Daenerys

I

Since she was a girl, Daenerys often found that in moments like this, she experienced what she felt was like mental suffocation. She took in her victory before her; the Iron Fleet was burned, the Lannisters had laid down their arms, and the Golden Company was gone. Drogon's roars pierced her ears as did the clanging of the bells. She shifted uncomfortably in the newly made saddle across Drogon's back.

Clang

She could not think with all of the noises, with everything before her that she could see and all she had to contemplate. Her mind was growing more suffocated by the moment as the people of King's Landing began to shout their surrender. A throbbing formed behind Dany's right eye and she closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath and lowering her head. She could taste ash in her mouth and something else. Blood, perha-

Clang

The throbbing peaked with the sound of the bell and seemed to fall with it as well, though the pain was there all the same. Her thoughts being interrupted only further suffocated her mind and when she opened her eyes, she had to blink several times though she saw the Red Keep. Turned a pale red by centuries of sunlight, not many changes had been made to it, it was apparent. Though there was one that was impossible to not notice: where once the the three-headed dragon of her house and perhaps even the seven-pointed star after was replaced with a lion all along the castle and in the windo-

Clang

A tear fell from her eye as the pain intensified again. It was not only the head pain that was affecting her, but the emotional pain of losing two of her children, having to watch them die before her and her Viserion, how she had to see him come back and face against her. The deaths of Jorah, Missandei, her good men, Barristan, Viserys, and Rhaego weighed on her, as did the betrayal of Jon, or should she call him Aegon now? Another tear fell and then another and she was sobbing on Drogon's back like a girl. She could hardly think, only feel everything as it came upon her.

Clang

She could not take it any more and with great difficulty, lifted off with Drogon. Her goal was clear: The Red Keep. She would torch the walls surrounding it and if Cersei still refused to surrender herself, then perhaps the castle itself must burn. Many screamed as she flew overhead and she realized that for the second time, she was flying over the city her ancestors had built. The rubbled-covered ruins of Baelor's sept remained on Visenya's Hill. The Dragonpit was in similar condition. And now Cersei thought to occupy their last vestige aside from Dragonstone. Drogon roared, feeling his mother's rage. The clouds were begin to come in from the west though were still far off in the distance and the clear skies gave her more and more of a view of the city as she flew overhead. The tears fell more freely now, seeing everything that had been taken from her. Everything she had endured to get to here when she should have been allowed to just be a girl.

And then Drogon let loose his fires upon the walls. They strafed the outer wall and watched them turn to rubble, she felt the fire burning in her chest, she felt like an avenging dragon. They dipped lower, Dany feeling in sync with Drogon as their movements were fluid and Drogon's flames shattered the roof of what she imagined to be the throne room. She moved a bit further out, down Aegon's hill and to the Dragonpit where she shouted 'Dracarys' and watched the flames billow over the stones of the ruin. Though as she turned back toward the Red Keep, her and Drogon going higher in the sky and away from where they came, there was no indication that Cersei was surrendering. She turned to the right and saw a stream of people evacuating from the city, some far away, many still making it out of the gates, and an eerie feeling creeped upon her. It felt as though an hour had passed between the moment this feeling crept upon her and the moment she heard the loud noise behind her though it must have been only a fraction of a moment. The wind whipped on her face and for that moment before she turned her head, she just saw the sun shining so brightly down on the world as though everything was normal. And then she heard a string of sounds after the first noise that could only have been explosions. And then a second string, louder, to the right of that, erupted from the ground in green clouds of flame and smoke that shattered the ground and razed all that it burst through.

Wildfire

Time slowed down around her. Her head had hardly completely turned to look before the green holocaust came into the corner of her eyesight. Before anymore could be seen, a blinding light pulsed from the explosion in sync with the shockwave of pure force that rippled out from it. The explosion had left her ears ringing and soon, there was no sound. The ashes surrounded her, falling from the sky, along with some debris from the initial two explosions. She thought to herself that she dare not look down at what was surely an atrocity beneath her. The wave hit her and Drogon hard. A pure force of nature, completely invisible that was able to throw her son as large as he was completely off his path of flight. They began to veer off in an unknown direction while green flame, ash, smoke, and pure hell rained down around her and Drogon.

She did not recognize the room that she woke up in. The only thing familiar was her head's ache. Though it was worse now. As she looked around a bit, the room looked just slightly familiar, as though maybe this was not the first time she had woken up and looked around. She allowed herself to lay there for a bit and listen to Drogon's wings flapping overhead. It brought her a certain comfort to know that her son was alright.

The walls appeared to be made from some type of cut stone, sectioned off to make the appearance of apartments. The windows were set with stained glass though of what she did not know as the glass had been shattered, and only certain purple, blue, and red pieces clung to the stone here and there. This certainly was no castle, not that she was complaining, her and Viserys had lived in far worse as children. She hoped some piece of the Red Keep remained. She yearned for a piece of her ancestors and family. She allowed herself a moment to cry for everything that had happened before reaching her weak arm up, shaking, and wiped them.

If I look back, I am lost.

