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Chapter 30 Vigilance

Margaery Tyrell

The view from atop the battlements of Highgarden always took her breath away. The concentric arrangements of the various gardens could all be seen from there as well as the area around the castle for miles in each direction. Usually the view would giver a sense of peace whenever she came here...but not today. Or any other day since the tragic news had arrived.

Once upon a time, she used to stand here with Loras, this had been their place, to stand and watch as visitors came and left Highgarden...but now all it brought her was sorrow.

They would never stand here again...never again.

She'd tried so hard to protect him and then save him from Cersei...except Cersei had sunk to such low points, it that boggled the mind. She outplayed them all by having the audacity- no insanity , to burn the Sept of Baelor in Wildfire. It had been an act worthy of the Mad King- or rather Mad Queen in this case.

She shivered, the echoes of the moment of blinding pain washing over her.

But it was only an echo. She was safe and in Highgarden, enjoying this second life. And this second life was a gift . One unlooked for and impossible, and yet...here they were.

Getting her bearings after she'd awoken here had taken a long time for her, but she'd shaken with joy once she'd realised that it also meant that Loras was alive again as well. That had been all that mattered to her, a second precious chance for them all.

And a chance for revenge on that murderous bitch, Cersei!

It had been a dream of the Seven Heavens, sent by the Father...to have this second chance, to make everything right...it was joy beyond imagining...right until Renly's raven came...and now Loras was gone again.

Gone ...so early and so quickly.

She hadn't even been able to see him again this time. It was a cruel trick of the Gods to bring them all back and then take him away again. She'd tried so hard to save him, to protect him, the last time...and this time she didn't even have the comfort of trying!

She pushed the grief away. She had to focus on the future. She'd been speaking with grandmother. All the things she'd said, all the revelations and mistakes laid bare. More importantly, everyone's secrets. Cersei's, Grandmother's, Varys's and everyone else's. So much had changed...but more importantly, what to do now?

And most importantly, to be Queen or not to be?

Grandmother was very adamant that that was very much off the table...Daenerys Targaryen would not be welcoming of any such attempt, no matter what father said. Three very large dragons were not something House Tyrell could cross. Aegon the Conqueror's lesson to House Gardner and the Field of Fire were not something to be forgotten.

Especially not by House Tyrell.

The only certainty that they had now was that House Lannister had to pay for all of their crimes. The crimes of both, the old life and this new one. Though father for once was actually paying attention and doing the smart thing, even grandmother was somewhat satisfied with his actions.

She paused thoughtfully, or at least all of House Lannister except Tyrion Lannister. He had been Daenerys Targaryen's Hand...that had been very surprising piece of knowledge, though less so considering that he had killed his father. That had probably gone a long way to endear him to the Dragon Queen. Though both her and grandmother had both agreed that his chances of him still being alive if his father remembered to be completely nonexistent.

He was probably very dead by now.

Movement on the horizon pulled her out of her revere, and she focused there. The whole reason that she was up her today was that Grandfather was expected to arrive sometime today. As she strained her eyes she could see movement at the edge of her sight.

She stood and waited leaning pensively against the battlements, as the men approached. As they neared, she squinted trying to make out heraldry of the men. After a moment of searching, she found a large flag waving in the air. She focused harder.

A tall tower was stitched prominently on the flag.

She smiled happily, it was the sigil of House Hightower. Grandfather had finally arrived. Perhaps now they could look outside the Reach and finally figure out what was really happening in the Seven Kingdoms. And where this second chance came from.

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As she watched, the men dismounted and gathered in the courtyard of Highgarden. At the center of it all barking commands with a grim expression on his face stood Lord Leyton Hightower. Her grandfather and Lord of Oldtown, a man who hadn't left the Hightower in an age. And yet, here he was in Highgarden now, it was unexpected and held many possibilities. All had been troubling Grandmother since the raven had come to Highgarden from the Hightower.

She made her way forwards and the men parted before her as she moved towards her grandfather.

"Grandfather!" Margaery called out as she smiled widely and embraced him warmly. It had been a long time since she'd last seen him, not since her last visit to the Hightower.

Lord Leyton Hightower's grim expression lightened and he smiled broadly, "My dear girl! Margaery!" he exclaimed after he hugged her back and then broke the embrace, "It warms my heart to see you well my dear."

