The Unyielding Stag (Game of Thrones AU/Invincible)
Chapter 35: Margaery Tyrell // Asha Greyjoy

A/N: Some more of the eventual harem's POVs~

-x-X-x-

Everything had fallen apart, but things could certainly be worse. Renly and Loras had been allowed to take the Black and her House had remained in charge of the Reach. Margaery might not be Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, but she was here in King's Landing, living in the Red Keep all the same. And she refused to be counted out of the running just yet.

Her grandmother had finally arrived too, which meant she'd had a 'tearful' goodbye with her father that morning before he left for Highgarden. Mostly tearful on his part, though Margaery had been sure to shed a few of her own.

And a couple of those tears had even been real, based on the very stark reality that they may never see each other again. Sure, her father was an absolute fool, but she still held love in her heart for him all the same.

Still, with her grandmother here, Margaery could finally begin scheming in earnest. Though first…

"Leave us."

The Queen of Thorns' tone is sharp and clipped as she stares down Brienne without a single ounce of fear despite the other woman's large size. Brienne bristles in return, but Margaery reaches out and places a hand on the giant woman's arm.

"Brienne, please… my grandmother and I need to catch up. Watch the door for us?"

For a moment, Brienne looks like she wants to argue… but in the end, she bows her head and departs the room to stand guard in the hallway. Truth be told, it still felt a little strange to have the other woman at her side… and Margaery knew that for all Brienne represented a source of protection, she could also turn out to be a source of irritation down the line.

Still, nobody else had really known what to do with the other woman after the Trial. For the others, it was simple. Those that lived on Axel's side became Kingsguard. Those that lived on Renly's side were largely given the chance to bend the knee to the rightful King of Westeros. Renly and Loras were bound for the Wall. She was to be kept as a ward of the Red Keep for the foreseeable future to keep the Reach in line as they paid reparations for their idiocy.

But Brienne was not a knight. She couldn't just bend the knee and turn her cloak. Or maybe she could have, but nobody had thought to ask her to. Nor did she seem inclined to. In the end, Margaery had as much taken her under her wing for Brienne's sake as she had to get around the fact that she technically wasn't allowed to have a sworn sword due to her hostage status.

Now though… well, they couldn't exactly have Brienne listening in on what her and Olenna were about to discuss, could they? As soon the towering woman has left the room and closed the door behind her, Olenna gives Margaery a sharp look.

In response, Margaery just smiles, pleased to have good news.

"I'm confident I can seduce him. You should see the way he looks at me, grandmother. Our young King is a fan of beautiful women."

The Queen of Thorns scoffs at that, shaking her head.

"Show me a man who isn't… outside of your brother and his fool lover I suppose. I don't doubt that you can seduce him, Margaery. He's the son of Robert Baratheon, after all. But can you keep him?"

Margaery pauses, pressing her lips together thinly. Seeing this, her grandmother sighs.

"You still wish to be Queen, don't you?"

Without hesitation, Margaery nods her head firmly. She does. Even now, even with everything having fallen to pieces. They should have never sided with Renly. Without the Reach, his entire claim would have fallen apart. They could have used that fact to push her as Axel's bride from the start.

Now…

"I know I'm starting from behind, grandmother. But I don't think I'm out of the race quite yet."

Lady Olenna Tyrell is well known for her blunt way of speaking. She tells it like it is, rather than telling people what they want to hear. So Margaery isn't very surprised when her grandmother's response is… less than enthusiastic.

"You're not just starting from behind; you're not even technically allowed to be in the race dear. You're not a candidate for Queen, you're the King's hostage, a spoil of war."

Margaery straightens up and thrusts out her chest a bit as she smiles coyly and flutters her eyes.

"Oh, but I'm a very pretty spoil of war, grandmother. And Axel Baratheon has an eye for pretty things. Do you know he visits the Great Sept every day?"

Olenna's eyes narrow, prompting Margaery to smile wickedly.

"They say he spends almost double the time at the statue of the Maiden as he does in front of all of the others combined."

That gets a derisive snort from the Queen of Thorns.

"Our Master of Coin should just take the King to one of his brothels at this point to see that itch scratched before it becomes a bigger problem."

