Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
With the subtle approach wouldn't they try to kill him without being caught? Or is there no chance of hiding their involvement?
Indeed, that is the plan. However, it is questionable if they really manage to do it without being caught. If everything goes exactly as planned, their involvement in this matter will be hidden. Lord Frey's more direct approach on the other hand would effecitvely be suicide with a good chance to take the king out before the guards stop them.
I can't believe some of these morons are planning to assasinate a king and are worried about being dishonorable.
It is safe to say that Garthon and Lord Mallister are similarly baffled. However, honour is very strongly rooted into the worldview of these men. Most of them are already reluctant to kill the king, mainly because of the fact that they are sworn to him, but what Lord Bracken for example really dislikes is the fact that he sees the Strangler as particularly heinous and reprehensible. It's one thing to assassinate a king, but to let him die in pain is a bit too much in his eyes. Lord Frey on the other hand has a very low opinion on poison in general, seeing it as extremely cowardly. He is not concerned about his honour, but mainly about his reputation. Lord Tully and Lord Blackwood also have their doubts, but they at least see that it is necessary. And at least part of Lord Bracken's disapproval comes from the fact that Lord Blackwood is in favour of this plan. With the exception of Lord Frey (who is more like the Greatjon) and Lord Mallister (who was inspired by Roose Bolton), these riverlords have a concept of honour that is similar to the one displayed by Ned Stark, so they feel very uneasy at the thought of poisoning someone.
With the subtle approach wouldn't they try to kill him without being caught? Or is there no chance of hiding their involvement?
I can't believe some of these morons are planning to assassinate a king and are worried about being dishonorable.
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
I don't know, it is actually hard choice... this was the original plan, silent one, it took some time to collect required things which they succeeded, why not to just follow this one till the end and strike by surprise.
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
[Advice him to stick with the original plan] The king is dangerous who knows what he'll do next, he needs to be put down as soon as possible and we don't want our hand seen in this.
I have a couple questions. At first Garthon seemed certain that this plan was doomed to fail and agreed only so he would die by his brothers side, has his opinion changed at all?
What would be Garthon and Torvin's role in the assassination?
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
At first Garthon seemed certain that this plan was doomed to fail and agreed only so he would die by his brothers side, has his opinion changed at all?
Yes, his opinion has changed slightly. He is still less than enthusiastic about it, but he sees a slim chance that it might work. The meeting with the endlessly bickering Riverlords slightly disillusioned him again though. However, he also starts to feel a bit more sympathy for Lord Tully, who is not that different from him after all. So, he is mostly still in this out of loyalty to his brother and not really convinced that they have a realistic chance of killing Harren.
What would be Garthon and Torvin's role in the assassination?
Their exact role hasn't been mentioned so far, but if Lord Tully goes with the original plan then Torvin and Garthon are going to have a direct role in the assassination, together with George and Gabin. It would be their job to actually kill the king and everyone else who is present during the assassination.
[Advice him to stick with the original plan] The king is dangerous who knows what he'll do next, he needs to be put down as soon as possible… more and we don't want our hand seen in this.
I have a couple questions. At first Garthon seemed certain that this plan was doomed to fail and agreed only so he would die by his brothers side, has his opinion changed at all?
What would be Garthon and Torvin's role in the assassination?
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Well, I wouldn't be too sure about that. I value your choices and to keep up the suspense of this subplot, I have decided to give you a number of choices that can potentially result in Harren's death, despite what the canon predetermines. Depending on your choices, the ones you already made and the ones you will make in future parts, the assassination has a chance to succeed. Building up a storyline for several chapters and then ending it without your choices mattering at all would be pretty pointless to me. That said, there is an equally big chance that Harren survives and that history will unfold as you know. It all comes down to your choices.
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Indeed, there is no apparent connection yet. There will be more storylines without an immediately apparent connection to the Raylansfair storyline starting in the next chapter, although some of these storylines will be connected sooner or later. Perhaps the Harrenhal storyline in general will get a connection to Raylansfair in time.
Well, House Hoare has loosely been connected to Raylansfair plot - remember the dagger Lyria made?
And then there is Anturion's plan that clearly would affect Raylansfair, and some characters near Raylansfair are connected to characters in Harrenhal - not to Torv and Garthon though... I think.
Garthon
Garthon moved a hand to his scabbard, noticing that the knight in front of him was certainly ready to strike first and willing to… more let things escalate if Garthon wouldn't follow his orders. Fortunately, Garthon had little interest in provoking this man. With slow movements, he removed the scabbard from his belt, slowly handing it to the knight, who grabbed it impatiently.
“It's 'Rickard', isn't it?”, he asked, trying to lighten the mood. The knight answered with a frown. “Ser Rickard for you, Ironborn”, he growled and shot a glare at George. “If your new friend tries any tricks, George, your allegiance to Tully won't protect you”
George decidedly shook his head and reciprocated the knight's glare. “You don't trust him? Garthon has proven himself to be loyal”, he insisted. Rickard shook his head. “Boy, I am here for one thing only: To protect Lord Bracken, from any kind of danger. Bad enough that he has to be here with that Bla… [view original content]
Garthon will advice Lord Tully to stick with the original plan
That was a very major choice. Actually, most of Garthon's choices in this chapter are going to be major and this isn't even the most important one. Still, it will have tremendous impact on the rest of Torvin's and Garthon's storyline and will play a role in wether or not the assassination will succeed.
The next part was supposed to be finished yesterday, but sadly I got very busy. However, I am sure that I will finish the part in the next few hours. There is not that much writing left to do and I have a lot of time today. This part is going to be the start for our newest PoV, Ilish Granver.
