(This chapter contains chapters 8 and 9! Enjoy!)
8: I've got you now…
"CALM! CALM! WE GOING TO HELP HER! WE'RE HELPING HER!" Aemond shouted to the white dragon, as it looked panicked after Daemon and Aemond got to close. He was sure if its rider wasn't as close as she was, she would have breathed fire or attacked with her claws.
"We need to get her to Dragonstone… Her and the Dragon. NOW. The Maesters can treat her right away." Daemon said, as and Aemond looked over the injuries on the girl. Nothing dangerous, nothing deep, but she was still skin and bones with the bruises and cuts all over…
"My orders are to bring them to KING'S LANDING… There are more Maesters to attend her at the Red Keep." Aemond protested.
"Fuck your orders… If she is losing the child right now, the babe could be gone before you reach it. The maesters at Dragonstone are just as good as the one at King's Landing; AND we have three midwives. She needs to be treated… NOW."
Aemond bit his tongue as he quickly argued with himself. His grandsire would throw a fit. Child or not, he wanted the rider. Aemond wasn't sure if he would care or not if she lost the child on their way there. As long as his orders were followed. However, Aemond DID care if the child was lost. The mother was VALYRAIN. As well a Dragon rider. That child carried the blood of their ancestors, and there was barely one Valyrian child born per year... It needed to live.
Aemond looked to the young Valyrian woman. Her one lavender eye and one green eye looked back up at him… Oh, fuck it. He couldn't in good conscience let her suffer or let her child die, not without doing everything they could to help the babe survive.
"Is that an order?" Aemond asked Deamon leadingly.
"What?" Daemon questioned, his face squishing in confusion in a way Aemond would find hilarious later on.
"Is that a Direct order from the Crown Prince Consort?" Aemond asked, more leadingly and with an arched eyebrow…
Daemon grinned like a feral cat as the meaning of the words dawned on him. "Yes… Yes, it is."
Aemond nodded with a light smirk and turned back to the girl. "We're going to take you to where you can get help, okay? Tell your Dragon to follow us, but not to attack…"
"Dragoon riding make the pain worse…" The girl said, in broken common. Aemond and Deamon both looked to one another startled, but quickly recovered. "That why I landed. Rest here with Dragoon. Pain to much…"
Daemon and Aemond looked to one another. So, she did speak some common after all. Noted.
"Passenger… I'll take her as a passenger on Cra-" "He's the blood wyrm… He wiggles and crawls through the sky. He's more likely buck her off or harm the babe more. Taking her on him would be even worse than letting her ride her own dragon..." Aemond interrupted. Daemon growled and bared his teeth at the teen's comment and challenge… But he was right. A ride on Caraxes was bumpy to say the least…
"I'll take her on Vhagar… She's taken other riders into the air while they were with child... She knows how to fly carefully. Besides, Caraxes is swifter, and someone has to reach Dragonstone before we do. Tell the maesters to be ready for the woman and child, as well as warn the guards to stand down... "
"Warn the guards to-..."
"I'd rather NOT be shot with a Dragonstone arrow today... nor do I think Vhagar would take that to kindly right now. She's already in a hunting mood." The Daemon stared for a moment at the teen, before he nodded his head.
"... You can land Infront of the courtyard gate. Don't land by the Dragon bridge: Far too long a walk... They can take her straight into the maester's tower there." Daemon ordered, before turning and running to his red menace.
Aemond turned to the girl; "Are you able to walk?" The girl gripped at her slightly swollen stomach, grimacing and holding back a yelp. She shook her head 'no' at him.
"I'm going to lift you... We're going to take my dragon, okay?" The girl nodded, then turned to the white Dragon.
"Lumi! Follow! No Attack! FOLLOW!" The white dragon gave an affirmative rumble but didn't look any happier.
Aemond got a grip on the side of the girl and lifted her up, catching her legs with his opposite arm. After she got over her startle, she wrapped her arms around his neck. She was afraid she might fall down otherwise.
Now carrying her, he started running to Vhagar. While getting her up the rope ladder might be a bit difficult, he could do it. And any pause would give Daemon enough time to get that much more ahead. With luck the Maesters would be waiting and ready as soon as they landed outside the courtyard.
Jace was finishing another rotation, when he saw a dragon approaching... Only this wasn't Daemon, nor was it the wild Dragon. For a wild moment, he thought it might be his mother... But Syrax had a different build and nose... then he saw the rider.
"Wha- AEGON?!"
"Hello there, Nephew! WHERE"S THAT DRAGON AT?!" He heard his uncle yell from his dragon saddle as he swooped around and started circling HIM.
