The feasts at Highgarden were more lavish than those anywhere else in the Seven Kingdoms.
The banquet hall seemed a dreamscape built of gold, crystal, and flowers.
Enormous crystal chandeliers hung from a vaulted ceiling painted with vines and roses. The light of thousands of candles refracted and danced within them, illuminating the entire space as brightly as day in golden splendor.
The air was heavy with the rich, fatty aroma of roast swan, the cloying sweetness of honeyed fruit, the mellow fragrance of fine wine, and the heady mingled perfume of countless varieties of roses.
The long tables were covered with the finest Myr Lace tablecloths, and silver cutlery and gold-rimmed crystal goblets gleamed enticingly in the candlelight.
Carefully trimmed arrangements of roses adorned the spaces between small mountains of delicacies.
Musicians hid behind pillars entwined with green vines, filling the hall with lilting accordion melodies, trilling recorder notes, and soft drumbeats.
Renly sat at the head of the hall, with Lady Olenna to his left and the magnificently dressed, breathtakingly beautiful Margaery Tyrell to his right.
She wore a pale gold, off-the-shoulder gown, its skirts studded with tiny pearls, as though she had draped herself in starlight. Fresh white roses were deftly woven through her golden-brown curls, setting off her smooth, jade-like face and flawlessly sweet smile.
From time to time, she tilted her head to whisper to Renly, her manner intimate and graceful.
Renly maintained his impeccable poise throughout, talking and laughing like a born king of feasts. Every glance and every raised cup drew the eyes and stirred the thoughts of all the nobles present.
Lady Olenna took a sip of Golden Wine, its rich flavor making her narrow her eyes slightly.
She set down her goblet and leaned a little toward Renly, keeping her voice