#corlys is and was so down bad for his wife and we love him for thatt

[avnasace]

corlys trying to name baela heir to driftmark is interesting, it shows his mindset i think, because considering baela is betrothed to jace, she wouldnt be able to be heir to driftmark even if she wanted to.

now that corlys has lost both his wife, brother and his own legitimate children, and lukes death left him without an heir, i wonder if him scrambling to pass driftmark to baela is suicidal ideation? i might be wrong but it almost looked like he was standing where they put the velaryons to rest? it would be easy to think he was grieving his family, also most likely thinking about how rhaenys wont ever join him and their children in the sea, but i also think it must have been him wanting to give up and join them early.

i do also love that rhaenyra told baela that she sees rhaenys in her, again proven by baelas "i am fire and blood" line and her talking about dying a dragonriders death like her mother and grandmother. i havent read the books but hopefully this means she might have given him some hope and reminded corlys why he sided with rhaenyra in the first place. which was because of rhaenys' words and his love for her and his grandaughters.

[povofjustme]

The Queen of Death

Part (1/?)

Fandom- House of the Dragons

Being Lord Corlys and Princess Rhaenys first born, your farther heir

Your were the most sweet and kindest child and that stayed with your until you were a maiden

But you never forget that you are Princess Rhaenys (the queen who was never) is your mother, your leaned many things over the years from her

You were a year younger that Rhaenyra and your grow up together

You both even claimed your dragon (Vermithor) at the same time as each other

Your were best friends and told each other everything

Even your little crush on one of the king’s guards Harwin Strong

You thought nothing would never changed your friendship

Even when she married your younger brother Leanor Velaryon’s and your marrying your first love Harwin

but your were mistaken when your was hold little baby Jacaerys

Your were heart broken when you was holding the babe in your arms

-Over the years your knew that Rhaenyra and Leanor marriage wasn’t perfect but she told you they have arrangement

But she never told you it was with your fucking husband

“I guess the little babe has more Arryn then targaryen”

That was the last thing you said before going mute

Your never felt so betrayed

Your husband, your best friend and your brother

Your cried in your mothers are for days and still hasn’t said a word, Rhaenys was heartbroken

She couldn’t done nothing but hold you

If Rhaenys was the ask the king for annulment the king would say no, just to keep Rhaenyra safe from the rumors

“Cousin you can not be that stupid” r

“Rhaenys watch yourself, we are family but am still king” v

“REALLY want to talk about family, Rhaenyra should learn the meaning of family!”

So her daughter had to stay in the marriage, but she would do everything to keep her first safe

Corlys was furious, there are no word to explain

He wants to pack up his daughter things and move her back to Driftmarks

But Harwin wouldn’t let it happen, after the birth of Jacaerys your wouldn’t speak a word to him

“She is my wife and she will not be going anywhere!”

He would try to grab your had and you would pull away

Ask you to had dinner with him and only meet with no response

Try to get physical and say ..

“I think is time for a baby” h

“….” Y/n walk out the room

And when your move out of your shard quarters together, he know he had lost you

Rhaenyra would do anything to get you back

She would try to have you break her fast with her in the morning - your mother would shut it down in a heartbeat

Tried having you go on walks in the garden with her and Jace but would find you with Queen Alicent children instead

Tried flying with you but be Vermithor would have Rhaenyra lost in the clouds and lost site of you

Even tried summoning you to dinner and sit right next to her, she would talk and talk to try to get something out of you

Even tried telling that Harwin didn’t mean a thing but then get caught up in her words, everything comes out bad

But you never utter a word

And you used it against everyone, even the king hisself

“So y/n how have you been feeling” v said in front of the dinner table “I heard you been unwell” v

“….” You

“Y/n-“ v

“Cousin leave her be” r

The king would try to talk to you but Your mother had your back no matter what

Some people found it rude or disrespectful but you had no feeling left to give

Everyone saw the change in you, you were the girl who was smile at everything and one

And now they never seen a smile on your face, unless it was with the Queens children

It’s been months since the birth of Jacaerys, the king was having a tournament for the babe, all the lords and lady’s where coming to celebrate

The looks and the whispers alone was getting louder and you couldn’t take it

You stood next your husband at the feast, when you saw that everyone was distracted you took your chances

In your room, your grabbing your ridding gear, a few pouches of gold coins. Not needing any else but the clothes on your back

Found your way to the dragon pit, got on Vermithor and fly

You didn’t know where you was going but you knew it was away from kings landing

Flying for hours, you found yourself in a storm

-Vermithor having a hard time trying to navigate again it….

