Jon Snow and the Dragonverse of Madness Book One: The Conquest

by Alperez16

After failing to stop the Night King, Jon Snow is sent back to where it all began for House Targaryen. How does the conquest go when another king and another dragon play their part and what does this mean to the past, present and future. Book 1 of a series that will take Jon on an epic journey through the key moments of Targaryen history, starting with the conquest.

3. The White Wolf and the Dragon of Silver

Dragonstone 3 BC.

Aegon.

He'd been surprised when Aemon had knelt to him and pledged his sword and dragon to him, surprised and somewhat delighted as it removed one of the doubts that both he and Rhaenys had shared. Though they'd found themselves believing that Aemon's intent was good, something that Visenya believed even more so than they, the timing of his arrival and what he represented had brought up questions.

If he were here to use them in some way, to take advantage of any feelings his claimed kinship instilled in them or simply to play them false, he'd have created a problem for them. His very existence created a problem for them unless they could be assured he was as true as he claimed to be. Visenya was taken by him, his story, the man himself, and what he could mean for them in regards to having not just another Dragonrider but one who was as experienced as Aegon himself was. Aegon was starting to believe that there was an attraction between his sister-wife and Aemon too, certainly on Visenya's part.

Mayhap that was why he sat with both her and Rhaenys and readied to tell them his decision in regard to Aemon Targaryen, mayhap that was the reason for that decision itself. Loathe though he was to give up a Dragonrider to any house that was not their own, he knew that Argillac would more readily accept Aemon than he would Orys and he could then use Orys to bring a different kingdom to their side. He could join him with a different queen or princess and so he took a swallow from his glass of wine, looked to both his sister wives, and readied to speak.

"I intend to offer Argillac, Aemon's hand in marriage." he said to a smile from Rhaenys and an angered response from Visenya.

"You cannot."

"He knelt to Aegon, sister, promised him his sword and dragon, I think he can and should." Rhaenys said slightly annoyed at her older sister.

"He'll not accept." Visenya said ignoring Rhaenys' words.

"Of course, he will, he seeks a Dragonrider more than he ever would Orys. We both know the response that he'll more than likely make should I offer him Orys' hand." Aegon said misinterpreting Visneya's words.

"Aemon will not accept." Visenya said firmly.

"He would break his oath so soon?" Rhaenys said aghast as Aegon looked from one sister-wife to the other.

"Aemon will not accept." Visenya said angrily.

He found his eyes staring into Visenya's own, her expression one that he had trouble reading and he couldn't be certain it was a factual or wishful statement she was making. It bothered him far more than he had expected to think it may be a wishful one and again he let that be what informed his words.

"Then we'll know he can't be trusted." he said and Visenya rose to her feet, her anger even more clear.

"You're a fool, Aegon. He still grieves for the loss of his wife and children, that man will not wed another, and not you, I, or the dragons themselves can make him do so. To dare order him is to court disaster and risk making an enemy of a man you've just allied with. Think carefully before you make that suggestion and know you do so without my support and should it be asked of me, should Aemon seek my counsel, I'll tell him to refuse." Visenya said before storming from the room.

That night he lay with Rhaenys and though they brought each other pleasure, for the first time he could ever remember, it was Visenya he thought of. He was not by nature a jealous man, but to see her act so passionately and he or their House not be the reason for that passion, disturbed him. Even the voice in his head that said that Aemon was part of their House too and that she was standing up for kin as she always so vociferously did, wasn't enough to remove his jealousy.

It didn't help when he rose the next morning to find Visenya and Aemon sparring in the yard. To see a smile on his sister-wife's face that he'd not put there, angered him somewhat. To watch the two of them move so fluidly made him envious. So once they were finished and they joined he and Rhaenys and Orys in breaking their fast, Aegon spoke aloud his plans and found that Visenya was more than right in her words.

"NO!." Aemon said loudly.

"You'd refuse a command from a man you name as your king?" he asked.

"This command, Aye I would. I'll not marry for an alliance, not for you nor for anyone. Not only is it a fool's errand to give up dragons to those who are not our blood, but mine own feelings also won't allow me to name another my wife. My wife died and I mourn her still, so no, I'll not wed, deal with that how you must." Aemon said as he walked away from the table and Aegon swore he saw Visenya's smile as she turned and followed him.

Orys sat silently as did Rhaenys while Aegon tried to decide what to do next. He looked to his brother by choice who seemed almost relieved and he knew he'd made a mistake in not speaking to Orys first. A mistake he was now about to rectify.

"Forgive me brother." he said as he walked over and place a hand on Orys' shoulder "I should have spoken to you before I brought this up."

"There is naught to forgive, Aegon, the Stormlands was but one plan, no doubt you had another in mind for me."

"I would have seen you joined to someone less against it than Argillac may be, the promises I made you would be ones I lived up to in some other way." he said and Orys nodded "Now it seems it'll be the way we originally intended and so I'll see the letter is sent today."

"And him?" Orys said looking over his shoulder at the door that Aemon and Visenya had walked out of.

"I know not. Visenya spoke true and I feel foolish for not listening to her words. A man who loves his love is not a man who easily replaces her." he said with a look to Rhaenys who caught it.

"I am unsure of him, Aegon, I'll not lie. He gives me much pause and yet I believe him somewhat true as well. It vexes me because I think I should distrust him more."

"As do I." he said "As do I."

It took some time for Aemon and Visenya to come back and not he or they knew what words were to be spoken and so they stood in silence for some time.

"There is something I need you all to see." Aemon said after some time "I'd ask you to follow me."

