After her mother's death, Vanora's estranged father comes to her rescue. She quickly realizes that having Daemon Targaryen as a father isn't easy.
But the hardest part isn't the etiquette lessons or even the endless pressure to prove herself worthy...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
115 AC
Runestone, The Vale
It's a sunny morning in the Vale and her mother is dead.
All day, the servants have been coming in and out of her chambers. They'd stand in the doorway, whispering to one another, then one or both of them would look at Vanora with pity. From all these interactions, she hears the same thing.
Lady Rhea is dead.
Vanora has no idea what that means. All she knows was that one moment her mother was here and now she's not. It happened the previous afternoon, six moons after her third name day.
The day had started like any other. Vanora is doing her usual lesson with Maester Ambrose in the main parlor. They are right in the midst of a lecture on the history of Westeros when Rhea's cousin Gerold bursts in, nearly taking the door of its hinges in his haste.
Maester Ambrose jumps out of his seat in alarm, as he tries to process the crumpled form of Rhea in Gerold's arms. He's standing stiffly, mouth dropped open in shock. It isn't until Gerold begins to wail that he snaps out of his stupor.
Servants and members of the guard begin to flood in from all entrances, having heard the loud noises coming from the room. A guard sees Rhea and takes off running, to inform the others what happened. The servants take one look at her and turn away in horror, the sight being too much for them to bear.
The Maester rushes over to check for a pulse, sighing in relief when he feels one, "She's alive, but only just. We must act quick."
Amidst all the chaos, they forgot about the young Vanora. As soon as she'd laid eyes on her mother, bones sticking out at awkward angles and a flowing head wound, the young girl had burst into tears.
Everyone is running in and out of the room, shouting and crying about Lady Rhea being injured but none of them pay attention to Vanora.
She sat there sobbing alone, knees brought up to her chest, until a young servant notices her. The servant rushes over, taking Vanora into her arms, "Lady Vanora, do not cry. Your mother is in capable hands!"
Vanora's sobs lessen to trickling tears and sniffles as the blonde servant girl runs a soothing hand down her back. Once she calms down, she notices the girl didn't look much older than she was, "Who are you?"
The serving girl brings Vanora into a tighter embrace, choosing to ignore the snot dripping down onto her shoulder, "I'm Lyana. Don't worry, I'll stay with you."
Feeling another wave of tears approaching, Vanora buries her head in Lyana's shoulder. She refuses to leave the older girl's side, seeking comfort in the only person who had noticed her.
Throughout the evening, Lyana tried to distract the girl. She feeds her sweets and tells her stories that her own mother liked to tell her before bed.
Lyana had been successful in helping the young girl forget the horrors she'd witnessed earlier until Gerold reappears, still covered in Rhea's blood.
