Hadrian Snow
Their attack on Bitterbridge had worked perfectly, and by the time the sun rose the next morning, him and his Marauders had fully taken the city.
Then came the next part of his plan, which led to where he was now. Crowded within the Great Hall of House Caswell’s keep in the center of the city, Harry met with all of his fellow commanders as to organize their next move.
“My first order is to split off a hundred men from our ranks.” He began the meeting unexpectedly. “Make sure they are only those who are the lightest equipped and least trained. Most shall head north, towards Renly’s position, but also south, randomly throughout the Reach. They will begin spreading word of the atrocity that has taken place at Bitterbridge.”
The men looked around in confusion. Mainly at the fact that Bitterbridge was perfectly fine, with only some of the guards being killed in the initial assault. The rest of the men-at-arms had been put in pens, and would be released when they left. That wasn’t to mention the smallfolk, who had either fled or barricaded themselves in their homes. To say a massacre had taken place here would be a vast overstatement.
“Um, atrocity, my Lord?” One of the knights asked uncertainly.
Harry nodded. “Spread word that we have killed every man in Bitterbridge, all one hundred thousand of them.”
“H-Hundred thousand?!” The men-at-arms and knights reeled back collectively, expressions of horror appearing on their faces.
“On second thought, that might not be enough to terrify everyone. Perhaps two hundred thousand?” He mused idly, as his men became even more panicked.
“P-Please, my Lord! The Realm will think we are sinners for committing such a crime! E-Even if we never did so in the first place!” One of the knights fell to his knees, pleading.
“Why not say four hundred thousand?” Captain Jarek Waters asked, seemingly amused by this whole ploy. The captain was one of the few who seemed to have understood what Harry’s plan was, being to cause widespread terror amongst his enemies.
But to the men who hadn’t caught on, all of them looked shook. “Next, have the smallfolk rounded up and separated into different parts of the city. Wake them up at random points in the night and move them to new locations every couple hours. We need them as tired and disoriented as possible.”
“But… Why, my Lord?”
“For we will convince them of our ‘supposed’ misdeeds.” Harry answered. “During the night, we will have some groups purposely scream in terror, and will intentionally make mounds of corpses and burned buildings to show them as proof. After that, we’ll send them off after our hundred men. It will only convince our enemies more of our misdeeds, making them terrified of what we’ll do next.”
/////
The smallfolk of Bitterbridge were absolutely terrified when the next day dawned. His men had played the part of rampaging, bloodthirsty bandits perfectly, burning buildings, making mounds of corpses from men that were already deceased, along with covering their armor and swords with gore. They had even made groups of smallfolk scream in pure terror, some accidentally, while others were paid in exchange for their services.
Val even had the ingenious idea of setting fire to the nearby forests. A great forest fire was now raging north of the city, sending up huge amounts of smoke that could probably be seen from hundreds of leagues away. He was sure the Lords of the Reach were starting to panic, and the impending arrival of his riders disguised as refugees and messengers would only create more chaos.
Of course, all of this only made the city’s population even more terrified. Smoke and raging fires could be seen outside the walls, making many of them think the world was literally ending.
When Harry was convinced that they were sufficiently terrified, he ordered the groups to be released one by one. Most were sent out the city’s northern entrance, as he hoped they would somehow end up in Renly’s camp in order to terrify them.
Few were released to the south, mainly being those that knew the whole atrocity was a show. They were those who were bribed with food to scream throughout the night, or were those who were able to put the clues together as to what Harry was planning.
If everything went right, the Lords of the Reach would believe Harry was laying waste to Bitterbridge, and that he had no intention of stopping. Soon, other towns and holdfasts might come under siege from his smaller force, further amping up the pressure.
And if that wasn’t enough, he had even written a personal letter to King Renly as insurance. He had wrote it in the most evil and condescending way he possibly could, hoping to goad the King into defeat.
It was as it all came to an end that him and his men were mounted up and moving on from Bitterbridge, and Harry had their exact destination in mind. It was the place where two of his lovers were waiting for him, with one of them being his future wife. To Highgarden.
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Margaery Tyrell
As the Starks would say, winter was coming, as she could feel the chill in the air. But Margaery actually enjoyed the change in temperature, making the hot summer days more pleasant with the nice breeze.
Sadly, her Grandmother was not of the same mind. A heavy frown sat on Olenna Tyrell’s face as she gazed out from one of Highgarden’s many terraces, not calmed in the least by the beautiful scenery below.
“Your father is even more foolish than I originally thought.” Olenna began their conversation on a bad note, drinking heavily from her cup of wine. “I should’ve swallowed, or even taken moon tea, rather than giving birth to that fat fool.”
Margaery couldn’t help but wince. It seems that Grandmother’s mood is even more foul than usual today.
