Dany wasn't sure what she had expected her homeland to look like, but somehow this was not quite it.
When she emerged from below decks, wrapped in a long cloak to guard against the harsh winter winds, she nearly missed the pale sliver of land that stretched along the horizon. The ship's captain strode up to her and bowed low, smiling.
"Your Grace. We are but ten leagues from the Dornish shore. You might glimpse it over the starboard side, if it please you."
Pleased or no, Dany had to see it. She pushed her way through the throng of Dothraki archers milling anxiously about the deck; this and the fleet of Ironborn ships that followed closely behind were armed with Khal Jhaqo's warriors, who would fire arrows from the ship along the Dornish shore, and her Unsullied, waiting below decks to storm the beaches. She had sent her dragons ahead, with Tyrion Lannister, Victarion Greyjoy, and Ser Barristan Selmy astride them, to treat with Doran Martell and arrange the landward attack. She only hoped the Martells still wished to ally with her after her beasts had roasted the Dornish heir. If not, her Dothraki and Unsullied would have to free Sunspear from the Lannisters' hold with naught but arrows and arakhs.
A large figure loomed over the starboard bow, watching the distance just as Dany had intended to do. She moved quietly beside him, and saw that Jorah Mormont's knuckles were white where they gripped the railing. He did not turn to look at her, but continued to scan the shore ahead.
"Westeros." He nearly whispered it, like a prayer, and she could not be certain whether he had spoken to her or to no one at all.
Dany searched and searched the land, but something was missing. Had she truly been expecting a waving crowd and dragon banners, after all this time? Am I as much a fool as Viserys? A sense of loss washed over her like a wave. This beach was no different than any other she had seen - and why should it not be? Though she knew it was foolish to cling to childish notions, the loss of the sparkling shore that had haunted her dreams sunk low in her chest. She had sacrificed everything for that shore: love, safety, happiness, countless lives...all for a kingdom she had never seen. And now here it was, and she could not remember why she had thought it was worth so much blood and fire.
Left in her wake were her sun-and-stars, her stillborn son, her only brother. Another husband and a lover who had played her false, and paid the price. Her soldiers, her freedmen, her people, laid along the Skahazadan, who had never seen what it was they had died for.
And Ser Jorah, beside her - she had nearly left him behind as well.
She turned to face him and found him quietly studying her. Their eyes met, and Dany had the sudden, sweeping feeling that he knew exactly what her thoughts were. Of course he did - he had seen all the dead, had been with her from the beginning. He had waited in Essos nearly as long as she had, praying for to see the shores of Westeros again. This land was his home as well, and he had nearly sold her for it. And now he might die too, along the Dornish shore, fighting to win her a kingdom.
Dany felt her breath catch in her throat. Out here among her warriors, mere hours before battle, was not the time or place for a queen to appear weak. She turned from the railing and retreated swiftly to hercabin, turning her back on the growing shoreline.
Ser Jorah found her there some minutes later, carefully studying the floorboards.
"Khaleesi?"
She nodded for him to enter, and he strode across the room to sit beside her on her narrow bunk. For once he said nothing, only waited as Dany considered how long it had been since she had thought of herself as a khaleesi. Once she took the Iron Throne she would be Queen of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men, and no one would remember her as the khaleesi of Drogo's riders save for Ser Jorah and her bloodriders. Even now, the memory of her first husband's face was beginning to fade.
"All the lives lost...all this time...what was it all for, Jorah?"
"For your kingdom, your grace," he replied. "For home."
"What do I know of home? I have never seen that shore before today, never trod on that spit of land you call my kingdom. And yet we have traded everything for it." Her knight opened his mouth to speak, but Dany barreled on. "Your island - the island you sold me for - is a thousand miles away. What then will you fight for, Ser? The place we land is no more your home than mine."
"No," he replied slowly, "It is not."
"And yet you will die for it."
He gave a surprised chuckle at that. "I do not intend to die, khaleesi. Not today."
"And if you do?" They had survived this long partly thanks to Ser Jorah's sword, but the long push to Kings' Landing would be the hardest fight yet, with foes more seasoned and better-equipped than they. Though the War of the Five Kings had crippled the land, Dany feared it would not be enough to ensure her victory.
His answer came without hesitation. "I swore to die for you. And so I shall."
Dany shook her head, biting back a sob. I never wanted you to die for me. I never wanted anyone to die for me. Jorah inched closer to her on the bed, careful not to move near enough to touch her but enough that she could feel the heat of him at her side. Once he might have put an arm around her, but after she had pardoned his betrayal and returned him to her service her knight had wisely kept his distance. At first she had been glad of it, and yet at times like this the girl in her missed her bear.
"Daenerys," he said softly, "I have watched you bear the loss of your brother, your husband, and your child, with a strength far beyond your years. Why fret so over a poor knight?"
"You were with me then. And always, until I sent you away. I ran a city into ruin without you, how could I rule a kingdom without you at my side?You are my strength."
Again he tried to speak, but fell silent when Dany settled her palm carefully on his cheek and drew his face to hers. Her fingers traced the black demon on one side, the long scar from Qotho's arakh on the other. Would he earn another brand today, in her name? Or worse?
"I should have kissed you in Qarth, in Astapor, in Meereen, and now...what if there is no time left..."
This time it was Jorah who silenced her, seizing her mouth in a kiss as his hands circled her waist. Dany pushed her tongue between his lips, remembering the last time she had been alone with her knight on a ship, and explored his mouth eagerly until he pulled away.
"Daenerys," he breathed, "I will love you forever. Not until the day I die, not until my last breath. Forever. Do you understand?"
She nodded, unable to stop the tears from finally rolling down her cheeks. He kissed her again, very lightly, and then rose from the bed.
"My queen…do not despair. Not today." Jorah reached for her hands and pulled her up to face him. "Today is the day you win your kingdom. This is a day men will sing of for a thousand years and more. This is not a day for sadness." His rough fingers brushed the wetness from her face, and Dany tried to force a smile.
"Perhaps they will sing of my brave knight as well."
"I doubt it. They already have a song about a bear and a maiden fair."
Dany laughed. "Shall I have it sung at your funeral feast, then?"
"Gods have mercy, no."
Jorah's grin matched hers as she looped her arms around his neck and pressed herself against his chest. Her lips had only just brushed his when the cabin door opened.
"Khaleesi, the Eunuch captain say – oh." Rakharo stepped back through the door. "Pardon, khaleesi. But your Grey Worm wish to speak with you."
"Of course. Tell him I'll be up in a moment."
Dany turned back to Ser Jorah as her bloodrider hastily exited the room. She considered resuming their previous activity, but he was right – this was not the time.
"We shall speak of this later."
"In Westeros," he agreed.
She flashed him a final smile and ascended to the upper deck once again, breathing the salty breeze that wafted from the Dornish shore. It loomed even larger now, spanning as far as she could see in front of them, but now she no longer feared what might await her on this foreign shore. Whatever the day brought, Daenerys Targaryen felt she had finally found a home.