"DAEMON WENT AFTER IT... I'M HOLDING HERE JUST IN CASE... WHAT ARE YOU DONG HERE?!"
"AEMOND AND I GOT SENT OUT AS WELL... HE WENT FURTHER OUT; I STARTED BACK AND COMBED THIS WAY!"
Jace's eyes went wide, as he wondered what to do now... Daemon and Aemond where now BOTH out there, with a possible the wild dragon... Well maybe they found it. But what if they found one another?
"IS THAT HIM?! I THINK THAT'S HIM!" Aegon yelled, looking up and pointing.
Sure enough, coming out from behind a rather dense cloud, were Caraxes and Daemon... Flying like a bat out of hell. He soared nose-down, swooping toward them at break-neck speed.
Both riders stayed circling as he approached them.
" JACE: DRAGONMOUNT, NOW! ALERT THE DRAGONKEEPERS! INJURED DRAGON INCOMING!" Daemon yelled as he speeded skillfully between the two dragons, then kept going.
'Shit!' Jace cursed as he turned Vermax around.
"Wa - DA FUCK!?" Aegon snapped as he also ordered his dragon to move and follow. Only Aegon didn't just follow. He snapped the reins a few times and urged Sunfyre to go faster and move quicker. He started catching up to the red dragon, flying just behind, with some difficulty.
"WHAT DRAGON GOT INJURED?! WHAT-DRAGON-GOT-INJURED?! DAEMON?! WHERE'S MY BROTHER?!" Aegon spat out as he chased behind him. The Red Blood wyrm was too fast for him and was soon out of his reach.
Aemond held the girl close to him as they flew. He had taken off his jacket and wrapped it around her before they went into the air. She was far less covered than he was, and his leathers would more than keep him warm during this flight. Both were secured onto his dragon by chains and ropes. Vhagar's saddle wasn't small at all, even so. It was different to carrying someone near grown with him then one of the twin toddlers he normally had in air with him. Especially with the growing belly... Her arms still held a vice-like grip around his neck shoulders, he kept his arms around her while his hands held the reins.
The White Dragon was flying just behind them, to the upper right. He was sure she had called her 'Lumi'. A Female Dragon then? She was doing her best to keep up. It was obvious the poor thing was tired, but desperate to stay with her bonded. She was flying closer than an unfamiliar Dragon would but was still following diligently. Her attention was on her rider, and her eyes never strayed far from her. Only giving out a chirp every few minutes to let her rider know she was still nearby.
Aemond was sure that it was only because of her rider's order and the fact that she was not being harmed by him at all that the other dragon tolerated her rider being on another dragon's back... And the fact Vhagar would quickly correct her.
He had his she-Dragon flying them smoothly forward. He had been debating pushing her to go faster; He fought with himself about it. But Vhagar was a powerhouse, the babe needed a smooth ride just as its mother did. They also needed time for the Maeisters to ready for their arrival. Rushing was not in the best interest for any of them, Dragon or human... So, he'd leave the rushing to Daemon, and just make sure the new Dragon and rider arrived safely.
He turned his good eye to the girl, taking a moment to check on her. She was still holding her belly and was still obviously in pain. But she was no longer yelling, and the pain was no longer coming in waves... Her one purple and one green eye looked up at him as she held on, but she said nothing...
He didn't have to ask what that look was. He'd seen it on other's faced before. She was terrified. Given the circumstances, he honestly couldn't blame her.
"Where are your people? Where is your family?" He asked in Valyrian. So, they could talk to each other easier, and maybe talking in their mother tongue would help calm her. He turned his attention back and forth from there flight path and to her.
"Dead... The Slavers killed them. It was just me and husband near the end..." She said in an oddly detached but earnest tone. His blood started changing from fiery rage to icy cold...
"Who is your husband?... Where is your husband?" He hated to ask but needed to know.
"Laevar... They killed him, too... They only needed me and the baby." She said softly, turning her head into his shirt. He grinded his teeth as she said that and in the back of his mind he was screaming.
"Do you know how far along you are in your term?"
"Not exactly. Four moons, maybe five..." She said, seeming to relax more and calm.
"Where are you taking me?... Us." She asked, correcting herself as her eyes looked to her Dragon and back.
"Dragonstone. My family's first seat. We have Maesters and midwifes there, they will be able to help you better then we could... and the Dragon keepers will know how to help your dragon as well... What is your name?" He asked next.
"Haelemys... Haelemys Peverell."
Peverell? He was sure had read that surname in a book some time ago... He it was in one of his father's books, in his room with his model of old Valyria. Which book, he couldn't remember.
"What is your name?... Since you asked mine." She asked.
