Here's another chapter for you guys and its a long one! By the way, I was looking through the ASoIaF Wiki when I noticed that Olyver Baratheon's name has been changed to Royce so that he was named after his mother's father, Lord Royce Caron. So needless to say, that is what he will go by as now. Anyway, without further adieu, enjoy the new chapter!
Author's Note: Profanity, graphic detail, intense emotions and disturbing/distressing scenery ahead.
Night provided some solace for Baela, but the following morning would inflict much punishment upon her. However, that punishment would not be a terrible hangover, although she did wake up with one. Nauseous and suffering from a headache upon her awakening, the princess spent the first half-hour of her being awake hovering over a chamber pot hating that fact that she was alive at that moment.
"Gods, why did I drink so much last night?" a sickly, miserable Baela said to herself after she had vomited a little. "I feel so ill..."
The princess soon began heaving again, and she braced herself for another unpleasant bout of vomiting. Stomach and throat on fire, eyes watering, nose burning, and lips covered with a slimy and vile amalgamation of saliva and bile, Baela groaned softly as she wiped her eyes and mouth with the right sleeve of her dress. She then heard the door creak open. Looking up from her sleeve, Baela noticed that someone was peaking at her from behind the door.
"Aly? Is that you?" she called out.
"No, your grace." the voice belonged to a man. "It is me, Ser Erryck Cargyll."
"What are you doing here?" the princess asked. "Where is my husband? Where is Alysanne?"
Ser Cargyll did not respond to Baela's questions; she heard him speak to someone else instead.
"She's awake. We need to take her to the queen."
The door opened and both Erryck and his sworn brother, Ser Harrold Darke, marched in towards Baela.
"What? What is going on?!" demanded an indignant Baela as the two Queensguard knights grabbed her arms and pulled her up onto her feet. It was not as if Erryck and Harrold were dragging a prisoner to the dungeons for they walked at a pace that allowed Baela to walk with them without issue. The cold air that filled the halls of the Eyrie had a somewhat sobering effect on the princess, but the flashes of morning sunlight from the windows struck her eyes with an intensity similar to that of being hit by an axe.
Sometime after being seized from her room, Princess Baela and her captors arrived at the High Hall. Wall to wall with people just the day before, the High Hall was largely empty save for the seven people that were there waiting for the princess and the knights. Once the hungover Baela's eye regained their focus, she recognized who the people were: her mother-in-law, father, husband, and the rest of the Queensguard. Her stomach immediately dropped when she saw the look that Rhaenyra was giving her.
"Fuck, what is she mad about now?" Baela wisely thought to herself rather than saying aloud.
Wearing a thick fur lined cloak with velvet slippers, Rhaenyra still looked impressive and regal without her crown and ornate raiment. Sers Cargyll and Darke walked up with Baela before the queen signaled for them to stop with an upward raised hand.
"That is good."
Rhaenyra glared at the state of her cousin/daughter-in-law. It was clear for all to see that Baela was a mess, having slept in her clothes from the night before, the right sleeve now bearing a stain from Baela wiping her mouth on it, her eyes looking red and glassy, and her possessing a pallid complexion. Rhaenyra frowned in disgust.
"Poor Laena would be so disappointed." Rhaenyra thought to herself.
"What is going on?" Baela asked in a pained voice as her head pounded from the light. "Why are all of you here?"
The queen's disgusted expression quickly morphed into an angry one where her purple eyes became wide and pure anger seemed to boil out of them.
"Why?" hissed Rhaenyra. "Why? You honestly do not remember what happened last night at the feast?"
"Not really." Baela said.
"You acted like a whore! Groping and fondling Lord Arryn in front of all of the wedding guests while you were in your cups in front of your husband, my son!"
Baela's eyes widened when she heard that, and her confusion was soon replaced by rapidly growing embarrassment.
"I..., I did what?"
"Acted like a whore." Rhaenyra said again with disgust. "Fondled another woman's husband, a great ally of ours no less, in front of everyone in the feast hall! And that's not the worst of it, Baela." the queen continued, "Not only did Jacaerys and your father and little sister witness your disgraceful actions, your children nearly saw you before I covered their eyes to spare them from the humiliating sight of their mother behaving so wantonly!"
Horror, embarrassment, and self-loathing filled Princess Baela's being, and she brought both her hands up to her mouth as tears began to well up in her eyes.
"No... Oh, no..."
Baela then covered her face with her hands as if they could shield her from her current predicament.
"Oh gods, I am so, so, sorry..."
As if tears and embarrassment were not enough, Baela felt a wave of nausea flow through her body. She moved her hands to her mouth as the sick feeling brought the normally indomitable Baela to her knees. Rhaenyra made another disgusted look while Jace and Daemon looked away in shame and second-hand embarrassment. Thankfully, nothing came up, and Baela was helped up to her feet again. It was then Rhaenyra spoke again.
