The Darkness of Day

by WalkingPotterGirl14

He put a dagger in her heart. She died. End of story. Or was it? The Gods decide that there's more to tell, more to save, and more heartbreak to follow in the story of Daenerys and Jon's lives, starting with new revelations right outside their doors. (Rated T until chapter 26, Fix-it Fic, obvious spoilers for the show)

37. Jon and Daenerys: The Execution

Hello again! Thank you all for your lovely reviews on the last chapter! Thank you so much to:

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Thank you so much! Your reviews really helped me write this chapter and make it extra long for you so I hope you all enjoy! And a big thank you and welcome to the new follows and favorites. This chapter is um, quite long and quite bloody. Jon sort of turns dark for a lot of this because like, how can someone die and not be dark? It gets pretty intense. But like, this is the execution - it's gotta be. So I hope you all enjoy! :) This is a late-night update so I hope you all get to read it haha

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Jon

Walking down to the dungeons, Jon was filled with an unfamiliar sense of fear that he had not felt in a long time.

Ever since he had thought about their being loyalists in the castle, he was looking around every corner. If they were to help the former queen, now would be the time to do so, especially since her execution was literally the next day.

And as he walked around towards the entrance that was near the dungeons, he looked to Daenerys, who was beside him, her sword in hands. "If you hear anything, wait for my go," he whispers to her.

Her brow furrows. "You really think there are people like that in the castle?"

"I don't know…how would the note get to Nesara then?" he asks her, to which she could say nothing back. Jon looks back ahead and reaches forward towards the knob, going to open the door. Within moments, he pulls it slowly towards him, trying to listen intently.

And straight as what he was thinking, there were voices coming from the lower floor.

He shares a look with Dany, one that said 'stay behind me.' She nods, as he starts to walk down first. As soon as he reaches the bottom, he signals her to go to the left of him, in a part that was hidden, and she does so, walking slowly as to not make any sound. Once she was hidden from sight, he peaks around and feels himself growl.

There, at the edge of Saeresa's cell, was a man that looked to be of older age, dressed in a guards uniform. He couldn't hear specifically what they were saying but knew that it had to do with the next day.

Jon looks around the area quietly before picking up what looked like an old piece of glass from a long time ago. He quickly throws it up towards the stairs, trying to signal the man to come closer to the other side. Within moments, he could hear footsteps approaching here he and Dany were hiding. As soon as the foot of the man appears around the corner, Jon nods at Daenerys to lunge.

She quickly trips the man and slices open his side, causing him to yell out and stumble, before Jon grabs him, pulling his hands behind his back. The older man groans in pain, looking up at him in fear. "Please, I-"

"Shut up," he growls, looking over at where Saeresa was, sitting in her cell. "Daenerys. Stay with Saeresa. I'm going to have a nice chat with our new friend here."

Daenerys nods as she picks up her sword and places it in her holster, but before she goes over to the quiet cell, she looks over at him. "Jon?" He turns his hand, his hands still held firmly around the old man's side. "Don't hurt him too bad…he could be useful."

"Trust me, I know. I'll be back in a bit." She nods, heading back over to the cell. The man struggles to be released from Jon's grip, but he does not loosen. "Stop fighting. It'll be over quicker if you do," he grunts to him as he practically drags him up the stairs, away from the words of that evil queen.

---

When he brought the man up to a spare chamber room, Jon hadn't realized how much he had been bleeding. Daenerys had sliced him up pretty good. Maybe, maybe, if he cooperated, Jon would let him live. But he knew he was starting to lose his hope for the grey area in people.

He throws the man into a chair and grabs a rope, tying it around his arms. "Please, your grace, I didn't-"

"Didn't I say shut up?" he snarls at him, causing the old man to swallow. "Now. You will sit there and answer the questions when I ask them. Or else we can end this very quickly." He pulls out his sword, the man eyeing it fearfully. "Your choice. Will you comply?"

The man slowly nods, but Jon didn't feel completely trusted yet.

"Look at me." His voice left no room for argument, and clearly, the old man understood before his head snapped up quicker than he had ever seen before. "What's your name?"

"T-Taedor," the man breathes out. Jon could see him trying to control the pain in his side by focusing on him.

"Last name?"

"Mellarys," he responds.

"What were you doing down there?" The man doesn't answer at first. Jon grips his sword tighter. "I don't want to have to hurt you any more than I had to, Taedor."

The man gulps before looking back at him. "I…I was one of the queen's loyalists."

Jon stands, anger fueling his veins. "How did you get back into Valyria? We sealed off the gates from the forest in here when we lost sight of the loyalists. We even sent out a search team to find them and couldn't find anything!"

As Jon looked at the old man, he realized with a quiet start that he was shaking. Jon feels himself let out a slow breath before he sighs. He was more upset about the fact that they had easily snuck past them than this man doing what he did. It wasn't like he had let Saeresa go.

Jon gently places his sword down before walking over to the edge, grabbing a cloth and some water from a pitcher. He pours it onto the fabric before walking over to where Taedor was. The man seemed fearful for him, but as soon as Jon raises his hands in retreatment, he relaxes – only slightly.

"I'm only going to clean your wound. Can I do that?" he asks the man quietly. Taedor stares at him in surprise before quietly nodding. Jon runs his hands down to the man's wound, before gently wiping at the swipe that Daenerys had made.

He could feel the man hissed at the pain, but nothing more than that. After a while, he wraps up the man's wound with the cloth as well, trying to stop the bleeding as much as he could before turning to look at him once more.

"Now," he starts gently, stepping away and going to sit back on the bed. "I am sorry for losing my temper…but you must understand why. My wife lives in this castle. My children, as well. I can't have some loyalist that's serving the false queen be speaking to her on my watch."

"Please, ser…if you'll just let me explain. I wasn't there to let her go – I was there to tell her off!"

Jon's brow furrows as he leans forward, confused at the man's word. "Tell her off how?"

The man swallows, trying to control his breathing before he begins to speak again. "Yes, I was one of the loyalists…but I only did it out of fear. I followed her originally because I was so used to the ideas of the old monarchs, I didn't know we could change…and then you and your wife came. But I have only ever sworn myself to the Galeron's, I had no choice but to follow them. But even then, I've been hiding with them out of fear that the other loyalists will kill me."

Jon looks into the man's eyes, trying to gouge if he was lying or not, but he could see nothing that would sway him towards that path. He seemed like an old man, not incredibly old like Maester Aemon had been, but old enough where Jon realized he would probably rather be at home than on the streets.

"Then why are you here right now, dressed in a guard uniform? Did you kill one of my guards?" Jon asks him.

"No. It wasn't me who did it. It was another loyalist by the name of Gaezar."

Jon leans forward and listens to him intently. "Then tell me everything."

The man swallows again but continues. "We…we snuck into the gates after you had taken the king and queen. There was so much havoc in the streets that it was easy to blend in, but afterward, the loyalists took up space in a house at the edge of the border, staying there for all of this. We knew that if we were found out there, you would never let us go…so we wanted to hide in plain sight. Many of her loyalists still wanted to go through with her plan despite it failing…I only stayed out of fear of being rejected…or hurt. But I went along with their plans."

"How did they get a guard uniform?" he asks him.

"They killed three guards that were doing patrols one night," the man explains. "Gaezar was the first one to kill them, and then the rest followed. One by one, they would take shifts in coming to the castle, pretending to be under the pretense of a guard, when they would relay information to Saeresa whenever she was awake from her injuries. I wanted to come forward – I really did – but they could tell I was slipping and had their claws in me. If I had come forward – I would have been killed."

Jon lets out a low sigh, leaning back in his chair. If this was true, this had been going on for months. "How soon did you get into the castle?"

"Not long after you and the queen took over…they had been planning on trying to kill you for months, but every single attempt one of them was killed."

Jon's brow raises in complete shock. "Killed?"

"The head guard. Magar. He was excellent at figuring out the plots." Why the hell hadn't Magar told him?! "But they would never stop. They kept trying and trying, all the way up until the trial yesterday, but decided not to go through with it due to the fact that queen was in cells…I'm so sorry for not telling you this earlier but they…they wouldn't let me!"

Jon's mind was whirling. Magar had known about this and although he took care of the problem, he had never told him? Or even Dany? What was the issue with that? That was the reason why Jon had never noticed anything wrong with the castle.

Magar had always done a good job of snuffing out the problem before it got to them.

"You don't need to apologize," Jon states, letting out a deep sigh once more. "I understand. Many people follow leaders out of fear. Was it your turn to do something tonight?"

"Yes," the man states. "That's how I got into the castle. They trusted me with a uniform, but I only came in here to see her one last time before you killed her…I always hated her. I only aligned with her ancestors. But I never wanted them to actually hurt you…please…"

He could see that the old man was trembling. Jon lets out a deep sigh before reaching down, grabbing the man's shoulder. "You don't need to be in fear anymore. Take a deep breath and look at me."

The man does so, barely moving his gaze away from Jon.

"You do have to answer my question. Who was the person who delivered the note to Nesara?"

The man bites his lip, clearly deep in thought, before he looks back up at him. "It was another loyalist. Under the guard of two. They snuck into her room while she was sleeping under the disguise of a nightguard. She found the note the next morning."

Jon nods, letting out a deep sigh. "You know I can't let you go, right?"

"I know…I knew that would happen if I got caught. It's why I still came here."

"I'm not saying I'm going to kill you," Jon says gently to him. "You've been very helpful and cooperative – despite my temper at first. But I need you to continue to help me." He points outside. "Tonight, you're going to guide me to that house. And we're going to capture every single one of those loyalists. And you are going to lead. Once we figure out what to do, then and only then can we consider letting you go."

The man nods his head, looking at the ground. "As you wish, your grace."

Jon nods, walking around to his side. "I'm going to leave you now to talk with my wife. There will be two guards at the door. If you so much as try to leave-"

"I can't with these restraints," he points out.

"Stranger things have happened." Jon walks to the door and opens it, whistling down the hall. Two guards come rushing forward at the sound and look into the room, confused at seeing the old guard uniform on a bandaged man. Before they could ask, Jon raises a hand. "Don't respond. Just stay here at the door and guard him. Just in case he escapes."

The two guards nod, doing as told. Without another look, he heads back towards the dungeons where Daenerys was, new information in mind.

---

Daenerys

It was silent for a good five minutes before her voice broke the sound of the cold and dark walls of the dungeons.

"Why'd you do it?" Daenerys asks her.

She could almost see the woman roll her eyes in the dark. "Do what, Daenerys?"

"Why did you surrender so easily?"

"How about because I knew you were still going to kill me, no matter what?"

"No, that's not you, Saeresa." Daenerys leans forward, her hands on the edge of her sword. "Even though you lost your kingdom, you always meticulously plan things. Obviously you've been trying to stop us from the inside out with these loyalists." The word felt like acid on her tongue. "But that hasn't worked either. So tell me – what is your plan?"

