Chapter 13 - lions Revenge Arc
DareonDareon picked at his supper; a roast duck drizzled in a peppered orange sauce, all recent purchases from the market, by the account of the chef. He had a taste for costly Dornish imports. His children, the twins Joanna and Gaemon, who had recently passed their fifteenth name day and Tygon, a small sickly boy of ten talked about the classes of the day with Cersei. His middle son, at two and ten, Baelon, was off living in the capital, New Kings Landing, as a squire to Kings Hand, Jon Connington. He hoped to join the King's Guard one day.
"...and the wedding of cousin Aegon and Rhaenys", Joanna added with a smile. Dareon snapped back to attention. Shit, he thought.
With his constant meetings with Lord Farman, Lord Westerling and Lord Kayce about the recent raids along the coast from reavers, the marriage of his niece and nephew had slipped his mind.
"We'll get to see Baby Baelon again", Gaemon teased. Cersei shot a look at her son disapprovingly.
"Baelon is squire to the King's Hand, Gaemon. That is a hard job, you will be proud of your brother. We do not pull down our family, or we give permission for others to do so", Cersei took an elegant bite of roast vegetable off her fork. Gaemon look at his plate and pushed his food.
"I shall need a new dress for their wedding since I am near a woman-grown now", Joanna said matter-of-factly. She looked at the spitting image of her mother, with large emerald green eyes, a striking and slender face and hair like beaten gold. Joanna had cut her hair short in the new lady's fashion of Kings Landing but Cersei kept hers long done in style of her youth. Cersei agreed with a smile and touched her daughter's hand.
"And you, Tygon? Do you want something new for your cousin's wedding?", Dareon asked his youngest. The white-haired and green-eyed boy looked away. He could never meet the eyes of anyone, not even Dareon. The boy shook his head and Dareon smiled. Cersei narrowed her sharp eyes.
"Use your words, Tygon", she said. The boy muttered something under his breath. Cersei fake coughed. Tygon looked up and down quickly.
"N-no, no thank you, mother, father", he said. Gaemon repeated his brother's stutter and made a face. Cersei half-smacked the table with her palm.
"Gaemon. Enough of this", she said sternly, the lion inside her creeping out, "to your room now, no treats after supper. Go. I expect more from the future lord of Casterly Rock". Gaemon opened to mouth to speak but shut it firmly when Cersei shot him a deathly glare. Tygon looked away and subtly slid a bread roll into the sleeves of his beige tunic while Cercei was occupied.
Daron raised a brow but stayed silent. Gaemon rose from his chair and sulked down the winding stone hall, decorated in reds, blacks and golds, muttering under his breath. The table fell silent as the cooks brought out the sweets course. A few cakes, a flagon of mulled wine and some fruits and cheese for Dareon who did not partake.
Through the course Daeron watched Tygon slip more food into his sleeve with thief-like subtly, but once again, Dareon said nothing. Cersei and Joanna spoke politely about gowns and fittings and hair. Dareon sighed, bored by their conversation. He wished to go back to his study, he had recently begun a new painting, one of his dragon, Redwing.
Her colours were that of soft dawn, light pinks and blended reds with flakes of gold. She was a perfect colour study in warmer tones, and she loved to pose for a painting. It was almost like she knew what Dareon was doing.
"...what do you think, Dareon?", asked Cersei. Dareon came back to the present from thinking of watercolours. He looked at his wife puzzlingly. She sighed,
"I had said, while we are in the Capital it may be time to start looking for a suitor for both Gaemon and Joanna. They have turned five and ten, it is our duty to find betrothals", Cersei paused, "Obviously, they must be from the Westerlands. Our family is…not well established. We need to make ties with the other houses; Baneford, Plumm, and Stackspear all have children at age with the twins, or near there. And they shall still be close to the Rock, I will not ship my children halfway across the country and only see them once a lifetime", the mother lion said. Daeron hmm-ed. He did not have the energy to reply. His eyes drooped and his brain raced, hundreds of thoughts circled his head and he didn't want to deal with any of them.
He stood from his chair at the head of the table and excused himself, citing he had work to do.
"My husband must be handsome or I think I will simply perish, Mother. He also must-", Joanna took a bite of cake. Dareon walked out of the large Feasting Hall where they took supper and turned towards his study, not noticing the pitter of soft footsteps behind him.
