Disclaimer: I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire.
Another dragon, another wolf, another stag
Chapter 16: Rhaella
"Talking"
"Thinking"
(Location: Riverrun)
At first, the morning had gone as normal in Riverrun. But it had been around midmorning when a horn from the walls sounded and the guards started running about shouting, "The king is near! The king is near!" As soon as those words were uttered, everyone had started running around in an almost panic to make sure that the king and queen received the best welcome that Riverrun could provide.
Of course, that meant standing out in the courtyard to greet the king, which was where Rhaella and her family found themselves standing. Since they were of the blood, they stood close to the representatives of House Tully, Edmure and the Blackfish Brynden Tully. Lord Hoster was still sick and thus had to remain abed. Every nobleman and woman who could squeeze themselves into the courtyard was there, most of all the Lords Paramount (with the exception of the Greyjoys).
Soon, the gates to the Riverrun opened and the king's procession rode in. There were no trumpets blowing or heralds banging their staffs on the ground and proclaiming who was coming, as Aerys was wont to do when he was still alive. First came the remainder of the Kingsguard, Ser Dayne, Ser Barristan, Ser Whent, and the Lord Commander, Ser Hightower. Such a sight would've made a young maiden's heart to flutter and a young man wish to join them. But all Rhaella saw was how they looked away when her brother ran rampant in his madness.
But who came next washed her free of those memories and filled her heart with love. Rhaegar, the First of his name and her firstborn son, rode a black palfrey into Riverrun. By his side was his wife, Elia Martell, riding a smaller sand steed. He wore a black jerkin and hose but the sleeves of his tunic were red and he wore the crown of Jaehaerys the Wise on his brow, something his mother had always thought apt. Elia wore a mantle of black too but the dress beneath was orange, something from Dorne itself. She did not wear a crown but that was normal. Behind them came the Hand of the King, Lord Jon Connington. Rhaella remembered him once as a vigorous young man who was eager to achieve glory for himself. But now, he was a serious man who chose to keep his attentions to the realm. There were more who came after them, but they were hardly important.
When the king swung down from his horse, the courtyard knelt to him. The only ones left standing were his own family. He took the hand of his wife to aid her as she climbed down from her steed. Together they turned to face the courtyard. "Rise," Rhaegar commanded. His voice was gentle but still carried through the air.
They all stood and waited. Protocol dictated that the king greeted the host of the castle first before going to others. That was why he and Elia stepped towards House Tully before their own family. "Lord Edmure," Rhaegar said to Hoster Tully's heir, "we thank you for letting us come into your home."
"It is an honor to have you here, your Grace," Edmure said grandly, sweeping his head low in a bow. "I offer you the salt and bread of my father's table."
"We accept it gladly." Servants began to circulating amongst the newcomers, carrying trays of bread and salt. The first was offered to Rhaegar and Elia, which they accepted.
Once the guest right had been established, Elia spoke. "How fares your father, my lord?" she asked Edmure.
Both the heir and the uncle turned quiet and mournful. It was the Blackfish who answered, "Hoster is still with us. I have a feeling he will recover quite miraculous and say that he will be damned that he dies before I'm married or something like that." Even though there was amusement in his voice and a similar smile on his lips, Rhaella could tell that those words were partly forced.
Her son and his wife did not comment on his words, instead greeting him personally. "Ser Blackfish," Rhaegar said in warm fashion, "It is good to see you again. A part of myself still hopes that you would become one of my seven."
The smile on Brynden's face widened by only a few inches but it became more genuine with those inches. "It was a tempting offer to join the Kingsguard, your Grace. But my brother was quicker and had me kidnapped to be brought back to Riverrun. Besides, I don't think Whitefish sounds as good."
The three of them all shared a chuckle. "As droll as ever, Ser Brynden," Elia told him warmly.
Then they moved to their own family and met them with genuine love. "Mother," Rhaegar said, kissing her on the cheek, "You and Dany have been well?"
She returned the gesture with a proper hug. "Of course we are, Rhaegar."
He smiled as he returned the hug but it faltered when he looked at his house and saw that someone was missing. "Where is Viserys?" he asked quietly. His mother did not reply, only glance slightly to the side. He followed her gaze and saw Viserys standing with the Starks, at the far end of the welcoming group. He did not say anything else about it, choosing to look at his sister. "Daenerys, you are as radiant as ever. I fear the day when you are married, for King's Landing will lose a bright star."