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly caused the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she had in front of her now.
“Do you listen? Be careful with her!”, the soldier called her again. Ilish knew, he was drunken. To her luck, she wasn't the one who had to serve them when they came in earlier this night and tried to 'occupy' the tavern for their lord. This questionable honour went to her best friend Daisy, who did a good job in fulfilling the men's requests for ever more alcohol. Now most of them had been passed out and Daisy was busy cleaning up the mess they left behind. This one had proven to be too stubborn to just fall into an alcohol-induced sleep. His name was Malkolm Sternhelm, as he had rather loudly proclaimed when he led her to the stables, to care for the lords horse. Ilish made sure to remember his name.
“I know what I'm doing”, she snapped back at him, causing him to raise an eyebrow. He was a truly huge man, broad-shouldered, heavily muscled, with a bald head and a long, brown beard that thankfully hid the majority of his ugly face, but failed to hide the deep scar that went from his left temple all the way down to the right side of his jaw. “Keep in mind whom your talking to, girl...”, he growled and she forced herself to give him a smile. “I'm sorry, Ser. It has been a long night. Perhaps I can bring you something to drink?”, she answered.
The mention of more alcohol caused a stupid grin to appear on his face, befitting to the general opinion Ilish got about this man. But it also caused him to get significantly more friendly towards her. “Now, that's an offer. Perhaps you're good for something after all. I'll take another mug of your finest. The lord is paying!”, he proclaimed and Ilish's smile got even more forced than before. Of course, the lord was paying. “And when you're back, I show you how to deal with a horse like this. You have to tread her gently, you know!”, he added and Ilish seriously doubted that he even knew the meaning of the word 'gentle'.
It was a good opportunity to get away from him and Ilish gladly took it. After all, when had she ever wasted an opportunity? She went out of the inns stables and took a deep breath of the cold nightly air. During chilly autumn nights like these, the warm Reach almost felt a bit like home, where even the Summer had been cold. It brought back memories of laughter and love, but also of death and despair. The broken look in her brothers eyes as he buried their father next to their mother. Then there was the spark of anger as he left her behind and never returned. Carvin was the only family she had left and she wasn't sure if she would take him back after all that happened.
As Ilish turned around, she bumped into someone, who quickly grabbed her by the shoulders. She let out a muffled scream, more out of surprise than out of actual fear, as she reached behind her back, her fingers grabbing the short knife she carried with her. “Careful where you step, honey”, a familiar voice called her out and Ilish let out a sigh, letting go of her knife, as her hands moved downwards, grabbing the man's belt and pushing him away from her. “Alan Harking”, she growled. “What are you doing here?”
Alan had the grin of a truly drunken man on his face, clearly showing that he could desperately need a good night full of sleep. For any other man, Ilish would have brought him to his home by now, to make sure that he wouldn't have to sleep outside, but he... after a full day in which he was effectively harassing her, she had enough of him. Ilish knew, she wasn't a great beauty. Her whole body was a bit too skinny for her own taste, her face nothing special and her hair, while comfortable for her, was cut far too short for the tastes of most men. But considering how much Daisy had to endure because of her beauty, Ilish was rather glad about her own plain looks. However, for some reason Alan Harking showed clear and unwanted interest in her.
She moved her hands behind her back again, so that he couldn't see what she was holding, as she attempted to push herself past her. Alan's supposedly charming grin got a bit wider. “Was just outside to take a piss, when I saw the most beautiful barmaid in Raylansfair”, Alan revealed and Ilish rolled her eyes. His charm reminded her of a particularly disgusting cockroach. “You're talking about Daisy and you're pissed drunken”, she answered.
“No!”, Alan protested. “I mean, yes, perhaps I had a drink too much. That can happen to a hard-working fellow, such as me. But I'm not talking about that Daisy girl. She's that cute redhead, right? No, I'm talking about you” He gave her a sly smile and she let out a sigh. “You're wasting your time, Alan”, she answered softly, but sternly.
Alan frowned slightly, as he shook his head. “Why? I mean, you've been here the whole day. I've been here the whole day. We talked. We laughed. Well, I laughed. But you smirked, that one time. There's this special connection between us. You're a classy girl. And, well... you can't go any more classy than me”
Ilish raised an eyebrow, as she finally stepped past him, putting her hands towards the front, so that he was still not seeing what she held in them. “Okay... do you mind if I won't even bother with answering?”, she asked and before he was able to answer her, she continued. “No? Great. Glad we talked about this. Now, do me a favour and go home. Alone”
She walked into the tavern, leaving a visibly baffled Alan behind. He said something else, but she wasn't bothering with listening to him anymore. What a prick! At first, Ilish had found him somewhat amusing, even had enough courtesy to laugh at some of his unsavoury jokes. But the day went on, her smiles got forced until they fully disappeared and his face started to appear more and more alluring for her closed fist. A grin appeared on her face as she looked down towards her hands, holding Alan Harking's purse in them. When had she ever wasted an opportunity?
As she looked up, she once again noticed how full the tavern was tonight. Aside from the dozen men from Mander's Mouth, Ilish registered a surprisingly large number of strangers. There was a tall, red-haired man who was apparently friends with Alan now, talking to the chubby man from the Vale. There were soldiers from the Rock, sitting in a side room and loudly requiring more drinks. A group of half a dozen armed strangers had managed to get a large table for themselves, sitting there oddly disciplined. During a day like this, Daisy and her cousin Megur both had to work alongside Ilish to fulfil the needs of the guests.