Dareon eased himself into his large leather chair behind his desk and looked at the raven scrolls that covered it. Some laid upon, fresh from while he was supping, he guessed. Other scrolls from earlier in the day sat face open…send three galleys to Kayce…Crackhall requests additional grain from Casterly Stores to feed the Royal Army posting…Three major repairs must be made to the Lannisport dockyard to optimise ship production…
The reavers of the Iron Islands had come in droves since the new year. They sensed the weakness of the Westerlands, and they were not wrong. Many of the Westerlords challenged his right to rule, they had been doing it for years. Refusing taxes, refusing summons, not filling quotes or sending men when he called for banners. The Westerlands did not want him
If it raids went on Coast for much longer, not only would the lords have another reason to hate him, but Dareon would have to formally request permission to reprimand Lord Greyjoy in Pyke. If he did not respond and stop the raiding, it would be another battle to fight, another rebellion to quash. Dareon placed his head in his hands and suppressed a sob.
He never asked for this, he never wanted to be a Great Lord. He never wanted to marry Cersei, he didn't even really love her. Yes, she was the mother of his children, but he loved another. She was gone now, somewhere she was happy, he hoped.
A soft chirp opened his eyes. He rubbed away his tears on the sleeve of his black shirt and looked up. On the balcony, Redwing lounged, her large wings catching the rays of the setting sun. She peered her yellow eyes through the windows and chirped again. Dareon found his face smiling as he walked over and opened the wooden doors to the balcony.
Redwing walked in on her immense wings. From what he gathered, they were far too large for her body. She was only the size of a young swine, the smallest of the brood but had the largest wings. Redwing plopped herself beside the fireplace and shot a small ball of flames onto the cold black coals. It didn't take. She looked at him with her large intelligent golden eyes and huffed, smoke escaping her nostrils and bird-shaped face.
"You have to do it yourself, Redwing. It is far too hot in here for a fire if you want it, you start it", Dareon said to his pink beast. She huffed again and placed her head in the fireplace, covering it in a fine layer of ash and soot.
A small creak of the door caught Dareon's ears. Tygon quietly closed the door and slinked into the room, not noticing Dareon in his chair. The boy didn't speak but walked over to the fireplace. He pulled out his trove of food from his shirt and placed it a few paces away from Redwing, then stood back. Still completely unaware of Dareon.
Redwing lifted her head and looked at the small boy. She chirped happily and turned her head to Dareon. Tygon followed her gaze and gasped. He began to look at the door but was frozen. Dareon stood up, his hands open.
"My boy, my boy. It is okay. Do you want to feed Redwing?", he asked. Tygon looked at the door again, then back at the pink dragon who sniffed a bread roll. Tygon nodded, then cracked his knuckles.
"I-i mean, sorry. Yes, Father. Sorry, Father, yes I would like to feed Red", Tygon said, looking at his black boots.
"My boy, it's okay. There is no need to apologise. Let's feed…Red? Which do you think will be her favourite treat? I think she will like the cream cakes, like your sister", Dareon smiled and sat on the rugged floor with his son. Tygon smiled and pointed to the hunk of cheese which Redwing was sniffing. Redwing light blew a heated breath on the yellow square and its edges toasted. She opened her small mouth, full of razor-sharp black teeth like needles, and swallowed it whole. Tygon laughed and started wide-eyed with fascination.
Well, I guess that answers why he was taking food. And why Redwing always tries to take my cheese platters as I paint…he thought with a smile.
A knock pounded on the door, stopping the peaceful content silence. Dareon stood and walked to the door. He opened it and before him stood Cersei. She smiled at him and walked past, stopping dead in her tracks when she saw her son and dragon sitting on the floor. Tygon shot up, scaring Redwing who flapped her wings in reaction, knocking over a vase. It crashed on the floor and shattered. Tygon looked at the vase, the door, and his parents. When Dareon tried to speak, Tygon bolted from the room. Redwing watched him leave and vaulted into the air, flying out of the still-open balcony door.
Cersei stood, her mouth ajar, shaking her head. She closed the door behind her at looked at the state of the office. Paint jars and easels littered the room, old canvas gathered in a corner, and a makeshift bed of a couch and blankets sat in the room. Dareon secretly slept in his office most nights, taking the private hallway from their chambers to avoid gossip. He needed space to grieve and let himself unwind. The deaths of his family still lingered in his mind, especially his mothers…
*CONTENT WARNING FROM HERE ON OUT*
"How you could let him do such a thing. The boy is already sickly and odd, you cannot encourage his behaviour", Cersei looked at the vase with disgust.
"If my father were here he would make him into a true lio-..man. A true man, or Jamie, even", Cersei moved to the desk and cracked open the new scrolls. Her steely eyes ran over the words, then she turned to another. Dareon stood awkwardly in the corner, avoiding her gaze.
