King’s Landing is a dangerous place in Game of Thrones season 6. The city is still under the control of King Tommen Baratheon and the Lannisters, but trouble has boiled over: the Faith, led by the High Sparrow, holds Queen Margaery and her brother captive, and will hold a trial for Queen Cersei’s life. The group is the greatest threat to Lannister rule since the Battle of the Blackwater, and the small council knows it. Moreover, they’ve been meeting without Cersei and Jaime Lannister—and they’re right to do so, since Jaime and Cersei are both major-league morons.

All Of This Is Cersei’s Fault In The First Place

Cersei is upset that, as the Queen Mother, she has been excluded from the meetings of the Small Council—which has grown small indeed, consisting of the Hand of the King, her uncle Kevan Lannister; Olenna Tyrell and Grand Maester Pycelle, sometimes along with Qyburn. Jaime and Cersei are pointedly unwelcome. The king himself is rarely there.

All of this is very wise on the part of the small council. Jaime is Kingsguard, and deserves a say on the small council strictly on matters of royal defense—such as the rescue of Queen Margaery. But he’s not much of a leader on matters of thought. Cersei is also rightfully entitled to a seat on the small council as Queen Mother. The trouble is, she’s only going to get them all into an even worse mess.

Cersei has a knack for bad plans. One of them alone should totally disqualify her for playing any role in taking on the Faith Militant: Her creation of the Faith Militant. Cersei is directly responsible for creating the fanatics who now control much of King’s Landing. She legalized the group, forbidden for centuries, in order to pay off some of the crown’s debts. Big mistake—and one that she has learned nothing from. Even her tenure in the High Sparrow’s prison and her walk of shame have not made her realize that she is out of her depth, that she doesn’t have the wisdom of Tyrion.

Even beyond that, Cersei got Margaery locked up in the first place. She does legitimately want the Faith Militant destroyed, mostly to save her own hide, but she put Margaery in the position that she’s in. She is at least in part working deliberately at odds with the council. And that’s ultimately why her plans are so suspect.

She’s trying to get rid of Kevan Lannister, get him to step down, so she herself can reclaim power. And she’s trying to get the council to storm the Great Sept, to attack the High Sparrow directly, to save her own skin—and possibly to get Margaery killed as well. Cersei is no friend to the Tyrells, although that’s mostly because of her own jealousy. As Olenna says, there’s going to be blood one way or the other. Cersei wants it to be the Faith’s—and Margaery’s. Let’s hope the small council wises up instead of falling for her tricks.