Chapter Text
— Westeros 133 After the Conquest.
The sound of rushing footsteps filled the wet ground from the recent rain that had hit King's Landing with feracity to bring down inns, winds never before seen battered the region from time to time.
There were rumors that the weather in Westeros was cursed after the end of the Dance of the Dragons, after the tragic death of so many dragons, the heavens were angered by the loss of so many childrens of the sky. Some say that the death of the legitimate heiress Rhaenyra Targaryen, who, persecuted by the decisions of former King Jaehaerys to usurp the throne on behalf of his grandson Viserys Targaryen, had killed the woman and her entire legitimate lineage.
The Iron Throne did not accept false kings, and it certainly would not accept a queen.
With a short reign Rhaenyra died during the dance, and many bards claim in their songs that her death angered the gods, and as punishment Westeros was doomed to an infertile future.
Fallacies, certainly, thought the Prince and heir to Driftmark Lucerys Velaryon. The world worked in peculiar ways, and it was not for men to judge the will of the Gods.
Children played outside the fortress, their boots soiled with mud and grass that stuck to the leather extensions that covered their small legs, — The boy named Aeron Targaryen played with noble boys who prowled the castle from time to time, it was inevitable to control children at that age and Lucerys knew it.
The marriage had been sudden, but it had also been the wisest decision, the end of the war brought separation and betrayals, many open wounds that could never be closed, but certainly covered up, — Luke needed to believe that their union could concert some of the disaster caused by the power struggles.
"—Aeron Targaryen, come inside immediately." The prince cloaked in clothing suitable for the cold announced, his son quickly stopped running and stared at him with a pleading look.
"Please, Father, just a little longer," Aeron had always been this boy, he was not very communicative or open to people in general, Lucerys was the only person the boy allowed himself to soften.
The other father, Aemond, and his husband was also a strict man who bore the scars of war on his body. Lucerys thought he could never forgive the Alpha for the atrocities he committed in the name of the right to sit on the iron throne, — Aemond had won the battle over the eye of the God. Daemon was dead, and it hurt to think that his mother had suffered so much before she left.
He held no grudge or anger toward his husband, certainly understanding that each followed their own ambitions during the battles. Aemond had not killed his father, his blade found the heart of his mother's lover and that was all, — Daemon was a good man, but how could little Lucerys forget how he had come into their lives so suddenly and claimed such authority.
There was no one for him anymore except his brother and his son, the relationship with Aemond was progressing slowly, the communication gap hurting them both badly.
"You better listen to your mother boy," The always warm voice sounded behind the omega, Aemond had those nuances, he liked to show up at the right time.
"I'm as much his father as you are, husband." That annoying mania Aemond and Aeron had developed of calling him mother made him dizzy in exhaustion.
"I'm sure you are, I'll get him, come in and don't stay in the cold any longer," The Alpha now walked over to his son with his hands folded behind his back.
They were the mirror image of the other, they were identical in every slightest aspect. The silver hair and the arrogant personality even if minimal when it came to dueling was there, the grumpy way the two met in the morning was identical as well.
Sometimes he wanted to feel that he had left his mark on his son, but the thought that he served as an incubator to carry the small image of Aemond Targaryen haunted him daily.
He loved his son, and hoped that they could get closer when he went to teach him the political issues of Driftmark, of course the Valyrian was left for Aemond to teach, after all they were scrambling as best they could to serve the image of loving and caring parents to their son.
"Enough fooling around boy, you're going to make your father angry, do you want that?" Aemond crouched down and poked his son's red nose, the little boy denied and made a quick farewell to his friends.
The similar figures walked back to the fortress, Aeron always full of life and energy, the boy was a true Targaryen, — It certainly caused Omega some sadness to take his surname away in the future, after all the agreement had been that he would be a Targaryen until he could assume the wood throne, then he would become a Velaryon.
"Come, husband." Aemond did not wait for an answer and rested a hand on the lower part of his slender back covered by the omega's heavy coats.
Lucerys merely agreed and returned to the interior of the fortress with his two Targaryen boys.
Aeron was taken away by the servent girls to be properly cared for, he was only four years old, very young and ambitious. He didn't have a dragon, his egg didn't hatch in his cradle and that sounded like an offense to Aemond.
'The gods are after me and my lineage after all'. The Alpha had uttered such a sentence in a moment of anger when he realized that his son would bear the curse of not having a dragon of his own.
"Would you like me to sleep with you tonight?" Aemond asked.
"That might be fine, I don't deal well with winter." The mark on Omega's neck itched against the heavy fabrics of the coats Aemond had provided for him.
"I will lie down with you today, I will not touch you more than necessary don't worry," Aemond reassured him and Lucerys silently thanked him.
This was still Aemond and he had to remind himself of that every day, the birth of an heir certainly softened the ever arrogant Targaryen who was now embedded with the role of caring for the family. There was some hesitation on both their part to develop sentimental ties, but Aeron united the two, who would do anything for their son.
"I have to meet with the city patrol now, decide how we are going to minister to the city's defenses and security now that winter is upon us." Aemond warned.
Lucerys agreed and tilted his neck, automatically his husband's fingers brushed the already healed but sensitive teeth mark. The icy fingers caressed the area in a familiar caress.
It was Aemond's way of saying goodbye, letting the omega know that he was still there and would continue.
"Take care." Luke ordered, and then he was gone without saying a single word, just the sound of the wind filling the void left behind.
