(Cersei POV)
I had learned, very early in life, that power never announced itself, but that its effects and what it did to others usually announced it. Things usually started with a whisper, then another, until they festered and grew, taking root. Actions nourished it, and significant actions fuelled it further until the whisper became power.
I was meant to marry Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. That's what my father always wanted and what I thought I wanted as well. At least, until I got to know Elia Martell. She became my friend, my confidante, the one who didn't lie to me, when, as I found out later, almost everyone did. I realised just how much I didn't want to marry Rhaegar and instead... someone else.
But that was never going to be. Rhaegar Targaryen was the prince and future King of the 7 Kingdoms, meant for greatness. And I was supposed to be his bride, becoming pregnant and giving him strong, beautiful children. That was my father's will, and that was our right. Because we were House Lannister, we were powerful.
I couldn't possibly see anyone remotely as powerful as my father. Not even the Mad King, with his disgusting, long nails on that disgustingly uncomfortable chair. No, my father had always been the most powerful person in my eyes.
People cowered when he was angry, looked at the ground and bowed their heads. His name spread fear among those who considered betraying or denying us. We had the King's ear and could do no wrong.
I truly thought like this until I met Robert Baratheon. He was so unlike Tywin. Where Father was stern and cold, Robert didn't have a stern look and even smiled most of the time. He was immensely charismatic. He seemed so unbothered and happy. Father was tall, but not overly so, lean, and regal. Robert was big and strong. He carried himself with ease and was not as stiff as Father. But both had in common that when they entered the room, they were usually the centre of attention.
I fell in love with him almost immediately after meeting him, and most definitely after he saved Mother. I wasn't aware of that fact, though, until Elia pointed it out to me. She told me about her experiences with Robert, and I could see her smile for the first time in the Red Keep. Robert had a way with people that pulled you in and seemed to bring great change to Westeros.
He led a rebellion against the Mad King and the loyalists. He crushed Gulltown, raised the banners of the Stormlands, defeated those who stood against him in his lands, defeated Randyll Tarly, ambushed Jon Connington and then killed and mutilated Rhaegar Targaryen at the Trident.
I never thought that anyone could take down the shining prince with the lovely voice from his high horse. He seemed perfect in everyone's eyes. But now, he was dead, and people started calling him... the choker.
But that wasn't the most unbelievable news that reached Casterly Rock.
It was when I found out that Father had sacked King's Landing but had got into conflict with Robert and the few men he had brought along to save the citizens of King's Landing. I heard reports from Uncle Kevan and saw Father for myself after they arrived back here. It was gruesome.
The sight of my father, injured and vulnerable, while being told that it was the rage of Robert which brought this upon him made me... feel strange. I couldn't decide what it was for a long time. I knew why he did it, why he almost killed Father. The death of Elia must have hit him hard. And it hit me hard, too. She was probably my only real friend in this world. Everyone else was just a sycophant.
My father and House Lannister weren't invulnerable, and now the whole realm knew it.
Jon Arryn arrived to speak with Father, but he wouldn't see him. Knowing that this was our chance, maybe our only chance to take what was left of this mess, I was the one to step up and meet him.
.
I was not supposed to sit in my father's chair. Yet there I was. Casterly Rock had never felt so quiet as it did right now. The corridors whispered now, not with fear of my father, but with uncertainty and fear of Robert I Baratheon, the newly crowned King.
Servants moved silently with their heads bowed, guards spoke in lowered voices, and my uncle Kevan waited without quite realising he was doing so. Power, that was what I had to display to the world right now. That House Lannister was still powerful.
Father lay confined to his chambers, his neck bound in stiff linen, his movements restricted to whimpers and small twitches of his fingers and his temper worse than ever. The maester said he would most likely recover in time, but he didn't sound confident. He did not dare to speak of pride, nor of the way a man like Tywin Lannister suffered when forced to lie still while the world moved on without him.
He couldn't see Jon Arryn. So Jon Arryn saw me instead. When Jon Arryn was announced, I did not rise from the chair.
He paused when he entered. Only for a heartbeat, but it was enough. I wasn't my father, after all.
"Lord Arryn," I said calmly. "My father regrets that he cannot receive you. He will recover in due time, but will still require rest as of now."
Jon studied me carefully. He was an elderly man, but not a dull one. Father told me so. His eyes took in the room, the guards, my posture, and that Kevan stood beside me. Despite his love for peace, he knew how to do politics.
"I see," he said at last. "Then it seems I am fortunate to find you, Lady Cersei."
"You are," I replied. "Because, unlike my father, I am willing to speak plainly."
That earned a thin smile. I know that he wasn't sure that he would be welcomed within these halls, not after what happened on his watch. But Kevan told me that almost everyone fought to stop Robert from harming his father, but it didn't work.
We spoke of the realm first—of political fires which hadn't yet been extinguished, of Houses that had bent the knee, of King's Landing which still reeked of blood and shit apparently. Jon Arryn did not accuse us of what happened, and I did not apologise. On the contrary, he was the one to apologise.
