#c. rhaena blackwood

[prodixal]

SELF PARA. || POST BATTLE

She'd stared at the fire for hours, as it danced, as it roared. Her eyes could not part from the flames, for the mere thought of doing so felt like allowing the reality to push through, to take root. If she could postpone looking away, for another second, another moment longer, perhaps she need never look away. Her sister need never be truly dead.

Rhaena knew, if she allowed herself to feel, she would walk over to Morghos, and climb her patiently. She would fly her over to Kings Landing, to Casterly Rock, to the Twins, to the entirety of the Riverlands, and she would burn it all to ashes and dust. Before Visenya could get a warning, before any of her cousins could mount dragons of their own, she would be done with it. The world would burn, and she would burn with it. This was her fault. Her sister was dead because of her. She was the one who had brought her to Driftmark. The one who should have protected her, kept an eye on her, gone after her. She was her responsibility. And yet her sister died alone, and cold, and frightened. Her little dove. The flames began to wither, and she stared into the void of darkness when the fire went off. And she wondered if that is what death was. Just the cold, dark, nothing. Tears welled at her eyes, and then began to fall. But not once did they close. All she did was stare ahead, into the cold, into the dark, into the nothing. It was Dawnbreakyr's scream, at the crack of dawn, that pulled her back to reality. A beautiful golden dragon, severed from half of its soul. Rhaena knew then, looking at the screaming beast, as it twisted in its own agony, that she had been right to fear. That nothing of her sister now truly remained. She was gone. She would never see her again. Where the flames for the girl once burnt, there was now a sunken pit. A pit of cold, a pit of dark, a pit of nothing.

[prodixal]

Perhaps dull was a poorly chosen word. Perhaps difficult would have applied better. Too difficult, too stubborn, too unpredictable. Rhaena was certain that the concept of love, marriage and loyalty was finite. It could not survive her. "Kyra..." she speaks her name softly, and for a moment she hesitates. "Is marriage something you want for?" brows knit together, and on the surface she appears a lot calmer than she truly was. Even the sweet jest that followed, did very little in terms of stilling her nerves. "We are in the wrong place for this conversation. Ideally there would be a bed. Or a table, at the very least. Something...sturdy." a chuckle is sweet, and short and she focuses quickly back on the halls which lay ahead. Only she is stopped in her tracks by a sudden pull, and as she faces Kyra, listening to words she'd truly needed to hear, her mouth falls open but no words seem to come out. Without hesitation, she steps in to wrap her arms around the other. It felt so...good, to be seen. To be understood. "Thank you. Truly, I --" a beat, "Thank you."

kyra lets out a laugh at rhaena's words. "please, with someone like you? i fear there will never be a dull moment, no need for more senseless trauma between us." and it was true. rhaena was the furthest thing from dull. she was exciting and kind and with a mind that kyra was still trying to understand. she could never be dull, at least not in kyra's eyes. and there is proof of that as rhaena makes a crude joke, one that makes kyra face burn hot with the implication. "well then perhaps i should feed you more complements, see if all your talk lives up to it. purely for research purposes, of course," she says with a laugh, trying to push away the thoughts that rhaena's words conjure within her mind.

as rhaena goes on to speak of her worries with her family, kyra stops walking and faces her lady, hands on her arms to have her look at her. "you were put in an impossible situation," she starts, her words soft but serious. "no matter where you stood, you would have been against your family. you went with your heart, to go to the cousins who had just lost their brother. you were in grief. if your targaryen cousins can not see that then they do not understand." she pauses for just a beat. "but i understand you, rhaena." her eyes scan over her face, taking her in for a moment before releasing her arms. "i do hope they see it the same, for your case. a war between kin is never easy."

[prodixal]

@crowndgods || ashara dayne.

Rhaena had called for lady Dayne in hopes of making an acquaintance. When a certain blue-eyed northerner brought back with him an olive-skinned southern sapphire, she was far too intrigued to let it slide without at least offering a warm welcome. She had the wine ready, chairs set apart just so, and was truly dying to hear something interesting come off another persons lips. Driftmark was suffocating, and this had been the longest she'd ever stayed in one single place. A servant comes in through the door, announcing her arrival, and she perks up with excitement as she heads for the door. "Thank you Morrell." she says to the boy, and then her eyes shift to the guest in all her glory. She had such an alluring aura about her, unmistakably Dornish. "Lady Ashara, please, come on in." she gestures towards the room, leading the way to tall windows overlooking the bay. Soon the dragons will feed, and dance across the skies. Sunset was always magnificent to observe from within her chambers. It was the sole reason she preferred the west wing. "I have had the pleasure of meeting your lord brother before he sailed off to battle. He left my sister in need of some...tea." she chuckles. "But you need not fret, my intentions with you are not of such nature."

[darylandbethfanforever9]

HOTD Season 2 Spoilers:

These are apparent spoilers and I hope this does happen.

1. So, apparently and hopefully we’ll see Team Green doing some serious PR damage to the blacks, with an episode showing septons and septas decrying Rhaenyra as a cruel queen for the murder of Jaehaerys.

2. Rhaenyra and Daemon’s marriage becomes estranged, after B&C and Rhaenyra is reportedly horrified while Jacaerys supposedly disowns Daemon and Rhaena secretly writes a letter to the greens, expressing remorse.

3. Aegon promises Helaena that Jaehaerys will be avenged and Aemond tells Aegon that he will die trying to kill Daemon. Aegon tells Aemond that it wasn’t his fault and Alicent forgives Aemond.

4. Rhaenys is killed and Baela is utterly useless at helping her grandmother, and forced to flee when Dreamfyre supposedly nearly kills her.

5. The Whents ally with the Greens and Alyssane Blackwood is maimed, while Sabitha Frey is killed.

6. Alys is foreshadowed and Jacaerys has a nightmare about drowning in the Gullet

7. Helaena confronts Rhaenyra and Rhaenyra starts losing support among the small folk and her own allies.

8. Cregan Stark struggles to drum up support for the blacks.

9. Aegon tells the statue of Viserys that the war is of his own making and desecrates his statue.

10. Alicent meets the Shepherd.

11. House Velaryon rebel against Rhaenyra and High Tide and Driftmark are sacked.

Honestly I hope this happens, but I’m not holding my breath. But god, I want to see vengeful queen Helaena, war criminal Aemond and vengeful Aegon.

[horizon-verizon]

Netty’s erasure is being justified by some with the excuse that it would be problematic to depict a young Black girl in a relationship with an older white man and then be used to create conflict between two white characters. But there was an easy and obvious solution to that problem which has been provided by the author himself in F&B: The theory of Daemon having a paternal relationship with Nettles, be it as her biological father or father figure. They could have shown her as a child from an affair he had long ago with whom he tries to connect. Or, had they been more creative, he could have been a mentor to her and grown to care for her because of her loyalty and because she reminded him of his own children with whom he had no conflict whatsoever in canon. Given how they lose Luke, Viserys, and Jace in quick succession, it would make sense for him to be protective of her. But Condal and Hess would never opt for those routes simply because it would amount to admitting that Daemon - for whom they harbour hatred so visceral as if he stole their girlfriends, left them penniless on the streets, and kicked their dogs – is a human being capable of emotion and reason. It would wound their ego. There was absolutely no need to make up drama between him and his daughters just to force a ‘redemption arc’ when he never needed one.

But it is rather concerning to see how they would rather mess with the canonical characterizations of more than one female character, sideline them and outright erase them, how they would rather subject them to gratuitous violence than accept that this one male character they’re unhealthily obsessed with vilifying, is not this one dimensional monster they have made him up to be in their minds. The little girls who played Baela and Rhaena as kids had their scenes deleted and the actress who played Rhaena had to make a post about it on Instagram. Baela had one significant scene and dialogue in S1 with Rhaenys which gave a glimpse to her character that was deleted. What all scenes had in common was that they portrayed a softer side to Daemon and proved that he cared for his daughters and was involved in their lives. Other deleted scenes include Daemon proposing a toast for Viserys because it was decided that one improvised scene where Daemon expressed his love for his brother by crowning him would be more than enough and the one where he mourns Visenya which got edited out. The pattern is evident. Most female characters in the story are disposable and interchangeable for C&H and not worth putting any effort or thought. They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate. They are seldom prioritized. Maybe that’s why Black Aly was robbed off her moment in the Battle Of the Burning Mill which happens offscreen. Her presence would have made the Blackwoods appear like the badasses they are in canon and defeated C&H’s plans to demonize them. Also because they can’t possibly have a woman have agency and engage in warfare out of her own freewill because wars are for men to wage while women need to preach peace :/

Now, if my predictions are correct, then Jeyne Arryn and the Vale subplot will be made all about Daemon too because of the made-up canon-defying murder of Rhea Royce that was birthed by Condal’s galaxy brain. What a way to miss the point of that subplot from the book. The Vale alliance was never about Daemon but about Rhaenyra and the empathy Jeyne had for her cousin as a fellow woman whose inheritance was threatened by her male relatives. Her dislike for Daemon was overshadowed by her feelings of solidarity for Rhaenyra.