Behind the counter, Ilish saw the owner of the tavern and a smile appeared on her face. Audrey Marigold was in more than one way the complete opposite of Ilish. Where Ilish was thin, Audrey was incredibly obese, her vibrant red hair contrasting with the slight tan she had put on during the warmer days of the early autumn. Her blue eyes had a lively look inside of them and even in situations where Ilish would frown, Audrey's smile never vanished. She was old enough to be Ilish's mother and in some way, Ilish always felt secure when being near her. The older woman gave her a big grin as she saw her approaching.
“Come over here, girl!”, she exclaimed. “How'd it go with that soldier?” Ilish slightly shook her head as she walked behind the counter, her gaze moving towards the multitude of guests inside of the taproom. Audrey's daughter Megur was serving a group of soldiers from Mander' Mouth, while Daisy, Megur's cousin, was serving a group of sellswords who had arrived with the men from the Rock. Both girls were around Ilish's age and displayed the vibrant red hair Audrey's family was known for. Whereas Megur was as round and chubby as her mother, Daisy possessed all the beauty her aunt and cousin were lacking. In Megur's case, this included inner beauty. With a disgusted frown, Ilish saw one of the soldiers giving Daisy a hard slap on the bum.
“Why don't you just throw them out, Audrey?”, she asked, noticing that the innkeeper's facial expression mirrored her own. “They come here and act as if they own this place” Audrey gave her a reluctant nod. “I'd like to, girl. But the sad thing is, they might own the place soon”, she answered, before her gaze hardened. In a quick movement, she grabbed the large, iron spoon she was always wearing at her belt and slammed it onto the hand of the red-haired sellsword who was sitting at the counter, as he had just tried to pour himself another mug of beer as she wasn't watching. “Oh no, Marak!”, she yelled. “If you want more, you're going to pay, like everyone else!”
The sellsword held his hand in slight pain and gave the large woman an intimidated nod. “Got no more money, ma'am”, he mumbled weakly, but Audrey was already done with paying attention to him. “Customers...”, she growled with a low voice, while winking at Ilish. “At least this lord is paying good money. Throwing them out won't be worth the trouble that follows. Besides, Daisy is a strong girl. She can handle them”
Ilish shivered as she remembered the last time Audrey thought one of her girls could handle a difficult customer. Back then, she had to thank Richard, Philip and Urid for intervening when this strange man had harassed her. Wolfius Woodbark... Ilish was glad that at least someone had the guts to stand up for him back then.
The feeling of Audrey's massive hand resting on her shoulder. “I need you to bring that to the mercenaries”, she revealed and pointed at the long table that was occupied by a group of armed strangers. Ilish pressed her lips together. The soldiers from Mander's Mouth were bad news. The soldiers from the Rock probably even worse. But these men... she had no idea whom they were working for, she only knew that they drank not even nearly enough for a group of mercenaries in a tavern. Apparently, Audrey was about to change that. Without saying another word, she handed Ilish a dangerously heavy tray and flashed her a motherly smile, before something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. “Marak!”, she yelled and raised her massive iron spoon, as the Ironborn once more tried to fill his empty mug on his own.
Ilish suppressed a smirk at the mercenaries pained howl, as she cut her way through the mass of customers. Even though the tavern was unusually full with strangers, most of the customers where people she knew and somewhat trusted. A glance was enough to prevent anyone from getting in her way. When she was younger, Ilish had never thought of becoming a barmaid one day and even when she started, at the lowest point in her life, she never thought that she would ever feel how she felt right now. She felt home.
The strange mercenaries were sitting at their table with a frightening discipline, talking about something in a surprisingly low tone. Not even the most well-trained soldiers Ilish had ever encountered managed to stay that calm, given their surroundings and the fact that they were about to get some ale. They wore a mixture of brown leather armour and chainmail, and rather disturbingly, Ilish spotted no sigil or the sign of a sellsword company on them. Their leader was easily distinguishable, a very tall and broad-shouldered man, with a shaved head and a brown beard, a man who slightly reminded her of Malkolm, the guardsman she... oh, shit, the guardsman she had left at the stables. That was bound to cause trouble...
As soon as she walked up to the table, the conversation died. Half a dozen almost hostile glares where shot at her. Ilish forced herself to smile, as she attempted to make the best out of that situation. “Your order”, she said with a strained smile, as she put the tray onto the table. At least this time, the men gave her cheerful smiles, although it only made them look more like wolves. The leader wasn't smiling. Without even wanting it, Ilish's gaze fell at the sword that was leaning next to his chair and she actually had to force herself not to look at it too long. Seven Hells, the way it shimmered almost made it look like Valyrian Steel!
The sellsword leader grabbed a mug of ale, leaning over it and starting to sniff. His narrowed, icy blue eyes met Ilish's stare, forcing her to look away again. “Botwerys”, he growled and one of the mercenaries rose from his chair. Ilish saw that he was only a few years older than herself, with short blonde hair and a stubble beard, with dark brown eyes that were carefully looking at her. “Of course, Ser”, he said and walked closer towards Ilish. “Please, mylady, walk with me”
Mostly out of confusion, Ilish followed his wish, as the sellsword lead her away from the table, to one of the slightly calmer corners of the inn. He gave her a good-natured smirk as he looked back towards the mercenaries. “You have no idea what you just did, right?”, he asked. Even more confused than before, Ilish shook her head. “I brought what you ordered”, she answered. “Seven mugs of beer”
The man gave her a nod, before letting out a sigh. “Perhaps I should introduce myself first”, he said and extended his hand. “Alexander Botwerys. Nice to meet you” She reluctantly shook his outstretched hand. “Ilish Granver”, she answered. “So, what's his problem?” She looked towards the sellsword leader and Alexander let out a sigh. “You brought him common ale. He probably thinks it smells like rat piss”, he answered and in Ilish's eyes, he wasn't too far away from the truth.
