopped him long enough to explain the situation to his aunt and then urged Robb to finish.

“The moment you left these quarters they were on the move. At first I thought they were just following you as I could track them watching you through the windows. But when you went to greet them,” he nodded towards Alysanne. “They took off. I followed them all through the city and partways outside of it. I can’t be sure where they went exactly but it seemed to me they were headed back to the riverlands.”

That was not good news in his eyes. He thought carefully about how to proceed.

“Robb, I want you to ride back to Raventree. I know its a pain but I need someone I trust back at home. See if you find any trace of the birds. Check that everything is still in order and then speak with my father.”

Robb looked aghast.

“Don’t tell him why I sent you obviously. Just inquire about things, see if anything's amiss. Make up some excuse as to why I sent you back, I don’t care what. Just make it believable.”

If Shanda was right and someone wanted everyone here, it meant something could be stirring elsewhere.

“And if I find nothing? No birds, nothing out of place?”

“Ride to River run then. I want to know who you see and what they say to you. I have a bad feeling about all of this but I don’t want to make accusations out of hand.”

“What are you thinking, Benji?”

“We ended one feud and started another. I haven’t seen any Pipers since I arrived but it’s still early. I don’t want to give them a chance to run through our homes while we’re out celebrating a healthy king.”

He paused for a moment trying to make his thoughts clearer. But he didn’t have enough information yet.

“If someone is watching through the eyes of those birds, we’re in trouble. I don’t want to take any risks. When you're done, Robb, ride back here. I’m not risking any letters, too easily intercepted.”

Robb nodded their thoughts aligned.

“I think you should tell Shanda.”

He whipped his head back towards his aunt.

“Why on earth would we do that? Haven’t we been trying to mitigate the damage she could cause? Now you want to hand her an explosive?”

Aly bit her lip and looked away.

“Maybe we’ve done more harm than good. We haven’t exactly come out of top keeping her in the dark have we? And you just said you royally pissed her off. This might be a chance to bridge the gap. Besides if the fucking king himself thinks she’s onto something then maybe she is.”

He sighed thinking of how angry and distant his wife had become. How far she shied away from him since he kept her from seeing her brother. There’s been less drama but his marriage was teetering on the edge of collapse because of it.

“I’ll think about it. We need to find her first.”

Robb stood then and Benjicot joined him. The two hugged and he departed.

“Leave no stone unturned, I want to hear it all.”

“When have I ever missed a stone? I’ll figure it out Ben, you just figure out your wife. Maybe talk to Arlan, he can give you some lady tips.”

“Yeah yeah alright, begone.”

After watching him leave, Benjicot turned to his aunt.

“Any ideas on where to start looking?”

“Of course. Wherever everyone else is. They’ll be in the thick of it by now, snooping. It shouldn’t be too hard to find them. It’s court after all, everyone knows where everyone has been, is currently, and where they will be eventually.”