Educate

( Tywin POV)

Standing at a window in a bedchamber high in the castle of Casterly Rock, Tywin stared southwards towards Lannisport.

Behind him in the room as well, his dwarf of a son, Tyrion, was sitting beside the bed of his eldest son, Jamie.

Jamie had been brought back from the North 2 days ago, and by the state he was in, Tywin could guess that the fool hadn't heeded his words.

Thankfully Jamie wasn't at risk of dying, and had been in and out of consciousness even during the trip from the North, at least according to the knights who journeyed with Jamie to Asteria.

When Tywin had heard the story of what happened with Jamie and William, he wanted nothing more than to flog his son all the way to King's Landing before he slapped Robert upside the head. Thankfully he had calmed down quite a bit since then, and was now back to his usual self.

Maester Creylen had told them that Jamie was recovering about as good as could be expected, given the injuries he sustained, and that it was thankful that Jamie had been treated before their departure from the North, otherwise he might not have survived the journey.

Given everything he had gathered thus far about William Castian, Tywin was confused about a few things.

'Why did he spare Jamie?'

'Why did he have Jamie treated?'

'What will he do now?'

These were the questions plaguing Tywin's mind ever since Jamie arrived back at Lannisport. He knew from past experience that Castian didn't care one bit about titles or what House someone belonged to, so he wouldn't have thought twice about killing the son of a noble, even someone like Jamie, yet Jamie was still alive.

With his alliance with the Martells of Dorne, and the fact that Oberyn Martell was there at the time, Tywin couldn't wrap his head around it. Even if Castian didn't want Jamie dead, the Martells would have jumped at the opportunity to kill a Lannister, especially his son.

The fact that Castian had Jamie treated was another thing to think about. Castian knew that Jamie wouldn't have survived the trip back to Lannisport without treatment beforehand, and the fact that he healed him told Tywin that Castian wanted Jamie to stay alive, for now at least.

Tywin couldn't help but think maybe Castian had some plan for Jamie in the future, but whatever it was, Tywin sure as hell couldn't come up with an answer to it.

No matter what reason he thought up, he could counter the reason with the simple fact the Castian could do anything he wanted single handedly than whatever Jamie could offer, and for some reason the question seemed to bother him.

As for thinking about Castian's next move, Tywin could give a reasonable guess based on how the crown responded to what happened.

If Robert just shut his mouth, Castian would most likely continue as he had been for the last few years, at least until he began to travel again.

Based on his notes, Castian didn't stay anywhere for too long, and would travel somewhere after a time of staying still. Hell, the fact that Castian hadn't been in Asteria when Jamie had arrived almost confirmed that.

Luckily his guards were smart enough to ask around at the time, and had learned that Castian had been gone for weeks, most likely on another exploration, which fit right in with his personality.

If Robert called the banners and tried to attack Asteria, Tywin guessed Westeros would be serving a new king not long after the call to arms was sent out to the Great Houses.

Granted it would never happen, given how if Robert did call the banners, the Iron Bank would call in their debts, something the crown couldn't actually pay back at the moment.

With not being able to pay the debts, the Iron Bank would use it as an excuse to fund the opposition, namely, William Castian to retrieve their gold, something the Iron Bank was known for.

No, Robert would be putting his head on the spike himself if he was actually stupid enough to call the banners, but Tywin still wouldn't put it past the moron.

It might be worth making it look like Robert called his banners just to see Castian come and kill the fat drunk, but Tywin knew it would only cause more problems than it would solve, so he threw that thought out the window.

It was just a passing fantasy anyway, nothing that would bear fruit.

If Robert didn't attack Castian, but still pushed for the man to bend the knee, Tywin guessed that Castian would come to kill Robert, plain and simple. He couldn't see the monster just sitting back and letting someone harass him, not even the king.

No, Castian would eventually start killing the messengers sent to summon him to King's Landing at that point, at least that's what Tywin thought.

"Argh..." Groaning from behind Tywin pulled his attention away from his thoughts and back to reality.

