⎯POISONOUS VINE
✬✬✬
Rhaenya had smiled brightly as she had looked at Aegon before they had gone to Daenerys to tell them of the news, as Daenerys smiled at her sister. Her last marriage was to their older brother Viserys, and how horrid he had been, there had been a vague memory of him in their early childhood where he was kind, somewhat and protective. But Aegon had not been Viserys, and he would never be as she saw the smile on Rhaenya's face, Daenerys knew perhaps Aegon had more than one destiny in this time.
"We shall find a Valyrian priest to wed you in our traditions" Daenerys promised as she smiled at her sister. Rhaenya hugged her sister as Daenerys then informed her of her plans, to let the Meereenese people bury their dead, even if they had been slave traders and owners. Aegon stood with Daenerys as he recommended the Unsullied to help given how they might come across as dangerous. "The Guards of the Crown should not be feared by the Small Folk may it be here or in Westeros, they should be looked at as protectors of the Crown who protect the Realm" Aegon said, they had been ser Criston's words to him long ago, but they helped him now too, for a far better cause.
Daenerys agreed and let ser Barristan, a former white cloak, oversee it with Grey Worm as Daenerys took Rhaenya with her. "Missandei told me Grey Worm saw her in the stream" Daenerys said as she linked arms with her sister. "Well, it comes as no surprise, she teaches him the common tongue, and I believe Grey Worm likes her, more so than simply a tutor" Rhaenya said as they reached Missandei who blushed softly. "Unsullied cannot love like men" Missandei said. "Who is to say what is a way to love?" Rhaenya said as she sat down and grabbed a goblet of wine as she looked to Missandei. "Love should come from the heart, and not anywhere else" Rhaenya said and Missandei nodded.
The three of them giggled as they continued to speak, plainly, before a knock disturbed them. Daenerys looked up and allowed the person to enter to find Aegon and ser Barristan. "Is it done? Have they all been buried?" Daenerys asked before Rhaenya saw the anger on Aegon's face and the disappointment on ser Barristan's. "What has happened?" Rhaenya asked walking closer before ser Barristan handed him a scroll.
It had been a royal pardon for ser Jorah of House Mormont, signed by King Robert Baratheon. Rhaenya furrowed her brows. "What is it?" Daenerys asked walking over before she read the reasons, and nearly sunk down. 'For spying on the Targaryen wenches, and the murder of their unborn children' had been a reason to pardon him. She remembered she had been with child once, but lost the babe very early on, Viserys had been rageful to her as well as anyone coming in his path.
She remembered she had terrible morning sickness, not something uncommon the Dothraki servant girls had said as she had explained it to them, but ser Jorah had something against it he had said. A juice made from berries he had found which he knew helped against a hangover. Aegon walked to Rhaenya as Daenerys took the letter from her sister, whose eyes filled with tears. "Where is he?" Daenerys demanded as she looked at ser Barristan.
"Outside" Barristan said and Daenerys nodded. "Call upon him" she said as Barristan nodded, they walked to the main hall where their throne stood upon the small pyramid with small waterfalls on the sides, Missandei stood with Daenerys as Aegon stood with Rhaenya while Grey Worm stood a level lower, sword in hand before he was joined by ser Barristan as Jorah walked to them. Until he almost reached Grey Worm and Barristan who stopped him from going further.
"Why did the Usurper pardon you?" Daenerys asked, looking to Jorah. His hands have been behind his back as he raised his head, looking to Daenerys. "If we could speak alone" Jorah said looking at one of the Queens. "No, speak to me here" she said, her voice soft, a part of her did not believe what she had read in the pardon, she could not phantom ser Jorah who had been by their sides since she had wed Khal Drogo and Viserys had hired him as a sworn sword. "Explain it to me" Daenerys said as Rhaenya could not bear to look at Jorah, if it had been true, it had never been her fault, like she assumed, when she did not conceive.
"Who do you think sent this to Meereen? Who profits?" Jorah said avoiding the question which drove Rhaenya mad. "This is the work of Tywin Lannister; he wants to divide us" Jorah explained as he looked to the queens. "If we're fighting each other, we are not fighting him" Jorah said as he looked to Daenerys. "The pardon was signed the year we met, ser Jorah" Daenerys said as she looked to him. "Why were you pardoned? Unless you are saying this document was forged" Daenerys said as her tone became harsher. "It is not forged" Jorah said through somewhat gritted teeth as he looked at the Queens, the sudden angry roars shook the pyramid as Jorah dreaded to know which one of the beasts had become angry.
