Love and Limelight

There were far too many people. They were everywhere - surrounding her, talking and pointing - and Dany ran away as quickly as she could, opening the door to a small storeroom and hiding inside; sitting down on the floor and hugging her knees to her chest, hoping no-one would find her.

Time passed, her heart-rate eased and soon she began to feel a little cold and hungry. There was still plenty of noise outside but now she could hear one voice clearly sounding through the din. Jon's voice.

"Dany? Dany, my love. Where are you?"

She managed to lift her head but, when she tried to call out, she found herself unable to make any sound. 'Jon' she tried to shout. 'I'm here!' But still she was unable to speak or move, her whole body feeling heavy and unresponsive as she desperately tried to force her body into action.

'I don't want to stay here,' she cried. 'I want to be with Jon out there.'

'But they're all out there too,' another voice cautioned. 'All the people and the cameras and … your old life come back to haunt you.'

'But I can't stay here. If I stay here I'm all alone.' Dany was feeling weaker and so tired and she somehow knew that falling asleep would mean she would disappear forever. 'I need to move. I need to get up. I need to get to Jon.' But it was more than that.

"I need Jon. I need him in my life."

And, with that thought, she was finally able to move. The door opened and her beautiful boyfriend was standing there waiting for her.

"Dany?" he asked, concerned.

"Jon. Please help me."

"Dany … wake up."

And she did, gasping for air, clenching and unclenching her fists, relieved to no longer be frozen. "Jon ..." she gasped, looking around, trying to reassure herself that she was safe here in bed with him by her side.

"Are you all right?"

She turned to look at him, nodding slowly as she watched his deep, dark eyes staring at her. "I love you," she said and his concerned stare instantly melted away.

"Oh, Dany." He pulled her closer, kissing her gently.

"I need to …" She frowned, trying to put her dream into words. Trying to find the best way to explain. "I think I have to go to this charity event of yours."

He frowned. "You don't have to."

She nodded slowly. "I-I think I do. That nightmare means … I think I have to, but only if you're with me."

"Of course," he said, moving to gently kiss her again. "You know I'll look after you."

"Yes," she said, her confidence growing. "You can be my bodyguard. That glower of yours should put off anyone from being too rude."

He frowned. "I thought I'd be going as your boyfriend but ..." He blinked, suddenly understanding. "Oh, but you're saying that that would give you the wrong sort of attention?"

She nodded. "And put the spotlight on you too. I think it'll be easier if we do it that way … for now. Until we're both used to the idea."

He looked at her closely, as if trying to convince himself that she was entirely recovered from her nightmare. "If you think it's for the best and if you're really sure you want to do this?"

She nodded. "I've been thinking about it since my conversation with Missi last night but the nightmare confirmed it really."

He nodded, his hand trailing lower and the smallest smile playing on his lips. "And so tell me, my love, do you now need comforting after that?"

~o~0~o~

Dany continued to change her mind back and forth as to whether she should attend the event even though, deep down, she knew the decision had been made and that she had to go because her nightmare had had some real truth to it. She knew it was telling her that hiding away for the rest of her life was not the way forward and that she would only be happy once she had finally faced up to her fears.

And everyone had agreed, despite their concern about whether she was truly ready. Missandei, Jon, Davos and Tyrion had all agreed that it was the right way forward and that attending a charity event was a good compromise; an opportunity for Daenerys to be seen in public with the emphasis being on the charity rather than on her.

Missi had helped her with her clothes choice; a black dress with an exceptionally low cut bodice and red accessories; lipstick, necklace, rings and high gladiator heels laced up her calves. Jon's jaw had almost hit the floor when he'd opened the door to collect her and she would have been amused at his frustration at not being able to kiss her and mess up her lipstick, if he hadn't looked so sexy in his all-black suit and that she was under exactly the same restrictions.

"Thank you, Jon," she said simply as they reached the hotel lobby. "Thank you for giving me the courage and supporting me and ..." Her lips twitched. "… for everything else."

"You're welcome," he replied, his dark gaze dropping downwards. "How is that dress even staying up?"

"Magic?" she suggested with a wink.

"This is going to be a very long night," he grumbled, although there was a slight sparkle in his eyes too. "But I am looking forward to receiving my pay for this body-guarding work later."

She gave him an affectionate warning look. "Okay, no more teasing from either of us. This is going to be difficult enough for all sorts of reasons."

He nodded, now fully serious. "I understand."

Dany had already given Davos permission to mention his 'surprise celebrity guest' during his opening talk, even though she didn't want to be formally announced. Instead she waited in a side room with Jon and Missandei until the function hall was mostly full, before casually walking in to mingle with the guests - nervously waiting until she was recognised - with Jon standing just one small step behind her right shoulder and Missi also hovering close by.

~o~0~o~

"Wow, you're really good at this," Jon mumbled as she parted company from a couple of business men with a smile and took a very small sip from a glass of champagne to help calm her nerves.