But Margaery shakes her head, smiling slightly.

"He wouldn't accept even if Lord Baelish offered, grandmother. Axel is a better man than his father was, and that means no whoring. But that's proving to be a bit of an issue for him. He still has needs. I've ran into him a couple times now in the Red Keep… only with Brienne at my side, unfortunately. But each time, I've noticed the way he looks at me. He wants me, grandmother. And I can use that to leap ahead of the competition."

Narrowing her eyes, Olenna frowns.

"Or you'll be used up and tossed aside, dear. He doesn't need to marry you to fuck you, Margaery. Reaching too far might see you smacked back down. And then where will you be? We're already in the dirt because of your father's idiocy. Do not compound on his failures."

… Ouch. Her grandmother had never spoken to her so harshly before. But Margaery doesn't let it get to her. She certainly doesn't feel a burning in her eyes, nor does she have to blink away a few tears as she swallows past the sudden lump in her throat.

Silence falls between the two of them for a long moment as she composes herself, with Olenna neither commenting on her momentary lapse nor making any effort to comfort her. In the end, Margaery licks her lips and bows her head.

"I understand, grandmother. I won't reach too far… nor will I expect too much to come of this. But surely becoming the King's mistress is better than being his hostage, no? If I don't try and push for Queenship, he should have no reason to grow upset with me. I can improve both my own fortunes and the standing of our House at the same time by showing him just how… willing I am to bend the knee."

That might have been a bit too crass, but Olenna just smirks all the same, the Queen of Thorns tilting her head to the side.

"Perhaps. Though at the end of the day, remember this lesson dear. You say that he would have no reason to grow upset with you… but men don't need a reason. They never have. If they want to be upset with you, they will invent a reason and use that instead."

Finally though, Olenna reaches out and places a hand atop Margaery's.

"I will support you all the same. I did not come here to spend my remaining years as a hostage for my son's sake… I came here for you."

Margaery straightens up at that, buoyed by her grandmother's support. More than anything, she suspects Olenna will be good for running interference on Brienne once she begins to pursue Axel Baratheon in earnest.

And… in the privacy of her own mind, Margaery thinks to herself… if Axel does fall in love with her and bucks all norms to make her his Queen, well then… that would be his choice, wouldn't it?

At least the rumors say he prefers a woman of age with him. Her competition is rather slim all things considered, even if she's also heard that Lady Sansa Stark will be visiting King's Landing at the bare minimum, with Princess Arianne Martell rumored to be on her way as well.

… She'll have to make the most of her head start on those women. They're her only real competition, after all.

-x-X-x-

"Father, you sent for me."

Asha Greyjoy calls out as she steps into her father's study, only to watch as Balon Greyjoy reads something and then snarls and smacks a mug off of his desk.

She raises an eyebrow, more surprised that the mug actually had anything in it to splash across the floor than anything else. It wasn't like her father to waste good drink, though obviously the Lord Reaper of Pyke was not in the best of moods at the moment.

Lifting bloodshot eyes to meet her gaze, Balon huffs.

"Drowned God take these Greenlanders! Can't even do fucking war right! And now this shit!"

Asha snorts in amusement, walking over and leaning on his desk. She'd heard about the Greenlander War, of course. Everyone on the Iron Islands had. It was probably the biggest news to hit them since their own failed rebellion. Robert Baratheon was dead and so were his two sons, so some bastard had been legitimized and was taking his place. Oh, but Renly Baratheon didn't like that, so he was going to make a mess of things instead.

Of course… it'd all fizzled out. They'd gone ahead and settled things with one of their mainland religion's Trials and apparently the legitimized bastard had come out on top. She'd seen many an Ironborn grumbling over the fact that the Greenlanders weren't going to be killing each other en masse… but her father seemed particularly upset by the news.

Then again, Asha knows her father all too well…

"What was the plan, father?"

Balon frowns… and then sighs and shakes his head.

"You always have been too quick for your own good, girl. If only you'd been born with a cock instead of a cunt between your legs."

She tries not to bristle too much at that, holding her tongue for a moment so that Balon will finally just fucking tell her already. Thankfully, after another beat of silence, he does.

