ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʀᴋ ꜱɪꜱᴛᴇʀ - House of the Dragon

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

                        Aemond Targaryen

There was something so peaceful about seeing Visenya surrounded by children.

Even though she always said children were her worst nightmare, and that she would never seek any, for them to be terrorific and nothing but problems (her words). But seeing how she would smile at them, carefully stroking her thumb against their cheek or mumbling a song in our mother tongue that would left them thinking that was simply beautiful.

It almost seemed as a completely different person from the murderous woman who had killed a man as painfully and slowly as she could after six days of torture. Two days, actually. Since his body had given up long before Visenya was even close to be done with him. That had her in a atrocious mood lately, since she would rumble about it senseless or twisted her knife until she bled or even threat me again. But Helaena had apparently found something to cheer her up a bit.

Jaehaera giggled when Visenya tickled her waist wrinkling her small nose, and her eyes found mine for a brief second before turning her attention to the silver-haired little princess pulling her hand and whispering things in her ear only them both heard.

Young Aegon was collecting flowers and stones with Jaehaerys and Helaena, and my sister was quietly explaining to them something about a red spider she had been trying to catch for weeks even before our half-sister'ss family had arrived at King's Landing. Aegon was turning pale, and his violet eyes were flying to his sister as if he was looking for comfort as he bit his little fingernails almost unconsciously.

"Stop biting your nails."

Her soft voice caught my attention, and she half smirked when I playfully raised my eyebrow, eyeing her own bitten nails with a smirk of my own.

A moody Visenya even though she tried to hide it and her brother had come to Helaena's chambers as soon as my mother and grandfather had left after breaking the fast, and the boy had begged my sister for a walk after loudly kissing Jaehaera's cheek and hugging Jaehaerys and Helaena herself.

Helaena had chuckled, embracing his little body with her arms before patting his head with her long pale fingers and sweetly asking the nursemaids to dress the twins up. As the three children laughed and joked and talked in their own language, Visenya had chatted with my sister almost ignoring my presence there, uncomfortable sitting on a wooden chair and studiedly trying not to stare at her for too long. She had said she was to leave the boy, and then find shelter in whatever old book was waiting for her in her quarters. But then Helaena had pouted her lips, delicately grabbing her hand in hers, and had softly spoken about the happiness Visenya would bring to her children if only they spent the day altogether. And Visenya could not say no to Helaena. 

After a kiss to the tip of my sister's nose, she nodded with a grin, and they had walked around the Red Keep with interwitned arms and sweet smiles and soft voices as they eyed the three copies causing riots in front of them and ignoring the gazes of all the lords and ladies in the hallways. It almost looked as if I was their personal sworn protector, walking a few steps behind them with my hands behind my back and my eye burning holes in every person who dared to even whisper as my sister and niece walked pass them.

Jaehaera had jumped in her arms as soon as we reached the gardens, and Aegon had grabbed Helaena's hand as Jaehaerys stuck out his tongue to his sister, visibly annoyed that Visenya was holding her instead of him.

How could her cousin seem so irriated by that fact, yet her brother was so uninsterested by it, almost as if he was watching nothing but a fly peacefully flying around him?

She has more brothers, Aegon is used to share her. Jaehaerys is not. A voice in the back of my head reminded me.

"Dragon!" Jaehaera screamed, lifting her head from her shoulder when a loud roar echoed through the empty gardens.