Background - This is both the canon and how I have changed it for the purposes of this story. They are also not necessarily in the exact order of events.
Westeros was conquered by Aegon and his sister wives Rhaenys and Visenya. Aegon and Rhaenys had a son first called Aenys who was a very sickly baby and child. When he was 3 years old Rhaenys died in battle and Aenys reverted to a much younger age causing concern for the throne. Visenya who was Aegon least favourite wife was not expected to be able to have a child as she had not been able to conceive at this point, but she unexpectedly fell pregnant.
Talk went around that she had used blood magic to be able to conceive Maegor and provide Aegon with an heir herself, who she loved dearly. When Maegor was born he was the opposite of Aenys, a healthy and chubby baby.
Aenys married Alyssa Velaryon and together they had 5 surviving children Rhaena, Aegon, Viserys, Jaehaerys, and Alysanne.
Maegor was married at 15 to Cerys Hightower, who was older than him and believed to be unable to bear children which was known when she was married to Maegor to prevent him from being able to have heirs of his own.
After Aegon passed away Aenys became King, and he named Maegor Hand of the King. In the first year of his reign faced rebellions , and he struggled to quash them, Maegor claimed Balerion, his father's dragon, and was a large part in getting the rebellion under control, along with his mother Visenya.
There were two years of peace where Aenys and Maegor got along and ruled together. Maegor married Alys in the hopes of being able to have a child when it became clear after years of marriage that Cerys wouldn't be able to have one. He planned on having two wives like his father, but Cerys, humiliated and furious, returned to Old Town, and Aenys demanded that Maegor set Alys aside and return to Cerys, or he would be banished.
Maegor refused to set Alys aside and went into exile for 5 years. While he was away Aenys and Alyssa married their two oldest children Rhaena and Aegon to each other. The main faith in Westeros is the Faith of the Seven, and they went into revolt at the marriage, they had accepted the marriage of Aegon the Conqueror, Visenya and Rhaenys, but they did not want to accept the practice of inter marrying would continue, even though this had been the practice of the Targaryens, and the Valyrians - where they came from - for centuries.
A warrior class of the Faith of the Seven was created called the Faith Militant, and they sought to get the Targaryens off of the throne of Westeros. They sprung up everywhere and started killing people that disagreed with them and taking control of cities.
Aenys, who had never been a warrior, was unsure how best to react to this threat and was surprised by the uprising. Rhaena and Aegon had been on royal progress, without Rhaena's dragon Dreamfyre, and they ended up trapped inside the Keep of one of their supporters as the Faith Militant surrounded them. They were here for months, and during that time it was discovered Rhaena was pregnant, she gave birth while they were still under siege to twin daughters.
King's Landing was in the meantime taken over by the Faith Militant, and Aenys withdrew to the Targaryen Island of Dragonstone with his family and Dowager Queen Visenya, who was urging him to fly out on his Dragon Quicksilver and gain control of the forces, but he wouldn't fly out.
Aenys became sick with stomach troubles and passed away in the middle of all the turmoil. Visenya flew out on her Dragon Vhagar and went to Pentos where Maegor was staying in his exile and brought him back.
Maegor claimed the throne, and went to take control of King's Landing as the Targaryen Capital city again. The city by this point was full of the Faith Militants, and Maegor made it clear he was going to claim the city back, and he was challenged by the Grand Captain of the Warrior Sons to a Trial of Seven, where seven warriors on both sides would go into combat against each other, and whoever the Gods held to be in the right would win. Maegor was the only one left alive after the Trial but he had been seriously wounded, taking a blow to the head that left him unconscious for several weeks.
During that time Alys returned from Pentos with another woman, Tyanna of the Tower. She was reported to have magical talents, dark ones, and she also seemed to be a lover of Maegor's. It was said that Visenya allowed her to Maegor's sick bed, and agreed for her to use blood magic to heal him.