"I have to admit that it's easier than I expected to fall back into playing the role of Daenerys Targaryen," she said.

Jon frowned. "What do you mean?"

"When you're in a big show like 'Magical Menagerie', a large part of the job is the promotion; doing interviews or attending sci-fi conferences and there you're obviously not your character, as such, but you're never exactly yourself either. The 'act' you put on there - the one I'm putting on here - is a subtly different version of yourself? I got coaching on how to be Daenerys in much the same way as I got coached to be Khaleesi. It's only now that this part of the fame game is coming back to me."

"I had no idea it was so … complicated."

She was about to talk about this unique role some more, but another group of guests had noticed her and were approaching rapidly with eager smiles on their faces. Jon quickly took a small step back whilst Dany turned to the new people with a bright smile, happily shaking their hands, acting the part, thanking them for their kind words about the show and taking out her favourite photo of her with her three dogs to show them. (It was a shame the hotel would not allow them inside.)

Then she saw another familiar sight from the past and swallowed hard. "Oh dear, here we go."

"What is it?" Jon asked.

"A photographer. This is the part I was dreading."

It was all very well working this small group of select guests, but the journalists here would now have realised that they had rather more than some dull little charity event and the nationals would certainly be taking note tomorrow. And Dany hadn't missed the few guests who had already been pointing their phones in her direction this evening, no doubt uploading pictures of 'Khaleesi' to their various social media accounts.

Up until that point it had been fairly calm but, now that word had got around that the famous Daenerys Targaryen was in the building, she was getting fewer breaks and the guests were starting to get tipsy and considerably more pushy. Suddenly Jon stepped forward to move in front of her, simply staring at one guy who had moved just a little too close, and Dany tried not to grin at the sight of this burly, six foot tall man turn suddenly pale on seeing her bodyguard's glare and quickly and nervously step back.

"Impressive," she mumbled, smirking at him, and Jon's lips twitched in reply as he gently urged her to move away from the gathering crowd. She felt his hand against her waist, the gentle touch warm and thrilling, and looked up to find his eyes focused on her intently, dark and concerned. She smiled her thanks for his consideration only vaguely aware of a few camera flashes going off and wondering if any of her fans were causing a scene behind her back.

"A little break?" Jon suggested and she nodded, allowing him to lead her out of the function room and escort her and Missandei towards the toilets.

"You're doing well," Missi said to her as they walked in to find the room mercifully empty, "and Jon's looking suitably stern and brooding … most of the time."

"Most of the time?" she asked, checking her reflection in the mirror.

Her friend smirked. "Yes, when he's not gazing at you longingly."

Dany rolled her eyes at her friend's teasing and refused to rise to the bait. She felt better for having had a short break and the chance to freshen up but couldn't fail to miss Jon's wide-eyed stare as they walked back towards him in the corridor. She licked her lips, stunned anew at how good he looked in his suit tonight.

"Will you two stop doing that," Missandei complained.

"Doing what?" Jon asked.

"Having eye-sex in the middle of the corridor. It's most off-putting." Then she walked away from them with a sly smile on her face, leaving the pair staring after her, opened mouthed.

~o~0~o~

Dany received even more attention when she returned to the hall, extra photographers having apparently appeared from nowhere, and with even more people now desperate to meet her. Missandei ensured Dany took breaks whenever she was feeling overwhelmed and Jon's presence became even more useful, as he stayed extra close to her and used his glower to full effect. Finally though, the evening drew to a close and Davos took to the stage to talk to everyone and thank them for attending and for raising so much money.

This was the last challenge for Dany, stepping up to take the applause and talk a little about the part she had played recently and how much she admired the good work the charity did. This was easier though, far closer to acting, standing up on stage with the audience a comfortable blur whilst reciting learnt lines. Still she was shaking like a leaf by the time she'd walked off, with Missi handing her a glass of water and Davos and Jon both looking at her as if they were worried she was going to break into a thousand little pieces.

"I'm fine," she reassured them. "Just glad it's over."

"Well, I can't thank you enough, Dany," Davos said. "Just having you as part of our team last week was enough to increase the money we raised but your appearance tonight … well, that's been priceless and we should get even more if the local newspapers take up this story."

She winced, remembering all the cameras and phones pointed at her tonight. "I'm sure there'll be plenty of coverage and, well, if it raises more money then it'll have all been worth it."

"Well, I'm grateful, as I said. I know that it wasn't easy for you and I think perhaps I have Jon to thank for that?"

He raised his hands. "Hey, I didn't push her at all. It was her suggestion."

"It was," Dany agreed, "but it was because of you. If I hadn't met you I would never have had the courage to come back out in public. I only hope you won't come to regret it."

He shook his head. "I can't say I'm comfortable with being in front of the cameras but, as long as I can be with you, it'll all be worth it."

