Chapter 43 - Rhaenys Velaryon.
Chapter 43 - Rhaenys Velaryon.
[Chapter Size: 2400 Words.]
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Third Person POV
North, 101 AC.
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Lord Corlys Velaryon walked down the corridor before entering the room where his family was.
"Lord Velaryon." The guards at the entrance bowed to him before opening the door for him to pass.
The first thing Lord Velaryon saw was his family eating the first meal of the day, as he joined them after dealing with some matters that had occupied him since he had awakened.
"I met with some people. I'm sure we can have the Baratheons with us. Their support will bring many others." Corlys said to his wife as he approached.
Rhaenys was a stunning woman. As a Targaryen princess, she had snow-white hair, violet eyes, and skin as white as milk. 2
She noticed the doors opening and saw her husband arriving, while her eyes soon landed on the boy beside her. Her youngest son, 7 years old, was eating somewhat recklessly.
"Eat slowly, Leonor..." she asked.
"But I am eating, Mother," Leonor said.
"You're not, brother." The older female voice echoed beside Leonor. She spoke teasingly. It was Laena, the firstborn daughter of Rhaenys and Corlys.
While Leonor took after his father, with bronze skin, white hair, and violet eyes, Laena took more after her mother. With the beauty typical of a Targaryen princess, she was a complete Valyrian and one of the future most beautiful women in the kingdoms.
Leonor was 7 namedays old at this moment, and Laena was 9 namedays old.
As soon as Rhaenys heard her husband, she could not help but sigh. She was one of the claimants in the struggle for the Iron Throne amid all this chaos.
She finished cutting something for the little boy to eat before looking at her husband. She said nothing as he sat down.
"You're very worried," she simply said.
"How could I not be? I've spent days trying to secure alliances, and the scouts reported that the North is arriving."
"The North, interesting..." Rhaenys could not help but murmur, lost in her own thoughts upon hearing that.
Hearing this, Corlys sighed. "Unfortunately, we won't get anything from the North. Clearly, they will directly support Viserys. Even so, I still intend to arrange a meeting with Lord Stark. I heard he is with his family, and his mother should arrive within a few hours," he said.
"Well, if you want the support of the wolves of the North, I must advise you, my husband. That woman is certainly the key to it," Rhaenys said.
"The widow? How do you know that? I thought it was only rumors," her husband asked, beginning to eat and taking something from the table to place on his plate.
"Isn't it obvious? Her son won't do anything without speaking to his mother first. Even though the North is quite reclusive, everyone knows the rumors that come from those lands."
"It doesn't mean we'll have their support if that woman doesn't give the final word," Rhaenys explained while her husband seemed to reflect on that.
"Do you think you could convince her?" he asked curiously. "After all, it would be one woman speaking to another," he suggested.
She closed her eyes. "I'll see what I can do."
Then she opened her eyes and looked at her daughter, who was watching them with a bit of caution. She was already almost nine namedays old and quite curious. Her eyes also turned to her son, who simply ate without caring about anything, at most casting a few curious glances at them and their conversation.
"I think it would also be interesting to see you fly on your dragon. After all, it's the only dragon we have here right now," her husband spoke again. Her dragon, Meraxes, was stationed in a corner of the forest, guarded by dragonkeepers who cared for him every day. It was forbidden to approach him except for authorized people. But many already knew that Meraxes was there, since she had been forced to make a grand appearance upon her arrival, at her husband's request, to earn the admiration and respect of the lords. 3
"You want me to go around frightening the lords, my husband?" Rhaenys replied, one eyebrow raised.
"No, that's not it," he said. "I'm saying that you could show yourself more often before the entire realm. It would inspire fear and support among the lords." He suggested this while Rhaenys shook her head.
"I'm not the only dragonrider, dear. Daemon is one as well, and he will certainly be supporting his brother."