Thing everything went black……

When you wake up, you were on a island… The death Island

(Had this in my head for awhile, don’t know how many parts but let me know if you want this in story!!)

[lokisprettygirl]

Hot take but i feel like Corlys is the only one who actually understands how Daemon's mind works. Like Daemon is probably the ONLY person from both the parties (up to an extent Aegon as well) that is not hiding behind the cloak of righteousness and plethora of "Oh daddy i have sinned, oh mommy i was bullied, oh kill the innocent guard for me when I need it but how dare you tarnish my name now that I want to sit the throne and make my dead daddy proud"

He doesn't give a fuck , he is staying true to his character.

Daemon is literally doing what he has always done.. getting things done violently if it would benefit him and keep his wife on the throne. We all love a bad boy until or unless the bad boy's actions cost us so I get you queen but like chill, he lost people as well (he broke down on the beach when his brother and daughter died).

I don't condone his actions but you knew who he was when you begged him to marry you a day after his wife died.

Every time I think I'm being too harsh on Criston he proves me wrong. Oh well now after a son for a son and the queen for the son i need team black to send someone to assassinate the King and fail miserably.

Also Aemond should just admit he got hots for his uncle and be done with it..he's so delusional, every time he speaks I cringe viscerally.

[tessarionbestgirl]

When Beala said " I am Blood and Fire. Driftmark must pass to pass to Salt and Sea." I just couldn't stop thinking how much this mankes no sense, she spend 6 years as ward in Drifmark. She should felt some connection with that place.

Oh man I have forget about that. Make everything worse.

That's the big difference between Got and Hotd. In Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire, we see how Theon has a certain conflict for being raised in the North as a GreyJoy. But in Hotd, at least when it comes to the Velaryons and TB any character depth is washed away and replaced with one cool line to shut down everyone that doesn't give a second thought.

But it's clearly worse for Baela, I've said this before but the last episode just fucked up any characterization of her as a character and she's the worst character written behind just Rhaenys, just because she didn't do something as bad as Rhaenys and contradictory, but she is just as empty. We know that Rhaena and Baela are mirrors of Sansa and Arya. But they are not even half as complex. And they don't even get the basics right, because yes we see her playing with the crossbow, but less about her being a tomboy, and more about foreshadowing Jace's death.

And Baela is very feminine from what little we see of her at the same time that she is even colder than Arya herself. That scene of her with Corlys just made me feel bad for him, because she basically told him that he has no right to mourn.

And then in an unthought-out act of his, as a way of trying to fulfill his wife's wish, he offers Drifmark to her. While she shuts down, and she only does that because it's set up for the bastards to be legitimized.

This is a standard because all of her scenes only exist to move the plot or serve other characters. The only thing I know about Baela is that she loved Rhaenys, and somehow this justify her support for Rhaenyra's claim ( ironically the shows frames that as the reason and not that she is engaged to Jace lol) and has a complicated relationship with her father, but that doesn't affect her as a character, so it's more about the Daemon than anything else.

[atopvisenyashill]

What is Corlys loyal to, during the Dance? What are his ambitions, as you see them?

Corlys wants

To keep his family safe

Access to power

To prove he’s as good as a Targaryen

His family name on the Iron Throne

A dragon rider in his family

Very similar in many ways to most of the other adults during this time, especially Otto Hightower. I think in many ways, he’s kind of an echo of Tywin here - he’s trying to prove that the Velaryons are worth just as much, that they’re just as Valyrian, just as special, just as ~chosen by the narrative~ as the Targaryens are. To him, proving that means he has to have a Targaryen wife, dragon riding children & grandchildren, and in a perfect world, his own family on that ugly spiky chair.