“Dear Ilish, this man is not a smallfolk sellsword. This is Ser Rodrik Stone”, he continued and Ilish raised an eyebrow. “He got a pretty nice sword for a bastard”, she mumbled and Alexander gave her a shocked look, as he grabbed her at the shoulders. “You got lucky that he hasn't heard you. If you value your life, never mention his sword and his last name when you're talking to him. Actually, just avoid talking to him at all”, he urged her and a strangely handsome smirk appeared on his face. “Talk to me instead when there's a problem”
As quickly as it came, the smirk disappeared again as he looked back at Ser Rodrik. “And now bring him some wine, the best you have. Do it as fast as possible and you might manage to calm him down”, he ordered her. Ilish looked past him and narrowed her eyes as she looked at the sellsword leader. “He looks pretty calm to me”, she mumbled and Alexander shook his head. “Trust me, he is boiling with anger and he is not very patient”, he warned her.
With these words he gave the grim-looking knight a nod, before turning back to Ilish. “As I said, don't let him wait”, he warned her again, before walking back to his table. Ilish let out a sigh. Soldiers, sellswords, bastard knights with Valyrian Steel swords and, worst of it all, Richard Harking's brother. It appeared to her as if the whole city had lost its mind. Still, she started to walk back to the counter, with the intention of fulfilling Alexander's request. Judging from his looks alone, Ser Rodrik wasn't a man she wanted to anger.
Lost in her thoughts, she walked through the inn, as suddenly, she felt a hand, grabbing her sleeve. As she looked up, she immediately noticed that she had almost bumped into Daisy, her best friend and fellow barmaid, who looked similarly lost in thoughts as she put a few empty glasses onto a tray. And she wasn't the one who had grabbed her.
As Ilish slowly turned around, she looked at the young man sitting behind her, giving her the hint of a grin. She let out a sigh. Short, blonde hair, a stubble beard, blue eyes and a scrawny build. She knew him, fleetingly, and reciprocated the smile. “Looks like I prevented a disaster”, the man grinned and Ilish gave him a nod. “Lawsen”, she greeted him. “Didn't know you were here today”
The young man shrugged slightly. He was a traveller, who only arrived at Raylansfair two weeks ago, and Ilish knew almost nothing about him, other than the fact that he was pleasant company, compared to most of the other people she knew. While not exactly charming or charismatic, something about Lawsen made Ilish sympathize with him from their first meeting.
“Had nowhere else to go. I figured I could spend the evening here, was hoping to find an employer”, he explained and Ilish flashed him another smile. “Well, it was a good decision. Audrey would have been furious if I would have smashed these glasses”, she answered and turned around, to face her friend. “Isn't that right, Daisy?”
To her surprise, she noticed two things. First, Daisy wasn't smiling. Ilish herself had always been annoyed by cheerfulness, even back home in the North. Because of this, Daisy Vega had annoyed her to no end, after she arrived at Raylansfair two years ago. However, in time her constantly cheerful nature won Ilish over. It was truly a rare and worrying occasion that Daisy wasn't smiling now. Instead, she had an intimidated frown on her pretty face. She was barely looking at Ilish, although she managed to give Lawsen a stressed smile.
“Thanks, Lawsen...”, she mumbled shortly, as she looked over Ilish's shoulder. “Something the matter, Daisy?”, Ilish asked and Daisy gave her a reluctant nod. “See that guy in the corner?”, she asked. Ilish followed her stare and indeed spotted a man, sitting in a corner on a table he strangely had all for himself. She wasn't able to see any facial features, as they were obscured by an oversized hat with a broad brim. Still, even from afar Ilish could tell that something was off with this man. “What is it with him?”, Ilish asked.
Daisy pressed her lips together and lowered her head. “He is watching me”, she whispered. “At first I thought it was a coincidence, but he is clearly watching me” Ilish raised an eyebrow, slightly shuddering at the thought of a creepy stranger who was watching her best friend. “Are you sure?”, she asked. “I mean, I can't even see his eyes”
“I am sure”, Daisy said with emphasis. “He has been sitting there for a while now. Earlier, he was watching Rosalie Mettel, but now that she left, he has switched his attention to me” She looked at Ilish. “You're good at dealing with these people. You have to help me!”
Ilish frowned as she heard this request. Sure, it wasn't exactly decent to stare at a barmaid for hours. And if Daisy was right, he had been creeping on Rosalie Mettel earlier. However, she had a lot to do... there was the wine she was supposed to bring to Ser Rodrik. The soldier Malkolm came to mind again, still waiting in the stables, probably seriously pissed off by now. And finally, what if this creepy stranger was dangerous? She was only one woman and not very strong. As if he had read her thoughts, Lawsen cleared his throat. “You want to confront him? If you do, I'd like to help you. Who knows, that guy could be dangerous”, he offered.
[Bring Malkolm a mug of ale first][Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first][Confront the stranger first]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
[Confront the stranger first] I remember that wide brimmed hat, Wolfius is that you? Also was really excited how Daisy and Audrey turned out. Audrey's spoon whipping on Marak brought a tear to my eye.
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
[Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first] No need to confront strangers because their weird, Rosalie left without incident right? I doubt he'll do anything unless he's provoked.
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly cause… mored the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she … [view original content]
Comments
[Advice him to consider Freys plan]
[Advice him to consider Mallisters plan]
[Advice him to consider Mallisters plan]
Since we all watched Got Season 5, we know what 20 good men can do^^
[Advice him to consider Freys plan]
[Advise him to consider Freys plan]
[Advice him to consider Mallisters plan]
[Advice him to stick to the original plan]
With the subtle approach wouldn't they try to kill him without being caught? Or is there no chance of hiding their involvement?