The quiet developed them again, and only a moment later did Daenerys hear the older woman sigh.

"You want me to be honest?" she asks of the young queen, who nods. "Yes. I have had loyalists sneak in here. I have made plans to somehow kill you and Jon. All of them have failed because of one of your actual guards catching us."

Daenerys' brow furrows. "Who?"

"Does it matter when the threat is gone?" Saeresa asks, before continuing. "But truth be told, after everything I heard today in the trial, I knew I wasn't going to be taken back easily even if for some reason I was let go. Or my husband. And after hearing what my daughter said to me…I didn't want to keep trying. I wanted to let it go. There was no point anymore."

Daenerys' brow furrows. "Do you mean Nesara?"

"Yes." Her voice was quiet. Lonesome. "I know what you think of me. I know what a lot of people think of me. I stand by what I've done, and what I would have continued to do if you had not been there. But I always loved Nesara. She was the only girl of my family who ever shared my ability to heal…and to use blood sorcery, now."

Daenerys takes a step back. "You…you can use blood magic?"

"Relax. I lost that ability a long time ago. It was much stronger when I was a child…I'm almost positive that as soon as I married Aenar, it was taken from me. If I still had it, you and Jon would have been dead where you stood that first day. But I cherished her. I loved her."

"You let your husband hurt her," Daenerys whispers angrily.

"I had no control over what my husband did when I was not there in the castle," Saeresa states. "My husband…is a terrible man. I'm not going to lie about that. He has physically hurt all of the children, Nesara included. He deserves the pain he gets."

"And yet you stood by his side."

"I had no choice," Saeresa hisses at her. "Of course, I was the brains behind every operation. Anything that we ever did. But to him? I had to be the obedient wife – as it had been in his family for years. I couldn't talk back to him in front of others – barely when we were alone. But when I planned, it was the only time he ever truly appreciated what I did. My mind. Without my mind, I am nothing. I can heal. I can harm. But the only way I can do that is through my skills. If the people had seen the queen murder their own king for the acts he committed against his children, there would have been uproar. Was I appalled at what he did to my son? Of course. Did I care about what happened to Mae? Even if she's not special, she is my daughter. But there was nothing I could do except wait for the day when he dropped dead. Even in the volcano, when he was beating Nesara, there was nothing I could do but watch and give the picture-perfect version of what my loyalists had come to believe in – a stone-cold queen. I couldn't show that I cared for my daughter."

Daenerys looks over at where Aenar was, completely unconscious. "It seems his rage has driven him to sleep," she murmurs.

"As it often did." Daenerys turns back around to face Saeresa, who was leaning against the wall now.

For once, Daenerys didn't see an evil queen. She didn't see the manipulative person Saeresa had shown herself to be multiple times over. She saw a mother who was hurting. That didn't mean she felt bad for her, but it was a different side of the former monarch that she never knew.

"Is that why you sent the note to Nesara?" Daenerys asks quietly, going back to the issue from before. "Because she was your favorite?"

"That and because she's so young. As I said, she could have possibly been swayed," Saeresa confirms. "Too many bad things have already happened to Zaevar and Mae. There was no way of convincing them to let us go. When every other attempt to be free of your hands failed, she was my last resort. And I thought there was still some sort of love…or uncertainness. But there wasn't. She…she loves you." Saeresa glances back at her, anger in her eyes. "She loves you and all of your maddening Targaryen horseshit. And there's nothing I can do about it."

"Even then, Aenar tried to kill her today when she said no and she escaped. Doesn't that scare you? That your own daughter can easily kill you within the blink of an eye?"

"What my daughter can and can't do with her power is up to her," Saeresa states quietly. "She could easily have snuck down here and killed me and her father herself if she wanted to, but she won't because she's Nesara. She's little. She doesn't understand yet completely what is happening except that the bad people are going to go away…and that's something I had to learn the hard way when she yelled in my face today."

Daenerys looks at her before letting out a deep sigh. "Well…your daughter will never be hurt again."

"That's what you think," Saeresa mutters.

Daenerys raises an eyebrow at her, anger spreading through her veins. "And what the fuck is that supposed to mean? She's safe with us. All of them are, more than they ever could have been with you."

Saeresa chuckles from where she stood and finally moves back towards the bars of the cell, looking at Daenerys in the dim light of the dungeons through the torches on the walls. "Oh, Daenerys. If anything, my children are much less safe now than they were before because they are with a moving target. Do you know how many people in the world would give their whole life just to be able to kill the former dragon queen's family? And what's more, is that now she has three new children that have powers. If anything, you're giving Nesara and the other two a death sentence. They were safer by my side when we would conquer and kill all who stood in our way and take back Valyria before anyone had the chance to kill us."

"You're wrong," Daenerys growls. "They're safer than they've ever been. Every single attempt at you trying to kill us has failed. What makes you think something in the future is going to change that?"

"My attempts have failed, but what makes you think that other people won't? And when you and Jon decide to do this 'peaceful' restoration, what makes you think they won't?"

Daenerys goes to open her mouth but Saeresa keeps talking.

"Oh, and I can see it now. Returning back home to good old Westeros, and there the people who hate you would jump at the chance to murder your children and rape your daughters. It's luck that Aenar didn't get to Nesara but with her being with you? It won't be long until her innocence is taken."

"Shut your fucking mouth," Daenerys snaps, standing. "That will never happen!"

"And then as soon as it's done, once all the blood is on the bed, they'll slit her neck and come for you and the rest of you next!"

"I said shut up!" Daenerys screams, her temper getting to her, but at that moment, the door to the dungeons open, and she snaps her head to see Jon running down the stairs at her scream. He looks at her worried, rushing to her side.

"Is everything alright?" he asks her quickly.

Daenerys feels herself start to slow down her breathing, glaring at where Saeresa sat, her eyes narrowed. She turns back to Jon, trying to push down the very thoughts that haunted her head daily. "I'm fine, Jon. What happened to the man?"

She knew it sounded insensitive to turn away her feelings that quickly, but she had already broken in front of Saeresa once. If she used her own fears now, then it would only add more aggression to the fire.

Jon looks at her, clearly worried, but he changes the expression rather quickly. "He told me everything. Did she-"

"Yes. She did." Daenerys turns to where Saeresa sat, before stomping over to her cell. "You may say all these things to scare me, and yes, it is a reality that someone could hurt my family. But as long as you're out of the picture and away from them, I will never regret doing what I did in saving them, no matter what happens."

Saeresa doesn't respond, and Daenerys grabs her sword, walking away. Jon follows after her, his brow still furrowed at her anger. "Dany, what happened?" he whispers to her once they go up the stairs.

"Let's get to a chambers first…I'll tell you then," she decides, letting out a deep breath. "Alert the guards. And Arya. Bring them in as well. Saeresa said it was one of the guards that kept killing her loyalists. Who was it?"

"Magar," Jon mutters.

"Magar?! And he didn't tell us?" she whispers angrily.

"Well, we're going to find out in a bit." He looks at her once they reach the top and close the door, seeing how frazzled she had become talking with the former queen. "Come on…let's get somewhere safe."

He rests a hand on her back and she sighs, following after him.

---

Once they found an abandoned chamber, Jon sat with Daenerys, holding her hand as she explained everything Saeresa had said – along with the thoughts she had put in the dragon queens head.

As soon as she was finished, however, she could see the familiar irritation start to spread across Jon's face. "I can't believe she would say all of that," he growls, standing up. He begins to pace, and she watches with quiet eyes while he does. "I mean, who is she to speak? She let her husband beat and rape their children out of what, social need? What the fuck kind of person does that?"

Daenerys bites her lip and glances at the ground. "Jon." Her soft tone causes him to turn, his angry look instantly turning to one of concern. "What if she's right?"

"Dany-"

"I'm serious." She leans up and looks back at him, her hair falling into her eyes once more from the braid she had put it in before this whole fiasco. "I mean…what if that's why…each time we try to have a child it…it doesn't work? Because if we have more children they're…they're only going to get hurt again? Like Dan? And Daemon? I mean, fuck…one of them already died. It was only because Nesara was there that he's here now with us...what if they are in more trouble now than they were before? Outside of where we are right now…people want to kill us."

Jon moves to her side where she sat, turning the chair so that she was facing him. "I know your fears, Daenerys. It was the same reason why I didn't want to be with you at first. The same reason why I didn't want Dan to travel south when she started having dreams. I was always afraid of what could happen when we entered into the world, away from our bubble. But you and I both know that isn't what our family has been like. That's not how we have survived. People have tried to keep us down and we keep coming back."

"But what if they stay dead next time?" Daenerys whispers, turning to him with fear in her eyes, her heart pounding wildly. "I mean, technically, all of us have died when you stabbed me, and then Daemon died again…so have you…I don't want the children to go through that. I don't want them to be facing those same fears."

"And they won't be," he reassures her gently. "Daenerys, they all know what family they are a part of. It's only natural to feel some fear. But you need to trust when I saw we are going to be okay. Don't let that witch's words get to you. You're strong. You're brave. And so are your children. We are going to be okay."

Daenerys looks at him, trying to calm herself down. Jon had always been the person she ran to whenever things would start to get overwhelming, but sometimes she wondered if he was just being positive for her sake. Maybe he thought these things too but didn't show it. She had realized that the moment she had children – real children that she could hold and love and cherish in her arms – her resolve as a stone-cold emotionless queen had been fading. She showed how she felt so much more often now.

And she hoped that was a good thing.

"Alright," she mutters, glancing at the ground. "I guess I can believe that."

Jon wraps an arm around her, rubbing her shoulder. "Is that really why you believe you couldn't conceive? Out of danger?" Daenerys slowly nods. "Dany, if danger had any impact on conceiving, Dan and Daemon would not be here. They were conceived before we faced off against the Night King. There is literally nothing that corresponds."

Daenerys feels herself chuckle a bit at his blunt statement, but she sighs. "Then what is it then?" She turns to him again. "Not to state the obvious, but we couple a lot, and even after that, nothing happens. I'm starting to feel like there's…something wrong with me again. Like the gods just don't want me to have another one."

"It's just not time yet," he says to her softly. "When they allow it, something will come."

"How are you so sure?" Her voice was broken a bit, fighting back the emotions she had been feeling for she didn't even know how long.

"Because I know you," he says to her gently. "And every child in this world would be lucky to have you as a mother. If someone thinks you aren't worthy of that, then they are dead wrong."

Daenerys smiles a bit at his words, before leaning in and planting a soft kiss on his cheek. "Thank you, Jon."

Before he could respond, the door to the room opens. Magar follows in with Arya, who seemed to still be rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and the grouchy frown from her lips. "What the fuck are you two doing calling us up so late?!" Arya asks angrily. "Was having a nice dream."