She smiled at her brother and said, "I'm not a star, but a dragon. The stars are the Daynes."
Elia laughed at that proclamation. "She certainly has the fierceness of a dragon," she told her husband before looking at her own children, "Just like our own."
"Aye, that is true," he agreed as he looked to Aegon and Rhaenys. "I trust you both have been doing your duties well?"
"We have, Father," Aegon replied for both he and his sister. "Our hosts have been sweetened, the men friended, and the ladies charmed."
"That is good. And what have you been doing, Rhaenys?" he asked his daughter. That was something that Rhaella loved of her son. While most fathers were content to hear from their sons only, he took the time to listen to his daughter.
Rhaenys smiled at him and said, "Making sure the court of ladies still goes on, Father." She looked over at her mother and said, "It is a difficult task at times but I bear it as best as I can."
Elia chuckled. "As ever, you are my daughter, Rhaenys." They moved onto the Martells, who stood next in line, and who the queen greeted most enthusiastically. "Oberyn, how wonderful to see you," she said to the Red Viper, hugging him just tightly as Rhaegar had for his mother.
"And it is good to see you too, Elia," Oberyn replied, holding her like she would vanish in just a second. When they broke the hug and he looked at the king, the warmness he had in his eyes cooled considerably. "Your Grace," he said shortly.
"Prince Oberyn," Rhaegar said just as shortly. He looked at Arianne and became a little warmer. "Princess Arianne, you seem to become more beautiful every time I meet you."
The heir to Dorne smiled brightly, though not seductively, at him. "You flatter me, my king." She did not say anything else and Rhaella thought that good. She felt that Arianne was too much like her uncle. It was a good thing that Doran was the Prince of Dorne but she could only hope that someone just as calm would be able to rein Arianne in once she took his place. As of that moment, Rhaella's hopes laid in Quentyn Martell.
Next were the Tyrells. "King Rhaegar," Willas Tyrell said, bowing his head low but still gripping his cane tightly. His siblings stood by him, two of them looking attentive while the third looked slightly bored. Their grandmother stood by Willas's side and watched things carefully.
"Lord Willas, is your leg well?" the king asked him, looking down at the cane and the leg.
"Aye, it is."
The Queen of Thorns snorted. "You already know that, so why bother asking him pointless questions?" she asked Rhaegar, giving him a cross look.
Any man would've been enraged and insulted that an old woman would talk to them like that but it said something Rhaella's firstborn that he smiled and said, "Lady Olenna, I would say that your sharp wit is missed in King's Landing but you would no doubt call me a liar since you reside in Highgarden."
"We can only hope that your granddaughter has the same wit," Elia said, looking at Margaery, standing next to Ser Garth and his wife. "Our son will certainly have need of it." Rhaella did not need to look at Aegon to see the small foul look on his face. She knew that he did not love Margaery. But there was nothing he could do about it. That was just a simple fact he would have to live with.
Olenna had nothing to reply with so she just gave a curt nod. Rhaegar and his wife went to the Lannisters next. "Ser Kevan," the king greeted Tywin's brother. The Lion of the Rock was not there himself since he never left his den nowadays.
"Your Grace," Ser Kevan replied. His wife and sons stood close to him.
But it wasn't he or Cersei and her children (who Rhaella the only good one was the two and ten year old son) that they went too next. Instead, they went to the Imp. "Lord Tyrion, have you been well?" Elia asked the heir to Casterly Rock.
"Unfortunately not, your Grace," he replied in a somber mood. "I have come to realize something most horrible. It seems that either I am getting shorter, or my sister's children are getting taller. And since everyone else has managed to stay the same height, I must conclude I am becoming shorter."
Even though Cersei gave him a look of ill-intent and her firstborn barely looked like she could care, the rest of House Lannister either smiled or outright laughed at his jape. Cersei's son smiled the brightest and Rhaella knew that despite his deformity, he loved his uncle. He was a sweet boy, that one. "I trust that your brother has been welcomed back to the family," Rhaegar said, turning his attention to the Kingsguard who stood in his armor by his family.
