16 Chapter 16

POV Change- Alexander Baratheon (18):

After my work out with Apollyon we showed the kids, a few moves before letting them go at each other, watching them exchange blows and apply what little wee taught I was impressed and cold see their talent for the sword. I already knew Arya would be talented given what she would accomplish in the future, but the butcher's boy was a welcome surprise.

Watching them move around and improve little by little as my men shouted corrections in their moves from time to time, I wondered if I should protect the boy and have him join us, but then again if I did that, I would have to take the boy to war. Even if I decided to leave him behind in the capital, I couldn't see him having a good long life when Joffrey is crowned.

With my decision to leave the boy to his fate I wondered just how much I should interfere with what was coming, before I could come to a decision, I could see Sansa and Joffrey coming out of the tree line. I watched as Joffrey sauntered over in his red regal attire with a sword at his side, I lamented for the blacksmith who had the misfortune to forge a blade for the prick knowing it would never be put to proper use.

I waved for my men to relax as I saw them stand at attention and tense with the worlds least favourite prince making his way over, when I looked at his eyes, I could see an all to familiar evil glint in his eye.

When he saw me stay seated and relaxed as he approached, I could feel his anger rise, when he drew his sword, my men stood at attention but made no more moves as they had their hands on their hilts. Joffrey didn't seem to see the danger he had placed himself in as he continued to place the tip of his sword at my neck.

"You should rise when the prince is before you Dragon spawn," Joffrey sneered as he looked down into my eyes.

I kept a calm and passive appearance, but I felt my anger start bubbling as I allowed myself to be threatened and insulted to a boy, I was better than in every way. Deciding to deescalate the situation before one of my men drew steel or worse Apollyon, I gave Joffrey and apologetic smile as I bowed my head.

"Apologies my prince, I injured myself earlier and was unable to give the respect afforded to a man of your position," my voice was thick with sarcasm, but it seemed everyone, but Joffrey heard it. I suppose he was on a high seeing me bow to him, something that rarely ever happened.

With a finale sneer, I spun on his heel and pointed his sword at the butcher's boy, "And who are you?"

"My names Mycah Milord," the poor boy dropped the stick in his hand not knowing it was the only thing protecting him from the torture Joffrey had planned.

"He's, my friend!" there she is the fearless Stark who would stand up to anyone for her own, but I was beginning to wonder if she had any sense whatsoever.

"A butcher's boy who wants to be a knight…" Joffrey's condescending tone was thick as it made those who knew him uncomfortable as we knew nothing good would come from him feeling superior. Even the Starks seemed to grow slightly uncomfortable with his tone, 'I guess he really does disgust people on an instinctive level.'

"Pick up your sword butcher's boy and let's see how good you are," with those words Joffrey drew his sword and pointed it at the poor boy.

"She asked me to milord she asked me to," Mycah had begun to tremble, and his voice was shaky and had lost all the vigour it had previously.

"I'm your prince not some common lord, now pick up your sword" Joffrey used the tip of his sword to motion for Mycah to pick up his stick which he had been previously using as a sword.

"It's not a sword my prince it's only a stick," Mycah was trying to appeal to the common sense of his prince without knowing that he would have had better luck making the fish in the river fly than convincing Joffrey to let him go.

"And you're not a knight," Joffrey brought his sword to the boy's face just under the eye, "only a butcher's boy."

"Stop it!" Arya shouted as her fear for Mycah's safety began to cause her to shake and her voice tremble ever so slightly.

"Arya, stay out of this." Sansa reprimanded her little sister. I don't think she fully grasped the gravity of the situation and that her beloved prince fully intended to kill the poor boy for no other reason than he so wished to.

"I won't hurt him, much" Joffrey pushed the tip of his blade into the side of Mycah's face drawing blood as he slid the blade slowly down his face.

I watched as Arya strengthened her grip on the stick in her hands and her eyes hardened with resolve before with a mighty shout, she took a swing at the back of Joffrey's head and pressing her advantage by taking a second swing at his sword arm.

With Joffrey's focus else where Mycah took of running faster than I thought possible, clearly the boy's preservation instincts took over as he never spared a single glance backwards. I thought about having one of my men seize him both to appease the mad prince and for the boy's lack of loyalty. But then I remembered he's just a butcher's boy and he would be lucky if he saw another day, so I refrained from interfering.

I watched as Arya used the little footwork, we had taught her earlier to avoid Joffrey's mad swing of the sword trying to kill the girl all the while screaming threats of disembowelment and death as her sister screamed for her to stop and that she was ruining something seeming to forget that her sisters very life was at stake now.

Soon Arya took a misstep and panicked when she saw the blade incoming and threw herself to the floor, that's when Joffrey calmed his wild swings and closed in on her pointing the blade at her neck.

"Enough Joffrey, if you kill her there'll be war," I warned as it looked as though he really was about to kill the girl.

"Silence, I'm going to gut the little bitch," He hissed back at me.

Before I could interfere further, I saw Arya's Dire wolf dart out of the bushes and attack Joffrey, taking a bite at his sword arm and bringing the shit down. Arya not to miss an opportunity jumped up and took hold of the sword Joffrey dropped and pointed it at his whimpering form as he begged for his life.

Things were a little different from what I remembered, first was Joffrey's intensity when he was trying to kill Arya then there was the fact that it seemed as if Arya had steeled herself to kill Joffrey. I knew I had to intervene, or things would spiral well beyond what I was ready for.

"Arya, that's enough. If you kill him your family will be branded traitors of the realm and war will ravage your lands." I tried to calm the girl down as I explained what would come of her actions.

"Arya stop, leave him alone," Sansa was hysterical as she shouted at her sister. It seemed she had forgotten that not a minute earlier Joffrey was all but ready to kill her sister.

I moved to stand beside Arya, resting a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "Kill him and thousands will march to war, among them will be your brothers and father. Death will hover all around your family and she will lay claim to them at any given time, your family will never know peace again and everyone you know may very well die. What you do next will affect all of Westeros, will you give us peace, or will you send us to war?"