Hello, everyone! So sorry for the long three month wait. I've been busy. Plus, I've been brainstorming ideas on how to move the story forward, and I've had to make more chapters. I wanted to publish two chapters at once, but they were going to be too long, and I wanted to make sure that they weren't rushed and most importantly, that they made sense.
Thank you all for your patience. So, anyway, here is Chapter 39. I would say enjoy, but I am going to warn you right now that this is going to be a sad and disturbing chapter. Read at your own discretion.
Author's Note: Disturbing scene near the end.
PS: I noticed a mistake in one of my previous chapters. The current season is spring, not summer. I will fix that then. I apologize for the error.
The Red Keep
As the manhunt for Aemond the Kinslayer was being carried out in the Reach, the Greens at King's Landing holed themselves up in their quarters at the Red Keep. With Queen Rhaenyra and the Blacks on edge over both the manhunt and the preceding death of Prince Jacaerys Velaryon, the Greens wisely felt that it was best to keep to themselves until the storm had passed. With Princes Jaehaerys and Maelor assisting in the search for their uncle in the Reach, the only Green Targaryen's at the Red Keep were their mother, Helaena, their sister, Jaehaera, and her three children: Gaemon, Aegon, and Aeva. Contact between the Greens and Visenya and Rhaenys became minimal after the expectant princess sequestered herself in her chambers with her daughter. The Greens could have visited the two princesses more often if it weren't for Visenya and Rhaenys receiving daily visits from their Black relatives, particularly from the queen.
Ever since her eldest son's death, Queen Rhaenyra continued to mourn him by wearing all black. Wherever the queen was, her sable ensemble seemed to absorb whatever light and emotion was in the area like a black hole, causing whoever was present to be drawn to the sorrowful queen. Rhaenyra had also grown cold towards Helaena and her family during this time, putting a new wedge between the two half-sisters, and recreating the tense atmosphere that the princess and her family first experienced after Rhaenyra was crowned queen in 129 AC. And so, to avoid any more family drama, the Greens did their best to make themselves scarce by hiding out in their chambers with their retainers. Ser Edmund Naeryon kept them all safe, both Helaena's septa and her longtime ladies-in-waiting kept everyone's spirits up with stories, prayers, and jokes, and servants waited on the family hand and foot.
These servants soon became the captive Greens' link to the world outside of their protective bubble, and updates about the ongoing manhunt were requested daily by both Helaena and Jaehaera. Much to the muted relief of the two princesses during the manhunt's first days, Aemond was successfully evading the Iron Throne's vengeful clutches. As much as Helaena and Jaehaera cared for their respective brother and uncle and wished that he would remain safe and unharmed, they began hoping that Aemond would turn himself in as the manhunt wore on into its second week so that peace could return to the Reach and take the black to save his head. Mother and daughter's hearts sank when they learned about the Blacks taking noble hostages and the burnings at Ashford and Highgarden by Moondancer and Macetail. Helaena received a heartbreaking letter from her youngest brother Daeron that expressed how upset and angry he was over his sons and granddaughter being taken hostage by the Blacks.
And as if that wasn't sad enough, Helaena also learned that her niece Saera, who had been greatly distressed over being separated from both her baby daughter and younger brother, was now bedridden, and her emotional turmoil was putting both her health and the health of her unborn child at risk. Saera's distress was shared by her mother, and Daeron lamented in his letter on how Bethany had become withdrawn and melancholy after learning that all three of their sons and infant granddaughter had been taken hostage by the Iron Throne. Bethany had become very protective of her youngest daughter, and she would not let Vaella out of her sight, which included having the ten year old princess sleep between her parents in their bed at night. Mother and daughter would pray frequently together in the Hightower's chapel for the safety of Valerion, Aeryn, Valarr, and Daena alongside Ladies Patricia Redwyne, Jeyne Merryweather, and Myrielle Peake, who all prayed for the safety of their captive relatives as well. Weeping could often be heard coming from the four women as they prayed.