[not quite a sidebar but - while I do think Aegon makes all the right choices in his initial conquest of the seven kingdoms, I think the Velaryons resented not being made a powerful, Paramount house in their own right. Installing them as overlords for the Riverlands or the Reach would be a bad idea the same way that both conquests leaving a Tyrell in Sunspear to help take over is a stupid, malicious idea that probably made both wars worse bc it pissed Dorne off. AND YET. they’re a valyrian house! one of the last lines of valyria left!! but all they have is driftmark!!!! i do think this sticks in their collective craw a bit but it seems to especially bother Corlys!]

I say “family” and not “blood” because Corlys is clearly willing to stretch the definition of “family” if it means he gets continued access to power. It’s why he is extremely forgiving in the Laenor/Rhaenyra marriage - I do think he realizes to an extent that he put them both in a weird situation and is willing to look past it a) because looking past it gives him access to power b) because Rhaenyra didn’t do it to sleight him, as shown by her friendship with Laena & the betrothals of their children and c) he grows to genuinely love and care for Jace & Lucerys, and probably Joff as well. There is that theory that it was Corlys who killed Harwin & Lyonel and I think it has its merits! Despite his affection for the boys, I do think he takes insult at the way Harwin & Rhaenyra so publicly carry on - he himself has a long(ish) standing love affair that he keeps hushed up and I imagine he felt Rhaenyra should be more discreet, and was insulted when Joff was born because like, you already have an heir and spare stop cuckolding my son jfc. Do I think he actually killed Harwin? Eh, up in the air about it tbh (seems more Viserys’ style if I’m being honest) but I can absolutely see the justifications he’s making here that Jace & Luke are necessary sacrifices of his pride but Joffrey is a step too far.

Now, while I put “keep his family safe” first because I DO think it comes first, notice I used “safe” and not “happy.” He doesn’t give a shit if they don’t like his decisions but Corlys does actually keep an eye on all his kids to make sure they are not being harmed. He doesn’t just wash his hands of Laena when the sealord he betroths her to turns out to be a dud, he actively puts off the marriage, and allows Daemon to get involved. He turns against Rhaenyra when Addam and Alyn are put at risk, then turns against Aegon II, even making the extremely risky move to kill the king, in an attempt to protect Baela.

I shittalk him a LOT for completely usurping his own daughter/granddaughter as well as counseling Rhaenyra away from a more proto-feminist stance, but I have to commend him here the way I do the Tyrells. Aegon II has gone mad with grief over Sunfyre, he’s probably in a lot of pain, high off his ass, we get that convo about him taking the black so he’s also running out of steam, which makes him erratic and dangerous, and he turns all of those built up feelings on Baela (if there isn’t snot and tears and spit dripping down both their faces when he takes her to the block in the show i’m suing!!!). Corlys attempts to calm Aegon but when it reaches a certain point, he doesn’t dick around trying to rationalize with an irrational person when it comes to the safety of his granddaughter - he just fucking offs the problem. Power and the Throne mean little and less if his entire family is dead and he knows this. It doesn’t mean he’s not willing to gamble, not willing to force his kids into shitty situations, not willing to usurp his own fucking granddaughter because a son is worth more, but in the end, Corlys really does love his family. It’s why he rages when Rhaenys dies. It’s why he’s devastated when Jacaerys dies. Corlys is very much A Man Of Westeros but in conversation with others like Tywin, Ned, Doran, Jon Arryn, Robert, etc., Corlys is willing to admit when he’s in over his head, grab his family, and get the fuck out of dodge. We are scraping the bottom of the barrel here on what a good father means, but well, that’s Westeros!

