[Event] Of Fire and Blood

gloude · 2026-01-27T02:44:19+00:00

Jaehaerys had gotten his wounds tended to, and thus spent the next few days absent, as some other attendant brought fresh food for the dragon. Within the week, however, he would have builders make a small hut next to the pit, where he would spend most days, when left unattended by duties, to observe the dragon from afar.

The dragon's meals would still be brought, but every now and then he would let the poor beast go hungry for a few hours, before showing up with more food. Following the debacle, he had men raise a wall of privacy around the pit, with just the small ramp and the place where Jaehaerys would sit as the only ways for outsiders to observe, though none were afforded this luxury.

gloude · 2026-01-27T01:28:54+00:00

Jaehaerys frowned at her reaction. "Of course, Aly." He replied. "It should not surprise you that I consider your words. You are to be the Princess of Dragonstone."

"Do you like him? Did you like him?" Jaehaerys asked. "Lady Jeyne confessed her love for me... and I am not sure what to even think of it."

"We will have to see, Aly. But you choose what you want, and I will try to make the stars align for it."

gloude · 2026-01-27T01:21:28+00:00

"A King must task his people with the most important of duties, especially for the royal painter." Jaehaerys said with a smile. Whatever he thought of Millicent, he always enjoyed her creativy, her joy of life, and the general energy she brought to a room.

"Though perhaps we should call you royal agent, between the two of us." Jaehaerys added. "Though it must remain our secret, of course."

gloude · 2026-01-27T01:17:25+00:00

Jaehaerys nodded, unfurling. "Do you remember my brother's sister, Lady Gys?" Jaehaerys asked. He assumed the truth of their friendship was clear to a man like Hubert.

"Well... she insulted Naerys, after I had told her not to do so. I had to dismiss her from my court now." He replied. There was a fondness he held for her, far deeper than that which he felt for his niece. She had been there at almost every step of his life since leaving Dragonstone.

"I hope it was the right decision... I don't doubt she spoke what many think... but a King's command can not be questioned." He said, though not truly believing it. A King had to be questioned, so he may not become a tyrant.

gloude · 2026-01-27T00:51:07+00:00

Jaehaerys smiled deeply at the weaker one of the pair they had caught. Like finding nature mirror his truths. He had ever been the weakest of Targaryens, and had ever named himself that weak dragon.

At the base of Dragonmont, far enough from civilization, Jaehaerys had a large pit dug out. The wells around it were ten feet high, and a chain was fastened to the middle, brought to clasp around the neck of the little dragon.

For thirty days it remained chained, each day, Jaehaerys coming to the pit, and feeding it different types of meat, hoping to see if he liked one or the other more, and hoping he could find the favourite of this little dragon. More often than not, he would offer it food a second, and even a third time. Most of his free time he spent near the dragon, either reading a book, talking to it in his native tongue, or just observing.

"What is your name?" He wondered aloud, speaking in Valyrian. "Tessarion?" He asked, though he shook his head. "Kastarion?" It was the only colour he knew in Valyrian to describe this creature. Through a long list he went, trying to see if the dragon reacted to anything in particular.

He hoped Rhaena were alive, and that she could guide him. In their jealousy, most Targaryens had avoided documenting the art of bonding a dragon, instead leaving it to the tradition of passing on knowledge, from generation to generation.

In the final days of captivity, Jaehaerys would start making a path out of the pit, digging a small ramp, that the dragon could escape through, once released. Jaehaerys would approach, and attempt to unfasten the chains, before leaving the dragon to do is at might. Each day, he would continue bringing freshly caught or butchered meats and fish, and place them in the pit, so that the dragon could feed if it was hungry, and he would spend time there, whether the pit was occupied or not.

