I was laying in the large bronze tub in front of the fireplace. The water was boiling hot and had steam rising from the top. Essi was finishing washing my hair and pulling it up into a bun, while Feqi was turning down my bed and laid out my night shift next to some towels. They were young Dothraki girls who had asked if they could serve as my handmaidens when I joined my sister in Qarth and they have served me ever since.
I enjoyed their company most of the time. They were sweet innocent beings who liked to talk about boys and clothes and other trivial things. It was a welcomed break from the normal strategies and politics I had to deal with.
There was a knock on the door and Feqi walked over to pull it open.
"The handsome man is here to see you," Feqi said in Dothraki with a chuckle.
"I knew he would come to you tonight," Essi told me with a slight giggle herself.
"Let him in," I said with a smile.
Essi stood up while I turned in the tub as Jon entered
"He only smiles when he sees her, have you noticed?" Essis says to Feqi, making them both giggle.
"Alright that's enough, you can leave us," I tell them with a knowing smile, watching as the two teenage girls left, whispering and smiling.
"You can speak Dothraki?" he asks moving towards me with a soft look in his eyes.
"Yes, and High Valerian" I answer. He smiles and grabs the chair from my vanity, taking a seat on my right. He glances at the water and then back up at me.
"How is it you can sit in a boiling tub of water and not even break a sweat?" he asks with a playful smile.
"It's in my blood I suppose" I sit up a bit in the tub. My left-hand moves to the back of my right shoulder, trying to rub out the tension I felt on a daily basis.
"Did you pull a muscle?"
"No, there's just tension in my shoulders. My sister says its the price we pay as rulers. We carry the people with us always" I answer with a smile. A small smile graces his lips and his moves the chair so he's seated behind me. The moment his hands touch my shoulders I flinch and gasp at his touch.
"Your hands are freezing" I mumble, mentally making sure my skin wasn't hot enough to burn him. He chuckles at that and starts using his thumbs to massage out the tension knots in my shoulders. His hands were still a bit cold but it was a pleasant feeling.
"Better?" he asks, continuing to rub my shoulders, his hands moving closer to my neck with each circular motion.
"Mmm much better," I say with a slight moan to my voice. I tilt my head to the right as his hand works in the left crook of my neck. I smile as I feel his lips on my left shoulder, slowly moving up my neck. I hummed at the feeling of his beard lightly scratching against my skin and the softness of his lips on my neck.
I turned around in the tub and cupped his cheeks with my hands, connecting our lips in a soft kiss. His hand moved to the back of my neck. His fingers entwining in my hair and lightly pulling, making my head tilt up as he lightly bit my lower lip. I wrapped my arms around his neck, trying to pull him closer. His hands moved lower, dipping into the water towards my waist. I stood up in the tub, keeping our lips connected. He pulled me closer to him, my dripping wet body dampening his clothes but he didn't seem to care. He lifted me out of the tub and moved us toward the bed.
I was laying with my head on Jon's bare chest, lightly running my fingers up and down his chest, occasionally tracing over his scars. He had his left arm wrapped around me with his thumb lightly moving across my hip. His chin was barely grazing the top of my head.
"What do you think of my sister?" I ask softly.
"She seems like a very capable woman" he answers a bit stiffly. I sit up a little and turn to face him. He pushes back some of my loose hair as I do.
"She is, but that doesn't answer my question" He gives a quick smile and moves his hand to my cheek, running his thumb over my skin.
"I think she's a bit stubborn, maybe even more so than you are. I think she lives up to the name of a conqueror" he answers.
"It sounds like you aren't very fond of her"
"She expects me to bend the knee to her solely because it is her birthright. I can't give her what she wants. I think I would be of little use to her" he mumbles.
"It's a good thing you're of much use to me" I reply with a smile, leaning over to place a quick kiss on his lips. He smiles and pulls me in for another kiss. I lay back down, putting my head back on his chest, smiling as he played with my hair.
"I found something, down in the caves"
"What?"
"Cave paintings. Of the Children of the Forest and the First Men. There was a painting of the Night King, and it looked like they were fighting him together"
"You should show them to my sister. It'll help you convince her and maybe help you seal an alliance without having to sacrifice the North to do it" I suggest.
"When did you get so smart?" he asked with a teasing tone in his voice.
"King's Landing has that effect on people"
Jon stood at the mouth of the cave with a torch in his hand, waiting. He had summoned Daenerys and Rhaella to the cave where he was mining so he could show them what he'd found inside. He was a bit anxious about this interaction. He was hoping that what he found would persuade Daenerys to rally to his side in the fight against the Night King and his army like Rhaella had suggested.
