Chapter 12 – Thorn and Rose
For several long seconds after Vivienne Tyrell's arrival, Alyssa did the only sensible thing she could think of.
She reached for a honeyed apple slice and quietly kept eating.
Across the table, the Tyrell sisters were smiling at each other.
The smiles did not reach their eyes.
"Sister," Margaery said pleasantly, lifting her cup. "I didn't realize you had been invited."
"I wasn't," Vivienne replied just as sweetly. "But I heard we were entertaining important guests and thought I should come see the famous Lady of Moat Cailin for myself."
Alyssa continued chewing very carefully.
This feels like a trap, she thought.
Margaery's voice remained light. "You've seen her now."
"Have I?" Vivienne's eyes moved slowly over Alyssa again, lingering in a way that made the young Stark very aware of herself. "I suppose I have."
Alyssa took another bite of apple.
The silence stretched again.
Then Vivienne suddenly pulled out the chair on Alyssa's other side and sat down—far closer than necessary.
Alyssa froze.
The Tyrell girl leaned in casually, elbows on the table as if they were already friends. "Tell me," Vivienne said, voice curious but edged with something sharp, "is it true you rebuilt Moat Cailin yourself?"
"With help," Alyssa answered politely.
Vivienne hummed.
Margaery's smile tightened.
Alyssa became acutely aware that Vivienne was very close. Too close. The heat of her presence made her instinctively shift away—
Which meant scooting closer to Margaery.
And then a little closer still.
Until Alyssa realized she had accidentally leaned into Margaery's side.
Margaery did not move away.
In fact, she looked rather pleased.
Vivienne noticed.
Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
Ah, she thought. So that's how it is.
She leaned a little closer to Alyssa, deliberately crowding the space again.
Alyssa leaned back the other way.
Which only made Margaery hide a smile.
"You must find King's Landing fascinating," Vivienne continued conversationally. "So many opportunities. So many powerful people." Her gaze flicked briefly toward Margaery. "So many... interesting alliances."
Alyssa nodded slowly. "It's... very different from the North."
"I imagine," Vivienne said. "Though I suppose someone as accomplished as you would have no trouble adapting." Her lips curved slightly. "People seem quite taken with you already."
Including my sister, she thought.
The idea lingered in her mind.
It might be entertaining to see how easily that attention could be redirected.
After all, if Margaery wanted something...
Vivienne had always enjoyed taking it.
Across the table, Margaery watched her sister carefully.
The game had changed.
And Alyssa Stark—currently finishing another slice of apple while unknowingly sitting in the middle of a Tyrell rivalry—had just become the board.
Vivienne turned her full attention back to Alyssa, her sharp expression smoothing into something far more charming.
"You must forgive me," she said sweetly. "I rarely get the chance to meet someone as... accomplished as you." Her tone shifted, warmer now. "Rebuilding Moat Cailin, feeding half the North, opening schools? It's impressive."
Alyssa blinked, slightly thrown by the sudden praise. "I had help," she repeated.
"Of course," Vivienne said lightly. "But someone still had to lead."
She leaned just a little closer again, voice lowering conspiratorially. "And I hear you also train with soldiers and hunt. That hardly sounds like the sort of dull lady most lords try to wed."
Alyssa wasn't sure how to respond to that. "I try to lead by example," she said after a moment. "I would never ask my people to do something I wouldn't do myself."
Margaery's expression softened noticeably at that. There was quiet approval in her eyes as she studied Alyssa, something warmer than mere political interest.
She means that, Margaery realized. She actually lives the way she rules.
That, more than the stories of Moat Cailin or the praise of lords, impressed her.
Margaery was.
"Vivienne," she said pleasantly, though her voice carried the faintest edge now, "you seem very interested in our guest."
"Shouldn't I be?" Vivienne replied smoothly. "She may become family one day."
Margaery's smile did not falter—but her arm shifted slightly behind Alyssa along the bench, a subtle claiming of space.
Alyssa noticed that.
She also noticed that she was now leaning almost fully against Margaery.
How did that happen?
Across from them, Vivienne absolutely noticed.
Her smile sharpened.
"Tell me, Lady Alyssa," Vivienne continued, "what do you like to do for fun? Surely ruling and rebuilding fortresses cannot be all you do."
"I—" Alyssa hesitated. "I read. Train. Build things." She shrugged slightly. "Sometimes experiment with crops or designs."
Vivienne laughed softly. "Gods, you really are strange for a noble girl."
"She's interesting," Margaery corrected calmly.
Vivienne's eyes flicked toward her sister.
Then back to Alyssa.
Alyssa felt her stomach twist slightly.
Because something else was bothering her.
Vivienne Tyrell.
That name echoed uneasily in her thoughts.
In the show—the one she had watched in her old life—Olenna Tyrell had granddaughters, yes.
But only one had mattered.
Margaery.
Vivienne had never been mentioned.
Not once.
Which meant one of two things.
Either Vivienne had existed in the background and never mattered...
Or the story she thought she knew had already begun changing.
Neither possibility made Alyssa feel better.
And the way Vivienne was looking at her now—like a puzzle she intended to solve, or perhaps a prize she might enjoy stealing—made that feeling worse.
Great, Alyssa thought grimly.
Something else has changed.
Vivienne leaned closer again, her tone softening into something almost playful. "You must miss the North," she said, letting her shoulder brush lightly against Alyssa's arm as though it were accidental. "All that cold air and open land. King's Landing must feel terribly crowded."
Alyssa shifted slightly, unsure how to respond. "It is... different," she admitted.
"Different can be exciting," Vivienne said with a small smile. "Especially when one meets interesting company." Her gaze lingered openly now.
Margaery's arm behind Alyssa tightened ever so slightly along the bench.