Turning his head to the side, Tywin saw Tyrion moving to help Jamie drink from a nearby cup of water. Staring into his son's eyes, Tywin noticed Jamie look at him, then look somewhere else, as if he couldn't meet his eyes.

Going back to staring out the window, Tywin didn't say anything for a few minutes, choosing instead to hold his tongue for the moment.

"H-How bad... how bad is it?" Jamie asked weakly, sounding as though it was a struggle to even speak. 'Good.' Tywin thought. He didn't want to hear his son speak right now.

It was unsure if Jamie was asking about his health or how bad the situation was with Castian, but given his son's stupidity thus far, Tywin concluded he was asking about his ability to swing a sword. Given how he couldn't think for himself, it made sense.

Tywin didn't answer Jamie right away, and Tyrion was smart enough to know not to speak, at least not right now.

Finally after a little over a minute, Tywin spoke, "Are you incapable of thinking?" He asked rhetorically as he turned to look at his injured son.

His words had a little venom in them towards the end, showing exactly how bad the situation was.

"I made it perfectly clear that you were not to anger, Castian. You were to deliver the crown's summons before returning home, yet your first thought was to block the path of a Lord in his own place of power, then challenge him to a duel for something as foolish as testing rumors!" Tywin said, not shouting, but louder than normal, and with an edge in his voice.

Jamie just lay there, not knowing what he was supposed to say to his father's words, while Tyrion was doing his best to not garner his father's attention. Tywin never liked him on his good days, and Tyrion didn't want to know what Tywin would say or do to him on a day like this.

Seeing Jamie not respond to him, Tywin walked over so he was standing at the foot of the bed with his hands behind his back.

"Did you learn anything from challenging Castian that the rest of the world doesn't already know?" Tywin asked Jamie, speaking in a way that sounded like an adult talking to a toddler.

Jamie was still not meeting Tywin's gaze, but it did look like he was trying to find the words to answer him, given how his mouth kept opening and closing.

"Are you going to say something clever? Go on, say something clever!" Tywin prodded him, knowing full well that Jamie had no excuse for his actions other than his own ego and vanity.

"I am a King's guard!" Jamie declared, as though that was answer enough for his actions. It wasn't. Tywin turned abruptly so his back was to his sons, his head already shaking side to side in disappointment.

"For 27 years I've tried to teach you... Lannister's don't act like fools, and yet here you are, proving me wrong!" Tywin said, sounding more than a little angry.

Silence reigned supreme for more than a minute, lasting only until Tywin slowly turned back to face his sons.

Looking directly into Jamie's eyes, Tywin spoke, "You're blessed with abilities few men possess. You're blessed to belong to one of the most powerful families in the kingdoms, and you're still blessed with youth, and what have you done with these blessings? Huh? You've served as a glorified bodyguard for two kings, one a madman, and the other a drunk. It is the family name that lives on. It's all that lives on. Not your personal glory, not your honor, it's family. Do you understand?!"

As he listened in, Tyrion couldn't help but notice how his father never referred to them as 'The most powerful family'. He usually referred to them as such in the past, so the fact that he said 'one of the most powerful families' made Tyrion believe that his father didn't think they were the most powerful, like someone was stronger than he was. That was a cause for concern.

Jamie didn't say anything right away, choosing instead to take Tywin's heated stare, though unsurprisingly, he did eventually nod his head.

"You've already turned your back on the family once, and then let the crown's stupidly cloud your judgement. Don't do it again!" Tywin ordered, then walked out of the room.

There wasn't anything else he wanted to say to Jamie, and there was nothing Jamie could tell him that he didn't already know.

The guards had already given a full detailed report of everything that transpired once they reached Asteria, and from it, Tywin could more or less pick away at the information and store it in his notes about the ever elusive being that was, William Castian.

----------

(Jamie POV)

Once Tywin left the room, Jamie turned to look at his little brother, Tyrion. Despite how their father and sister treated Tyrion, Jamie truly loved him. He could be himself around Tyrion, and the both of them would have the other's back no matter what.

