Sorry about the delay but I ended up rewriting this chapter because I was disappointed with the way that the chapter was turned out and this is a better version then the previous one.

Season eight just because I fancy talking about it. Honestly I think people are overreacting and trying to point out tiny faults and blowing them out of proportion. The only part that I really disliked was Bran becoming king, which I didn't like for three reasons. One, no medieval society would ever elect a cripple to rule over them, two I honestly think he would make a terrible king, he certainly didn't seem bothered during the council meeting and three I was hoping for Jon to become king, although I did like him going North of the Wall instead. In fact my opinions on many key characters such as Daenerys, Jon and Tyrion has actually improved massively as a result of the last season, and likewise my opinion of Sansa has gone straight to hell with her replacing Ellaria Sand as my least favourite character, backstabbing bitch with an inflated sense of her own importance who only desires herself becoming queen, she truly is Littlefinger's successor and a disgrace to everything the Starks stand for. Anyway I'm not saying season eight didn't have its faults because it did but overall I consider it a worthy conclusion to a brilliant show and I am eagerly looking forward to any future successor shows of it.

Mage of the Storm chapter 12

Cersei Lannister looked like she was ready to explode or order her death. She seemed to be going back and forth between anger at her and worry for Joffrey. It was intriguing watching the changing expressions on her face as queen went from going purple with anger to completely pale with worry before turning red as she glanced in her direction and worry was replaced with anger.

Selene knew that there was going to be hell to pay if Joffrey died, something she honestly didn't actually want to happen. She may hate her brother, he was sadistic and cruel but that didn't mean that she wanted him dead. And truthfully she blamed Joffrey's personality more on Cersei's parenting then anything else.

She, her father, Cersei and Jaime Lannister along with Jon Arryn and the rest of the Kingsguard waited outside Joffrey's chambers as Grand Maester Marwyn did whatever he could to try and treat Joffrey. Personally Selene wasn't sure if anything could be done to help Joffrey. Lightbringer was ancient, and the spells that were weaved into the blade were so masterfully done that even contemplating what had been done to Joffrey would be near impossible.

"And what is going to done to the princess in response to what happened to my son?" Cersei demanded, practically spitting out her title.

Jon Arryn sighed in response and Selene couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity for the elderly man. Being Hand was not an easy job and from the bags under his eyes and the way they were bloodshot this clearly was not the first sleepless night he had had. "Unfortunately until we know more about what is happening to Joffrey, we can't issue any form of punishment upon her." Jon Arryn replied diplomatically, attempting to keep the peace but from the thundering look Cersei gave the lord of the Eyrie it was wasted.

"And why not?" Cersei growled out, sounding more like the lion on her banners then the regal queen she liked to portray herself as.

"I don't think you want to speak about punishments, your grace." Selene replied mockingly, drawing Cersei's ire away from Jon Arryn, causing the man to send her a grateful nod in response. Dealing with Cersei was stressful even in the best of times.

"And why not?"

"Because the biggest question is what was Joffrey doing in my room while I was sleeping with my sword in his hand? What were his intentions? And most importantly why the hell did the Kingsguard allow him to enter my room without any objection?" Selene finished listing, giving a pointed look towards Mandon Moore who remained completely stone faced.

"I'd like to know that as well Moore." Her father all but snarled out.

"As would I." Ser Barristan added giving his own glare at his fellow kingsguard. Despite the hostile looks pointed at his direction Moore neither twitched nor showed any sign of unease. It wasn't Moore's skill with a blade that made him dangerous, it was his personality.

"The prince wanted the opportunity to speak with his sister, why when it was so late and night and she was sleeping I don't know. It's not my place to question royalty. And the princess wasn't in any way harmed, whereas the Grand Maester is currently treating the prince for as of yet unknown injuries." Ser Mandon answered calmly and evenly.

That in turn drew their attention back to her. "I don't know what has happened to Joffrey." Selene replied honestly. She could guess, it was common in her old life for powerful magical objects to have safeguards against being stolen and considering the spell work in Lightbringer it would probably be more surprising if nothing had happened to Joffrey but what did happen to him she honestly had no idea.

"You really expect us to believe that?!" Cersei snarled causing to spittle to fly out of her mouth and looking into her green eyes Selene saw nothing but madness and hatred.

"I don't really care what you believe, what happened is that Joffrey sneaked into my room while I was sleeping and injured himself. You can ask him yourself when he wakes if you don't believe me." She told Cersei.

Cersei glared at her with enough hatred to melt the Wall but Selene didn't give her another thought. Her mind was already preoccupied with the potential consequences of what would happen if Joffrey died. If he died then she knew it would mean a war with the Westerlands, something that had been hard enough to avoid in the aftermath of her fight with Gregor Clegane, her father's first instinct being to put Tywin Lannister's head on a spike but Selene had convinced him to let the Lannisters be. Maybe it wasn't her smartest decision but Selene intended to rule all of Westeros, including the Westerlands. Not only that but the true enemy wasn't the Lannisters but what lied north of the Wall.

Selene vividly remembered her vision of Storm's End being destroyed and the Night King killing her. If she was to defeat the White Walkers then she needed Westeros, all of Westeros united. Which, unfortunately, included the Lannisters.

The door to Joffrey's chambers opened and the Grand Maester exited the room, a bead of sweat glistening from his brow. The elderly maester looked completely exhausted. "How is my son?" Cersei asked, all traces of anger being replaced by worry. If Cersei had any redeeming qualities, it was that she truly did love Joffrey.

"The prince lives, however he remains unconscious and I have done all I can for him. It is up to him whether he awakens." Marwyn explained and it was all she could do to keep her face impassive, but it was harder for other people present. Her father was sporting an expression of guilt and regret, an expression almost identical to that on Jaime Lannister's visage. Cersei's look of concern however had once again become an expression of rage.

"Do not underestimate my son you grey rat." Cersei snarled. "My son is a lion, he will survive whatever that whore has done to him."

"Grand Maester, can we see my son?" Her father asked, his voice breaking slightly.

"Of course your grace." Marwyn answered as he began to walk away along with the members of the Small Council and the Kingsguard, leaving her uncles, her father, Cersei and Selene herself. The rest of them entered Joffrey's chambers while Selene remained outside, she knew Cersei would not want her presence inside and considering what was happening to Joffrey the least Selene could do was accommodate that.

Selene waited outside for the rest and after a few minutes her uncles Renly and Stannis. "How is he?" She asked, Marwyn not been very specific on the details.

"He's in a bad shape." Renly admitted with a wince.

"There is going to be consequences because of this Selene." Stannis warned her.

"I didn't anything to Joffrey." She snapped at them.

"And we believe you Selene." Renly reassured her. "But unfortunately, others won't believe the same." He warned her and with that her two uncles walked away.

Selene continued waiting outside, waiting for her father and Cersei to leave before she went to see her brother. A few minutes later her father walked out the door, his face red with tears in his eyes. "Father?" She asked cautiously but he walked past her with nary a word or glance his eyes distant and distracted.

Selene did not have to wait for long for Cersei to exit the room and when she did a large sneer came upon the bitchs face. "Why are you still here?"

"Waiting for my chance to see my brother?" Cersei's lip twitched in amusement at that but what she found amusing Selene didn't know.

"Why? So you can finish the job?" Cersei snarled, her eyes promising eternal pain and suffering.

"If I wanted Joffrey dead, I would not have summoned the Grand Maester to help him." Selene stated but she knew her words were pointless and in truth she didn't care what Cersei thought.

"Say whatever you wish, I know that you are responsible for what has happened to my son and I promise you Selene, that one day you won't know when, you won't know how but I will take someone close to you and they will suffer for what you have done and remember Selene a Lannister pays their debts." Cersei threatened her voice low and dangerous.

"Out of respect for the condition your son is in I will overlook your words. However, if you ever try to attack those closest to me then I won't bother attacking those closest to you. I will simply kill you, and you would do well to remember Cersei that Lannisters aren't the only the ones who pay their debts." Selene left her own warning. She wasn't one for petty revenge, if Cersei was stupid enough to attack those she cared about then she would simply kill the woman in response, consequences be damned.

She didn't bother saying anything else as she entered her brother's chambers, closing the door behind her as she did so.

