Chapter One: Blood Birthright
Standing by the fireplace in her private quarters in Winterfell, Daenerys watched the orange flames dance around the blackened firewood. It sparked and crackled and the heat from it washed against her face, bathing her in warmth she hadn't received in some time.
Sucking in a deep breath, she should have been thinking of the war that was almost on their doorstep. The Night King, the powers he possessed to create an army of dead men and beasts alike was unlike anything she had ever seen before. It was terrifying, and yet it still didn't scare her more than the terrible secret Jon Snow had revealed to her the night they had arrived in the North.
Aegon Targaryen.
If it was true, if Jon Snow was the true-born son of her brother Rhaegar Targaryen, then he had a claim to the iron throne. All the allies and connections she had made in Westeros would fall from her already fragile grasp and into his lap. His birthright was a direct challenge to everything she had ever worked for, and it rattled her more than a million dead soldiers could.
Flinching as the stiff wooden door creaked open, she glanced over her shoulder and felt a wave of unease tumble in her belly as Jon greeted her with his steady dark gaze. It was as if he knew she had been thinking about him.
"Your Grace." He murmured, lowering his head respectfully as he hovered in the doorway. "I don't mean to disturb you..."
"You're not." Dany raised her chin and composed herself enough to smile at the King in the North, still feeling so deeply for him even after his revelation. "Close the door behind you, it'll keep the heat in."
Stepping inside the dark room that was lit by candlelight, Jon pushed the door shut and clicked the lock into place. It was a move that didn't go unnoticed by Daenerys as her pale violet eyes locked into his gloved hand before finding his face again.
His expression was unreadable, as it always seemed to be. Dark brow furrowed and lips pressed into a firm line, he took long strides towards her.
A breath hitched in her throat when one of his hands pressed against the small of her back, pulling her into his chest while the other tangled into her braided silver locks. His lips were against hers in an instant, a feverish crash of tongue and teeth as he breathed her in.
In this moment, titles and birthrights meant nothing. In this moment she had found heaven and she didn't want to leave.
"Jon..." She whispered lovingly, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Leaning back, the King in the North peppered kisses down her pale throat and nuzzled his nose beneath her jaw. He could have drowned in her right there and then, but the bastard name that he had carried on his shoulders for all these years pulled him out of his trance.
Stroking his thumb against her lower lip, he gazed into her eyes and saw for himself the kind of love he had craved since Igrid's death.
"Aegon." He corrected her, his voice ragged. "Say it."
Daenerys was stunned into silence, and she was torn from the clouds above and thrust into reality once again. Facing the man she loved, the Targaryen Queen shook her head.
"I can't." She whispered, wanting the earth to swallow her whole.
"You can." He told her.
"If I say it — it makes it real." She said. "I can't."
"What are you so afraid of?" He asked, seeing terror bleed into her features. "You are my Queen, you will always be my Queen. My real name changes nothing between us."
"It changes everything!" Daenerys snapped, not understanding how Jon was so oblivious to it all. "You are the last male Targaryen heir, if Westeros learns that your name is Aegon Targaryen then I lose everything I have ever worked towards. I lose my claim."
"You will lose nothing." He assured her, the tone in his voice deep and unwavering. "You will rule the seven kingdoms of Westeros by my side, you will rule any land you choose to by my side. I will give you anything and everything you could ever want, so long as you give yourself to me now and always."
Daenerys parted her lips to speak, but she was speechless as Jon took her face between his hands. "I bent the knee for you because I love you, would you do the same for me?"
A/N: Thanks for reading the first chapter of this story. I have five chapters of A Union of Dragons written which are already published on A03, but also wanted to publish the story here on FF for those who might not see it elsewhere. Let me know what your thoughts are and if you would like to read more! I feel as if Jon Snow was a shell of himself in the show, and decided to write a version that is a little darker and has a LOT more backbone.