He looked to Rhaenys and to Orys and bid them join him in following Aemon and Visenya from the room. They walked out through the large open doors and down to the steps that led to the beach and by the time they reached the beach itself, he was not alone in breathing somewhat heavily. As they walked across the sands, Rhaenys' curiosity got the better of her and she asked where they were going and what it was he wished them to see.

"The truth, the truth of what I faced and what cost me all that I held dear." Aemon said sadly and no more words were spoken until they reached the caves.

He looked on as Aemon grabbed a torch and lit it, he and Visenya both looked to each other and shook their heads as neither of them had been the ones to leave it there, meaning that it had been Aemon himself who did so. This was a surprise to them both as he'd been well watched since he'd arrived here and their guards had mentioned it not.

"I'm well used to sneaking away from those who watch my movements, your grace. Blame not your guards for their failure for they'd be no match for my teacher in this regard." Aemon said with a soft smile forming on his face.

Entering the caves was not something they'd done much lately. As children, they'd hidden and explored them somewhat but none of them had ever really liked them and certainly had never gone as deep as they now did. Aemon though just like with the keep itself seemed to walk unerringly to wherever he was leading them. He made the path seem like one he'd traveled many times before and as the light from the torch shone against the black walls, he began to speak.

"Dragonglass. Obsidian." Aemon said "To most in Westeros this is a useless thing and yet while the Lannisters have their gold in their own mines, nothing was more precious to us in my time. Whether it was the gods that decided that it had to be our House and the House of the Wolf joined together that led the fight or whether it was simply that the opposite of Ice is Fire, I know not. Dragonglass, Dragonsteel, and Dragonfire though were the greatest weapons we had against the army we faced."

"How can this be a weapon?" Orys said picking up a broken piece of black glass and smashing it so it broke in two.

"Valyrian Steel is Fire made Steel. Dragons are Fire made Flesh and Dragonglass is Fire made Stone, Lord Orys. The strength is not in the material itself but in what made it, there is magic in that stone and magic is all that one can use to fight against magical things." Aemon said as he stopped and Aegon and the others looked at the images pained on the walls.

There were small figures that looked like children, bigger ones that looked like men, white-lined figures that fought against them, and one larger figure wearing a crown and whose eyes were painted blue. Aegon moved to the wall and touched his hand to the drawings, half expecting them to be wet or freshly made, and yet it was clear they were not. How old they truly were he couldn't tell, but they'd not been painted in his and he doubted even his father's lifetime. Was he to wager a guess, then he'd say they were done long before a dragon had named this place as their home.

"The Night King and his army. Those you see allied against it are the Children of the Forest and the First Men. Almost eight thousand years ago a battle was fought and though not truly defeated, the Night King lost, and the Great Wall of Ice that stretches all across the North was built to protect the Realms of Men from those who were not. In less than three hundred years that Wall will fall and in less than five more, so will all men except for one. I know not why I've been sent back here, your grace, but it's not to marry or take a wife and I doubt I'll ever see mine own again even were I to fall."

"Then what is your intent, Aemon?" Visenya asked eagerly.

"To do all I can to prepare our House for what's to come. To right wrongs that are set to happen, to set things in motion that can't fail. For three hundred years our house led Westeros and during that time we faced enemies hidden and those very much not, we fought amongst ourselves and did terrible things to each other, all while ignoring threats that we should not. Before I breathe my last, I intend to make sure that as little of that comes to pass as I can, to give those who follow the chance that I never had. Then and only then can I go to my hell a happy a man." Aemon said handing Orys the torch and walking from the cave.

Dragonstone 3 BC.

Aemon.

Why he'd decided to show them the images on the wall he knew not, they'd not truly questioned him about the future he'd told them about, they hadn't seemed to doubt him and so he wondered was it simply to emphasize he'd not wed again. He'd not expected that to be the offer that Aegon would make him, had not even considered it an option and once it had been brought up to him, he'd reacted accordingly.

His wife was dead, his children were dead, no one could ever take their places and he'd not seek anyone to do so. After he'd spoken and had shown the images in the caves, he'd spent some time alone and had considered things even more practically. He'd asked himself even more of the questions that he'd been asking since he'd found himself here and not in the seven hells or heavens. Questions that he only had answers to some of them.

Why was he here?

What was his purpose?

What plans did the gods have that he couldn't see?

Could anything he did here actually prevent what was to come or at least prepare them better for it?

In the end, it was the last one that he concentrated most on and gave the most thought to. He did his best to think about lineages, future events, what bringing a change to one thing meant in regards to the other. Even were he not so against ever being wed again or worried about what effect a child of his may have not just in this time, but in the centuries to come, he still wouldn't have been sure that he rather than Orys was the best choice for Argella Durrandon's husband. The part of him that said without that wedding there would be no House Baratheon and so no Robert was shouted down by a different part of him and he knew not why that was.

He looked to the Reach and thought of the Gardner Kings and how their fall allowed House Tyrell to rise and he feared that by doing anything to interfere there, he'd risk that not occurring. With them not as the prominent house in the Reach and not being Warden's of the South would it mean that the matches that led to Margaery being born couldn't occur? Could he play a part in a world that saw that be an outcome? He knew he could not. There may never be a chance for him to know his wife other than in death, but to not have known her, to not have been with her, no that wasn't even an option.

Aemon felt the danger of becoming lost in those thoughts when he heard the voice and looked up to see Visenya standing there in front of him.

"You need a spar." Visenya said taking him from his thoughts and Aemon smiled at her and nodded.

"You think you may beat me this time?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Now I know how you fight."

"Who says that's the only way I fight?" he asked to a shake of her head and before he knew it they were standing facing each other with their swords drawn.