"Sorry does not really work for me, Baela." Rhaenyra then gestured towards her husband and son. "Sorry does not work for them either. Neither will it due for Rhaena, Lucerys and Joffrey, your little brothers, and your other nieces and nephews. The lords and smallfolk might find your actions humorous like they did about Lucamore "the Lusty", but House Targaryen never will.
And just like Lucamore, you will be made an example of."
Just then a heavy gust of wind was heard buffeting against something "loose". Eyes turned towards the source of the sound: a wooden door made from bone-white wood that was barred shut with two long, heavy bronze bars that was nestled between two columns. The blue outline of the crescent moon that had been carved onto the door could be seen. For some reason, Baela felt uneasy looking at that door and its "blue moon".
"Do you know what this is, Baela?" asked Rhaenyra, startling her daughter-in-law from her thoughts.
"No. What is it?"
"It is the Moon Door." Rhaenyra replied. "House Arryn's favorite way of executing its prisoners and enemies is to throw them out of this very door. The unfortunate souls who get thrown out of the Moon Door touch the ground again after falling six-hundred feet; a long enough fall for you to make peace with your gods before you land. When my mother was alive, she would tell me stories about how she used to be afraid of hearing the Moon Door rattle at night from the mountain wind during her childhood.
She believed that the noise was being caused by the ghosts of the Moon Door's victims trying to come back to haunt the Eyrie."
Rhaenyra's gaze hardened as she stared at the Moon Door. She then turned to face Baela.
"Would you like to become a ghost, Baela?"
The queen's comment surprised both Daemon and Jacaerys. Both men exchanged glances before staring at Rhaenyra with wide eyes. Even though she was hungover, Baela knew what her mother-in-law was insinuating.
"Rhaenyra, are you going to throw me out the Moon Door?"
Rhaenyra did not respond to Baela's question. Instead, she turned towards the Moon Door. Ser Roger Beesbury and Lord Commander Steffon Darklyn flanked both sides of the door.
"Open the door." was all the queen said.
Tensions increased as the two knights began to pull back the door bars. Daemon's paternal instincts flared up and he took a step forward before he was stopped by his stepson. Jace whispered something to Daemon, and the Rogue Prince stayed where he was, but it was clear that he was very nervous about the whole thing, as was Jace.
"Rhaenyra!" Baela cried out. "Do the Arryn's know of this?!"
"Of course, they know. I asked them in private earlier during breakfast."
Having pulled his door bar, Ser Beesbury held the rattling Moon Door shut with his hand as Steffon pulled out his bar. Roger then carefully moved back from the door with his hand still on it as the strength of the mountain wind pushed it open inward, and Steffon grabbed it from his sworn brother and opened it completely. Sunlight and bone-chilling wind poured through the now open Moon Door. Baela turned her face away from the blinding light and covered her eyes with her hands; Sers Cargyll and Darke looked away as well. The High Hall was now filled with the sound of roaring wind.
Queen Rhaenyra admired the beautiful scenery outside once her eye adjusted to the light. She then turned around and walked towards Baela. She then gestured for the Queensguard knights to move forward while saying "Bring her over." Nausea now replaced with great panic, Baela frantically tried to stop the unfolding of her apparent execution. She tried to drag her feet on the smooth marble floor to try and slow the knights' progress but it was obviously futile. The air got colder and blusterier as she got closer to the open Moon Door.
"Rhaenyra, please! Please! I said I was sorry! I was drunk!"
"You need to be taught a lesson, Baela." Rhaenyra said in a serious voice, her purple eyes flashing in the morning sunlight. "Pity it has to be learned this way."
Erryck and Robert stopped when they were right before their queen and just feet away from the Moon Door. Rhaenyra then reached over and grabbed hold of Baela's left bicep. With a contemptuous look, Rhaenyra dragged her terrified daughter-in-law away from the knights and brought her over towards the very edge of where the harrowing drop began. While the rest of the guests were enjoying the wedding breakfast in the Morning Hall, Baela was facing the very real possibility of meeting the same fate as the "King Who Flew" nearly a hundred years before. Her toes overlapped the sharp edge, causing the normally fearless Baela to nearly jump out of her skin in fright.
The terror-stricken woman could not help but look down. Six-hundred feet down below were the jagged rocks on which the bodies of countless executed souls had been broken upon along with those who had flung themselves out of the sky cells in a fit of madness. Gods knew how many bones were scattered amongst those rocks, but both mortal and deity alike knew of the titanic fear and insanity that plagued the flesh and blood owners of those bones as they fell screaming from whatever perch they were thrown from. Baela trembled from both fear and the chills that crawled up her spine as she stared at the faraway earth below. Rhaenyra's grip increased on her captive's arm and she moved her face closer towards Baela's ear.
"Are you scared?" asked Rhaenyra in a tense tone. Baela frantically nodded her head. Pleased but not smiling, Rhaenyra looked over her shoulder towards Erryck and Harrold.
"Step back."
