A/N: Sorry. Been caught up with many things, especially at work. But I will update this story still.

"Careful, careful," Lord Rahitheon directed the workers. "Come on now! We only have one shot at this, so make it count."

Rhaenys was always amused at Lord Rahitheon's near obsession for perfection, and she had to be thankful that he did not beat the workers as savagely as the ones who practiced slavery. But it was satisfying, for the project that they were all waiting to see completed was near its end.

"On my mark! Three, two, one!"

The last of the marble slab was lowered and placed into its proper place, thereby completing the keep at last. It was a grand keep, in the style of the Valyrian dragonlords' of old and also combining the style of the Westerosi castle.

Everyone cheered and the horns blared, while Rhaenys, Aegon, Jaenyx, Visenya, their parents, Orys, and Argella clapped enthusiastically. Overhead, the six dragons flew, also accompanied by twelve hatchlings.

It was a joyous day for all of those present. It was a day that saw the final touches of the new capital city be completed, a city that would be a shining example from atop not just one hill but three hills. As much as this city was a testament of the dragonlords, it would also serve as a testament to the return of the Valyrian people, once thought extinguished by the Doom of Valyria.

Rhaenys had to remain struck at how much city had grown, replacing the wooden fort that had one taken its place. It showed to her of what people were capable of if they were given the right tools, the right guidance, and the proper motivation. She had to learn that it was not enough to simply give people what they wanted to achieve a goal, but that they had to also be pushed in order to achieve something great.

"Muna!" She turned around saw her children run towards her. Daemon was a small boy with his silver hair and purple eyes already fierce. Following him was his younger brother Aemon and his twin sisters, Alysanne and Daena.

"My little dragons!" Rhaenys hugged them all after getting on her knees. "Do you look our new home?"

"It looks so big, muna," Daemon managed to say.

"That it is, son. That it is."

Aegon hugged his sons and daughters as well and kissed Rhaenys as well. He then outstretched his left arm and waved it at the city below them. "Remember, little dragons. All of this, you will inherit one day. This will all be yours, and it will be your duty to maintain it and expand this place."

"But it's beautiful already, kepa," Daemon told him. "What's there to add?"

Aegon rubbed his hand through his son's hair. "There is always something to add, son. Something more could be done to make this place better. Never settle."

"Settle?"

Rhaenys should have known that her son didn't know what that word meant. "When you are older, Daemon, you will understand."

Daemon didn't know yet, but that didn't matter, for he smiled behind Rhaenys.

"Daemon!" Gaerion cried out to him.

"Gaerion!" Both of them jumped into each other's arms, embracing each other like the brothers that they almost were. The two of them were rambunctious together, and keeping them under control was a near impossible task given how they complemented each other almost perfectly.

"Aunt Rhaenys," Gaerion looked up at her.

"Hello, Gaerion." Rhaenys scratched his ear with affection. "Enjoying the city, are we?"

"It's so beautiful, aunt."

"What's your favorite part so far?"

Gaerion pointed at the palace that they had just completed. "That. I want to run around there all day long, with my dragons flying above me."

"I'm sure you will," Rhaenys was amused. "How presumptuous you are, but I will allow you to run around there however you like."

Aegon also noticed his nephew. "Ah, Gaerion. You feel like another plot forming in your mind? Perhaps another pony race through the streets?"

Gaerion lowered his head, embarrassed at being reminded of that. "It will never happen again, uncle."

Aegon chuckled and patted his shoulder. "It was a good show, nephew. And I actually did like the race. Shows that if you can ride a pony well, and Daemon could do it also, then the both of you will be fierce dragonriders. It is only natural."

Gaerion smiled at him. "Thank you, uncle."