Reading about the emotional turmoil going on at Oldtown made Helaena and Jaehaera immensely grateful that the queen had not ordered for Gaemon, Aegon, or Aeva to be taken away from them. The three siblings' resilience and continual happiness in the face of the untimely deaths of both their great-grandmother and their parents' half-cousin, and being separated from their father and uncle was a source of great pride for their grandmother and mother. Nine year old Aegon spent most of his days in the company of Ser Naeryon practicing swordplay or archery in the training yard. Eight year old Aeva spent most of her time with her mother and grandmother sewing or embroidering or learning how to run a household by her septa. The activities that Aegon and Aeva shared together were the lessons taught by Maester Urban, learning how to ride horses in the yard, and playing with their older brother Gaemon.
Ten year old Gaemon could distract his family somewhat whenever they felt overwhelmed by the world's growing negativity. Gaemon the Blind and Jaehaera were joined at the hip, and the prince was rarely out of his mother's sight. He could be seen playing with thimbles, reels, and spindles while his mother, little sister, and grandmother performed needlework; the three princesses always made sure to keep the scissors and spare needles away from Gaemon so that he wouldn't accidentally hurt himself. Gaemon played with these tools in an infantile manner – he would swing and shake a spindle as if it were a rattle and roll the reels on the floor like balls. Gaemon was initially forbidden to play with thimbles after he nearly swallowed one when he was two years old, but over time, he did learn that thimbles were not food, and he played with them by putting them on his fingertips and tapping them on them on the floor or rolling them around on the floor like marbles.
Frail as he was, Gaemon had made some progress over the years. He could speak, albeit in broken sentences that were no more than three words long, but it was enough for him to convey what he wanted to his family, especially to his mother. For example, if Gaemon wanted to visit the royal kennels, he would say "Pet dog doggy", but if he wanted to pet a specific dog like Spider, Prince Aeric's hound, Gaemon would say "Pet dog Spider". If he wanted to go for a ride, he would say "Ride horse yard" or "Ride dragon sky". Gaemon's sense of balance had improved as he grew up too, and he could stand straight without swaying, and, when Gaemon went out for horseback rides around the training yard, he could sit up straight in a saddle on his own with Jaehaera standing beside the horse holding onto his back and arm as a stable-boy carefully led the animal around the yard.
When playing with his younger brother and sister, Gaemon would hold either Aegon or Aeva's hand while playing their special version of tag or hide and seek. With his hearing being so acute, Aegon or Aeva would clue their brother in on where they were by speaking or making some other noise, letting Gaemon immediately know where his sibling was located. This would sometimes get the blind prince so excited that he would all but drag Aegon or Aeva behind him as he tried to tag or find the other. When not playing, Aegon and Aeva would lead Gaemon around to engage his sense of touch by feeling stone walls, cold fountain water, or tree bark to name a few. The blind prince was especially fond of smelling flowers or his mother's perfume, and he would smile and simply utter the word "pretty" whenever he smelled them.
Gaemon, Aegon, and Aeva were all such sweet, gentle, and innocent souls, and their mother and grandmother hoped and prayed that they would remain unaffected by what was going on outside of the Red Keep. Aegon and Aeva would occasionally ask Jaehaera or Helaena if they heard anything about their father and uncle and if they were coming home soon, and they were always disappointed to learn that the two men were still busy searching the Reach for the children's fugitive granduncle. The morning of the twenty-seventh day of the tenth moon saw a similar exchange take place between the two princesses and the children.
"Did any ravens arrive this morning, mama?" asked Aegon, and his face fell when Jaehaera shook her head. Feeling bad for her grandson, Helaena made an effort to comfort him.
"I am afraid not, sweetling. But it's only morning. We have a whole day ahead of us. Perhaps we will get a raven today from either your papa or uncle."
Aegon nodded his head in acceptance of what his grandmother had said, but his expression remained crestfallen. His sister Aeva bore the same look. Gaemon's expression was neutral. He never missed his father, and even though he was fond of his Uncle Maelor, Gaemon the Blind never asked about his whereabouts either. Maybe it was because Gaemon could be so easily distracted. Case in point being that he was being spoon-fed porridge by his mother at that very moment.
"The dragon flies high in the sky," intoned Jaehaera as she slowly sailed a spoonful of porridge up above her firstborn's head in a playful manner as he sat still and waited for his next bite with a growing grin on his face. "And then he flies down to his cave." Gaemon opened his mouth and closed on the spoon with a smile when he felt it touch his tongue. This game was played daily between Jaehaera and Gaemon during mealtimes, and they had been doing it since the prince was weaned from his wet nurse's breast.
