Rylla Tyrell Hightower was born in the year 151 AC to Lord Lyonel Tyrell and Lady Annet Costayne. She is the elder sister to Jeona Tyrell and the young Lord Leo Tyrell, and half-niece of Ser Ardon Tyrell, the Lord Protector of the Reach. She is the wife of Ser Myles Hightower and mother of their daughter Alinor.
Dark brown curls frame this young lady’s heart-shaped face. Her skin is dotted with many freckles, and her kindly, innocent brown eyes give her a youthful, girlish look. Her lips are very full, and they ofttimes rest as a smile. Her face is marked by little else than a somewhat broad nose, but none would say that the woman is not fair. In terms of her proportions, she is rather average of height, build and shape for a young mother.
Her dress would perhaps be described as more elegant than ostentatious. Her gown is made of dark green velvet, and embroidered with Myrish lace and cloth-of-gold. From how dear her dress must be, and the green and gold colouring, all gently born men and women would surely know the lady to be a Tyrell of Highgarden.
At first glance, Rylla Hightower is the rose of the royal court. Raised at Highgarden as the eldest sister of Lord Tyrell, she has come to enjoy a life of a social butterfly. A woman of smiles, she will gladly enlist anyone among her long list of connections.
That is, of course, unless you mean to do her or her family ill. For every rose has its thorns, and she has more than a few. Many have made a remark about the young woman, only to be bitten back in a rift between the two. And being a member of a Great House brings a great deal of pride with it, of course.
Though her brother rules Highgarden, in some ways, she is the successor to her rude-tempered father that died in the Dornish sands.
One hundred and fifty-one years after the coronation of Aegon the Dragon, in the reign of King Aegon, Third of His Name, Rylla Tyrell was born as the first child of Lord Lyonel Tyrell and his wife, Lady Annet Costayne. The birth of a daughter is always disappointing, especially when House Tyrell had a rather precarious line of succession with her father being the only son of Lord Loras, yet for the first years of her life, she was recognised as the heir to Highgarden. Three years after her birth, she was joined by a sister, Jeona.
In 157 AC, King Daeron, First of His Name, began his conquest of Dorne, and Lord Lyonel Tyrell bravely led the armies of the Reach against the stubborn Dornishmen, who finally cowed at the end of the year. In his absence, Lady Annet gave birth to their third child - a boy, to the joy of House Tyrell and all the Reach, who was named Leo. Lord Lyonel, however, continued to remain in Dorne even after the king had returned north, becoming his primary agent in the newly conquered region, and travelling castle to castle to try and crush minor rebellions.
Then, at the end of 160 AC, Rylla was left without a father when Lord Lyonel was murdered at Sandstone, igniting the successful Dornish Rebellion. Her brother Leo became the child lord of Highgarden, as his father before him had been, and her half-uncle, Ser Ardon Tyrell became Lord Protector of the Reach.
However, her childhood after her father’s death was not an unhappy one. She grew up in the most beautiful castle in all the Seven Kingdoms (well, according to the Tyrells, of course) and at the age of eleven, she saw the beautiful and fearless then-Queen Daena and the royal court in the spectacular Tourney of Love during their visit to Highgarden. Though she was by no means unruly or disobedient beforehand, the court’s visit deepened her desire to be a true lady, and she has tried to be rather virtuous: dutiful, kind, generous, and wise.
Rylla was educated alongside her sister Jeona, her cousin Lyessa, as well as many bedmaids. From her septa, she learned the mysteries of the Faith. From her mother Annet and aunt Nemony, the high harp, singing and dancing. From her great-aunt Calla, she learned to embroider, and she learned all the virtues that a proper lady should have from her lady grandmother. And from Maester Jaden, she learned about the realms of worldly men and women.
As the eldest daughter of the late Lyonel Tyrell, any man in the Seven Kingdoms would be pleased to wed her, and she thus had many suitors. In 166 AC, at the age of four-and-ten, she was betrothed to Ser Myles Hightower, the youngest son of the Lord of Oldtown, and a companion to Prince Aegon Targaryen. Any maid would be pleased with such a match, though it may be only a little disappointing for the eldest daughter of Highgarden, whose sister and cousin were betrothed to heirs to great Houses. Nonetheless, she was prepared to marry the Hightower knight.
As a maiden flowered of six-and-ten, her uncle decided it was high time she travel to the court of King Baelor in preparation for her wedding. Over the next few months, she met with courtiers, lived through the disappearance of Princess Daena, and made friends and foes alike, before she was wed to her husband in a splendid ceremony that attracted guests from all the Seven Kingdoms.
