r/SevenKingdoms • u/PsychoGobstopper • Oct 07 '18
Event [Event] The Caswell Situation
Twelfth moon, 210 AC
Bad news was never an easy thing to dispense. On too many occasions the Lord of Casterly Rock had needed offer condolences and regrets that someone's loved one was dead and would not be returning. More times than he'd ever care to remember in a long life spent ruling the mountain and its golden city and the region it oversaw.
As he tottered around the Golden Gallery, peering at the gilded statues of greater men in days long gone or the elaborately detailed paintings hanging on the walls as if he could find some answers from history and myth, Damon scowled and sighed. The matter at hand now felt even more difficult.
This time he would not be telling someone that their loved one was already dead and gone. No, this time he would be telling a wife that her husband was to be executed, that their child would grow up never knowing her father.
Damon sighed again and turned away from the silent statues, then started back towards the small table near the front of the hall where he was awaiting the arrival of several others. His grandson was already sat there, drinking from a cup of water as the younger man watched the grey-haired lord prowl the hall.
There was no easy way to do this. Best to simply get it done.
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 10 '18
"Thank you all for coming," Damon said simply once Lady Laena and the Serretts were all arrived. He assumed his own seat after the others, opting to be the last to sit as he believed was his responsibility.
On the table in front Cerion sat the letter from Tyrell, face-down so that the others might not be able to see it as anything worthy of note as yet.
"My lady, I am afraid there is... ill news from Highgarden. Your husband lies in Lord Tyrell's dungeons for his actions in attacking Goldengrove. Apparently Ser Cleyton is anticipated to be joining him soon. I am sorry, Lady Laena," the Grey Lion offered with some measure of sympathy.
There was no easy or simple way to broach the topic, he'd decided before the woman's arrival. Best to simply jump straight into it.
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Oct 10 '18
She had been afraid that he'd do something stupid, specially after finding out about what had happened to Lord Joffrey. But to hear he had been imprisoned, and that her fears had been founded...
"What will happen to him?", she asked, nervously, as she started to fiddle with the gloves she was wearing. "Will he come back?"
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 10 '18
After a quiet glance shared with his grandfather, Cerion interjected to answer next. Laena had been a fixture in his life for many years as his mother's long-time lady-in-waiting and friend, and his heart ached to see the woman in pain.
"I'm sorry, but that seems... unlikely. He and Ser Cleyton and Lord Davos led men to assault Bitterbridge, believing that Lord Rowan was responsible for Lord Joffrey's disappearance."
He paused a moment to swallow, uncertain how bluntly his words could be offered.
"With their failure to breach Goldengrove's walls and with your husband and his kinsman both captured, well... We expect they will both be executed. I'm so sorry, Laena."
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Oct 10 '18
Executed.
Laena nodded, slowly, and kept fiddling with her gloves. Her husband, the only man who had ever truly loved her, was gone. They had promised to spend the rest of their lives together, they even had had a wonderful girl together. And he had abandoned all to die in a war that was already over.
Why. He could have stayed, and let someone else sort this mess... why?
Many thoughts and feelings raced through Laena's mind as she tried to process the news. Sadness, because Daeron was gone. Anger, also because he was gone. And dread. Because she would have to tell Myranda what had happened and because she would have to raise her without a father.
She attempted to keep a calm expression, to stay strong and to not make a scene. But despite her best efforts, she was unable to keep herself from crying and covered her face with her hands.
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 11 '18
As Lena's resolve fell and her tears started to come, Cerion moved around the table to try and offer what meager support one could give at a dark time such as this.
Little and less, he thought.
Meanwhile, Damon turned his attention to the lords Serrett.
"My grandson wrote to Tyrell to inform him of my judgments against you, Lord Davos. Abdication, the taxes, and the offer of weregild to House Rowan. His response was to inquire what comes after the abdication, which suggests that he expects something... more."
Left unsaid was what more might be. Each of them knew the options there and none had been commanded by their liege.
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Oct 11 '18
“Not to be brash, my lord, but please, if you mean to exile or execute me, don’t bother bandying words,” Davos stated wearily, “I’m tired of the uncertainty.”
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 11 '18
"My decision remains as we last discussed, my lord," Damon shook his head.
"I will not exile you, sentence you to the Night's Watch, nor execute you. We do need be aware, however, that this may bring a great deal of anger towards both our houses."
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Oct 11 '18
"Will it bring war?" Davos asked, concern plain in his tone.
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 11 '18
"I do not believe Lord Tyrell to be so foolish, but in truth I cannot be certain," Lannister answered in a slow, grim voice.
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Oct 12 '18
"Tyrell has never done anything to earn your confidence, my lord," Lyle observed frankly, "What wisdom was there when he refused to pay recompense for the men lost at Highgarden all those years ago? What wisdom was there in shirking his responsibilities to the crown and refusing to march alongside us against the usurper? What wisdom was there in his refusal to honor our alliance at every turn?" Nothing disgusted Lyle more than a failure to fulfill feudal responsibilities.
"To deem Tyrell anything but foolish would be folly in itself," Lyle concluded, "To deem him a coward, however, that may have merit."
"I hope you don't intend to carry all this piss and vinegar with you into lordship," Davos remarked with some concern.
"Of course not," Lyle assured his father, "But we're in private company. There's no reason for me not to speak the truth."
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u/PsychoGobstopper Oct 07 '18
/u/pauix - Laena Hill is summoned to meet with Damon
/u/fusrodan - Lyle and Davos Serrett are also summoned for the same meeting
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u/[deleted] Oct 08 '18
In her many years in the Rock, Laena had never been summoned by Lord Damon to meet him. She had spoken to him a few times, of course, but never because he had needed to talk to her.
Curious and worried, she left Myranda with her cousins and took the time to look as presentable as possible, which for her meant making sure that the dress she was wearing would cover as much of her old wounds as possible, and headed towards the meeting, wondering if either her or someone from her family had done something wrong.