"If Father were here, he would also get this" she held the scrolls in her hands, "under control within a moons turn. He would not wait for a Royal Approval, he would gather his fleet, sail to the Iron Islands and show the strength of his House. Demand the reavers stop or make them". She threw the papers on the table and sat on it. For a few minutes, they stood together in silence. Neither saying anything nor making a move to leave.
"Have you received word from the Freys, by chance?", she asked, playing with her long golden hair. Dareon raised a brow, her mood had shifted completely. This was the third time this week she had asked about the Freys.
"No, not yet. Lord Walder is called late for a reason, Cersei", Dareon lied. He had received a raven this morning from the Twins. A message about a possible alliance of Frey and Goldfyre through Tygon and one of the Waldas, possibly Gaemon, too.
The scroll read as Frey knew of the plans for Castamere, Tarbeck Hall and Oldstones, a project meant to be a secret between Rhaegar, Dareon and Cersei.
She continued to smile prettily like she could smell the lie with her lion's nose. She caressed a hand over her shoulder, bare from the cut of her gown to show more skin.
"It's quite warm in here. Maybe…oh, I do not know, we should do something about that. Here, come help with my gown. It is ever so warm against my skin", she cooed.
Dareon walked over hesitantly. He knew the game she was playing…it was something she did often. When she wanted something, she used her body to get it. Dareon often played along, but only because he was aware of what she was doing…and he got some fun out of it, too.
He helped her undo the lacing of her red and black gown and pulled it over her head. She sat in her small clothes, sheepishly.
"The children do need suitors soon, Dareon. We must solidify our places as…Goldfyres, here in the Westerlands", she pretended to wipe sweat from her brow. She lounged on the desk. She let her hair down from its simple updo and watched it tumble over her breasts. Dareon smiled, although he did not love her, in the way he loved another, he still loved her in a way.
The mother of her children, whom he loved with all his heart, and his companion for the past ten and six years. Even when they argued or went days without speaking, they were bound together by duty understanding. Sometimes it did even feel like there was love. When he held her hand during all her labours, when they had taken moonlit boat rides as newlyweds, when they danced at balls and tourneys, when she let him paint her, then most of all.
She beckoned Dareon over, a devilish look in her dazzling green eyes, the colours of emeralds which she loved to wear. Dareon obliged. She placed a hand on his shirt and looked up.
"I was thinking, after we rebuild those holdfasts and break the news to Baelon, we will have to find brides for Tygon and him. If Gaemon and Joanna wed Wester Houses, then we may want to…extend our alliances. The Riverlands or Reach perhaps…another old and proud house that can field many men", she started to undo the string of his shirt. It opened, exposing his light silver chest hair and toned chest, "to help control the Westerlands. Now more than ever, we need strong, loyal men".
"Aemma, Shaena's girl, is three and ten, a year Baelons senior. They would be a handsome match for Castamere. It would make ties to the Stormlands. Or Aerea, Aegon's bastard, he treats her like a real daughter. A wedding with her would practically be like a wedding with a true-born child. She is twelve, like Baelon. Her dowry would be the allegiance of the Tyrells through Aegon", Dareon played the game like Cersei, he pulled the pin that held her top small clothes in place, making them fall off in a fluid motion.
She sat on the desk in nothing but a small white underskirt. Cersei used her hair to cover her large breasts. He looked over her body with a hungry smile. Faint silver stretch marks danced over her stomach from pregnancies. He ran a finger over the lines, he loved the feel of them on her body. Goose pimples rose on Cersei's skin.
"Are you cold, perhaps we should put our clothes back on…?" he suggested. Cersei sighed and shook her head.
"Or perhaps we should do something to warm up", she pulled the black shirt off Dareon and guided his hand to her chest. Encouraging him silently to grab her. Her skin was soft and warm in his palm. Dareon had an idea, he wanted to see how far he could push Cersei before she made a mistake.
He picked up his wife in his arms and carried her to the couch, sitting her beside him. She moved her hands to his breeches and worked on the ties.
"Why not someone from beyond your family, Dareon? Yes, they are powerful but the Targaryens are not the only House in the Realm", Cersei ran her hand around Dareons groin area with light fingers. He felt himself stir inside but suppressed it…for now.
"The Arryn boy is small and sickly, and we only have one daughter who is too old for him. There are no Martells of age with our children. Maybe a Stark? What are their names, Sandra and something? They are close to Baelon and Tygon in age, too. Who can boast of more noble and old blood than the Starks?", Dareon caressed Cersei's face while she planned her next move. She stood and removed the last of her small clothes, letting them fall to the floor. The dragon inside Dareon began to stir. Three years his senior at four and thirty, Cersei was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen… almost.