"We're sorry to disturb your slumber," Jon states, standing up. "But we've come across some…information that we need to discuss with both of you." Daenerys watches as Jon turns his gaze to Magar, who was looking at him with slight fear. "Magar. Why have you kept the secret of the loyalists from us? And where are the bodies?"

Instantly, the guard gets on his knee, bowing his head. Daenerys could see his body shake.

"My grace," he starts out. "Forgive me. I did it for the sake of your children. They have been going through so much lately and I did not want them to see the planned deaths of the king and queen."

"Wait, what the fuck's been happening?" Arya asks from where she stood, arms crossed against her chest. "People have been trying to kill you?!"

Jon sighs and looks back at his grand knight. "Magar. Stand." The man does so, his posture not slipping. "While I appreciate the reason you did it, trust that Daenerys and I can handle the children ourselves. In the future, tell me when there are people trying to sneak into the castle to kill us. Although I do commend you for killing them and somehow keeping it a secret. Where have you taken the bodies?"

Magar glances towards the window and nods at it. "You know how I have been taking those morning walks?" Both of them nod. "It's been to throw the bodies into the volcano."

"Seven hells," Daenerys mutters, her head in her hands.

"I must say, that's quite the dramatic way to get rid of them," Jon states.

"Well, I can't do it here." Magar gestures outside. "If I'm seeing with a shovel digging into the ground, I'd get caught. Burning them in the castle would draw eyes. I can't throw them into the sea because I don't want to hurt the wildlife in the waters – bringing them up by carriage and putting them into the lava has been the best choice."

"At least there will be no remains," Daenerys says after a moment before her eyes look back to a very confused and shocked Arya. "We're sorry. We haven't told you what it is. Saeresa has had her loyalists sneak back into the gates of Valyria. They've tried to plan ploys to kill us but Magar has hunted down each one."

Arya's brow raises in complete surprise before looking over at Magar. "Each one? How did you find them?"

"It was easy at first," Magar says quietly, his stance finally relaxing from the questioning in the room. "They didn't know how to properly act like guards. Only had the uniform. So I knew something was wrong. Once I saw the dead bodies of the other guards, I killed them. The first group of loyalists. And then more and more began to come into the castle. All of them had that same look in their eyes of fear, something that they didn't know how to control. Some knew how to act better, but it was always a pick of 'who is and who isn't.' I saw a man tonight but he didn't seem suspicious."

"We caught him," Jon states quietly. "We have him chained up in another room. And he's going to help us."

Arya's brow furrows. "How?"

"He knows where a secret house is full of loyalists who are hiding right here in the city," Jon states. "He guides us to it, Magar leads a raid on the house and captures all of the loyalists who have been supporting the queen, and round them up towards the outskirts of the city. We will decide what to do then."

Arya looks at him quietly, and Daenerys could see the question that the girl had on her mind. "…are you going to burn them?"

"I don't know what I'm going to do, Arya," Jon sighs tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "As far as I know, some of these men could be completely deranged and don't understand what they are doing or who they are supporting. It's something Dany and I will have to discuss. For now, I need you, Magar, and the others to talk with the man. I will meet you down in the foyer, and we will begin the raid from there. Please…just head down there."

Magar nods, following orders instantly and heading away. Arya gives Jon one more quiet look, but when he doesn't say anything, she heads off as well. Once she was gone, Daenerys turns to Jon, seeing the clear conflict in his eyes.

"Jon," she says gently.

He looks down at her, and once he sees her gaze, he sighs. "I'm sorry, Dany…I…I've had to deal with traitors before but I…I didn't think I'd have to deal with them here."

Daenerys reaches over and grabs his hand, holding it close to her. She pulls him down so that he could sit next to her. "No matter where someone rules, there will always be traitors. While we can be upset with Magar for keeping it a secret, he has done an excellent job of keeping them at bay. And now, we can finish it."

"But I…" He swallows and looks back at her. "I care about these people…so much. I don't know if I can do that to even the ones who don't understand."

Daenerys intertwines their fingers with his. "Then we do what I did with the Lannister army," she says, causing him to look over. "We give them a choice."

"A choice?" he asks softly.

"A choice…I know it's something neither of us wants to do, but it's what has to be done. And then from there…we can finally focus on getting rid of the people who caused it all."

Jon looks at her quietly before sighing. "I really wonder how Aenar never had anything to do with this. How is it that Saeresa could still plan all this from the confines of her cell?"

"Aenar is a mad king who has no ambition but his want to be a ruler. Saeresa at least has a brain." She glances out towards the window. "But hopefully, we can snuff out those plans today." She goes to grab her sword again, but Jon stops her, his brow furrowed.

"What are you doing?"

"Going with you on this raid."

He instantly stands. "Daenerys, we don't know what these loyalists are capable of. I really don't think-"

"Jon, how long have I been training for?"

The question perplexes him, but he answers anyway. "I don't know…maybe a year and a half now?"

"And how many guards are we going to have with us?"

"…good amount."

"And who is also going to be there?" Her eyes fall on him, and he sighs gently at her look.

"Me."

"Good. Glad to see you can state the obvious." She walks up to him, her hand at the hilt of her sword. "You agreed to train me for this long because you wanted me to be able to protect myself. How am I going to get better if I don't face a serious threat even as a queen? I'm not going to be that woman who sits idly by and lets her husband do all the work – even when we are actually married. We do this as a team as our ancestors have done before us."

Jon looks down at her form before a small smile grows on his cheeks. "You're turning into another Visenya."

"And is that a bad thing?" she asks, chuckling a bit.

"No. It's not. Just need to keep an eye out for you more now," he states, grabbing his own sword. "If you really want to do this, you have to stand by me."

"Of course." She heads towards the door, looking back at him with a quiet smile. "Are you ready to do this?"

Jon sighs and walks forward. "As ready as I'll ever be. Let's go."

---

It was silent in the streets.

The early morning rays of sun were just starting to peek through onto the stone cobbled streets of the Valyrian people. The quiet sounds of feet marching across the path were the only disturbance to the peace. Taedor was at the very front with Jon and Daenerys, leading the charge of guards and Arya towards the house where the loyalists were staying.

When they arrived outside, Jon could see why no one had found the place for so long. It was hidden away in a mess of homes that could blend in with any type of person. But as soon as Jon gave the go-to head in, it was nothing but realizations.

Daenerys watched with him as plenty of the guards took hold of multiple loyalists, all who seemed completely shocked at the fact that they had been found suddenly. They were beating bloody when they tried to resist and were dragged out onto the streets, trying to suppress their yells through pieces of fabric as not to disturb the peace of the morning.

One by one, they were tied up and thrown into a carriage, all of them being taken to the outskirts near a field, a couple of miles away from the castle. Daenerys had stayed silent during the whole thing, ready for any attack that could have happened, but when they arrived at the crossing with the carriage full of loyalists, she could see the hesitation in Jon's eyes.

But as she reaches over to grab his hand, trying to offer him some form of companionship in this, he squeezes it back, letting her know she wasn't alone.

The two of them walk towards where the guards steadily unloaded the loyalists, some of which seemed scared and others furious. Arya helps with some of the last loyalists and turns to Jon, sleep still in her eyes, saying, "I'll see you later - don't fuck this up." To which he chuckled a bit as she left, leaving the king and queen alone, with their guards and the traitors.

Daenerys watched as Jonarys and Drogon flew into their line of vision, clearly out for some morning flight, and lands next to them. It was almost as if the creatures had realized that they would need them.

As soon as every single loyalist was in front of them, Jon looks to Daenerys. She knew that he was almost expecting her to take charge. She had done this before. She had gotten rid of people. But she wanted him to do this. He needed to do this. So, she nods at him to continue. She would be there for him, but he had to say the words.

She watches as he looks back over at the loyalists, before his expression changes to stoic and serious, a face she only saw on him when dealing with royal duties.

"I'm sure you're wondering how all of you have gotten here," he starts, his voice firm. "You've been evading for months now, and while I do not agree with how you've done, I must say you did an excellent job of hiding. But now, your time of hiding is over."

His eyes look around as he searches for Taedor, before nodding at him.

"Come forward."

The older man does so. Instantly some of the people in the group of loyalists curse at him, spit as he walks by, but he only keeps his eyes straight forward. Taedor moves to stand next to him, and Jon rests a hand on the man's shoulder.

"You have done well in serving and guiding us to where they were. Know that because of your revelations, you will not be punished the same way as these people will. We thank you."

Taedor nods, taking a step back to where Daenerys was with a coat to cover him. She had noticed that he had been bleeding for a good amount of time – probably due to her slicing him when she first found him in the dungeon with Jon – but she would make sure he got proper treatment.

Jon looks back to where the loyalists stand, letting out a deep breath.

"I'm sure I can tell you what Saeresa has said about us to you," he starts. "That we are here to take your lives away, change this world into something that you're not used to, into something strange. But the only thing that is strange is the way of the world that you haven't seen yet. We are trying to build something great. Not an empire. A union of people who need help. Who need people like Daenerys and me to look after. The new world cannot be built on violence and bloodshed as Saeresa wanted it to be, as it used to be. It has to be built on peace. On kindness. On allies. And yet, you support a queen who wants nothing else but to hurt others for the sake of power."

The loyalists do not speak, although Daenerys starts to see their eyes being to shift towards where the dragons sat, patiently, their growls low and menacing.

"I am not here to hurt you," Jon continues. "And neither is Daenerys. We are only trying to help. When I first heard of the loyalists planning on killing us, I was understandably furious." Instantly, the loyalists seemed to have a tone shift, some even looking away from Jon's eyes to the ground. "But I have seen enemies be turned into supporters. I have seen people who hated each other work together to defeat a threat. And that is what I am asking of you. So…we are giving you a choice."

Jonarys comes to his side at that point, the blue dragons scales standing out beautifully against the grass of the ground beneath them, shining against the light. Daenerys stood, watching how the creature sat so elegantly next to Jon. It was in that moment that he truly looked like a Targaryen, the most she had ever seen.

"You can join us," he states. "You won't be accepted instantly. You will be on watch, and you will have to prove that you are willing to work with us to create this world that we want to. To save the lives that we wish to save. But you will live, and you can see how wrong you are about the world. The second choice is to be imprisoned."

Daenerys raises an eyebrow at him, but he only nods at her to let him continue. So she does.

"Maybe you're not completely on board with what Daenerys and I are doing. Maybe you don't know us properly yet and you don't want to swear yourself to us. I understand that. There are thousands of people out there who would be unwilling to support a usurper, as people say. But that doesn't change the fact that you still have tried to kill us. Multiple times. All of which have failed. If you do not wish to join us, you will be imprisoned until you feel that you are willing to adapt to what we are trying to do. We can't have any more traitors among us. It comes down to those two."

