A Raven in The Dragon's Nest

Chapter 1

The sound of boot on stone echoed through the icy cavern, syncing perfectly well with a hum. The man walked alone, humming a tune under his breath until he stopped before a gate. It was made of white weirwood, an old face carved on it, pale, shrunken and wrinkled. When the man had gotten close enough, its eyes opened to look at him, eyes that were white and blind.

"Who are you?" the gate asked, glowing in the darkness of the cavern.

"I am the watcher on the walls" the man replied. "I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers. I am the shield that guards the realms of men."

"Then pass," the gate said, its lips opening wider than it had until it was a great gaping mouth in a ring of wrinkles. The man smiled, walking right through the gaping mouth whistling his tune once more.

----

Below the red leaves of the Weirwood Tree were two young women. One was laying down, her head on her companion's lap while the other read from a book.

"Did you read it?" the girl with the book in her hands asked.

"Of course, I read it" the girl on her lap answered.

The one that sat looked sceptically at her friend, before gazing at the pages of the book in her hand. "When Princess Nymeria arrived in Dorne who did she take to husband?" she asked.

"A man" her friend answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Whose name was...?"

"Lord Something."

"Lord Something" the questioner almost chuckled at the response, "Septa Marlow will be furious if you answer with "Lord Something", Rhaenyra."

"She's funny when she's furious" the one named Rhaenyra quipped.

The questioner looked at her friend for a bit, before turning her eyes away from her face. "You're always like this when you're worried," she said.

"Like what?" Rhaenyra asked.

"Disagreeable" the girl answered.

Rhaenyra finally met her eyes, looking into them for a moment before she looked away once more. "I worry for my mother" she answered finally.

"Is that all you worry about?" the girl asked, raising an inquisitive brow.

"Only my mother" she assured her friend, "I hope for my father, that he gets the son he's always wanted. As long as I can recall, it's all he ever wanted."

The brunette's brows furrowed confusion palpable in her expression. "You want him to have a son?" she asked. The answer to that she would not get, for the sound of a shoe on stone interrupted them both.

"I am sorry to intrude" the one that interrupted spoke, "I was hoping to pray to the Old Gods. I could come back later if it pleases the Princess and the Lady Alicent."

"No," Princess Rhaenyra stood, dusting her dress clean. "We were done anyways" she held a hand to the brunette who went by Alicent. The young lady took her hand and stood, but her eyes were on the stranger.

He was tall, easily touching six feet if not more. He wore a simple grey tunic that looked worn out, the same as the pants he wore. His hair was a dark brown and his skin pale. He was handsome and had a Northern look to him. But his eyes unsettled her. It was like looking into pools of blood.

"Come on" the Princess whispered harshly, having been trying to get her friend to move from her spot. Alicent seemed to snap out of her thoughts then and went away arm in arm with the Princess. It was only after they entered the Red Keep did the thought strike her. How had he known her name?