This show is such a droll tragedy that at times I wish they just stop pretending and accept it for what it is: The Adventures Of Historian and Philosopher Almond ft. Hugh the Greatest Family Man to have ever Family Manned in Westeros Hammer.

The pattern is evident. Most female characters in the story are disposable and interchangeable for C&H and not worth putting any effort or thought. They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate. They are seldom prioritized.

@deus-sema

Reminds me--and it is definitely connected to & fueled by the same principle of male centeredness--when SA and rape against women is used more to define a male character than to elucidate anyone on why men rape in fiction. It's either to signify a man who rescues said woman as "good"; the man who does it as "bad". And that's it. How does the woman feel and develop into the future with this incident, how does the community deal or not deal with the event and not just the rapist/would be rapist, what does anyone do to try to prevent it, etc., nothing.

Which underplays rape and gender violence as "a thing that happens" as if innate to human nature and not malleable behavior for the sake of creating character for males.

They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate.

In a recent reaction post to Epi 5, I said that the writers trying to make their version of Rhaenyra seem suppressed by her own council by making the "monarchs can't go into battle" thing an excuse to not deal with a woman make war instead of a pretty valid reason that had real life male monarchs not actually go to war themselves MOST of the time (the one who is meant to be the opposite of the fiery and proud Rhaenyra GRRM described but also a Rhaenyra who is trying her damdnest to be taking seriously or approved by the men around her as if that was who bk!rhaenyra was).

@thevelaryons said this in their post about how HotD writes Rhaenys and Corlys' relationship:

Yet despite all that, their relationship onscreen is still a loving one. Like I said, it’s a writing issue. Corlys and Rhaenys are clearly meant to be viewed as a loving couple but the central theme of HOTD is apparently that women are always victims of the men in their lives. Corlys as a man must fall into this in some way. But like always, the writers go overboard in their heavy-handed attempts to depict misogyny onscreen. So Corlys’ actions towards Rhaenys are such that there is a lack of respect but somehow there is love.

And they are coming from how HotD rewrote Rhaenys to be way too accepting of the Hull boys in her awareness when book!Corlys actually kept them away from anywhere Rhaenys herself might go to see them or discover them...bc she too didn't take what she and most noblewomen would see as insults to them of their husband's not only cheating but bringing their bastards around in the same spaces as their wives. Rhaenys was a Targ princess and very proud to be one.

Though Marilda is impressive as a human being (leading her own trad eboats later on), in the social context of these people I don't think noblemen would not take exception to not only their wives cheat on them but also cheat on them with any lower classed man or a stable boy and male readers not identify & recognize that as bringing shame to that man. Yes, men are socially graced to cheat, but noblewomen in Westeros still are expected to not have to raise his by-blows or have those bastards "sully" their own status by having them around. that's just the way things go, as those men love to say.

Then there is Daemon-at-Harrenhal trying to display his great leadership that he wants to prove to both Viserys and Rhaenyra that he was as capable of being a monarch/leader as he thinks they don't think he should be. Based on incompetence. Which is compounded by his bungling the Blackwoods and Brackens thing and thus endangering Rhaenyra's ability to get more soldiers...when bookwise, he doesn't perform any such stupidity and never tried to prove anything about his being able to be a competent king/independent agent to anyone. In fact he, like Jace, manages to collect many supporters from Rhaenyra with little problem. not only that, bk!Rhaenyra had an almost a ubiquitous and eager base in the Riverlands. These are CRITICAL changes made for shallow & logically inconsistent drama. Inconsistent bc we see Daemon and Rhaenyra have more or less a pretty settled marriage where Rhaenyra shows she had trusted Daemon to at least not betray her...which is why her later despair at his death and "betrayal" with Nettles was as intense as it was.

It reveals a pattern HotD makes of trying to poke fingers at misogyny while still being very sexist in how they do it by simplifying their men like Daemon and Corlys, try to overpunish and vilify Daemon, as well as how they pacified their female characters. It's all a distorted, very overly literal and unnuanced rewrite of the original story. But what else is new?

This is the story people want, right?

[prodixal]

"I would be a hypocrite to berate you in any way Lorent, as I'm sure you're aware. I know a thing or two of women and undesirable betrothals. Birds of a feather, you and I --" a quick roll off eyes passed her features and she did not care to dig further into hidden meanings and possible deflection. "You may find this shocking but some of us can enjoy company without hidden agendas." Rhaena could not tell if his assumption was offensive or tragic. It must have been a horrible way to live -- thinking every interaction came with hidden motives. "I do not fear marriage, just as I do not fear fish -- and yet I have no taste for either." she said matter-of-factly. "I’ve no issues with attachment, vulnerability, love, intimacy. -- If anything, I am the most attached, vulnerable, loving and intimate person I know. Why should I fear such things? No, I do not deflect nor do I fear. What is the worst that can happen? A broken heart? Breaking a heart? That is ridiculous." people have survived worse. She shifted in her seat, eyes narrowed as she took another sip of her wine. "My lack of flavour for marriage stems purely from my desire to exist in a more polygamous setting. As my ancestors did. -- This simplistic idea of marriage is so...strict, so crude." she paused, thinking it over some more. "It is apparent to everyone I am no lady, though I certainly look the part. I wish to love freely, many people, many times, within a marriage. But Westeros has no taste for it. Everyone wants the confines of monogamy. Who does it benefit truly? Where do these notions stem from? Innate human desire? It cannot be that, I am human, I have this desire. Religion? Possibly, yet there are Valiryan religions perfectly fine with polygamy. Is it to prevent inheritance disputes? Favouritism? Alliances? Conflict? I truly do not know. All I do know is that marrying for love is not a possibility, not for me, because marriage here is primarily political in nature. And I shall do my duty, as does everyone else of noble name, and yes I will complain somewhat, but I shall do it anyway. Unless my beautiful betrothed and I find a way to end our predicament. She does seem most eager. -- After all, our marriage right now would not be politically advantageous. And if we cannot have love or advantage, what is the point truly?" She almost asked for forgiveness, for speaking so much and yet, why should she apologise for providing input into a conversation? Why were people taught that expression was somehow inconvenient?

"You mean to say you’ve avoided death through the sheer fact you are pretty? Now be truthful Lorent, I did not take you for a liar." She jests. "Lust and love, love and lust — perhaps you’ve simply a magic cock." she had sincerely doubted that. "I am certain lady Stark has not kept her true affections hidden from you as much as you make it seem. You took advantage of her love with your lust. It is human. But if you wish to feel less horrid about it, just let her be." it was simple enough, certainly not worth drinking over. "She will quickly find another and forget all about you and your magic cock. I mean, Lyanna Stark is far too beautiful and sweet natured to be wasted on someone who is anything less than obsessed with her. Some women just deserve that…don’t they? Someone who will drop everything for them? Someone who will overcome their own flaws, fight tooth and nail to keep them happy? Someone who will make them feel loved and...desired." Rhaena prided herself on being good at reading people. "She deserves a man who will not have her acting like a man. A man who will not have her uttering proposals, or have her seem so…desperate, as you do. She is not desperate, she does not need you. She wants you, gods know why." she gave him a look then, curious of the way her words would land. "So do not fret pretty boy, she will not want you for long. Women go where they are wanted and, well, you seem to have made it very clear this time around that you do not want her the same. Pity, truly, perhaps she could have even made you happy. But alas you exude the energy of someone under the impression she’s not good enough for you. I hope she does not internalise that, such insecurities could fester.”

