A Small Council

It had been the first time many of them had been in the same room as one another.

They were a strange group.

Yet they were here together and all for the same reasons.

Each of them studied one another, trying to figure out what the other was thinking while simultaneously revealing nothing. They were each of them some of the most powerful men and women in the world, possessing the power to reshape the political landscape of Westeros if they so desired.

Yet neither said anything as they sat around the table.

"I've never been one much for silences." Tyrion broke the silence, an unusual move, but one that suited his character. "If we have nothing to say, perhaps we should simply retire for the day."

"There is no need for that," Eddard replied, gaze flickering to the oddly dressed men that stood behind him and Daenerys Targaryen who had been staring upon Olenna. "We are all here in service of my son, should we not be working with one another on how to ensure that the realm will be secure and stable once this war has come to an end."

"Indeed we should," Olenna responded, having been ignoring Daenerys entirely, instead focusing on the Imp who she recognised as the more dangerous of the Targaryen faction. "Unfortunately, as a result of the war, the Reach has expended much of its harvest and our stores to support King Robb in his pursuit of peace. Starvation will soon become rampant across Westeros and with it, a high potential of disease."

A strange tactic, admitting her weakness.

But one that everyone had already been aware of.

Olenna knew that and rather than keep it secret, had instead purposefully revealed it and therefore, robbed both of them of using that to damage the Tyrells. There was still damage to be done by revealing it as she had, but Olenna had sufficiently eliminated much of the damage in the process.

"Perhaps the wealth of Mereen could be used to help us in fixing this situation?" Olenna wondered, placing the power in the hands of the Targaryens in doing so. However, even in the aftermath of this bloody conflict, there were many, many mouths to feed in Westeros and that came with it, not only power but responsibility.

Failure to handle that responsibility and power properly, then the backlash would be crippling.

Yet Tyrion did not bat an eye.

"A letter has already been sent to Mereen." Daenerys replied. "We have purchased food from the Free Cities that should be arriving in a few days' time. It will not be enough to solve the long-term damages of the war, but it should be enough to mitigate the short-term damages."

"As you know." Tyrion continued. "The War of Five Kings has been extremely costly to all sides, especially the smallfolk. And as you said, there are many mouths to feed, we cannot solve that problem with a single shipment, nor would it be wise to expend all our money on food without also solving the many other crises that we will face in the aftermath of this war. We do have possible solutions that may bare fruit in the future, but for now, it is our belief that solving the short-term problems will be more profitable for us all."

"Do you?" Olenna asked dubiously. "Are you willing to risk your life with that belief? Because if the smallfolk do riot, they will all know who to blame and it will be you, Lady Targaryen." Here, Olenna looked directly at Daenerys for the first time. "And if you fail, House Targaryen might well and truly be wiped from the world of Westeros."

"Or perhaps, we shall be praised for our handling of the crisis." Daenerys was far from deterred though. "Perhaps it will be instead those that were unable to handle the situation and handed it off to others that might face the consequences."

"I'm certain my son will trust both of you to handle the situation to the best of your abilities." Eddard intervened. "And I'm certain he will aid you, Lady Targaryen in your efforts to solve the food crisis that will soon befall Westeros. He will not wish to see the realm he has fought to secure fall apart so soon after he has achieved his goals."

"Of that, I have no doubt." Daenerys agreed.

Eddard then turned the course of the conversation away from the food, that had already been handed over to the Targaryens. "Instead, we should be focusing our efforts on to rebuilding the infrastructure of the Westerlands, the Vale and the Riverlands. The latter is a vital trading hub for not only all of Westeros but also for our trade with Essos. Without it, we are losing a great deal of money and trade."

"The securing of the south has already seen trade return to the Riverlands," Tyrion answered.

"But not all of it." Olenna continued. "Only when the war is over with shall the trade routes of the Riverlands be in full use and it will take time before it ever reaches the level it was at previously."

Here, Willas, who had been sat quietly throughout the course of the conversation made himself known. "We have come up with an idea, that might speed up that process even further, but also open up more opportunities for trade all across Westeros." Placing a map on the table, he unrolled it to reveal that its contents related to the western shorelines of the North, Westerlands, Riverlands and Reach.

But more importantly, the entirety of the Iron Islands.

"King Robb has made his desires to ensure that the Ironborn are dealt with very clear." Willas explained. "It is why when sending part of the Redwyne fleet to the east to deal with King Aegon Targaryen, he asked us to keep a third behind in the west to sail north to the Iron Islands."

Daenerys and Tyrion both spared a glance at Eddard, trying to gauge his reaction only to see that he did not seem surprised in the slightest by this. 'Which means, he knew of this beforehand.' Daenerys thought to herself.

'Are you their ally, or perhaps, simply our enemy?' Tyrion wondered, focusing once more back upon Willas.

"We are aware of part of the Ironborn Fleet returning back to the Iron Islands. But they are a fraction of their original number and thanks to Rodrick Forrester, Victarion Greyjoy and his fleet have been destroyed. The portion of the Redwyne Fleet we have sent to secure the Iron Islands should succeed in short order." Willas described and while his face gave nothing away, the tone in his voice said a great deal. "At which point, we intend to turn the Iron Islands into a trading hub of the west, just like the Riverlands."

"To do that, you will need money." Tyrion pointed out, well aware that a great deal of the Reach's and the Tyrell's wealth came from agriculture. "And considering the current situation, you don't have much food or money."

"You're right, we don't." Olenna was hardly deterred though by this. "But we are aware of Illyrio Mopatis who supported Aegon. He is one of the wealthiest men in Essos and we have already contacted the Iron Bank, they will be sending over an envoy so that we might negotiate the terms of the Iron Thrones' current debt."

Tyrion frowned, going still.

"It is our intention to first ask of the Iron Bank a small loan of a million Dragons to help begin the rebuilding process," Olenna said. "After that, we will negotiate the release of Illyrio Mopatis, under the condition that he takes the current standing debt of the Iron Throne to the Iron Bank which I believe will stand at near eight million Dragons, onto himself."

"What an excellent idea." Tyrion agreed, though no smile was upon his lips. "I had been thinking of something similar myself. The King shall surely be overjoyed upon sharing this news with him."

"He will already be aware of this plan." Willas cut in. "We dispatched a letter weeks ago, informing him of our intentions."

"And have you received word back?" Eddard wondered.

Willas shook his head. "Not at the moment, but in a few days I am certain we will have."

Eddard nodded his head. "I would be most pleased if you might share the contents of the letter with me when it arrives. And I do hope that should the meeting take place with the envoy from the Iron Bank before my son returns that I might be included."

"Of course," Olenna replied. "As the father of King Robb Stark and Lord Paramount of the North, you are the only one who can best represent your son in meetings of these scales should he not be present. Though, I would ask that you allow my son, Willas to join you in this meeting, to ensure the Iron Bank does not try anything. We have had many dealings with them in the past and they can be quite cunning and sly."

Eddard bowed his head.

Tyrion tapped his fingers on the table in thought before stopping. "Well, I suppose that this has been quite a productive meeting. But I suppose you have travelled quite a fair distance and must be quite tired. Perhaps were should convene at a later date."

The contents of this meeting had revealed quite a bit and while in some cases was worrying, Tyrion was far from overly concerned. Things were just beginning and like he had expected, the Tyrells had come out swinging. They had made the first move and now it was up to them to respond appropriately, but doing so in a rush would only leave them exposed.

Besides, he already had a few ideas that might help him in the future.