CHAPTER SIX ─── confrontations

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"𝕷et us have some music." Viserys commanded, and Alaelanna turned to her brother, nudging the taller man.

"Perhaps ask Helaena to dance. The poor girl does not seem to be having a good time."

"I was planning on it. Will you be alright?" Jace questioned. "I do not wish to leave you with Aegon."

"I will have Luke, and father is two spaces away from us. You know that our uncles will not try anything with him here." All the Thorne children knew that their uncles held some respect for Malkym, especially after he had broken someone's knee cap and nose in the space of two minutes. They had not truly dared to go against him ever since.

"We can but hope." Jace nodded. "Sister."

He pressed a quick kiss to his sister's head, before standing and approaching Helaena, holding his hand out. The poor girl looked stunned, eyes wide, before she accepted his hand gracefully. Aegon looked put out, something that Alaelanna was quite happy with.

She turned back around, a smile still gracing her face. Her parents were speaking in hushed tones, and she could guarantee that her father was calling her mother a silly nickname once more, for the woman was blushing and rolling her eyes. Camryn had calmed down now, eating his food as he told Luke about what he wished his dragon to look like.

Alaelanna laughed as she heard the name Camryn wished to name the beast once it hatched.

"You cannot name a dragon Snappy. It has to be something impressive." Luke rolled his eyes. "Do not become like our sister and name your dragon 'Littlewing'."

"Littlewing is a very strong name." Alaelanna shot back, her laughter stopping, "and she's a very good dragon."

"She has the worst name of all."

"Do not disrespect my dragon so." Alaelanna hissed at her brother, who rolled his eyes. Unbeknownst to any of the Thorne children, Otto Hightower was using this moment to attempt to convince Aemond to speak with his new betrothed.

But Aemond could not move, let alone speak, merely watching his new betrothed carefully as she spoke and laughed with her younger brothers. His eye narrowed, before he turned back to Otto and shook his head again. He would not speak with her.

"Lana, try." Camryn leant over his brother, placing some food on his sister's plate. "Is this not wonderful?"

Alaelanna smiled, chewing on the glazed carrots that he had given her. The food that they were eating tonight was more rich and lavish than what they normally had at Alterwoode, so this was a treat for the young boy.

"It is amazing." Camryn grinned, happy to have impressed his sister. "Now, you must try this."

"It is green." Alaelanna and Luke giggled at the sour look that Camryn had plastered across his face. "Why is it green?"

"You have to eat them." Their father turned from their mother momentarily, looking at his second youngest. "Otherwise you shall never grow to be as big and strong as your brothers, or your cousins."

Camryn devoured the vegetables, drawing further laughter from Alaelanna and Luke, who were cackling as they watched him. A commotion quietened their laughter, causing the pair to turn and find that their grandfather was being carried away, in what seemed to be tears.

The room fell silent, before a large roast pig was brought out, as one of the mains for that night's dinner. Alaelanna noticed it first, fighting to keep a grimace from her face as she watched it be set down in front of Aemond. She remembered the incident, mere weeks before they left King's Landing, where Aegon had a pig dressed to resemble a dragon and roped Alaelanna and her brothers into helping him with it.

Alaelanna hadn't felt good about that prank, feeling as if it was wrong to pick on someone for something that was out of their control, but her brothers had said yes and she did not want to be left alone. It had been something that she'd gone crying to her mother about the next day, wondering if she was a bad person for laughing and helping.

Luke seemed to also be thinking on it, his nose twitching as he met his sister's eye. She waved it off, before noticing Camryn's face as he stared at the vegetables in front of him. His nose was scrunched, eyes narrowed and even she could not hide her laughter at it. Luke also began to laugh, before a hand slammed onto the table.

All three stopped, turning to see that Aemond had stood, grabbing his cup.

"Final tribute." He hummed, as Jace retreated swiftly to his sister's side, both of them watching. "To the health of my nephews, and niece. Jace, Alaelanna, Luke, Camryn and Viserys."