"what do i deserve? an endless stream of women berating me for my offences? i never purported to be wise, or good." playfulness was replaced by feigned indignation for a moment, but even in his melodrama, lorent didn't care enough to render the act convincible. he wasn't interested in heightened emotion, in investment of any sort, so he reverted to the boyish banter soon thereafter, debonair smile he wore so well. "would you consider me mediocre? i've not begged for your love nor does my heart bleed at the prospect of being snubbed by you, and yet here you are, entertaining my company. you seem to know exactly what i am, and why i am what i am. i find it curious you would sit here and endure my presence, given there's so little in it for you." head craned in ostensible contemplation, again, he didn't care for her answer, why she'd dignified him with her presence at all. he'd relish it as long as she allowed, and seek to replicate the feeling the next day, with her, or another. "see, i think you enjoy diverting from your misery and have come to revel in mine instead, because it is easier than facing whatever it is you fear in marriage."

there was a youthful quality to the way his laughter filled the distance between them, warm and clear. dimples stretching deep into his cheeks, brilliant blues crinkling with amusement -- at being called a whore. "i may have no dragon at my disposal, but i am also very pretty. it is why my head still sits upon my shoulders." he was certain there was a veritable string of scorned parents, daughters, and sons who would've liked to adorn their halls with his head. what a legacy to leave behind. "i lay with her, reprehensible rake that i am. i shared a woman's bed who very clearly, articulately, expressed her repeated desire to sleep with me. she mistook lust for love. that is my misdeed. tell me, rhaena, am i to wed every person i've ever fucked?" at her proximity, he lifted the cup he'd stolen, dangling it before her face -- while his arm snaked about her shoulders and brushed across soft skin, figuring she'd dislodge it herself, if it offended. "highgarden would burst at the seams."

[allyriadayne]

What were your highlights of the trailers?

in no particular order

1) AEGON!!!! I was very surprised by how much he featured in the trailers. i had the inkling aemond would feature more heavily because he's the usual fan favorite but i loved that they really took the time to show more of less what aegon will be and do next season. loved his scenes with alicent and larys (!!!!) and i loved seeing him have almost complete autonomy and make decisions! i want him to get worse and this showed me a lot of promise. i'm still a bit ambivalent about the new wig because i liked the other one, but nbd.

2) Larys. a lot of torturing and spies this season which means a lot of larys too! i've been heheing too close to the sun by imagining how the aegon/larys dynamic was going to be but i had no hope of even seeing a little bit in the trailers. silly me because he was there!!! surprised by them having a mini arc beginning from the end of b&c to before & after rook's rest. also a new still of larys was so great for me personally because he was styled v differently from the usual.

3) Baela. Baela riding moondancer and fighting (?) at rook's rest as a foreshadowing for her fight with aegon later. SICKKK. her wigs and rhaena's (and rhaenyra's!) were also better so it's was a big highlight for me. more screentime for my girl!

4) Jace. I imagined he would be in the trailer for the stark nostalgia and he was, but i liked the parts where he was mommy's little diplomat in the dinner with the other dragonseeds. i was half afraid he was not going to be included but i'm glad he is. seated next to addam nonetheless!!!!! another win for my jaceaddam agenda. we also saw hugh and ulf and baela directly in front of jace soooo cute.

5) daemyra failmarriage. no daemon on luke's funeral scene nor in the dragonseed dinner. he's obviously in harrenhal and i think we see him in maegor's tunnels (?). they are soo cooked i love them. rhaenyra also looked v stern and passionate which is good because i was also ambivalent on showing her completely destroyed by luke's death like in the book. daemon looked so hot ngl i love daemon in armor so much.

6) the bracken twink taking on four blackwoods at the same time. my family!!!

special mentions to the blurry background images of tyland lannister, alicent looking like the saddest woman in the word and freddie fox looking like freddie fox in a horse.

[prodixal]

"Hm..." she responds simply, trying yet to figure out if the other was being genuine or if something was amiss. Though she truly had no reason to doubt her. some people simply were -- good. "Handy how?" she raises a brow then, perhaps the other did not lie but, it seemed truth could have been her weapon of choice. "Truth does have a way of getting out, doesn't it? Sooner or later." smile enters her cheeks and she taps her hand gently. "It might just be its most valuable quality." Rhaena flew over Pyke on couple occasions. She was never interested enough to stop and take a closer look. But she could see how the other might feel such a sentiment. "And given the opportunity and...the right circumstances -- where would you like to be? Which places would you wish to see?" she had no idea where the other might've already been. But she wished for her to think of something nice, something that might inspire some hope. Hope was a precious thing, in times like these. "Forgive me, my lady, I struggle with manners I truly do." this had perhaps been the longest she had maintained such forced politeness. "But you need not force niceties with me, nor flattery -- I would much prefer we speak plainly."

"i had not thought to do that, my lady, but i'll keep it in mind," she started, "though i try not to make a habit of forgoing the truth, it may come in hand someday." continuing to walk with rhaena, her heart fluttered the closer they got to morghos. the idea the dragon could sense something about her she herself couldn't see frightened her, but any sense of fear or hesitation being perceived as deceit frightened her even more. she was sure the woman felt stelsa's muscles tense more with every step forward, hands growing clammy. "it's not that i dislike it, but it reminds me of home. a sunnier, greener version of it at least. the familiarity is disorienting," she spoke truthfully. if they wanted me on an island, far removed from freedom and surrounded by people who distrust me, they should have left me on pyke, she added in her head. she listened intently as the other talked about her dragon, her words remind her of poetry the way she spoke about something some people thought a dangerous nuisance. "it's a blessing for you to have a such a strong bond with something so phenomenal and awe-inspiring," she looked at rhaena with a shy smile, "it's a blessing for morghos for the same reason, my lady."

[watcherintheweyr]

Ykw

The writers deleting that scene where rhaenyra called alicent a wh*re is one of the best decisions they made. Bc the whole dance, one of the core facets was that rhaenyra was the victim of gendered violence.

The whole dance, Rhaenyra was the one who supported women in positions of power (alysanne blackwood helped lead her armies, jeyne arryn as head of the vale, sabitha Frey as her head of house, Rhaenys on her war council, Mysaria on her Small council- and in show- 'when I am queen I will create a new order', '... how romantic to be imprisoned in a castle and made to squeeze out heirs...' [proceeds to hold alicent's hand in comfort and apology when seeing her words struck a nerve], 'my mother was made to bear heirs until it killed her', immediately inviting baela and rhaena to the table where the decisions are made in the way her father never did for her.)

Rhaenyra is the one who, through the whole dance the ONLY reports of her demeaning or attacking other women were either in retaliation to Alicent's venom, or solely reported on by the source that hated and maligned her the most in the books- and who thus had the most to gain through making rhaenyra as unlikable and unsympathetic as possible, and the source who loves to make up stories for drama - with yet another story that was **blatantly** made up for drama.

Like it's logical and justified that Rhaenyra feel betrayed and furious at Alicent. She has no idea that Otto made everything happen. It's been 6-8 months of Alicent doing this- since the night of Aemma's funeral, and Alicent never said a word to her.

Earlier within ep 2, Rhaenyra explicitly confides in her worries and fears of the lords plotting to replace her as heir to Alicent, and Alicent dismisses her fears with 'it is not our place to question the plots of lords and men' even though as heir it explicitly IS rhaenyras place.

Within this same episode, Otto repeatedly undermines and dismisses her as heir and shows visible displeasure when she outmaneuvers him to stop bloodshed at Dragonstone. And now she sees her supposed closest friend has been secretly meeting her father for months, all without telling her a word of it. It is REASONABLE that Rhaenyra be angry and betrayed.

But her lashing out and calling Alicent a whore just doesn't quite fit correctly. Lashing out at the perception of Alicent having ambition to be queen, perhaps. Lashing out that Alicent hadn't told her anything even given that she knew of Rhaenyras fears, certainly. Not wanting anything to do with her, not trusting her or Viserys and trying desperately to get distance from them both- these things all do fit within her characterization.

But Rhaenyra calling Alicent a whore doesn't at all feel consistent to the character they have built Rhaenyra to be by this point or at any other point in s.1. Even when Alicent is at the height of her power trip and her humiliation and abuse of Rhaenyra, Rhaenyra never refers to her with a slur or in such a blatantly disrespectful manner- even though Criston apparently feels more than comfortable in calling Rhaenyra 'spoiled c*nt' in Alicent's presence, despite Alicent's weak as hell and honestly half hearted reproof of him doing so.

And it's just... very very predictable that certain elements of this Fandom are trying to treat that scene as canon, even though it was deleted for a reason.

