Dragons of Destiny

King's Landing 305 AC.

Aegon.

He'd rarely seen her this upset and so the night was spent together, just the two of them with Ghost and Lyarhaex. The red dragon just like the white wolf almost seeming to act as pillows for his wife when he would move to get her something. Stand up to fetch her some food and Ghost would take his place on the couch. Move to speak to someone at the door and when he turned back Lyarhaex would be in her arms.

When he took her to bed she almost clung to him as she slept and he spent most of the night awake and holding her in his arms. Each time she'd shiver or shudder he'd run his fingers through her hair or softly stroke her back until she stilled. Aegon not needing to see into her head to know that the dreams she was having were bad ones. They'd not spoken of Essos much, other than the tales of what she had done there and he believed she was feeling guilty about leaving them alone. His wife's heart was too big and too pure for this world and right now it was hurting and as he softly kissed her forehead he swore he'd make those responsible pay dearly for that.

Waking up the next morning was like waking to a completely different woman. Dany had done her crying in her sleep and though there was still sadness in her eyes, there was determination there too. They broke their fast and she sent for Grey Worm and Missandei, Aegon leaving them alone even though she didn't ask him to. He knew the three of them shared something that he had not been a part of and so could offer each other words that he didn't have. Instead, he moved to the sparring yard to take his own frustrations out there.

"Feel up for a spar, Ser Jaime?" he asked as they walked, the knight giving him a small smile and a nod.

As usual, when he reached the sparring yard it was to find it remarkably full. Whether this was how life at court usually went or that people were just striving to keep in shape for the battles to come, he couldn't tell. His arrival created a stir though and as he and Jaime lined up to face each other he could see some of those sparring stop to look. Jaime though one-handed and that being his offhand had gotten better since the fight with the dead. He may not be a true match for him but it wasn't an easy win either and the two of them were both smiling by the time they were done.

He looked around for another opponent and found that Ned Dayne had finished his own spar, Aegon quickly waving the man over so they could face each other. The younger man was the very best opponent he'd faced even including the Night King and their spar soon drew even more interest. Blackfyre against Dawn also ensuring that all eyes in the sparring yard were on them as the two blades clashed. It was fast, frenetic, and were they not as good as they both were then one of them would have certainly been hurt. Aegon finally taking the match with a feint and a crashing down of his sword's hilt onto the hand that held Dawn.

Hearing the sound of clapping, he turned to see the Sellsword standing on the balcony with a smug look on his face. His hands coming together almost in a mocking manner as he looked down at him and Ned. Only the knowledge that if he faced him now then he'd not hold back stopped him from running up the stairs and dragging him down to place a sword in his hand. Daario was lucky that his wife still needed him to tell her what exactly had happened in Meereen and even luckier that Arya was for once not here. Aegon may have been able to hold in his anger, he doubted his little sister would have, and seeing the man gutted though amusing would not be productive.

"That man is a fool, your grace." Ned said as they shared some water.

"Fools are easy to predict, Ned, they'll do foolish things each and every time, give me a fool over a clever man any day." he said to a chuckle.

"When do you think we'll be heading for Dorne, your grace?" Ned asked.

"We have some appointments to be made here and then once those are done we'll load up the ships and set sail. Eager to see your homeland again?" he asked as he swallowed his water.

"My aunt is in Sunspear, your grace." Ned said softly.

He moved over to the younger man and placed a hand on his shoulder before Ned turned to look at him.

"I give you my oath, whatever it takes we'll see your aunt is unharmed." he said and Ned nodded.

"I thank you, your grace."

"You know Sunspear well?" he asked and Ned shook his head.

"Ser Daemon or the princess know it better than I, I spent most of my life in Blackhaven with Lord Beric and then in the Riverlands with the Brotherhood." Ned said sadly.

"He was a good man, Lord Beric. Though I only knew him for some short time and by then I believe he was a different sort than he had been, he was a good man." he said.

"The revivals took a lot out of him, your grace. I heard him and Thoros discuss it one night when they thought me asleep. How each time he came back he'd did so after losing another piece of himself, a part of him that made him a man being stripped away each time he fell." Ned said his voice sounding even sadder and his eyes now firmly focussed on the ground in front of him.

"Then the man he once was must have been a sight to behold." he said to a soft nod from the younger man.

"That he was, your grace." Ned said before walking away.

As he did so Aegon was left wondering how much like his uncle Ned truly was. Did he carry much of Ser Arthur in him? If so which parts? He was good and true and he seemed honorable. The young man was one of the few lords that he'd met that he could find few faults in. Even when they had spoken about what he'd done with his cousin, Ned had listened and asked but one question.

" Did he deserve to die, your grace?"

That was it, as simple as that, did he deserve to die, and once Aegon had told him what he had done, he hadn't even needed to answer that question.

"Ser Arthur, was he anything like his nephew, Ser Jaime?" he asked turning to the other man.

"In some respects, he was, your grace. He was less effusive and much quieter but they share some traits." Jaime said.

"Then the world is much poorer without him." he said.

"That it is, your grace."

He nodded to the knight and the two of them walked back into the Red Keep. Today would be spent naming lords and taking oaths of fealty and he looked forward to neither. There were elements to being a king that he cared not for, propriety, protocol, and procedures that if he had his way he'd eliminate and yet he knew they were needed. In time he and his wife would change Westeros for the better, for now, they needed it to be stable as soon enough they would be leaving, not just for Dorne but for Essos too.

Aegon made his way to the Tower of the Hand, he was eager to see Davos and to annoy the man a little. It wouldn't only be lords he didn't know personally who'd be named today. Walking up the steps and then entering the room he felt the smile appear on his face as he heard the curses from Davos's solar. He bid the guards not to announce him and knocked on the door himself and was soon treated to some of those curses directed at him.