Jamie was smart enough to know that Tyrion was smarter than he was, and Tyrion was smart enough to know that he didn't stand a chance doing anything physical against Jamie. Together they made up for the other's shortcomings, and both of them knew it.

"Maester Creylen says you're recovering nicely, and that your fever has passed. You'll still have to rest up for a few more days before our departure for King's Landing." Tyrion told him, letting him know how bad things were for him, while not showing any contempt for him like their father.

"What do you mean, 'our departure'?" Jamie asked, taking note of something Tyrion had said towards the end there. When Tyrion didn't answer right away, Jamie could tell there was something Tyrion didn't want to tell him, so he prodded further.

"Come now, brother. Don't start treating me like I can't handle it."

The silence only lasted for a few seconds before Tyrion spoke, "Father has kept all information of what's happened in the North from getting out. Instead of sending a Raven, father will personally ride to King's Landing with the both of us and a host of soldiers. He wishes to inform King Robert of what happened, and make sure the King doesn't try to ride North himself."

Jamie didn't think his father would do something like this, but he guessed it made sense when he thought of who they would be going up against.

Thinking back to his 'fight' with William Castian, Jamie felt a chill run down his spine. The man fought unlike anyone Jamie had ever seen, and could move faster than any man alive, Jamie was sure of it.

Then there was his magic. Jamie had no idea how much more powerful William was than what he had seen, but he at least knew that William was going easy on him.

If Robert tried attacking him, Jamie couldn't say how that would go, but given the feeling of dread creeping over him, he didn't think it would go well for them. That wasn't even mentioning the other Lords of the North, nor the defenses of Asteria.

Jamie had seen first hand the city's defenses, and needless to say, it would take one hell of a siege, but that was if they even made it there.

Bear Island and the Last Hearth would not side against Castian, and by the looks of things, Dorne would not stand idly by as their ally was attacked.

No, if Robert moved North, so too would Dorne, and before long the whole of Westeros would be at each other's throats.

"What was he like?" Tyrion asked, breaking Jamie out of his thoughts.

Looking at his brother, Jamie answered, "Terrifying..."

Again there was a pause before Jamie continued, "He made me feel as though I was a child again fighting the master-at-arms for the first time. Then there was his magic... it was unlike anything I've ever seen before."

The two brothers just sat there after that, both processing that information. Eventually though they did start talking again, only this time they both spoke of anything but the North and William Castian.

There would be enough of that in the days to come, and right now neither of the brothers wanted to even think about such a man.

--------------

(Tywin POV)

It had taken 4 days after Jamie had fully awakened for him to gain enough of his strength back that it was safe for him to make the journey to King's Landing, though he would not be doing it from the back of a horse.

Instead, Jamie would be riding in one of 2 wagons Tywin was bringing, along with a host of 200 soldiers who would be riding horseback.

There was already a contingent of 100 Lannister soldiers in King's Landing, but they were always there on standby for if Cersei or Jamie ever needed them, still, it would give Tywin 300 soldiers to call on should he need them.

If he marched anymore men, people might think that he was going to sack the city again, and that just wouldn't do to keep the people in line.

The trip to King's Landing had taken a little over a week, the group of mounted men having to stop frequently for Jamie's sake, making sure that he remained as relaxed as could be while on the road, but also not to the point where it would take them forever and a day to reach their destination.

When they finally got to the city, Tywin wasted no time, choosing instead to go straight to the Red Keep. A messenger had been sent to inform the members of the small council, who would no doubt inform the King and Queen of Tywin's arrival.

Going straight for the small council chamber, Tywin found the Hand of the King, Lord Jon Aryn, The Master of Ships, Lord Stannis Baratheon, The Master of Whispers, Varys also known as the Spider, The Master of Coin, Lord Petyr Baelish, and Grand Maester Pycelle already seated in the room.

"Greetings Lord Tywin!" Jon Aryn said respectfully.

Tywin went through the formalities of greeting the council members, at least the ones currently in the room. There was still the Master of Laws, Lord Renly Baratheon, Lord Commander of the King's Guard, Ser Barristan Selmy, and of course, King Robert himself.