"Aemond... Prince Aemond Targayen... We'll be at Dragonstone shortly. I promise."
Crazes landed, on all four claws, with only a semi-loud BOOM. A moment after he landed, his rider started dismounting.
The guards in and around the courtyard were shocked, as the Targaryens normally took flight and landed closer to the dragon mount or the bridge... There was no time to remain shocked, as the prince started barking orders the second his feet hit ground.
"YOU, Get the maesters! We have a rider, Injured, coming toward us right now! YOU, Go tell every guard and archer they are not to fire at ANY Dragon that's NOT the Canabal... not until this mess is settled. Unless ORDERED too! and YOU, Go get my wife!" He said, as he turned his head to look behind him. Just as he expected there were at two spots; one Gold and one greyish Green, that were growing bigger and bigger as they got closer.
"Let her know the wild dragon, the rider, her two brothers AND their dragons will all be arriving... SHORTLY..."
Chapter 9: Old Scars, Old wounds
Jace headed for the clearing between his mother's castle and the Dragon mount. His plan was to land as close to the Dragon keepers as possible and alert them, as ordered. Aegon turned and changed Sunfyre's course, deciding not to follow Jace. He landed by the courtyard gate instead. He set his dragon's feet not far off from Caraxes. Caraxes wasn't happy the unfamiliar gold dragon was near him. He started hissing and furling his wings. Sunfyre gave a low screech in reply, but then kept his cool and ignored the other dragon.
Aegon jumped off his mount unceremoniously and rushed his way over to Daemon.
"Didn't you hear me yelling?!"
"… Yelling what?" Daemon spoke in a dead-pan voice with a glare to the half-breed Hightower brat.
"WHAT BLOODY DRAGON GOT INJURED?! ... AND where's my brother?!"
"Shouldn't you have asked those questions in the OPPOSITE order?"
"I mean… Well… They're both kind of the same question…" Aegon said sheepish, the wind now knocked out of his sails.
"If you were so worried about your brother, why did you follow me instead of turning around and looking for him?"
"I DIDN'T KNOW WHERE HE WAS! YOU DID! I'm not going to fly into the path of a raging dragon, Ether!"
"…But you're willing to let your brother fly into that path?"
"He'll be fine! The twat has Vhagar! As well as YEARS of experience tolerating ENORMOIUS amounts of pain! What does that matter anyway, he's the fucking SPARE!"
Daemon's jaw locked, and eyes pierced deep into the boy's soul. The sudden shock of fear knocked Aegon to rights. His addled mind cleared up enough for him to realize what his mouth had said. Not only was it very messed up, not only was he was contradicting himself at the same time, but he had said it to DAEMON. Another second son. Aegon gapped like a fish as Daemon's knuckles on his crossed arms turned white.
The ornate castle door to the left of the courtyard opened. Rhaenyra exited with Luke beside her. He was holding her and her growing belly steady as she moved quickly. No one wanted to risk her falling. They started heading swiftly over to Daemon and Aegon, both with looks of surprise on their face. The three midwives came flocking out the same door a heartbeat later.
On the other side of the courtyard a painted white door opened. The two men of the maester's tower rushed out. Master Gerardys and Yearwood, who was a learner under his master.
As soon as they were all close enough, Daemon addressed them all.
"We found them both; Prince Aemond should be arriving with the rider and the dragon in a few minutes. He will be carrying the rider with him, on Vhagar... Both are injured. From what I could tell the two looked to have been starved, tortured, and abused... Probably for months on end... Best guess is they escaped from Slavers Bay then flew west towards safety. They still have chains hanging off of them..."
"They will need Treatment, Water, Food, and a warm place to sleep and recuperate. In that order. Jace is filling in Dragon keepers now, so they will be ready to treat it once they arrive. Maester and midwives; you should start preparing a room as well. You'll need tend to the rider as soon as they arrive as well."
"Yes. my prince." "Yes, Prince Deamon." "Yes, your highness." was chorused around them. The Junior meister and Junior midwife rushed back through the white door.
"…My love, why the midwives as well? Is he that injured?"
"…The Rider is young girl. A Pregnant young girl. Moons along in her term. She's in pain and said she felt like she was losing the baby…"
Rhaenyra felt a chill running down her back from Daemon's words and the pictures they brough to mind. Her eyes snapped to her midwives, who looked to her at the same time. She barely needed to nod her head before the two picked up their skirts and ran. One to the tower, the other back into the castle. Luke looked pale from the moment Aemond was mentioned, but now he was turning greener and greener. Looking as if he would turn tail and run. If he didn't have his mother's arm, he might have. His eyes darted nervously into the distant sky. He was not ready to see Aemond again, even after all these years.
