I do not own any of the recognizable characters in this story...
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CHAPTER 11: DOORS
Days had gone by since she left everything behind. She had travelled away from the hell that had imprisoned her for years before everything actually started burning, and now she could only think of running farther.
She had made sacrifices all her life, but nothing prepared her for what had happened some days before. Leaving the city like a criminal was never the plan, and neither was leaving her youngest son with that kind woman. Her family had gone from bad to worse since The Purple Wedding, and the Targaryans arriving to King's Landing did not make things better. Her children were scattered through Westeros: Myrcella was hidden somewhere in Dorne and Tommen was supposed to be on his way to serving the new lord of some castle in the Stormlands.
Tyrion had once told her that her love for her children was her only redeeming quality, 'that, and your cheekbones', and she had made sure that her two living children were as save as they could be. She, on the other hand, was alone.
She spent half her life pushing people away, until one day, not even Jaime could look her way without hatred in his eyes. She could not blame him, she would not blame him, she had done plenty of wrong during her years as queen, but, as the night wore on, she had been another victim of The Game of Thrones. True, she had known how to play the game -or so she thought-, but she had not accomplished anything apart from some deaths and misery for a lot of people.
That was her eighth night in Fawnton, but almost a month had gone by since the Targaryan attack. She knew they were looking for them, she knew they would not stop until they gathered all the Lannister pups in the Throne room. She only hoped her little Myrcella was alright with the enemy. She knew Tommen would never be alright again, watching his home town had been too much for him... The last time she saw him he could not focus on anything.
A million thoughts ran through her head at the speed of light, every bad thing she had done all those years was coming back to torment her that instant: poisoning her husband, sleeping with her brother, almost killing her other brother, not stopping Jeoffrey when she had the chance, letting her father dictate every step she took...
She heard the Targaryan soldiers pounding on the door again. She knew that they would get in the small shack eventually, and the gods knew what they would do to her when that happened... Just like that, the door opened.
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She was sprawled on her bed while her future husband's pet lay on the floor beside her. He was watching her, judging her...
"What are you looking at?" She asked, but the direwolf just looked away. She was just about to start talking to Ghost again when she heard a shy knock on her door. She was surprised when she saw a child waiting for her with a bright smile on her face. 'This must be the little Sam...'
"Hello!" He said. "I want play with Ghost!" Ally smiled and let the little boy in. He ran towards the wolf and started playing with him right away. She sat down by the fireplace and watched them for what it could have been hours. She missed Andry... She missed his spirited will and stubbornness; she missed the focused look on his face when he played the piano, and the bored look when he attended lessons with his proffesors...
Ally had lost track of time when someone else knocked on the door.
"Come in!" She said, and the wilding woman she had seen walking around the castle entered.
"I'm so very sorry m'lady, but I couldn't find my son... I'm sorry if he bothered you, it won't happen again..."
"What is your name sweet girl?"
"Gilly... M'lady."
"How do the men treat you Gilly? Are they kind to you?"
"Some whisper when I walk by, but I'm used to it... They also whisper when the little Sam is near them, and I think they make fun of Samwell when Lord Jon can't hear them..."
"I have a proposition for you... My uncle Stannis believes that a lady in my position should have someone to help her... There is not much I am allowed to do besides visit my dragon and reading, but I could use some company... Would you like to accompany me, Gilly?"
"You mean like a fancy handmaiden?"
"Yes..." Ally giggled "The little Sam could stay with us, and you would be able to watch him all the time, would you like that?"
"Yes, m'lady, I'd like that! Thank you!" Suddenly the girl shut up "M'lady... I... I know that I shouldn't say anything but... but Sam told me that you're going to marry Lord Jon... and... and he's been really upset this past few days... I was thinking that, maybe you could talk to him?"
Ally had noticed too... The way he looked lost suddenly... If Stannis had been there, he would have been furious that a servant girl, a wilding, had dared talk like that to the king's niece; fortunately, Ally was different.