It took almost 20 minutes before Robert arrived, smelling of wine and swaying heavily from side to side. Of course, Ser Barristan was trailing only a few steps behind his King, and Renly was only a step behind him.

"What's the meaning of this?! Why have I been called here?!" Robert demanded answers as he moved over to his chair before dropping his fat ass down hard on the seat.

It was only in recent years the oaf began to put on weight, looking nothing like the man he was when he became king, or even the man he was when the Greyjoy's rebellion had occurred.

Already Robert was short of breath after only a short walk, something Tywin noticed almost immediately, causing his opinion of the man to fall lower than before, which was already pretty low.

"To educate you." Tywin answered clearly towards Robert, then looked to each person in the room before turning to look at a guard at the door behind him. With a simple nod the guard left the room, while Tywin turned back to the room's occupants.

"You want William Castian to bend the knee, but let me ask you this. Would you ever bow to an insect?" Tywin asked, looking pointedly at Robert.

"What are you playing at, Tywin?!" Robert remarked, not seeing the need to answer such a ridiculous question.

"I'm saying, you can't ask a sorcerer such as Castian to bow down to anyone." Tywin said calmly, as though he was explaining something simple to a child.

Before anyone could make the obvious objections, the doors to the room opened, and in hobbled Jamie, with Tyrion trailing a half step behind him.

Just as the guard at the door was going to close it, Cersei entered the room, stopping only a few feet away from Tywin to stare at the still bruised and bandaged form of Jamie.

He had recovered much since he had been beaten, but he still wasn't even close to being back in peak condition. That would still take another month, maybe two depending on if he actually listened and rested as his body required of him.

The guard at the door looked at Tywin to see if he should hold off on closing the door until the Queen excited, but a simple glance was all it took to let the man know that he should close the door as fast as he could with himself on the other side of it.

Turning back to Robert, Tywin saw him scowling at Cersei, obviously not pleased that she was in the room, though he didn't say anything in front of Tywin, which wasn't a big surprise, but Tywin still expected some form of complaint from the oaf.

"Ser Jamie, what's happened to you?" Ser Barristan asked, being the first to show some bit of concern for his sworn brother of the King's Guard.

For his part, Jamie was doing his best not to look weaker than he most certainly looked already, his dignity not allowing him to disgrace himself further.

"He was sent on a fool's errand. Castian didn't take kindly to your summons, nor should you have expected anything different." Tywin said, answering Ser Barristan while still staring pointedly at Robert.

"I want him dead!" Robert exclaimed angrily as he shot to his feet.

"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Tywin asked calmly, almost like he already knew the answer.

"I rule over seven kingdoms! He's just one man! I'll march an army to his door and drag him out on his ass before I execute him for the rest of Westeros to see!" Robert stated with absolute assurance in his words.

At Robert's statement, Tywin shook his head slowly as he began to pace from one side of the room to the other before saying, "Wrong. You'll only have whatever army you can gather from the Stormlands and the Vale. The other five kingdoms won't fight for you."

That bit of news made the eyes of everyone in the room go wide, including Cersei, Jamie, and Tyrion.

"What are you talking about?" Jon Aryn asked, showing a great deal of concern, unlike Robert, who was just pissed off.

'Another reason why this oaf should never have been king.' Tywin thought tiredly.

"As you all most certainly have heard, William Castian has decreed that Dorne is his ally, and they're more loyal to him than they are to the crown. Highgarden has also brokered an alliance with Castian, stating they will not side against him in a conflict." Here Tywin paused as he looked to Varys, who in turn stood to address the room, or more accurately, Robert.

"What Lord Tywin says is true. My little birds in the Reach reported as much when the castle shook." The Spider said, reminding everyone of a tall tale from way back when.

The incident of Highgarden shaking had indeed been reported to the crown, but it had also been reported that the castle was completely unblemished afterwards, indicating that it was just a weird forgettable event.

Hell, Robert figured the spies must have been drunk because the Red Keep shook more often than not for him every day.