She blushed elegantly, a planned tactic. She placed herself over him, standing and guiding his hands on her hips, just below the dips above her thighs.
"Why not…I dont know…the Freys, perhaps. With Edmure gone, I doubt Maegella will stay in power for long. The Riverlords will cast her aside for one of their own. I would wager the Freys will become the new lord's paramount. They have so many daughters and granddaughters…enough for Baelon and Tygon to have…choices of the litter". And the arrow hit its target.
"Is this why you have asked if Walder has sent word? Have you been sending ravens with-", Cersei cut him off with a kiss.
She sat herself on his lap and ran her hands through his silver hair. He let his tongue explore her mouth, her manipulative mouth that twisted words and spat venom.
She tasted sweet, like cakes and creams. One of his hands moved down her backside and towards her butt. Dareon held it tightly in his palm, she was firm and solid. The dragon inside him was getting harder to control. It had been many moons since they laid together, but he needed more information first.
He pulled away from the kiss and placed a few on her ear. Dareon then kissed her more, trialling the lines of her body from her neck and staying between her breasts. He took one of her nipples in his mouth and she let out a small moan.
"L-lord Frey sent w-word following the twins n-named-" Dareon bit down lightly, cutting her off with another moan from her lips. The sound of her filled his ears. He was nearly there, she would surely slip up soon.
He turned his body and pushed her onto the couch. Her back lay flat on the cushion he placed under her, and Cersei looked up into his eyes. He pushed himself over her and held himself there. Dareon leaned down and kissed her again, this time her kiss told him she wanted him more than he wanted her…perhaps this interaction did really have more than one motive.
Cersei moaned again as he planted more kisses along her collarbone. With a hand, she began to play the strings of his breeches again. This time he allowed her to pull them down, letting his dragon come out. He held himself back, he wanted her to want it more, or give him what he wanted.
"And what did Lord Frey say to you?", Dareon spoke between kisses, moving towards her, down between her legs. He planted a few kisses at the top of her things, then around her lower stretchmarks, kissing each one individually.
"H-he wished them a bountiful y-year... And their he-alth. He asked a-about Baelon and T-tygon. If t-they were well t-too. If th-ey had any interest in his g-girls", she tried to speak. Dareon went to work in her special place, filling the room with her moans. He filled his mouth with her, moving his tongue around and making her body writhe. He loved that noise.
Her breathing picked up as he changed the pace of his kissing, adding his hands to the mix and making her come close, but slowing down as her body began to shake.
"Why would Frey ask for Baelon and Tygon? No one knows we intended to make Baelon lord of Castamere or our plans for Tygon. Everyone still thinks he is for the King's Guard. Only you, Rhaegar and I know of the Wester Project…", he finished her off with his hands as he spoke. Her body shivered and her back arched with pleasure. Cersei looked at him green eyes a mix of subtle panic and desire.
"I-i do not know, Dareon. Perhaps he made a mistake. He is an old man", she tried to recover. She pulled herself up and looked at Dareon's member, long and ready.
Now it was her turn, and Dareon was ready to see how she played this one. She slowly lowered herself onto him and began to move her hips. Dareon smiled at the movement, she felt so good…so wet and warm. Even if he did not get all the knowledge he was looking for, at least they had shared this time together.
Dareon suppressed a moan and felt his dragon build-up, he wanted to delay it as long as possible. Cersei guided his hands to her breasts and he played with them while she sped up her hip movements.
"He is always scheming, Lord Frey. i-i hear from some of the ladies; he's marrying off his sons and daughters so many of the lesser houses, to secure alliances with the Riverlands, Reach, The Iron Islands and Vale", Cersei placed her hands on his chest and worked even faster.
Dareon let a small moan escape his lips while he grabbed her hips again, feeling the silver lines on them that he loved so much.
A hundred thoughts crossed his mind, about the Freys, the rumours of uprisings in the Riverlands, the unrest in the West, the Iron Islands, the feeling on his member inside her. Gods she felt so good, he thought. He could no longer contain himself. He helped her on him while he began to thrust into her with urgency. The dragon needed it.
Dareon played with her area too, with his hands, making her moan even further. Together they climaxed both filling the room with the sounds of their moans.
His seed filled her while she still sat upon him. Slowly he went soft inside her and she rolled off. They sat in silence for a moment, recovering their breaths.
Dareon stood and pulled up his breeches and offered Cersei a hand to stand. He planted a kiss on her cheek and smiled,
"Next time you go sending ravens to lords, remember. They all come to my office first", he gathered his shirt and pulled it on. Outside the sun had begun to set. Just like the colours of Redwing. He left Cersei as she redressed herself. They both thought about the interaction as they parted ways…who had won?