BAPTISM BY FIRE, house of the dragon

02. prelude to the fall

⠀⠀⠀⠀The island itself was a rather lonely place. It was isolated by the sea on all sides, though Driftmark was a short flight west and a few lesser houses resided on the small islands surrounding the larger. Besides the few servants and armed men who ran the fortress, the only company around was either the smallfolk of the tiny fishing village or the wild dragons seen swooping through the sky.

⠀⠀⠀⠀The girl, recently turned ten-and-seven, had grown quite restless with the confinement. She had been amiable until the maesters warned her against taking to the sky on Xadras out of fear for the child coming along in her stomach. Now, left with nothing to do but visit the library and walk the sandy shores, she was ready to pull the child from between her legs. She would gladly do so by herself if given permission from her caretakers. Seven Hells, she might do so without their consent at this point. This was a stark contrast to her earlier feelings. For months, she had wished for the babe to remain inside her forever out of fear of failing at motherhood.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Ser Erock Stark constantly assured the princess she would be a great mother. He told her stories of how his own fell into the role naturally after giving birth to his elder brother. Ser Harwin Strong, the newest addition to her entourage, reminded her that there would be maids and nurses abound to aid in the rearing of her child. He even offered to personally attend to her needs during such a time. Lady Nymeria Martell was the most immense relief, spending countless hours with her darling princess, whispering sweet nothings in her ear and massaging her tender breasts. She swore the girl was even more beautiful with the glow of pregnancy.

⠀⠀⠀⠀It was Drack Martell, Nymeria's brother and protector, who found the expecting mother on the beach. She stood barefoot at the edge of the shore, letting the waters of the Narrow Sea lap at her bare skin. He leisurely strolled towards her, only having sought her out to ask his sister's whereabouts. The two were acquaintances at best; he had been a stipulation of his sister's tenure at court.

⠀⠀⠀⠀As usual, since her marriage, she had a distant gaze in her eyes. When she turned to address the man, she looked through him instead of at him. Even though their gazes met, he knew with certainty she was elsewhere. She seemed to sway back and forth ever so slightly in rhythm with the receding waves. He thought of her in comparison to a sapling in a storm—young and unsteady but oh so resilient.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Drack took notice of the darkness of her dress under her swollen belly. The fabric appeared wet. He immediately understood: this was not a consequence of the sea; her water had broken. He rushed to close the distance. "Princess, we must alert the maesters. The baby is coming," he said in an even tone, not wanting to startle her. She remained unphased by his declaration and maintained the same mute expression.

⠀⠀⠀⠀"Drack, I fear I am not fit to be a mother," she told him.

⠀⠀⠀⠀"I believe no person is truly ready to be a parent until they finally are one," he replied. He placed his calloused hand on her forearm in an attempt to gauge what her reaction might be to his next course of action. "Come on, Princess." He elicited a small grunt as he picked her up bridal style. He did so as gently as possible, but her unwillingness to move nor the additional weight of pregnancy did not help.

⠀⠀⠀⠀"Madwen will never be fit to be a father."

⠀⠀⠀⠀"No, he will not," Drack affirmed. "But you have an entire army of people ready to raise this child with you."

⠀⠀⠀⠀Vaerya's fears of motherhood melted away as soon as she held the newborn. She looked upon the little boy in her arms and saw the whole world, her whole world. She immediately knew by the way his head snuggled into her chest that he would be the best parts of his mother and the best parts of his father. He would be a dragon made of ice or a wolf made of fire. She looked over at Erock and saw her feelings reflected in his cerulean irises. She saw herself and the child in them, too; they were his whole world.