Pre-Chapter A/N:Another chapter on time? Guess my lock-in is going pretty well. If you haven't already, I recommend turning on notifications for my stuff so you can see when new stuff drops right as it drops. More chapters on my patreon(https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga)— same username as here and link in bio. Since I just started a new story, there's a cheeky discount on said patreon(https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga) page for anyone interested.
"Do you understand why I had to do that?" Viserys asked once we had retired to his solar. After he had made his decision not to punish us or do anything more, he had dismissed Court, and then we had received the invitation to attend him in his solar from Cargyll. This time, at least, we had been escorted by only a single Knight and not a whole contingent of them.
"To send a message. You are the King, after all," I said. Instead of nodding to agree with me, he just scoffed. He poured out a healthy amount of Arbor red in a glass and offered it to me.
"Thank you, Your Grace," I said, accepting it. He took his own glass next. I noted there was no pour for Laena. I passed her my glass to drink first. If Viserys thought anything of it, he did not mention it.
"I don't need to send messages. I am the King. My word is law. I did that because you had forgotten," he said.
"I would never, Your Grace."
"Oh, but you would. There in the Stepstones, you are all but a King in your own right. Tell me the truth: which of those former slaves you rule over thank me for the bread they eat each day? Which of them thank me for the pirates that do not break down their doors? The Ironborn have a saying—every Captain is King on his own ship. Our family has worked hard across generations to prevent a similar sentiment from taking hold among the Lords of this land. You do not have that lesson, Laenor. You have not learned it. You do business with my Lords and with the merchants across the sea equally. You make mountains of gold and pay a pittance in tax. You devise means to get around the taxes you do pay…"
"Your Grace—"
"I am still speaking, Laenor. All this I have noted, and I did nothing. Nothing until it became known that you might have broken the most important law of all. Do you know why the King's Peace is so important?" he asked.
"Because it preserves the stability of the realm. Can't have vassals going on fighting each other without permission," I said. He chuckled.
"If it were so, then it would not affect wars outside the realm. What business do I have with dealings half a world away? It would only take a letter to disavow any actions any vassal takes. The King's Peace is important because it gives the King power."
"Power?" Laena shot in.
"Yes. Power. The power of peace. The King's Peace means only the King can declare war. Only the King can call for arms to be raised. The King has a monopoly on large-scale violence, and is there a power more important than that one in this world we live in? I decide if Knights will give their lives in the hundreds. If smallfolk will die in the thousands. If millions more will starve and suffer the effects. War is the most beautiful and yet the most dangerous thing we have. I control it because I am King. And I am King because I control war," he said.
"And in attacking Dorne without your permission, we risked that control," I surmised.
"Exactly. What do I care if snakes burn in their desert? What business of mine is it? But it represents a danger to our very way of life. If the Lords see that I allow you to wage war unopposed, then what will stop Bracken from burning down Blackwood's land and seizing it in a year?"
"But you did let us get away with it," I said.
"I summoned you and then had you frog-marched before my throne. And while I did it, I recognized our familial relation. If this is what I will do to my own cousins, then what will I do to them if they step out of line? That is what the Lords wonder now," he said.
"I see."
"Besides, could I have punished you?" he asked.
"You are the King," I said.
"Am I? Do you see me as the King, Laenor Velaryon?"
"I attended your summons, Your Grace."
"On the back of one dragon. I wonder where Vhagar and Meleys are now. I wonder where they will be in a day if I were to arrest you. I wonder what Igneel will do as he flies around my castle even now. I am the King because I wear the crown, but that does not matter when I remember how many dragons I have and how many you do. Aegon Targaryen and his sister-wives conquered the Seven Kingdoms with three dragons."
"Igneel is no Balerion," I cut back.
"No. He's something scarier. Such an unassuming color for such a frightening beast. Dread Balerion was black as night with fire running through his very being that made him look like a glowing coal when he breathed it. Your Igneel is a plain grey. And yet he has grown faster than every journal or account says is possible. By the time you are my age, how big will he be? Caraxes took decades to reach that size. Your Igneel would smite the Blood Wyrm from the air if they danced, I know," he said. I didn't know how to reply to that.
"You will not be marrying my daughter," he said next.
"Your Grace?"
"Send my apologies to your mother. I feel you are not as heartbroken as I would expect a young man your age to be for missing out on a royal match," he said.
"Rhaenyra and I have our differences," I said.
"Indeed. She has requested to be married to anyone else. Anyone but you, she said. I will grant her her wish. Folding your family into the royal line was the easy solution to dealing with what will now become an uncomfortable problem."
