The next day, Elaena woke up with a happy smile plastered on her pink lips. She opened her violet eyes and noticed that Robb was still sleeping soundly, a light snoring filling the room. The desire to throw herself onto Robb and wake him up with kisses was beginning to swallow her wholly, but she decided to remain quiet. Her head was lying on his chest, and his arm was wrapped around her shoulders. She could hear his heart beating slowly, peacefully. The images of the previous night came into her mind, and she found herself wishing for it to happen again, and again. Elaena blushed almost instantly, remembering that she was no longer a maiden. Her body shivered as the sensations of last night washed over her, and she turned to look at Robb again. Even during his sleep, he seemed satisfied and happy. She placed a soft kiss on his cheek, which caused him to open his eyes.

"Good morning, my lord." Elaena smirked mockingly.

"Good morning, my soon-to-be wife." Robb greeted, pulling her face closer to his to plant a soft kiss on her lips. "Were you watching me in my sleep?"

"Perhaps I was..." Elaena answered, smiling widely at him. Her violet eyes were filled with love, it was obvious. Robb's hands traveled through the slender curves of her body, the fact that she was completely his still amazing him, and he pulled her closer to him. His lips claimed hers, and she tangled her fingers into his curly hair. "We should probably start thinking about getting up..."

Robb lied on top of her, their gazes were locked onto one another. His hand trailed down her belly, until it reached the inside of her thighs, causing her to smile wickedly. Elaena tried to pull him more into her, but he didn't allow her, instead he continued to look at the change in her expression. His fingers worked its way through her entrance, causing her to moan softly. "Robb..." Elaena smirked warningly, wrapping her arms around his neck. His excitement was more than evident, and he surely loved to hear her moaning out his name in pleasure. "Robb..." She whispered again, her eyes half-lidded.

"I just can't get enough of you, Ella..." Robb murmured in her ear, causing her whole body to tremble in pure arousal. "How can you expect me to want to leave bed when I have you here, lying under me, completely and utterly naked?" Elaena grinned, her cheeks turning into a light pink. "I wish we could stay here forever, just the two of us..."

"So do I, but unfortunately, we have responsibilities we must take care of." Elaena mumbled, her smile falling almost completely when she remembered all her duties as the new Lady of Winterfell. She already felt tired and the day hadn't even begun yet. "Maester Luwin won't like it if we spend the entire day locked away in your chambers. He'll know that something is up... and I have to take care of Rhaegon and Visemon." Robb ignored her exasperated words and began planting soft kisses on her collarbone until he reached her beautiful breasts. "Oh, Gods..."

"Can't we just enjoy each other's company a little while longer?"

Elaena seemed to ponder about it for a few moments. Then, she finally gave in. "Fine... Ten minutes, Robb, ten minutes, and no more!"


King's Landing

"You're in pain." Cersei commented, her emerald green eyes examining Lord Eddard's hurt leg. The Queen sauntered closer to him, her hands grasping her long dress so it wouldn't touch the dirty ground. Her way of walking indeed resembled a lioness; it was calculating and slow, as if she was picking out the best way to attack her prey. Everything about Cersei Lannister was dangerous, and Eddard needed to be careful around her.

"I've had worse, my lady."

"Perhaps it's time to go home. The South doesn't seem to agree with you."

"I know the truth Jon Arryn died for." Ned countered abruptly, causing Cersei to smile perilously at him. Foolish, honorable man, the Queen thought to herself, he should know better than to threaten and anger a lioness! Ned Stark should have never left the North to come South, he was too righteous for his own good.

"Do you, Lord Stark?" Cersei was not afraid of him. Eddard was a good man, perhaps even too good, but he was no match for a lioness. His honor was going to be the death of him, she was sure of it. "Is that why you called me here, to pose me riddles?"

Ned shook his head, his grey eyes noticing the large purple mark that King Robert had left on her pale cheek. "Has he done this before?"

"Jaime would have killed him. My brother is worth a thousand of your friend."

"Your brother... or your lover?"