"I fucking told ya, I don't need anything, for fucks sake I'm not a fucking cripple." Davos said annoyedly.

"Is that any way to speak to a king?" he said entering the room, Davos looking at him and frowning as he did so.

"It is when this is his fault." Davos said looking at the papers strewn on his desk.

"I told you to hire some men to help." he said taking a seat across from him.

"I'm the Hand, thanks to you." Davos said and Aegon chuckled, deepening the frown on the man's face.

"You really wanted to curse didn't you?" he said trying not to let the chuckle turn into a full laugh.

"Fuck off, your grace." Davos said both of them then giving in to it and laughing as Aegon poured the man an ale.

"Drink." he said and Davos nodded.

He waited until he had taken a good swallow of it before he looked at him once again, Aegon's humor now tinged with concern.

"Is it truly that bad?" he asked concernedly.

"It takes some getting used to, we really need a Master of Coin, Aegon." Davos said and he nodded.

"I don't know who to trust Davos. Jon I believe is a good man and Varys has proved himself, Lord Paxter I'll get to know more of when we set sail. You've earned both mine and Dany's trust ten times over and that's why despite it not being what you want, we need you as Hand. Princess Arianne doesn't want a representative as of yet, she's far too concentrated on retaking Dorne." he said shaking his head.

"Have you spoken to the Vale Lords?" Davos asked.

"Not yet."

"Speak to them and to Varys, Lady Anya especially." Davos said and he looked at him curiously.

"Why her?" he asked.

"She had a run-in with Lady Sansa, Aegon." Davos said and he didn't get to finish as Aegon rose quickly to his feet and was out the door before he did so.

King's Landing 305 AC.

Dany.

Her dreams had been filled with images she'd long since forgotten. Men, women, and children treated as property, whipped, beaten and some even killed at the whims of their masters. Each time that she felt she was sinking into a pit of despair she felt his hands touching her and helping her out of it. His fingers in her hair or touching her back, his words soft and simple as he promised that together they would free them all. Between Aegon, Ghost, and Lyarhaex they'd gotten her through both the immediate aftermath of Daario's words and the night that followed.

So much so that when she woke the next morning it was with an even greater resolve than she had shown in the Throne Room with Aegon. Then anger had been her guide, she'd been angry over what had happened, angry and determined to see her people free. Later it had been worry and concern she'd felt most as thoughts of their suffering had threatened to overwhelm her. Now though she felt only resolve, a resolve that was soon strengthened even more when Aegon left her to speak with Missandei and Grey Worm.

"You heard?" she asked them both as they sat down at her table, all three of them breaking their fast together though only she and Missandei really ate.

"He lost the city." Missandei said, the sadness in her voice was one that she shared in.

"He did and we must take it back." she said determinedly.

"We go to Meereen? "Grey Worm asked, an odd look on his face.

"Aegon has agreed that once we take Dorne we set sail for Meereen." she said and she saw Grey Worm nod.

"Should we take the city back my queen, when we leave it will fall again." Missandei said and she reached out to take her by the hand.

"I so much wished to be here, to sit on the throne of my family. I believed it was my birthright, my destiny, and I thought I'd left the Bay of Dragons in much better shape than I'd found it in. I thought I'd freed them and their lives and the lives of their children would be lives without chains, but I made a mistake." she said as Grey Worm looked at her curiously.

"My queen?" Missandei said confused.

"I forgot who the masters were and what they were. As long as there are masters there will be chains and I promise you both that this time I'll not make a mistake. This time I'll leave no master alive and when I'm done there will be no one to place a chain around another's neck." she said looking to them both "Are you with me?" she asked almost softly.

"Always my queen." Missandei said with a smile.

"The Unsullied follow Queen Daenerys, I follow Queen Daenerys." Grey Worm said.

She hated that they were not to know peace, it had been what she had thought they'd receive once the war for the throne was finished. A life without battles or wars, one where they could relax and grow old, that was not to be their life, or at least not for some time. Aegon was with her and that gave her more comfort than she could ever have asked for. Knowing that her closest supporters, her friends, were with her too made her feel as if she was doing something worthy.

It was a feeling she'd known for a time and one that she'd lost for a time too. Seeing how she'd been welcomed at first by the North had made her question herself and what she was doing. With Aegon's help and then seeing the true Northmen, it had come back when they'd accepted her and together they'd beaten the Night King and his army. As they rode south and gained more and more allies it had grown and yet it was different from how this was. True they would change people's lives in Westeros for the better, but that change in Essos was far more dramatic. Here the chains were invisible ones though chains, all the same, be it of birth, status, or based on how much coin they had access to. Compared to an actual chain, a collar, a whip, however, Westerosi had it easy.

"A man wishes to see you, your grace." Ser Brienne said as she entered the room.

"A man?" she asked curiously looking to Grey Worm and Missandei.

"The Sellsword, your grace." Ser Brienne said with a look that Dany wasn't quite sure of on her face.

Dany nodded to Grey Worm and Missandei, the two of them rising to walk to the door, and then she told Brienne to send him in and then to ask Ser Jorah to come to her. The lady knight telling her that her bear was speaking to some men that he was considering for positions in the Dragonguard. When Daario entered the room she almost rose to her feet to wipe the smile off his face. He moved towards her and Lyarhaex screeched at him, Dany smirking as the red dragon flew and landed on the table in front of her.

"A new one?" Daario said sitting down across from her.

"She is." she said.

"She?" he asked raising his eyebrow.

"Lyarhaex." she said to a confused look from him. "Named for mine and my husband's mothers." she said and she saw the brief wince on his face when she said husband.

