#rfms.open

 she  wasn’t  uncomfortable  by  staying  inside  the  ball  room  ,  the  performers  outside  holding  her  interest  only  as  long  as  the  wind  hadn’t  blown.  the  dornish  woman  was  otherwise  a  bit  miserable  ,  and  it  was  plenty  obvious.  “  could  you  imagine  how  long  it  takes  to  do  that  so  well  ?  ”  asks  she  ,  gesturing  to  the  woman  hanging  from  the  ceiling  and  twirling  in  large  strands  of  silk.

        duty  and  grief  weighed  heavily  upon the lord’s shoulders as he sat at his desk. he had wanted to remain with his cousins, comfort them in their grief over tywin’s death and mourn alongside them, and had he not possessed a duty to the realm that was where he’d be. however, he did, and now that a second tragedy had struck the red keep in such a short time, harming their king for a second time, he nor any member of the small council could afford to be lackadaisical. the grand maester had only recently left, leaving behind a copy of his notes on the symptoms the ill. willas was in the middle of looking it over, taking notes on similarities, when there was a knock and the door open.        ❝  now is not the best time,  ❞       he said without looking up.

 “  i  hope  your  rooms  are  to  your  liking  ,  should  you  need  anything  please  do  not  hesitate  to  ask.  ”  he  was  chipper  ,  far  too  happy  for  abraxas  on  any  other  day.  but  the  prince  was  wed  ,  he  was  happy  ,  and  he  was  in  dorne.  while  sunspear  felt  plenty  crowded  ,  nothing  could  dampen  the  prince’s  mood.  besides  ,  he  was  always  happy  to  show  off  his  home.  or  ,  his  partial  home  now  ,  he  supposed.

 it  seemed  only  by  the  gods’  wills  that  he  didn’t  join  his  other  family  members  in  falling  ill.  luc  had  been  no  stranger  to  the  wine  ,  but  it  seemed  he’d  retired  before  the  bad  batches  were  brought  out  or  was  in  luck  for  once  in  his  life.  his  morning  has  been  spent  checking  in  on  everyone  he  cares  for  ,  and  as  he  shuffles  out  of  rhaegar  and  reila’s  chambers  he  catches  sight  of  another  aiming  to  walk  in.  “  i  would  not  advise  visiting  them  at  this  moment  in  time.  ”  he  knows  rhaegar  is  hand  and  therefore  acting  in  charge  as  his  brother  is  ill  ,  but  the  man  was  rather  useless  this  morning  while  fretting  over  his  wife.  “  perhaps  later  ,  or  see  if  this  is  something  another  can  assist  you  with.  ”

 “  if  you’re  looking  for  an  interesting  choice  ,  the  lemon  cakes  are  quite  tasty  tonight.  ”  achara  begins  ,  having  taken  up  station  at  the  dessert  table  both  for  her  own  interests  and  it  seemed  to  be  the  safest  spot  from  anyone  asking  her  to  dance.  the  lady  wasn’t  in  the  mood  ,  but  that  didn’t  seem  to  stop  many.  “  if  they  aren’t  your  preference  ,  those  cherry  tarts  are  quite  delicious  as  well.  ”

 eirelia  hadn’t  loved  slipping  on  her  ass  through  the  halls  of  winterfell  ,  but  she  did  love  chaos.  now  ,  in  the  courtyard  with  a  frosted  ass  and  sore  limbs  ,  she  couldn’t  help  but  grin  at  the  cackling  ironborn  and  sparkles  in  the  sky.  “  well  isn’t  this  a  sight  ?  ”  questions  the  lady  aloud  ,  glancing  about  to  the  nobles  and  small  folk  alike  who  gathered  for  the  beauty  in  the  sky  ...  and  the  ones  groaning  about  the  ice  that  had  yet  to  even  get  off  the  ground.

 “  do  you  think  they’d  let  anyone  try  ?  ”  questions  the  mormont  as  he  gestures  to  the  fire  breathers  setting  up  to  begin  their  performance.  it’s  fascinating  ,  far  more  than  anything  else  happening  at  the  moment.  hugo  wasn’t  bored  at  the  ball  ,  far  used  to  these  types  of  celebrations  in  winterfell  ,  but  gods  was  he  easily  focused  on  only  one  aspect.  “  it  couldn’t  be  that  scary  ,  could  it  ?  ”  it  was  safe  to  say  his  wonder  outweighed  his  logic  in  the  moment.  the  lord  blamed  the  ale.

      ❝  no,  my  lord,  you  have  nothing  to worry about. it was a prank taken too far               yes, the hall will be cleaned, and i’ll have a maester visit your wife.  ❞       at last the man appeared satisfied, at least enough to bow and bid him farewell. finally. it wasn’t the first guest who’d approached him since the fireworks had filled the night sky, many worried that this was an ill omen, a warning from the iron born, while others had been concerned about a family member who’d fallen due to the ice. a heavy sigh fell from the king’s lips. damn ironborn. all he’d wanted was a quiet ball, meant to brighten everyone’s spirits after being stuck in winterfell for longer, but alas fate had other ideas. the sound of footsteps approuching made him turn, a smile returning to his lips.     ❝  yes? how may i help you?  ❞