Chapter Text
After his victory against Tywin Lannister, King Robert Baratheon has summoned all the lords to King's Landing to renew their oaths of fealty. True to his nature, this was followed by a feast that didn't seem to end. For a fortnight lords and ladies celebrated their king's victory. Everyone was enjoying themselves.
Today, however, the morning silence was interrupted by a women's scream and within moments the castle was awake. The news had spread like wildfire. Robb Stark had been caught in Arianne Martell's bed.
"How could you do this?" His mother yells at him. She had been doing it for quite some time and by now he knows it isn't really a question. Her yelling is followed by a glare, that he tries to avoid by looking at his feet.
"Robb Stark, you will look me in the eyes when I'm talking to you!" There is no avoiding it.
"I know that young men have needs and I understand that," Others take him, not this again. "But why not go to a brothel? Why not some servant wench? Why did it have to be a Dornish princess?" His mother continues her rant as she paces in front of him, with her hands in the air.
"The Dornish are treacherous! You are smart enough to know that," and Robb did know it. He knew more than his mother assumes, but he can't tell her that. Not yet.
"She seduced you and you walked right into her trap! You think it is a coincidence that the Red Viper's daughter caught you?" She asks incredulously. "Your mistake could cost us more than you think."
The only thing that stops her is exhaustion. The disappointment in her eyes, hurts more than he imagined.
His mother is only partially right. It was a trap, planned by Arianne and her family to force his father to marry him to the princess. He had fallen for it, just like he had fallen for her at the first sight.
Never in his life had he seen something so beautiful and alluring. Women like that weren't supposed to exist.
Every men had lusted after her but the Gods had smiled upon him or so he had thought. The princess wanted to see Grey Wind and he was happy to oblige such a simple wish. Maybe she would be thankful to grant him a dance? A dance in exchange for seeing a direwolf, that is how everything had started.
Robb was always confident and relaxed around girls but in her presence he had acted like a hopeless fool. At least in the beginning.
Arianne had a way about her to make one feel special. If her beauty had drawn him to her, it was her charm and wits that made him fall in love with her. She was bold-spirited woman with a sharp tounge and a sharper mind.
One moment she was a perfect lady and the next moment she would whisper things in his ear, that would make a whore blush. He could spend an eternity with her and never be bored.
She was everything he wanted before he even knew it.
But then, three days ago, everything changed. Wanting to prove to her that he could be bold and spontaneous like those Dornish paramours, he had heard about, Robb had found a ladder and tried to climb into her room.
Just as he was about to climb through the window, he heard his princess discuss their plan with her cousins.
Never in his life had he felt so ashamed and stupid. But after the shame came anger and the hunger for vengeance.
He would use the knowledge he had and get everything he could from Arianne but he would leave just before their trap was sprung.
It had worked perfectly. Arianne had complied with his every wish. In Godswood, against the skull of Balerion, on the beach and even in the throne room they had made love.
As expected last night, Arianne invited him to her chambers. One more time, he had thought and then I don't want to see you ever again.
Before he could fulfil his next fantasy, Arianne had stopped him. It was the first time she had looked insecure and even a little ashamed.
"Robb, you need to leave," Arianne whispered but Robb decided to play the fool.
"Why? Is something wrong?" Robb asked and Arianne smiled sadly at him.
"I cannot do this to you. You don't deserve it. You deserve someone better than me." Her voice seemd caught in her throat as she struggled to find the right words.
Was this some new strategy or the truth, he couldn't know so he feigned ignorance .
"You cannot do what, Arianne?"
"I cannot take away from you the same thing I'm fighting for. Look, it is a long story but in a few hours Tyene will come in and scream. Everyone will know what we did and my uncle will demand that you marry me-"
Maybe he was still a fool but he just couldn't watch her like that. Her broken voice and watery eyes made him stop her.
"I know," Robb confessed in a flat tone. He wanted to scream and yell at her but he just couldn't.
