"Fire cannot kill a dragon."
Charlotte's POV
"Knew what, Karalyn?"
Can someone, you know, tell me the truth for once?
Karalyn drags a chair over to me, her eyes pulling my gaze towards her. "Charlotte... None of us would've imagined that this would happen to anyone. But you..." She lifted my chin softly, melting the metaphorical shield I was putting up. "You are special. More special than any other born before you..."
"None of us... Who is this us?"
She shakes her head back and forth. "I may have used the wrong terminology... Us is more of the family that has been waiting so long for someone like you to return."
The family? Is she out of her mind?
"Charlotte, think back to a time before the rebellion that allowed your father to take the throne... when Aegon V was ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. He had a few children, some being Jaehaerys and Rhaelle. Can you remember?"
Remember? I massaged my temples, thinking back to lessons I received from Lady Catelyn when I lived in Winterfell. "Those were the Targaryens... His was the fourth child of King Maekar and Dyanna Dyane... He became King because his two oldest brother's were dead, and his other brother became a Maester. Other than that, I... Uh... Don't remember anything else."
"Rhaelle Targaryen is your great grandmother."
She's not my grandmother, because Robert isn't my father. "Karalyn... This is why I have to get away from King's Landing. Robert isn't my father. My mother had an affair..." With Jaime, my uncle.
"You know that's not true. You survived the fire. The flames were upon your skin and you did not burn. It's the magic you inherited from great grandmother. Why do you think your hair turned red after you were exposed to fire? You carry the Blood of Valyria in your veins."
My eyes bulge from the sockets, absorbing at least half of the words that came from her mouth. Dragon blood? "I'll say it again... Robert is not my father. I look nothing like him. Baratheons are born with dark hair, and mine is... or was the lightest of blonde."
"Your cousin, Shireen, is not black of hair, and she is a true born Baratheon."
I kept my thoughts to myself, as I looked away and admired the Targaryen banner hung on her wall. Wait, why is that hanging there?
She brings me away from my thoughts. "Sweetie, you are the ghost of your Queen mother. There is no doubt about that. Her genes are strong in you, but it does not overpower the blood of the Targaryens. You were born with purple eyes, deep and beautiful. I imagined you've heard the story from Maester Pycelle about your birth. You were not strong, and on the verge leaving this world. In order to ensure your survival, Pycelle gave you a droplet of wildfire."
I hold my hand, to steady my shaking body. "Hold on... I was born with purple eyes? Second, WILDFIRE? How is Seven Hells am I even alive? Wildfire killed Aerion Targaryen."
"The wildfire wasn't strong enough to kill you, but the minute you swallowed it... your eyes turned a vibrant green. The wildfire masked the magic in you blood... At least until it was awoken again in a time of great peril. You hair kinda absorbed the fire..."
"May I ask how you know any of this?" It shouldn't surprise me that these secrets were coming to the surface. I'm literally the most mysterious, and misunderstood person in the entirety of Westeros. I don't exactly belong anywhere, but have a tiny connection with everything.
I still don't know if I should believe her... Is Robert Baratheon actually my father? I mean, she's the only one who's offered an explanation for the night of the abduction. Why the fire didn't burn my skin...
"This is when things get difficult... I've been around the castle longer than you've been alive. I fell in love with you father, Robert. He's the father of Rhaena... I was in the castle the night you were born, preparing the arrival for the King's heir."
My breath stops in my throat, almost choking. "Wait...Wha...what?"
"I helped Maester Pycelle on the night you were born. I worked more in the background, because I didn't want your mother recognizing me.
I stand quickly, gathering what little sanity I had left. "I'm done... I can't handle whatever might come out of your mouth next. Robert is not my father. Rhaena is not my sister. I am not a Targaryen. Please just stop." I head towards the door, walking out of it before she could say anything else.
"Charlotte, wait!"
She follows me down the street as I pushed through the crowds of people. "Your father made me promise to protect you!"
I could feel the heat radiating from my body, causing me to stop dead in the street. A fire setting deep within my soul, igniting at the slightest bit of anger. Within seconds, Karalyn was standing right in front of me with nothing but guilt written on her face. "Robert was also the one who told me to ask you in front of the entire city to heal Rhaena. He knew you had magic..."
He was using her to prove his theory that I was the bringer of destruction. He knew I had magic before I did. Sadly, he was wrong, about the bringer of destruction part.
I narrowed my eyes to the point of light not being visible. "Robert wanted me killed. He hired someone to kidnap me when I was six weeks old... He wanted me to drown in a river. He thought I would end this country. He didn't want anyone protecting me. Robert wanted me dead!" By the end of my rebuttal, I was screaming.
"Charlotte..."
Four men came running down the alley, each of them carrying knives in their hands. "Grab as many women as you can!" Karalyn jumps in front of me, using her body to push me against the wall. She whispered under her breath. "Hide your hair..."
My cloak immediately went over my head, and I turned my face towards the wall.
The atmosphere of the alley tangibly drops two degrees and women were running and screaming with fear. Men were grabbing them, and tying ropes around their mouths to prevent them from screaming. The women were thrown in piles, squirming and trying to escape. But, all I could hear was the awful noise of loved ones being separated, and children crying for their mothers.
One of the men approaches the two of us, his voice deep and raspy as he spoke. "Hand over the girl... We promise to take very good care of her." A hideous cackle escapes his throat as he reached for me. Karalyn holds her ground. "You do not want her. She is blind, and will be of little value to you."
The man pushes Karalyn to the ground, much to her protest, and grabs hold of both of my arms. "Such a pretty little thing. Men will pay great money for you." I twisted in his grasps. "Let me go!" He put a rag over my mouth, muting my screams as he dragged me down the alley.