Joffrey was in a pitiful state, he was pale, sweating and bandages were wrapped around the hand that was holding Lightbringer, her sword having burnt her brother's hand. She knew the words that lay under those bandages, forever burned into her brother's forearm, 'UNWORTHY,' her blade having decided that Joffrey was unfit to wield it. Selene did not like her brother, they had never gotten along but looking at him now she felt no hatred only pity.

Selene walked over to where Lightbringer was placed, Marwyn having requested the sword's presence to see if it could give any indication what to what had happened to Joffrey. The red glow had faded and Lightbringer looked like an ordinary sword. Selene grasped the sword, her magic practically singing as she did so and the white glow returned to the sword.

"I don't like you Joffrey, but I don't hate you either. You're a sadistic little shit and I'm not much of a believer in redemption but I do hope you will become a better person." She spoke to him as she kneeled on the floor next to him, placing Lightbringer in front of her knees as she placed her hands on his chest and began focusing her magic.

She wasn't sure if what she was trying would even work but she had to try.

Selene breathed deeply as she began to focus her magic outwards, towards her brother. What she was doing was using her magic to try and heal what Lightbringer had done to him. There was no guarantee it would work especially as she couldn't even be sure what it was that her sword had done to him.

Selene did not cast any enchantments, the magic she was using was older beyond spells, relying on pure instinct and intention, to try and heal her brothers.

She could feel the room around her as her magic as her magic reached outwards, sense the power of Lightbringer, the ancient sword acting as a conduit for her magic, allowing it to reach out and she could sense her brother, the lingering traces of magic in his body from Lightbriger, the power of the sword simply being too much for him and its traces slowly killing him.

Selene reached out for those remnants of magic that help her brother, purging them from his system until finally Joffrey awoke screaming in shock while Selene collapsed onto the floor panting from the extensive use of magic.

The sound of Joffrey's screaming quickly attracted attention with her father, Cersei and Marwyn quickly rushing into the room, as Selene picked herself up off the floor, Lightbringer in her hand. Cersei didn't hesitate for a second before she launched herself at the bed, enveloping her son in a hug as he calmed down and finally stopped screaming.

"Selene, what did you do?" Her father asked cautiously standing by the door.

"I helped him." She snapped as she walked past her father, she was tired, magically drained and she just really wanted to go to sleep and she was halfway to her chambers when noticed someone was following her.

Taking a small detour Selene began travelling down a small unused part of the Red Keep, and when she was cewrtain there was no one else around she finally confronted the person who was following her. "Is there a reason your stalking me, Grand Maester?" Selene asked.

"Actually there is Princess." Marwyn answered as he walked up to her with a book in his hand. "This is for you." He said giving it to her.

"'The Mystical Arts' by Visenya Targaryen." Selene raid the title on the book Marwyn had just handed to her, giving the Grand Maester a questioning look but inside her heart had skipped a beat in suspicion. 'Did the man know about her magic?' She wondered. "While a book belong to one of the very first Targaryens is certainly a precious gift I'm afraid I don't understand why you have gifted it to me." Selene replied putting on a face of confusion, all the while her hand tightened around the hilt of Lightbringer, more then ready to use the sword if necessary.

Marwyn rolled his eyes at her words. He didn't respond and instead he placed his hand to his lips and muttered something that she couldn't here but it wasn't what she didn't here that shocked her it was what she felt. Marwyn opened his closed fist, revealing a small flame in the palm of his hand.

"You have magic." She stated.

"And so do you." He spoke back.

Line Break

From his office in one of his largest establishments Baelish gazed out the window into the streat bellow. He always enjoyed this sight because it he owned this street. Every building, every goldcloak and every peasent worker, they all answered to him. He enjoyed this sight because it was a symbol of how he had grown stronger since that fateful day, how he had become one of the richest and most influential lords of Westeros, and most were too stupid to realise it. Many simply saw him as a toothless lord who was skilled with numbers, others saw him as someone who was more of a merchant then a noble and the great majority of nobles of was forced to interact with considered him little more then a lowborn who had risen beyond his natural place, servicing nobility. He hated those nobles were then anything and he would take great pleasure in putting them in their place.

Even those who knew him to be dangerous and influential failed to realise just how so. Mostly because there was only one person in the capital who realised how dangerous he was and that was Varys, and because all the other key players in capital all had larger threats and bigger enemies to deal with then the minor noble from the Vale who had managed climb to the position of Master of Coin.

The master of Whisperers was the only member of the Small Council he truly respected, the others Baelish simply possessed a great deal of scorn for. Renly Baratheon, a prime example of a noble being given a position of power he had neither earned nor deserved, Stannis was little more then a brute who spent most of his time gritting his teeth about imagined slights. Ser Barristan, a man who liked to profess honour and yet he happily serves one King after another because his oaths demand it. The new Grandmaester Marwyn was a bit of an enigma and more dangerous then Pycelle but not someone to be considered a threat. And then their was Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King.

When he was first hired as master of coin after the Greyjoy Rebellion when his predecessor had passed away in his sleep the old falcon had watched him like a hawk. After all Jon Arryn was an old man and one did not reach such an old age by being weak or feeble and Jon Arryn was neither and the man had known not to trust him especially with the amount of rumours surrounding him from his fostering in Riverrun. But even though it had taken years Baelish had gained Jon Arryn's trust and since then his power had grown on a level even he was honestly surprised at.

Varys was the only one who understood how dangerous he truly was, and likewise he was probably the only one who realised just how dangerous the spymaster was. Both of them had no armies, no lands and little in the way of titles but they both had their words, which in the right hands was more dangerous then any weapon. Though he had never found out who Varys was truly loyal to but Baelish had never believed that it was to the realm like he always proclaimed.

Then their was the princess Selene Baratheon. Not the most dangerous, or even the most cunning person he had met but all the same she was not someone to underestimate. She was resourceful and incorruptible and she had made it abundantly clear that she was no ally of his. In fact she had even tried to have him removed from his position as Master of Coin. Luckily while Selene held the Kings ear so did Jon Arryn and Baelish held Jon Arryn's ear. But still he knew that with the princess actively undermining him, even going so far as proposing alternate candidates for his post as master of coin, he would have to be careful as well as prove himself capable for the position he managed. Therefore he had to actively work to remove the current debt the Iron Throne faced.

To be truthful Baelish actually had little to do with the debt facing the crown, it had already been in debt when he had been made master of coin and he instead simply used the debt to his advantage as a means of spreading his influence all over the Seven Kingdoms. And the loss of the debt would have a great impact upon his influence but he had no choice, unless he wanted to be replaced he had to work and in the words of the princess 'do your job or we'll find someone who can.'

Baelish would do what was asked of him, if only because he had no alternative but he would not allow the way the princess spoke to him go unpunished. He had come to far to be removed by a fawn bitch spawned by a Stark whore. He was already taking measure to bring about the downfall of the princess and the incident and scaring involving prince Joffrey was something he was already using as means to weaken the princess's support, having rumours spread that Selene had purposely scared her brother with the very mark that she had on her hand to denounce him as unworthy.

The Lannisters may be sitting on the side-lines right now but it was only a matter of time before they finally declared war and when they did he would be the knife that stabbed the Baratheons in the back. After all Petyr Baelish, Lord Paramount of the Stormlands was a rather impressive title after all.

Line Break

Arron liked Volantis, it was an ancient city of great beauty, culture and importance and while it had its faults he definitely enjoyed wandering the first Valyrian colony ever to be founded. The markets were pacted with goods from all over Essos, displays of wealth were visible in every corner it was a truly prosperous city. A city built on slavery yes, but still one of the greatest cities in the known world despite its slaver economy.

"So how long before we're on the move again?" Garin asked curiously as they wandered the various stalls along the great bridge of Volantis.

"Not long." He answered his friend. "Connington has already spoken with the three Triachs and were going to be on the move soon."

"Any ideas on what's specifically happened?" Daemon asked as well.

"A Dothraki Khal has been attacking Volantis settlements all along the Rhoyne river. We and several other sellsword companies will be charged with removing the Dothraki threat in the area." Arron replied.

