Kingslayer •Jaime Lannister•

Rhaena Targaryen

Rhaena was furious, her eyes had turned a violent shade of purple and her face was deep into a snarl. Robert had made a show of it to tell the story of how he had murdered Rhaegar Targaryen, his drunken mouth slurring the words and spitting all over everyone near him. The beastly man was riding on Rhaena's spine until finally she couldn't hold herself together.

"But that was then and now you are a beast of a man, a whore and a drunk, where could we find someone better to rule the seven kingdoms, maybe if you lifted your stomach we could begin looking there." She had spat at the man, she hadn't regretted the words but she had regretted saying them as Eddard Stark looked at her furious. Eddard grabbed her arm tightly, dragging her out of the dining hall and into the corridor.

"Get your hands off of me." Eddard looked down at the girl, she was tall for her age, but she was still shorter than Sansa though the girl was three years younger than her. But Ned couldn't be angry with her as he looked into her eyes, the violet color was swimming in tears there was anger in them but there was more sorrow than anything else.

Before Ned could scold the girl she had snatched her arm from his grasp and turned down the corridor. He could have either chased after the girl to scold her and then sent her to her bed, or he could return to the dining hall to apologize on behalf of the girl.

Ned sighed at the retreating figure and turned to compose himself, he would need to justify her actions in someway without letting any hints to her identity slip.

As Ned entered through the doors again all eyes snapped onto him, all except for Sandor Clegane, the hound kept his eyes on his plate. Ned took careful steps to his seat, sat and took a drink.

"King Robert, I'd like to ask your forgiveness for the behavior of my natural-born daughter, she is bleeding and can not control her anger very well." Ned shook his head feigning shame, he was proud of the excuse that he had come up with but knew that he would hear it from Catelyn later as she had been against the girl attending anyway.

"All is forgiven, in fact I found it quite amusing, she's got quite the personality." Catelyn sent Ned a glare, she knew that he hadn't scolded the girl, Ned always looked more upset than Rhaena when he did.

"Might I be excused, i'd like to go check on the girl." Catelyn was standing before she had even finished her sentence, she smoothed her dress and exited the dining hall.

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Rhaena stood staring out of the window, if she stared hard enough she thought that maybe she could see her father, standing at his window looking at her, their violet eyes meeting and Rhaegar's smiling at the girl.

The sound of the door opening took her out of her daze, her wild eyes taming themselves readying herself to be scolded by whoever had just entered.

Lady Catelyn stood in the door, her eyes were stern as they always were when she looked at the girl, the girl who had supposedly come from the infidelity of her husband. Catelyn hadn't liked the girl even as a toddler, she'd tried her best to keep Robb away from her until Ned told her off.

"That show that you put on back there was a complete embarrassment to our name, how dare you speak to the king that way!" Catelyn Stark hadn't ever felt more embarrassed, it was one thing to let the bastard girl attend the feast, but for her to speak out like that was horrifying.

Rhaena wanted to yell at the woman but she couldn't bring herself to, Catelyn Stark was right Rhaena knew that was she had said was wrong, but she really didn't feel like having Catelyn scold her. Instead she just turned her back to the woman and returned to her seat by the window, it was rude but Rhaena was about to cry and Catelyn wasn't helping.

"I apologize for embarrassing your name." Rhaena's voice cracked a bit at the end, sometimes it was all a bit too much for the young girl, she remembered so much of her father and all that she wanted to do was see him again. She didn't have a family name to honor or dishonor, and it hurt sometimes to see Sansa and Arya in crying into their fathers arms when hers was across the land and sea.

Catelyn was readying herself to continue scolding until she heard the girls voice break, she hadn't ever seen Rhaena cry, and that damn sure wasn't about to start today. Rhaena hadn't even cried when she fell out of a tree and crushed her foot, it had healed fine but at the time the maesters were sure she would never use it again.

"Could you please leave me?" Rhaena hadn't looked Catelyn in the eyes since she'd arrived and it scared Catelyn that the strong girl who had once been dragged away from a pub full of pirates kicking and screaming because one of them had grabbed the arse of one of the waitresses that Rhaena had known for a while, and even when she dropped a mug of ale onto his head and he'd held a knife to her throat she didn't even flinch. Ned himself gave the girl a hiding, but had apologized a bit later once he'd heard the full story, Rhaena spent a month glaring at him and misplacing his scrolls and maps.

Catelyn couldn't bring herself to stay, but she didn't want to leave the girl alone to her thoughts, Rhaena's mind had proven to be a dangerous place for the girl and others. But as she saw the girls head snap to the side, a frightening look on her face as she glared at Catelyn through the side of her eye Catelyn turned and left.

As soon as she heard the door close she nearly screamed, too much was happening at once, the safe haven she had once built was crumbling down and the whispers in her ears were getting louder. She felt like she was going to explode and splatter herself onto the walls of her bedroom, bits of Rhaena Targaryen scattered on the ground just like her fathers rubies from his chest plate.

She had to get out of there, out of Winterfell, out of the North, out of Westeros, it was all so smothering. Rhaena pulled out her scroll and prepared to write to her father, she would tell him of the savage ways of Robert Baratheon and of the voices and how they were screaming in her ears. She sat with his last letter next to her, answering the questions that he'd asked her, the letter read,

My dearest daughter,

It has been a week since I have last written you, for that I apologize but I've been a bit busy with things. Are they still treating you and Jon well? if they aren't I will sail across the sea and kill them all, I promise. You said that Robert Baratheon was on his way, if you get the chance smile in his face and ask him about the lovely Lyanna, ask Ned how she died in front of him, smile the smile that I gave you. Tell Jon that you love him, twice one for both of us, how is he doing, is he truly as good as I've heard? My dearest Rhaena, there are people that will help you, but they are few and far between. Do not trust anybody, but trust everybody, when people believe that you trust them they will trust you.

If the voices are still as loud as they were the last time we spoke, ask the maester for milk of the poppy it will soothe the headache and you'll sleep through the nights. Do not let them guide you, do not listen to them, you aren't prepared to hear what they'll say. I love you, I love you, I love you. My sweet summers babe, keep going, I'll love you to my last breath.

Papa.

Rhaena pressed a kiss onto the letter, if she imagined it she could smell him on it, the burnt smell that seemed to follow him, the smell of parchment and ink, the smell of flowers that used to bloom in the gardens. Rhaena did as he told her and fell asleep with the letter clutched to her chest.