The men did as they were told, and Rhaenyra pulled Baela back from the Moon Door and all but flung her onto the floor. Baela landed on the floor with a sharp thud. Breathing heavily and heart nearly pounding out of her chest, Baela looked up from the floor at the queen. Rhaenyra gave the princess a contemptuous glare before speaking to her again.
"If you ever, ever embarrass my son like that again, Baela," growled Rhaenyra as she gesticulated with her right index finger, "I will hand you over to the Silent Sisters without a second thought and find Jace another wife. While you are preparing corpses for burial, Baelor and Alyssa will be calling another woman "mother", and when I die, and when Jacaerys ascends as king, that woman will be crowned queen with a crown of gold and jewels whereas your only crown will be a drab grey cowl. Do you understand me, Baela?"
Trembling and frightened beyond belief, Baela quickly nodded her head without a word. This did not satisfy the queen. She took a step forward when Baela said "Yes" loud enough for Rhaenyra to hear. The queen stood tall before her cousin/daughter-in-law and glared at her.
Regal.
Powerful.
Terrifying.
Rhaenyra was all three of these things. A dragon queen indeed. The Conqueror would have been so proud of his great-great-great-granddaughter.
Rhaenyra then looked at her husband and son. Both men were frozen where they stood. Daemon looked furious while Jace appeared nervous. These expressions made Rhaenyra I pause for a moment. Did she overreact? Did she overdo Baela's punishment?"
She balled her hands into fists.
"What's done is done. I do not require their leave."
Without a word, Rhaenyra looked away from Daemon and Jace and she proceeded to walk off. As the Queensguard trailed after their queen, Daemon and Jacaerys rushed over towards Baela. The princess pushed away the helping hands of her father and husband.
"Get away! Get away from me!" she screamed as tears began to pour down her face.
"Baela-" Daemon began before getting loudly cut off by his hysterical daughter.
"Why didn't you help me! I'm your daughter!"
As Daemon tried to calm his eldest child, Jace tried to interject.
"We did not think my mother was going to take it that far, Baela."
"She tried to throw me out of the fucking Moon Door, Jacaerys!"
"No, she was not." Jace said through gritted teeth. "She just wanted to... to..."
Jace searched desperately for another word other than "scare".
"She wanted to what? What?" Baela hissed. "Put me in my place? Is that it?"
Jace said nothing, and he looked down at his feet.
"It's just like what you said before you all left for Gulltown six moons ago during our argument..."
Baela balled her hands into fists. More than anything she wanted to slap her husband from here to New Year's, but she couldn't. Rhaenyra would probably chuck her out of the Moon Door for real if she touched Jace like that again. Hurt, scared, and feeling immensely vulnerable, Baela melted into her father's gentle, comforting embrace. A quiet Daemon escorted his tearful daughter back to her room from the High Hall, leaving Prince Jacaerys Velaryon behind alone to contemplate his marriage and how its troubles had led to this very moment.
As that morning's drama was not enough, Baela was soon beset with more discord. When she met up with her companions in the Eyrie's circular garden, Baela saw a stark contrast in her friends' behavior towards her. Alysanne was unusually gentle and soft-spoken while Maris was cold and quiet. All three women were silent as Baelor, Alyssa, and Tara played with each other in one of the Eyrie's solars. The friendship between Baela and Lady Blackwood would gradually warm up again that same day.
The same, however, could not be said about the friendship between the princess and Lady Baratheon. Despite having apologized profusely for embarrassing both Maris's sister and new brother-in-law during the bedding ceremony, Maris remained cold towards Baela throughout their stay at the Eyrie and even on the homeward journey for King's Landing. A few days after the Targaryen's returned to the Red Keep, a raven arrived bearing a letter from Storm's End that was addressed to Maris. After reading the letter, Maris stoically shared its contents with Baela and Aly. Much to the two women's great surprise, Baela was not the only woman to engage in scandalous behavior at the Eyrie during Joffrey and Ellyn's wedding.
During the wedding feast, a sixteen year old Lady Floris Baratheon had confided to her older sister about how she hated living at Storm's End since everyone was too scared to even breathe around Borros due to his new mercurial nature. Floris regaled Maris on how she had pleaded their mother to allow her to live at their grandfather's seat at Nightsong, but Elenda had refused her youngest daughter's pleas because she did not want to be alone with her husband with little Royce. Concerned for her youngest sister, the clever Maris hatched a plan. The morning after the wedding, Maris woke up early and met up with the Celtigar's to ask them if they could take Floris with them when they returned to Claw Isle. Floris was due to marry Ser Clement Celtigar the following year, and Maris persuaded Lord Bartimos Celtigar that it would be beneficial for both his son and future daughter-in-law to start getting to know each other before their wedding took place.
Although the Celtigar's were a little reluctant to go behind the Lord of Storm's End's back, they nevertheless agreed to take Floris in. What did they have to fear? One of their daughters was going to marry a dragon prince, all the Baratheon's had were wolves, lions, and now falcons. Securing the alliance of House Celtigar, Maris then convinced one of her sister's handmaids to exchange clothes with Floris the day the non-Valeman guests were due to leave for home. The handmaid resembled Floris, and the two were nearly identical when they wore each other's clothes.
