Chapter Text
Robb
His plan had been accepted, a weight seemed to lift off his shoulder when the Dragon Queen agreed to it, only for a new, heavier weight to be put back on, a tournament against a sell sword, an unsullied, a knight and the most famous kings guard in a century. Robb was good with a sword, very good, never beaten on the battlefield, but this was whole new kettle of fish. He walked to the training plaza, a square building with an open roof, hundreds gathered on the walls to watch, he walked with the other 4 men over to blunted weapons stood on a rack. He examined them carefully. Daenerys and Missandei were sitting under a gazebo, drinking an orange coloured juice and whispering predictions, the Dragon queen looked as regal as ever, his heart beat quickened, he could not make a fool of himself in front of her.
Daenerys rose from her chair, "The format of the first Queens Torney will be all against all, get your opponent to yield and then move onto the next, as I said earlier the winners reward is their own request. Good luck."
Robb picked a sword from the rack, weighing it with both his hands and his eyes, Daario picked a Dothraki Arakh, Greyworm chose a spear with a 10 inch blunted tip, Ser Barristan and Ser Jurah both chose a traditional sword.
The men formed a distant circle, Robb sandwiched between Greyworm and Ser Jurah, he looked around the circle hoping to read the men around him, they were all seasoned fighters, they knew better than to let emotion shine through their faces, except for Daario who looked as smug as ever, hardly looking at his opposition but eyeing Daenerys, winking at her, he drew a dagger with the pommel of a naked women on it, kissed the breast of it and then threw it at the weapon rack, the blade reverberating in the wood in the top right corner of the rack.
Robbs mind went blank, he did not care if he won the tournament, he had nothing to ask the Dragon Queen other than to bring her troops to Westeros and kill the Lannister's, something he knew she could not give, not until Meereen was secure. However he did know one thing, he would not allow Daario Naharis to triumph, the man was everything a Stark of Winterfell despised, arrogant, bashful, careless, but he was dangerous, a man does not simply stubble on the command of thousands of sell swords.
Daenerys clapped her hands and that bought his body to life, he stepped back quickly, examining to his left and right, Ser Jurah did the same, Grey worm however, turned straight for him, with footwork so precise it looked almost inhuman, he stepped and thrusted at Robb's chest, the blow aiming straight for his heart, Robb used the momentum of the strike to glance it away, the sound of steel on steel gave Robb confidence.
It didn’t last long however, grey worm drew back his spear, shuffling his feet to change the angle of approach, he thrust from low to his right, aiming a slice at the artery in Robbs thigh, Robb went to parry but Greyworm had retracted the blade so quickly, he hardly had time to react, he left himself slightly exposed, the attempted parry leading to him facing side face and with a flash of desperation he drew his sword to cover the exposed side of his body.
Again the spear head met his blade, he had gotten lucky, a second later and he would've been disarmed. He remembered what Ser Roddrick would tell him, 'when fighting a man with a spear, use the length against him, he has the range, so get up close and personal, use the pommel of your sword, your head, your knee, whatever you can to throw him off balance.' Robb went on the offensive, swinging his sword at the spear head to knock it aside, leaving a gap of space to step into, Greyworm was too quick however, the spearhead yanked back into a swing at Robbs head, Robb ducked and parried the next jab that came at his chest, they traded blows like this for a minute or so until he saw a way through. He had to play the man.
Unsullied were like a trained dog, pouncing on any chance to do what they were taught, a treat waiting for them if they did. Robb stepped back a few paces quickly, looking around at the other three men, Ser Jorah and Ser Barristan were trading blows, with immense skill and Daario was standing there, twirling his Arakh in his hand, watching the others, weighing them like a butcher does a steak.
Robb had known that Greyworm would pounce as soon as he felt his opposition lose concentration, he stepped forward and thrust at Robbs stomach, he had seen it coming, without lifting his sword arm, he side stepped the blow, and grabbed the wooden spear a few inches below the blade, he pulled with all his might but Greyworm had realised the spear, Robb instead was thrown off balance, Greyworm reached to his waist, grasping for a dagger that was no longer there, instead the curved blade of an Arakh came around grew worms neck, "Yield." said Daario Naharis from behind Greyworm.
Greyworm said nothing, but nodded, the Arakh slid out from his neck and Greyworm walked off to the side, standing to attention, the most emotion Robb had ever seen in his eyes, Fury. Robb had a similar emotion coursing through his veins, that was his victory, his hard work, and Daario had stolen it like a Hyena steals from a… Wolf.
