Alicent Hightower | HOTD

Chapter 2: Two to Four Years Later

𝕽𝖍𝖆𝖊𝖓𝖆𝖗𝖗 washed his face by the river. He has been hiding in King's Landing for the past two years. He kept dying his hair brown to look like he had gold hair rather than white hair.

As he walked around the castle, he hid his sword beneath his cloak. Queen Hella gave birth to the king's firstborn son a few days ago, and they were celebrating his birth today. Only powerful families were allowed to attend, but he snuck right in.

As the king smiled at the bundle of joy in his arm, he stood in the crowd. Queen Hella was overcome with emotion as the king announced the name of his son.

"I'm here to introduce my son, Aegon Targaryen II!" People began cheering when he announced it to everyone. Rhaenarr looked around and noticed a girl in a blue gown standing behind the queen and next to a man he assumed was her father.

"Please enjoy the feast as we have much more to celebrate." King Viserys said as everyone went to the table to get their food.

He looked at Princess Rhaenyra, who didn't seem pleased with the whole thing. He was aware that her brother would pose a threat to her throne or that people would begin to prefer him over her because he was a boy. He felt bad for the girl.

Rhaenarr sat at a table, munching on a grape from his plate. He observed everyone having a good time. But every time he looks around, his gaze is drawn to the girl at the royal family's table.

He watched as she said something to the queen before leaving. He cursed himself, wondering why this girl had such an impact on him that he felt compelled to follow her. He got to his feet and followed her outside to the garden. His eyes widened as he noticed her biting down on her nails.

"Are you okay, my lady?" Rhaenarr questioned, and the poor girl jumped as she turned to face him. She rose quickly and bowed her head. "Forgive me my Lord, I didn't notice you coming in." He smiled as she spoke.

"It's fine, and you don't have to call me my Lord. "My name is Rhaenarr Beverly." She thought to herself as he said it. "I've never heard of a Beverly house?" He chuckled as she asked herself.

"We come from a very distant family." He informed her, and she nodded. " Could you please tell me your name?" He asked, and she blushed with embarrassment." Alicent Hightower." She said before bowing once more.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lady Hightower. Now is there a reason why you seem upset that you had to leave the party?" He asked, and she looked at him. " You do not have to tell me if you feel uncomfortable talking to a stranger." He said, and she blushed once more.

"No, nothing to worry about. It's just that things have been awkward since my sister married the king. I'm not sure how to feel about it." He frowned as she spoke. "What do you mean?" He asked, and she turned to face him.

"My sister and I used to be friends with the princess, and she sees the marriage as a betrayal of her being replaced as heir and her mother." Alicent told him, and his suspicions were confirmed. "And why does she despise you if your sister married the king?" Rhaenarr questioned.

"She believes that I am to take my sister's side." Rhaenarr gave her a frown. " I'm sorry you had to go through that." He told her, and she smiled. " It's alright. There's nothing you can do about it now." She told him as she looked down. "Why don't I tell you about myself so you don't have a depressing night?" She smiled and nodded as he said this.

They both learned a lot about each other over the next hour or so, but only parts of what Rhaenarr had to tell her. He was to keep his identity hidden, even if it meant lying to her about his background.

But he didn't lie to her about why he was here by himself. He told her about his girlfriend and brother, and how he couldn't bear the thought of them getting married and starting a family.