Elenda suspected nothing when her "youngest daughter" boarded their ship. The duplicity was discovered when Borros asked for the fake Floris to sing for him one night during supper. Unable to sing, the handmaid tearfully confessed to the Baratheon Sisters' plot. Borros immediately began ranting and raving like a madman once the revelation of this duplicity by his own daughters came to light. He grabbed the poor girl by her neck with both his hands and he began to choke her as a horrified Elenda and Royce looked on.
Taking her crying son into her arms, the Lady of Storm's End called for the guards. It took two men to release the handmaid from the furious Borros' grasp and five more to pull him away from her. As the guards tried to drag their lord back to his bedchamber, Borros continued ranting and raving, the volume which prevented anyone from hearing one of the guards calling for the maester to be summoned to tend to the injured girl. Borros cursed and insulted the women in any way he could with the word "bitch": calling the fake Floris a "lying bitch", the real Floris a "sneaky bitch", Maris a "conniving bitch", and Elenda a "stupid bitch" for being duped and not being able to tell her own children apart. Elenda gently rocked little Royce in her arms to try and calm him, doing her best to not break down herself.
Lady Caron would later send a raven to Claw Isle begging Floris to return home. Floris did not personally respond to her mother's plea, and she tried to dictate a letter to her mother with House Celtigar's maester, but she was overcome with emotion over being torn between remaining at Claw Isle where she was safe or being with her mother and little brother back home at Storm's End with her volatile father. A sympathetic Maester Potkin gave the young lady some sweetwine to calm her; she was able to finish dictating to Potkin after imbibing the medicated wine. Elenda never replied back once she got Floris' letter. She later sent a raven to Maris that expressed her anger and shame at her second born daughter's actions.
The letter ended with the statement that Maris had been disowned by her father, and that she was not welcome at Storm's End for as long as Borros was alive. Baela and Alysanne comforted their friend when their heard of her disownment, but Lady Baratheon still remained calm and strangely unphased. Three days later, another raven arrived for Maris, this time it flew in from Casterly Rock. Shortly after reading the letter, Maris told Princess Baela that she wanted to resign as her lady-in-waiting. As mentioned before, Lady Maris Baratheon is the cleverest of her sisters.
She knew that her and Floris's plot would be discovered sooner or later and that the former would suffer a heavier punishment for being the machinator, and so Maris put up with being Baela's companion for a little while longer until she got confirmation that she was no longer held in high regard by her own parents. Maris sent out a raven to Casterly Rock the same day she learned about her disownment asking if both she and Tara could reside there. Lord Jason Lannister agreed to take in his late brother's widow and daughter, and following that confirmation, Maris announced her resignation to Baela. When a shocked Baela asked her friend why she wanted to be dismissed, Maris coldly reminded her by saying "you know why."
Wracked with remorse over what she had done during Ellyn's wedding, Baela, very reluctantly, accepted Maris' resignation. Both the widow Maris and a one-year old Tara left the Red Keep to begin the long journey to Casterly Rock with a sizeable escort that was led by her Uncle Manfryd and Prince Jacaerys Velaryon on the back of Vermax. And speaking of Jace, the marriage between him and Baela had deteriorated considerably. The marriage between Rhaenyra and Daemon had also soured somewhat due to what the former had done to Baela at the Eyrie.
Although she was still angry over Baela's behavior during the wedding feast, Rhaenyra was starting to feel guilty about her reaction over it. But the queen was too prideful to say sorry, and the princess was too depressed to receive any sort of apology or reconciliation. Baela desperately wanted to get away from the Red Keep to recuperate, but she did not want to leave her children behind, let alone invoke Rhaenyra's wrath again. And so Baela stayed at that cold Red Keep, enduring silence, depression, and regret. But while the year 134 AC had so far been marked with bloodshed, tension, and melancholy, there was still some joy to be had.
Lady Nell Beesbury and Princess Rhaena Targaryen had both announced that they were with child again earlier that year. Two years after the birth of their son, Prince Aeric Targaryen, Joff and Nell welcomed another baby boy midway through the tenth moon. Unlike his older brother, the newborn prince's size and birthweight was normal, and his mother's labor with him was untroubled. The happy couple christened their son with the name Daemion in honor of the grandfather of the three conquerors of Westeros. Prince Daemion Targaryen looked exactly like his father with brown hair and eyes and a pug nose.
Daemion's birth brought some much-needed joy to the Red Keep. The atmosphere at High Tide was especially jubilant. As her fourth pregnancy progressed, Rhaena began to suspect that she was carrying more than one baby inside her womb this time. Her suspicions were confirmed by Maester Thaleus after he felt two small heads during his examination of Rhaena's abdomen when she was three months pregnant. The news that he was going to have twins greatly excited Lucerys.