Rhaenys remembered the specific incident that they were referring to. A few moons ago, it was Daena's nameday and she wanted a pony to ride, but she couldn't choose which one would fit her besides the hatchling she had. Daemon, being the good brother that he was, decided to make the decision for her by riding a pony from the best picks. Gaerion caught up with him and he suggested that they race through the newly-laid streets, with the people surprised at how two princes of the realm were racing each other at such a young age. Although Daena was able to choose a pony, which was the one that Daemon won on, Rhaenys was more than displeased that the both of them risked getting hurt after not being entirely used to riding ponies. Aegon was amused that the boys were bonding well with each other and showing manhood at such a young age, while Jaenyx was very proud that his son and nephew were able to show strong abilities on the backs of ponies, which would indicate good potential as riders. Visenya shared Rhaenys' feelings, since she also cared about her son's wellbeing and wanted to punish him. Both of their parents, thus Gaerion's and Daemon's grandparents, both told them to lessen their punishment out of love for their grandsons. That was when Aegon and Jaenyx decided to have them turned over to Lord Kenzou. She didn't know what exactly happened, but their hands were bruised and their eyes red from being overworked and not receiving enough sleep.

The reason Rhaenys remembered the incident with the ponies clearly was because she had to protest to Lord Kenzou on what he did to them.

"If you are afraid that I hit them, I can assure you that I did not," Kenzou told her. "I merely gave them a series of tasks that all men had to do on their own initiative."

"Which is?" Rhaenys asked pointedly.

"Digging holes and putting up posts."

"Ah, so that explains why their hands were bruised. They never used shovels before," Rhaenys let out. "But why are their eyes red? Did they not get enough sleep?"

"I gave them three days to dig and put up one hundred wooden posts. And I refused to give them rations besides bread and water until they completed their quota for the day, which I calculated by the hour."

"You deprived young boys?" Rhaenys was incredulous.

"There is nothing stronger than food to motivate young boys to do work, especially princes."

Rhaenys was more than angry, especially when the thought entered her mind of her young son living off of only bread and water while doing arduous physical work. "What is the point of that? You cut their hands, you made them sweat, and you almost beggared them until they satisfied your whims?"

Kenzou narrowed her eyes at her. "Never in my life did I allow my personal feelings to influence my actions. The only time that I allowed them to was when my brother Arata was killed. You remember him, don't you?"

Rhaenys did remember him. "How could I forget him, Lord Kenzou? He trained me on the bow and pushed me to be better than I was. For that, I owe you and your family very much. However, I cannot tolerate you abusing my son and nephew, even if I did ask you to scold them for their reckless behavior."

Kenzou crossed his arms. "You asked me to discipline them. I only did what you asked."

Rhaenys was about to lose her temper. "Yes, but not like that."

"If you have a problem with my methods, you can remove me from my post at any moment."

Rhaenys couldn't believe what she was hearing. "And allow you to return to indolence, like when I last saw your father?"

Kenzou eyes darkened, causing Rhaenys to step back a little. "Don't… ever… talk… about that time."

Rhaenys was shocked that the great Konno Haru had gotten fat and was merely occupying his time with sculpting trees. She was so shocked that she had to find something to keep him busy, and so he made him overseer of the Wendwater, a post she and Jaenyx put together from thin air with the ostensible purpose of guarding the Wendwater mouth from pirates.

"I apologize if I meant offense, Lord Kenzou. However, I merely want to obtain an explanation on why you put my son and my nephew through that. I understand your intentions, but as always, your methods are extreme."

"And again, if you have a problem with my methods, you can remove me."

Rhaenys knew that it wasn't a good idea, for no one in the Black Column would follow anyone else. Aegon discussed with her on the potential risks of such a dangerous formation being loyal to only one man, but Jaenyx told her that he could control him. And that was that, for Rhaenys knew that Jaenyx would never use a group of dangerous men like the Black Column against them.

"I'm not going to remove you, Lord Kenzou. The Black Column has grown well under your care and I will not allow anyone else to safeguard us from other assassins."

That was the truth. The Black Column had become a fearsome formation of assassins trained specifically to protect their family from other assassins. Growing from a small core of Haru men, they expanded their ranks to squires who couldn't secure knighthoods, merchants who knew how to travel through the backcountry, and hunters throughout the Seven Kingdoms under their control. Four thousand men wore the coveted black robes of the Black Column, all of them spread out through the land and the majority remaining in and around the capital.

"However, how about I discipline you as well?"

Kenzou looked at her with a challenging look. "And what could you possibly do to me besides removing me from my post?"

"One of your offices that you hold is chief scout, which made you in charge of all scouting during the campaigns. You earn a total of one hundred golden dragons every year."

