Chapter Text
Daeron
The air felt heavy, it reeked of a smell he couldn't describe, there was almost no light, other than torches near his bed. The walls were made of black rock; it was not clear whether it was day or night. The little he could see in the distance were what appeared to be statues of monstrous that looked like lizards, perhaps they were dragons.
What a depressing place
That place seemed familiar to Daeron; he remembered seeing it before in his dreams, although at that moment he felt more gloomy than at other times
It was there that he began to feel pain all over his body, and it became difficult for him to breathe. He distinguished an old man next to him mixing things he couldn't make out. He was wearing a horrible tunic and had an excessively large chain on his neck. The strange smell he perceived earlier seemed to come from that container the man was holding, although there was also a rotten smell Daeron felt that it came from his own body.
All of this is very strange, more than usual
Something felt out of place, much like his nightmares but worse, more macabre.
Was this a dream?
At this point Daeron no longer knew, lately he could not distinguish reality from his dreams, he no longer distinguished when he fell asleep and when he woke up as if he were unconsciously traveling between both worlds; Just at that moment he felt sleepy and began to feel cold, too cold, although it transmitted a feeling of calm to him as if a stranger were holding his hand to welcome him to the other side, telling him that it was all over now.
“Kepa”
A little girl stood beside him, looking at him with tears in her eyes, lilac eyes, like his, reaching out her small hands to take his cheeks. He remembered her face, he had seen her before
”don't die, Kepa” her blonde hair stuck to her wet face ”please don't die”
He felt his heart sink, the girl saw him with fear in her eyes, he felt helpless at the thought of leaving her alone.
And sadness, a lot of sadness
”Kepa, please”
Daeron wanted to tell her that everything would be alright, that he wasn't going anywhere, but his words didn't seem to be heard; he only saw the girl's fearful eyes, unable to do anything. Suddenly, he felt like cursing life to keep her away from him.
Near the girl he saw a woman, very beautiful, with dark skin and a serious look, her hair was pastel pink, tied up in a high bun, she didn't say anything, she just gave him a look of familiar disappointment.
Kiera
”Prince Daeron” the old man spoke ”describe to me how you feel”
How do I feel?
Like shit, that's how I feel
”Don't die, Kepa...”
”Prince Daeron”
The girl's sobs began to be heard far away; he could still hear the old man's voice, although it sounded different, softer, and feminine?
”Mr. Daeron”
The darkness of the room disappeared, being replaced by bright white lights pointing at his face; the bad smell changed to a disinfectant scent and he still felt cold but more direct, more artificial.
”Mr. Daeron?” There was a woman next to him, about twenty or little bit older, very different from the old man next to him before. ” Are you awake now? describe how you feel”
How I feel?
His throat was too dry to answer he felt like shit.
He tried to talk, he also tried to sit down but his body didn't respond. The woman next to him, assuming it was a nurse, looked at him understandingly and informed him that she would look for the doctor. It wasn't until that when he realized where he was.
The anxiety began to run through his body, but he didn't bother trying to figure out how he had gotten there, since his head did not seem to respond well at the moment. If he was honest with himself, Daeron always told himself that at some point he would end up in the hospital again, since bad decisions were something of his daily life.
The doctor only did a few general checkups; he didn't seem interested in updating him on his condition or why he had been hospitalized. Daeron took that as a bad sign.
”You can leave tomorrow morning, I recommend you to rest and eat well”
He was an older man who was too serious for Daeron's taste
”I think it's unnecessary to tell you that ideally you should avoid consuming alcohol or other substances”
he give Daeron a look full of cynicism however he maintained a tone of professionalism
”It is likely that due to your situation you did not want to apply these instructions completely, but I ask that you at least have some discretion”
Damn headache, he would have responded to that guy anyway if he had the energy.
”Rest while is possible young Daeron, your brother will come later to see you”
My brother!?
