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FIFTEEN;
『 THE SNOW FALLS 』

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ㅤ     TONIGHT IS COLDER THAN MOST. The doors to the balcony have been shut to seal in the warmth of the room and the curtains have been drawn. The bed is lined with extra blankets to keep us warm. I lie under these blankets with my hand presses to my stomach. Whenever I close my eyes, I try and imagine what the baby will look like. I know they will have white hair and piercing eyes, but I wonder if their face will be sharp and chiseled like Aemond's or softer, like mine. I wonder if the baby will be a boy or a girl, although I do not discriminate. I pray to the gods they will be kind no matter what. I pray they will be safe for as long as they can be.

The hour is late when the chamber door is burst through. I shoot up in the bed. Aemond follows close behind, pulling his dagger out from under his pillow and pointing it at the intruder. Though, the intruder is Ser Harwin. He is not a threat to us. He bows quickly before addressing us.

"My Lord, My Lady, forgive the intrusion," he is out of breath. "The troops of Dragonstone had made landfall. Our men are working them towards the fields. The Keep will hold for as long as the war my rage, but I thought it best you know." He explains in a short summary of the situation. My hand falls from my stomach and grips the fabric of the sheets.

Aemond's hand rests atop mine. "Thank you, Ser Harwin. Please collect the members of the small council, including Lucerys." He demands like a King. Ser Harwin nods then rushes out of the room. The door closes behind him.

Aemond and I climb out of the bed, a pair of tired souls. He grabs his sword and I grab mine. Neither of us even bother to wear our crowns to the meeting. We clamber down the hall in our nightwear. When we enter the room of the small council, all of the voices quiet. I feel the eyes of men linger on me, as I approach in my thin nightgown. They would be smart not to look for too long.

Aemond and I take our seats at either head of the table. "Men of the small council, thank you for coming on such short notice," I announce to the room. "The troops of Dragonstone have made steps onto King's Landing. Our men will be fighting them and pushing them towards the fields, where we will release the other two thousand men. As well as the dragons, if need be." My voice is hushed but it carries around the room well enough.

The men nod and exchange words. Aemond says a few things that I don't quite catch. My thoughts are so jumbled these days I often find myself zoning out. The council is dismissed and we make our way back to our chamber, now with Lucerys following behind. I've told him he will be staying with us, in our chambers, to ensure his safety. He is only a boy, he cannot defend himself like he believes he can. I make him comfortable on the couch then blow out the surrounding candles. Aemond and I take our places in the bed with a single candle burning beside me on the side table.

"Ser Harwin estimates that the men will have been moved there by sun high tomorrow," Aemond whispers from beside me. "By that time, Rhaenyra and Daemon will likely follow." He continues. "I guess I'm asking... Are you ready to face them?" His eyebrow lifts.

      My head shakes. "No." A simple answer. "I am not ready to face my parents and my brother on the battlefield. I never will be, I believe." I admit. My eyes turn slowly away from him to the balcony. The curtains shift slightly. My eyes narrow as I look outside, to the darkness. My eyes shift downward as white puffs fall from the sky.

      I jump from the bed and run over to the balcony door. I press my hands to the door. My eyes watch as the little flakes of snow fall from the dark sky. At first, I am overjoyed to see the snow. Every summer, when the heat blisters, I seem to miss the snow. I love the snow, the way it lights up the world. Then, I remember the snow from my dreams. When the snow sticks, a battle begins. It is becoming all to real all too quickly. I look back to Aemond, who seems extremely confused, to say the least.

      He crosses the room and stands beside me. "Are you not happy for the snow?" He asks. I shake my head and turn back to the window.

      "In my dreams, when the snow sticks, the true bloodshed begins. It snows now, and the armies are at one another necks. When the snow sticks, it also brings a golden dragon. Syrax." I explain in a hushed voice, making sure to avoid waking Lucerys.

      "What else have your dreams shown you?" He asks, curiously.

      "I have the same branch of this dream every night. Minor details may be different, but almost everything is always the same. The snow sticks. The other side has Targaryen banners. You are by my side. A golden dragon storms over the sky." I explain to the best of my ability. His head drops slightly as I watch his eye think.

      "Have you tried Essence of Nightshade, to help you sleep?" He suggests. I nod.

      "I have. I sleep deeper, the dream is more vivid. Still, I awaken and I cannot fall back asleep." I reply. He looks rather concerned now. I present my best grin to try and give him some relief.

     "Let us return to bed and rest. We will need to get as much rest as possible. The sun brings war." He nods and follows me to the bed. I pull the blankets over us. I can feel his gaze linger on me as I close my eyes. It is my instinct to place my hand on my stomach as I sleep, but he is watching, I must resist.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

WHITE SNOW FOR AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE. My feet are planted firmly under the white blanket of snow. I hear no marching of men this time. I hear no yelling. The fog in front of my face is thick. I take steps forward, to where the men had been marching in all the dreams before.