She pressed the palms of her hands on either side of her and began to push up a bit in the bed she was resting in, getting herself upright. She wasn't sure how long she had slept for but it had been long enough that movement was difficult for her, and painful at that. Her throat was dry and when she spoke it came out nothing more than a harsh whisper. So she clapped her hands as loudly as she could several times before Grey Worm himself opened the door.

"Torgo Nudho." She smiled at who was probably the only person she trusted now.

"My Queen." He said, in High Valyrian, as he strode across the room in only a few strides and gave her a hug, full on the shoulders. She had never seen the man break his stern commanding facade. She knew then that he had worried for her life. He stood up and straightened himself, looking at her with watery eyes.

"How long has it been since the battle?" The words were scratchy, though he understood her. "Where are we?"

"Your hand told us that this was once the home of a septing?" He looked confused but proceeded. "You have slept for only three days my queen. The old man feared for your health, and for your babies."

She felt as though she could pass back out immediately as her head began to swirl again. How could she not have known? She hadn't felt this way since she first arrived in Vaes Dothrak, she should have known. She had been riding and fighting, and the blast. What if they were gone?

"I'm pregnant." Somehow there was good news in all of this, something to live for. "What has happened, has anyone died?"

"You need to rest, my queen. I will get the old man." And with that, he left.

She was the Queen, though now they cared more for her safety than her authority. This was one of the aspects of royalty she did not consider. Soon, an old man came shuffling in, a bit short and wizened in the face.

"Maester Melwys, your grace." He bowed deeply, though appeared to be staring at her while doing so. "I was called upon from Rosby to attend to you. I am well experienced in women and childbirth."

"I am far from childbirth, Maester, so your words will be needed, not your fingers." She spoke harshly to establish the boundary for this man who looked at her body with wide eyes as he licked his lips feverishly almost as though it was some unconscious habit. "What has happened in this city in these past few days? What is the state of it, has there been an accounting of the dead? Has anyone arrived, are councils being convened, have they decided to crown me or is it still up for debate?"

The slew of questions appeared to take the man off guard though he took a breath and began to explain to her. The wildfire had been stashed by Cersei throughout the city well before this it was though by Tyrion, and the explosions destroyed over three quarters of the city, including the Hill of Rhaenys, Visenya's Hill and part of the Red Keep. The only part of the city that remained was the Red Keep and the Northwestern corner near the Gate of the Gods and about a mile along the North wall was still fine. Though the Red Keep was mostly fine save for a few towers being destroyed, part of the throne room, and some of Maegor's Holdfast received damage, it appeared to be okay. Aegon's high hill however was a heap of debris and rubble, destroyed homes and ruined piece of the walls that had fallen down the hill. It would likely take a moon or so to clear it all out and restore the stairway enough for the forces to get up into the castle. They have accounted for some of the dead: nearly all of her Unsullied, remaining Dothraki, and most of the Northern forces that had allied with her are gone. They have declared no King or Queen as of yet and are yearning to retreat to Dragonstone for a more secure stronghold and because of that, have not sent word or summons to anyone, save for Sansa.

The maester, who she later learned was a bastard of Walder Frey, was ordered out of the room by her and to find Lord Tyrion, though she was fast asleep before he returned. They say that another two days had passed before she awoke this time, and how she needed it. Though she dreamt of an oasis. Drogon was there, though he was as small as he had been during their time they spent marching to Meereen. At his feet were three eggs that he was appearing to nurture lovingly. At the center of this was a pond that a small brook opened up into, making a small waterfall. She saw a trout swimming around with a single small trout swimming alongside it and several seahorses, oddly enough, were dancing in the waters. There was a falcon on the tree that stood to the left of the brook and at the base of the tree were grapevines, oddly enough.

Daenerys could tell she was dreaming as she saw the sun ripple in colors of red and orange and yellow and a beam of light erupted from both ends as though it was piercing the sun itself. A star bled across the sky, though it was not red as the Shierak Qiya she had followed to Qarth, it was a striking pale purple. A stag walked slowly forward and stood with the other animals, drinking from the stream. Surrounded by foxes, bears, ravens, stallions, and so many more. A lion sat alone, with one black eye and another green. He was smaller than what she imagined most would look like and his fur was as pale as the lion Drogo had killed for her. She went to approach the lion, before she saw up above, that three wolves were together. Two stalked forward, a rope clutched in their mouths dragging along a wooden device that carried the third. One was Ghost, she would of course recognize him, though the other was only a bit larger, with grey fur and yellow eyes. The one they carried had eyes that were pure white, with no color whatsoever, and a third eye, almost invisible in the silvery-grey fur, black in the middle of its head just above its nose. They approached the pool as well and began to drink from it and before she had realized, the shine of the sun had turned to a bright moon, illuminating it all. And as the wolves approached Drogon and his eggs, she saw Drogon bare his teeth.

The dragon snarled and reared his head as though to attack but then he calmed down. He untensed himself and leaned forward cautiously and sniffed at the direwolves. And then he laid down with his eggs once more and the wolves laid with him. And as she saw Ghost nuzzle his head onto Drogon's the beam of moonlight changed from silver with the dust particles swirling white and grey around it to a burst of reds and oranges and yellows and pale blues, silvers, and whites. She took it all in as both the Dragon and the Wolf looked up to the moon and as Ghost howled, Drogon loosed a funnel of flame to the night's sky.