[#003] FOR THE REALM (GAME OF THRONES / ASOIAF)

[m_findlow]

Theme Prompt: #003 – Devil's advocate
Title: For the realm
Fandom: Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire)
Rating/Warnings: PG-13, Spoilers for Season 1/Book 1
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1,000 words
Summary: Jon Arryn seeks out the one person who may be an ally in his newfound revelations.



'Filthy brothels,' Stannis muttered, brushing the sleeve of his doublet with a gloved hand, as if the gesture could rid him of the distasteful scenes he'd witnessed inside. The very air in the street was fouled with sweat and stench as the hot summer's day rose up from the pavements.

'One of Littlefinger's establishments, I believe,' Jon Arryn replied, falling into step beside him.

'Yet another reason I despise having to sit on the Small Council,' Stannis complained. 'The man is an insufferable, self-serving weasel.'

'Yet a businessman is well suited to the charge of being the city's Master of Coin.'

Stannis snorted. 'You can hardly call a brothel a business. What good is being the Hand of the King if you can't rid the city of its whores, Jon?'

'Your brother the King would have me very quickly removed as his Hand if I did.' Jon Arryn pursed his lips as they weaved their way through the busy streets, mulling over his thoughts. 'I must confess that I have found these visits troubling.'

'It troubles you that my brother has sired a dozen bastards in as many years? It would trouble me had he not.'

'Strange though that each of them is remarkably similar, would you not agree? They have all the hallmarks of Baratheon blood. And yet his three trueborn heirs have their mother's looks.'

'A daughter should have her mother's looks,' Stannis replied. 'It's an unfortunate child that should take after her father.' He thanked the gods that his own daughter, disfigured as she was, carried her mother's shapely face. Gods help her if she looked like him, stern and fierce with a face that threatened to crack in two should he dare to smile.

'And the King's two sons? They are as fair and golden as any Lannister I've seen. Yet all of Robert's bastards...' he let the sentence trail off.

Stannis had seen them for himself. Every one dark-haired and ruddy-skinned, like every forebear he could recall in living memory. 'More comely and more kingly than their father when the time comes,' he replied.

'The question is, should we let it come to that?'

'I trust that you've done what you can to counsel my brother as best you can, but you realise what you are implying, don't you?'

'Which is why I asked you to come with me to see it with your own eyes. I cannot believe that there is coincidence in this.'

'You would accuse Robert of having no trueborn heir,' Stannis stated.

'And as such, that you would stand to inherit the throne should Robert die.'

Stannis shook his head. 'Madness, Jon. You cannot think to declare this. It would be an act of treason.'

'Even though you stand to gain the most?'

Stannis gave a grim-faced scowl. 'All the more because of it. The Lannisters would have us both put to the sword and made to look an accident.'

'You stood aside once to let Robert be King. Would you stand aside again when Joffrey takes the throne?'

In truth, Stannis hated the boy. He was as spoilt as Robert, but with the arrogance of every Lannister he'd ever crossed paths with. He would be as inept at running the kingdom as his father. Were it not for Jon Arryn and the Small Council, the kingdom would have fallen into ruin fifteen years ago. As it were, they were neck deep in debt. Only a lack of a power from other Houses in the Seven Kingdoms kept the peace. The only house that threatened the balance of power had cleverly married into it.

He should have known, Stannis realised. The Lannisters had stood with the Targaryens. Cersei had been betrothed to the Targaryen prince before they'd been toppled. Their only way back into power would be to align their house with House Baratheon. They'd very quickly hitched their wagon to Robert, sealing their place amongst the ruling class.

And therein lay the rub. The vile taste of rats and rotting fish he'd been forced to eat whilst laid siege to by the Targaryens still curdled his stomach. Meanwhile Robert had been drinking and whoring instead of laying King's Landing to waste and putting an end to their tyrant ruler. Their places should have been reversed. A year younger than Robert he might be, but fitter to rule by far. If the truth came out, and could be proved, that would change everything.

'If it's true then we must tell Robert,' Jon insisted. 'I cannot believe he is complicit in this.'

'My brother is many things, but wise is not among them. He may very well whore himself to an early grave.'

'All the more reason why such duplicitous acts should be brought into the light. If this is truly a Lannister scheme to overthrow...' Jon frowned, the last few weeks of revelations weighing heavily on his shoulders. 'You are Robert's heir, I am almost certain of it now. A time may come sooner than we like when that may become vitally important.'

