𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐧 ➵ jacaerys velaryon

16: ᶜʳᵘᵉˡ ᶜˡᵃʷˢ

☁️ ·̩͙✧
C H A P T E R S I X T E E N

JACAERYS

HE TOOK careful aim at the deer oblivious to his presence and a deep breath. As the shot pierced through the forest, it hit its target.

"That's it!" Cregan Stark cheered, signalling for the wolves and their companions to go finish the job.

That morning, Jacaerys had risen early, too early, and Cregan had offered to take him out hunting to clear his mind for a while. Unable to refuse, he agreed, and they were escorted into the forest in the company of a few of Cregan's companions and their wolves.

"What did you discuss with Mevanya last night?" Once the two of them were alone organizing the remaining arrows, Jace tried to sound as unselfishly discreet as possible.
"About you, about her, we didn't talk much," Cregan shrugged, oblivious of the look Jacaerys was giving him as he organised the things in his horse's pouch.
"Of me?" The prince questioned, curious.
"I asked her how you'd been, and she said not so well. She doesn't talk much, or at least certainly much less than everyone had painted her to. She's... darker, than the stories tell."
"Yes, well, she lost a lot, suffered a lot, not to mention she's about to go to war against her whole family, dark is what you can expect at this point. I'm afraid the stories won't be true again, at least not for a long time, Mevanya has...changed, her eyes don't contain the same brightness they used to, and for an awful lot of right reasons," he couldn't help all the words he said, as he felt his chest on fire thinking about the past and the present, how much the greens had destroyed someone who always but wanted to fix things, who seemed to have been born to shine, but could no longer.
"You too," Cregan spoke, catching him off guard, focusing his full attention on him.
"What?" Jace stopped what he was doing, confused, and looked at the young wolf with furrowed brows.
"You've lost a lot too, you've suffered a lot too, your darkness is right too, your change is right too."
"I can't afford to change right now," he denied, turning away from the man and going back to his work.
"I beg to differ. Leaders have to change, adapt to new circumstances."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Great Leader of the North, I forgot that your poetic words come from a man as old as you," he tried to put a better mood on the moment, rolling his eyes at his friend's words.

Cregan laughed and tossed him his quiver and bow to keep. Jace smiled in response and turned to his horse.

Once the deer was secured, the small hunting party returned to Winterfell as Jace and Cregan immersed themselves in a pleasant talk. For the younger man, it was certainly refreshing to have the Stark's company again.

"Where did you two go?" returning, on the way they met Mevanya, just awake, if her little yawn was any indication.
"Hunting, Your Highness, sorry I didn't extend an invitation, but I figured you wanted to take advantage of your sleep," Cregan replied before Jace could, giving, again, a sly smile towards the girl, just as he had done yesterday.
"Mevanya doesn't like hunting, anyway," Jace remarked, rolling his eyes at the stares between the two.
"And how would you know that?" The silver one raised an eyebrow in defiance.
"When you and Daeron turned seven, Viserys took the family hunting, you couldn't stop crying about 'the poor little animals they were killing', we never went hunting again after that,'" he said so unevenly, as if it were a memory from only yesterday, but Mevanya was surprised that Jacaerys remembered it in such detail.
"Do you remember that?"
"How could I forget? It was one of the most irritating days of my entire childhood, you didn't stop complaining until we were back in King's Landing and my mother got you a rabbit," he rolled his eyes, not noticing that Mevanya's expression dropped a few shades.