Luke hoped and prayed that these twins were both male so that he could finally get his heir and spare in one birth after having three daughters.
The month after his nephew Daemion was born, the Lord of High Tide celebrated his nineteenth nameday. The royal family traveled to the island of Driftmark to celebrate this wonderful occasion. What made this visit even more special was the presence four certain individuals. Five year old Princess Visenya told Maelor about the upcoming visit to High Tide when the two were playing with each in the queen's solar during the days leading up to Luke's birthday. Seven year old Maelor asked his mother if he could go to High Tide with Visenya and her family since he had never been there before.
Although it had been five years since the Black Conspiracy and Rhaenyra's coronation, Helaena still felt uneasy about her youngest son mingling with his half-aunt's family. Despite her unease, Helaena nevertheless asked Rhaenyra if Maelor could accompany them to Driftmark. Much to the princess's surprise, Rhaenyra consulted her son, and she was able to convince him to invite Aegon the Elder, Helaena, and their children to High Tide. While his sister-wife and children accepted their invitation, Aegon declined, preferring to remain at the Red Keep with Ser Edmund Naeryon. Aegon could tolerate his half-sister to a certain degree, but not her second born son.
He still had not forgiven Lucerys for what he had done to his younger brother fourteen years earlier at High Tide during the Red Spring...
High Tide was bustling with activity once the Targaryen's and their dragons arrived. Lucerys had a wonderful birthday feast with both his immediate and some of his extended family present. He had a lot to be thankful for as he marked his nineteenth year of life. Luke was both a prince and the Lord of the Tides, was married to a sweet and beautiful woman who had given him three equally lovely daughters, and she was now eight months pregnant with twins. Other than celebrating Luke's birthday, the royal family also stayed for a week to visit the Velaryon's.
Days were spent idling in both High Tide and castle Driftmark, walking along the beach, riding on horseback to tour the island towns of Hull and Spicetown, or flying around the island of Driftmark when it was not too cold outside. Prince Aegon the Younger and his betrothed, Lady Thea Celtigar, took their first ride together on Stormcloud's back since he had finally grown to be both large and strong enough to carry two people on his back. A twelve year old Prince Viserys Targaryen rode Ravenscale for the first time during that visit too. Ravenscale was roughly bigger than an auroch by 134 AC, and both the dragon and his rider followed Stormcloud as they flew around High Tide. Because Ravenscale could only carry one rider at a time, Viserys' betrothed, Lady Myrine Darklyn, took her first flight with Princess Jaehaera Targaryen on the back of her dragon Morghul.
After Morghul had landed, the normally quiet and solemn looking Myrine was grinning and talking none-stop about her first flight, which greatly amused her peers. Maelor and Visenya had gone on their first dragonback rides when they were toddlers, and they rode with their parents or siblings during the visit. The two half-cousins' young dragons, Meteor and Dyannerys, flew around and played with each other. Although Dyannerys was tame and sweet around Visenya, she was still very aggressive towards everyone else, especially towards Visenya's mother due to her having kicked the hatchling for biting Visenya's finger shortly after hatching from her egg. However, the one-year old hatchling was friendly around the princess's betrothed and his dragon.
Seeing the warm interactions between her half-siblings and their cousins saddened Baela further. Depressed and despondent since the incident at the Eyrie, Baela found solace in talking with her grandmother and twin sister in the latter's bedchamber since the pregnant Rhaena was on bedrest. Helaena would often join her twin cousins and the Queen Who Never Was during these bedside gatherings, and being a mother of twins herself, Helaena imparted some wisdom to Rhaena on what it was like to give birth to and care for twins.
"It will get better, Baela." Rhaena said as she patted her twin's hand during a conversation about Baela's marriage to Jace. "I know it will."
"How can you be so sure, Rhaena?" Baela asked as she squeezed her sister's hand. "You and Luke are so happy together. Have you two ever fought?"
The expectant princess gave Baela a knowing smile.
"We have bickered every now and then, but we have always come back to each other afterwards."
"Bickered about what?" Baela asked.
"Small things. Things like how many sweets the girls should have after supper, what tutors should teach Daenaera, and how loud Luke's snoring is."
Baela cracked up when her sister brought up how loud her brother-in-law snored. Jace snored loudly too. Rhaena's smile became sad though.
"Although, lately, Luke and I have been arguing about the pregnancy."
"Why?" Baela asked, her expression becoming serious. Her sister looked down at her bulging belly below.
"I want these two to be my last children." Rhaena said as she cradled her belly in her hands. "Luke prays for twin sons, but whether these two babes are both boys, a girl and boy each, or both girls, I wish for them to be the last that I will bear. Is it not strange, Baela, how even though women are the ones who have to carry a child in her womb for nine moons and go through the rigors of childbirth, it is up to her lord husband whether or not she should keep bearing children even when she does not want to? Joyce told me how her father's first three wives all died in childbed because he kept impregnating them again and again without allowing them to recover properly from a previous birth..."
