The Mouth of the Dragon, The Eyes of the Lamb

Chapter 28

The sight of Greyson standing guard outside of Lucela's chambers caused Aemond's temper to flare all over again. He had been pacing the halls of the Red Keep trying to figure out how to apologize to Lucela, and now he was going to have to deal with her jealous guard dog.

"The Princess has asked to be alone, my Prince," Greyson said as he watched Aemond stop next to him in front of Lucela's door. Aemond glared at him out of the corner of his eye before knocking three times on her door like they did when they were children.

"Luce?" Aemond called out as he knocked again. Silence met him on the other side. "Luce, please?" He pleaded as he knocked again. He was met with more silence. With a scowl, Aemond wrapped his hand around the doorknob and turned. His face formed a deeper scowl when the door didn't open.

"The Princess locked her door when she went into her chambers."

Aemond wanted to knock Greyson's teeth down his throat. It was obvious she had locked the damn door, and he was growing tired of this narration Greyson was doing. "I gathered that, Ser Greyson."

He kept his hands on her door frame as he stared at the wooden door. The carving of the Godswood tree mocked him. All of Viserys' children and grandchildren had custom carved chamber doors. It was his gift to them when they were old enough to have a chamber of their own, and it was the only good thing Aemond could ever remember him doing.

Greyson kept glancing over at Aemond as the minutes ticked by. He hadn't moved from his position, and he seemed like he was hoping the door would simply disintegrate. He took a deep breath before he spoke again.

"She'll forgive you eventually. That's just who the Princess is as a person. Princess Rhaenyra made sure of it while raising her; she's good."

Aemond closed his eye but, for once, didn't want to punch Greyson. He was right. "For once, we agree, Ser." Aemond didn't turn to look at him, but he could see the quick turn of Ser Greyson's head in his direction. "Lucela and my sister, Helaena, are the only good things in this family. And they are slowly being tainted by the likes of Aegon and me."

"My Prince?" Greyson had no clue where Aemond was going with this. He was almost positive he was saying this in hopes that Lucela was listening in on the other side of the door.

"Lucela doesn't deserve the likes of an angry, short tempered sinner like me."

"The Princess isn't religious." Greyson was beyond confused. He knew that Alicent and Aemond considered religion to be everything, but Lucela and her side of the family had never been that way. The entire time he had known her, he had never seen her pray or talk about the Gods once.

"No, she's not," Aemond replied with a smirk. "But she is divine. I haven't decided if she is Hell born or Heaven sent yet, but she is divine either way."

"You care for her?" Aemond jerked his head to look at Greyson. He was facing forward and wouldn't look at Aemond after he asked the question. "It's not uncommon, Prince Aemond. Anyone that spends any time with the Princess begins to care for her."

Aemond sighed and looked back at the door before sliding his hands down the door frame and backing away. He wasn't going to admit how he felt about Lucela to her guard- the guard that was loyal to Lucela and Rhaenyra. He turned on his heel and stalked to his own chambers.

Greyson waited until the door closed down the hall before he knocked on Lucela's door in three slow knocks. That was the signal they agreed on as they left the dining hall. Now, he simply had to wait for Lucela to let him in.

Aemond all but slammed his door. He had fucked things up royally, and it took Greyson to give him hope. In his rage, he didn't notice the figure sitting on his bed. Instead, he walked to the wall and hesitated. How angry would Lucela be if he used the tunnels to get to her? He knew that she was well aware that he could do it. Maybe this was some sort of test? With a roar, Aemond punched the door and turned before stopping in his tracks.