[theredpharaoah]

Dragons:

Targaryens are pretty much guaranteed to claim a castle dragon. It’s why Jaehaerys had the pit so heavily guarded. It’s probably the reason he created the pit and the dragonkeepers in the first place - to control access to dragons within the house. The Dragonkeepers have to turn Targs away from claiming dragons they know Jaehaerys wouldn’t like certain members(women) claiming. And even amongst the wild dragons, the Targaryens don’t show fear. Rhaena, Aerea, Maegor, etc, used to be among them just fine. Rhaenyra’s flinching at the arrival of Seasmoke and Rhaena was feeding Androw to Balerion with zero fear. Viserra would play in the pit and dare boys to put their hands in dragons’ mouths. Saera tried to steal a dragon. Baelon hit Balerion on the snout. Alyssa wanted Balerion but the Dragonkeepers persuaded her to go for Meleys instead. I laughed at Meleys not liking Daemon but that’s not the lore either. This is not Eragon. There’s no destined dragon for a rider. They ride whoever they choose to claim. And these dragons aren’t wild like Drogon was, they don’t have to be whipped into submission to be mounted. So please explain to me how tf Rhaena almost died. Was she attempting to tame a feral dragon? Because that’s the only way this makes sense. And Seasmoke has only been riderless for 6 years; he’s not feral and he was never an aggressive dragon.

Rhaena:

The way Rhaena is spoken of is not reflected in her character. They speak of her like she’s a coward and she comes off as anything but that. Compare Rhaena with Lady Jeyne to how Rhaenyra and Jace scoff at and dismiss her at the end of this episode; it’s not clicking. She’s not a coward. Where is this going? She’s in the Eyrie and none of us gaf about that storyline. You apparently compounded her character with Nettles. This is usually done in shows and I don’t have a problem with it, except you’ve just made that entire choice useless because you still sent her to the Eyrie. How are you going to get her back to Dragonstone? What about the children? What are you going to even do with the kids now that you’ve aged them down so much? You should’ve had her claim a dragon the episode she was supposed to leave to the Eyrie.

Daemon and The Riverlands:

First off: why is Daemon imagining himself fucking his ideal of his mother? What purpose did that serve for the plot or anything? Daemon was said to have been unaffected by the effects of Harrenahal, so why tf have you made him damn near incapacitated? And Alys Rivers; are you splitting Nettles story to her now? Are you making them lovers? What is the point of this? Also his character; he’s an idiot butcher. He told the Blackwoods to go play Ironborn on Bracken land and expected that to go over well with the rest of the River Lords? Then we have Jace; you can’t give the Freys Harrenhal you fucking idiot. The Freys wanting Harrenhal doesn’t even make sense. Nobody wants that fucking castle. It’s only useful during war.

Aegon and Helaena:

You made up a suit of Valyrian Steel armor and put him in it just so you could violate all the properties of Valyrian steel. What the fuck was the point of this? You could’ve just gave him the regular suit of armor he wore in the book. You made Helaena a dreamer and….what? The whole point of Dragon Dreams is that they give you knowledge about the future. Dany has Dragon Dreams and she uses them. Helaena doesn’t use hers at all. Dragon Dreams don’t make you fucking Cassandra of Troy; you’re not uselessly screaming and unable to decipher meanings. And there’s been a very obvious drop in ability for her. In season 1 we see Helaena performing entomomancy. There’s no way she’s doing all the shit she was doing at Laena’s funeral and doesn’t know what she’s doing. She’s 13-14 here too so it’s not some childish intuition she’s no longer able to do. And her character back then was way more badass than what she is now. She reminded me of how I interpreted Rhaena I’s character. Now she just runs around crying and being cryptic. They haven’t even mentioned the fact that she’s a dragonrider and we’ve never even seen her interact with Dreamfyre. Helaena loved flying -it was her greatest joy in life. We’re gonna discuss this regent shit later. You cut Maelor so she’s not going insane either. She went insane cuz she was constantly reminded of Jaehaerys when she saw Maelor. Originally she was told to choose between her two sons, not tell them which one of the twins was her son. And we need to discuss how she’s been completely robbed of Agency here. Helaena was actively participating in the usurping of the throne. She was in the Small Council meetings, and she was expected to go to battle and defend the city as well.

Christon Cole:

Character makes no sense. He would’ve been executed or sent to the Wall regardless of having Alicent’s favor after he killed Joffrey. Everything after that has just made him and the show seem more ridiculous.

Rhaenyra and Rulers Don’t Go To War:

This is not Planetos tradition. The rulers are expected to go to war. And in Fire and Blood, they expect Rhaenyra to participate in the war. On her dragon. Her never being in a battle is one of the weakest aspects of F&B. This episode you talk about her frustrations with being denied battle, we once again see she looks to Visenya, and then you proceed to have her act nothing like her. Her having to come to terms with the fact that she’s on her own and will have to face Vhagar should empower her. Meleys could’ve beat Vhagar. Syrax, Caraxes, and Meleys are all in the same age/size range. Syrax is faster than Vhagar and Rhaenyra has decades of experience riding over Aemond along with far more knowledge of battle tactics. She has a chance here, and she has to have a chance because otherwise she might as well walk into KL and let them kill her. The clip of her next episode flying on Syrax made no sense. Where are we going? Her picking up the sword??? She has no training. She can’t use that. Her threatening who I believe was Lord Celtigar - we already know you’re not going to do shit. Also, Rhaenyra is said to be intelligent since she was a child and she’s not shy about going to battle. The only reason she doesn’t fly to battle in the early days of the Dance is because she’s recovering from her miscarriage. Her personality clashes with later descriptions given of her by both Mushroom and Eustace: her reaction to Nettles and Daemon being one of them. And her apparent paranoia in KL seems nonexistent by the time she meets Aegon on Dragonstone - implying she wasn’t paranoid to begin with. I also don’t think Rhaenyra would be the type to put up with Daemon’s infidelity or that she would blame Nettles moreso than Daemon, but that’s my interpretation.

Culture:

Aemond becomes regent because he’s “The Protector of The Realm” and rides Vhagar. If it was up for debate, precedent(which they act like they live so much) would see regency pass to Helaena. The only reason Helaena probably didn’t become regent in the books is because she was already mad by the time Aegon was injured at Rook’s Rest. Dreamfyre should be larger than Caraxes, Syrax, and Meleys, but Rhaenys says otherwise. She’s at least the same size. So she had a dragon of a large enough size to support her claim as Regent. Also, the Greens were not arguing for Agnatic seniority - that came after the Dance. A daughter inherits before an uncle by Westerosi customs. So Aegon’s heir is Jaehaera in the show. The main argument made against Rhaenyra claiming the throne in the books by the Greens was that her children were bastards, not that she was a woman. Aegon only agreed to take the throne after Christon lied and said Rhaenyra would have to kill him to insure her bastard sons could ascent unobstructed. Aegon’s words according to Eustace: “My sister is the heir, not me. What sort of brother steals his sister’s birthright?”. This whole “women can’t rule” thing they’re doing in the show was not the norm of the culture. Visenya and Rhaenys did more of the day-to-day ruling than Aegon and Alysanne is still fresh in everyone’s minds. Also, they’ve completely failed to convey the seriousness of kinslaying. Aemond was not looked at well for what he did to Luke. He was called Aemond the Kinslayer. We haven’t seen anyone treat him differently but Alicent.

Dragonriders:

Dragonriders are warriors. Dragons aren’t for trips and to be shown off. Rhaenys is presented as a warrior in F&B and she does not use a sword. Meleys makes her a warrior. GRRM does make a distinction when he specified that characters were Dragonriders and used a blade, but Dragonriders are considered warriors. They’re literally in control of nukes. Rhaena could be said to have acted like a warrior too, and Jaehaerys acknowledged this. He said they’d have to go to war if the eggs Elissa stole hatched and that no hatchling could hope to stand against Dreamfyre and Vermithor. He refused to have Alysanna be a part of this. Rhaena then says “She is Rhaenys and I am Visenya. I never thought any different”. So Rhaenyra, Baela, Helaena, and Rhaenys’ lack of respect makes no sense. I interpret it as they would’ve been treated like warriors who hadn’t been blooded yet. And better than that, because a dragonrider doesn’t need to be blooded - you know they’re going to do damage. These men are not speaking to these women - especially Rhaenys and Rhaenyra - like they control beasts that could annihilate their entire family and bloodline in a matter of hours. And even the show contradicts itself. In episode 3 when Willem Blackwood is vying for Rhae’s hand he’s mocked by Bracken for saying he’d insure she was safe. Bracken says: “‘Protection’? The Princess has a dragon you dumb cunt.” And everyone, including Rhaenyra, laughs - she doesn’t need a man to protect her and they all know that. This also explains why Rhaenyra never learned how to use a sword even though she’d been the declared hero since she was 8: she didn’t need to. She only had to hone her abilities as a dragonrider. That was more than enough to insure she could fulfill her duties as Protector of The Realm.

