You Are The One

Chapter 3

Jon knows her steel armour won't protect her, let alone the leather. Still, she puts them on anyway. And is sure to leave her flammable fur cloak behind. She also leaves her leather gloves behind—not that she's assuming he'll even let her touch him again, she's just trying to be respectful.

Well, as respectful as she can be after murdering his mother...

Again, her brain asks her just what the fuck she thinks she's doing as she makes her way over and around the still half crumbled down palace—Tyrion assures her that plans for reconstruction will begin very soon, not that she even asked; she's more concerned with rebuilding the city—stepping carefully as she does.

Gendry is nowhere to be seen. Having disappeared when she stepped back out of her room.

Even Maliah was braver as she asked Jon if she needed her to come with her and even followed her halfway down the windy hallways—even with the Sun shining, since Dani's devastation on King's Landing, it's like a permanent winter chill has settled.

Jon keeps her breathing steady, trying to stay focused and not panic. She's not exactly afraid...OK, not completely. But somehow, she feels like she understands these creatures.

Which, she guesses she understands after finding out who her father really was.

She knows as long as she doesn't piss the dragon off intentionally, he (probably) won't eat or burn her.

She grabs the tie from her wrist— almost forgetting about her hair—and scrapes the top half back into a loose bun and lets the rest sit behind her back as usual. She pauses when she hears a rumbling, feels vibrations under her feet. A soft and slightly impatient sound. Like he's tired of waiting for her.

Jon gulps, nods to herself to just go ahead. She straightens her back and slowly walks down the steps. The wall entering the Throne Room is still mostly standing, but over the tops of the huge double doors, Jon can see a flicker of a tail and those giant wings shifting, causing the air to lightly ruffle her hair.

She takes the last step and pushes the doors slowly open, letting them creak loud for him to hear, even when she knows he can probably either hear or smell her already. She stops just inside the doors, standing and staring at him.

And Gods, he's just as fucking big as she remembers him. Yes, it's only been two months, but she still can't even get over the fact that she's rode one of these things all by herself.

Drogon doesn't turn his head. He's still staring forward at the new throne. Jon can't see his face, but she sees his wings twitch with annoyance and his tail curling as he reactions to her being there. Almost like he's waiting for her to come to him.

Jon doesn't want to die, at least, not right now, anyway, but she really doesn't want to piss him off. More than that, she feels she owes him an explanation. Whether he understands or not is a different issue.

She takes another deep breath and walks slow and steady over to him. He doesn't look at her still, just stares at the Throne. She stands by his curled tail and stares at it, too.

It's like nothing ever even happened. Each sword of the Conqueror's enemies planted back exactly where it was. Jon has only laid eyes upon it that one time before she ended Dani before she could take it for herself.

Jon would have let her. Would have fought for her Queen to her last breath.

And then...

Jon closes her eyes, lets out a quiet sigh. Opens her eyes, turns her body to face the dragon. Looks up at him as he continues to ignore her and says to him, "I know it means nothing to any creature who has their mother taken from them, but I am sorry, Drogon, truly." She swallows down the lump trying to form in her throat.

Because—God's, help her—she was beginning to fall for the crazy, beautiful woman.

For her aunt...

Jon then has to ignore the curdling in her stomach and the acid trying to rise up her throat. She takes another breath, then, says, "If you're here for your revenge or justice, I won't blame you."

Drogon finally moves, though, only a fraction. His shoulders shift and he lowers his head a little as he lets out a rumble from the back of his throat.

Jon notes his tail curling a little more and she doesn't know how she comes to the conclusion that he wants her to touch him, to comfort him. But with only a slightly trembling step forward, she takes a deep breath to sooth herself while slowly lifting a hand to lay across the fold of his wing pressed into the stone.

She's never touched the wings before. Only the rock solid and rather smooth to the touch scales. His wing feels a lot more like animal skin without any hair. It feels delicate and she finds herself smiling a little when her touch seems to tickle and he wiggles his wing and it ripples under her hand.

