wicked games | aemond targaryen

𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢-𝚝𝚠𝚘

RHAENRYA STIRRED AWAKE at the soft light that slipped through her window. She released a sigh as she rolled onto her side, unsurprised to find the other side of the bed empty when she reached out to feel the coldness of the sheets that signaled her husband had been gone for a while.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she sat in her bed, a long yawn escaping her lips at the restless sleep she got last night. The quiet of the morning was unusual. By the early hours of the morning, Joffrey would have already slipped into her room to seek comfort before the day fully began. Yet, Rhaenrya heard no sound of small feet padding down the hall, no knock on her door, no familiar voice calling out to her.

She swung her legs over the edge of the bed, her bare feet meeting the cold stone floor as she reached for her robes. The cold air made her shiver as she wrapped it tightly around her body, stepping out into the corridors as she made her way to her children's rooms.

Rhaenrya found the room empty, the bed neatly made as though untouched the night before. Her heart dropped in concern, wondering if something had happened during the night while she slept. She moved quickly through the corridor, stopping at Jacaerys' room in hopes the boys had simply spent the night there.

His room was just as empty, though his bed was slightly rumpled. The room was cold, her eyes finding the dead fire that kept them warm during the night. Her thoughts couldn't help but whirl with dozens of possibilities, each worse than the last. Perhaps the greens had finally decided to make their move against her.

Panic gnawed at her insides, but she forced herself to breathe slowly. There was still one room she had yet to check, yet the thought that if her boys weren't there sent fear down her spine. Ser Donnel stood faithfully outside the door, stepping aside with a respectful bow as she hesitated before the door. She waited a moment before pushing open the door.

The room was quiet, the morning light barely seeping through the curtains as the fire flickered in the corner. She approached the bed slowly, stopping at the edge as she released a relieved sigh.

There, in the middle of the bed, were all three of her eldest children curled up around Valaena. She released a soft chuckle of disbelief at the thought that something had happened to her children while Valaena was there. Her gaze softened as she watched them, relieved that they seemed to have been able to find rest despite the troubling times.

Rhaenrya walked around to the side of the bed, careful to keep quiet as she kneeled down by their side. She reached up, brushing a stray lock of hair from Lucerys' face before planting a kiss on his forehead. He seemed to stir at the contact, eyes blinking open sleepily as he found his mother at his bedside.

"Good morning, sweetling," Rhaenrya smiled, watching as Lucerys groaned while trying to hide his head beneath the covers of the bed.

"I'm not getting up," he mumbled into the sheets as a long yawn escaped his lips.

Rhaenrya couldn't help but laugh softly at his protest as she reached up to pull back the sheet from his head.

"I'm afraid you can't stay in bed all morning," Rhaenyra told him softly as Lucerys released a moan, his face scrunching in a mix of reluctance and sleepiness as he rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"Why not?" Lucerys muttered as his eyes flittered to the ground.

Rhaenrya released a sigh, reaching up to cup his face in her hands as she forced him to look up at her.

"Everything is going to be okay," Rhaenrya smiled, hoping to convince him when she herself was unsure. "Now, let's go get ready or we'll be late."

Joffrey groaned as Rhaenrya reached over to lift him from the bed, soft grumbles coming from his lips as his eyes fluttered open.