Riverrun, 302 AC

Aylis is staring at her husband, her hands nervously palming each other's. Her brown hair beautifully plaited is falling on her chest, which raises faster with each words that comes out of Stannis's mouth.

When he has arrived, just a few hours ago, she has been happier than in months. He has met their children, and has hugged his other children. Aylis knows he is not going to stay long. Thus, she wants to enjoy each second by his side. After Edmure has greeted them all, the men have been fed, and then have rest. The night has quickly come and she has out the children to bed. This is when Stannis has taken her hand, and has said he needs to talk to her. She has led him to her chamber, still the chamber of her childhood. Edmure has thought their father's chambers would better suit a king and a queen, but Aylis has refused. This is in this room she has written to Stannis so many times, in these sheets she has given him her most precious gift.

Tears come to her eyes, but it is not because of the souvenirs. Stannis has just told her he needed to sleep with Melisandre. Aylis has always felt weird around her: intrigued by her mysterious nature, jealous of her beauty, and grateful of her loyalty to Stannis. But, it is easy to be loyal to the winning side. Would she still follow him if he wouldn't have taken Kings Landing? Would she die for him like, Aylis is sure of this, Davos would do? The voice of Stannis vanishes in the air, and she knows he is waiting for her answer now. "Do you give your consent?". Does she really have a choice? Of course she does not want to see her husband sleeping with another woman, what kind of wife would want that? She looks at him, finally looking up from her tortured hands, red with how hard she squeezed them. Stannis holds his gaze at hers: he looks so tired, so sad and so unsure of his decision. Aylis knows it has to cost him as much as it costs her. She stands up slowly and, her legs shaking, she walks the few meters that separate them. Stannis sits up, never looking away from her. She places her hands on his shoulders, and whispers with a voice so different than hers, than she wonders if she really speaks the words:

"Do what is needed to save Westeros"

Stannis feels the weight of the anguish disappearing, immediately replaced by guilt. He looks down and Aylis hands move to the back of his head, stroking his short hair and pressing his head against her chest. After a moment, his arms embrace her too, and he closes his eyes, wishing this bloody war would be already over.

"Please..." she whispers. "Just not here..."

He nods again and whispers too:

"Thank you..."

"What for?..." she whispers again.

For being so supportive. For understanding my duty, and yours. For having been so patient with me. For having loved me since you have known the meaning of this word. For being the wife I do not deserve. For giving me the most perfect children ever. For being the ideal mother and the best queen.

He wishes he could tell her these words, but it is not him. Instead, he just hugs her tight, not answering her with sentences, but with gestures. His lips brush the skin of her cleavage. She takes a step backwards and he thinks she is not up for it, since the talk they just have had. But, instead, she stares at him, moving her dress away from her body, revealing her nudity. His gaze wanders on her body. After all these years, he is still appealed by her. He wonders if he will even stop being, one day. Before he knows it, he stands up, pins her on the bed and clumsily undresses. As he slides in her in a rough thrust, he whimpers, overwhelmed by the pleasure of making one again with her, "I have missed you, my queen". He repeats it, like a litany, when her nails scratch his back, when cries escape her mouth, when their bodies turn slick with sweat, when he locks eyes with her, as he feels her climax arousing, because he wants to see this light in her eyes, just like he knows she wants to see his too. His breath hard, he allows himself to moan, deeper and deeper, louder and louder, and he collapses on her as they come together, in a perfect union. Aylis's arms wrap around him tight, and Stannis closes his eyes a second, trying to catch his breath, and feeling a bit ashamed of what they have just done. He looks up at her to see if she is alright, but her eyes are closed, her mouth half opened, and he knows she has fallen asleep. He slowly pulls out from her warm body, and lies by her side, falls asleep in turn.

Stannis wakes up in the middle of the night, in a sweat, crying out after a nightmare. He needs a second to realise where he is, and to look at Aylis, scared he would wake her up. But she is still asleep, curled up on her side. Swallowing hard, he finds his breeches and puts them on before wandering through the sleeping castle. He walks towards the children's bedroom, his bare feet on the cold stones making him shiver violently. His hand leans on the handle and he enters: the children are all asleep, in different beds. He has disapproved this, but Aylis has not cared. To him, Aistan would be raised differently than his siblings. But his mother has been too scared of losing him. Hence, she wanted to keep him as close as possible. Stannis sighs a bit, but walks to every bed, stroking the soft black hair of each of his children, before stopping in front of the wooden cradle standing in the middle of the room. He stares at the little baby sleeping peacefully, frowning severely, examining each features. Her face is Aylis's, but she is strongly built and her skull is covered with dark hair. He hesitantly takes her hand in his, and her little fingers immediately wrap around his index, tight. He smiles a bit, feeling mixed emotions: the happiness and pride of being a father, of course, but, meanwhile, the sadness of having spent so much time away from them all, of having missed the delivery of his last child, her first months. He feels terribly bad, because he knows he will miss even more soon. He promises himself to come back from this war, from these battles, to finally enjoy the family life he deserves.