-Chapter 33-

-Chapter 33-

-POV Rhaenyra Targaryen-

"You're not a dragonrider, you can't understand what I'm trying to explain to you. Dragons can't be controlled by thought. We are bonded, but not to that extent," I said.

"Aemon can," said Jeyne, still as confident as ever.

I frowned, skeptical, and Jeyne continued her story:

"I know because I saw him do it when we were young. Back then, we were on good terms. His grandfather would often tell me stories about his grandson, the dragonrider of Urrax, the future greatest dragon in the known world, and maybe even in history.

"He told me that Aemon could give orders to his dragon without speaking, and under his grandfather's insistence, whom he didn't like to upset, he showed me once. It was a long time ago, but I could never forget that scene: the orders Aemon gave to his dragon by thought could range from retrieving a fruit from a tree to killing sheep, and in any way he wanted.

"At the time, I wasn't impressed, just horrified by the power it represented and eager to control Aemon, but…"

"But dragons are not slaves," I said a bit harshly before realizing that I had just defended my cousin without even meaning to.

'I can understand why Aemon hates her,' I thought, before brushing away all unnecessary thoughts from my mind to focus on what was most important.

"Aemon came to the capital with the intention of overthrowing you," I said, giving Jeyne what I believed to be the reason for this 'incident.'

"Is this information reliable?"

"Harwin told me," I said, looking at him. He nodded and immediately added, "It is, I guarantee it with my life."

"I imagine it was the clubfoot who gave you this revelation," said Jessamyn, gradually recovering her composure, clearly displeased with Harwin's brother.

Harwin didn't even respond, and we remained in heavy silence for a few moments before Jeyne said:

"This cannot happen; we need to put him in his place, and without delay."

"How?" I asked, eager to know Jeyne's plan.

"I think we could speak with the Velaryons," she said.

Faced with my discouraged and incredulous expression, she didn't waver and added:

"They are supposed to arrive just before tonight's banquet. If we manage to intercept them and talk with them for a few moments, we could try to convince them that we are on the same side and that it's in their best interest to help us rein in Aemon."

"Princess Rhaenys might be sympathetic to our situation, given that she has experienced something similar," added Jessamyn.

Skeptical about the feasibility of this plan, I said softly in a bitter tone:

"I doubt it. She hasn't shown much enthusiasm towards me during our previous exchanges. I think she never will, given that she was supplanted by my own father. But we have nothing to lose, because if Aemon manages to depose you, very likely invoking the precedent of the Great Council, which the lords of the realm, all male, will immediately validate with the support of the Hightowers, I will be next on the list. At that point, we will have lost everything: the Vale, the Iron Throne… In short, we will have lost absolutely everything."

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-POV Daemon Targaryen-

I smiled, accompanied by my 6-year-old son, when I saw my eldest arrive, and I said:

"I hope everything went well for you."

"Perfectly well, if you don't count the fact that Urrax almost devoured Rhaenyra's new little pet," he said in a cheerful tone, accompanied by a little boy the same age as Baelon, who looked at his brother with stars in his eyes.

'They are not cut from the same cloth, and it's not for lack of trying to forge him.'

"Women," I said jokingly, while receiving a nudge in the ribs from my young and beautiful wife.

-POV MC-

"Need I remind you that I'm here," said a woman I immediately identified as my new stepmother, Raevyna Vaelaros.

"I imagine this Valyrian beauty is my new stepmother," I said, looking at the lady in question.

"You're a flatterer," said Raevyna.

"It's only flattery when I lie to please, but I always strive to tell the truth, especially to beautiful ladies," I said, bringing her hand to my lips.

My new stepmother rolled her eyes, and Daemon smiled without taking offense, saying:

"That's not how you're going to charm her."

"I had to try," I said jokingly.

'These past years have helped to somewhat mend what was broken, but the core issue remains: he wants the throne, and he's counting on me to obtain it.'

"Mother wanted me to convey her most sincere thanks for making one of her dreams come true," Raevyna said to me with a warm smile.

Daemon frowned for a moment at the mention of Saera, a person he has, for reasons I don't know, always loathed, even at the mere mention of her name.

"Don't be grumpy, Daemon, and Baelon, stop hiding behind your father. You've been waiting a week to see your brother again."

'See again, as if we really saw each other last time,' I thought, feeling slightly guilty because I had immediately seen this child as a possible future enemy instead of what he really was and what I represented to him… his big brother.

Shy, he stepped forward slowly and extended his hand to me. I smiled at this gesture and knelt down to his level, saying, "I've heard that you managed to bond with Sheepstealer. That's a great achievement for your age. I'm proud of you, little brother."

His smile instantly widened, and I took him in my arms before saying, "I don't yet know what gift I can give you, so forgive me, but I will find something soon."

He nodded in my arms before I let go and ran my hand through his black curls.

'He looks like his mother,' I thought, remembering one of the rare times I had glimpsed her at court during my childhood.