1 Second of his name
It had started like any other day; I had woken up late and got prepared and ready for work.
I left my house behind and I started to walk towards the bus station.
It was a misty morning and the air was thick with fog. The sun had yet to rise and the only light came from the street lamps lining the footpath and cars passing by.
The walk was boring and monotonous, as always, but the fear of becoming homeless kept me going.
I wrapped more in my thick coat and I sped up my walk.
'Fuck, I need to move, or else I will lose the bus' I thought to myself.
The mist obscured my vision, making it difficult to see more than a few feet ahead.
The mist slowly began to clear, revealing the beauty of the morning. Birds sang in the trees and the grass sparkled with dew. I took in the sights and sounds, enjoying the peace of the morning.
Suddenly, without warning, the peace was shattered by the sound of a bus approaching.
The sound of the horn cut through the misty morning air, trying to alert me to the danger.
It was too late...
The bus hit me, killing me instantly.
As the light faded from my eyes, I felt my body go limp. I had always known that this moment would come, but I had never imagined it would feel like this. There was a sense of weightlessness, of drifting, of being carried away by something beyond my control.
...
I reopened my eyes.
I found myself standing again in the middle of a dense mist. I couldn't see more than a few feet in front of me and the only sound was the soft whispering of the fog. As I walked, I felt a sense of unease, as if I was being watched.
"W-what is this place?" I asked out loud hoping for an answer.
Suddenly, strange figures began to materialize out of the mist.
I counted seven of them, and they all looked different - they seemed sad, angry, or distant. I saw a bearded man with a stern and strong face, then an older woman with a loving and protective face, a man with a sword with an angry face, a man with a hammer, a beautiful and innocent-looking young woman, an old wizened woman then I saw a hooded figure, holding a scythe.
When my gaze met the hooded figure I suddenly felt a sense of dread and tried to run, but I was paralyzed by fear.
The hooded figure closed in, then it stopped before me and said with his frost breath.
"....Not today...."
I felt a sudden jolt as if my body had been electrified. I gasped for air, My eyes flying open. I was surrounded by darkness, but I could see a faint light in the form of a womanly figure.
I tried to move, but my limbs felt heavy and unresponsive.
"A-AEGON?!" said a womanly voice.
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112 AC, Red Keep
Alicent Hightower
Her son, Aegon, had been in a severe accident and was in a coma.
He was playing with Helaena in the godswood when he suddenly collapsed. He was rushed to the maester but Mellos didn't know what had caused it or if he would ever wake up.
Helaena was traumatized, she blamed herself for what happened to her 5-year-old big brother and she visited her brother daily to make sure he was fine.
I spent every waking moment at my son's bedside, holding his hand and talking to him, even though he couldn't hear me. I would tell him about my day, about the things he loved, and about how much I missed him.
Despite the overwhelming sadness and uncertainty, I refused to give up hope. I knew that Aegon was a fighter and that he would come back to her.
I would spend hours staring at him, his chest moving up and down, and with tears streaming down my face.
As the hours turned into days, my hope never wavered.
Finally, after 3 days, Aegon's eyes fluttered open. He looked up at me.
'My son is back!'
"A-AEGON?!" I said immediately.
I hugged him tightly, tears of joy streaming down my face. I knew that our journey was far from over.
I noticed that my son looked at me astonished with his purple eyes and then he finally opened his lips.
"...W-who a-are you...?".
My heart sank as I realized that Aegon didn't remember me. I tried to hold back my tears and smiled through them "I am your mother Alicent".
Aegon looked around the room, confusion etched on his face. "A-Aegon? what are you talking about?" he said.
"I remember walking to the bus to go to work then-" suddenly Aegon touched his head as if it were about to explode.
I felt my heart breaking, but I tried to be strong for him. "It's okay," I said while brushing the hair from his forehead. "We'll work on it together, you'll remember everything eventually".
"Y-yes mother"
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112 AC, Red Keep
Aegon Targaryen
"How are you feeling, Aegon?" Maester Mellos asked as he checked my vital signs.
"I'm a little confused," I said.
"He didn't remember me Maester, his own mother!" said Alicent alarmingly.
"Please don't worry mother, now I'm fine. I remember...everything..." I replied.
Maester Messos nodded, "That's normal in cases like this. It's called retrograde amnesia, it's a type of memory loss that occurs after an injury or illness."
Messos continued his examination, checking my reflexes, motor skills, and cognitive abilities. He also asked me questions to see if I remember all correctly.
"Everything looks good," Mellos said, "but I'll need to continue monitoring you to ensure that there's no lasting damage."
Alicent seemed relieved and grateful "Thank you Maester, you are dismissed"
"Yes, my queen" Messos replied bowing his head and moving his feet toward the door, and leaving.