She was as good as he'd read about, her movements precise and swift and no motion was wasted. Was this earlier in his life then she'd have beaten him easily. Had he not the experience of facing White Walkers and being forced to adjust to the demands of beating things that moved with a speed that was almost unparalleled then he'd have tasted defeat more than once. There had been a time when he'd felt unworthy of the blade he held in his hands. For Valyrian Steel deserved a swordsman that matched its deadliness and for a long time, he was not that man. Now he most certainly was and with a sweep of his feet, and a move to catch her before she fell to the ground, he heard her yield, and then as he heard something else he dropped her.

Come, find me, pack.

As Visenya raised herself off the ground and glared at him, Aemon closed his eyes and went searching and when he found him, he fell to his knees and cried out in pure joy. How long it had been since he'd felt such an emotion, he knew not, but he knew the last time he'd felt Ghost's presence in his mind and he had been sure that was the last time he'd ever see his truest companion. To find that he was here, that somehow the gods had sent him back as they had Rhaegal and him, was more than he could ever have wished for. So for the first time since meeting his wife, holding his children in his arms for the first time, or bonding with Rhaegal, Aemon felt the god's favor again.

"Aemon. Aemon." Visenya called out worriedly and Aemon rose to his feet and shook his head.

"I need to go to the North."

"You cannot. We have no accord with the North, Aemon, they will see your arrival as an act of war." Visenya said worriedly.

"It matters not, I must go, there is something for me there, something I've not had by my side in far too long and something I'll not wait any longer to do so."

"We must speak to Aegon, Aemon we must." Visenya said and Aemon nodded.

While they walked he told her a little about what it was that he had felt and what had called out to him, Visenya looking at him as if he had lost his mind and that look was soon to be shared by Aegon, Rhaenys, and Orys when he spoke to them a few moments later.

"What do you mean you can feel him?" Aegon asked.

"I'm a warg. Not as strong as some and though I've practiced somewhat over the years there was not much alive to warg into. I've not tried it here as of yet, but with Ghost, I have no need to." he said to confused looks.

"A warg." Orys asked and as Aemon went to answer, Visenya did so for him.

"Someone who can look through the eyes of an animal, Orys. The North has tales of them and some Maesters say they existed but are no more."

"Maesters aren't to believe on everything, Visenya." he said to a nod and a curious look from Aegon.

"What makes you say that, Aemon?"

"I believe over much of our House's reign the Citadel worked against us. I met a man in my own time, an Archmaester who knew my granduncle well and who spoke most fondly of him and one who was mentioned in my father's letters. Marwyn the Mage he was named for he had a desire and curiosity about magic that was unrivaled.

"What of it?" Rhaenys asked.

"Who do you think killed all the dragons the last time around? Gallant Dragonslayers armed with swords? The world the Citadel is building has no place in it for sorcery or prophecy or glass candles, much less for dragons. Ask yourself why Aemon Targaryen was allowed to waste his life upon the Wall, when by rights he should have been raised to Archmaester. His blood was why. He could not be trusted. No more than I can. Marwyn spoke those words to me when I sought the Citadel's help against the Night King and his army, they are words I found I believed, and over time I found out much more to prove them true."

"So you're saying that the Citadel are our enemies?" Visenya asked and the look on her face showed her feelings clearly.

"I'm saying that the Citadel and the Faith are not to be trusted and that when you take your throne, your grace, they are to be dealt with and changed accordingly."

"Tell me more of this warging, Aemon." Aegon asked and it took him some time to explain it as best he could, the words not his and more Bran's or Varamyr's.

"And it's truly a Direwolf that you travel to find?" Aegon asked and Aemon nodded "I worry what the North will think upon seeing a dragon, it may not lead to war but it may, and yet there is an opportunity here too. You say there is Stark blood in you, Aemon, that your mother was a lady of House Stark?"

"She was."

"Aegon?" Visenya said looking to the Conqueror.

"Should you be seen and approached I'd ask you to hold your sword and your dragon, Aemon, only if your life is in danger would I expect you to resort to violence."

"I've no intent of harming a Northman, your grace."

"Very well, then you have my leave to travel North."

"I thank you." Aemon said as he reached out for Rhaegal and made to leave the room, Visenya's voice stopping him from doing so.

"I'm coming with you."

"Visenya!" Rhaenys called out.

"I'm going with him." Visenya said and before he or Aegon or anyone else could deny her, she'd left the room to ready herself.

The look Aegon gave him was an odd one, one that Aemon couldn't truly name, and was it not for his words then he'd have mayhap tried to.

"Should anyone even dare threaten…"

"Fire and Blood, your grace." he said to a nod of Aegon's head.

Less than an hour later they were standing by the dragons and Aemon looked on as Aegon kissed Visenya on the cheek and she did the same to Rhaenys. They'd been given food and Visenya warmer clothing and as he watched her climb up on Vhagar's back, he did the same to Rhaegal's. The Green Dragon seemed as excited as he was by the journey they were about to undertake. It had been far too many years since they'd flown the skies over the North and looked down at the lands below. Not since Winterfell itself had fallen had they dared or wished to do so and now he found they both wished for nothing more.

The Riverlands and the North 3 BC.

Visenya.

She had no true idea of why she had wished to travel with Aemon, other than she wanted to spend more time with him. To go on what she would have named a flight of fancy was it Rhaenys who was doing so, it was not who she was and yet as they flew together she found she enjoyed it immensely. Rhaenys loved nothing more than being on her dragon and soaring in the sky, be it with Aegon or alone it made little difference. For Visenya it had become a rare thing and usually the only time she and Vhagar flew was when they actually had something to accomplish. While it could be said that Aemon had something to accomplish on this flight and so she by joining him had too, there was no real reason for her to accompany him other than a wish to do so.

