“Ah yes,” Viserys replied as he sat up a bit more instead of half sitting and half laying down. “I’ll write tonight and they should be here within the week” Adding more fleets to her already massive amount of ships…She, no they would be neigh unstoppable. He listened intently as Daenerys spoke of the dragons and the politics of Slavers Bay.
“A new path.” He echoed as he wondered just what this new path would mean for Westeros. “And what, prey tell dear sister do you mean to instate for laws?” He asked genuinely curious to hear what she planned on doing once Westeros was once again under House Targaryen rule. If he had been told before he married her off to Khal Drogo that she would eventually gain Drogo’s armies and more he wouldn’t have believed it, called them a liar and sent them on their way but now, as he looked at her he could believe it.
“Daenerys, should I even ask what my role in your new path would be?” He knew by birthright he was the heir to the throne but he also knew he had given her the power, inadvertently, by marrying her off, but she had the dragons, she had the control of the armies. All he had was the birth order, a fleet of ships and the male privilege of being born a son before Dany had been born. “I recognize that you have more power than I could ever claim to have, I’m not the father of dragons or any other earned tittles but I don’t want this to turn into another Dance of Dragons…” Though he knew that it wouldn’t quite be that way because he didn’t have any dragons.
“At any rate, we’re together again. I cannot begin to tell you how happy I am to be here, to be with you again. I’m sorry you had to go through all of this alone. “ Viserys said as he finished off his cup and sighed before he slowly got up out of his chair and embraced her again from the back of the chair, holding her tight as he leaned over her and kissed her cheek softly. “I spent a lot of time thinking and I’m sorry for what happened, for how I treated you as you grew into a woman. I should have been more kind, more caring…in the right ways.”
Viserys took the goblet from her and sipped at it gladly. ‘Qarth and Astapor?” He asked surprised that they had been able to make it that far from where he had left them last. “The Unsullied is a massive and grand army in of itself, now paired with all of these Dothraki…Quite literally all…” Viserys was in shock at the very idea of the number she now held at her disposal and he vocalized his thoughts on the manner. “Daenerys, I am proud of you. I know Rhaegar and mother would be if they could see you…Queen of Mereen and Khalessi of the Dothraki.. with three dragons…”
He couldn’t sit still as she told him of her dragons, giving a small bow of his head at the names of the dragons, noticing how they’d been named for those male figures in her life who had died. Though he wasn’t too sure how he felt about his baby sister killing all of these men and it seemed as if she had done it herself not by her dragons or by order of her army and the thought of her taking a life made him a bit scared of her and yet intrigued.
“Yes! I would like to meet them all very much. They sound just as magnificent as the stories of old told of them. So, you’ve conquered Yunkai, Meereen…Do you plan on conquering all of slavers bay and beyond as well as Westeros? Will you place trust worthy people in seats of power and it shall be as Dorne is to Westeros?” He asked, wondering what she had planned on doing once they sailed for home. “This wine is excellent by the way, may I?” He asked as he gestured to the bottle to pour himself another glass.
She was here. Viserys was overwhelmed with emotions as Dany came down to where he was at and felt her touch, the feeling of just her arms around him made everything just that more solidified as he grinned as she placed kisses on him and he returned the affection. She gave orders to servants and he took that moment to fully take in the chamber he was in. It was quite beautiful and nothing he had ever seen before in Essos or Westeros.
He followed her wishes and stood to his full height and moved his cheek towards her fingers, wishing for more contact as though he had been without human touch all his life. He followed her into the library and spotted the wine and food that had been left near a sitting area, purple hued eyes scanning the room and taking in the massive size and details. “It’s beautiful here, you’ve made quite a place for yourself, I’m told you sport quite the array of tittles, Dany.” He was quite impressed by them if he was being honest. She had proven to be a tremendous leader and do something he didn’t know if even he could achieve.
“Where to even begin….” A half laugh came out as he tried to think of what to even say now that they were alone, his brain still processing the reality of the situation. “I went back to Illyrio, the ships have been ready for a while and after I got word of Drogo’s death…I assumed the worst of you after I got no word on you. Then I got news of the uprisings after the Usupers death, War of the Five Kings is what it’s been dubbed. I decided to wait it out, but than I got news of you, here, in Meereen!” Viserys explained as he went to the carved out window and looked at the city from above before he turned back to face Daenerys and sat down, glancing at the food before deciding he wasn’t hungry just yet.
