You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

oakhearted:

Arys stiffened slightly when Jaime laughed. The irony in the statement made him uncomfortable, though, after all this time, it probably should not have done. As green and ineffectual as it made him feel, he couldn’t deny that he looked up to Jaime in some regard. Any complaint Arys had in PM’s employ Jaime had also, only with ten years more worth of grievance. Any reward Arys had in serving the Baratheons, Jaime also had multiplied. While Arys had the satisfaction of looking after Myrcella like a surrogate niece, Jaime had that in actual. The black mark of Jaime’s disloyalty to Aerys Targaryen wasn’t something that Arys could do much to reconcile, however, so he largely ignored it until such a time as it was mentioned.

“Yeah,” he said slowly, to fill up space as he compressed his foot against the clutch, moving into a lower gear once they straightened out on the Mall. The blue flicker from the police bikes started to glow on the empty asphalt.

“I like it over at Martell,” he finally spat out, wondering how much he’d given away and how close Jaime would keep it. “Their head of security gives me a hard time, but they run a good show.” He cocked his chin slightly as he thought over what to say next. “I don’t know. Maybe it would be easier. If we weren’t locked in.”

Jaime nodded along slightly with Arys’ words. He could tell the other man was being careful, stepping around a subject he obviously didn’t want to talk about. “I imagine it would be a good place to work.” He muttered thoughtfully. He wondered if perhaps Arys was considering to leave for Martell Steel when the time came to jump ship. It was a good business and from what he’d heard Doran’s daughter Arianne, now the CEO, tolerated Robert’s assigned guard more readily than the rest of her family.

“He can’t be anyone worse than the guys you work with here.” He joked. He didn’t know Martell’s head of security well. Actually, he didn’t know him at all. It wasn’t his business to know the grunts who protected the Martells, unless he was ever sent against them. However, even without knowing him he didn’t imagine he could hold a candle to the sorry band that Robert had gathered to form his ‘kingsguard’, other than himself and Arys, of course.

He chuckled mirthlessly as he looked out the window, the police bikes pulling up close to the side of the cars as Arys let it crawl to a stop and waited. “A lot of things are easier when you’re not stuck behind a locked door.” He shrugged, scratching at the stubble underneath his chin - he would need to shave, Cersei preffered him clean-shaven - and turned away from the lights reflecting off of the window. “But a locked door keeps people out as much as it keeps you in. You’ll be thankful for it, eventually.”

You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

oakhearted:

The traffic lifted slightly once they got into the Euston thoroughfare. The sun was starting to rest low in the sky, not quite setting yet, but the flickering blue headlights at the front of the Jaguar were beginning to become visible. Arys drove consistently aware of the police escort at each side, slow to respond, slow to process what it was Jaime was saying. 

They were both skirting around unsaid issues, and Arys was fairly sure Jaime knew that too. They kept bringing up subjects and not commenting on them, but that was regular fare in discourse with men who made a living standing to one side of the most powerful man in the country. Arys was used to folding polite conversation around prickly demands with other people, but the habit stuck even when talking to other members of the Guard.

“I don’t know how comfortable I feel being tied to a sinking ship,” he grimaced. The hull in administration was holding for the time being, but it had been fifteen years; it wouldn’t float for much longer. The thought of giving Robert Baratheon another ten years of his life in out-of-office security did not exactly fill him with joy. “I don’t know about you but I thought I might eventually have some sort of life. Been putting off having any semblance of one since I got this job.” He ran his tongue across his teeth behind closed lips. It was a feeling of conflict. By the end of the year he might just be a regular for-hire officer again able to do what he liked, involve himself with whoever he liked, without having to worry about the consequences. But that meant he’d lose Myrcella, and he’d already seen her come so far. 

Jaime nodded understandingly at Arys’ reluctance. He’d felt the same when he’d seen Aerys begin to lose favour with the public. Every day, he would watch as more protestors came knocking at No. 10’s doors, more rioters and looters flooded the streets of London and more MP’s jumped ship from the Conservative’s to the Lib Dem’s and Labour. Until finally, he’d decided he’d had enough. If he’d known that history would repeat itself with Robert, he might’ve stayed with the Targaryens.

“If I were anyone else, I’d tell you to remain loyal.” He said, chuckling slightly. “But I’m hardly one to talk now, am I?” Truthfully, he didn’t consider himself to be disloyal. He’d remained loyal to his father, despite what he’d ordered Gregor Clegane to carry out after the Targs retreated to America. No matter what the other members of his family thought of his little brother, he’d always stuck on Tyrion’s side (unless he got into an arguement with Cersei). And then of course, there was his sister…

He frowned thoughtfully at Arys’ last statement before shrugging. “No, not really…” He mutter vaguely before running a hand through his hair, deciding to elaborate. “I guess, ever since university the bodyguard game’s all I’ve ever known. I know, I’m forty-four, I should be settled down with kids,” technically, he’d done that, but Arys wasn’t really the person to be talking to about that. “but this has been my life for so long, and with my sister and her kids… I don’t think I could just leave.” No matter how much I want to.