Baela held her twin sister's hand in both of hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"It will get better, Rhaena." Baela said, parroting what her sister had said earlier. "Wait until after the babies are born. If Luke ever pesters you about getting pregnant again, tell me, and I will set him straight!"
The twin sisters then exchanged kind smiles as they held and squeezed each other's hands.
The evening that Baela and Rhaena had conversed was the last night of the Targaryen's stay at High Tide. After supper, the men and women went their separate ways. The king and princes stayed in the feast hall to continue talking and drinking wine while the queen, princesses, and the royal wives and significant others settled down for the night. Rhaenyra was reading a bedtime story to her three Velaryon granddaughters, daughter, and Daenaera; she held little Meg in her lap as she read from a storybook about the legend of the first Storm King, Durran Godsgrief, and his wife Elenei, who was the daughter of a sea god and a wind goddess. Helaena, Baela, and Nell were tucking their children into bed after reading them bedtime stories, drawing the covers up under the chins of their little ones before giving them each a kiss goodnight.
Thea and Myrine were by themselves in a solar. Thea was embroidering her favorite mantle while Myrine was burying herself in the pages of an old tome about the history of House Velaryon that she got from High Tide's library. She was currently reading the chapter that detailed the life of Lord Daemon Velaryon, the realm's very first Master of Ships. Princess Rhaenys Targaryen had gone to bed early. She was about to doze off when she heard a frantic knocking at her bedchamber door.
"Your grace! Your grace!" the anxious sounding voice belonged to Lady Lyra Hayford, one of Rhaena's companions. Rhaenys bounded out of bed and opened the door.
"What? What is it, Lyra?!"
"It's Rhaena. Her waters have broken!"
The Queen Who Never Was's face paled when she heard those words and her blood ran cold. She took off for her granddaughter's bedchamber right away without saying a word. When Rhaenys reached Rhaena, she found the Lady of the Tides curled up into a ball on her bed clutching the bedsheets with one hand and her bulging abdomen with the other. She was moaning in pain as tears streamed down her face. One of Rhaena's other companions, her cousin Lady Phaedra Velaryon, was rubbing her lower back to try and ease the contractions.
Rhaenys spotted something red in the corner of her eye. When she moved her gaze there, Rhaenys saw that there was a large bloodstain on the bottom of her granddaughter's nightgown. Although deeply panicked, the princess refused to let that overwhelm her, and she rushed to be by her grandchild's side. Both Ladies Joyce Wylde and Lyra Hayford wasted no time in informing the rest of the household about Rhaena going into premature labor. Rhaena's bedchamber and the hallway outside were soon crowded with people.
Princesses Rhaenys and Baela sat on both side of Rhaena holding her hands as she screamed and cried out in pain. Princess Helaena and her cousin's three companions stood off to the side offering encouragement and support. Three midwives, a mother and her daughter and granddaughter, attended to Rhaena. Maesters Thaleus and Julian prepared sweetsleep and consulted books about premature births. The room became stuffy and hot from everyone inside, and Lady Joyce Wylde pulled open a tapestry to let in some cold winter air to try and cool things down.
In the adjacent hallway meanwhile, all was quiet save for Rhaena's pained cries coming from behind her bedroom door. Lucerys was sitting on a bench with his elbows resting on his knees and his face buried in his hands as he prayed silently for the safe delivery of his premature twins. He was flanked by his mother and Joffrey, the former who was gently rubbing her son's back in an attempt to comfort him. Jacaerys leaned against the wall with Addam and Alyn of Hull as he did his best to try and ignore the heart-wrenching sounds that were coming from his stepsister/sister-in-law's room; the other Velaryon's who were present in that hallway tried to do the same too. Aegon, Viserys, Thea, and Myrine were with the group for a few minutes before Myrine became too distressed by Rhaena's cries, and she was taken back to the solar by her friends.
Daemon stood still by the bench where Luke and Rhaenyra were, his fist pressed up against his mouth. The whole situation brought him back to when his second wife went into labor with their son fourteen years earlier in 120 AC. The birth had lasted for twenty-four long, agonizing hours before Laena finally brought forth Daemon's first son. Sadly, Daemon and Laena's baby boy was born deformed, and he took his last breath just an hour after taking his first. A grief-stricken Laena followed her child to the grave just three days later...
And now, one of Laena's daughters was going through an equally harrowing childbirth, and Daemon absolutely dreaded the idea of history repeating itself with one of his own children. His cousin was going through the same dread too. Rhaenys's mother had been born a month premature herself, and her birth led to her own mother's death. The sixty year old princess's fears worsened when she noticed the big leather roll that was lying next to Maester Julian's books. It undoubtedly contained surgical tools that would be used to cut a baby out of its mother's womb if she had died before she could give birth, or was at death's door during the labor. The maester who had attended to Rhaenys's maternal grandmother the day Jocelyn was born had to cut the baby girl out of her mother's womb after the dying Lady of Storm's End had fallen unconscious during the labor.
