Sun and Fire ~ Aemond Targaryen

02. Letters to Aemond

After the birth of Daelor Targaryen, the mansion descended into chaos as foreseen by Daemma. Thousands of letters from the Lords and Ladies of the great Houses poured in incessantly, along with emissaries and both welcome and unwelcome visitors.

Meria preferred to stay away from the crowds, flying on her dragon and visiting her father's vineyard to talk with the peasants, a much more pleasant distraction for her. Sometimes she sought the opportunity to train with Ser Morros without being seen, or even found ways to torment her servant, Melissa.

In contrast, Daemma mostly secluded herself in her room, dedicated to organizing her correspondence. She had accumulated many letters since her nameday that she hadn't yet read. Although her room was always tidy, organizing the letters seemed an impossible task without Sarai's help.

She kept in touch with everyone: Princes Jacaerys, Lucerys, Joffrey, Baela, Rhaena, Rhaenyra herself, her uncle Daemon sporadically, Queen Alicent, and Princess Helaena, with whom she exchanged frequent letters to keep up with her children, the young twins Jaehaerys and Jaehaera. In fact, she hadn't traveled to King's Landing since the children turned two namedays, and currently Princess Helaena was pregnant.

However, she hardly ever communicated with her cousin Aegon. Since childhood, there had been predictions that he would be an unfortunate husband for someone as extraordinary as Helaena; he was always drunk and barely paid attention to his wife or their small children. That's why Daemma tried to reach out to her, to offer the support she needed. She knew that Aemond and their parents, the Kings, also cared deeply for Helaena, but... let's just say openly offering comfort was not their strong suit.

Just thinking that there was a time when she believed she would be betrothed to Aegon made Daemma's stomach turn. She felt a deep compassion for Helaena and her misfortune, a compassion that sometimes seemed overwhelming. In addition to letters from her cousins, she received correspondence from various Lords and Ladies who mostly wished to introduce her to their unmarried sons.

Daemma was now of an age to consider suitors, though she found the prospect bothersome. However, she understood the formality of it all and always declined proposals gracefully. Fortunately, her parents supported her decision, believing there was no rush to think about marriage.

As for Aemond, after the incident at Driftmark, there was a period where they hardly saw each other. At the funeral of Laenor Velaryon shortly thereafter, Aemond did not attend, supposedly still requiring the maester's care, that was the excuse given by the royals.

Following that event, they only occasionally exchanged letters, and the written lines were always sparse. Daemma wasn't sure if it was because Aemond found writing to her tiresome and did so out of obligation, or if it was due to him adjusting to the absence of his eye, which made writing difficult. The truth of it was uncertain to her. However, the next time they met was at the wedding of Aegon and Helaena.

It was a lively celebration, despite everyone still being tense over the recent events at Driftmark, which remained fresh in memory. Even Prince Daeron made an appearance, the fourth and youngest child of the Queen and the King, who rarely joined the family except on very special occasions, residing in Oldtown serving as cupbearer and squire to his maternal relative, Lord Hightower.

Aemond did not seem happy at the party and kept himself apart from everyone, including Daemma. His presence seemed more out of duty than personal desire. It was clear he did not share in the joy for his newly married siblings, nor did he have any interest in facing those he had fought with, or the courtiers who watched him like a circus animal. His desire to escape was palpable, yet as always, he remained stoic, having learned from a young age to hide his emotions.