” Which brother?” he tried to ask but his voice could barely be heard
An hour later his brother Aerion appeared at the door of his room, he had to admit that he was not the brother he expected to see, although he was the most likely since Aemon was not in town and Aegon was still a minor. In a way, he was surprised to see it there; of all the people, it was the last one he would expect a visit from.
Aerion didn't bother to greet him, he just remained silent judging Daeron with his eyes, until finally, after letting out a snort, he decided to speak
”Father says I have to take care of you” Aerion spoke with some annoyance, very typical of him
” So... Tomorrow please hurry up to pick up your things and move quickly to my apartment because I don't have time to come for you, or help you pack or anything like that and I can't wait until too late to meet you either because I already have plans for the night, do you understand me?? ”
Ooh! of course brother! I understand, how could i be so inconsiderate?!.... Asshole!
”I have a home” he reminded Aerion
It was a rented room in his best friend's apartment, but it was a home
Aerion tilted his head and gave him an incredulous look
”Really Daeron? I doubt Duncan wants to let you live on his roof after what happened, he practically begged us to do something with you once and for all”
At that moment Daeron began to feel an urgency to know how he had gotten to that hospital.
”and after too long a fight with our dear father” Aerion continued ”we came to this conclusion”
From his listless look and the loud sigh he let out, Daeron knew that it was not a conclusion Aerion agreed with.
” What happened with Dunk”
He needed to know why his friend would be upset to apparently not want him in his house and he also wanted to know what exactly would push Duncan to talk with Aerion again, as far as he knew they had not spoken for more than a year, after the play when that accident happened with Tanselle, since then Duncan avoided Aerion like he was a demon.
”You scared his girlfriend, What did you expect?”
Tanselle?
”There must have been something good about the idiot believing himself a hero” his tone of voice was different, softer ”he barely managed to save you”
”What are you talking about?!” The confusion was starting to stress him out.
Aerion was closing eyes clearly annoyed
”Of course you don't remember” he muttered to himself
Daeron tried to remember everything, the headache wasn't helping him, the night before they were at Raymun Fossoway's house, at his engagement party, he remembers talking to his cousin Steffon, he doesn't remember the conversation very well, by then he was already very drunk, but after that everything became confusing.
At some point he met Tanselle, by the pool; the water looked so blue and Daeron felt too hot.
I want to swim
Tanselle pretended to laugh at his jokes, always trying to be nice, just like Dunk, but for some reason this time she looked distressed.
”Daeron, stop!”
He vaguely remembers Tanselle's arms surrounding him, trying to exert force, but failing against Daeron's weight.
”Duncan! DUNCAN!!!!”
He remembered nothing beyond that, only the cold of the water surrounding him, just like the stranger's embrace as if it were leading him back to the same abyss as his dreams.
”Why am I here?” he finally asked Aerion
Aerion fell silent again, looking at him for a while before responding
”You were drunk, as always, some idiot offered you drugs and you like an idiot took them, plus you almost drowned” There was anger in his voice, subtle but present ”I came as soon as Duncan called”
Yes, it was a good justification for calling Aerion after a year
”By the way, it seems you got Fossoway into trouble”
He had gotten drunk a million times and Dunk had rescued him a million times, although he was never about to die, he understood why Duncan wanted to get away from him.
”I tried not to call dad, but... I didn't know what to do”
And what did Dad say?
Did he care?
No...surely he complained to the gods again for giving him a defective firstborn.
It doesn't mean his father was going to let this go unnoticed, which made everything worse, not just for him
”I don't need to move in with you”
”I think so, you need it, you don't have money and... i don’t like the idea of leaving you alone in this moment”
Daeron let out a laugh
”I didn't know you cared so much about my little brother” he sounded ruder than he intended
”Don't be an idiot! Be grateful that Dad doesn't want you around the little brats in the state you're in, because otherwise you'd be locked in that house being constantly monitored by him and I don't think you'd like that”
Well, Maekar Targaryen had to leave the responsibility to someone, and who better than his other wayward son.