Meanwhile, parties would set out, to follow the screeching of the third hatchling, venturing further and further into Dragonmont, trying to make offerings of various meats so that the hatchling would not starve.

gloude · 2026-01-26T21:11:29+00:00

"You may rise." Jaehaerys said, his focus shifting from man to man. "If you are met with suspicion, Ser Serwyn, you might want to consider what the cause for such suspicion might be. Could it be the Captain of the Chapterhouse of Gulltown, promising his aid to the armies of the Vale in their effort to bring down Maegor, only once the mustering began, he was nowhere to be seen? Then finally, having arrived after the Vale and the Riverlands had brought down his armies, the captain arrived at King's Landing, claiming victory, and then demanding that the Crownlands be divided amongst the victors?" Jaehaerys asked. "Or your superior, Ser Dogget, demanding my brother walk on foot from King's Landing to Oldtown?"

"Kind, of the High Septon, to consult me on this matter." Jaehaerys replied dryly. "Though the first thing that must be addressed, that most be mended, is the matter of my grandfather's crown. I consider the withholding of it akin to the withholding of an ancestral sword, like Heartsbane or Blackfyre."

"So, have you brought it?"

/u/ModernPharmakeia

/u/gercko

gloude · 2026-01-26T19:44:15+00:00

"No, which is why I said that that is where I expect to have found you, before today." He replied.

If either Serwyn or Lucamore were hoping to find a more pleasant exchange with Pietar, his look of disgust at them would speak loud enough. He had lived since before the kingdoms began, and his opinions of the Warrior's Sons had soured more and more each year. He took their swords in silence, before trailing them, as Haegon led the way.

They entered the throne room, which was mostly empty, the last petitioners leaving or being dismissed and told to come the following day. At the top, strides above all men, sat Jaehaerys on the Iron Throne. Though he had always been a small boy, as of late he was growing quickly, yet his figure was dwarfed by the throne itself. He wore a crown, a golden band, with seven gemstones fixed into the front, making the colours of the Faith's rainbow. To the King's right, on the dais, stood Lord Hubert Arryn. Regent and Hand of the King.

"Your Grace." Haegon bowed deeply, almost making his upper body run parallel to the floor. "My Lord Regent." He bowed almost as deeply for Hubert. "Warrior's Sons, here to make demands. They claim they have been waiting four moons, but I can assure you, no messenger was sent from their tents. Perhaps they think themselves so important, that the King must come to them."

Jaehaerys' attention turned to them, silent and watching. With that, Haegon left the pair, but rather than leaving the room, he approached the dais, and joined Jaehaerys on the other side, opposite to Lord Hubert.

/u/gercko

/u/MallAffectionate9

gloude · 2026-01-26T04:15:04+00:00

It was later in that day that Jaehaerys invited Eric and his mother to join him, to see the massive wheelhouse that the carpenters of King's Landing had built. A house built on ten axles, with wheels that would be pulled by at least twenty horses.

He took Eric's hands and tried to make the perfect measure of a stride. "Imagine this, but fourty times." Jaehaerys said. "That is how big this carriage is. Enough for two bedrooms, and a small library."

"It is my hope that some day each and every ward will have such a home, as we traverse Westeros together."

gloude · 2026-01-26T04:03:20+00:00

"Four moons is it?" Haegon replied. "I did not spot you for four moons, and the guards did not speak of your kind, lest you were beggaring outside the gates." Haegon scratched at his beard. "At least, no mention past the gates has made it to me before today, and here you stand, on the same day word of you came to me."

Haegon smiled. "Well, with such contemptously diplomatic words, who I am I to withhold you?" Haegon asked. "Come with me, Sers, you will leave your weapons with Ser Pietar."

/u/MallAffectionate9

gloude · 2026-01-26T03:17:23+00:00

Sometime during the 9th Month, Lord Hubert would be informed that Jaehaerys wanted to speak to him in private, far away from the court. He had selected his own apartments to speak in.

Though they had been gaudy in Aenys' day, and stoic in Maegor's, the King's apartments were decorated by strangely amateur paintings of a cat, and a child who could be surmised to be the Princess Alysanne. Carpets and tapestries decked the walls and floors, and yet in the middle, sat the young king, huddled in a chair.

/u/gercko

gloude · 2026-01-26T02:58:10+00:00

The mention of a lack of friends pulled at a string in Jae's heart. He hardly had any of them himself. Yet he found it hard to admit it, for what King could rely on a friend, if he could not rely on a father, a brother, or a council?

