II / What Targaryens Must

    While they walked back to the boys' chamber, Rhaelys skipped ahead in front of her parents. Her mother was not smiling and neither was her father, but Rhaelys paid them no attetion. She only paid any thought of mind to her sister, who was currently tucked away safely inside her own arms.

When they entered the chambers, Jace, Luke and Joff were nearly screaming. Her brothers, sweet as they were, were not being quiet, but they never were, so Rhaelys was not really surprised. They were with Ser Erryk Cargyll, a Knight of the Kingsguard in Rhaenyra's chamber. "And he sees a big, scary, dragon!" Jace exclaimed and Rhaelys smiled at the sound of her little brother's voice.

Rhaelys was a lot of things, but she wasn't blind she saw the way her mother and Ser Harwin looked at each other. "Mother, father, sister!" Jace exclaimed as he, Joff and Luke got up and walked over to the little heat place where they had put the egg for their new brother.

"We chose an egg for the baby," Luke said as Rhaelys hugged her little brothers. "That looks like the perfect one," Rhaenyra said as Harwin helped her sit down. "I let Luke choose," Jace said and Rhaelys rolled her eyes. "Only because I told you to, Jace," Luke smiled and thanked both of his siblings. 

"Thank you Jace, Rhae," Rhaelys could never think ill of her brothers, because they would always be her brothers. "For the next babe, I get to choose the egg!" Joffrey exclaimed loudly. "Jace promised me that, mother." Rhaenyra smiled at her youngest son as Joff jumped up and down with joy and excitement.

They were her little brothers and she would forgive them anything. "Not every day an egg leaves the dragonpit, Princess. I accompanied the lads, so they would be safe and sound for you." Ser Erryk Cargyll said. Like Harwin was Rhaenyra's sworn sword, Ser Erryk was Rhaelys'. And he was like an elder brother to her.

"Laenor and I thank you, Ser Erryk," Rhaenyra told Harwin, Harwin walked in as Erryk left the room. "A second girl, I heard. You will have quite the full house now," Rhaelys thought of it and he was right. Now it was her, Jace, Luke, Joff and Daera. And that wasn't even counting their dragons. 

Vermax, Vermithor and Arrax were three dragons of the eldest children, and yet they were so different. Rhaelys rode Vermithor, the largest dragon after Vhagar, while both her brothers mounted hatchlings born from their cradle. Joffrey's egg had not yet hatched, but everyone held hope that soon the egg would hatch.

Rhaelys' had hatched but died soon after. No one uttered a word of her being a bastard after she had rose to the skies atop of Vermithor, at the age of nine. Vermithor was bronze and large and Rhaelys loved him every much. The list of those she loved was not very long, but when you were on it, you really were someone. Harwin looked at baby Daera the same way her father did: like she was the most precious thing in the world.

Rhaelys would agree that she was, but it was not Harwin's place to look at her so, at least that's what the courts believed. Rhaelys loved the fact that so many loved her little sister. "What a grand lady you will make, ay?" Laenor asked his daughter, as he slowly coddled her in his arms. Laenor looked at Daera exactly as fathers should look at their daughters, and it made Rhaelys happy beyond words.

"Might I?" Harwin asked Rhaenyra instead of Laenor, as if the father of the babe was not holding it. Rhaelys found it weird but she chose to ignore it, as she was sure her mother knew what she was doing. "Husband, Ser Harwin wishes to hold princess Daera." Laenor looked up from his daughter and smiled brightly, if not a little bitter. "Of course," He says, as he hands over his newborn girl to Ser Harwin. "Daera is a very pretty name," Daera's name sounds so wonderful when it is spoken out loud. "You chose well, Princess Rhaelys."

Luke put on his big boy face and looks at Laenor as seriously as he can. Rhaelys was sure he wanted something from their father. "Father, please, may I hold Daera?" Luke asked him and Rhaelys smiled to herself as if she had known it. Luke could only be cute when he wanted something, or if he didn't know anyone was watching. Jace stopped him but Rhae could see on his face that he too wanted nothing more than to hold their baby sister. "No, no, and no. You are far too young," Rhaelys then speaks up, saying she would like to hold her sister now. To Luke's annoyance, Rhaelys is deemed old enough and is allowed to hold Daera.

"If the dragon hatches, what will she name it, you think?" Luke quickly calms down once the topic shifts to dragons. If he loves anything at all, it is the dragons. Rhaelys finds his bond with Arrax rather amusing. The dragon and the boy are both too small to bind to each other yet, but that does not mean that Luke does not love his dragon well. Arrax will take food from no other, only from Luke.