"Why would you name a dragon after some Westerosi" he asked dismissively, Lyarhaex screeching at him once more before Dany then threw her some of the cooked meat that Missandei hadn't eaten.

"Because he's a dragon just like me." she said looking to see his reaction.

"I find that hard to believe, you're the only dragon I've ever seen." Daario said smiling at her.

"You have not truly met my husband." she said, her own smile quickly stopping his.

"He's rather small isn't he." Daario said reaching down to grab some of the grapes that rested in the bowl.

"Yet the shadow he casts is as large as mine own." she said proudly and though she wasn't sure, she swore she heard a snort from the other side of the table, her eyes narrowing as she now looked at Daario.

"And yet I wonder if my queen's needs are being sated, he doesn't seem the man to do so." Daario said and she laughed loudly.

"If you only knew how sated I am. Aegon is a man amongst men, Daario, a true king. A man who owns my heart and who leaves me breathless with merely a look. Compared to him you are but a sparrow while he is a dragon." she said enjoying the annoyed look that appeared on Daario's face.

"Will we be heading to Meereen, my queen?" Daario asked, suddenly changing the subject.

"We will, I intend to take my city back and I will not be stopping there." she said seeing the smile that quickly appeared.

"Then I look forward to our travels, my queen." Daario said and as he rose to walk from the room she realized that he no doubt believed that it would be only her and he that was going to Meereen, Aegon in his mind needing to stay here and rule and so she decided to shatter that illusion once and for all.

"My husband so looks forward to seeing the Bay of Dragons and to testing his sword against the men of Essos, perhaps had it been Aegon that Meereen looked to for protection then the city would still be a free one." she said with a smirk.

"Or perhaps my queen would now be a widow in mourning, alas it's something we shall never know." Daario said as he turned to walk from the room and he was lucky he did so immediately.

Lyarhaex looked in his direction and screeched loudly once more and as Daario closed the door behind him she saw the flash of white. Where Ghost had been while Daario was in the room she knew not but she doubted he'd been far and as she looked into his red eyes she smiled knowing that the wolf was protecting and not spying on her. Aegon had no need to concern himself about Daario Naharis, no need to feel jealous. She was his and he was hers and no one could or would come between them.

King's Landing 305 AC.

Lady Anya Waynwood.

She'd not been granted an audience with the king and queen as of yet but Anya had not wasted her time. Anya had gotten the lay of the land as best she could while she waited for her chance to plead her case. There was something going on with Dorne that she wasn't aware of and whoever that sellsword was he had brought word that Meereen had fallen. Something that had caused the king to send them all from the Throne Room without further explanation.

It gave her much to ponder on as did the rumors she heard about the Small Council. Lord Redwyne as Master of Ships was the only true choice as was Varys as Master of Whisperers. She wasn't too aware of Ser Jorah Mormont, other than knowing he'd won a tourney in Lannisport many years earlier and had married one of the Hightower's. After that, not much had been heard about him and though there was some scandal in the North about him some years later, she knew not what that had been about. He'd ended up in the Queen's service and so that alone made him suitable to be the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard or Dragonguard as it was now known as. Anya's true surprise in that regard was that Jaime Lannister and a lady knight served there too.

Finding out that the Hand was Ser Davos Seaworth had been another surprise but then she'd heard from the Knights of the Vale who'd returned that he and the King were close and any man was better suited than Tyrion Lannister for the role. Where the imp was she didn't know nor care but she was glad he was no longer in service to the Targaryens. A kinslayer truly was not a man that any in Westeros would wish to deal with. The biggest surprise was that Jon Connington was alive and well and now served as Master of Laws. Though the man had brought the Golden Company to the side of the king and queen and should be rewarded for it. That he was and would be loyal to House Targaryen above others was an added reason for his appointment she felt.

It left a position up for grabs and she almost dared to dream that it could go to someone in the Vale. Was her own position more certain she'd have almost demanded it, or as much as anyone can demand something of a king and queen with dragons at their beck and call. Gods, dragons, she thought, the world was so very different now that they were back in the world. The rules that governed warfare no longer applied when dragons could be set upon an army. She shook her head and cleared her thoughts, she had work to do and had already put her best guards on Harrold to keep him in line. Anya rose from her chair to check up on her former ward only to be stunned when her guards came into the room with the King himself walking purposefully in front of them.

"Your grace." she said with a curtsy that belied her years.

"Lady Anya, I believe you and I have much we need to speak on, my cousin for starters." The king said his tone leaving no doubt they would be speaking on it now.

"Of course, your grace, a drink, some refreshments?" she asked and the king shook his head but did take the seat when offered.

"My cousin, my lady?" the king asked and Anya began to tell him the tale.

"Lady Sansa arrived in the Vale along with Theon Greyjoy, your grace. Lord Robert was most pleased to see his cousin and her, him. While there I'm afraid to say she spoke of her grace and yourself in the most unflattering of ways. She claimed that you both forced her from her home and stole her birthright from her." Anya said to a loud snort from the king.

"My cousin has a way with words my lady, that those words are untruths matters not to her." he said and she smiled and nodded.

"She and Lord Robert became close, your grace, the relationship turning romantic though I must admit I felt it to be a show on Lady Sansa's part more than that she had any genuine feelings for her cousin." she said and saw the small nod of the king's head "While praying in the Sept one day Lady Sansa was attacked, an assassin sent I believe by Cersei Lannister and dispatched by Theon Greyjoy."

"My cousin was unhurt?" the king asked with no feeling whatsoever.

"She was your grace. Later that night Lady Sansa began to suggest it was you or her grace that sent the assassin to kill her." she said and the king smirked.

"My cousin has an active imagination." the king said and she nodded.

