Born on the nightfall of a tragedy, raised with the weight of power and expectations over her shoulders, Elaenora Arryn knew her fate could not be written by the Seven, but only by herself.
Carrying the blood of both the murderer and the murdered i...
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« To dare is to do »
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Grey Ghost's ashen scales seemed to blend in with the foggy ambience, almost as if the dragon's body was made of the same mist that embraced him. As dread gripped her stomach like a closed fist, Nora's breath felt trapped in her throat. She feared the dragon — she would have been stupid not to — but the inexplicable tug Elaenora felt in her guts slowly pulled her towards the winged beast with the force of a tight rope.
Aemar's eyes widened the more his daughter approached Grey Ghost. Once again, his hand went discreetly towards his sheathed sword, resting it on its pommel. He knew that if the massive dragon decided to attack the two of them there would be little he could do about it, but he could not help either the curiosity arising in his entrails.
"Elaenora, I beg of you. Be careful, this is not a game," Aemar murmured again, his voice feeling strangled inside his throat.
"I wonder why he has been following us," Nora murmured, still bewitched by the dragon's presence.
"It is strange, that is certain. Grey Ghost is known for avoiding men as much as possible. I do not think anyone has ever seen him this up close so, I repeat, be very careful."
The winged beast's yellow eyes met Nora's as she was slowly approaching. He appeared wary of the tall blond man standing a couple of steps away from the young girl, and feeling cornered and threatened by his presence, Grey Ghost adopted a more defensive posture, rising on his limbs and opening his wide mouth of sharp long teeth. The orange glow in the back of his throat made Nora's heart thump in her chest. The idea of dying cremated by a wild dragon gave her painful goosebumps but, at the same time, she could not stop herself from walking closer and closer to the dragon.
Her father, however, was no longer feeling that confident and curious, at least not at the expense of his daughter's safety. With the panic in his voice, Aemar ran towards Nora and tried to grab his daughter's hand to pull her away from the wild beast. "Elaenora! Step back!"
The dragon raised on his legs, flapping his wings and shrieking threateningly when the man got too close for his liking. His figure stood tall and menacing, the glow in the back of his throat becoming brighter as Aemar's eyes caught a glimpse of the flames.
Nora freed her hand from her father's grip and focused her eyes on Grey Ghost's yellow ones. Her heart beat hard in her chest as if it was about to break her ribs. She should have been terrified of standing in front of such a wild beast at her tender nine years of age but, contrary to the expected, Nora felt a new sentiment growing in the depths of her guts. A new sense of bravery that she had not experienced before. Looking into the dragon's eyes, she got even closer.
"Lykiri, Grey Ghost! Lykiri!" Nora spoke up, raising her trembling hands, trying to appear both firm but also calming. She repeated one of the few words in High Valyrian she remembered from spying on Aemond's lessons. "Rȳbās!"