This game always annoyed Jaehaerys, though. It embarrassed him to see Jaehaera feed their eldest child as if he were an infant when he was a boy who was going to turn eleven on New Year's Eve. But by now, Jaehaera did not care how her twin-husband thought about the way she took care of the handicapped Gaemon. Thankfully, Jaehaerys was the only one who minded this; his mother, younger children, and brother were all fine with Jaehaera and Gaemon's mealtime games. Besides feeding her son at every meal, Jaehaera also got him dressed in the mornings and evenings and bathed him on her own without the help of servants.
Jaehaera could have easily arranged for servants to take care of Gaemon for her, but she didn't want that. She was his mother, and disabled or not, Gaemon was still her child, and she was not going to let anyone else raise or take care of him. Even the daunting prospect of her caring for her son when she was old and gray didn't faze the princess one bit. And in the event when the Stranger would come to reap her soul, Jaehaera knew that Aegon and Aeva would take good care of their older brother in her stead. If she ever felt afraid for Gaemon's future, the feeling that he would be in good hands throughout his life put always her at ease.
"And the dragon lands in his cave one last time," Jaehaera said with satisfaction after giving Gaemon his last bite of breakfast. "Good boy, Gaemon."
"Good boy, Gaemon," repeated the prince's grandmother with pride.
The blind prince giggled happily as Jaehaera wiped his mouth.
"Is everyone done eating?" asked Jaehaera to her youngest children. Spoons scraping the bottom of wooden bowls answered the princess first shortly before Aegon and Aeva said, "I am" and "Me too." Morning sunshine poured through the high windows of the room, and Jaehaera could see blue sky outside. It looked like today was going to be a beautiful day.
Jaehaera thought that she and her family could go out for a dragon ride after the conclusion of Aegon and Aeva's lessons later that afternoon. This idea was received excitedly by the children once Jaehaera shared it with them, and Helaena accepted to join them after her daughter extended the offer to her. In the meantime, Jaehaera and Helaena would take Gaemon to the royal gardens to play while his younger siblings were attending their lessons. Gaemon held both his mother and grandmother's hands as they walked him to the garden with Helaena's companions following after them. Childish squeals of joy were heard by the three once they reached the garden.
Walking further into the garden revealed that the squealing was coming from Little Rhaenyra. She was playing tag with her cousin Little Daemon, who was it, and their half-cousin once removed, Aemon, who was running with Rhaenyra. Watching the youngsters as they played were Ladies Thea Celtigar and Myrine Darklyn and Princess Alysanne Velaryon. Alysanne's infant daughter, Princess Elaena Targaryen, was being fed by her wet nurse, who was sitting on a chair beside the bench her mother and Ladies Celtigar and Darklyn were seated. Elaena's feeding ended soon after Helaena, Jaehaera, and Gaemon got closer to the group, and the wet nurse handed the infant princess back to her mother to hold.
Jaehaera was happy to see her two childhood friends since the time they spent together had been cut short due to the growing ill-will between their families, but she tensed when she saw the crown prince's wife and daughter. If Alysanne was uneasy about being the presence of Aemond the Kinslayer's sister, niece, and grandnephew, she did not show it, hiding any ill-will underneath a veneer of royal politeness. Jaehaera's uneasiness faded when she and her mother laid eyes on another baby princess who was present in the garden. It was Rhaenys. The sight of the little princess, who was being held by Thea, greatly delighted her paternal grandmother and aunt, and they both uttered her name at the same time.
"Where is Visenya?" Helaena asked as she and her entourage walked up to see her granddaughter. The three women's anxious expressions made both Helaena and Jaehaera nervous.
"In her bedchamber," spoke Thea as she dandled Rhaenys on her right knee. "Visenya woke up feeling unwell this morning."
"Maester Thaleus says she has a fever," added Myrine. Seeing the worry grow in Helaena and Jaehaera's eyes, Alysanne made an attempt to assuage their concerns.
"Aunt Visenya is faring well, though. She's sleeping now."
"How is the baby?" asked Helaena, who dreaded the possibility of her daughter-in-law going to into premature labor again.
"My aunt said that her baby was moving around normally inside her womb before she went to sleep. She said that her little boy felt strong."