"I sent letters to Varys, the spymaster of King's Landing" Jorah said as he looked defeated no longer able to avoid the question Daenerys had asked plenty of times already. "What was the content of these letters?" Daenerys said as she looked at Jorah, swallowing thickly as she felt sick to think he had been betraying them all this time. "Information" Jorah said. "What information?" Daenerys quickly asked back as she kept staring at Jorah. Aegon stepped closer, as if to ready himself to fight the old knight. "When the both of you, and Viserys arrived in Pentos" Jorah said as she looked angry with him now. "His plan to marry you to Khal Drogo and his own plan to wed Rhaenya, when you were finally married" Jorah said before his voice drifted off.
"And?" Rhaenya said finally speaking up as her eyes raged fury. "When Viserys died" Jorah said as he fell silent again. "Did you tell him I was carrying Drogo's child? When Rhaenya carried Viserys?" she demanded as Daenerys eyes spewed its own flames. "I—" Jorah said. "Yes or no" Daenerys demanded. "Khaleesi" Jorah tried. "Do not call me that" she spat before she stood up as Rhaenya looked on, Aegon walked beside Daenerys his hand on Blackfyre as he stared down Jorah. "Did you tell them or not?" Daenerys demanded and Jorah looked down. "Yes" Jorah said defeated.
"That wine merchant who tried to poison me, because of your information" Daenerys said when Aegon raised Blackfyre to Jorah's throat. "I stopped you from drinking it" Jorah said. "Because you knew it was poisoned" Daenerys said before Rhaenya stood up as well. "The remedy you gave me, to help with my morning sickness?" Rhaenya demanded to know looking to Jorah as Aegon looked from her back to the old Knight. "I—" Jorah said looking down. "You were the one to poison it" she said as she felt hot tears stream down her face in anger as she looked to him. Daenerys looked to her sister, remembered how cruel Viserys had been and how awful he was after. Her cries and tear stained face still clear on her mind as she remembered how Viserys demanded another child from her as soon as she had recovered, which had been far too fast.
"You betrayed us" Daenerys said as Aegon dug the broadsword further into his neck, drawing a small line of blood. "From the first" Daenerys said and Jorah dropped to his knees, not caring his neck had been bleeding as he fell before her. "Forgive me" he cried out. "I never meant—" Jorah cried out, his voice on the verge of breaking. "Never meant what?" Aegon demanded then, looking to the knight. "To betray the true Heirs? To kill House Targaryen?" he demanded as he stepped closer to the knight. "Please Khaleesi" Jorah said, raising his head, looking past Aegon to Daenerys. "You sold our secrets to the man who killed our brother and plotted the death of our father and stole our brother's throne" she said as she looked to the ceiling in disbelief, she could not bear to look at Jorah.
"I have protected you, fought for you, killed for you" Jorah cried out. "And you want me to forgive you?" Daenerys said. "You are the cause of the death of my niece or nephew" Daenerys said. "For that alone I could never forgive you" Daenerys said. "I have loved you" Jorah muttered almost too soft to hear. "Love?" Daenerys laughed. "How can you say that to me" Daenerys said. "Any other man, and I would have you executed" Daenerys said and Rhaenya looked to her sister, surprised she would not. "But you, I do not want in my city, dead or alive" Daenerys said and Rhaenya felt somewhat relief he would not go unpunished. "Go back to your masters in King's Landing" Aegon said as he looked to Jorah. "Collect your pardon, and rot with it" he said as he pushed the sword once more to his neck before cutting his cheek.
"A reminder for what I can do if I ever see your face again near any of us" Aegon said as Jorah tried to look at Daenerys who had turned around and held her sister's hand, ignoring the knight as he tried to plea once more. Jorah stepped back before he went to collect his things. Rhaenya looked to her sister. "I need to speak with you" Rhaenya said as she eyed Aegon who nodded before they went to the council room. Daenerys still angry with what she had learned about Jorah looked to her sister. "Please do not tell me you have betrayed me too" she said as she looked to her sister. Rhaenya shook her head. "But I should have told you sooner" she admitted.
"We had flown to Braavos where we saw Stannis Baratheon, fancied himself the King of the Seven Kingdoms, we convinced him" Rhaenya said before Aegon interrupted her. "Rhaenya did really" he said with pride as he looked to Daenerys and Rhaenya. "Either way, we convinced him to give us Dragonstone in return we would be his banners" Rhaenya said. "You wish to help the man who tries to take our throne?" Daenerys questioned not yet seeing the silver lining of her sister's plan. "No, I have seen it in my dreams, sister, Kings die as quick as mayflies, and Stannis is one of them, but with a claim to Dragonstone we come one step closer to Westeros" Rhaenya said to her sister as Daenerys nodded and smiled. "Thank you, sister" Daenerys said as she hugged Rhaenya, she knew her sister would never betray her, not even for Aegon whom she loved so fiercely.