Kenzou nodded. "Yes, that is correct."

"How about for this year, you do not see a single bent copper from that office? And it will not be so damaging to you, since one hundred golden dragons is nothing to what I hear you earn from your trading deals."

Kenzou pursed his lips. "If that is what you wish, you may do so. Although you are correct. One hundred golden dragons is but a drip in the bucket of what I will leave behind for my children when I die."

Rhaenys found out what the leader of the Black Column was indeed a rich man. From all of his deals that he made across the narrow sea with the Free Cities, his total income amount to over two thousand golden dragons a year. But he only spent less than half on himself, with the majority being spent on making the Black Column well-equipped and paying his sources throughout the land that Jaenyx also used from time to time.

As for Lord Kenzou himself, he took on a concubine that he met from Volantis and had four children with her. By the laws of Westeros, they were ineligible to inherit anything, but Aegon ignored it and decreed that his oldest son would indeed inherit his father's wealth and lands, which were still under the name of Konno Haru. Rhaenys met the concubine personally and saw why the stoic Kenzou liked her. She talks very much and likes to dance. A good woman to balance him.

When all was said and done, Kenzou temporarily lost a portion of his income, but she was satisfied that her son and her nephew learned their lesson, thoughts that Visenya also shared.

Going back to what the final celebrations of the completion of their palace, the last building to be completed from the other buildings and living spaces of the capital, she also saw her still young daughters playing in a circle among her cousin, Jaenaera. At the moment, she was the only female cousin that Alysanne and Daena had, as Orys and Argella still didn't have daughters. Hopefully, that will change soon.

While Gaerion was the closest to Daemon, Visemor was closest to Aemon. Aemon still clung to her thigh whenever he could, while Visemor wanted to play with his big brother and older cousin. She didn't remember how exactly they came to be close, but she did remember seeing them playing with wooden dragons and pretending to be the dragonlords of old. At least Aemon has a cousin that he can rely upon.

As for the Baratheon boys, Baldric, Arlan, and Gaemon were all close to their cousins. Baldric, strangely enough, was closest to Visemor and Aemon. Arlan liked to be around Daemon and Gaerion, and Gaemon was most tender to the girls from both her and Visenya's families.

To show favor to the families that were most loyal to them through the years, they allowed sons and daughters from certain houses to foster at the capital. Among the first families to be shown such favor, besides the Starks, were the Blackwoods, the Reynes, the Tyrells from Highgarden, and the Arryns, essentially all of the great houses of Westeros. From that point, they would allow lesser families the chance for fostering their kids among them.

First to arrive was Alastor Reyne, son of Bailen Reyne and the designated heir of Weslar Reyne. With the characteristic red hair of his family, he was indeed every inch his grandfather. Unrestrained at times and sharp in mind at the same time, Rhaenys recognized him as a wild card that could be useful for the Seven Kingdoms. But his moments when he lacked restraint did worry her. One time, he had gathered the maids and servants that were to wait on him in the still uncompleted palace, and his way of introducing himself was to knock out one of the servants with his stick. From what the Kingsguard who passed by told her, he said, "He'll wake up. Granted, he won't have any teeth left, but he would be a wiser man for it. And the last thing that he would remember is your funny jest just a moment ago, wouldn't it?"

All because one of the servants told a jest that he didn't like? Rhaenys then had the maids and servants be careful with their words.

Next was Roderick Blackwood, son of Colren Blackwood. With black hair and grey eyes of the First Men, he showed early aptitude with the bow and arrow, no doubt his skills being strengthened after he also took lessons from Rhaedar Tarareon. Roderick preferred his own company, so his charge made him interact with the other boys at court. He ended up befriending Aemon, so it was a gain for Roderick and her youngest son in the end.

Third boy was Gawen Tyrell, son of Theo Tyrell and Vevienne Gardener. Named after the man whose death marked what was now called Emerald Fields, Rhaenys was worried about his presence among them. However, their worries were for naught, as Gawen proved to be very loyal to the dragons and even attended hunting trips with her sons and their cousins. Although the boys were still too young to actually kill their own prey, Gawen proved to be very adept at riding ponies, which would indicate his future as a good horseman. Hopefully, he would be like his namesake, but on our side.

