FOUR YEARS LATER

"Mora," The young maid looked down to see a little girl tugging on the skirts of her dress. "I need your help! It's urgent!"

Mora gave the young girl a knowing look as she lowered herself so they were eye-to-eye. "Is it urgent like the last time you said it was urgent and it turned out that you had run out of your favorite paint? Or perhaps like the time where you came screaming in the middle of the night because you swore you saw a lion running on the beach?"

"It's absolutely urgent this time, I swear!" The girl insisted and Mora stood up to her full height and grabbed the basket of dry sheets she had just pulled from the clothesline.

"I don't have time for your fantasies today, Joanna," Mora told her as she walked and Joanna ran after her, struggling to keep up with her little legs. "Lady Sunderland is coming today with her children and I have a lot to do today." To say that just about everyone had been surprised to hear that Lord Tywin was remarrying would be an understatement; from what Mora knew, he had loved his late wife with all of his heart and hadn't been the same since she passed after giving birth to Lord Tyrion. "Why don't you go find Steffon?" She suggested despite knowing the cat was skilled at getting away from his owner. He was able to keep Joanna busy for hours.

"Because I need your help, not his!" Joanna shouted as she tried to keep up, but Mora was ten and seven older than her and with such an age came long legs that could take her wherever she needed to go. Cat-chasing had given Joanna speed and agility that no five year old should possess, but her dress was long enough to keep her just a few steps behind Mora . "Stop going so fast! This is of the upmost imporntace!"

"I may not know how to read, Joanna Hill," Mora stated as she started up the stairs to where Lady Saunders chambers would be. "But I know that's not how you say that word- I've heard enough Lords saying it to Lord Tywin as they begged on their knees."

"It is the upmosts in-portance!"

"Wrong again!" Mora pointed out as she went into the large, sun-lit chambers and Joanna followed after her, panting the entire way before she dramatically collapsed on the ground. "What's the point in Lord Tywin graciously giving you a tutor if you don't even go to your lessons?"

"But they're so boooorrring!" Joanna moaned, her voice muffled by the carpet and Mora let herself take comfort in the fact that it had been beaten hard just the day before. The last thing she needed was a sick Joanna.

"I could always suggest to Lord Tywin that he replace your reading lessons with more sewing lessons with the Septa," The got an even bigger groan from Joanna.

"Sewing is stupid!" She complained as she finally pulled herself back up to her feet. "It's usless!"

"Useless," Mora corrected as she laid a clean sheet over the bed and Joanna trudged over to help her tuck the edges under. "And how do you think you got that dress?"

"It's usless to me!" Joanna claimed, completely ignoring Mora's correction. "I'm five! Lord Tywin won't even let me ride one of the small horses; why would he let me sew a dress?"

Mora grabbed another sheet. "Why don't you go ask him? I'm sure he's a complete mess right now waiting for his future bride. Seeing you would do him a lot of good," And it would probably get her a demotion back to the kitchens if Lord Tywin found out she had sicced the little girl on him, but it would be worth it for a few moments of silence.

Joanna Hill was truly a child like no other; she was beautiful, caring, charismatic, and the most darling little child you'd ever meet, but she was still a child. There were days where her rambling mouth and inquisitive nature got her into worlds of trouble- like when one of the maids son convinced her that she could find baby unicorns but only in the forest at night. Joanna hadn't even questioned it and snuck out of the castle and she would have been lost forever if one of the visiting knights from Highgarden hadn't caught her and returned her to a furious Tywin. Mora had been Joanna's caretaker since she was three years old and she knew better than anyone that Joanna would either grow up to be a respectful and gentle woman- one any man would be lucky to have as a wife- or a menace to society.

"I can't!" Joanna insisted. "I need help with my present!"

"What present?" Mora threw the sheet over the bed and Joanna barely managed to grab the edge in order to pull it straight.

"For Lady Sunderland," Joanna seemed pleased that Mora had finally asked about it. "I made her jewlry for her hair-"

"-Jewelry," Mora corrected.

"And I need to go down to the beach for a shell- a golden one!" Joanna continued. "But Ser Andos won't let me through the passing because Lord Tywin says I'm not allowed to go alone anymore,"

Mora gave her a look. "That's what happens when you go hunting for lions in the middle of the night,"

"I need you to take me,"

"Joanna, I have too much to do," Mora told her apologetically. "Perhaps we can go later after Lady Sunderland arrives,"

"But it won't be a welcoming present if I don't give it to her when I welcome her to Caserly Rock."