"For the Dothraki to have attacked so far south shows they are getting far bolder in their raids." Garin spoke with a certain amount of unease. Unease that was shared by his friends, the three of them had been in the Free Cities long enough to know what sort of damage the Dothraki could cause.

"Well once we've pushed them back it should keep the Dothraki at bay for a while, they respect strength and the only reason they are attacking is because they believe Volantis weak." Daemon stated.

"Or they could see it as a personal challenge." Arron countered, only time would tell.

"Excuse me my good sir." A voice called out getting their attention. Turning around the three of them saw a man dressed in red robes identifying him as a priest of R'hllor, flanked by two of the Red guards officially called the Fiery Hand. "Yes you." The priest spoke pointing at Arron. "The High Priestess wishes to speak to you. Alone." The priest added.

"Are you crazy?" Daemon asked taking a step forward, with a hand on his sword hilt, prompting the two guards with the priest to do the same before the priest gestured them to stand down.

"If I intended him harm then I would not bother with asking him to come." He stated in response.

"What does the High Priestess want with me?" Arron demanded.

"I am not privy to that information." The priest stated. "But she did say to tell you it concerns the 'prince that was promised' said that those words would gain your attention."

'Well, she's right about that,' Arron thought. 'The prince that was promised' He knew those words very well, the words that had drove his father mad. "Very well, I'll meet the High Priestess."

"What?" Garin bellowed.

"Arron you can't. It's not safe." Daemon argued.

"No harm will come to you, you have my word." The priest vowed.

"I'll take your word for it." Arron stated with reluctance. He wanted, no he needed to know what this priest knew about him. The risk was simply to great to ignore. "Now let's go," He said as he followed the priest through the streets of Volantis until they arrived at the Red Temple, the largest in all of Volantis.

Architecture was never something that had ever really appealed to Arron but he couldn't deny the beauty and craftmanship that went into building the Red Temple. The temple was an enormity of pillars, steps, bridges, domes and towers that all flowed into one colossal building. It was also exceptionally colourful with hundreds of hues of colours ranging from red, to yellow, to gold, looking something akin to a sunset. It was easily one of the most beautiful and impressive building he had ever seen.

"Magnificent isn't it." The priest remarked with clear pride in his voice.

"That it is." Arron agreed as the two of them walked up to the entrance of the temple, passing a group of the Red Hand guards who watched them wearily.

The inside of the temple was no less impressive then the outside as down every corrider there seemed to be some ancient tapestry or sculpture showing beautiful workmanship. One tapestry in particular caught his attention

One half of it was completely covered in shadow, illustrating a hidden enemy while the other half was of a man wielding a sword covered in white flames. "Azor Ahai, or the last Hero as he is known to you Westerosi." The priest explained. "And here we are." He announced as they reached two massive oak doors.

"High Priestess Kinvara, I have brought the boy."

"Thank you Priest Jor, you may leave us." Kinvara spoke and with a boy Priest Jor left him the High Priestess and another man who stood in the room. "Aegon Targaryen, this is Thoros of Myr, Thoros meet the young prince." She introduced, causing Thoros' eyes to widen in shock and Arron was surprised as well at the presence of a man who was believed to have abandoned the red faith and had become a practically permanent fixture of the Baratheon court.

"Aegon." Thoros muttered still in shock.

"I prefer Arron." He countered. "How do you know who I am?" He demanded turning his attention to Kinvara, getting to the point of why he was here.

"I doubt you would believe me if I told you." She spoke.

"Try me." Arron challenged.

"I have always been partial to the sight, being able to see things others cannot. That's how I learnt you were alive. And for your second question which you are going to ask, no I don't intend to reveal your identity."

"Then what is it you want from me? If you think that I'm the prince who was promised-" He started before she interrupted him.

"Actually I don't believe you are the prince who was promised, but that doesn't mean you don't have an important destiny ahead of you."

"Destiny?" Arron asked with a snort. "My father was obsessed with the concept of destiny and it drove him mad. So I'm not interested in whatever you have so say about my 'destiny.'"

Kinvara was silent for a few moments before she answered. "Only a fool blindly follows the words of seers and ramblings of prophecies, and trying to control fate is like playing with wildfire, it only ends in disaster as your father. Your scepticism makes you wiser then Rhaegar. However it is a bigger fool who completely ignores the warnings foretold. After all if Aenys Targaryen had refused to head his daughter's warning then he the Targaryens would have died with the rest of the dragonlords and the world would be worse off because of it."

"Which brings me to my second point, why do you deny your own gifts of foresight?" She questioned.

"I—I d- don't know what you are talking about." He denied, hating the way his voice stuttered.

"You had a dream about a stag fighting a mountain and then news spreads of Selene Baratheon fighting Gregor Clegane. Don't pretend to be a stupid man, you deny your gifts. Why?"

"Because I believe my father had the same curse." He snapped. "My mother wrote to my uncles about how my father often had these dreams and considering his obsession with prophecy I believe my 'gift' as you call it came from him. My father got my mother killed, my sister killed, possibly because of the very dreams I now have, and you ask me why I deny them?" Arron asked with a bitter laugh.

"Your father got most of your family killed because of his gifts, but you Arron can save them with it. Remember that." Kinvara advised him. "And one last piece of advise before you leave Aegon Targaryen, your power comes from water as much as fire, descendent of Nymeria, remember that." She told him cryptically to his confusion as he then turned and left without another word.
Kinvara watched with a small amount of disappointment. "Well that could have gone better." She admitted to Thoros.

"I don't understand your interest in the boy. You yourself said that he wasn't Azor Ahai." Thoros said in confusion, still not understanding why Kinvara was so interested in the boy.

"Azor Ahai didn't fight back the darkness alone, and neither can Selene Baratheon. That was your vision wasn't it, Westeros covered in ice with her fighting the Night King?" Kinvara stated. "Aegon Targaryen may not be the prince that was promised but he still has an important role to play in the wars to come. Vital even." She added. "What will you do now?" She asked Thoros curiously.

"It's time I returned to Westeros, and I will aid Azor Ahai in whatever way that I can." Thoros answered. He didn't know why he had been gifted his vision, but he knew its purpose and what his role in the fight to come will be. "What about you?"

"I will meet Selene and see who she is for myself." Kinvara replied.

Line Break

Selene and Marwyn were both taking the opportunity to compare notes for a lack of better explanation regarding their knowledge of magic, as Selene removed a book from a fade draw located in her desk. "This is my grimoire." She told Marwyn as handed him the book which he took sagely. "It contains a brief description of all forms of magic I know as well as various spells." She explained to him.

It was a very thick book Marwyn noted, with a thick cover and a latch on it to keep it closed. There was no writing on it but their was a very detailed rune on the front cover. Marwyn was very knowledgeable on all forms of runes and hieroglyphs, yet he hadn't the faintest idea. "It's a blood rune." Selene explained. "It means only I can open that book." Selene took the book back and placed her hand over the rune causing the latch to release, and she handed the book back to Marwyn.

When Hayley had realised that Trelawney was only ever going to waste her time predicting her death in divination lessons she had dropped the subject and took Ancient Runes instead and her specialty was Norse runes. Say what you will about the Vikings but their mastery over runic magic was some of the most advanced in her previous life.

While Marwyn busied himself with reading through her spellbook Selene focused her attention on Visenya Targaryen's book, finding one of the very first spells in it being able to summon a small lick of flame, which she guessed was the very spell Marwyn had used to prove he had magic.

"Flame." Selene cast in High Valyrian and a moment later a small flame appeared in her hand, drawing Marwyn's attention. The spell may have been one designed for beginners but as far as he knew the princess had never even studied Valyrian magic but she had still achieved the spell on her first go. Just how powerful was she?

Selene cancelled the spell a few moments later and she returned her attention back to the spellbook while Marwyn did the same, until he saw a section that caught his attention. "You can turn into an animal?"

"The animagus transformation? Yes I know how to do it." Selene answered. Granted she hadn't turned into her animal form in nearly a year but once you achieved the connection to your animal side it simply wasn't something you could forget, it was forever a part of you.

"Would you mind showing me?" He requested feeling a sense of giddiness come over him. He had believed he had known all forms of magic but to turn into an animal, the possibility had never crossed his mind, had likely never crossed anyone's mind.

