Led By Fiery Passion (currently being revised)

Part 70

One month later: Aenyra

Three months had passed since she last saw Aemond. With each passing day, the tiny sparks of hope she had clung to during those long days and lonely nights gradually faded from her heart.

She stood on the shore, her feet sinking into the gritty sand with every gentle caress of the soft waves against her bare skin. The light breeze danced around her, making her white dress flutter as she lightly cradled the round swell of her belly. The little life inside her had been anything but still over the past few months; what had begun as delicate flutters—like butterflies taking flight—had transformed into playful kicks and strong jabs against her ribs.

A gentle smile graced her lips as her fingertips traced  shapes on her belly, just as Aemond always did. Each place she pressed elicited a response, tiny kicks that felt like sweet conversations in their own right.

"Oh, my love, if only your father could feel how much of a fighter you're already becoming." With her eyes clouded by emotion, she inhaled the fresh sea air, the only sounds enveloping her being the heavy waves crashing against the shore and the powerful wings of Cannibal soaring above her.

Then, she felt a soft, delicate hand grasp hers on the left side, giving it a gentle squeeze. She recognized that touch instantly, and in response, she squeezed back, a faint smile lingering on her lips as she allowed the peaceful morning to embrace her.

"Everything is going to work out... you'll see." Helaena's soft voice reassured her, giving her hand another gentle squeeze.

"You've seen it?" Aenyra asked, still keeping her head tilted back and eyes closed as the warm sun bathed her face.

"I'm not entirely certain," Helena admitted softly. "Sometimes it's hard to tell if what I see is from the present or the future. But... what I have seen is a glimpse of you, Aemond, and your son together, safe and happy."

Aenyra's eyes widened, shimmering with emotion as they met Helena's warm, reassuring gaze. For the first time in three long months, a genuine smile curved her lips, fragile yet radiant, and a single tear traced a quiet path down her cheek. Instinctively, she placed her other hand over her growing belly, feeling the soft flutter of life within. She imagined a beautiful little boy, his hair as white as snow, eyes deep and endless like sapphires, and she pictured him as the spitting image of Aemond. In that moment, hope bloomed gently in her chest, a warmth that eased the lingering ache of worry and fear.

Aemond..

You would be so ecstatic with the news.
A little dragon prince.

"I miss him," Aenyra murmured, her voice barely rising above a whisper.

"I know you do," Helena replied gently, her fingers tightening around Aenyra's in quiet solidarity.

"I'm not the same without him," Aenyra admitted, her gaze fixed on some distant point, as if searching for him through the shadows.

"I know you're not," Helena said softly, squeezing her hand with all the reassurance she could offer.

A heavy silence settled over them, dense and suffocating. Aenyra's mind spun with worry, the world around her fading until only the frantic thrum of her own heart remained.

"Why... why do we still have no word? Not a single sighting from Vhagar, nothing... why?" she whispered, voice trembling.

Helena shook her head slightly, a faint, uneasy smile brushing her lips. "I don't know," she admitted. "It's as if he's vanished... like the air itself swallowed him whole."