[THE ASHES AND BLOOD]
[ACT ONE
CHAPTER THREE]
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While waiting for her husband after the Small Council, on the ninth day of her eighth month of pregnancy, Princess Alyssa Targaryen felt severe pains in her lower abdomen. She was then in the process of brushing her long silver hair, and when she felt the first twitch, she dropped the gilded brush to the ground, a painful sigh escaped her lips, which attracted the attention of her ladies-in-waiting. The women quickly summoned the maester and helped their mistress to lie down on the bed. Alyssa was horrified when she felt something running down her leg, and when she lifted her nightgown, she noticed that it wasn't fetal water, but blood.
After the death of the last Grand Maester Allar, the new Grand Maester - Mellos was sent from the Citadel to come to King's Landing with the king's permission. His past isn't entirely known, but unlike the previous Grand Maester, he didn't inspire the confidence of the Princess and the Crown Prince. He was strange, quiet, and withdrawn. Most of the time he sat in his private chambers, his nose buried in dusty books, or in the hall of the Small Council, where he talked about his ideas for the Realm, but he never stepped out of line, as most lords did.
Grand Maester Mellos reached the princess' chambers as quickly as he could, and then went about his work and helping the woman in labor. It was all happening too fast, the pain continued, but Alyssa gritted her teeth and tried to push her baby out, following the orders of the Grand Maester and the midwives. All she wanted at that moment was to hold her child safely in her arms, to protect him or her from the harms of this world, and to kiss her child on the forehead like any mother would.
"Send for the prince. He is needed here" ordered the Grand Maester to one of the ladies-in-waiting, who immediately ran out of the princess's chambers and ran through the corridors of the Red Keep, looking for Prince Baelon, whom she found only after a few minutes. As she broke the news to him, without hesitating a second, the silver-haired prince paced the corridors, running into Maegor's Holdfast and heading for his wife's chambers. "My beloved" the prince approached his wife lying on the bed, her face contorted in pain and her teeth clenched. "Avy jorrāelan" he gasped as he grabbed her hand, he felt his airway constrict, taking his breath away as he watched the pain his wife was going through and he could do nothing but whisper soothing words to her that didn't lessen her suffering. I love you.
Princess Alyssa's screams were heard in the corridors of the Red Keep. Viserys, now playing with his daughter, cringed with each scream of his mother, but still found enough strength to play with his daughter. Sitting next to them, Daemon watched his little niece and even held her little hand, and she smiled happily at him in return. She was now three months old and the happiest baby the Targaryens had ever seen.
"When she grows up, she will be one of the most beautiful women in the Seven Kingdoms," the Queen declared confidently as she joined her grandchildren and great-granddaughter. "She inherited the mixed look of Starks and Targaryens. She will also be one of the most powerful women in Westeros. After all, she inherits much of the land in the North, and if you choose to make her your heir, she will also inherit the Iron Throne in the future," she added.
"A woman can't be king," Daemon said, referring to the teachings the septa and the maester had given him. "No, Daemon. But a woman can be a queen. Besides, a woman can be a better queen than a man can be a king. It's how you rule that matters, not what you have between your legs," Alysanne replied, stroking the younger prince's overlong hair. "I heard your new brother or sister's labor will soon be over. The midwives and Grand Maester Mellos are working to make your mother's pain end quickly."
"Does that mean we can see her later?" Daemon asked hopefully.
Alysanne nodded. "Who would dare oppose the prince's wishes?" she joked, earning a short laugh from her youngest grandson. She then looked at Viserys, who showed no amusement as he continued to attend to his daughter. "If you want, you can rest in your chambers. I can take care of her," she offered, knowing that every free moment the prince spends in his daughter's chambers.
"No need"
"I'm serious, Viserys. You should rest. You say you're not tired, but the dark bags under your eyes tell me otherwise." she put her hand on his knee and then took over from him little Daenerys, who smiled happily, enjoying the presence of her great-grandmother.
Viserys nodded gratefully, then walked away, leaving his brother, daughter, and grandmother alone to play together, drawing laughter from all three.
King Jaehaerys pushed the handkerchief away from his mouth. The maester, who had been brought straight from the Citadel at the king's request, together with Mellos, looked at the handkerchief in horror, noticing scarlet drops on the snow-white material. The maester immediately took the dirty piece of cloth and reached for the table where he placed his bag. He extracted herbs from it that he believed would help the king, though Jaehaerys knew nothing could really help him. Death was inevitable, and he had long since resigned himself to the fact that there was no escape from the judgment of the gods.
