The Rise of Dragons | Aemond Targaryen

Chapter 6

As we walked outside and into a clearing, a loud roar was heard. It immediately brought a smile to my face as Balerion landed. I ran ahead of the others, clutching the gown I was wearing. When I reached Balerion I hugged as much of him as I could. It felt almost wrong to be away from him for long periods of time. They truly were tied to this world together and it gave me some comfort. It's a great feeling that no matter what happens, Balerion will be by my side.

"Can they come near you, Balerion? They're very important to me," I asked. It felt weird talking to a dragon but when I felt acceptance go through our bond, my unfounded worries washed away.

I looked to the children who were all looking at my dragon with awe and fear. "You can come towards him. He won't harm you with me here."

Aemond beckoned Aegon and Viserys forward. Surprisingly, they were the least afraid. I walked a few steps towards them and held out my hands. I smiled encouragingly at them and that seemed to be enough. It was an instance where children were braver than men.

"Are you sure he won't eat us, aunt Lyna?" Aegon asked shyly.

I laughed lightly while we approached slowly. "No he won't, Aegon. He won't harm you because he knows that you're my family. He knows how important you are."

The young boys seemed to be taken with the large dragon and were stroking the side of his jaw. Balerion huffed and the boys giggled when their hair blew.

"Can you take us on a ride with him?" Viserys asked excitedly.

"Now that you'll have to ask your mother for. I'm not sure she'll be happy if I took you riding on him without her knowing." I looked towards the others and was confused on why they weren't approaching. "Don't you want to come near him?"

Lucerys and Joffrey were the ones to walk forward, but stopped halfway. "Most dragons don't like a lot of people near them. Will we be annoying him?"

"Not at all. He's quite eager to meet you," I said fondly.

"You can feel his emotions?" Asked Baela.

"And he can feel mine. That's why I am sure he's safe," I said distractedly. The two young boys were trying to climb up his wings and all I could feel from Balerion was amusement. Was Balerion as lonely as I was before I came here? Was he taken from a time where he was alone? Were were truly kindred spirits.

I turned and saw Aemond approaching with the others. It seems they have trusted my word and felt safe enough to approach.

"Doesn't it look odd to see a dragon this size playing with children?" I asked Aemond. To be fair it was a bizarre sight. They were pretty much using him as a playground and Balerion was nudging them back.

"This is a bit horrifying," Aemond said. I looked to him and he did look a little horrified. His eye was wide as he took in the children playing.

I could feel the slight change in the dragons emotions and knew it was time. I walked towards the children and motioned them to come away. "He's about to fly off to get food so I suggest you move away."

They didn't seem scared anymore and walked several paces back with Aemond. I put my forehead against Balerion's before pulling away. We all watched as he flew away and I was in awe of him. I never really knew how big he was but looking at him fly was daunting. His wingspan looked to be over 200 feet but I was never good at math. He covered the sun so much, it looked like there was an eclipse.

I knew where we were going next and I'm kind of afraid. I remember seeing Vermithor in the show and he didn't seem to like visitors too much. I can't really tell whether or not I'm brave or stupid. Probably both.