Lysa Brax

Lady Lysa Brax is the heir and regent of Hornvale, for her elder sister Margaery.

She is the younger daughter of Lord Alyn Brax by his Riverlander wife, Alyssa Piper. She is also the wife of Balman Hayford.

Appearance and character
Lysa has earned her monicker, the Dark Unicorn, for a very good reason. In a family of fair-haired people, she stands out, taking after her mother, with her dark auburn hair. Tall, she doesn't have the traditional body associated with women - though not stocky, it isn't feminine either, as someone who is not a stranger to wielding weapons.

Her skin is pale, for the colour of her hair, and her face seems a result of intricate, detailed carving of an artist. Her eyes are different colours - one light brown, almost hazel, and the other a clear blue.

As for her manner of dress, she likes wearing gowns of more expensive materials and is especially fond of lace and necklaces.

Lysa is a dutiful, hard-working woman, with scars from the time of her sister's betrayal. Thus, an aura of seriousness and perhaps heaviness rests beneath the heterochromic power of her eyes. She is a hopeless romantic, who'd bend the rules of the Faith, if it meant she could have a lover for a short time. Diligent, and willing to learn, she accepts criticisms and advice. As a ruler, she has a stern, but merciful hand.

The beginning
Lysa was born 7 years after her elder sister Margaery, and two years after her stillborn brother. After the death of her only son, Lady Alyssa grew more and more depressed, drawing into herself more often than not, but the birth of her last daughter managed to cover for the loss of the son. Her father, Lord Alyn Brax, rejoiced with his wife, and the couple was very fond of both their surviving daughters. The couple would have no more children but the two girls, as the Gods have inteded that Hornvale pass into the hands of a woman, the septon advised.

Margaery was not the model sister. Though she had the appearance of a Brax, much like her aunt Meredyth, it would seem she also had her aunt's trait of madness within her. She felt threatened by the birth of her sister, who, as she grew up, didn't exibit any signs of the cursed trait.

The responsability
Margaery's madness didn't need a traumatic event to take form. Instead, Alyn and Alyssa knew perfectly well that their daughter was not of healthy mind, and though they didn't love her less for it, they were aware they'd have to rear young Lysa as the heiress.

As soon as she was able, Lysa was learning. First the letters, then the numbers, which agreed with her much more than the letters. She spent hours in her father's solar, taking in lessons and advice. Against her mother's wishes, she put away the needle, having no patience to sew, and took up weapons in her hands, as is a tradition among the women of House Brax, a very military-oriented House.

In the meantime, Margaery continued quietly staring in envy at her sister, believing Lysa had taken a place that was rightfully hers by birthright. The relationship between sisters had always been, from the very start, one-sided - Margaery was too wraped up in her own world, finding the outside world too difficult to manage to notice Lysa's care, which developed under their father's lessons of family love and values.

The rift
As she grew up, Margaery's condition worsened. The parents tried hiding it from other noble Houses, in hopes of getting her a suitable husband, but the girl had already made a choice for herself. It all started in 429 AC, when Olenna Kyndall came to Hornvale to serve as handmaiden to Margaery. Her family thought it the best possible solution for her, and for raising their reputation amongst the western nobility. Margaery quickly took to her, and they became not only friends, but rumours have it lovers too. Olenna was quick to take sides in support of her lady when the ultimate betrayal struck - a reckless attempt at slander, public and open, of Lysa's name. The worst part is that it really made a border, a frontier of sorts, between House Brax - one one side, the more traditional ones, who supported Margaery's claim, and on the other, the supporters of Lysa's claim.

A claim she never asked for. Even Tysane Lannister, her longtime friend from her frequest visits to the Rock, supported her claim, and though she was grateful for it, and also the comfort the Lannister had showed her, she still didn't ask for such a claim to be made in her name.

The tactic
The fear of the civil war loomed over the head of Alyn Brax and his brother, Lyonel. Learning from the past, they devised a plan, with Lysa's consent, as well as Lord Doggett, who was an avid supporter of Lysa, to set to marry Lysa and Lord Doggett's heir, until she came of age, but the heir would, once she came of age, reject her in favour of someone else. It was a tactic to avoid the conflict in a short run, and it worked, but just in case things went awry, Alyn taught his daughter a valuable lesson she found she was gifted in. Warcraft.

Another tactic for securing peace was Lysa bonding with the army. Alongside practicing her skills with ranged weapons, she learned how to heal wounds and cuts. The men loved her - the warmth, and the morale the girl offered them. Since then, the spears of House Brax had been Lysa's.

The rewards and punishments
Lysa came of age in 432 AC, but the tactic was cut short by the outbreak of war. Alyn, ever loyal to his liege lords, despite of his advancing age, rode to it with his men and most of Margaery's supporters, leaving his brother Lyonel as Castellan, officially. And privately, as a guide to Lysa.

Lysa proved herself beyond capable. Under the guiding hand of her uncle, she ruled as if she was lady, and it was the sound defeat of Margaery, and her hopeless attempt at rulling. The betrayal was not forgotten, however.

In 433 AC, in a formal, public event, in the Great Hall, Lysa officially spared her sister - but it is said not because of the sister, but of her handmaiden, who cried and begged and was genuinely sorry for her transgressions. Showing mercy, she confined her sister and her lover to a separate part of the keep, with no connection to politics. Upon her inheriting the title, Lysa would take the mantle of regent, and be a lady of Hornvale in everything but name.

Then the worse happened. In 435 AC, the dreaded news came - their father had died in the war. During his funeral, the sisters even held hands. But it was the last time anyone saw them be affectionate to each other, for after all, some wounds never heal.

The regent
Quickly after her father's death, Lysa did as she agreed. She took the title of Regent and declared her sister unstable to rule, and every member of her House had to conform to that, for she never took the title officially. Upon her visit to the Rock, to Tysane, she secured her uncle's place as Lord Marshall of the Westerlands, a reward for showing loyalty. But no titles would replace her father.

Chapter III - Firebrand
TBA

Quotes by and about Lysa
"His head mildly bobbled, watching her surely recant the facts, doubly assured of the righteousness of her position - the necessity of the result. It was a trait worth envying by many faced with divisive decisions." - ''thoughts of Aerys Velaryon

"She could appreciate the woman before her, and the way her words seemed to carry a cadence which could soothe even the worst of wounds." - thoughts of Tysane Lannister

"All of her womanhood was spent at Casterly Rock, and in that time she grew a great deal of admiration for the Westermen, and their taste. Lysa was no exception, and Jeyne looked at her as if she were witnessing the  Maiden herself." -'' thoughts of Jeyne Frey

"The Heir to Hornvale, they called her, but Tys already saw her as the Lady of Hornvale. Such a title carried a weight to it – a weight she had not seen in Lysa, who carried about her days without care for the trivial matters of ruling." - thoughts of Tysane Lannister''

"While Lysa was in a commanding position, as well, to be the future Lady of Hornvale, and bound to request that instead of herself, Balman would have to give up his name, she usually did not look the part, dressed and mannered more humbly, which provided some of the attraction Balman had for her, although the authority she possessed contributed, as well." - thoughts of Balman Hayford, Lysa's bethrothed

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Family
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