On Adaptations:

When you’re adapting a book to a show/movie, you have license to take many liberties. People can’t follow narratives and characters on a screen the way they can with a book. They also can’t be informed of the world the way they can with a book - you have to show not tell. But Fire and Blood provides even more freedom than usual, because it’s a vague gloss of events written from two very biased accounts. Furthermore, after the dumpster fire that was GOT, I don’t think you’d have a hard time going AU with this. There is so much freedom here, but what you change has to be purposeful and good. First of all, you need to decide what you want to do? Are you sticking to the book ending or going somewhere different? You have to decide the main themes and messages you want to convey - what are you trying to use this story to say? They don’t seem to have done this. The show reads as indecisive. Are we sticking to the script or are we going in another direction; sometimes they seem to do that sometimes they don’t. Then they change lore that wasn’t really up on the table for changing; why change Dany’s eggs? The message? I couldn’t tell you. GRRM had a clear bias during the Dance - he supports the Blacks. Rhaenyra is one of many iterations in his “Amethyst Empress Cycle” - a cycle I believe he intends for Dany to break. And so the message GRRM seems to convey is some sort of naive feminist theory. The issue is that these show runners are failing at even that. Feminism is intuitive. There’s no way Rhaenyra can see her situation and what she’s doing and not see how big of a step forward it is for women all over Westeros. Yet the character they’ve crafted denies this - they all do - and continue to behave as though they exist in a vacuum. That they can have one: Rhaenyra ascending as Queen Regnant. without the other: drastically altering the political landscape of Westeros. Rhaenyra in the show acts as if she’s the exception, not a new rule. She doesn’t advocate for any other women in the realm and she still thinks in the patriarchal thought patterns of all the men around her. In the books we couldn’t say this because we’re not given enough to know. But based off of the show, we definitely can. And then this episode; what’s the message? Women are presented as this caricature and then instead of having them break that mold you have them embrace the caricature. It reads like some very idiotic interpretation of Difference Feminism. Acknowledging that those things traditionally considered feminine are just as important as the masculine, does not mean what we’re seeing in this show. Alicent doesn’t take Cole to task for betraying her at the council, she essentially says “I thought I meant more to you than that”. Rhaenyra doesn’t take Alfred to task for his insubordination, she bows to his demands, gives him an important mission, and looks weak all the while. She acts like she wants his approval. These women aren’t even the characters we were introduced to in season 1. Remember young Rhaenyra- how bold and sure she was even in the face of her inexperience? Where is that. This Rhaenyra can’t even rule her face. This Alicent can’t even express herself. This show is fighting itself. It’s fighting its apparent message, it’s fighting the lore, it’s fighting characters and relationships it previously developed.

And the changes? What do you change when you adapt a story? In my opinion you should change the weak points of that story. Off the top of my head; Rhaena, Dragonseeds, not immediately attacking KL, Moondancer and the dragons ridden by women problem(somehow they’re all just smaller than the men’s dragons - even if they’re older), ambiguous relationships, lack of sorcery known by Targs, lack of glass candles, lack of Valyrian arts and crafts known by Targs and Velaryons, inconsistent dragon populations, inconsistent dragon sizes and ages, etc. These are things I would think to change in my adaptation of this story BEFORE I took it in my preferred direction. They’ve solved Moondancer. Other than that, they’ve made more issues. One example is when they said Aegon had that dagger made by the last of the pyromancers. Why the hell didn’t they teach their skills to someone? Why didn’t he demand they do so?

Relationships:

I would put this above adaptations but Tumblr is stupid and will delete all this if I hit return. They’ve botched a bunch of relationships. Viserys loved Rhaenyra the most, but he was close to his other children and his grandchildren. He was sick, but he was a father figure to Aegon, Helaena, and Aemond. And Rhaenyra and her kids were closer to them as well. Rhaenyra and Alicent’s kids never liked one another though. Rhaenyra, Laena, and Daemon were pretty much in a throuple. I don’t think Rhaenys ever disliked Rhaenyra. The Velaryons knew(as did the whole realm) that Laenor was gay, and I’m pretty sure they knew that Rhaenyra and Daemon loved Laena. They knew Laenor couldn’t provide heirs which was why Rhaenyra and Laena’s children were betrothed when Rhaena and Baela were 2 and Jace and Luke were 4 and 3. They did that to insure they would still have Velaryon blood in their lines. Vaemond and the other Velaryons always just read as thirsty for power to me. I mean Corlys ain’t even fuck with them like that tbh. He built High Tide cuz Driftmark was too crowded(Read: his family got on his damn nerves). Vaemond attempting to take lordship from Luke due to lack of Velaryon blood was nonsensical because Rhaena and Luke’s children would be just as Velaryon as any other Velaryon had ever been. He just wanted power. Aegon and Helaena’s relationship is way off too. Aegon was a sleaze and he slept around(and was predatory), but he did seem to care for and maybe even love Helaena. They slept in the same bed until B&C happened. Their marriage was nowhere near as cold as it’s depicted in the show. Daemon and his relationships with everyone is a mess. He doesn’t seem to care about his children at all really, he doesn’t seem to have loved Laena, he doesn’t seem to have loved Mysaria, and he’s abusive of and doesn’t seem to love Rhaenyra. I also don’t read the family being so fractured. Unlike with Rhaenyra and her brothers, Baela and Rhaena never call their brothers “half-brothers”. And considering Rhaenyra’s love of Laena, I don’t believe she didn’t raise those two girls as her own. I also don’t think that Daemon doesn’t see the Strong boys as his own kids too, and they don’t see him as their father. Harwin couldn’t take an active role in raising them for obvious reasons and Laenor was never around. They’d been around Daemon since they were born, and he was their father - a present and active father - for most of their lives. Joffrey wouldn’t even remember Laenor or Harwin as he was 3 when they died. And that leads me back to Rhaenyra’s relationship with Rhaena and Baela; they were 4 when Laena died. They don’t remember her. When they think of “mother” it’s Rhaenyra’s face that pops up, not Laena’s. And it’s the same for The Strong Boys and Daemon. Harwin couldn’t have raised them as it would’ve been way too dangerous for him to even show a decent amount of affection towards them. Maybe he could on Dragonstone though? But even that wouldn’t be enough. Her eldest: Jace and Luke are 6 and 5 respectively when he dies. They have fragmented memories of Harwin at best. Autobiographical memory literally stabilizes at those ages, everything before that is either nonexistent or fragmented.

[dragonmartellstark]

At the coronation of Rhaenyra as Regent Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, Jacaerys was chosen as his heir, but his figure was not well seen by others due to his supposed bastardy, his mother assured that he carried his blood, dragon blood and with that should be enough.

Jacaerys was engaged to her cousin, Baela Targaryen, but despite maintaining a good relationship, the two did not love each other and it is known that Baela did not like the idea of ​​being queen since she had to obey the protocol and rules that according to her, were absurd. In 132 a. C., Jacaerys made a long journey through the Seven Kingdoms settling in for a time in Winterfell where he met Sara Snow, the bastard sister of Cregan Stark and it is known that he fell madly in love with her. The prince extended his stay in the North for a few more months to meet that young woman who had amazed him and both became lovers during that time sharing time in hunting parties, card games and in the boy's bedroom.

Queen Rhaenyra demanded that her son return to court in order to officially marry his cousin Baela, but Jacaerys disobeyed his mother and secretly married Sara in the heart tree of Winterfell, where he gave himself to her under the testimony of the Old Gods. This marriage was something bittersweet for Cregan since he had four daughters with Alysanne Blackwood with whom the prince could marry, but in the end Cregan declared his sister as Rickon Stark's legitimate daughter.

Rhaenyra and Daemon were unhappy with the prince for having humiliated Princess Baela in this way and also displeased with Lord Cregan for accepting that marriage. Baela Targaryen did not show upset and accepted that her cousin was happy, in addition to revealing that she had a lover of hers, her cousin, Alyn Velaryon and she wanted to marry hers as she no longer had a fiancé. In the end Rhaenyra accepted this marriage and declared Sara legitimate to be able to have a formal wedding taking place in the year 133 a. C., being a double ceremony in which Jacaerys and Sara were married, in addition to Alyn and Baela.

Jacaerys and Sara soon consummated their union as a very passionate couple. In the year 135 a. C., was born the first daughter of the couple, Rhaenys named in honor of her grandmother Rhaenyra of her and Princess Rhaenys, the queen that she never was. Two years later Aerion was born, the future Aerion I Targaryen and he had the platinum hair and purple eyes of his maternal family proving that Jacaerys was of Valyrian blood.

The couple was happy and despite not having more children, they were very close and shared the same room. With the passage of time Sara gained the appreciation of hers-in-law of hers the princes Lucerys, Joffrey and Aegon, in addition to the sympathy of Helaena Targaryen and hers of her children who saw her as "a new queen." In 152 a. C., her son Aerion married one of Lucerys and Rhaena's daughters, Princess Laena Velaryon with whom he had a daughter, Rhaenyra.