She smiled back at him feeling a semblance of happiness, "I have missed you grandfather...and I'm happy you're here," she said happily.

"I hope you've missed me as well, cousin," cut in Lord Paxter Redwyne, as he stepped up to stand next to them.

She turned towards him and smiled, "Of course, my lord," she moved to him and gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek, "we are always happy to see family here."

Lord Paxter nodded gracefully and smiled, though there was a tightness to his eyes that was uncharacteristic of him, "I expect my dear aunt will be happy to see us as well."

Margaery kept the smile on her face and nodded back without commenting. She cast a look around. She started, the smile on her face freezing as she took in the rest of the men that were with grandfather and recognized more of them. No one had been expecting these guests at all.

She hid her surprise as she recognized Lord Axell Florent...and he wasn't the only unexpected companion. Coming up to them now was Samwell Tarly. The fat son of Randyll Tarly looked different than she remembered. He was a quiet boy with a kind heart and not at all like his severe father. He'd changed physically as well, she could see his check bones, he was slimmer than she remembered and he was armed. She could see Heartsbane slung over his shoulder and he was striding over with more assurance in his stride than he usually did. There was a hardness in his previously kind eyes that made him look far too much like his father for her ease of mind.

She cast a questioning glance at her grandfather, before turning towards the unexpected guests and giving them both demure smiles, "Welcome to Highgarden, my lord," she said curtsying to Lord Axell.

The big eared Lord nodded back agreeably, "Thank you Lady Margaery, I'm glad to be here."

She turned to Samwell, "Sam, it's been too long." She gave him a big endearing smile.

Sam didn't get flustered. He bowed, "Lady Margaery, it's good to see you too." His voice was steady and unwavering, his tone even and warm.

She kept her smile in place but was very surprised. The Sam she knew always became flustered when she spoke to him. Obviously, he had changed in the future, and remembered that future, but she hadn't expected him to change this much.

"We need to speak to your father and Olenna," her grandfather cut in and commanded, his expression becoming grimmer, "There is much that must be said...much more than Olenna realizes."

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Olenna Tyrell

The meeting was as tense as she imagined. And far more complicated than even she'd envisioned.

"What is he doing here?" Olenna asked with venom in her voice, staring at Lord Axell Florent. "You stood with Stannis once, why are you here with us?"

Lord Axell sneered, "Stannis can fuck off. And my sister can burn with her damned fire god!" he spat angrily.

His reaction was to be expected, her spies had reported that his sister's Red Priestess had burned him in the last life, but it was reassuring to see him giving them proper respect and fealty now. One less grasping fool, one more loyal bannerman for Mace.

She sniffed haughtily, "Yes, I suppose she lost your loyalty, when she burned you," she declared offhandedly.

Lord Axell reddened and ground his teeth noisily. She ignored his reaction and turned to the other unwanted guest.

"And you, Samwell Tarly! I'm surprised to see you standing here as well," she said turning to the other unexpected guest, "Though if you're here then I suppose Randyll has been dealt with." She leveled an acid glare at the weak fat boy.

Instead of recoiling at the acid glare, the fat boy stared back balefully. Olenna suddenly found herself a little unnerved, his eyes held much too much hardness for her peace of mind. Samwell was always a timid and fat craven boy. He should not be staring back so balefully...yet more changes to the natural order of things, she mused in dismay. And one more thing to keep an eye on.

"Please Olenna, at least say hello before beginning," Leyton chided her with a frown.

She snorted in an unladylike manner, "I'm too old to waste time. And with all the changes, there is even less of it to waste."

"Then let us begin, Aunt," Lord Paxter reproached her gruffly, "We have too much to speak of, and as you've said, too little time to waste," his reproachful expression turned grim.

Mace stepped in nervously, "Forgive mother, goodfather, cousin Paxter. My lords, we are glad to have you all here," he cast a prideful look at Lord Axell and Samwell, "Especially any who would renew their vows of fealty to Highgarden."

The Lords cast Mace neutral expressions but neither agreed or disagreed with his oafish assessment.

She eyed them all warily, there was something off. Both Leyton and Paxter were far too much on edge for her ease.

And this was not a calm and good start to this meeting. And every instinct in her old bones screamed at her this meeting would be a delicate and complicated meeting. Leyton would not have left his Hightower for anything less.

She sat back and smiled, "then sit down and let us speak," she said in a cool tone.