[backjustforberena]

hi!

i read what you wrote on the fact that ryan didn't tell steve and eve about the affair, so another interview (tvline) has just been published, and once more steve mentions how he was completely unprepared for alyn and addam, and how he can't understand how corlys's love for rhaenys - in his opinion a love that is genuine since for corlys she is the one - can be reconciled with the fact that he cheated on her with the same person.

i've been thinking about it, and honestly, i believe the biggest issue is that the show will likely try to sanitize corlys' image and won't address the age difference with marilda. i think the fact that 60 yo corlys had two children with her when she was 16 and then 18 is crucial to understanding that this relationship was driven by lust and a power imbalance, it's grooming. there's nothing romantic about it: corlys exploits a young girl for his own amusement and then leaves her and their children, commanding them to stay away from the places where his family could meet them (which is already a huge difference from the show). all of this shows that the 'problem' is not in rhaenys-corlys' relationship but in corlys himself.

it's all very dark in the book and for this reason i don't think they'll respect it. but in changing so, all steve's issues with the character are created and can be solved only by admitting that after all, at least from corlys's side, this love was not so deep and that at same point of his life rhaenys wasn't really 'the one' anymore.

I've always been a bit curious by this "buzzword" of "sanitizing" a character. One of the reasons that I do is because, well, frankly, it suggests something nefarious. Something duplicitous on the part of the showrunner or the writer and I'm always really hesitant to go all in on that. It also suggests a job complete - like they've done such a whitewash on a character that there is nothing that an audience can criticise or loathe them for. Something painfully untrue. None of these characters are exempt from bad behaviour that we, as an audience, can judge or condemn.

I doubt the writers have a list written out of Corlys's timeline to say: oh, let's change that to make him look bad or let's tweak that to make him look better. A lot of the changes are from other things, larger frameworks and choices like time jumps and the arcs of other characters and condensing things down and combining events etc etc. And necessity and representation and if they can do it, within the world they've already built up.

The writers have chosen some darker paths and opinions for Corlys that aren't strictly there in the text. They make him far more forceful with proposing Laena as a bride for Viserys, far more dismissive of Viserys as King, far more callous with Laenor (as he has to wed the day of seeing the man he loved beaten to death) and dismissive of his sexuality, far more wayward in that he leaves his wife alone for six years, far more cruel in having Alyn and Addam near to him but not acknowledging them. There is all of this as much as we have scenes of him showing vulnerability, grief, loss, love and actual emotion that we don't get from the text. That's just the nature of adaption, especially adaption for TV.

I would also like to ask the question: can you sanitize this text? It's a historical text made up of historical figures. We have no idea of motivation, interpersonal relationships, dynamics, emotions, or thoughts. What happens is that people invent, interpret, analyse, assume and create narratives around the facts we are presented, but the foundation to sanitise is so fundamentally shakeable - no one reads things the same way. What may be one person thinking they've sanitised a character (an active task to do) may just be the fact that a person has read the exact same thing and just interpreted it or chosen to interpret it differently, without acknowledging the darker take. No harm, no foul, just different.

You say that the Marilda and Corlys relationship is "very dark" and of course you can read it that way. It's not good at all. The age gap is massive, the power discrepancy is huge. But, and this is just my opinion, we do not have anything concrete enough to say with absolute certainty that it was "very dark". The text offers no judgment on Corlys as a character, no condemnation and no opinion from those involved. Indeed, it offers no confirmation on Corlys, as you can easily read it and say the boys' are Laenor's. It could be that that only 2 out of 5 readers think that, but that's the point. That creates the wiggle room to diverge from the fact that it is "all very dark in the book".

Please don't take this as me dismissing your opinion. It is a popular one. There's a lot of virtue in it. It is just me pointing out that it is opinion, and not objective fact. We are not beholden to this idea that the relationship was "driven by lust and a power imbalance" because we don't have any facts. We assume. We interpret. Which leaves it fair game for other people to assume and interpret. Corlys might have thought he loved this girl, taking out "lust" as a sole motivator and making it something different. He may have found nothing amusing in the situation at all, may have been reckless or fearful or firm or angry or cruel. He may not have had the intention to exploit her. Of course, he may well COULD have. But we don't know.

