Fellowship & Fairydust

Tenerife Sea – Ed Sheeran

You look so wonderful in your dress.
I love your hair like that;
the way it falls on the side of your neck,
down your shoulders and back.
We are surrounded by all of these lies
and people who talk too much.
You’ve got that kind of look in your eyes
as if no one knows anything but us.
And should this be the last thing I see,
I want you to know it’s enough for me.

December 30, 299

When Sansa opened her eyes, it was to darkness. The moon was high in the sky. She was still naked. The dress she had been wearing the day before was puddled on the floor, the hem dirty from the road. Tyrion’s clothes were beside hers. She smiled, remembering the afternoon they had enjoyed together. Never in her life had she felt so close to another person. It was hard to believe that that person was the Lannister imp.

She rolled onto her side, cupping her head in her hand and staring at him. He twitched as he slept, his brow furrowing, his hand scrabbling for purchase against the covers. She frowned, remembering how still he’d lain when they were first wed. He was never like that anymore. She wondered if it was because he drank less than he used to. Did ale make people sleep sounder?

Sansa slid from the bed. They hadn’t bothered to unpack the night before, and it took a moment for her to locate her luggage. She fished through it before pulling out a pale blue dressing gown, which she wrapped around her shoulders. She padded across the room to the door and carefully lifted the bar.

“Where’re you going?” Tyrion asked blearily.

“Bathroom,” Sansa said.

Tyrion groaned and pushed himself up. “You’re supposed to take Adelaide.”

“Adelaide is fast asleep in her own room,” Sansa said. “It’s the middle of the night.”

He stared at her, a protest on his lips.

“I’ll be quick,” Sansa assured him. “Please?”

Tyrion sighed and inclined his head.

Sansa slipped from their bedchambers to the privy down the hall. Although she had noticed little on her trip to their quarters, the location of the bathroom had stuck. She slipped inside and did her duty quickly. It was a wonder, but for the first time in days, she had no desire to hurt herself.

When she returned to their rooms, it was to find Tyrion dressed and stacking items into a basket. She stared at him, perplexed.

Tyrion caught her look. “Considering we’ve slept the day away, I thought we might spend the evening under the stars.”

A smile graced Sansa’s lips.

“I remember thinking the stars were beautiful when I was a boy,” Tyrion said. “I haven’t bothered to look at them in a long time.”

“That sounds nice, Tyrion,” Sansa said.

***

Tyrion led Sansa out the back of the castle. She had the basket in her hands, laden with blankets and food they’d grabbed from the kitchens on their way through the castle. Tyrion loved the dark of night when the world was quiet, save for the frogs and night birds. In the din of the moon, he could see his breath puffing in small clouds in front of him.

He led her to a section of the beach that the ‘little people’ were blocked from using. The sea stretched out in front of them, dark and brooding, while beneath them, the white sand seemed to glow in the moonlight. Tyron stopped, and Sansa stopped beside him.

“Here?” Sansa asked.

Tyrion nodded. He helped Sansa spread a blanket out on the beach, and they set the food they had packed in the basket above where their heads would be. Tyrion selected a sandwich from the basket before throwing himself on his back. The stars were above them, and Tyrion thought that he could not imagine a more perfect night to gaze upon them.

“What do you think the stars are?” Sansa asked.

Tyrion had just taken a mouthful of food, and he chewed it, staring at the stars ponderously. Swallowing he replied, “The Maesters say different things. Some believe that they are holes punched in the sky so the gods can look down upon us. Others say that the kings of the past are up there. Still, others say they are lanterns that the gods left in place to provide light to us each night.”

Sansa rolled onto one side and cupped her head in her hand. “Yes. But what do you think?”

“Me?” Tyrion frowned, staring at the Great Lion above. “I think they’re beautiful.”

Sansa laughed and rolled onto her back, her hair fanning out beneath her. “Me, too.”

***

Sansa couldn’t remember a time when she felt as content as she did lying next to Tyrion on the beach, watching the stars and listening to the waves crash against the beach. Tyrion lay so close that she could smell the leftover ink on his fingertips and the ham on his breath. She wanted to touch him, but despite their afternoon of lovemaking, she felt shy. He was her husband, and yet she didn’t know if he enjoyed having his hands held.

She watched the horizon line turn from black to grey, and then from grey to pink. Tyrion dozed beside her, his chest rising and falling. She rolled onto her side, watching the air puff above him. Her fingertips reached out of their own accord and hovered just above his chest, desperate to feel the beat of his heart, and yet she hesitated.

“My Lady.” Tyrion cracked open a single eye to look at her. “I’m not going to slap you for touching me.”

Sansa felt herself flush hotly.

Tyrion sighed and pushed himself into a sitting position. He reached up and laced his hand through the one she had hovered above him, squeezing her fingertips gently. “We should be getting back anyway, before…”

Warning bells sounded from Casterly Rock, echoing loudly towards the beach.

“Damn!” Tyrion leapt to his feet, tugging Sansa’s hand as he went. “We’re missing.”

“What?”

“Your handmaiden probably tried to bring us breakfast or some such nonsense.” Tyrion rolled his eyes. “Hurry now, before they send the guards to fetch us back.”

Sansa reached to grab the basket.

“Just leave it!” Tyrion began to jog towards the rock. “We’ll send Podrick to get it later.”

Laughing, Sansa ran after him. She caught his hand as she reached him, and together they sprinted the distance to Casterly Rock.

***

“Do you have any idea how many people are looking for you?” Bronn stood just inside the door to the castle, leaning against a wall, his arms crossed over his chest.

Tyrion, still panting from the run, shrugged. “Everyone but you I take it?”

Bronn scowled. “I knew you’d gone and done something foolish.”

“That is what I do.” Tyrion glanced sideways at his young bride. She was, he could tell, attempting to look properly chastened, but the pink of her cheeks gave her away. Tyrion added to Bronn, his voice wry, “We are truly sorry for any inconvenience we may have caused.”

“I’m sure.” Bronn pushed himself away from the wall. “I’ll go ring the bells to let them all know you’re found.”

Tyrion waited until Bronn made it around the corner before laughing. Half a second later Sansa joined in, her laughter a soft, lilting sound.

“I know we shouldn’t have worried everyone,” Sansa said between breaths. “But it’s so nice to be able to. At King’s Landing…”

“We’d both have had to deal with more than Bronn.” Tyrion smiled. “We’re the Lord and Lady of Casterly Rock. This is our domain.”

“As long as the servants don’t revolt, anyway.” Sansa brushed the hair away from her face. Her eyes sparkled with merriment.

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