A Dragon is not a Slave

It was all over.
Jon walked away from the group almost as soon as Tyrion left to salvage the situation. He'd seen it going so differently, like a huge incredible moment in time. One they'd make songs over. The great truce of Kingdoms... He was such a fool. Always rushing to be the hero, the truth-teller, a man of his word. All their hard-won work was very nearly canceled out by him. His own cause, undone by stubborn loyalty. But then, it was far, far more than loyalty that made him tell Cersei he now followed Daenerys. The fragile skull of a pint-sized dragon caught his eye and he stooped to pick it up. It was Daenerys herself...
Footfalls broke him out of his thoughts, small footfalls that bit into the gravel and rocks with power. He knew it was the queen, even before he looked up, and she slowed just a small distance from him. Jon forced himself to speak. "No one is less happy about this than I."
"I know." she said around a sigh, and something intuitive in him believed her. "I respect what you said..." she offered. "Wish you hadn't of said it, but I respect it."
Jon fidgeted. At this point she should have been doing much more than just respecting the motivations behind a bad move. He'd planned to have her admiration, perhaps more, by now. Instead he felt embarrassed and defeated and everything he wished he was not. But when she reached for the tiny jawbone in his hands he passed it to her at once, and eagerly allowed himself the distraction of her face.
"This place," her eyes scattered around the ruins, "was the beginning of the end, for my family." She spoke next in a tongue that he did not know, but it did something strange to him. And immediately. Almost as an afterthought she explained, "A dragon is not a slave."
She looked at him before walking away, and Jon was still running her voice through his head in those words which he guessed were high Valyrian. His body was responding far quicker to it than his mind. Woe to the man who tried to make her a slave, he thought to himself, even if I did once imagine making a slave of her in my bed. He watched her. More than once...
"They were terrifying, extraordinary." she moved and he followed. "They filled people with wonder, and awe, and we locked them in here." She walked herself into a small doorway in the crumbling stone walls but Jon chose to pause, and study her. "They wasted away," she looked down at the jaw bone, "they grew small. And we grew small as well. We weren't extraordinary anymore, we were just like everyone else." She lifted the skull up, to give back to him, with that same sadness that she carried.
Jon felt a pang of feeling for her, not for the first time. He understood why she was sorrowful now he knew her better, believing she was the last of her kind, and wandering alone. A terrible thing, Maester Aemon had said. A Targeryen alone. But he knew how it felt to feel outside of it all, as well. He took the skull back, and made a point of touching her fingers when he did so.
"You're not like everyone else." he said to her. Despite the council pacing nearby, he stepped down into the alcove with her, closer than he normally dared to go. "And your family hasn't seen it's end." he explored her whole form just a bit."You're still here." If anyone in this world was extraordinary it was her.
Dany looked tired when she said. "I can't have children."
"Who told you that," Jon frowned.
"The witch who murdered my husband," she almost whispered.
He felt a flare of hideous anger towards that particular foe in her life. Her damage was far-reaching and devastating, robbing a young girl of a future before she even knew what it was. Jon stared at her face. "Has it occurred to you that she might not have been a reliable source of information?"
The queen smiled gently, and Jon felt the obviousness of his remarks as soon as they'd been said. He had basically just spoken of his desire to prove the witch wrong, but Dany was gracious enough to move on. "You were right from the beginning," she told him, "If I'd trusted you, everything would be different."
Jon nodded, slowly. "What now?"
He wished he hadn't asked it, because she looked floored by the question. She answered with her own worries about leaving the country exposed, but Jon had been speaking more about himself, about how trusting him would change things. Mostly, he wondered if she felt the change between them, the one that had happened in the ships cabin days before. Even though everything was going to shit around them, Jon would take the next chance to remind her.
"It appears Tyrion's assessment was correct," he answered and when she looked puzzled, he explained, "We're fucked."
He knew Dany wasn't the type of highborn lady that would be offended by a curse, but her small sweet laugh was a surprise that hit him in waves. Jon had to fight the strongest urge he had yet, to push her back against the wall, kiss her at last, and touch her in places he'd only been able to stare at. Then she would understand how much she could trust him. But there were other things going on, and other people in view, so when he returned her smile, he tried to keep the longing out of his eyes.