“We both thought each other dead…You know, they say a Targaryen alone in the world is the terrible thing’ and they are correct, it was the worst feeling, perhaps even more so than when we lost father, Rhaegar and mother….” He felt older and perhaps a bit more wiser since his time back in Pentos, taking his time to read up more on the current affairs and situations of the houses in Westeros but he could only imagine how wise and grown up Dany had become since she’d been on her own, running and surviving with more people than just one to count on her for their survival.
“Tell me of your travels, if you wish to spare some details, i won’t pry further into them.” He mentioned, fearing some to be horrid for her to relive, he had known from experience that first few months on their own with no one to help and protect them had been one of the worst times in his young life, least running into exile with his mother and afterwords with Darry he had had someone with him, an adult. He didn’t wish to think back to that time any more than he had to.
“You’ve three beautiful dragons, they’re quite exquisite. The black one reminds me of the stories of Balerion. He’s not even fully grown is he?” The wonder at just how much bigger he could get, after already exceeding the dragons before their extinction by at least tripled in size, Dany’s dragon had to be at least half the size of Balerion when fully grown if not less.
There had been a letter sent for Viserys shortly after Daenerys had announced her pregnancy and it had come from
Illyrio
telling him that his ships were ready and he was to come back and prepare everything for their departure. Viserys wanted to take Daenerys with him but he also knew from Ser Jorah that the Dothraki would be hard pressed to get on ships let alone across water.
So, he left before Daenerys had her ceremony with the barbaric acts of eating a horses heart. The Dothraki for all their use were truly a culture that he felt wouldn’t adapt well to Westerosi culture and were better suited to living here. Viserys said his goodbyes and left, knowing the journey was going to take some time Ser Jorah had made sure to hire a person at the markets to help Viserys transverse his way back to Illyrio.
It took a few months but he had made it back and had also inspected the ships seeing that they were in fine shape and had heard more news of Westeros and that King Robert was dead. Killed in a hunting accident and now his son, a child was ruling. This would make taking over Westeros even easier now that there was a war breaking out and talks of who should rule instead of a rumored child of siblings who weren’t even married. Viserys had also learned while he was in Pentos of the great Khal Drogo’s death and while he hadn’t word of his sister he feared the worst, knowing the heathens and how they struggled for power.
Viserys stayed in Pentos, mourning his sister and the life they could have had in Westeros while the war in Westeros raged on, biding his time to strike. The Starks were in dissaray, scattered and dead, too many other Great Houses had lost members and some houses had become extinct. But than news of dragons and a woman conquer came though to him, not by Illyrio himself but from people passing by. Daenerys? It had to be. What other woman with dragons would there be? He asked for more information when he could and had pieced together a rough idea of where she would be and he was led to Meereen.
Viserys felt foolish, going to Meereen to see if these rumours were true. How could she be alive? Daenerys hadn’t been the most hardy of stock nor strong. She’d been meek and fearful though she had started to show signs of becoming a fighter, of being stronger but there was no way she had survived the Dothraki aftermath of Khal Drogo’s army. But once he saw a black dragon, bigger than he would have expected to see, a glimmer of hope rose up in his chest. Maybe, just maybe he wasn’t the only Targaryen left in the world now. He still had Daenerys and she had dragons. Soon as he reached the cities gates he was taken a hold of by the guards and he requested a meeting with their leader. They had to know about his sister. Perhaps Dany was in with the leader and was making plans herself.
He waited for a long time before he was allowed to even see the leader and his mouth dropped open as his eyes stared at the figure coming towards him and he ran towards it, tears filling his vision as the guards blocked his path and he shouted her name. She was here. She was alive. Relief filled him as he took in her figure. She stood before him, looking stronger than ever, beautiful and regal. A true Queen and a reminder of their mother, except this time it was a better memory and not one of pain. “Dany…you’re alive.” He sank to his knees as the guards tried to push him away with their crossed spears as to dissuade him from moving any closer. “I thought you dead.”
