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                            124 AC Red Keep

Meriahnya stood on the sandy shores of Blackwater Bay, dressed in simple silver and blue silk dress; her hair pinned up in a proper if slightly messy bun. Across from her sitting on a rock Niliana stood tall and let out a happy screech. She was glad to be able to go in the water again. It was past mid-afternoon, and Jace and Lucaerys went to the dragon pits with Aegon and Aemond.  After 8  years of endless winning and blabbering from her brother, Jacaerys would finally try to claim Vermax, gaining him a dragon. This was the perfect opportunity for the young sea dragon to sneak off without anyone noticing she was gone. Meriahnya turned toward her sea-green hatchling, with a wide smile. " Ready, girl."

Nilanma nodded, letting out puffs of seawater. Meriahyna chuckled at her dragon's unusual, if occasionally harmful quirk. If Nilanma was feeling happy, seawater puffed out of her nostrils and Jacerys had been on the receiving end of an unfortunate shower one time.

"Ok, then let's embark on a splashing venture."

Nilanma outright sprayed Meriahnya, her little yaps combined with her attempts at a twirl. After which, Meriahyna prepared to take off in the water—

"Meriahyna Velaryon!"

Laenor had run to the shore upon recognizing Nilanna's signature scented saltwater spray. Meriahnya curtsies and waits for her father's disapproving glance, something that never came.

"Were you planning on a swing without me?"

Meriahyna's eyes lit up, and an innocent smile appeared on her face. " No, Papa."

"You are an atrocious liar." Laenor laughed. "Still better than Lucerys."

"Luke's eyes practically have a mind of their own."

"And apparently, so does your dragon."

Nillana let out a huff, nearly spraying Laenor with saltwater, had he not dodged in time.

"Sorry little Beryl; I believe I'll steal away your mistress for a while."

" Father, can you distract Mother for a while?" Meriahyna asked. " She's no doubt looking for me to see how I'm doing in my lessons with Septa Mariela?, to be honest, I've been slacking off on my studies." She admitted.

" Meri, the histories are important as well." Laenor scolded gently. "Dragon-riding and the occasional swim will keep your body healthy, but books will sharpen the mind."

" I know Papa, but Mother has been overwhelmed with endless history lessons, rather than music and embroidery," Meirahyna exclaimed.

" I just want some time for myself." The Sea Dragon mumbled, gazing up at her father with puppy dog eyes.

Laenor shook his head, knowing he couldn't turn away from his daughter's pleas, let alone those beautiful eyes of hers. " Alright, I will keep your Mother busy for a bit; but you must promise me you will do better in your lessons."

" I promise, Papa," Meriahyna answered, jumping into her father's arms, and hugging him tightly. Laenor pulled his daughter in close, pressing kisses to her head.

" I want you back before sundown," Laenor said, pulling away from his daughter. The Velaryon Prince turned his gaze onto Niliana.  Watch after my daughter now, don't let her out of your sight.

Niliana bowed her head toward the Sea Prince and let out a screech, fully understanding his words. She turned toward her mistress and grasped the small hand with her large, scaled claw. Meriahnya clutched tightly around the sea-scale dragon's clawed hand and took off running toward the water."

She stopped for a moment, dipping her toes in the water, enjoying its coolness. The moment soon came to an end when, all of a sudden, she felt Niliana grab her by the waist and dunk her into the water.

" Niliana, I wasn't ready!" Meriahnya screeched, trying to brush the water out of her eyes.

Niliana let out a snort, extending her large hands out floating lazily in the water, her green wings spread out widely across the water casting a shadow over the sun below them. Meriahnya swam over toward her dragon, grabbing one of her large hands into hers. " Let's adventure down below, girl."

The two dove under the water together, swimming deeper into the sea. Meriahnya spread her arms and legs out, trying to match Niliana's movements, wondering where she was leading her. As Niliana continued to dive, the water pressure began to drop. Eventually, Niliana came to a stop in front of a cave, turned her back towards her mistress, and pointed towards the cave.

Meriahyna paused, gazing back at her dragon, hesitant for a second. "Girl, are you sure about this? I don't think it's such a good idea," she thought. On the other hand, the young sea dragon felt strangely drawn to the cave and wanted to explore it, but didn't want to take the risk.

