*ON PAUSE FOR TIME BEING**
❝There is no war so hateful to the gods as a war between kin ― especially when the fray pits mother against child.❞
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Princess Naerys Targaryen, the overlooked daughter of King Viserys, walked t...
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⚠️ graphic depictions of child birth towards the end, read at your own discretion ⚠️
***
The day of the tourney dawned, and Naerys had never yearned more for obscurity. She wished to remain with her mother, to witness the arrival of her new sister. But alas, as the King's daughter, duty tethered her to her father's side, an obligation that even her rank as the second-born could not lift.
"We have chosen an egg from Silverwing's clutch for the babe, Mother," Naerys declared with a cadence of hope.
"Oh, have you?" Queen Aemma replied.
"I hope for a sister," she confessed, imagining the bond they would share. She would be the most devoted elder sister, nurturing and protective, for she understood what it meant to feel overlooked.
"Yes, the King has told me of your wishes. He said you and your sister are quite certain it will be a girl," Queen Aemma acknowledged with a soft smile.
A shared glance passed between Naerys and Rhaenyra, exchanging knowing smirks.
But the moment was swiftly pierced by the Queen's sharp gasp—a wave of discomfort coursed through her. She doubled over, clutching the bedpost as she was seized by a fierce pang, her breath hitching.
"Mother!" Rhaenyra exclaimed, concern etching her features.
A flurry of handmaidens rushed forward, urging her to take to the birthing bed, yet Aemma shook her head. "No, let me move. I feel better this way," she insisted, summoning all her strength.
"Help me walk, just for a moment," the Queen urged her daughters.
Naerys and Rhaenyra exchanged worried glances as they took hold of their mother's arms, steadying her as she swayed. The Queen was dressed in loose, flowing garments, Aemma's hair tumbled in disarray, beads of sweat shimmering on her brow.
The handmaidens, though reluctant, retreated to their tasks, allowing the matriarch and her daughters a moment of privacy as they paced through the chamber together.