I can't believe some of these morons are planning to assassinate a king and are worried about being dishonorable.
Indeed, that is the plan. However, it is questionable if they really manage to do it without being caught. If everything goes exactly as planned, their involvement in this matter will be hidden. Lord Frey's more direct approach on the other hand would effecitvely be suicide with a good chance to take the king out before the guards stop them.
It is safe to say that Garthon and Lord Mallister are similarly baffled. However, honour is very strongly rooted into the worldview of these men. Most of them are already reluctant to kill the king, mainly because of the fact that they are sworn to him, but what Lord Bracken for example really dislikes is the fact that he sees the Strangler as particularly heinous and reprehensible. It's one thing to assassinate a king, but to let him die in pain is a bit too much in his eyes. Lord Frey on the other hand has a very low opinion on poison in general, seeing it as extremely cowardly. He is not concerned about his honour, but mainly about his reputation. Lord Tully and Lord Blackwood also have their doubts, but they at least see that it is necessary. And at least part of Lord Bracken's disapproval comes from the fact that Lord Blackwood is in favour of this plan. With the exception of Lord Frey (who is more like the Greatjon) and Lord Mallister (who was inspired by Roose Bolton), these riverlords have a concept of honour that is similar to the one displayed by Ned Stark, so they feel very uneasy at the thought of poisoning someone.
(Advice him to consider Freys plan)
[Advice him to stick with the original plan]
I don't know, it is actually hard choice... this was the original plan, silent one, it took some time to collect required things which they succeeded, why not to just follow this one till the end and strike by surprise.
[Advice him to stick with the original plan] The king is dangerous who knows what he'll do next, he needs to be put down as soon as possible and we don't want our hand seen in this.
I have a couple questions. At first Garthon seemed certain that this plan was doomed to fail and agreed only so he would die by his brothers side, has his opinion changed at all?
What would be Garthon and Torvin's role in the assassination?
Yes, his opinion has changed slightly. He is still less than enthusiastic about it, but he sees a slim chance that it might work. The meeting with the endlessly bickering Riverlords slightly disillusioned him again though. However, he also starts to feel a bit more sympathy for Lord Tully, who is not that different from him after all. So, he is mostly still in this out of loyalty to his brother and not really convinced that they have a realistic chance of killing Harren.
Their exact role hasn't been mentioned so far, but if Lord Tully goes with the original plan then Torvin and Garthon are going to have a direct role in the assassination, together with George and Gabin. It would be their job to actually kill the king and everyone else who is present during the assassination.
[Advice him to consider Freys plan]
[Advice him to stick with the original plan]
I honestly really want to see this assassination play out.
You want to see it fail too? Excellent.
Honestly, I really want to see this assassination succeed.
It shall fail my friend. All your friends will die. Unless a certain lord of Dragonstone happens to stop by.
Well, I wouldn't be too sure about that. I value your choices and to keep up the suspense of this subplot, I have decided to give you a number of choices that can potentially result in Harren's death, despite what the canon predetermines. Depending on your choices, the ones you already made and the ones you will make in future parts, the assassination has a chance to succeed. Building up a storyline for several chapters and then ending it without your choices mattering at all would be pretty pointless to me. That said, there is an equally big chance that Harren survives and that history will unfold as you know. It all comes down to your choices.
[Advice him to consider Mallisters plan]
Finally caught up again! [Advice him to stick with the original plan]
[Advice him to consider Freys plan]
Great part!
Is it just me or does the Garthon/Torvin plot have no connection to the Raylansfair storyline?
Indeed, there is no apparent connection yet. There will be more storylines without an immediately apparent connection to the Raylansfair storyline starting in the next chapter, although some of these storylines will be connected sooner or later. Perhaps the Harrenhal storyline in general will get a connection to Raylansfair in time.
Well, House Hoare has loosely been connected to Raylansfair plot - remember the dagger Lyria made?
And then there is Anturion's plan that clearly would affect Raylansfair, and some characters near Raylansfair are connected to characters in Harrenhal - not to Torv and Garthon though... I think.
[Advice him to stick witch the original plan]
The Voting is closed!
Garthon will advice Lord Tully to stick with the original plan
That was a very major choice. Actually, most of Garthon's choices in this chapter are going to be major and this isn't even the most important one. Still, it will have tremendous impact on the rest of Torvin's and Garthon's storyline and will play a role in wether or not the assassination will succeed.
The next part was supposed to be finished yesterday, but sadly I got very busy. However, I am sure that I will finish the part in the next few hours. There is not that much writing left to do and I have a lot of time today. This part is going to be the start for our newest PoV, Ilish Granver.
Ilish
“Careful, girl!”, the loud man called and Ilish rolled her eyes. She had expected him to object, but his booming voice nearly caused the horse she was just caring for to cringe back. It was a fine mare, the colour of ebony, a tall and muscular animal that belonged to the Lord of Mander's Mouth. A horse bred for tourneys, bred for war. And it was the first horse of that kind Ilish had to care for. However, she was also the only person working at the inn who had actual experience when it came to work with any kind of horse.
Even though Hobert's soldier was annoying her to no end, a rare smile found its way onto her face as the memory of her families farm far up in the North came to mind. No matter how bad it ended for everyone, there had been some good times in her childhood, together with her parents and with her brother. Of course, the horses back home had been skinny and weak creatures, not comparable to the beautiful animal she had in front of her now.
