Irri and Doreah carefully braided her hair and tied her gown securely after her bath, doing a sort of dress rehearsal for the next day. "Tightly," she whispered as they retied her gown. "I want the Khal to see his son." She smoothed down the dress in the front and sighed. The gown had been made to be flowing and soft, to emphasize her innocence, not to expose a pregnant body. "Let's loosen it again," she requested."At least see if we can make my breasts look like they're bigger, Doreah."
Her handmaiden made a teasing singsong hum at her. "Shhh, quiet," Dany teased back with a grin. "I want this to be perfect for him."
Dany was worried that her wedding gown wouldn't be pretty enough to wear for her introduction to the Dosh Khaleen, but it was the prettiest clothing she owned. She intended to change before the heart ceremony that evening into more appropriate Dothraki attire, knowing that it would please Drogo, and it would keep her from spoiling her gown with blood. Ohhh, blood, there will be blood. Her stomach quailed at the thought, but she forced her nervousness down.
She wouldn't see Drogo until he met her at the temple tomorrow afternoon to present her to the crones. She was nervous, knowing everything depended on what they would foresee of the future, no matter if it turned out to be true or not. Their word was law in the city, and it could possibly have a very negative impact on Khal Drogo and his khalasar. She refused to leave anything to chance, especially anything that could fault her or his choice to marry her.
"Khal Drogo is not going to start comparing you to other women tomorrow of all days, Khaleesi," Doreah whispered to her soothingly as Dany cupped and lifted her breasts in the bodice of her dress. "He will have spent the night on the mountain, no shelter, no sustenance. You will be all that he will see, at least until the feast. There, let's try that." She tied the back of the dress as Dany removed her hands in time for her to tighten the top.
Dany groaned. "How am I going to manage to eat at the feast after eating the heart?" she asked, glancing again in the mirror. "Everyone will be expecting me to. Oh, that's better."
"Khaleesi, you will be served many delicacies from all over the world," Irri answered her, nodding. "There will be something good you will like, even for just small tastes."
"What about Viserys?" she asked nervously. "Has anyone seen him since we've arrived?"
"I saw him, Khaleesi. For an hour, maybe two, after he was settled into a house." Doreah's unspoken words said as much as her actual ones.
Dany nodded slowly and met her eyes. "How was his mood?"
"The same. Although he seemed to feel better after the bath. I washed his clothes. I hope it helps."
"We had the new ones made for him," Dany started thoughtfully. "What if we asked him to supper tonight, just to be nice? Drogo isn't here, so there won't be any danger of violence, you think? Have a goat butchered for supper, he will like that better."
"Horsemeat makes a man strong and honest, Khaleesi," Irri protested. "It is known."
Dany smiled at Irri. "Of course it is. Viserys doesn't like it, though. Get a goat. Doreah," she looked at her handmaiden. "Invite him to supper, and I will surprise him with his new things for the feast and ceremony tomorrow." Doreah nodded in consent, and left the room with Irri to fulfill their tasks.
Dany sighed and changed out of her gown, hanging it carefully with the rest of her clothes in the bedroom. She lingered for a moment, caressing the folds of the sandsilk. She hoped the dress would be good enough. You're the true princess of Dragonstone and the Seven Kingdoms, Daenerys, a voice inside her mind scolded. Of course you're good enough. You're the only woman the mighty Khal Drogo will touch, the only woman he sees when he moves about his khalasar. She took a deep breath and raised her head, her own encouraging reminder enough to cast aside her doubts.
She slipped on her favorite vest and pants, happy to be comfortable and have time to relax before her brother arrived. She settled in the front room on some cushions, and leaned back into their softness, her hand automatically coming up to rest on her baby. A fluttering from within tickled her much lower on her belly than her hand, and she immediately moved her hand to cover the spot, holding her breath. Another flutter, and she felt the tears welling in her eyes. Rhaego. Her heart skipped a beat and she took in a deep slow breath as she closed her eyes to feel her baby move. She couldn't stop the smile that took over her face. My baby. She wished Drogo was home with her. Soon enough, he would be able to feel Rhaego move from the outside of her belly, and she wanted to see the look on his face.
She could hear a woman crying in distress, and it was approaching her home. She jumped up from her reclined position as Doreah burst through the door, tossed down onto the floor by her hair, Viserys enraged and out of breath as he threw her down, raging about Daenerys ordering him around. She was completely confused for a moment, but as he yelled, she figured it out. "I wasn't commanding," she said slowly, trying to keep the shaking from her voice. "I simply wanted to invite you to supper." She gestured to the food laid out for them, and his gift.
He stalked over to the long table and picked up the pants she had had made for him. They were worthy of a Khal, and Drogo had just grinned and shook his head at her, knowing all the good it would do for Viserys. "What's this? Dothraki rags? Are you going to dress me now?" he yelled at her, throwing the clothes on the floor, enjoying the look of disappointment on her face. "This stinks of manure! All of it!"
"Stop! Stop it," she answered him, her anxiety mounting. He was getting too angry, and he would strike out at her next, she knew. Her fear of her brother striking her was more for Rhaego than herself. She would not let him hurt her baby.
"You would make me into one of them, wouldn't you? Next you'll want to braid my hair?" he sneered.
"You've no right to a braid, you've won no victories yet," she answered, letting her anger get the better of her, gritting her teeth together against her rage.
"You do not talk back to me," he raged out, enunciating every word, then slapped her so hard she fell to the ground. He pounced on her and began to struggle with her, trying to slap her again as she fought back. "You are a horselord's slut, and now you've woken the dragon!"