Jon stares up at him, finally meeting his eyes and somehow not feeling afraid at all anymore. He looks right into her soul, at least, that's what it feels like. And as her smile falls away, she realises her can probably do just that. He can see all the pain she's caused and the pain she's had caused to her. Seen the choices she's had to make; all one she's didn't want to, but did anyway.

He...understands her.

She guesses it takes a dragon to really know a dragon.

Even if she's half wolf and was brought up full wolf, the dragon runs through her veins.

She's always felt it, even if she didn't know what it was. Always felt this annoying itch just under the surface of her heart. Like she was a withering flower that just had to, but never could reach a slither of sunlight.

Drogon snaps her from her thoughts as he suddenly shifts back. She pulls her hand back as it slips from him. She stays deadly still, just in case. But is surprised and a little shocked when he lowers his face down to her instead.

It's just like last time, only this time, Dani isn't here and Jon isn't trying to get a dragon's approval just because she wants Dani to herself.

She ignores the bad taste that thought leaves on the back of her tongue. Which is easy when you have a huge dragon staring right at you.

His eyes are the brightest glowing rubies she's ever laid her own eyes on and each one is almost the size of her entire head.

He blinks slowly at her, like she used to see the stray kittens Brann or Arya would find do whenever they would show them love and care. Jon does as her siblings (or technically, her cousins) would do with the kittens and now blinks slowly back at the dragon in front of her.

Jon chuckles nervously when he blows out a hot breath through his nostrils and right into her face, making her hair whip back. If he was going to eat her, he probably would have done it by now...right?

But then, what is he doing h—

Drogon shifts again. In seconds, this time, he's standing to her right. He lowers his head until it's almost touching the stone floor. He dips his wings, the folded joints flattening to the ground at his sides. His wings ripple before settling calmly. His back cracks and his tail flicks. Then, he rolls his left shoulder at her.

Jon's eyes widen as he finally turns his head to look at her with expectancy. "You..." She gulps, clears her throat. "You want me to..."

Nope, she still isn't processing.

Jon shakes her head, just barely before he lets out a rumbling soft growl of disapproval. She literally has a dragon fucking glowering at her right now.

It's like he's saying: "you killed my mum, so, now, I'm your problem." Jon almost laughs at the thought, but thinks better of it. Considering she's already treading on thin ice concerning pissing off said dragon any more than she already has.

Jon clears her throat again, instead, sincerely wanting to know, "Why would you want me?"

Drogon simply blinks at her, still seemingly waiting for her to just hop onto his back like it doesn't change everything. Again.

Jon isn't sure how much more change she can take right now.

She can't exactly serve up the excuse this time of whether the dragon might even want her on his back or not. Nor can she say anymore that she doesn't know how to ride a dragon.

Well, she still doesn't really know, but she's a lot more confident than she was.

Horses really are boring now...

Her brain screams at her for her stupid reasoning when that confidence suddenly rises within her and she finds herself walking slowly over to him.

He's a bit bigger than Rhaegal was.

Jon's heart twinges at the thought of his death, anger curling around her stomach as she thinks of Euron and wishes she'd been the one to kill him (instead of an oath breaking, King slayer turned Queen deserter like Jaime Lannister.)

Drogon, much like she remembers Rhaegal doing as she approached him for the first time, seems to vibrate with excitement. He huffs when she just stands there staring at him.

Gods, what am I doing?

Jon shakes the doubts away and begins her less than graceful climb up onto his back, using his spikes to grip and pull her up. But bless him, he does try to stay still for her. At least, until he feels the moment her backside is planted between his shoulders.

Then, he's off without warning and Jon is letting out a less than regal yelp of surprise...and some panic.

He's a lot fucking faster than his brother was, but his movements are more balanced and once they reach the clouds in just a matter of seconds and he levels his body out, Jon suddenly remembers why she ever climbed onto a dragon in the first place.