Helaena closed her eyes, inhaled deeply, and sighed with relief. "Mother Above, please keep both Visenya and her baby strong. May mother and child both be safe and well." she prayed silently. Opening her eyes and seeing her toddler aged granddaughter, and turning to look at her ten year old grandson, Helaena forced her worries to the back of her mind to focus on the living grandchildren she had with her right now. Jaehaera also took note of her half-cousins' children, and she stepped forward with her son to ask her companions and Alysanne if it would be fine with them if Gaemon, with her assistance, played with their children.
Thea, Myrine, and Alysanne looked at each before nodding their heads in agreement and giving their consent. Gaemon did not interact much with his Black half-cousins. Rhaenyra's grandchildren were familiar with Gaemon the Blind, but a combination of being sheltered by his mother and his infantile behavior made it hard for the Black princes and princesses to bond with Gaemon. When Gaemon was younger, the queen's grandchildren from the bloodline of her first marriage did their best to avoid him due to his once pitiful appearance and drooling, which they found to be unnerving and disgusting respectively. The grandchildren from the bloodline of Rhaenyra's second marriage were a little more accepting of Gaemon due to them being around his age or younger.
Little Daemon and Rhaenyra and Aemon watched as Jaehaera walked up with their blind cousin and explained to them how to play with Gaemon. The children accepted, and soon a grinning Gaemon could be seen leading his mother around the garden chasing after the giggling youngsters in a game of tag. The boy's grandmother meanwhile held Rhaenys for the first time in two weeks, and she enjoyed every minute of it. Rhaenys had started walking on her own earlier that year, and she delighted her grandmother, aunts, and cousin with her cute toddler's gait as she cooed and babbled under the women's watchful gaze.
"Jaehaera looks like she is faring well," commented Thea as she glanced over at the princess as she guided Gaemon through tag. Helaena's face fell with motherly sadness.
"She is strong but discovering my mother's body still haunts her."
The other women gave Helaena sympathetic looks. None of them could ever imagine coming across their own mother or grandmother's dead bodies, let alone learning that they had been murdered.
"Has Jaehaera said anything about that night, Helaena?" asked Myrine. The older princess shook her head.
"No. I have tried to encourage her to talk about it with me or our septa, but she refuses each time I bring it up. I have seen her brooding from time to time at the table or when we're sewing, but I don't know whether to ask her if she is alright or to just leave her alone. Jaehaera is a grown woman, but she is still my daughter, and I worry for her." Helaena sighed then, "The expression I have seen on her face when she broods is even darker than the one she had when she learned about Maegon and Maegelle's birth..."
"Grandmama." The women turned to see Rhaenys toddling up to her paternal grandmother holding a brilliant yellow dandelion in her tiny hand. "Flower. Pretty flower."
Her spirits low following the discussion about Jaehaera, Helaena lit up when she saw what her granddaughter had brought her. Amidst a low chorus of "awws" from the other women, Helaena scooped Rhaenys up into her arms and sat her down on her lap.
"That is a pretty flower you have there, but it is not as pretty as you." praised Helaena in a tone dripping with grandmotherly love.
Rhaenys gave her grandmother a bashful grin that showed off her emerging baby teeth. She held the dandelion up to Helaena for her to smell, which Helaena did, and she complimented on the fragrance. Rhaenys then wrapped her arms around her grandmother and stayed there, not wanting to leave the comfortable seat that was Helaena's lap and embrace. Thea smiled softly at the sight, and then she looked up at her husband's half-aunt and gently asked, "How have you been faring since your mother's death, Helaena?"
"I have been managing." replied the princess as she rubbed her granddaughter's back. "It is still so unbelievable, though. One moment, my mother was alive, and then dead the next. And to die the way she did..." Helaena trailed off.
Silence fell upon the four noblewomen as they contemplated the horror of being smothered to death. Having a pillow pressed hard against your face, you struggling desperately against the smotherer to free yourself from their grasp and to try and breathe again, the horrifying feeling of no air coming through your nose or mouth as you inhale... Granted, Queen Alicent was insufferable the night she died due to all the wine she drank, but she did not in any way deserve to die in such a horrifyingly brutal way. Her murder was bad enough on its own, but what made it worse was that the identity of Alicent's murderer was still unknown, and that the ensuing conflict over who had killed the late dowager queen had led to even more bloodshed, grief, and anger for both the Reach and the Iron Throne. It was grimly amazing how one individual's decision to murder Alicent has spawned so much discord in the past two weeks...