"I and the other Lords of the Vale didn't believe a word of it, your grace. Why would you when if you wished her dead it could have been done far easier and with a much greater chance of success." she said.

"But Lord Robert did?" he asked surprising her a little.

"He did, your grace, he was infatuated with Lady Sansa by this time. Lady Lysa had kept him well apart from how other young lords were raised you see and he led a very sheltered life."

"What other accusations did my cousin make to Lord Robert and to the rest of the Lords of the Vale, Lady Anya?" the king asked not responding in the slightest to her words.

"When the remainder of the knights sent with Lord Yohn arrived bearing his body, Lady Sansa suggested that you, your grace, may have sought to see him fall. That you and these are her words not mine own, never forgave him for coming to your aid at the Battle of the Bastards." she said and the king laughed loudly.

"My cousin knows very little of war, why would any man bear a grudge against the men who saved his life? I admit, Lord Yohn and I were not on the friendliest of terms but I respected the man and was more than thankful for his and the Knight's of the Vale's help." the king said.

"As Ser Daveth and others were more than keen to attest to, your grace. Ser Daveth especially speaks most highly of you and her grace and so once again other than Lord Robert, Lady Sansa's words fell on deaf ears."

"Then I ask you pass on my thanks to Ser Daveth, a good man and true and one the Vale should be most proud of." The king said and she smiled at that, the king knowing how to play the game a little it seemed.

"Arrangements were made for a wedding, your grace, between Lord Robert and Lady Sansa and though I was not in favor of it, I bowed to my liege lord's wishes. It seems the gods though had a much different fate in store however as one morning Lord Robert was found dead in his bed. He'd been smothered with a pillow, your grace." she said though that wasn't exactly what had happened but it suited her more.

"By whom, my lady?" the king asked with intrigue.

"We believe Lady Sansa to be responsible, your grace." she said to a furrowing of the king's brow.

"For what reason would she? If they were to be married then she'd have no cause to see him dead." the king said and she knew her next words would decide things.

"May I be blunt, your grace?" She asked and he nodded "It came to our attention that things had developed physically with Lady Sansa and Lord Robert, certain, ahem activities were taken place between them and like most young men, Lord Robert was eager to speak of these in the most unflattering of terms."

"He bragged?" the king asked and she nodded "What happened to my cousin, Lady Anya?"

She told him of the trial, the result, and the exile, the king not showing any emotion as she spoke the words and she felt annoyed that she couldn't get a true read on him. It was clear he thought little of his cousin, the mere fact he named her as such proof enough of that as he named the Lady Arya a sister true. Whether he'd have welcomed them killing her or that he much preferred what they had done, wasn't as clear to her, however.

"What is it you seek, Lady Anya?" the king asked changing the subject far more quickly than she had expected him to.

"I seek to the Vale to be welcomed back into your good favor, your grace, yours and her grace's." she said noticing that when she mentioned the queen, the king seemed to ever so slightly relax.

"What makes you think that you're not already in them?" the king asked.

"I… we were late your grace, in dealing with Lady Sansa and the fallout from Lord Robert's death we were late and couldn't come to swear our oaths and march for her grace and for yourself." she said trying to sound regretful, she felt it worked a little given the look on the King's face.

"We seek not to punish those who were late, my lady. Nor to replace those who didn't fight against us. The Vale lost good men fighting in a war that the rest of the realm cared little about. Neither I nor my wife will hold it against you that you arrived late to a battle that was already won." the king said.

"I thank you, your grace." she said with a smile.

"There is the matter of the naming of a new Lord of the Vale and Warden of the East to be considered, I'd welcome your suggestion Lady Anya." the king said and she felt her heart race just a little.

"By right of blood, Ser Harrold Hardyng is the heir to House Arryn, your grace. He was my ward for some time and though he has some rough edges, were it my decision I'd see him named as both." she said looking to the king.

"I shall take it under advisement, Lady Anya. We'll speak again when her grace and I have made our decision."

"I thank you, your grace."

She watched him leave and she wondered if she'd said and done enough, only time would tell but she felt that she had, she hoped that she had. There were opportunities here, ones that if she could take advantage would see her house rise high, ones that if she played wrong would see her house in flames. The more things changed the more they stayed the same she thought filling her glass with wine, the great game was never-ending.

Riverrun 305 AC.

Sansa.

Seeing Riverrun for the first time Sansa couldn't help but be impressed. There were larger keeps in the Riverlands and some had larger villages around them, Seagard was almost a small city in of itself but she doubted there was a prettier keep than this. They weren't welcomed with any formality though which annoyed her slightly. She was the niece of their lord, the granddaughter of their former lord and she had assumed that would mean more than an old steward and some guards to greet her.

Beggars couldn't be choosers though and in essence that's what she was, a beggar in all but name. So she, for now, had to grin and bear it and as Theon helped her from her horse she put on her brightest smile and curtsied to the steward as befitted a lady. The man looked at her oddly, his eyes roaming her face for such a long time that she felt even her put-on smile begin to falter. She was just about to say something to him when he spoke and apologized.

"Forgive me, my lady. But your mother was well known to me and for the briefest of moments it was as if she was in front of me again." the man said with a warm smile.

"There is nothing to forgive, Ser?"

"No Ser my lady, Utherydes Wayn, Steward to your uncle Lord Edmure. If you and your companion will follow me, I'll take you to my lord." he said and Sansa smiled at him and nodded.

Inside the keep was as pretty as outside, it wasn't luxurious or dripping in obvious wealth but it was well maintained and so very different from the grey walls of Winterfell or the rather bare walls of the Gates of the Moon. There were tapestries and etchings, most of them showing some version of river life. Fishing, swimming, bathing were all depicted as well as a rather large one of Riverrun itself showing it surrounded by water on three sides. The image fascinated her so much that she for a moment forgot why she was here and instead stood to look at it.

