Davos II (ASOS)

"It was tragic, how the Freys sewed the head of the direwolf upon the shoulders of the Northern boy, and nailed a crown on his head. His mother, was slain and thrown naked into the river. They violated guest right, therefore are cursed by the gods." Salladhor Saan recounted his story towards those in the court.

The pirate friend of the Onion Knight retold the story of the Red Wedding, an event in which allies of the North and the Riverlands were brutally killed by those of House Frey and House Bolton, in some kind of evil alliance.

Ser Davos saw the visible disturbance on the face of Prince Jacob, with his new hair colour being the standout. He looked to never want to hear such things, about a boy he wanted to kill because of being crowned King in the North and the Trident.

The Onion Knight knew how the prince bonded with Robb Stark in Winterfell, before the war started and lives were taken away from the world.

"It was the hand of R'hllor that killed the usurpers." Queen Selyse declared, as Ser Axell and Lady Melisandre agreed.

The eyes of Prince Jacob were as cold as the snow outside of the North, and he was sitting on the chamber table with his new sworn sword, the Grimm knight from the south behind him.

"How could you say such a thing, mother? People have been murdered at a wedding, under guest right. This is Tywin Lannister's doing, I'm sure of it, anything to remove potential threats to his reign of power." Prince Jacob growled, between his teeth.

"Dear boy, the Northern brats tried to usurp your father's throne." Ser Axell said nicely, as he looked at his great nephew with annoyance.

"No one deserves to be murdered brutally like that, to have the poor woman's body thrown into the river and not even have proper funeral rights for them is blasphemy, and you should watch your tongue, or else you will join your brother in the dungeons." The prince said sternly, looking at his uncle.

Ser Davos had never seen Ser Axell scared or intimated before, as he was thankful to the Seven for Prince Jacob's return, as he could restore order into the King's court and get men like Axell Florent put in their place.

"This is Walder Frey's doing, and I will offer pardons to the remaining Starks and Greyjoys in return for fealty." King Stannis said.

"This will not work, my king. Only more pretenders will rise, where those have died left." Lady Melisandre refuses. "You must show the realm a sign of your power."

"I have nothing to show."

"You only lack dragons, my king." The Queen chimed in.

"The Targaryens have tired all attempts to bring dragons back from the dead, and look how it turned out. People have died or have been scarred by such madness, and you want to raise dragons again, it seems your storytelling skills are becoming faulty, my lady." The prince says towards the Red Woman.

"None of the others have paid the price, if the king gives me the boy. Of R'hllor the prophesy will be fulfilled. His dragon will awaken and spread his stony wings"

"It should be done, Your Grace. The boy means nothing, but his blood can save us all." Ser Axell replied.

"Killing a boy, who is my cousin by blood. It seems Melisandre's wicked tricks have enslaved you to believe every little word she says, behind the fire and the beauty is a trickster who wants to steal your soul, great uncle." The prince says coldly.

"The boy is the very existence on the insult my cousin and your brother conducted on our wedding bed." Queen Selyse pleaded, holding onto the arm of her husband.

Stannis pulls away from his wife's grip. "Even if Robert defiled our bed, it was not the boy's fault and it seems you have forgotten our son has returned."

"He has changed too much and has become more like that smuggler, who you seem to enjoy the company of more than your own lords." The Queen looked sourly upon her recently returned son.

"Mother, Ser Davos is a faithful servant, at least he never committed treason, like your uncle. I would like Uncle Axell to join him in the dungeons, if he says one more word out of line."

Melisandre placed her hand on the king's arm, as Davos noticed he didn't pull away, like he did the Queen.

"The Lord of Light cherishes the innocent. There is no sacrifice more precious. From his king's blood and untainted fire, a dragon shall be born." The Red Woman said.

"It would be wondrous to see stone come to life, I remember seeing the old dragon skulls in King's Landing, as a child." The King grimaced.

"No man is more cursed than a kinslayer." Davos speaks up, remaining his king.

The Red Woman looked to be angered, as if he had awoken the cursed demon that was her dark soul. She kept herself composed, like a true lady and never showed emotion.

"Why is Edric Storm's life needed?" The Onion Knight asked.