"Listen to your heart's desires, Meri," she heard a soft female voice echo in her head. "I won't let anything happen to you. Trust me as your friend, your companion, and your dragon. My Lady Lusine entrusted me to look after you."

Meriahyna's eyes widened in shock, staring at her dragon in bewitchment. "You can hear my thoughts."

"I have waited thousands of years to hear your thoughts," Niliana responded. "And now you can hear mine, you and I are one another's soul."

"Soul?" the young Sea Dragon questioned through their bond.

"Thousands of years ago, I served another mistress named Coraline, the first ever Valyrian Sea Goddess." She answered.

"What happened to her?" Meriahyna inquired.

" No one knows," the sea dragon responded, in a somber tone, turning her lavender eyes away from the girl. Her priestess, Lady Lusine, became her successor afterwards.

"I thought I would never take to the skies again," she continued. "I wandered alone for centuries in the sea, with no rider or anyone to talk to. But then one day, I felt a shift in my soul, and I flew up the shore for the first time. I came across you and felt drawn to you, and you to me."

" How come you didn't say anything soon to me?" Meriahnya asked. Why go on in silence?

" I didn't want to scare you off, little one." the Sea Dragon mumbled. It has been centuries since I last spoke to someone. Even Lady Lusine, who I serve as an obedient subject, I'm too scared to even speak to her.

Meriahnya grasped Niliana's hands into hers. " You don't have to be afraid anymore."  You can tell me anything

Niliana smiled widely at the girl, her lavender eyes gazing at her softly. " I know, Meri." 

" Now, why do you wish to go to that cave so badly?" The young Sea Dragon asked.

" Do you trust me?" Niliana asked, gazing at her intensely, not wishing to scare her off.

The Princess shocked her head. " Of course, I do."

Niliana clasped her mistress's tiny hands within her own large, clawed grasp, pulling her toward the cave. Together, they dove in, swimming deeper into the enveloping darkness. Meriahyna gazed around and saw ancient carvings etched into the cave's walls, attempting to discern their details. Niliana pulled her away, guiding them toward the bright light at the end of the tunnel. They swam towards it, and soon, air filled Meriahyna's nostrils once again."

Meriahnya rose to the surface of the cave, gazing around in awe; she found herself in an underwater grotto filled with endless treasures. Above, large kelp trees stretched high, reaching towards the ceiling of the cave.

" What is this place?"  The Velaryon asked, turning her gaze on her dragon.

" My home." Niliana answered, lifting the young Princess onto her back. Hang on, tight.

She grasped onto Niliana's blue, spiky scales, holding on tightly as instructed. Niliana led them deeper into the cave. Meriahnya gazed downward and saw a herb of flounders swimming beneath them. She leaned down, placing her hand into the water, trying to touch them. Suddenly, one of the flounders rose to the surface; its green eyes stared back at her curiously. Meriahnya smiled back at the fish. "Hi, my name is Meri," she introduced herself, waving her hand. "What's your name?"

The flounder smiled back at her, swimming closer towards her. " I'm Fluke." He answered.

" It's nice to meet you, Fluke." The young Princess repiled, offering her hand.

Fluke stumbled backwards for a second, alarmed not expecting for her to answer him back. " You can understand me!" He exclaimed. But, how?"

" I don't know." Meriahyna said, shrugging her shoulders.

He swam closer to her, lifting his gaze. His eyes widened in shock when he noticed her legs. 'You're human.'

Meriahnya's light  violet's eyes began to spark, smiling, she gracefully  lifted her legs to show him, wiggling her toes. " I know it's pretty cool, right? Though, not as cool as your fins."

" They are pretty cool." Fluke said, flapping his fins at her.

" Meri, who are you talking to?" Niliana asked, turning her head back towards her mistress.

" I'm talking to my new friend, Fluke." The Princess answered. He's a flounder, with adorable fins."

"Niliana!" Fluke exclaimed, recognizing his friend's voice. He jumped out of the water and onto the dragon's scaly back. "Where have you been all this time?"

"I had matters I had to take care of," Niliana responded.

