All of Pieces

Chapter - 10

   Daenerys shifted her position in bed, trying to ease the pain in her back. She felt pressure in her hips and lower, the babe heavy in her body. Small cramps had been plaguing her all night, but there was no pattern and they were manageable. The Maester had told her two weeks prior, when she was so sure it was time, that her body was just getting itself ready for the birth. They had been at Dragonstone for a month now, and their babe was still content inside her womb. She had grown increasingly miserable, and larger than she ever felt possible. Jon had been ever so diligent, sometimes suffocating, in his quest to ensure her comfort and contentment. She moved one of the pillows behind her back, desperate to apply more pressure to quench the ache. One day she had mentioned to him that the pillows had been a great relief to her back and legs and had come to their chambers for bed that evening to almost every single pillow in the keep available for her choosing. He had also seen how difficult it was for her to rise from the bed on her own, without needing his or a handmaids help to get pulled up, and how frustrated she had become at being helpless The next she knew, he had installed one of his leathered belts to the canopy so that she may be as independent as possible and pull herself up using the belt to hold her weight. Sighing deeply, she rubbed her belly, and opened her eyes to look over to Jon. He was deep in sleep, soft snores escaping intermittently. His raven hair was loose, curls tumbling about the pillow as one rouge one fell over his left eye. His face was soft with rest, his mouth slightly open into a pout. She almost thought to wake him, that if she could not rest then neither should he. But she didn't, knowing that rest had not come easy for him and was happy to see him actually sleep. He had never spoken his feelings aloud, but she knew he had anxiety daily on if that day would be the day. Especially as her time got closer. Every single sharp movement she made, or grimace of discomfort, would send him to her side asking if she felt alright. His behavior had relaxed some after the Maester last had examined her the morning prior, confirming he saw no signs of impending labor and that the pain was normal. Already stubborn like your father, she thought to their babe as she continued to rub her belly.

She let her gaze drift past Jon, out towards the great open window and terrace. The moon was bright in the sky, the night as dark as ink with stars shining like diamonds. She wasn't sure of the time, but knew it was the middle of the night because everything was silent. The air was calm, the sea breeze drifting the smell of the ocean into their rooms. The smell was a welcomed one, as Daenerys had grown very fond of Dragonstone in their time here. She had been able to enjoy the keep, and actually explore, with the threat of war hanging over them. The feeling of having an actual home was surreal, knowing there would be no more running and no more conquests to win. She had always firmly believed that her own desires did not matter, for a Queen did not belong to herself but her people. However, in this instance, lying next to the man she loved and with their child growing within her, she allowed herself to imagine what life might be like for them all. Their child would know stability, and love. Their child would have a real home, would never have to wonder where a meal would come from, or have to rely on the kindness of strangers. They would grow up as a Prince or Princess of the Seven Kingdoms, the future of the realm.

The fear that had followed her since she had been made aware of her pregnancy began to creep into her happy thoughts. She was overjoyed at the prospect of being a mother soon, but could not bring herself to fully become attached to this child. Not like Rhaego. With him, it was different. She had been so full of childlike hope. She had even known he was a boy, seemingly able to communicate with him in her womb. But then it all came crashing down upon her and she lost that hope and her whole family as she'd known it. She had already lived through the cruelty and intense pain of his death, and those feelings alone kept her at a distance emotionally. She just wasn't strong enough to endure it again, not after all of the trauma and loss that happened since. The thought of anything happening to this child made the bile rise up into her stomach. Despite her best efforts to try to remain as aloof as possible until she held the babe in her arms, she loved her son or daughter with every fiber of her being. A sharper pain in her back drew her from drowning in her darker thoughts and firmly back to the present. She bit her lower lip softly as she shifted in position. The ache in her hips in the new position made her realize that she would find no more comfort this evening. Using the belt hoist, she used her strength to pull herself up and out of the bed as quietly as she could manage.