ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʀᴋ ꜱɪꜱᴛᴇʀ - House of the Dragon

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

The night was my favorite part of the day.

Everything was quieter, darker and calmer.

Back in Dragonstone, those nights were Jace and I didn't sneak out nor Luke came to my bedchambers looking for comfort, I would spend hours laying on the sand beneath the castle, hearing the whisper of the waves and feeling the drops of the freezing water crashing against my bare feet as I watched the stars.

Daemon often joined me, specially when the skies were free of the dark clouds and the stars shone like candlelights above a black background. In Old Valyria it was stuided the constellations that formed our skies, he had said, and he made sure I studied them as well.

My fascination for blood and sweat and swords was quickly overshadowed by the endless odd names of the stars. And the nights became slightly better whenever I shared time with my stepfather over the cold sand.

He never stopped training me though, and I didn't want to stop either. But I found another reason to wake up in the morns, wait for the night to see the stars and the moon.

The night of my four-and-ten nameday, Stormy and I flew so high in pursuit of the full moon that I passed out on his back. My mother almost had a heart attack as Daemon unsaddled me and carried me to my chambers, and I gained a four weeks punishment for my recklessness and a heavy disappointment as Rhaenyra explained the moon couldn't be touched. Why? I had asked, I had a dragon, we could fly until I could touch it, could we not?

"Air gets heavier up there." I had said when Jace asked me what if felt like. "It's odd, you can't really breathe."

Daemon made sure I suffered during those four weeks and, though I still had a fascination towards it, I never tried to touch the moon again.

King's Landing was a another story.

It was a living city, and some nights the lights were too bright to see any stars. It was yet another reason to hate the capital.

I had found a small place in the huge gardens, far from any paths that could be walked by people, and was pacify laying on my back as I tried to distinguish any known form. The smoke coming from the city and the heavy clouds were making it quite difficult, and the noises coming from the Keep and below Aegon's hill were pissing me off. It was pass dine time, how could people be so active at that hour? It didn't help either, the throbbing pain in my shoulder whenever I removed myself.

Even though the tournament was barely four days prior, the wounds were pretty much healed already. That could be possible because I had been confined to my quarters during those days and nights, and my only company had been not other than Emory under my mother's request. Not even Lucerys could sneak in to sleep with me, and had almost threatened me (as if it was my fault) during our morn meal, the only one we were allowed to share, that same day.

It had been a nightmare, spending so much time without my boys, or my sisters, or training, or flying. Stormbreaker was mad as well, but he was too scared of his mother to even try to complain, full aware Rhaenyra wouldn't even hesitate on snitching on Syrax the moment we set foot in Dragonstone.

My mother knew I couldn't bear been lockdown any longer though, and I had the theory she had spoken to Daemon and they both decided I was healed enough to freely go, since neither Emory nor Ser Erryk had tried to stop me as I sprinted down the corridor. I had managed to avoid my boys however, since what I truly needed was fresh air, yet I was already regretting not inviting at least Luke as the boredom quickly drowned my mind.

"Princess?"

My body reacted for itself, sitting in a straight position at the sound of a husky voice, and I felt slightly dizzy since I had been laying for almost an hour and I had sat too fast.