⭑

     That night, Rhaelys prayed to the Maiden. Sooner rather than late, Rhaelys' betrothed would be surely made known to her. She had no desire to be wed, but it was her destiny. It was her destiny as it had been her mother's and her grandmother's, as it had been all women's destiny.

If the Gods were truly just, they would allow her to remain unmarried.

"Maiden, oh maiden. I pray he is kind and loving. I pray he will not mistreat me. Maiden, oh maiden. Let this boy love me as I love the Gods." Though Rhaelys believed in the Seven faithfully, she still prayed in her mother-tongue of High Valyrian. "She will not listen this late, Rhaelys. Now please be quiet. We should be asleep. The hour of the owl is soon upon us, and mother will be furious come morning!" Rhaelys shook her head and threw a pillow of hers right at Jace's face.

"Furious at you, perhaps. Mother could never be cross with me. She loves me best." Rhaelys was not ashamed of the fact that she was the favorite between the four, well, now the five of them. As the eldest child, the heir to the Iron Throne, and the first girl, she was the one her mother loved best. Though all of her children knew it, they were not treated differently and Rhaenyra still loved her sons a great deal more than most parents loved their children. She just loved her little girl a bit more, the love a daughter can only get from her mother.

It is funny to Rhaelys. A mother is the mirror of her daughter. The daughter is all the mother could've been, and a mother is all the daughter will ever be.

In the world that Rhaelys Velaryon lives in, a girl can be five things. A daughter, a wife, a mother, a widow or a stranger. She wishes to be none. She is a daughter, it is something she is not able to escape. But to be a wife or a mother or a widow, she can make a choice not to be. A choice as far as any choice is in her hands. The Gods may have other plans for her.

"Go to sleep then, please. You may not know what it is, but I am tired. And I do not wish to be cross with you in the morrow for keeping me up." Joffrey said, and though he was only four years old, he was perfectly able to make his opinion known to his sister. She loved all her brothers the same, but Joffrey always stuck out to her. In a good way, of course. But he was the one that always wanted the most attention, which both Jace and Luke were happy to just watch silently as things occurred.

When Rhaelys only giggled at Joffrey's words, he took a different approach. "Please just shut up, Vae! I'm trying to sleep!" He said, and Rhaelys could almost see a fake tear streaming down his face. She turned to Jace instead.

"Tomorrow you bind Vermax to you. Aren't you excited?" She asked Jace, who was half-asleep already.

"I'll tell you all about it tommorow, Rhaelys. I want to sleep!" Jace said, and Rhaelys could see her brother's eyes were half-closed already. "Alright. Good night, sweet boys." Rhaelys said, as she too closed her eyes. tommorow would be a new day. A day where she could ride Vermithor!

⭑

     Rhaelys and Jace and Luke stood in the dragonpit, together with Aegon and Aemond. When the dragonkeepers brought out Vermax, Luke clung to Rhaelys tightly. 

His own dragon, Arrax, was nowhere near ready to be ridden and Rhaelys knew her brother was grateful for that. Nothing scared him more than when he was faced with the large beasts. Rhaelys had been the same but now that she had ridden, she wasn't scared anymore. Vermax was almost seven now and ready to be ridden, if a little small. He had come from the egg in Jace's cradle and he had named the dragon himself.

Jace, ever her little brother, had named his dragon after Rhaelys' own. She loved Vermithor and she loved how large and strong he was, but sometimes she wished she had not a great mount of Old, and rather a young hatchling that would be hers to train and hers to name. 

Rhaelys just didn't know what would be different if Vermithor was still a wild dragon roaming through the dragonpit unclaimed. When she was ten her mother had taken her to introduce her to Syrax and Rhaelys had fallen in love, Rhaenyra would later say. The great Bronze Fury Vermithor would always be her first love.

Luke and Jace had to luck to have a dragon born to them. As Joffrey would, hopefully. Rhaelys wondered what Helaena did as they were busy with dragon lessons. Usually, she would join them, for she loved her dragon Dreamfyre and spending time with Rhaelys and Aemond, but today she wasn't there. Rhaelys found herself missing Helaena, as she so often did. But she put it from her mind and focused on Jace, as today was the day for him to fully bond to his dragon. Aegon kept looking at her, something which annoyed her to no end.

She had seen him when she walked through the corridors to her room, but he had not paid but attention to her then, she had thought. Mayhaps she was wrong and he simply was so disgusted by her that he could not look away from her. 

His name-day neared closer and Rhaelys felt sorry for Helaena. She was sure their wedding could not be long now. They had not been betrothed yet, but Rhaelys had always known it was Alicent's plan to wed her children to future cement their so-called claim to the Iron Throne, in case she could not succeed in wedding Aegon to Rhaelys. And there was no way that Rhaelys would marry Aegon.