The sound of someone approaching stopped him, and when he saw that Tyrion had returned, they moved together, back to the council meeting pavilion. They'd just come to a stop on the platform when they saw that Cersei and all her entourage were returning as well. Jon moved closer to Daenerys, his hand easing over Longclaw slowly. Beside Cersei was her brother, and her curious looking Maester. No one looked as though they were poised to attack but if something were to happen here and now, with the treacherous woman and her inhuman looking guard, Jon would defend his own little queen until his last breath.
"My armies will not stand down, I will not call them back to the capital." Cersei said. Jon was compelled to move a bit in front of Dany. And then Cersei said, "I will march them north to fight alongside you in the Great War."
It hit Jon hard, to hear her say the words. He turned in surprise to Tyrion who offered a small smile.
"A darkness is coming for us all," Cersei went on, "We must face it together. And when the Great War is over, perhaps you'll remember I chose to help, with no promises or assurances from any of you." This time it was Dany that glanced at Tyrion, "I expect not." Cersei added scathingly, then her voice lifted with authority, "Call our banners. All of them."
She looked Daenerys up and down then, one queen to another, before she stomped away with her men and company in tow. Whatever she'd meant by promises and assurances was fast fading from Jon's thoughts, as he realized this meant they would all mobilize. Ser Davos and he would need to pack every bit of Dragonglass they managed to chip out, and then, finally he'd be going home to Winterfell again. And he wouldn't be alone.
The tension had lifted considerably, and the whole company started to speak at once. The Queen perhaps looked more reserved, and watched Tyrion closely. Jon was distracted by the things he had to arrange still on Dragonstone but he made damn sure he stayed beside her when they started the walk out of the Dragonpit, so that there was no chance she could somehow board a dragon and fly off again.
"My queen," Jon fell into step with her.
"Your Grace." she said for the first time, and Jon tried to hide his smile. "You look very pleased with the outcome."
"I am."
Dany walked on for a few seconds in silence. "You think Cersei Lanister will keep her word."
Jon glanced at her sharply, "Her brother looked like he would."
"Her brother does not sit on the throne."
Jon nodded. "Aye, it's true. But she loves him, and not the way she should."
"I hear rumors she was entertaining a marriage proposal from Euron Greyjoy." Dany said, and Jon felt instant rage at the name. "Would her bond with her brother be so strong were that to happen, I wonder?"
Jon looked forward grimly. "Would you let me find that man and end his life?"
She laughed just a little, and nudged her arm into his. Jon felt awash with feeling at the familiar action and more, at how they now walked together, with everyone else following behind them. "Everyone wants to protect me all the time," Dany was saying, "If you could feel Drogon's impulses as I do, you'd understand how safe I really am."
"Well. I will try to be there, in the times when Drogon is not." Jon said. "I would help you anyway I could, but I'm best with a sword in hand."
"I know." Dany glanced at him then. "I saw."
Jon felt something like a wallop in his stomach, remembering the mad dash to escape north of the wall. He had decided to wait and defend, so that the others had a chance to climb onto the dragon safely. With one of her dragons going down, Jon had only thought of the bad he'd done by going there. But now that the walker had proved Jon's cause to be true, he allowed himself some grudging redemption. And Daenerys watching him kill white walkers, impressed with what she saw, made him rethink the mission itself.
They walked on until the path to them close to the city walls, where more and more observers were around, so very soon they found themselves somewhat the subject of whispering and watching. Behind them, Ser Davos argued with Varys about who knew the streets of Kings Landing more, and it was growing rather heated. Jon asked Daenerys if it was hard to pass the Capital, and not go inside.
She frowned slightly. "I never knew a city in Westeros would allow so many to go hungry. I see I was naive to think it was so very different from Essos. But, this is the land of my brother, and my ancestors before me and, we are not the same as those who bore us."
"No. We are not," Jon told her meaningfully. He never would forget when he'd heard his own words hit him in the face that day in the throne room, when he first saw her.
"My people are suffering. We can change it, Jon." she breathed, "Can't we?"
He considered what she said, as his eyes trailed over to the faces of the people lined in ditches, looking as though they hadn't eaten in days. Never before had he thought of them, and now, walking like a King beside her, he felt completely ashamed that he hadn't. According to Dany's followers, like the Dothraki, she was not a queen, she was something more, like a part-god. Without giving in to the superstition Jon decided, from the talk of her moves up the Salvers Bay, she was more than a ruler and conqueror. She was a revolutionary.
"You could." he answered at last. And I will be there to help you.
