Aemond Targaryen lived to become a weak old man, withering in the cells underneath Dragonstone. One mistake caused a lifetime of pain.
Losing Baelon, was the start to the end of the Hightowers. But it wouldn't be the end of them.
Alys Rivers a wit...
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。.✦ ☾
Aemond cradles a small wooden bowl, his wrists and feet are free of chains as he takes in the morning sun. His white hair was a mess and unkept, blowing softly against the cool breeze. The once prince sat there for hours, letting the food grow cold.
"You should stop picking your nails, it's a horrible habit." Baelon whispers softly into Aemond's naked shoulder, breath gently caressing his skin. Aemond looks down and he lifts his hand, flayed skin at the tips of his fingers, reddened and abused.
Baelon covers his hand with his, bringing it up and caressing his face, peppering his pale skin. "And you should quit worrying, it's a silly little habit I picked up from my mother, it's nothing." Aemond says
Baelon lifts his chin, his eyes meeting Aemond. "Nothing you do is silly." Baelon whispers
....
Aemond lets a singular tear fall before he looks away from the window, his eyes meeting hard brown ones. Lucerys stares at him with hate and disgust, just barely separated from the prison bars. "Good morning young Lucerys." Aemond states, licking his cracked lips.
Lucerys hums, "So you're finally speaking, after all these years of silence, not even my most brutal torturer can get a scream past those blacked lips." Lucerys sneers. Aemond presses his lips together, looking away. "Does it hurt you every time you see me? Knowing that I am my brother's exact image?" Lucerys asks, tilting his head, he is genuinely curious. Every time he came to visit Aemond, he couldn't meet his eyes.
Aemond doesn't comment, having to lower his gaze. "Well, it hurts me..." Lucerys admits, he had his brother's face, his brother's hair, and his brother's smile. The young lord had envied his brother's looks and now he could be his twin. "But what salves my wounds is knowing that the monster that killed him, is behind bars, withering away as an old wrinkled man. You used to be a formidable warrior, well....not a warrior, you've never earned that title, always hiding behind your mother's skirt, playing the knight. While my dear old brother fought for my family......" Lucerys says
Aemond lifts his head, his fingers trailing the rim of the bowl. "It does pain me Lucerys, all of this, I loved him more than myself... But I let my anger and my hurt consume me. I was blinded as a child, I was humiliated as an adult. I lived in a lonely castle, a life you can never understand. In those moments, I felt that I had to kill you, I wasn't going to let anyone stop me, not until he did. That night was the biggest mistake of my life." Aemond says
"It was, because of you, I lost my older brother, the brother that protected me until the very end, the pain you feel..is nothing compared to the guilt that eats at me every day, knowing I was the reason he died. And for that I hate you." Lucerys says, eyeing him in disgust and hate.
"I understand." Aemond says
Lucerys grasps at the bars, bringing his face closer. "You do understand, don't you....because you hate yourself just as much, I sometimes pity you...because I know that my brother would hate to see you so hurt and so isolated....if I were a better man, I may forgive you. But I'm not." Lucerys says, he then closes his eyes, taking a deep breath. "I should've let you take my eye, it would save us all this pain." He whispers
"No. It wouldn't."
Lucerys opens his eyes and he meets Aemonds. "I can handle your hate, I handle it all, but I could never handle Baelons." Aemond says
"And yet, he would be alive."
....
"How's Helaena?" Aemond asks, sitting close to the entrance of the metal door. Alys sat on the other side, leaning against the rock wall. "Beautiful as ever." Alys whispers
"Her twins are grown and married. Maegor is a lost puppy, always following my dear twin, it's adorable really. But she's happy and free." Alys says with a small smile. "Is she married?" Aemond asks curious. "No, she had the option, but she didn't want to tie herself with another man." Alys says
Aemond smiles. "Good."
"Rhaenyra has truly changed this realm for the better, Women are free, while not everyone accepts it, it's relieving." Alys says "It's how it should've been, men are cowards when it comes to woman." Aemond says
"And they always will be, now enough chatting, we have work to do." Aly states "and what exactly must we do?" Aemond asks "First we must get you out of this cell." Alys says
....
Aemond stares at the green land ahead of him, hidden within the walls of the dragon keep, he takes a trembling breath as he takes the first step.
Alys watches him with careful eyes, her dress softly swaying with every step she takes.
Aemond finally steps fully into the light, closing his eyes and inhaling the scent of grass and dragon. "My father would want you to have a choice....despite it being completely against what I want....you can leave, you can forget Baelon and the rest of us and you can be free, just like your sister....you can go anywhere." Alys says
Aemond slowly opens his eyes, staring up into the blue sky. He could forget all the pain and be happy for once, he knew he could eventually grow to accept Baelon's death, but he didn't want to let go of the love he held in his heart for him, it felt like an impossible task.
"I'm an old man, my life will be spent on my arse thinking about all the things I lost, I could never love, I could never find a family of my own. My mother is here, and so is my sister, even if I can forgive myself, I'm still a fugitive. Freedom was never an option." Aemond admits
Alys steps beside him. "Fine, it seems we have work to do."
....
A/N
We're getting somewhere peeps.....
How do you guys feel so far? Hopefully, I didn't ruin my last book with the continuation of this one.