Maegor awoke from his coma and it was said that he was different after waking, he flew out on Balerion and burned down the Sept in which the rest of the Warrior's Sons were debating what to do next after Maegor won the Trial and so seemed to have the favour of the Gods.
Aegon and Rhaena had been able to escape from where they had been under siege, and managed to get Rhaena's Dragon Dreamfyre, and Aegon claimed his father's Dragon's Quicksilver. Aegon started a rebellion against Maegor claiming that he, as his father's heir, was the rightful King and that Maegor had usurped him and his mother Alyssa declared him King.
Some Lords, unhappy with Maegor's heavy handed rule went to Aegon's side and provided him with soldiers, others hedged their bets and promised their support to him but did not fully invest themselves. Aegon and Maegor met in battle at Harrenhal, despite Aegon having the larger force, he was inexperienced, and Balerion being ridden by Maegor killed Aegon and the much younger Dragon, Balerion.
Rhaena fled to the Island of Fair Isle with her daughters, and Alyssa, Viserys, Jaehaerys, and Alysanne resided on Dragonstone.
Alys became pregnant and Maegor was overjoyed, gifting her family with many presents, however when it came to the birth the baby was a still born and claimed to be a monster, with scales and wings. Alys died in childbirth, and it was later discovered that Tyanna of the Tower had poisoned her and the baby, she confessed all of this freely when she was discovered, and Maegor had her executed. Cerys Hightower had returned to Maegor after he was made King, and it seemed as though they were reconciled, she past away a few years into Maegor's reign of what was said to be a heart attack, but was later suspected to have also been caused by Tyanna.
Harry sat on his bed waiting, and waiting, and waiting. The longer he waited, the more nervous he felt, and the more confused he got. Standing for the tenth time he started pacing around his room, tugging at his nightgown and worried his lip in a nervous habit that he had not allowed himself to show since arriving in King's Landing from the Lightning Isle.
He moved to the window and looked out over Blackwater Bay, the almost completed Red Keep was shining beneath him under the moonlight. It was so different from his home, from where he had grown up, it looked alien to what he was used to seeing, but he felt a thrill of excitement going through him at the same time.
He had been bored on the Lightning Isle and his mother and father had known it, being here, being married to the King, being married to the son of the Conqueror, and now being at the center of court offered him a chance that he did not think he would get.
He had known he would be married for politics, he knew that he would be married for the benefit of his House. This match was not one that he had been expecting though. News of the death of Queen Alys had shocked everyone, and of course, the mutterings of her being murdered had been seconds behind that news. Everyone had different ideas as to who it was that was responsible for the death, and the reason for it. The discovery of Tyanna of the Tower having been the culprit had been shocking and not shocking at the same time. And it definitely cast concerns over the death of Ceryse Hightower.
More importantly, it had left an opening, for consort to King Maegor. It had been a shock when the ravens had reached the Lighting Isle from the Dowager Queen Visenya asking after the rumours of Harry, wanting to know whether they were true.
Harry and his parents had still not expected much to come of the letter as they had heard that dozens of letters had also gone out, clearly looking for a new partner for the King. He had no Heir of his own, and he needed to produce one to push away the claims of his nephews and nieces that were still muttered about despite him having claimed the throne nearly five years ago.
Their choosing him had been a shock, but there had not been very long to be shocked considering he had been rushed to Kings Landing along with his parents and wedded to the King within a day of arriving at Kings Landing.
Harry huffed to himself as he turned and grabbed his robes, tugging them on, and shoved his feet into his slippers. He had seen his new husband, his King, for only a few hours, during the wedding and then the feast after, and he had been waiting for him to come and join him to consummate their wedding. But he had not come.
"Where is the King please?" Harry asked the King's Guard standing outside his room.
"He is…the throne room Sire," one said. "Sire?" he said panicked when Harry nodded and then moved to leave.
"I am going to go to him," Harry said.
"He is in a…brooding mood, Sire," the King's guard said as they glanced at each other.