"If you wish, I can send a raven to the Citadel to fetch new herbs, Your Grace," the maester offered, but the Old King shook his head. "No need, maester. Death can't be escaped, it will get to everyone eventually," he replied, leaning back against the pillow. "Has my grandson already been born?" He asked.
"Unfortunately, I don't know, Your Grace. I can go and see what stage the princess is at now." The king shook his head again. "When the princess finally gives birth, they'll all run around and we'll find out if she has given birth to a son or a daughter. For all I know, Alysanne recently predicted that my daughter would give birth to a son, whom my son will name Aegon after my grandfather, Aegon the Conqueror," he chuckled, but a wheezing cough escaped his lips.
"If I can do something..."
"Send for my great-granddaughter. From what I've noticed recently, her smile is contagious. Perhaps it will make me smile too, if only for a while," he ordered, the learned man immediately nodded his head and left the king's chambers, intending to fetch the little princess.
Instead of going to his chambers, Prince Viserys went to the castle library to choose one of the many books he wanted to read before falling asleep. Entering the room, the prince inhaled the characteristic smell of old books and paper. In this room, on these wooden shelves, were books that had been written down even during the reign of Aegon the Conqueror and later his two sons. Viserys stood in the center of the room, the smell of the books and the silence calming him, especially now. That was until he felt a punch on his back. He staggered forward, but managed to stay on his feet, which couldn't be said of the person who bumped into him.
Viserys turned to see the girl sitting on the floor, her books strewn around her. She immediately shifted her weight to her knees and began picking up books from the floor, eager to escape the library as quickly as possible and hide in the chambers that had been assigned to her for the duration of her stay in King's Landing. Viserys bent down and helped gather some books, and when he looked up to give the girl her property, he froze. She had characteristic Targaryen features like pale skin or silvery hair. But her eyes were different, dark brown merging with his purple orbs. They both felt as if the world had suddenly stopped.
The girl was the first to break the connection and held out her hands expectantly. The young prince immediately shook himself out of his momentary stupor, then placed the books he had gathered from the ground into her waiting arms. She muttered a soft "thank you" under her breath, then turned and hurried out of the library, leaving the prince alone.
And then he wondered what in the seven hells her name was.
Alysanne was nervous, but she didn't show it. After years of hiding with her brother and mother from her cruel uncle, Alysanne was able to hide her emotions perfectly under an unreadable mask. She was very worried about her daughter. Alyssa's screams continued for several hours. Every time the elderly woman heard the painful cries of her daughter, her heart leapt with worry and fear for her dearest daughter. Alysanne in her long life went through many births and gave birth to many children. Most of them were dead. First was her first son, whom she named Aegon after their brave ancestor, who died three days after birth. Alysanne blamed the women who attacked her while bathing in Maidenpool for her son's untimely death. Her second child and first daughter, Daenerys died at the age of seven on Shivers. Her next daughter, Daella, died giving birth to her only daughter. Her son Gaemon died when he was only three months old. Valerion was small, smaller than other newborns, and died before he was a year old. Her daughter, Saera, was banished from King's Landing for her conduct and is rumored to have settled in Essos. Maegelle was sent to Oldtown and devoted to the Faith of the Seven, which was Alysanne's gratitude to the Mother who had blessed her with many children. Prince Vaegon was sent by his father and mother to the Citadel, where he was educated as an Archmaester because he didn't want to marry any woman and preferred to spend his time in a secluded corner of the library rather than in the courtyard practicing swordsmanship with his elder brothers.
After so many years and so many losses, Alysanne wished that all her children would gather in the Red Keep so she could meet them all again. Alyssa and Baelon lived on Dragonstone, but since Baelon was named Hand of the King, they moved to the Red Keep with their two sons. Aemon and Jocelyn lived in the Red Keep, but Aemon often took his dragon, Caraxes, high into the skies, taking his only daughter, Princess Rhaenys, with him. Archmaester Vaegon and Septa Maegelle lived in Oldtown and had little contact with their mother and father.
Alysanne missed those days when her children were little and clung to her skirt. Now each of them (who were still alive) had their own families and their own lives. Alysanne was left with only the care of her grandchildren. And so it was now.
Daemon decided he was getting bored sitting indoors with his grandmother and niece, so Alysanne suggested they take a walk to the gardens. The boy was bouncing happily up the steep stairs of the Red Keep as grandmother was on his heels, holding her giggling granddaughter in her arms. Most of the time, Daenerys Targaryen shone like the sunbeams, cheering up the entire Red Keep with her cheerful laughter and childlike charm.