A whoop of joy was heard coming from Jaehaera, breaking her friends and mother from their grim thoughts. Turning to look, the women saw Jaehaera congratulating Gaemon on tagging Little Rhaenyra, who was now pouting with her arms crossed while sullenly kicking at the ground. Wanting comfort, Rhaenyra glanced up at her mother, only for her eyes to meet with Thea's disapproving look. Feeling ashamed over her behavior, Little Rhaenyra bowed her head, and walked quietly over to her mother, who wrapped her arms around the young princess and held her. Jaehaera did the same to her son before resuming the game to try and tag the two princes.
Gaemon was able to tag Little Daemon, but Aemon was able to avoid his half-second cousin once removed until Aegon and Aeva were free to ride their dragons. Dragonriding was Gaemon's most favorite hobby, and he fidgeted with excitement in the wheelhouse as he and his mother, grandmother, and younger siblings rode over to the Dragonpit. Being a good boy, he never whined about how long the trip took or when Morghul was getting saddled up, and Gaemon petted the dragon's snout with a happy grin on his face as the great beast was getting prepared for flight. Once up in the air on Morghul's back, Gaemon, sitting in front of his mother with one of her arms wrapped around his belly, would hold his arms up in the air and squeal happily as the wind blew through his hair and buffeted his skin. The happy noises that Gaemon the Blind made could be heard by his grandmother and younger siblings as they flew close by, which in turn made them happy as well.
Helaena, who was riding Dreamfyre alone, observed her daughter and grandchildren's gaiety as they flew around King's Landing. It felt so good to feel pure happiness for once instead of lingering anxiety and dread. Political intrigue and drama remained grounded to the earth below as the captive Green Targaryen's flew around in the sky above without a care in the world. Occasionally, Helaena thought of inviting her half-sister to go flying with her and her family to escape the turmoil that had been consuming her life for the past two weeks, but the princess could never work up the courage to do so. Then again, Helaena knew that she was not responsible for Rhaenyra's happiness, and if the queen wanted an escape from her stress and grief, she could do it on her own or with the help of her other relatives.
Hearing two other happy squeals, Helaena looked across Morghul to find Aegon and Aeva squealing happily atop of Sunfyre the Golden. Turning ten in two months, Aegon was already considered to be a skilled dragonrider by his family, and they were all proud of him because of it. Prince Aegon the Elder would have been the proudest of them all if he was still alive. When Gaemon, Aegon, and Aeva were younger, their grandfather would often take them for rides atop of Sunfyre. If there was a heaven, then Aegon the Elder would be smiling down from on high at the sight of his grandson flying Sunfyre with his little sister, and as the years went by, perhaps the dead prince's spirit would see his grandson flying with his own child, grandchild, and maybe even a great-grandchild before the Stranger came for him.
An hour and a half after they had taken to the sky, the dragonriders had to land back at the Dragonpit so that Aegon and Aeva could return to the Red Keep to make it for their remaining lessons of the day. The rest of the day passed by quietly and peacefully. The Greens returned to the gardens to watch Gaemon, Aegon, and Aeva play for the last few hours of daylight before sunset. There were more children for Gaemon to play with this time besides his younger brother and sister, for, besides Little Daemon and Rhaenyra, Rhaenys, and Aemon, there was also Oswyn, Valaena, Aerys, and the latter two's maternal cousin, Raynor Darklyn. The normally quiet garden rang out with the sounds of children playing, laughing, whining, and commanding as the sun slowly sank beneath the horizon.
Peaceful as this playtime was, the Blacks and Greens sadly parted ways when it was time for supper. Both sides departed with a sense of sadness weighing down on their hearts and minds. Could their lives go back to normal after Aemond One-Eye's capture? Would it ever regardless if he was captured or not? Everything was going so well up until that fateful feast in Oldtown, and now, everything was going downhill so fast.