You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

oakhearted:

Arys is quite used to the sour taste of contempt after ten years in service. He laughs when Jaime embraces it too. They rarely have to speak about the fact that Robert is hardly the man he should be, given his position. He can’t be sure what it is that Jaime’s done in the name of service but if it’s anything like the binds forced on Arys, they at least share common grievances there. They’re made similar by the bonds of their employment. Arys isn’t sure they’d have much in common otherwise. 

“I didn’t watch it, I’m afraid,” he admitted, pulling the car through the intersection, keeping an eye on the caravan keeping up behind him. “Caught the recap on the Ten O’Clock News.” He hadn’t thought Cersei’s decision particularly wise. It seemed as if she’d gladly wandered into a press trap, but Jaime didn’t need to hear his thoughts on that. 

“If he goes down,” Arys started, darkly, thinking about the way that, even though he was stationed three cars back, Robert Baratheon might as well have been sitting right behind them, “what do you think happens to us?” Jaime had worked for Aerys too. “You think we’ll be kept on? After this bullshit administration?”

Arys’ laugh brought a touch of a smile to Jaime’s face. It was rare that he could allow his contempt for Robert to be shown instead of hiding behind the mask he kept up whenever he was in the other man’s presence. Knowing that he isn’t the only one of Robert’s guards who feels discontented - although it’s hardly surprising - is oddly comforting.

He doesn’t respond to the other man’s comment on Cersei’s interview as they continue driving. He knows it was a disaster and he had his suspicions about the Tyrell boy’s agenda in the interview but he would rather forget about the trainwreck his sister had caused, even if the rest of Britain refuses to.

The next question causes him to tense slightly and he keeps silent for a moment as he considers his answer. “I imagine those who want to stay will be kept.” He replied vaguely, not letting on about his own decision if - no, when - Robert fails. “If he crashes and burns, I imagine he’ll at least try to come back fighting. And even out of power he’ll have enemies he needs to keep at bay. He’ll need people like us.” It’s foolish to hope that this time next year he won’t have to deal with his brother-in-law and that he can leave the web of politics he’s been trapped in ever since Aerys reign. But he knows, deep down, he can’t leave. Not while Cersei is married and his father insists on keeping them connected to the Baratheons.

You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

oakhearted:

Arys paused a moment before he peeled out into the traffic - and, naturally, traffic there was. Of course, there was no fire in getting back to St James so the police motorcycles sunk into the congestion lines and the black cars laced up together to sit until the lights changed. He didn’t drum his fingers on the wheel or tap his foot against the clutch. The lights flashed red and he kept his hands at two and ten as a light, early-evening rain started to ping against the wind screen. Arys wasn’t one for idle chatter nor small talk, generally, but with Jaime, he could always spare a few words. 

He decided to move past the subject of Myrcella. The Lannisters were a close family and he didn’t entirely trust Jaime to keep an issue as minor as his niece’s football scuffle off his sister’s radar.

“The Martells?” he clarified. “They’re… resilient.” That wasn’t the right word. Steel didn’t bend (bow, break, his mind filled in), it withstood. He shrugged, slightly. 

“You know, the old man’s daughter’s taken over now. Barely even took a personal day.” He let off the break a little, pulling the car into gear as he slid forward in traffic before he realised the thought of Arianne had made him smile. “What about the homefront?” he covered, quickly. “What’s the fallout since your sister’s interview?”

Jaime couldn’t help frowning slightly when Arys chose not to elaborate on the Myrcella situation. Perhaps it was for the best, if he knew who had given her a black eye he would probably either kill them, or tell Cersei and she would kill them. Some random kid was not a life he wanted on his conscience.

He nodded along slightly to what Arys said about the Martell’s, twisting his mouth into a slightly pitying smile. He did feel bad about what had happened at the Stark girl’s party, and not just because it had happened under his watch. Doran was not particularly a good man - Jaime’s experience had taught him there were very few, if any, good, decent men in the world - but he hadn’t deserved that death, and his family didn’t deserve to experience that loss.