"… COULDN'T YOU HAVE JUST SAID THAT WHEN I ASKED!?" Aegon burst loudly from Daemon's other side. Arms flinging around, drunken and dramatic.
"…. You reek of sour wine and dragon. You know that, right?" Daemon snarked.
Aegon glared at the rouge prince. Fighting with himself as his face scrunched and teeth Nashed. But Aegon knew he couldn't just say anything he wanted to say to Daemon. Not on Dragonstone, not without repercussions... After a moment, Aegon looked around then grinned like a Chesire cat.
"You DO know this space is a little too small for Vhagar to land properly... Right?"
Daemon's eyes widened as he looked at the ground Infront of the courtyard entrance...
"Fuck... MEN, CLEAR OUT THOSE CARTS! CARAXES! TO THE AIR!"
Aemond saw the growing dot on the water line that was Dragonstone... They were nearly there. He felt a glowing sort of joy in the corner of his head from Vhagar. She recognized her home, where she had hatched and grown... She was glad to be back.
'Yes, I know, Girl... Let's get you home.' He sent to her.
Her one-eyed rider could not share in her joy or sentiment... This was his sister's castle. Under her rule. BOTH of her boys and her stepdaughters lived on this island. Well, at least one of the stepdaughters. The other went back and forth from Driftmark. Fact remained, the ones who took his eye would be there...
People had referred to his family, the Greens, as the 'Snakes'. Half because of the green they donned. Half because of his Grandsire's ambition and the underhanded things he had to do and deals he had made during his time hand of the king... But right now, he felt like he was the one walking into a snake pit.
The blacks outnumbered him there... No one under that roof would care if he got hurt or died. No one there would protect him. He would be landing feet on THEIR soil. He would be lying to himself if he thought he would be safe there. Even if the threat of Otto and Alicent retaliating if something happened to him should be enough to give them pause. Even the fact that he and Rhaenyra share a father might be enough to buy him a safe, but short stay... Even that wouldn't last long and would be risky.
But...
His eyes turned to Haelemys. She was still holding on to him tightly. But her eyes weren't fixed on him in fear anymore, but looking around and took in the beauty of the sky and the water. Aemond had to admit... She was quite beautiful herself.
She had the glow of otherness that all dragon riders had, but it was more than that... Her touch was gentle. Her voice was unique, always with the hint of Valyrian vowels in it... Even her mis-matched eyes. Not that he would look down on that, anyway, given his own... Appearance.
It the back of his mind, he started berating himself. He shouldn't be having these thoughts. She was with child. She was a newly made widow; she had a slave collar forced on her and probably suffered things no woman should. He swore he heard an old Septon yelling 'Unclean!' in the booming voice in the back of his head... He violently quieted that voice down as well. He would NEVER say anything like that to her. Nor allow anyone else to say anything of the sort about her; She'd been through enough...
But still, something about her grabbed his attention, and wouldn't let it go... She turned her eyes back to him, relaxing a bit more. The Purples and greens shining even more at him... Though the Green eye might be his favorite...
His thoughts were halted when she winced in pain and grabbed at his shoulders tightly.
"Is the pain back?" He asked in Common.
"Not my pan dis time..." She said with a wince, as she turned her head behind them. Lumi let out a small cry, and Aemond turned his head to look as well.
The Dragon was struggling. Her wings were starting to falter, and the uneven movements were making her flight uncontrollably shakey.
He looked back to the growing mass at the water line. He quickly made some calculations.
"Tell your Lumi to glide on our tail wind... We're nearly there. See that Island ahead of us?... That's Dragonstone. She'll make it if she glides. Vhagar's tail wind can carry her. It's strong enough; We'll tow her in behind us."
The girl nodded and closed her eyes, more than likely to talk to her Dragon via the bond.
As she did, He noticed something else. He didn't notice before because... Well, her eyes... But there was a faint shine of a scar on her forehead. One aged and healed over by time. One kind of like his own. Only this one was in the shape of a lightning bolt...
Unconsciously, his right hand went up, and he touched the scar with his thumb...
her eyes opened and blinked. He felt like he was caught doing something wrong... He stilled for a moment, wondering if he should apologize... When her one hand when up and touched his own scar in return. Only the scar, she skipped over his eyepatch completely...
Something warmer started burning deep in his chest at the gentle movement.
She really was beautiful... In a way that was only hers.
He would take her to Dragonstone. He would see her, and her Dragon cared for and healed. He would put up with seeing his half-sister, and her maiming children for as long as he needed to see it done. Then he would be the one to take her to Kings landing.