"In times of siege, the sluice gates are opened my lady, the river floods the land cutting the keep off from those who would wish to take it." Utherydes said.

"And yet it's been taken has it not" she said and the man gave a sad nod.

"All keeps fall my lady and none, not even Harrenhal can withstand a dragon's flames." Utherydes said, his words sending a chill down Sansa's spine.

She heard some revelry coming from what she assumed was the Great Hall, there was clearly singing and some playing of music, and yet it was past that and down a small corridor that she was taken. When she saw the two guards at the door she knew this was her uncle's solar and it didn't take it long for it to be confirmed to her. Despite her protests, Theon was told to remain outside and Utherydes led Sansa into the solar where she found her uncle rising to his feet to greet her.

"By the seven it is you, welcome to Riverrun, niece." her uncle said warmly, his smile true to her eyes and she was more than pleased to see it so.

"Thank you uncle, it's so good to finally be here." she said as he walked around from behind his desk and hugged her before placing a kiss on her cheek.

"You're the very image of your mother, is that not so Utherydes?" Edmure said and the steward nodded, a smile also on his face, and yet this one she felt to be less true for some reason.

"Long have I wished to see you uncle, you and Riverrun though I dared not come here when I traveled south." she said as Edmure bid her sit and asked Utherydes to see that refreshments were brought.

"For why, niece, why would you fear coming to your kin?" Edmure asked.

"Twice I've asked for aid uncle, twice I've called for aid from my kin, and twice I've been denied. When I marched to retake my home I sent the Lady Brienne to speak to my granduncle Ser Brynden and he refused my call and then as I traveled south I sent word to you and received no reply." she said, playing up her upset rather than her anger.

"I cannot answer for my uncle, but for myself what you asked for was not something I could provide. I named Jon Snow my king…" Edmure began but she interrupted him.

"But he's not Jon Snow is he, you named him your king based on a lie." she said and Edmure frowned at her.

"I knew it not at the time and regardless of that, you would have asked me to go against dragons?" Edmure said shaking his head.

"I would have asked you to support your kin, uncle, no more or less." she said.

"And I will, Riverrun welcomes you, Sansa, most happily and you may stay as long as you wish but I've now sworn to House Targaryen, as by now has the entire realm and you should think of doing the same. Make peace with your cousin and then push your claim for Winterfell, I'll even support you in doing so." he said looking at her.

"I thank you, uncle, I find I'm most tired and hungry and in need of a bath and a change of clothes." she said and Edmure rose to his feet just as Utherydes walked back in with a servant.

She was about to walk from the room when Edmure caught sight of Theon, her uncle's expression changing though he said nothing and she almost panicked thinking he may. Instead, he simply sent for a different servant and had them both directed to rooms, and Sansa was soon laying in a warm bath and thinking on her next move. It was clear she wasn't going to get the full support she had hoped for but partial would be enough, for now. She needed a power base and without one she was done for.

After washing and changing she asked to be taken to Theon and together they walked to the Great Hall. It was quite full and though it wasn't a feast it was as close to one as the few she'd been to in the Vale and closer to any she'd been since the last time she was in the South. As in Stone Hedge Theon was not allowed to sit with her if she wished to sit the High Table and she knew that she needed to. Not only was it from there that she could best judge the moods of some of the other men in the Riverlands but it was where she belonged. So they parted and she found herself next to a young woman of around her own age that she soon found out was her goodaunt.

"Sansa, my wife Lady Roslin, I'd introduce you to your cousins but it's late and they're already abed." Edmure said and Sansa smiled and nodded at the other woman.

"My lady." she said as she looked her over.

She was rather plain she thought and as she looked at her all she could think of was that Robb had lost his crown because he'd not married her. It was something that must have been clear in her face as Lady Roslin shot her a look that she didn't much like.

"Roslin." the woman said and Sansa knew she had to be just as courteous.

"Sansa." she said smiling and saw the nod of approval her uncle gave her.

The conversation was stilted and she saw Lord Bracken speaking to Edmure, her uncle then turned to her to ask her if it was true about Sweetrobin. She willed the tears to come and they did, both her uncle and Lord Bracken, as well as one of the knights at the table, almost falling over themselves to hand her a handkerchief so she could dry her eyes. By the time she made her way to her bed that night she was sure they all felt sympathetic to her plight. Though the Lady Roslin seemed anything but and Sansa knew she'd be a problem.

As she turned out to be over the next few days. Each time that Sansa managed to steer the conversation to how wronged she'd been and how much she feared that Jon and the Dragonwhore wanted her dead, it was Roslin more than any who challenged her. Any time she felt she scored a hit it was Roslin who made sure it didn't land how she'd wished. The worst of those had been when she was speaking of how Jon hated her mother and was now taking out that hatred on her daughter. How that was something that had become clearer to her the longer she thought about it.

"I believe you're mistaken, Sansa." Roslin said, her uncle, Lord Bracken, and the knights she'd found out were Ser Marq Piper and Ser Karl Vance looked not to her but to Roslin.

"Forgive me Lady Roslin but I believe I'm better placed to understand my cousin and his wife better then you, I spent far more time with them both." she said almost haughtily.

"Indeed and no one here would deny that, however, my husband spoke to your sister Lady Arya, who by then King Aegon had already offered Winterfell to. He'd offered to make her both Lady and Warden is that not right, Edmure?" Roslin asked.

"Indeed he had and it was only her own reluctance that had stopped it from being so, which I spoke to her about." Edmure said as the others nodded.

"So it seems strange to me that the king would favor one sister over the other if he truly bore a grudge against their mother." Roslin said.