The Lords nodded and sat down at the meeting table.

They were gathered in a meeting hall, one of many in Highgarden. A large table was positioned in the center of it with wine and refreshments laid out for the visiting lords. Mace came to sit at the head of the table with her at his right hand. On his other side sat Maester Lomys, the elderly man had a guarded cautious expression on his face.

Mace looked constipated, he'd looked that way ever since Renly's raven had arrived. Her constantly smiling oafish son had rarely smiled since then. The lack of a proper male heir made their position in the Reach precarious. And a precarious position was not good, but now they could properly plan for the future. If Samwell was here with Leyton and Paxter than she could imagine that Randyll had already been dealt with. Samwell would be much easier to cow into submission and to control than Randyll had ever been- despite his newfound backbone.

At the far side of the table sat, Samwell with her nephew on his right and Axell on the left. They were quiet, with very grim expressions on their faces. Samwell cast a pointed look at Leyton.

Leyton, on the other hand, didn't sit down, he stood next to the table, on Lomys side of the table. She'd known Leyton for a long time now and she could rage, of all things, rising in him. She shifted uncomfortably in her chair. He looked very angry...very, very angry.

Mace began the meeting, not even noticing Leyton's anger, "So you have dealt with the traitors then, goodfather? Placing Randyll's head on a spike on the walls of Highgarden will look good."

Leyton began pacing back and forth before turning sharply to them, "I didn't deal with Randyll. And he isn't dead. Lord Samwell locked him in his room like an errant child before I arrived."

Olenna blinked in surprise, turning to give Samwell a long look, "You dealt with Randyll? How?"

Samwell gave her a saccharine smile, "Very easily," he said smugly.

"Well done my boy!" Mace boomed happily, "I always knew you were a true and loyal son of the Reach. Your loyalty to House Tyrell will not be forgotten."

Samwell cast an unreadable look at Mace but didn't otherwise react, much to Olenna's continuing disquiet.

Leyton's raven had mentioned traitors...if not Randyll...then, who? What else didn't she know? "Your raven spoke of traitors," she stated leaning forward with narrowed suspicious eyes.

Leyton waved an irritable hand, "Aye, there are traitors...I left Baelor putting heads on spikes in the Citadel," he spat angrily. He stepped towards Lomys and with a swift motion, unsheathed his blade and held it pointed at Maester Lomys's throat. It was not an ordinary blade, this was Vigilance, the Valyrian steel ancestral blade of House Hightower.

Maester Lomys paled and stared fearfully at the blade pointed at him, "My...l..lord?" he trembled.

Leyton's voice trembled with rage and emotion, "I know all about you and your masters, traitor!"

The Citadel?! The Maesters? Olenna's hands curled into a fist under the table, as she kept her face blank at this perturbing surprise.

"Traitor? Lomys! What is he talking about?" Mace gaped in disbelief.

Lomys didn't answer, he was rooted in his chair his eyes fearfully locked on Vigilance.

"How many times did you poison my Alerie?!" demanded Leyton angrily, his face red with rage, "How many children did she lose because of you, before she finally succumbed?"

Maester Lomys trembled but didn't answer.

Olenna shook for the first time in a very long time, at a loss for words as her mind ground to a halt, trying to fathom what Leyton was saying. Alerie had lost so many children over the years...it was a natural part of child bearing. The risk always existed...though some women had an easier time than others.

"Alerie...poisoned?" blurted out Mace in disbelief, his face was turning white.

Leyton ignored Mace, "Get up, traitor!"

Lomys stumbled from his chair, trying to put some distance between him and Leyton, "I have done nothing, my lord!"

"You fucking liar! I have seen the records in the Citadel, I have seen your reports and the ways you helped destabilize the Tyrells's hold on the Reach. Your masters are dead and the few Archmaesters left are appalled and ashamed of what your group have been up to!" Leyton exploded, his blade shaking, as he shook in fury.

Mace stood up and stumbled away from the table in a daze much to Olenna's disgust. She rolled her eyes in annoyance at her son's lack of control and poise.

"Not to mention Luthor! He was a stupid man, but riding his horse off a cliff? That was a little much even for him!" Leyton snarled in derision. "You did that as well, didn't you?"

The magnitude of the betrayal shook her again as Leyton's revelations continued to rob her of her preconceptions...Luthor was taken from her?! All these years she'd bemoaned his stupidity and it been an assassination?!