They flew from Dragonstone and over the lands to the west of it, some she'd not truly seen before and so when Rhaegal dropped lower, she bid Vhagar do so as well. She looked to Aemon and the Green Dragon and saw them almost circle the large lake beneath them, a look of concentration in his eyes as he did so before he then bid Rhaegal to fly higher and Vhagar joined him. Beneath her she could feel her dragon's own joy at the flight they were on and when they flew over the giant keep, she finally figured out where they were.

Harrenhal was all she'd imagined it to be, the drawings that Aegon had commissioned of it and the other keeps of Westeros were ones that she'd studied diligently and yet it didn't prepare you for seeing it for true. It made her consider battle plans which she then dismissed completely, not wanting them to intrude on the peace that the flight was brought to her. Soon enough she saw the river below her and knew by the way it split that it was the Trident and then she was surprised when Aemon once again had Rhaegal do a circle around something before he then looked over to her and bid her land.

"It's not night yet, Aemon." she said after she'd climbed down off Vhagar's back and thanked her dragon for the flight, the trills the she dragon made ringing in her head as she did so.

"It soon will be and we are alone here with no one for miles around, there may not be anywhere else as deserted for miles." Aemon said and she nodded.

She watched as he gathered wood to start a fire and then he moved to the nearby river and began to fish. Visenya chuckled to herself and shook her head at the image of him standing still with a Valyrian steel sword raised. When she saw him thrust it down and then pull it back from the water with a large fish impaled on it, she was stunned. As she was when he did it again and then brought both fishes over and set the fire to cook them over.

"Trout, not my favorite meal but beggars can't be choosers." Aemon said as if it was some private jape that only he knew about.

"Hot food is hot food Aemon and it's been a while since I ate trout." she said trying to show she wasn't disappointed in their fare.

The fish turned out to be quite delicious and by the time it was cooked and they'd finished eating it, night had fallen. Rhaegal had flown off alone and had returned with food for Vhagar which her dragon ate happily and both dragons now lay no more than a few feet from them, their heat adding to the heat from the fire. They sat in silence for a few moments, Aemon almost seeming lost in his own little world and she wasn't sure what to say to break that silence, finding she'd no need to as Aemon began to speak.

"I grew up in the North, was raised in Winterfell and though I believed myself a bastard I had a better life than most." Aemon said catching her by surprise that he'd spoken at all "My uncle was to most a good man and I believed him to be the very best I ever knew. I spent most of my early life wishing to be him and then the rest of it making sure I was very much not. Our house was not well-liked in the North partly because the North Remembers." Aemon said with a soft smile "And partly because of lies that were believed and which my uncle did nothing to dispel. I….."

"Aemon?"

"I had not thought to go back, to see it again. I beg you forgive me if my emotions get the best of me."

"Of course." she said and then the silence returned this time broken by her "Do you know much about the current North? About the Starks?"

"Torrhen Stark, The King That Knelt and Brandon Snow the bastard brother who would not." Aemon said and she looked at him curiously.

"The King Who Knelt?"

"During the Conquest, Torrhen led an army of 30,000 men and crossed through the Neck and into the Riverlands, Aegon led his own army to meet him and so Torrhen's march was not as unseen as he'd hoped it would be and instead he found a force of 45,000 men and three dragons waiting for him." Aemon said and Visenya almost gasped.

45,000 men? Where had they gotten such a force from, she wondered. At present they had less than 5,000 men to call upon and not all of those were soldiers or cavalrymen. She was about to ask the question that came to mind when Aemon spoke again.

"Torrhen's brother bid him fight and even devised a plan to kill the dragons." Aemon said and Visenya angrily rose to her feet.

"I'll fucking kill this Brandon Snow with mine own hands! Where is he now? Do you know his whereabouts?" she snarled.

"The plan was rejected, Visenya, Torrhen was smarter than his brother and he knew that Brandon's plan was folly. But dragons are not invincible and we must speak on them in regards to another enemy later on."

"Who?" she asked as she sat back down.

"Dorne." Aemon said and she looked at him to see that he was staring back at her, his dark grey eyes almost looking black in the dark of the night and she felt a small stirring at how intensely he stared at her.

To her surprise, it was more pleasant things that the conversation turned to after that. Aemon told tales of growing up with cousins in truth but brothers and sisters by choice. He spoke of a brother that he clearly loved and a sister that every word he spoke about her showed her to be his favorite. There were other brothers too and another sister and when she pressed him on the rest of his family, she saw both joy and sadness in his features.

"My daughter was my pride and joy, Visenya. I know a father is not supposed to have favorites but I'll not tell a lie and name her any different. Don't get me wrong, I loved my son too and I've no doubt that he'd have made me proud as he grew, but with Lyanna it took little for her to do so. Never did I feel as content or complete as when I spent time with them both and their mother, nor did I realize that the time was to be fleeting or I'd have spent even more of my days just by their side." Aemon said as he rose to his feet "I failed them, failed my family, and though this is not the second chance I'd have wished for, it's all I've been given and so I'll not fail our House as I did mine own."

She thought about going to him as he stood alone by the river and in the end felt it for the best if she did not. Laying down on her side, she was soon asleep and when she woke the next morning it was to the smell of more fish cooking and to find herself wrapped up in Aemon's cloak. In the cold of the morning, she kept it wrapped around her shoulders a little longer than she needed to and as she ate, she breathed in the smell of him and found it pleasant to her nose. When they were finished eating, he bid her dress more warmly and told her that they would arrive in the North before the night fell and as she handed him the cloak back, she felt their fingers touch and it sent a jolt through her body. It was one that Aemon clearly felt too.