“Do you listen? Be careful with her!”, the soldier called her again. Ilish knew, he was drunken. To her luck, she wasn't the one who had to serve them when they came in earlier this night and tried to 'occupy' the tavern for their lord. This questionable honour went to her best friend Daisy, who did a good job in fulfilling the men's requests for ever more alcohol. Now most of them had been passed out and Daisy was busy cleaning up the mess they left behind. This one had proven to be too stubborn to just fall into an alcohol-induced sleep. His name was Malkolm Sternhelm, as he had rather loudly proclaimed when he led her to the stables, to care for the lords horse. Ilish made sure to remember his name.
“I know what I'm doing”, she snapped back at him, causing him to raise an eyebrow. He was a truly huge man, broad-shouldered, heavily muscled, with a bald head and a long, brown beard that thankfully hid the majority of his ugly face, but failed to hide the deep scar that went from his left temple all the way down to the right side of his jaw. “Keep in mind whom your talking to, girl...”, he growled and she forced herself to give him a smile. “I'm sorry, Ser. It has been a long night. Perhaps I can bring you something to drink?”, she answered.
The mention of more alcohol caused a stupid grin to appear on his face, befitting to the general opinion Ilish got about this man. But it also caused him to get significantly more friendly towards her. “Now, that's an offer. Perhaps you're good for something after all. I'll take another mug of your finest. The lord is paying!”, he proclaimed and Ilish's smile got even more forced than before. Of course, the lord was paying. “And when you're back, I show you how to deal with a horse like this. You have to tread her gently, you know!”, he added and Ilish seriously doubted that he even knew the meaning of the word 'gentle'.
It was a good opportunity to get away from him and Ilish gladly took it. After all, when had she ever wasted an opportunity? She went out of the inns stables and took a deep breath of the cold nightly air. During chilly autumn nights like these, the warm Reach almost felt a bit like home, where even the Summer had been cold. It brought back memories of laughter and love, but also of death and despair. The broken look in her brothers eyes as he buried their father next to their mother. Then there was the spark of anger as he left her behind and never returned. Carvin was the only family she had left and she wasn't sure if she would take him back after all that happened.
As Ilish turned around, she bumped into someone, who quickly grabbed her by the shoulders. She let out a muffled scream, more out of surprise than out of actual fear, as she reached behind her back, her fingers grabbing the short knife she carried with her. “Careful where you step, honey”, a familiar voice called her out and Ilish let out a sigh, letting go of her knife, as her hands moved downwards, grabbing the man's belt and pushing him away from her. “Alan Harking”, she growled. “What are you doing here?”
Alan had the grin of a truly drunken man on his face, clearly showing that he could desperately need a good night full of sleep. For any other man, Ilish would have brought him to his home by now, to make sure that he wouldn't have to sleep outside, but he... after a full day in which he was effectively harassing her, she had enough of him. Ilish knew, she wasn't a great beauty. Her whole body was a bit too skinny for her own taste, her face nothing special and her hair, while comfortable for her, was cut far too short for the tastes of most men. But considering how much Daisy had to endure because of her beauty, Ilish was rather glad about her own plain looks. However, for some reason Alan Harking showed clear and unwanted interest in her.
She moved her hands behind her back again, so that he couldn't see what she was holding, as she attempted to push herself past her. Alan's supposedly charming grin got a bit wider. “Was just outside to take a piss, when I saw the most beautiful barmaid in Raylansfair”, Alan revealed and Ilish rolled her eyes. His charm reminded her of a particularly disgusting cockroach. “You're talking about Daisy and you're pissed drunken”, she answered.
“No!”, Alan protested. “I mean, yes, perhaps I had a drink too much. That can happen to a hard-working fellow, such as me. But I'm not talking about that Daisy girl. She's that cute redhead, right? No, I'm talking about you” He gave her a sly smile and she let out a sigh. “You're wasting your time, Alan”, she answered softly, but sternly.
Alan frowned slightly, as he shook his head. “Why? I mean, you've been here the whole day. I've been here the whole day. We talked. We laughed. Well, I laughed. But you smirked, that one time. There's this special connection between us. You're a classy girl. And, well... you can't go any more classy than me”
Ilish raised an eyebrow, as she finally stepped past him, putting her hands towards the front, so that he was still not seeing what she held in them. “Okay... do you mind if I won't even bother with answering?”, she asked and before he was able to answer her, she continued. “No? Great. Glad we talked about this. Now, do me a favour and go home. Alone”
She walked into the tavern, leaving a visibly baffled Alan behind. He said something else, but she wasn't bothering with listening to him anymore. What a prick! At first, Ilish had found him somewhat amusing, even had enough courtesy to laugh at some of his unsavoury jokes. But the day went on, her smiles got forced until they fully disappeared and his face started to appear more and more alluring for her closed fist. A grin appeared on her face as she looked down towards her hands, holding Alan Harking's purse in them. When had she ever wasted an opportunity?
As she looked up, she once again noticed how full the tavern was tonight. Aside from the dozen men from Mander's Mouth, Ilish registered a surprisingly large number of strangers. There was a tall, red-haired man who was apparently friends with Alan now, talking to the chubby man from the Vale. There were soldiers from the Rock, sitting in a side room and loudly requiring more drinks. A group of half a dozen armed strangers had managed to get a large table for themselves, sitting there oddly disciplined. During a day like this, Daisy and her cousin Megur both had to work alongside Ilish to fulfil the needs of the guests.
Behind the counter, Ilish saw the owner of the tavern and a smile appeared on her face. Audrey Marigold was in more than one way the complete opposite of Ilish. Where Ilish was thin, Audrey was incredibly obese, her vibrant red hair contrasting with the slight tan she had put on during the warmer days of the early autumn. Her blue eyes had a lively look inside of them and even in situations where Ilish would frown, Audrey's smile never vanished. She was old enough to be Ilish's mother and in some way, Ilish always felt secure when being near her. The older woman gave her a big grin as she saw her approaching.