"Is there another choice?" one of the loyalists ask from where she stood.

Jonarys lets out a screech at the words, causing many of them to back away and duck in fear. Jon's face does not change, but his tone does.

"You can look to the dead bodies of your former supporters for a third choice."

It was quiet, fear running evident in the minds of the loyalists.

"Again, I don't want to hurt you. Daenerys does not want to hurt you. We want to help you. But if you won't change, we refuse to allow you to live. So, either you bend the knee and join, or take the cell. Or, if you refuse to do either, a dragon can do the rest for you. Those are your choices. Pick. Wisely."

She was impressed. He didn't bend to their whim. He didn't show any change in his eyes. And judging by how the loyalists had reacted, his attitude would change their ways.

And, one by one, many began to kneel. She was thrown back to when it was her standing there, by herself with the Lannister men in front of her. And she only prayed that Jon did not need to use that word for these people.

Most of them had knelt, and once almost everyone was on the ground, her eyes look to the couple that are still standing. Daenerys instead steps forward this time. "Why do you stand, my lord?" she asks him quietly.

"In all due respect, your graces," the man states. "Your husband is right. We do not know you…but I have a family. We all have families. Although we have been loyal to the queen's cause for years…I do not wish for them to be burnt. The ones who stand…we select the second."

"I'm glad you've taken the high road," Jon remarks from his spot. "Guards. Take the men who have kneeled back to the castle into chambers. Guard them. We will discuss where they will be staying until we feel we can trust them. For the ones who stand…to the dungeons, until their mind changes."

The guards instantly get to work, separating the group and bringing them in two separate lines back to where the castle was a couple of miles back. Daenerys steps forward and takes his hand in hers, and once she does, he lets out a deep sigh.

"We have to go back home." His words were quiet. If she wasn't next to him, she didn't think she would hear them. Every muscle in his body was tense. He had been on real edge delivering that. Or it was something else.

"Then let's go back," she reassures him. The two dragons beside them fly off into the sky, and she stays with him as they walk back together.

---

When they did arrive back at their chambers in the castle, Daenerys had let Jon rest on the bed while she drew him a hot bath. She had realized that whenever he felt like this, sitting with her in one always seemed to calm his nerves. But she had a feeling that today, it might not be what he needed.

"Dany." His voice was rough when she came back in, and she could feel some sort of shiver run up her spine at it. It was a different kind of tone he spoke in. One that almost sounded commanding.

"What is it?" she asks him, walking over to his side. He doesn't look up, but she could see that his hands were so tightly wounded that his knuckles were turning white. She gently undoes his hand, while the other one starts to run her fingers through his hair. It took a moment, but slowly, his muscles began to relax, and he let out a deep breath.

When his eyes finally make a connection with her own again, she could see the pain, the hurt, the fear…everything all mixed into one.

"Come on," she whispers to him. "Come with me."

Once she says those words, he moves with her as she pulls him up, guiding him to their bathing chambers. It doesn't take long for her to undress him until he was as naked as the night prior, letting him sink into the water beneath them. Once he's in there, she takes off the few clothes she wore as well, joining in the steaming bath. Both had been up in the dungeons and the streets getting covered in dirt. It was better to take a bath now before the executions later on.

As she runs water through his hair, she watched carefully for any reactions from him. He was quiet, so quiet that it perplexed her to no end. She wished there was a way she could see within his head, to see what he was thinking. But when her soft hands start to trickle down his face to his chest to wash the dirt, the words she hadn't expected came out.

"I wanted to kill them."

She looks up in surprise, wondering if what he said was real, but his eyes give away nothing but the truth.

"I understand why people wouldn't support us. We're new. It's a different world. But regularly sneaking into the castle…to try and kill us…the children are here, Dany. And looking at them, on that hill, with our dragons beside us…it took every last bit of strength I had not to say the word." He swallows and looks down at the now muddy water from the dirt. "And it scared me."

Daenerys takes his hand in hers, holding it close to her body. "I understand why it would be. Do you remember when I burned the Tarly's?" He slowly nods. "The only reason I did that was because I knew they wouldn't bend. No matter what changed their minds. Many of the lords there are stubborn. They didn't want to see change. But even the people who followed Saeresa…they did. I have faith that now, once they see what we are doing…they will be supporters, maybe even some of the best."

Jon looks back up at her, the fear still in his eyes. "But I swear, I…if there weren't women there…if there were just men and they…they didn't do anything, I-"

"I know, love." She rests a hand against his cheek, causing him to quiet. "I understand. It's a messy situation when you're trying to rule and some don't want you. But be thankful that most of them did want to change…if not for just their lives. They won't be turning back to Saeresa anymore."

"It just…frightens me." He looks back at her. "Having that kind of power. With one word…you can end someone's life. And if they don't change their minds…the people in the cells, then we…we'd have to…"

His words trail off. She sits next to him, taking his hands in hers.

"We would."

He was quiet. "I've never…I've never had to deal with something like this before. When people don't want to willingly change. I had the traitors at Castle Black but this…there are children here. People with families. And if they don't submit…" He swallows, his words failing him before he looks back up at her. "…does that make us monsters? For separating families?"

"No," she instantly states, her hands tightening his grip. "Don't think that. We aren't separating families. It is their choice who they want to follow or not. What they want to do. If they end up going down the wrong path, there is no one to blame but themselves…if you do not wish to use the dragons, there are other ways. Easier ways. You and I both know this…don't start to think that just because you want to keep traitors away from the people who support you that it makes you a monster."

She moves closer and wraps her arms now around his neck, looking down at while she straddled his lap.

"Trust me…you are anything but a monster." She kisses him softly after that, and it was the first time she felt his hands go to her waist, holding her close to him. When he pulls back, he looks up at her and nuzzles his nose against her own, letting out a deep sigh.

"Being a Targaryen…is fucking tiring," he mutters, causing her to snicker. "I feel like there's this constant need to uphold to some standard and people are going to think of you like that…trying to convince the ones who don't believe you…it's bloody difficult."

"No one ever said it would be easy changing the minds of people," she whispers to him. "But with the two of us, we can do it together. Even our children are a part of it. They've already changed the minds of many of the sorcerers here. We have a whole army full of magic people that we never thought we would have."

"There's a lot here I never thought I would come close to touching," He looks up at her and then his hands move to her cheeks. "So much."

"I know. But here we are…alive and well. Somehow." She grabs water and dumps it over his head, causing him to spit out some from his mouth, making her chuckle a bit, before she begins to wash his hair. As her hands move through his curls, she could feel him sigh once more.

"It's strange," he mutters. "I feel perfectly fine killing Saeresa and Aenar. If anything, it's been something I've been looking forward to…but killing those people…it frightens me."

"Because we both know that those two usurpers deserve to die," she explains. "You and all of Valyria know that. The loyalists are confused people who don't know what is good and what is wrong, and that's why it feels wrong to even think death of them – because they are nothing more than unknowledgeable fools. Do they deserve death for thinking the way they do? No, they don't. Do they deserve it for planning to end us? Yes, they do. But are we going to do that instantly? No…because everyone at least deserves a chance to change. And if they start to throw hands or show trouble…we deal with it then."

Jon sighs but nods. "I suppose that's just the way of life now…hopefully nothing else comes from this." He looks up at her and takes her hands in his. "By the way…the eggs we received from the volcano. Where are they? Are they still with the red priests?"

"As far as I know, yes. When we first came here I thought they were in the castle but Kinvara said she had them taken to a secret room in the temple. Why?"

He looks at the water before glancing back at her. "I was thinking of doing something with those eggs…when we burn the bodies." Daenerys raises an eyebrow and he sighs. "I know, I know what I said, that I wanted to find another way. But when are we going to get a chance like this again where the dragons can be born the same way yours were? And I'm not saying we hatch every single one…just a couple, including the one I found."

Daenerys raises an eyebrow. "And who would these dragons belong to?"

"That's part of the plan as well…it'll come with time. I just wanted to make sure they were still there and available to use." Although she wanted to know where he was going to be sending an egg off, she would at least allow it for now. His mind was full of thoughts and words and plans that she didn't want to put more pressure on it. For now, she trusted he had the right idea. "Soon, we'll have to go through with what we planned…but for now…"

He leans up and presses his lips against hers firmly, arms slinking around her to pull her close, and Daenerys smirks against his lips, happily responding to another moment of pure ecstasy.

---

Jon

After their morning excursion, Jon and Daenerys finally made their way down to the dining chambers to break their fast with their family. It was pleasant to see after what had happened this morning, and for the sake of how happy the children were, Jon decided to keep their hunt for the loyalists to himself.

It seemed Arya had gotten the message too, as well as the guards because they were given no questions when they walked in. Instead, it was a conversation about their lives and their skills. Jon had watched the children practice with Arya afterward, showing them their new abilities and training, but after that, he called all of them together, saying they were going to the red temple.

Along the way there, Taevar had joined his side, along with Arya, while Daenerys stayed near the front with the children.

"I heard about what happened," Taevar whispers to him as they walked. "Why didn't you alert me? I could have helped."

"We had it covered, Taevar," Jon reassures him. "It's better for the leaders to handle something like this than the people they are surrounded by. It was better that you slept for today with your family."

Taevar sighs and shrugs. "As you wish, your grace."

Jon rolls his eyes at the words. He still wasn't the hugest fan of being called that, but Daenerys had said it best herself – if he was to be ruling, it was time he got used to it,

"What happened after I left?" Arya asks him. "I didn't see what you did with the loyalists…did you burn them?"

"No. I gave them a choice." He sighs softly before looking over at her. "If we're being completely honest, a part of me did want to. They had been planning my death – at least the ones down in the cells now. Both of us. But I knew that not all of them were like that. Some of those supporters were confused, and didn't know who to follow. I'm giving them a chance to save their lives."

Arya nods quietly, looking ahead. "Well…I commend you for not burning them instantly."

"I would have if they didn't choose the two options," Jon states. "It was either bend, or be thrown in a cell. And if they refused both, I'd have no choice." He looks over at her. "Know that no matter what Targaryen trait I do, I'm still your brother. It's just…sometimes you need to do the frightening choices to protect the people that you love."

"I understand that, Jon…just don't change too much." She squeezes his hand discreetly and he smiles a bit, glad that his sister understood. "The only reason I've never been too fond of burning was…well, what happened in King's Landing. It's a memory now and I know it wasn't her…but I think I've experienced enough dragonfire for one lifetime."

"Then you've come to the wrong place," Taevar chuckles from where he stood.

Arya rolls her eyes. "I know. But I'm here to support my brother. I always have."