"Of course not." Selene answered with a smile as she stood and walked to the centre of the room, she needed space to be able to transform. One second Selene stood in the middle of the room and the second she morphed into her animal form and in her place a large white doe appeared

Marwyn had seen a lot of things in his life that ranged from mildly surprising, to world ending shock however seeing someone turn into an animal easily made the short list. He looked on in awe at the white doe in front of him. He had never had much regard to towards animals in terms of a scientific interest but he couldn't help but be intrigued by a deer that had white fur. "I have to admit princess you are a very beautiful doe." Marwyn confessed causing her to tilt her head at the praise while had slowly walked around her and assessed what he saw.

Her size and shape was average for that of a doe and the powerful legs were a clear indication of how fast she was capable of running. Interestingly her eyes were the same piercing blue in her animal form. Another interesting factor was that a small patch of fur on her forehead was slightly darker, being closer to grey then white appeared in the shape of a lightning bolt of all things. If there was any significance to this Marwyn didn't know it.

"Can you understand me in that form?" He asked her and in response Marwyn learnt what a glare from a doe looked like and he guessed that answered the question. "Could you change back please?" He asked and a moment later the princess was once again standing in front of him. "How come nothing happens to your clothes?"

"When I turn my magic views my clothes as part of my body and so gets changed along with the rest of me into an animal and when I change back my clothes get restored." She explained.

"And that's what you call an animagus transformation correct?" Marwyn asked, looking as giddy as a kid who was told they could have all the sweets they wanted.

"Animagus yes." Selene answered him as she stared at the old maester who scribbled down what she said onto a piece of parchment.

"Transfiguration. Simply extraordinary." Marwyn muttered to himself. As an archmaester he had studied many different sciences over the years but magic would always be his true passion. "How difficult is it to become an animagus?"

"It takes roughly six to eighteen months to become an animagus on average. It is difficult but once you've mastered the transformation it's as easily as breathing." Selene answered. She wasn't worried about revealing any information, she'd already ensured that they were alone and she was always in a good mood after transforming into her animal form. "But transfiguration is one of the most complex branches of magic, requiring intense concentration and no small amount of power." Truthfully Selene was lucky she had mastered the animagus transformation in her last life otherwise it was doubtful she'd be able to have mastered it this life. She was also lucky that death hadn't changed her animal form, because without the potion ingredients necessary to make the animagus revelation potion it would have been impossible to find out what her form was.

"Are there any benefits to becoming an animagus? Any changes to your physical body or personality?" Marwyn inquired.

"Not so much personality changes but you can pick up some animal characteristics. It's hard to explain because every animal is different and the experience always ranges from person to person." Selene tried explaining.

"Could you give an example?"

"My diet." Selene answered causing Marwyn to raise an eyebrow in question. "Have you ever seen me eat any meat Grandmaester?" Marwyn felt confused by the question, before he realised what she meant, deer's aren't carnivores, although there had been a small number of cases in which they did eat meat. And though he hadn't had many meals with the princess now that he thought about it he had never actually seen her eating meat of any kind.

"So your vegetarian?" He asked

"Not exactly, it's more of a rare delicacy that I can't eat very often but I can still eat meat, just not very often because the animal part of me doesn't like it." Selene tried explained, she knew some types of deer did indeed eat meat, but she wasn't sure what subspecies of deer she was, but she could eat meat, just not very often. "Its complicated I know. As for physical changes I'm perhaps more agile with better reflexes but it's hard to tell how much is from my animal form." She told him.

"So I've answered one of your questions, you can answer one of mine. What can you tell me about this mark?" Selene questioned as she raised up her hand, showing the mark of the Deathly Hallows on the back of it.

Marwyn took a moment to shuffle through a series of parchments and scrolls he had brought with him before he answered. "The mark itself appears in nearly every culture and continent. Here," Marwyn answered handing over a parchment that looked ancient and Selene was very careful handling it and she laid it out before her.

Selene looked over the parchment which was covered in hieroglyphics that she had no understanding of. The only one she recognised was the mark of the Hallows. "What language is this?"

"I don't know it's official name but it was used by the Dawn Empire." Selene's eyebrows shot up in surprise at that. The Dawn Empire, a civilisation surrounded in myths and legends that made Valyria seem tame in comparison. Practically nothing was known about the civilisation that predated both Valyria and the Ghiscari Empire. The Empire of Yi Ti claimed to be the heirs of the Dawn Empire but was never able to prove it and it was also theorised by some maesters that the First Men had been members of the Dawn Empire.

She wondered if Azor Ahai had been a member of the Dawn Empire, he certainly would have lived in that time period. "Can you translate it?"

"I only have a rough translation, but I do believe it states, 'death is only the beginning.'" 'Well that certainly isn't ominous,' Selene thought to herself resisting the urge to snort. "It also speaks of a weapon of great power, but it fails to specify what it is." She didn't need to look at Marwyn to know he was glancing it Lightbringer. Further evidence perhaps that Azor Ahai had been from the Dawn Empire if it was referring to Lightbringer.

"And what about the other Hallows?" Selene questioned, while Marwyn gave a sigh in response.

"To be perfectly honest princess there is no record of an invisibility cloak or a resurrection stone anywhere in the records." Marwyn replied and Selene let out her own sigh of disappointment.

"Disappointing but not too surprising." Selene muttered. "So you have no idea where they could be." She stated which only caused the man to smirk.

"I did not say that." He replied with a smirk as he shuffled through the pile of parchments he had brought and handed her more then a dozen pieces.

"These are wills, from the Durrandon family." She spoke as she looked through the them, the first looking over a thousand years old, while the last was written by King Arlan V with his son King Argilac the Arrogant as the main benefactor.

"If you look through the wills you'll see they all mention a single item, a stone of importance. None of the wills specify what it is but it could be…"

"The resurrection stone, it's in Storm's End." Selene interrupted him. Looks like she'll have to make a visit to capital of the Stormlands soon.

"It might be, but after three hundred years it hasn't been seen at all, not to mention not a single Baratheon will mentions any such item or stone to be passed on. It's entirely possible that it was stolen when Argella was betrayed by her garrison to Orys Baratheon, if so then the odds of it still being in Storm's End are slim." Marwyn reasoned.

"Still it's better than nothing." She replied. "Any ideas about the invisibility cloak?" She asked him.

"Well since both Durran Godsgrief and Brandon the Builder were the sons of Azor Ahai, the odds are that if he gave Durran the resurrection stone then Brandon was given the invisibility cloak. But it has the same problem with the resurrection stone. It might be in Winterfell but after thousands of years it's entirely possible that it's somewhere else and lost to history."

"Still it's better then nothing and both Storm's End and Winterfell are some of the oldest castles in history with many secrets in their walls. Just because no one has seen them doesn't mean that they aren't there." Selene replied, her good mood picking up again. Both Winterfell and Storm's End were ancient and even Selene didn't know all of the secrets of those two ancient fortresses.

"So you wish to learn more about transfiguration?" She asked and Marwyn nodded eagerly in response, jotting down notes as she began explaining the principles of transfiguration, conjuration and illusions. After so long it was refreshing to finally be able to talk to someone about her magic.

Line Break

Selene was travelling through the city with a small retinue, her goal not particularly important but something she felt she needed to do. The fact that it would keep her out of the Red Keep for a few hours was simply added bonus. The tensions in the royal court was worse than ever after what had happened to Joffrey, with court rife with rumours about what had happened to him, the most prevailent being that she had tried to kill her brother and that it was only a 'miracle' that he was still alive.

The fact that Joffrey had sneaked into her room and tried to steel Lightbringer and simply suffered the results of his own stupidity never crossed the minds of those vipers in the court, not that she expected it to. One thing she had learnt as Hayley, when the masses get an idea in their head, no matter how ridiculous or impossible then convincing them otherwise was simply not worth the effort, and that it was easier to simply ignores the rumours and wait for them to pass.

But still despite the ever present rumours surrounding her the last week had been very beneficial in her mind. Marwyn was a literal treasure trove of knowledge on magic in Westeros and she had formed a close friendship with the eccentric old man. He had even suggested a few interesting ideas to help her channel her magic. Turns out that while there was no records of wands, according to Marwyn's records the Valyrian dragonlords had crafted focuses in the form of rings and staffs in order to help them wield their magic. Granted most objects had more then likely been destroyed in the Doom of Valyria but still it gave Selene hope that she would be able to craft herself a wand.