Rhaenya and Daenerys decided to not let Jorah ruin them, instead decided to continue to rule and try bring peace to Meereen as Rhaenya suggested to listen once more to the people of Meereen. Once Missandei announced them, an elder man stood before them, bowing his head. "Thank you for seeing me, Your Graces, my name is Fennesz" the man spoke as he looked to the Queens. "I can speak in the common tongue if you wish" he said. "You speak it very well" Daenerys said as she gave the man a smile. "Before you freed me, I belonged to Master Mighdal" he explained. "I was tutor to his children, I taught them languages and history" the man said. "They know a great deal about your family because of me" the man said as he looked to Rhaenya and Daenerys.
Daenerys and Rhaenya smiled to him in thanks. "Little Calla is only seven, but she admires you very much" Fennesz said as Rhaenya smiled at the thought of such a young girl admiring her and her sister. "I hope I can prove worthy of her admiration" Daenerys said as she smiled at the man. "What can we do for you?" Rhaenya asked as she looked to the man. "When you took the city, the children begged me not to leave the house" Fennesz said as he looked to the Queens and Rhaenya wondered what his question would be, where his story was headed. "But Master Mighdal and I agreed that I must" he told us and Rhaenya furrowed her eyebrows. "Now I live on the streets" Fennesz said as he looked to the Queens. "I have outfitted mess halls to feed all former slaves and barracks to shelter them" Daenerys explained as she looked to the man before Rhaenya realised what he wanted.
"I do not mean to offend, Your Grace" Fennesz said as he interrupted Daenerys. "I went to all these places, the young prey on the old" he explained. "Take what they want and beat us if we resist" he explained further of the happenings of the mess halls. "My Unsullied will make them safe again in short order" Daenerys tried but Aegon looked to Rhaenya as if they both knew what was meant to happen now. "Even if they are safe who would I be there?" the man asked as he looked to Daenerys. "What purpose would I serve?" the man asked. "With my master, I was a teacher" he said as Rhaenya turned to look at Daenerys who was slightly frustrated, still because of the ordeal with Jorah and not being able to say the right thing to advice or please this man.
"Perhaps I can come with a solution, I assume you are not the only one to feel this way" Rhaenya said, and the man shook his head. "No, Your Grace" he answered. "We wish to free the slaves, but we also wish for the former slaves to have proper lives, perhaps you may help me in this matter, as well as your Master Mighdal" she said as she looked to him. "I would be forever grateful" Fennesz said as he looked to Rhaenya. "Prince Aegon and I shall start a centre, perhaps instead of slaves those who wish can become servants or teacher, but they would need to be paid fairly for their service" Rhaenya said. "Some may take them in, offer shelter and food in return of service and none are allowed to be threated unjustly" she explained. "Thank you, Your Grace" Fennesz said as he bowed his head and left.
"The former master may take advantage of the situation and revert back to their old ways" Barristan said. "Then it's our duty to make sure those who try to revert back shall be punished" Rhaenya said before another man walked in holding a cloak hiding something.
"Approach, my friend" Daenerys said as they all looked to the man. "I do not understand, my Queens" the man started as he looked to the Queens. "The Queen has said you may approach" Missandei translated as she looked to the man. The man walked forward as Aegon looked to the man as he stood beside Rhaenya. The man spoke before Missandei translated. "I have brought you—" she started as she listened to the man. "He came from the sky" she said and Aegon closed his eyes knowing it had to have been one of their dragons. They grew larger day by day to the point Drogon and Rhaegal were near the size of Sunfyre by the time of the Dance. "The black one" Missandei translated and both Aegon and Rhaenya turned to Daenerys. Aegon should have warned them to properly train the dragons to strengthen the bond so they would not do such thing, but he also knew there was no truly controlling dragons.
"The winged shadow" Missandei translated before the man placed whatever he held in his arms on the ground, slowly revealing what he had held before he showed blackened bones of what looked to be a small child. "He came from the sky and—" Missandei translated. "My girl" she said as the man cried on his knees before them. Daenerys looked to her advisors and then nodded to Barristan. "That is enough for today" she said before they went to meet in the council room as Rhaenya looked to her sister. Viserion had flown over the city staying near Sunfyre at the edge, Aegon had been the one to feed them some cattle he bought from local herders as Rhaegal and Drogon flew where they pleased.