Jon smiles at her before he walks into the red temple behind Daenerys, who was still conversing with the children. He walks over to Vamon, who had been waiting patiently for their arrival, and whispers into his ear, "Take us to the room with the eggs."

Vamon nods and leads the royal family down a hallway and to a set of stairs that lead down below. Daenerys looks up at him in questioning, her brow furrowed, but he only nods at her to keep going, to which she does. Vamon opens the door, and in a giant chamber where hundreds of dragon eggs, all waiting to be hatched or used. Vamon heads back up the stairs, leaving the family alone. While most of them had seen them before, Arya stared in surprise.

"Holy shit," she whispers. "There's enough for all of fucking Valyria in here! Maybe even Meereen too."

"These were all in the volcano," Jon explains to her, stepping inside and carefully around the eggs. "Sadly, only those truly of Valyrian blood can ride by themselves – sorry Arya." She rolls her eyes but was still staring at the eggs on the ground. "But, she is right. There are hundreds of eggs in here. And while I doubt we will be hatching all of them – at least not for a little while – I do want to give my children first picks."

Nesara looks up with gleeful eyes, while Mae seemed shocked. "You're…you're letting us pick out our own dragons? Even me?"

"You're a Valyrian, are you not?" Jon asks her. Mae smiles a bit before it widens into a full-on grin. "I know your family before we never let you have one, but we think that anyone who has the blood should be allowed to ride – with caution."

"I know," Mae says.

"That's why you two get to pick first. Go ahead." The two girls rush off, giggling into the echoes of the chamber, examining each egg. Jon looks over at Zaevar, who was watching them with a slightly concerned smile. "What is it, Zaevar?" he asks the boy.

"I…don't know how smart it is for little Nesy to be riding a dragon by herself," he mutters, looking up at him. "It's scary enough when she's riding with me."

"It'll take a while for her dragon to grow once it hatches. She won't be riding for herself for a while…but it will be her own creature to grow a bond with, just as you have with Stormrider when you were young."

Zaevar smiles and looks over at Dan. "Did you tell him that?"

"I've told him everything. You shouldn't be surprised at this point."

Jon chuckles at her blunt statement before resting a hand on his shoulder. "If you wish, you can pick out a dragon egg as well."

Zaevar looks at the eggs before quietly shaking his head. "I could, but I have Stormrider. I don't think I need another dragon…at least not for a long time. I think I'll let them have more pickings than me."

"That's mature of you," Jon says, squeezing his shoulder. "You do well on your own dragon, anyway." Zaevar smiles to that before Jon turns his gaze to his flesh and blood, letting out a deep sigh. "I have told you two not to fly yet because I've been afraid. But Dan is right – you two are growing up – even if it's at normal speed now." And to that, they both laugh. "Which means I need to start letting go of my fears and let you fly, literally and figuratively. Now, both of you have your own bonds with your dragons, with Visenya and Jorharion. You can be like Zaevar and stick with them, or if you desire you can hatch your own. It's up to you."

Dan and Daemon share a look before Dan steps forward. "I think as much as I enjoy Visenya, I wouldn't mind hatching my own. Daemon was practically born with all three."

"Then go for it," he encourages her, letting her head off into the circle of eggs. Nesara suddenly calls out to Zaevar, saying how pretty one of the eggs were and he comes over to her as a big brother does. Jon looks down at Daemon, who seemed to be debating. "What about you, son?"

Daemon bites his lip, looking at the eggs, before looking back at him. "I think that would be a good idea…just for extra protection with Jorharion." He glances at the ground. "But I…I don't know if I'm deserving of one."

Jon's brow furrows. "What do you mean?"

"I…I feel like ever since the volcano, I haven't been myself. I've tried to be but…I don't want to suddenly hatch a dragon and have it hate me because I won't be like mother or how I used to be."

Before Jon could answer, Daenerys interrupts. "Daemon, a dragon is a dragon. It's going to be a connection with you. No matter how you act, as long as you don't harm it, it will remain as loyal as it can be. What happened to you doesn't make you any less of a Targaryen. If anything, it makes you more."

Daemon smiles a bit at her explanation before his eyes look back over at the eggs. "Alright…then I'll take one!" He hurriedly rushes over to his twin, looking down at the eggs. Jon smiles a bit, glad at Dany's voice of reason to their son, but he could see from the annoyed look in her eyes that there was something else going on.

He clears his throat and looks over at Taevar. "You're free to grab one as well, Taevar. A hand of the crown on a dragon would be quite resourceful."

Taevar shakes his head. "I have my own back home, your grace. If anything I'd like my son to have one, but not now."

"If you wish, but if you don't want to take an egg, I need you and Arya to do something for me."

The man's brow furrows and Arya finally turns her gaze back to him, after staring at the eggs for a good minute. "I'm sorry – just distracted by literal magic in front of me. What is it you want us to do?"

Jon chuckles a bit. It really was a shame that Arya wouldn't be able to ride a dragon. She had the spunk of some of the best dragonriders out there but the cards just wouldn't align. He'd really have to take her for a ride one day.

"Last night, Dan and I decided to change our names. Don't look at me like that – I'm still Jon to you and to everyone else closely involved with me. The same with Dan," he explains at the strange looks from the two. "But when you're announcing titles in the future, or we're in court, or anything like that, I need you to call me Jaehaerys. And Dan is to be called Daenesa. Make that known to the people – send out word, talk with commoners, anything just so that it spreads. People will believe it if it's coming from the hand and the king's sister."

Taevar nods his head at his request. "I must say, the name suits you. I'll get to it right away." He runs up the stairs, heading off. Arya still stares at him in shock before shrugging her shoulders.

"Jaehaerys. I like it – but you're still always going to be Jon. Please don't change that."

Jon chuckles a bit. "Don't worry, I won't. Now go – we have much to do later." Arya squeezes his hand before taking off after Taevar to help the hand. Once he was gone, he finally turns to Daenerys, whose arms were crossed against her chest. "Alright, hear me out."

"Hear you out?!" she whispers fiercely. "Jon, when you said that you were going to gift dragon eggs to people, I didn't think it would be our own children first!"

"I know, I know, but listen," he says to her gently, his hands resting on her sides. "I understand why you would be upset, but we had to start hatching these eggs as soon as possible. We have an opportunity to do so, and why shouldn't it be with our children? Nesara is the same age when Zaevar received his – at least according to Dan – and Mae was never even gifted one because of how they treated her. And we already agreed to train the twins in flying. It's the perfect chance to hatch more and grow the family."

Daenerys looks over at where the children were, her expression clearly changing to one of sadness. Jon turns his gaze back to her.

"Dany, what is it? What's wrong?"

The woman sighs after a moment and leans against the wall, watching her children with a now sad smile. "Nothing is really…wrong. I just remember when I was given my children. My dragons. How much love I felt…I know I still have Drogon but I can't help but wonder what could happen to their own dragons – especially since Dan and Daemon are going to be bonding with two…I miss having more than Drogon to ride."

Jon takes her hand in his, smiling a bit. "That's why I have something to show you."

Her brow furrows. "Gods, please, not another surprise."

"Just one more," he chuckles, pulling her to another side room. She rolls her eyes but follows him, smiling at his giddy expression. As he pulls her in, the sounds of the children falling behind them, he watches as her eyes travel to the former egg that he had felt some sort of connection within the volcano – but there was another one right next to it.

She walks forward, her brow furrowed in awe as she lifts up the egg. It was a deep shade of green, one that almost reminded him of Rhaegal but darker. Her eyes look over it before she turns her gaze to him.

"Where did you find this egg?"

"It was one of the hundreds out there," he says to her softly, coming over to her side. "I know that I'm letting the children pick their own but…I don't know. I saw this egg and I thought of you. Some sort of connection, I suppose. But I wanted us to hatch the two together with the children's eggs." He walks over and wraps his arms around her from behind, looking at her as her eyes went towards the scales of the egg. "I know ever since we've been trying for another child you've felt that you can't conceive."

She looks up at him, not saying anything, but he could tell from her gaze that he was right.

"I know that it's wrong. I can just feel it. But you and I both know you consider the dragons your children…so why not hatch two more of our own to add to the family?"

He sees a soft smile spread across her face before she looks back at the dragon egg. "How long have you been planning this?"

"Not that long. It really only came to me a couple of days ago…but I wanted to make sure that I told you before we continued on with it…do you want to do that?"

Daenerys smiles before she slowly nods her head. "Yes…I would, Jon. That would be fantastic."

"Good." He leans down and presses his lips against her forehead, feeling her fall against his chest, the egg still in her hands. "I'll have them bring the eggs out to the pyre when we're reading for the end of this…after that, we'll have new family members." He rests his hands against her stomach, leaving a gentle kiss to the back of her neck. "And one day, we'll have a new human one too."

She tilts her head to look up at him and kisses his lips softly, feeling her sigh against him. He knew that she had been feeling awful lately about what they had been trying to do. He didn't blame her for feeling that way either. But this was the least he could do – at least try to make her feel better.

"I love you," she murmurs.

"Father!" they suddenly hear Dan yell from the room, her loud voice echoing across the walls. "We have our dragons!"

Jon chuckles at her excitement. "I love you too," he mouths to Daenerys before turning back to the door. "Bring them up to Kinvara – she'll have them prepared!"

He hears the peddling of footsteps going up the stairs, while he takes his own dragon egg from the stand. As he goes to walk away with Dany, he sees one of the red priests come down, his hood over his head. "Your grace," the man says, bowing. "Many people are beginning to gather among the crowd. The execution needs to begin soon."

Jon instantly felt his mood sour, but he responds none the less. "We will be going back to the castle now to prepare the prisoners – please, take these eggs and have them ready by the pyre. We're going to be bringing a little more fire into the world."

"As you wish, your grace." The man bows his head again and heads back up the stairs, taking the two dragon eggs with him, leaving Daenerys and Jon alone. She turns to look at him, her hand in his.

"What are we going to do to them first?"

Jon's brow furrows. "What do you mean?"

"You and I know that you aren't just going to burn them. We have to hurt them for what they did. I know you want to keep me away from this, but I hate them just as much as you. So tell me – what are you planning on doing?"

Jon looks down at her and feels himself still at the fire in her eyes. He knew Daenerys was a kind queen, a sweet one, a caring one, but he also knew she was ruthless to the people that she hated, to the ones that betrayed them. And she was right – he wasn't just going to burn them. He was going to fucking mutilate them before that flame fest.

And if Daenerys and he were doing this together, that meant that she could join in if she wanted to as well.

"It's not going to be pretty, Daenerys."

To that, she only smiles. "Good."

---

The mood was somber when they walked back into the castle. The children had just gotten back when Daenerys had told them to get ready for the day. They weren't dumb, and they knew what she meant, so quietly, they all went to their chambers, each trying to help the others get ready for the day.