"Only death can pay for a life, and a great gift requires a great sacrifice. The deaths of the two usurpers proves what little his blood did"

"I see no proof of your ritual being the cause of the deaths of Robb Stark and Balon Greyjoy. The salt smelling pirate fell off a bridge or was pushed of by a dissatisfied Ironman. The Stark boy was murdered at a wedding, so keep your fairytales to yourself, my lady. You are one king short." The Prince said, his tone was hardened.

"My son is right; the boy Joffrey still lives." The king interjected.

"If Joffrey should also die, it will prove the power of R'hllor." Melisandre questions.

"It might." King Stannis replies.

"It might not, Your Grace." Ser Davos added.

"R'hllor's power is mighty, and those who doubt him are unbelievers and traitors." Queen Selyse says, in a bitter tone.

"The smuggler still has faith with those seven idols of the false faith." Ser Axell grumbles.

"I warned you, Ser Axell about your words being out of line. Leave and take mother and the Red Witch with you, and don't bother my father with your useless wittering again." The prince chimed in, on the behalf of Ser Davos.

Davos was thankful, for his newfound status as Hand of the King, and for Prince Jacob's return, as it made his mother worry in her eyes of fear of how his departure has changed him for the worst.

He watched, as the Red Woman, Ser Axell and Queen Selyse leave the chambers on the Prince's orders, as he breathed a sigh of relief of them being gone.

It was just the three of them.

The King, the Prince and the King's Hand in the chamber table together, as the prince tied his hair back in an unruly ponytail, and had his hands on the table.

"Your Grace, your daughter, the princess plays with Edric and will be heartbroken if he is murdered." Ser Davos said, reminding the king of the princess's newfound friendship with the boy.

"Father, reconsider. He maybe a bastard, but he is our blood. Kinslaying is one of the highest crimes you can commit against the gods, with violating guest right being another." The prince implored, towards his father.

"There is no harm in meeting him."

"This should be left alone, Davos. My concern is towards the realm, and not one boy. Melisandre's conviction of destiny may have charmed all the Queen's men to believe her, but I am uncertain of it. The sword did not turn the tide at the Blackwater, but a dragon would. I have seen things in the flames too, a king with a crown of fire, burning me to ashes."

"Don't tell me, whilst I was gone, she converted you?" The prince muttered.

"If Joffrey should die…what is the life of one bastard boy against a kingdom's fate." The king asked.

"Everything" said Davos, softly and bowed his head.

"You should go, and you should too Jacob. I will talk you with later, as you proved yourself worthy of my confidence again."

Davos followed the command of his king, as he started to think of his family. Of how losing four sons made him more hateful towards the Red Woman, as he should have gone through with the plan of killing her and things would be much better without her around.

The Onion Knight was accompanied by Prince Jacob, as he was ordered to leave his father's side. The poor boy had been gone for a long time to see things spiral out of control, it seems the Queen's men were more power-hungry in the prince's absence.

Nevertheless, Prince Jacob's return inspired fear within men, who were too confident in following Melisandre's manipulations, most of them feared the prince's return would give the King's men more power within King Stannis's court.

"I don't understand why he is being like this, more reclusive and willing to listen to the witch's words. What happened to make him so willing to kill a child for power." Prince Jacob asked.

"Losing the war and thinking you were dead could be the reasons, Your Grace." Ser Davos replied.

"I was kidnapped, by an old face from the past."

"Who was it?"

"Artys Rowan, he only did so because he didn't want me to die. I used his feelings to help get me home."

"Matters of the heart should not be played with, your game playing is becoming more ruthless and your heart is becoming cold."

"In bad situations, you have to make use with the weapons you have."

The Onion Knight knew the prince changed. His return made him more affirming and acted more like a leader, instead of a prince who stood by and agreed with what his father told him.

He was a Baratheon; his strong will and rebellious streak was in his blood.

Ser Davos saw growth within the prince; he looked determined to remind those within the King's court that he has returned and is ready to assume his rightful place as Prince of the Seven Kingdoms and heir to the Iron Throne.

The prince wanted to be a leader, and he showed it by putting his mother, the Red Woman and Ser Axell in their respective places.

The knight looks at the myriads of the fantastical creatures, mostly the dragons carved into the stone of the castle, and wonders if they were really stone cravings or real dragons transformed into stone by Eastern magic.

