Karma // Criston Cole // Aemond Targaryen

25. Withering

"What a wonderful name day present would a wedding make?" Alicent pondered. Aemond glanced to daelia over his stew.

"Are you finally annulling your union to grandsire?" Daelia countered and aegon choked on his chicken leg as he cackled out. "Who is the lucky man?"

"No my dear." Alicent corrected. "Your union of course."

"Oh yes of course. Silly me. I had a strange dream last night that everyone was seperating and my father came back from the dead and he was so ugly. His skin all withered and leathery from death. His eyes sunken and hair was falling out... he looked like death. He looked like- hello grandfather."

"Hello Daelia, you look so lovely today." Viserys remarked "always so beautiful."

"Its my velaryon genes no doubt." Daelia decided. "I mean thank you." Daelia corrected quickly. "Grandma!" Daelia jumped up sprinting to Rhaenys.

"Hello my sweetling."

"Hi grandpa!" Daelia hugged corlys next. She spared a glance at one of daemons daughters. One of laenas daughters. Daelias... cousin. "Hi-" daelia nodded to baela. "What are you doing here?" She clung to corlys. Even though he knew how unlikely it was that daelia was velaryon he still loved her. Because of the love laenor had for his daelia.

"Your name is fast approaching." Corlys remarked

"And we missed you!" Rhaenys added. "Your mother isnt here is she?"

"She does care about me. Never has. Never will. The only bonding we did was when i was suffocating in her hostile womb." Daelia informed them bluntly and corlys held her closer. A smile curved his lips.

"Welcome. We were not expecting you." Viserys added.

"Your grace." The velaryons echoed. They were professional and Polite but alicent saw the bitter rage lurking under the surface.

"Im so glad you could come. We were just talking of weddings. Daelia and Aemonds future wedding that is." Alicent added.

Rhaenys and corlys both knew that aemond was a better match than most men. Knew Laenor approved of aemond as well. They shared a smile as Daelia grabbed Aemonds hand in confirmation.

"When is the happy day?"

"I would marry dealia today!" Aemond assured

"We are young and have all the time in the world." Daelia reminded him. "Im in no hurry."

"Otherwise she saw your tiny pecker and wants to test drive a real man!" Aegon agreed.

"No." Daelia corrected. "That is 100 percent incorrect."

💋

"Happy name day Daelia," criston gave her a lingering kiss as she melted against his chest.

"Wake me up like this every single day." Daelia requested before turning back to her vanity and finished readying herself for the day.

"I um... this is for you. I- well just open it." Criston suggested

"Presents already? You know I just want you naked for my present." Daelia reminded him. But then she looked at what in his hand. A little box. Jewelry. A ring perhaps! Excitement filled her at the thought of him finally proposing to her. She was quick to open it but what she saw took her aback.

"Criston?" Daelia countered confusion filled her and contorted her beautiful face. Her hand went to her neck as she stared back at the gift in cristons hand.

Criston held out a bracelet that was glittering with sapphires. Daelia stared down at it before looking up at him.

"I don't understand..." Daelia whimpered reaching for it cautiously as if touching the gems would make her father come back to her. Ressurect his soul with a touch of the sparkling gems.

"Your father gave this to me, said I would know the time was right to give it to you." Criston remarked gently, he clasped it on her wrist.

"Thank you." Daelia whispered. "I wish he was here."

"I... when- before he passed he came to me. Before we left and he said look out for my girl... i dont know if I did as he would have wanted but then he gave me this as if he knew his fate." Criston remarked gently.

"I hate daemon," daelia seethed.

"I know you do but you need to be careful." Criston countered touching the sapphires on her necklace as she fiddled with her bracelet.

"I hate my mother too. I hate them all." Daelia demanded. Criston saw a fiery darkness in her eyes that reminded him of Daemon when he was younger. When daemon had murder on his mind. "I want them dead for taking my father. Grandma knows the truth. We all do and yet we do nothing." Daelia whined out. "We should do something. They deserve to be punished. They deserve to die for what they did-"

"Your father wouldnt want you to become a killer." Criston cut in.

"My father isnt here and thats their fault." 

"Daelia-"

"Im not a killer. I dont like to get my hands dirty." Daelia assured. "Thank you for giving this to me. I need to speak to my grandmother. We have let my grandsires ignorance go on long enough."

"Happy name- Daels whats wrong?" Daeron demanded falling into step with her. "What did Aemond do? Was it Aegon? I will beat him up. I promise!"

"No. Its my mother." Daelia grumbled.

"Is she here? For your name day. Thats nice-"

"No. She isnt. Shes the reason my favorite person is dead and im-"

"Im not dead. Im right here." Daeron corrected. Daelias anger faded. The king was in charge and the king would not listen. She knew this. She knew that time was supposed to heal all wounds but no time would fix her ache for her father and why she didnt take off her sapphires from him.

"Thanks Daeron..."

"You okay Daels?"

"I am now. Thank you. I needed that."

"Anytime!" Daeron agreed. "What did I do?"

Daelia moved to her chambers and dug out the long forgotten letter from her father. She touched the bracelet on her wrist and sighed as she opened it.

My dearest Daelia,
I might always be here for you physically, to hold you hand and embarrass you in front of boys but im always in your heart. Just like you are always in mine. You are my world, Daelia Rose Velaryon. My whole world. The thought of being apart from you breaks my soul in half.
My dearest Daelia I will always love you.
~Your favorite, daddy.

"He knew." Daelia rasped out. He knew rhaenyra was going to kill him.