Mother moved towards me and stood beside the bed, she started caressing my hair "I love you more than words can express, my dear son. I-I was so afraid that something had happened to you. But now I'm happy you are awake, you can play again with your sister. She felt responsible for your injury and to amend she came here every day to check on you"
"Look there, she put on the bedside table her favorite bugs and flowers," she said smiling.
I smiled weakly, still a bit confused and unsure but I knew that I could trust this woman.
"That's lovely mother, I will make sure to visit Helaena but now I'm fairly tired so I would like to repose," I said
She nodded knowingly "Yes of course son" and then she left.
...
The realization of where I was came only a moment after my head felt as if it was about to explode.
I am having difficulty understanding the memories from my past, as they are all jumbled together in my mind. It is hard, to separate my memories as an 18-year-old guy from Aegon's memories.
This confusion is causing me a terrible headache and making it difficult to remember certain things. I know that I am Aegon Targaryen and ...myself, but it is strange for me to be in a 5-year-old body.
I walked toward the mirror and I began to admire my new features.
I was mesmerized by the image staring back at me. I had silver-gold hair and piercing purple eyes.
I couldn't help but stare at myself in the mirror, taking in every detail of his face and body.
I had always been passionate about Martin's World watching GOT and HOTD shows and reading the books, but I would never imagine myself being reborn as one of the members of the dynasty of the Targaryen kings and queens who had once ruled the Seven Kingdoms.
And now I couldn't help but wonder about all the infinite possibilities of this life.
'I'm not just looking at a child in the mirror, but at the potential for something greater'.
Still, I feel... Lonely, my friends and my family are gone, and I am afraid that I will forget them or worse lose myself.
I decided to start writing down my memories and the stories I knew,
I wrote in my native language so no one would be able to understand it. I checked my memories and I know that young Aegon has a personal diary so when I obtained it and a pen with ink, I began by writing down my name and the names of my previous family. After documenting my past, I began to record the story of the House of the Dragon Universe books and shows, as much as I could remember. I wrote about the main plot and the characters. I still didn't know in which verse I was reborn, show? book? or some twisted alternate universe. Of course, I wrote in my native language so no one would be able to understand it.
I found that the list of trustworthy characters was quite short, aside from my Hightower family, there were not many people I could trust. And to add on top of it this is the worst possible period for a Targaryen, the dance of dragons would kill every one of my family except a few ones.
'Of course' I thought bitterly 'Helaena, Alicent,... everyone is destined to die and the realm would be left to bleed.
I certainly will not let Rhaenyra and her spawn destroy my family and the realm, I always had been on the green side of the conflict. I hated the fact that they gave Aemond and Aegon the Disney villain makeover and I hated how one-sided the show is. They turned Rhaenyra into this 'feminist icon' and people cheer for her and blame Alicent even though she doesn't even come close to Rhaenyras's evil.
The things Rhaenyra did would have catastrophic side effects when the Dance finally ends, she has terrible judgment, a level of entitlement, and a general lack of ability to play the game.
The dance of the dragons had a significant impact on the smallfolk and lords, many of them lost their lives, lands, and wealth in the war, the economy was in ruins, and social instability was widespread. And Rhaenyra's spawn would end the legacy of the Targaryens for the foolishness of Aerys, Aegon IV, Baelor, and the mad queen.
But, the thing that pisses me off more is their righteousness, that attitude 'we're better than everybody' attitude is shown to consistently come back to bite them in the ass. Aerys II also thought he was above his vassals, and he got his family deposed for his troubles.
There's nothing categorically better about the Targaryens than other people; the only thing separating them is dragons. And besides, Valyria was a horrific empire built on the backs of slaves and blood magic sacrifice. They conquered the burned people simply because they wanted to, it's not a place you should want to emulate. The Targaryens moving away from that legacy is a good thing and the greens represent this movement toward a more Westerosi Targaryens.
Rhaenyra is older than me, yes. But as a woman, her claim is weaker, according to the Great Council - which is basically a proto-parliament of Westeros. And Viserys actually broke the same rules that gave him the crown, by naming Rhaenyra as his heir and reinforcing the primitive doctrine of absolutism.
And of course, Stannis the Mannis said that Rhaenyra is a usurper so I'm 100% justified to take what's rightfully mine.
One thing is sure, I will not let that pedophile of a Daemon come even an inch close to the Iron Throne.
...
As time passed, I realized it became night and I put myself to bed. And I looked to the ceiling, exhausted by all the things that have happened and will happen.
'The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands'.
I allowed myself a last smirk before closing my eyes, I was scared for what was to come but still excited for the future.
"This is where the fun begins"
AN: I changed a bit the timeline, making Aegon a little bigger when things happen :)