The older woman’s gaze suddenly narrowed in on her. “If Renly tries to inseminate you, then you better be smart enough spit it out or take moon tea the next morning. At the rate this war is going, we’re better off hiring some faceless men to get rid of him.”
She shifted uneasily. “Talking like that would be considered treason, Grandmother.”
“Don’t lecture me about treason, dear.” Her grandmother scowled. “Besides, it’s only a matter of time till this mess is over, with us even more worse off than before. Whether due to Tywin Lannister taking your husband and father’s heads, or if it’s the Dornish who finally have enough and poison us all in our sleep. We are a doomed House nonetheless. We’ll be lucky to hold on to Highgarden, much less our title as Lord Paramount of the Reach.”
She felt unease seep into her stomach, the type of stress that was rare for her to experience. Politics, plots, court intrigues, and seduction were all things Margaery could handle with ease. But it seemed that war was her weakness, akin to a rabid animal that she had no control over.
And it was all made worse by her Grandmother’s particularly foul words, which she was usually able to ignore.
“You should have a better outlook on things, Grandmother.” Margaery, swirled her goblet of wine, before taking a deep sip. “Even if our alliance with King Renly breaks, Father can always retreat back to the Reach with his bannermen. It would be far too costly for the Lannisters and Starks to besiege us here.”
Rather than agree, Olenna snorted in cruel amusement. “You are more right that you know, dear, just not in the way one would think. As we’ll be under siege far sooner than one would like.”
“Huh?”
“Word has come from House Redwyne, that the Ironborn have begun raiding our shores.” Olenna said, picking up several letters that rested at her side. “Apparently, King Tommen has given them a ‘Royal Warrant’ to loot and pillage the shores of the Reach. No doubt Ned Stark and Cersei Lannister had a hand coming up with that particular idea, as it will also satiate the Greyjoy’s lust for piracy.”
Dark wings and dark words was the saying for incoming ravens bringing news, and it seemed the words brought by raven were worse than usual as of late. She could not see why Olenna Tyrell was in such a terrible mood.
“Oh.” Margaery realized how terrible that particular bit of news was.
Her Grandmother let out a snort. “Indeed. But it is not all terrible, as a certain bastard is making his way further into the Reach to us here.”
She thought those words over, before realizing what she meant. “Harry?”
A nod. “Your lover is apparently racing south to Highgarden, and is going to besiege us here. No clue how he plans to impregnate this place, but his magic will certainly help. Mace was quite panicked about it in his latest letter, and his alliance will no doubt fall apart if the bastard manages to actually pull it off.”
“You don’t seem… overly concerned.” Margaery noted her Grandmother’s lack of panic.
“It’s because I have you, my dear. Along with that Dornish whore masquerading as a Princess.” Olenna replied. “The Stark bastard favors the two of you, and is likely going out of his way to try and take you back.”
He cheeks reddened slightly, feeling warmed by the gesture. Ladies across the realm would often dream and tell stories of a gallant knight coming to their rescue, and Margaery was starting to see the appeal of such a thing.
A Queen she supposedly was, about to be rescued by her bastard lover in the middle of a war. No doubt Harry would want to spirit her off, along with Arianne, taking her to safety and having his way with her all the while.
“I believe that’s enough, for now.” Olenna finally said. “Go and see Arianne, and make sure she’s in good health. The last thing we need is that bastard burning this place down after finding her in poor spirits.”
Margaery gave a courteous nod and did so, leaving the garden and beginning to make her way through the halls of the keep.
Highgarden was a massive castle, likely the biggest in Westeros, and known for being one of the few considered impregnable. It was its sheer size that gave it such a lofty reputation, with three walls built one on top of the other to increase its height, along with the briar labyrinth between the middle and outer walls for any attackers to navigate. That wasn’t to mention the large hill it sat atop, making any besieging army have to climb said hill before taking all three walls before they even approached the keep.
Yet those facts gave her little doubt as to Harry’s ability to take the castle. He was a skilled warrior unlike any other, a known sorcerer, and would likely only need a small force to open the gates from within and storm the place before the guards could act.
After all, a massive castle like this could only be manned by a large force of men-at-arms, which they did not currently have. Her father had taken most of the men with him to fight in the war, leaving a token force behind that barely managed to man the gates, much less go out on patrols.
Such thoughts caused stress to eat away at her stomach once again, as she finally reached the area within the Keep where Arianne was being kept. The Princess of Dorne was still under guard, but afforded her own set of apartments in place of an actual cell.
Margaery walked past the guards before opening the door, not bothering to announce herself. She was a regular visitor here after all, usually coming to visit in the evenings.
