" It's the name the people of Pentos have been calling you, apparently, on the day we took the city, by the end of the night, you were completely covered in blood." Daenerys says.
" Oh, but it doesn't matter what they call me; I have more important things to think about right now." He says as he takes a chair and places it next to Daenerys and sits down.
"What exactly is on your mind?" She asks, noticing the pensive expression on his face.
"…."
Aegon stays silent for a moment, thinking about whether to really explain his current dilemma to her.
She notices and grabs his hand.
" You are going to have to tell me things. I am to be your Queen, I won't just be a maiden waiting for you to return from war with no opinions of my own. I don't think you would want that either."
Aegon looked at her and smiled.
" You are right, I need an equal. My better half is not some shy, naive maiden."
" Exactly, so tell me what is on your mind."
"Right now, I have a choice to make. Remember, I told you I would make a trip to Westeros after we took Pentos?"
" I remember, have you changed your mind? I remember the reason you wanted to make the trip in the first place was to scout out and meet with some of the lords that could join us."
" That's correct, but what I didn't tell you was there was a hidden reason, in the coming days Ned Stark will be put in a position where he will lose his life, currently I have no attachment to the Starks, he may have raised me but he kept my origin from me and wouldn't have told me if I didn't already know. I am currently deciding if I should save him or not."
"Mhm, in the couple seconds since said that I've come up with many reasons to save Ned Stark but only one to let him die, you aren't a fool so I assume you are well aware of the advantages of save the man, the only reason I can think of why you won't is is you believe he won't fight for you but instead fight against us."
" Exactly, Ned Stark is a man of principle and honor, one could say to a fault. Robbert's children are bastards; if you and I aren't included, the rightful heir would be Stannis. Ned Stark will find this out if he hasn't already, and it will lead to his death."
" With his death, the north will once again march south, and wars will erupt involving all the major players in Westeros, weakening them all and creating a massive opportunity and advantage for us. If I save him, there is a chance he will support Stannis in his war for the throne, even if he would be in debt to me."
She didn't ask how he knew this information; she just nodded and answered.
" That's a fair point." She says as she looks through the window into the distance.
And slowly a smile appears on her face.
" For you, of all people, to say Ned Stark is a man of Honor and principle, it must be well known throughout Westeros, right?"
" It is, at least amongst the lords of Westeros."
"Then let's use it to our advantage, I think you should go and save him, and let him send out letters to every lord in Westeros explaining your origin and his part in raising you, I know many won't believe and even those that do won't come to our side immediately afterall we are still focused on Essos, but it will have an effect."
" And if he doesn't agree to do as I ask?"
" Well, he was going to die anyway, right? The thing that would change is who kills him, it's still one dead wolf, and I'm sure you can rescue him without anyone finding out and return the dead body if he refuses."
" So if he refuses, we return things to the natural course, a good plan." Aegon says.
" Right now, our weakness is obvious; we have no eyes and ears on Westeros soil. On this trip, I'm going to change that."
"Mhm, so how soon will you leave?"
" In the next two days. Since we have no source of information from Westeros, I don't know how far things have progressed. I'll be gone for at most twelve days; in that time, the Dothraki presence in the city will be increased, and I'll leave Igneel behind to keep people honest."
" Take two of your bloodriders with you, the rest will follow me and Maegor. You can also carry out your intention to visit some of the lords that could come to our side; our focus should be the Martells and the Tyrells."
" My thoughts exactly."
Kingslanding.
The red keep was alive as the small council meeting came to a stop, as everyone was looking at Grand Maester Pycelle as he began reading the message aloud.
" Aegon Targaryen, son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen, taken Pentos a week ago, three dragons flew through the sky as dragon fire engulfed the city harbor and city gates."
"lies there all lies." Robbert shouted.
" Your grace, the information has been confirmed many times from different sources. Pentos has fallen into Targaryen hands." Varys explained.
" Ned, what do you think?" Robbert asked his hand.
"..."
The room fell silent, as everyone turned to look at him.
Ned Stark sat quietly, his thoughts were stormy.
" It would seem the North loyalty doesn't completely belong to the king," Tywin Lannister says.
" The North's loyalty is with you, your grace. I'm simply thinking of how best to deal with them."
" How to deal with them? It's simple, send the faceless men to rid the world of them." Tywin added.
"We must begin to prepare for war." Stannis adds.
The room filled with voices as everyone threw out their own opinions. Ned sat silently, his thoughts racing.
" Let's decide on this quickly. I want to go hunting." Robbert added.