Margaery merely closed her eyes and murmured a soft assent, then let out a quiet breath, allowing the water to lap over her shoulders. For a while, neither of them spoke.
Only when Viserys rose with Margaery in his arms and carried her to the openwork railing did she realize what was happening. But she did not dare open her eyes, merely turning her face to press it against his chest.
After all, although autumn had already come to Westeros and the days were growing shorter, with darkness already beginning to gather, the streets of Highgarden City below were still bustling with people.
The warm autumn breeze of the Reach blew through the openwork railing, yet it still made Margaery shiver after coming out of the hot water. The wind also carried up the clamor from the city below.
Though Margaery's eyes were closed, she could concentrate all the better, picking out where the sounds came from, such as the voices of the City Watch handing over their duties on the nearby inner city walls.
A little farther away came snatches of singing and boisterous laughter through tavern windows, along with merchants' cries and passersby haggling in the market. Farther out, near the outer walls, there was also the dull clang of the Timekeeper striking the Iron Bell.
Viserys stood before the railing with her in his arms. After a moment, he murmured into her ear, "Your grandmother was quite right about what she said in the hall today. But the livelier these people are, the more it proves they understood what was said. The Ironborn were merely an excuse they used to shift responsibility onto one another. Now even that excuse is gone, so all they can do is light their lamps a little brighter, terrified I might see