"Thank you for warning me," Harry simply nodded before moving to carry on walking through the corridors.
He knew the rumours about the King, he knew what people called him. He knew the rumours of what the King was supposed to have done, the acts he was supposed to have taken. He knew what people said of him.
He also knew the whispers of Tyanna of the Tower, and what she had done to him when he had lain dying, he knew the whispers of the change that had happened to his personality after he had survived the battle with the Warriors of the Faith, only just survived.
"Sire, this way," One of the King's Guard coughed.
"I fear I am going to be quite lost for a little while," Harry laughed and turned to the right instead of the left as he had been about to do.
"The Keep is large and confusing, Sire," the King's Guard said, clearly unsure what to do with him when faced with his politeness.
"Just a little," Harry nodded. "Are you to be my guard?" he asked.
"Yes Sire," they nodded.
"After what happened to Queen Alys?" Harry asked softly.
"The King wants to make sure that you are safe, there will be another two when we are not on duty,"
"What are your names?" Harry asked.
"Owen and Loral," Owen answered.
"Thank you for guarding me, I look forward to getting to know you better," Harry smiled. "Left?" he pointed.
"Right," Loral shook his head.
"I have a terrible sense of direction," Harry laughed.
"Sire, the King does not like being disturbed," Owen warned softly.
"Thank you," Harry smiled gently at them as they reached the throne room, the guards on the door staring confused at them as they approached.
"Sire," the guards on the door sounded concerned when he reached them.
"We have said," Loral shook his head.
"I am afraid I will not be dissuaded," Harry nodded. The King's Guard all looked uncertain but Harry waited a few moments and they all came to the same conclusion, he was the King Consort.
The Guard opened the door to the throne room for him, and Harry stepped through the side door to the throne room, thankfully not having to walk through the impressive and imposing massive main doors he had had to walk through for the feast hours before.
The servants had finished cleaning up the throne room in the hours since Harry had gone to his bed chambers and been waiting for his new husband to come to him, it was empty of the tables, benches and chairs, the shrapnel that came from the wedding. Instead, it was bare of anything except for the Iron Throne and said new husband.
Maegor was a large man, Harry had heard that he had been born a large and robust baby, and the people had muttered that it was because of the blood magic Queen Visenya had performed in her desperation to give her husband/brother a child, a son. He stood at around 6,3 tall, his Targaryen silver blond hair was cut short unlike most men wore their hair, the blond strands falling around his face, and sitting up in messy spikes that somehow suited his harsh face. A carefully trimmed and cared for beard and mustache lined his sharp jaw.
He was handsome, yes, but in a harsh way, much in the way the Dragons of the Targaryen's were stunning and deadly. His face had sharp angles, and there was the line of a deep, deep scar running down from under his hairline and down his forehead, peeking out from under the crown on his head.
His shoulders were wide and broad, Harry was able to see more so now because he had stripped out of his robes and thrown them to the side, and was only in his white shirt and black trousers. The way he was leaning forward on the throne drew the shirt even tighter over his shoulders, the fabric straining a little at the angle he was holding himself in.
The angle he was holding himself was…exhausted. He had his sword drawn and was holding it point down into the floor, holding it so tightly onto the hilt with one hand that his knuckles were white, he was leaning onto it, his head was bowed, staring down at his feet, and there was something utterly exhausted about him.
He was only 36 years old, but he had been through so much, suffered a lot of betrayal.
"Why are you here?" Maegor asked without looking up as Harry drifted closer.
"It is our wedding night," Harry said softly.
"There is little point," Maegor snorted.
"I would like at least a chance to try," Harry said equally softly.
"The problem would not be with you, it is with me, I am cursed," Maegor grunted.
"I knew what you meant, I would still like a chance to try," Harry stopped a few steps lower than the throne and met Maegor's eyes when he looked up at him.
"Most would be thanking every god that they could that I had not graced them with my presence," Maegor said.