In 157 a. C., Queen Rhaenyra I passed away and Jacaerys was crowned as Jacaerys I using the Targaryen surname instead of Velaryon. Sara could not be crowned due to the king's problems with faith refusing to declare a bastard queen, but Jacaerys chose to change to the Supreme Septon being supplanted by a man known as "Bar" who crowned Sara as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms in 159 a. C.

During the reign of her husband, Aenar Targaryen, Aegon's eldest son "the youngest" (Jacaerys' younger half-brother) rebelled against the king declaring himself the sole king after the death of his father in 160 a. C., this rebellion is known as "the war of Valyrian succession". This war put the royal family in great danger suffering an assassination attempt that was stopped by Joffrey Velaryon protecting the family from him until the end. This rebellion ended in 162 a. C., when Jacaerys convinced Aenar to marry his granddaughter, Rhaenyra who was Aerion's only heir when he ascended to the throne, in this way Aenar and Rhaenyra would reign in the Seven Kingdoms together. This deal was supported by the Velaryon, the Starks, and Aenar's younger sister, Jelaena, so the prince agreed to marry the little princess.

The following years were calm and peaceful for the kings enjoying a certain popularity for being conciliators, in addition to their works of charity to the convents, orphanages and schools of the Capital.

Sara did not separate from Jacaerys being her faithful and beloved companion, she was even with him when he was sick with smallpox in the year 179 a. C. The queen took care of her husband for four days, but during those days she was also infected and had to be in bed away from Jacaerys. That same year Jacaerys passed away at the age of 64, when Sara found out about her death and cried for her for a long time and her condition only worsened, dying two days after the king. Both were cremated and their ashes were buried together.

A la coronación de Rhaenyra como Reina regente de los Siete Reinos, Jacaerys fue elegido como su heredero, pero su figura no era bien vista por los demás debido a su supuesta bastardía, su madre aseguro que el llevaba su sangre, sangre del dragón y con eso debía ser suficiente.

Jacaerys estaba prometido con su prima, Baela Targaryen, pero pese a mantener una buena relación ambos no se amaban y se sabe que Baela no le agradaba la idea de ser reina puesto a que tenia que obedecer el protocolo y las reglas que según ella, eran absurdas. En el 132 d. C., Jacaerys hizo un largo viaje por los Siete Reinos instalándose en por un tiempo en Invernalia donde conoció a Sara Nieve, la hermana bastarda de Cregan Stark y se sabe que el quedo perdidamente enamorado de ella. El príncipe alargo su estancia en el Norte por unos meses mas para conocer aquella joven que lo tenia maravillado y ambos se convirtieron en amantes durante ese tiempo compartiendo el tiempo en partidas de caza, juegos de cartas y en la alcoba del chico.

La reina Rhaenyra exigió a su hijo volver a la corte para así casarse oficialmente con su prima Baela, pero Jacaerys desobedeció a su madre y se caso en secreto con Sara en el árbol corazón de Invernalia, donde se entregó a ella bajo el testimonio de los Antiguos Dioses. Este casamiento fue algo agridulce para Cregan ya que tenia cuatro hijas con Alysanne Blackwood con las que el príncipe podía casarse, pero al final Cregan declaro a su hermana como hija legitima de Rickon Stark.

Rhaenyra y Daemon estaban descontentos con el príncipe al haber humillado a la princesa Baela de esa forma y también disgustados con Lord Cregan por aceptar aquel casamiento. Baela Targaryen no se mostro disgustada y acepto que su primo fuera feliz, además de revelar que ella tenia un amante su primo, Alyn Velaryon y quería casarse con el al ya no tener ningún prometido. Al final Rhaenyra acepto este casamiento y declaro legitima a Sara para poder realizarse una boda formal celebrándose esta en el año 133 d. C., siendo una doble ceremonia en la cual se casaron Jacaerys y Sara, además de Alyn y Baela.

Jacaerys y Sara no tardaron en consumar su unión siendo una pareja bastante apasionada. En el año 135 d. C., nació la primera hija de la pareja, Rhaenys nombrada en honor a su abuela Rhaenyra y a la princesa Rhaenys, la reina que nunca fue. Dos años después nació Aerion, el futuro Aerion I Targaryen y este tenia el cabello platino y los ojos morados de su familia materna demostrando que Jacaerys era de sangre valyria.

La pareja fue feliz y pesé a no tener mas hijos fueron muy unidos y compartían la misma habitación. Con el paso del tiempo Sara se gano el aprecio de sus cuñados los príncipes Lucerys, Joffrey y Aegon, además de la simpatía de Helaena Targaryen y sus hijos que la veían como “una nueva reina”. En el 152 d. C., su hijo Aerion se caso con una de las hijas de Lucerys y Rhaena, la princesa Laena Velaryon con la cual tuvo una hija, Rhaenyra.

En el 157 d. C., falleció la reina Rhaenyra I y Jacaerys fue coronado como Jacaerys I usando el apellido Targaryen en vez del Velaryon. Sara no pudo ser coronada debido a los problemas que tuvo el rey con la fe negándose a declarar a una bastarda como reina, pero Jacaerys opto por cambiar al Septon Supremo siendo suplantado por un hombre conocido como “Bar” quien corono a Sara como Reina de los Siete Reinos en el 159 d. C.

Durante el reinado de su marido, Aenar Targaryen, el hijo mayor de Aegon “el menor” (medio hermano menor de Jacaerys) se rebelo contra el rey declarándose como único rey después de la muerte de su padre en el año 160 d. C., esta rebelión se conoce como “la guerra de sucesión valyria”. Esta guerra hizo peligrar mucho a la familia real sufriendo un intento de asesinato que fue detenido por Joffrey Velaryon protegiendo a su familia hasta el final. Esta rebelión acabo en el 162 d. C., cuando Jacaerys convenció a Aenar de casarse con su nieta, Rhaenyra quien era la única heredera de Aerion cuando este subiera al trono, de ese modo Aenar y Rhaenyra reinarían en juntos los SIete Reinos. Este trato fue apoyado por los Velaryon, los Stark y por la hermana menor de Aenar, Jelaena por lo que el principe acepto casarse con la pequeña princesa.

Los años siguientes fueron tranquilos y pacíficos para los reyes gozando de cierta popularidad por ser unos conciliadores, además de sus obras de caridad a los conventos, orfanatos y escuelas de la Capital. 

Sara no se separo de Jacaerys siendo su fiel y amada compañera, incluso estuvo con el cuando este enfermo de viruela en el año 179 d. C.. La reina cuido por cuatro días a su marido, pero durante esos días ella también se contagio y tuvo que estar en cama alejada de Jacaerys. Ese mismo año Jacaerys falleció a los 64 años de edad, cuando Sara se entero de su muerte lloro por un largo tiempo y su estado no hizo mas que empeorar falleciendo dos días después que el rey. Ambos fueron incinerados y sus cenizas fueron enterradas juntas.

[prodixal]

The grief must have snuffed out all the light that previously lit up the island. Apart from the funeral pyres, and occasional candles that had still remained, Driftmark was coated in shadow. To Rhaena, it felt oddly soothing. At least it was harder to see the sunken eyes, and the strands of silver hair hidden beneath a black veil. She'd approached lord Stark to get away from less desirable company. The pity, the questions, the reminders of her sisters character which, it seemed, not a single person knew anything about. She was not gentle, nor well-mannered, nor sweet. Her sister was a dragon, and she was ruthless -- "I've nothing left to say of the dead, my lord." she pulled the chair to settle beside him, resting her elbow at his wheelchair giving the impression of a private conversation in order to prevent the others from approaching. "Death is exhausting -- for the living, that is. The dead are just dead, aren't they?"

open starter: driftmark residents location: high tide

the halls of high tide had never felt so hollow.

the salt-laden air carried the scent of the sea, as it always had, but tonight it mingled with the iron tang of blood and the stifling weight of smoke from the pyres still burning. corwyn velaryon was dead. the battle at green fork was won—if such ruin could be called victory—but the cost had been steep, and the taste of it bitter on edric stark’s tongue.

he sat on his wheelchair at the edge of the great hall, the firelight casting long shadows across the stone. the air was thick with the murmur of voices, hushed but urgent, nobles and knights alike whispering of what was to come.

edrik had no answers—only exhaustion, only the dull ache of wounds yet to heal, and the knowledge that the war had not ended with corwyn’s death. it had only begun anew.

his grey eyes flicked across the room, seeking—what, he was not certain. a familiar face. a voice of reason. another survivor of green fork. or perhaps simply a distraction from the weight pressing against his ribs.