Selene had actually attempted to craft herself a wand when she was thirteen, using a piece of holly wood from the Rainwood and a dragon fang from one of the many skulls in the Red Keep. Her attempt had been a complete failure and had even caused a small explosion that had been very difficult to explain and Selene was lucky that she hadn't gotten herself killed. Her attempts at repairing her holly and phoenix wand in her last life should have taught her not to meddle in such stupidity but after thirteen years of struggling to wield her magic properly she had gotten impatient and had cast aside all caution.

When she was Haley Potter she had studied many branches of magic but wandcrafting wasn't one of them, however if she could discover the secrets the Valyrians had used, hopefully from Visenya Targaryen's grimoire then she could craft herself a wand. While her ability to wield magic had improved since she had discovered Lightbringer, it wasn't the same was wielding a proper wand. If Selene was to estimate it then Lightbringer allowed her to wield roughly half of her magical core accurately, a massive improvement pre her discovery of the ancient weapon but still far from ideal.

"Tobho Mott," Ser Barristan stated, when they reached their destination. "The greatest smith in all of King's Landing, and also the most expensive. Me and my fellow Kingsguard often come to him for our armour and weapons."

"Shop looks old." Selene stated as she took in the sight of it. "When did he arrive in King's Landing?" She asked curiously. Tobho Mott had been a smith in the capital since before she was born but the man was from Essos, Volantis if she believed correctly and she wondered what had brought him to Westeros.

"In the final years in the reign of King Aerys." Ser Barristan answered. "The Mad King had gone through a faze where he was obsessed with Valyrian steel and he brought Mott to Westeros because of his ability to re-forge it." Of course, there were rumours that it was Tywin who had persuaded Aerys to bring Mott to Westeros but that was neither here nor there.

The two of them entered the forge to find who she assumed was Tobho Mott in the process of hammering a sword. Selene and Ser Barristan waited for him to finish before he noticed their presence. "Your grace, Ser Selmy." He spoke with a thick accent as he bowed deeply. "What can I do for you?" He asked.

"I was wondering if you could examine Lightbringer." Selene stated. It had occurred that it would probably be a good idea for a smith to at least look over the weapon and since the man in front of her was by far the best smith in the city there was no other alternative.

She could see caution in his eyes, word of what had happened when Joffrey had tried to hold the weapon had clearly spread, but she could also see curiosity and desire in his eyes as well, and in the end his desire won out as he accepted to help them. "Very well." He said and she handed him the sword still in its scabbard. Interestingly nothing happened, possibly because where Joffrey had tried to steal the sword, she had instead handed it to Mott? A possibly explanation.

"Exquisite." Tobho muttered as he withdrew the sword from its scabbard. "Truly exquisite."

Tobho then began getting the work on the sword, examining it and trying to identify what metal it was made out of. "Interesting." Tobho muttered in the process of his work. "I wonder. Gendry come here and assist me." He bellowed out for his apprentice.

When Gendry appeared in the main forge Selene blinked once and then twice in shock as she stared at Gendry. Black hair, blue eyes, strong large build, not to mention the absolute spitting image of her father when he was a teenager which she knew from a portrait of her father when he was only sixteen. Glancing at her companion she saw the look of surprise on his face as he looked at Gendry in surprise. Selene resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration, Mya Stone, Edric Storm, Jon Snow, just how many bastard brothers and sisters did she have?

"Yes master?" Gendry asked.

"Hold the sword steady while I examine it." Tobho ordered as he passed the sword to Gendry, which caused Selene's breath to catch in her throat and she began to yell a warning as she recalled what happened to Joffrey but nothing happened, no glow, no tremor of magic, in Gendry's hands Lightbringer was a sword nothing more or less.

While Gendry held her sword steady Tobho began examining the sword in depth, muttering to himself as he did so. "I wonder… princess may I borrow your Valyrian steel dagger?" He requested and she passed it to him, causing Ser Barristan to subconsciously take a step closer to her as she now, appeared, defenceless.

"Keep it steady Grendry." Tobho ordered as he held the dagger on the blade of Lightbringer and then began to push down and slowly slid the dagger up the length of the sword, greatly a loud screeching noise as it did so. "Extraordinary." He spoke with awe as she passed the dagger back to her.

Selene's eyes widened in surprise and Ser Barristan gasped in shock. "Impossible." The old knight muttered but the proof was there on the blade of her a dagger, a scratch almost unnoticeable in the Valyrian designs but a scratch, nonetheless.

"Indeed princess, your sword is stronger than even Valyrian steel. I'm afraid I can't tell you what type of metal it's made out of because I honestly have no idea but it the weapon appears to be in perfect condition. However, I will tell you that I have examined another sword like it, with the same properties."

"And what sword would that be?" Ser Barristan asked.

"The sword of your fallen comrade Arthur Dayne." Tobho answered.

"Dawn, Lightbringer is like Dawn." She stated.

"It is certainly similar, but I could be wrong, I am making a comparison between this sword and a sword I studied over twenty years ago. But if you wish for more information then you'll have to go to the Daynes princess."

"Thank you for your help." Selene spoke and Tobho and Gendry began getting back to work and Ser Barristan prepared to leave but Selene lingered, her eyes gazing at her half-brother. "It's Gendry, right?" She asked, starting the conversation.

"Yes, your grace."

"Is this your work?" She asked pointing at a very high-quality sword, but of a slightly lower quality then the rest of Tobho Mott's work, making her guess Gendry was the one who made it.

"It is your grace." Gendry answered with unmistakable pride in his voice.

"It's very good work." She complimented.

"Thank you." He spoke sounding a little uncomfortable and she understood why. Most nobles would sooner scorn a commoner then praise them; Gendry was simply not sure how to react to a noble actually treating him decently.

Selene thought about what to say next but realised she simply had no idea what to say. What did you say to your recently discovered half-brother, especially when said brother had no idea the two of you were even related? "Storm's End has been lacking a skilled smith since Donal Noye joined the Night's Watch, if you ever wish for a job come find me." She told him and then proceeded to leave the shop.

Line Break

Selene looked over a map of the North, particularly the part of both the Gift and the New Gift, the later of which currently belonged to her after she'd purchased it from the Night's Watch. Despite the size of the land it was largely abandoned and practically worthless. Wildling raids were common and their simply wasn't enough men of the Night's Watch to keep up with them. But if the Wall fell then the Gift would be the next line of defence.

At the very least Selene needed to rebuild the ruined fortresses and keeps that were dotted around the New Gift, six in total with Queenscrown being the largest. Selene thought of the costs it would take to repair them and resisted the urge to wince at the thought. Yes she had access to the funds of Storm's End but she would rather leave those finances in tact rather than empty it, which left her with her personal wealth, which was rather limited. She could maybe repair one, possibly two of the keeps if she started with the smaller ones before her wealth ran out.

The Crown was still massively in dept so if she was going to repair the land and try to make something useful out of it then she would need assistance from several noble houses in Westeros in order to fund such a venture.

Selene pulled out several pieces of parchment and a quill and started writing to four noble and above all wealthy houses in Westeros who would hopefully be willing to finance such a venture, especially considering the rewards she was offering.

Royce, Swann, Blackwood, Tarly and the biggest risk of all Lefford of the Golden Tooth. Approaching the second most powerful house in the Westerlands would be a tremendous risk, but if she succeeded then Selene would have gained herself a powerful ally in the Westerlands.

Line Break

If there was one thing he had learnt in his life it was that there was always a need for contingencies because things never went according to plan. For example a small raid on a merchant ship travelling from Volantis to Pentos, be prepared for some fool trying to stab him in the back. Which explains why the man in front of him was currently fastened to two large wooden beams crossed in an X shape.

"I will only ask this once, who hired you to kill me?" He questioned the brute in front of him. There was no way he was working alone, he was simply a dog answering a master's orders.

"May the Storm God take your accursed soul Crow's Eye." The prisoner spat at him, causing Euron Greyjoy to smirk.