I hope the other two turn out well, Father
”I'm sorry” he apologized ”don't worry, I'll do my best not to bother you for too long little brother”
Aerion frowned, he knew he didn't like being call like that, but there was something funny about seeing Aerion's grumpy expression.
”Don't be late tomorrow, or you'll stay at the door until I arrived at night” he said, leaving the room without saying goodbye, because of course, why would he?
⋆༺𓆩⚔𓆪༻⋆
He was aware that Aerion had told him to arrive early, but he had to pick up his things at Duncan's house. He knew that Dunk was leaving in the morning for his Rugby training, but Tanselle didn't leave the house until two in the afternoon and he preferred to arrive after that time. He packed as much as he could as quickly as possible. The truth is, he was afraid that Duncan or worse yet, Tanselle would show up at the door and have to deal with awkward conversation.
When he arrived at Aerion’s building, he found that he was clearly not there. He didn't want to stay at the reception because after a while the receptionist began to give him suspicious looks. To be fair, he didn't seem to be the heir to a high technology company; in fact, physically he wasn't that much like his brother. He decided to go to a nearby store to buy something to eat he chose a sandwich and went to the refrigerator with all the intention of having a soda, however he could spot a small package of beers, well technically the doctor didn't tell him that he wouldn't drink, in moderation, if well, it's a four-pack, that's moderate.
He stopped as he approached the counter; the cashier seemed familiar to him. After managing to recognize her, he froze.
Kiera, his ex-girlfriend, tall, slender, with dark skin, she used to dye her hair different shades, something common in Tyrosh, her hometown. That day, her hair was a bright pink that fell in waves over her shoulders.
”What are you doing here!?”
Kiera's voice caught him off guard, he took a step back and crashed into a pile of sauce cans, Kiera gave him a sharp look, then she looked at the cans on the floor and turned her gaze back toward him.
”Sorry...I mmmm”
what should he say?
”I didn't know you worked here...I mean you're usually around Flea Button...” Kiera's look was starting to make him nervous ”and well...not here”
”That's because they rotate our genius” she responded rudely, without a touch of kindness
”yes..yes, umm....obviously...sorry” he picked up some cans from the floor to try to organize them as they were before, however his attempts were in vain because they ended up falling back onto the floor
”Are you going to pay!?” Kiera said exasperatedly after hearing the cans fall
Daeron stopped what he was doing and approached the counter with clumsy steps, trying not to do or say anything that would bother the girl in front of him.
He put the two packets of beer and the sandwich in the table. Kiera stopped to look at the objects on the counter and then she glanced at Daeron
Seriously!?
He could hear her voice judging him in his head
Yes, seriously! You know I drink beer Kiera
She just let out a snort and turned her gaze to the cash register
”that would be $29.99”
He took out his wallet and he only found one $20 bill. he checked the other pockets but found nothing, so he checked again a few more times.
Kiera evidently ran out of patience
”Oh please Daeron! Are you serious!?”
”Okay! okay! ... calm down!”
He decided to give up and return one of the packages of beer to the refrigerator, then went to the checkout to pay for the rest. Kiera practically snatched the bill out of his hand and slammed the change back with a loud bang on the table
”You can leave now”
However, Daeron did not move
”What? Do you want me to sell you cigarettes? Do you have money for that!?”
”Not..I just ...”
”What the hell do you want, Daeron!?”
I Dream of you
”How are you?” he decided to ask
We had a daughter and you looked at me badly, very similar to the way you're looking at me right now
” I'm working in a store full of cockroaches putting up with customers who disorganize my work. How do you think I'm doing!?”
Well that was fair
”Sorry” Kiera frowns, it seemed like she wanted to yell at him ”we haven't seen each other in a long time and... I just wanted to talk”
”Well, find someone else to talk to”
That was the problem, he didn't have anyone to talk to
”Yeah well...but I wanted to talk to you, you know...” his tone of voice got lower as he looked at Kiera's furious eyes
She didn't say anything for a while; her gaze was a mixture of emotions, none of them good.