Tyrion didn't turn his head to look at Ser Jaime. "He has, your Grace. My brother is always welcomed amongst the lions." There was a look of gratitude on the Kingslayer's face when he heard those words. Even though he was a man reviled for what he had done during the war, Rhaella knew that he had been a boy given an impossible choice and did the best he could. She could still remember the look of surprise on his face when she had thanked him for killing Aerys.
When Rhaegar and Elia went to speak to Jon Arryn, who stood with his heir, a clansman who nearly matched his height, and a boy who was clearly the clansman's son, the warmness they had held cooled slightly. "Lord Arryn," Rhaegar said politely, albeit formally.
"Your Grace," said Lord Arryn, just as formally, bowing his head ever so slightly.
"We know young Harrold Hardyng," he said, looking at the heir to the Eyre before turning his gaze onto the clansman. "But we do not know you."
When the clansman spoke, it could only be described as a growl. "I am Shagga, son of Dolf, of the Stone Crows, who are sworn to the Arryn in the Eyre, who is sworn to the Targaryen on the Iron Throne," he proclaimed. Then he all but slapped the boy in front of him. "This is Ned, son of Shagga." The boy looked back at his sire and was ready to attack him, if the thick hands of his father kept him firmly in place.
Rhaella thought that it was something when a savage clansman from the Mountains of the Moon stood alongside the Lord Paramount of the Vale and not kill him. The Small Council and the royal family had heard reports of Lord Arryn making peace but it was another thing to see it with her own eyes. But that name was disconcerting. She thought that her son was of the same mind as he stared at the two. "Ned?" he finally replied.
The Stone Crow nodded. "Strong name, proper name for a Chief of First Men," he declared. His son looked just as proud to share the name.
But Rhaella was concerned about where the name had come from. "Has Jon Arryn been telling tales of the Starks to the clansmen or has he been taking them to Winterfell?" she asked herself. King's Landing had well been aware of the fact that Lord Arryn had travelled to the North and to Winterfell many times over the years, having been sent ravens about the trip. Nothing had seemed to happen but had they been wrong this entire time.
While she mused over this, she noticed that her son and his wife had walked to the next group. "Lord Stannis," Rhaegar said to the Usurper's younger brother, who towered over him by a few inches.
"Your Grace," Stannis said in reply. His brother looked as if he wanted to speak but stayed silent. Rhaella could not help but wonder if Stannis had ordered Renly to be silent beforehand. As far as she remembered, the youngest Baratheon brother had never been one much for protocol.
Elia looked over the group and then back at Lord Stannis. "Where is your niece, Mya?" she asked him. "I would have thought that she would be in attendance."
The man's eyes narrowed and even though she could not hear it, Rhaella knew that he was grinding his teeth. "She is attending to her duties that the Iron Throne has given her. If you wish to know of her location, ask Princess Rhaenys." It was a short answer that was to the point. But anyone who hadn't heard it before would've thought him to be too blunt.
But Rhaegar's wife took it in stride and gave him a nod of acknowledgement. "That is very true. Mya has our thanks for serving so well in her capacity."
Stannis accepted those words as he always had: with a quiet air and a frown. The king looked to his side and found the plainly-dressed man standing there. "Ser Davos, I trust you have fared well since we met last?" he asked the man.
The Onion Knight looked to be a bit surprised at being talked to, by the king no less. "I have, your Grace," he finally said. "My wife has blessed me with seven sons in our years of marriage."
"Seven sons?" the king replied with a surprised smile. "Gods be good, man. I don't know how you would be able to manage seven sons. There are days where I think I can hardly manage one alongside a daughter too!"
"I can admit that had been trying times with my sons, my king. But I have also found that it is best to find them a profession as soon as they are able to handle it. My four eldest boys are men of the seas and my younger ones are to be knights. I believe it will be enough to keep them busy." He did not jape when he said those words. He meant each one of them sincerely and honestly. From that alone, Rhaella knew that Ser Davos Seaworth was an honest and good man.
"Yes, I know of your elder sons. They serve well in the Royal Fleet. Your eldest, Dale, is a fine captain. Perhaps one day he will be a Master of Ships on the Small Council." There was nothing in the king's voice that suggested it would become a truth one day. It was a suggestion only. But Rhaella knew that Aegon had taken note of it.