"The Targaryens wed brothers and sisters for three hundred years to keep bloodlines pure. Jaime and I are more than brother and sister. We shared a womb. We came into this world together. We belong together!" In Ned's opinion, Cersei must have played and replayed those words in her mind a thousand times to make herself feel better about what she was doing with Jaime, to make it seem right, when it wasn't like that at all. Targaryens were almost forced to marry their own brothers and sisters, most of them didn't even have a choice, since they were mostly forced into it by their parents. Other times, the incest just came naturally for them, because it was already embedded in their genes. What they were doing was wrong and vile.

"My son saw you with him." Eddard said accusingly. Cersei knew exactly what Ned was implying, so she smiled evilly. "That is why you've tried to kill him. Twice." Her silence was more than enough for him to gather the answers to his own questions. "But Elaena, my ward. Why try to burn her? What did she do to you? She didn't see anything, she didn't know anything about you and your lover."

"Jaime had his own reasons to believe that she posed a threat." Cersei simply replied. Elaena Targaryen was a much more delicate subject to discuss. Talking about it in public would doom them all. Jaime and Cersei had organized the two assassination attempts. The Queen had already been informed about their failure, because both Bran and Elaena were still alive. She didn't feel like she had lost yet, because there was still plenty of time to turn the game on her favor. Accusing Eddard of protecting a Targaryen girl would have been much more enjoyable, but she knew that that would simply not work out. She told herself that she didn't care for Robert anymore, but forcing him to kill his best friend, his brother, would have been atrocious, and some small part of her didn't want to watch him suffer any more than necessary. Also, if Robert executed Eddard, a war would begin, and conflicts like this should be avoided. Still, she already had plans for him. Cersei would eliminate her enemies with time and, one by one, they would all fall dead in front of her, because unlike them, she knew how to play the game of thrones. "Do you love your children, Ned?"

"With all my heart."

"No more than I love mine."

"And they're all Jaime's."

"Thank the Gods!" Cersei exclaimed. "In the rare event that Robert leaves his whores for long enough to stumble drunk into my bed, I finish him off in other ways. In the morning, he doesn't remember."

"You've always hated him."

"Hated him?" Cersei sounded almost offended by such accusation. "I worshipped him. Every girl in the Seven Kingdoms dreamed of him, but he was mine by oath. And when I finally saw him on our wedding day in the Sept of Baelor, lean and fierce and black-bearded, it was the happiest moment of my life. Then, that night, he crawled on top of me, stinking of wine and did what he did... what little he could do... and whispered in my ear, 'Lyanna'. Your sister was a corpse and I was a living girl and he loved her more than me."

Eddard cleared his throat, taken aback by her response. "When the King returns from his hunt, I'll tell him the truth. You must be gone by then... you and your children. I will not have their blood on my hands. Go as far away as you can, with as many men as you can, because wherever you go, Robert's wrath will follow you."

Cersei couldn't help but smile mockingly at the honorable man. He truly knew nothing about this game. "And what of my wrath, Lord Stark? You should have taken the realm for yourself. Jaime told me about the day King's Landing fell. He was sitting on the Iron Throne and you made him give it up. All you needed to do was climb the steps yourself. Such a sad mistake."

"I've made many mistakes in my life, but that wasn't one of them."

"Oh, but it was." Cersei paused, taking a step closer to him. "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground."


Winterfell

Robb and Elaena were panting and sweating immensely. The Lord of Winterfell rolled to the other side of his bed and laughed, planting his hand over his racing heart. Elaena smiled and once again placed her head on his chest. "You do realize that we shouldn't do this before our wedding, right?" The Targaryen girl commented, trying to remain serious. It was only the second time that they had made love, but during the two times that it had happened, Robb had released his seed inside of her. "I don't want to become pregnant in a time like this."

"And what time would this be?"

"Robb, we make one wrong move and we start a war." Elaena sighed, closing her eyes. "I don't want our children to grow in an environment like that. And honestly, I wouldn't feel very comfortable about asking Maester Luwin to get me some moon tea."

"I agree." Robb answered, running his hand through his tousled hair. "So, are you saying that we should stop for now?"

"At least until we are married." Elaena nodded with her head.

"Then I want to get married now." Robb smirked, pulling her closer to him. Elaena smiled and chuckled, obviously not taking his demand seriously. "I am serious, Ella. I want to get married as soon as possible. I want you to be mine."

"I am already yours."

"Officially."

"Shouldn't we at least wait until your mother returns to Winterfell?"