"Who's the human?" Fluke asked.

"She's my new rider," the dragon answered. "So be nice to her."

"So, what's it like being up there on the surface?" Fluke asked, turning towards the young princess.

"Well, it's very fun, warm, and much lighter up there than down here," the young sea dragon answered. "Also, there's a ton of delicious food and sweets, such as lemon cakes."

"Ooh, I would love to go to the surface one day," Fluke squealed. "I bet humans are as nice as you up there."

Niliana let out a snort at the flounder's comment. "Yes, nice enough to hunt your kind when they're hungry and cook your remains for their dinner."

Fluke jumped back in shock, his eyes widened in fear. "Eat my kind?"

"Humans eat a lot of seafood up there, unfortunately," the young princess mumbled. "It's the way of life; we humans tend to hunt animals, sea creatures for our sustenance."

"You're not going to eat me, are you?" the flounder rambled.

Meriahnya chuckled softly. "Of course not, I would never eat a friend. Besides, I'm a vegetarian. I don't eat meat or any type of seafood."

Niliana halted in her tracks before an ancient golden statue of a beautiful mermaid who held a trident. The mermaid's hair was delicately braided into a bun and adorned with pearls. Atop her head sat a solid metal crown, embedded with a sapphire gemstone. Carved into the center of the gemstone was the symbol of a blue dragon with sea-green wings, roaring out sea-green flames. Pearls and shell clams were intricately carved into the sides of the crown. Below the statue laid two golden chests.

Meriahnya gazed at the statue curiously, sensing a magical aura coming from the statue. Tilting her head up, she noticed a glow of light flashing from the mermaid's eyes. " Nil, who is-" before she could finish her sentence

Fluke jumped off Niliana's scaly back, and swam towards the statue, his eyes fluttered. " And, who might you be?" He said, in a muscular voice, raising his eyebrows at her.

" Coraline, the Valyrian Sea Goddess, Queen of the seas." The sea dragon answered. My creator, my mistress, my first rider.

" I'm Fluke." The flounder said, introducing himself to the statue, waiting for a reply back.

" She's dead." Niliana said. This is just a statue of her.

Fluke gazed at the dragon in pity. " I'm sorry."

" I thought all Valyrian gods and Goddesses lived in Valyria." Meriahyna inquired, remembering her grandfather telling her of the ancient tales of Valyria.

"  They did, but Coraline." The blue scaly beast responded. Coraline lived on land and sea, she would divide her time between the two words.

" You must miss her a lot." The young sea dragon mumbled.

Niliana's crouched, titling  her neck back to gaze at the young Princess. " I don't know what I am without her." She answered.

Niliana reached forward grabbing the chests off the floor. Her eyes flashed a lavender color immediately opening the chests. Inside one chest resided a huge silver egg, dyed in a blue hue. The other chest housed a majestic purple egg, dyed in a light brown color. Carefully, she took them out of the chests, cradling them in her scaly hand as a mother would do to her newborn. Bending forward, Niliana pressed a kiss, small spits of  dragon fire surrounded the eggs.

Meriahyna gazed at the eggs in awe, the eggs were large and shiny coated in pearl and shell clams.  She turned her gaze towards  her dragon, feeling a wave of sadness wash over her.

" Nil, are these your eggs?" She asked.

" No, they're not." The dragon repiled. They're my siblings.

" Siblings!" Fluke exclaimed.

"Centuries ago, Coraline created me and my siblings to be her children, her protectors, and guardians of the seas," retorted the Dragon. "I was the only one able to hatch from my egg. My siblings didn't come out of their eggs on their own for some reason. But, I haven't lost hope. I know one day they'll hatch."

"Maybe, they don't have enough warmth," Meriahnya said. "We could try heating them up in the fireplace."

"They're not regular dragons, little one," Niliana rebuffed. "They're sea dragons. Sea dragons don't need heat to survive like other dragons. Sea dragons and fire dragons are opposite species. While fire dragons adore the heat, we sea dragons thrive on coolness and open air."

"Is that why you don't get along with the other dragons in the dragon pit, besides Dreamfyre and Terassion?" asked the young Velaryon.