Ser Davos only replied, "If that is to come, I hope that it will be on his merit and that he will do the duty well."
"You are a fine man, Ser Seaworth, and I am sure that your son will be too if given the duty." Rhaegar looked to the Lord of Storm's End and said, "I did you a service all those years ago when you had me knight him as part of your surrender, Lord Stannis."
Again, the man set his teeth to grinding. "As you say, my king," he said shortly.
"Ser Davos, you still carry your fingers," Elia asked, looking at the pouch that hung around his neck. Rhaella saw the pouch too. She had heard about how Stannis had treated the man who had saved Storm's End. He had cut off the first joints of Ser Davos's left hand for punishment for smuggling but also had Rhaegar knight the man for risking his life to save those in the castle. Many had called what Stannis had done cruel to the man who saved him, except for the man himself.
He clutched the pouch like they would disappear. "I do, your Grace. They have brought me and my family luck."
As the king and queen walked towards the last group, the air in the courtyard became quiet and thick with tenseness. Rhaella wondered if the Starks had placed themselves last because they had hoped that the king would pass them by or if it was how her son had chosen to walk amongst them. But that was moot now as the king and queen approached the northerners.
Rhaegar's eyes scanned them as he came close. "Lady Stark," he said politely, but with less warmth then the others had been given. "Where is your lord husband?"
"Home at Winterfell, your Grace," Lady Catelyn told both him and Elia politely. She held her youngest by his hand. The little boy looked like he would rather be somewhere else then there but he held onto his mother's hand.
The king and queen shared a brief look with one another before looking at the matriarch of House Stark again. "We had asked him to come to Riverrun," Elia said to her.
"You asked, you did not command, my queen," she replied. "My husband does not have fond memories of tourneys. And there must always be a Stark in Winterfell." If that was supposed to sound like a rebuke, it was the politest one Rhaella had ever heard.
"I see," Rhaegar said, turning to look at the rest of the Starks there. "If Lord Stark is not here, then who speaks for the Starks?"
The heir to Winterfell spoke, "I do, your Grace."
He turned his attention to the lad, looking him over like the king he was. "You are Robb Stark, named for Robert Baratheon."
The air became heavy as everyone watched to see what the young Stark would say to that. "I am, your Grace." His face was a neutral one, showing nothing on it.
But Rhaegar continued to watch him. "Tell me, what does your father say about me?"
"Nothing, your Grace," Robb Stark replied.
He looked slightly baffled at those words, drawing his head back like they had stung. "Nothing?" he repeated.
"My father does not speak of you."
"What of my wife?"
"My father does not speak of her, my king."
"Does he speak of the failed rebellion?"
"He does not."
To hear such words were surprising. But Rhaella had a hard time believing them to be true. Men did not forget their losses that easily. They would grieve and relive them again and again, letting their failure drive them on to seek revenge. If Eddard Stark was here, she would have named him a liar for not speaking about what had happened. And from the way her son looked at the heir to Winterfell, he believed the same. "And what does he say of your namesake? Tell me, young Stark, what does your father say about Robert Baratheon?"
The young lord didn't speak right away. His eyes seemed to watch the king and queen before him, looking for something. Rhaella did not know if he found it or not when he said, "Only that he was his closest friend."
Rhaegar and Elia waited, thinking that there must've been more. But Robb Stark stayed silent and watched them. "That's all?" Elia finally asked him, breaking the silence.
"That's all, your Grace."
They didn't say anything in reply to him. Instead, they decided to go down the line of them. To Lady Sansa, who curtsied with perfection, they offered a polite smile. But when they came to the next person in line, the young Arya Stark, they both froze. Rhaella knew instantly why. "Oh no," she thought in horror.
"Hello, your Grace," the young girl said, giving them a curtsy that made both her mother and trueborn sister wince. "I'm Arya Stark." Rhaegar and Elia still said nothing, only continued to stare at her. She looked them in the eyes with confusion. "What? Is there something on my face?"
"Arya!" her sister hissed in horror. She looked at her with a scowl.
It was then that Rhaegar found his voice. "Forgive me, Lady Arya," he began to say.
"I'm not a lady," she said with a disgusted look.
"Arya, he's the king!" her sister whispered loudly.