Thankfully, those tools would not be used. Three hours after Rhaena's water had broken, the first of the twins emerged; the grandmother midwife carefully pulled the baby out of its mother as it came forth. All was quiet except for Rhaena as she panted and groaned as she tried to push the baby out, and as the midwife intoned soft words of encouragement.
"It's a boy!" the midwife announced when the newborn was completely out. She said it loud enough for the assembled crowd outside to hear, and the Lord of the Tides looked up from his hands when he heard the three words that he had been waiting so long to hear. However, no sound came from the baby. The daughter midwife quickly motioned for the granddaughter midwife, a twelve year old girl, to come over with swaddling clothes to wrap the baby in, after which the girl quickly took the newborn boy to the maesters.
Thaleus and Julian examined the child as the eyes of the royal women and their companions were all rapt on the two men. The baby's unusual quietness soon became very worrying.
"Why can I not hear him?" wheezed a concerned Rhaena. "Why is my son not crying?"
Thaleus and Julian exchanged glances, and the former softly shook his head. The young Julian froze where he stood and he looked back down at the newborn baby on the table. This was the first stillbirth that Julian had attended to and he was clearly shaken by the immense tragedy of the event. Older and more experienced, Thaleus turned around to inform everyone that the first twin was stillborn. Lips quivering, Rhaena's head fell and she began to sob quietly as her heartbroken grandmother and twin sister embraced her.
Except for the saddened Maester Thaleus and grandmother midwife, there was not a dry eye in the room. Phaedra took it upon herself to go out into the hall to announce the tragic news to everyone outside. Lucerys, who had stood up as soon as his cousin had entered the hallway, sank back down into the bench and cradled his face in his hands as everyone in the hall moaned sorrowfully or began to weep.
"Please, please, Mother above..." Luke prayed silently. "Please spare the other child that still remains in Rhaena's womb. I do not care if it is a boy or a girl, just let them be born alive. Please, I beg you..."
Rhaena began crying out once more in pain, both physical and emotional, as she labored to give birth to the second baby. Thirteen minutes after the arrival of the stillborn prince, his twin was born. This time, the first cries of a newborn was heard. The baby's cries elicited so much joy from everyone.
"It's another boy!" the grandmother midwife called out.
Lucerys heard the baby crying and he barged into his wife's room to see the child for himself. He saw his newborn son being cradled in the arms of the midwife. Born one month premature, the baby boy was small in size and his movements were weak. Before Luke could get a closer look at his son, the midwife's daughter and granddaughter moved in to swaddle and take the baby to the maesters. An immensely exhausted Rhaena sank into her pillows as the adult midwives waited for the afterbirth to arrive.
Luke made his way towards his wife's bedside, and their grandmother moved so that he could sit by Rhaena. She looked terrible. Save for her red, swollen eyes, Rhaena's skin was pale and covered in sweat, her silver-white hair was matted against her forehead and the back of her neck, and the fabric of her nightgown stuck to her damp, bare skin. Her eyes were closed, and she was breathing softly. Luke was at a loss as to what to say to his wife.
He quietly took her hand into his and gently rubbed her head as words formed on his tongue.
"You are so brave, Rhaena." whispered Lucerys. "So, so brave..."
Baela firmly clutched her twin's hand in hers as she tried to hold back tears, her throat too tight for her to say anything. Moments later, Maester Thaleus walked towards Rhaena's bed with her swaddled son in his arms. Rhaena stirred when she heard her son's cries, and she slowly opened her tired eyes. Both her husband and sister carefully helped to prop her up against her pillows so that she could hold her new baby. The premature heir to Driftmark was a small and delicate creature with big purple eyes and silver-gold hair; the first of Queen Rhaenyra's grandsons to possess every Valyrian feature.
Rhaena gently touched the tip of the baby boy's nose before tracing his left eyebrow and rubbing his soft, fine hair as it scintillated in the candlelight.
"He's beautiful." Lucerys said as he admired his newborn son.
"He is." Rhaena replied.
The baby began to cry loudly, and Rhaena gently rocked him in her arms to quiet him. Rhaena looked up from her child to see Maester Julian swaddling the stillborn twin up before taking him away for burial. For just a split second, she could see the silver-gold top of her baby son's head as he was being carried away. The sight caused great sadness to manifest in Rhaena's heart, and she looked back down at her living son. After it was discovered that she was having twins, Luke and Rhaena agreed to name the twins Corlys and Corwyn if they were both male.
Now, in midst of tragedy, the names were switched around. The stillborn older twin was named Corwyn while his living younger twin was christened as Corlys in honor of their esteemed great-grandfather. It was a bittersweet night for both Houses Velaryon and Targaryen. In the face of great sorrow, however, marital bonds were reestablished. Rhaenyra I and Daemon became close once more as the former wept into her husband's arms that night in their bedchamber as they both mourned for the stillborn Corwyn and prayed for the recovery of Rhaena and Corlys. Jacaerys followed his wife to a veranda that overlooked the Narrow Sea after she had left her twin's bedchamber.