"My Queen," Ser Jorah called, and came up by her side, "I have a suggestion for you about-"
"Jon." Theon's voice by his side only slightly distracted Jon. "Might I have a word?" But in truth, even though Theon spoke, Jon was only half listening to him, and otherwise trying to catch what Jorah Mormont was saying to Daenerys.
"Later Theon, alright?" he stopped the man. There was still some rage inside Jon where Theon Greyjoy was concerned, even if he was only a shadow of the pompous, over confident man he once was. Jon was eager to intrude on the queens conversation, except once Ser Jorah was speaking to her, Missandei fell into step with her as well. Then Brienne of Tarth was at his own side.
"Your Grace, I go at once to Winterfell," the lady told him. Jon suddenly remembered Arya.
"You've seen my younger sister?" he asked.
Lady Brienne smiled. "Yes, Your Grace."
"And? Well, how is she looking? Has she only just survived? Or-"
"She wields blades as though she were born doing so."
Jon broke into a smile. "Aye."
"One of them, made of deadly Valyrian steel," Brienne's strides were nearly two of Jon's. "The other, she calls Needle." He nearly melted with the thought. Arya still keeping the little blade he'd had crafted for her made him long to see her. "You are welcome to journey with me and Pod, if you wish to return soon." she added, and something about the edge in her voice told Jon she was urging it.
"Is Lady Sansa doing well in her position?" he asked of her.
Brienne smiled again, "Like she was born doing so."
The thought of continuing on with Lady Brienne to Winterfell that very afternoon would have greatly appealed to the Jon who had just gotten to Dragonstone months ago, but his eyes trailed back to the queen. The last week without seeing her face at least once a day, had been so unbearable he couldn't stand the thought of taking himself from her. He was going home, it just had to be done this way. "Get back to them Lady Brienne, and tell them I bring the one thing that can stop the Long Night."
She bowed once, and fell back into the company. Ser Davos was quick to fill her place, saying, "These Dothraki are like celebrities in the city."
Jon noted how the people watched them, roughened warriors with their long curved blades. Had he been a common boy in the crowd, he too would have been curious at the sight of them. But more were taken with the queen, and he watched several groups of them follow her, calling out with a sort of desperation. Some whispered about him even, and many women smiled at him. Overhead the dragons flew, and cries of wonder broke out through the crowd periodically. He was beginning to realize that this is what it meant to travel in the queens entourage.
Quite a distance had spanned between them now along the way, but Jon kept his eye on her, in case Cersei were as treacherous as Dany seemed to think. Tyrion was speaking with her lowly, and at one point she looked back at Jon, with confusion. He nodded once at her. I'm here. And he watched as Ser Jorah kissed her hand and left her. Watched and then scowled.
"That certainly bothers ye." Ser Davos remarked.
"Not for long," Jon replied.
Davos turned his way, his hands joined behind his back. "Oh there's to be another change, is there. Do ye mind telling me about it this time?"
"No change yet," Jon said, nearly to himself, "But I mean to have more from her than a chance to kiss her hands."
"And does she know this?"
He recalled keeping her hand trapped for seconds longer than her should have while he stared, craving her so strongly, so obviously. "I would bet she does." he answered.
"Then I would caution ye," Davos surprised him. "To keep it a secret between the two of ye. The north has a short memory and the last time they had a king... well."
"He was distracted by matters of the heart." Jon considered Robb for a moment, never having seen it so directly from his brother's side before. "But Ser Davos, there stands a queen, and here stands a king." Davos conceded and with a very understanding smile.
At this point Daenerys and her adviser had waited for Jon and Ser Davos to catch up with them, and when they were close enough to speak, Dany said, "I've half a mind to have you smuggle me into the city, Ser Davos, as you've done so often with other cargo."
"My prices raise, Your Grace," the Onion Knight smiled at her, "with the value of the cargo. Not even the Lannisters would want the sort a debt it would take to get you inside the most dangerous place in the world for ye."
Jon felt himself smile, and he looked down at the road so avoid being seen. What a smooth romancer Ser Davos had probably been, in his day. Daenerys resumed walking, and now they were clear of the city walls, some of their followers trailed away. She turned to Jon abruptly, and said. "The pair of you lied to me. I've not forgotten."
Jon threw a glance at Davos. "Lied?"
"Your chest," she went on, and Jon suddenly felt panicked. "I saw it. And every scar... every scar Jon, is one that should have killed you."