"I chose to come here and marry you," Harry said, pulling his robe a little closer around himself to try and fight off the chill of the hall now that most of the fires were banked.
"You did not exactly have much of a choice," Maegor's eyes were not lavender, they were more amethyst and violet.
"You are our King yes, however, after everything that had happened recently, it would have taken very little for us to politely reject you, and there is little that you would have been able to do," Harry said and held his ground when Maegor shifted on the throne suddenly, anger washing over his face.
"Then why are you here!" Maegor snapped.
"Because I want to be," Harry tilted his head.
"Then you are a fool," Maegor snorted, slumping back into the throne, though his eyes stayed intently upon Harry.
"I don't believe that I am," Harry hummed.
"You don't? You agreed to marry me, and you came to find me when I did not come to your bedchamber. What else can you be,"
"Someone that sees something different in you than you seem to expect me to see," Harry answered the rhetorical question. And the King stared a little more intently at him.
"And what do you see?" Maegor sighed. Harry realised that Maegor thought that he was trying to flatter him.
"People call you a Usurper, they say that you came and took the throne because you wanted the power," Harry said calmly.
"Yes, they do!" Maegor growled out.
"I don't think that is right though," Harry carried on as though he had not spoken, and Maegor jerked back just a little in surprise, barely visible unless he was being watched as intently as Harry was watching him.
"And what is your theory regarding my actions?" Maegor narrowed his eyes.
"You were loyal to your brother, despite your differences you flew to his aid when he most needed you, twice, and you never, not once, openly challenged him. Arguably you partially claimed Balerion to be able to defend your brother and the Targaryen name as much as to claim your dragon," Harry took a step up, closer to the King. "You did not stand against your brother, even when it was clear that you had the might to take it and that your brother did not have that might,"
"Be careful," Maegor leaned forward.
"I mean no insult to your brother," Harry shook his head.
"Then what are you saying?" Maegor narrowed his eyes.
"You had a chance to seize the throne, a number of chances, and you did not. Not until the death of your brother when the country was in rebellion, when your nephew was young, naive, and had no dragon of his own. The Targaryen name and rule were under threat, the lives of your nieces and nephews, everything that your father, mother, and aunt had built, and everything that had been created was all under threat. A strong and powerful rule was needed, one stronger than your brother's was,"
"That does not give any reason that it was not usurpation," Maegor huffed.
"The fact that all but one of your nieces and nephews are alive and that one went into an all-out rebellion against you would indicate that you did not do it for power," Harry shook his head.
"That is little to base anything upon!" Maegor growled leaning forward again, and frowned confused when Harry took a careful step up again until he was only three steps away from the King.
"It is a lot. Someone who only wanted to usurp and have power would have killed them all, and you have had more than enough chances to do so, others would argue that there have been a few times that it could have been put forward as being a righteous act to kill them for rebelling against you. But you didn't,"
"You dream and fantasise, it has been shown that I am not that man," Maegor slumped back again and shook his head.
"Not by your actions," Harry argued, taking another step. "Tyan…"
"DO NOT SPEAK HER NAME!" Maegor roared, and Harry jumped, stumbling, and almost slipped back off the steps until Maegor reached out and quickly grabbed him.
"I didn't mean to upset you," Harry apologised.
"It is my fault! At the end of the day, there is only one person that is at fault for what happened, and that is me!" Maegor released Harry and looked to the side. He started when he found his hand taken.
"No one can know everything," Harry said carefully, "No one can know who people really are, or what their true intentions are. If we did life would be a lot easier,"
"All anyone does is betray me," Maegor squeezed Harry's hand, tightly enough to be uncomfortable, but not tightly enough to hurt.
"No they don't," Harry argued, and he smiled when Maegor looked incredulously at him.
"Are…are you trying to provoke me?" Maegor asked, baffled.