Lastly was Ronnel Arryn, the heir to the Vale. Ronnel Arryn was as precocious as he was when she met him, especially after she allowed him to ride her dragon around the Eyrie. But this time, Ronnel seemed very curious about the Valyrian practices, his time on the dragon having made him eager to know everything about Valyria and its customs. He spent much time around the Valyrian temples and even was trying to learn High Valyrian. As such, Ronnel got along with all of the boys and girls in the family. If only I knew he would be changed so much because I granted his wish, she smiled to herself.

But the important relationship that everyone was looking at, especially Rhaenys, was Daemon's relationship with Alys Stark. She was still young, but Rhaenys could see that she was going to be more than pretty. Alys knew how to talk, she know how to write, and her father and mother were investing in her training in dancing, playing instruments, and writing poems, all of which they would not naturally do since northmen had a different way of expressing customs. However, the North was not all of Westeros and they needed a queen that was educated and could talk with all of the houses south of the Neck. She also had to know how to speak High Valyrian, at least for the reason of her being to communicate with the family without the others outside of the family knowing secrets. For that matter, she was guarded and tutored by Brandon Snow, who remained in the south as Hand. She and her uncle Brandon were very close and it was a bond that she hoped would remain that way. Direwolves being together.

The most important aspect of the relationship was whether they would be compatible, and Rhaenys knew that she had to do something to make them interact. But if she forced it, it would never work and thus defeating the entire purpose of their betrothal. However, they were relieved when Daemon kept looking at her after she began to dance. They continued talking after she told him some verses she wrote, and he was enamored by what she was saying. Success.

As for her children, they all got their own hatchlings. Daemon had a red hatchling that he named Caraxes. Aemon had a bronze one that he named Vermithor. Alysanne had a silver dragon that she named Silverwing, appropriately. Daena had a yellow one named Syraxes. And there were were many more eggs that were just waiting to be hatched. For the ones with the Belaerys family, Gaerion had a blue one that he named Tessarion, Jaenaera had a grey dragon named Terrax after both of her namesakes, and Visemor had a golden dragon named Sunfyre. The Baratheon boys might have had dragonblood in them, but it was not strong enough and Rhaenys felt sad that they couldn't find the joys of riding their own dragons.

"Muna, can I ride upon Meraxes? Please?" Daemon asked her, pleadingly. Their hatchlings might have been potent, but they were still too small to be ridden.

"All right." She went to Aegon, who was talking with Visenya and Jaenyx. "The kids want to see the city from above. Shall we?"

Visenya and Jaenyx did not hesitate, for they gave their children whatever they wanted. Better not spoil them.

After placing their children carefully between their spines, they all said the word, "Sōvegon!" as one.

High above the city, they were able to see what they were able to create from above. And the depths of their marvel couldn't have known any limits.

Their new palace was built elaborately, one of the main buildings on the western side of the Vhagar's Hill under the Grand Baths of Aenar, named after the one brave enough to move from Valyria prior to the Doom and adapting a technology long lost during the Doom but resurrected because of the Rahitheons' ingenuity. The baths certainly provide a nice addition, as how else can I get some peace amidst this city that is about to get noisy?

The brick walls of the palace were originally covered with marble at the bottom, while the upper parts were frescoed. A portico fronted the domus along the south side. Almost all of the columns, floors and marble walls were put in an elaborate arrangement, adapting the designs from old Valyria long lost until today.

The house was built around a big peristyle with porticos on three sides, while the fourth on the north consisted of a cryptoporticus which supported the rear embankment. At the center, occupied now by a series of long barrel vaults to support the overlying baths named after Aenar are the remains of a fountain. On the eastern part is a large nymphaeum that opens to the courtyard.

The nymphaeum, translated imperfectly from High Valyrian, served as a sanctuary, a reservoir, and an assembly chamber where weddings were held when the dragonlords reigned over the world. It was a certainly a refreshing piece of architecture, since none of the castels in Westeros possessed it.

Surrounded by a portico of four columns it was equipped with a cascading fountain on the bottom, whose water was conveyed into a central basin. On the walls of the grotto was a mosaic of which only few traces remain within a frame of shells. The lower part of the walls were originally covered in marble.

