she is water: soft enough to offer life, tough enough to drown it away.
__________
A moon had passed since Amaris arrived back in Dragonstone. Much of her time was spent with Shireen, Myra or even Ser Davos Seaworth. As a child, Amaris had always been fond of Davos, and he her. The rest of her time was spent with her father, learning the ways to rule Dragonstone.
In her absence, she learned that her father had taken on a new religion. Amaris, who knew her father never paid much mind to religion was shocked. But when she met the priestess, Lady Melisandre, it all began to make sense.
Melisandre was charismatic, beautiful and alluring. Even Amaris believed some of the things she said about R'hllor, the Red God, the Lord of Light.
"I believe you have a gift, my lady," Melisandre stated, looking at Amaris from across the feast table.
"A gift?" Amaris responded, humor in her voice. "And what gift is this, Lady Melisandre?"
"The gift of sight," Melisandre said. "I would like to teach you, allow you to hone this gift."
"You're delusional," Amaris scoffed. "I'm just a girl, no more, no less."
"You're wrong," Melisandre said with a smirk. "You're so much more. You are the daughter of the promised prince."
Into her wine glass, Amaris snorted as she shook her head at the priestess. She was no princess; she was just a lady who would one day inherit land from her lord father. She had no supernatural sight.
"I can prove it," Melisandre said. "Come with me."
Without waiting to see if Amaris would indeed follow, Melisandre stood up and walked out of the dining hall with her head held high. After a moment's contemplation, Amaris stood and ran after the priestess.
"Come," Melisandre insisted once they reached her chambers, "look into the flames. Tell me what you see."
"I see fire," Amaris replied, rolling her eyes. "Coals and smoke."
"Open your mind," Melisandre demanded. "Let R'hllor in, allow him to act through you."
"And how do you expect me to open my mind?"
"Close your eyes, breathe deeply, imagine every possibility but think of nothing. Once your mind is clear, stare deep into the flames and see."
Relenting, Amaris rolled her shoulders back and closed her eyes lightly. She inhaled the scent of salty sea air and let herself relax. It was surprisingly easy to clear her mind of every thought, but perhaps that was because she needed that freedom. Something coursed through her veins, seeping into her heart and mind. It told her to let go of all fears. And so she did just that.
Slowly, Amaris opened her eyes and stared deeply into the flames. Now they were not just flames. She saw imagines. Her uncle, Robert, getting stabbed in the stomach by a boar's horn. She saw Joffrey sitting on the Iron Throne. She saw steel flash through the air and a head falling to the ground. Ned Stark's head.
Gasping, Amaris stumbled backwards, shaking her head frantically.
"No," she sobbed, feeling tears well in her eyes. "No! That cannot be!"
"What did you see?"
"I saw my uncle dying, my cousin sitting on the Iron Throne. I saw Ned Stark getting executed. Melisandre, how can this be?"
"The Lord of Light is showing you what is to happen. This is a warning, my lady. A warning of war to come. War that will shake the Seven Kingdoms, staining the grounds with blood."
__________
"I received a raven just now," Stannis told his daughter, holding a slip of parchment tight in his hand. "Your cousins are all bastards born of incest, according to Ned Stark. This means a Lannister will be sitting on the Iron Throne and not a Baratheon."
Amaris stayed silent, thinking to what she saw in the flames. She saw Robert dying and Joffrey taking the throne and Ned Stark dying.
"Lord Stark could die for accusing the Queen of such an act."
"And that is why I believe it," Stannis said plainly, looking back down at the parchment.
"That's fair," Amaris agreed.
"I also received this," Stannis said, handing Amaris another piece of parchment, "from Renly. Robert is dead and Renly has decided that he will campaign for the Iron Throne."
"That's nonsense," Amaris said, scanning the letter. "You're older. The throne should be yours."
"And then yours when I die," Stannis added on.
Upon hearing that, Amaris could not help but smile. But her smile was quickly wiped away when she realized the severity of the situation they were in.
"Father, what does this mean for us?"
"It means war."
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so i'm really excited for this story arc tbh. amaris is gonna become sort of like melisandre just less, you know, crazy.
-bleuseys