"No, it's quite alright," Rhaegar told them both but keeping his eyes on the younger. "Forgive me, but you have the appearance of your late aunt so much, I was caught off guard by it."
Rhaella resisted the urge to groan and hang her head. Of all the things he could have said, he said that before all parties that were involved in the rebellion. But then the Stark sighed in what sounded like exasperation and irritation. "I don't look like my aunt. She was beautiful. I'm just Arya Horseface." She threw a look at her sister, who didn't say anything in response.
Rhaegar's shoulders starred to shake and before long, it was obvious to everyone that he was laughing. His laughter wasn't the loud, boisterous kind that could be heard from one end of a castle to the other. It was actually on the quieter end, like he had just heard a good joke. The Starks weren't the only ones who were looking at him when he laughed. "My king, what is funny?" Robb Stark asked him.
He stopped his laughter enough to reply, "I just remember your aunt saying that she used to be called Longface Lya when she had been a child."
While that had been surprising to hear to the Starks, and possibly dangerous to everyone else, Elia Martell spoke too. "And she was hardly a lady too." It could've been insulting the way she said it. But she said it lightly and with a small smile on her lips. Rhaella knew that Elia and Lyanna had had some interaction before the latter's death but it still could be seen as an insult. She was worried that the Starks would see it as such. But then Arya Stark grinned widely and sent her eldest sister a look.
The king and queen continued to walk down the line until they reached Theon Greyjoy. "Lord Theon," Rhaegar greeted him politely.
"Your Grace," he said back but with a slight smirk on his face as he bowed his head. But when he lifted his head back up, Elia walked up to him and gave him a kiss on each cheek. His eyebrows lifted in surprise while his face blushed. "Uh…Um…"
Elia gave him a kind smile. "We had heard about how you saved my nieces from drowning, my lord. For that, I thank you."
"Oh, well, you're welcome." The younger Stark started to snigger at his reaction and Rhaegar chuckled too. Clearly the boy had not been expecting that kind of reply.
But the mood turned somber and serious when the king and queen reached his brother. "Viserys," Rhaegar said, smiling warmly.
"Brother," Viserys said shortly with none of the warmth. As the two look at each other, Rhaella noticed the differences between her sons. Viserys was shorter than his elder brother by only a few scant inches but much more muscular. Rhaegar's hair was short and fell to the nape of his neck while his brother's was much longer and pulled into a braid that was most certainly not womanish. The king was clean-shaven but Viserys had a beard that was beginning to thicken.
"I trust that Lord Stark has treated you well?"
"Aye, he has. Sending me to the North was the best thing you ever did for me."
Rhaella could only stare at her younger son at his proclamation. It was a brazen thing to say and it certainly garnered shock amongst the loyalist families. But Viserys didn't pay any attention to them. He watched his brother for his reaction. But instead of replying to it, Rhaegar only placed a brotherly arm to his shoulder. "Let us speak inside. We have much to discuss."
"We must settle in first, Rhaegar," his queen reminded him.
He looked at her with a smile. "Ah, you are right. Thank you, Elia." He turned to the rest of his company and spoke, "Let us enter Riverrun." At those words, the rest of the company began to splinter off and do their duties. The Great Houses all followed the king into the castle, their duty to greet him done with.
Most of the Kingsguard followed the king and queen into the castle besides Lord Edmure and Ser Brynden, save two. "Your Grace," the Lord Commander said to Rhaella, standing before her with a bowed head.
"Ser Hightower," she replied coldly. Once, there was a time she would've called him Ser Gerold and thought of him as a fond friend. But that was the past. She didn't even trust him to protect her daughter. "What is it that you want?"
"Only to make sure that you and the princess are well and safe," he replied. But even though he said those words, he looked past her.
She heard Sandor stepped forward. "If you got something to say, old man, than say it," he growled to the White Bull.
"Watch your tongue when you speak to me, Hound. You forget who I am."
Her sworn shield snorted in derision. "Of course I fucking know who you are. I'd have to be deaf, blind, and stupid to not know. You're an old man in white armor who stands around all day doing nothing."
Rhaella decided to stop things before they could go any further. "Sandor," she said warningly, "I have no wish for a fight in the courtyard."