The decoration of the vault, thirty-three high, was preserved only in part where four corner medallions and a central octagon were inserted, the latter partly preserved representing the scene that depicted their greatest battle yet, the fields on which both Lannister and Gardener bannermen met their fiery end.

Underneath the second hill, named Meraxes, was another palace that was to be used as their secondary one but was reserved for their family members and their parents when they were visiting the city. On other days, it would be used as a place where all of the decisions would be made.

The main part of the palace on Meraxes Hill came with a large and brilliantly decorated set of rooms, which was placed in the central part of the Meraxes' Hill under the palace that they would use as a family. The lower floors contained gardens, two pavilions, a nymphaeum, and an art gallery. Beyond these rooms was a very large latrine, which would drain into the ocean through an elaborate drainage system that ran out underneath through the city. The Rahitheons certainly had a hard time constructing that.

In one of these rooms is a rich marble floor found under the oval fountain room of the main palace, and a rich nymphaeum with marble columns and bronze capitals. It was richly decorated, befitting the great dragonlord families of old during the heyday of old Valyria. Fascinating on what could be rebuilt if at least one person maintained the records of such buildings.

The cryptoporticus that connected the palace with the nearby main palace was also part of the complex. It was over two hundred feet long with mosaic floors and elaborate stucco ceiling decoration with vegetal elements and cupids. Cryptoporticus referred to a semi-subterranean gallery whose vaulting supports portico structures aboveground and which is lit from openings at the tops of its arches, which was quite useful when it came moving from one place to the next.

Rhaenys found herself marveling that it was not the end of such a splendid construction. On the highest hill, named after Balerion, was their main keep, which was to be where their court would assemble where the important matters of the realm would be discussed. They did not have a name for such a keep at the moment, although they were waiting for a proper name and person to come forward. Its courtyard was so large that a colossal statue over one hundred in height depicting both Gaemon the Glorious and Daenys the Dreamer in an embrace was there. It was so spacious that it had a mile-long triple portico. Also there was a pool of water like a sea, that was surrounded by buildings which gave it the appearance of cities within cities. And besides that, various rural tracts of land with vineyards, cornfields, pastures, and forests, teeming with every kind of animal both wild and domesticated, which started from inside the keep and could be mostly seen from the outside of the city. In other parts of the house, everything was covered in gold and adorned with jewels and mother-of-pearl. Dining rooms with fretted ceilings whose ivory panels imported from Essos could be turned so that flowers or perfumes from pipes were sprinkled down from above main hall of the dining rooms was round, and it would turn constantly day and night like the Heavens above. There were baths, flowing with seawater and with the sulfur springs found within the caverns of the Blackwater Bay. When the Rahitheons dedicated this house, that had been completed in this manner, the family only approved of it only so much as to say that they could finally begin to live like a normal beings, but above all the rest at the same time.

The outermost point of the main castle is the portion with the private rooms. By the gods of old Valyria, how did they manage to find so much room to put us in?

The first outer courtyard protected the main keep and also included the stables, the brewery and the bakery. The second courtyard houses the large armory building and the blacksmith's tower. This yard is protected by the dominant great gate constructed of the best steel and black stone found on Dragonstone. The Grain Tower and the Grain Measure Tower were used for stabling and to store animal food, and all of them belong to the third courtyard. The main sight of the fourth courtyard was the tower and temple that would be used for holding ceremonies in private. The court officials and craftsmen would work and live in the fifth courtyard, which would protected by a strong fortification that could act as another layer of defense for the city.

The tower named after Baratyon, the name of their first stronghold of the Targaryens from the Land of Long Summer, protected the keep in the western part next to the Blackwater Rush, which everyone knew fed into the Blackwater. A battlement connected this tower with the main castle, thus making the keep high above the city very protected against all types of attack.

The enclosed area altogether comprised of eighty acres with a perimeter of nearly three thousand feet, along with over ninety blocks of semicircular towers, over three thousand merlons, curtain walls over ten feet thick, with an average height of forty feet, and over ten gates.