Olenna looked to Maester Lomys and without blinking turned back to Leyton, "Kill him! Now!"

Lomys quailed and moaned trying to retreat from Leyton. He suddenly came to an abrupt stop and his face froze. His back arched and then he jerked several times before suddenly dropping to the ground...revealing Mace who had been behind him. Mace was standing there with a fierce- if somewhat surprised, look on his face. In his hand he held a bloodied dagger. In her anger and rage, she'd been so focused on Lomys she hadn't seen Mace came up behind the maester to stab him.

Leyton lowered his blade and stared with satisfaction at the dying maester. He looked up at Mace and then nodded once grimly.

She looked down at Lomys, he was gasping for breath as a pool of blood spread out from under him. Lomys's breathing was getting weaker and weaker, his eyes fluttering as he grew paler and paler from the loss of blood. A feeling of satisfaction spread through her and something else she couldn't identify for a moment...proud. She was proud.

It was a sense of pride.

A sense of pride in Mace.

It was an unexpected and exceedingly rare feeling for her.

She looked up from the dying maester and the pool of blood around him, to look at her son. Mace was standing there with a fierce expression on his face, uncaring of the blood that was on the front of his tunic, his knuckles were white as they clutched the bloodied dagger.

"Well done, Mace," Olenna said with satisfaction and pride. This second life was truly a miracle, Mace was actually doing some things right.

Mace looked up at her in shock, "Uh..thank you, mother," he stammered. He shook himself suddenly and called out, "Guards!"

The door to the meeting room opened and two guards stepped in. They took one look at the body of the dying maester, the pool of blood and the bloodied dagger in Mace's hand and Leyton standing with a drawn sword in his hand. They blanched in surprise.

"Put this traitor's head on a spike!" Mace commanded, his voice unsteady but adamant, pointing at Lomys, "And get someone to clean this up!"

The guards hurried to drag nearly dead Lomys from the meeting hall.

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The meeting continued after the blood had been cleaned away, and Mace had changed his tunic. Leyton wasn't finished, there were still more surprises to be had, this group of traitorous maesters had been busy. Very busy...and their betrayal began so long ago...

Leyton was sitting down now, with Vigilance placed in front of him on the table, "Lomys and his masters...they had many goals. Foremost among their goals was the obliteration of all things related to magic," Leyton explained as he sipped at a goblet of wine, he waved a hand all around, "And all of this is the result of magic. At the end of my life they were our ruin...but that is something I will get back to." He finished cryptically.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance at him, of course this was second life was the result of magic...there was no other explanation. The Gods had certainly not taken pity on them for their mistakes.

He stared down into his goblet thinking quietly for moment, before continuing.

"...They were a small group, thankfully, but they have tried to control Westeros since before the Conquest. They have held back advances, sabotaged alliances and outright murdered any that opposed them. Murder was but one their many tools...an effective one and one they used often," Leyton paused and sneered angrily, "My Alerie was not the only Highborn lady that they murdered. The Maesters have commit so many things in their perverted plan for control. They were poisoning Rhaella and her children...they even let Joanna Lannister bleed to death," he spat, filled with disgust, "All deaths that could be explained away for a variety of valid and acceptable reasons."

She gaped just as much as Mace now...this was defying belief now. The breadth and degree of betrayal was unheard off...

"They murdered Joanna Lannister, as well?" asked Mace shaken by the audacity of the maester. The Rains of Castamere was not an idle threat. The Old Lion's bite was worse than his roar as Robb Stark had come to understand.

"They had a reason for killing Joanna," Leyton nodded in confirmation, "You have to understand, they despised magic. The Targaryens were Dragon Lords and their blood is magic. They have been plotting and acting against the Targaryens since the Conquest. Their invisible hand was there in Maegor's reign, in the Dance of Dragons...and with Aerys as well. They have systematically sabotaged the Targaryens at every turn since the beginning. They've wanted them dead from the beginning...and they nearly succeeded with Aerys. There are many poisons that can drive a man mad, and Pycelle had access to many of them."

Mace was blatantly aghast at Leyton's revelations. And she was right there with him, though she was hiding it better. The picture Leyton painted, was a degree of treachery and planning that was breathtaking in it's complexity and longevity.