I walk deeper through the smoke of the fog. As I walk, the more bodies I see. Men wearing Dragonstone armor, men wearing the Red Keep's armor. Every shield has the Targaryen symbol painted on it. Blood is everywhere. The white snow has been stained in this dark crimson blood. The faces of the men before me are fearful, mostly. Some of them appear prideful. The only difference between the men is the armor they wear. Even then, it is minimum. Even the armor bears a striking resemblance.

I stop in my tracks and turn back to where I had been at first standing. A mountain of bones towers over me. The mountain touches the clouds. I walk to the mountain and press my hand to the structure. The bones and skulls clamber to the ground then disappear. The mountain has vanished. All that remains in its wake is Viserys, my grandfather.

His face has been restored. His eye is no longer missing. Age still tears at his face, but he does not look nearly as bad as he once had. He does not have the gold mask he used to have to cover his face. His posture is hunched. He still wears his crown. I look over him and approach him.

"Never forget who you are." His voice stops me from moving. "You are a Queen. You must protect your kingdom from all who threaten it. Even if that threat is your own flesh and blood." His lips do not move but his voice echos around my head.

I continue moving towards him. I try and hug him but he disappears into the air before my touch can reach around him. I fall to my knees where he had been and feel tears welling in my eyes. I hadn't even gotten to say a single word to him or touch him before he vanished.

      "Do not weep over the dead, dear one." I turn my head to see a woman standing a few feet from me. She has long white hair and piercing eyes. Her face is slightly aged but her beauty remains intact. I recognize my mother in her face. Then, I realize, that this must be my grandmother. I never had the chance to meet her, but I've been told stories of her kindness and compassion.

      "From my blood come the princess that was promised and hers will be the song of ice and fire. The song is still promised, Alerhya. The prophecy does not blur." Her lips do not move, as Viserys' hadn't, but her voice moves through my head. She offers a hand down to me. I take it. She pulls me up and stands before me. I see so much of my mother, of myself, in her.

"Do not run from the prophecy. It must be faced. It will not crumble." Again, her words are in my head. As she lifts me from the ground, she vanishes once I stand tall. I blink, my eyes are consumed by darkness for only a moment. When I open my eyes, I am awake.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

THE FIRST SIGNS OF LIGHT SEEP THROUGH THE CURTAINS. I run to the windows and peer through them. The snow has become a blanket over the world. The grass has been turned white. Roofs have been coated with a white layer. I feel my body tense as I remember what this means. Snow brings death. It is not yet noon, the men have not yet been brought to the field, and yet I find myself in the bathing chambers stripping off my nightgown and pulling on my riding gear.

Most would wear armor, but not a Targaryen who intends to ride her dragon into battle. Heavy armor slowly one down. Though it does provide more protection. This dragon riding gear will allow me agility and swiftness. I have trained without armor before, therefore I believe I will be alright. At least, I hope so.

As I'm clipping the Targaryen pin onto the chest of my gear, I sense motion near the doorway. I turn my head to see Aemond. His eyes are heavy but he seems more than ready for a battle. He approaches me and turns me to face him. I look him in the eye and notice he hasn't yet put the patch over his eye. Usually he does it first thing in the morning, sometimes he even sleeps with it on. I understand it to be a sort of insecurity he has.

"Don't tell me you've lost your patch." I say.

He shakes his head. "I believe that any opponents will fear me more on the battlefield if they can see how I've overcome loosing an eye." His tone is edged with adrenaline.

"Or they will target you more seeing as you're partially blind." I joke.

"Then they will be surprised when a partially blind man drives a sword through their chest." He says with a cocky smirk. I roll my eyes. He takes the pin in his thumb and clips it, evening it out. I guess I hadn't quite put it on correctly. He disappears from the bathing chambers then returns with his armor.

I help him out of his nightwear then help him with his armor. I adjust and clip the straps of the tunic. He handles the armor around his legs. I even get him to step into his boots with my help. I run my fingers through his hair then tell him to turn. I take a strand of hair from the top of his head and begin to braid it down his back. It reaches from the crown of his head to the end of the rest of his hair. Targaryens always wear braids into battle.

He then tells me to turn and I obey. He divides my hair into three sections and begins working. The three braids eventually jumble into one around my neck. When he's finished, I run my hand over his work, feeling it.

"Where did you learn to braid so quickly and so well?" I ask, inquisitively. He shrugs his shoulders and adjusts the tunic.

"I have been watching you braid your hair every morning. I'm a quick learner." He answers. I roll my eyes again and push his shoulder playfully. He snatches my hand and pulls me into a hug.