He steeled his resolve. He wiped his face clear of any emotion. He mentally readied himself for the interactions to come.
He would die before letting any amount weakness show or be caught off guard. Not while the Blacks were watching...
She was HIS responsibly now. His to guard and protect. Even in the house of his enemies.
The small group stood waiting just inside the courtyard gate. The guards and men finished clearing out the last of the carts from the area Infront of the gate. Clearing the way for the very large arrival. Aegon even had his Sunfyre move as well. Both him and Caraxes perched themselves on the dragon glass roofs nearby. Watching while they sunned themselves.
"Tell the Dragon keepers they can stay in the clearing... They can tend to the Dragon here. We'll get a group of men to run them water, supplies... Anything they need." The Crown princess ordered. Her guard nodded, then ran out the gate and to the other side of the clearing to pass the message on.
Rhaenyra turned her head to Luke, who was still gripping his mother's arm. Next to them Meister Gerardys and the two midwives. Jace, who had just run from bringing the Dragon keepers was standing next to them. Daemon was there as well, but he was pacing the gate. Mumbling under his breath about 'Chasing after the brat' and 'dare not be tring to and trick him...' Even his wife was giving him a wide berth at the moment. Everyone could tell the Rouge Prince was FAR more then wound up and knew better to approach him just yet.
Off to the side away from everyone else was Aegon. Leaning against the wall, watching all the activity. Seeming to be smirking at Daemon with no small amount of glee. Giving pointed looks to Jace and Luke every few minutes as well.
"Is... Is that him?" Luke asked in a small voice, as the two dragons who had been getting closer and closer were now readying to land.
"...Don't think it could be anything else..." Jace replied. His voice controlled but his stance nervous. Both Brothers with their throats clogged with guilt, nervousness, and more. They hadn't seen Aemond since Drift mark. They had tried to put their uncle and that event out of their mind as much as they could...
Now, everything they had been ignoring and avoiding the past 5 years was catching up with them... Including Aemond.
A huge dust cloud resounded DOOM, followed by a less loud Boom and more dust, was heard. Daemon, the maester, and a guard walked forward. They stood waiting, as a long rope was thrown over the side. There was a pause, then down the rope, with the arms and limbs of the girl still wrapped around him, descended Aemond. The guard and the maester ran out, and before long, the same two were rushing the girl into the white tower.
Aemond let them take her, then turned to speak to Daemon and the Dragonkeepers. After a few moments, he turned to follow after the new rider... But he froze in his tracks as he saw the two boys that standing at the gate.
Tention and unease washed over the entire courtyard like a flood. The two shorter dark-haired princes stared with uneasy eyes at the Blonde-haired prince. Luce started to look even more ill as Jace looked back and forth with worry written on his face.
Aemond began to glare heatedly at the two. A cold, chilling kind of glare. but he quickly snapped his head away from them and continued to follow guard and girl.
A quick, "Pardons, Princess..." To his half-sister was all that was spoken as he walked by.
Luke stood still for just a moment, as his eyes watered... Then he broke away from his mother's arms and ran off.
Aegon's short but cackling laugh following after him.
"Bring her in carefully, lay her on the new sheets..."
"The water is boiling; we started the tea..."
"No raspberry leaf, boy! Are you Daft?!"
"The first thing we need to do is measure the belly; That will tell us how far along she is."
"Add more Lemon Balm, that's enough Vale root..."
"It's okay, sweetie, we're here to help... I promise we won't hurt you."
"The privacy screen, Berilla! THE SCREEN!"
One of the midwives quickly ran over and pulled the fabric screen shut as the other two started helping the young girl disrobe.
Aemond and Deamon then stood alone on the other room; separated from girl and healers. Both looking agitated, but for different reasons.
"So, the Dragon's name is Lumi and her wings were getting weak... Did the girl say anything else? Did she tell you anything about herself or her family?" Daemon asked quickly.
"Her family is dead. She says the slavers killed them all. They left her and her husband for last, then killed him. She doesn't know how far long she is, and her name is Haelemys Peverell. I know I've read that name somewhere before..."
"Peverell?" Daemon said, as he thought back to his own studies. "I've heard the name as well; they are family from old Valyria... I thought they were all lost to the doom., like all the rest..."
"Apparently there was a branch that had have been living in Volantis... Were they Dragon riders as well?"
"Very few were dragon riders, but Volantis makes sense, though... The Perevell family were all Mages. Pyromancy, Blood magic, Dragon magic... Death magic. Every branch had the talent."
Aemond's jaw nearly dropped. "So, you mean her family practices magic? Real magic?"
"... I mean her family built the great Mage Tower of Valyria... They TAUGHT others magic."