The Maid - Aemond Targaryen

Forty Five - Paranoia

Elyana stood outside of Helaena's chambers with a stoic expression on her face. Aemond had suggested she visit the Queen, but she could not find the courage to knock on the door, to see Helaena absolutely broken. What could Elyana possibly say to Helaena? Would Helaena even wish to speak to her after she blatantly chose her to die?

Elyana did not fault her for it, she would have chosen Helaena if it were her own son on the chopping block.

She was accompanied by Conrad, who was looking at her expectantly, awaiting for her to go into the Queen's apartments. But something did not let Elyana move, something held her back. She watched the wooden door for what appeared to be minutes, until finally she took a deep breath and knocked.

There was no answer, and Elyana thought that perhaps Helaena was not inside or that maybe she was sleeping. Until she heard a loud wallowing emitting from inside, a horrifying and gut wrenching sound that made Elyana's skin crawl. Conrad's eyes widened, and he turned to Elyana to give her a widened eye look.

She took a breath and opened the door, peeking her head inside. Kneeling on the floor was Helaena, back facing Elyana as she rocked back and forth while crying loudly. Elyana went in alone, closing the door softly behind herself, though the sound made Helaena turn around abruptly.

Her eyes were bloodshot red, hair absolutely matted beyond repair, and in her hands she held a wooden dragon. A child's toy. Jaehaerys' toy. They stared at each other for a few seconds, unmoving.

In that moment, silence spoke louder than words. Elyana stepped foward, while Helaena only looked at her with tears streaming down her cheeks freely.

"Helaena... I am so sorry..." Elyana finally said, completely heartbroken at the sight before her. She understood Helaena's mourning, but she also could never understand. Helaena had watched her son be beheaded mercilessly, she had watched them stuff his head in a sack, watched them take her child's life as if it did not matter. And it did not matter, not to them.

Elyana would prefer to lose her baby a hundred times than to ever have to watch her child be beheaded.

If she were to have a child. But she was not.

Helaena did not answer, instead she turned back around and continued crying, holding the wooden dragon close to her chest. Elyana moved towards her, sitting down besides her and gently caressing her back.

She had no idea what to do or say to make Helaena feel better, she was sure nothing in the world would ever make it better. Helaena looked up at Elyana, "You will be ash from the fire." She stated in between sniffles, and then looked back down.

Elyana frowned and swallowed hard, staring at Helaena with wide eyes. What did she mean? Elyana had gotten used to Helaena's sayings, gotten used to the creepiness and the randomness of it all. But as she stared at the wallowing Queen, she thought back to everything that Helaena had told her in the past. So many cryptic things that somehow had come true.

It dawned upon Elyana in the matter of a second. Helaena was not crazy or creepy, she coud see more than anyone, she knew more than everyone. "Ash from the fire?" Elyana asked slowly, blinking her tears away as she looked at the Queen. Ash from the fire? Ash from what fire?

Elyana was frightened, rightfully so, and she almost wanted to shake Helaena and demand her to tell her what she meant.

But Helaena was cryptic, she would never tell her things plainly. Surely because she could barely understand the things she saw herself.

Elyana remained with her for about an hour, her mind racing with a thousand thoughts a minute. Ash from the fire. Did she mean that Elyana would die? By dragonfire? The words had not served to help Elyana's sheer paranoia, and they were now driving her insane.