Vaera Targaryen, the Dragon Bound

The People's Princess

The next morning, after being helped by her maids to get dressed, she exited her chambers and found ser Criston standing next to the doors, waiting to escort her wherever she needed. "Princess" he said, "I do hope you have slept a little, ser Criston" she told him looking in front of her, "I did" he answered, "I think you should know, Princess, that today I am to train your brothers" he informed her, "Then let's hurry – I enjoy a good laugh like the next man" she said savouring the thought of her inexperienced brothers waiving swords.

Vaera walked down the stairs to the inner courtyard and saw Aegon and Aemond with wooden swords, fighting the dummies. "Princes" said Cole calling for their attention, the brothers turned around, Aegon with no shame on his face for his behaviour of the night before. "Are you going to watch us train?" asked Aemond feeling a little sheepish now that she was there to witness them make a fool out of themselves.

"Brothers" she greeted them, "Only if you want me to" she added warmly, "Of course" said Aegon boastful. She smiled graciously and went to sit down on a bench where there wasn't too much mud. She put on a proud smile and lost her gaze onto her brothers and the knight, still thinking whether she could marry Aemond now, what to say to her father and the Queen, whether to beg or not. Quite a while must have gone by during her dozing off from reality because when she looked up over the balcony, she saw Alicent and Helaena.

The Queen smiled to her and gestured her to come to her. Vaera stood up, smiled again to the maids and servants that were messing about and walked up the stairs again to meet her sister who did not look happy at all. "What is it?" she asked to Helaena, "There is something your father and I have discussed" said the Queen, "Am I the topic?" she asked trying to mask the fact that she knew she was to be cast aside as a future Targaryen wife. "It does concern you" said Alicent graciously, "Prince Aegon will marry Princess Helaena, soon after we return from Driftmark" she told her with a small smile. Vaera turned to her sister and tried to smile; she knew Helaena was strong, she knew she would have survived Aegon, "Congratulations, sister" "Thank you" said Helaena looking down. Vaera turned her head towards the Queen again and asked, "How does this happy news concern me?" "As you were first promised to the Prince, this now means you're free to marry someone else, someone of your choosing – you'll be going on tour through the realm to find a husband, to choose from the lords that come before you" "How long will I be gone for?" she asked, "Six months, a year. However long it will take" said Alicent calmly, "Will I still be here for the royal wedding?" she asked stroking Helaena's arm, "Of course, dear" said Alicent warmly, "Very well, then" stated Vaera breaking a little inside.

When she met with her father that day, she did not want to cause him more worries than necessary, when he asked if she was happy with the changes regarding her future, she smiled and said, "Of course", but she wasn't.

Vaera and ser Criston were walking together that afternoon, aimlessly, through the Keep, "They told you?" he asked, "They did. I am going to go on tour after the funeral and after their wedding" she said dead inside.
Moments later, Aegon and Aemond intercepted them on one of the spiral staircases, "Sister" said Aegon rushing towards her, she stopped as did her knight. She wondered whether Aegon knew yet but he looked a little too happy for that to be the case.

"Brothers" she said, "The servants brought a gift for you" said Aegon with a snigger, "A gift?" she asked curiously and Aegon grabbed her hand and dragged her down the stairs, towards the gates of the Red Keep. They ran, with Aemond on her other side and ser Criston yelling at them to stop. For a small moment she was reminded of when they were younger and they all liked each other, when Aegon wasn't a menace to women, when Aemond was still on good terms with his brother, when Vaera still didn't know she couldn't mother children.

They ran to the gates of the Keep and there, just before the stairs, Aegon stopped and drew Vaera closer to him, he held her tight and gestured with his finger in front of her face and pointed to a black log on a chariot. "What is that? The gift? What is it?" she asked, "Who is it?" he corrected her. She squinted her eyes and tried to look better, it wasn't black, it was charred and it wasn't a log but a person. "Your sworn sword suffered the same fate as Laena" he laughed. She felt like her stomach had plummeted down to her feet. "Do not look, Princess" said ser Criston but Vaera wanted to look, that man had been by her side for the past two years, always making her laugh when he saw she was feeling down, he had been a good knight. She tried to swivel free of Aegon, she wanted to cry, had he come back with her he'd still be alive ... "I told him to stay there" she whispered hopeless, Aegon leaned in and whispered to her, "If you need a shoulder to cry on or a lap to sit on – you know where to find me".

Aemond's thrill of looking at a dead body changed immediately to rage towards his brother. He charged at him and pushed Aegon away, "Leave her alone!" he snarled, Aegon sniggered, "Stop it!" roared ser Criston keeping them away from each other, "None of you should see this" he added trying to make them walk away, "Princess, please" he urged her.

She did not move, "Princess" urged her ser Criston again, she sighed and walked towards the body, leaving both princes bewildered; Aegon must have believed seeing that would have upset her and it did but she wasn't going to let anyone see it, "Princess!" sprinted ser Criston after her, letting go of the princes, he took longer steps with each stride to keep up with her. He stood between her and her former protector. Only then did she notice his parents were there, they had been called from Highgarden, so he must have died soon after Laena, in the night. "They deserve my condolences. I left him there and he's dead. I owe them at least that" she said under her breath. Ser Criston sighed and accompanied her, he stood close to her, still between her and her former sworn protector. The servants and the lower sers, small lords and ladies looked at her. She stopped to take a look at the body of ser Rodarick Churly. She was only able to recognise him through the armour that was now glued to his face, everything else was pitch black. Vhagar had unleashed her sorrow onto him evidently when Lady Laena's body was being retrieved. Ser Criston tried to reach for her arm but it was too late, Vaera had already put her hand on his body. His mother was at his feet, wailing, only his father seemed to try to contain before a Princess of the Realm. She tried to smile, to show them some sympathy. She took one of her rings off, the one he always had to pick up because it was still too big for her and it always fell, it used to be one of King Jahaerys, one of many ... ser Rodarick used to joke he would glue it to her finger one day and then, around the year prior, she grew slightly into her body and it never fell again.

"Your son was a brave man, a wonderful companion during these past years, I know I will miss him so I can hardly imagine how you and your wife must feel – I know that my words are empty to you now" she said, she looked down at her hands and twirled the ring between her fingers one last time. His mother stood up and walked to her husband, shaking, he held her up. Vaera held out her arm and gave the ring to his mother, "This ring caused quite a few arguments between us but also many laughs – I wish you to have it" she told them. His mother took it and his father thanked her, Vaera turned to her former sworn sword and bowed and whispered, "Thank you" then beamed towards his parents one last time and walked away. After a few steps, she heard a man calling her, "Princess?", she turned around and it was ser Rodarick's father, "Thank you" he whispered now in tears with his wife. Vaera bowed to them as well and walked away. People around her began to whisper and some left through the gate at once.

Now she was shaking, Cole noticed, "That was honourable, Princess" he said trying to keep her calm, "I feel guilty" she admitted, "Don't, it won't help" he told her. She walked to her brothers; Aemond was impressed while Aegon did not understand why she did that, he thought she would have been horrified. "Why did you do that?" he asked, "They lost their only son" she stated gravely, not looking at him, "They're peasants – you just gave them a gold ring" he argued, "The Princess did an honourable deed, my Prince. They're still people, no matter their social standing" reprimanded him Cole.
That night, Vaera could only think of ser Rodarick, "Have they taken him to Highgarden again?" she asked to the Captain of the Kings Guard, "They have, Princess. He will be buried outside the city tomorrow" he told her, "Thank you" she said, "Princess" said ser Harrold Westerling before walking away.