Maya entered the hall and saw Bronn speaking urgently with Grey Worm. Her brows furrowed as she came closer to them.
"What is it?" she asked them bluntly.
"We've been tricked. The Greyjoy forces have been take by fucking Euron and those Martells ladies are dead most likely," Bronn explained to her. "Pity. I quite liked them."
"Cersei Lannister is taking her armies to the Reach-to Highgarden," Grey Worm added. "It has will be captured and Olenna Tyrell killed. Our queen will have lost three of her allies."
Maya nodded. "What does she plan to do now? How far are we from Highgarden? I can gather our forces and head there to defend the Tyrells."
"If we leave right now then perhaps we may get there." Bronn told her. "It's a slight chance though. If we leave our asses open here in Casterly Rock then they may fuck us right out of our mouths."
"Fine," she said. "Bronn and Grey Worm, you defend the castle and I will take our forces to Highgarden."
"Will they obey you?"
"I am their lady." Maya responded.
"And Cersei is their queen." Bronn reminded her.
"Not for long," Grey Worm said to Bronn.
Maya ignored them and walked away, but called out to them over her shoulder, "I will ride to Highgarden and you both will stay here, guard the Rock."
They looked at each other then back to her in confusion, but not shock.
Maya gave the orders to her men before she went to change for battle. She took off her dress and slipped into her black breeches and black coat with a direwolf fighting with a lion on the back of it. Her maid quickly tied up her silver and black armor. She tied her belt around her waist and sheathed her sword. She then threw on her black gloves before leaving the room.
Maya could hear the cries of the Dothraki as they rode forth. Maya commanded her armies to stop with her hand as she watched from the top of a hill as chaos ran around the field. She saw countless men be slaughtered from the Dothraki and be turned to ash by the dragon.
They all watched in awe and fear as fire rain down upon the armies of Cersei. She saw as they tried firing arrows at the dragon, but none of them pierced it's skin. Maya walked closer to the fiery field and saw a horse running through them with fire on it's back.
She looked up to the sky and saw the dragon had Daenerys on it's back. She turned to her men and ordered, "Get the gold and the crops. Avoid the Dothraki-the Dragon Queen. All of it. Get the gold and the crops and come back here."
Her men flew past her and her eyes caught Tyrion glancing around the battlefield filled with black smoke. The dragon roared, it's voice vibrating through the sky before it breathed fire again. Maya saw the large arrow fly through the sky and heard the loud yelp the dragon gave before it crashed down to the ground.
Maya rode towards them as quick as she could when saw a blonde haired man pick up a spree, heading towards Daenerys. Maya unsheathed her sword, jumping over burning men and logs. She cut off the man's head as she rode past him. Maya's horse pushed her off of his back when the dragon roared at them.
Maya stood up slowly and stared at Daenerys Targaryen.
"You came," Daenerys said shocked that Maya would even come to her aid.
"I came for the gold and crops."
Daenerys opened her mouth to reply when they heard someone yelling angrily as they charged at them. Maya frowned as she looked at the person who wanted to kill them. She held up her sword, preparing to fight them all.
She covered her face when fire roared over her, heat licking her skin unpleasantly. Maya put her hand over her mouth in shock as she saw the various burning bodies in front of her. She knitted her brows in anger as she saw the bodies completely charred. She looked behind her and at Daenerys.
"You saved me and I saved you. We're even now," Daenerys told her.
"I guess we are then," she said softly. "You have three dragons, yes? Are they all this big?"
Daenerys nodded. "They are. They protect their mother. They're my children."
Maya looked around and saw that everything was bloody and burned. Fire and blood, she thought then to herself as black smoke surrounded them. She couldn't even imagine what the three of them together could do.
Maya stepped away as the dragon walked closer to her, sniffing her. She was quite fearful of it as she should be. She saw the damage it did with only a single breath of fire. She knew that if Daenerys wanted to then she could have her dragon burn her to the ground and no one would blink.
