Twenty Three - Oh Brother

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Saera was frozen in place, her heart threatening to leap from her chest as she stood in her apartments. She could feel her twin brother's presence looming over her shoulder, and she almost felt breathless— as if she were being choked. Before she could even process that her brother was there, in her rooms, in King's Landing, she felt his arms wrapping around her in an almost suffocating manner. "Oh I have missed you!" He breathed out as he hugged her from behind.

"Jace?" Her voice was small and meek when she pulled away from him, turning around to face him. Her eyes widened when she took in his appearance as his hair was shoulder length and curly. "Your hair..." Saera gaped.

Jacaerys chuckled. "I've let it grow out, do you like it?" he asked. Saera gulped and nodded her head slowly. "You look handsome." She muttered under her breath, and she meant it in the way that a sister could think a brother handsome.

He beamed widely, reaching to cup her cheek, and Saera almost flinched at his touch as just a few minutes earlier the hand that rested upon her face was that of the man she loved, her uncle.

"Why are you here?" Saera asked, her voice quiet as she gazed up at her twin brother. She knew she should be glad to see him, but she was not. Jace frowned. "I missed you, of course. Have you missed me? Our nameday is soon. I thought you would like to be surprised."

He thought wrong. Saera faked a smile. "Of course, no surprise could be better." she lied right through her teeth, leaning into her brother's chest like she had done thousands of times before though something was different. She was different, she was no longer the girl that used to pressure herself into loving him. Saera used to find comfort in the arms on her brother, but that was not the case— not anymore.

Jace wrapped his skinny arms around her and pulled her in even closer to his body, his fingers playing with locks of her brown hair. "I leave this same night, tis a quick visit. Why don't you show me the gardens?" he asked her when they pulled away, and Saera nodded dubiously. Aemond would surely loose his mind if he saw her and Jacaerys prancing around the Keep, but could she say no to her brother? Her betrothed?

Saera lead him out of her apartments, only for Jace to stop midway— right in front of her desk.

"What's this?" He asked, reaching for a sapphire encrusted dagger that laid on the desk. Saera gulped hard, "Oh! That's Allan's dagger, my guard, you know him... he used to be in Dragonstone." she lied, as the dagger was not Allan's but Aemond's.

"Why is his dagger inside your rooms?" Jace asked, twirling the weapon around in his hands as he inspected it. "He let me borrowed it so I could cut some canvas, give me it. I can give it back right now." Saera said, walking over to her brother and snatching the dagger from his hands.

Saera strutted out of her chambers and into the corridor with Jacaerys trailing behind her. She turned to Allan who was standing dutifully in his post. "Here, Allan. Your dagger. The one you gave me a few days ago. Thanks for letting me borrow it." Saera handed the weapon over to her guard, who inspected it for a moment before looking up at the princess once more.

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