'Have a care, Jon,' Stannis warned him. 'My brother loves you, but his wife does not. Even being the King's Hand will not afford you protection.'

Jon Arryn nodded. 'I have one more place I wish to visit. I believe then I shall be satisfied.'

'Not another brothel, I hope.'

'No. The boy's mother is well past her whoring days. He is a man grown, plying his trade as an assistant armorer and blacksmith.'

'Then you had best go there to buy a suit of armor. Common folk talk. Let them speak of the Hand of the King seeking a suit that would befit the Lord of the Vale, rather than one who would question the King's own bloodline.'

Jon Arryn gave him an acquiescing smile. 'I trust you shall insist it be their very finest work.'

Stannis grimaced. It had better be. If Jon Arryn wasn't careful, he might need it as more than just a pretense.

Comments

[autobotscoutriella]

This is so good--it feels like it could be actual GOT canon. I could 'hear' this conversation happening as I read it.

[m_findlow]

Thank you so much. It's a complex and detailed world but there are still small gaps to exploit and conversations to be delved into. Finding them is half the fun.

[graveexcitement]

nice! this reads as very plausible. i like the stannis POV here!

[m_findlow]

He's an intriguing character, and it's canon so who am I to argue? ;)

[alobear]

Great to head back to the very beginning and see this scene in detail, knowing all the incredibly complex things that happen afterwards. Really good stuff!

[m_findlow]

Thank you. I had fun expanding on this one little line in the book where Ned wonders why Jon Arryn has suddenly taken an interest in having fancy armor, when he was always so plain and practical. Stannis being there was actually canon, but one of those things that was easily overlooked so early in the book. I'm loving discovering little nuances now that I'm reading them for the second time.

[dray]

Can you please write the last book? I don't give a fuck what GRRM is up to these days, I think you'd do it better and faster. ;A;

This was awesome. I feel like I was reading a missing page.

[m_findlow]

Lol, I know right? Every time he releases a new book I'm like, "No! Just finish the first one and stop procrastinating!" then I smash my head onto the desk.
Whilst waiting for the book that will seemingly never come, I've been re-reading them and discovering all these little throwaway lines he put in there for things that happened or are assumed to have happened but which he never wrote. I'm making little notes of them as I go with the aim of writing them how I imagine they happened. He put so much detail into the books that finding little gaps where you can create new threads is actually fun.
Thanks for the kudos! :)

[dray]

That's so smart! I seem to remember him doing that and expecting him to loop back to some in future books, but he winds up spinning such a wide net that I think he's forgotten some things.

[badly_knitted]

I really enjoyed this despite knowing nothing of canon. You wrote the conversation so well that even I can understand exactly what's going on.

[m_findlow]

Thanks! I think you'd really like the books. Or at least read the first one then watch series one. The casting is fantastic, and really gives life to the characters in the book.
Part of the challenge I love with this comm is not necessarily writing a piece for people who are already fans and know the Fandom but to be able to write it in such a way that it is digestible to anyone, even if they've never heard of it, and hopefully to build some interest in the Fandom. If I've done that, then I'm happy. :)

[badly_knitted]

I doubt I'll ever get around to reading even the first book, they're so long, I'm a slow reader, and I have precious little time available for reading the books I already have. I do have season one on DVD though, not that I have time to watch that either. Found it cheap in a charity shop.

Yes, it's important here to try to make stories accessible to people who don't now the fandom, and you always manage that beautifully.

[sarajayechan]

Wonderfully written!

[m_findlow]

Thank you! :)

[peaked]

This is taking me back to what I enjoyed most about this show — the history! You captured Stannis really well, where he's disapproving of Robert yet will protect him to the bitter end. I love that Cersei's cunning comes through in this even without her being present. You've done a great job fleshing out the ill-fated Jon Arryn.

[m_findlow]

Thank you! I agree that the best parts of the show weren't the big action scenes, but rather the hushed exchanges that happened between characters, sometimes dark and foreboding, other times highly entertaining.

[etoile_noire]

Very nicely written. I really enjoy this style of narrative (and it's kinda made me want to go read the book... since I haven't done a thing with GoT).
Thanks for sharing it.