"No, that is not my intention," Harry shook his head, looking earnestly at the King. "But you have not been betrayed by everyone. Your mother has stayed loyal to you, you have Lords and knights loyal to you, your King's Guard are loyal to you,"
"With the exception of my Mother, they are scared of me," Maegor shook his blond head.
"I am not afraid of you," Harry said softly.
"You should be," Maegor said, but it was so tired and hopeless that Harry thought he could not hear himself fully. He definitely did not mean for it to come out like that.
"No, I shouldn't," Harry squeezed his hand, taking the last step, and knelt in front of the King, keeping hold of his hand.
"Then you are simple," Maegor sighed.
"And we have gone full circle in our conversation," Harry laughed.
"Harrison," Maegor shook his head.
"Everyone close to me calls me Harry," Harry said.
"Harrison, I am not the man that you seem to think I am," Maegor shook his head.
"I do not see the man that I am meant to see," Harry responded. "I know why your mother chose me over the women that were also looked into, even though my chance of bearing a child is not proven,"
"She believes you to be some sort of healer," Maegor looked down at him. "A natural healer,"
"I can't fully control it, I don't know what it is that I do, or how I do it. There is no way that I can…just do it. But I want to help if I can, I feel like I am meant to be here," Harry said honestly.
"The Gods have sent you?" Maegor asked, his tone saying exactly what he thought of that.
"I don't believe in the gods, I believe that I have been put into your path for a reason though, that I can help you," Harry said honestly.
"My head, it has hurt, ached, since the trial of seven, since…"
"I can guess," Harry nodded, seeing how difficult it was for the man to say.
"It is the only thing that my mother and I have ever argued about, she made sure I lived so her legacy lived," Maegor huffed.
"May I touch your head?" Harry asked.
"It is the reason Mother chose you, you said so," Maegor scowled at him.
"But it is you I am married to, not your mother and I will not do or try anything without your permission, not after everything that has happened to you," Harry shook his head.
"You pity me!" Maegor snarled, taking his hand away.
"No, it is not pity I feel for you, I have empathy for what I know you have been through, and for the things I do not know about, but can guess at. I do not want you to go through something like that again,"
"That sounds like pity!" Maegor glared still at Harry.
"Is sympathy and understanding such a bad thing?" Harry asked carefully.
"Pity is!"
"Sympathy and understanding," Harry repeated.
"Do whatever you wish," Maegor sneered.
"Very well," Harry nodded and sat down on the top step of the throne.
"What are you doing?" Maegor asked, utterly baffled by his new husband who sat there quietly for a good ten minutes, seemingly happy to gaze around the throne room, taking it all in now that it was just the two of them.
"I want to be with you, to help you if I can, but I understand that will take time and trust, so I am happy to wait for that," Harry shrugged, turning to look at him before turning to look over the room again.
"I trust no one but my mother," Maegor said firmly.
"That is a short list, hopefully, you can come to trust me as well, an even number would be better," Harry hummed.
Maegor watched a little incredulously as Harry fished into the pocket of his robe and dug out a book, opened it to his bookmarked page, and then seemingly settled comfortably into reading, making it clear he intended to stay right where he was.
Harry shivered a little as he turned the page of his book, absently wishing that he had had the mind to change before coming looking for his husband, but then he had not really planned to be sitting on the stone steps of the Iron Throne as Gods knew what time reading.
He felt something hit his back and he looked around confused before he smiled softly at Maegor when he realised that it was his discarded robes. He had dropped them over Harry's shoulders. The King was looking to the side, brooding, and definitively not looking at Harry.
Harry shifted and wrapped the robes around himself, tucking them under himself as well to give himself some padding before settling back down to read.
Confused purple eyes settled back onto him, and Maegor sat watching his strange new husband sitting at his feet reading, wrapped in his robes, and utterly uncaring that Maegor was seated behind him with his sword still drawn.
The King's Guard quietly closed the door that they had been peeking through and looked at each other with hope in their eyes, it was the last thing that they had been expecting to see when they peaked in to check what was going on after hearing nothing for hours.