It made the flight into the North one that was spent more in looking to the man flying some feet from her than the grounds below and each time she looked his way, she was pleased to see him looking her own. At what point the chill came upon her she couldn't tell, but she knew they'd crossed from the Riverlands to the North because of it. As she looked down on the lands themselves, she did so with an eye for Conquest and certain things quickly became clear. No army would breach the Neck from the South, just as no army had ever done up to now, and even should they manage it, this was not a place where one would wish battles to be fought. Turning to look to Aemon and finding his eyes on her once more, she found herself looking forward to the night to come and to spend it alone with him again.

Storm's End.

Argillac Durrandon.

He sat in his solar with his Maester and steward and looked over the numbers, maps, and reports. The Great Keep at Harrenhal was almost completed and he knew that soon Harren would look to the lands that were under his protection and laid nearest their border and he wasn't sure he had the strength to stop him should he wish to take them. Would that he was twenty years younger and as fit as he had been back then, not to mention as unafraid.

Turning from one problem to the other, he read the note and looked to Maester Otar while holding it in his hand as if he was asking him a question without words. The simple nod from the Maester was all the answer he needed and he did his best not to let his worry show as he placed it back down on the table and looked to the map once more. Where this other dragon had come from he knew not and it caused him grave concern. It made the alliance he'd sought with Aegon Targaryen even more important and yet he'd received no answer to his offer.

Enemies to the north of him were no new thing and he'd fought and beaten any who'd dared threaten his lands before. He'd killed a king with his own hands at the Battle of Summerfield and were he still that man today, then he'd back himself to be a match for Harren or for any who sought to take what was his. The problem was that he was no longer that man and he had no son of his own to be that man for him. He was old, tired, and the fight he once had was long gone out of him. Were it not for Argella and his own damn pride, then he'd not even seek to fight at all, but he would not leave his daughter unprotected and certainly not allow her to fall prey to Harren's greed and lust.

"This is the number we can call upon?" he asked Theo, his steward.

"It is our full strength, your grace."

"And how quickly could they be readied?"

"To meet up and be ready to march, a moon maybe more, but surely you don't…."

He quietened Theo with a look and then bid him and the Maester leave him be. Argillac almost collapsed into his seat once they'd left the room. It felt as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders and he was shamed to admit that he needed help to face the storm that he knew was brewing all around him. Were it not for that then he'd never have suggested or even countenanced allowing his daughter to become a third wife to a man he had no respect for. Had Aegon Targaryen not had three, no four, dragons to call upon then he still would not.

After he drank down a glass of warmed summer wine, he did all he could to put the thoughts of impending doom from his head and made his way to the Great Hall for the night's festivities. Seeing his daughter as he walked into the room made him catch his breath as it sometimes did, Argella looking more and more like her mother each day and he found himself wishing that she was here to offer him the wisdom and counsel that he so sorely needed.

"Father you look tired." Argella said as he took his seat beside her and he leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead before telling her that he was well. The lie coming easily to him as so many had lately.

He found that he enjoyed the night, the minstrels were in better form than usual, the conversation flowed and the wine went down easily. So entertaining was it that it allowed him a brief respite from the worries that troubled him and he went to his bed that night in a far better mood than the one he'd been in when he had risen from it that morning. Even his sleep was untroubled and he dreamed of days long past when he was a much younger man and still a prince and the world looked so very different to his eyes than it did now.

Waking the next morning, he dressed and broke his fast and once again felt as if the weight on his shoulders had been removed somewhat. So much so that Theo, Otar, and Argella all commented that he looked to be in a much fairer mood and he spent the early part of the day japing with some of his guards as he walked walls of Storm's End and looked out on his precious Stormlands below him. It was as he was doing so that he saw the rider's approach. The man wore no sigil or bore no flag and yet Argillac was certain of who he was long before the man himself confirmed it. Aegon had sent his reply and he felt his anticipation begin to build as he made his way to the Great Hall to find out what that reply was.

"Your lord dared send you to me with this?" he said rising from his throne an hour later "He dared insult me in this manner, he an Upjumped dragon with little lands to name his own and few men to call upon." he raged "Guards Seize him!" he shouted and his guards followed his orders instantly.

"Father?"

"Your grace, Your grace."

"My King please reconsider.."

The voices were barely heard by him such was the anger that filled his heart His sword was already in the stomach of the man who'd brought the message before anyone could stop him and he felt for the first time in moons, powerful once more. It took the man mere moments to die and it was during those moments that the idea struck him and Argillac almost laughed loudly as he gave the order for the man's hands to be removed.

He did laugh when he wrote out the note and had the hands placed in the basket and called upon a dozen of his guards to see it delivered to Dragonstone. The sheer impudence of that Valyrian fool to dare offer him a bastard for his trueborn daughter, to even dare suggest that this was something he would accept. Old and tired he may be, but he still had his pride and one good fight left in him. Argillac had thought that fight would be against King Harren, now he was sure it would be against Aegon Targaryen and so as he bid Otar send out the ravens, he readied himself for the fight to come.

"These are the only hands you'll receive." he said with a smirk as he imagined Aegon's face when he looked upon his message.

It was later that night that he woke from a terrible dream. Horrible images of dragons raining down fire upon stone and it simply melting and twisting away filling his head. Of a large storm coming in and washing him out to sea and of the skies over Storm's End being lit up as the dragons came to feast. How long it took him to stop shaking or to calm down he knew not, but he didn't sleep for the rest of the night and nor the night after. The same thought running through his head constantly and the same words being spoken under his breath.