Jon tried his best not to smile as he saw them approaching, but he didn't have to try for long as he only saw one white-haired woman approach. Daenerys stood in front of him as regal as ever with Missandei standing a step behind her.
"There was something you wished to show me?" she asks. Jon falters for a moment.
"My sister will be joining us later, she has some other matters to attend to" Daenerys answers.
"Of course Your Grace, if you'll follow me" Jon replies, turning with his torch in hand and entering the cave.
He showed Daenerys the dragonglass they had been mining and proceeded to take her deeper into the cave, towards the paintings he had found.
She stood next to him as he held up the torch and illuminated the cave paintings, with arcane symbols and drawings of what looked like the Children of the Forest.
"I can't believe it. The Children of the Forest stood here thousands and thousands of years ago...right where we're standing now. Long before mankind ever arrived in Westeros" Daenerys mumbles, her eyes roaming over the ancient paintings.
"Actually, that's not exactly true," Jon says, walking over to another chamber within the cave. Daenerys follows after him, a bit of confusion showing over her features.
He shows her a crude drawing of the Children and the First Men.
"Were they fighting one another?" Daenerys asks thoughtfully.
"Look at this" Jon says, moving to hold his torch up to another section of the cave wall. The light revealed a drawing of a Child of the Forest and a First man together facing a man with blue eyes.
"The Children of the Forest and the First Men only managed to drive off the White Walkers because they chose to fight together to save themselves from extinction. A choice that we have now" Jon says, turning to face Daenerys.
"I will fight for you and the North, when you bend the knee" she replies, turning to face him.
"The North will never accept a Southern ruler. Not after everything that's happened" Jon argues.
"They will if their King does" she retorts.
"If you brought me down here to suggest that I should ally with you because these White-Walkers are such a world-ending threat then the North should submit to me. Your survival should outweigh your pride" she continues.
"Pride has nothing to do with this. This is about preparing ourselves for the greatest threat we'll ever face"
"I think you mean the greatest threat you'll ever face" she spits back.
"Do you have any compassion? Do you care about the thousands of lives that'll die because of your stubborn pride?" Jon snaps back.
"Watch your tongue. You're a guest here, but that can change in a heartbeat"
"I'm already a prisoner here. You took our boats and our weapons, what more could you take?" he asks with an airy breath.
"My sister," she says calmly. Jon can feel his heart skip a beat for a moment before realizing how much of an empty threat it truly was.
They exit the cave in silence and are approached by Tyrion and Varys. Both of their faces betrayed a look of worry.
"What is it?" Daenerys asked.
"The Unsullied have succeeded in taking Casterly Rock," Tyrion said.
"Good"
"There has been a recent set back in our plans. It turns out that the Rock was only a feint. They didn't even bother to defend it. Instead, they were marching south for a surprise attack on Highgarden. Which they were successful in" Varys explains.
The anger on Daenerys' features was evident. She could barely keep her anger at bay.
"All of my allies are gone for a castle with no supplies. It was your cautious strategy that lost Dorne, the Iron Islands and now The Reach!"
"We still have the Unsullied and three dragons" Tyrion replies in a calm manner.
"This is your fault! You wanted to use a light hand against the Lannisters because they're your people!"
"We still have enough ships to get the Dothraki from Dragonstone to the mainland. You still have the single largest army in all of Westeros"
"Which are useless if I can't feed them. Which is what The Reach was for. I have had enough of clever plans. I will take my Dothraki and my three dragons to the Red Keep and I will burn it to the ground with everyone inside" she snaps coolly, beginning to walk up towards the castle.
"Perhaps I should leave," Jon says as they all walk after her.
"No. Stay. What would you have me do?" she asks.
"You've brought dragons back. You've abolished the slave trade. You've proven you can do things a different way. But if you use your dragons to melt castles and burn down cities you'll be no different than any of the other tyrant Targaryens who came before you" he says. She takes a deep agitated breath before continuing her trek back up to the castle.
I was up on the cliff tops. The wind was blowing through my hair which I kept loose today. I was dressed in trousers and a shirt today. Even after all this time playing the part of a princess, I was more comfortable in my trousers than skirts. I was watching the dragons flying about the island, with Monell by my side.
"So what is it like flying one of those?" he asks, making me chuckle.
"Its the most amazing feeling there is. The wind through your hair, the freedom you get" I answer, turning to look at him. He was smiling at me, and there was this look in his eyes. The look Jon has whenever he looks at me.
"You shouldn't look at me like that," I say turning back to look at the dragons.
