Who: Jaime Lannister & Ned Stark What: Idle banter Where: Pennytree When: After this. Warnings/Rating: Brief mention of incest but nothing substantial; spoiler alert for events in A Storm of Swords~A Dance with Dragons.
His dream had come true after all. He might not be in Casterly Rock, but they had all abandoned him. Cersei. Father. He still had Tyrion, but not for long. They would soon fall out, just as they had in the future that only Jaime remembered - if he knew the future that no one else did, maybe he had been living a dream all this time. But it was not a dream. In his dreams he had his hand. He was whole. He was whole and he was invincible.
In his dreams, Brienne of Tarth would keep him safe. But he had waited, months and months in vain at Pennytree, waiting for her to come for him so that they could honour the oaths they had sworn to Lady Stark. He would redeem his honour and then he could return to King's Landing. But days upon days he had spent riding out in all directions, looking for Brienne, for Clegane and for Sansa Stark, all in vain.
This is not your world. This is not your time.
It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that everyone else should dwell in the past and he not be allowed the same opportunity. It wasn't fair that everyone else could have a second chance and he did not. But life was hardly fair and kind, and Jaime was still the foolish, naive little boy he had been when he first tasted Cersei's tongue and felt her smile against his lips.
The door which had been left ajar creaked as it opened, and he whipped his head around, leaning forward though he remained seated under the shade of a tree. His hand nearly fumbled awkwardly with the hilt of his sword. 'Brienne,' he had wanted to call out, his chest tightening in anticipation.
But it was Ned Stark who had emerged, and the hope went out from Jaime's eyes like the death of a candle's flickering flame.
"Lord Stark," he greeted with a wide smile that betrayed his disappointment. He leaned back against the tree trunk once more, letting go of his sword.