The Queen's Chambers
The door was open, and the sound of a baby crying could be heard from within. Alicent, wearing a green dress, stood on the balcony holding a swaddled infant.
"His cry is loud. He will surely be an excellent warrior," Viserys said with a smile, looking at his wife and young son.
"Thank the gods for this gift," Otto added, beaming.
"Come in, come and see your newest grandson," Viserys urged. Otto used to be selfish, but one thing was true: Alicent was indeed fertile, and had given him child after child. Including Rhaenyra, the King now had three sons and two daughters.
A happy noise filled the room as the group entered. Alicent looked over and smiled sweetly. "Is the council meeting over?"
"It was nothing of consequence," Viserys said, in a fine mood as he took the kicking, twisting baby from his mother. "This little fellow's name is Daeron Targaryen." He showed the infant to Otto. "As I told you in the letter."
"Very lively," Otto said, looking at his little grandson carefully and pinching his feet through his woolen socks. The more children the King had, the stronger the bloodline of House Hightower would be. He was so happy he could barely contain himself.
"You had no trouble on the road, Father?" Alicent asked, concerned for the father she hadn't seen in a long time.
"Everything was fine," Otto replied, still smiling. Alicent, full of joy, straightened his slightly wrinkled collar. She had played an indispensable role in his dismissal as Hand, and in the time since, she had stood firm and gathered her own power at court. Otto could no longer control her, but she still missed her father day and night. She would not be so lonely anymore.
"Ahem..." Aemon followed the others through the door and coughed twice to get their attention.
Alicent's eyes lit up, and she rushed over. "I thought it would take you longer to return."
"I was scolded by my uncle," Aemon complained in a low voice.
"That's your own business, and don't think I don't know you've gotten into trouble again," Alicent smiled, putting her arms around his neck and pulling him into her embrace. Aemon bent down, resting his cheek against her delicate white collarbone. He was close to her warmth and could smell the rich, sweet scent of milk. It was fascinating.
"How long can you stay this time?" Alicent asked, stroking his silver-gold hair with affection. The last time they had met was when Daeron was a month old. It had been almost half a year.
"I'm holding a tournament in Riverrun next month," Aemon said truthfully.
Alicent immediately pursed her lips and tightened her grip. It would be impossible for her to travel with Daeron, who was still a babe in arms.
The others were not surprised by their intimate posture. Viserys looked at them and smiled helplessly. In his eyes, Aemon was still a child.
"Let me hold him," Rhaenyra said, walking to her father and reaching out for her younger brother. Viserys hesitated briefly before handing over the squirming Daeron. He was not yet a year old and already had a fearsome temper, whimpering and kicking his short legs.
Rhaenyra took a deep breath and carefully took her little brother into her arms. She wanted to improve her relationship with Alicent, but she couldn't forget the past. It would be better to get to know her half-siblings first. She just hoped she would be good at taking care of children.
An interesting scene unfolded. Daeron, who had been kicking and screaming a moment ago, immediately quieted down in Rhaenyra's arms. He stared up at his eldest sister with big, light purple eyes.
"He's not crying anymore," Rhaenyra said, a little surprised as she held the heavy infant firmly.
Viserys was also surprised and smiled. "It seems he likes you very much."
Hearing this, half of Rhaenyra's nervousness disappeared. She used a free hand to tease the little one.
"Ooh..." Daeron twisted his body and tried to grab the fingers scratching at his face, his own face turning red with the effort.
"I'll take him for a walk," Rhaenyra smiled and carried Daeron out to play. Halfway down the corridor, she kissed his cheek. He was truly cute, and surprisingly easy to soothe.
While people chatted in the queen's chambers, the corridor outside was noisy.
"I'm the older brother! You have to listen to me!"
"No!"
"How dare you disobey me!"
"I didn't..."
In front of several anxious maids, two silver-haired boys were wrestling on the floor. The older boy, Aegon, had cunning eyes and used his strength to pin his younger brother down, holding his face with one hand. The younger boy, Aemond, was full of grievance, but because of the age difference, he was pressed to the ground and couldn't struggle. As the two boys fought, a silver-haired girl squatted in a corner nearby, seemingly in her own world.