"What have I done."

The North 3 BC.

Visenya.

It was majestic when she saw it first, the Great Wall stretching for as far as the eye could see. It rose higher than any wall had any right to and that it was made from ice beggared belief. They'd passed over Winterfell and as he'd done with the lake and river in the Riverlands, Aemon had Rhaegal do a circle of the keep. From there they'd flown across the North in less than a day and now as night began to fall, they'd finally reached the Wall.

A part of her wished to fly over it, to see what the lands that lay the other side of it looked like, as she couldn't see them even from upon Vhagar's back, but her dragon seemed reluctant to do so. So when Aemon bid her land, Vhagar made the decision for her and she found herself by a small stream with what looked to be an old stone building nearby. She thanked her dragon for the flight and bid her go feed and rest, Vhagar doing so reluctantly when Rhaegal did the same thing.

"We should get inside, the nights are cold near the Wall." Aemon said and she looked to the building and back to Aemon to see him nod.

"We are alone?" she asked.

"Aye."

She watched him pick up branches and broken pieces of wood as they walked and then use his shoulder to push open the door of what she could now see was a small cottage of some sort. Before she knew it, he'd lit a fire in the hearth and bid her warm herself up, Visenya only noticing how cold she truly was when she felt the warmth of the fire on her hands and face. When he turned to leave the room they sat in, she looked at him curiously.

"I'll find us something warm to eat." he said and she nodded, turning back to the fire and letting its warmth envelop her.

He was back in what seemed like no time at all, the rabbits he held in his hand were freshly killed and she looked on as he moved around the cottage as if he'd been here many times before. She was stunned when he took out a large pot and began to put vegetables inside, as he then cut up the rabbit and poured water in and placed the pot over the fire before sitting down beside her and watching it as it cooked.

"You've been here before?" she asked.

"Aye. The Night's Watch uses this place for those who won't make it back to the Wall and who've been south of it. They have some others on the other side of it and in the worst of the weather, it can mean the difference between life and death. I had hoped it would be here, but I wasn't sure as no one I spoke to could remember how long they'd been using it."

"Did you serve long?" she asked and he shook his head.

"Days, weeks, less than a moon. Not long enough to swear my vows thank the old gods." Aemon said shaking his head.

"Your uncle sent you to the Wall?" she asked still unsure what actually had brought him there.

"He never actually sent me. I was raised a bastard son of a noble lord and I felt the shame that brought most keenly. I wished to not feel it any longer and to gain some sense of honor and for a bastard that's a hard thing to accomplish." Aemon said looking off into the distance "There is great honor serving in the Night's Watch. The Starks have manned the Wall for thousands of years. And you are a Stark, you might not have my name, but you have my blood." the laugh was bitter and she looked at him to see an angered expression on his face once he'd stopped.

"Aemon?"

"My uncle, gods I loved the man, but I fucking hate him too. Had he not…when they killed him when they took his head after they'd named him a traitor, little did they realize just how far his treason had gone and what made him admit it, I know not. The last words he spoke named me true and finally named my mother as his sister, my true father as Rhaegar Targaryen. By then I'd been told it by others, by my granduncle and a man who had been there on the day I was born, but had he not spoken I know not whether or not people would have believed it. It's funny isn't it." Aemon said laughing again, this one a truer laugh.

"What is?"

"That a man most thought as the pure definition of honor, was believed in a lie and even after he named that lie for what it was, he was then believed when he spoke the truth." he said before she saw an odd smile appear on his face as he spoke more "The world fucks you one way or the other, so you'd better be prepared to be fucked, Jon Snow, for you're prettier than my daughters and there are no bears in the woods, Har…."

"Aemon?" she asked confused and she saw him shake his head and move to get some bowls to serve the rabbit stew in.

She thought he'd say no more, but as he served what turned out to be one of the nicest and simplest meals she'd ever eaten, he spoke again.

"Forgive, I had thought this place would make me lose myself and I was right. Those last words were spoken by a man named Tormund Giantsbane, my friend, my true friend and a man of the Free Folk, Wildlings as people may name them, a man who was coarse, rude, a heathen savage as he'd been named by some and a man who was more honorable than any man I've ever known." Aemon said.

"Mayhap we should speak on other things?" she asked and he nodded, though soon enough he was frowning once more when she asked him about the future, hers, Aegon's, and Rhaenys'.

"I told you that the dragons aren't invincible, that they can fall?" he asked and she nodded "In my time they fell to a creature of malice and magic, the Night King used fell means to bring them down and one by one my aunt's dragons fell, only Rhaegal and I not being allowed to for some unknown reason. In a little over a hundred years from now, our family will turn into the biggest dragon killers of all, we'll fight amongst ourselves, against each other, and by the time we're done the age of dragons will be over and not seen again for another one hundred and fifty years."

"Why? Why would we do something so incredibly stupid?" she asked incredulously.

"Partly because of being influenced by others, Houses, Maesters, the Faith, at times our House falls prey to each, mainly because of ambition and hubris. The Dance of Dragons begins because a King dared to name a daughter over a son and the son and his mother refused to accept it and sought o usurp her and take the throne for themselves. Oh, it's more complicated than that, but one thing that must be made clear when Aegon takes his throne, right if right and firstborn child and not firstborn son is who should rule when their father falls." Aemon said firmly.

"I'll see that done. You have my word on it Aemon, I'll see that done." she said and she was surprised when he shook his head and looked at her.

"It starts with you, Visenya. The fight for succession and all that comes after it. It starts with you." Aemon said with regret.