Depressing as this was, the adults tried to find some distraction from their never-ending worries with the food they were going to eat that night. The Greens sat down for a small but rich meal of creamy mushroom soup, a colorful salad of apples, spring greens, and candied walnuts; roasted venison served with bacon, carrots, fennel, and rosemary, and fresh baked bread with butter. Red wine was drunk by Helaena and Jaehaera, and the children were given a watered-down version of the beverage. Everything tasted delicious, and supper was seasoned with family chitchat. Lessons, cousins, pastimes, and tomorrow's plans were all discussed between the Greens.
As usual, Jaehaera and Gaemon played their flying dragon game at the dinner table. Carefully balancing a spoonful of mushroom soup in her hand, Jaehaera slowly sailed the spoon over Gaemon's head as she intoned "The dragon flies high in the sky". But before reciting "And then he flies down to his cave", Jaehaera blew on the soup, added the odd but cute new line of "First he blows the fire out," before finally feeding her son. Gaemon loved the taste, and he begged for more, something which his mother was more than happy to do. It was not long before Gaemon's bowl of soup was finished.
Aegon noticed how much his older brother loved the soup, and he quickly handed his untouched bowl over to his mother to give to Gaemon.
"Here, mama. Let Gaemon have my soup. I don't like mushrooms."
"Why not?" Jaehaera asked curiously as she reached over to take the bowl from her youngest son. "You used to like them."
"Mushrooms are good for you, your grace." interjected Maester Urban after chewing and swallowing some venison. "They will help you grow big and strong."
"I don't like the taste anymore," was Aegon's answer. "I don't like how soft and squishy they are, either."
"Very well, then," said his mother. She then turned to Gaemon. "What do you say to your brother, Gaemon?"
"Thank you, Aegon." Gaemon's words tumbled out of his mouth in his typical distorted tone, and he ended his three words with a big, senseless grin. Another round of flying dragon soon commenced between Jaehaera and her eldest child. Aegon's soup was mostly cool when he gave it to Gaemon, and the blind prince finished his second bowl quicker than the first one. His mother congratulated him on finishing his soup as she wiped Gaemon's mouth with a piece of cloth.
"Good boy, Gaemon. You cleaned both bowls."
"Yummy, yummy soup! Mushrooms are yummy," chirped a happy and full Gaemon as he happily pounded on the tabletop with his hands.
"He'll grow big and strong now," remarked Aeva, calling back on Maester Urban's earlier statement to her older brother Aegon. Helaena smiled and nodded at her granddaughter. Urban shared Helaena's proud expression.
"That's right, my sweet," the older princess said proudly.
Aegon rolled his eyes as he ate his last bite of venison with a piece of carrot and fennel each. "Meat and vegetables help boys grow strong, too," he thought to himself. Annoyed at first with his siblings, Aegon soon cheered up when dessert was served. Thick, custardy almond milk pudding with strawberries was on the menu that night, and it proved to be an instant hit with all three siblings.
When dessert was finished, everyone settled down for a quiet evening in their solar. Helaena taught Aeva how to embroider flowers and insects. Jaehaera multitasked between embroidering and keeping an eye on her sons. Aegon was reading to Gaemon about Garth Greenhand and his many children from an old folklore book that had been used by his great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother to read to their children at night to help them fall asleep. Unlike his mother, who had problems learning how to read when she was a girl, Aegon became literate relatively early, and he could read aloud well and clearly; his listeners found his voice to be nice and soothing.
Gaemon enjoyed being read to. He couldn't picture any of the storybook scenes for obvious reasons, but the voices of the readers provided a lovely ambience that the blind prince greatly enjoyed. Aegon was reading about how Brandon of the Bloody Blade had driven giants out of the Reach when his sister yelped in pain after pricking her finger on a needle. Gaemon swiveled his head in his sister's direction, and he suddenly shot up from his chair.
"Aeva!?"
Aeva was sitting next to her brother, and Gaemon wrapped her in a big, tight hug.
"Hug feel better?" Gaemon sweetly asked his sister as he hugged her.
"Yes, Gaemon," squeaked Aeva as she tried to get a breath in. Gaemon the Blind didn't know his own strength.
"Let her go, Gaemon," ordered Helaena in a gentle tone. She gently grabbed ahold of her eldest grandchild's arms and opened his embrace. Free from her brother's suffocating hug, Aeva hugged him herself to thank him for looking out for her. Gaemon grinned slightly at the feeling of his younger sister's embrace.
"Aeva better." he said contently.