As soon as Rhaenyra emerged, she saw Aegon beating Aemond. "Aegon, let him go!" she shouted.
Aegon turned, saw that it was his half-sister, and promptly continued to pummel his brother. "You're not the boss of me!"
"Aegon, you bastard..." Aemond cursed in frustration, and his words were met with two small fists.
Rhaenyra's eyelids twitched. She looked at Ser Criston Cole, who was guarding the door. "Separate them."
Cole glanced at her, pretending not to hear.
"White Knight, I said separate them!" Rhaenyra's face turned livid. She had no patience for this traitor.
Cole carefully glanced toward the bedchamber. Seeing that the King and Queen were not alarmed, he reluctantly replied, "Yes, Your Highness." He strode forward, grabbed the back of Aegon's collar, and lifted him up. Aemond scrambled to his feet to fight back, but Cole simply pushed him into the arms of a maid. Simple and rough.
Rhaenyra didn't like it one bit, and lowered her head to soothe the squirming Daeron in her arms, who had been startled by the noise.
"Let me go! Do you hear me?" Aegon struggled angrily. Rhaenyra walked closer and gave him a cold look. The boy shrank his neck and fell silent.
"Why were you fighting?" Rhaenyra asked her two half-brothers.
"He didn't listen to me!" Aegon immediately pointed at his brother.
"I did not!" Aemond said timidly. The two brothers immediately began to argue again.
"Quiet!" Rhaenyra snapped, annoyed by the noise. The two little boys shut up.
"You," Rhaenyra said, looking at the aggrieved Aemond. "You tell me."
Aemond was very afraid of his half-sister. "It was Aegon," he said timidly. "He called my sister a freak, so I fought him."
"Helaena?" Rhaenyra was surprised. Aemond nodded silently. Meanwhile, the silver-haired girl in the corner seemed not to have noticed, muttering to herself.
"Look," Aegon pointed. "She is a freak who talks nonsense."
"She is not!" Aemond retorted indignantly.
Alicent's three older children had a relatively harmonious relationship. Aegon was eight, Helaena was six, and Aemond was five. Daeron had been born not long ago. The three children had come to greet their father, but before entering the room, Helaena had held her head and started speaking nonsense. Aegon, as was his habit, had spoken rudely, and Aemond, feeling his brother had provoked him, balled up his fists. Despite his fear of their mother's punishment, Aemond had thrown the first punch. But it was a lopsided fight. Aegon easily pinned his brother to the ground.
"All this over such a small matter?" Rhaenyra was speechless. It was no wonder she didn't understand. She had grown up as an only child beloved by all. Sibling fights were unheard of. Her only "brother" had been Aemon, and if she was unhappy with him, she would simply pull down his pants and spank him. But that was no longer possible. The boy had grown up, and now he was the one taking her clothes off.
"Alright, stop fighting," Rhaenyra said, shaking her head to clear the blush from her cheeks. She pointed at Aegon. "Don't you ever mock Helaena again, do you hear me?" As the eldest sister, she had the right to discipline him.
"I know," Aegon said involuntarily, though it was clear from his face he was not convinced.
Rhaenyra sneered. "If you do it again, I will tie you to Syrax and take you for a flight."
Faced with this threat, Aegon didn't dare to be stubborn. "I'll remember!"
"Go and play," Rhaenyra signaled to Cole, who let Aegon go. As soon as he was free, Aegon ran into the queen's chambers, not forgetting to look back and glare at Rhaenyra. Stupid sister! he thought. When I grow up and get a dragon, I'll feed you to it!
Rhaenyra, unaware of her little brother's thoughts, smiled and pinched Aemond's cheek. "Go on, you can go play too." She felt a fondness for this half-brother who knew how to protect his sister.
"Yes," Aemond said, glancing at her secretly before running back to Helaena. In his heart, Helaena was his sister. This eldest half-sister was a stranger. According to their mother, she was selfish, unreasonable, and a bad woman—their future enemy. She didn't seem like it now, but he had to be a good boy and listen to his mother.
Rhaenyra didn't care that she received no thanks. She walked toward the curled-up Helaena, planning to use the opportunity to connect with her younger siblings. Helaena was sitting in the corner, holding her head with both hands and muttering softly.