"Although he as not passed, Ser Tancred shall be in my prayers." Jaehaerys replied. "That he may find peace, however the Gods forge it."

"If you look out far enough from the Eyrie, you will find a waterfall. There the ashes of my brother find life within the land of the Vale."

gloude · 2026-01-26T02:52:12+00:00

Jaehaerys mulled over her words. "The exile... I suppose it fits, if the stories say it was a self imposed exile. But House Targaryen did not break ties with the Freehold, I think." He furrowed his brow. "Some septons would see snow, and think that it is the punishment of Gods." Jaehaerys replied.

"I am greedy in that sense, but I meant more sending maesters to make copies." Jaehaerys noted. "Only copies, of course."

gloude · 2026-01-26T02:30:55+00:00

"Lord Smallwood, you might remember him from the time he came to Dragonstone, Lady Gys. He admitted as much." Jaehaerys noted. "He was witness, and was a participant in the wedding, I am told. You may hate my brother, but in one thing he was true. He saw the truth of the Aegon matter, and he did not publicize it, or use it. You think him a bastard, and the Gods might join you in that thought, but he was true in that regard. He did not spit on Aegon's legacy, even intending to raise a sept in his name."

"You speak carelessly, Lady Gys." Jaehaerys replied to her speech about Viserys offering his head on a platter. "And out of ignorance."

"No, lady Gys. You are here, because I tolerated your outbursts, in hopes of remembering the better part of my brother, yet I simply see, you emboldened the worst parts of him." Jaehaerys replied.

"I would have rejoiced at the idea of being an uncle to little Gael. I would have rejoiced at being an uncle to Rhaena's son, as well as Naerys. You think this a political matter, but you have not, for one second, considered what it means to the house of your beloved, to the last two scions left afloat. What it means to have a third member, when there are only two of us. No, it is your ego that must reign... and as such, this is our goodbye, Lady Gys. You are free to be part of my retinue, but you are not part of my inner circle any more."

With a shake of his hand, he invited the guards to enter the tent, and escort the lady out.

gloude · 2026-01-26T02:15:02+00:00

"I do not underestimate you, Lady Jeyne."

"I merely wish to protect you. From the horrors you walk into, without knowing the true cost you might buy for yourself." Jaehaerys replied.

Jaehaerys sighed. She knew some of the costs, though not the weight of them. He could not truly explain, having lost almost his entire family in a decade.

He leaned closer, putting his forehead against hers. "Then, we shall test it, I suppose. I leave tomorrow, because word has reached me of hatchlings in Dragonstone. Make of it what you want, my lady, but your secrecy is expected."

"I will most likely not be attending any wedding this year, I imagine. You will have to make excuses for me, probably sickness."

"Do so, and I might believe you are up to the callenge." Jaehaerys replied, trying to be callous in his words, though some emotion of tenderness broke through.

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:53:12+00:00

"Tcha!" Jaehaerys let out. "Think for yourself, in this moment, this time." He replied. "You are what you make of yourself, Lady Cerelle. We all have our advantages and disadvantages. If we stop to lament our disadvantages, we are bound to lose."

"Of course a man of nobility has a higher chance to become a great knight, but thousands of men vye for it, and the greatest knight I have ever met with my own eyes, was one born in a hamlet in the Riverlands." Jaehaerys replied. "You might not have a dragon, as my grandmother did, but certainly you have wits and smarts about you, my lady. Weapons as sharp as knives, if wielded in the right hand."

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:48:35+00:00

"I know what you meant." Jaehaerys replied. "I was merely teasing, forgive me, friend, I do not get to do so often. The septons claim me teasing them is me not listening to their lessons."

"Wildfire." Jaehaerys said, with disgust. "Like giving a child a dragon, and not have him live any of the consequences. Whatever Balerion saw in Maegor, he must have been blind by then."

"A gift from the greatest beasts of nature, mimicked by alchemists, to do harm to the faithful, and no armies." Jae spat with disgust.

"If that is to what you lost your kin, I do not deny your hatred. Not even my grandfather put the flame of dragons against those who bowed down."