“have you come to speak of the dead?” his voice was low, rough from war and wear. “or of what comes after them?”

[laannie0803]

Lady Baela Targaryen, apodada Bae, fue la hija mayor del príncipe Daemon Targaryen y su segunda esposa, Lady Laena Velaryon. Tuvo una hermana gemela, Rhaena.

De joven era una doncella asilvestrada y caprichosa, fibrosa y rápida, más hombruna que femenina que llevaba el pelo plateado tan corto como un muchacho, para que no se le atravesase en la cara cuando cabalgaba.

Cuando su madrastra Rhaenyra Targaryen se hizo con el dominio de Desembarco del Rey y el Trono de Hierro, Baela dividía sus días entre Marcaderiva y Rocadragón. Poco después de que la corte de la reina se trasladase a la capital, Baela fue descubierta dejando que un pinche de cocina la tocase por debajo de las faldas. El castellano de Rocadragón, Ser Robert Quince, enojadísimo ordenó que le cortaran la mano al chico y tan solo la llorosa intercesión de Baela lo salvó. Cuando el dragón Fantasma Ceniciento apareció calcinado y destrozado en la isla de Rocadragón, le prohibió a Lady Baela volar en Bailarina Lunar por miedo a que el dragón Caníbal, que se creía había atacado al otro dragón, le hiciera daño. Lady Baela no quedó feliz con la prohibición y esa misma noche trató de escabullirse hasta su dragona pero fue descubierta; luego de eso quedó confinada a sus habitaciones.

Cerca del final de la guerra, y debido a que Rocadragón cayó en manos de Aegon II Targaryen, Baela pudo escapar de sus habitaciones cuando la puerta fue destrozada. Se las arregló para llegar a su dragón y soltó sus cadenas, ensillándolo y escapando, pero mientras huía se encontró con Aegon II y Fuegosol. Los dragones lucharon hasta el amanecer en el aire, pero cayeron sobre la dura piedra del patio de la fortaleza. Aegon II se soltó de la silla cuando los dragones se encontraban a veinte metros del suelo, pero Lady Baela no corrió la misma suerte y quedó enganchada a la silla de Danzarina Lunar. Finalmente consiguió escapar, pero su dragona fue devorada por Fuegosol. Quemada y apaleada, Baela logró desengancharse de su silla y arrastrarse lejos de su dragona. Ser Alfred Broome la encontró y desenvainó su espada para matarla, pero Ser Marston Mares lo impidió arrancando la espada de la mano de Alfred. Tom Lenguatrabada la llevó hasta el maestre Hunnimore.

Después de la ascensión de su primo y hermanastro, el rey Aegon III Targaryen, Lord Cregan Stark tomó la regencia en lo que se conoció como la Hora del Lobo. Ordenó ejecutar a todos los hombres involucrados en la traición a Aegon II Targaryen, aun cuando estuvieran actuando por órdenes de los hombres del actual rey Aegon III. Champiñón afirma que Lady Baela empuñó una espada y declaró que cortaría la mano de cualquiera que intentase hacer daño a los hombres que la habían salvado; Lord Cregan sonrió y dijo que, "si la dama tenía tanto cariño a aquellos perros, le permitiría conservarlos". Lord Stark también se mostró inflexible sobre perdonar a Lord Corlys Velaryon, quien había jurado lealtad al rey Aegon II Targaryen a finales de la guerra.

Rhaena y Baela convencieron a Aegon III de no castigar a Corlys, afirmando que si no fuera por su abuelo, el estaría muerto. Aegon perdono la vida de la Serpiente Marina y lo hizo parte de su consejo Privado.

Como la gemela mayor, muchos consideraban a Baela como heredera al Trono de Hierro, pero ella detestaba estar en el centro de la atención de la corte de Desembarco del Rey. Su personalidad asilvestrada gustaba de compañía inadecuada para una noble, como un malabarista joven y simpático, un aprendiz de herrero cuyos músculos admiraba, un mendigo sin piernas, un mago de trucos baratos y un par de gemelas de un burdel.

En 132 d.C. se acordó que Baela se casaría antes de poder deshonrar a la Casa Targaryen. Fueron considerados como pretendientes Lord Kermit Tully, Lord Benjicot Blackwood, Lord Lyonel Hightower, Lord Dalton Greyjoy, el príncipe Qyle Martell y el autoproclamado Rey de los Peldaños de Piedra Racallio Ryndoon, pero la Mano Ser Tyland Lannister y el Consejo de Regentes se decidieron por el dos veces viudo Lord Thaddeus Rowan. Sin embargo, Baela no estaba satisfecha con la decisión.

Un día después, huyó del castillo y contrató a un pescador para que la llevara a Marcaderiva. Allí buscó a su primo, Lord Alyn Velaryon y le contó los planes de matrimonio; quince días después, Lady Baela, de dieciséis años, y Lord Alyn, de casi diecisiete, se casaron en el septo de Rocadragón. Aunque algunos regentes le pidieron a Ser Tyland que solicitara la anulación al Septón Supremo, la respuesta de la Mano fue de desconcertante resignación, haciendo correr el rumor de que matrimonio había sido arreglado por el rey y la corte. Posteriormente, se acordó que Baela no podría ser heredera del Trono de Hierro después de tal acción.

El matrimonio de Lady Baela y Lord Alyn fue famoso como tormentoso. En 133 d.C., Lord Alyn zarpó hacia las Tierras del Oeste y Lady Baela lo despidió con un beso y la noticia de que se encontraba embarazada; si el niño era varón, sería considerado heredero del Trono de Hierro. Lord Alyn le pidió que nombrara al bebé Corlys, como su abuelo, pero que Baela declaró que sería una niña y se llamaría Laena, como su madre.

Ese mismo año, mientras su marido estaba en Antigua, envió una carta a Baela después de que se recibió la noticia de la muerte de la reina Jaehaera, y el repentino anuncio del compromiso del rey con la hija de la Mano del Rey, Myrielle Peake. Se desconoce el contenido de la carta, pero poco después Lady Baela y Lady Rhaena llegaron a Desembarco del Rey con la joven pupila de Baela, Daenaera Velaryon, para el Baile del Día de la Doncella. El rey eligió a Daenaera como su segunda esposa, haciendo creciera el desagrado que Lord Unwin Peake sentía por Baela.

Al año siguiente, Lord Alyn Velaryon volvió a la capital a bordo del Lady Baela trayendo consigo al príncipe Viserys Targaryen, quien se creía muerto. Lord Alyn se encontró en los muelles de Desembarco del Rey con Lady Baela esperándolo con su hija recién nacida, Laena; tras besar a su esposa, Lord Alyn alzó a la niña para mostrársela a la multitud, que lo ovacionó. Con el regreso del hermano del rey, Lady Baela dejó de ser la heredera al trono. Poco después, Lady Baela regresó a Marcaderiva con Lord Alyn y su hija. Cuando el esposo de su hermana Rhaena, Ser Corwyn Corbray, fue asesinado en Piedra de las Runas, Baela viajó a Rocadragón para consolarla. Para 136 d.C., Lady Baela estaba embarazada de su segundo hijo.

Después de su muerte (entre el 165 y el 170 d. C. me imagino) su esposo tuvo un romance con su sobrina, Elaena Targaryen y tuvo mellizos bastardos, Jon y Jeyne Mares. Elaena esperaba casarse con Alyn, pero este desapareció en el año 175 d. C.

Su relación con Alyn no me parece del todo sincera y romántica (al igual que la de Daemon y Rhaenyra). Aun así al igual que su hermana, solo eran unas niñas en medio de una cruel guerra y Baela estuvo presente, me imagino que debió sufrir un poco mentalmente por todas las muertes y los destrozos al rededor de los Seis Reinos.

Lady Baela Targaryen, nicknamed Bae, was the eldest daughter of Prince Daemon Targaryen and his second wife, Lady Laena Velaryon. She had a twin sister, Rhaena.

As a young woman, she was a feral and capricious maiden, stringy and quick, more manly than feminine, with silver hair as short as a boy, so that she would not get caught in the face when she rode.

When his stepmother Rhaenyra Targaryen seized control of King's Landing and the Iron Throne, Baela divided her days between Marcaderiva and Dragonstone. Shortly after the queen's court moved to the capital, Baela was discovered leaving a pinche de cocina to touch her underneath her skirts. Dragonstone's Castilian Ser Robert Quince, very angry, ordered the boy's hand cut off and only Baela's tearful intercession saved him. When the Ashen Ghost dragon appeared charred and shattered on Dragonstone Island, he forbade Lady Baela to fly on the Moon Dancer for fear that the Dragon Cannibal, believed to have attacked the other dragon, would harm her. Lady Baela was not happy with the ban and that same night she tried to sneak up to her dragon but was discovered; after that she was confined to her rooms.