Her army? The Dothraki valued their horses more than females. Viserys didn’t care to learn their culture, but she had listened all day while riding and had learned much though their language was still a mystery. Her husband knew only a few words of Common and for what he wanted of her, he needed none of them. Husbands. Aegon. Kings. Men. Daenerys made a low sound that sounded fainting of a cut-off sob. Men did what they wanted. Women didn’t have the same rights. They were the property of their families until they were given to a husband, then they were the property of their husbands. “You are my… my King, but I belong to Khal Drogo,” Dany told him softly, shrinking away. “I am no Queen and the Dothraki value their horses more than their wives. If… if my husband wants to share… share me with his Ko, that is his choice, not mine.”
Khal Drogo might kill him if he learned of Viserys intentions. Dany had no choices – she’d never been given any choices. She didn’t understand how her brother could think that she did. At one time, Dany had believed she would be his wife, bare him his children, as other Targaryen sisters had, but even that would not have been her choice. When he’d told her he was selling her to Drogo for an army, it had been a shock, but she’d done her duty to him even as frightened as she had been. She shuddered as Viserys spoke of what Drogo did to her at night. What did he know of it? It was she who suffered, for an army that would give him the crown he so desperately wanted. Now he wanted her body? Viserys didn’t understand that these Dothraki didn’t see him as their King. Ser Jorah had warned her of the dangers there. “It is Khal Drogo’s right to do as he pleases with me, brother, and if he learned of what you desire, he might take great offense,” Dany murmured, blinking away unshed tears.
“When you are Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, you will have the power and respect you deserve, sweet sister” Viserys replied having known many a powerful woman had ruled not only from beside the throne and many attempts at one the throne and he had no doubt in time Dany could be one as well. He knew how everything was set in their culture and a vague idea of the Dothraki and knew that if Westeros had such views on woman that the Dothraki had worse.
“Will there horses bring them sons and daughters?” He sneered his question, clearly having a different view point on the value of horses and woman. Horses were just animals that had use, woman were more useful and well, just better than some livestock. He had ideas of killing Drogo and replacing him but all those ideas seemed to fail as he thought of the end process and he sighed heavily. “It may be so, but I am King. But I am also as King allowed my right to a woman.” He knew their father had tried to force the issue, joking about using it on Joanna Lannister and his hand dropped from Daenerys’s face and he gave a small shrug as he could tell Dany was as stubborn as he was volatile.
“Your husband will be here soon.” Viserys finally remarked, knowing it was better to leave before it was too late and he risked the wrath of Drogo and his sword, as much as he wanted Daenerys to be his completely, he valued his own life more. Pressing his a soft kiss on her forehead he departed from the tent and made his way to his own smaller one and waited for nightfall and sleep till the dawn break’s light woke him up and he prepared himself for yet another breakfast and day of traveling, wondering if Dany had thought of his proposal while Drogo had his way with her last night as he greeted Ser Jorah and struck up a conversation as much as he could with the knight.
She flinched just the smallest bit at his touch, expecting something a slap or a pinch or even the sting of her hair being pulled sharply. With Viserys, Dany was never sure of what would set him off, so she doesn’t trust his tone or the gentleness with which he touches her. It’s years of fear that keeps her from moving away or drawing away from his touch – Dany knows it will inflame his anger and she just wants a couple of hours without pain. It’s hard, because her thoughts have turned down a terrible, hopeless path and last night, she had dreamed of escaping to the nothingness of a funeral pyre. “You did, brother,” Daenerys admits carefully. “But you gave me to Khal Drogo. He is my husband.”
It was not her place to say whether or not Khal Drogo treated her ‘right’. What was ‘right’? Her life had been fear and pain before and it was fear and pain now. Nothing had changed except the who. “Khal Drogo is a great Khal now pledged to aid you, brother,” she said in barely a whisper, tensing as Viserys moved closer. Dany doesn’t understand what he means, not for a moment, and then she does, her eyes widening. Loved? Did he mean to claim her as her husband had? That wasn’t love. He couldn’t be serious. It was a trick, surely, to judge her devotion to his cause. Her head bowed, moving her cheek away from his touch, as her words spilled heavily from her lips. “I… I belong to my husband now, brother.”