“Come over here, girl!”, she exclaimed. “How'd it go with that soldier?” Ilish slightly shook her head as she walked behind the counter, her gaze moving towards the multitude of guests inside of the taproom. Audrey's daughter Megur was serving a group of soldiers from Mander' Mouth, while Daisy, Megur's cousin, was serving a group of sellswords who had arrived with the men from the Rock. Both girls were around Ilish's age and displayed the vibrant red hair Audrey's family was known for. Whereas Megur was as round and chubby as her mother, Daisy possessed all the beauty her aunt and cousin were lacking. In Megur's case, this included inner beauty. With a disgusted frown, Ilish saw one of the soldiers giving Daisy a hard slap on the bum.
“Why don't you just throw them out, Audrey?”, she asked, noticing that the innkeeper's facial expression mirrored her own. “They come here and act as if they own this place” Audrey gave her a reluctant nod. “I'd like to, girl. But the sad thing is, they might own the place soon”, she answered, before her gaze hardened. In a quick movement, she grabbed the large, iron spoon she was always wearing at her belt and slammed it onto the hand of the red-haired sellsword who was sitting at the counter, as he had just tried to pour himself another mug of beer as she wasn't watching. “Oh no, Marak!”, she yelled. “If you want more, you're going to pay, like everyone else!”
The sellsword held his hand in slight pain and gave the large woman an intimidated nod. “Got no more money, ma'am”, he mumbled weakly, but Audrey was already done with paying attention to him. “Customers...”, she growled with a low voice, while winking at Ilish. “At least this lord is paying good money. Throwing them out won't be worth the trouble that follows. Besides, Daisy is a strong girl. She can handle them”
Ilish shivered as she remembered the last time Audrey thought one of her girls could handle a difficult customer. Back then, she had to thank Richard, Philip and Urid for intervening when this strange man had harassed her. Wolfius Woodbark... Ilish was glad that at least someone had the guts to stand up for him back then.
The feeling of Audrey's massive hand resting on her shoulder. “I need you to bring that to the mercenaries”, she revealed and pointed at the long table that was occupied by a group of armed strangers. Ilish pressed her lips together. The soldiers from Mander's Mouth were bad news. The soldiers from the Rock probably even worse. But these men... she had no idea whom they were working for, she only knew that they drank not even nearly enough for a group of mercenaries in a tavern. Apparently, Audrey was about to change that. Without saying another word, she handed Ilish a dangerously heavy tray and flashed her a motherly smile, before something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. “Marak!”, she yelled and raised her massive iron spoon, as the Ironborn once more tried to fill his empty mug on his own.
Ilish suppressed a smirk at the mercenaries pained howl, as she cut her way through the mass of customers. Even though the tavern was unusually full with strangers, most of the customers where people she knew and somewhat trusted. A glance was enough to prevent anyone from getting in her way. When she was younger, Ilish had never thought of becoming a barmaid one day and even when she started, at the lowest point in her life, she never thought that she would ever feel how she felt right now. She felt home.
The strange mercenaries were sitting at their table with a frightening discipline, talking about something in a surprisingly low tone. Not even the most well-trained soldiers Ilish had ever encountered managed to stay that calm, given their surroundings and the fact that they were about to get some ale. They wore a mixture of brown leather armour and chainmail, and rather disturbingly, Ilish spotted no sigil or the sign of a sellsword company on them. Their leader was easily distinguishable, a very tall and broad-shouldered man, with a shaved head and a brown beard, a man who slightly reminded her of Malkolm, the guardsman she... oh, shit, the guardsman she had left at the stables. That was bound to cause trouble...
As soon as she walked up to the table, the conversation died. Half a dozen almost hostile glares where shot at her. Ilish forced herself to smile, as she attempted to make the best out of that situation. “Your order”, she said with a strained smile, as she put the tray onto the table. At least this time, the men gave her cheerful smiles, although it only made them look more like wolves. The leader wasn't smiling. Without even wanting it, Ilish's gaze fell at the sword that was leaning next to his chair and she actually had to force herself not to look at it too long. Seven Hells, the way it shimmered almost made it look like Valyrian Steel!
The sellsword leader grabbed a mug of ale, leaning over it and starting to sniff. His narrowed, icy blue eyes met Ilish's stare, forcing her to look away again. “Botwerys”, he growled and one of the mercenaries rose from his chair. Ilish saw that he was only a few years older than herself, with short blonde hair and a stubble beard, with dark brown eyes that were carefully looking at her. “Of course, Ser”, he said and walked closer towards Ilish. “Please, mylady, walk with me”
Mostly out of confusion, Ilish followed his wish, as the sellsword lead her away from the table, to one of the slightly calmer corners of the inn. He gave her a good-natured smirk as he looked back towards the mercenaries. “You have no idea what you just did, right?”, he asked. Even more confused than before, Ilish shook her head. “I brought what you ordered”, she answered. “Seven mugs of beer”
The man gave her a nod, before letting out a sigh. “Perhaps I should introduce myself first”, he said and extended his hand. “Alexander Botwerys. Nice to meet you” She reluctantly shook his outstretched hand. “Ilish Granver”, she answered. “So, what's his problem?” She looked towards the sellsword leader and Alexander let out a sigh. “You brought him common ale. He probably thinks it smells like rat piss”, he answered and in Ilish's eyes, he wasn't too far away from the truth.
