Sworn Fate // Aegon Targaryen II

Chapter 5

Nobody had been more surprised than Aerion when his father had strode up to him and offered to fly him to King's Landing with Seasmoke. For days, his father had simply disappeared inside himself only to suddenly remerge as if everything was fine again.

It made Aerion nervous and he'd assured his father multiple times that he didn't have to fly him there, even though he desperately wanted to see Aegon. But his father had insisted the flight and fresh air would do them both good and so Aerion had agreed. The letter was sent and somehow they had gotten a positive reply back from Queen Alicent saying they could meet in a field on the outskirts of King's Landing.

When the morning of the visit arrived, Aerion dressed as quickly as he could and sat impatiently through breakfast, practically vibrating in his seat. His visible excitement made both of his parents laugh and for a split second, it almost felt like everything was back to normal again.

The moment passed quickly, but it still soothed a part of Aerion's soul. Perhaps things weren't as dire as both he and Jace had felt them to be.

As soon as breakfast was over, Laenor walked to the Dragonpit with him and they mounted Seasmoke before taking off into the air.

The ride from Dragonstone to the mainland was almost beautiful. The perpetual storms around the island had cleared and the sun was glinting brightly off the dark water below. Every now and then, Seasmoke would dip down to drag his feet through the ocean, sending huge sprays of water up into the air.

His father didn't laugh as much at his dragon's antics as he might have in the past, but he did have a smile on his face which was more than Aerion had seen in all the terrible days that had come after they'd received word of his aunt's death.

Once they had crossed the ocean and were flying over land, Aerion scanned the King's Road below them. It didn't take long to pick out what seemed to be one of the royal carriages making its way along the road accompanied by a group of gold cloaks and at least one person in a white cloak.

Probably Ser Criston if Aerion had to guess, though he desperately hoped it wasn't him. His father could barely stand the sight of Ser Criston, and today of all times he didn't want his father to have to deal with his presence.

Laenor guided Seasmoke to land in the chosen field, giving them a few minutes to get the dragon settled before the horses arrived. The horses who were tasked with pulling the royal carriages were more used to dragons than most, but it was still fairly easy for them to become spooked if one came too close.

Aerion waited impatiently by his father's side as the carriage rolled to a stop and the door slowly opened. The moment he saw a glimpse of silver hair, he took off running across the field and tackled Aegon into a hug once he stepped onto the grass.

Aegon stumbled back a couple of steps, but his arms were quick to come up and wrap around Aerion. Standing in his arms made all the chaos he'd endured in the last few weeks seem distant. Aegon's presence made him feel steady in the way no one else's could.

Aerion glanced up, eyes quickly scanning over Aegon's familiar features. "Your hair is a mess," he said finally, causing Aegon to throw his head back in a laugh.

He's beautiful. The thought struck Aerion fully in the chest as he watched Aegon laugh. He'd seen Aegon thousands of times, but the thought had occurred to him in this moment so naturally he wasn't quite sure it wasn't one he'd had thousands of times before.

A throat cleared behind them, pulling his attention away from Aegon.  Alicent was staring at them pointedly with Ser Arryk standing at her side.

That was one blessing, at least.