The North 3 BC.

Aemon.

The sound of horses stopped any further conversation, Visenya looked at him angrily which she had a right to given the words he'd just uttered. He rose to his feet and blew out the candles, though it would do little to hide their presence and the smoke that came from the chimney had no doubt brought whoever was outside to them. Moving to the window he looked out and hoped it was black brothers and not someone else and cursed when he saw it was North men.

Had it been men of the Watch then he could have paid them off for the supplies they took. Looking at the men though he'd name them as Umber or Glover men as they could be from either of the nearest keeps. The cottage they were in was closest to the Nightfort as for some reason he'd felt Ghost was north of the Wall and it would be there that he'd cross. The white wolf knew the secret entrance there as well as any brother of the Night's Watch ever had after all.

In a way he was glad of the interruption, the story he had been about to tell Visenya was one that he knew would hurt her and yet one that needed to be told. There were many terrible rulers in his House, few had done as much damage as Maegor did, and if he could stop him from rising, that alone would change many things. He'd see the Faith was dealt with long before it would ever need Maegor to face the Faith Militant or the Warrior's Sons. How he'd see it done, he hadn't yet decided but they, the Maesters, and those who would kneel and play them false would all be dealt with before he was done.

"You wait here, I'll speak them." he said turning to Visenya who shook her head "I look and sound Northern, you very much do not." he added with a smile which seemed to relax her little and he noticed how her hand went to Dark Sister and she moved to the window to look out as he walked through the door.

There were seven men, all mounted and he quickly saw they were indeed Umber's, one of them clearly an Umber himself given the size of the man. When they saw him, he was glad that his cloak covered up his own sigil and that he looked as Northern as he did and when they heard him speak, he saw them relax somewhat.

"Is there some problem?" he asked his northern burr even more pronounced.

"That cottage belongs to the Watch, you may wear black lad but you're not a black brother." the Umber said.

"No, I'm not. Just a traveler passing by who sought shelter for the night." he said taking a pouch of his hip and jangling it so it seemed like it was coins and not what it truly carried inside "But I was going to pay for what I used and other than the vegetables and a fire I made myself, I took naught that wasn't mine own."

"You still took from the Watch lad, you'll need to ride with us to account for it to the Lord Commander."

"Surely that's not required, Lord…."

"Umber, Beric Umber, and you are?" the large man asked leaving him in no doubt that an answer wasn't just required it was demanded.

"Jon Snow, my lord."

"A bastard, where's your horse's bastard….Wait, who's that there in the house, come out where you can be seen lest I need to drag you out."

He felt him, the white wolf moving quickly towards him, Ghost feeling him to be in danger and mayhap he was as the other men with Lord Beric Umber all moved their hands to their weapons and Aemon was glad to see there were no bows amongst them. He heard their gasps when they saw Visenya as she walked out from the cottage, her silver hair and ethereal looks drawing the eye and he knew then that they'd not simply pass as two travelers in the night.

"I'd tell your men to move their hands from their weapons Lord Umber, or I can't be held responsible for what happens next." he said as he saw the outline of Ghost in the distance.

"I take no orders from you boy, and as for her, she's no woman of the North."

He put his hand out to stop Visenya from moving forward and announcing who she truly was. The dragon in her demanding to be treated with respect and her contempt for the danger they were in was something to both be admired and very much not. When one of the men took out his sword, his own and Visenya's soon followed and he saw the now concerned looks that the men behind Beric Umber were giving them. To see Valyrian Steel be bared was rare, to see not one but two swords made from it rarer still and he heard the whispers as Visenya's own blade was recognized.

"You're…."

"Drop your weapons now, my lord, sheathe them or I'll not be able to…"

The white blur crashed into the two horses at the back and the men went flying off their backs and to the ground. Three of the other horses raised up and threw their riders once they saw what it had been they'd mayhap only smelt up to then. As the last two men, Beric and one other moved for bows they had on their horses, Aemon himself moved. He knocked out the first as he dragged him from his horse, the hilt of Longclaw crashing against his head and leaving only one winner.

Beric, he dragged from his horse and held Longclaw against his neck as Ghost moved to stand beside Visenya and offer her a wolf's protection.

"Tell your men to drop their weapons, my lord, I truly mean you no ill, and yet if you force me to, then I or my wolf will end you all here and now."

"Your wolf…your wolf, that's a…

"Aye, a Direwolf, my lord, do as I say and you and your men will ride from here and live to tell the tale over an ale." he said and Beric nodded.

"Drop your weapons, the white wolf means us no harm." Beric called out.

"My lord…"

"Do as I fucking say or none of us will see the morrow."

Whether it was the panic in Lord Beric's voice, the fact that Aemon could end him in an instant should anyone move or Ghost's snarling face, the words were listened to and the men dropped their weapons and moved away from them and the few horses that hadn't bolted. With a nod to Visenya, he watched as she and Ghost moved to the weapons and picked them up, placing them in a neat pile next to her, as he then moved from Lord Beric.

"I came here only to be reunited with my friend, Lord Beric. The white wolf is my only reason for being here." he said as Beric looked to Visenya and then to him, finally seeing the sigil he wore and which identified him as what he was.

"You're a dragon, not a wolf, both of you." Beric said and Aemon nodded.

"Aye, I'm a dragon, but I was a wolf afore then and there is Wolf's Blood in my veins. When you speak to King Torrhen and Brandon Snow, tell them you met a wolf that is as much as one as they." he said as he stroked Ghost's fur and felt the white wolf brush against him "You, put the weapons in the horse and give it a slap on its arse." he said pointing to one of the men who moved to do what he said.

