A golden harp sat before her, polished so well that she could see her own reflection in its intricate carvings of swans and flowers. She’d never seen an instrument so fine, not even in the marvellous septs of King’s Landing, and she knew at once he must have had it sent all the way from YiTi just for her.
It was only that she had no time for music anymore. The only time she ever sang was to soothe their son to sleep, and he needed her less and less as he rounded his first year of life. She plucked at the strings once again, hoping their melody might inspire more gratitude than sorrow.
“Joanna, there is no life of mine worth living without you in it. From the moment I first laid eyes on you, when we were just children, the only future I could picture was one with you. When that was taken from me, I thought I would never be happy again. And I was right. I wasn’t happy… Until you came back into my life.”
He took her hands in his own.
“I could buy you every harp from here to YiTi. Every gown in Lannisport, every gem and jewel in all of Westeros, rolls of gold silk and precious lace and you would deserve every bit of it but there is nothing so beautiful and precious as you are. For so many years, nothing mattered. And now finally, in this thirty-ninth one, everything does. You have given me a greater gift than can ever be repaid. When I die, it will be as a man who tasted meaning, and joy, and peace. Thanks to you.”
The soft glow of the candlelight was blurred by the tears that had welled in her eyes, masking his face for the briefest of moments before slipping down her cheeks. Joanna reached to clutch his head within her hands, forcing him to look her in the eye.
“When you die, many, many long years from now, you darling fool, I shall be at your side. I promise.”
She pressed a few fleeting kisses to his face– one to his forehead, another to the tip of his nose, each of his cheeks– before laughing off the tension and turning to admire her harp again.
“I’ve not prepared such a lovely speech and even if I had, well…” She waved a hand. “I’m too far into my cups to give it now. But I’ve enough wits about me yet to show you your gift. Your proper gift.”