Guys this is so important !! And I have to hear your thoughts (please read <33) Initially, I planned these two stories (Rescue and Intoxicate) to be separate, but then I started thinking, what if I connected them? I’m still brainstorming, but here is the idea:
As you know Shaera Rivers (Valarr’s love interest) is kinda a healer who practices magic. Meanwhile, Daenys Martell (Aerion’s love interest) suffers from a chronic lung condition due to her premature birth. (If you’ve read the book description or my previous comments)
In my original draft, Daenys was supposed to travel from Dorne to the Red Keep in 208 AC at the suggestion of her aunt, Queen Myriah, to be treated by a Maester.
However I’m considering a twist. In my Valarr fic, Shaera stays at court as a lady-in-waiting to care for the Queen’s health (In 207 and 208 AC) So, instead of a Maester, Queen Myriah could invite her niece, Daenys, specifically to be treated by Shaera. This would be the catalyst for Daenys and Aerion’s story to begin.
There is one complication though. In the Valarr book, I was planning to have Aerion killed off to keep the succession line moving toward Egg (Aegon V). But what if instead of killing him, the King or Prince Maron Martell or Maekar makes a deal? Since Daenys is the Crown Princess of Dorne, they could demand that Aerion renounce his claim to the Iron Throne in exchange for permission to marry her— to avoid any messy succession conflicts between the two thrones.
Now, we know Aerion would normally never agree to this but since he’s roughly 10th in line anyway, do you think it’s plausible for him to accept? Does this sound like a solid plan, do you have any alternative ideas? Do you think this feels forced or convenient? Should I keep them as completely separate books or in the same shared universe?