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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warnings:
Graphic Depictions Of ViolenceMajor Character Death
Category:
Gen
Fandoms:
House of the Dragon (TV)Warhammer Fantasy
Characters:
Ikit ClawRhaenyra TargaryenJacaerys VelaryonLucerys Velaryon (Son of Rhaenyra)Baela TargaryenRhaena Targaryen (Daughter of Daemon)Daemon TargaryenCorlys "The Sea Snake" VelaryonHelaena TargaryenAddam VelaryonBackground & Cameo CharactersSilverwing | Alysanne Targaryen's DragonOriginal CharactersJoffrey Velaryon
Additional Tags:
Crack Treated SeriouslyCanon-Typical ViolenceThe Dance of the Dragons | Aegon II Targaryen v. Rhaenyra Targaryen EraAlternate Universe - Canon DivergenceCanonical Character DeathCharacter Turned Into a HumanIkit got isekai'd as Jace's twinSkaven Species (Warhammer Fantasy)Death to all GreensHuman ExperimentationScience ExperimentsIkit is his own warningSilverwing still has shit taste in male ridersPOV MultipleBackground RelationshipsBackground Character Deathshow canon onlyDragon RidersAnimal AbuseIkit is an abusive dragonriderTho he's fairly mellow compared to his SkavenselfGood Parent Rhaenyra TargaryenNo beta we die like LucerysDysfunctional FamilyCannibalismBlood and TortureCanon-Typical BehaviorBAMF Helaena Targaryen
Language:
English
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Published:2026-02-26Completed:2026-04-22Words:181,492Chapters:55/55Comments:1,270Kudos:749Bookmarks:160Hits:33,651
The Rat Prince of Westeros
SkilledWarriorKiwi
Chapter 24: Rhaenys
Chapter Text
The air above Volantis was so warm Meleys barely needed to beat her wings. It was midday, the sun bright upon them both as they soared over the First Daughter. With the far-eye Rhaenys noted that while many people down in the streets below looked up, it was not with the typical type of fear or awe. No, these people were used to a dragon flying overhead even if not this particular one.
She circled over the city several times, trying to catch sight of Silverwing's great form. The streets were wide and broad due to the abundance of elephants the nobility used, so it would be easy enough for a dragon to be settled down yet despite their search they couldn't locate another dragon.
Rhaenys frowned, snapping the far-eye back into place and stowing it in one of the saddlebags. She knew there was a high chance she might not cross paths with Ikit. Essos was a massive place, and she had visited both Braavos and Pentos first before heading further east so she knew there was a sharp probability that despite the rumours stating Ikit had settled down in Volantis they were just as likely false or too late. Or even that he would not be present, considering the boy's nomadic state.
And now, after they circled over the city repeated with Meleys calling, there was no dragon that flew up to meet them nor did they spot one down in the streets below which made Rhaenys's believe it was much the same- he had indeed visited the city yet had moved on. She wasn't about to give up however.
"Seek, Meleys," she called in their mother tongue, the Red Queen trilling back.
The Red Queen flared out her wings, the pink membranes filling with the warm Volantenes air like immense sails, and dropped down until she was perilously close to the buildings. Her wing beats sent banners snapping and birds flying as her barbed head swung side to side as she scented the air. Occasionally she'd sharply turn, tilting her wing down through a street only some feet above the people as she adjusted her course as she hunted for the scent of another dragon.
Meleys snorted, puffs of smoke rolling back and brushing over Rhaenys's face, and she knew her dragon kindred was getting closer to the source. A dragon had been nesting in the city, long enough to leave an imprint like any of the caves upon Dragonstone as she sat up straighter in the saddle.
Then she spotted the gouges on the ground as they passed over another block of buildings, upon one of the square walls and roof, with a scorched empty courtyard behind another.
Rhaenys bade Meleys to land before it, with the Red Queen having to swing her tail around and quickly tuck her wings in as she landed upon the street before the source.
There was a woman already waiting at the entrance of the elaborate building, all lilac silks and white diamonds with pearls, long hair pulled back in jewel-encrusted braiding which had gone silver with age. Her features and bearing were familiar.
Rhaenys had never met her yet she still knew who the woman was as she dismounted Meleys with a groan at her aching muscles, and approached.
"Aunt," Rhaenys's voice was cool.
Disgraced Princess Saera Targaryen smiled at her, "Niece. How pleasant it is to meet you. How fares Westeros?"
"Quite well," Rhaenys answered. "I am here seeking my grandson, Prince Ikit."
"Ah yes, such a darling boy he is. Yes I do indeed know of his whereabouts," Saera said lightly. "However the street is a poor place of discussion. Please, come into my humble abode so we can talk like two civilized princesses."