"My mother's been very busy, maybe too much." Robb countered, squeezing Elaena against his chest. She hugged him close to her and listened to his heart as it returned to its normal rhythm. "She had Tyrion Lannister trapped and let him slip right through her fingers."

"Perhaps it was better that way, Robb. The Lannisters always pay their debts, remember?"

"Yes. Sooner or later, Tywin Lannister would have sent an army towards us just to get his son back."

"Lord Tywin might hate Tyrion, but he's still a Lannister."

"Precisely."

"Well, Robb, I do not know about you but I, as Lady of Winterfell, must return to my chambers and take a bath, so I can go about our castle and attend to my duties." Lazily, Elaena got out of bed and began picking up her clothes from the floor. Robb remained lying on his bed, his icy blue eyes following her every move as she paced across his bedroom. Elaena was beautiful and deliciously slender, and he just couldn't stop himself from admiring her body. The Targaryen girl had her back turned to him, which gave him a perfect view of her bottom. "Quit staring. I can feel your eyes on me." Robb couldn't look away, no matter how hard he tried. Then, she whirled around and threw her clothes on the bed, walking terribly slowly towards him. Her belly was flat and her breasts were lusciously round and well-built. Robb wanted to have her again, but he knew that they shouldn't.

"Please, put your clothes on, or I might have the urge to have you again." Robb growled as he felt himself becoming hard again. Elaena smiled innocently, picking up her dress. She loved to tease him, it seemed. Instead of putting it on, Elaena pulled the sheets that covered Robb's body and sat on top of him, her entrance brushing against his hardness. She hadn't forgotten her own words, but she couldn't keep away from him for long. "Elaena, I thought you said-"

"I know what I said." Elaena interrupted, placing a soft, lingering kiss on his lips. When Robb opened his eyes to look at her, they were once again filled with lust. Elaena held his gaze for painfully long moments, before she made a move to let him enter her completely. Robb gasped and gripped her hips tightly, helping her with the movements. Robb started releasing soft moans of pleasure, while Elaena tried hard not to moan too loud. His right hand crawled up her belly until it reached her breast to caress it gently. Elaena jerked her head back and said his name in a strangled gasp, beginning to make slower movements to provoke him. Robb couldn't handle it anymore, so he picked her up and switched places, throwing her onto the bed to place himself over her. With his hands, Robb parted her legs and entered her once again, this time taking faster and deeper thrusts into her. The sound of their bodies working as one and their uncontrollable moans were the only audible clatter in Robb's bedroom, and Elaena worried that maybe they were being too noisy and violent, because the bed was beginning to creak loudly. "Robb..." His hands grasped the headboard of the bed to thrust even deeper into her, making the bed shriek louder.

"Elaena..."

Suddenly, there was a heavy knock on the door, causing both of them to stop immediately. Elaena pushed Robb off of her and picked up her dress, beginning to put it on as quickly as possible. "Just a moment!" Robb yelled, grabbing his leather shirt and his pants to start dressing himself as well. Elaena's heart was pounding fast, not only because of the pleasure Robb had given her, but also because they might have been caught. Her cheeks were turning bright red, and she was still gasping from all the hurry. Two minutes later, Robb and Elaena were fully dressed. The Lord of Winterfell opened the door and Elaena felt her entire world fall to her feet when she saw that it was only Theon Greyjoy. "Theon."

Theon wore a dirty smirk on his lips. Oh, Gods. He knew it. He had heard them. "Having fun, were you?"

"Sīkudi nopāzmi..." Elaena murmured in High Valyrian; it meant 'Seven Hells'. She whirled around to hide her ashamed expression and touched her red cheeks, noticing how burning hot they were.

"Elaena's a real beast, eh?" Theon entered Robb's chambers, his eyes analyzing the whole scenario. Noticing how messy Robb's sheets were, Theon gathered enough proof to know that they were indeed having sex. "I mean, you're not exactly quiet. I was walking through this corridor and when I was near your door, I heard you two moaning loudly. Not to mention the bed... It could have been someone else, so consider yourselves lucky that it was only me."

Elaena eyed Robb carefully and noticed that he was completely speechless. He wanted to say something, he wanted to speak, but he just couldn't. "So what if we were making love, eh? There's nothing wrong with that." Elaena countered, placing her hands over her hips in a defensive manner.