"I was hoping you'd say that." He replied as he picked up a flaying knife and began working the prisoner's hand, his scream filling the brig of his ship while Euron hummed as he continued his work. The Boltons may have invented flaying but they were hardly the only ones to master the craft.

He had to give his prisoner some credit, he had a rather impressive pain tolerance, as despite his defening screams he refused to give up any of the names of any allies, or who had hired him. Euron stepped back as he finished flaying the skin off the man's left hand, giving the man a moment of respite before the torture continued.

The man had stopped screaming by now and was content to simply weep and likely regret every decision he ever made as he sobbed in front of Euron. Euron gave a sinister smirk as he held the flaying towards the man's right hand and began peeling the skin off his little finger. The man whimpered and moaned but still refused to give in and it wasn't until Euron started peeling the man's third finger that he finally broke.

"Stop." The man begged, incapable of withstanding any more pain.

Euron chuckled as he withdrew the blade from the man's hand and help the blood coated knife up to the man's face. "Now, who hired you?" He asked.

"Your brother." The man gasped out. The answer actually disappointed him honestly, Euron had enemies from Tywin Lannister in Casterly Rock to the God Emperor of Yi Ti and yet it was his oaf of a brother who had tried to kill him.

"Balon?" Euron asked wishing for confirmation. While his brother certainly wouldn't hesitate to order him killed, there had never been any form of brotherly relationship between the two, assassins weren't normally Balon's style. He was the kind of fool who would want to kill someone face to face.

"No. Damphair."

The response actually caused him to pause in surprise before Euron bursts out into laughter. He's normally more composed then that but he couldn't help it, it seemed his idiotic younger brother has finally grown a spine. "So what caused Damphair to try and kill me?"

"He believes your responsible for Victarion's death. Said there was no way he could have been killed by a mere boy and that you were behind it."

Euron rolled his remaining eye as he struggled to comprehend his brother's logic. Aeron had never been the smartest man but clearly the years had taken what little wits he possessed. Not that any of his other brothers were any smarter then Aeron and not for the first time Euron wondered if his mother had an affair and he was the bastard of some nameless old fuck. It would certainly explain the difference in intellect between himself and his brothers.

As well as other differences between them.

Of course this also meant a big issue about what to do with Aeron. Brother or not Euron was not going to let that pious fool have a second chance to take his life. Not to mention the Iron Islands, while not vital to his plans did play an important role and the last thing he needed was Aeron in a position of power to undermine him.

"So you going to kill me?" The man asked.

Euron chuckled in response. "No I'm not going to kill you." He told him causing the man to look at him in confusion. In response he lifted up his eyepatch.

The horrified screams were music to his ears before they were replaced by a blissful silence.

Euron exited the brig of his ship and ascended towards the deck of the ship. "Change our course, we're heading for Westeros." He told his first mate.

Line Break

Selene closed Visenya Targaryen's grimoire, her mind a whirlwind of thoughts and contemplations. Queen Visenya had certainly been more then a 'mere dabbler' in the magical arts. From one grimoire alone it was clear that the deceased Targaryens knowledge was easily superior to most witches and wizards Selene knew in her previous life.

Selene rubbed her eyes tiredly, her thoughts scattered as she contemplated everything she had read and the impacts it could have. The book wasn't merely Visenya's grimoire but also served as a diary of sorts for the deceased queen. As well as the methods of teaching magic she had used for Maegor and Aenys Targaryen. Many maesters had studied the relationship between Aenys and Visenya and many concluded that they Visenya had only ever tolerated Aenys and thought him unworthy of the Iron Throne.

It was certainly surprising reading about Visenya praising the boy that many would believe she later killed so Maegor could become king, for his love of magic. From what Selene could tell Maegor had only ever saw magic as a tool of war and death, Aenys by contrast had possessed a true passion for magic and all its wonders, a passion Visenya had shared.

But regardless of the true nature of the relationship between Visenya and Aenys Targaryen Selene now had undisputable proof that not only had the Targaryen conquerers indeed possessed magic but they had passed the knowledge onto the next generations of their family, and Selene imagined that Aenys Targaryen had taught magic to his own children, which left the biggest question; how did the Targaryens lose their magic. It was possible that generations of inbreeding had turned them into squibs, or that when all the adult Targaryens during the Dance were killed the younger generations of the Targaryens had forgotten their abilities.

Magic had once been a mighty force in the world, unfortunately it had died out in this world, the when and where was debatable but it had started with the Andal invasion. The Andals hadn't just killed the Children of the Forest but had also targeted anyone who was thought to possess 'demonic' powers. Witch burning were far from unique to her first life, the Faith Militant had been very eager to burn those they had deemed as heretics. But regardless the Faith Militant was disbanded and the influence the Church wielded had been on the decline ever since the reign of Jaehaerys I. So why had the decline of magic's biggest opposition not lead to its renewal?

The question had never bothered Selene much but now that she knew the truth it honestly terrified her.

The Order of the Maesters were a much bigger danger then Selene ever could have imagined and she now understood what Marwyn had been trying to tell her without actually doing so for fear of them being discovered, spies were everywhere in the capital after all and she had no doubt that those 'grey rats' as some referred to them had their own in the capital.

Selene had honestly never given the maesters much thought, an academic order of intellectuals who she had seen as a group of wise learners and therefore she had never seen the need to regard them with suspicion. Now however, now she was wondering if the maesters knew she had magic and were planning on using the same measures they had used against the Targaryens on her.

Selene had been receiving messages from the Citadel ever since she had first revealed Lightbringer in her fight with Clegane, requesting to see Lightbringer and well as all but demanding to know where she had found the sword. At first she had simply thought that it was intellectual curiosity and that they simply wanted to study her sword in order to compare it to the ancient legends of Lightbringer, but now… now she wasn't so sure.

She needed more information on the maesters, and she couldn't afford to wait.

Selene looked up when she saw Ser Arys enter her chambers with a stack of letters in his hands. "More betrothal requests?" She asked not even exasperated anymore, just tired. She had bigger concerns to worry about then dealing with all those letters.

"Unfortunately it's something that you have to put up with." Ser Arys answered with a small smirk as he dropped the stack right in front of her.

"Tell me do you think if I sent a raven to every Lord in Westeros and told them to piss off they would leave me alone?" Selene asked with a small smile at the idea.

"It might, or it would make you seem unattainable and therefore cause them to double their efforts to gain your attention." He replied as he saw her start looking through all the letters though he doubted any of them would grab her attention. But he was still curious about her thoughts and he chose to stick around for the moment to see what she came up with. And after about ten minutes he saw her crumple the letter in her hands and through it in the fireplace. "Do you think if I had Walder Frey sent to the Wall Lord Tully would thank me?" Selene practically snarled with her expression completely livid.

'Oh she is pissed,' Ser Arys thought at the enraged expression on her face and he wondered what Lord Frey had written to have angered her so much, but he was too afraid to ask, because if there was one thing he had learnt as a Kingsguard it was that you didn't draw an angry Baratheons attention onto yourself, because they truly lived up the words of their house "Ours if the Fury." Robert Baratheon could switch from being jolly and joyful to a murderous rage in seconds depending on the motive, Stannis seemed to exist in a perpetual state of annoyance and anger, and Renly Baratheon, probably the least militant member of his family yet the young Oakheart could recall no less then three occasions where the Lord of Storm's End had well and truly lost his temper and they had not been occasions that he remembered fondly. Selene's temper was better controlled then her father and uncles but no less severe.

"I'm pretty sure half the Riverlords would thank you and the other half would sent you gifts in gratitude." He quipped in response earning half a chuckle in response. "What about the other offers?" He asked her after he saw she had calmed down a bit.

"Some are worth considering." Selene admitted.

"Do you have any in mind?" He asked her.

"I'm considering some offers but haven't decided on anything." Selene spoke but whoever she took for her consort it would hopefully be someone that she loved. However she knew that love might be a luxury she may not be able to afford. If she couldn't love whoever she took to be her consort then she wanted someone that she could, at the very least respect and care for. Otherwise she may well be having the same misfortune her father had with his marriages, in love with a woman who didn't love him back and married to another he despised.

Ser Arys waited for a moment to see if she added anything but when he saw that she wouldn't he decided to change the topic. "So what were you doing before I came in?" He asked her.