"Do you know where he is?"
A few minutes later Ally found herself walking up the stairs and Gilly's directions. She had noticed how the men in the castle looked at her, not in a hungry lusty way, but a thankful one. She would have to ask Gendry about that when they met for supper. Alara found her fiancé sitting in a dark corner of The Wall, looking towards the land beyond it.
She heard him talking to himself before he noticed she had arrived.
"I do not know who I am anymore..." he said.
"That is bullshit"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Jon... I do not know you, but something as simple as who your birth father is does not change who you are... Your name does not change the man you have become... We all know that Rhaegar Targaryan is not really your father, you may be his seed, but it takes more than that to be a father." She said while she sat down beside him.
"I just... I grew up thinking I was a true northerner: my looks, my personality... And now, it turns out I am not that much of a northerner..."
"Have you met yourself? You could not be more from the north if you tried." She said, managing to make something close to a smirk on his face. "They say that Eddard Stark was an honourable man... And if you are so much alike as every living soul says, then you cannot be a bad person."
"You seemed to think otherwise two days ago... I have not seen you since we agreed on our alliance, even your brothers say you have been distant. Does it really displease you so much? I know I am not much, but I did not think I had the power to make a woman so... moody." 'At least he is joking' Ally thought.
"Well, a woman has the right to be moody from time to time; once a month actually."
"Do you not think it funny? We are to be married and the only things I know about you are that you have a dragon, you do not hesitate to make anyone who wronged your family pay and my direwolf spends more time with you than he does with me..."
"Well... the only things I know about you are that... I actually do not know anything about you except the obvious..."
"Ha-ha..."
"What was it like? Being out there?"
"Different."
"Different?"
"Different. I will tell you one day... It is getting late."
"I asked Gilly if she would like to be my handmaiden... if that is alright with you... Stannis insists I need one, and I figured that my chambers would be safer for her and Sammy than the other side of the castle" She said on their way back.
"That is alright, do not worry..."
Ally could still feel Jon's mind was elsewhere when they stopped in front of her chambers.
"Jon, it is not that important. No one will care if you are half a Stark, you are still better than a Bolton."
"How do you do that? How do you guess what I am thinking?"
"You are not that hard to read... Do not worry... we will make our move as soon as our army is ready, and we will take your home back."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Have you been down in the dungeons lately? Rumour has it there is a huge dragon that breathes fire there... Have a good night Jon; and come find my brothers or I if you want to share beautiful stories of dysfunctional families and father drama."
She could have sworn she heard him chuckle as she closed the door.
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She woke up alone again. Her beloved husband had woken up before her again, and left her to break her fast by herself. She had been oversleeping for the past few days and, as someone who had already experienced the changes pregnancy caused on a woman, she recognised her tiredness as one of them.
Her dreams, however, were crushed when she lost her bed covers and found that her mattress was dirty with blood, her blood, her moon blood. She had been so sure that she was pregnant...
Daenerys realised that would not be a good day for her. She called her handmaidens in to clean up the mess in the bed, and got in the bath tub, so she could ready herself for the day.
She found Aegon an hour later, sitting down in the garden were he could keep an eye on the dragons. She smiled even if she did not like the company he was in. Margaery Tyrell was laughing at something Aegon had just said, and that made her blood boil... He stood up as soon as he saw her walking their way, and greeted her with a soft kiss.
"You remember the lady Margaery, do you not my dear?"
"Of course I do, how could I not?"
"It is a pleasure to be here to break my fast with you, your grace." The pretty brunette said politely.
"Aegon, darling, do we have any news on the lady Margaery's husband? Have our men found Cersei Lannister yet?"
"Not yet my dear, but I am sure we will have news from them soon."
"I bet you will be eager to see your husband again, right lady Margaery?"
"Tommen is a very sweet boy, your grace, I only wish he is safe, wherever he might be. What do you plan on doing next, your grace?"
