The entire day after breakfast and his little chit chat with Margaery passed dully for Lucas. He had nothing of particular importance to do at the moment.
At one point, he had considered going for a stroll through the city of King's Landing but had quickly dropped the idea. He would do so after he owned the city... ahem, after he became the Lord Commander of the City Watch.
In the meantime, he had two barrels of wine delivered to the two individuals he had promised. Robert Baratheon and Margaery Tyrell.
He knew people like Renly Baratheon would be seething once they learned of this. Renly would most likely take it as a slight. He was too arrogant for his own good. Not that he did not have the right to be arrogant. He was the brother of the king. Lord Paramount of the Stormlands. And Master of Laws in the small council of the king.
But Lucas hardly cared for his reaction.
He also understood that, by now, most of the members of the small council had turned hostile toward him.
Jon Arryn, who had initially welcomed him warmly and was likely eager to rid the city of its stench, must now be simmering with frustration and irritation.
He expected similar reactions from the others. None of them would want their share of power to be trimmed away.
The only possible exception was Varys. But Lucas couldn't be certain of what that man wanted.
"For the realm," "for the betterment of the realm," those were Varys' favourite phrases, but Lucas suspected there was a personal agenda hidden beneath all the silk and whispers. Varys was not a man he would ever trust.
Another figure of interest on the council was Petyr Baelish. And Lucas had already antagonized the man by dragging the matter of the crown's debt into the open. That was not the sort of thing Petyr would want publicly exposed. Engaging with Baelish was going to be... interesting. That man was shrewd but he lacked when he started to believe that everything could be controlled by schemes and plans alone.
Just as Lucas had finished dinner and was preparing to sleep, Tillie arrived to deliver a message.
A servant had come outside his chambers and informed that Queen Cersei was summoning Lucas to her chambers.
Lucas raised an eyebrow at that. What could Cersei want? Something about the terms he had proposed? Or about the incident between Joffrey and him? Or... something else?
It still did not matter as he followed the maid toward Cersei's chambers. Two guards stood at the door. Their eyes narrowed slightly at his waist, where his sword should have been strapped, but was not. No, he was not weapon less. Enough weapons to arm a small squad of army was waiting in his sky poison pearl.
Even so, they did not stop or search him for smaller knives or hidden weapons. Most likely Cersei's instructions.
The door was pushed open, and he stepped inside. The room was dimly lit in the pale yellow hue, the flames from the candles flickering gently across the stone walls.
Near the window, he spotted the silhouette of Cersei seated on a chair.
He walked toward her. As he drew close enough, he could spot her clear enough and his eyes widened slightly.
Why? Because Cersei was wearing a slightly revealing nightdress.
The fabric was thin, almost transparent, and Lucas could clearly make out the outline of her curves. He wondered if, in daylight, he would have been able to see even more beneath it.
The dress was sleeveless and draped loosely across her shoulders, exposing a generous portion of her boobs from the sides. The neckline was deep, and a fair amount of cleavage was visible to Lucas.
Since, cerise was clearly in the mood to feast his eyes, he did not hesitate in ogling her. Or at least he showed, he was quite interested in her body which she considered as a means to control men around her.
"Cousin," she sighed, her eyes settling on his frame. "Have a seat."
Lucas took the chair across from her, his gaze drifting toward the window. The ripples on the waters of the Blackwater were just visible in the darkness, illuminated faintly by the moonlight.
After a moment, he turned back to her. Cersei said nothing, simply sliding a glass of wine in his direction.
"Called me to drink wine with you?" he asked, stealing another glance at her cleavage before picking up the glass.
He took a sip without hesitation. Even if it had been poisoned, he was not worried, with the Sky Poison Pearl in his grasp, there was little that could harm him. But it had not been poisoned.
"Not really," Cersei replied. "I thought maybe we could catch up. The wine is just a medium."
Lucas chuckled. "Ah! Sure. But you should have informed me beforehand. I would have brought the Sky Pearl Wine with me."
"Oh?" she said, her expression barely shifting. "I thought you gifted that only to young girls."
"No. Not young," he corrected with a smirk, his eyes drifting toward her boobs once more, "but beautiful ladies. And you are quite the beautiful one."
A smile bloomed on Cersei's lips as she subtly puffed out her chest, offering Lucas an even better view.
"Then I will expect a barrel of that wine from you," she said.
"And your expectations will be fulfilled," he replied without missing a beat.
"So," Cersei said as she leaned back in her chair. "I believe you will be staying in the King's Landing for quite some time."
"Only if the king agrees to my conditions," he replied.
"Most likely, he will," Cersei informed him. "Lord Commander of the City's Watch."
"Thank you, I guess," he said.
"About Joffrey," she said, finally breaching the topic that had been weighing on her mind. "I think the two of you should reconcile. A Lannister must stand by a Lannister."
'Only if the Lannister is not named Tyrion,' he muttered inwardly, though he kept the thought to himself.
"It is not like there's any serious conflict," he said aloud, offering a subtle smile. "Besides, he is just a child. Why would I take offense to his actions?"
Cersei felt a flicker of irritation, though it did not show on her face. When she spoke of reconciliation, she had meant Lucas should make the effort, apologize to Joffrey if needed. But now, with the way he framed it, it sounded as if Joffrey had been at fault, as if he should be the one seeking forgiveness.
He had been at fault, true but that was not the point. Joffrey was the heir to the throne. The future king. How could he be expected to reconcile and apologize?
Still, she kept her smile in place, though it was clear now Lucas would not be easily manipulated. Perhaps she would have to take things a step further. Simply offering him a view might no longer be enough.
*
*
*
[Add the book to your collection. Send some power stones and leave your opinion.]
[Access to Advanced chapters on P@treon. Replace @ with a.]
p@treon.com/shadowauthor