"You'd leave us unarmed?" Beric asked.

"There is no danger to your or your men for miles around, you'll find the horse by the stream a mile or so to the south, he'll be waiting for you there. I bid you farewell Lord Beric, I hope should we meet again you'll remember we let you leave unharmed. The North Remembers after all." he said as he, Ghost, and Visenya moved and began to walk from the cottage and off to the north.

He could see the smile that Visenya wore and the way she kept looking at Ghost as if he was some mythical creature, which he truly was. Aemon waited until they were far from Beric and his men before stopping to introduce them truly and he called for Rhaegal as he did so, knowing the Green Dragon was with Vhagar and that he would wish to see the white wolf as much as Aemon himself did.

"Ghost, this is Visenya Targaryen, Visenya, this is Ghost, along with Rhaegal, my truest companion." he said as the white wolf licked his hand and then moved to do the same to Visenya's.

The sound of her laughter brought him memories of another time and another place, Aemon was afraid to close his eyes in case he saw Margaery standing there and was transported back to her first time meeting the white wolf. As he heard the dragons land and Rhaegal's trill to see Ghost there, he looked to Visenya, and for the briefest moment her eyes were golden brown and her hair no longer silver. Had she a lopsided smile on her face then he'd have been looking at his wife and he felt a stirring in his heart not just for Margaery but for the woman in front of him too.

A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed. Up Next The continuation of a conversation about an errant son brings Aemon and Visenya closer together and both cross a line they'd not intended. Aegon welcomes his sister-wife and Aemon back to Dragonstone and listens as they tell a tale of the North. Before a delivery sets him in a rage and the battle lines are drawn. Four dragons and an army land next to the Blackwater Rush where a city is formed and a king is crowned and around the Realm ravens fly bearing a dragon's message as the Conquest truly begins. For those reading my other fics, Purple Deception should be next.

Seaweedbrainisblue: To each their own, but Margery is probably the very best choice if you wish to be king.

Robbler: Thanks so much.

Daryl Dixon: Really glad you liked it.

Celexys: Not having Ghost there makes it feel wrong and for Aemon it's a huge thing as it's the first real boon he's been given in so very long. I'm glad you're liking Aemon's telling of things, I'm trying to make it so it feels natural and isn't just an info dump.

Jessicanightmarewolf: Ghost will play a big part in Aemon's relationship with the Starks, it's funny because I considered going the way you suggest here, bringing him in just as he met them, but I wanted to have him around for longer and so he'll still be at the meeting, just he'll be arriving with Aemon.

Diedonetw: So glad you think so.

Leonel: I've noticed that too, it's like the premise interested them and then they just run out of steam, hopefully, this won't be like that as it's planned and plotted out to the end and is part of a larger series.

Outcome; Ghost needs to be there doesn't he lol.

Aegor: Thanks for saying so.

Keb: Oh the Maesters are so in for some fun time, You're right also, Aemon just by being there changes things and this is even before we see him actually do so.

Sozins Flame: Both fics starring an Aemon too, maybe it's just the name you like (just kidding lol) glad you're liking both of them.

Mrmcnasty: Very much so, Visenya is lonely, she knows she's the third wheel in the relationship with Aegon/Rhaenys and so she's drawn to Aemon who has the same level of loneliness, if not for the same reasons.

Aemon is 27 years old here.

Dunk: We'll see a truer reunion with Ghost/Aemon next chapter as he pretty much wanted to be out of the North here, so a more emotional reunion to come. Both Aemon and Visenya sense the loneliness in each other and it's kind of the same with the dragons too. I think it has to be chronological otherwise you'd get lost, as you say the jumping around would be a bit confusing, so for me, the plan is to do each of the timelines in order, so from here to the Dance and so on. Aemon changes things simply by being here and that's not even going into things he seeks to change, so we'll start to see that as we go. An example is simply him coming north and we'll be seeing the House of Stark in a chapter or two and them finding out that there is a dragon who has a wolf.

Guest: Thanks so very much, I'm so happy to hear that.

Guest: Thanks so much.

Creativo: En realidad, aparte del tamaño, Orys y Robert no se parecen demasiado. Orys tiene ojos negros contra los azules de Robert y empuña una espada, por lo que es más el nombre que nada.

Victoria: Thanks so much, my friend. I like the historical aspect of it and the changing things but not changing everything, Jon here isn't trying to replace the Conqueror or change the Conquest too much, but certain things to make House Targ better prepared for what comes afterward. I'm so sorry to hear about your loss, it can be a devastating thing to go through, especially because of the bond we share with them. It's what influences me in regards to the dragons and the Direwolves, they're special and should be treated as such and not just relegated to being mindless beasts that don't feel or have their own agency. For Jon here, Ghost and Rhaegal are literally all he has left, you'll see it even more clearly with Ghost because he and Rhaegal have been together over these last few years, where to him Ghost was lost. So that initial emotional reunion is to come next chapter, but they are to Jon literally the only two connections he has, (he's building others now) and so they should be special and shown to be so IMO. You have my deepest sympathies, my friend, it'll be hard for a while but it will get better and you can think back on the memories and hopefully, they'll bring a smile to your face.

Dorodrigo: Thank you, I will, next chapter should be in a couple of weeks.

Xan Merrick: Thanks my friend, Jon without Ghost is just wrong.

Chapter Master: Technically I think that's what they were, they were just not named that way, and Aegon I think always saw them as being forever Leal, not knowing what was to come. It's kind of hard to look to Orys and see Robert in a way, as there is no way that Orys would ever do what Robert would do, so how do you stop Robert from happening? Well, you probably need to stop Aerys.