And then… things seemed to sour quite quickly for the young woman, in all supposed marital bliss. Rylla had never known her aunt Reyna too much, but the two soon turned to disagreement against Rylla’s tenacious stance against the heir to Casterly Rock’s barbs. The relationship soon turned from poor to worse: after both aunt and niece fell with child yet again, Rylla seemed quite displeased to have another iron-blooded cousin. It ended with her ferocious uncle Ser Dagur Saltcliffe barring contact between Rylla and any child of his. And her own aunt seems quite well-contented to uphold that arrangement.
Perhaps that played a part in why the lady was dismissed from Princess Naerys’s prayer companions not all too long after she was offered to join the royal in question… though from what is publicly known, it was the Hand’s choice, and perhaps if it wasn’t her aunt she offended, then perhaps the heir to Casterly Rock or the King’s Counter…? And yet the lady begs it was nothing like this at all, that she was dismissed for health reasons due to her pregnancy at that time. After all, she had been put on bedrest some months before after being caught in an awful fire in the Iron Way.
Even her relationship with her husband is not as best as could be. It’s known that Ser Myles was well-contented with his wife and; lazy as he is, content to indulge her in her schemes of sullying courtiers for their peccadilloes. But even this is too much to ignore, and the fact that she bore a daughter—Alinor—does not make the situation any better. And the lady herself seems quite displeased of the child’s sex.
She but clings onto life in the capital, as the wife of a prince’s companion.
18th day, 6th month, 151 AC - Rylla Tyrell is born as the eldest child of Lord Lyonel Tyrell and Lady Annet Costayne. The birth of a daughter is disappointing, especially with a line of succession as precarious as House Tyrell’s at the time, but nevertheless, Rylla displaces her great-uncle Meros as the heir to Highgarden.
16th day, 6th month, 154 AC - Two days before her third nameday, Rylla is joined by a younger sister, Jeona.
4th day, 1st month, 158 AC - Rylla’s father is away in Dorne when her mother bears a healthy son, who is named Leo after the customary seven days. The occasion is a joyous one to House Tyrell and all the Reach, and Rylla no longer has the burden of being her father’s heir.
4th day, 12th month, 160 AC - Having arrived at Sandstone after a hard ride through the desert with his three thousand men-at-arms and knights, Lord Lyonel is met by the blind Lord Ganlos Qorgyle, uncle to Prince Marence Martell. That evening, Lord Lyonel, fond of Dornish women, reached for the bell-pull to summon one to his bed. The beds canopy parted with the pull of the rope, however, a thousand scorpions fell onto him. He died, screaming, as his lords and officers were slaughtered in the night. Rylla’s brother, Leo Tyrell, becomes the child lord of Highgarden, and her uncle Ardon his Lord Protector. Lyonel’s death ignites the ultimately successful Dornish Rebellion.
8th day, 10th month, 162 AC - The royal court visits Highgarden. Over the next few weeks, Rylla witnesses the splendid Tourney of Love, and the beautiful and fearless Queen Daena in attendance.
5th day, 1st month, 166 AC - After negotiations between the families, Rylla Tyrell and Myles Hightower are officially betrothed.
22nd day, 3rd month, 168 AC - Rylla arrives in King’s Landing in preparation for her wedding to Ser Myles Hightower.
17th day, 4th month, 168 AC - Rylla attends the feast which welcomes the heroes back from the Stepstones. It is here she is introduced to the ladies Elyse Caswell and Alys Baratheon. The next morning, she is shocked to hear that the Princess Daena has disappeared from the Maidenvault.
1st day, 5th month, 168 AC - Rylla hears word from a retainer sworn to the Tyrell manse: an old beggar woman in Flea Bottom has claimed to have seen a girl hiding under a wheelhouse, seemingly confirming a suspicion of Prince Viserys about the Princess’ escape. Days later, this tale is confirmed by the city watch, and Rylla hears word of ravens flying to prominent castles of the Crownlands.
6th day, 5th month, 168 AC - Rylla attends a small celebration after the naming of Elsabeth Caswell. She gives the babe a swaddling cloth knitted and sewed by the Tyrell herself, as well as a doll crafted by a master toymaker, in the likeness of Annet Tyrell.
18th day, 6th month, 168 AC - Rylla celebrates her seventeenth nameday in the Tyrell Manse of King’s Landing. Notable attendees include the squire Arnos Sunderland, heir to the Three Sisters, as well as four of Lord Tully’s children: Lady Melene Darry (and her own daughter, Lady Amyra Darry), Ser Brynden Tully, Lady Jannia Buckwell, and the squire Toren Tully.