”I'm not interested in getting back together with you”
”WHAT!? I wasn't going to ask you for that!” She gives him a look of disbelief ”I wasn’t! Really!”
”So why are you still here!?”
Why was he still there?
Because he almost died
Duncan probably hates me...and so does his girlfriend
Now I have to live with my brother, the psychopath, who also doesn't get along with my best friend, if he's still my best friend
My father hasn't called me yet, even though I almost died; it's not like he called me before, of course
I keep having strange dreams and I feel horrible in all of them.
”Because before we were dating we were friends” he blurted out almost in a whisper
He never really had many friends, he only had one at school, it was difficult to surround himself with genuine people having the last name Targaryen, and to be honest, it didn't seem like people really liked Daeron, the only real friend he had made was Dunk and by default Raymun and Tanselle although he doubted whether the two of them actually considered him a friend, probably not.
But his only friend was gone and now he was standing in front of one of the few people with whom he had truly connected, they shared similar tastes and disliked the same people, but then they started dating, and things got complicated.
I guess it's easier to put up with shit from a friend than from a partner.
Kiera looked at him again, this time she didn't look upset, just bored.
”We can't be friends Daeron, you know that”
Yes, he knew it
It was something else they had in common, the same regret, one with brown hair and mismatched eyes, another person Daeron let go, adding to his list of reasons why he was alone.
”I think you should leave, Daeron”
Yes, he should do that
⋆༺𓆩⚔𓆪༻⋆
At night Aerion received him, but not before complain to him for the time he arrived
”I told you to come early”
Of course the package of beers didn't go unnoticed by him
”Gods, you're incredible”
He snatched the package from his hands and hid it somewhere Daeron didn't know about, because he couldn't find it afterward.
”You will stay in the guest room, please clean it, I didn’t have the time and try to keep it that way”
He didn't remember that Aerion even cared about cleanliness
”Bring your keys with you because I won't let you in if you leave them behind, I need to sleep well, I have a very busy life”
Ha! I wonder with what
He was going to retire to his room when Aerion spoke again
”I also like to listen to music at night, I turn it up really loud, don't complain, this is my house”
So this was going to be his life from now on
”And please try not to make a mess” Aerion added
”Thank you Little Brother” he blurted out softly, not wanting to argue with him.
He took the first comfortable thing he found in his backpack to finally go to sleep. he was so exhausted he couldn't take it anymore, and he didn't feel like doing anything, but he was interrupted by his phone.
”Hello” He didn't know who could call him, he assumed it was his father, so he prepared for a scolding
”Daeron? Are you okay?” It wasn't a scolding and it wasn't his father
” Valarr?”
”Are you feeling okay? Are you with Aerion?”
Valarr always spoke calmly, almost without showing emotions, although he did notice a certain urgency in his voice
”Ummm, yes I'm at his place”
How did he know I'm with Aerion?
He heard him let out a deep sigh on the other end of the line
”And...is he treating you well?”
Does Aerion treat anyone well?
He was being unfair, sometimes his brother wasn't so bad, just sometimes.
”As he normally treats me” he replied ”how did you know where I was?”
He didn't respond immediately; it was obvious he was looking for a way to avoid mentioning Raymun's party
”Okay...” Daeron short with silence ”tell me who told you”
”Duncan called my father”
Of course he did
”Neither you nor Aerion answered his calls, and he was worried about you; obviously, at some point he had to explain everything”
Big idiot, although he was partly relieved to know that Duncan wasn't that upset with him
”And you called to lecture me or something...?”
”I called because I want to know how you are” Valarr interrupted him ”I'm worried about you”
They both remained silent for a few seconds
Was he worried about him?
