Mother Of Dragons

Chapter 19

Dany was still asleep when Drogo woke the next morning. He glanced down at her and sighed softly, the poor girl's eyes were swollen and she was overly pale in the dim morning light. He hoped she would sleep some more, so he gently eased himself from the bed and silently dressed. He had a job to do today.

He stepped outside and stretched, enjoying the crisp summer morning. His first morning back in his own house in well over a year. It had been too long since he'd enjoyed a quiet morning so near the lake. He thought briefly of calling his horse so they could take a long walk around the lake, taking up the whole day, but he had a wife to think of now. A grieving, pregnant wife, and her dead brother needed to be sent to the Nightlands.

Drogo sighed inwardly again, and went off in search of Ser Jorah. They would build Viserys' pyre and burn his body as soon as it grew dark. Daenerys' brother, by blood alone, deserved that honor, and it was for that reason only Drogo wouldn't string his body up in a tree for the crows to pick clean. Not a blood rider to call his own, and it was his own fault, Drogo reflected. It's up to his sister's men and husband to do the man honors he doesn't deserve. Pathetic little worm.

He called on Qotho and Rhakaro to search for Ser Jorah and to find out what happened to the Dragon Prince's body, stopping at the temple to receive a blessing for the deed he was about to do. He would remove the gold from Viserys' body before burning him, and it possibly could cause blood to spill, so he wanted the Dosh Khaleen to know exactly what was happening, and ensure that no curse would be placed on him or his unborn son as a result of preparing the body for the Nightlands. There were certain things that even a Khal doesn't leave to chance.

After his brief talk and blessing by the crones, he left the temple, eyes still burning from the sweet smoke of their magickal fires. He considered going home for the morning, but decided that his presence wouldn't help her to stay asleep. Despite her tears, he still wanted her, and it was more than just her growing, ripe belly.

They built the pyre down by the lake, a place of high honor that Drogo hoped would make Daenerys happy. Just a few men were needed, toiling at it in the afternoon heat, but it was erected and solidly built for such a man. Viserys had very few possessions to take with him to the Nightlands, and they were all placed under him to help ignite the fire. Drogo tossed in a blanket woven with his personal pattern to help burn the fuel, not able to find anything in Viserys' belongings that would do the job.

Checking over the work, he felt satisfied. Heading back home, he ducked behind the house to wash off the day's grime in the deep, cool stream that ran behind the mud brick wall that protected their home from flooding. He could hear Irri and Doreah talking quietly in the back room as he made to go over the wall and into the water.

"At least she's sleeping now," he heard one say consolingly to the other.

"I don't want the blame if she loses Rhaego over this," the second one said, making Drogo stop in his tracks and his stomach turn painfully. My boy. The thought hadn't occurred to him. Suddenly he was unsure of what to do, so he stood there in the small space between the wall and his home, pants in hand, listening to the women talk about his son.

"What else can we do for her? All she does is cry when she's awake, she won't eat, won't drink, and she won't say a word," Doreah said, frustrated.

Oh fuck this. Drogo hopped over the wall and scrubbed quickly, washing away all the dust and sweat from working in the heat. He grabbed his pants and walked around to the front of his house and entered, not bothering with his clothes. The women came out quickly from the back room, and he quietly commanded them to fetch the midwife to see to Dany. He grabbed a linen from the line of drying clothes and wiped himself dry, tossing it into the corner with the rest of the unfinished laundry, that particular chore obviously halted mid stage in lieu of tending to Daenerys.