Karalyn was running after me, but I knew she wouldn't be able to reach me. "Charlotte!"
In that moment I wished I was still sitting in her living room discussing whether or not I was actually my father's daughter.
*~* Present Time
"Get your hands off me!" I yell at the top of my lungs. Two men were pulling my arms as I struggled against their hold. "You'll regret touching me, imbeciles!" They began laughing. "Shut it... Or you wont' have a tongue."
I narrowed my eyes, knowing that these men would be impossible to convince. Other means would be necessary. "Listen... I promise I'll behave if you loosen my hands. What could I possibly do?" The guard runs his hand through my hair. "Save the pleasantries for later... The other boys will love you."
"Where exactly are we going?"
One of the other prisoners standing a few feet away from me answers. "Casterly Rock."
Home of the Lannisters.
*~* Days Later *~*
"Get up, girl!" One man pulls me from my place amongst the piles of leaves I used as my bed in the wagon. Days were beginning to run together as the sun rose in the morning, and set in the evening. Food was scarcely given, and water was from dirty lakes and rivers. I was in the same clothes that I'd worn the day I was taken from King's Landing.
"We've arrived at Casterly Rock. Master wants you to be front and center."
I ran my fingers through my hair as he continued to drag me behind him. "To be honest, I would keep you for myself, but you will be worth a fortune. Maybe even Lord Tywin himself will take you to his bed."
I reply nonchalantly. "Oh, please take me to him..." I couldn't sound eager, but I couldn't portray fear. I needed to find a middle ground, and that was pretending that I was actually a whore.
"Are you serious, girl? He might slit your throat if you try and charm him. He's not the easiest of men."
If I could just get Lord Tywin in listening distance... I can convince him that I'm his long lost granddaughter... "Take your chances. A man has never said no to me. It's all in the eyes..." I turn to face him, and bat my eyes seductively.
The man stands still, pondering my words. I can thank my mother for teaching me one thing, how to manipulate men. "If you die, I will personally drag your dead body and burn it for all to see." Good luck with that...
I smile softly, still trying to comb the leaves from my hair. "Deal."
•••
The smell of food was filling the air as we walked through tents of smoke. Food was being prepared for the sun was going down, and dinner needed serving. The man holding my hands together didn't seem the least distracted as he pushed me through the thick crowd of individuals lining the walkways.
"You know, I heard it easier to reach Lord Twyin if you head directly to the middle of Casterly Rock." Again, something I remembered from one of my mother's stories. She spoke fondly enough of this place, where she grew up, and the time she spent with her father and brothers. Her voice enters my head unexpectedly. My father, he isn't a caring man, but devoted to keeping the family name intact. He is as intelligent as men come, a great commander and leader. Never underestimate his words, for he is the truest lion of the family. It was as though she spoke those words for me to remember if I ever were to meet him.
"Will you shut it, girl? You're one sentence away from having your tongue sliced out of your mouth."
I giggled to myself as we continued through the camp, and towards the towering tent of Lord Twyin, Lord of Casterly Rock and Warden of the West.
From the stories I've heard of my mother, Joanna, I imagined you inherited her calming nature. She would proud, as I am. Again, my mother's voice was echoing in my head. Am I going crazy? No, I am not going crazy because all of this is completely new for me. I've never met my grandfather before. I've never been to Casterly Rock. And, currently... I am held captive by a drunken man who believes I'm a whore. Hearing my mother's comforting voice just seemed to make it all a little better.
"We're here, little girl." The man pulls me in front of him, giving me view of the tent of gold and red. Older men were walking in and out of tent. I have no idea what my grandfather even looks like... "Take off what clothes you need, and I'll request a meeting with him." It can't be that easy.
The man lets go of my arms, removing the chain that connected my hands. "Make me some money..." He pushes me in the direction of the tent, his hand on the crook of my back.
Jaime...
My uncle exits the tent, towering tall in golden armor. He doesn't even look in my direction, causing me to silently curse under my breath. Jaime's figure began walking away, and the little hope I had in my heart was dropping. Each step he took away caused my anxiety to grow. I wasn't going to let him get away "Jaime! Jaime! Help me!"
The man elbows me in the chest, a scream escaping my mouth. "If you don't stay quiet..."
"Jaime!"
The man pushes me behind him, carrying my shrunken figure away from the tent. I couldn't move as my chest hurt to expand, and my mouth was covered with dirty rags. "Who are you really, girl?"
"Release my niece, or this sword is going through your back."
The man drops me to the ground, backing away with his hands in the air. "You're the Queen's daughter?" I turn to the man, my eyes full of fiery anger. "Princess, to you."
A few Lannister guards rush at the man, throwing him on the ground, and putting a large chain around his neck. Jamie rushes to my aid, putting his arms around my waist as he pulled me from the ground. "Everything is going to be okay, Charotte." I cowered in his arms, surprised that I wasn't yelling in his face for sleeping with my mother, his sister. The thought still made me sick to my stomach.
"How long have you been away from home?"
I mumbled under my breath. "Days..."
Jaime picks me up as though I was a young child, and began walking towards the large tent that was my destination only minutes before. "Your mother is probably worried sick."
He doesn't know that I ran away before being taken hostage by those men.
"Are you sending a raven?"
Jaime glances down at me with green eyes that seem to run rampant through our family. "I have to at least let her know you're okay. You know how she gets..." Crazy. Insane. Uncontrollable. He walks into the tent, immediately carrying me towards the corner where a cot was laid out. "Rest here... I'll have a nurse come by."
He throws a blanket over my body, and kisses me on the forehead. "Please stop getting yourself into trouble."
"Jaime, who is this?"
A deep voice rings through tent, shaking the my existence. Twyin Lannister.
"Father, this is Charlotte. Cersei's eldest daughter, and your granddaughter."