"Pycelle is not working for the Lannisters?" she asked in surprise.

"Oh, he is...he's just this groups' servant first, he's a Lannister servant second," Leyton expounded further, "Anyway, they killed Joanna, so that they could use Tywin as a weapon against Aerys. Between Joanna's death, his deformed son and Aerys's slights against the Lannisters...Tywin was ready to murder anyone in his path...which he did in the sack of King's Landing. Three centuries of planning nearly came to fruition then...but the Gods conspired against them, and eventually brought the truth to light."

Olenna sat very quietly, the effectiveness of their plan was undeniable. Despicable and evil. Murderous to the extreme and unthinking of the cost of the wars they started.

"...I don't have any trustworthy messengers left in Oldtown, I used them all spreading word of this betrayal," Leyton admitted in disgust, he laid a hand on Vigilance, "We Hightowers should have been more vigilant...we failed in this...but never again." He paused for a moment before shaking himself from his foul mood, "Which reminds me, I brought you a loyal replacement for the traitor."

Mace balked and found his voice, "How can we trust a maester again?!"

Olenna grimaced, "We can't not trust them, we depend on them far too much." As usual Mace missed the obvious. The maesters had been an essential part of Westerosi society for millenia. All communication would break down without them.

"And that's the crux of the problem," Leyton nodded, "I left Baelor working with the Archmaester of Magic to weed out all the conspirators...we're actually quite lucky. They were so arrogant that they'd never be discovered, they kept impeccably legible records," he finished with an evil smile.

Olenna sniffed, "Good riddance then." She nodded once, "How did you discover this?"

Leyton shared a long look with Samwell.

When he didn't answer, she gave them both scathing looks, "Well? I'm not getting any younger."

"Before we get to that we have to speak of the future of the Reach. And the King we will be supporting," Samwell stated evenly, speaking up for the first time in the meeting.

Olenna arched an eyebrow at Samwell, "King you say? And which King is that, exactly? There's been so many and I'm old. I'm sure I've forgotten a few of them," she asked sarcastically, with a sardonic smile, "And last time I checked there was a Targaryen Queen...who may or may not have Dragons. One we should not make an enemy of."

Samwell smiled, giving her a self assured smile that did not put her at ease, "You know him as Jon Snow, the King in the North. His true name is Jon Targaryen. The trueborn son of Rhaegar and Lyanna. He is the rightful king of Westeros...he also borrowed one of the Queen's dragons and he has a direwolf."

The smile disappeared from Olenna's face as Samwell said the name. For a second time that day, the Queen of Thorns was at a complete loss of words for several moments.

The implications of Samwell's words were earth shattering, and her mind was reeling, trying to grasp just how this changed everything. The most obvious and blatant thing that suddenly came to mind was that Lord Eddard Stark had been lying...since the end of Robert's Rebellion.

After a moment, she threw back her head and laughed, "Gods! Who knew Eddard Stark was so duplicitous?!" she laughed again, "The honorable Lord Stark indeed! He's held a knife at Robert Baratheon's back since the Rebellion!" The sheer congruity of the image was laughable to imagine. "And Robert has no idea? And the boy is pressing his claim now?" She laughed again. She hadn't laughed like this is so long...

Samwell nodded, "I don't know if Robert knows yet, but yes Jon will be pressing his claim with Lord Stark's support."

She actually cackled now, "Oh...to see Robert when he finds out! It might just kill him...and won't that solve so many problems?"

Mace was gaping like a fish, "Lord Stark...is rising against King Robert?" his tone dripped disbelief and shock.

"That was the plan," Samwell confirmed firmly.

Olenna controlled her mirth, and gave Samwell a sharp look, "But you haven't confirmed this yet?"

"Winterfell is quite a distance away, it takes time for ravens to get there and back," Samwell replied unhappily.

"Hmmm...and yet you're sure enough of this to come here? To speak his name and secret with impunity?" Olenna asked leaning forward to stare at him.

"Yes," was Samwell's succinct reply.

She frowned, "Why?"

"Because I know what's coming for us. I've seen the true threat to us all," Samwell said his tone grave and face grimmer than she had ever seen before.

She was disquieted again, her mirth disappeared, "True threat? And what threat is that?"

Samwell shared a glance with the other Lords before answering, "The Others. The Army of the Dead is marching on the Wall...and it will be a second Long Night."