Daario turned his back to Robb, looking directly at Daenerys, "I believe I have made the Young wolf angry, your Grace."
Robb turned to look at Ser Barristan and Ser Jurah, just as Ser Barristan danced around Ser Jurah's blade and with a vicious upper cut, he disarmed the old Bear, putting his sword to his neck, "I yield" Ser Jurah grunted breathlessly.
Only then did Robb realise how hot he was, sweat poured from him, the linen shirt he was wearing clung to him, restricting his movement slightly.
"A break for our 3 remaining champions." Daenerys chanted across the yard. Robb was glad of it, he went over to the table with 5 cups and a jug of water and drank heartily. After he had finished his water, he started to unbutton his linen shirt, glancing over at Daario and Ser Barristan, examining the states they were in, Daario looked as good as new, having not fought in the first duel, he had gotten the measure of both of them without breaking a sweat, Ser Barristan on the other hand looked older than Robb had ever seen him, during the fight with Ser Jurah, he had expended a lot of energy, that alongside the beaming sun made him look tired.
Robb took his linen shirt off and threw it in the sand, exposing his torso to the sun, he looked down at his sword and glanced at his chest, he had a warriors build, thick shoulders and arms, with strong wrists made for holding steel, he had a light covering of stubble on his chest, and a muscular abdomen, littered with scars, 4 puncture marks, a dark purple against his pale skin on his lower torso, from where crossbow bolts had entered him. The Largest and Darkest scar straight over his heart, a thick scar the shape of the cross section of a dagger. Looking at it reminded him of the night Roose Bolton had buried it up to the hilt into his chest, the memory made him angry.
He glanced over at the two women standing in the shade, only to find both of them staring directly at him and the scar on his chest, Daenerys looked away quickly but the expression of shock on her face was plain for all to see, he did not know how to take it. He turned towards Daario and Ser Barristan who were also drinking from the table and they both looked as well though Ser Barristan did not react, he simply spoke, "Your father was the most stubborn man I've ever met, only he could have a son stubborn enough to deny death." Robb smiled at him slightly, twirled his sword once and stepped back into the fighting arena.
Ser Barristan spoke again, "Your grace, I do not wish to mock your Torny, but I wish to save my energy for real threats, with your permission I would yield as to properly analyse these two fight."
"Of course Ser Barristan, you fought valiantly, I'm sure you would have come out victorious either way." Daenerys said with a smile. He bowed and walked underneath the Gazebo, next to Ser Jurah, they shook hands and exchanged a joke to which both men chuckled.
Daario stepped out into the arena, Arakh by his waist, they began to circle each other, Robb with the rigid stance of a Northern warrior, Daario with the nonchalance of a sell sword smothered in confidence. "I watched you fight, Lord Stark, you are a good fighter but I am a great one." he threw his arakh up in the air, it did two flips before settling back into his hand, a peacock showing his feathers, thought Robb. He refocused on the task at hand, he knew that Daario would try to anger him, make him slip up with his words, Robb also knew that he would have to be at his very best to beat him.
He stared intently into the brown eyes of his opponent circling mere feet away. Daario lunged quickly, slashing his Arakh through the air at Robbs neck, he back peddled and moved his head back just in time, he felt the wind rush against his Adams apple from where the blade had passed just underneath. Daario smiled, his Golden tooth reflecting the beaming Mereenese sun, blinding Robb for a second, in that second Daario rush forward, a flurry of blows cascading down on Robb who did all he could to deflect and parry, moving his feet in the defensive steps Ser Roddrick had taught him. Daario was quick, strong and clearly talented with his blade. Robb needed to find a weakness. He fainted a blow at Daario's rib cage, pulled his sword back and thrust at his heart, Daario brushed the attack aside with apparent ease.
He remembered training with Theon Greyjoy, the traitor, when he was a child in Winterfell, Theon was older and used to be larger than Robb, this was his greatest strength. One day Ser Rodrick took Robb aside mid duel and told him that your opponents greatest strength was also his greatest weakness, he needed to apply this logic here.