I sink my chin into his shoulder and he returns the favor. His hand rubs my back gently and mine rests over his shining armor. I take in the scent of his hair. It smells of both dirt from outside and the clean sheets of the bed. Sour and sweet. The light shines through the small bathing chamber window as he backs away and rests his forehead on mine. I wish we could stay like this instead of the fate that awaits us outside.

He takes my hand then we leave from the bathing chambers back to the main room. Lucerys is awake and already dressed in some armor.

"I gave him some armor from my wardrobe. It fits him like a glove." Aemond states. I grin and approach my youngest brother. I tug at the armor on his body. It's true, it does fit him rather well. I take his hand and produce some words of encouragement. He will be with our strongest men down in the dragon pit, waiting for me to return there with Aemond so that we may mount our dragons.

All three of us leave the chamber. I command Ser Harwin to take Lucerys down to the dragon pit, and of course, he does. Lucerys is his son, I cannot separate them. Aemond and I march down the halls to Alicent's chambers, where Aegon and Helaena are, waiting for us to enter. A guard pushes open the doors for us and we enter.

My eyes fall to Aegon who is dressed in thick black armor. Then to Helaena, who wears dark green riding gear. Aegon's hair is short, but he's managed to fit a small braid by the front of his face. Helaena's hair is pulled into a complex waterfall of braids that end up in a low bun at the base of her neck. The two siblings seem to be talking about something by the window. Alicent sits idly on the green sofa, sipping rather aggressively on a cup of wine.

When she sees Aemond, she practically throws the cup onto the bedside table. She runs over to him and hugs him so tightly I'm afraid he may loose a rib. She strokes his hair as they hug. He seems shocked, but soon enough he untenses. She pulls away from him and seems surprised to see that he's gone without his patch. She then turns to me and hugs me. I struggle to breathe.

"Take care of my babies." She whispers into my ear. I nod. She releases me from her grasp then calle Aegon and Helaena over. I haven't seen much of Aegon since kissing him in an act of revenge in the corridor. He seems to be avoiding eye contact, which I don't blame him for.

Words of prayer are exchanged around the room, led by Alicent. The four of us exit the chamber to the hallway, leaving the once Queen alone. There are six guards posted outside of her chamber. She will be safe. I turn to Helaena and wave down some passing guards from the hallway.

"Take the Princess to the dragon pit," I command to them before turning back to Helaena. "When we come to the dragon pit, prepare to mount your beast and take to the battlefield." I say to her.

She nods. "There are five beasts on the side that wants us dead." She mutters. I follow her with my eyes, confused, as she marches down the hallway with the guards. I find myself trying to grab a tan decipher what she said, but I cannot.

"She's always saying strange things," Aegon mutters. "I find it easiest to ignore her random thoughts." He adds. I exchange an annoyed look with Aemond then tighten my jaw. I've sent Lucerys and Helaena down to the dragon pit, which means now we must make our way to the battlefield. We will watch from the tower, but if things get heated or it seems as though we are loosing, we will have to take to the battlefield either by foot or by dragon back.

The people need to see their King and Queen supporting their decision of this war and fighting for their land. It will be enough to stand in the tower and watch, but I am assured that we will have to either run down and fight with swords or fly down and fight with fire.

My mind has stored Helaena's words. As we walk towards the most Eastern tower to see the battle from a birds eye view, I turn myself trying to decipher her words in my head. There are five beasts on the side that wants us dead. She said. I have no clue what she might mean, but I've learned to listen what she has to say, no matter what her foolish brother and husband had to say about it. As a woman, I will listen to a fellow woman with open ears. Some people may call her crazy, as Aegon has, but I find her far from crazy.

We stand at the edge of the tower. I look down at the fields. Men. Thousands of them. Blood has splattered the white ground for as far as the eye can see. Swords strike, shields deflect, and yells tremble the ground. I find myself searching for the white hair of my parents, but every head is hidden away by a steel helmet of armor. I tighten my grip around the railing of the tower.

Between the screams and yells of men, I hear something else rumbling in the distance. The top of the tower blocks my view of the sky, so I poke my head out and turn my view up to the sky. The fog is smug and thick, but if I narrow my eyes enough, I can see through the clouds. Two clouds have parted just enough for me to see through them.

One dragon, golden. A second dragon, black and red. A third dragon, red. A fourth dragon, white and pink. A fifth dragon, smaller than the rest, green and red. I could recognize these dragons anywhere. Syrax, ridden by Rhaenyra. Caraxes, ridden by Daemon. Meleys, ridden by Rhaenys. Morning, ridden by Rhaena. Vermax, ridden by Jacaerys.

      They're here. They've come.

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