"Arya and he were always close Lady Roslin and my sister takes more after my father in looks than I. I believe when I'm looked upon it's more my mother that is seen." she said almost petulantly though she didn't notice the looks she was given when she did so as her eyes were focussed far too intently on the other woman.

"Perhaps, or perhaps it's because Lady Arya didn't seek a crown to call her own." Roslin said.

Sansa was furious but she knew she couldn't speak out, not right then. So instead she made it look as if she was pondering the woman's words. It killed any more talk of the sort that she like that day and instead talk turned to Theon and she then had to defend him. That they listened she welcomed but again it was Lady Roslin whose points were made far better than her own. Sansa saying that he'd saved her life not once but twice not being accepted as eagerly as the words that Roslin spoke once she'd done so. Roslin bringing it up that had he not done what he'd done in the first place then the war would have taken on a much different turn.

She had no comeback for that, each of the men in the room had all suffered greatly through that war and most of those responsible were now dead. To have someone to focus some of their hurt and blame on left her in a terrible position. Theon's good deeds got him leave to stay, his bad ones and her own closeness with him painted her in a terrible light and Sansa was left cursing that she had been outplayed by a Frey of all people. A member of the worst family in the realm who had almost married a king and had lucked into marrying the Lord of Riverrun had managed to outplay her and while she held her tongue then, she did not when she and Theon were alone.

"Who does she think she is."

"An up jumped Weasel"

"Had we not needed to cross a bridge then she'd be still rotting in the Twins."

Her words grew louder and louder and Theon did his best to calm her down to no avail. She was in mid-rant when the door opened and she swore the woman planned it and timed it to perfection. Sansa was caught shouting out that she wished her sister had killed the woman in the Twins as well as the men, just as Edmure, Roslin, and their two babes walked into the room.

"You out." Edmure said to Theon "Roslin, leave me and my niece alone, take the children back to the Nursery." Edmure said his anger clear.

Sansa felt worried for her safety, she need not have, it was her welcome here that was in danger and not her body.

"I welcomed you into my home and you speak of my wife so. Your sister told me that you had turned into a hateful, spiteful woman and I refused to believe it. I welcomed you as my kin but it seems that you don't know the meaning of the word. You're jealous of what others have and feel the world owes you a debt. Well let me let you into a little secret, niece, the world owes all of us fucking nothing. What we have, what we get is what we deserve and I fear the life you deserve is one alone and without family." Edmure said.

"Uncle, I'm…"

"Save your lies for someone who believes them. You may stay the night and on the morrow, I'll see you escorted to wherever you may wish to go, I'll even give you coin to travel as that's what family does for one other. But you are no longer welcome in my halls and once you leave I have no wish to ever hear from you again. Your mother would be ashamed of you, Sansa Stark, thoroughly ashamed, as am I."

When she left the next day she didn't look back once as they rode to Seagard, there was nothing for her back there, and only by looking forward could she keep her composure. There was no other choice for her now, it was to be the Iron Islands, this is what her life had descended to, a rock wife with no husband.

King's Landing 305 AC.

Davos.

A lordship, him, what was that fool of a boy thinking. Lord Davos Seaworth of Cape Wrath with further lands and no one to pass them onto. Thank the gods he'd convinced Aegon not to give him an even bigger keep, even if it had come at the cost of accepting a Lordship in the process. Had he an heir to leave it to then he'd have welcomed both the lordship and even the offer of a larger holding but he had no one and that time was long past. It wouldn't even do Marya much good, only that it would make her life more comfortable and then be passed along to one of her brother's children.

So he'd accepted the lordship because his king had requested it of him and he'd sent the letter to Marya telling her that she was now in charge of larger holdings. It wouldn't bridge the gap between them and he doubted he'd receive a letter from her in return. Time, distance, and the loss of a son had turned what had been a good marriage into one that he was no longer welcome in. He sighed as he got up from his seat and made his way to the Throne Room, there were appointments to be made and ceremonies to be held. Ones that his part in was as Hand and not thankfully for his own naming.

He nodded to his guards, the group of Unsullied and Northmen that he'd become close to over time and they began the long walk to the Red Keep proper. They were only halfway there when he was called to the gates, Davos hurrying after the men of the Golden Company and almost bursting out laughing when he saw the man who stood there.

"Tell them to move their swords before I stick them up their arses Onion Knight." Tormund said and Davos chuckled as he told the guards to do just that.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" he asked as the man embraced him, his smiling face a most welcome sight.

"It's fucking dull Beyond the Wall, the people are building, building is boring, being with Jon Snow was never boring. I had hoped to catch you in the middle of a fight but I arrived too late. Tell me the fighting's not done?" Tormund asked hopefully.

"You've arrived just in time, my friend, the fighting's nowhere near done, come, he'll be pleased to see ya and you'll get to see men kneel." Davos said.

"The big woman is here?" Tormund asked and Davos laughed.

"Aye, she is." he said and Tormund quickened his steps as they moved into the Red Keep.

The large man garnered some odd looks as they walked to the Throne Room and was the result of many hushed whispers when they entered it. Yet when the king saw him and almost raced from the throne to embrace him, they stopped immediately. The warm smile on Aegon's face as he looked at Tormund was as true a one as he ever wore and Davos could see it returned just as truly.

"How? Why? The Free Folk they are well?" Aegon asked after he moved from the larger man.

"Aye, they're well King Crow, I came for a fight, am I in the right place?" Tormund asked and Aegon laughed as he patted the man's shoulder.

"Very much so, I'll…."

"Aegon." the queen said firmly and Davos swore that Tormund laughed so loudly that the sound boomed around the room.

"Go, Jon Snow, we'll talk soon." Tormund said and Aegon embraced him once more before heading back towards the Iron Throne only to stop and turn with a smirk on his face as he did so.