Do you see the point I'm driving at? The showrunners have latitude and freedom that we may not want to give them as it contradicts our reading of the text, but nevertheless, the text does afford them. And then on top of that, there is the usual freedom and necessity of changing things for an adaptation.

Corlys's adaptation and changes in this storyline do not begin with how the showrunners want to tackle this story and the changes to this story may not have been done purposefully to make Corlys seem a better man. Corlys has been aged down. This is likely done to be more palatable to an audience, to have an actor across all the time jumps and to have a representation of a middle-aged and equal relationship within the story. None of that has to do with Marilda.

The Hull boys have been aged up and brought into proximity to Corlys. This has probably been done to help seed the Dragonseed storyline, make it easier to introduce them, have them fit neater into the timeline, give them some background and aims and ambitions prior to the war and also to populate a different location and add complexity, as well as lean away from child soldiers. That is all separate from their mother.

At present, due to the lack of information about their mother, and the lack of information about ages across the board, it's not a blot on Corlys's name, nor does it absolve him. The mother of Alyn and Addam has not been cast and not been mentioned. There is NO reason to think, assume or hope that Marilda was 16 when she gave birth to Alyn. They can easily age her up, the timelines have shifted etc. Rhaenys probably wasn't 18 when she gave birth. Either way, the chances are that we'd be meeting an actress close to Steve and Eve's age, given the age of Abu. That's not necessarily an agenda, it's just the way that it'll need to be done due to the overall changes in the show.

Do you want Marilda to be as young as she was in the books when giving birth? It's impossible for the age gap to be the same due to Corlys being aged down. We don't know how old he is but he's not 60 when those boys are conceived. But do you want it? Would it make you happy? Why?

Moving on, I think it's a mistake, at this juncture, to say that Corlys's genuine love for Rhaenys is only Steve's opinion. It's not only Steve's opinion. It's not a "headcanon" that's being challenged, it's a fact of the text, and of the scenes, and of the narrative and of the characters. It's played. Corlys loves his wife immensely and that's more than an actor's opinion, it's the basis of the relationship within the universe. It's something from the source and the showrunners.

"Admitting" that this love was not so deep from Corlys's side is not an option because it would undermine everything. It would be putting it out there that Season 1 and all the work done before is not only a lie but insufficient and unreliable. They have this narrative. They need to stick with it. It's also just really bad form and really bad storytelling. And it also may not be what they want to do! It's not something they have to do. It's not easily tossed aside because we have (and this has continued into S2 and so the only way to address it would be in S3) 18 episodes chock-a-block with the motivation for Corlys in that he loves Rhaenys. And that she is that guiding light. Corlys can have cheated in the past AND still have this love for Rhaenys. The two things can coexist but, at the moment, we have no idea how they might do because that is the work that is lacking.

My issue isn't that this storyline suggests some cracks in the relationship or it suggests a period in time or mindset in which Corlys strayed - it is that they haven't helped the actor with it. Was it a bit crappy for them not to mention it in S1? You betcha - I don't know why they didn't, maybe they thought it wasn't relevant or they hadn't decided what to do with the Hull boys or they just didn't think. I don't know. But the mistake, I believe, on the part of the showrunners is they haven't provided a framework in which to reconcile the actions and make it a part of Corlys's and Rhaenys's story, especially when it is something they have to react to.

Steve's issues are not this "darkness". He hasn't got a clue what the book says so he isn't responding to Marilda of Hull. He doesn't even know the name, from what I can gather. The issues come from Corlys having these sons and that is not a fact changed from the book (even if circumstances and ages have been). The issue comes from the cheating, not the specifics of it, because he has no specifics of it with which to find issue.

