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SOME PEOPLE BELIEVED TARGARYENS were descendants of the gods who lived amongst common men. Some must have been, Naerys thought, but certainly not my uncles.
She yawned softly, rubbing at her eyes. It was far too early in the morning to be dragged out of bed to accompany her brothers to the Dragonpit. Lucerys had been strangely insistent, claiming they had a surprise for Aemond that she couldn't miss out on. Something told her, rightly so, that this couldn't be good, and she made an effort to stay awake.
Vermax appeared to be particularly irritated that morning. The dragonkeepers had to stay close to him, in case he lashed out at the children. Perhaps he was not fond of being bothered so early either.
Aemond had asked Naerys why she hadn't ordered the dragonkeepers to bring forth Blackfyre as well, but she told him there would be many other chances for them to spend time together. She knew, however, how much Jacaerys needed this, and she decided to encourage him instead of focusing on Blackfyre and herself. For some reason, she felt a blush creeping onto her face, and she shook her head to try and clear it before her brothers noticed.
It was rare for Aemond to initiate any kind of conversation with her. It made her think that maybe their heated argument in the library had had some sort of positive effect on him.
"Dracarys, Vermax!"
Her brother's voice brought her back to the present moment, just in time to watch Vermax feed on a roasted goat. "Well done, Jace."
Aegon let out a bored puff of air, whirling around to look at his younger brother with mischief in his eyes. "Aemond, we have a surprise for you."
Aemond frowned. "What is it?"
"Something very special," Lucerys replied, rushing towards the entrance of the pit, barely hiding his excitement. Naerys had a bad feeling about this.
Aegon gave him a grin that was all teeth. "You're the only one of us without a dragon."
"Indeed."
"And we felt badly about it," Aegon continued, smirking. "So we found one for you."
"A dragon? How?"
"The gods provide!"
Lucerys returned from the pit with a very round pig trailing behind him. Naerys cringed at the sight.
"Behold! The Pink Dread!"
They had gone through the trouble of attaching a pair of wings and a tail to the poor animal, all of this just to make fun of Aemond for something that wasn't even his fault. Naerys wanted to knock Aegon's teeth out. She wanted to smack both her brothers for participating in something so cruel. The look in Aemond's eyes was enough to break her heart and fuel the rage inside her.
"Be sure to mount her carefully," Aegon advised, snorting in his brother's ear. "First flight's always rough." Seemingly satisfied, the older prince turned around and headed towards the exit without a single care in the world. Jacaerys and Lucerys went to follow him, but Naerys grabbed the two of them by their ears, pinching them harshly.