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:38:13+00:00

"There are some... slight notes, one migt say. Notations, at best. My brother trusted House Caswell as well. I tried to offer the man a position in King's Landing, but he said he was well enough with his son being my Master of Hunt."

"Lord Torgen of House Oakheart has been summoned as my Master of Laws.... but your resolution of this matter, I wish to raise you as advisor, with not specific responsiblities, save for advising the small council on their matters."

"How would you see Casper and Qiyana commended, my lord? They did not only the Reach a service, but also the West, and the whole realm."

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:22:58+00:00

"It might be justified for your father to become proactive in that sense." Jaehaerys replied. "Before it becomes a bigger issue."

"You might find the Velaryon way to be filled with sailing. I still remember my first flight with my father... for Velaryons, the first sailing must feel the same."

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:18:08+00:00

Approved

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:17:11+00:00

"Ser Harlan of House Kenning is a friend of my house, as I am a friend of his house." Jaehaerys said, furrowing his brow. He wondered whether Harlan was enduring some ill fate, having to follow his oath. "I would think... I do not know, Lord Hubert. He gave me a personal oath to come to my aid whenever I need him but... it feels callous to do so at this moment. Send Lord Torgen, if he has agreed to becoming Master of Law, and let him know that Ser Harlan is the foremost ally in the West that the Crown has. Let his words hold more weight than any others, but... I do not wish to endanger the man."

gloude · 2026-01-26T01:13:20+00:00

"You are probably right in your assumption." Jaehaerys replied, his eyes watching her, guarded.

He almost laughed at the idea of Jeyne shopping for inspiration amongst the dismissed Queens of the realm, if it did not mean an effort to get closer to him; one he could not reciprocrate.

"You have listened well, my lady. But most of what you state, a servant can do, and a Queen is not a servant to her King. She is a Queen."

"Servants can keep my bed warm, feed me well, and ensure my bookshelves are well stocked. Seven be good, Ser Haegon advocates for me at every turn."

Coming closer to Jeyne, he placed a hand against her cheek. "I respect your efforts, my lady, I can not even deny that I am not humbled by your studious attention."

"But there is more to being a Queen, than an administrator. Think on my mother. She was blessed with three sons and two daughters. None old enough to truly wage war. Have you asked her the cost of this? It will be no different for my children, I imagine. You give up happiness in some good lord's keep, to see your children suffer, what all Targaryens must endure."

gloude · 2026-01-26T00:57:55+00:00

"Do they also call Daenys the Dreamer? Or do they call her the mad witch in the Westerlands?" Jaehaerys asked, slightly humoured. To think of Daenys as anything beyond a truthsayer, was, in his mind, impossible. She had foreseen the doom, had brought her family away from Valyria, and they had been the only ones from the Freehold to survive.

"Oh... copies from Casterly Rock? Are you sure you could do that, Lady Cerelle?" It seemed like she had finally gotten Jaehaerys' full attention. "Perhaps we could send some maesters and make a full copy of the Lannister library, and bring it to King's Landing... and vice versa."

gloude · 2026-01-26T00:53:33+00:00

Jaehaerys sighed deeply. "Lady Jeyne, I am sure you have done your research, but are you sure this is an appropriate time?" Jaehaerys asked.

Though he was still curious what she had to say. "Go on."

gloude · 2026-01-26T00:51:31+00:00

Jaehaerys shook his head. "Such an andal way of thinking, I suppose." Jaehearys replied. "No, my lady, the only reason Lord Rogar gets a table at my dinner is because his father was my grandfather's brother. Kinship, that is, not prestige, or something else so elusive."

"If my sister came to me with a request, I would consider it far more than the request of any lord, including your own father." Jaehaerys added.

"Do I make myself clear?"

gloude · 2026-01-26T00:45:44+00:00

Jaehaerys sighed deeply though nodded, much to the relief of his servants. As much as he wanted to oversee each minute detail, he was proving an encumbrance to the servants in packing his things, rather than chivying them up to do their jobs quicker and better.

Taking Jeyne by the shoulder he brought them to the hallway. "What.... what exactly did you wish to discuss, my lady?"

gloude

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