Yes...because the meeting couldn't get any more absurd. First the maester conspiracy, then Lord Stark's lies and now monsters were coming to kill them. Maybe she was still sleeping? That would explain a lot...

"That's just a legend!" stammered Mace incredulous with denial. "It's Northern nonsense."

"I wish it was," Samwell shook his head unhappily, "I've seen the army of the Dead. I've killed wights and White Walkers. The Wall fell. The North fell...and then everything and anyone else. It is all very real, and they are coming for us. If we don't prepare we will fall...again."

There was ice clutching her heart now. Dragons and a Targaryen restoration had been a forgone conclusion this morning. Leyton's surprises aside, that hadn't changed that, but this...fighting legends was not something she had prepared to do when she awoke this morning.

"This is the truth, the Army of the Dead is coming for us all," her nephew chose that time to join the conversation, "I fortified the Arbor...the rest of the Reach had already fallen, the night before I awoke in the past, I was preparing for a siege, the Redwyne Straits were freezing over and it only a matter of time before the Dead walked across the ice to kill us all." His face was deathly pale and he shuddered as he remembered his past, the possible future.

"I sent Baelor and all I could to the Arbor, before the Hightower fell. I died with a White Walker's blade in my chest as the Hightower was being swarmed over by our own dead risen from the graves we had dug for them," If Paxter was deathly pale, then Leyton was death warmed over, "This is when I discovered the maester's conspiracy. Even with the dead knocking down our walls they denied the truth and hid their knowledge."

Mace was staring between the two men, his mouth opening and closing but no sound was coming out as he shook in his seat.

Olenna's legendary resolve disappeared. This was...this was...well insane was one word for it. It also added an urgency to an already tense and unstable situation. She shivered, dealing with Cersei and the Baratheons was all she had expected to really need to do. Not this. Not fight legends made flesh.

She turned to Samwell, "And you? What do you know? Why are you so changed?"

"Lady Olenna, as a Brother of the Night's Watch, I became the first man in millenia to kill a White Walker. And I met Jon there...we became brothers then. By the end of it all...I died with Heartsbane in my hand crossing blades with the Night's King himself. I am not the fat craven boy you remember." Samwell proclaimed proudly.

Olenna raised an eyebrow in surprise at the admission, his joining of the Night's Watch had been scandalous enough and her ears in Horn Hill had said it had not been a voluntary one; Randyll had pushed him into it. She knew the craven boy from before, but as she looked at Samwell now, she couldn't find any trace of him. More and more, he was looking like a true son of Randyll Tarly with every passing moment. She'd have to find some way to bind him to the Tyrells for her peace of mind.

Samwell wasn't finished, he raised his hands and gestured all around, "All of this, this second life. We did this. To undo history was our plan."

Olenna's head came up sharply and she stared at Samwell, "You did this?"

"Well, not me personally, it was Brandon Stark," admitted Samwell sheepishly.

She blinked, "I thought he died?"

Samwell shook his head, "Theon lied. Bran survived and used his magic to send us all back...though far more remember than are supposed to...I'm still waiting for an answer as to why."

The Starks were looking more and more formidable as this meeting progressed. Lord Stark held a game changer in his nephew. The Young Wolf lived again. And Lord Stark's second son magic was so powerful he could bend time to his will. If circumstances were different, she might have looked for a Stark husband for Margaery...though Brandon was a second son, if a little young...actually it still might be workable.

That said...there was still one piece left unaccounted for.

"And what of Daenerys?" she asked, "Surly, she will not relinquish her throne to her nephew so easily? I have no desire to live through a second Dance of Dragons," she finished dryly.

"Jon and Daenerys are Targaryens...what do you think?" Samwell retorted, giving her disappointed look.

She shook her head, "Of course they are...so now what?"

"The North will rally to Jon. With Lord Stark will come his goodfamily and the Riverlands. Lord Royce will depose Lysa Arryn and the Vale will bend the knee to Jon," Samwell stated evenly.

Mace seemed to have lost the use of his tongue. He was gaping in the fashion of fish with every revelation.

"And how will Royce remove that shrew? He's much too honorable for anything properly underhanded," Olenna asked with an annoyed flick of her hand.

Samwell shrugged, "He doesn't need to be underhanded, it was Lysa that poisoned Jon Arryn," he stated simply, "At Baelish's behest. He provided her with the poison."

