For almost her entire life, Daella Targaryen has lived as Mellara Rivers, the bastard daughter of Arnold Arryn and cupbearer of Lady Jeyne Arryn. First and trueborn daughter of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, Daella had but slight contact with her fami...
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F I V E
Breathing in the dark, lying on its side ─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
Breathing hard, Daella clenched her arms around the trunk of the tree as she dared to look down below her. Her breath turned into little clouds and she pressed her mouth into the fabric of her mantle, hoping it would not betray her. It had not taken long before the horses of her uncle's party had come charging after her. They were more skilled riders than her, urging their horses at a speed that had Daella certain would have killed her in an instant, and knew the ways of the forest way better than her.
"I've found the cunt's horse!" Simon Strong yelled. Not a second later he indeed appeared underneath the tree Daella was hiding in, the reins of her horse tied to his saddle. "She must have fallen off somewhere around here, my Prince."
"We would have heard," the voice of Prince Aemond replied, a hint of dismay audible through it. He too steered his horse in the direction of the clearing, directly under Daella. All they had to do was look up to see her, hugging the rough trunk of the tree and hiding among the branches. She counted herself fortunate that it was only Aemond and Strong, the others probably after ser Elseham and protecting Mycelli. "But she can indeed not be far off."
When Daella had heard the hooves of their horses clattering on the ground, gaining on her fast, she knew it had been hopeless. She had steered her horse in the thickness of the forest and slowed down to a reasonable pace. Hoping for the best, she removed her feet from the stirrups and raised her arms, deciding that she was either going to pull off the best move in her life or probably die trying. The surprise when her hands grabbed one of the lower hanging branches and the horse rode from underneath her had been overwhelming and the sense of triumph had almost made her fall from the tree all the same.
Hastily, Daella had swung her legs around the branch, awkwardly scooting closer to the trunk before sweeping her body into a vertical position again. With her chest heaving and her hands scuffed from the rough bark, she had watched Prince Aemond and Simon Strong ride below her. It hadn't taken long, however, before the two of them backtracked, coincidentally ending up right below Daella.
"Let us circle the ground from this point, my Prince," Strong said, scanning the area around them. There was a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth, as though absolutely enjoyed the thrill of the hunt. Daella fiercely hoped that prince Aemond would take the advice and get away from this place, so that she might escape. "We are wasting time."
"The bastard girl has no horse and even if she had the fastest pair of legs in the realm, she would not be able to outrun us," Aemond replied, a tut escaping his mouth. He pulled on the reins of his horse, making the white mare turn into a circle."You can still see the traces of her horse here," Prince Aemond said, smoothly unmounting his horse. He knelt down, pointing at some prints in the muddy ground. From her height, Daella had no idea what her uncle could see, but she had a dreading feeling that it wasn't good. "They are deeper here than they are there, which means that she must have gotten off her horse right... about... here."