I stared at him.
"You have three dragons to my one. Otto would advise something drastic. Something foolish. I, instead, will ask you a question. Do you want to be King of the Seven Kingdoms, Laenor? Would you doom my house and the realm for it?"
"I don't want to be King, Your Grace," I said.
"You gave a very good speech for it all those years ago, I am sure you remember. You talked circles around Daemon that day. If you were a man-grown, you would have been the one granted the Iron Throne by the decision of all the Lords at that Council. And now you tell me that you want the throne no longer."
"I was a child. I knew only what my parents had told me I should want. Now, I have other things I want. I want peace for my house. I want prosperity for the people I have named as mine. I want to be able to explore the interests that draw my fancy. None of those things require a crown. You could even say taking a crown would directly work against a few of those. How much free time do you have, Your Grace? Yes, you are a King, but you are as much a servant of the realm as the realm serves you. I don't want that," I said, saying it out loud for the first time. I could turn the Stepstones into a paradise in my lifetime. I would never be able to do that with the Seven Kingdoms.
The only circumstances that would make me want a throne were circumstances that would give me the chance to vastly expand the Crown's powers, holdings, and remove the Lords that I knew would be problematic. And well, there was no need to tell Viserys about that. I just had to wait. If the opportunity ever came, it would be after this man's death.
"I see. Would you swear it to me then? That you would abandon whatever claim you have on the throne and back the claim of my chosen heir if the time ever comes that her claim needs backing?" he asked. How interesting. So even he knew that Rhaenyra's ascension was unlikely to be smooth sailing. So where was this forethought in canon? Or was it the fact that she would not be marrying into the most powerful house in the realm that had him thinking more?
"I would. If you would swear your support to me in a different matter," I decided to take a risk of my own.
"My support is yours, Cousin," he said.
"You didn't ask what I needed," I chuckled.
"Is it strange that I find myself trusting you? I just feel like I can trust you no matter what. You remind me of Daemon, you know?" he said. I smiled at what he must have thought was a compliment, even as I tried to avoid my true thoughts showing on my face.
"What do you need my support with?" he asked.
"When I choose my bride, there will be many in Westeros who oppose it. You will not be one of them. In fact, you will declare your full and unconditional support for my choice and wedding," I said.
He paused. And then he looked between Laena and me, looking at the glass I had handed to her especially closely.
"If that is your wish, then like I said, my support is yours, Cousin."
"And so my support is yours, Your Grace," I echoed, knowing that I was lying to this good man through my teeth. But I couldn't feel any guilt for it.
"Thank you, Cousin," he said.
"If that will be all, Your Grace?" I asked.
"Before you leave, your performance in the tourney was splendid. Do keep your skills sharp. A time might come when I will need to send one of my sons to squire outside this city. Family will of course be the first consideration," he said. I smiled and nodded, before leaving while silently praying to every god who would listen that he never actually did that.
Having one of Aegon, Aemond, or Daeron under my aegis was just going to involve me in shit I would much rather avoid with a ten-foot pole.
— — —
"And that was all," I said, finishing my explanation to Mother.
"You never did tell me you attacked Dorne. Neither did you mention the assassination attempt made on your life," she said.
"There wasn't one," I shrugged.
"I suspected. Now let us hope that the King does not find out you lied to him in open court."
"Impossible to prove either way. He'll take my word for it because he will want to believe me either way," I said. She nodded.
"Well, today's been stressful enough. I'll be heading to bed now," she said.
"Same here," I said. Today had been a day and a half already.
XXXXX- ONE MONTH LATER—
In the end, it had taken a whole month for Mother to agree that I had enough of Driftmark and let me return to the Stepstones. I'd been antsy all through the time I spent there—unable to do more than send letters with orders and receive responses to letters I'd sent days earlier. It was a frustrating experience, but Mother felt I needed the vacation, and arguing with her wasn't worth it. Not when I would be leaving her for who knows how long in this castle alone.
It wasn't all terrible, at least. The daily flights with Mother and Laena were pleasurable. Igneel enjoyed being home with the warmer and more pleasant weather. He flew on his own more often—hunting in the coasts of Driftmark every once in a while. We had even gone as far as Dragonstone once or twice and had flown with a dragon I suspected to be the Grey Ghost. I'd curbed the flights when I'd spied a massive black shape in the corner of my eye during one of them. Dancing with the Cannibal was not my idea of a good time.