Below was the main temple that would be utilized for the worship of the Valyrian gods. The temple is was over thirty feet diameter and consisted of a circular cella within a concentric ring of twenty columns over twenty feet tall, resting on a tuff foundation. These elements supported an architrave and roof. But inside were the best likeness of the deities of old Valyria:

Arrax: Ruler of Gods, law, order, justice, governance and strength.

Aegarax: God of all creatures that walk, run, swim or fly. Creator of the first dragon.

Balerion: God of death and the Underworld.

Caraxes: God of the sea, twin of Meraxes.

Gaelithox: God of fire, stars, moon, sun and the dawn, rival of Meraxes.

Meleys: Goddess of love and fertility.

Meraxes: Goddess of the sky, twin of Caraxes.

Shrykos: Goddess of beginnings, endings, transitions and doorways.

Syrax: Goddess of wine, fruitfulness, parties, festivals, madness, chaos, drunkenness, vegetation, and ecstasy.

Tessarion: Goddess of music, arts, knowledge, healing, plague, prophecy, poetry, beauty, archery and booty

Tyraxes: Goddess of reason, wisdom, intelligence, skill, peace, warfare and battle strategy.

Vermax: God of boundaries, travel, communication, trade, language, and writing.

Vermithor: God of smiths, crafts and artisans.

Vhagar: God of war

Beneath the temple lay another sight to behold. It was a sumptuous rotunda belonging to the temple grounds, cut through by foundations of the main rea. The elaborate domed room which interconnected two barrel-vaulted corridors was spectacular architecturally and had marble-lined pools and paving in multicolored opus sectile, all still largely intact beneath the temple.

For the people to make their lives and time more bearable in the city, they constructed structures that would provide for their enjoyment. Adopting from the old practices of Valyria, there was one that would hold all of the tourneys and all of the races. Using plans that were preserved by the Rahitheons, they built a structure that was the first and largest stadium throughout the entire history of the Valyrian Freehold. It measured at over two thousand feet in length and over four hundred feet in width and could accommodate over one hundred thousand people. It was truly something to behold.

There were many theaters, gardens, and fountains all relying on the aqueducts that were slowly being built from across the land. For the people, it would be a welcome change of pace from the wretched existence that they lived prior to their landing.

As for the city itself, they decided to name it King's Landing, for it was where they all landed to rule. King's Landing was roughly square-shaped, sprawling across several miles and defended by tall walls. It was dotted with manses, arbors, granaries, brick storehouses, timbered inns, merchant stalls, taverns, graveyards and brothels. There was a fish market. Hundreds of quays can be found in the harbor. Between buildings the roads are broad, lined with trees and branching alleys and streets.

The city covered the north shore of the Blackwater Rush and covered three tall hills, named after the three dragons belonging to House Targaryen, the ones that conquered Westeros besides Cloudwynd. Behind the quays outside of the walls, there tend to be ramshackle buildings which extend to the walls. These include bait shacks, pot shops, warehouses, merchant's stalls, alehouses, and prostitution rooms. Rhaenys swore to keep a tight watch on them, since she had to help control all of the illegal activities that could ruin the city that they had just built.

As for the port of the capital, enclosing an area of one hundred and seventy acres, with two long curving moles projecting into the sea, and an artificial island, bearing a lighthouse, in the center of the space between them. The foundation of this lighthouse was provided by filling one of the massive obelisk ships, used to transport an obelisk from the Free Cities of Essos to adorn the spina of part of the main keep and palace. The harbor thus opened directly to the sea on the northwest and communicated with the Blackwater Rush by a channel on the southeast.

The royal fleet guards the entrance to Blackwater Bay, patrolling it and the Blackwater Rush. On occasion royal fleets have been sent to deal with pirates that would soon threaten the trade that the city would rely upon. They were under the overall command of their cousin Daemon.

By the gods, I hope this is all going to be expanded and maintained, for what is there to do if my children will not take this?

A/N: Given the circumstances, King's Landing will not have the same layout (I took inspiration from ancient Rome, medieval Messina, and others)

Rhaenys is a blast as a queen, mother, and aunt. And we see the entire extended family having fun with each other. Most important, Daemon and Alys are getting along, so that should continue.

And yes, more dragon hatchlings. The future of the Targaryens and the Belaerys families is safe.