"What was her name?" Rhaenya eventually asked. "Zala, Your Grace" Missandei said as Rhaenya looked at Daenerys. "How old was she?" Daenerys asked. "Three" Missandei answered as Aegon looked to Daenerys. "And no sight of Drogon?" she asked. "Sailors saw him flying over the Black Cliffs three days ago, My Queen" Grey Worm said as he looked to Daenerys before Rhaenya looked to her sister. "Nothing since then" Grey Worm said as Aegon looked to Daenerys. "There is a place dragons vent to, when in doubt" Aegon said looking to her as Daenerys looked at him. "Where?" she wished to know. "Valyria" Aegon said remembering how Aerea and Balerion had flown to Valyria as well, and how Vhagar had disappeared as well after Prince Baelon had died, suspected to have also returned to Valyria.
"Meet me at the catacombs" Daenerys suddenly said as she looked away from everyone. Rhaenya looked at Aegon as he looked back to her. "Is it true then? Dragons do better in Valyria?" she asked, and he nodded. "At least, my father believed it so" Aegon said a sad tone to his voice. Rhaenya stood from her place and placed a hand on her arms to comfort him before she looked to his face as he gave her a small smile.
They eventually met Daenerys at the catacombs where they saw Rhaegal, roaring slightly to the Unsullied who opened the tombs as she walked down and Rhaenya saw how she chained Rhaegal before leaving. Rhaegal cried out before she heard Viserion cry out as well. "I hope you do not plan to force me to imprison Viserion as well" Rhaenya said as she looked to her sister. "It will be better if we do" she said as she looked to Rhaenya.
"It was our families first mistake regarding the dragons, Your Grace" Aegon said as he turned to Daenerys. "Are you undermining my decision?" she asked as she looked to Aegon as they walked back inside, Sunfyre and Viserion safe outside the city walls, only a call away. "No, I am trying to teach you of the dangers of your and my ancestors" Aegon said as he looked at Daenerys. "The Dragonpit became the end of the beginning, do not make the same mistake. Train dragons do not punish them" Aegon said before he walked away to mount Sunfyre and fly away.
If he wished to wed Rhaenya, then he wished for the Valyrian priest. Master Illyrio had been kind to Rhaenya, she had told him, perhaps Pentos had been filled with more Valyrians practising the old customs as he flew to Pentos, it had been where Daemon had gone to in his time and marriage to Laena. Aegon landed near an open clearing as Aegon looked around, dressed in Essosi styled clothes with blue and purple colours for the favoured colours of Daenerys and Rhaenya. Aegon walked around the streets of Pentos in search of a priest before he saw a man look at him, watching his every move.
Aegon walked into an alley before he hid himself behind a wall. Waited until he saw not one but two men, one bald and one short follow him, he continued to walk himself back to Sunfyre who seemed to notice his rider's distress before he flew and hid himself, waiting for Aegon's signal.
"Who are you?" Aegon eventually asked when they rounded the final corner just outside of Pentos. "We could ask you the same thing" he said as Aegon looked down on him. "I will not ask you twice" Aegon said. "I am Varys, my Lord, and this is my companion, Tyrion Lannister" the man said and Aegon nearly laughed. "a Lannister this far east" Aegon laughed as he turned around and looked to the clearing. "Funniest thing I have seen in my time here" Aegon said before he turned back to Varys and Tyrion. "What may I do for you?" he asked. "Your sigil" Varys said as he looked to the three headed dragon pin on Aegon's clothing. "You serve the Queens" Varys asked, more like stated as he looked to Aegon.
"You seem to know much, Lord Varys, but not enough" Aegon said as he looked to the men, placing his hands behind his back as he looked to them. "We were on our way to Meereen, we—well I—believe the Targaryen Queens are a far better pair to rule the Seven Kingdoms" Varys said as he looked at Aegon. "From my short and brief history lesson of these times, I learned it was House Lannister who aided in the fall of House Targaryen, and now I am to believe he wants to help rebuild it?" Aegon said turning to Tyrion. "Ironic, isn't it" Tyrion said as he looked to Varys. "Let us leave to Meereen, a random servant of your precious Queens is not going to help" he said. "I am no ordinary servant, my Lord" Aegon said.
"I am Prince Aegon of House Targaryen, second of my name son of King Viserys and Queen Alicent" Aegon said as he looked to Varys and Tyrion. "He died many years ago" Varys said as he looked to Aegon before Sunfyre landed behind him, roaring out as people of Pentos scurried around. "And yet, here I stand" Aegon said mounting his dragon before flying back to Meereen to report on his new knowledge. The Valyrian priest could wait.
✬✬✬
thought aegon deserved some solo scenes