"My sister," Margaery said calmly, "has always enjoyed collecting interesting things."
Vivienne gave her a sideways look. "And you have always enjoyed keeping them."
Alyssa glanced between them, feeling very much like a bone between two hounds.
High above the garden path, half hidden behind climbing roses on a stone balcony, Olenna Tyrell watched the scene unfold.
Her sharp eyes moved from one granddaughter to the other.
Vivienne's behavior made her frown.
Too obvious, Olenna thought. Too hungry.
But when her gaze shifted to Margaery—and the way Alyssa leaned unconsciously toward her—the old woman's mouth curved into a satisfied smirk.
There it is, she thought.
Her favorite granddaughter was interested.
And the little wolf seemed quite comfortable in her garden after all.
Eventually the afternoon began to wind down.
Alyssa rose from the table, brushing crumbs from her skirts. "I should return to my estate," she said politely. "Thank you for the hospitality."
Margaery stood with her immediately. "It was our pleasure."
As Alyssa made her way toward the garden path, Olenna appeared again as if she had simply been taking a walk nearby.
"Leaving already?" the older woman asked mildly.
"Yes, Lady Olenna. Thank you for inviting me," Alyssa said with a respectful incline of her head.
"You are welcome anytime, child," Olenna replied.
Alyssa glanced toward Vivienne as well. "And thank you for the conversation."
Vivienne dipped her head with a polite smile that did not reach her eyes. "The pleasure was mine."
Before Alyssa could step away, Margaery gently took her hand.
The Tyrell girl leaned down and placed a soft kiss against Alyssa's knuckles.
The gesture was perfectly courtly.
But it still made a faint flush rise in Alyssa's cheeks.
"Safe travels, Lady Alyssa," Margaery said softly.
Moments later Alyssa was stepping into her carriage, still slightly red in the face as the driver urged the horses forward and the wheels began carrying her back toward her estate.
Once the carriage had disappeared down the street, Vivienne stood abruptly.
"How charming," she said flatly.
Without another word she turned and walked away through the garden.
Leaving Olenna and Margaery alone beneath the roses.
Olenna watched her go, unimpressed.
Then she turned her sharp gaze toward her granddaughter.
"Well?" she asked.
Margaery didn't hesitate.
"I like her," she said simply. "Compared to most ladies who seek my hand, Alyssa Stark is the obvious choice."
Olenna smirked knowingly.
"Yes," she said. "I noticed."
Margaery looked mildly embarrassed but did not deny it.
"You actually like her," Olenna continued, amusement coloring her voice.
"I do," Margaery admitted.
"Good," Olenna said. "Because I suspect she would suit you very well."
She tapped her cane thoughtfully against the stone path.
"In time," she continued, "we will arrange a trip north. It would be wise to speak with Lord Stark directly about the possibility of a match."
Margaery nodded slowly, but a small crease appeared between her brows.
"Vivienne," she said quietly.
Olenna's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Yes," she replied. "I noticed her interest as well."
Margaery sighed softly.
"She enjoys taking things that belong to other people."
Olenna's mouth curved into a thin smile.
"Then we will simply make sure she does not succeed this time."
Later that evening, the Tyrell manse was quiet.
Margaery sat in her chambers near an open window, a book resting in her lap though she had not turned a page in several minutes. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the garden—the way Alyssa had leaned into her without noticing, the earnestness in the Stark girl's voice when she spoke about her people.
A sharp knock sounded.
Before Margaery could answer, the door opened.
Vivienne stepped inside.
"You should learn to lock your doors," she said lazily, closing it behind her.
Margaery didn't look surprised. "You should learn to knock and wait."
Vivienne ignored the comment and wandered further into the room, running her fingers along a table before turning back toward her sister.
"She's interesting," Vivienne said casually.
Margaery's eyes narrowed slightly. "Alyssa?"
"Who else?"
Vivienne tilted her head, studying Margaery the same way she had studied Alyssa earlier.
"You like her," she said.
It wasn't a question.
Margaery closed her book slowly. "And if I do?"
Vivienne smiled.
"Then I suppose I'll have to take her."
Silence fell across the room.
Margaery's gaze hardened.
"You don't even know her," she said flatly.
"I don't need to," Vivienne replied. "Where you show interest, I see opportunity." She leaned against the edge of the table, folding her arms. "And really, dear sister, you do make it terribly tempting."
"This isn't a game," Margaery said quietly.
Vivienne's smile widened.
"Everything is a game," she said. "And whether I actually like Alyssa Stark or not..." she shrugged lightly, "I will take her simply because you want her."
Margaery stood now.
"You won't."
Vivienne laughed softly.
"We'll see."
With that she turned and walked toward the door, pausing only long enough to glance back.
"After all," she added lightly, "she seemed rather easy to make blush."
The door closed behind her.
Margaery stood in the quiet room for several seconds.
Then she exhaled slowly.
"Gods," she muttered under her breath.
"What have you started, Alyssa Stark.
Margaery's expression hardened as the words left her lips. The playful warmth she had shown in the garden faded, replaced by the colder resolve of a Tyrell who understood the stakes of power and rivalry.
"No," she murmured to herself, voice low but firm. "I won't allow that."
Vivienne might enjoy games—might enjoy stealing what others valued—but this was not some courtly bauble or passing fascination.
Alyssa Stark was something Margaery genuinely cared about.
And that, more than anything, made Vivienne's threat intolerable.
Margaery Tyrell was known for her charm, her beauty, and her ability to win hearts with smiles and kindness. But beneath that gentleness lived a mind as sharp as any player in King's Landing.
She had no intention of letting her sister take something that mattered to her.
Vivienne would not win this.
She would not take Alyssa away from her.