Happy to know that his sister was fine, Gaemon was guided back to his seat by Aegon, and the latter resumed reading to him. Jaehaera would read another story to Gaemon later that evening after tucking him into bed. Other than folklore, Gaemon was also fond of historical stories, especially ones from Aegon's Conquest of Westeros. Hearing about epic battles involving dragons and horses made Gaemon imagine the feeling of wind blowing through his hair, and he could "feel" these stories better because it was a sensation that he was familiar with. He really "felt" the wind in his hair as his mother read about how Aegon the Conqueror flew down on Harrenhal and had Balerion the Black Dread unleash a torrent of dragonfire on the great castle, turning the huge turrets into stone candles and incinerating everyone inside.
Finishing the story with the ascension of Lord Edmyn Tully as the first Lord Paramount of the Trident, Jaehaera kissed her son goodnight, extinguished the candle on her nightstand, and they both fell asleep side by side. Bad dreams plagued Jaehaera as she slept. All she could see, no matter how hard she tried to repress it, was her grandmother's last night alive. This was a common nightly occurrence for Jaehaera ever since that fateful night. She could see Alicent insulting the guests at the Hightower, arguing with Visenya and calling the princess's parents usurpers, and then...
"Mama..."
Gaemon's voice was weak, but his sleeping mother could hear it thanks to Gaemon shaking her to try and rouse her. Eyelids fluttering, Jaehaera's awakening progressed slowly at first until Gaemon said something troubling.
"Mama, belly hurt..."
Hearing this caused Jaehaera's eyes to snap open. Being the hour of the wolf, which was made even darker thanks to the new moon, it was pitch black in the bedchamber. Jaehaera quickly felt her way to the drawer of her nightstand to fetch some flint to light a candle. Upon successfully lighting the candle, Jaehaera immediately turned her attention back to her son to see what was wrong, and her concern deepened when she saw him. Gaemon's skin was flushed red with fever, and his nightclothes stuck to his sweaty skin as if they had been pasted onto his body.
"Gaemon?!" Jaehaera crawled closer to her son and she placed her left hand on his forehead. High heat greeted Jaehaera's palm, and the princess gasped.
"Mama, belly hurt..." Gaemon groaned again. The boy then doubled over and grabbed his stomach, his expression twisted with pain. Gaemon then started crying. Her heart hurting for her child, Jaehaera held Gaemon in a motherly embrace as her own eyes began to water from a combination of fear and heartbreak over her son's sudden, painful illness. Gaemon's crying became louder, and Jaehaera soon smelled the vile odor of excrement.
"Oh, sweetling, what is happening!?" Jaehaera asked, her fear rising. She quickly got out of bed and rounded it to reach Gaemon to help him up and take him to the privy. Gently helping her son up from the mattress, Jaehaera froze when Gaemon began retching. Acting quickly, Jaehaera tightened her grip on Gaemon and tried to lead him as fast as she could to the privy.
Mother and son were able to reach the privy in time, and Jaehaera comforted Gaemon as he vomited into the privy shaft.
"Burning... Hurt... Mama, belly hurt...," whimpered Gaemon when he was done vomiting. Gaemon's weeping turned to pained cries as he grabbed his belly and curled up into a fetal position. Jaehaera was frozen in terror at the sight of her suffering son. She had never seen Gaemon like this. Gaemon had never been this sick or in this much pain before in his life.
Willing herself to move against her fright, Jaehaera scooped her son up into her arms and made a mad dash for Maester Urban's chambers. She had never run so fast in her life. Gaemon's agonized screams echoed throughout the cold, empty halls. The hair-raising journey to Urban's chambers seemed to take longer than usual, and a terrified Jaehaera started screaming for the maester before she even saw the door.
"Maester Urban! Maester Urban!" shouted the terrified princess,
A startled Urban greeted Jaehaera just as she arrived with Gaemon at his chamber door.
"Please help Gaemon! He's not well! Help him, please!"