[deimos-velaryon]

Context: Back in Dorne, after Lord Deimos has the falling out with his half-sister, Selene, his then-betrothed, Lady Swann, seeks him out to have dinner together. It is one of the first times Lord Deimos opens up about matters of a personal nature to the woman that eventually becomes his wife. / @ellievswann

DEIMOS VELARYON: There was a knock on his door, once, twice, and the Hand of the Queen didn’t answer. “The door was closed for a reason,” he snapped the second he heard the knob turn, the wood creak slightly as the door opened. He glanced up from the papers scattered on the desk only to see his betrothed. His hardened expression softened only slightly and the man let out a tired sigh. His sour demeanor wasn’t her fault, it wasn’t her doing, of course. Whose doing was it really but his own? He couldn’t help but entertain the thought that Lady Swann was more likely than not doomed in some way by their arrangement, that she definitely thought him an insufferable man, an arrogant arse; that inevitably the day would come when she would also spew his horrible truth in his face. She never had much trouble speaking in a straightforward manner to him, and she never bothered to hide her distaste for him either.

“Pardon me, my lady,” he stated, his voice gruff, “I didn’t mean to…” No, you did mean to. You mean it every time. Deimos glanced down for a moment, gathering his thoughts, gathering his temper. “Pardon me,” he simply said. “Is there anything I can help you with?” the Master of the Tides asked instead, attempting to be courteous despite the rough start to this interaction with his future lady wife.

ELENDA SWANN: No look resembled anything like shock on Ellie’s face hearing the demeanor of her fiance. It hadn’t deterred her from entering his room. She had started to grow accustomed to his attitude. But, it wasn’t always bad. It wasn’t always like this. She had seen glimpses into what she hoped was the real him, his real personality. “I had come by to see if you wanted to share dinner tonight.”

If she wanted to be above it all she could simply throw some quip back in his face and storm out before he could get another word in. And part of her would be justified in that action. Who would blame her after his less than a courteous greeting. But the soon-to-be Lady of Driftmark bit her tongue. “Something is bothering you, my lord” she said. It was no question; there was no doubting it. Soon enough his issues would be her issues, she might as well get used to helping him….and maybe part of her wanted to help. Wanted to see if she could bring out that kinder part of him again. “Could I help with something?” she asked him, looking around the room for something to drink for them.

DEIMOS VELARYON: “I would, thank you,” he replied in a low tone. Perhaps a break from his work would better suit him to cast aside the thoughts that plagued him. He’d gotten little done thus far, really, feeling his mind so easily scattered. Elenda could be a more welcome distraction, but she wasn’t really. She was no distraction. She could be direction. Like his mother was to his father. Whether Lord Corlys and Princess Rhaenys loved each other never mattered too much to Deimos as much as the fact that they had offered steadiness and partnership to one another. Could he have that with his bride-to-be? She was making the choice to listen, if only he made the choice to talk.

She could read him well enough, regardless of the mask he wore. And so he chose not to wear a mask at all. “May we sit? Before going to dinner?” the lord asked, getting up from his spot by the desk, and gesturing towards the couch that was settled by the window. The lady moved over to pour some drinks for them and Deimos waited in silence, sitting and looking at her, contemplating what to say. How to say it. This was unusual for him, but he didn’t feel all that odd giving this moment a try. “Have you ever heard the name Selene Waters?” he began, though he couldn’t imagine why a lady such as Elenda might at all be acquainted with someone like his sister. “She’s quite a well-known whore, made a living for herself in King’s Landing. Well, she’s no longer a whore, I suppose, for she has settled here in Dorne with some lord,” he said, keeping his gaze downcast, wringing his hands together, “She’s my sister. Half-sister. A daughter of the Sea Snake, but not of my mother”.

ELENDA SWANN: Life is not a fairytale, Elenda. It is not a princess being rescued in a far off tower and love at first sight. It would be foolish to think of that or to dream of that. Dream of a partner to respect you, who llistens and one whom you can do the same with. That is what you can hope for in the future.

Her mother’s words rung true in her mind now more than ever. It had been from a conversation long ago but something she understood more as time went on. There would be no fairytale story for any of them. But with Deimos she could see someone she respected. He was no boy or romantic lover but a man. And with the family she was stepping into, she knew she would need that more than ever.