"Well, Dragonstone would be the next obvious target, but maybe we should aim for Storm's End or Gulltown in the Vale of Arryn..." Aegon explained.
"Darling, I do not think strategy is something to be discussed as we break our fast, let me enjoy my morning tea before we start talking about work..."
Dany noticed Jon Connington walking their before anyone else did, and she touched her husband's arm so that he could talk to his second in command. Dany and Margaery fell silent as soon as Aegon left.
"It is such a pity..." Dany said.
"I beg your pardon?"
"I was just thinking about your husbands, they all tend to die or disappear. You have always wanted a crown on your head...It is so bad you will never wear one..."
"I do not understand your majesty... Have I displeased you in any way? The king..."
"The king is a man... And the whole court knows how you manage to get what you want from those. Do not be offended, it is a skill that has been used since the first men arrived in Westeros... Nevertheless, women of fine lineage do not tend to use that kind of... how could we call them? Assets? Yes, they do not tend to use that kind of assets. I know what you are trying to get from my husband, but it will not work. You will pack your things and leave for Highgarden tomorrow at dawn, and you will not come back to the capital, are we clear?"
"Yes, your grace."
"Lady Margaery" Aegon said when he returned. "I need to sort a little setback with my wife..."
Aegon took her hand and walked with her through the Red Keep until they reached one of the highest balconies in the building. Dany could see smoke coming out of a building...
"Dany..." he said. "Drogon is out of control... He destroyed a dozen of ships last night, just for the hell of it, and he has been terrorizing the people of King's Landing, our people, since we arrived. Can you see that large column of smoke? That used to be an orphanage... he burned it to ashes this morning..."
"And the children? Aegon are the children alright?"
"Some survived... Dany we cannot let that happen again... I know your dragons are young, and they are having some kind of rebellious phase, but we cannot risk our people..."
"I know... I know... I just do not know what to do about them..."
"I have an idea... but you will not like it... We could lock them in the dungeons, for some time... until we figure out how to control them..."
"Do you really think that is the best idea?"
Dany accepted Aegon's offer, but that did not mean she liked it. She guided her three dragons through the dungeons in the Red Keep talking softly in High Valirian. She could feel Drogon hesitate in every corner, she could see he did not like where she was taking them, and of course hell broke loose when he realised she was going to lock them.
Drogon started growling, lashing anything and anyone that dared move close to him, and breathing fire in all directions. Most of the soldiers were hurt by the time they managed to shackle the dragon to the wall. Aegon and her had decided that the three dragons would be tied up, but free to walk in the dungeon.
Daenerys regretted that decision the moment she saw Drogon open his enormous mouth and try to make Aegon his midday snack. She screamed, he got away just in time, and Jon Connington commanded everyone to leave the place. Suddenly there were guards everywhere, some helping Aegon up and guiding him out of the place, some trying to keep the dragons away, some ushering her out...
The world around her started spinning, and without a warning all the events of that day became too much. She felt light, she stopped noticing her surroundings, she stopped seeing everything around her, and she felt her knees cave in. The last thing she heard was a door closing behind her.
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Hello guys!
I know it's been long but this last week has been kind of crazy for me and I didn't want to update another short chapter.
We've had 3 girls on this chapter: Cersei, Ally and Dany. It has been a tough one to write, because I didn't really know how to write the Cersei part, or how much of King's Landing I wanted to show. Anyway, I think we are going to leave King's Landing be for some time, because I think that the storylines on The Wall are more interesting right now, and this is a Gendry/Arya/Jon/OC story so...
Next chapter will be Eddrick and Gendry and his arrival to Storm's End, and I'll try to update by Sunday night or Monday morning (Spanish time) depending on the work I have to do and all that jazz...
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED, FOLLOWED AND FAVOURITED THE STORY THIS WEEK, I'LL WRITE SOON, I PROMISE.
As always, review or PM if you want to know anything or have any doubts
Be kind to one another!
Star :*