"My Lords, My Ladies, good Sers, I give you Tormund Giantsbane, The Tall Talker, Horn Blower, Breaker of Ice, Husband to Bears, The Mead King of Ruddy Hall, Speaker to Gods and Father of Hosts. Hero of the War for the Dawn and a man I am proud to name a brother by choice." The king said "I bid you welcome him as you would a true hero for that is what he is."

Davos listened as the room began to clap and Tormund glared at the king who was smiling and winking at him. The man's own laughter soon ringing out loudly as he turned and spun as if he was presenting himself.

"I'll fucking gut him for this." Tormund said to him under his breath, Davos finding his own laughter soon coming as he looked at Aegon and then turned back to Tormund.

When it quietened down, he nodded to Grey Worm who came and stood with Tormund while he walked and took his place beside the king. It was Princess Arianne who came first and was recognized as the Princess of Dorne. Arianne swearing her fealty before moving away. Lord Dayne came next and did the same, Davos hearing The Sword of the Morning mentioned more than once. Then came Ser Daven and Lady Joy Hill who'd arrived only the day before and Davos could hear people speak Cersei's name as they looked to the lady. It was an apt description he thought, in looks if not in personality as the lady was a much different sort.

"The Westerlands swears fealty to their Graces King Aegon and Queen Daenerys of the House Targaryen and House Lannister renews it's oath to House Targaryen in perpetuity." Ser Daven said as did Lady Joy, the knight kneeling while the lady held a perfect curtsy.

"Arise, Ser Daven as our Warden of the West and Arise Lady Joy Lannister, the future Lady of Casterly Rock." the queen said and both the knight and the lady smiled as they did so.

Then it was Lord Edric Storm's turn along with the Lord of the Stormlands. The young man kneeling as he looked around the room as if he was seeking someone out. Whoever it was he didn't find it and quickly began to swear his oath, the words seeming true enough to Davos's ears.

"Arise as Lord Edric Baratheon, Lord of Storm's End and Lord Paramount of the Stormlands." The queen said, Edric smiling as he did so.

Next, it was the Lords and Lady of the Vale, he and Aegon had spoken of what to do with the Vale and he knew that Varys had spoken privately to the king and queen as well. He now stood like the others in the room awaiting their decision.

"House Arryn renews its oath of loyalty to House Targaryen and I swear mine own and my house's in perpetuity. "Ser Harrold said as the room hushed.

"House Arryn is no more and its name shall be confined to history. Arise Lord Harrold Hardyng Lord of the Vale and Warden of the East." the king said surprising some including him, he'd thought he'd name the man an Arryn if he chose him as Warden, that he was not sent a message though.

"House Waynwood swears its oath to their Graces King Aegon and Queen Daenerys of the House Targaryen and I swear my house to yours in perpetuity." Lady Anya said and it took some time for either the king or queen to answer, the queen finally doing so.

"Arise Lady Waynwood as the new Mistress of Coin." the queen said to gasps, none louder than the one from the lady herself. Davos looked to see a small smile on Princess Arianne's face and on some of the ladies in the Throne Room, there were some scowls on some of the lord's faces but more seemed pleased than not.

"Your graces honor me, I don't know what to say." Lady Anya said her shock still clear.

"That you'll accept is all that's needed to be heard my lady." the queen said.

"Then I accept with great humility and much appreciation, your grace." Lady Anya said.

Lord Leyton and his heir stepped forward and Davos looked to see them staring at Lady Malora who stood to the left of the king. He watched as they too knelt and then the king spoke and named Lord Leyton as the Warden of the South. Lord Paxter and his youngest son stepped forward once that was done and both swore their oaths and Davos saw Aegon look to Daenerys and then her small nod.

"Arise Lord Horas Redwyne, Lord of Highgarden." the queen said and the boy smiled almost as brightly as the orange of his hair.

On and on it went and he was soon getting bored himself, Davos unsurprised to see the yawn that came from Tormund. As the last oath was sworn and the king and queen rose from their seats, he saw Aegon look to the Sellsword who had entered the room without him noticing and he closed his eyes to offer up a prayer to the gods that there would be no trouble. He was more than pleased that it seemed there would be none and yet whatever the man said when Aegon walked past him put paid to that.

The man had clearly angered him greatly and yet he watched him simply nod to the sellsword and then bid him to follow, Tormund and Ser Jaime following behind them also. Davos, the queen, and others almost rushed outside after them and he was glad to see the king take his sword off and hand it to Ser Jaime.

"What is the fool doing." the queen said annoyedly.

"At least he's not bearing steel, your grace." he said to no reply.

The two men were in the courtyard and he couldn't hear what was being said, a little way off them stood Ser Jaime who didn't look concerned, and Tormund who wore as big a smile as he'd ever seen him wear. Davos, the queen, and the lords and ladies of Westeros all looked on with no true idea of what was to happen and then he heard a dragon roar and he began to chuckle.

King's Landing 305 AC.

Aegon.

He and Dany had spoken to Varys about Ser Harrold and Lady Anya. The Master of Whisperers confirming what the lady had said about Sansa and Lord Robert and that his cousin was now at Riverrun. It bothered him not where she was and yet he told Varys to make sure he knew her location at all times. His wife and he then made the choices for the realm, or to be more precise Dany made the choices and he agreed with her.

There was no fault that he could find in any of the arguments she put forward and he had no wish to contradict or challenge her on any of the decisions. She had a better read of the politics than he and though he had somewhat a read on the people, it wasn't enough to cause him any doubts. The one disagreement they had was over naming Ser Harrold as his own name rather than as Lord Arryn. Aegon wished the house removed from the realm and though it was for petty reasons they were reasons he'd not let go.