She could hear his growl in irritation but did nothing else. The White Bull eyed the Hound for a moment longer before turning his attention back to her. "Your Grace, the king and queen request that the royal family attends them once they are settled."
"We will be there," she said shortly. He bowed his head again and left. As he left, her eyes found the other member of the Kingsguard still out in the courtyard.
Ser Arthur Dayne stood before the Starks. "Lady Catelyn, Lord Robb," he greeted mother and son politely.
While his younger siblings were staring unashamedly awestruck at the Sword of the Morning, the Stark heir was trying his best to look lordly. "Ser Dayne, is there something you require of us?" he asked.
A faint smile appeared on his lips. "Only to see my niece," he replied as he looked at Jocelyn Sand standing behind Sansa Stark. "It has been far too long since I've seen her."
It was only after Lady Stark gave her an nod of acknowledgement that the bastard stepped out from behind her trueborn sister and walked up to her uncle. "Hello, Uncle Arthur," she said with a smile. "I would hug you but you're wearing armor."
He returned her smile with a bigger one. "It's good to see you again, Jocelyn. You have grown so much."
She flicked her eyes back to Lady Stark for a moment and then to him again. "I've been told that I resemble my lady mother."
He chuckled and said, "Why don't you ask her?" Her eyes widened as he turned around to face the flood of people. She looked around him and saw her mother walking towards them.
Rhaella watched in silence as Ashara Dayne walked to her brother's side. There she stood and looked at her bastard. Even though she had grown older with time's march, she still looked beautiful. She smiled and held out her arms. "Jocelyn, my little star," she said warmly.
"Mother!" the girl cried happily, all but running to her and hugging her tightly. She buried her head into Lady Dayne's shoulder. As they stood there, everyone could tell that they were mother and daughter. They had the same dark hair and purple eyes, both of which made them beautiful to the extent that men stopped and watched as they walked by.
Lady Ashara broke the hug and looked at the Stark, specifically the matriarch. "Lady Stark," she said politely.
"Lady Dayne," Lady Catelyn said back, just as politely but without the warm touch the other woman had.
She noticed the lack of warmth but did nothing to reply to it. "Thank you for watching over my daughter."
"It was my lord husband's decision, not mine." The silent implication of her words was clear. If it had been her decision, Rhaella had no doubt that Jocelyn Sand would've been thrust out to the cold instantly.
But Ashara did not look angry or insulted. She looked over the rest of the Starks. The Queen Mother could not see her expression but she could imagine it was one of longing. The tales of what happened at Harrenhal were quite well known in the south of Westeros. "You have beautiful children," she finally said to Lady Stark.
"Thank you," she replied in that way only a mother could understand. With that last word said, they all left to continue the day.
It was only an hour later that Rhaella and Daenerys walked towards the small room that the king had taken for the family meeting. They both could hear that Aegon was already inside. "Father, I've heard from the Starks about their gem mine. Did that happen before you started bringing me to the Small Council meetings?"
"Yes, Aegon, it was," Rhaegar replied. "Lord Stark sent the crown a raven about the mine about two years before you started coming."
"Huh. I never would have thought that the North would produce anything worthwhile. It's just snow, hills, and ice up there."
Even before she opened the door, Rhaella knew that her grandson shouldn't have said that. When she did open the door, she could see the slightly angered look on the king's face as he and his son stood before the table that dominated the room. "There is more to the North than that, Aegon. When you become king, you must know the land you rule or you will be a poor king."
Aegon winced like he had been struck. "Yes, Father," he said quietly. "Forgive my rudeness." Rhaegar didn't say anything in reply, only pointing to the seat by his wife.
Rhaella couldn't help but feel her heart tear at the scene, knowing full well where it came from. Her son was an excellent king alongside Elia. But when he had a prince, he had been consumed in fulfilling a prophecy. When he ascended the Iron Throne, he discarded the prophecy to such an extent that no one dared make mention of it in his presence. That fact was especially driven home after he nearly had the red priestess executed for coming to King's Landing to help fulfil it. All because of a woman he had lost.
"Mother," her son's voice reached her ears, bringing her back to the now. She watched him come around the table to hug her and Daenerys.