"Absolutely the right thing to say," she said, fighting the sudden urge to kiss him. They were alone here, apart from Davos and Missandei but, as she'd said before, it was best for them to learn how to keep their distance whenever they were out in public. At least for now.

"Your taxi's here, Dany," Missi said then.

She smiled and left the room with her friend, throwing a knowing look at Jon who nodded in reply. She didn't want to be seen leaving the hotel with him tonight, just in case, but had given him a spare key to her flat so that he could make his own way there later.

"It's started," Missi announced with a loud sigh as she looked at her phone on the back seat of the taxi.

"Oh?"

"I've just looked up the Khaleesi hashtag on Twitter and there's a slightly blurry picture on there uploaded from someone's phone."

Dany sighed, looking over her friend's shoulder. "I did notice a few phones pointed in my direction." Another picture scrolled into frame. "Ooh, that's a good one of Jon."

Missandei rolled her eyes. "God, you are so smitten!"

She giggled. "Many more like that and he'll be getting his own fan following."

"Yeah, but I'd brace yourself. I'm sure it won't be long before the fan-sites discover that the elusive Daenerys Targaryen had come out of hiding."

She shuddered. "I'll leave you to keep an eye on all that then, Missi. I've learnt from past experience that I do not want to be hanging around those sort of sites come tomorrow morning."

~o~0~o~

"I worried for a moment that you might have changed by the time I got here," Jon said as he sauntered into her living room and saw her still in her black dress and high heeled red shoes.

"I was thinking about undressing," she admitted as she stood up from the sofa and walked towards him, "but then I remembered the look you gave me when you picked me up and changed my mind."

"Good," he said, quickly closing the gap between them and running his hands up her bare arms, his head tipped as he stared down at her bodice and obviously tried to figure out how it was staying up. Then, with very little warning, he ducked down to kiss her neck, nibbling her gently whilst his hands trailed lazily down her back.

"You looked so damn sexy all night," he mumbled against her skin. "It was torture."

"Same back at you," she said. "That suit ..."

"And the sight of your legs in those shoes." He dropped down to his knees, running his hands up her calves and then even higher. "You were almost the same height as me tonight in those things."

"You like them?"

"I like everything I see. These stockings and this dress ..." As his hands slid higher they lifted the hem up with them and he groaned as he saw the lacy garters around her thighs. "What underwear were you wearing?"

"Why don't you look and see," she teased as his lips kissed their way up her leg and his hands rolled her dress up to her hips.

"God, you might was well not have bothered. This is practically string."

She scoffed. "Considerably more expensive, I assure you."

"I dread to think how much per millimetre."

She smirked at him. "Why, Jon? Do you not approve of them?"

His only reply was a hum as he started to explore the skin around the lacy thong with his fingers, tracing slowly up to her hips, along her lower stomach and then down to the inside of her thighs. His lips then joined them; kissing and licking, whilst his fingers teased very slowly under the material causing all sorts of wonderful shivers to cavort across her skin.

"Bedroom ..." she gasped, grabbing a handful of his dark curls, mostly to hold herself steady as her legs became ever more wobbly.

"No," he replied. "I want you here. Now. I want you to be wearing all of this when I take you."

"Jon I ..." Her insides twisted and she suddenly found it hard to breathe.

"Lie down on the floor," he commanded.

She could barely stand anyway, collapsing onto her back on the rug as Jon bunched her dress up to her waist and settled between her legs, unzipping his trousers impatiently and then pushing the thong aside as he prepared to enter her.

He turned his head just before he did so, licking his lips at the sight of her stocking legs and bright red shoes, the sight obviously turning him on.

"Gorgeous," he declared as he claimed her lips and pushed himself into her. "Oh ..." He paused after just a couple of thrusts, gasping.

"What is it?" she breathed, his own passion now fuelling hers. "Please don't stop."

"You were driving me mad all night and now … this … I'm not going to last long."

Dany laughed gently, leaning up to kiss him and tilting her hips, encouraging him to continue. "This is your payment, remember? You earned this, my handsome bodyguard, and I know you well enough to be confident about getting a refund later anyway."

"More than one, my beautiful Dany," he promised, diving back down to kiss her again.

~o~0~o~

A/N: I had roughly written this chapter before the Golden Globes, already dressing Dany in a black dress with red jewellry, and got very excited when I realised that Emilia would be wearing something similar. And, although I made a few subtle tweaks to her outfit here to match up with the photo, I really wanted to keep the red accessories and so reached out to the wonderful Wil1969 who was kind enough to create a manip for me, even though she doesn't watch GOT. (You can find it on my Tumblr promotion forthis chapter)

The early writing on my new fic 'Warg Riders' is progressing well. It is a trippy mix of a Magical Menagerie sequel and GOT canon-era AU (And yes, it is Jonerys) and also ties into the last chapter of this fic which I'm very excited about sharing with you all. xxx