Near the end of the war, and because Dragonstone fell into the hands of Aegon II Targaryen, Baela was able to escape her rooms when the door was smashed. She managed to reach her dragon and released her chains, saddling and escaping, but as she fled she encountered Aegon II and Fuegosol. The dragons fought until dawn in midair, but fell on the hard stone of the courtyard of the fortress. Aegon II was released from the chair when the dragons were twenty meters from the ground, but Lady Baela did not suffer the same fate and was hooked to the Moon Dancer's chair. Finally she managed to escape, but her dragon was devoured by Fuegosol. Burned and beaten, Baela managed to unhook herself from her chair and crawl away from her dragon. Ser Alfred Broome found her and unsheathed his sword to kill her, but Ser Marston Mares prevented it by ripping the sword from Alfred's hand. Tom Lenguatrabada took her to Master Hunnimore.

After the ascension of her cousin and stepbrother, King Aegon III Targaryen, Lord Cregan Stark took over the regency in what became known as the Wolf Hour. He ordered all the men involved in the betrayal of Aegon II Targaryen to be executed, even though they were acting on the orders of the men of the current King Aegon III. Mushroom claims that Lady Baela wielded a sword and declared that she would cut off the hand of anyone who attempted to harm the men who had saved her; Lord Cregan smiled and said, "If the lady was so fond of those dogs, she would allow her to keep them." Lord Stark was also adamant about forgiving Lord Corlys Velaryon, who had sworn allegiance to King Aegon II Targaryen in the late war.

Rhaena and Baela convinced Aegon III not to punish Corlys, stating that if it wasn't for her grandfather, she would be dead. Aegon spared the life of the Sea Serpent and made it part of his Private council.

As the elder twin, Baela was considered by many to be heir to the Iron Throne, but she hated being in the center of the attention of the King's Landing court. Her feral personality liked inadequate companionship for a noblewoman, such as a sympathetic young juggler, a blacksmith's apprentice whose muscles she admired, a legless beggar, a cheap trick magician, and a pair of brothel twins.

In 132 A.D. it was agreed that Baela would marry before she could dishonor House Targaryen. Lord Kermit Tully, Lord Benjicot Blackwood, Lord Lyonel Hightower, Lord Dalton Greyjoy, Prince Qyle Martell and the self-proclaimed King of Stone Steps Racallio Ryndoon were considered as suitors, but the Ser Ser Hand Tyland Lannister and the Council of Regents were decided by the twice widowed Lord Thaddeus Rowan. However, Baela was not satisfied with the decision.

A day later, she fled the castle and hired a fisherman to take her to Marcaderiva. There she sought out her cousin, Lord Alyn Velaryon, and told her of the marriage plans; A fortnight later, Lady Baela, sixteen, and Lord Alyn, almost seventeen, were married in the Dragonstone Septa. Although some regents asked Ser Tyland to request annulment of the Supreme Septum, the Hand's response was one of disconcerting resignation, spreading the rumor that the marriage had been arranged by the king and the court. Subsequently, it was agreed that Baela could not be heir to the Iron Throne after such action.

The marriage of Lady Baela and Lord Alyn was famous as stormy. In 133 AD, Lord Alyn set sail for the Western Lands, and Lady Baela dismissed him with a kiss and the news that she was pregnant; if the boy was a boy, he would be considered heir to the Iron Throne. Lord Alyn asked her to name the baby Corlys, as her grandfather, but that Baela declared that she would be a girl and her name would be Laena, like her mother.

That same year, while her husband was in Antigua, she sent a letter to Baela after news of Queen Jaehaera's death was received, and the sudden announcement of the king's engagement to the daughter of the King's Hand, Myrielle Peake . The content of the letter is unknown, but soon afterwards Lady Baela and Lady Rhaena arrived at King's Landing with Baela's young pupil, Daenaera Velaryon, for the Maiden's Day Ball. The king chose Daenaera as his second wife, growing Lord Unwin Peake's dislike for Baela.

The following year, Lord Alyn Velaryon returned to the capital aboard the Lady Baela, bringing with him Prince Viserys Targaryen, believed to be dead. Lord Alyn met Lady Baela on the docks of King's Landing waiting for him with his newborn daughter, Laena; After kissing his wife, Lord Alyn raised the girl to show her to the crowd, who applauded him. With the return of the king's brother, Lady Baela ceased to be the heir to the throne. Soon after, Lady Baela returned to Marcaderiva with Lord Alyn and her daughter. When her sister Rhaena's husband, Ser Corwyn Corbray, was killed in Rune Stone, Baela traveled to Dragonstone to comfort her. By AD 136, Lady Baela was pregnant with her second child.

After her death (between AD 165 and 170 I imagine) her husband had an affair with his niece, Elaena Targaryen, and had bastard twins, Jon and Jeyne Mares. Elaena hoped to marry Alyn, but he disappeared in AD 175. C.

Her relationship with Alyn doesn't seem entirely sincere and romantic to me (like Daemon and Rhaenyra's). Even so, just like her sister, they were only girls in the middle of a cruel war and Baela was present, I imagine that she must have suffered a little mentally for all the deaths and destruction around the Six Kingdoms.

[prodixal]

"Greyjoy." she says though a nonchalant sigh. Her eyes passing over him as if appearances were enough to see through a person. "How very lucky you decided to join us during this difficult time." with her hands clasped together before her, she walks up to him. "I hear we've you to thank for kidnaping my dear cousin. Is that true?"

@bloodycrxwnn // daemon greyjoy

[prodixal]

open to all. driftmark

"Must I justify myself at every turn?" it was getting tiring. Perhaps she ought to make a public announcement and explain that she did, in fact, owe loyalty to the only people who had genuinely treated her like family. Revenge, power, Dragonstone -- those were simply the benefits that came with the territory, and Rhaena would have all three. "Pour me a drink then, go on."

[prodixal]

Rhaena did not take kindly to her cousins laugh. And perhaps a couple of moons ago she would have been inclined to agree. To not even bother expecting such a union to transpire -- and yet, after a conversation with a certain Bracken boy, she had time to think. To change her mind. If a Bracken could see past the hate for the sake of greater benefit, surely the Blackwoods were not so full of ego and arrogance to do the same. "You and I are Blackwoods, and here we are. Our people would come, if we gave them a good enough reason to do so. If we had a strong Tully leader to unite the Riverlords, we could be the strongest force within this war. Perhaps stronger than the Tyrells, stronger than the Lannisters...even." after years of practice acquired through murdering each other, the Riverlands had experience the other areas lacked. They had an advantageous position too, united they could position a king of their choosing. The news of Monterys betrothal catch her by surprise. She was aware of the talks, but did not know such a thing was official. "You don't say." her comment is made not to give away the quick pinch of rage that passed through her bones. "I am very familiar with lady Rhea." on an intimate level. "They do not match. If Greyjoys want a union with the Velaryons, surely the younger daughter would have been more suited to Baelora." perhaps when she's made hand, she could stir these decisions and matches in a more appropriate direction before they are official. "I understand my uncles reluctance to join in with the Blackwoods, but I will have a word, I promise."

Joanna couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her lips, the thought of Brackens and Blackwoods standing united was ridiculous, it would never happen. Not in their lifetime anyways. "As much as I would try and speak with her, I highly doubt that would be possible. There is no way the Brackens and the Blackwoods are ever going to fight on the same side. I believe we would have a civil war in our hands if the Blackwoods came to the Velaryon side, we would be fighting among ourselves." There was a small shake of her head, she had tried to unite them, to stop this pointless rivalry but most of the time it seemed like she was the only one fighting for it. Joanna found herself comfortable in the other's company, able to speak freely of what was going through her mind. And her heart. It wasn't an easy task, for her to open up to others in such a way but Rhaena had that effect on her. They were family after all, they were fighting on the same side and for the same things, she felt like she could trust her. "I know. I can only imagine the amount of pressure that is on his shoulders." She paused. "He's betrothed to Lady Rhea Greyjoy. I didn't know what I expected coming here, of course his father would've already arranged a marriage for him." She paused, nodding her head. "I will stand by him, until my last breath. He's the reason why I came here and why I'll stay. I believe in him, I always have. And I know if it happens, he'll be the king we need." She paused. "I appreciate it, thank you Rhaena."