Rhaenys accepted, allowing her travel coat to be taken so she was left in her crimson and black riding armour, and followed after Saera inside.
Slaves were everywhere in the building, scantily clad and all in collars. Rhaenys's expression did not so much as twitch as she was led through the ornate hall. Of course Saera would gleefully become a slave owner, considering what Rhaenys knew she had treated the likes of Perianne Moore, Alys Turnberry and Tom Turnip. People had always been toys for Saera, and it seemed growing up and becoming a mother, a grandmother, did not change her from the petty controlling child she truly was.
Even now the woman radiated smugness as she ushered Rhaenys into a more intimate room, one with a dark oak desk with plush cushioned chairs, walls covered in tapestries, books, ornaments and a sculpture of a twisted woman in one corner. When Saera sat it was with the window at her back which showed the scorched courtyard out beyond.
There was a strange tinge to the air Rhaenys couldn't identify but felt as familiar as Meleys's scent.
With both women seated Saera snapped her fingers and a woman appeared to offer drinks which Rhaenys declined.
Rhaenys felt shocked at how much the other woman looked like her late grandmother, Queen Alysanne, even if she hid it well. If it wasn't for how dull her eyes were, with the scars upon her cheeks, then she could have passed for the Good Queen's twin. It shouldn't have surprised her, however, she still remembered how three of Saera's bastard sons had come to the Great Council and one in particular looked precisely like King Jaehaerys in his youth. Yet from the scars and demeanour of the woman, Rhaenys could guess she had not benefited from resembling Alysanne. Saera always hated her mother more and it seems her child had inherited that hate simply from looks, as Saera accepted a goblet before dismissing her daughter with a sneer.
"Worthless children of mine, if only one of them held even an ounce of the talent our dear sweet Ikit possesses. If only he was born to me instead of that lot," Saera lamented, leaning back in her chair with elegant ease.
Every part of her movement was to draw the eye, to the length of her throat, the sweeps of silk accenting her aged bosom and keeping it propped high, her face carefully powdered and painted. She was in sharp contrast to Rhaenys who had her silver hair tied back in a utilitarian braid, features weathered and heavily lined from years under the sun, her clothing of hard boiled leather armour dyed in black and red. A whore's master against a dragonrider. Rhaenys would be amused if she didn't feel so on edge.
She knew her aunt Saera still lived, the same way she knew her uncle Vaegon still lived at the Citadel of Oldtown. Yet both had cast off House Targaryen and Saera had done so out of spite. So Rhaenys felt concerned when she heard about Ikit spending time with his wayward great-great aunt. She knew the boy was intelligent beyond his years but Saera had been manipulative for near every day of her life, and she was not even a decade older than Rhaenys. She wouldn't even be surprised if the woman attempted to seduce Ikit or even succeeded, since she seemed to have no limits to her depravity. If Saera even hinted at such a thing Rhaenys would have Meleys eat her alive, kinslaying be damned.
For now she remained calm, a gracious guest to a slave-owning whore master who was taking her time to sip from her gemstone encrusted goblet.
Rhaenys just ignored the petty powerplay, settling back in the chair and absentmindedly thinking of what she could have for supper. With Essos there were enough wild horse herds from the Dothraki she did not have to worry about paying for Meleys's meals but she herself was feeling a bit peckish. One could not live off dried meats and biscuits forever and she tried to remember what inns and taverns were renowned in Volantis. Most likely on the docks, at least. She certainly wasn't going to rely upon Saera's hospitality.
Finally the woman quit with her ridiculously slow drinking, setting her goblet down to look at her.
"So tell me, princess," Saera finally decided to speak. "What was your question again? I think I've forgotten. Old age I do believe. Can be a tricky thing."
Rhaenys's leveled her with an unimpressed look, "Prince Ikit. I am here looking for him. Apparently he spends quite a lot of his time in Volantis, more than the other Free Cities."
"Well I can't imagine why you're looking for him. The boy left years ago, seems he doesn't want to be found."
"He still cares for his family, that is not in doubt," Rhaenys's countered even as Saera's smile widened. "I simply wish to check on him and deliver letters from his mother and siblings."
"Well it is a shame then, as you missed him by about a week," Saera said, leaning forward to prop her chin upon the back of her hand.
"Do you know where he went?"
"Asshai. Specifically Stygai."
Rhaenys blinked, brow furrowing as she said, "The City of the Night? What could he possibly want there of all places?"
"Who even knows what he's doing in a corpse city. He seems to like sneaking about old ruins. Certainly made the Dothraki fear the sky again when he started sniffing about the old Vaes cities or whatever it is those savage horsemen call them. He's got quite the nose for secrets and eager little hands to dig them out."