"I wish to extend my deepest apologies for what happened to Lord Tywin. It was never my intention to see him harmed, and while the actions of his soldiers were incorrect, those were their actions and didn't warrant having his neck injured the way it was."
I looked at the old man and couldn't help but frown. What a spineless coward he was. The least he could do was to stand up for what happened and own it. But here he was, hoping to mend the relationship with Father. I felt disgust at his actions, but didn't let it show.
"The realm needs peace. And the King needs allies who will not test that peace," he said.
"I agree. Which is why I am glad you came to us," I responded.
"You wish to offer terms."
"No," I said softly. "I wish to offer a solution."
"A solution?" he asked.
I nodded. Kevan straightened beside me, uncertain, but he did not interrupt. He was my father's loyal brother, and he would be my loyal uncle until Father recovered.
"The Targaryens believed that to rule, one only needed gold, fear and the memory of past glory. Robert Baratheon has proven otherwise. Robert has something the Mad King did not, the love of his people. The loyalty of those who chose to follow him during the rebellion. Men and women who would die for him without hesitation. He is not merely King because he won; he is now King because Westeros wants him to be. Because he is the most suited."
Jon watched me more intently now. I could see hesitation in his eyes. Something bothered him, and I had a good idea what that was.
"And you?" he asked. "What do you want, Lady Cersei?"
"I want House Lannister to survive the new age," I said. "Not by humiliation of being replaced. But by embracing our role and completing the power that Robert has already started to build."
Finally, Jon Arryn spoke.
"The King will not forget what happened in King's Landing, and from what I know about Lord Tywin, neither will he. How would you accomplish all that, Lady Cersei?"
"A King... needs a Queen."
Jon Arryn looked at me and nodded. He understood and had come to the same conclusion, it seemed. This was the only way to remove all the bad blood and terrible memories of what happened. If I am married to Robert, he won't take revenge on Father, and Father won't attack Robert right away. It will give us time.
"I will go to King's Landing, not as my father's daughter, nor as a bargaining chip. I will go as myself, Cersei Lannister. I will ask Robert Baratheon for his hand in marriage."
"You would place yourself directly in his hands. Are you willing to do that? To become Queen? To serve the realm?" he asked.
"Yes," I said without hesitation. "Because Robert Baratheon is not cruel. He is dangerous, but not petty. And he respects strength when he sees it."
I told him what he wanted to hear, to sell my point. My relationship with Robert Baratheon might have changed by now, after what happened. But my feelings, I realised, hadn't. This was what I wanted, what I was born to do. I was told about it, after all. The woods witch was right.
"I understand. I will deliver this message to Robert and try to convince him that this is the best course of action."
.
It didn't take long for the news to spread. The King was getting married, and I was to be the Queen. I hadn't seen Robert for a long time, and I didn't know whether he had changed. I knew about Rhaenys and who she truly was to him, but I had no intention of revealing that.
The ride to King's Landing never felt so long. But when we finally made it, I was pleasantly surprised. The stench which greeted everyone in the city had reduced considerably. It had to be true that Robert was working on taking down and rebuilding King's Landing. He had told me he would change so many things about the city, and now he was doing it.
I couldn't say that I was against this.
Cersei and everyone who had been invited to the wedding settled in for a few days, while the final preparations went on. Contracts were finalised and promises given. I left everything to Uncle Kevan, who told me about it later. The nervousness increased each hour, and I couldn't sleep or eat for days, until the fateful day finally arrived.
We made it to the Sept of Baelor, giving me enough time to observe the people of the capital. There were still many broken buildings and construction underway, but mostly people were happy. They cheered and yelled my name as I passed.
I know that Robert hated the Faith of the Seven and looked down on the fat septons. I was dressed in my most beautiful dress for my wedding. I was so nervous. The doors opened, and finally I saw Robert.
He stood at the front, with his back turned, waiting for me. He seemed to have grown taller or bigger in a sense. He wore a simple but clean and expensive outfit. Stannis Baratheon, his brother, stood by his side, but I couldn't see his parents. And then, Robert finally turned around.
My heart jumped out of my chest. I stopped breathing for a moment and swallowed hard. He had changed since I last saw him. The charming face of a young man had made way for the even more lovely face of a man. He was the image of what any maiden dreamed about.
I slowly took a few steps forward and never looked away. When I stood by his side, he smiled gently and reached out to me. I placed my small, tender hand in his large, strong paws.
...
I didn't hear a word the Septon said, and neither did Robert. This felt too fast for some reason. I didn't have time to process all of this. Was this real? For some reason, the words of the Woodswitch entered my head. She told me about pain, but pleasure and love as well. I could only hope that this feeling I had right now wouldn't die.
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Well, here we are. Finally it happened. I am terrible at writing a wedding, since my single-ass hasn't been on one yet. Don't judge, you imprisoned bastards.
Anyway, we will finally move on to showing what a Dorn/Guilliman-like man he truly is. Changes will be made.