You and the Prince ended up sparring in the field for the rest of the afternoon.
By the time dinner was served, you both were engaged in an earnest conversation with one another where you spent the entire meal trading stories of combat.
You both were so engrossed with the other's tales that as the evening turned into night, you had not noticed he had ended up escorting you all the way to your chambers.
He seemed to realize this as well as he smirked and took a noticeable step away from you.
When you raised a brow in question, he simply replied with a hint of amusement,
"Best not to tempt fate."
Before bidding you a pleasant night and leaving with that smirk still on his face.
In the weeks following, you could confidently say your relationship with the Prince had changed for the better. As the respect you held for one another as warriors turned into the respect you held for one another as people, an unexpected friendship had formed.
Playing the roles of the besotted intendeds was easy to do when you actually liked who you were engaged to.
Daemon was of the same mind as he was forced to make appearance after appearance to keep up the perception of your courtship.
But as he spent more and more time with you, the less forced these outings felt.
That is why he did not mind it when his brother suggested he take you on a tour of the city — accompanied by chaperones and guards, of course. After admitting that you have only ever been to the Red Keep whilst visiting King's Landing, it was agreed that this needed to change if you were soon to become Princess of the Realm.
So, with a handful of guards for protection, and a few Septas for propriety, you both journeyed into the city on horseback.
You spent most of the time asking him questions about the towns, buildings, and statues that you passed by.
And it was because your eyes kept straying to your surroundings that you did not notice your betroth's eyes kept straying to you.
Having gotten used to the sight of you in your tunics and trousers, Daemon was decidedly unprepared to see you dressed in proper court attire.
A small smile grew on his face as he recalled the petulant look in your eyes as you stressed that your Uncle had insisted on such clothing.
He supposed he would have to thank the Lord the next time he saw him given the way your dress accentuated your curves.
It was difficult not to notice, and even harder not to think about.
Not for the first time, the Prince found himself grateful that it was you that he was to wed.
However, his musings were cut off when he heard you say,
"Shall we, my Prince?"
Meeting your gaze, Daemon saw the knowing look in them and realized, since he had not heard your question, that you had caught him in the act of observing your appearance.
As a smirk joined your expression, you saved him the embarrassment of asking you to repeat yourself and simply stated your question again.
"I merely asked if we could walk about the square and give the horses a moment's rest."
Nodding in agreement, the Prince dismounted from his horse before making his way over to help you dismount from yours.
Since you were in a gown, you had to ride side-saddle, and as such, needed assistance in properly getting down.
But as your bodies came into contact as he helped lower you to the ground, Daemon found that his thoughts were anything but proper.
After he handed off the reigns of your horses to one of the guards, you took the Prince's offered arm as he escorted you into the town square.
You pleasantly conversed about various things in a bid to know more about one another as you passed by the many merchants. It was when you came across a stall selling weaponry that your conversation found its focus.
Picking up a beautifully designed dagger, you appreciatively said,
"This is a fine blade."
The seller looked to see which one you were holding before saying,
"Ah, you have a good eye, my Lady. The metal of that blade is Valyrian steel."
Knowing of the rarity of such a metal made you look at the dagger once more. Turning to Daemon with a grin on your face, you declared,
"Well, I must purchase it then."
With an amused smile, the Prince took the handle from your grasp to inspect the weapon you wanted to buy.
After exaggeratedly looking over it for a moment, he asked, in his mother tongue,
"What guarantee do we have that this is genuine, hmm?"
And because he asked the question with a certain level of condescendence, you felt the need to defiantly ask a question of your own in the same language.
"Well, what if I just liked the look of the thing?"
Your eyes narrowed at him in a playful manner, as he glanced to you with a similar expression on his face.
You held each other's gaze for a moment longer before you both fell out in light chuckles.
He was still smiling at your little standoff when something over his shoulder caught your eye.
As a white speckle gleamed in a tower far off in the distance, your military mind immediately reminded you that the glint you were seeing was the point of an arrow.
Without thought, you shoved the Prince as hard as you could to the side. Since he was unprepared for such a push, Daemon wound up unexpectedly falling over.
But you did not notice as a searing pain in your shoulder immediately sent you to the ground on your back.
Chaos erupted in the square as soon as your body hit the floor.
You could vaguely hear the sound of your betrothed calling for the guards to form a perimeter around you both as he made his way to you.
You had told yourself to focus on your breathing so you did not focus on the radiating pain. You were so concentrated on just getting air into your lungs that you did not hear the first time the Prince called your name as his face came into view above you.
It was when he repeated himself more urgently that you finally made eye contact with him.
Using your eyes to quickly rove over his body, you eventually said in a shaky voice,
"Are you hurt?"
Giving a relieved huff to hear you talking, the Prince simply responded,
"No, but you are."
And carefully gathered you in his arms before picking you up.
You were swiftly brought back to the Red Keep to have your injury tended to. After the Maesters assured him of your wellbeing, he found himself compelled to visit you in your chambers.
Having been given the milk of the poppy for the pain, you were decidedly unconscious as he made his way into your room.
Taking a seat next to your bed, the Prince observed you for a few moments in silence before slowly moving to take your hand in his.
As he entwined his fingers with yours, he felt a roaring anger blaze through him as he decided then and there that whoever was responsible for this, would pay.