"Yes, and that's exactly why I want you to do it. Many people expect to see dragons, and it would be a mistake to let Daemon be the first to do so for many people who have never seen his dragon. You haven't flown since you arrived. When Daemon appears, I'm sure he'll make a point of flying over all the camps with Caraxes and frightening every noble." Lord Velaryon was not wrong.
There were only two dragonriders present at that moment. After all, even though Jaehaerys was still alive, he was too old to ride Vermithor. Viserys did not possess a dragon, as Balerion himself had died a few years earlier. Since then, Viserys had never managed to become a dragonrider again.
Thus, only Rhaenys and Daemon remained as the active dragonriders of House Targaryen. There was also little Rhaenyra, whose egg had hatched in her cradle, but she was only a child and could never ride Syrax, the name her dragon had received. Currently, he was in the Dragonpit in King's Landing.
"I'll think about it," Rhaenys said at last.
Despite that, she knew the effort to place her on the throne came more from her husband than from herself.
"But you know? I'm interested in something else, now that you mentioned the North." She placed a hand on her chin. "There's a rumor. A rumor about a child in the North in whom the king himself is interested."
Hearing that, Corlys nodded silently. "It's just a child. Nothing relevant. Merely a curiosity of the king," he replied simply.
"Well, the king's curiosity is quite relevant. I heard that this child is coming with the Northern delegation. I even forgot to ask about it."
"I couldn't say. No one on the small council or at court can explain why the king asks about him. I only know that the king issued an order to have him brought along. He must be coming with the Northern delegation and Lord Stark."
"I even heard that he's bringing that direwolf." He added. And upon hearing that, one of the children lifted her head.
"A wolf?" Leona's voice emerged as she looked at her mother and father curiously.
The queen smiled slightly at her daughter. Her children were the only light amid all that chaos. 1
"That's right. A direwolf. They say he's as large as a horse and more beautiful than anything that isn't a dragon," she said.
"Yay! I want to see the wolf!" Leonor, the youngest, also joined the discussion.
"Yes, we'll see it as soon as the opportunity arises," she said to her son, touching his head since he was close enough for her to do so.
Even she was interested. Though it was not something impressive for someone who had already seen dragons, it was still interesting to observe exotic animals.
"So, about the boy, do you know anything?" Rhaenys asked, turning her attention back to her husband. He always had spies everywhere; he should have some information.
"Well, there are many stories about the boy. They say he's a genius of the North and that he killed a giant bear by himself a few moons ago after running away from Winterfell in the middle of the greatest feast the North has for gathering its lords..."
"That sounds interesting. Worthy of a ballad, don't you think?" Rhaenys raised an eyebrow.
Obviously, it was a rhetorical question. There was nothing better than telling a great story through song. After all, those were always the best stories.
"And there is one," her husband confirmed. "It's just not as popular in the South as it is in the North. Obviously, you can't expect people to believe that a child of ten namedays killed a giant bear alone in the forest."
"What a shame. I would have liked to hear that song. I hope they perform it."
"The North brought some bards with them. You'll certainly hear it."
Later, Rhaenys left the place where the family had been eating to take a walk with her daughter and son, accompanied by guards. Her husband was elsewhere, arranging more meetings with lords in search of support...
As they walked, Rhaenys could not help but look through one of the tower windows, observing all the camps with hundreds of banners spread in every direction.
It was a unique event, even for her. She had never seen the entire realm gathered in a single place.
As for her possible coronation, if she were honest, she did not truly believe in it. Even so, she was honoring her husband's wishes and, personally, she also did not want to appear weak in defeat. After all, she was a woman, and the realm would hardly accept her. Even though, deep down, she desired the crown.
"Do you think you're going to win, Mother?" Leonor asked.
Rhaenys looked at her son and stroked his head. "I don't know, my prince. I don't know. But it doesn't matter." She replied softly, feeling that her son was certainly rooting for her.
"Rhaenyra said her father is going to win. I said Muña would win!" Leona muttered beside her with evident dissatisfaction.