The smile his fellow bodyguard wore confused him for a moment, and he was curious to know what suddenly put the other man in a good mood, but the question about his sister derailed his thoughts for a moment. He couldn’t help the grim expression that took over his face as he remembered the bruise he had found on Cersei’s arm the night before. The first he’d ever seen, and he hoped, for Robert’s sake, it would be the last. “Robert’s not happy, obviously.” He muttered, deciding to ignore protocol and calling their boss by his first name. As far as he was concerned, whenever his brother-in-law was out of earshot, he could say what he liked about the fat oaf. “Him and almost all of his cabinet ministers. Apparently she caused quite the commotion, although I don’t think it’s much of a surprise given what she had to work with.” He shrugged, not bothering to hide the bitterness in his voice.

You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

oakhearted:

The car rocked slightly when Jaime climbed into the passenger seat. Arys responded with a grim smile in kind, leaning against the steering wheel to check the headlights of the cars behind in the rear-view mirror. 

“Hey, you know how he gets sometimes,” he said, dryly. “He wants the full set.” The Guard had its various security play-throughs - usually the Prime Minister made do with the police motorcycle escort and two of the Jaguars, but there were times when he had two of them in each vehicle in the envoy and one beside him in the backseat of the middle car. Arys supposed that recent events excused some of Robert’s paranoia, but there was little he liked less than fighting the government’s route home through London traffic.

Someone tapped on the top of the car and that was the signal to move out. Ignoring Jaime for the time being he twisted the key in the ignition and flicked on the headlamps before pulling out into the cobbled road. Envoy procedure dictated they went no faster than thirty-five, but he pulled up short to the end of the road and waited for the other cars to slot into line. He locked his elbow, pushing his shoulder back against the squeaking leather seats.

“I thought I’d be long gone too by now,” he admitted, slowly. He hadn’t seen Jaime since two days before the shooting when he’d dropped Myrcella off from an earlier football match. He’d barely spared him much of a thought until Cersei’s interview had hit the headlines. He was at Martell Industries most days now - it was starting to feel like a real nine-to-five thing. And, of course, there was Arianne… “They’ve offered me twice what I make now to go on as a consultant. It’s your goddamn niece who keeps pulling me back.” He glanced over at Jaime as he checked the road ahead for an opening. “How’s her shiner, by the way?”

Jaime chuckled slightly at Arys’ explenation, keeping quiet after the tap came on the window to send them forward and let Arys focus on driving into place. It had been a while since they had went through this procedure. Security had been tightened considerably after his sister’s interview had aired, it only made sense that Robert would pull out all the stops, even if it meant removing contacts from businesses.

He couldn’t stop the small smile that tugged at the corners of his lips at the mention of Myrcella. At first, he hadn’t approved of how close his niece grew to the younger guard, but Arys had proved time and time again he only had good intentions when it came to her. “She has that effect on people.” He shrugged before raising an eyebrow at Arys’ next question. He had caught a glimpse of the purple and yellow bruise marring her face a few days ago, he wasn’t aware that the man next to him knew about it. “She’s using less make-up so I assume it’s fading.” He replied after getting over his surprise, smirking slightly. “I should’ve known she had help covering it up, seeing as Cersei hasn’t caught on yet.”

He turned to look out the window for a moment, loosening the tie so that it was choking him less. He worried his lip as he considered his next question. “How are the Martell family?” He asked, genuinely curious. The thought of attending the memorial service for Doran made him slightly anxious. Knowing the state of the family would at least help him decide what would be appropriate to say if he was stuck with one of them.

You can’t always get what you want [Closed: Jaime and Arys][May 19th] 

Jaime straightened his tie as he stood shuffling in the elevator along with a few other hotel guests. His shirt collar chafed slightly against his neck as the tie held it tightly around his throat, but it helped cover up most of the bite marks Cersei had left there the night before.

Stepping out on the ground floor, he looked out at the front doors, seeing that some of the cars forming the Prime Minister’s escort were already lined up.Crap. He thought, quickening his pace towards the doors and slicking a few stray strands of hair out of his eyes. He hadn’t got much sleep last night - not necessarily a bad thing given the reason why - but it meant he had slept in well past his alarm, only being woken by the rattling of a passing cleaner with her trolley.

Robert’s other guards were already there and ready to leave and he lowered his head apoligetically, knowing he had held them back from calling Robert and Cersei down and into the waiting black sedans. Once they saw him, they moved to their respective cars and Jaime jogged to the front car, seeing Arys Oakheart slipping into the driver’s seat.

He rose an eyebrow as he opened the passenger side and slipped in. It had been a while since he’d been paired up with Arys as the other man was almost always on assignments at Martell Steel’s main offices or running off to collect Myrcella from somewhere or other. “Here’s a face I didn’t think I’d be seeing for a while.” He said with a small smile as he looked over at the younger man. “I would’ve thought after the shooting you’d be at Martell Steel for good.”