Ch13. Yara

Seventeen years old Yara Greyjoy paced in her assigned room. It was quite a luxurious one, not much different from the room she occupied as the daughter of the Lord.

Her accommodations aside, she was nervous. Two weeks passed since that monster ravaged the castle and bewitched her fa-, uh, Lord Greyjoy.

Since then various mysterious things started to happen all around Pyke.

At first, she had to sign a parchment which prevented her from talking about the secrets of these people.

She witnessed the tall rocky wall recede and return back into the ground.

Then out of nowhere, some invisible weight was as if dropped on her shoulders every time she had some ill thoughts about those people. She plotted many ways to get rid of them but every time she almost gathers her resolve, this invisible weight becomes almost unbearable and her instincts scream at her to stop. And if nothing else, Yara Greyjoy trusted her instincts. After all, they are the sole reason she is still alive after so many battles.

Somehow, every raven she sent, returned without delivering the letter. She even tried to send ten at once in different directions and yet, they returned not even an hour later, the letters still fastened to their legs.

She heard rumors her father actually gave up his ownership of the Iron Islands and transferred it to the magic users. Now Yara knew she was not particularly the sharpest pike in Pyke but something was supremely fishy about that. She knew her fa-,... Lord Greyjoy well. The old coot would never do that. Not even over his dead body. The most disturbing was the Maester Kern's grimace as she asked him if he knew something about it. He just gave her a sour smile slash wince, patted her shoulder in sympathy, and walked away. Weird. But no matter how much she pondered over it, the undeniable fact was, that the companion of that monster was now the new Lord of the Pyke, Lord Cair.

Then the more obvious things started happening.

Things floating around in the air as if someone unseen carried them.

People dying the second they try to attack the new Lord and his Ladies, seemingly out of nowhere.

The reparation of the demolished parts of the castle. Yara was floored. She went to sleep at night and in the morning the next day, the castle was back in its pristine condition during its times of glory. No, it was actually different, better. She never saw such sturdy walls nor such a smooth, jet black stone. The already black castle darkened even more as if shadowed by the night even during the day.

And then there was the duel between Lady Bellatrix, the monster who massacred over three-fifths of Lord Greyjoy's forces, and Lady Irene. That was an eye-opener if nothing else. She saw something unthinkable. The monster who haunted her nightmares for a week was beaten with such ease it was frightening. Lady Bellatrix threw everything she had on Lady Irene, devastating the yard to unrepairable proportions. And yet, Lady Irene just swatted it all away or dissipated any type of sorcery with a casual swish of her staff. It was a frightening sight for Yara. The piles of corpses of her comrades would not disturb her as much as that. And then, when the fight ended, Lady Bellatrix fainting from exhaustion, Lady Irene just impacted the ground with her staff, making the yard glow scarlet as it repaired itself to its previous state.

She once dared to meet Lady Bellatrix's cold, black gaze. At that moment, her life as if flashed in front of her eyes, and her head started hurting slightly, frightening her. But when nothing else happened due to it, she shrugged it off.

And not to forget, Lord Cair. The young man she saw floating as a few balls of iron circled him in the air at quite a speed. Yara was confused about what he was doing but when he 'banished' one iron ball at a wooden dummy, completely decimating it as the ball flew right through it and cracked the wall behind the dummy due to the impact... Yara shuddered.

So, yes, she was nervous. She was expected for a meeting in the throne room where her fate will be decided by the new Lord. She only hoped she wouldn't end up a salt wife. Even death would be kinder to her already diminished pride.

...

Yara entered the throne room, unsurely and slowly.

Inside, she saw the empty throne and under it a table occupied by two people. Lady Irene and Lord Cair, waiting for her.

Lady Irene gestured to her to sit and Yara did.

"Hello, my Lady, my Lord." She greeted them, trying to appear polite. She had no illusions her position was anything but good as she was the daughter of the previous Lord, and therefore an obstacle.

She observed as Lady Irene and Lord Cair exchanged amused looks and turned back to her.

"So, Yara, what are your plans." Lord Cair casually asked, making Yara stiffen.

At first, she wanted to lie but one look from Lady Irene changed her mind completely. She wouldn't go far with lying. Not here.

"I-, At first, I-," She took a deep breath, hardening her resolve. "At first, I wanted to have you killed." She started and when she saw no reaction other than a bemused smile gracing their faces, her body relaxed and she continued. "But, I realized, it would not end well for me..." She trailed off.

"No, no, it really would not." Lady Irene rolled her eyes in an almost friendly manner, making Yara feel even more comfortable.

"I will do what you decide for me, my Lady." Yara resignedly hung her head.

"Okay, we already checked if you are trustworthy for our purpose anyway and we chose you as our Regent." Lady Irene said and Yara's head snapped in her direction, her eyes widening.

How could they have already checked if they can trust me!? They never even talked to me yet!

These types of thoughts swirled through her head but she knew she would not get an answer. There was only one answer she needed to know right now.

"Regent?" She asked cautiously.

"Yes, you see, we are not really interested in ruling the Iron Islands that much." Lord Cair proclaimed, making Yara dizzy from the surprise at his statements

How could they not be interested in being Lords of Pyke?

Her confusion showed and lazy smiles appeared on Lord Cair's and Lady Irene's faces.

"We are owners of Iron Islands, Yara." Lady Irene clarified.

"And there is a difference... where?" Yara asked, baffled.

"Rulers have the responsibility to develop the lands, provide for the people, and further society. The owners do not. Your father, Yara, was an owner. Most of the current Lords are owners that play at ruling because it fills their own pockets. They feel no responsibility to their subjects nor have any desire for development. They are content with what they have. That is the biggest reason for the huge stagnation of these lands."

As Lady Irene talked, Yara got progressively more confused even though she understood her point, somewhat.

"We will rule for a while but we won't stay our entire life here in order to take care of these lands." Lady Irene explained patiently. "We need someone to do it in our stead when we are not available."

And someone to become the Queen after we depart this world, she added in her mind, amused at Yara's gaping expression.

"Bu-, but I am the daughter of the previous Lord!" Yara blurted.

"So?" Lord Cair quipped.

"'So?' Shouldn't you give me as a reward to one of your best subordinates? Sell me to slavery? Make me into a salt wife? Keep me in your dungeon as an entertainment?" She shrieked. "Instead, you offer me a position right below your station? Are you mad? Even my fath-, ... Lord Greyjoy would never trust me with something like that!" She ranted.

"So, is that a refusal?" Lady Irene asked, calmly sipping her tea.

Yara was taken aback. They really did offer her something so precious. If it was anyone else, she would think they are crazy, accept and plot their demise but not with these people.

These people surely had some mysterious way to ensure her loyalty and make sure she does her job.

Oh, she didn't even know how right she was.

Nevertheless, she, as an ironborn woman, was not as restricted and weak as those Westerosi females. She always laughed when she saw a woman shrieking while her crewmate was raping her during the reavings. It was such an abhorrent sight! Such a miserable weakness! These women were just screaming as they secretly enjoyed it! If not, then Yara really did not understand why they didn't attempt to defend themselves. If a man decided to force Yara, she would at least make sure to leave a few scars as a reminder if not outright kill him!

But no matter how strong or free a woman of the Iron Islands is, she would never get such a high position as she was just offered. After all, she was still a woman. Yara was not about to let an opportunity such as this slip by.

"Yes, I accept, my Lady."