"Ser Arys, you are from the Reach so can I ask you a question?" He nodded at her words wondering where she was going with this. "What do you know about the maesters?"

Line Break

"You're mad." Marwyn was the first to speak.

"I wouldn't say that." Brienne disagreed. "But what you are suggesting is more then slightly risky."

Marwyn couldn't resist snorting at that. "Risky, risky she says. What you are proposing is walking into enemy territory on the off chance that you might, not will, but might find something useful."

"I am surrounded by enemies." Selene growled, her temper flaring slightly. "More then you realise and now you tell me these maesters are another enemy yet you object to me carrying out a fact finding mission. Arys, what do you think?" She asked turning to the third and final member of their little group who looked deep in thought.

"As a knight of the Reach a part of me hates this plan." He was a member of a very prominent Reach house after all. "But if what the grandmaester says about the maesters is true then we really cannot afford to simply take chances. It's risky yes, but it could arguably be worth it."

"Very well." Marwyn admitted seeing as he was the lone objector to the princess's proposal. "But how are you going to get into Oldtown, never mind the Citadel? The Hightowers are certainly no allies of yours."

"I don't need to get into Oldtown I just need to get into Highgarden."

"Ah." Ser Arys stated in realisation. "The Hightowers are the Tyrells strongest allies in the Reach, if you arrive in Oldtown while on your way to Highgarden, perhaps on a diplomatic mission from the crown then the Hightowers cannot afford to refuse you entry into Oldtown."

"The crown is heavily in dept to the Tyrells, more the enough to justify a journey to the Reach." Marwyn added thoughtfully.

"That will allow you to enter Oldtown, but what about the citadel?" Brienne asked. "All this planning is worthless if you can't get into the citadel.

"There is a small disused privy that's long been abandoned, the maesters have been meaning to block it off but have never gotten around to it, that should get you into the citadel." Marwyn proposed.

"Climbing through a privy." Selene stated, her mind flashing back to climbing through pipes in the Chamber of Secrets.

"I very much doubt you'll be able to simply walk though the front door." Marwyn stated with amusement. Climbing through a privy. Selene recalled her infiltration training with Jaqen which had certainly been unpleasant in a number of ways. Marwyns suggestion was a simple, and pardon the pun, dirty solution to the problem.

"But what about finding your way through the citadel. Do you have any maps with you?" Brienne asked Marwyn who nodded although he looked deep in thought as he considered a different solution.

"I do but I might have a better solution. There's an acolyte in Oldtown, Alleras who could guide through citadel." He proposed.

"And why would this Alleras be willing to help me?"

"Because Alleras is none other than Sarella Sand." He answered with a small amount of satisfaction at their stupefied looks.

"One of the Sand Snakes in the heart of the Reach." Arys half whispered in shock before he started bursting out in laughter causing the three of them to all look at him in surprise. "Sorry, it's just for all Mace Tyrell and the Queen of bitches consider themselves all knowing regarding everything in the Reach they have the daughter of someone they openly call an enemy of the Reach located in the domain of their strongest allies." Ser Arys' had become very bitter by the end of his tirade and Selene wasn't the only one to look at him in surprise. She had always known that Arys, for reasons he had never explained had a negative opinion of the Tyrells yet the way he was speaking showed their was much more then a simple dislike about it.

"I can get message to Sarella for you." Marwyn offered as they got back to the matter at hand to which she nodded. Sarella, Selene had found was unique amongst the Sand Snakes, as where her sisters always preferred using a blade she herself was much more of an intellectual, preferring learning to fighting, but that didn't mean she couldn't fight. Well Oberyn had said house Martell owed her a debt although she certainly hadn't expected to call it in so soon. "There is a vault in the lowest levels of the citadel, the answers you seek are most certainly hidden inside. It's locked by a set of keys, each one possessed by one of the arch maesters. You could either take the keys, or try to find another way to get through the door."

"That solves getting into the citadel, and assuming you remain undetected you should be able to exit the same way. But the biggest question is how are you going to remain unnoticed in the city. No doubt Lord Hightower is going to through a feast in celebration of your visit, how are you going to get the chance to escape their notices while you sneak into the citadel?" Ser Arys asked, after all none of this planning would be worthwhile if someone noticed she was missing and a search was arranged to try and find her.

"Just leave that to me." Selene smiled, her training by Jaqen had left her well equipped with infiltration and stealth, she was more then confident that she could resist the detection of the Hightower guards.

"But if we are going through with this plan then we'll need contingencies in case everything goes to shit." Brienne spoke and Selene couldn't have agreed more with her friend. And they did just that.

Line Break

Daenerys smiled as she glanced out the window of the manse in Lys where she was currently staying with her brother Viserys. She didn't know how long they would be staying, their current host was hardly the nicest man who's company they had ever endured but she couldn't deny that she magister had an absolutely beautiful home and she would be sad to say goodbye to it.

Unfortunately she would have to say goodbye to it, just as she had with every other place she had stayed in her life. Daenerys had at one point lived in all of the Free Cities and she had to leave every single one of them for fear of the Usurpers assassins.

Off all the Free Cities Lys prided itself on being the most beautiful, something that Daenerys certainly believed to be true. The artistry, the layout, even the people, everything about the city was beautiful. As a pureblooded Valyrian Daenerys and her brother had always stood out but in Lys their silver hair and purple eyes were common. She liked that, especially when she decided to travel the city, she wasn't Daenerys Targaryen, exiled princess and sister of the rightful king of Westeros, she was simply Dany. Of course her brother was of a very different opinion.

"DANY." A voice bellowed pulling her out of her thoughts as she turned to face her brother Viserys Targaryen. "Did you not hear me?" He asked slowly as he stalked towards her causing her to freeze slightly.

"I-I'm sorry." She stuttered, hating herself for doing so but luckily her brother seemed more annoyed then angry, which was a good thing as she didn't have to worry about waking the dragon. In the past she never had to worry about waking the dragon, Viserys had always had a temper but she had never been the recipient of it, but that had changed over the last few years. Dany understood it after all, it was her fault their mother was dead. If it wasn't for her who knew different things would be if Rhaella Targaryen had survived.

"Anyway there's been news from Westeros." Her brother began, piquing her attention. Westeros, their 'home' but she could she really call a place she didn't even remember as home. To her home was with the house with the red door, with old but kind Ser Willam to care for them. But now that home was gone, and Ser Willam was dead.

"What's the news?" She asked.

"Gregor Clegane is dead." Her brother announced and Dany had to grab the railing next to her in shock. The Monster pet of Tywin Lannister, a man said to be over eight feet tall, a being who could cut a horse in half with a single swing of his sword, the beast who had cut a bloody path through the Iron Islands during the Greyjoy Rebellion and the man who had murdered her nephew Aegon, and then proceeded to rape her goodsister Elia Martell before killing her too. Who could have possibly brought down such a monster?

"The Baratheons." Viserys answered and Dany blushed as she realised she had asked that out loud, luckily her brother didn't seem to mind the question. "Particularly the Usurpers daughter."

"But why?" She asked and this time her brother sent her glare in response causing to flinch but Viserys did answers the question.

"You mean you don't know?" He asked her scornfully. "Of course you don't. The Usurper had removed his sons by the Lannister bitch from the line of succession and named his daughter as his heiress, the Lannisters in response sent to Mountain to kill her, only for her to kill the great beast herself." Selene Baratheon, a woman who unless Dany was mistaken was not even two years older then her and yet she had killed one of the most monstrous people in the world and despite herself she couldn't help but be curious about the Stag princess.

"Selene Baratheon, a person described as one of the most beautiful and fierce women in Westeros. Perhaps their is some hope for the Baratheons after all. And every king needs a queen." Her brother only whispered the last part but Daenerys looked at him shock. "Oh yes the Baratheons will all burn and their greatest member will birth the future of house Targaryen. Oh it will be glorious Dany." Her brother laughed as he proceeded to walk down the hallway, cackling as he did so. Daenerys didn't think she had ever heard such terrifying laughter in her life.