Rhaenys could not help but smile slightly as she noticed her daughter's irritation. She tried to keep a relaxed expression despite the slight discomfort those words caused.
"Well, she also hopes that her father wins," said Rhaenys.
"But I want Muña to win!" the girl insisted.
"Whatever is going to happen will happen anyway. How about we go to the castle courtyard now?" she said as the children nodded.
And they followed the corridors until they reached the library, where they found Viserys, who seemed to be merely passing by with some friends.
One of them was none other than Otto Hightower, his loyal friend and the current Hand of the King. One of Viserys's greatest supporters.
"Rhaenys!" Viserys called out in a friendly manner, as though neither of them were competing for the greatest power in Westeros.
Rhaenys offered a restrained smile when she saw them. "Hello, Viserys. How are you?" Rhaenys asked with a friendly smile.
"I'm well. And how are you and these two?" Viserys replied before smiling and looking at the children.
"They're doing well. We're heading to the courtyard right now," Rhaenys answered.
Viserys nodded. "Aemma is there as well. We'll join you. We just need to receive a few things. Lord Strong has called us for a small meeting."
Rhaenys nodded. "Of course." She gave him a small smile. "Then I'll leave you to the other lords."
"We'll talk later, cousin," Viserys said before beginning to walk away.
"Princess," Otto bowed respectfully.
The other men also greeted her before following Viserys.
Rhaenys continued through the corridors with her guards and children until they finally descended to the lower levels of the castle.
"I'm so tired, Mother..." Leonor could not help but complain beside her.
"Consider this training for the coming days, my prince. Harrenhal is much larger than our home," she said, ruffling her son's hair.
Then they headed outside.
They passed one of the balconies and approached it with their guards, who did not leave their backs unprotected for a single moment since they had left the chamber where they had eaten the first meal of the day.
There they found several ladies. Lady Strong was present with her son, Harwin. They also found Aemma, Viserys's wife, once again pregnant, accompanied by little Rhaenyra.
All of them turned their attention toward her arrival. "Princess Rhaenys," some of the women greeted.
Rhaenys approached with her two children, passing the royal guards before beginning the conversation and exchanging greetings.
Soon her eyes turned to the training yard below, where several knights were practicing.
Leonor immediately became interested. "Who do you think is going to win the tourney, Mother?" he asked, fascinated by the sight.
"I don't know. There will be many skilled knights in the tournament this time." She observed the field for a few moments.
"Even the North may participate," one of the ladies said.
"The North? Interesting. I want to see those savages trying to handle a lance," Lady Tarly commented, drawing a few discreet laughs from the other ladies of the Reach.
Neither Rhaenys nor Aemma showed even the slightest smile at the remark.
They knew the value of the North and had no intention of being seen laughing at jokes about them. Not when they needed their support.
"It is rude to say that the largest kingdom in Westeros is made up of savages," Aemma said.
The laughter died immediately when they realized the princess was not joking. They were all supporting Viserys for the throne, and getting close to Aemma was indeed an opportunity for that.
"The princess is right," another lady agreed.
Meanwhile, Leona had joined little Rhaenyra in conversation.
"Speaking of the North, I didn't see anyone riding a wolf. They just arrived," commented one of the ladies who had just overheard some conversations.
"So they've arrived... I've heard things about them..." another woman said.
"You must be talking about the white wolf the size of a horse that's with them. Everyone outside is talking about it." That immediately sparked the interest of those present.
Even her children and Rhaenyra herself seemed curious. Rhaenys turned her attention back to the knights training in the yard.
'It seems things are getting interesting,' she thought.
Author's Note:
Well, in the previous chapter I included some mistakes regarding the canon, and I corrected them here. It's true, House Strong held Harrenhal during this period. I also made this chapter a bit shorter, just to show a little of the relationship between Rhaenys and Viserys, as well as how both sides are seeking support for the throne.
In the next chapter, we'll return to Jon.
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