"Like what?"
"You know what"
"Like I'm in love with you? Rhaella, you know how I feel about you. We've spent years together, and now this...this boy comes along and you just expect me to drop it all?" he asks, a bit of anger in his voice.
"I know that what we had was...special. We were in love, but things have changed"
"What's changed? All I know is that you left me in the middle of the night, babbling nonsense. You left and swore you would send word when you arrived. You didn't. We all thought you were dead. I thought you were dead. Next thing I know I'm sailing halfway around the world to find you and what do I find? You, in the arms of another man, looking at me like you forgot who I was" he snaps, pain lacing every syllable.
"I'm sorry I never intended-"
"No, it's exactly what you intended. You knew who you were running to when you left and you didn't even care" he says moving to stand in front of me so he was only inches away from me.
"Of course I cared. I've always cared. I love you, but not like you want me to. Not the way I used to" I say, trying my best to explain my feelings to him.
"Why? Because of some boy, you knew years ago? He left you Rhaella. He left you while I've been here for you for the past six years" he argues.
"He had no choice...I hated him for what he did, but I understood it"
"You understand? You love him but you understand why he left you?"
"He did it to save my life, Monell. I couldn't handle the cold much longer and Lord Eddard was going to ride south with his daughters. He arranged for me to go with him to save my life. But Jon knew I would never leave when there was a chance for us to be together. I was betrothed to his brother, dying from the cold of the North and I didn't care. I wanted him and I still thought that there was a chance for us. He knew better, so he left for the wall with his uncle Benjen and that was that"
"Why didn't he just go south with you?"
"He was Lord Eddard's bastard. The King and Queen would never allow it. Besides my betrothal to Robb made things more complicated. There couldn't be any question about my devotion to the King and the betrothal he set up. If there was I could be killed, all because of my last name"
"It doesn't deny the fact that he left you"
"Yes, he did...and I left him when I escaped King's Landing to go join my sister. When I got on your boat" I say, feeling my anger start to rise.
"Are we interrupting something?"
Monell quickly stepped away from me and bowed at my sister as she approached, with Jon walking behind her.
"No, the Captain was just leaving," I say with a forced smile. Monell turns to face and gives a low bow before he walks away.
"Right, well no doubt you've heard about Casterly Rock," she says.
"Yes, I've heard. Are you planning on retaliating?" I ask, crossing my arms behind my back.
"Yes, I'm going to take the Dothraki and the dragons and go turn the war to our side" she simply states. I nod along to her words.
"I'll get the Dothraki ready and I'll meet you near the Reach" I reply. She nods and turns to walk back towards the castle.
"You can't be serious," Jon says taking a step towards me. I give him an odd look.
"You're still injured. You could be killed going out there" he says giving me a hard look.
"I'll be on Visenya. Surrounded by hundreds of thousands of Dothraki. I'll be fine"
"What happened to never leaving my side? If you're going to go at least let me come with you" he asks, his eyes moving to a look of worry.
"This is something I have to do one my own. I've done this plenty of times before, it's not like this is my first battle" I say with a smile, moving to stand in front of him.
"And if you go, and you get hurt or killed?"
"This is war Jon...are you telling me you'll never risk your life again or fighting in another battle?" I ask. He stays silent. I raise my hand up to cup his cheek.
"I promise, I will come back to you," I say softly. I place a soft kiss on his lips and allow him to hold me tightly through the kiss. When we break away he rests his forehead on mine.
"Hurry back...don't do anything stupid" he mumbles, making me laugh.
"I'll try my best" I answer, breaking away from his embrace and walking towards the empty field. I raise my fingers to my lips and let out a loud piercing whistle. Within moments Visenya lands on the grassy field in front of me. I climb onto her back and she takes to the sky.
I hovered over the field where the Dothraki were encamped and getting ready to take the boats to the mainland. Visenya landed on top of a cliff overlooking the Dothraki. We flew over the Dothraki as they sailed across the sea. They followed me towards the Reach, where I would meet up with my sister. We waited at the top of a hillside, hidden from view. I looked up at the sky and saw the shadows of my sister's dragons circling overhead.
"Khalasar! Are you prepared to fight for your Khaleesi?!" I shouted in Dothraki. The blood riders shouted and howled behind me.
"Let's go kill some soldiers!" I screamed and they screamed back as we descended down the hill. Visenya glided through the air down the hill where my sister and Drogon were already burning the wagons. Visenya started burning wagons down on the opposite side of Drogon. There were arrows whizzing past me and Visenya, but when I looked up to see how my sister was doing, there were gigantic arrows, meant for killing dragons, flying towards her. She was dodging them thankfully.