" I was named for that man. My uncle took his honor from him and that honor not only gave me the life it did but it cost me two brothers and many years with my sister. It's not for that alone though I wish them gone, nor even for the part they played in the rebellion and in seeing the Stag on the throne. It's for what that honorable man did when the bodies of my brother and sister were laid out in front of his king." Aegon said.

" What did he do?" Dany asked.

" Nothing, not a damn thing. As High as Honor indeed. Not only did he not see that the men responsible faced justice but he rewarded the man who gave the order by making his daughter the queen. Jon Arryn fucked this realm up more than any other man including, Aerys, so fuck him and fuck his house. It died with him and with his son." he said and Dany nodded.

That she then agreed with him only made him less likely to challenge her own decisions and when she suggested Lady Anya as Mistress of Coin he found no reason to argue either. It would send a message Dany said and in this, his wife had been right as she usually was. She'd talked to him about Daario and though she'd not asked him not to lose his temper with the man, he knew she wished he would not.

" You know he means nothing to me, don't you?" she said as she kissed him deeply.

" I know my wife's heart is as true as mine own. I can dislike the man though, right?" he said with a chuckle.

" Aegon."

" Make fun of him a little?" he said laughing still.

" Aegon." she said reproachfully.

" I'll play nice." he said after a few moments before Dany then told him that both Lyarhaex and Ghost weren't playing nice when he had come to see her.

He knew that they would need the man in Essos and so he had resolved to ignore him as much as he could. In the Throne Room seeing that Tormund had come to King's Landing and would be by his side once more made that even easier. Aegon had noticed Daario at the back of the room right from the moment he had sat down, he'd seen how he looked at him and at his wife. It was a look he knew all too well, one that had been directed at him for most of his life. A look that said he was unworthy and while he knew that was true in relation to Dany, this man had no right to think himself any worthier.

When he'd first seen the man he'd not been jealous of him, his wife's reaction to his visit left her feelings in no doubt. Her reassurances to him about Daario were unneeded, though he welcomed them regardless. If anything the man disappointed him greatly and he knew that he should have listened to Ser Jorah more when he'd asked him about him, rather than build him up as something else in his head. Dany and he hadn't spoken much about their previous lovers, he'd heard of Drogo and of Daario and had told her of Ygritte but in some ways, he preferred his wife's way of looking at things than his own.

" If I look back I'm lost, Aegon." she said softly as they lay in their bed.

He knew that feeling all too well, though when he looked back he had more years to look back on than she and more wrongs that needed righting because of it.

Daario was simply not good enough for her, Missandei had said so, Ser Jorah had said so, and seeing the man in the flesh that was what he had felt too. So he had tried to ignore him and had succeeded mostly, even seeing him in the Throne Room he'd not paid him much attention. Less so when Tormund arrived but as he was walking to speak to his friend, it was then that Daario decided he had no wish to be ignored.

" My queen looks bored, it's an odd thing for me to see as I never remember her wearing that expression when she was in Meereen, perhaps it's the place." Daario said as Aegon brushed past him "Or the company."

" Or perhaps she's trying not to let loose the dragon on the man who lost her city, be thankful my queen wears such an expression Naharis, for I've seen her when the dragon is woken and on days like that only a king can calm her." he said moving to go by the man, Tormund looking at him curiously.

" And what makes you a king other than a crown?" Daario asked.

" Step outside and I'll be more than happy to show you."

He now stood face to face with the other man, an eager look on the Sellsword's face as he waited for the spar to begin. Aegon didn't need to look to where she was standing as he could feel her eyes were on him. Moving to Ser Jaime he took off his sword and handed it to the knight, nodding that all was well as he did so.

"I thought?" he heard Daario say and Aegon looked past him to where Tormund stood, a smile on his friend's face as he looked at him, it was one he happily returned. Having him here was a boon to his spirit and having him with him for what they were about to do was something that he was most grateful for.

Kneeling down on the ground, Aegon closed his eyes and felt him nearby, he didn't even have to call him as Rhaegal was already on his way and he felt the others coming too. The sound of the loud roar of the green dragon drowned out the sound of the smaller dragon's just as fierce one, and it was Lyarhaex that arrived first. The Red Dragon had flown from their room and now landed in front of him. The loud screech that she made in Daario's direction one that was heard by one and all.

Aegon moved and stroked her head, the dragon trilling as he did so and leaning into his touch. Her eyes were on Daario all the time though, her meaning clear and then Aegon smiled as he saw the white wolf move from behind the man. That it made Daario almost jump a couple of feet brought laughs from those watching but not from Aegon himself. Instead, he just reached out as Ghost licked his hand and then his face before he sat down in front of him facing Daario as he did so.

He looked to Tormund who was laughing loudly and then he heard the beat of the wings, Lyarhaex calling out to her much larger brother who landed gracefully behind them. As one they moved to the green dragon, Lyarhaex flying to land in front of Rhaegal while he and Ghost walked to join them both. Once he got there he leaned in and placed his head against Rhaegal's snout, the green dragon trilling as he did so while Aegon began to whisper softly to him.

Looking to the balcony where Dany stood with Davos, Ser Jorah, and Ser Brienne he smiled. In the bay, the fleet had already arrived and soon they'd be setting sail for Dorne. A battle was on the horizon and a war was to follow, one that would take them some time to win and one his wife wished this man to be a part of. He had no time for silly games such as this but a message needed to be sent. So he stroked Rhaegal's snout and then Lyarhaex's before he rubbed Ghost softly behind his one ear and then moved so close to Daario that he and he alone would hear his words.

"Only a dragon can love a dragon." he said his voice barely a whisper and as he did so Rhaegal roared loudly.