Urban was at first taken aback by the sight of Jaehaera's terrified expression, but when his eyes fell upon the writhing and crying Gaemon as he laid curled up in his mother's arms, Urban immediately sprang into action. He led the princess into his chamber, closed the door behind them, and he had Jaehaera lay Gaemon down on a nearby table. The blind prince's screaming had awoken the Green household, and a small crowd had started to gather outside of Urban's door shortly after Jaehaera had entered with her suffering son. Princess Helaena and Ser Naeryon soon joined the crowd after consoling the frightened Aegon and Aeva, who were now in the care of a septa and two of Helaena's ladies-in-waiting. Helaena recognized her grandson's screams and her daughter's shouting, and she frantically barged through the crowd with Ser Edmund Naeryon to get to Jaehaera to see what was wrong. The duo all but took the door off its hinges when they entered Urban's room; Edmund shut and locked the door behind them to keep out curious onlookers.
"Jaehaera! What has happened!?" inquired a frightened Helaena. Her wide purple eyes soon found the crying Gaemon, and Helaena felt her heart drop and her blood run cold. Gaemon writhed about on the table like a chicken being carried off to the chopping block. Jaehaera hovered over her son, cradling his head in one hand and rubbing his stomach with the other as she tried to soothe him with kind, gentle words. Helaena rushed over to Gaemon's other side to help comfort him.
Maester Urban hastily gathered up every herb and medicine he could use to help treat the suffering prince. The first thing Urban was going to do was to try and treat Gaemon's stomach pain. Once that was dealt with, Urban would next draw and ice bath for the prince to try and combat his fever. Grabbing one of his vials of milk of the poppy, Urban was able to administer it to Gaemon with the help of his mother and grandmother, who both helped to hold the boy's head up and keep his mouth open long enough for him to drink the medicine.
Gaemon's screaming mercifully stopped after he drank the milk of the poppy, and he dozed off. However, his breathing was weak. Urban had an ice bath prepared for Gaemon, but it had no effect. His fever remained high, his breathing grew shallower and shallower, and the boy's pulse started to weaken. Realizing that there was nothing more that could be done for Gaemon, Urban had Ser Naeryon remove his young patient from the bath and laid him back down on the table and covered him with a blanket.
Helaena and Jaehaera prayed desperately to the Mother Above to spare Gaemon's life, but it was to no avail. Over an hour after his mother had brought him to Maester Urban, Prince Gaemon Targaryen died. He was only ten years old. Just as Gaemon's screams of agony had filled the halls an hour earlier, those halls soon resounded with the heart-wrenching sound of Jaehaera's mournful wail when Urban informed her that Gaemon, her firstborn, had passed away. Jaehaera cradled her dead son's head in her arms and her own head fell upon his as her tears cascaded down hot and heavy from her eyes, her mouth rent open as anguished cries flowed out of her mouth.
A sobbing Helaena was bent over with her hands folded over her mouth as she mourned the untimely passing of her eldest grandchild. Edmund stood off in the corner with glimmering eyes and trembling lips. The small crowd gathered outside the locked door knew that something awful had happened, and a pall of sorrow descended upon them. Aegon and Aeva heard their mother's wails, and they were held close by the septa and their grandmother's companions. Maester Urban stood as still as a statue amidst this sea of grief.
Inwardly, both the man's heart and mind were in great torment. Urban's heart ached at the fact that he could not save the young Prince Gaemon. His mind, however, was being tormented by a bout of grim brainstorming. Going over what he had witnessed over the past hour, and from what he was able to glean from the hysterical Jaehaera after she arrived with her son, Urban made a mental list of the symptoms that Gaemon suffered from before he died: terrible stomach pains, high fever, looseness of the bowels, and vomiting. Piecing this puzzle together with what he knew, Urban shuddered at the insidious hypothesis that culminated at the conclusion of his thinking.
The symptoms of the ailment that ended the short life of Prince Gaemon the Blind was indicative of mushroom poisoning. Urban broke out in a cold sweat. Mushroom soup had been served to the Greens that night. Urban saw Gaemon eat two bowls of the stuff, one of those bowls having been Aegon's. The fact that no one else was complaining of stomach pains or vomiting as the evening wore on led Urban to conclude that this poisoning was deliberate.
And he had a sneaking suspicion that he knew who could be behind this poisoning if it was an act of malice. Gaemon's own half-grandaunt, Queen Rhaenyra I Targaryen...
Poor Gaemon... Was he poisoned intentionally, or was it a tragic accident? I cannot promise you when the next chapters will be published, but I can guarantee that they will be interesting, disturbing, and tragic. Thank you for your patience and for reading.