9th day, 8th month, 168 AC - On this day, Rylla and her septa observe jousting practice in the courtyard of the Red Keep, as all court gossip is about the Kingsguard vacancy being filled. She makes light conversation with Lady Gwyn Banefort, Ser Villem Staedmon and the squire Arnos Sunderland, as Ser Garlan Hunter and Ser Durance Darklyn ride against each other, and then Ser Garlan and Ser Elmer Crakehall.
Notably, the mood begins to darken in Tyrell quarters upon the arrival of Ser Aidan Dayne and his wife, Lady Aisling of House Ryswell. When Lady Gwyn remarks that Ser Aidan may well have worn the white cloak if he were not wed, Rylla scoffs at that, and opines that being a Kingsguard from a foreign realm is quite the contradiction of allegiances.
When Lady Gwyn responds that all knights of the Kingsguard forsake their allegiances to their houses when they don the white cloaks, Rylla responds that it is not so simple for men of a certain disposition and background… and Lady Aisling, upon hearing this, responds that pride can be such a vice, and that the greater the house, the greater the pride… And Rylla retorts by mentioning the northwoman’s certain lack of… fruitfulness. The two continue to banter, before Ser Aidan interrupts them, remarking on the Dayne party’s departure back to Starfall with Prince Maron Martell, the bastard Lewyn Sand, and Lady Elysa Dayne.
Rylla bids them farewell with forced courtesy, and asks them to send her love to her great-uncle Septon Geryn and her good-brother-to-be Ser Perwyn Hightower… and stifles a forced blessing from House Tyrell to the Prince Marence.
The old wounds between Tyrell and Martell, and the north and Dorne, have certainly not ended… but things are certainly changing.
4th day, 9th month, 168 AC - On a cold, grey day a crowd of smallfolk, merchants and nobles alike gathered along the docks of King’s Landing to wait for the arrival of the newest addition to the fleet, the fast galley Queen Daenaera. Among those gathered was Rylla Tyrell who was impressed with the vessel, speculating about who the captain would be. The captain, Ser Garlan Hunter of Southshield and the Sea Watch of King’s Landing, was revealed to the crowd, resulting in applause for the half-Serry knight.
9th day, 9th month, 168 AC - On this day, Rylla makes her way from the Tyrell Manse to the Red Keep where she meets a cluster of friends and acquaintances—Lena Mallister, Gwyn Banefort, Durance Darklyn, and even her uncle, Dagur Saltcliffe, alongside many others. Yet when Dermett Corbray makes a crude comment about Rylla’s cousin, Myleria Tyrell, the future Lady of Duskendale, behind her back the young rose takes offense—which only results in greater slander, both upon Myleria, as well as Gwyn Banefort. This ends in fists between Ser Dermett and Ser Durance, Rylla’s body going faint at the violence between the two nobles. As the situation calms down, Rylla flees the scene.
13th day, 9th month, 168 AC - Rylla welcomes her good-brother-to-be, Ser Bradwell Hightower, to King’s Landing in preparation for Rylla’s wedding to Myles Hightower. That night, she hosts a grand ball in the Great Hall, where she is dressed as Maris the Maid. Among the guests are Bradwell Hightower, dressed all in yellow, Elyse Caswell, in a splendid outfit that reflects her person and the heritage of herself and her husband, Malwyn Hightower, dressed as the Hightower, Gwyn Banefort, as the Hooded Man, Durance Darklyn, as the Blackwater, Edmure Tully, as his ancestor Lord Edmyn, and Ashera Celtigar, in a dress of seafoam white. It is considered splendid by all.
30th day, 9th month, 168 AC - Rylla chances upon a heavily pregnant Desmona Corbray (formerly of House Blackwood) in the godswood. The two women converse about Faith, Rylla’s forthcoming marriage, and the comings and goings of court, before Desmona’s waters break. Rylla helps to carry the future Lady of Heart’s Home to the Blackwood Apartments in the Guest Tower, and she and her septa assist in the birth of Desmona’s firstborn son, Gwayne Corbray.
2nd day, 10th month, 168 AC - As the last guests pour into the city for Rylla’s wedding, a grand Spring Market is held in Fishmonger’s Square. There, Hightower and Tyrell men shield her from a thief who had been stealing quantities of honey from Lady Gwyn Banefort and Ser Farin Prester.