Continuing his pacing, Tywin began speaking again. "If you expect forces from the IronBorn so soon after their rebellion then you're a fool. Even if you did somehow manage to sway them to your cause, the rest of Westeros just finished fighting them, and would therefore not trust their old enemies so close to them. You'd cause more unrest among your ranks than you would raise morale."

Tywin made a good point, and everyone in the room agreed with him. Hell, Stannis would rather go finish off the IronBorn than call for their help in battle.

"Then there is the North. You might be able to convince Lord Eddard to join you in battle, but you'll not get his bannerman. From what I've gathered, Maege Mormont's daughter holds a position in his council, and he and Lord Jon Umber are close friends. Lord Tallhart is in a trade agreement with Asteria, one which has benefitted him greatly. None of them will fight Castian, and none of the other Lords will go to war with their own allies, as I'm sure you already know."

Tywin had been keeping an eye on the Northern Lords a bit more than he normally would have due to Castian moving there.

To keep from causing bad blood between him and Castian, Tywin hadn't sent spies or did anything that would anger the young lord, instead he made merchants ask their buyers about things related to Asteria or Castian, mostly hearsay, but when enough people in the North confirmed the same thing, Tywin could make his own conclusions.

It was amazing how much information a Vodka merchant could get out of people once they had a few drinks to unwind themselves.

"That's still only four of the seven kingdoms. What about Casterly Rock?" Jon Ayrn asked, wondering why Tywin himself wouldn't support his son-in-law to crush a potential threat to the realm.

"King Loren Lannister wisely bent the knee to Aegon Targaryen when he saw the threat the Conqueror and his dragons represented to the Westerlands. King Mern Gardener of the Reach did not. House Lannister is still around, while House Gardener was turned to ash, and its name only spoken about in history books. I'll not let House Lannister follow along House Gardner, to be remembered on a page that most don't even bother to read." Tywin spoke, telling them all what would be the fate of those who went to war with... whatever the hell Castian was.

"He attacked my brother! Your son! And you're just going to let him get away with it?!" Cersei huffed angrily. Judging by both Tywin's and Robert's expressions, she had spoken way out of turn.

"Yes, your brother challenged Castian to a one-on-one duel, and look at the condition he returned in. Be thankful he was able to return at all." Tywin told his daughter, however, by the tone of his voice, he wasn't happy that he needed to explain himself at all.

"So what would you have me do then?!" Robert shouted, not happy in the slightest by Tywin's words.

"Leave him be." Tywin said simply, earning more than one frown from the room's occupants.

"And why would I do that?! He is in my Kingdom!" Robert roared, his face a bright red, due a little in part to alcohol, but a large part because of his anger.

At his words, Tywin actually smirked at Robert, a literal mocking smirk, angering the king even more.

However, before Robert had another outburst, Tywin spoke, "Wars swallow gold like a pit in the earth, and the crown is already almost 2 million gold dragons in debt to House Lannister, and another 2 million in debt to the Iron Bank. House Lannister will not fund this expedition, and the Iron Bank would sooner go to war with you than go against their strongest ally."

Everyone in the room had heard the rumors about Castian and the Iron Bank for a while now, but up until Tywin said it, only one person in the room actually believed it, and that person just so happened to be the Spider.

"Surely there is someone there we can reason with..." Cersei said, trailing her words off quietly when she got another hard stare from her father. She really needed to keep her mouth shut.

"The Iron Bank is the Iron Bank! There is no 'someone'! We all live in its shadow, and almost none of us know it. You can't run from them, you can't cheat them, you can't sway them with excuses. If you owe them money, you don't want to crumble, you pay it back. Because of course, the Iron Bank will have its due."

No truer words had been spoken about the Iron Bank, and everyone in the room knew it, even Robert. Only a fool would go against the bank, because they had so much money, they literally funded armies with more gold than they would be getting back.

By that point it wasn't to get back their money, but to let the rest of the world know that they would not be cheated, and they would get what was promised to them one way or another, even at the cost of eradicating anyone in your family line.

The only exception to this however, was William Castian.

