Jaehaeron Targaryen - The Northern Dragon

An innocent little Lady

When Jaehaeron entered Jaehaerys' chambers with Rhaenyra and Alicent on each arm, the Old King could not help but let out a small chuckle that exasperated his great-grandson.

"Hello grandfather!" Rhaenyra greeted with a lot more enthusiasm than the King had expected.
His great-granddaughter had started calling him 'grandfather' since Baelon's death. It made him both younger and sad.

"Hello, Rhaenyra." He greeted back with a smile before looking at the only young lady he did not know. "And who might you be, young one?"

Alicent gently let go of Jon's arm, and bowed perfectly.

"My name is Alicent Hightower of Oldtown, your Grace. I'm honored to meet you."

To the children's mutual surprise, Jaehaerys did not answer, his eyes widened and his breath grew heavier. The six year old young lady felt her heart beat in her chest.

"Pardon me." The Old King murmured as he covered his face with his hand to hide his tears. "What did you say your name was, young one?"

"A-Alicent Hightower, Your Grace."

The pain... the tears, the memories of his disputes with his wife, everything came back to hit him without so much as a warning, had he been a lesser man, Jaehaerys Targaryen would have been killed by sorrow in the second.

"Pardon me."He repeated while he fought to swallow his tears back. "My young lady, your voice is identical to my daughter's, Saera. Hearing it again, after so many years, reopened old wounds."

Alicent looked appalled by this information and almost threw herself to the ground as she bowed to apologize.

"I'm so, sorry... I..."

"No!" Jaehaerys almost screamed as he felt his heart being teared out once again. "No don't apologize Saer... Young Lady. It is not your fault, and it is I who apologizes... Seven... Saera, I am so... sorry."

As the King was crying in his hand, Rhaenyra and immediately let go of Jon's arm to rescue her grandfather with a hug, just like her mother was doing every time she was crying. Jaehaeron smiled when he saw Jaehaerys' old arms lock around his cousin's back and went to join them to double her efforts. The sixty-nine year old ruler felt his sorrow and pain being supported by the tiny bodies of his great-grandchildren, he would have moved out of their embrace had he been six years younger and strong enough to endure. But he was not Jaehaerys the Wise anymore, he was Jaehaerys the Old King, the Father who had lost eleven children, a sister, two brothers, his parents, his best friend and the love of his life. He was exhausted and dying, his only joy and last reason to live one more day were his last children, the only children he could spend time with.

The moment lasted around half a dozen minutes, then the old man finally let go of the prince and the princess.

"Thank you little ones." He whispered as he rubbed his tears off his eyes. "I apologize for this."

"There is nothing to apologize for, grandfather." Jaehaeron comforted him. "What did you call us for?"

Jaehaerys smiled, he knew he had only called for Jon, and he also knew that his great-grandson had the same unfortunate tendency, as he himself had, to bury personal matters under a pile of work. No matter how many times Jaehaerys had warned him about the consequences of such actions, Jon was Jon.

"I just wanted to spend some time with you, my dears." He half-lied. "Tell me, what did you do today?"

The next moments were embarrassing for Alicent, for she had to stay in a room, next to the royal family, where her presence was clearly not required. She waited in silence, as the Prince and the Princess spent the next twenty minutes or so conversing with their great-grandfather. She was terrified of opening her mouth, for she feared her voice would hurt the King again, oh! What would her father say if he were to learn what she had done? She had ran away from her room and made the King cry! She will be punished, she knew that by now.