7th day, 10th month, 168 AC - As the rains of spring pattered upon the Red Keep, Rylla was wed to Ser Myles Hightower. The septon that married them had invoked seven blessings, Ser Myles spoke seven vows, and the Reachfolk gathered there were all astonishment when the bride’s beautifully embroidered cloak of cloth-of-gold roses and velvet greenery was replaced by one of elegant cloth-of-silver.
As the ceremony proper ended, the party made its way to the Keep’s Great Hall, draped in green-and-gold banners of House Tyrell, as well as the grey-and-white of House Hightower. Relations surrounded the happy couple, as well as friends and acquaintances.
The bride was seen to engage in conversation with maids even younger than she, teasing Ashera Celtigar and Lena Mallister about weddings forthcoming and prospective. Though she turned ill when Ser Jonn Lannister entered the Great Hall…
For Black Jonn remarked that he wished the maid had inherited her parts from Garth Greenhand rather than her late lord father, and even mentioned them being filled with scorpions—for the heir to Casterly Rock was known to still hold deep grievances for the actions of Lyonel Tyrell in the conquest of Dorne. As her aunt tried to stay her, Rylla, beginning to fume at the slight of her treacherously murdered sire, snapped back that she hoped that some parts of hers were indeed as fruitful as the Greenhand… or at least more than any barren jewel, for it is known that Jyana of the Eyrie has not given Ser Jonn any children in three years. With her aunt remarking that Rylla should not stoop to the level of Lannister, and her new husband staying her, she let the celebrations be more joyous than hateful once more. Later, Ser Durance Darklyn wished the couple many sons, and the Black Lion wished the bride’s womb was as fecund as her mind barren.
Then a lordling approached the groom with a signet ring, and the gift giving had begun. Lady Ashera gave the couple a pair of pins with the Tyrell and Hightower sigils, as Ser Bryon Waynwood approached them with a feather ... one that indicated that the Keeper of the King’s Mews had a pair of handsome falcons ready for the pair. Gwyn Banefort had also readied a gift for hunting: a fine set of bleached archery bracers. Bradwell Hightower gave his goodsister a set of jewellery in white and silver, and his youngest brother a sword with the Hightower words engraved upon it. Edmure Tully followed suit, with a gem encrusted bridle for the groom… and an oar engraved with the happy couple’s names, for he had even had a small pleasure boat made for the pair—both of whom were astonished, and raised a glass for friendship between Oldtown, Highgarden and Riverrun.
With the guests petering out as none could outdo the heir to Riverrun, the dancing began, with the gangly Celtigar maid joining in with the Reachlords and their ladies. And then? Naturally, the bedding began, and men set upon the bride, and women upon the groom, as they escorted the two to their bedchamber.
8th day, 10th month, 168 AC - A tourney is held in honour of Rylla’s wedding to Ser Myles Hightower. As her husband falls to Ser Dermett Corbray and Bryon Waynwood, Rylla pays little attention to the rest of the day… that is, until Malwyn Hightower and Ser Dermett Corbray unhorse each other, and she is called to intervene. Declaring her new nephew the victor (as Ser Dermett showed his lack of chivalry by calling for his sword), she stirs up animosity with the heir to Heart’s Home. When Malwyn finally falls to Ser Elmer Crakehall, the captain of the guard at Casterly Rock declares his own bride, Fiona of Castamere, to be Queen of Love and Beauty in the place of the Highgardener.
Member of the Houses Tyrell and Hightower
Wife of Myles Hightower, Companion to Prince Aegon Targaryen
Member of the Veiled Ladies
{Lyonel Tyrell}, Lord of Highgarden, Warden of the South, Defender of the Marches, High Marshal of the Reach - If truth be told, Rylla cannot remember much of what her lord father was like. However, she is deeply devoted to Lord Lyonel’s memory, and was greatly upset by his murder. In her mind, he is strong, just, devoted, and gallant - everything a father should be.
Annet Tyrell, Lady of Highgarden - Lady Tyrell has a fine relationship with her eldest daughter, and has raised her to be everything a highborn lady should be - obedient, courteous, kind, generous, and accomplished. As Rylla’s father died when she was but nine, Annet has been even more instrumental in Rylla’s upbringing.
Leo Tyrell, Lord of Highgarden, Warden of the South, Defender of the Marches, High Marshal of the Reach - Lady Annet’s safe delivery of a healthy son while Lord Lyonel was away in Dorne was a joyous occasion for House Tyrell and all the Reach. Rylla no longer had the burden of being her father’s heir, and quickly grew very fond of her little brother, and has always treated her child lord brother very kindly.