I spotted the lighthouses first with some pride growing in my chest like a small still flame, the exact opposite of the wide bonfires that each lighthouse boasted. We had done it. A lighthouse on every other island above a certain size would see to it that the Stepstones were lit at night for sailors making the journey. It would also make sure that everyone knew there was something of value here. Bloodstone was growing as a port city even when I'd been there. After two months of me being away, I wouldn't be surprised to find that it had grown even more in popularity.
Without me ordering him to, Igneel sharply lowered himself so we were flying right above the water. I could feel the sea breeze flowing through my hair as small bits of moisture in the air slapped against my face. A growl from above us was the only warning we got before our view of the sun was blocked. I scowled and we barrel-rolled out of the way as Vhagar sharply reduced her altitude.
"She wants to fly, huh? Let's make that bitch fly," I whispered to Igneel's neck and we shot off. We accelerated sharply and then began to climb. We went higher and higher until we were in the clouds themselves. I could hear Vhagar's wingbeats behind us as she followed. Laena was probably urging her to move faster and faster.
I smiled to myself. Laena was going to be so pissed when this was over.
We began to slow as we got higher, allowing Vhagar to catch up just enough… And then at the last moment, when there was a chance she would reach us in this game of tag, we twisted and began to dive instead. Vhagar's twist was far less graceful but she did a good enough job, and then we began to speed up as we went down. I couldn't hear Vhagar's wings with the sound of the wind rushing past my head as fast as we were going, but she had to be just a few feet behind us.
We went down towards the sea, and right when it looked like we were about to smash in and have a very uncomfortable afternoon, we twisted and lurched upwards very sharply. Our tail kissed the water as we passed it. The splash I expected to hear from Vhagar hitting the water was nowhere to be found. I searched behind us and then in the sky before I saw her just flying about.
Laena looked behind her and shook her head as if to say—can you stop playing around? I chuckled.
"Once bitten, twice shy, I guess," I said with another chuckle. Fair enough. We'd done that one to Vhagar before. Makes sense that Laena could see it coming. We shot off towards Bloodstone, accelerating past Vhagar with a burst of speed. If we shook our wet tail a bit at her nose while we passed, then it was entirely accidental. Her growls of annoyance were music to my ears though.
We reached Bloodstone in about thirty minutes from then. I flew around the island thrice before making landfall in front of the castle. The castle looked largely unchanged from the outside from the day it had been stormed by the Stormlords. We'd repaired the gate that we had destroyed, but beyond that, there was little to do. It remained an imposing edifice of black stone. I waited for Vhagar to land, leaning against Igneel's form.
Of course, she landed with enough force to cause a tremor in the earth itself, but since we had been expecting it, Igneel did little more than harrumph in annoyance while I leaned more against him to avoid the force from destabilizing my footing.
Laena slid down the dragon and into my arms. She placed a chaste kiss on my lips.
"We're outside," I told her, smiling regardless.
"I don't care. Enough hiding. Mother supports us and you got the King on our side. What do we have to fear?" she said. And when she put it like that, there was little I could say to argue. So I held her even closer and kissed her harder.
"Good," she whispered against my lips before hers captured mine again. I moaned into it and remained there for a while before we were interrupted by a growl from Vhagar. We looked over and noted that Maester Bernard was on his way from the entrance. Someone had warned him of our arrival, it seemed.
"Lord Velaryon. Lady Laena," he said, offering us bows one after the other.
"Maester Bernard. I hope all goes well with the projects I entrusted in your care?" I asked.
"Yes, my Lord. It all proceeds according to plan," he said.
"Speaking of, on the way here, I noticed a massive foundation being built. What's that about?" Laena asked.
"Lord Velaryon ordered the building of a new sept. The foundation is to serve as the base for the building," he said.
"A new sept, huh? What's wrong with the one we already have? I didn't think you cared all that much for the Faith of the Seven," she said, turning to give me a look.
"I'll meet you inside, Bernard. If you would please wait for me in your tower, I will be with you shortly," he said, and then turned around to head back to the castle.
"Firstly, maybe don't mention around believers in the Faith that we couldn't care less about their gods. Even the best of people would betray someone for believing in the wrong gods. Secondly, that old sept was nice and all but no place for a wedding between dragon riders," I said. It took a second for it to sink in and then her smile put the Sun, the Stars, and all the heavens to shame.
"Really?" she asked.
"Really," I confirmed.
A/N: Wedding bells ringing? Well, yes. But not yet. Expect another tiny time skip next chapter. Next five chapters up on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga)(same username as here and link in bio), support me there and read them early. Started a new story, so there's a discount for the rest of the month on patreon(https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga): feel free to check that out as well.