"Selene Baratheon." She muttered with a small amount of pity. Viserys frightened her and he was her brother, she had no idea what he would do to Selene if he got what he wanted but would not be pleasant. "I hope you get a better fate then the one my brother wishes for you." Daenerys looked back outside to the balcony from her room but unlike before she just couldn't let the beautiful view of the city distract her. Her mind was too occupied, and the city just didn't garner her attention in that moment.

The daughter of the Usurper had piqued her interest and now she wanted to know more.

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Selene looked towards Oldtown in the distance as her ship approached the city. As the name implied Oldtown was the oldest city in Westeros with the Hightowers being an ancient house of the First Men and as the centuries went by the small holdfast of the Hightowers grew into the one of the largest and richest cities of the known world. Almost as large as King's Landing but with a population of approximately 300,000 people. And it was a much cleaner city, and while it wasn't completely odourless it didn't carry an infamous stink in the same way that King's Landing did.

"It's beautiful." A voice behind her caught her attention. Turning around she saw her half brother Jon staring at Oldtown in awe. Awe that she could understand, Jon had only seen three cities in his life and Oldtown was much more impressive then either King's Landing or White Harbour. White Harbour was tiny in comparison and didn't carry the infamous stench of the capital.

Honestly Selene did not want Jon with her, she had no idea what she could expect from Oldtown but the dangers still existed. Unfortunately since Ser Arys was coming and Jon was his squire. Jon had been given a quick summery about their reasons for travelling to Oldtown but rather then deter him it had only encouraged him to help in whatever ways that he could. Stubborn and honourable fool.

"Oldtown as the name implies is old, and it has adapted over the centuries, making the most advanced city in Westeros." Selene explained to her brother, although he was unaware of that fact. She wasn't sure whether or not she should tell Jon about his parentage, it was a decision she had been wrestling with for a while now. Was it even her place to tell Jon, or that of her uncle Ned? Or was Jon better believing he was the bastard of Ned Stark rather then the love child or Rhaegar and her mother. Ignorance was bliss as the age old saying went. But as Hayley she had hated how people had kept secrets from her.

"You know I told you this could be dangerous." She told him.

"And I told you that I didn't care. I just want to be able to help you any way that I can." Jon replied.

"But why?" Selene asked. Truthfully she found his loyalty to her very flattering but that didn't change the fact that she didn't get why Jon was purposely putting his life in danger.

"Do you remember the first time you came to Winterfell?" Jon instead asked causing her to look at him in confusion as she nodded. "It was at the welcoming feast for your arrival, you were sitting at the high table, while I was sitting in the back of the great hall where I was kept out of sight." Now that Jon brought it up she did remember it, and what she did.

"Not long after the feast started you asked my father where I was, asking why I wasn't at the feast with my family." Jon continued with a chuckle and Selene let out a small laugh of her own as she recalled what happened. The great hall of Winterfell went completely silent, her uncle was embarrassed while her aunt had looked like she had swallowed a lemon and had all but snapped saying that it wasn't a bastard's place to sit up at the high table. "And in front of the entire hall you left the high table then joined me at the back with the commoners."

"I said that you were as much my family as any other Stark." Selene spoke as she remembered her words. Catelyn had not been happy at her words but Ned, while embarrassed had also been pleased. Looking back he was probably happy about her building a relationship with her brother.

"The reason I'm here to help you Selene is because you chose to help me. I was but a bastard and you were a noble princess who had no business interacting with someone like me."

"You were my family." Selene countered.

"Many would disagree. Even in the North bastards are viewed as nothing more then a stain on their families honour yet that never bothered you. You always treated me fairly and kindly, never looking down on me for my station as others have. You have always showed me kindness and loyalty Selene, and that's why I'm here, so I can repay that in any way that I can." Jon told her passionately and she was truly touched by his words, and in that moment she came to a decision about her dilemma.

"Jon, there's something I need to tell you." She sold him sagely. "About your mother."

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It was nightfall when Selene snuck out of the Hightower. Dressed in dark clothes allowing her to blend easily in the night. She had chosen against taking Lightbringer with her leaving the sword in Ser Arys possession, for this mission she needed speed and stealth the sword would only slow her down, even if her ability to use magic was massively improved while she sword was in her presence.

Selene snuck throughout the city, remaining completely unseen, her training with Jaqen shining through as she avoided the detection of the city watch, drunkards and the unsavoury elements of Oldtown as she made her way to the sewer system near the base of the citadel.

It wasn't hard to find the privy hole that lead to a small stream which lead into the sea. Although from the atrocious smell coming from it she doubted Marwyn's claims about being as abandoned as he had said. "Well here goes nothing." She muttered as she began to climb through the hole in thr foundations of the citadel

After what felt like an hour of climbing through one of the most disgusting locations Selene's had ever had the misfortune of seeing she finally reached the exit to the privy chamber, a cheerful voice greeting as she reached her destination.

"Well hello princess, this is certainly seen a sight I never thought I would see. If those uptight nobles of the court could see you now, tut, what a scandalous sight." Sarella Sand spoke with an absolutely massive smirk, offering no assistance as she pulled out of the hole.

"Many of those nobles already consider me a scandalous tart." Selene defended as she leaned against the wall to catch her breath. She was never, ever forgiving Marwyn for offering her this solution.

"Mmm, that is true." Sarella agreed. "Though we can both agree that you will need to bathe when this is done." She spoke, crinkling her nose in disgust as she did so. Selene just rolled her eyes, although she couldn't disagree with what was quite possibly the most intelligent of the Sand Snakes.

"Have you done what Marwyn asked?" She asked getting straight to business to which Sarella nodded.

"I was on kitchen duty today. I've placed powerful sleeping mixtures in all of the archmaesters food and drinks. They'll be out cold while we get the keys."

"Then lets go." She spoke as the two of them began walking to the corridor which all the archmaesters resided.

"Well that makes things easier." She remarked about the fact all the archmaesters slept in the same place.

"Indeed. Lets get going." Sarella whispered. "Now lets get a move on." She spoke opening the first door, as they located the key to the vault on a small bedside table.

After the fourth archmaester they entered the fifth room when Selene saw something that surprised. "Since when has Pycelle been an archmaester?"

"When Marwyn became the new Grand Maester he took his place as an archmaester." Sarella answered and Selene went to collect the key that she saw was around Pycelle's neck on a chain while Sarella went over to a small table in the corner covered in various vials.

Selene slowly lifted the key off of Pycelle's neck, careful not to wake him when she Sarella hunched over the table in the corner. "What are you doing?" Selene whispered.

"Nothing." Sarella answered back calmly, having finished what she was doing anyway.

"Well let's get a move on." She stated and they continued their mission until they possessed all the archmaester keys, and then began the descent to the base of the citadel.

Selene and Sarella stood before the massive door that would lead to the vault of the maesters hidden secrets. Massive did not begin to describe it, it was absolutely enormous standing at fifteen feet tall and made out of complete stone with an intricate designs on it, with an extremely complex locking mechanism on it, requiring a key possessed by each of the archmaesters to open it.

"Are you ready?" Sarella asked her.

"The reason I'm in Oldtown in the first place is to find out what's behind that door." Selene answered as she walked up to the door with the first key in her hands as she placed it into the lock before moving onto the next one.

Selene turned the final key, unlocking the door, causing it unlocking mechanism to open it on its own.

End of chapter 12. Please review.

Also a couple of views brought up that it would only unnecessarily and pointlessly delay this story for Selene to try and search for the Hallows, well all I'm saying in response is that I always intended for the Hallows to be in this story and for Selene to search for them, so everything is going according to plan and the plot is not being in any way delayed.

I'm expecting a lot of backlash and negative reviews with Selene saving Joffrey but keep in mind that while Selene acknowledges her brother is a bad person she does still view him as a brother and deep down she hopes he can change and become a better person. It's a bit like how the TV show Merlin in season 3, Merlin saved Morgana despite her having become evil at that point. Knows their bad but still hopes they can change. Also keeping him alive allows him to become the sadistic little shit that in a way will secure Selene's reign because she will be seen as the better alternative. And yes Selene will certainly end up regretting her decision.

Also have to say trying to write Viserys from Daenerys point of view is much harder then I thought it would be.

Pairing will be Aegon/Selene/Daenerys which was my preference. Probably be the hardest to pull off but I look forward to trying.