The Fire That Burns Within US - Aemond Targaryen

Riverrun

137 - Riverrun

The Riverlands smell like the earth and freshwater. A refreshing smell to that of Kings Landings. Aemond has never travelled much, the furthest west he has ever gone had been Old Town years ago when he visited his brother, but Old Town is much farther south than Riverrun. Aemond can feel the crisp and bitter cold wind coming from the north, and he now misses the brightness and warmth of the sun.

Visenya watches as Ben jumps down from Morghons saddle; she holds Daenys close to her chest and hopes the knot keeping the sling hasn't come loose. The ride to Riverrun had been easy, Morghon and Vhagar flying well together without either dragon being aggressive or playfulness. Ben opens his arms as Visenya slides down Morghon's side, grabbing onto her to steady her landing on the ground.

Aemond looks towards Visenya before looking at Laenor; he had been sleeping for most of the flight, and Aemond is grateful that he had taken their son rather than Daenys. He didn't want to fly without his eye patch or not have it in front of so many people he doesn't know. Aemond begins the slow dismount of Vhagar, throwing the few bags the three of them had thought of.

Morghon lets out a huff as Visenya gets off him, looking to Ben and then Aemond before taking off. It was almost like he was making sure that Visenya would be protected in the presence of the two. Morghon had missed the Riverlands.

Rob smiles as his two best friends make their way towards him, the young Lord slightly jogging towards the two of them. Once the three get close enough to one another, they pull each other into a hug, Visenya careful to make sure that Daenys doesn't get crushed. The three pull apart once the unmistakable sound of giggling reaches their ears.

Aemond makes his way towards the reunion, watching the men Rob had brought with them. They don't wear the Tully sigil or carry the banner of the house. Instead, as clear as day, a Valyrian symbol is on their black chest plates.

Rob smiles at the giggling Daenys, who shyly buries her face into Visenya's chest, clapping her hands at the attention. Rob bends down and boops the young princess' nose. Aemond moves to stand behind Visenya as he stares down at Rob. Rob, now aware of the death stare of the one-eyed Prince, stands tall and pulls his hands away from Daenys.

"Rob, this is Daenys," Visenya introduces Rob as she shows Daenys in the sling. Visenya turns around, feeling Aemond behind her and pulls the sleeping Laenor out of Aemond's sling. "And this is Laenor,"

"Aren't they cute," Rob says as he looks between the twins, finding it adorable how Daenys tries to wake up her brother. Visenya hands Laenor back to Aemond, who holds him close and kisses the top of the sleeping babes head. Rob claps his hands together as he returns to the men he has brought. "Come, I have a feast planned for tonight,"

"You didn't have to do that," Ben tells him as a formality. The knight is looking forward to drinking with his friends and finding someone or some people to warm his bed for the night.

"My two closest friends are visiting me, and Visenya has given birth to these two little cuties," Rob tells them as he nods towards the bags that Aemond and Ben had put on the ground, telling the men to grab them. "You are lucky that I don't host a week-long affair,"

Aemond watches close as three men take their bags. How can Rob trust men that are not sworn to him? The Valyrian symbol for clear stares back at him, and Aemond watches with confusion as the men bow their heads down to Visenya; as they walk past, his wife greets the men by name and as clear as their wedding day, Aemond hears the name again. Dróttning'daishar.

– –

The ride on horseback to Riverrun had not been as smooth as the ride on dragon back, with Laenor waking up grumpy and Daenys wanting to swap parents. Aemond hadn't been amazed at Riverrun, finding the castle lacking a certain beauty and small compared to the other castles he had seen.