As the lachrymose princess tried to process all that had happened that night, she felt a familiar set of arms wrap around her. Baela welcomed her husband's embrace rather than push it away. A tidal wave of powerful emotions surged within Baela, and she quickly turned around to cry into Jace's chest. The two stood out in the moonlight of the cold winter night as they both reconnected through their mutual mourning over their stillborn nephew. Life was too short to brood over unhappiness and anger, and Baela and Jace chose to make amends that night.
While 134 AC was a grimly eventful year for the Black Targaryen's, it would end on a happy note for their Green counterparts across the continent. An uneventful but pleasant peace was enjoyed by Rhaenyra's half-brothers and stepfamily in Oldtown. Earlier that year, Lady Bethany Hightower announced that she was pregnant with her and Prince Daeron Targaryen's first child together. That child was born during the second to last week of the year. Bethany's mother-in-law and stepmother were both by her side holding her hands as she labored to bring her first child into the world as her family, husband, brother-in-law and Alys Rivers waited outside in the adjacent hallway.
"Seven above, this hurts!" yelled Bethany as labor pains rippled throughout her body.
Alicent and Lady Sam shared empathetic looks with Bethany and amused ones with each other.
"Does it ever get better?" panted the poor girl. Alicent shook her head sadly.
"I am sorry, my sweet. Childbirth is always a trial no matter how many times you go through it. But the end result is always worth the pain. Just think of the baby you are soon to have. There is nothing quite like holding your own child in your arms after it is born, especially if it is your first."
Bethany was paying attention to what her father's cousin was saying until a particularly painful contraction distracted her. She cried out in pain until Samantha calmed her down.
"Just breathe with it, Bethany." said the Lady of the Hightower, who was also pregnant herself for the second time, as she counseled the mother to be in a soothing tone. She was able to get her stepdaughter to breathe with her so that she could regain her calmness and try to cope with the pain. Meanwhile, out in the hallway, Daeron alternated between sitting on a bench shaking his leg up and down to pacing around on the floor. He wrung his hands and squeezed his fingers nervously, a trait that is similar to what his older half-sister did with the rings on her fingers, something they both got from their late father.
After an uncertain amount of time had passed, the cries of a newborn could be heard coming from behind Bethany's door.
"It's a girl, milady!" announced the midwife after the baby was born. "A beautiful little girl."
Bethany grinned from ear to ear when she heard the news as her mother-in-law and stepmother both congratulated her with big smiles on their faces. Minutes later, after the baby princess had been cleaned, examined, and swaddled by Maester Alfador, Daeron was ushered into his second cousin-wife's bedchamber to see their firstborn child. He smiled when he saw the cooing bundle that was being held in Bethany's arms. The prince approached his wife's bedside and saw his daughter's face for the first time. She was a lovely baby, and the girl possessed every Valyrian feature: silver-gold hair and dusk purple eyes.
"Hello there..." Daeron said softly as he reached out to touch the top of his newborn daughter's head. "Aren't you a pretty little thing."
"Would you like to hold her, Daeron?" Bethany asked, to which her husband nodded. Alicent hovered over her twenty year old youngest son as he carefully gathered the baby up into his arms. All was quiet as the happy couple savored their first minutes of parenthood. The dowager queen smiled as she watched the spectacle unfold; she was so happy to have another trueborn grandchild.
"What will her name be?" Alicent asked as she wiped some stray tears of happiness from her eyes.
"Saera." Daeron answered as he rocked his daughter in his arms. "Princess Saera Targaryen."
"That's a lovely name." Alicent replied warmly.
After Alicent and Lady Sam got the chance to hold the newborn Saera, Daeron took his daughter out into the hall to introduce her to the rest of the family. The hallway soon buzzed with coos and congratulations. Ormund smiled proudly as he held his newest granddaughter in his arms, and little Saera's uncles all took turns holding and complimenting her. Snow fell outside of the Hightower as the family within basked in the warm, familial love they all shared for their newest family member. Saera's birth would mark a happy end to a year that was rife with tension, bloodshed, and sorrow.
Baela has had a hell of year hasn't she? She has dealt with scandal, being threatened, falling out with a close friend, suffering a stillbirth in the family, and nearly losing her twin sister and nephew to a difficult preterm labor. Thankfully both Baela and Jacaerys are now reconciling as are their parents. I am not a mother myself, but I can imagine that the pain of having a stillborn child is indescribable. Just imagine being so excited for your child to be born only to learn that they do not have a heartbeat during an ultrasound or they are not breathing when they are born... At least one of Lucerys and Rhaena's twin boys lived despite being a preemie.
I am happy to finally be done with the year 134 AC so that I can get on with the rest of Rhaenyra's first decade as queen. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review! :)
PS: The crescent moon carving on the Moon Door was inspired by the two illustrations that are present in the image gallery for the Moon Door article in a Song of Ice and Fire Wiki.