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Queen Sanira Stark - Caitlin Stasey

Book Three of the Winds of Freedom. Follows The Lady of Winterfell and The War for the North.

Chapter Thirteen: The Queen across the Sea.

Staring up at her ancestral home, Daenerys Targaryen wasn't sure how she felt standing on the beach as she stared up at Dragonstone; behind her stood those who had served her well and believed in her mission. Finally, she had come home. After living in exile for twenty-four years, her entire life, spent cast away by the usurper who had tried to have her killed; she wasn't sure how she felt about being home.

It had been through Viserys that she had heard stories about their home, about the bad men that had taken the throne and cast them out murdering their family and forcing them to live in exile. Ducking down, Daenerys grasped at the sand beneath her feet allowing it to slip through her fingers; her head bowed as she tried to wrap her head around the fact that she was really here. Daenerys took a moment to gather herself, getting back to her feet as a man approached them; he looked wary taking in the army that had arrived on his doorstep.

"Lord Daeron Targaryen welcomes you to Dragonstone and awaits you in the throne room," the man said taking in the foreign Queen, he eyed her warily as he took in the people that gathered behind her. No doubt not one of them had ever stepped foot in Westeros, they were foreigners as much as the woman who had come to claim the Iron Throne.

Daenerys paused at the greeting, a frown set upon her face as she pondered the words; the name holding no meaning to her not even the fact they shared a name. Viserys had never made any mention of a Daeron ad her knowledge was limited on since she had no connections to main land Westeros since Jorah had been dismissed from her side. Missandei and Grey Worm shared a small look, neither of them sure what to make of another Targaryen especially when Daenerys had often talked about being the last of her House and now there was one sitting in her ancestral home.

"Very well, take me to this Lord Daeron Targaryen," Daenerys stated, she clasped her hands in front of her and stared up passed the man towards Dragonstone. She would judge whether this 'other' Targaryen would be a threat or an ally to her; she had no idea what to expect from this Lord Daeron and her stomach turned not knowing what to expect.

Entering the throne room, Daenerys held her head high as she followed the man with Missandei and Grey Worm following behind her; she couldn't stop herself taking in the room as she entered, everything feeling so foreign and unfamiliar to her. Finally her eyes rested upon the man at the centre of the room, her lips pursing at the sight of the him who looked far from what she had expected.

Daenerys had thought that this Daeron Targaryen would look more like herself ad Viserys, that he would share the noted white blond hair that all her family shared. Instead, here she found a man that looked nothing like she would have thought a Targaryen would look; he looked no different to her than the man that had brought her to the throne room. Beside him stood a woman, who clearly held some Valyrian blood, the woman held her high proudly as she stared at Daenerys with a look that made her a little uneasy.

"My Lady Aunt," Jon greeted awkwardly, despite the fact that they had known that Daenerys was coming from the reports that they had received about her armada coming into sight. Messages had been sent to King's Landing to let them know that Daenerys had come to Westeros, no doubt hoping to launch her invasion of Westeros from the Targaryen seat like the Conqueror had done.

"Welcome to Dragonstone my lady," Laena stated with a polite smile, she looked to the other woman who seemed less than pleased at what was happening. Perhaps she thought that Dragonstone would be empty since Stannis now resided in King's Landing, how much news could the Queen across the Sea have about lands that she didn't know or understand. Laena had no intentions of surrendering her home, she would not allow Jon to do something stupid that would put them all at risk when he had a greater claim than this woman to their home and lands.

Daenerys paused for a moment, waiting for the words that neither Jon nor Laena would be willing to speak that would surrender Dragonstone to her as by right. It was her birth right, she was the daughter of King Aerys, sister of Prince Rhaegar and Prince Viserys; it was her destiny to restore her house to the throne and take back what was stolen from them.

"Will you not surrender Dragonstone to me?" Daenerys asked, she clasped her hands in front of her as she looked between the man that claimed he was a Targaryen and the woman beside him. This was not the welcome home that she had imagined for herself, she had been told that the common folk longed for a Targaryen to return to the throne yet here one was living in the ancestral home.

"You are in the presence of Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen, the First of Her Name, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Protector of the Seven Kingdoms, the Mother of Dragons, the Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, the Unburnt, the Breaker of Chains," Missandei stated as if to remind them who they were speaking with, that perhaps her titles would jog some memory that they needed to be loyal to. Laena snorted slightly unimpressed by the list of titles that the woman before her thought should make them impressed, it was easy to see that she had dropped her hold of the titles that she had held while in Meereen.

"The seven kingdoms no longer exist as a united kingdom," Jon murmured awkwardly, he wasn't sure what to make of the woman that stood before him that was the only link to the family that he didn't know. He wrote often to Robb and he knew that it would be awhile before they saw each other again, especially with the news that he had been given that morning.

"My husband is the son of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen from his marriage to Lyanna Stark, his claim is far greater than your own," Laena stated proudly, she refused to tolerate any threat to their home and she would help Jon defend their home in any way that she could. Daenerys stared at Jon, her face blank of any emotion as she tried to wrap her head around what she was being told; it was a stark contrast to the tales she had been told about Rhaegar and his time with Lyanna.

Daenerys took a step back, the world around her suddenly feeling not so secure as her mind caught up on what that meant for her and her own claim to the throne. Here stood someone with a better claim to the Iron Throne than she did, everything that she had based her life on since Viserys had died could be a lie.

"There was a council held to examine Daeron's claim, witnesses called upon to assure that the truth was discovered. Daeron is the son of Rhaegar and Lyanna, legitimate in the eyes of the Seven by the marriage of his parents before Rhaegar's death," Laena informed the room, she could see the cogs in Daenerys' mind turning and she was putting an end to any doubt. Daeron was the rightful heir and had renounced the Targaryen claim to the throne, content to rule Dragonstone and find peace here after everything that had happened to him.

"I understand that this must be shocking news to you, that it might come as a complete surprise," Jon said watching the look on Daenerys' face, he could still recall Maester Aemon's words about Targaryen's alone in the world being a terrible thing. No doubt she had spent many years thinking that she would be the last Targaryen, only to return to Westeros to find that she wasn't so alone in the world and everything that she had hoped was not going to happen. There was no grand welcoming, no one plotting to restore House Targaryen to the throne; the people had enough of war, they had suffered for years under the war against the Lannister and there was finally peace.

"We are more than happy to offer you a place to rest, although we must advise that your presence here as been reported to King Stannis," Jon stated knowing that her presence here could not be ignored. The last thing he wanted was for Stannis to deem himself some sort of threat, Daenerys presence here was not something that was going to go unnoticed. The dragons themselves were eye catching, Laena had watched their approach and had been in awe of them as she had stood a top of Dragonstone. Laena had told Jon about how two of her own ancestors had been dragon riders, how her namesake had ridden the legendary dragon Vhagar.

"Thank you," Daenerys said forcing a smile to her face, she was not finished yet and she knew that she had to play her cards right if she wanted to gain back her family's throne from the usurper.

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