Maya kept still as she felt it breathe on her, it's breath hot. She moved when it moved its nose into her body, pushing her. Maya held her hand out and touched it softly and hesitantly. Her fingers ran slowly across the black scales that felt hot and rough to touch. She looked into its eyes which examined her closely. Its eyes were the most beautiful color she had ever seen.
The dragon walked away from as Maya let out a sigh of relief. Daenerys walked towards her and said, "It seems Drogon likes you."
"Gods, it has a name."
"Just as you've named your direwolf. Winter was it?"
Maya nodded. "Yes, I've had her since she was born. She was only a pup and now she's a scary thing. She's protective...she almost killed Jaime and then my brother who tried to kill Jaime."
"My dragons are the same." Daenerys said. "I only wish your wolf didn't grow to love the man who killed my father."
"Do you know why he did it?"
"It doesn't matter to me."
"To a queen, it should matter the most," Maya warned. "In order to avoid the same mistake your father made. Jaime killed him because he was mad. He was going to burn the entire city down and he thought that he would survive the wildfire because he thought he was part dragon. Jaime killed him and didn't tell anyone why he did it."
"Are you threatening me?" Daenerys asked angrily.
"No. I am giving you a warning. Anyone can kill you, no matter if they love you or not. If they're sworn to protect you or not. If you are they're savior or not. It doesn't matter," Maya explained to her. "Give them no reason to want to kill you. Don't be your father."
"I am not here to be queen of the ashes," Daenerys said, her voice soft and genuine. "I promise. If you stand by me then I will be the greatest ruler the seven kingdoms have ever seen. I fight for those who can't."
Maya eyed her and then gave a swift nod. "Don't decide yet on what to do with Jaime. Just until after the war with Cersei. I want her dead as much as you."
Daenerys didn't answer her and only walked away with her dragon behind her. Maya moved aside and watched as her armies looked over the dead, taking whatever they wanted from them.
Maya returned to her armies on her horse and looked behind her to where Daenerys and her dragon laid. She looked back to her men and asked, "Did we get the cold and crops?"
"We retrieved the crops, my lady and only a small portion of the gold, they went different roads it seems," the general answered. She nodded at them and looked them over for injuries.
"Did you avoid them like I ordered?"
"Some tried to get in the way, but we only knocked them out."
Maya nodded again. "Good. Let's return home. I have no desire to see what else the Dragon Queen plans to do with the survivors."
"What will she do to them?"
"I think she will burn them all, but she doesn't want me to know about it." Maya turned her horse and her men towards the road when they saw a Dothraki rider come towards them.
"Khaleesi demands your presence at Dragonstone."
Maya furrowed her brows and looked to her men before looking to the Dothraki. "I need to return to Winterfell. To my son and husband. After that then we will return to Casterly Rock and live peacefully there."
The Dothraki gave her an impassive look as he repeated, "Khaleesi demands your presence at Dragonstone."
Maya let out a heavy and irritated sigh, pulling on the reins of her horse. "Men, return to Casterly Rock and tell Bronn what has happened. I'll be back as soon as I can."
Jon walked down the steps of Dragonstone with Davos and Malachi on both sides of him. Malachi stopped walking when he saw a familiar chocolate brown head of hair with streaks of white.
"Maya," he called out to her and waved his arm. Maya smiled gratefully at the sight of her friend and ran towards him.
As they hugged, Malachi whispered, "Do I need to kill her?"
She pulled away and whispered back, "I have no idea. We shall see."
"Rose," Jon greeted happily. Maya hugged him tighter than she hugged Malachi. She missed her brother more than she knew. They pulled away from each other and Jon looked over the streaks of white in her hair.
"What are these now?" Jon mused. "You growing old or scared, Rose?"
Maya laughed and nervously touched her curly hair. "I hardly know. The maesters don't have the slightest idea why this is happening to me. I think it could be because of the Night King."
"Because of Leonardo?"
"He touched me too, but I don't know, Jon. Is she not going to help us?" Maya asked quietly. "We need her."
Jon shook his head. "She doesn't trust us. We are strangers to her as she is to us. It's a delicate situation, Maya. Why are you here?"
"I saved her in the battlefield when they shot a spear into her dragon," Maya explained. "I touched the dragon, Jon. It's amazing."