Mace continued to gape, mute with shock.

Olenna arched an eyebrow in distaste and huffed in annoyance, "I should have had him killed when I had the chance," she lamented, "I never trusted that upstarted whoremonger."

"Don't worry he will be dealt with," Samwell assured him, "Jon wants his head on a spike."

She nodded mollified, "Good."

Samwell gave her a look and seemed to be bracing himself now, "The Lannisters..."

Now Mace found his voice, "...will pay in blood! Loras's blood demands blood!"

Olenna looked at Samwell's demeanor, then at Leyton's. Paxter looked away from her and Axell snorted in contempt. This did not bode well.

"The Lannisters," he repeated throwing a glare at Mace, "have already bent the knee to Jon. Tyrion Lannister has seized Casterly Rock and by extension the Westerlands."

Olenna laughed at the unexpected good news, "Ha! And Tywin?"

"Like my father, a prisoner in his own castle," Samwell rejoined with an amused smile

"So the Imp has taken his due. Impressive," she nodded sagely...then grimaced. This meant Lord Rowan's raiding would be provoking the Westerlands needlessly. If Tyrion had Jaime, he would hand him over to maintain the peace.

Mace puffed up in rage, "And this means my boy will go unavenged?! Jaime Lannister must pay!"

It was Leyton that answered now, "Unlike you, my spies gave me the full story. Renly didn't tell you everything. Loras attacked Jaime Lannister...and Ser Barristan Selmy...at the same time," Leyton stated gravely, "I loved my grandson and I mourn him...I have lost yet another precious piece of my Alerie...but he was complete and utter fool."

Olenna held her head in her hand, absorbing the painful news, "Idiot boy..."

That put a much different story to Loras's fate. No Reacher Lord would be sympathetic to them after that truth came out. Loras would be hailed as the fool he was and no one would blame Jaime Lannister for his part in the act.

Mace was turning purple with indignation, "It doesn't matter! Lannister blood must pay for my poor boy!"

"Oh be quiet, Mace," Olenna commanded, swatting her son on the arm, "Going against Jaime Lannister and the formidable Barristan Selmy at the same time would be considered a form of suicide in most of the Kingdoms."

Mace turned red and closed his mouth sharply. She held his gaze till she was sure he wouldn't say anything else on the matter.

Samwell cleared his throat and straightened his shoulders, his face turning stony, "There is one more thing we must speak of," he turned to Mace, "I am sworn to House Targaryen and by the end I was the Warden of the South. With the White Walkers coming, by his Grace's command, I will be Warden of the South again."

Mace turned white, "This is an outrage!" he screamed rising from his chair and banging his fists on the wooden meeting table.

Olenna's face went blank as she came to tried grips to with what Samwell had just said.

"I know what's coming and what needs to be done. You cannot be Warden of South now." Samwell announced, his tone brooking no argument.

Mace began sputtering, "I am Warden of the South and Lord of the Reach! House Tyrell has ruled the Reach since Aegon the Conqueror wiped out the Gardner Kings!" He turned to the other lords for support against this upstart.

Unsurprisingly, Axell Florent was enjoying Mace's displacement with a smug grin on his face...

"House Redwyne will follow Samwell Tarly," her nephew announced with a confirmatory nod, he wouldn't meet her eyes.

"As will House Hightower," Leyton added with a hard look at her and Mace.

Dread gripped her guts as she suddenly realised that neither Leyton and Paxter were supporting Mace either...

The Hightowers and Redwynes were family. Close family...if not even they would support them...they would lose all credence in the eyes of the other Lords of the Reach. Again, Olenna found herself out maneuvered. She hadn't imagined that such a situation would arise again! She really was getting old...this lack of imagination had to be dealt with. First Cersei...and now, Samwell Tarly?

Mace was looking back and forth between his goodfather and Paxter, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"Sit down Mace," she commanded firmly.

He didn't move, he just continued to look back and forth between his two rebellious lords.

She reached out and pulled him down into his seat, before turning back to Samwell, "So House Tyrell are no longer Lords of the Reach?"

"Only until the Others have been defeated," Samwell stated evenly, "After the war, all titles and rights will return to House Tyrell."

Olenna was surprised at this, "Hmmm." It was a better situation than she imagined, it gave her time to find Margaery a proper husband, and groom a proper heir for Highgarden.