"I get along well with Vermithor," Niliana defended. "But as for the younger dragons, they are spoiled little brats that are disrespectful and very obnoxious. They have no respect for their elders or authority. They rarely listen to their riders."

"The dragon keepers are such old crocks. They favor the younger dragons more and feed them more than older dragons like Vermithor and myself."

"Do they mistreat you?" Meriahyna asked.

Niliana let out a snort. "No, little one; I show them my sharp teeth from time to time, and they cower away in fear. One of them had the audacity to use a whip on me just because I was taking a nap near the pit."

"They did what?" she hissed, her eyes blazing in anger. "They have no right to treat you so. I will talk to my grandfather about this and demand he replace them."

" It's okay, Meri." the dragon reassured her mistress. I can handle myself.

Suddenly, the cave began to darken around them as the sun beneath them started to set. "It's sundown. Oh no, father's going to scold me!" Meriahnya shrieked.

"Let's get you home. We can come back tomorrow."

"Can I come with you guys?" the flounder asked, swimming towards them.

"No, you can't," the sea dragon huffed.

"Please, pretty seaweed on top," Fluke pleaded.

"Fluke, I would love nothing more than to bring you back with us, but there's no place for you to stay," the Princess signed.

"And those royals are not going to want a flounder swirling around their castle."

"I won't be any trouble at all," Fluke mumbled. "And besides, I'm really small. I can fit somewhere." His eyes began to sadden, his cheek pouted, gazing at them with sparkly eyes.

" Aw Nil, we can't leave him behind." the girl said.

Niliana rolled her eyes, letting out a massive growl. "  There's nowhere for him to sleep."

"I'm sure I can find a bowl somewhere in the kitchens and put some water in it. That'll be his sleeping quarters for the time being until I can find a permanent spot for him," Meriahnya responded, taking Fluke into her arms, gently holding him.

" And, what about your scorpion fish mother?" Niliana hummed. She's not going to allow you to keep Fluke.

" I'll talk to my father, he'll sway my mother over into letting me keep Fluke." The young Velaryon reassured her dragon.

Niliana turned her gaze towards her flounder friend. " Don't draw any attention. And, whatever you do, don't go breaking  out into tune.

" I can't sing my tunes, come on." Fluke groaned.

" You can sing?"

Fluke nodded. " Of course, I can. I'm one of the very best of my kind." Wanna, hear a tune?

" Oh, please don—"

Fluke cleared his throat and began to sing.

" Birds, they'll fly high in the sky.
The sun will be shining bright, casting its light.
I'll be doing whatever flounders do on the shore
With a nice ice drink  in my hand.
My fins will be underneath the sun, probably getting gorgeously tanned under the light.
Just imagine how much light shines on the shore.

I'll finally see a light blue cloud breeze, blowing away a thunderstorm, with such ease.
And finally, see the clouds move in circles in the sky.
A sight so beautiful, it could make an eel weep in tears.

And, I can't wait to see what my fellow buddies think of me, as happy as can be.

Just imagine how much light shines on the shor-"

"Enough!" Niliana growled, turning around and swimming out of the cave. Fluke continued with his tunes, annoying the dragon, while Meriahnya chuckled and giggled at his words.

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Meriahnya spied the halls for any guards or maids nearby, once the coast was clear she ran across the hallway, juggling Fluke in her arms." Hey, slow down." Fluke said. I'm too young to die, I only received my fins weeks ago."

" Ssh, you're gonna get us caught." whispered the Princess.

She finally made it to her chambers and all but opened the door with a bang. She shut it tightly and placed Fluke down on her nightstand. "Okay, I think we're safe," Meriahnya said."

"Where have you been all day, young lady?" a voice shrieked behind her.

Meriahyna turned around and was met with an angry, disappointed gaze from her mother. Behind her mother's skirts, her brother Jacaerys stood with a smug look on his face, who had his arms folded over his chest, his eyes filled with amusement.

" Mother, I'm so sorry, me and Niliana went out for a swim and got carried awa-"

" So, you decided to go swimming rather than attend your lessons." Rhaenyra scolded.

Meriahnya lowered her gaze to the floor. " I just want some time for myself, mother." I'm always stuck in boring lessons all day."

