The Arryn Heir

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Chapter 1

The Princess learns the truth.

The small council meeting had just been adjourned and Princess Rhaenyra was in both shock and anguish.  Her best friend and sole companion was to wed her father, a man who hadn’t said much to her since he named her heir. Neither had even implied that they were courting, to her and they were still supposed to be in the mourning period for her beloved mother, the Queen Aemma Arryn.

Oh, she could not wait until her cousin got wind of the treachery as it was HER army that helped secure the crown for Viserys and now he was slighting them through his recent actions.  Yet, her father, every time Daemon had asked for an annulment from his unwanted wife Rhea Royce, claimed that they could not afford to slight the Vale.  Well, Rhaenyra vowed that the Vale would know precisely just how much their King himself was slighting them.  The Hightower chit would never have their support when they learned about the rapid marriage followed so closely behind Lord Roderik’s youngest child’s murder.

Yes, Rhaenyra was heir to the Iron Throne but she wasn’t foolish enough to believe that she would retain the position for long, especially once Dear Alicent gave her father his all important son, especially with Otto whispering in her father’s ears.  After that she would likely be sold off to whomever Ser Otto dubbed best for his ambitions and likely would die “tragically” in the birthing bed.  She had no intention of letting that happen.

Following Queen Aemma and Prince Baelon’s funeral, Lady Jeyne Arryn, the Warden of the East and Lady of the Vale, had approached Rhaenyra and they had spoken of the situation in the Vale.  Jeyne had no interest in men and was her father’s only surviving child and also had no nieces or nephews.  The cousins they had via their Arryn uncles were either girls who were married off into other houses, dead or imprisoned in the Sky Cells at the Eyrie in their attempts to forcefully take the Eyrie from Jeyne.  As for the cousins they had via their Arryn aunts, while they did have a couple living male cousins, most of those were also dead or imprisoned though a few were married like their sisters and content with their lives.  Jeyne had asked Rhaenyra if she wished to foster with her in the Vale as she feared for her young cousin’s safety in the capital with so few allies.  Unfortunately, shortly thereafter, Rhaenyra was named heir and Jeyne returned home, though the cousins kept their correspondence.  Her cousin had, in light of Rhaenyra’s naming, suggested that her fostering in the Vale would be good for her as then Jeyne could teach Rhaenyra to be a leading lady in her own right, just like she was.  Rhaenrya was not sure if she'd ever be a leading lady of the Realm, but she decided that she really would be safer in the Vale.

After the Princess returned to her chambers, she quickly wrote a letter to her cousin stating that she would be coming to the Vale to stay as she wanted to feel closer to her mother.  The Princess worded her missivive that way in case someone would read it.

The next item on Rhaenyra’s agenda was discovering how her father came to pick such a low born maid as his second bride.  Thankfully she was on good terms with the staff of the Red Keep and soon found out that Lady Alicent had begun visiting her father’s chambers for long hours in the middle of the night and that she had not bled in three moons.  With the planned wedding only a moon away, well, her bastard would be well on the way though, unfortunately would likely be given a royal title and the Targaryen name.  This outraged the Princess.  She was her father’s heir but he planning to supplant her and her mother had only been dead a mere four moons.  Alicent would replace her mother less than six moons after her death and would bear her child less than a year after Prince Baelon passed.  Aemma and the Vale would be deeply disrespected. 

Chapter 2

Rhaenyra flees to the Vale.

Needless to say but while the Red Keep busied itself with the rushed wedding preparations, Rhaenyra prepared her escape.  She also prayed and offered sacrifices to the Valyrian Gods that Alicent’s children would not be able to bond with the dragons.  Yes, it was a bit vindictive, but she felt it was justified that the future Hightower Dragon King might be dragonless.