“Dear Ilish, this man is not a smallfolk sellsword. This is Ser Rodrik Stone”, he continued and Ilish raised an eyebrow. “He got a pretty nice sword for a bastard”, she mumbled and Alexander gave her a shocked look, as he grabbed her at the shoulders. “You got lucky that he hasn't heard you. If you value your life, never mention his sword and his last name when you're talking to him. Actually, just avoid talking to him at all”, he urged her and a strangely handsome smirk appeared on his face. “Talk to me instead when there's a problem”
As quickly as it came, the smirk disappeared again as he looked back at Ser Rodrik. “And now bring him some wine, the best you have. Do it as fast as possible and you might manage to calm him down”, he ordered her. Ilish looked past him and narrowed her eyes as she looked at the sellsword leader. “He looks pretty calm to me”, she mumbled and Alexander shook his head. “Trust me, he is boiling with anger and he is not very patient”, he warned her.
With these words he gave the grim-looking knight a nod, before turning back to Ilish. “As I said, don't let him wait”, he warned her again, before walking back to his table. Ilish let out a sigh. Soldiers, sellswords, bastard knights with Valyrian Steel swords and, worst of it all, Richard Harking's brother. It appeared to her as if the whole city had lost its mind. Still, she started to walk back to the counter, with the intention of fulfilling Alexander's request. Judging from his looks alone, Ser Rodrik wasn't a man she wanted to anger.
Lost in her thoughts, she walked through the inn, as suddenly, she felt a hand, grabbing her sleeve. As she looked up, she immediately noticed that she had almost bumped into Daisy, her best friend and fellow barmaid, who looked similarly lost in thoughts as she put a few empty glasses onto a tray. And she wasn't the one who had grabbed her.
As Ilish slowly turned around, she looked at the young man sitting behind her, giving her the hint of a grin. She let out a sigh. Short, blonde hair, a stubble beard, blue eyes and a scrawny build. She knew him, fleetingly, and reciprocated the smile. “Looks like I prevented a disaster”, the man grinned and Ilish gave him a nod. “Lawsen”, she greeted him. “Didn't know you were here today”
The young man shrugged slightly. He was a traveller, who only arrived at Raylansfair two weeks ago, and Ilish knew almost nothing about him, other than the fact that he was pleasant company, compared to most of the other people she knew. While not exactly charming or charismatic, something about Lawsen made Ilish sympathize with him from their first meeting.
“Had nowhere else to go. I figured I could spend the evening here, was hoping to find an employer”, he explained and Ilish flashed him another smile. “Well, it was a good decision. Audrey would have been furious if I would have smashed these glasses”, she answered and turned around, to face her friend. “Isn't that right, Daisy?”
To her surprise, she noticed two things. First, Daisy wasn't smiling. Ilish herself had always been annoyed by cheerfulness, even back home in the North. Because of this, Daisy Vega had annoyed her to no end, after she arrived at Raylansfair two years ago. However, in time her constantly cheerful nature won Ilish over. It was truly a rare and worrying occasion that Daisy wasn't smiling now. Instead, she had an intimidated frown on her pretty face. She was barely looking at Ilish, although she managed to give Lawsen a stressed smile.
“Thanks, Lawsen...”, she mumbled shortly, as she looked over Ilish's shoulder. “Something the matter, Daisy?”, Ilish asked and Daisy gave her a reluctant nod. “See that guy in the corner?”, she asked. Ilish followed her stare and indeed spotted a man, sitting in a corner on a table he strangely had all for himself. She wasn't able to see any facial features, as they were obscured by an oversized hat with a broad brim. Still, even from afar Ilish could tell that something was off with this man. “What is it with him?”, Ilish asked.
Daisy pressed her lips together and lowered her head. “He is watching me”, she whispered. “At first I thought it was a coincidence, but he is clearly watching me” Ilish raised an eyebrow, slightly shuddering at the thought of a creepy stranger who was watching her best friend. “Are you sure?”, she asked. “I mean, I can't even see his eyes”
“I am sure”, Daisy said with emphasis. “He has been sitting there for a while now. Earlier, he was watching Rosalie Mettel, but now that she left, he has switched his attention to me” She looked at Ilish. “You're good at dealing with these people. You have to help me!”
Ilish frowned as she heard this request. Sure, it wasn't exactly decent to stare at a barmaid for hours. And if Daisy was right, he had been creeping on Rosalie Mettel earlier. However, she had a lot to do... there was the wine she was supposed to bring to Ser Rodrik. The soldier Malkolm came to mind again, still waiting in the stables, probably seriously pissed off by now. And finally, what if this creepy stranger was dangerous? She was only one woman and not very strong. As if he had read her thoughts, Lawsen cleared his throat. “You want to confront him? If you do, I'd like to help you. Who knows, that guy could be dangerous”, he offered.
[Bring Malkolm a mug of ale first] [Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first] [Confront the stranger first]
(confront the stranger first) I liked this part. It was good
[Confront the stranger first] - I wanna know who's creeping.
Great part as usual, Liquid.
[Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first] I suspected it was Stone. Not good with Bear and everything.
[Confront the stranger first] In an inn full of people he would be stupid to try anything.
[Confront the stranger first] I don't know if it's just me, but I have a feeling this guy works with Wolfius.
[Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first]
[Confront the stranger first] I don't even know man, I'm confused with this one. Hope things go well.
[Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first]
[Confront the stranger first] I remember that wide brimmed hat, Wolfius is that you? Also was really excited how Daisy and Audrey turned out. Audrey's spoon whipping on Marak brought a tear to my eye.
[Confront the stranger first]
[Bring Ser Rodrik a bottle of wine first] No need to confront strangers because their weird, Rosalie left without incident right? I doubt he'll do anything unless he's provoked.
[Bring Malkom a mug of ale first]