the power of kingsblood in his veins

closed for @ofkingsblccd​ || the red keep

Her uncle and brother were probably the only thing keeping Mya sane within the walls of the Red Keep. Every corner she turned, every Lord or Lady she made eye contact with, caused her heartbeat to quicken. Something about this place was eerie to her, either the ghost of her father haunted her every way she went, or Cersei’s fiery eyes bore a hole into her soul. She was certain the woman would want her dead if she knew she was just within grasp, but would this be the time she would make such a skeptical? Perhaps not, but with Cersei, it was impossible to be certain of the move she’d make or the lengths she’d go.

Mya quickly found herself outside, away from the crowds. Her breathing became even. Her face would never show the fear she felt, but it was what has kept her alive thus far. Looking around, she spotted Edric and felt herself even more relieved. “It’s good to finally find someone I can trust.” She greeted him, a small smile coming over her face.

In his quest to make himself appear unassuming, to completely disappear from Cersei Lannister’s map, Edric had somehow managed to isolate himself. Hanging around the fringes of events where he was used to being front and center, he’d ended up leaving his usual companions behind, everyone having their own lordly social duties to attend to. In his self-made exile, though, Ed had taken up wandering the castle to cure his boredom; an admittedly stupid pastime, perhaps, for he often paced the halls alone. As such, it was a comfort to catch sight of his half-sister, and a relieved grin crossed his face.

“Not a fan of the Lion’s Den either, I take it?” Edric responded with a laugh, feeling a weight disappear from his shoulders. It was no secret to either of them that King’s Landing was a perilous place to be King Robert’s child; was there strength in numbers, or only more danger? Though Edric scarcely knew one way or the other, he did know it was good to see a friendly face. “It’s good to see you, too, Mya. Been keeping yourself busy, I hope?”

@ofkingsblccd​ | renly + edric | the red keep

renly was aware of two very important things, especially now that he was in danger of becoming as crabby and boring as stannis was as a babe: king’s landing really was the closest thing to an infected sore as any city could get, but he also complained far too much for someone who ridiculed stannis for doing the very same. yet with robert and loras dead and gone for so long now, the king’s landing he once remembered had faded into the past. it was almost as if he was experiencing the city anew. ( it was just as bad as it had always been, maybe even somehow worse, but who was renly to judge? judgement was only a flyaway hobby to him. ) after spending too long in too many strangers’ company, the lord of storm’s end had retreated back to the safe company of his favourite nephew instead. or was edric his only nephew now?

“ i used to hate that statue of robert, ” he muttered, features pulled into a tight wince as he looked at it. walking around the gardens, he’d forgotten the thing even existed - but here it was, looking all too much like every baratheon son did. “ there’s another one around the corner that looks exactly like stannis on his five-and-twentieth nameday, but don’t worry. ” he turned to his nephew, expression almost too neutral to even look bored, but blue eyes alight with amusement. “ it’s just robert a few years after he got married. ” edric was robert’s only recognised bastard; a son raised at storm’s end with renly himself, by renly himself. but they knew two very different versions of the king that was.

every moment spent in king’s landing was a moment too long for edric. though renly had made his semi-regular journeys to the capital during ed’s time in storm’s end, the bastard had never joined the retinue for rather obvious reasons. perhaps it would have been nice, to visit his father, but not at the cost of dealing with cersei lannister’s wrath. his time in the capital had been spent as it usually was - charming, chatting, making friends everywhere he went. but ed was muted, softer around the edges, desperate to go unnoticed where he’d usually make a scene. it felt wrong, as if he was constantly dressed in clothes too small for his skin, but he knew just how hard-won this temporary peace was. if it took trading his golden silks for tans, he would do what he needed to.

walking the gardens with renly was a much-needed reprieve. it felt like ages since the tension had left his shoulders, like ages since he’d last seen his only true family. absentmindedly, his gaze shifted over the statue before him - and then he froze. edric stood there for another moment before responding, gaze transfixed on the father he’d never known. “everyone always tells me i look just like him,” he mumbled, eyes squinting in concentration as if searching the stone for an answer to an unasked question. a beat, then, “they say you do too, but i clearly look nothing like your ugly mug.” the joke, clearly meant to lighten the mood, came with a cheeky smile on ed’s face as he leaned over to nudge his uncle.

The drab, muted colors of Edric’s coat felt like a physical reminder that he had no business being at an event hosted by Cersei Lannister. So different from the Baratheon golds and vibrant hues he usually wore, Edric felt more a bastard than he ever had in years of living at Storm’s End. There, he’d certainly felt the sting of his surname and illegitimate birth, but it had always been tempered by Renly’s constant companionship - for his uncle had never treated him like something less. The friends he’d made while his uncle’s ward were similar, a comfort from all that came with being a Storm. In King’s Landing, though, everyone he knew seemed so far away, constantly occupied with this or that, leaving Ed to constantly dodge the sight of blonde hair as he wandered the halls.

Taking up a spot next to Bryce, Ed leaned on the wall and sipped on his wine. Cersei had spared no expense, and who would Ed be if he didn’t drink away as much of the Lannister gold as he could? “Do you think she knows I’m here yet?” Edric mused, wondering not for the first time if he should’ve just said fuck your peace and worn his best and most Baratheon attire. The regent herself sat high upon the dais, far away from the increasingly drunk partygoers. Ed was thankful for that distance - and thankful more still for his friend’s presence beside him.