Jon struggled with an answer. But as the road rounded down towards the bay, alongside theirs, another Targaryen ship was docked. A reaction came from both Dany and Missandei, and suddenly what was said, was once again forgotten.
"Go to him," Jon heard Dany say to the little scribe, both smiling broadly. Then she turned to him, "Forgive me, I see the captain of the Unsullied has arrived and I mean to speak to him." Daenerys turned to go, and then turned back. "I'd like you to tell me the truth one day."
Jon loathed to see her leave, knowing that they might not have the chance to be alone again for the rest of the day. But he wasn't sure what to tell her about his scars. It was far too large a subject to discuss along the busy road through Kings Landing.
Ser Davos again walked up beside him and mentioned. "She's rather sharper than I might have been able to handle in my day. Come te think of it. Might be hard to chase a Dragon, even for a wolf."
"Maybe I am a dragon myself." Jon joked, "My mother might have been a Targeryen for all I know"
Davos chuckled. "Maybe I am too."
But by the time they'd reached the shore, Daenerys had left on Drogon to fly to the island alone. Jon was furious, but Ser Jorah defended himself as keeping her safe. The journey back was rife with tension, and Jon was the main contributor, even if the Knight had gifted him with Longclaw. Everyone seemed to want to keep them apart now, where before they were constantly forced together. Tyrion had great speeches of warning about being too publicly attached to each other, Jorah speculated that she might be the target of some of Jon's enemies, and this new one, Greyworm they were calling him, stared at Jon as though he knew everything there was to know about Jon. Unsettling of course, because he knew nothing about the Unsullied's commander. Varys was the only one, it seemed, that wasn't at all upset with his declaring to serve Daenerys, and what that meant was a mystery.
On returning to Dragonstone, Jon craved the chance to wander around and think, and be away from everyone's opinions on what he should do. Splitting from the company, he took a longer way back, to think over how he would conduct himself. He'd declared for her, but it wasn't like he'd declared love for her. Not to all of them anyways, and yet there was something in the way Cersei Lannister looked at the two of them that made him nervous. And then there was the Greyjoy lunatic, who could take Daenerys just to see what the world would do. Perhaps hiding how he felt was the right idea.
But there was a test for every decision and his would come in mere moments. After a time, he found himself in a private stable yard that seemed abandoned at first, until he glimpsed the queen herself, alone and tending to a white mare. A gray girl on a dying horse, suddenly the Red Woman's words came back to him. Is this the girl she meant? Jon felt all his breath drop out of him at the sight, and he nearly left her that way, so pretty were the two together.
Daenerys glanced up at him, as he approached. "You were not with the return party." she said, "I almost thought you took the Kings Road home."
Jon smiled. He could feel her abrasion, and understood. She didn't want him to leave again. That was alright. He never would. "You make good time when you take to the skies," he remarked. "Makes me almost jealous."
"It wasn't my decision this time," Dany said, oats and such on her gloved hand, "Ser Jorah is always very concerned with my safety."
Jon nodded, and said nothing, feeling intense annoyance with Ser Jorah. Safety of person had nothing to do with making her fly everywhere, it had to do with proximity to himself.
"I have a question for you." she said.
"Alright."
"If the Great War was not upon us, if we were not faced with the Night King and his armies...Would you still have declared for-"
"Yes." Jon said, at once.
Daenerys was all eyes, wide and vibrant. "Even though Cersei has the capital? And the North probably hates me?"
"Cersei won't have the capital long." Jon told her, confidently. If they eliminated the Northern threat, Jon felt he could cut through the Lannisters like butter. Strangely, he'd never been so motivated to win the crown for Dany, now that the attention was where it needed to be. "And I will be in the North with you."
Dany softened just a bit. She looked like she might have wanted to ask him something else, but instead she turned away, and took to brushing the silver horse again.
"She's lovely." he commented.
"Thank you. She's been through a lot with me," the queen was lost in revere. "but our journey is not over yet."
Jon cringed slightly, "Our Northern roads are rough. Perhaps a sturdier beast would-"
"She was a gift." Daenerys turned to him, her eyes particularly violet in this lighting and ever so slightly angry. "I would not part with her for the world."
Jon would have answered, but she stared with such a mixture of defiance and secrecy that he was unwilling to fight. He would not be able to fight this girl much longer, on any subject. Maybe it came with noticing the small things about her face, like the stubborn setting of her jaw when she disagreed with something, the perpetual worry in her beautiful eyes, or the way a smile could suddenly light her up entirely, and nearly knock him over. But now he wasn't sure he'd be able to hide how he felt about her, even if it was a good strategy politically.