"Do you love her?" he heard himself say as the men parted from another flurry of blows, he could see the question land as Daario's eyes narrowed at him, "The Wolf does have a voice, I feared someone had cut his tongue from him alongside his manhood… or did they leave that part of you when they killed you." Robb had prepared himself for a retort but this crossed a line even for a man like Daario. Robb lunged again, meeting the Arakh up by Daario's shoulder, who turned the blow and aimed a slash of his own at his torso which Robb deflected, using the momentum of the parry to twist into a ferocious cut at Daario's head, the blunted tip was sharp enough to draw a line of blood across his cheek.
"I once fought a man in the fighting pits called Strong Belwas." Daario said smiling as he retreated quickly, wiping the blood from his face, "he always let the man he fought cut him once before he killed him. Tell me King Robb, did you think that's what you were doing when the man plunged a dagger into your chest, if so Northerners are even thicker than I knew?"
Blind rage took over him, Robb charged at the man, cutting and hacking at Daario who parried and blocked with frustrating ease, as Robb aimed a deadly slice at the mans neck, the butt of the Arakh came flying towards his temple, he was knocked to the ground, dazed and covered in sand. He pushed himself up onto one knee and turned back to where Daario was, only to find him facing Daenerys, "After I dispatch of this dog for you, I should like my reward to be the pelt of his Direwolf, it shall decorate the room in which we shall be eating in later." He turned back to Robb, who glanced over Daario's shoulder at the Dragon Queen to find her eyes boring into his, defiant and willing, it gave him courage.
Robb got to his feet, "The young wolf arises." he heard Daario say in a mocking tone, making his mind flash back to Walder Frey. He took a deep breath before he spoke quietly, but loud enough for all to hear, "Has anyone ever loved you? You were raised in the fighting pits, that must have been difficult for a young boy. If truth be told Daario, I pity you, you will never find what you so desperately crave, for love cannot be won."
Now it was Daario's turn to charge, his strikes were quick and ferocious, a whirl of blades, parrying and cutting, Robb ducked and weaved, blocked and countered for what felt like hours, Daario's attacks were weakening, becoming slower and sloppy, Robb intercepted a cut at his face and held the block there, the men were face to face as Daario grunted, "Did you feel like you won when you saw what they did to your wife?"
A second wave of rage passed over him, he slammed his forehead into Daario's nose and heard a sickening crunch, or at least it would've been sickening had it not been the sweetest sound he had ever heard. Daario fell onto his back as Robb saw a dark shape in his peripheral vision, Robb held the point of his sword up to Daario's neck as Grey Wind slinked over and hovered his massive head over the horizontal form that was the leader of the Second Sons and growled, a deep, guttural sound with 3 inch long razor sharp teeth bared ready to tear into his neck. "Yield" Robb said simply. He saw a flicker of defiance in Daario's eyes before looking up at the Direwolf as a string of saliva fell from Greywinds mouth onto Daario's face, "I yield." he said defeatedly.
A round of applause from the hundreds decorating the walls alongside Daenerys, Ser Jorah and Ser Barristan. Robb walked towards the Gazebo and knelt, chest heaving from the duel.
"You fought valiantly, Lord Stark, I am a women of my word, if there is a request you might ask of me and it is within my power I shall grant it." Daenerys spoke with a tinge of glee etched into her words. Her eyes met Robb's and his heart dropped slightly, he regained his composure and stood, "If your grace would be so kind as to allow me to select the menu for a dinner with all of the Queen's council as well as my friends Thoros of Myr and Beric Dondarrion" he glanced at Daario who had returned to wrench his dagger from the weapon stand, "I am yet to try Peacock but I've heard it is… succulent. And Perhaps a live Peacock for Greywind, I would not have him missing out on the feast."
A smirk washed across Daenerys' face and he thought he saw Missandei quickly cover up a laugh, he glanced over at Ser Jurah and Ser Barristan who beamed with appreciation that someone had finally taken Daario down a few pegs. Robb allowed a feeling of pride to wash over him, he had held his nerve and come out victorious.
Daenerys stared into his eyes for a moment and pronounced, "If that is all then it shall be granted, will Daario Naharis be invited to the feast, forgive me but I did not think Northerners forgave insolence."
"I do not see a reason why he should not be in attendance, a wine bearer will of course be necessary and I'm sure Daario is keen to serve his Queen and her council." Robb replied, trying and failing to hide a grin creeping across his face.
"I would be honoured to serve my Queen and you, Lord Stark." Daario said with a bow
Robb would have contested the title Daario gave to him but he did not expect a man with Daario's pride to take the insults Robb had given him with his request lying down. He would feast tonight with the women Daario loved whilst he served them wine, that was enough for him.