"Hand loom, green spool, black spool..."
Aemond crouched down beside her, watching his sister talk nonsense. He was used to it. But Rhaenyra couldn't help but take it seriously.
"Black spools, descendants of the dragon weave dragon-silk threads..." Helaena lowered her head, her eyes fixed on the gaps in the floor, unaware of the world around her.
Rhaenyra frowned, picking up on some clues. It seemed to be about the Black and Green factions. The color of the spools hinted at something, and the prophecy said two spools would weave a silk thread together. Is it predicting our family will be united? That Alicent and I can reconcile? Rhaenyra speculated. She couldn't fathom any other way the Blacks and Greens could make peace.
Helaena was a Dreamer; Aemon had told her. Dreamers were valuable, but not that valuable. Even Aemon was a Dreamer. However, not every Dreamer was a Daenys the Dreamer, able to foretell the doom of a nation. Most, like Aemon and Helaena, were haunted by nightmares and fragmented visions for a lifetime. When Aemon was a child, he could suppress his nightmares with a special pillow. As he grew older, however, the pillow gradually became useless, so he had given it to Alicent.
Rhaenyra sighed and touched her little sister's head. She couldn't help her.
"Helaena," she said softly. The little girl raised her head, her big eyes reflecting her elder sister's beautiful face. She lowered her hands and rubbed her round, bun-like cheeks.
"What are you doing here?" Aemon came over quietly.
"Helaena has a headache," Rhaenyra said, then asked curiously, "Why did you come out? I thought Alicent wouldn't let you go so easily."
Aemon smiled proudly. "Aegon went to complain. He's suffering the consequences now."
Rhaenyra couldn't help but smile. "I'll go get something," Aemon said, seeing Helaena was still listless. He planned to find a solution on his magic essence panel. He was fine; his mental strength was strong enough to handle bad dreams. Helaena was too young to control her prophetic abilities. After saying goodbye, he walked alone to a quiet corner of the corridor.
Seeing that no one was around, he summoned the card panel.
[Bronze Armor]: "Armor engraved with runes."
[Pyromancer's Night Light]: "Concentrate and calm the mind."
[Red Rabbit]: "Large mammal of the order Lagomorpha, family Leporidae."
The prices were 300, 500, and 100, respectively. He did not hesitate, tapping all three. At the bottom of the panel, the golden hourglass read: [Essence: 2,420].
The [Bronze Armor] turned into a blue card and fell into his hand. He stuffed it into his pocket, startling the golden-nosed rat within. The [Pyromancer's Night Light] dissolved into pale blue fluorescent dots, which condensed into a palm-sized glass lantern. Aemon examined it and saw that the wick was made of a gray-white stone, but it wasn't lit. Defective? he wondered.
He then looked at the third card. The introduction was strange, and the name was even stranger. A flash of emerald green light appeared on the floor, and a soft, red rabbit with ruby-red eyes materialized, calmly chewing on something. Aemon was stunned. It was a rabbit, but it was a meter long.
"Do you know it?" he asked, patting his pocket. The golden-nosed rat peeked out, observed the rabbit for a moment, and then shook its head vigorously. One was a mouse, the other a rabbit. They were not related.
"Forget it. I knew you'd be useless," Aemon said. He squatted down and tentatively rubbed the rabbit's head. The red rabbit slowly relaxed and lay on the ground, letting its fur be stroked like a calm alpaca. Very good, not aggressive at all. He had thought it would be less obedient, considering its rebellious size. What good rabbit grows to be a meter long? "Follow me."
He put a leash on the red rabbit. According to the panel, this large rabbit was fiercely protective of its owner and could also dispel bad luck.
A moment later, Aemon returned. Helaena was still in the same spot.
"I'm back," Aemon announced, leading the Red Rabbit.
"Hush, keep your voice down," Rhaenyra turned, holding the now-sleepy Daeron. As soon as she finished speaking, she saw the big rabbit's silly expression. "Ah!"
Not only did she notice it, but Helaena did too. Her purple eyes suddenly widened, shining with a dazzling light.
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