"I will only agree to this on one condition! You must marry Margaery!" cut in Mace suddenly, "What better way to assure your rule then to join our houses through marriage?" he continued, trying to sound smart and insightful.

Olenna sighed and then pursed her lips as she glared at Mace. Apparently he'd missed the point where his grandchildren would still rule the Reach...though having Samwell as a permanent Warden of the South was attractive...if he was married to Margaery. Perhaps her great grandchildren would finally inherit enough smarts to override the oafishness of Mace and Luthor.

Samwell puffed up, his eyes filled with defiance, "No."

"And why not, boy? You could be Lord of Highgarden and Horn Hill. What better way to consolidate your power?" Mace retorted fiercely.

"There's only one woman I will ever marry, Gilly. I will never marry Margaery," he announced adamantly.

Leyton and Paxter grimaced at Samwell's declaration. Axell looked away, disgusted.

She narrowed her eyes and glanced between them, "And which House does this Gilly belong to?"

She didn't miss it as Leyton and Paxter winced at her question, and as Axell ground his teeth. What is going on?

Samwell's self assurance faltered for a moment before he rallied again, "I met her in the last life, when I was a brother of the Night's Watch...I met her beyond the Wall."

Olenna's mind reeled, He met her beyond the Wall? Wait...then that would make her...a Wildling? The boy will be Lord of the Reach...and he wanted to marry a Wildling?!

She stared at him for a moment suddenly seeing the boy's resemblance to Jaime Lannister, in tone and demeanor, "Gods...another romantic fool," she said shaking her head in disappointment. First Jaime, and now Samwell Tarly?

Father protect me from these romantic fools!

Mace was sputtering at the boy's outright refusal now, "You would refuse the Rose of Highgarden...for a savage Wildling?"

Samwell glowered darkly at Mace, making him flinch back, "Yes."

Mace looked back at him, appalled at the simple answer.

"....but I have a brother, Dickon, if you insist on a marriage to Margaery to secure this alliance...and your line..." Samwell began pointedly.

Olenna jumped at the chance, forgetting her plans for Brandon Stark. This was a better option, especially if Samwell was so adamant about marrying his Wildling lover, "That would be acceptable."

Dickon Tarly was a proper knight of the Reach and it would finally bind the Tarlys, and through his mother; the Florents, to the Tyrells. Hightower, Tarly, Redwyne, Florent and Tyrell all bound together by marriage. That was a smart move in face of all the chaos in the Kingdoms.

Mace gave her an dismayed look.

"Also, if you think about it, who better to help strengthen Highgarden's defenses than someone who's seen and exploited all of your weaknesses?" Samwell asked smugly with a knowing smile.

Olenna looked at him idly, Why couldn't Mace have been this intelligent? And Randyll stupidly banished him to the Night's Watch? The more fool him! With a smart son like this, there was so much she could have done.

"Mother! You cannot accept this for me! Or us! Margaery deserves much more! She deserves to be a Queen!" Mace denied, his oafish nature reappearing again.

"Enough Mace! I watched our House destroyed once! I will not see it brought to ruin again!" Olenna raged, finally losing her temper. "They hold all the power now," she pointed at Samwell and the other Reacher Lords. "Accept this and we can survive...more than survive actually. It's all we can do now..." She finished in defeat, "And really Queen? To which king exactly? Joffrey? Renly? This Jon was a possibility- but I know which side of Daenerys I wish to stay. And her Dragons."

Mace stared at her in response to her tirade and ground his teeth unhappily.

She turned back to Samwell, "We will recognize you as the Warden of the South, on the condition that the title and all powers and responsibilities revert back to House Tyrell once we have dealt with...the Others," she declared, shooting Mace a pointed glare. She jerked her head towards Samwell.

Mace's lips thinned, "As my mother says." he managed to utter in disgust.

"I will gladly relinquish the title once the Others are defeated...and I will return to just being Lord of Horn Hill," Samwell agreed with a confirmatory nod.

Olenna sat back, if not satisfied than at least mollified. It was the best deal to be had in the moment...now all they had to do was call back Lord Rowan before things got too out of hand in the Westerlands.

Notes:

Author's Notes: My hat is off to Syed at SB and Trivia Freak at AH, who pegged who I was pairing Margaery with way back when. Kudos! :) Anyway as always, don't forget to REVEIW! :D

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