A/N: I should probably confessthat I have no idea about the actual lay out of the Red Keep and all associated buildings like the Maidenvault. So there might be errors and the like but I hope they don't detract from the story too much.

An unpleasant silence settled around them and Lyanna could feel Cersei's eyes boring into her. Right now, all she could think of was putting as much distance between herself and the Lannister girl as possible but she couldn't resist one final word.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Cersei forced out a laugh.

"You act like some innocent maiden, accusing me of vying for the attentions of men when just moments ago you practically swoon at the feet of the prince! Blushing so prettily and looking so deeply into his eyes. Ha!"

She turned and stormed away, leaving Lyanna to find her own way around the Keep.

The Stark girl was stunned. To have anyone suppose she was clamouring after a man's affections was absurd. Wasn't it?

She thought of the way she had felt when Rhaegar touched her hand and her fingertips tingled in remembrance. The feeling intensified when she recalled the warmth of Jaime's breath on her skin.

Uh-oh.

Lyanna felt that this visit to King's Landing had set something into motion, something she wouldn't be able to halt and she suspected it had everything to do with her being at this 'dangerous' age. She wasn't a complete fool. She'd noticed the changes in her body; the biggest one being when her moon's blood had begun when she was nearly twelve.

No one had thought to prepare her for that particular event.

The morning she had woken to find her night dress and bedsheets stained in what appeared to be her own blood was not her fondest memory. Her immediate reaction had been to hide what had happened as best she could. Then during one of the rare lessons that day with the septa she had asked what it meant when people began bleeding for no reason.

It almost made her laugh when she remembered the look on the old woman's face.

The memory made her feel better for the moment and she decided to try and put her confusion and strange feelings to the back of her mind. She would just have to deal with these blushing-maiden feelings as they came along.

The absolute silence around her brought Lyanna back to her more immediate problem.

"Which way, which way do I go?" She muttered, her indecision making her turn slowly on the spot.

She was brought to an abrupt halt when her eyes landed on Jaime Lannister. He was leaning against the wall only a couple of steps away, his arms crossed and a quizzical look on his face.

Lyanna had had enough of the Lannisters for one day and as they were alone she didn't hesitate in dropping her King's Landing manners, such as they were, and allowed herself to show how she really felt..

"Sneaking up on people is a bit rude isn't it? You should wear a bell or something."

She had intended to say her piece and then get away from him as quickly as she could. Otherwise she might end up saying more than she meant to and that always got her into trouble one way or another. Especially with someone she didn't know very well or at all.

Jaime grinned, stunning Lyanna just a little.

No one should be allowed to be so handsome. No wonder he's already a knight. Probably charmed his way to where he is.

It was a bit of an unfair thought to have. She had already seen that he was a superb fighter, at least with a sword. But she also knew he came from one of, if not the wealthiest family and his father was Hand of the King.

Jaime took advantage of her momentary loss of movement and stepped closer. Lyanna instinctively moved back until she felt the backs of her knees hit the window seat. The man seemed to want to invade her personal space and make her feel as uncomfortable as he could but she was determined to keep a scowl on her face. Never mind the fact that she had already shown how she was feeling by moving away from him.

"I don't think a bell would suit me very well. I rather like surprising others. And I thought it prudent to assess your temper before announcing myself. I passed my sister in the hall. I have to say, I haven't seen her quite so angry for a long time. I only heard your name as she passed so I came to see what had happened."

When Lyanna refused to enlighten him he looked around the corridors for a moment then laughed.

"Oh dear. Have we had a fight over the prince then? It's only the first few days and there's already been an eye scratching contest? I'm disappointed to have missed it."

Lyanna felt her face flush. His tone was only really lightly teasing but she wasn't in the mood to be treated like some insane female, fighting over a man. If it had been one of her brothers she would have attempted to punch them (attempted being the main word there) but as she had already been behaving badly she settled for pushing past him as roughly as she could.

Which resulted in her feeling like she had banged her shoulder on a solid piece of stone.

With a smarting shoulder she turned and said,"Why does everyone keep thinking I want the prince? I don't want him. Luckily, your sister does and she can have him for all I care. I intend to return home to Winterfell when all of this is over. And I'll never leave there again if I can help it!"

Thinking of home brought sudden tears to her eyes and rather than humiliate herself completely, Lyanna turned and hurried away.

oooo

Jaime watched the Stark girl literally run away, clearly upset. His face wore a frown now as he thought about what she'd said.

When he'd run into Cersei and seen her barely contained anger his curiosity had been roused.

He was already intrigued by Lyanna. It had been a long time since he'd met anyone so unmarked by the world. He was only young but he had seen his fair share of the world and he wasn't so sure he liked much of it. And King's Landing was especially awful with all the bowing and scraping. And the polite manners that were essential for survival made him grind his teeth at times. He'd like nothing more than to return to Casterly Rock but his sister had other ideas.

Somehow, she had almost succeeded in convincing him to become part of the King's Guard in order to stay in King's Landing with her. She seemed to thrive in the place and was determined to make her home there one way or another. Having her brother with her was essential to her happiness, or so she had said, and he was powerless to stop himself from bending to her desire.

It had always been that way, Cersei would snap her fingers and he would come running like a puppy. But something that Lyanna had said made a tiny crack in the glorified image he carried in his head of Cersei.

She had already told him she intended to marry the prince. The marriage would elevate the Lannister family to heights their father had dreamt of since they were small children. And now she was old enough to bring the plan to fruition.

It hadn't occurred to him before that she actually wanted the prince for more than his status. He had heard many a girl sigh over the man before and now it seemed his sister was to be counted amongst them too.

Anger stirred inside him as he thought of all the times he had sacrificed his happiness to give Cersei what she wanted. And now she was asking him to give up his birthright and autonomy and become part of the King's Guard in order to be available to her whenever she wanted.

She would have everything she had ever wanted; power, status, a family of her own.

And he would have nothing but her.

It used to be enough, but now I'm not so sure, he thought as the enormity of his decision washed over him. He thought of all the things he would be giving up to stay in a place he hated and all of a sudden he wanted more than ever to be far, far away from everyone.

Perhaps I'll steal away with the Stark's when they return to Winterfell.

He couldn't help but laugh out loud at the absurd thought. He was certain Cersei wouldn't follow him there. She had never seen snow but she hated the cold with a passion. Though from what he'd seen earlier perhaps she hated Lyanna Stark now more than anything.

Both of the girls faces were brought into his mind as he considered their differences. One was all bright loveliness while the other had a pale beauty he found surprisingly attractive.

He had never looked at another girl before except to disdain her looks next to his sister, believing her to be the most beautiful woman in the world.

Now, his eyes had been opened just a little wider and he found he had been wrong. His mind drifted toward the Stark girl again as he made his way toward his bed chamber to change for the night's feasting.

He would of course dress in the eye catching colours of his House and he knew Lyanna would try to dress as plainly as possible in order to blend into the crowd.

It was going to be a challenge but he was now determined to have a little fun. If Cersei could pursue her prince then he would do some chasing of his own.

He was going to make Lyanna Stark fall in love with him.