119

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207 AC

Haunted Forest

Daenerys Targaryen

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"Aerion?!" I lift his head from the ground and his tired-looking eyes gaze up at me.

"Danny?" He weakly asks with a distant look.

My heart clenches and I cradle his face with both hands.

"Aerion..." I mutter trying my best to not look down at the growing blue 'wound' on his side.

"Danny... I want... you to know... something." He struggles with his breathing as he lifts up a shaky hand but fails and drops it to the ground.

"What is it?" I try my best not to grimace or cry as he smiles up at me with pain in his eyes.

Why did this happen?

I won't accept this.

"I'm perfectly fine." He snorts and sits up startling me in the process. "This shit does sting though..." He mutters and pats his side with a gloved hand.

I feel my jaw drop as the storming emotions in my chest get snuffed out.

Then the rage builds.

"You fu-" I lunge at his back and wrap my arms around him before sinking my teeth into his shoulder.

"Ah!" He shivers and jerks trying to escape but I quickly snake my legs around his stomach and squeeze him tightly. "No biting!" He hollers but I ignore him as he falls back against me pinning me to the ground.

This will teach him to act like he is dying.

Biting down harder he squeals and tries to roll over but I manage to keep up the way we are as he worms around in my grasp.

"Please!" He pleads. "It was supposed to make the moment dramatic!" I stop biting him and he goes slack in my grasp with a deep sigh.

"My heart nearly stopped!" I hiss and he nods rather casually making me want to bite him again.

First, he fights the Night King in single combat.

Then he pretends to be dying with an obvious wound on his side.

How could I not be panicked?

"I mean, I am pretty sure I am dying but I know I won't 'die'... per se." I freeze and tighten my grip a bit more.

"What do you mean?" I hesitantly ask, unsure if he is playing around or serious.

The wound does look bad... is he serious?

"I am become Death." He states rather simply with his hand going down to his side where the blue wound spreads slowly. "Instead of a big bonfire with a bunch of people burning... I am slowly freezing to death." He turns his head and kisses my arm. "But I will be fine... I think." I set my forehead against the back of his head and sigh.

"That doesn't sound like confidence." He hums and wiggles around in my grasp once more.

"I can't be sure about any of this, it's all new and uncertain but I am pretty sure I just got the approval of the Great Other to become his replacement as well." He shakes his head and his soft hair tickles my nose. "I am not sure why these Gods are so ready to die... but I think it has something to do with how this world has stagnated for so long." He hums in thought.

"The world has stagnated?" He grabs my arms and undoes the hold I have on him before snaking his left arm around to pull me in one swift movement onto his lap as he sits up on the ground.

"Think of how things have been for thousands of years... the cycle just keeps repeating with no... innovation." He slowly nods, this is something I have thought about many times.

Breaking the Wheel is something I have long imagined doing.

We are shifting the world and turning it down a new path.

"I think I get what you are saying, but I don't see how that would be something the 'Gods' would be overly concerned with." Shouldn't they want things to stay the same?

If it doesn't change then they know what to expect, they have seen history repeat itself over and over again.

"I honestly don't know so I can't be certain, but I think at least the lack of progress has either slowly killed them or they have just grown bored and want to pass on and let someone else take up the mantle." They want... death?

That seems... strange.

But then again, I have not lived even a hundred years yet and they have lived for thousands.

Is it possible to get tired of living?

"I see." I look into his eyes and find them a far deeper shade of purple.

Streaks of red and blue like spider webs criss and cross in his eyes, slowly merging and turning into a deep purple that looks exactly like an amethyst.

"We still have a lot of work ahead of us." He smiles and places his forehead against my own.

"We do." I nod slightly remembering the various islands we still need to hang our banner over, then there is the Far East. "I have faith." He snorts and shakes his head slightly.

"There was never any doubt in my heart." I raise my chin and press my lips against his and close my eyes as his other arm snakes around my back.

There is still so much ground we need to cover.

But for right now we have done enough, we can take a small little break.

Battles of Light and Dark fought over thousands of years.

A War of Life versus Death, ended with our actions here today.

Here in this scorched and frozen field, a Song of Ice and Fire was sung and now there will be a lasting peace between the two.

A peace we will spread to all lands, bringing unprecedented unity.

I can't help but smile at that thought.