Why not send him in my stead? I am not refusing, of course. I have no qualms about meeting with Ser Jaime and requesting this of him. But Ser Jorah would likely be more persuasive than I. Ser Jaime is not very fond of me, Your Grace.
Truly. Lord Varys and I did our jobs and did them well, but we were not friends of the Lannisters. Cersei once ordered my death simply as a display of power. And with her disdain for both myself and Lord Varys came Ser Jaime's, as I'm certain you are aware the two of them were...close.
[ Implied intimate relations in the term close. ]
I betrayed them as well. [ A quiet confession. ] As the war waged on in the seven kingdoms, I found myself by the side of Sansa Stark. A bright young woman and kind young woman, I'm certain you'll agree. I had married her aunt and together, we had taken her under our protection. It's no secret that I had harbored fondness for her mother, and out of my own personal loyalties to Cat, I felt I owed it to her memory to keep Sansa safe. When her aunt Lysa took her own life, that duty fell upon my shoulders alone. I came to view Sansa as the daughter I never had.
And so, I devised a plan for her to reclaim Winterfell. It wasn't without its faults, but in the end, we were able to unseat Ramsay Bolton and defeat the Lannister allies who held Sansa's home. There, I declared my loyalties to House Stark.
[ Unseen, unheard, Dany clicks her claws on the edge of her vanity, watching herself in the mirror as she listens to Baelish explain. Family names, lines of loyalty, logical leaps, but missing from Baelish's tale is some personal transgression that has transpired between himself and the Kingslayer.
She feels her anger like the crunch of dragon jaws on struggling prey, and she feels herself ease up on the pressure. ]
What was he like? [ she asks, after a beat. ] When you had your run in in De Chima.
[ It's a pertinent question. Also something of a delaying tactic while she picks through her emotions and Baelish's words, but the answer interests her regardless. ]
There's a pause, a considering silence that she does not fill in with questions as to Jaime's nature -- key though they are, they are likewise uniquely unsatisfying, as so many answers as to the world of Westeros can be.
She will see for herself.
Finally; ]
Ser Jorah does possess a talent for retrieving Lannisters.
[ Phew. The gravity of this situation is lifted off of his shoulders. He doesn't have to be the one to bring Jaime before Daenerys. He has been let off the hook. And it's much better to proceed in a voluntary manner than to be forced to give up a man who had threatened him with always paying his debts.
But Petyr should be there, if he can. He should see what happens for himself, if he can. ]
Ser Jorah does possess such a talent, yes. And Ser Jaime had expressed interest in meeting him.
[ Probably not being dragged off by him, though... ]
I can talk to him. I can see what his reaction will be -- if he is willing to come before you peacefully or if he will put up a fight. And then you will know where he stands -- if Ser Jorah is needed to retrieve this Lannister. But I do hope this all will come to a peaceful conclusion.
One must always hope for peace. [ So you do that. ] And if Jaime Lannister were to come to me in the mind to humour the Targaryen orphan girl in mere obligation to peace, we may never have it.
[ Her tone is flat, mildly exasperated, but there is at least some grim satisfaction gained in watching someone turn her command into his own idea and present it back to her, if with softer language. Perhaps this is the difference between America and Westeros.
There is no room in her graciousness to thank him for it. ]
I said I would have him before me, at a time and place of my choosing. If you believe yourself able to accomplish this task, then I leave it in your hands, Ambassador. If the Kingslayer resists, then send for Ser Jorah.
[ Dany may think it's her own order parroted back at her, but this way is less of an order for Baelish. The responsibility falls off of his shoulders and now it's merely a suggestion that he will bring this up to the kingslayer to see his response. If Jaime comes peacefully, Baelish will involve himself. If Jaime refuses, he will not take part in this. It puts him right evenly in the middle, where he would prefer to be. ]
Like I said, I will speak with him. Will that be all, Your Grace?
[ Because she must consign herself to the fact that she will not feel at peace until this man who roams the streets is brought before her. Her anger feels coiled within her, settling in for the wait.
They are voices only, over this transmission, but there is the sense of her gaze lifting away, settling elsewhere. ]
no subject
[ And he has a talent for Lannister delivery. Even if the first one was probably smaller. ]
And I understand that the Kingslayer is a swordsman without his sword hand.
no subject
no subject
[ She manages not to make this prod particularly suspicious, just insistent for information. ]
You both shared a court for the most part of the Usurper's reign, and his downfall.
no subject
[ Implied intimate relations in the term close. ]
I betrayed them as well. [ A quiet confession. ] As the war waged on in the seven kingdoms, I found myself by the side of Sansa Stark. A bright young woman and kind young woman, I'm certain you'll agree. I had married her aunt and together, we had taken her under our protection. It's no secret that I had harbored fondness for her mother, and out of my own personal loyalties to Cat, I felt I owed it to her memory to keep Sansa safe. When her aunt Lysa took her own life, that duty fell upon my shoulders alone. I came to view Sansa as the daughter I never had.
And so, I devised a plan for her to reclaim Winterfell. It wasn't without its faults, but in the end, we were able to unseat Ramsay Bolton and defeat the Lannister allies who held Sansa's home. There, I declared my loyalties to House Stark.
no subject
She feels her anger like the crunch of dragon jaws on struggling prey, and she feels herself ease up on the pressure. ]
What was he like? [ she asks, after a beat. ] When you had your run in in De Chima.
[ It's a pertinent question. Also something of a delaying tactic while she picks through her emotions and Baelish's words, but the answer interests her regardless. ]
no subject
[ So it's quite likely the kingslayer will not be slaying any kings in the near future. Or ever. ]
no subject
[ That caustic edge hasn't left her tone, even when wry, but now it seems more directed towards the true object of her ire -- the Kingslayer himself.
She's quoting someone. It's probably Tyrion. ]
no subject
[ Because Baelish hadn't noticed much else that was different about Jaime Lannister. ]
no subject
[ Not really.
There's a pause, a considering silence that she does not fill in with questions as to Jaime's nature -- key though they are, they are likewise uniquely unsatisfying, as so many answers as to the world of Westeros can be.
She will see for herself.
Finally; ]
Ser Jorah does possess a talent for retrieving Lannisters.
no subject
But Petyr should be there, if he can. He should see what happens for himself, if he can. ]
Ser Jorah does possess such a talent, yes. And Ser Jaime had expressed interest in meeting him.
[ Probably not being dragged off by him, though... ]
I can talk to him. I can see what his reaction will be -- if he is willing to come before you peacefully or if he will put up a fight. And then you will know where he stands -- if Ser Jorah is needed to retrieve this Lannister. But I do hope this all will come to a peaceful conclusion.
no subject
[ Her tone is flat, mildly exasperated, but there is at least some grim satisfaction gained in watching someone turn her command into his own idea and present it back to her, if with softer language. Perhaps this is the difference between America and Westeros.
There is no room in her graciousness to thank him for it. ]
I said I would have him before me, at a time and place of my choosing. If you believe yourself able to accomplish this task, then I leave it in your hands, Ambassador. If the Kingslayer resists, then send for Ser Jorah.
no subject
Like I said, I will speak with him. Will that be all, Your Grace?
no subject
[ Because she must consign herself to the fact that she will not feel at peace until this man who roams the streets is brought before her. Her anger feels coiled within her, settling in for the wait.
They are voices only, over this transmission, but there is the sense of her gaze lifting away, settling elsewhere. ]
I'll await your counsel, keenly.