" You're a Princess, your life doesn't belong to you, it belongs to the crown, to me!" The Princess exclaimed. You have a duty to this realm, this family to attend to your duties dutifully without any argument whatsoever.

The young Velaryin scoffed at her mother's words, lifting her gaze up. " I have done my duties to the realm and the crown unlike you, mother." She barked back.

" What did you say?" Rhaenyra demanded, her eyes blazing with fire.

" Don't try to turn this on mother, Meri." Jacaerys snarled, stepping towards his sister.  You're the one who is forgetting your loyalty around here. You see, mother, I told she's spending too much time with that weirdo."

"  Don't call her that!" The young sea dragon hissed. And, beside this has nothing to do with you, butt out.

" Make me?" Jacaerys challenged, his eyes darting up towards her. Or, are you not a dragon enough to do something?

"You're pathetic. You think just because Aegon has taken you under his wings, you're some kind of mighty dragon, but let me tell you: you are nothing but a sheep." Meriahnya clapped back.

" I am a dragon!" Jacaerys shirked.  A true one, unlike you who is nothing but a seahorse

" Don't speak to your brother like that." Rhaenyra bellowed. This is not about him, this is about you not taking responsibility for your actions.

" He's the one who started it, mother." The young Princess argued. He always stir up the pot, and whenever I try to defend myself I'm in the wrong.

The young Prince rolled his eyes. " I am only trying to look after you, sister." He replied.  You've been spending far too much time with Helaena and Daeron, that you forgot who your true family is.

Rhaenyra nodded, in agreement with her son. " Yes, it seems the Hightowers have swayed your sister over to their side."

"You will no longer play with that boy and girl, do you understand?" The Princess said.

" That's not fair!" Meriahnya growled. I only missed one lesson.

" They are a bad influence on you." Rhaenyra defended. And, besides, you need to spend more time with this family.

"Jacaerys here has missed multiple lessons and called his Septa a pig, yet he can still hang out with Aegon of all people. Why does he get to do whatever he wants?" said the Velaryon girl.

Rhaenyra ignored her daughter's words, walked past her, and turned her gaze towards the girl. 'Tomorrow morning, you will be in lessons all day until dinner time, and there will be no dragon flying for three weeks,' she said. With that, she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her."

Jacaerys said in a teasing, sing-song voice, 'You should've just attended your lessons as mother instructed, don't you think?'

" Get out of my room!" growled, the young Princess.

" 'Alright, crybaby have it your way then," the young Prince said, with a taunting laugh, making his way towards the door. He stopped in his tracks when he saw Fluke sitting on top of the nightstand.

'What's this?' Jacaerys asked, picking up the bowl.

'It's my fish, leave it alone,' Meriahyna said, stepping towards her brother and taking the bowl out of his hands.

" Is that an angelfish?" Jacaerys questioned.

" No, doofus, it's a flounder." She corrected him. Do you ever read at all?

The young Prince rolled his eyes at his sister, gazing at the fish. Fluke clenched his teeth in fear, beginning to shake. "Where did you find him?" he asked.

"On the shore," Meriahnya lied.

"Good catch, sister. We can cook this little fellow up for tomorrow's dinner," Jacaerys grinned. "It's been a while since I've had a nice piece of fish."

"You will do no such thing!" Meriahyna said, standing protectively in front of Fluke. "He's my friend, so I'm afraid, brother, you'll have to live on sheep for the time being."

"I don't need permission from you, sister," Jacaerys snarled. "I'll just ask Mother, and she'll make you hand your friend over."

"Get out," ordered the young Princess.

Jacaerys glared at his sister before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Once he was gone, Fluke began to swirl around the bowl of water in panic.

"Oh my god, he's going to eat me!" Fluke shrieked. "I don't want to be fish bait. I'm too young to die. I haven't even gotten to see the sun yet."

"Fluke, calm down," Meriahnya said. "It's going to be okay. I'll talk to my father; he'll give an earful to my brother."

"Until then, stay low, don't draw any attention to yourself," she added.

Fluke nodded, calming his nerves down. "Your mother really is a scorpion fish."