Salladhor appears from the darkness, as the Prince looked glad to see the outgoing pirate in his sights, with the pirate blinking to see if the young man, beside Davos was really Prince Jacob, but with a change of hair colour.

"It seems I was wrong; the prince does live. And his hair has changed colour." The pirate said gladly.

"Still pestering my father for gold, now pirate since the war is lost." The prince replied.

"If the dragons did come to life, then the castle will collapse into ruin."

"Have you forgiven me, for not listening to you before?"

"You were foolish to think of killing the Red Woman, but you seemed to have learned your lesson."

"I would rather see her gone, sooner rather than later. She is manipulating my father, and he doesn't seem to listen to me anymore." Prince Jacob said grimly.

"The Queen's men do not care for you, Davos. They would rather see you burned alive for insulting the Red Witch and the Queen, and that you have been making your own allies, among the men who think the king is too firmly under Melisandre's control."

"Davos, is this true. Are you plotting with men in secret?" The prince asks, in his new hardened tone.

Davos couldn't lie to the prince, even though what Salladhor said was true. The prince knew these kind of games, but he didn't know the full extent of the problems in the court.

"There is no point denying it, it is true and the prince will have to deal with it." The pirate said sourly.

"It is true."

The look of brokenness and sadness was what Davos did not want to see on the face of the prince, he didn't like being lied to after days of returning to Dragonstone. He looked upon the Onion Knight with confusion on his face.

"Is your king willing to sacrifice the Storm boy?" The pirate askes.

"He wouldn't, he would never allow a child to be killed for a folly." Ser Davos replied.

"The higher a man climbs the farther he has to fall." The pirate said cryptically, as he leaves into the darkness of the castle.

Davos believed he thought of himself, as he had risen to the highest position he knew be reached.

He felt dirty about not telling the prince of mustering allies among the King's Men, as his presence is what made the Queen's men fear for their places in the king's court.

The king's hand and the prince were strolling through the caste, as the Prince's greying hair was slightly changing back to its original black colour.

"You don't have to explain, Davos. Lying is inexcusable, but you had your reasons why. The Red Woman is gaining too much power for some common priestess from another part of the world." The prince spoke first.

"Are you not angry with me?" The Knight asked.

"No, Davos. I can never be angry with you. You are the only man I can trust, a part from my new sworn sword." The prince said, with a smile surfacing on him.

"About him, where did he come from."

"He was the captain of my ship, as Lord Hightower paid him a sum to keep it in good condition. The man can sail well, and said he can swing a sword better than most. We need men fighting for us, and Sorrell is one of those men."

"How are you, dealing with the death of the Stark boy?"

"I don't like to talk about death, it has become the norm, Davos. Uncle Robert, Uncle Renly, Master Cressen, Cortnay Penrose…..men die all the time, but most die on the battlefield. Men who die at special occasions are the exception. Robb and I bonded, when I was in Winterfell, but it was when we were young and idealistic, in a world that expected us to take the same path. Become a great lord and inherit your father's lands and fortunes. Robb was lucky to inherit his birthright, but I never got the chance, all because Uncle Robert robbed my father of his rightful stronghold, and therefore robbing me of my inheritance."

"Did you care for him, even if his fellow Northmen crowned him king?"

"I understand now; fate pulls us in different direction. It was that disastrous wedding that sealed the fates of House Stark and House Tully. Both houses are scattered in the wind, but the girls are in more danger than ever before."

"I have been made Hand of the King, Admiral of the Narrow Sea and Lord of Rainwood, by your father's decree." The knight confessed.

"Davos, this is a great thing for you. You deserve the position more than any of those other lords, who allowed my father to become influenced by the Red Woman." The prince said gleefully, gripping the knight's shoulder.

"The title won't save me from the ire of the Queen's Men."

"Don't worry, I will deal with them. Ser Axell has no choice to obey me, as heir to the Iron Throne and his great nephew."

Davos didn't understand the prince like he did before, maybe Prince Jacob changed whilst he had been kidnapped and had seen things in a greyer view. He was gladdened the prince was able to trust him, as he was one of the only men he did trust.