"You're staring, Jon Snow." she told him, after a long moment had passed.
Jon abruptly looked away from her, wondering at himself for being so daft. "Aye," he nearly laughed. "it's hard not too."
Dany's head dipped slightly, and her eyes flicked all around the stable, before returning to his. It took that long for him to realize she was reacting shyly to him. Jon immediately wondered if he'd been too bold but then she smiled slowly. Of all things he wasn't expecting her to smile. Chastise him maybe... But then her cheeks pinked, and suddenly his feet were moving. He stepped in so quickly, in fact, that her mare shied away just a bit, but it wasn't until her was an inch from her, looked down into her great, big eyes, that Jon stopped. They were so close that they shared air between them but he forced himself to hold there.
He ached for more.When his brow touched hers, her lovely eyes closed, and Gods know had they stayed so even a second longer he would have kissed her. And if he did finally kiss her, it would only be a matter of time before he was tumbling her in the hay. That was not how he planned for the first encounter to go, not with this one. But how heavily she breathed now, and how her chest moved, and how her eyes yearned. Well, those things ought also to be considered, Jon thought just before he pressed closer, nose to nose. And just as he felt the surface peaks and valleys of her lips against his own, he heard a distant call.
This time he closed his eyes, and allowed himself just a breath more, before stepping back. Missandei had been the one calling, and discovered them there, feet apart. Whether she knew what had gone on only a second before, was unclear, but Daenerys was flushed and breathless, and it made Jon mad with want for her. His whole body was mad with want for her. He could only wonder if her own body was reacting the same.
"The small council has assembled," Missandei told them, "We only await the King and Queen."
Daenerys met his eyes, and half smiled. "We shouldn't keep them waiting any longer I suppose."
Jon tilted his head slightly, "Waiting is not the worst of things."
"Hmm." Dany nodded and replied, "Time to contemplate things."
Missandei was confused, and tried not to be forceful while she ushered them out of the little stable, but Jon understood Dany's words were for him. What have I to contemplate, little queen. Jon thought, even if I have to wait forever, at least I already know. Every step she took back up to the castle doors, Jon stared at her and felt the passion build instead of dissipate. Every glance back at him, her white curls swirling around her waist, he felt a new wave of it. The seven take me...he followed her like it was what he was born to do, I'm falling in love...
The small council was arguing when they arrived and Jon stood by Ser Davos, thinking to be an observer mostly. But instead, they turned to him. Not just for the military advice, but for all manner of things. What sort of weapons are we to tell the Southern armies to use? Where was the Night King likely to strike first? Who out there was most in danger of attack Who needed to be brought into the fold? And most pressing, how were they to mobilize the vast armies to get to Winterfell
"Well," Jon began, making use of the table-map, "If we have the Dothraki ride hard on the Kings Road, they'll arrive at Winterfell within a fortnight."
"And the Unsullied?" Dany asked him. Greyworm had moved close to her by now.
"We can sail with them to White Harbor, meet the Dothraki here on the Kings Road," Jon pointed, "then ride together to Winterfell." There would be many times on that journey when they would be alone again.
Ser Jorah broke in then, "Perhaps you should fly to Winterfell, Your Grace." Jon felt utter panic flooding into him, but the man went on, "You have many enemies in the north. Thousands fell fighting your father... all it takes in one angry man with a crossbow. He'll see your silver hair on the Kings Road and think one well placed bolt will make him a hero. The man who killed the Conqueror."
Daenerys thought his words over, but Jon had no desire to let them take root. "It's your decision, Your Grace." He hoped Ser Jorah took that into account. "But... if we're going to be allies in the war, it's important for the Northerners to see us as allies. If we sail to White Harbor together, I think it sends a better message."
Dany thought for a few moments, then she turned to Ser Jorah again, and told him. "I've not come to conquer the north, I'm coming to save it." Jon felt his chest build with fierce pride for her, and when she faced him, he knew he was smiling. "We sail together." she said, and though it was unspoken he felt she was saying, We wait no longer.
Though Ser Jorah looked irked, and the rest of the council seemed to know exactly what was going on, Daenerys looked quite pleased with herself. A few moments passed before she returned from being lost in thought and said, "Well? Let us prepare to go North!"