—
Perhaps the curse said that the Iron Throne chose its king and would not allow an illegitimate blood to sit on it, — Maybe all that was true, but he seemed to have accepted King Jacaerys as his new monarch perfectly.
After the end of the War, being one of the last living heir of Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, Jacaerys had support in his claim to the throne mainly because of the friendship he held with the wealthiest houses of the seven kingdoms, Lannister, Velaryon and not that they were very fortunate but Cregan Stark seemed to raise the Northern flag for him.
He had decided that in order not to cause exile to his own blood that unions should be made, the marriage to Aegon was his own decision with sentimental weight. His uncle was a horrible person and not good with children, but as soon as he had laid eyes on little Maelor, nothing else existed for him.
Aegon spoiled their son with the most precious things the kingdom and the silken streets could produce. The boy's black hair didn't seem to shake the omega, which was ironic for the way Aegon seemed to care so much about bastardy issues in the past.
Their relationship was good, Jace was in love with the Targaryen prince and didn't hide it from his husband, who called him crazy for harboring feelings for someone like him, for someone who had usurped his mother's throne.
Jace loved the complexity of their relationship, there was no more past, if they wanted to restore an entire dynasty they would have to work harder and argue less.
Rhaenyra would be happy? sometimes Jace caught himself thinking, and came to the same conclusion every time, No.
His mother in the last months of her life was a ruler plagued by distrust and paranoia, it was sad to admit but she was slowly losing her sanity. Jace blamed the constant betrayals that occurred in the war, Daemon always flying to river lands alone with Nettle, a girl and dragon rider who won many flags for the former queen.
Corlys had suffered from his mother's wrath, almost suffered exile as he was the queen's hand at the time, but with the end of the war Jace put an end to all the uncertainty and restored much of the peace.
He loved his mother like no other, he didn't know Queen Rhaenyra but he knew the gentle woman who loved her children more than anything. And that was a memory he was happy to keep.
"Your Grace, the prince and royal consort Aegon Targaryen second of his name and your lord husband wishes to see you," The guard announced making the introduction unnecessarily large.
"Let him in." Jace squirmed on the throne and adopted a more comfortable posture.
Aegon entered the throne room carrying his son in his arms, even though he was big enough to walk alone Maelor was needy in the extreme when it came to his parents.
"Husband, my son." Jace addressed them both affectionately.
"He kept grumbling that he wanted to see you and sit on that silly throne, you better get down here and get him or I'm going to make him king in your place." Aegon grumbled already stopping at the first step that led to the throne.
"Always so sweet, my lord husband." Jace was on his feet the next second and holding the child in his arms. "Do you want to sit on the throne with your father Maelor?"
The boy nodded frantically, normally he was quite talkative but Jace made him shy because he was a more serious figure most of the time. Father and son sat on the iron throne, care being taken that Maelor didn't cut himself.
"You're going to sit here one day, what do you think?" Jace asked with the boy on his lap.
Aegon smiled quietly as he faced the two sitting that way on the throne, it was hard for him to accept that he had been reduced to a consort of one of the half-sister's bastards, but he preferred that to death, and now he had Maelor who filled part of the void left by the war.
"Will I get to wear the conqueror's crown? Father Aegon wore it, will I be able to too?" The boy looked excited as he asked.
"Wouldn't you like to wear the crown of your grandmother the former queen?" Jace asked, as he himself wore his grandfather Viserys' crown.
"The conqueror's is red and shiny." The child's justification was simple and age-appropriate, Jace concluded.
"Of course it is, you like flashy things don't you?" King asked.
"He's my son, what can I say?" Aegon sneered.
"Surely he is your son." Jace kissed the boy's forehead and carried him back into the arms of the silver one who put him down immediately.
"But—
"Maelor Targaryen, at your age I was already running all over the fortress looking for a good wine—
"Right husband we understand, go play a little Maelor, where is Aeron?" Jace always tried to incite friendship between the two boys.
"He doesn't like me Father," The boy shrugged and ran around the outskirts of the expansive hall giving the couple some privacy.
"What ails you husband?" Jace asked, his hand involuntarily moving up to his pale cheeks, Aegon twitched at the touch but didn't refuse him.
"You know, he's starting to ask about the dragon, his egg didn't hatch too husband." Aegon began to voice his concerns, "After the war dragons are almost scarce, we only have one hatchling in the Dragonpit and Lucerys' son will want to claim him for himself too."
"And what's the problem?" They both deserved the same chance Jace thought.
"Jace, husband, our son needs a dragon, he will be the future king and what would people think if he didn't ride a dragon until he was fifteen?" Aegon always worried about so many silly questions in the Alpha's opinion.
"We have several eggs of dragons under protection in DragonStone, Daeron is taking care of them, husband."
"You don't understand, there is no guarantee that they will hatch, the war has brought terrible consequences to the birth cycle, it decreases more and more, Maelor deserves the right to ride a dragon." Aegon demanded.
"The dragon will choose a rider, my husband, it will be done tomorrow and that's it, if I enforce my word and stop Aeron from trying I would be creating more division between our families, and that was never the goal." Jace stamped his foot and took no more complaints from his husband, who left the place in grumbles with his son in his arms.
Jacaerys felt he was making the right decision in preventing divisions from forming within the family, unity was necessary in difficult times.
But Jace didn't know that history would repeat itself again, all because of a dragon.