"Faster, muñāzma!" exclaimed an amused Daemon, who was the first to reach the gardens. His grandmother was far behind. grandmother.
"It's not easy running around in these skirts with a small child in your arms, dear boy. Go and find a wooden sword, show me what a great knight you will be one day." she encouraged him and watched as the silver haired boy ran to find the item she had mentioned.
Time passed and Alysanne smiled as she watched her grandson brandish his wooden sword. "It was impressive, my dear boy. One day you will be a great swordsman and you will be able to defend your mother and niece."
"Why?"
"Because Daenerys will need a perfect swordsman who will always be ready to protect her. The world isn't kind to young girls, Daemon. One day you will understand."
Their brief conversation was interrupted by the arrival of a servant. The man bowed his head to the three members of the royal family.
"My Queen. My Prince," his eyes fell on the woman who held the sleeping child in her arms. "The king wishes the presence of the princess."
Meanwhile, in Princess Alyssa's chambers, a woman's loud scream could be heard, followed by a baby's cry. Mother breathed a sigh of relief as her heartbeat slowly returned to its natural rhythm. Baelon grinned broadly and bent down to place a kiss on the forehead of his beloved wife. "You did a great job, ñuha jorrāelagon ābrazȳrys," he praised her. my dear wife.
Grand Maester Mellos cut the umbilical cord and handed the baby over to two midwives, who immediately set to work cleaning him of blood and other substances that had accompanied him at birth. The maester took care of the princess again when she pushed the bearing out a few minutes later. "You have a healthy son, my prince," the midwife informed him, placing the newborn boy in Baelon's arms.
"His name is Aegon," the prince announced, then shifted his gaze to his wife, who nodded and bent down to kiss her son on the forehead.
Queen Alysanne Targaryen watched with tenderness as her brother-husband held her youngest great-granddaughter in his arms. She had seen the same sight many times before. That was when Alysanne gave birth to their children and her brother-husband held them in his arms, thanking the gods for blessing them with the birth of another Targaryen. Prince Daemon sat next to his grandfather and told him about his sword training. The king very quickly saw the great potential that his grandson had. He was an avid swordsman. At the age of five, he set his eyes on his father's sword forged of Valyrian steel and, much to his mother's fear, wielded it. The Dark Sister fit perfectly in his hand, even when he was just a little boy. Instead of hearing his father's stories of the meetings of the Small Council, as Viserys had done, he preferred to hear stories of wars, battles, and Aegon's Conquest. He was impressed by the accomplishments of his ancestor and one of his sister-wives, Queen Visenya Targaryen, who also wielded a Darksister.
"Muñāzma said that one day I would protect Dany," the prince boasted. "That the world isn't kind to little girls and Dany will need my protection" grandmother.
Jaehaerys looked at his sister-wife who just shrugged. The smile hadn't left her face since the sight of her brother-husband with the children brought back memories of him holding their own children. Then the Old King looked back at his grandson, who was staring at the sleeping girl.
"That's true, my brave grandson. She will definitely want you by her side. She will feel safe when you are around."
The king looked again at his sister-wife, who was now seated at the foot of the king's bed. "How is Alyssa? Has she given birth yet?" he asked, worrying about his daughter as he always did when she lay down in the delivery chambers. "Is the baby with us yet?"
"I don't know, husband. Last I heard, she was still in labor. May the gods make the pain go away quickly and the baby come into the world soon."
Jaehaerys nodded and went back to talking to his grandson. "So you want to be a knight?"
"Yes! Father said he would give me a Dark Sister one day. He said he didn't know a man who deserved our second ancestral weapon better than me."
"Your father is right"
A knock on the door caught the attention of everyone in the king's chamber. Jaehaerys, eyes turned toward the door, invited the servant inside.
"Your Grace" the servant bowed to the king. "My Queen"
"What news do you bring?" the Old King asked.
"Princess Alyssa Targaryen has given birth to a son," he informed them. "Prince Baelon named him Aegon." added.
Good Queen Alysanne's heart beat faster. Aegon. This was the name of her ancestor who had conquered the Seven Kingdoms, uniting them into one under one king. But that was the name of her elder brother before he was killed fighting Maegor the Cruel, and her first son, who died when he was only three moons old.
"Is Aegon healthy?"
"Yes, My Queen. The Grand Maester says the little prince kicks like a little goat."