"No, no, no." Theon shook his head. "About that you're right, but make it less... loud, aye? Moaning like that, I mean, they probably even heard you down in the South!" At that, Theon burst out laughing. Elaena rolled her eyes and grabbed a pillow, throwing it at Theon's face. "Hey! What the hell was that for?"

"Are you still asking?" Elaena inquired, her tone stern and harsh. "Gods!"

"What are you doing here anyway?" Robb was finally able to speak, and he surely wasn't happy about Theon having found out about what they were doing.

"Maester Luwin sent me to fetch you." Theon answered, trying to remain serious. "I was going to Elaena's chambers next, because he required her presence as well, but I guess that won't be needed any more." Theon snickered once again. His face was beginning to turn red from laughing so hard at them.

Elaena slapped the back of his head and glared daggers at him. "Will you ever shut up about this?"

"Not a chance!"


King's Landing

Eddard Stark couldn't believe it when he was informed about King Robert's nearing death. The drunken fool came back from his hunt almost torn to pieces. Robert had been drinking too much wine, as he always did. The black-bearded man felt almost pathetic for letting that boar tear him apart. "Too much wine, missed my thrust... It stinks, it stinks like death. Don't think I can't smell it. I paid the bastard back, Ned. I drove my knife right through his brain! You ask them if I didn't! Ask them!" Eddard glanced around the room sadly, the thought of losing his best friend haunting him inside. Cersei Lannister and Grand Maester Pycelle stood next to the door, only watching him. Cersei was quiet, too quiet. Robert's youngest brother, Renly Baratheon, watched the dying king with empty eyes. It was no secret that those two hardly tolerated one another. Robert never cared for any of his siblings. It didn't even seem like it hurt Renly to watch his older brother stand so close to death. "I want the funeral feast to be the biggest the kingdoms ever saw, and I want everyone to taste the boar that got me! Now leave us, the lot of you. I need to talk to Ned." Cersei still tried to dissuade him, but the king yelled back at her, ordering all of them to leave immediately. And so they did. Robert let out a pained growl. His face was pale like death, and his wound also smelled like it.

"You damned fool!" Ned was able to say at last.

"Paper and ink on the table, write down what I say." Robert ordered, ignoring his best friend's frustrated insult. Eddard did as he was told and grabbed hold of a piece of paper and a quill. "In the name of Robert of the House Baratheron, first of... you know how it goes. Fill in the damn titles." Robert paused, taking a deep, painful breath before continuing. "I hereby command Eddard of House Stark... titles, titles... to serve as Lord Regent and Protector of the Realm upon my death, to rule in my stead until my son Joffrey comes of age." Instead of writing 'my son Joffrey', Eddard replaced it with 'my rightful heir', and handed it to Robert so he could sign it. When he was done with it, Eddard placed the paper back on the table. "Give it to the council after I'm dead. At least they'll say I did this right, this one thing. You'll rule now. You'll hate it worse than I did, but you'll do it well." Eddard loathed the idea of ruling Westeros, but he would do it, if it meant that he would honor Robert's memory and serve his kindgom justly. "The girl... Daenerys." Eddard froze in his place, once again fearing what Robert was going to say. "You were right. Varys, Littlefinger, my brother. Worthless! No one to tell me 'no' but you. Only you." The ghost of a smile passed through his lips, but it was momentary. "Let her live. Stop it, if it's not too late."

"I will."

"And-"

"Wait, before you carry on with your speech, there is something you must know. Something that hurt me to do it, but it was the right thing to do, and so I did it. I couldn't let you die without knowing this." Eddard uttered, knowing that that was the right moment to tell him the whole truth. "All those years ago, when Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen fled Westeros, they were not the last Targaryens. The night Rhaella gave birth to Daenerys, she didn't come out of the Queen's womb alone. She had a twin sister who came out before her." Robert's expression was beginning to change drastically, but Eddard couldn't read through it. "Elaena Targaryen was her twin sister; my supposedly wildling ward. That girl you saw standing beside my bastard and my ward when you arrived to Winterfell, that girl you said to be a sight for sore eyes, because she truly is beautiful, that girl, Robert, is in fact Elaena Stormborn Targaryen. Her mother Rhaella sent her to the North, begging me to take care of her and see her married to my oldest son. She wanted her to be raised with honor."

