Who: Isobel Dayne; anyone in the streets of King's Landing When: Day 18, morning Where: King's Landing, streets and gate Rating: PG-13 Status: in progress
Isobel found it troubling, being forced to stay outside King's Landing and denied entrance because of some sort of plague, and wondered if perhaps the men of the Crownlands hadn't got word of her father's grand plans for them and decided on principle to bar the doors against her.
It wouldn't half surprise her, given her terrible luck with courting as of late, and it would give her blessed respite for trying to put her best face forward all the time. It would be nice just to happen upon a young knight who wanted a love match instead of some lord three times her age who wanted nothing more than a mare for breeding. She felt as if she'd been paraded at a fair at the last Frey debacle, after all, and wanted nothing with a repeat of that incident.
She had half-heartedly tried to play at cards with her ladies, but after being beaten in three rounds by Alys and Dara and being threatened if she lost again by Bethany, she'd decided to withdraw and let Gillian take her place as Bethany's second. Safer for everyone involved, especially since Gillian was fond of an uphill battle. She watched for a short while until she was satisfied at how the game was going and pushed out of her tent, thinking to scout her woodland home. Perhaps she could marry a man in the Stormlands, a landed knight, who'd build her a home here in the Kingswood. It'd be lovely, after all the sand of Starfall and Dorne as a whole. There was nothing but sand in her past, but she hoped for rich soil and a rich home in her future. At least a stable home, and one she could be happen in until Starfall passed to her and her children. It was all a girl could ask for, truly.
And never meant to be, she thought idly, eyes narrowing at the sign of movement at the head of camp. Her party wasn't the only one stopped outside the gates of King's Landing by any means and movement ahead meant that possibly the gates had been opened. She strained her eyes to see any of her knights but none stuck out among the many men on horseback. She whistled for her own mount, Morning's Star, and frowned when he did not heed her call. Typical of the ill-tempered thing, Stranger take him.
Finally managing to wrestle her horse into submission and mount, Isobel rode to the head of the column and stopped near a young boy and a knight she was unfamiliar with. Her own retinue consisted of three brothers of House Dalt; Drustan, Damian and Devin Dalt were a more than capable retinue for a girl and five companions. Seeing no sign of their lemons or purple,
Isobel slumped in her saddle and waited for any shouts of news.
"They're opening the gates," the boy beside her said, causing Isobel to flick over her glance. He was small, ten perhaps at most, and she half-smiled at him. It'd always been easier to children, talking to them. It was adults she had the trouble with and men at that. Damn men and their inability to relate to her the way her ladies did.
"Do you have any idea why?" she asked, blushing bright when she attracted the attention of the knight to her left. He leered, pleased with her form, and answered in a thick voice that was rough from disuse.
"That'd be because they're letting us in, milady. Plague's lifted from the city and the Regent's decided to open the doors again." That was certainly good news. Isobel nodded shyly in thanks and turned her horse to head back to her encampment and the game of cards that had been going on, intermittently, for at least three weeks. Inevitably, someone had misplaced the winning card that was certainly in her hand and the game had continued despite Isobel's protests.
Retinue in tow, a dusty and tired Isobel rode slowly through the streets of King's Landing, wondering what secrets the Crownlands held behind red-brick walls. This certainly wasn't Starfall any longer, or Dorne, for that matter. She was playing with a whole new set of rules.