wicked games | aemond targaryen

𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢

ELISSA LANNISTER WAS conflicted.

Her mind was racing as she found herself hiding in the kitchen nibbling on the bread in her hands. She tried to ignore the sun setting, the light dimming through the small windows as she leaned against the table with lead feet.

Valaena Targaryen confused her.

The girl certainly wasn't what she had been expecting when she arrived at Dragonstone only a few mere months ago. Her father had sent her there on behalf of the greens to serve as a lady-in-waiting to the bastard. It wasn't like he cared what happened to her, she was his seventh child out of eight. He had plenty to spare and didn't seem to care if one ended up in the grasp of the blacks.

The orders given to Elissa were quite simple, gather as much information as possible and report back anything of interest to her father. She had thought it was a rather stupid idea, sending a Lannister to gather intelligence was the least discreet thing they could have done.

And yet, Elissa found herself surprised at how little Valaena tried to hide from her. Sure, the Targaryen had been rather wary when she first arrived as her lady-in-waiting, but most of the time it appeared she forgot that Elissa was sent as an informant for the greens. Sometimes, Elissa thought the bastard grew rather lonely when her family spent their days flying on dragon back as they left her alone within the castle walls. Or maybe the girl was so fond of avoiding any sense of responsibility for her lessons and would drag anyone along with her to escape it, even if it was a Lannister.

The only thing Valaena Targaryen seemed to take seriously was her swordsmanship, something that, although Elissa knew very little about, she was well aware of how deadly she was at it. Even then, she could tell through her father's letters that he didn't take her words seriously. The condescending tone when he spoke of the Targaryen bastard brought a bitter taste to her mouth as he dismissed her warnings of Valaena's skill with the blade.

Elissa was hardly a fool. She knew what her father expected of her, that she should be paying closer attention to everything that happened in Dragonstone so she could report every detail back to her father. But the longer she remained at Dragonstone, the more blurred the lines became. She found herself hesitating when she picked up her quill, struggling to decide what was worth writing.

What was worth betraying.

A long sigh escaped her lips as she realized she could no longer avoid what she had been dreading. The journey from the kitchens to her father's rooms felt far too short, even with her taking detours to extend the length of her walk there. The corridors were eerily quiet, leaving her with nothing but her thoughts.

She hesitated when she reached his door, her stomach twisting in knots as she raised her hand to alert her presence. There was a beat, followed by a commanding "come in" from within.

The air felt suffocating as she entered his room, unsurprised to find him hunched over a pile of papers as his quill worked to respond to the many correspondences. He barely looked up from the table as she approached him, nervously fiddling with her hands as she bit down on her bottom lip.

"Well?" he prompted, his voice sharp with impatience as his gaze remained fixed on the papers before him.

Elissa swallowed, trying to calm her nerves before she spoke.

"Nothing of real note," she said carefully. "We arrived yesterday during midday and she's mostly wandered the gardens."

She paused before adding, "She did stop us on the way into King's Landing for some starving children-"

"Yes, I'm well aware of her little interaction with the smallfolk," he cut her off with a sneer, as if disgusted to even be talking about it. Elissa had to bite her tongue, knowing anything she said to her father would only make it more difficult for her. "Nothing but a stunt for political gain. Anything else?"

Her mind flashed to the muddy skirts of Valaena's dresses, the obvious proof that she had been sneaking out late at night in King's Landing. Elissa wasn't sure what Valaena was up to late at night, much as she didn't when they were back in Dragonstone. Yet, she couldn't help but think back to Valaena's panicked face that morning when questioned about it.

"No," Elissa felt a heavy pressure in her chest as she spoke. "Nothing else as of late."

Despite the nerves that overtook her from the lie she just told, her father hardly seemed to notice as he shuffled through the papers. Like he hardly cared.

He glanced up after a few moments, as if surprised she was still standing there.

"You're dismissed," he told her, eyes dropping lazily back to his work as he made it clear he was done with her.

Elissa nodded her head, hurrying out of the room as she tried to calm her beating heart from the lie she told. She wasn't even sure why she lied.

"There you are," Valaena's voice traveled through the corridor as the door shut behind her, catching her off guard as she turned to find the Targaryen girl walking in her direction.

Elissa swallowed, still reeling from the conversation with her father as she her eyes wandered to Ser Donnel. He had the same disapproving look on his face that he always had when he looked at her. It was no secret that he was overly protective of the Targaryen bastard, and distrusted Elissa more than any of them.

"My lady," Elissa dipped her head in greeting, earning a scoff from Valaena at the formality of it all. "I was just-"

"Reporting to your father, yes I know," Valaena rolled her eyes as she looped her arm through Elissa and began guiding her down the corridor together.

"O-Of course not," Elissa stuttered, her face flushing red at being caught so easily.

"You're a terrible liar," Valaena teased, her tone light, though her violet eyes flickered with something sharper beneath the surface. "Besides, it's no secret why you were sent to me. I see no reason why we need to pretend otherwise."

Elissa released a sigh as they turned a corner, knowing it was useless to argue with the Targaryen.

"I'm not sure what you mean," she replied, although there was less conviction behind her words. Valaena was right, everyone knew why she was sent to Dragonstone. Only a fool would think otherwise.

"If you were better at it, I'd be more concerned," she mused with a small laugh. Then, after a beat, she added, "But lucky for you, you're a rather terrible spy."

Elissa wasn't sure luck was the word to describe it.

"Where are we going?" she changed the subject instead, feeling the burning glare of Ser Donnel behind them as they walked further down the corridor.

"You'll see," Valaena grinned as she suddenly pulled her down the corridor and up a flight of stairs. Elissa stumbled slightly, caught only by Valaena's firm grip around her arm as they continued up the random tower.

They emerged onto one of the high terraces of the Red Keep, the cool night air wrapping around them as Elissa shivered from the thin material protecting her from the cold. The breath caught in her throat at the sky that stretched above the vast ocean before them, stars scattered across the dark sky as they glittered against the water.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Valaena leaned in and whispered, something unreadable in her expression as Elissa turned to look at her.

She didn't respond at first, glancing back out at the beautiful night sky as she felt her nerves begin to settle.

"Yes," she admitted, watching the grin that spread across Valaena's face. "It's beautiful."

"See? I knew you had some sense in you," she teased as she dropped her grip from around her arm, leaning forward against the railing and releasing a rather content sigh.

Elissa dropped her gaze back down to Valaena, wondering why the Targaryen girl was so nice to her. If she had been crueler or more aloof by her presence, then perhaps it would have been easier to betray her. Yet she wasn't any of those things. There had always been something different about her than the rest, something that the rest of the Targaryens were missing, but Elissa couldn't quite put her finger on what that was.

It bothered her endlessly, and she was determined to find out what it was.