Eventually, after going over in detail with Daenerys what he had planned to do, Jon told the guards to ready the prisoners and bring them outside. He waited with Daenerys, who was quiet, looking out into the sky, his hands looking through what he had before the doors suddenly opened and both of the captives were dragged out.

Jon watched as Saeresa was sat on the ground, arms and legs tied, and mouth gagged. It was amazing that even now, her hair had refused to grow back due to what happened in the volcano. Her skin was burned permanently. Should he feel bad about that? Maybe. But did he? Absolutely not.

Aenar, on the other hand, was yelling into his gag, struggling to break free, but as soon as the guards dropped him onto the ground, he moves his angry eyes up to Jon, who was staring down at him. Jon nods at the guards to step back, and they do, but stay close by, standing near the doorway to the outside entrance.

He had been planning this for a while. Somewhere away from the clean halls of the castle, in a courtyard that was hidden from view, with an easier way to clean up the mess that was bound to follow. And standing here, looking down at them, Jon still couldn't believe this was actually happening. But he was glad it was.

Jon walks over to where Aenar was and finally pulls down his gag, and as soon as he does, he spits at his feet. It doesn't faze him. "Finally have us where you want us," the man growls. "Get to it – I'd rather die by the death of a thousand fires than have to look at you two cunts longer!"

Jon doesn't say anything before he turns his gaze over to Saeresa, pulling down her gag. She does not speak. However, he does now.

"I know what you said to Daenerys," he says firmly, causing the woman to look up. "That you think because the children are in our care now, that they are in more danger."

"When the fuck did you say that?!" Aenar asks her angrily.

"When you were passed out in your fucking rage," Saeresa bites out before looking back at Jon. "And? What if I did? It doesn't change the fact that I am right and you are wrong."

Jon shrugs from where he knelt. "You're not right. I know you think you are, but you're not. Because the measure of a child's safety has never been just through physical. It's emotional. Mental. They feel safer just being around us, and even if we had Westeros knocking on our door tomorrow, I can almost guarantee you that now, they know someone will be looking out for them, rather than blindly hitting them and hurting them from afar."

He goes to stand again, walking back over to where Daenerys stood, but then sighs, turning his eyes back to Saeresa.

"She told me how you care for Nesara. I do, as well. She's a tough little girl with a heart of gold. But you ruined that the moment you allowed your husband to beat her senseless to the point where she nearly died. I don't care about honor. Or public reaction. When a child is hurt, you stop the person who is hurting them, or else you're just as bad."

At that, he sees tears in the woman's eyes for the first time ever, but he feels no emotion.

"You've lost your right to cry after everything," Jon mutters. "And if you think that's going to change a single thing that we do, you're delusional."

Saeresa doesn't respond, but she looks at the ground. Finally, he takes her gag and puts it back in, doing the same to Aenar before he could say something fucking stupid again.

Once Jon avoided the pull of Aenar's teeth near his fingers, he steps back and walks over to Daenerys, who now held in her hands what they would be used. She places it into his fingers, and he holds it tightly against him, before turning to where they stood, letting one half of it fall to the ground. As soon as the former king and queen looked up, their eyes froze in shock.

"I'm sure you recognize this," he states, turning to the king and queen. "From the volcano – when everyone was rescued we had some people go in after the fact to see if they could find any of the weapons you used. Turns out – this was the very one. Except we saw that this wasn't a one-time made weapon. This is the same one you've been using against anyone who dares stand in your way – your prisoners, your children, and my own son."

He holds it in front of their faces, seeing them morph into shock at the fact that he had it.

"This whip," he starts. "Isn't just a normal whip, as you might know. You had this modified so that it could inflict even more damage than normal. Do you see these, Dany?" he asks her, turning to show her the weapon. "They made sure that there were little spikes sewn into the leather so that when they would whip someone, tiny little insertions would be made on their back, making them bleed more."

He watches as Daenerys looks at the murder weapon before her eyes look back to where the former monarchs sat. "I can see it," she states, her tone dark. "And this is what murdered Daemon, correct?"

Jon nods, walking closer to them with the whip tightening in his hands. "Completely…and the one they used against Nesy, and anyone else who said no to what they were doing." He turns to the guard that was closest to them. "Take off their shirts."

Aenar fights with the guard, but Saeresa was the one who spoke as they removed her top. "Please, Jon-"

"You don't get to beg!" he snaps, his voice a hiss. She stares in shock at his angry tone but doesn't say anything. "You expect me to give you mercy?! After what you did to our children?!"

He feels a hand come over his shoulder and he turns his head to see Daenerys at his side, trying to calm him down. A part of him didn't want to. Honestly, he wanted to beat these motherfuckers senseless for even daring show tears after what they had done, but just like usual, his lover was the one who calmed the dragon that built within him.

Jon turns his gaze back to where the prisoners were, both of their shirts now completely removed. He holds the whip tighter. "When I was thinking of how to hurt you two after what you did, I didn't know what to do at first. Burning you was too easy – even if that's how you'll go in the end. But hurting you with the very weapons you created to hurt others…" He walks over behind them, raising the whip high. "Well…that's just poetic justice."

And then he brings it down with a hard *crack*.

Both of them scream in pain, but it only urges his rage to keep going, to keep hurting them. Each time they screamed, it was a mark for someone they had harmed. For the people, for the civilians, for their own family, for their children, for Daemon. He had lost count at one point how many he had felt was for his son. But each scream they had, it was almost like he was in the scorching volcano with them, heat sweating down his face, but instead of the king and queen, it was his child. And now, he finally got to get revenge on the very person who did that to him in the first place.

Each time that whip cracked onto their back, dark and large droplets of blood emerging from the tiny holes from the spikes along with the leather, it was a strike for Daemon. For Nesara. For every child, that they had put in danger.

He lost track of time after a bit. He knew he let a couple of seconds pass between each hit, but after a while, he didn't think about the sun setting or rising, or the sound of people walking by. He didn't even look at anyone who was in the room with him. It was just his eyes staring holes into the marks he placed on their back. His mind reeling back to when he saw those same marks on Daemon.

Those fucking bastards.

Suddenly a hand appears on his shoulder and he looks back over once again to see Daenerys there, but instead of the calm look she had in her eyes before when he had lost his temper, she had on an expression of anger. And quietly, she holds out her other hand. She was asking for a turn.

He silently hands it to her, and she steps forward to where he had just stood. The king and queen were already bleeding badly. She was pretty sure Saeresa was sobbing from the pain, but from the way Daenerys was looking at them, he had a feeling there was going to be even more. And then, with more strength than he had ever seen, she brings the whip right down onto Saeresa's back. Hard.

Daenerys had hit her so badly that he sword he could see bone appearing.

"Mercy, please!" Saeresa yells from where she sat.

Daenerys stares at her in shock before suddenly bringing the whip down on her again, and then once more on Aenar. "Did you give mercy to the children in that volcano? To Kinvara? To anyone!?"

She throws the whip onto the ground, taking a shuttering breath and stepping back. Jon picks it up and moves her behind him again, giving her a look that said 'take a breath. I'll handle the rest.' He didn't blame her for snapping. He would have too. But if they were too violent with how they treated them now, then they wouldn't be able to properly do what they wanted to.

He takes a good look at the marks on their backs, deep pieces of hot flesh dug into that seeped onto the ground, blood around his feet. It was enough for this punishment.

"Guards," Jon states, looking over at them. "Put their shirts on and take the prisoners to a cell. I have…specific punishments I want to give them now."

They work instantly, dragging both Saeresa and Aenar up. Aenar was cursing wildly at him, his eyes wide and bloodshot but full of rage, while Saeresa had calmed down, the tears staining her cheeks. On a normal day, Jon would have never condoned to this much torture. He was the one who had shot Mance Rayder in the heart when he was being burned.

But for people like this, they didn't deserve mercy.

When they were out of his sight, Jon turns to Daenerys, who still looked shaken from what Saeresa had said to her. He rests his hands against her cheeks and leans down, pressing his lips against hers, reminding her that they were here, and those two were going to be gone. This was real. After a moment, she pulls back, a soft look in her eyes.

"I need you to do something for me," he says to her gently.

"What is it?"

"Go to the temple and fetch Kinvara for me." Daenerys' brow furrows, but he only nods at her to continue. "Please. It's for what I have planned…and you'll want to see it."

Daenerys looks at him strangely before stepping back, nodding to what he said. She gives him one last kiss on the cheek before moving away from him and going towards the door that would lead out into the city. Once she was gone, Jon let out a deep breath and walks to where they would be chained.

---

Daenerys

To say today had already been completely maddening would be an understatement for the dragon queen.

They had woken up to trying to find loyalists, locked up most of them instead of killing them, had a bath and coupled, picked out dragon eggs with her children and Jon, and now she was watching as Kinvara walked gracefully towards the castle, knowing full-well what Jon had been planning.

How was it that she was the only person close to him that didn't seem to know what he was planning until this morning?

The fire with the dragon eggs, she had assumed would happen. Well, at least a part of her did. She had been understandably still surprised when he brought it up to her but she knew why. However, they whip he had found, she had no clue he would use. And knowing it was the same weapon that lead to her son's death…that had only made her even more shocked.

Jon hadn't been joking when he said he had planned what he was doing. That he 'had his methods.' And these were it.

She had never seen a killer in Jon. She had seen a loving father, a strategic genius, a good king – but a killer, she never thought he was. Or at least an execution-planner. It was so different…and yet, she didn't feel fear at it. If anything, she had felt the same emotions from him when he was hurting them. It was why she had wanted to let in a whip as well, despite knowing that he would deal the most damage.

And now, she only wondered what it was he was planning with Kinvara because when Daenerys had gone to go get her from her duties, the red priestess had gotten up without a word to come with her.

When Daenerys had walked into the castle once more, the guards told her that they were keeping the children together reading in the library so they wouldn't be near the cages or hear the screams of their parents until it was time for the burning – if they wanted to see it. For that, she was thankful. Her children may be brave, but they were still just that – children. She didn't need them seeing more horrible things than they already had.

As she walks to the bottom floors with Kinvara, Daenerys could almost feel the change in tone. Jon was already down here. And he was waiting.

She opens the door, and her eyes instantly go to where the two beaten-up monarchs were chained, whipped, and their backs against the wall, Aenar trying to break his chains while Saeresa stared up at her angrily. Jon sat in a chair, sharpening his sword, eyes trained on the steel. It was only then did she realize it was the one she had made for him, Blackfyre.

As soon as he looks up and sees her, however, his eyes change and he gestures for her to come to his side, which she does. "Kinvara," he starts. "Bring Saeresa close to the queen and I."

The woman does as he commands, walking to the former queen and dragging her towards where Jon sat. Daenerys watches from where she stood, a curious look in her eyes.