"Let him come," The man beside Jace said in High Valyrian, the language of their family. Vermax resembled Vermithor greatly. Aegon yawned as if this was nothing to him. Aegon rode Sunfyre, but was oft bored with his golden dragon. The man pushed Jace forward, towards Vermax. There was still a few feet's distances between them, of course, for the safety of Prince Jacaerys.

"Call Vermax to heel, Prince Jacaerys," Another man said, more boy than man. "Serve!" Jace yelled in High Valyrian, as Rhaelys smiled at her younger brother growing up so quickly. Once Vermax got too close too quickly, Jace yelled again, "Halt!" In order to stop the dragon from attacking him. Vermax went back quickly and the man next to Jace looked impressed. "Well done," He said, in High Valyrian as well. Though it was also their mother-tongue, it was the only language that the dragons understood.

Another dragonkeeper at the other side of the hall brought out a goat, a sweet innocent goat. That was going to be Vermax's meal for today, and they would have to watch. Vermax spot up and watched the goat carefully like a child watching their dinner. It was not what Rhaelys wanted to see perhaps, but the smile on Jace's face made it all worth it. It would just be a little bloody. "Vermax!" Jace called out to his stead, who did not respond to him at all. "Vermax!" He tried again, still without the dragon responding to him.

"You must hold mastery over your dragon, my young Princes," The boy beside the dragon teacher translated from a language that Rhaelys could not understand; it certainly was not Valyrian, that was for sure. "As Prince Aegon has done with Sunfyre and Princess Rhaelys with her Vermithor," He translated further, as Rhaelys could feel Aegon's eyes on her again. "Once they are fully bound to you, they will refuse to take instructions from any other," 

Rhaelys had been given the same speech two years ago when she had learned how to ride on Vermithor for the first time. It was thrilling. She hoped the same for her little brother. Riding a dragon was the most wonderful thing she had ever experienced.

Sometimes Rhaelys wondered what Vermithor thought when he was in the skies. Long ago he would ride with King Jaehaerys, but instead of Jaehaerys, now a thirteen-year-old girl rode his backside.

"Can I say it?" Jace asked the dragon keeper who nodded yes and Jace looked back at his sister and brother and the Green boys for a moment, before a hand on his shoulder turned him back towards Vermax. He had to focus more, but that was quite difficult for Jace sometimes. Jace smiled again before finally saying the long-dreaded word. "Dracarys, Vermax," Dracarys means dragonfire in High Valyrian. It was what a Targaryen said before their dragon would burst out of fire. And so Vermax did what he was meant to do, and eat the goat as if it were a mere lamb.

"Aemond, we have a surprise for you," Rhaelys, who stood next to Aemond, grabbed a hold of his hand. He was three and ten, the same age as her, and he hadn't claimed a dragon yet. Aegon, Jace and Luke always made fun of him for it. "What is it?" Aemond questioned, and though Rhaelys said nothing, she questioned it as well. Only not with words, but with her eyes. "Something very special," Luke said, giggling as Rhaelys got more and more suspicious of her little brothers and Aegon. Luke ran away as Aegon pushed Aemond to the side of the Dragonpit.

"You're the only one of us without a dragon. Seven Hells, even Helaena has a dragon." Aemond swallowed his pride and pretended to play along. "Indeed," He said, no emotion in his words. "And we felt badly about it, so we found one for you," Rhaelys didn't believe them anymore. You can't just find a dragon. Only on Dragonstone, wild dragons roamed, and Aegon was not strong enough to ride Sunfyre and pull another dragon back. And he was far too lazy for that as well.

"A dragon. How?" Aemond questioned, seeing no fun in this little game of theirs. Aegon knuckled. "The Gods provide," Rhaelys knew it to be untrue because Aegon did not believe in any Gods. He only believed in himself. Rhaelys held her breath as Luke walked back up the stairs and came back with a pig. 

A pink, fat ping that was dressed like a dragon. "Behold," Aegon said as he smirked. "the Pink Dread!" Her brothers and Aegon proclaimed, and Rhaelys swore she saw a tear coming from Aemond's eye. Not that it didn't make sense. "Jace, Luke," Rhaelys said an all of a sudden she wasn't such a sweet sister anymore. She would drag them back to their chambers.

"Be sure to mount her carefully, brother, the first flight's always rough," Aemond hugged Rhaelys tightly after Aegon had said it, as the girl put daggers in Aegon's back in her mind. Rhaelys looked angry now. "Jacaerys, Lucerys. Come with me, mother will hear of this!" She said and as she mouthed sorry for Aemond. She would dragged her brothers back by their ears, if she had too.