"How do we know the Iron Bank is actually allied with him? So far it's just been rumors and hearsay." The Master of Coin, Petyr Baelish asked, genuinely curious if it had been confirmed to be true or not.

"I myself have business with the Iron Bank as you all well know, and have confirmed the alliance between the two. Should the throne move against him, the Iron bank will do everything in their power to destroy it and any supporters that follow. So you see, the crown can ill-afford to go against William Castian and the Iron Bank! You mess with one of them, you mess with both of them." Tywin said, finally confirming the alliance that most everyone else thought to be a lie.

-------------

(Varys POV)

When Lord Tywin confirmed what Varys had already reported months prior, the Master of Whispers couldn't help but let out a breath he had been holding.

'You're too clever, My Lord...' Varys thought, focusing intently on Tywin.

It was for this very reason he had swayed the Mad King to go against Tywin at the time when he was his Hand. Tywin was too smart, and wouldn't fall for the lies that most men would.

The old lion was too cynical to not check the rumors himself, and unlike most people, believed to get real facts before acting. This was one of the reasons Varys liked Robert Baratheon for king.

The man cared more for wine and whores than he actually cared for being king. As for his advisors, it wasn't too hard to only share what needed to be shared, as most of them were too busy doing their jobs.

Unlike them however, Tywin had his own spy network that was constantly bringing him information. If they reported something Varys didn't, it would prove that he wasn't fit for his position on the council, and he would probably be executed.

Things were going quite nicely for the Spider. The realm was being slowly bankrupted, and with the secrets Varys knew about a few certain people, a war wouldn't be too hard to pull off when the time was right.

However everything changed when a certain boy appeared out of nowhere and began to ravage the world. Not only had the boy garnered the attention of most everyone in the world, he had gained somewhat of an obsession from Lord Tywin, which was understandable when you were as smart as he was.

Tywin was constantly keeping track of the biggest threats to his House, and if there was a threat, it was most certainly William Castian, Varys knew this to be fact.

He had seen first hand the city of Asteria and the land bridge created by Castian, a work of art not seen since the days of Bran the Builder.

Follies and years of Varys's careful planning were being undone by some magical child that came from who knows where. Then there was the fact that the Targaryens disappeared into thin air.

Varys originally thought that Castian had something to do with their disappearance, given how he was in the city with them when they disappeared, but then the Iron Bank started selling information on their whereabouts.

Varys had tried to find the two exiled children, but they were always one step ahead of whoever came to find them, but the rumours always mentioned two children showing up with a small contingent of guards, but moved on shortly thereafter.

Not even Varys could tell that the Iron Bank was just going above and beyond with its rumours for William that most people would be hard-pressed to ever know they were lies.

In his mind, Varys was hoping Lord Tywin would leave to go back to Casterly Rock as soon as possible, mostly so he didn't have to worry about answering questions that should have been answered long ago, but also so he could go back to setting his plans in motion for when the 'true king' came to claim the throne.

---------

(Grand Maester Pycelle POV)

'I knew he was the man to follow! The Gods themselves couldn't have explained it better!' Pycelle thought, completely enthralled by Tywin.

Not even the Masters at the citadel could run a kingdom as well as Lord Tywin, and the topic had been brought up a time or two.

Pycelle knew this to be true, and was more thankful each day about his choice in serving the true ruler of the realms.

'Let's hope the king and the rest of the council are smart enough to heed his advice!' Pycelle thought, without a doubt in his mind that Tywin had things under control, after all there was no man he thought better of to lead the realm.

'I have served 3 kings, but here before us stands the greatest man I know. Lord Tywin wears no crown, yet he is all a king should be.'

----------

(Petyr Baelish POV)

'In King's Landing, there are two sorts of people. The players and the pieces, and there is no stronger player than him. For now.' The Master of Coin thought, unsure as to what had Tywin so scared of a boy.

Sure he had some good points that Petyr himself had not known, but the man was Tywin Lannister. If he wanted the boy dead, there were more than a few ways to go about it, even if he did have magic.

A crossbow bolt to the heart or a blade across his throat, a man with magic would die the same as a man without.