Inside, she found Arianne was naked and standing in front of an expensive Myrish mirror, admiring her own bare form as if looking for imperfections. Clearly in the middle of trying on different outfits, yet lost in her own pleasure as she cupped her immense breasts and sent Margaery a smirk.
“I didn’t expect you at this hour.” Arianne turned around from the mirror, breasts swaying heavily at the movement before her expression wilted. “What’s wrong?”
Is it that obvious? She had spent many years practicing to keep her thoughts hidden, expressions controlled. Yet now it seemed Arianne could simply read her like a book… or rather, Margaery was simply that distressed.
“Harry is coming.” She didn’t bother with formalities, especially if Arianne wanted to stay naked in front of her. “He should be here in the next couple days.”
The Princess of Dorne stilled, as an expression of joy appeared on her face. After all, Harry coming to Highgarden meant that she was about to be rescued. “And this is a bad thing?”
“More-so for me, than it is for you.” She replied, sitting down. “You’re not the one who sided with Harry’s enemies.”
“You’re too hard on yourself.” Arianne moved over and sat next to her on the couch, placing her hand on Margaery’s thigh in a show of support. “It’s not like you could resist after Renly and your brother attacked the camp and spirited you away. Harry will know that.”
“Still…” She trailed off in uncertainty.
Arianne ran her hand lightly along her face, trailing down so her fingertips ghosted over Margaery’s breasts. “If he needs convincing, then I will help in any way I can.”
“I-It might not be enough.” She rambled, as her worries came flooding out. “He could hate me. And he wouldn’t be wrong to for what I’ve done. All of this could’ve-”
She stopped, eyes wide, as Arianne’s lips were suddenly against her own. She could feel the woman’s hands running through her hair, down her form in a way that made her blush.
“I know why you came here.” The Dornishwoman’s voice was deep and sultry. “It was not just to tell me about Harry, but also for your own relief.”
Margaery tried to respond, but Arianne kissed her again, hands hungrily roaming over her body in a more forceful way. Soon her dress was pulled away, breasts exposed as the two women were left naked.
The Martell Princess was then on top of her, their breasts mashed together, as she kissed up and down her long neck. “Let us make tonight memorable, and take time to practice for when Harry is with us once again.”
She moaned in agreement, her vision fluttering in pleasure as her core became drenched in arousal. This wasn’t the first time they had entertained each other’s pleasures, but before it had always seemed somewhat forced. Now they were both looking to comfort each other, bonding over the man they loved.
Soon, night came as Margaery stayed in Arianne’s room, sleeping next to her in the same bed. The girl was bare and sound asleep next to her, entirely unaware that she was awake at her side.
Tired as she was, sleep refused to come. Word of Harry’s return dominated her thoughts, and it was once her tired eyelids forcefully shut that noise woke her.
She could hear sounds coming from outside the keep. The ringing of bells and yells of guards, stirring awake more of the castle’s occupants. Belatedly, she stood from the bed and walked over to the balcony, pushing aside the curtain blocking it to see what was going on.
Fires raged outside the castle, as the nearest buildings to the castle walls were set ablaze. She could make out thousands of torches moving in the darkness, marking the movement of thousands of men.
Grandmother was right, a siege would come sooner than we thought. And their attackers had arrived earlier than expected at that, meaning they had raced straight here from Bitterbridge. Harry must be there too.
She turned to head back into the room, to wake Arianne, only to spin and suddenly find herself face to face with a familiar pair of green eyes.
“H-Harry.” She breathed out sharply. “I-I need to-”
“Shh.” He quieted her, holding a finger to her lips. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
“W-What?” She felt befuddled. “But I betrayed you. Agreed to marry Renly, and went along with my Father’s-”
“And yet you’re here, taking care of her.” He looked meaningfully over her shoulder at Arianne, who was still asleep. “Besides, I’m sure you did what you could to get out of it. The fact you’re here and not with Mace and Renly’s army says a lot.”
Margaery swallowed her initial retort, trying to get some semblance of control over her raging emotions. For some reason, she happened to glance at her reflection in the nearby mirror in that moment, seeing her ravaged and disheveled form due to Arianne’s lovemaking. It struck her that this was probably the ugliest she had ever looked in Harry’s presence, yet he didn’t reject her.
“Obviously it wasn't enough.” She looked away in embarrassment, seeing out the window to the besieging army below. “What happens now?”
“I’m taking Arianne with me, and you’re free to come too.” He answered. “Highgarden is only a rest stop to try and scare your Father into quitting the war, we’ll be heading south to our true destination after this.”
She blinked. “And that would be?”
“Oldtown.”
Disclaimer: All Characters are over the Age of 18
A/N: Ended up scrapping and eventually rewriting a portion of this chapter that I wasn’t happy with, which delayed this. Expect Harry x Arianne x Margaery next chapter