“I know” his words felt empty, devoid of any real emotion at the reminder of what he had done, he knew his actions and why he had done it and he gave a sigh as she continued to speak, seeing the fear and realization on her face as his words sunk in. “Khal Drogo may be pledged to me but he wouldn’t have been without you. Without a promise of a wife. Drogo is a means to an end, Daenerys. He and his army…your army.” Viserys tried to persuade her to his mindset and way of thinking.
“How many men had said they belonged to their wife and have broken their vows to the Gods and people by sleeping with another? Some for a truer love than just obligation. Khal Drogo is an obligation. I…I could be more than that for you, to you. Aegon I had two wives, and multiple kings and queens after had a lover, there’s no rule saying anyone is allowed to have only one to share their bed, even your husbands people take multiple partners”
Viserys was keeping his anger in check, trying to calm himself down from having an outburst. It wasn’t fair. She was supposed to be his. There was no one else that was allowed to touch her as Drogo did, hurt her the way Drogo had. Daenerys was his. His sister, his only friend if she could be called that…and by Targaryen custom meant to be for him to marry, to have children with as would have been his duty had he been born a woman and before Rhaeger had married Elia Martell, or even had the war not happened and Rhaegar and family alive, he and or Dany promised to one of Rhaegar’s children and the others left for marriages outside the family.
“I can show you tenderness that he will never show you. He will mount you like a dog every night, Daenerys, uncaring for your concerns and pleas.” He had heard her cries on their marriage night and both he and Ser Jorah had been worried about her for the following day, though Jorah had shown in more outwardly.
Viserys’s mouth twitched with a sad smile at her words as he placed his
hand on her cheek, resting it there for a moment as he brushed his thumb
over her cheekbone. “I know you haven’t sweet sister.” He replied, his
tone soft and almost uncharacteristically caring. He had known about it
just as the whole Khallasar had and he had watched her the entire day as
she walked and rode her horse in pain no matter how she tried to hide
it. “Does he?” he asked as he pulled away from her to regard her and her
body. He knew that throughout the years he himself had not been careful with her or gentle with her in any manner but after seeing what looked like slight bruises on her body he felt like she would have faired better in anyone elses hands.
“Dany, he does not treat you right. Who has provided for you and taken care of you for far longer than he? Who nursed you back to health after you took ill after Ser William died?” He asked as he took a small step closer to close the distance between them. “I will always love you sweet sister. Can you say the same for your ‘Lord Husband?’ He’s not even a Lord.” Viserys snorted as he spoke of the Great Khal and he reached his hand out to cup her face once more “If you will allow it, I will show you just how you should be loved, how it should really feel.” He was asking for permission now, not taking something by force. He would have normally, taken things without permission, but not with this, not with the current state of things.
“I think it’s quite interesting that we finally see her embracing her brother’s ambition. What does that say? You’re seeing the beginning of something. We’re not at the end yet and I think it’s very important at this moment that we start seeing who she is.” —Michelle Clapton to Uproxx
“[Cersei & Daenerys] are dressing now because they want to be taken seriously, they want power, so they are dressing powerfully […] Dany, she’s wearing a chain across her body as almost a chain of office. A chain of intent. We designed the pin first which is with three dragon heads and then its supposed to move to be the backbone of a dragon, and each piece of chain is supposed to be a separate part of the spine […] She’s always used jewellery, from the time she wore a slave collar to show her united front with the slaves and then as we advance […] it becomes less about Essos and more about her house and being a Targaryen. The more she connects with her family the more she adopts them into her costume. […] Finally we’re getting the [Targaryen] red. She was a confused woman, she was wandering … trying to seek something. And now she’s finally got her armor, she’s finally got everything, and she can finally echo the style of her brother with the extended shoulders and the red and the symbolism.” — Michelle Clapton to Insider
She’d done her duty to her brother, the one who had raised her, teaching her his version of history and fear, by marrying Khal Drogo. Not that she had any choice in the matter. Daenerys dared not defy Viserys, no matter how terrified she was of the Dothraki leader, she was far more afraid of her brother. Dany didn’t even consider herself a broodmare. The Dothraki valued their horses far more than their women, but they showed her a begrudging respect and Ser Jorah was there to help her understand their customs. Slowly she learned the language and how to gain Khal Drogo’s love, easing some of her daily suffering, but the more confident Daenerys grew, the more unhinged her brother became. She tried to help him, to offer him acts of kindness, but he attacked her brutally, forcing Dany to defend herself against him for the first time.