"And completely terrifying," Jon added which made Maya chuckle in amusement.
"And there are three of them," Maya said, but most to herself. "I was planning to return to Winterfell, but she had her men stop me. I just want my life back. I need to see my son."
"You will, Maya, I promise you will. I won't let her tear your family apart."
"Don't break your promise, Jon. I've seen too many broken promises," Maya reminded him sternly.
They heard the dragons roar in the sky above them and Maya shook her head. She thought about how dangerous the dragons were and how much damage they would do when they came to King's Landing. Maya looked to Jon who kept his eyes on Daenerys and she knitted her brows in confusion before scoffing.
Maya pushed him away and Jon stumbled backwards, staring at her questionably. "You fancy her?! She wants to kill my husband! She may kill us as well."
"You don't know that."
"She burned alive the men who did not bend the knee to her."
"We are no different. We've done the same as she has," Jon defended her. Maya rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"That is different and you know it. You don't kill those who surrender."
Jon turned away from her and began to walk back to the entrance of Dragonstone. Maya turned to Malachi and asked, "How long?"
"They don't know it yet," he told her. "He asked me to retrieve the dragonglass if she should deny us, but I don't know. She seems like she wants to help us, but your brother won't bend the knee."
"Good. I'm afraid he may let his feelings get in the way of our mission. Defeating the Night King is always the goal, he has an army of the dead. We need her and her dragons."
"Agreed. I know her advisor from my childhood so I may be able to get her to talk to her queen."
"Any news from home?"Maya asked and Malachi shuffled his feet.
"I think you should return to Winterfell immediately, my lady," he advised.
Maya had a confusion expression on her face as she inquired, "What did the raven say? What's happened?"
"Return home. Go now, I will help you."
"Tell me, Malachi. I command you."
He looked away and shook his head, putting his hands on his hips. He looked to where Daenerys and Jon were on the top of the steps. Malachi turned back to her and whispered, "Hope is alive."
"Hope?" Maya scoffed. "We know that Daenerys gives people-"
"No, Maya, not that hope. Your daughter, Hope. She lives and is in Winterfell with Ser Jaime and your sister and brother."
Maya immediately turned away from him as her chest started to heave up and down. She furiously took off her gloves and then proceeded to walk up the steps of Dragonstone, ignoring the calls of her name from Malachi. She ignored him and what he had told her.
Her daughter was dead.
She was dead in her arms before they took her from Maya.
It wasn't possible, she thought to herself as she stepped up closer to them. She died and this girl is an imposter.
"What is it?" Daenerys asked her.
Maya scoffed. "Nothing. Some girl is pretending to be my dead daughter. She has everyone fooled apparently."
"How do you know?" Jon inquired. "Can it be her?"
"IT CAN'T!" Maya screamed at him, rage bubbling up inside of her. "She's dead. I know what I saw."
"I know what it's like to lose a child. I would do anything to get him back. So if there is a chance, a small chance that she could be the daughter you lost then I would take it and go to her," Daenerys advised her. "Do you want to return to Winterfell?"
Maya looked off into the distance of the sea for a moment before she stared at Daenerys. "No. I don't. It's not her."
Maya walked past Jon and Daenerys who watched as she left them. Jon sighed as Malachi walked to them and shook his head.
"The letter arrived this morn. I thought she should know, but you didn't see how angry she was, Jon."
"She doesn't want to believe even the possibility that it could be true," Jon realized. "She's going to regret it."
"Are you sure it is her?"
"Only a handful of people were there when Maya lost Hope or thought she did. We need to discuss this latter with Ser Jaime when we return. Maybe Bran can tell us more."
TBC…
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I honestly think that Maya wouldn't want to accept that her daughter is alive because that would mean that she missed out on her life and she probably knows that she had a hard life and it's because of her. She blames herself for everything and that hurts her. She'd rather deny her existence then be thankful that she's alive.
Maya is going to avoid her at all costs and the idea of her. She doesn't want to know Hope.
Maya and Daenerys are kinda the same person so keep that in mind.
I hope you all liked this chapter.
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