"… We were going to take advantage of this shit, obviously. All those idiots were converging on King's Landing. Even the Redwyne Fleet headed for the Narrow Sea. And the North had all marched South. Once the fighting started in full, we could have reaved up and down the coast. Taken from the North, the Riverlands, the Westerlands, the Reach. All of it… would have been easy. It would have been a return to the old ways! And the best part of all, they would have been too busy killing each other to do anything to stop us!"

Asha continues to bite her tongue as her father rants. There's a lot of things she could say to that, but none are what Balon wants to hear. The last time they tried to return to the old ways, it got all of her brothers except for Theon killed. And Theon was up in Winterfell, almost certainly turned into little more than yet another Greenlander at this point.

And yet, even though Balon had surrendered and been allowed to keep his seat… she knew that her father still longed for a world where the Ironborn could reave freely and force the rest of Westeros to pay the Iron Price. A world where they didn't have to hide their raiding and mask their reaving behind piracy and banditry. A world where they could be truly free.

Frankly, Asha wasn't sure she wanted that same world. But she knew better than to say so out loud. She had her own ship and was a Captain in her own right, and that was its own form of freedom as far as she was concerned. Certainly better than being some Southern Lady and married off to some Greenlander Lord, that was for sure.

"And now this shit… they're saying Euron is back."

Now that gets Asha's attention, however. Her eyes widen in surprise before narrowing as she leans forward.

"'They'? Who is 'they' father? Who has seen Euron?"

Asha had as many uncles as Balon had brothers, obviously. But only one of them was truly infamous. Euron Greyjoy, the man so repugnant even the rest of the Ironborn, as well as his own family, wanted nothing to do with him. Asha didn't know all the details, but she did know that he'd more than earned his exile from the Iron Islands… and that her father had told him to never return so long as Balon still lived.

Growling, the Lord Reaper of Pyke rises from his chair… a little unsteady and clearly deep in his cups long before she'd arrived.

"… Euron's ship, Silence, has apparently returned to the Narrow Sea from his latest adventure. This time however, the rumors say that he's back to stay. That he claims he intends to stick around because Westeros is more 'fun' now."

Growling, Balon slams a fist into the nearest surface… his desk.

"He's coming for my seat! I just know he is! He finally thinks he's gathered enough power, enough support to dethrone me once and for all!"

Asha stays quiet. Part of her wonders why Euron would wait all this time only to come back now. And yet… she wouldn't be surprised if her father was right all the same.

Suddenly, Balon whips towards her, staring at her.

"You."

Asha pushes off her father's desk at that look, her hand surreptitiously falling to the dagger at her belt. But Balon just points at her rather harmlessly.

"You can go. You WILL go."

Straightening up while at the same time relaxing a bit, Asha inclines her head.

"Go where, father?"

Balon smiles mirthlessly and she wonders how long ago he found out about Euron. How many sleepless nights had he had before he finally called for her?

"Go to the Narrow Sea. Go to King's Landing. I want you to find out what your uncle is up to and bring me news of his movements. And if you can get the measure of this new Baratheon King at the same time, then so be it."

Asha presses her lips tightly. Reconnaissance Duty. It's not necessarily bad work, but it's also not very fulfilling work either. Certainly not likely to put coin in her men's pouches or food in their bellies. And yet, she doesn't really have any room to say 'no'. Swallowing a sigh, she bows her head.

"Of course, father. I'll see it done."

"Then why are you still standing here? Go already!"

Asha departs before her father's mood can get any fouler… and he can decide to take that out on her. Really, she'll be glad to be on the sea again anyways. Nothing but the ocean, her crew, and her ship. It was where she felt the most free and she always loved departing on another voyage.

… Plus, part of her did have to wonder what sort of man this Axel Baratheon really was. The rumors said he wasn't just handsome, but also incredibly strong, the Demon of the Trident come again. The more fanciful ones claimed that he took down an entire ambush on the Kingsroad by himself, and also singlehandedly won the Trial by the Seven without any help from his allies.

Asha is smart enough to know better than to believe such things of course… but she's nevertheless curious. And now it seems she'll have a chance to find out because she's headed to King's Landing on her father's orders.

What fun…

-x-X-x-

A/N: Machinations! Machinations everywhere! As far as the eye can see~

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