"Casterly Rock," Mora corrected. "Say it wrong again and Lord Tywin will force you into more lessons with your tutor," Joanna gave her a pleading look. Two years and Mora had yet to master the art of saying "No" as she supposed every parent or guardian had to learn at some point. "How about this?" She began, "Lady Sunderland has a daughter your age. Pick one of your toys to give her and then I will gladly take you to the beach,"

Joanna perked up. "Okay!" She yelled before running out of the room, leaving Mora alone to finish her task. Joanna was a generous girl, Mora knew that, but she also happened to be a complete wreck when it came to making decisions. It'd take her hours to complete her task, giving Mora plenty of time to finish her own.

/

"What about this one?" Mora asked as she held out a shell for the young girl old to examine.

Thankfully for her, Mora had been correct when it came to Joanna and her toys. She didn't have much of an attachment to any of them, but the hard part for her was choosing just one toy to give to Lady Sunderland's daughter. Mora had been able to finish everything she needed to and had gone to check on her charge only to find that Joanna had given away every toy she had.

"I couldn't choose just one," Joanna insisted before going into a twenty minute explanation about how she couldn't give away her stuffed lion without her stuffed cat because they were in a "destructive, co-dependent relationship" - a term she'd heard Lord Tywin use once- and that her wooden horse had to go with them because it was determined to break them up so they could "better themselves" - something else she'd heard Lord Tywin say.

Joanna took the shell with her small hands and she grinned. It was small and mostly flat with a small crooked hole near the smaller side, but it was gold and Joanna loved it. "This is perfect! Lady Sunderland is going to look like a three-tit whore!" Mora couldn't help the loud snort that came out and immediately threw a hand over her mouth so Joanna wouldn't see her smile.

"Jo-" Mora cleared her throat and lowered her hand, certain she could keep her laughs at bay. "Joanna, where did you hear that?"

"Lord Tyrion,"

"Well, um, that's not a very nice thing to say to anyone," Mora told her and Joanna's head tilted. "Those are very bad words and you can't say them to anyone. Okay?" Joanna nodded. "Good. Lord Tywin would kill you and me both if you said that to Lady Sunderland."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because that word makes people feel very badly about themselves," Joanna shrugged.

"Lord Tyrion seemed happy when he said it," Mora shook her head as she stood and pulled Joanna up onto her hip.

"He would."

After leaving the beach, Mora took Joanna back to her chambers to take a bath and get her changed into the new dress that Lord Tywin had made for her; He wanted her to look presentable when Lady Sunderland arrived.

Mora wasn't sure why he wanted Joanna of all people to meet his intended, but she could never understand her lord's motivation when it came to how he treated Joanna. One of the the other maids had gossiped that Joanna was the lovechild of Ser Jaime and a highborn girl from Highgarden- which was why she was supposed to have been sent there after her birth- but another quickly shot those rumors down when she pointed out that Ser Jaime had been in Kings Landing when Joanna had been born- which was also wrong according to another maid who insisted that he had been in the Riverlands at that time. The only person who wasn't going off of gossip was a kitchen maid who had been around when the queen still resided at the Rock; she had told Mora that Joanna had been found abandoned on the beach only to be found by Lady Cersei- of all people- a few weeks before she set off to Kings Landing.

After brushing out the girl's long blonde hair, Mora braided it into two braids before twisting them up into two knots on the top of her head. The dress Lord Tywin had made was a light blue color with long sleeves that covered her hands. Mora already knew she'd have to tell Joanna more than once to stop swinging and hitting people with them.

"She's here!" Mora heard and whipped her head to see Joanna standing on her empty toy chest to look out the window. Rushing over, Mora looked out to see a carriage heading straight for the castle.

"We're late," She breathed. "Joanna, let's go!" Not waiting for her to jump down, Mora grabbed her charge with one hand and her skirts with the other before running out of the room. How could she have lost track of time?

Luckily, however, Mora managed to get both her and Joanna down to where everyone was waiting. She just barely had time to deposit Joanna down next to Lord Tywin and Lord Tyrion and taking her place with the rest of the staff before the riders flanking the carriage arrived.

"Best behavior, Joanna," Tywin instructed lowly as Lady Sunderland stepped out of her carriage followed by her children. There were only two of them; the oldest was a boy with black hair and the youngest was a little girl Joanna's age with curly brown hair. Lady Sunderland had the same hair as her daughter, though it was a lot less curly and a lot more thick.