She thought of that great statue of Syrax and the flawless make of it, and the suspicious origin for such a thing. Rhaenys instead asked, "Do you know when he will return?"
"No. He doesn't part all of his details with me. Though if you travel to Asshai someone there would most likely know. Last I know he also wanted to fly to Sothoryos so he may chose to go that way once he's done at Stygai or perhaps he is there already."
"The Green Hell?" Rhaenys sighed, already thinking back to the many pictures Ikit had drawn back at Dragonstone. "Was it to hunt wyverns, by any chance?"
"Hm, indeed it was," Saera traced the rim of the goblet with a painted nail, her lips pursed.
That certainly put a burden upon her search. With the tensions in the Stepstones- yet again -she was uneasy about heading further east. The spite of the Hightowers, the king's ill health, her husband sailing to the Stepstones. As much as she wanted to see her grandson yet again she had taken some chance, knowing it was possible she would miss him or their information was wrong. As swift as Meleys could fly, unless she had a flock of dragons at her disposal she could not check every city in a timely manner.
Rhaenys sighed, "Very well. I had heard he had spent more time here in your hospitality, yet it would seem I was mistaken. I will continue my search and cease to burden your hospitality."
"My my, princess. You give up quicker than I expected," Saera smiled. "And here I thought you'd huff and puff and threatened to blow up my house with your dragon instead of running away. But really, I suppose I was anticipating a little too much from the Queen Who Never Was."
She bristled, sitting ramrod straight, "I have no times for your games, Saera. Whatever quarrel you held against Jaehaerys and Alysanne is long done, just like their reign. I am here about my grandson and that is it."
"Oh you try to hide it but I can see the disgust," Saera said, wagging a jewel-encrusted finger at her. "Saera the Whore, isn't it? Well, what my kindly father use to call me."
"You were a whore, Saera," Rhaenys replied flatly. "Quite proudly in fact."
"And yet you're the prisoner, chaining yourself to a marriage and then failing to gain the Iron Throne. Twice might I add. Oh how did you ever show your face again in court? Since you seem so lofty and prideful over an old whore like myself."
"In opposed to what, fleeing from my responsibilities? Be a whore, then become a whore master who owns slaves? You think that is something you should take pride in?" Rhaenys asked coldly.
"Everyone is a slave in this world, even if Westeros holds the delusions there are none in the Seven Kingdoms," Saera rolled her eyes. "You are a slave to the men around you. You are a slave to your husband, just like my mother was to hers. I would rather be a whore than be anything like the likes of you, at least I made my choices instead of having them be picked for me. At least I chose my freedom. And my nephew- how many grands, I keep forgetting -chose the same. He escaped Westeros and he will always be welcome in my home for it. Anyone who can tell you ridged cunts to fuck off can always seek a place before my hearth. Tell your other grandchildren that, since you seem intent on dragging this one home."
"I know the order of things," Rhaenys said flatly.
Saera laughed at her, "Of course you do, Queen Who Never Was. You certainly help uphold it, don't you? A dragonrider yet still locked in your pretty little cage. At least I grabbed my freedom, even without one."
After a moment Rhaenys inhaled deeply, fending off the cold rage that tried to grip her. She exhaled, posture relaxing as her voice gentled, "But I am not here to argue, aunt. You have your life and I have mine. We are separated by the sea and we are what we are and there is no point arguing about such a thing. And you mistake me, I am not here to drag Prince Ikit home."
Saera arched her brow, "So you said, yet forgive my skepticism. He certainly never mentioned you would be visiting. He refused to even mention his family to me."
"He doesn't exactly linger. But we know he's stayed here longer than others, Silverwing's presence has made it mark. So all I ask is that I leave the letters of his family in your care, to give to him upon his return," Rhaenys said. She didn't blink at Saera's admittance Ikit chose not to speak of his family, if anything that just made her certain Ikit realized very quickly what type of woman Saera was.
Opportunistic. Selfish. Exploitive.
He was smart to never give her insight.
Saera just pursed her lips at the request, watching Rhaenys with half lidded eyes. Rhaenys knew Alysanne had written oft to her estranged daughter even if she never got a reply. Yet still, she wrote.
"Fine," Saera decided, leaning back in her chair. "You may leave them here and I will deliver them to him when he returns from Stygai, presuming he doesn't end up dead in the corpse city but that boy has a knack for surviving."
"You swear it?"
"Ugh you Westerosi and your oaths- yes, Queen Who Never Was, I swear," Saera raised a hand in mockery, rolling her eyes. "Now go remove your stinking red beast from my doorway and away from my city, you're ruining my business."
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