Alaelanna's eyes narrowed, wondering whether he was truly going to be stupid enough to speak as she thought he might.

"Each of them handsome, wise..." Their father was trying to get his children's attention, shaking his head slowly. "Strong."

Alaelanna and Jace stood shoulder to shoulder, eyes narrowed and hands reaching for daggers that should not have been on their bodies in the first place.

"Aemond."

"Children." Malkym and Alicent's voices mixed, both warning their respective children out of their current idea.

"Come." Aemond ignored them, matching Alaelanna's gaze head on, as she and Jace waited. "Let us drain our cups to these five, strong children."

"I dare you to open your mouth and spew such bullshit again." Jace murmured, as he and Alaelanna waited for Aemond to mutter one more thing. Luke had also stood, glaring from behind his siblings.

"Why? 'Twas only a compliment." He turned to the twins, walking over as they stood their ground.

"He is asking for it." Alaelanna muttered.

"Do you not think yourself strong?"

"No." Rhaenyra called, having seen her twins move before Aemond had. She knew her children well, and knew their habits and fighting styles even better having heard her husband talk about it many a time. 

As Aemond grew distracted with Jace's punch, he missed Alaelanna twisting around her twin to kick at the back of Aemond's legs in a manner that her father often did. Aemond toppled at the feeling, as Aegon rushed over to help.

But he turned his back on Luke, a fatal mistake, for the younger teen yanked him backwards and pushed him into the table, his head bashing against the wood with a satisfying sound.

"That is enough!" Alicent called. Aemond tried to get up, but Alaelanna was quick to kick his hand out from beneath him, sending him slamming back into the floor again. She crouched by his prone form, a foot over his right hand so that he could not fight back, looking down with a sneer.

"Do not attempt to get into a fight when you cannot win it, dear uncle." She hissed as Jace hurried to prevent Aegon from pushing Luke off, helping his younger brother subdue their older uncle. "Your anger has blinded you, more so than that eyepatch ever did."

He made to stand, once more, though Alaelanna put all of her weight down onto the right hand side of his body, refusing to let him up. She knew that she was weaker, and smaller than he was, but if she distributed her weight correctly then he would not be able to beat her.

He turned, looking up at her, his eye wide an filled with an emotion that she did not know.

"Alaelanna." The sharp call of her name had the girl standing and backing away. "Boys. Off of your uncle! Now."

Jace and Luke were reluctant, but their father grabbed them by the scruff of their neck, pulling them to their mother's side as guards came rushing over, standing as a barrier between the two families.

"I was merely expressing how proud I am of my family, Mother. Though it seems my nephews and nice aren't quite as proud of theirs!" Aemond turned from where he spoke with his mother, glaring at the trio as they all froze. Spinning on their heels, the three Thorne siblings reached for their house daggers, before a sharp glare from their father had them pausing.

All three elder siblings grumbled, before backing off, pacing behind their father. They were hoping and praying that their father would give them permission to hurt their uncles, but he did not. Instead, he merely turned to Aemond with a dark glare.

"Your own father asked for you to make peace, yet you stand there, speaking of treasons as if attempting to start a war." Alicent paled at Malkym's words, a tight grip on Aemond's arm as the man scoffed. "Please remember, that we are family. All of us."

Rhaenyra nodded, holding Camryn's hand. The boy had wanted to help his older siblings fight their uncles, but was not yet a good enough warrio r, so had to be restrained. Even now, the only reason he was not joining his siblings and pacing was because of the hold that their mother had on him. She had given up trying to wrangle her eldest children.

"This was not a good end to an otherwise pleasant evening." Rhaenyra mused, before turning to her children. "Back to your quarters now."

"But-"

"We will speak on this later." Rhaenyra cut her eldest son off, before motioning them away. The boys glared, walking away slowly as Alaelanna hovered for a moment to see what her parents would say, before she too was asked to go. As she began to close the door behind her, she heard the start of her mother's sentence, and a grin found it's way onto her face.