The position of Hand of the King was something to be treasured, and by honour and duty he will try to be a good hand, and better than Lord Florent's short term reign.

The two stumbled into the Maester's chambers to see Maester Pylos, whose face twitched by looking at the returned Prince with a new hair colour and a colder stare in his sapphire blue irises.

"Your Grace, how can I assist you at this time?" The young maester asked, showing respect towards the heir to the throne.

"Nothing as of yet." The prince replied.

"Being Hand of the King is the same as commanding a ship."

"I am too lowborn and uneducated for this task." Davos disagrees.

"Ser, there have been renewed scholars, lords and knights, who have been terrible Hands, and how a common blacksmith's son had become one of the best." Prince Jacob added.

"I can teach you read, alongside Edric, the princess and Devan."

"You never learnt to read, Ser. I never knew." The prince said glumly, twiddling his fingers together.

"Reading was something a crabber's son never thought was important."

"I can help you, Ser. As reading was the only solace I had away from the chivalry and courtly love nonsense in the Reach. You are Hand of the King now, and you shall be educated."

"I thank you, Your Grace. You shouldn't have too, since you have much to do, as you have returned."

"I wouldn't want to waste time with them, as helping you read is a selfless duty I can spare time on."

Davos gleamed inside, he didn't expect the rightful Prince of the Seven Kingdoms to stay and help him learn to read, as he had other responsibilities to tend to. He felt as if he was worth more than the other lords in the eyes of the prince.

The Onion Knight saw a spark shine through the prince's laughter, as he was relived. As Prince Jacob's happiness had not disappeared in favour of the grimness he saw in the Chamber of the Painted Table.

After days of learning, Ser Davos was exhausted, as the words didn't make sense to him on the first two days of Maester Pylos and the three children teaching him. He was fortunate on how the young maester was easy-going on teaching him the basics.

The Onion Knight found some of the lessons difficult and humiliating, but he gaining knowledge from the words from the texted books. The Prince had fallen asleep many times, as he was determined to see Davos be successful.

Seeing Prince Jacob sleeping on the Maester's table was a humbling sight. The boy had the entire fate of the kingdoms on his shoulders, all because of his trueborn Baratheon blood. If his father was to die, then Jacob will rule the Seven Kingdoms.

After the children leave for the day, it seemed the knight missed the encouragement given from Princess Shireen and his own son Devan, who looked to be relieved to see Prince Jacob alive, but was shocked by his change of hair colour.

"I would prefer a message to read, rather than a book." Ser Davos asked.

The Prince's eyes were open, as he had a sense of bewilderment on his face. "A message would be a great start of understanding full lettered sentences."

Maester Pylos gives Davos an old one to puzzle out, as the prince stood from the table to sit beside the Onion Knight, for moral support and encouragement.

As he read further, Davos realises the message was from the Night's Watch and it was said to be of great urgency, as it was sent to the rightful king for a reason.

"To those Five Kings in the realm. The King Beyond the Wall is heading south with a mustered army of wildlings, and Lord Commander Mormont is missing and feared to be dead. Sent for assistance to help combat the threat of these wildlings from crossing the Wall." The prince read the message out loudly.

"Has the King seen this?" Davos demanded, as the maester looked nervous and fearful.

"Maester, have you been withholding important information from my father." The Prince interjected.

"I brought it to Lord Alester, who was Hand at the time. Your Grace. He had told me not to waste time with it, and we had no men to spare anyhow."

"There is a real threat, Pylos. I don't know why southrons are so apathetic to the plight of the Wall, but they are people of the realm. They guard us from whatever is behind the Wall, and to leave them will be selfish action."

The Onion Knight was reminded of the Red Woman's prophecy playing in his mind, and Stannis's visions of a ring of torches in the snow with terror all around. he also remembers what Salladhor told him about Azor Ahai sacrificing his wife for his sword's power.

He wonders if it's the roles of Shireen and Edric play in the Red Woman's prophecy. To be sacrificed for the king's magic sword to work against this enemy of darkness.

Davos thinks it doesn't matter if some wilding king conquers the North, but Prince Jacob thinks differently because he has been in the North, and spent time with the people there for days, and understands the plight of the cold region.

"Find something else for me to read, something less troubling." Ser Davos said, as the maester complied.