"So this is it, then?" Saeresa growls at him. "You're going to cut me up into tiny little pieces with your new sword?"

"No. Quite the contrary, actually," Jon mutters before looking back at the woman. "This sword is going to be for your husband – but I can't do what I plan to do to him without first working on you."

"Then get on with it," she states angrily.

Jon raises an eyebrow before leaning down to get closer to her. "My wife has told me many things today – including how you feel especially close with our youngest."

"Your youngest?!"

"Yes, our youngest because she is most definitely not yours anymore," Jon responds. "Either way, I can understand why. Out of your former children, she was the only one who could heal others. I mean, if not for Nesara, my son would be dead. She truly is a remarkable little girl. I understand why you would feel so close to her."

Saeresa stares at him, her brow furrowed. "What in the name of the seven hells are you talking about? What does this have to do with anything?"

"Well, it got me thinking that you're a healer – which is why you feel so close with Nesy," Jon states. "An advanced one, at that. You're the best one here. Which made me realize that none of this…actually harms you. Does it?"

Daenerys watches as Saeresa freezes. Hell, she does too. He was right.

"I…I don't know what you're talking about."

Jon hmms and leans back. "Kinvara. Rip off her shirt again."

"No, no-"

Kinvara does so quickly, and Daenerys looks at the marks on the woman's back to see them practically moving, the blood stopped, and what seemed to be skin starting to reattach itself. She stares in shock before turning to look at Jon, who was leaning back in his chair.

"Just as I thought," he states. "You've been consistently healing yourself so that it seems you don't feel pain when in reality it's only been the sorcery that has been saving you. Which I why I must commend you on your brilliant acting out there." He stands up and walks over to where Aenar was, who had stopped his thrashing and was staring at Jon in shock at his revelation. "And I'm assuming-" He stops his words and rips off Aenar's shirt, showing his wounds were healing as well. "-that your husband is receiving it as well, which seems to be true."

"Jon," Daenerys breathes from where she stood, looking down at a now-humiliated Saeresa. "How…how did you figure this out?"

"It was really just guessing," he admits, looking over at her before throwing Aenar's shirt to the ground. "Saeresa is the best healer here. A known prodigy. And her daughter is becoming one as well. It would only be normal for her to be exceptionally skilled at healing so much that she doesn't even need to touch the spot she's trying to heal – only focus on it. From there, I started to plan using their own whip against them, not only for that 'poetic justice' I stated earlier, but to see how far I could take them before she began to heal. And now, looking at these wounds, I've realized she felt no pain at all. She was healing the whole time – which is how she and her husband are still standing right now. She was only acting."

Daenerys stares at him in surprise. Apparently Jon did know something.

He turns his eyes back to where Saeresa sat, his brow raised. "Do you deny any of this?"

"…no," she mutters, looking up at him. "I don't. And I'll continue to do it. You're not going to hurt us as long as I am still breathing – no amount of torture can break us."

"Ah, not now it can't. But once I used my secret weapon here, it will." He rests a hand on Kinvara's shoulder, and the red priest smirks. Daenerys looks at him confused.

"What do you mean?" she asks him.

"Well…when I was figuring out ways to somehow take your healing from you, I distinctly remember you saying long ago that your husband once had fire sorcery within him, and that he had to have that taken away from him for the 'good of the city' because it was too much 'power.'" Oh, he did not. "So, I did some digging. How was it that a man, who had power beyond belief, could have his powers taken away from him like that? And turns out, the answer is simple – through a red priest. Or priestess."

Daenerys comes forward to Kinvara's other side. "Is this true?"

"Yes. It's actually quite simple. A blood sorcery ritual. One that has been passed down in royalty for years."

At this point, Saeresa had tears streaming down her cheeks, on her knees, looking up at them. "Please!" she pleads. "Gods, don't take my power away. I'm nothing without it. I'll stop healing myself. Just let me die the way I was. Please."

Jon snorts from where he stood, before suddenly reaching down and grabbing her head sharply, causing her to look up and hiss at the pain. "If you wanted mercy you should have healed my son and daughter when your husband nearly beat them. Daenerys said you are nothing without your mind. Well now, your mind is going to have nothing to focus on. No power to rely on. You will be a shell of your former self – the way it should be. I may not be able to hurt you physically right now, but mentally? That's the goal."

He pushes her back, and Daenerys watches in awe as he nods at Kinvara to step forward.

"Proceed with the ritual – and make sure it hurts."

Kinvara nods and steps forward. Daenerys watches as Saeresa tries to back away from Kinvara's hands but now that she had stopped the healing, her body was failing her. Kinvara grabs the woman and places her against the wall, before taking her chained hands into her own, slicing into them roughly and having them pasted onto what seemed like an old book of rituals.

Daenerys shakes her head as she watches Kinvara begin to chant, and Saeresa begins to scream. Blood starts to ease out of her mouth and onto the floor. The lights in the room grow brighter until they are completely burned out. Everything shook. If Daenerys didn't know any better, she would say that Saeresa was getting tortured.

Whatever it was that Kinvara was doing, it was making Saeresa's body turn inside out.

And then suddenly, it was all over. Kinvara steps back and takes a deep breath, speaking in ancient Valyrian before turning her gaze to Jon. "It is done."

When she moves her body, Daenerys sees blood at the edge of Saeresa's lips, her body leaned against the wall, seemingly completely still, but her eyes connect with Daenerys'. And for the first time ever, she sees them with no life. Nothing. There was only blankness.

"Holy hells," she whispers, before turning to Kinvara. "Are you…alright after that?"

"I am perfectly fine, my queen. I would do anything for you and Jon." She bows her head to both of them. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go join the rest of the crowd. The burning should start soon."

The woman leaves after that, and Daenerys turns her eyes back to Jon, who now moves the stilled Saeresa and looks at her back. As soon as he does, a smirk comes on his lips.

"Her powers are gone." And to prove it to her, he turns the woman around, showing Daenerys that her wounds were bleeding again and no longer healing. After that, he drops the woman against the wall, who was quiet and shaking now. "How does it feel? To have what you held dear taken away from you?" The woman doesn't respond but glares at him, blood still seeping from her mouth, but as soon as she opens to somehow form a word, all she could do was choke on her own blood and lean over on her hands and knees. Jon stands, staring down at her. "Good. Feel that. Feel the same fucking pain the children felt. It's the least you can do before you're sent to your death."

When he moves back from her, he suddenly grabs Blackfyre again, before moving to the door and calling in two guards. It wasn't long before they walk in, bowing to Daenerys before turning to where Jon stood.

"Hold Aenar." They do so, walking to the chained man. He was now groaning and moaning in pain since the healing had stopped on his back, but still somehow held his look of contempt up at Jon. "Now for you," he mutters. "I wanted to make sure I had you pay. One way or another, there would be a physical reaction from you. But I couldn't do that with your wife constantly healing. But now, I have all the free reign in this world. But – I won't do this alone."

He looks over at Daenerys, reaching out his hand. She was still in shock as to what happened to Saeresa, but she wordlessly takes his hand in hers, pulling her to him gently.

"Daenerys, take out your sword," he says softly to her. Normally she would have asked why, but the way he said it made her feel safe doing so like it was worth something. So, she does, pulling it from its holster, holding it tightly. Once it's within her grasp, he turns to the guards. "Hold out his hands."

They unchain them from each other and pin him to the wall, with Aenar still yelling explicit things at him. Jon, however, did not seem to care. He steps forward, a dark look in his eyes Daenerys had only seen when he found out about Daemon and Mae.

"You have harmed and murdered so many people," Jon snarls. "I'm shocked that it's taken this long for someone to find justice for what you've done, but I refuse to be a part of this game any longer. Now, I can harm you, for every single person you've ever hurt yourself. So this-"

He suddenly swipes the sword down onto Aenar's right hand, cutting it completely clean off. Daenerys watched as the limb falls to the ground as Aenar screams in pain, blood pouring from the incision. And that is why he was sharpening his sword.

"That's for every single man, woman, and child you've harmed since the beginning of your reign." He raises Blackfyre again, and Aenar stares at it in fear. "This-" He lunges the sword down onto his left hand, Aenar shouting so loudly Daenerys was sure birds were flying out of fear outside. "That's for harming your own fucking children, beating them until they were bloody and near death's door. They will never have harm from you come to them again."

He lowers Blackfyre, now covered in Aenar's blood, who was whimpering in pain. He turns to Daenerys.

"I want you to do it next," he says to her. Only now in the light did she realize he had tiny droplets of blood on his face from where he had plunged his sword into Aenar. "Pick a limb that he's used to hurt people. To get back for what he's done."

Daenerys stares at the now shivering, pleading man. She had been one to show mercy in the past, but for the first time, she didn't feel that same amount of human in her. She felt how she was back in Meereen when she crucified those slave masters. And honestly, it was what she wanted to do to him.

But instead, she decides another way.

"Take off his pants," she commands the guards, her tone low. Aenar stares at her in shock as he fights their hands, but his weak body was of no use to what she planned to do. "Next, his breeches." They do so, leaving the bloodied monarch completely bare bottom-down. She stares at his flaccid cock, raising an eyebrow. "Amazing that that is what you used to harm your daughter. But it makes sense – a man with a tiny brain has a tiny cock."

She raises Dark Sister, glaring at the man in anger.

"But this - this is for Mae."

With one clean swipe, she brings the sword down onto his cock and watches as it falls to the ground, blood spurting from his body. Aenar thrashes around, but Daenerys watches as soon as the guards let go of the king, he falls to the ground, screaming in pain. Jon turns to the guards once more, nodding his head.

"Take them out of here and string them to the pyre – it's time we ended this."

The guards make quick work now of the two prisoners. For the first time ever, Aenar wasn't fighting his restraints - instead being walked out of the cell, staring down at his bleeding limbs while the men grab his pants – Jon instead stops them, shaking his head.

"Let him die with shame."

The guard shrugs but nods his head, heading off. Saeresa was carried out. It didn't seem she could even walk after what Kinvara had done to her. But once both of them were gone, it was only Daenerys and Jon that remained in the room.

She looked down at her sword with the man's blood on it, and then at Jon's before her eyes moved to the pool of red liquid around the floor. It was silent between the two. And then, she moves her eyes up to his.

"You weren't joking when you said it wouldn't be pretty – I'll never doubt you again."

He lets out a huff of air, a clear sign of amusement at her comment, before placing Blackfyre back into its holster. He looks down at her as he walks to her side, and places his hands against her cheeks, stroking her skin. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you all of this – it's been swimming around in my head for I don't know how long – I didn't want to scare you off with what I knew."

"Scare me off?" she laughs, looking up at him. "Jon – that was bloody brilliant. The way you used what she had said in the past against her, bringing Kinvara in – even the limbs you cut off of Aenar-"

"As well as you – good choice, by the way."