"And so she was."

"And so she was. And I have lied to you and everyone else who asked about it, I have done it for many, many years."

"Because you thought that I would slaughter her as soon as I laid my hands on her."

"You would have done it, Robert. You wouldn't have been able to see past the fact that she was a Targaryen, even though she was entirely innocent. I know that if I told you about her, you would have had her executed."

"Perhaps the man that I once was would have done that, but I see things differently now, Ned. A bit too late, wouldn't you say?" Robert barked a laugh, coughing out a large amount of blood. Eddard grimaced, the sight of his best friend in pain causing him to shudder. "I forgive you, Ned. I know that you were only doing what you knew that was the right thing. Marry her to your son Robb. I remember that the boy was already all over her. Let her and her sister live, Ned. Protect her."

"I will, Robert."

"And my son... Help him, Ned. Make him better than me."

"I'll... I'll do everything I can to honor your memory."

"My memory..." Robert repeated, shaking his head. Eddard smiled grimly, while his king laughed at himself. "King Robert Baratheon: murdered by a pig!" The man stopped laughing suddenly and stared at his best friend with gloomy eyes. Eddard knew that it was finally time for Robert to go. "Give me something for the pain and let me die."


Winterfell

"My lady!"

Elaena was sitting by the desk of Lady Catelyn's old office, analyzing the accounts with great care, when Maester Luwin appeared on the door. She looked up from the papers and saw what the Maester held in his two hands. A letter. Elaena immediately jumped up from her chair and approached the old man in a hurry. "A letter from your twin sister, Daenerys."

"She has been writing to me more often than the usual. I wonder if something wrong has happened, Maester Luwin."

"Read the letter, my lady."

Elaena unrolled the parchment and began reading it out loud. "Elaena, I have news for you, concerning our brother Viserys. Recently, Khal Drogo and I brought our Khalasar to Vaes Dothrak, the sacred city of the Dothraki where no free man's blood can be shed. Here, men are not allowed to use blades or swords, but Viserys went against that rule, I am afraid. Our brother has threatened to take me away from my people, from my husband, and he has threatened to murder my unborn child, in front of Drogo, claiming he wanted what was bargained for - his army. Viserys never cared for me. He sold me to become powerful, simple as that. Responding to our brother's threats, Drogo used a pot that sat above the hot fire and threw some golden chains inside, melting them. Two men held Viserys down, and Drogo spilled the molten gold all over his head. Finally, Drogo had given him the golden crown Viserys so much desired. He died almost instantly. I know what you are thinking, Elaena. Viserys was our brother, but he was a vicious, power-hungry fool with no sense of family. He would have had me killed if it meant he would get an army in return. I was not important to him, and neither were you. We may have never met, but I care for you, sister. I am so sorry to bring you these news, Ella, but if you knew about everything that Viserys did, you would understand why this was a relief to me. Viserys was not a true dragon. Fire cannot kill a dragon. You and I, Elaena, we are the truthful daughters of the dragon. Fire runs through our veins. And I believe that, if anyone can take back the Iron Throne, it is you, sister. I will stand behind you if you ever decide to do it. You have my word."

"Viserys was..." Maester Luwin began saying, but he trailed off when he noticed the look in Elaena's violet eyes.

The Targaryen girl had never met her older brother, and she knew that he had flaws, many, many flaws, but she didn't wish for him to die. Her eyes were puffy, and it was clear that she was trying her hardest not to cry in front of the old Maester. "It was for the best." Elaena chose to say, reading the letter again, this time to herself only. "He would have hurt Dany and her baby. He would have killed them."

"My lady-"

"Please, Maester Luwin, leave me. And close the door."

"If I may say just one thing, one thing only, my lady..." Maester Luwin said as Elaena gulped and nodded, allowing him to speak freely. "You have a good heart. Do not let this ruin you. You've never met this boy. Do not direct your angst against your twin sister."

"I do not blame Daenerys, but he was my brother, nevertheless. My flesh and blood."

"Quite right too." Maester Luwin countered, glancing down at his aged hands. "I will not bother you any more, Elaena."

"Thank you, Maester Luwin."