Something snapped inside her, and she grabbed at whatever she could reach to defend herself and Rhaego. Her hand locked around the belt of gold coins and she blindly swung it up toward him, hitting him in the face. They both were horrified at her actions; Viserys let her go in shock, and Daenerys sat up and then stood over him. She reined in her adrenaline rush, and she locked eyes with him. "I. Am. A. Khaleesi of the Dothraki. I am the wife of the great Khal and I carry his son inside me. The next time you raise a hand to me . . . will be the last time you have hands!"
Viserys slowly got to his feet, cowering in front of her despite his taller stature. She was so angry she was shaking, but she stood as tall as her frame would allow. The dragon has indeed been awakened, she realized. The dragon is inside me, not him. She watched as he slunk out of her home, and Irri ran to her side. "Khaleesi, sit," she urged, guiding her back toward her comfortable resting spot near the open fire pit.
"How is Doreah?" Dany asked, snapped out of her rage, and looking around Irri, trying to search for her.
"Bruised eye, no blood," Irri assured her as she settled Dany back down into the cushions. "I'm bringing you water. You will drink it."
Dany nodded wearily. She hadn't wanted Viserys to spoil her day, but he had managed to anyway. She hoped tomorrow he would be too drunk to remember the feast. She took the cup from Irri and drank the water, not really tasting it or enjoying the fresh coldness in her mouth.
"Khaleesi, your supper is ready," Irri offered, breaking into her thoughts after a few minutes.
"I'm not hungry," she said sadly, and tucked one arm around Rhaego. "You and Doreah share it, Irri, and take some to Ser Jorah. I'm sure he'd like a change from horses' meat, too." She curled up in the cushions and let herself be lost to her thoughts. She liked the feel of the coals in the fire pit, a soft pulsing warmth that kept her little soft spot warm. A little flutter and nudge from within made her smile in spite of her sadness. "I feel you, my son," she whispered. "I'm happy you weren't hurt."
After Irri returned, having taken Doreah home and food to Ser Jorah, she guided Dany to the bed. "Rest, Khaleesi. Tomorrow will be a long day for you."
"Not as long as the hours until it's over," Dany sighed softly. She got up from the cushions and made her way to the bedroom, easily finding the chest that contained her books, her wedding gift from Ser Jorah. She carefully chose one, rubbing the leather cover with her hand, and returned to the front room. Irri had lit some candles and the fire now was crackling with a new supply of wood, so there was plenty of light for her to read.
She was only a few chapters into her book when Irri shook her awake. Her mind fumbled with the realization that she'd fallen asleep. "Time for sleep, my Khaleesi," she whispered, and helped her up.
"Irri? Will you stay? I don't want to sleep alone," Dany said softly.
"Yes," she answered simply, smiling gently before chiding her. "You're too tired. This is your one night to sleep."
Dany giggled as she peeled off her clothes. "He's horrible, isn't he?"
Irri grinned as she tied Dany's sleeping silks around her shoulders. "You could have worse problems than a husband who wants you," she pointed out.
"Yes," Dany agreed. Like a brother who is going down the same spiral to madness that our father had. The thought was depressing. Viserys was on his way to getting himself killed. Drogo had already raised his limit of tolerance to him for her sake, and yet Viserys was pushing beyond that. If he found out about today . . . Dany pulled a face. Drogo was only waiting for her consent to end it, she knew by the way he looked at her when her brother was around. It hurt her that she would be the only Targaryen left eventually. No, I won't be . . . she touched her growing bump and smiled. For the first time, the world seemed a little less lonely to her.
It took some time to settle in the new bed. It was too large without Drogo there to fill it, and it had a different smell to it than their other one. She would need to bathe more in the evenings and go to bed with some of her favorite scent clinging to her body. That would settle the matter quickly. She sighed and rolled to face her companion. "Are you and Rhakaro . . ." she trailed off at Irri's grin.
"Soon, I think," she answered in a conspiratorial whisper. "He is not ready yet for me."
"What does it take for a man to be . . . ready?" Dany asked curiously. This concept was completely new to her.
"A man needs a certain amount of restlessness in him that can't be quieted by a horse or a fight," Irri replied. "Khal Drogo had that restlessness inside him for years before your Magister invited him to Pentos to see you. He had many women, but none made him happy. He tried to quiet the calling in his bones with two or three women a night, at a time, but it is said that he always woke up hungrier than when he went to bed."
"Oh," Dany said quietly, not knowing what else to say. On some nights, Drogo would wake and want her more than once, but he always seemed satisfied when he woke in the morning, content to hold her for a few minutes before rising to greet the day.
"His khalasar has grown larger than all the others for this reason," she continued, but stopped at the look on her Khaleesi's face.
"How many of his children are out there?" Dany asked, feeling a knot of dread in her chest.
"He has claimed none, so there are none," Irri answered, confused, before continuing. "Blood riders, women, and slaves have joined him willingly. They believed that he would be the father of the Khal of Khals, if he could only find his Khaleesi as the Great Stallion had done. When Magister Illyrio sent his messenger with his invitation, the Dosh Khaleen sent him with a blessing and prayers that he might find his Khaleesi among the people there."
"And now, tomorrow, they will meet me," Dany said faintly. "What if I'm not who they thought I would be?"
"You are, Khaleesi," Irri reassured her. "And the whispers among the people here of Vaes Dothrak are that a rival khal, Khal Jommo, will join with Khal Drogo's khalasar. He plans to place his empty arakh sheath into our Khal's hands at the feast tonight if you succeed with the stallion's heart."
Dany felt the last of her courage drain to her feet. Their khalasar would grow easily by another 15,000 men if she kept that raw, bloody heart down. More men for Viserys' army to take back Westeros. Home. She suddenly felt like crying. She could not fail, there was absolutely no room for failure. Everything was on her shoulders.