"Rhaegar," she said back, accepting his hug. She looked at the table and saw that the royal family was there, save for Viserys, and House Martell. The two houses sat on opposite sides of the long table, facing each other. Both Prince Oberyn and Princess Arianne looked amused at how Aegon was treated while Prince Quentyn looked uncomfortable to be there. Whilst Rhaenys didn't look as amused as her cousins, there was a faint smile on her lips. Elia sat near the head of the table, as was her right as queen, and Aegon sat beside her. There were two more chairs on the Targaryen side. Clearly, she and Daenerys had been expected.
Rhaegar finished hugging them both and gestured to the empty seats. "Come, sit down." He walked back to his own chair and sat down in it. The only Kingsguard in the room was Ser Arthur, standing quietly behind his king.
She and her daughter took the seats offered to them without argument. Dany looked around the table and at everyone. "Where's Viserys?" she asked.
"He will be here," Elia assured her. "This concerns him."
"So it's come," Rhaella thought to herself. She had told her youngest son about what would happen, all that could be done now was to see it through. A sense of slight bitterness formed inside her. It seemed like she had just gotten her boy back and now was losing him all over again.
The door opened again and Viserys. He saw the table, saw how everyone was sitting, and looked at his brother. "Is there no chair for me, my king?" he asked with a cold politeness.
"This meeting is about you, Viserys," Rhaegar replied. "It is perhaps best if you stand for this." His brother said nothing, so he continued. "When we last saw you, you were a child. But now you are a man, Viserys. As such, you have a man's duties; paramount of those is the duty to your family. The line of the Iron Throne must continue and we must make alliances with our lords."
"So I am to be betrothed," Viserys said shortly, still coldly.
The king ignored his voice. "Yes. The queen and I had discussed this at length. In the end, we agreed that it would be best to renew our ties with Dorne and House Martell." He gestured to the Martell side of the table, to which Princess Arianne turned to look at him with a smile that was between seductive and coy. "In a year or two's time, you will wed Princess Arianne and become her consort when she ascends the throne of—"
"No."
That single word, still spoken coldly and shortly, made everyone stare at him in absolute shock. His brother fell silent at it and his mother looked at him worriedly. "What are you playing at, my son?" Rhaella thought.
"What do you mean?" Rhaegar asked his brother, his eyes narrowing into a serious gaze.
"I will not marry Princess Arianne. My answer is no." Both Prince Oberyn and his niece were beginning to look offended at his words.
"Viserys—"
"No, Rhaegar. Whatever you say or try to offer me, my answer will be no again and again. Dorne already has a queen and from her, a son and a daughter. They should not want or need more."
Elia spoke to her goodbrother, her voice calm and gentle. "This is a marriage that will soothe over the grievances made between our two houses."
"What grievances?" he demanded. "The Iron Throne won the rebellion as I recall. And even if that wasn't the case, I would still refuse to marry into Dorne." He gave Princess Arianne a foul look. "If the Princess and her uncle are what is said of the Dornish character, I would stay very far away from them if possible."
Even Prince Quentyn looked shocked and outraged at that comment. His sister stood up from her chair with a look of anger. "What is that supposed to mean?" she demanded.
He kept his gaze on her, his look still foul. "You must have known about this betrothal, my lady. Why else would you look at me like the cat that had laid claim to the entire bottle of milk? And yet, even though we are supposed to betrothed, your eye wanders and you flirt with anyone that walks on two legs and has a cock swinging between those legs. I would even dare to say that flirting is not all you've done with men. How can I expect you to be faithful when you look at every man like they are your next conquest?"
"Uncle, I say that's taking it a bit too far," Aegon began to protest, coming to the defense of his cousin.
But Viserys was not done, for he turned his look upon Prince Oberyn. "But if this man was the one who taught you to behave that way, the fault hardly lies with you. It would lie with him, amongst other things."
The Red Viper's face became a mask of barely constrained rage, morphing into something dark and thunderous. "What, pray tell, do you mean by that, Prince Viserys?" he asked, his voice leaking with such enraged intent that Rhaella feared he would leap out and strike her son at that moment.
But her son simply looked him down. "Was I not clear, my lord? Very well, I will explain it in far more easier words: rein your bastards in. They seem think that being related to the dragon's blood makes them dragons as well and use that to bully everyone and anyone that they can. Clearly, you did not raise them right, if at all."