After making sure that both of her children were behind her, Lady Sunderland led them over to Lord Tywin, Tyrion, and Joanna.

"Lord Tywin, I presume," Lady Sunderland gave a quick curtsy.

"Lady Sunderland,"

"May I introduce my children," She stepped aside as to not block them. "My son Liam," The black haired boy gave a decent bow. "And my youngest; Kenna." Kenna's bow was just as bad as Joanna was sure hers would be.

"My son, Tyrion," He gave a proper greeting. "And Joanna," When Lady Sunderland turned her blue eyes on Joanna, the five year old forgot all propriety and waved eagerly. "Joanna..." Realizing her mistake, she quickly dropped into a curtsy.

Lady Sunderland smiled as she looked from Joanna to Tywin. "She's just like I thought she would be. Perhaps we should go inside, Lord Tywin; we have many things to discuss."

When Tywin got the letter from Stormwood Isle six months ago, he hadn't believed what he had read. There was absolutely no way that anyone could know about Joanna's true parentage; he'd keel over before he disgraced the Lannister name with such a truth and his children knew better. Whoever had sent the letter had to be bluffing.

Unfortunately, a brief conversation with the Lannister guard he had entrusted to take care of the nurses who had been in Cersei's chambers during the birth revealed the truth. It hadn't taken Tywin a second to realize that the man was lying when he told the tale of how he had run both nurses through with his sword almost four years ago. It had taken him less time to get the truth out of the guard; the truth that he had let one of the women get away and she had made her way to Stormwood Isle and lived, working as a kitchen maid to the Sunderland's, under a fake name. Tywin had no idea what circumstances had caused the maid to reveal her secrets to Lady Sunderland nor did he care. The only thing he had been worried about was what Lady Sunderland wanted in return for keeping quiet. A marriage hadn't been what he was expected.

"I'm a woman grown, Lord Tywin," Lady Sunderland said when Tywin had made the month long journey to Stormwood Isle. "I have three children- the oldest of which is set to take over as Lord of Stormwood Isle soon if our liege lords don't overthrow him before it happens,"

So that had been the deal; in exchange for Lady Sunderland's silence, Tywin would marry her and find good matches for her remaining children when they came of age, along with providing soldiers to keep the liege lords of Stormwood Isle at bay.

"She's beautiful," Lady Sunderland commented as they watched the children play on the sands of the beach. After seeing that Joanna had given all of her toys away to her, the youngest Sunderland- Kenna- had seen it fit to do the same. Not wanting to stay cooped up the castle after such a long ride, Liam had taken his sister and Joanna down to play on the beach. Nearby, Tywin could see both a Sunderland and Lannister guard watching them.

"She is," He agreed.

"She'll be six this year?" Tywin nodded as he filled two cups. He turned and passed one to her that she took with a smile.

"Correct Lady Sunderland,

"Call me Fiona," She requested. "After all, I won't be Lady Sunderland much longer." She turned back to the window, smiling as she watched Kenna chase Joanna around in a game of tag. "Tell me; what do you plan to do with her when she gets older?" Tywin raised an eyebrow. "You don't expect to keep her here forever, do you?"

"I expect to give her a comfortable life," Tywin replied. "She is due that; whether that life is here or somewhere else is a detail that shall be left to her," Fiona nodded.

"What does she know about her parents?" She questioned.

"Nothing; Joanna was abandoned on the beach as a babe. One of the kitchen staff took her in after my daughter became queen,"

"You love her," Tywin didn't deny it, but he didn't acknowledge the statement either. "Of course you do," Fiona looked back out of the window and watched Kenna and Joanna play. "She's light in the form of a little girl,"

"She is the best of us," Tywin said. "Hopefully her...birth won't affect her as she ages," It was all Tywin could hope for; the Joanna continue to stay sane as she grew, but there was no telling what the effects of incest could have on her. If he were not so weak, he would have rid himself of the girl long before she was able to become a threat...

But he was weak- at least he was when it came to his eldest grandchild.

"It won't," Fiona insisted and she turned to look at him. "I'm here now and I will shape her into the best person she could possibly be."

"And if you can't?" He asked. "If she is as mad as Aerys?"

Lady Fiona gave him a smile as she raised her cup to her lips. "Then I'll teach her how to hide it."