"Thank you," she responds, shaking her head. "Either way – that was incredibly smart. I…I don't think I've ever seen you…scheme like that." She looks up at him with a raised brow before biting her lip. "Good gods…maybe I am becoming my father."

Jon's brow furrows in confusion. "Why do you say that?"

"Because I don't know…seeing you overcome what she said, being so smart against her, using her own words…it's exactly the man I knew you were. It makes me…want you, I suppose," she mutters, rubbing the back of her neck. "Which is bad because we are literally standing in a pool of blood. Their blood."

Jon chuckles at her embarrassed statement but reaches down, grabbing her hand. "It's alright…I understand. It's a different part of me." The two walked out together, leaving the mess behind them for someone else to clean. "I just felt…so much darkness. They've fucked us over so many times and I felt…justified doing it to them. There can be no peace until justice is served – and I think we just delivered a good amount of it."

"And now we'll deliver the rest," she responds, turning to him.

Jon lets out a low sigh as he looks outside. Already, thousands had begun to gather. "Are you ready to finally be rid of them? Once and for all?"

Daenerys feels a slight smile come over her lips. "More ready than I will ever be."

---

Jon

Once they were brought outside, Jon and Daenerys walked to the front through a pathway created by the people. Most had seen the damage that had been done to the former monarchs and many were praising what they did. Jon, however, felt indifferent about it.

Yes, he didn't regret hurting those people. They had done terrible things and he wanted them gone, and he wanted them to make sure they knew that the city wanted them gone. And while it was nice to have their supporters agree with what he did, he didn't want to be remembered as the king who beat the former rulers bloody. No, he wanted to be better, as did Dany.

But he assumed that would be for tomorrow, and today was to end this constant war between them and the former dragons of the East.

As he walked up there, he was surprised to see that Dan and Daemon were both waiting for him, along with the Galeron's behind them, but he could see from how they stood that they were slightly uncomfortable with what happened. He particularly noticed how Mae's eyes would travel to her former father's lower section.

"Hey," he gently to them once they arrive on the stage overlooking where the pyre was. "You don't have to be here for this if you don't want to be. It's not a commitment."

Dan and Daemon share a look before shrugging their shoulders. "Well, they killed me, so we're going to watch them die," Daemon states simply, which causes Dan to nod her head in agreement.

Jon sighs and turns to look at the others. Mae was stubborn and would not leave, with Zaevar at her side. "They've done too much to hurt us…besides, I think you might have hurt them enough already," Zaevar mutters, looking over at where the two monarchs were tied. "But we want to see this through to the end."

Daenerys appears at his side, looking to where Nesara was hidden behind her sister's legs. "Nesy, how about you come here to me?"

Nesara glances up from where she stood, a look of fear on her eyes, and nods. She rushes over to Daenerys' side and she lifts her little girl into her arms, watching as she buries her head into Dany's neck. Jon didn't blame her. The little girl hated her parents, but she had seen enough horror in her lifetime so far – especially from the volcano. She didn't need to see this.

He looks over at his elder children before standing straight. "If you're sure, this is your last chance."

"We're staying," Mae confirms, to which the other three children nod. Satisfied with their intent, Jon turns his head to address the rowdy crowd, but before he could do so, Mae reaches out and grabs his hand. "Did…did you cut off his…"

Her words trail off, but Jon knew exactly what part she was talking about. "I personally didn't. Daenerys did. That's why he has no pants right now."

Mae looks over at Daenerys, who was speaking sweetly to Nesara to calm the little girl down. And then, in her quietest voice, she mutters, "Good."

Jon feels himself smile at her response but doesn't say anything, just squeezes her shoulder and urges her to go back and stand with the rest of the children. As soon as he turns his head to face the people, his eyes go directly to where the former monarchs were laid, their arms and legs tied to the pyre. A stream of blood followed to their bodies. He could see every outline of each whip mark on their backs.

Aenar wasn't yelling or screaming for once, just staring ahead in anger, while Saeresa was completely still. It was as if the moment her sorcery was taken, she turned into a statue. He didn't blame her. But there was no way in this world he felt bad for what he had done.

His eyes look among the crowd, seeing the familiar faces and people that had helped them get this far, from the commoners to the dragonlords, to Taevar and Kinvara, who stood near the edge of the stage. He even saw Arya and Eleana standing in the front, whispering something to each other, before Arya gives him the thumbs up from where she stood, clearly approving of what they had done to the monarchs.

Everyone was here. And it was time to move the fuck on.

"People of Valyria," he begins, his voice loud and calm, something that caused every single person to hush down and turn their attention to him. "You have been through many hardships these past years, have seen people rise and fall, live, and die. Most of which has been due to the rulership of these two – but not anymore. Today, a dragon rises from the ashes."

The people around him begin to cheer. He looks to Daenerys, who encourages him to keep speaking.

Jon looks back to the people, raising a hand, to which they begin to quiet down once more.

"I never believed I was going to be helping rule something like this. I always thought I would live out my days alone, much less with a beautiful family and thousands of people like you by our side. But after everything that has happened, I'm proud to stand here and defend what you have gone through. Now, we exit the old era and enter into a new one, of peace and happiness. And that starts with the deaths of these two…you may have noticed that they have been beaten bloody and mutilated already, but I don't think that's enough. Do you?"

They all protest, their voice united in one large front. Jon feels himself smile a bit, but wipes it off his face, trying to remain as regal as he could.

"If you can see, my family and I have picked out dragon eggs that will be reborn from the ashes," he states, gesturing to where the eggs laid near the base of the pyre. "With these deaths, we will spring forward new life, both literally and figuratively. And from here, we will forge a new path, bring new families, and revitalize what used to be Valyria. We will take back what is ours and build a new world, starting with the people right outside these walls. So tell me, Valyria – are you ready?"

Everyone raises their fists, chanting and screaming multiple things, in all different kinds of languages and tongues, but the one thing he recognizes in all of them, in every single voice, was passion. A passion he had not seen since before the Night King arrived.

So, with a smile, he turns to where Daenerys stood. She gently lowers Nesara into Mae's arms and takes her place next to him as an equal, looking across the crowd of people. At that moment, Drogon and Jonarys appear from over their heads, taking their spots across from the pyre's, their heads ready for what they were prepared to do.

Jon looks to Dany, and she nods. It was time.

Within seconds, he turns his eyes back to where the monarchs were. There was one last look of depravity in Saeresa's eyes. One more expression of anger in Aenar's. But compared to what they were before, it was nothing. And now, it was time to move past it.

"Aenar and Saeresa of House Galeron," he begins. "I, King Jaehaerys Targaryen-"

"And I, Queen Daenerys Targaryen-"

"Sentence you to die," both of them say. Jon takes a look at Dany, who squeezes his hand from where she stood. And then, moving his gaze to where the dragons stood, both of them say the words they had wanted to say for so long. "Dracarys."

Bright orange and red flames burst forth from the dragons, lighting the pyre on fire as the two monarchs screamed in pain for mere seconds, but was drowned out by the sounds of people yelling in happiness and raising their hands, chanting their house words once more. He looks over at the children, making sure they were alright. Nesara was still snuggled into Mae's chest, but other than that, they were doing fine. Daemon even nods his head once the screaming stops, letting out a deep sigh.

They had been justified.

He turns his gaze back to the lighted pyre, the flames creating a beautiful glow around the courtyard, and for once, Jon felt relief enter into him. No longer would he have to worry about these loyalists, or the king and queen. He could focus on being a ruler, and being with his family. This felt real. This felt good.

They were dead.

He looks over at Arya, who's eyes were trained solely on the dragons. He would have to take her for that ride soon.

And then his eyes move over to his love, his life, his light in the darkness, and he leans over and presses his lips against hers, a kiss filled with many promises of a new life, a new beginning. When he had said dragons would emerge from the ashes, he had been serious in regards to new creatures, but now, it was their time to make Valyria rise again.

When he pulls away, he sees that fucking beautiful smile that he wanted to make sure was on her lips every day for the rest of their lives. And it was then that he realized the moment they get back to Meereen, he was going to marry her. He hated this lie. He wanted her as his wife, as soon as possible. He wanted them to build this new world together, even more now. He had never been one for being a leader like this, for taking on a role so large.

But seeing these people, so passionate, so willing to follow their vision – all he wanted was to make it happen. Is this what a king did? He didn't know. But he hoped he was doing something right.

He presses a soft kiss against the tip of her nose before turning his eyes back to where the pyre was. The bodies were becoming ashy now, being burnt to a crisp, the deaths coming quickly. He knew that the dragon fire would have killed them fast, which is why he was even more pleased they had hurt them before the pyre.

But suddenly, there was a crack. A beautiful crack. Not from the flames or the breaking of glass to celebrate from their people. No.

It was from an egg.

He turns to Dany, who smiles widely, pushing him forward. Jon steps down from the stage and towards the pyre, being mindful of the commoners who congratulate him and pat him on the back as he did, some even watching as he stepped into the flames, trying to see from where the crack had emerged. Was it Nesara's egg? No, nor Mae's. He could see Dan and Daemon's still there, unbroken, and Daenerys' was sitting quietly. So…that only meant-

He hears a soft screech come from behind him and he turns around to see that a small head was peeking out from within the very egg he had picked up in the volcano, his egg he had kept safe this whole time. Flames start to catch on his clothes, but he doesn't care. He leans down as the dragon breaks forward from its shell, screeching out softly.

Jon smiles as he holds out his arm, and within seconds, the little dragon steps onto his now bare skin. He quickly steps out of the flames as the dragon climbs onto his shoulder, nibbling at his ear, before screeching once more. It was a beautiful shade of purple, its scales dark and menacing, one that he had a feeling would grow quickly.

He didn't know what he would name it, or when the others would hatch from the flames, but he knew one thing when he looked back to his family, seeing all of their gleeful looks in their eyes, and the love in Dany's.

He could never go back to the way things were. He was a dragon now, through and through. And with this new child on his shoulder, he was prepared for anyone that stood in their way.

The past had died, and now it was time for them to bring forward a new world.

---

And the former king and queen are dead. About damn time honestly lol

I did not mean for this to get dragged out for so long but these chapters just kept getting longer and I couldn't stop it lol now we really get into the empire of fire and ice. Next chapter is going to be planning the conquering of Astapor and Yunkai, followed by more love and sex and blood as GOT does lol

As always, love it? Hate it? Want to send me to the wall for all of eternity? Let me know in the reviews, as they always inspire me to keep writing and pushing out these chapters for you. I'm so happy to all of you that have reviewed so thank you so much for making my day a little bit brighter! Don't forget to follow or favorite if you would like to join us on our adventure and I will see you all in the next chapter. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you guys have an awesome day! Wash your hands and stay healthy!