"No, you don't understand. One of us would have to give up their inheritance and he will insist that you do it." She tried to make him see the full picture.
"I know," he repeated. "Three nights ago I was about to climb through that window and surprise you," he pointed at the exact window with his hand, "but then I heard you talk about your great plan."
At first she just looked at him with wide eyes and her jaw was almost touching the floor.
"But why didn't you say anything? Why did you come here?" She asked and Robb just wiggled his eyebrows and gave her his most wicked grin.
He should have seen the slap coming.
"You used me," she growled and went to slap him again but he caught her hand.
"You were using me from the beginning. You made me fall in love with you, just so you could force my father's hand! Why? To hurt him?" Robb growled back at her.
Her anger was gone and she looked at her hand, that he was holding. Robb let her go.
"No. Not to hurt your father, but to stop my father from giving Dorne to Quentyn. I don't know why, but he doesn't want me to inherit Sunspear," she took a deep breath and turned away from him.
"I need allies if I'm going to stop him. You are the heir to Winterfell, second in line to Riverrun and your aunt is married to the Hand. With you as my husband, my father wouldn't dare to disinherit me."
She turned again and looked at him.
"It doesn't matter. I will find some other way to stop him. I'm sorry, you should know that with any other men, I would have gone through with it," she rolled her eyes. "I would have tried it."
"You are the only man, who made me consider giving up my birthright. I cannot let my father win. I'm sorry Robb." She kissed him softly and then wiped a lone tear from her cheek with the back of her hand. "I'm pathetic. Go. Before I embarrass myself more."
How could her father do something like that? She was his heir by law.
"No. This is what we are going to do..."
Now he waited with his mother for his father to come back from the Hand's Tower. He was there with Oberyn Martell and Jon Arryn, trying to find a solution that was agreeable for everyone.
"Was there blood on the sheets?" His mother broke the silence. "Of course not," she didn't wait for him to answer, "you would find snow in Dorne before you find a maiden."
"We should go to the King and tell him that," she was trying to find a way out of this mess, but was interrupted when his father entered the room. He was clearly angry.
"Oberyn demands that you marry his niece. He insists that you be the one that gives up his birthright. It's either that or you fight him in a duel."
His mother went pale at the news, "Ned, he will die-"
"He will name me his champion," Eddard stopped his mother.
It was time to stop this, Robb decided. Nobody is fighting anyone.
"No. I will not." Robb spoke for the first time. "There will be no duels. I will give up the North."
"You cannot mean that, Robb!" Catelyn screamed at him.
"Nobody is going to die because of me," he stud up and walked to her. Her eyes glistened with tears. He kissed her forehead softly, "Don't be sad. Your firstborn is getting married to a princess and soon you will have little grandchildren to spoil. We will visit each other whenever we can. Bran will inherit Winterfell and our blood will rule two kingdoms."
"Robb, we can talk to prince Doran. He is much more reasonable than his brother." His father said.
"I wouldn't be so sure," Robb answered. "Either way, it doesn't matter. I will marry Arianne."
"Son, I'm proud that you want to do the right thing but I fear you are making a mistake. One day you could regret this." His father tried one more time.
"Trust me father, I will regret many things but not this. There are worst things than marrying for love."
"But she doesn't love you!" It looked like nothing was going to convince his mother.
"She does. She warned me to get out of her room long before Tyene came in. She betrayed her family's trust to save me." Robb explained.
"Why didn't you leave then?" His father asked curiously.
"Because I already knew about their plan and when she confessed everything, I knew that she loved me. If she could, she would give up Dorne for me." It wasn't the exactly the truth but close enough.
Nobody said anything for a long time. The silence made him uncomfortable.
"I suppose there are worse matches than a princess," his father said in defeat. "I would have you happy before anything else."
His mother stood up and looked at him sternly.
"You will write regularly. You will visit once a year. I want at least one grandchild fostered in Winterfell-" she was giving orders like a battle commander.
Robb just laughed and hugged her tightly. "Anything you say, mother."