"How can I be reassured that marrying my daughter to your son will not end up the same way that it has tonight? This has furthered my thoughts that perhaps, my daughter should remain at Alterwoode, especially if your own son can not watch his tongue..."

Alaelanna grinned, before hurrying after her brothers, who were waiting for her at the end of the corridor.

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As the evening got ever darker, Alaelanna escaped from her chambers to wander the castle halls and find the famed dragon skull of Balerion the Dread. She had not seen it since she was small and her mother had taken her, and now that she could not sleep, she felt the need to find it once more.

The corridors were dark now, the braziers barely lit as Alaelanna finally found herself in front of the famed skull.

It was humungous, far bigger than her own dragon's head, with teeth that glimmered like pearls in the candle light. 

"You should not turn your back on your enemies, niece."

"There is no one for me to fear here." Alaelanna did not turn, still admiring the tribute of the once great beast, in front of her. "There is only a skull and a scarred boy."

A knife pressed itself to her throat, though Alaelanna did not flinch, staring onwards.

"Some would mistake the constant comments about my eye for you being obsessed with it." Aemond Targaryen towered over her, glaring down as Alaelanna sighed.

"I have come here for peace and quiet, neither of which you can provide. Leave, before I decide to put you on your ass once more." She smiled sweetly, "and take this dagger from my neck before I embed it into your good eye."

"The famous Thorne temper."

"You should know it well by now." Aemond hummed, before pulling the dagger from her throat and standing beside her. Alaelanna sighed. 

"We are to be married soon, niece. You shall have to accept my company soon." She laughed at that. "You find it amusing?"

"I find it amusing that you think we shall be pleasant with each other after all the harm you have caused my family."

"The harm I have caused? Dear niece, only one of us is missing an eye." Aemond growled, staring down at the girl, who scoffed.

"If I recall correctly, you deserved it." She spun on her heel. "A prince should never lay his hands on a woman in violence, yet you were more than happy to push over a lady and then, you pushed me into a rock."

A hand grasped onto her wrist, as Alaelanna paused.

"Release me."

"You speak of scars as if you are the one who was injured from that altercation. Your wounds healed, your brother stole my eye as if it was nothing."

"And you gained a dragon." Alaelanna turned, stepping closer as she glared up at the tall man. "That is what you always wished for, was it not, uncle? You asked for something, you were given it and then paid the price in full. Do not act as if gaining Vhagar was not your ultimate goal. To act as if you were blind to the knowledge that claiming Vhagar at her dragon rider's funeral would not annoy Laena's daughters is pure stupidity. You acted, and then, there were consequences. It is a fo-"

Aemond swooped down, pressing his lips to hers. Alaelanna gasped, her mind going blank for a mere moment at the feeling of warmth emanating from his body, before she remembered herself. Reaching down, the girl found the handle of her dagger, pulling it free and pressing it to Aemond's eyelid.

The man froze on instant, pulling back from her as he struggled to see past the thin blade that Alaelanna let brush against his eyelashes.

"Alaelanna..." Her name was breathy on his tongue, eye wide with fear as the girl glared. "Do not..."

"Let this be a reminder, uncle. Should you ever place your hands onto me again, I will take your eye." Her hands did not tremble, nor her form waiver, as she pulled the dagger back and smoothed her dress. Aemond remained staring at her, the same expression on his face as their had been at the dinner. "I told you, I would find no peace or solitude with you here."

She turned, sweeping away from her uncle quickly as she pushed her anger down. She would not marry this man.

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Hiya,

So, technically, they've had their first kiss but it's more because she was so close and Aemond wanted to see her reaction. Alaelanna's reaction is normally just violence and threats, and she holds no remorse for putting Aemond into his place as quickly as possible. In fact, twice in one night.

Let me know what you think,

Love Li xx