Dragon Princess || Aegon II Targaryen

𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 16

With the matter of the winged pig behind them, Rhaenys and Ser Arryk made their way back to the Red Keep.

As they walked, Arryk shared tales of his life as a knight, weaving stories about his bond with his brother, his eternal companion in both life and war. He spoke of tournaments, small skirmishes, and his past loves, carefully omitting the more sordid and crude details unfit for a princess's ears. He recounted how he and his brother joined the Kingsguard after being defeated by Criston Cole, chuckling at the expression on Rhaenys's face upon hearing of yet another victory by the knight.

In truth, Arryk disliked Cole just as much as Rhaenys did—perhaps even more, given that unlike the princess, he had to deal with the man nearly every day. It was well known that Cole had ambitions for ever-higher positions. It was no surprise that he had ingratiated himself with the king's children and the queen even after being dismissed as Rhaenyra's Sworn Protector following his killing of the Knight of Kisses during the princess's wedding to Ser Laenor. Everyone suspected why Ser Criston harbored such animosity toward the princess. The fact that Cole was the most likely successor to Lord Commander Westerling didn't sit well with a great number of White Cloaks, including Arryk.

So, he was pleased that, despite Cole's ability to charm all her brothers, Rhaenys wasn't so easily swayed. She saw right through him.

As Arryk continued with his stories, he noticed the way the princess's eyes sparkled with curiosity and attention. Her laughter filled the air whenever he recounted events from his childhood that connected him to his brother. He was her protector, and it was clear she genuinely cared for him. In many ways, Arryk could be seen as the father figure Rhaenys never had—a father who dreaded the thought of losing his little girl to a lord from the other side of the realm. But that was a decision over which Arryk had no say, no matter how much it pained him.

It didn't take long for the carriage to pass through the gates of the Red Keep, where everyone immediately recognized the royal princess. Once the horses halted and the door swung open, Rhaenys graciously accepted the hand of one of the knights assisting her as she disembarked and began making her way toward Rhaenyra's chambers.

As she walked, she could feel the eyes of everyone upon her—curious, probing, and unwelcome. What they were curious about, she couldn't quite tell, but the sensation unsettled her. All those courtiers, their gazes sharp and calculating, seemed ready to pounce, like vultures waiting for her to falter, eager to pick apart her failures and disgrace her family. Rhaenys despised those sordid stares, but there was no avoiding them. After all, she had become a subject of much interest both in court and in the city. A princess unafraid to walk among the common folk, though always accompanied by her sworn protector, who made sure everything reached Jeyne Waters' orphanage as promised. She was also the only one who maintained more than just a cordial relationship with the princess heir and was increasingly regarded as the most beautiful princess ever to walk those cold halls. A beauty not just in appearance, though that was remarkable enough, but in spirit as well.

Many looked at her with curiosity, some with hatred, and others with envy. All were waiting for the day she would drag the crown's name through the mud. After all, what royal didn't have at least one glaring flaw?

Well, her flaw would be love.

Yet, amidst the whispers, Rhaenys overheard something that made her blood run colder than the ice beyond the Wall. Alicent's provocation, her mother's foolish request—rumors spread like wildfire through the halls that Princess Rhaenyra had been seen wandering the corridors, suffering, with Ser Laenor, right after giving birth because Rhaenys's own dear mother had insisted on seeing the newborn immediately after its arrival. Rhaenys knew this was nothing but a ploy by the queen, a scheme to scrutinize the child for any lack of Valyrian traits.