eachdraidh | (fourth lemon cake) voice ✧ open to both courts

Fellow Shardholders. [ of either court! ]

I would speak to a man of law -- should any find himself amid our numbers. [ such a profession is unknown to her, but stiles has explained some occupations and tenets of his world and this one in particular piques her interest. sansa stark could make use of such a man who might be bound by her confidentiality. of course, she does not quite understand the ins and outs of the arrangement.

but that's why she asks today: to learn; to plan; to piece together little patches of her defence. ] Anyone who would call themselves lawyer. I would speak with you. That is the word for it, yes? [ lawyer. ] My apologies if I've gotten it wrong; I'm only a simple girl and I am unwise in these matters. I want to learn about the things that are mysteries to me.

[ like whether a lawyer's strange binding powers of argumentation would even apply in these lands. once her conversations are finished, she snaps the locket shut and can be found in the library -- where she organizes books she doesn't care to read, because the practise soothes her and distracts her mind from its darker thoughts. or else come the evening she sits in her chambers, and allies of hers are welcome to stop and knock. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ she curls her fingers around the glass but does not drink. ]

Only we have no High Septon here, my lord. Only fairies and kings and strangers.

I think the King and Queen must have some form of Sept themselves. I would not think otherwise. If you asked them kindly I am sure they could direct you to where best to find one of their kind.

[ He leans forward, careful. ]

Who's marriage do you wish to see annulled, my lady? I have given thought to the matter myself, with regards to my own lady wife and her marriage to Joffrey.

[ ah. so ser loras kept some of her secrets -- though perhaps only because it was not important enough to tell. sansa nods her head and swears that she will tell renly of how she'd seen the very ending of lady margaery's marriage with her own eyes.

but for now? ] My own, my lord.

I see.

[ He nods his head, tapping absent fingers on the side of his chair, tilting his head with curiosity. ]

Allow me to ask, then. Was your marriage consummated, Sansa?

[ the question comes with no ceremony. no pomp. no introduction. hard and sharp like a knife, it lays across not only her heart but the thick muscular cord of her sensibilities. her moment of panic is clear: her well-maintained mask cracks just a little bit, and she looks as if she might fall to tears.

tears of joy. tears of happiness. tears of gratitude. because lord tyrion had been an ugly unfortunate husband, but he had not robbed her of her maidenhood. even so, the matter is personal and unseemly so her cheeks flush with humiliation. ]

No. No. My Lord Husband did not -- he did not demand it of me.

[ Renly moves, then, drawing a silken handkerchief from his sleeve and handing it over with not ceremony, shaking his head. He did not mean to be cruel, of course, but it was important that he ask. It is better to pull the bandage from the wound and ask it swiftly than drag it out as though it were not a question that was sure to come. He nods, leaning back in his chair. ]

Then we can certainly have your marriage annulled. All you must do is request it, my lady, and we will bring it to the attention of the King and Queen. Their laws cannot be so different from our own.

[ He bows his head, offering a hand should she want it for comfort. ]

You will be a Stark once more.

[ the hand she shuns, but the silk cloth she dabs to her cheeks and relishes its cool feel on her skin. ]

And if my Lord Husband were to ever arrive...[ but, oh! she had not identified him. and with a barely-noticeable wince, she clarifies: ] If Lord Tyrion were ever to come here to either court, my lord...

It would matter not. [ Renly lifts a shoulder, shaking his head. ] As I said, it takes only one to annul a wedding. If you wish to no longer be his wife then that will be it. [ He glances up, astounded, in his turn, that she would be wedded to the Imp. ] I am sorry you have been put through such trials.

In his own words, he is not the sort of husband young girls dream of. [ and then -- quite sadly: ] But also is not Joffrey.

No, he is not. There are not many that could be worse than Joffrey, I imagine. [ He shakes his head. ] I... Know what it means to not be the husband that most dream of, my lady. I will do what I can to aid you.

No, my lord. [ she shakes her head. ] I imagine you would make a perfect husband.

[ it is a sad commentary on how far sansa has fallen in her esteem of the marriage institution: an ideal husband might indeed be one that would be happier ignoring her for another, even if that other is a man. ]

I think you mistaken, my lady, but I thank you for the compliment.

[ He smiles at her, as benevolent as ever, before he stands to pour himself his own glass of water, swallowing it with a careful motion. ]

I can speak to the monarchs for you, if you wish.

Please. I would be so very obliged.

[ she does not note that her father does not know -- like as not, she doesn't have to. she would not be here talking to lord renly if she had her father's confidence to indulge. but sansa wants the matter settled before lord eddard hears a single word of it. ]

Then I shall do so on your behalf.

[ His glass is placed down and he moves and settles himself back in his chair. ]

It would be honour to aid you, dear Sansa.

And as with so many of our conversations, my lord, I would beg you to keep it between ourselves and Their Graces.

Of course. I would not mention it to anyone else.

[ The only person he would dare speak to is gone, after all. ]

(fourth lemon cake) voice ✧ open to both courts

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