king for a day ¹ ━━━━ jacaerys velaryon fanfic

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- ̥۪͙۪˚┊❛ CHAPTER FORTY ONE ❜┊˚ ̥۪͙۪◌
I WANT YOU
❛ you're coming back
and it's the end of the world ❜

౨ৎ disclaimer
mentions of death!

EUDORA.

When the High Septon realized Eudora bore a wedding ring and worshiped the Old Gods, he refused to allow Aemond to marry her.

The Faith of the Seven saved Eudora that day, but now here she kneeled with Alicent beside her— who was trying to introduce such a new religion. She now wore a dark green dress, her smile a mere memory to everyone. Instead she lit candles with meaningless prayers— the dowager queen suddenly seeing a replica of herself through the Stark.

"Tell me," Alicent said with a low voice. "How is my daughter?"

"Far enough from your reach," Eudora answered dryly, her eyes only focused on the flames.

"Eudora, I—"

"I believe it's time we head back," she interrupted, beginning to stand.

"When you were younger," the Dowager Queen began, turning to look at the girl. "I remember how you reacted every time you received a letter from her son– trying to hide those letters as if I didn't know."

Eudora stopped, her back turned to Alicent. "What of that?"

"I... I want to apologize," Alicent admitted. "The letters never came through to him."

"I don't understand."

"I took them– as some means to ensure you would come closer to Aemond instead of Jacaerys," the queen continued to explain, immediately getting up and taking Euodra's hands in hers. "I thought– I thought that, at the time, you'd finally see Aemond as a friend, a potential and much more suitable partner than Jacaerys–"

"You, you did what—"

"I'm sorry," Alicent interrupted, holding her hands tight. "Had I known Aemond would be... would be like this, I wouldn't have kept those letters from you. I just wanted you to stop seeking out what isn't in your reach and–"

Eudora snapped her hands from her grip, leaving Alicent standing as she escorted herself out of the Great Sept. She could only stay still as she watched the girl walk away, the thought of fault plaguing her mind now.

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚

The girl found herself standing in front of Aegon's bed, watching as he slurred words that were too hard to understand– something about his pain, not that it mattered much to Eudora. What mattered was her anger building up at every second he stirred, one more moment closer to recovery.

Granted, Aegon wasn't at fault for believing his mother's lies, Eudora blamed Alicent for letting her ambitions get the best of her. But Eudora loathed the Targaryen for acting as if he deserved it– as if everything had happened for him to sit on that throne. For Aemond to take her to this godforsaken place, for Alicent to think she could forgive her after everything. Eudora wasn't happy here, she never was.

But the funny thing is that the first time around, there was Jace and his impulsive and revolting decision to take Eudora with him to Dragonstone, there was Helaena who kept her company throughout her days in the Red Keep, there was always some small reminder that she'd be saved. And now she stands there, looming over the broken king's bed, wishing that her thoughts wouldn't betray her into doing awful things.

She's thought about it a lot, how it would just take a few seconds for her hands to strangle him till his last breath, maybe she could take whatever they were giving him to heal so he'd pass quicker. Or maybe she'd take a knife, becuase if in any case they'd find her and they'd take her head for doing so, at least she died trying.

At this point, it didn't matter if she lived or died, Eudora just wanted a way out of thereone way or another. If it is by her own hands or the Greens' doing, she swore she wouldn't be a captive of the Red Keep under Aemond's grasp ever again. 

"Eudora," Aemond's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Have you come to pay respects to your king?"

"I was just about to leave," she muttered, walking towards the door before Aemond stopped her, grabbing onto her arm with a tightening grip.

"I want to remind you that should you do anything," Aemond began, whispering into her ear. "And I mean anything to betray us again, I'm not sparing you any more grace."

With that he let her go, Eudora's breath stuck in her throat as she continued to walk away.

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚

She's come into terms with the fact that the only place she's allowed to go to that was outside of the castle's reach was the Great Sept. It was the only way for Eudora to find some kind of place away from the suffocating walls of the Red Keep. Eudora didn't pray, she just liked to kneel and watch the candles flicker from the flames. "Lady Stark," she heard a voice whisper, her head whipping around to see who it was.

"Elinda. What are you–"

"Green has never suited you, My Lady," she smiled, taking a look around to see if anyone was close by watching. "It dulls out your eyes." Elinda noticed how confused the girl looked– well, how a mix of emotions surged through her. Confused, delight, shock, everything could be seen through Eudora's silence. "The Prince Jacaerys was going to come for you, but his mother preferred him not to– she has ordered me to come to your side instead."

"How is my husband?" Eudora asked instantly, her voice a whisper and yet her eyes searching for an answer. "Was he hurt? Did he—"

"He is safe," Elinda reassured her, placing a hand on Eudora's. "The Gullet did a great deal to him– to his dragon, they were saved from the waves as some sailors found him unconcious. He... it took the Prince Jacaerys a week or so to awake from his injuries."

The girl's eyes widened. "How bad were his wounds?"

"The sailors recalled finding him surrounded by his own blood. But don't worry, he's been recovering." Elinda's words brought some sense of relief to Eudora. "Lady Stark, when I heard you were taken to the Red Keep I was frightened of what they might do to you. And because we've yet to figure what the Prince Regent has in store, you'll need help within the city while the war rages on."

Eudora nodded, her lips pursing together. "Elinda, what I'm about to ask you is going to be... daunting. You cannot report this back to Rhaenyra, promise me that."

"If it does no harm to you, then I promise."

"Good, now how does one acquire poison in this city?"

(( 🫗 ))