Ellie poured the tea for both of them and sat across from her fiance. “No I have never heard of her before.” But as he spoke more it seemed more clear why she never had. An illegtimate daughter of the Sea Snake? And one who went into such a business. “She is staying here in Dorne? Does the queen know this?” she asked him, curious if the queen even knew of her cousin in the first place. “I mean…do you have a relationship with her? I do not judge you if you do. Blood is blood at the end of the day.”

DEIMOS VELARYON: "Thank you,” he muttered as his betrothed set a cup of tea for him. It was a small detail but not something the lord took for granted, for she needed not have such thoughtful gestures towards him, really. Yet here she was, listening to him. It didn’t start this way. Slowly but surely the two of them seemed to be finding their footing in regard to the sort of relationship they both hoped to have with their future spouse. He looked at Elenda and he didn’t see just a political alliance, a clever and beneficial deal. He looked at her and truly saw his future wife.

“The queen knows about her,” he nodded, for when the existence of Corlys’ secret child was revealed to Rhaenys, it was revealed to the Velaryon and Targaryen families as a whole. “I don’t often speak to my cousin about her, though”.  The Master of the Tides reached out to take his cup of tea and blew on it softly, thoughtful, then took a sip before setting it down on the table. “I do… I did, at least,” he answered her question, made uncomfortable by his own instinctive reaction to speak in the present tense when such a bond was no more. “My father revealed her existence to me when I was not even a man grown. I became acquainted with his lover and the girl,” Deimos paused and scoffed. “I befriended Selene over the years. I grew to view her as a true sister, not just as the bastard my father sired. I know that it was his wish to legitimize her for one reason or another —the war, the long and distant travels Selene took with her seafaring mother, it never happened”.

Deimos felt exhausted, so tired on the inside. He knew that his manner of speaking and the way he looked at his betrothed must have given away how this had been eating at his mind for days. “She’s taken a Dornish lover. She’s a paramour to a lord now,” he added and the thoughts of the harsh discussion the two of them had in the presence of Lord Allyrion flashed in his mind. So he told Elenda about it. How Selene recriminated him for being selfish, that he was unable to feel happy for her quitting her whoring to settle with someone she claimed to love. How she discarded their father’s ring and denied her Velaryon bloodline, and he had in turn taken personal offense from his sister rejecting their family and called her a victim who only created more strife for herself. By the end of it, neither called the other brother or sister anymore… “Do you think I was in the wrong?” he asked, meeting Ellie’s eyes. “Be honest, please. You’ve never had trouble telling me when I behave like an arse,” he chuckled softly, reaching for his future wife’s hand.

[sweetestpopcorn]

Why is Jaehaerys Martin's favorite king? Can someone explain this please.

Apparently Martin prefers kings who choose peace over war. But war or violence is a necessity sometimes. You cannot win your independence with mere negotiations. Some level of threat of violence is necessary. Even today (I will not take names, let's just say country A and B), country A send their extensive armies with weapons to kill terrorists in country B for it's safety etc. In fire and blood, it is stated that aenys fled with his family to dragonstone after the faith nearly killed them in their own house. 😐😐😐. How can you not choose violence then. A king fleeing his own home capital is not a good sign at all.

Jaehaerys was a pos man. What Martin is saying makes no sense. Maybe that's a difference of opinion between people of first world and third world nations. Anyways back to Jaehaerys. How he treated his sister wife, daughters, grand daughter really just says it all. Sure people talk about alysanne constantly but what the 2 of them did was paltry. after Aenys/Maegor combo, they probably looked like saints. Even Maegor the cruel named his grand niece his heir over. Sur ehis tax policy was good, but man sowed the first seeds of the dance when he appointed the god forbidden Otto Hightower as his hand. And then walserys had to go marry the B! T¢H.

If all the targaryens considered him the gold standard, no wonder they were deposed after 15 kings. Love that none of rheanyra's kids were not named after him.

Sorry for the rant, I just couldn't keep it down any longer.

Hi there, Anon! And again sorry for the delay!