Meriahnya giggled. "Yeah, she is a snapping, judgmental person that digs her claws into everyone around her."

"Why is she like that?" Fluke asked.

The young Princess shrugged her shoulders. "She's always been like that, even when she was younger. She had room to improve herself, but she ended up getting swept away by a certain Prince.

For years, rumors had circulated about her mother and her uncle, Prince Daemon. The rogue Prince was married to Lady Laena Velaryon and had twin girls named Baela and Rhaena, who were the same age as she was. Time and again, her mother would write to them, inviting them to stay at Dragonstone, but her letters would remain unanswered.

To this very day, her mother's heart belonged to the Rogue Prince. Even Ser Harwin had taken notice of it. While Rhaenyra held deep affection and love for her knight, her feelings for the Rogue Prince overshadowed that.

"If only the Dragon Princess knew the type of trouble she would get herself into later on. The Rogue Prince's heart, it seemed, remained with himself.

Later that night, just as Meriahnya was about to rest for the night, a gust of wind swept through her chambers. The wind whirled around the room, knocking everything to the ground. Meriahnya rose from the bed, trying to close the windows shut, but was knocked to the ground by a gust of wind, sending her sprawling onto the cold, hard floor. As she scrambled to her feet, a sudden downpour of water droplets cascaded onto the floor, and rose up towards the ceiling, growing in size.

The young sea dragon stumbled back, her eyes wide with shock. The water began to dance in the air, swirling and twirling, before it started to morph, shaping itself into the figure of a beautiful woman.

The  woman stepped towards the startled girl, a bright smile playing on her lips. "Fear not, little one," she cooed, her voice as soft as a lullaby.

"Who...who are you?" Meriahnya managed to stutter out, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I am Lady Lusine," the entity introduced herself, her voice echoing around the room, "I am your guardian protector."

"My...what!" The young princess exclaimed, her eyes darting around in confusion.

With a gentle touch, Lusine helped Meriahnya to her feet, her hands resting lightly on the young princess's shoulders. "You and I," she said, her voice filled with a strange warmth, "are linked together by destiny."

" Destiny?" questioned the young Sea Dragon.

"Come to the Temple of Naerea, there I will tell you everything you need to know," Lusine answered.

"I don't know where that is," Meriahnya stated.

"It's in the Smoking Sea, the sea that divides Westeros and Essos," the goddess answered .

"That's where the ruins of Old Valyria are?" Meriahnya exclaimed. "The last time a Targaryen flew there, they ended up with firewyrms inside of them." She recalled the story of Princess Aerea and Balerion flying to the ruins of Old Valyria, only to return with a possessed Princess Aerea, the masters had tried treating the Princess, but the damage done to her body was far too severe to be fixed.

"No harm will come to you or Niliana, I swear," the Sea Goddess vowed.

"I don't think it's a good idea," Meriahnya mumbled. Besides, my mother grounded me from dragon flying for 3 weeks.

Lusine sighed, raising a hand to gently stroke the girl's cheek. She had no intention of forcing Meriahnya to come with her if she wasn't ready.

"Think about it, little one," Lusine advised gently. "Perhaps one day you'll visit me. Greatness awaits you, but you must decide if you are ready to embrace it."

And with that, the Goddess's illusion vanished, leaving droplets of water to fall to the floor. Meriahnya stood there startled, unsure what she had just witnessed and began to hear the Goddess's words echo in her head. " Greatness awaits you."

"How could she be meant for greatness? She was just a princess with nothing to inherit," Jacaerys would taunt her. While Jacaerys and Lucerys would be kings of their own nations, she would be stuck being a brooding mare to a highborn lord, taking care of endless babies and running a household.

No matter what she did, she would never be a son, nor important enough to her mother. "If only I was born a man like my brothers, then maybe I would have my mother's love and affection," she thought. "You are special, little one," a voice echoed through her head. "You will see soon enough."

Meriahyna lowered her gaze to the ground, staring at the puddle of water where the mysterious woman vanished. "Lady Lusine, who in the seven gods are you?All the young Princess knew was that she was left wanting to know more about the mysterious women.

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Yeah, I know it's been a few days :)