Visenya and I continued on burning everything she could. She landed on the ground and started burning soldiers at close range until we heard a screech. I turned to look over my shoulder on Visenya and saw Dany and Drogon, falling to the earth.
I got Visenya to turn around and we were about to start racing towards her until I was hit. I let out a grunt of a scream as I was hit by an arrow in the back of my left shoulder. The force of the hit sent me falling off of Visenya. I landed on my stomach. I slowly sat up and looked behind me, seeing a man in black leathers with messy black hair holding a bow. I used my right hand to rip the arrow out of my shoulder while Visenya moved closer to me so she was protecting me with her wings.
I got up to my feet and pulled out my sword. What few soldiers were left, starting running towards me. Visenya burned and fought off most of the men, but the ones that did get through I cut down with my sword. The pain was bad, but not bad enough to hamper my fighting skills.
I made it back onto the back of Visenya. I clutched my soldier in pain as Visenya took to the air and flew over to the top of the hill. She landed next to the small group that was gathered at the top, including Tyrion and Varys.
"I knew this would happen!" Tyrion says in a groan of frustration as I slowly make my way off of Visenya and towards the group.
"It's really only a little scratch," I say as I look over at my wound. My shoulder and leathers were covered in blood, my blood. The ends of my silver hair that I had braided were covered in blood too.
"You should head back to Dragonstone, your sister can handle herself from here" Tyrion advises, continuing to look me over.
"It's okay, I'll be able to manage"
"With respect your Grace, your wound needs to be tended to or else it could get infected. It is in everyone's best interest that you remain in good health so I think it would be best if you went back to Dragonstone" Varys says, eyeing my wound with a critical eye. I turn around and see Dany on the back of Drogon, flying around with the Dothraki cheering.
"Okay, I'll go back to Dragonstone" I reply. I make my way back over to Visenya and climb onto her back haphazardly. She takes off back for Dragonstone and within an hour she lands on the field, in front of Jon. So much for keeping my wound a secret. I watch as Jon slowly raising his hand up towards Visenya's nose. She moves her nose forward and nuzzles into his hand. Jon's eyes go wide with fear but he manages to stay calm during the encounter.
I slide off of Visenya and move to stand before Jon as she flies away. Jon looks at me with wide eyes as he takes in my appearance.
"What the hell happened?" He asks.
"Someone got lucky," I say with a smile. But he gives me a hard look, the Stark look.
"We need to get that taken care of," he says, beginning to walk back towards the castle. I walk by his side as we make our way towards my chamber.
Essi and Feqi were inside and their eyes went wide when they looked at me, but their wide eyes turned into smiles.
"We'll have to add another braid to her hair when we do it Feqi," Essi said with a smile. I smile back at that.
"Essi, Feqi, can you get a bowl of water please and some clean clothes?" I ask. They both smile and quickly walk out of the room. I start fiddling with my laces but Jon takes off his gloves and cloak and throws them on the bed, opting to deal with my laces himself.
"You don't have to do this" I mumble as he helps me take off my leathers and then my bloodied shirt.
"What kind of man would I be if I didn't help you with this sort of thing?" he asks with a smile, looking over my wound.
"Isn't it traditionally the woman's job to look after the man?" I ask with a teasing smile. He chuckles as my handmaids walk back in with a bowl of water, clean clothes, and cloths. They set the things next to me on the bed and left my chamber. Jon grabbed one of the cloths and set it in the bowl of water.
"Here, turn around," he says holding up the wet cloth. I turn so my back is facing him. I cringe as he starts cleaning the area around my wound. I turn around to face him as he starts cleaning the wound on the other side of my body. Once he finishes, he wraps a clean strip of cloth around my upper waist and left shoulder.
"Thank you" I mumble as he finishes his work. He smiles at me as he moves the bowl aside.
"My friend Sam was usually the one doing this. I haven't patched anyone up before that wasn't myself"
"Well, you're very good at it," I say, looking over at my freshly patched up shoulder. I strip off the rest of my clothes and pull on a white dress Essi and Feqi had brought for me. I turn back to face Jon as he looks at me, releasing a deep sigh.
"What is it?"
"If that arrow was a couple of inches off, it would have gone right through your heart," he says. I move forward to stand between his legs and I take his hands in mine.
"But it wasn't. I'm okay" I tell him with a smile. Trying to ease his worried look.
"I know, I was just worried is all" he mumbles in reply.
"I promise, the next battle, we'll fight together"