Anon, don't let me stop you. Go off 😂😂😂👏👏👏

As much as I love Jaehaerys, and I still don't think he was a pos man, I do agree with a lot of your points about him and George's takes. I also have some doubts that George fully understands how problematic he made Jaehaerys in many instances, as he still maintains what a great king he was. But I am not inside his head so 🤷‍♀️

You are absolutely right when you say that sometimes choosing peace is not (and should not be) an option, even when it is for personal reasons. Should we just let someone take something that is ours? Should we choose to close our eyes to injustice because we don't want trouble? It's usually said that bad things happen when good people do nothing, so how much should we look the other way regardless of what it will cost us?

For the most part though, I don't know how much of this was true of Jaehaerys. While he tried to be peaceful, he was not shy from going to battle when necessary. He wasn't like his father that ran from conflict at all costs.

That all said, we will NEVER forgive him for Otto 😂😂😂

Well out of her five boys Rhaenyra only had a say in the two she had with Daemon (f_ck you Corlys and Laenor; Daemon, sweetie, you deserve the world this is why you are Daddy Daemon), and she did name one for freaking Walserys 😂😂😂

Aegon - named for the Conqueror

Viserys - named for Walserys

Tell me you have a favourite without telling me you have a favourite XD I'm totally kidding, I like that she named MVP Viserys for her father who she loved - still better than being named for your "father's" former fling l:l. And Viserys is one of my favourite valyrian names ever so points to you RhaeBae!

Please rant anytime I did really enjoy it!

Happy New Year to you 🥰 and take this: 👑

[vivacissimx]

for the fanfic thing, F K M X and D (love doesn't live here)?

sure!

dialogue snippet + why you’re proud of it - prob alyn and baela's break up in for all the salt in the sea

“Ever since I met you, I have felt that we knew one another,” he says quietly, winded. Hopeless. “When you came to me shivering and desperate that night on Driftmark, I recall thinking, finally. Out of all of this, there might at last be something good. When you placed Laena in my arms...you gave me something I never thought to have again. A family of my own.”

“You threw it away at every chance,” she whispers miserably. “Even then, I loved you so long.”

He closes his eyes. Saltwater rises in his cheeks. He sheds no tears, for Corlys Velaryon once smacked him across the face when he wept for Addam and he learned that lesson well. “Do you still?”

“What does it matter,” she barks incredulously, but he senses she is not being cruel no matter how small he feels in the face of her reaction. He thought himself too old to have such emotions anymore but it would appear one never outgrows wishing for their wife’s care and respect.

“It matters,” is all he says.

She gives him a sober look. “Daenaera was a child when she came to us. You played with her, the games of babes, hiding and seeking, sneaking her candies. She loved you. And you dishonored her little girl, Alyn. Sweet young Elaena, the girl we sent a rocking horse upon her birth.”

Her words are weighty. They pile heavy upon his shoulders.

“No, my Lord. I do not love you any longer. For you are a stranger to me.”

“You will never forgive me this betrayal,” he speaks aloud. It is more a statement than a question. She does not reply. Perhaps, in our youth she might have found it within herself to do so. But now she desires peace, and I am a man of battle. Of destruction. Like the ocean, I cannot be just one thing.

“Then there is nothing left for me,” he despairs

idk if i'm "proud" but it got across everything i wanted to say. alyn's unresolved war issues that he rationalizes away with at least i have baela. baela's love for her family and her inability to forgive alyn's betrayal not just bc infidelity but because it was so personal. both of them being stubborn/unable to change, and that working until it didn't. yeah.

angstiest idea/backburner premises - here!

a character you enjoy making suffer - i don't like making any of them suffer! it makes me feel kinda bad haha. however i do like making them heal, and in order to do that they have to suffer first, so there's my pickle

a song or a playlist to associate with love doesn't live here - there have been so many ups & downs in this fic that no one playlist would work.

overall tho i've listened to octohate - ryn weaver, trust in me - etta james, therapy - duke dumont, & forgotten how to fly - clay most while writing it.