Daenerys felt something twist inside her that day, because despite his cruelty and abuse she loved him – he was her brother, but she couldn’t have known what was yet to come. Watching Viserys die, helpless to stop it, powerless to undo the horrible fate he had brought on himself, had cut something out of her heart. She was alone in the world now. The last Targaryen. Her worth defined by the child in her womb. But little did she know that her trials were not over. The magi poisoned Drogo and killed the life growing within her in the same stroke. Laying on the furs in her tent, her body aching and bleeding, Daenerys had thought her life over while the Dothraki built Khal Drogo’s pyre. She dozed, having another vivid dream and when awoken, she was filled with a fiery determination. Taking her dragon eggs, Dany set them around the pyre, around her dead husband, and signaled for the torches while Ser Jorah tried to talk her out of what she planned, her Knight’s eyes filled with dread.
The fire was roaring with a deathly laughter of its own, stretching for the night sky, when Daenerys slipped past Jorah and stepped into the flickering heat. It lapped at her body, the tatters of her dress fluttering away as she stood by the pyre engulfed in heat though it touched her not. There was only the licking flames and the night sky above, the crackling of wood and then she heard it, like stone shifting on stone, and moments later, the first tiny claw touched her skin. The three baby dragons curled against her body as she lay down to sleep, comforted by the fire and the breathing babies. She awoke in smoke and the last of the flames, rising from the ashes, the dust slipping from her body and the image Daenerys saw before her had her heart skipping a beat. Was she still asleep and having another vision of Rhaegar?
Standing, Daenerys cared not that she was covered only in soot and baby dragons, taking a step closer to the man she’d seen many times in her visions. Irri ran over with the Hrakkar pet, draping it over her shoulders, but Dany only cared for the man kneeling before her. Reaching out, Daenerys fingers skimmed on his cheek. Those eyes. “Rhaegar,” she whispered, her fingers lifting to touch his hair, combing into the soft silver locks so like her own. “If I am still dreaming, I will kill the man who wakes me.”
Behind him, Ser Jorah had risen from where he had knelt with the Dothraki, his hand on the hilt of his sword as he came forward, stopping a few feet away as he watched the interaction. “Khaleesi? You know this man?”
“Know?” Daenerys gave a huffing laugh, her gaze never wavering from her brother. On one shoulder, Drogon chuffed and preened, on the other Rhaegal chirped and stretched his nose toward his namesake. Viserion rested on her arm and nuzzled there. “No, but I have dreamed of him all my life. Rise, my brother.”
They both were in a state of disbelief it seemed, both trying to take over the idea that they weren’t the last ones. That they had a family once again. He leaned into her touches, however light they were and he eyed the knight who seemed too protective over his sister for Rhaears liking and as her dragons made sounds Rhaegar’s eyes focused back on Daenerys spoke and he rose to his feet, noting how much taller he was than her, almost a full foot taller.
“You dreamed of me?” He asked, tilting his head to one side before he took in her appearance and stepped closer to place a hand on her cheek. “You’re real…You’re here. I never thought I’d see any of my family….Is Viserys..” Rhaegar felt tears brimming in his eyes at the thought of what his little brother must have gone through not only with their father but the aftermath of it all. “I want to apologize, I want to be there for him. I-I wasn’t able to be there for him before…Not in any way I could thanks to Father.” Rhaegar told Daenerys as he looked around before he placed his hand on her shoulder bringing her closer to him. “And you. I wasn’t there for you either. But look at you. A Khalessi of a Khalassar, you’ve brought dragons back into this world even” Rhaegar side, a combination of nerves and relief.
“Wait..why were you in the fire? How-How are you still alive?!”
Goldnwulf 