NOVEL NEXT 214. Olaf is here
Over the next few days, the two siblings behaved themselves, and Cersei became more reserved. She was already someone who didn't talk much, as she felt everyone was beneath her here, viewing the Northerners as inferior. Being a Lannister filled her with pride.
But now, seeing how she and her brother were led around, made her anxious. It was so bad that even Robert noticed her change and asked if everything was fine. It took all of Cersei's energy not to spill the beans and surrender herself to the clutches of death. The black lines reminded her not to cross the line, and the numbness emphasized the reality of what she was facing.
She had met up with Arya and Jon (present) and somehow could tell that they were not the ones to antagonize her, perhaps supposing that the two who had shown up were in disguises, considering the fact that they could use magic for that purpose.
Meanwhile, for some reason, Jaime became interested in the 'dead' part that Aoto had mentioned earlier. He wanted to know what the end game was and thus went to gather information. Most of them were some kind of folklore.
The White Walkers. The Wall being built to safeguard against them.
Everything now made sense to him when he came to know. He even consulted his brother, as Tyrion too had read some books about them. Tyrion found it weird that his brother was suddenly interested in fantasy but didn't ask.
Soon it was time to leave, and everyone had gotten ready. Jon (present) was adamant about going to the Wall, and Ned tried his best to dissuade him. Soon the day for leaving came for both groups.
Benji was ready to go to the Wall again with Jon, while Ned, Arya, and Sansa were supposed to go with Robert. Of course, in the group, Loki, Jon, and Arya (future) were present too. Joffrey was very happy with the watches and the new clothes that both of these businessmen had brought him, and he wanted to buy more once they reached King's Landing.
It had to be noted that during the journey, Nymeria and Lady, the two direwolves, also followed Arya, and Arya (future) made sure that they wouldn't be hurt or killed. The incident of Lady hurting Joffrey did eventually happen.
Joffrey was adamant, and Cersei, being the arrogant person she was, wanted to get back at the Starks for hurting her son. In fact, when Jaime saw the commotion, he wanted to deescalate it since he regarded the Stark children as untouchable.
But Cersei was adamant about the punishment, thinking she was in the open and nobody would be able to touch her. Little did she know that, as she was dictating to kill off Lady, she felt a sting of pain in her wrist. Before she could realize it, blood was flowing from her hand and dripping on the ground. She didn't even understand what was going on until the guards looked horrified and came forward to bandage her.
"My Queen, did you have some concealed knife? Please hand it over to me for your safety," one of the guards said. Cersei looked around as she was bandaged but she couldn't find who hurt her but she knew why she was hurt.
She had tried to hurt the Stark children and it made her realize again how powerful magic was and if she didn't follow in line, she would be executed long before she could reach King's Landing. If she died, her children would die too and Ned would get the throne anyways.
"Mother, are you alright?" Joffrey asked with concern, visibly taken aback by the sight of the flowing blood. Although a bit disgusted, he knew he had the protection of his mother, and he clung to her.
"Yes, my son," Cersei replied, relieved to see her child's concern.
"Can we kill that bastard now?" Joffrey asked, still not over the fact that a wolf had tried to bite him.
"No. There is enough blood for today," Cersei hurriedly answered, fearing that her son's words might anger the one who had hurt her. She was also a bit disappointed that Joffrey was still in the mood for revenge after she was hurt.
"But Mother!" Joffrey persisted.
"Those are my orders," Cersei spoke loudly, making sure the guards understood not to follow her son's demands. That was enough to silence Joffrey. Meanwhile, from afar, Robert, who wanted to intervene, was stopped by Ned, who said that the children could figure it out themselves.
Seeing his wife hurt, Robert no longer cared about the wolf and let his wife rest. Ned had a faint smile on his face as he observed this. He knew that Arya, with her ability to go invisible, had attacked Cersei.
He wanted to intervene earlier, but Jon stopped him from behind. Jon was amazed by what had happened. They were treating the Kings and Queens as playthings.
Sansa and Arya (present) were beyond happy that they could keep their wolves and wouldn't be killed. With this small intervention, their journey continued, and soon they reached King's Landing. Loki wasn't impressed at all once they arrived in the capital.
"I thought it was some golden city," Loki complained to Arya and Jon.
"Well, it is the best city this realm can offer. Maybe the city of Braavos could be better," Arya said.
"I doubt that," Loki replied, having no expectations upon seeing the capital. After their arrival, Robert announced that Ned would be the new Hand of the King.
Nymeria and Lady found it challenging in the hot weather, so Jon had to use magic to ensure that the wolves would always experience cold weather near him. It was something like what Elsa did with Olaf at the end to prevent him from melting. In this case, there was no visible source, but the wolves would experience cold weather from an unseen magical force.