Jeona Tyrell - Rylla is the elder sister, and she will not let Jeona forget it. Her sister was one of the few people Rylla has acted a little more authoritative towards. Jeona has, of course, been betrothed to the heir to the Eyrie, while Rylla has only been betrothed to Myles Hightower. Their relationship has not soured, however, nor was it truly sour to begin with.
Jancia Tyrell, Dowager Lady of Highgarden - Elegance, grace, dignity, charm, refinery. These are all virtues which Lady Jancia possesses. To Rylla, she is the finest lady in the Seven Kingdoms, and she greatly idolises her grandmother. They have a rather close relationship, and Rylla feels she can tell Jancia anything that troubles her.
Ardon Tyrell, Lord Protector of the Reach - For the first few years of her life, he was simply just her witty and kind-hearted Uncle Ardon. But after her father’s death, Ardon became Lord Protector of the Reach. While his nature has not changed, Rylla sometimes feels he tries too hard to act as a father to her. She is firm in her obedience to him, but she is convinced that no-one can replace Lord Lyonel.
Reyna Tyrell, the Silver Rose, Mistress of Keys to Princess Naerys Targaryen - Many maids may idolise their beloved aunts, but Rylla does not know Reyna very well, as she was just a babe when Reyna was packed off to wed her first husband. Still, Rylla still greatly respects her half-aunt and her position as Princess Naerys’ Mistress of Keys, and is honoured to be in her care in King’s Landing.
Myles Hightower, Companion to Prince Aegon Targaryen - Rylla met her husband for the first time when they were to marry in the city. He treats her courteously, when he can, but she knows that she is still a little girl to him in many ways, and he is the butcher of Dorne.
Edmure Tully, heir to Riverrun - Rylla is always keen to make connections to other Great Houses, and the heir to Riverrun is most certainly a figure to support… and it seems that Ser Edmure is equally keen to make connections with her. The Tyrell and Tully appear more than glad to engage in conversation about the future of their two houses. She is also fairly well-acquainted with Ser Edmure’s five siblings: Melene Darry, Ser Brynden Tully, Andrya Ryger, Jannia Buckwell (the Lady of the Antlers), and Toren Tully.
Jonn Lannister, heir to Casterly Rock - Under most circumstances, the heir to Casterly Rock would be a somewhat assured connection for a Tyrell of Highgarden and Hightower of Oldtown ... but, of course, House Tyrell has not fully recovered from the scandalous affair between Rylla’s aunt, Reyna, and Jonn Lannister some ten years past, even if the two in question care a little less than they might. Yet, it is Jonn himself who has quashed any reason for there to be a veneer of pleasantries between the lion and the tower, for, of course, he opines that her beloved father was completely odious for his actions in Dorne. This culminated at Rylla’s own wedding feast, where Jonn hoped that Rylla’s parts were more Garth Greenhand than her scorpion-filled father’s… to which Rylla quipped back that she hoped she was at least fruitful than any barren jewel, slighting Ser Jonn’s Arryn wife.
Gwyn Banefort, Former Lady of Hammerhal - Rylla has heard it all about Lady Gwyn from those keen to gossip, and even her septa—that she is afflicted by a curse of the Stranger, as she has lost two husbands, as her Arryn mother lost three. Yet Rylla seems to be able to look past these rumours, as the western lady has always treated her with dripping courtesy.
Forthcoming.
“The greater the house, the greater the pride, it seems.” - Aisling Ryswell.
“Indeed, Lady Aisling, there are many vices that bar the path to true knighthood. Lack of diligence, for one. What is the use of allegiance if there are no, ah, fruits, of such duty and labour?” - Rylla Tyrell.
—
“I know who you are, girl. You have your father’s look, and none of his odious nature.” - Jonn Lannister.
“Odious? No, I hope that quality is not prevalent in Tyrell women, or it will be such a shame when my dear cousin weds your son and future heir.” - Rylla Tyrell.
—
“Casterly Rock is not for touring and courtly visits. The Westerlands is a hard place for hard people. Best if you all keep your adventuring to the Reach and Riverlands. After all, it would not do to have you made saltwife to an ironborn so soon after a joyous union with Ser Myles.” - Jonn Lannister.
“Ah, yes, Ser Jonn, how good you are to be concerned about that. After all, House Tyrell knows all too well about having our women becoming wives of ironmen at the fault of those of the west.” - Rylla Tyrell.
“
Forthcoming.
Category://King’s Landing -> People