𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑 | 𝗮𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗿𝘆𝗲𝗻

Chapter 24: hurtful realizations

121 d. C

King's Landing

As the summer arrived at King's Landing the common folk invaded the public fountains and the other body's of water as they seeked relief from the scorching heat.

On the other hand, the royal family enjoyed the private beach that was located on the east side of the red keep. The kids, joined by a heavenly pregnant Rhaenyra and Daemon who kept an eye on the kids who were on the water and another on his wife.

Daeron and the Velaryon boys built sand fortresses and pretended they were knights seeking to conquer the castles in the name of their queen. Helaena along with Aegon enjoyed taking a walk along the shore letting the waves wash over their feet, cooling their bodies a bit.
Aemond helped Shiera jump the waves. Holding hands, both tried to avoid being caught off guard by the waves.

When a big wave came and Shiera was able to jump above it with ease she turned with glee on her face.

"Kepa! Did you see that?! Did you see me?! Did you see what I did?!" She couldn't contain her happiness. She also wanted her father to feel proud of her, even if it was with the little things.

"I did sweetheart. You were awesome!" Daemon wasted no time trying to make his daughter feel supported and loved. Every small step was an important moment in his eyes. He also saw the lack of maternal support the Targaryen kids had so he tried to offer them some comfort if he could. "You're also doing great, Aemond! Good lad!"

As time passed he had started to warm to the Viserys boy's. He tried to forget about their mother and grandsire. Although hard at first, with the help of Shiera and Rhaenyra he learned about their personalities and how they weren't their mothers mistakes.

At his words Aemond visibly blushed and sent a nod at him as a sign of appreciation. During the last months Daemon had begun teaching him all about sword fighting and dragon riding. Meraxes had already grown considerably and it wouldn't be long before he would be able to ride her.
So he had been preparing Aemond for this new part of his life.

Once the maids had arrived with food for their lunch they all sat down under a gazebo and talked about what they had planned for the afternoon.
However, while the children were talking among themselves, Elinda appeared at the beach and approached the adults with discretion. When she neared Rhaenyra she lowered so she could whisper in her ear.

"I was told to let you know that a white worm has found out something that might interest you, your highness." At this Rhaenyra looked at Daemon. They both knew that what Mysaria wanted to talk about had to be serious to risk being caught talking to them in person.

"And has this white worm said anything about where it wants us to meet?" Daemon asked quietly.

"It said that the moon is the most beautiful when you look at it from the godswood" Having nothing else to say she waited for Rhaenyra's nod of approval before standing up and going back to her chores.

Shiera, who although having been talking with Daeron about famous knights and battles, hadn't been able to stop herself from listening to a bit of her parents' brief conversation with Elinda. One of the advantages of being sightless was that the rest of her senses were more acute than those of the rest of normal people, so even speaking softly she was sometimes able to pick up conversations not suitable for her ears.

Aemond, sensing that her attention was elsewhere, tried to ask her what was going on with her only to be stopped by Shiera. That was not the moment as the rest of their siblings were still with them and it was obvious that what happened was something that they didn't need to know.

Later that night, Rhaenyra and Daemon made their way across the keep to the godswood as silently and fast as they were capable. With Rhaenyra almost 8 moons pregnant her health had weakened a little and the maesters agreed that what would be best for her would be to be bedridden and to not overexert herself. Mellos, the Grand Maester had also suggested that she drink some of his concoctions to keep her pains away. Obviously this sugestión had been ignored by both Rhaenyra and Daemon and they had decided to keep to their own opinions.