He leapt out of his chair with such a force that it was knocked down and the sound echoed in the room. "You ungrateful, disrespectful, little shit!" he roared. He started to walk around the table, only to find Ser Arthur in his way. "Get out of my way, Arthur."
"I cannot let you harm him, Oberyn," the Sword of the Morning replied, his hand gripping Dawn's handle.
"Oberyn, sit down," Elia told her brother sternly. He looked at her still with the look of outrage on his face but she matched it with a look of steely resolve. He finally sat down but still glared at his goodbrother. She looked at him too. "Viserys—" she started to say as Ser Dayne went back to his original place.
"Elia, I know that you are the queen and my brother's wife. I will love you for that. But I will not marry into Dorne. They have enough, let them be satisfied with it," he told her. "And besides, you cannot betroth me because I am already betrothed."
Rhaella looked at her son with absolute shock and she wasn't the only one. "What?" her eldest son said. "What did you say?"
"I am betrothed," his brother replied.
"To whom?" he demanded.
"To Lady Sansa Stark of Winterfell," Viserys answered. "I asked Lord and Lady Stark for her hand and they accepted. Not only that, but when the marriage is made and consummated, Lord Stark has arranged for us to hold lands on Sea Dragon Point. I plan to take those lands and make them strong. I will build a city there that would rival White Harbor and bring trade to both sides of the North."
The way he spoke of his vision, his hope of it and will to make it so, made Rhaella look at him with a new eye. He was his own man and hoped to carve out his own piece in the world. "You would become a vassal of the North?" Daenerys asked him, her voice curious.
He smiled at her. "Aye, I would. The North and the Starks have given me much. It is only fitting that I try to repay that debt."
"Viserys, this is absurd," Rhaegar told him, getting irritated and going towards angry. "You're not going to be marrying into the North. You will marry Princess Arianne and mend our ties with Dorne."
"I do not think that the princess appreciate that now as much as she had before," Rhaella noted. Arianne looked at her son like she wanted to hit him again and again without stopping.
"I will marry Sansa Stark. There's nothing you can do to stop that from happening, Rhaegar," Viserys replied. "By doing, I will be fixing something that our house has failed to fix for well over two hundred years: upholding our end to the Pact of Ice and Fire."
His mother knew that pact well. It had been made during the Dance of the Dragons between Rhaenyra Targaryen and House Stark. In return for their support, the wolves would have a Targaryen princess to take into their house. Well, Viserys wasn't a princess but he was taking one of the Starks into marriage. It wasn't ideal, but she thought it could work and help mend the issues with the North. But then the king spoke. "That pact has already been fulfilled."
"By you?" retorted his brother with a sarcastic bite to his words. "As I recall, kidnapping Lyanna Stark does not constitute fulfilling the pact. Neither was causing a war." He looked at everyone in the room. "If this was the only concern for this meeting, I'd call it pointless and done with. Good day to you all. I will see you at the feast tonight." He turned and walked out of the room without any further words.
Rhaella watched him go with a strange sense of pride. Watching this all happened reminded her of how her father had ordered her and Aerys to marry each other despite neither of them wanting it. Except this time, her son found the strength and resolve to refuse.
End
Author's note: Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.
So, the king has finally arrived. Took him long enough, huh?
Greeting multiple families of great importance is probably done differently than just greeting one family. You would have to go down the line and greet them all instead of just picking one and brushing the rest off. Doing this also shows how Rhaegar sees the other Great Houses.
If Arya can be compared to Lyanna, then it should be safe to say that Lyanna went through the same thing her niece went through as a child. She probably grew into her beauty, not have it right away.
I think it's safe to say that Sandor and the Kingsguard (or at the very least, some of them) have a strained relationship. They see him as an outsider who is nothing more than a brute. He sees them as inefficient idiots who just stand around and do nothing. Of course, he learned most of that from Rhaella.
To the reviewer who thought there was going to be a Sansa/Viserys thing happening, you got it in one. That had been the idea around the same time the supposed betrothal between Viserys and Arianne came into my head. Since he was raised in the North and felt a great many things of him were because of that upbringing, Viserys would feel the need to repay that. Of course, this was also a way to pull the Dornish characters off their high horses. Now, I'm not bashing the Dornish here, but they are a bit smug and confident in this story.
I'll see you next chapter!