Tywin also had the largest army in all of Westeros, and combined with the rest of the Seven Kingdoms, or at least the ones who would fight for the crown, it shouldn't be too hard to deal with one boy.

At least that's what Petyr thought. Still, the fact that Tywin was so cautious of this boy, it gave Petyr a few ideas that he could use to further increase his position of power.

---------

(Cersei POV)

'What is father thinking?!' She wondered worriedly. In her head she thought they should already be marching their troops to go put down the fool who had dared to harm her brother.

She was also worried about the letter she had sent to this little monster with Jamie, and the fact that he wouldn't meet her eyes told her that something had indeed happened on that front.

'If Robert finds out...' Her thoughts trailing off as she wondered just how angry he would get.

His own King's Guard would probably be looked at again if he found out, especially the ones who made it there through her recommendation.

She doubted Robert would do it personally, but Lord Arryn might, if he actually found the time to do so. The Hand of the king looked more defeated than his age should have allowed him to be, but trying to solve Robert's problems was like fighting a losing battle.

That was the only silver lining here, and she knew it. She wanted to ask more questions, but a simple glance from her father told her it was best if she bit her tongue for now.

They would already be sharing words about her even being here now and for her outburst earlier. She wasn't looking forward to that.

---------

(Tyrion POV)

Watching his father give a lesson to the men who ran the kingdom was enlightening to say the least. He knew his father didn't hold anyone in the council in very high regard, but Tyrion at least thought he would show them a bit more respect than this.

Still, his father's warning wasn't without cause, nor was the fact that he would refuse them the gold to fund the campaign against the upstart in the North.

From the state of his brother and from what he had learned of the failed summons, Tyrion was sure his father knew more than he was telling, but decided it was best to keep his mouth shut.

Hell, he was only here to observe and learn about court, and apparently what not to do if he was king. His father didn't like King Robert, that much was common knowledge, and of course Tyrion knew why, hell everyone knew why.

His father, Tywin, thought long term, and planned on how best to govern the realm. Robert Baratheon on the other hand, well... his only thoughts consisted of where the wine was and what poor woman he could stick his prick in next.

"So you would have me do nothing while this-this boy steals from me?! And how soon before the rest of the Kingdoms think they can just take what they want?!" Robert shouted at Tywin again, still not getting the message, but at least he was thinking of the future this time.

Tyrion listened as Tywin explained to the room about playing it off as a move from the crown to bring a little more stability to the North, and keep them from remaining as backwoods as they were.

It was all hogwash, Tyrion knew, but it was enough of a reason to make Robert Baratheon not look like a weak fool, while still not looking weak to the rest of the kingdoms, even if their opinion of him was already shattered.

For a little over 3 hours Tyrion listened in as Tywin spoke to the Small Council, and by the end of it he was quite happy that he was given the chance to be here.

Really it was so he didn't act like the rest of the fools at court, but Tyrion liked to believe his father was trying to help him succeed in life.

By the end of the meeting, everyone returned to their own quarters to think about what they had learned and discuss it in the following days. Well, everyone on the Council would discuss it, probably.

As for the king, Tyrion had seen him make his way to a brothel just outside the Red Keep with a jug of wine in hand.

'He's got the right idea, just the wrong time.' Tyrion thought, fully approving of the King's choice of action, only he could have chosen a time when his Council wouldn't need his input.

There would be more than a few questions for the King in the days to come, and Tyrion didn't believe Robert would be capable of answering any of them.

-------------

Days Later

(Unknown POV)

"Are we really doing this?!" A tall skinny man asked his companions who were all boarding one of the three ships that would depart within the hour.

""""AYE!!"""

The chorus of cheers sounded out from everyone else as they raised their swords in agreement, making the skinny man gulp before he too climbed on the ship.

Of course he wanted to reave and sow like their ancestors did, but why did it have to be there?!

'I'm gonna die.' He thought sadly.

A chill ran down his spine every time he thought of that monster, and he'd only ever heard stories about him. Still, the Drowned God was with them, so what could go wrong?