Until that moment, Daeron always thought Valarr hated him; he didn't know how to feel about the fact that maybe it wasn't entirely like that. For some reason, that made him feel irrationally nervous
”I would have gone with you to the hospital if I'd known you were there”
Of course you would have, Golden boy
Even if he doesn't want to admit it, it wouldn't have bothered him to see Valarr there
”Do you feel better now?” Valarr asked
Not really
”Yes, I guess I'm better now”
”How much time are you going to spend with Aerion?”
”I don't know yet, but I'm going to look for a room or something”
There was silence on the other line, it seemed that Valarr was preparing to speak
”If you need help you can tell me” Valarr clears his throat ”with whatever...you know”
”I know” Daeron let out a smile, Valarr didn't sound upset or disappointed, he sounded like the same guy worried about Daeron every time he got into trouble ”but for now I'm fine Valarr, for real”
He knew Valarr wasn't entirely convinced, but he didn't seem to protest
”Okay” He answered ”Promise me you're going to take care of yourself, okay? Can you promise?”
Normally he would say yes, that he promised, as an attempt to get people to leave him alone, especially his father.
Promise me you won't show up drunk at dinner tomorrow, Daeron
Can you promise you won't embarrass me tomorrow, Daeron
I need you to attend this conference, it is essential. Can you promise me that you will go?
Yes father, I promise
Although of course in the end he never did it.
However, for some reason he didn't want to lie to Valarr; he couldn't promise him anything of course because he didn't trust himself to take care of himself, so he only responded with a...
”I can try”
When the call finally ended, Daeron wented to sleep, his conversation with Valarr was the last thing he thought about, and his voice echoed in his mind as he slowly fell asleep.
And in the blink of an eye, he found himself transported to another place.
The air was warm, that was the first thing he noticed, he was on a large balcony, adorned with several flowers, the trees peek out of the ground, in various colors, as if they had just bloomed.
”Today I spoke with Grandsire” Someone next to him said, a young boy, very handsome, a silver lock stuck out between his brown hair
Valarr
”He told me that he is not feeling well; his health has gotten worse since my father died” there was sadness in his words ”It was as if he were warning me that I would soon take his place on the throne”
Daeron watched him; he looked so still, immutable, so perfect, but at the same time he looked so fragile.
”I'm not ready Daeron” he blurted out in almost a whisper ”I know I should stay stoic and carry on with my responsibilities as a father I teach myself but... I'm terrified”
He hated the feeling he was getting from seeing Valarr so vulnerable; he felt an immense desire to put his arms around him and hide him from the world.
Instead he approached him and slowly took his hand.
”You're not going to do it alone” he told him in what seemed to be an attempt to comfort him ”Aunt Elaena will be supporting you or Uncle Brynden”
For some reason that name gives him a chill
”And also father...he says he wants to be by your side, support you in whatever way he can...if you receive it of course”
Valarr only looked him in the eyes with an intensity that seemed overwhelming
”And you?” I ask ”Will you be here too or are you going back to Summerhall?”
”I...”
Something told him he wouldn't stay there any longer
”I would like you to stay” Valarr told him ”You would be of great help to me”
Daeron let out a little laugh
”I can't think of what way”
He had a hard time finding anything he wasn't completely useless at.
Valarr looked at him; he seemed to have an internal debate arguing between what he wanted to say and what he considered more prudent, or looking for a good excuse to make Daeron stay.
”I need you, Daeron” he finally said, apparently with some embarrassment because I quickly looked under ”please stay”
He sensed a tone of pleading in his voice
His chest hurt, it hurt a lot, deep down he wanted to stay by Valarr's side, but at the same time he knew it was never going to happen.
”Valarr”
He looked him in the eyes again, those beautiful eyes, different from his, from those of his entire family, Daeron thought they were the most beautiful he had ever seen, more beautiful than any Valyrian. Not even all the shades of purple could compare to how special those eyes were.
”Promise me you'll at least think about it” Valarr asked him
He wanted to say yes, that he would never leave his side, that he would follow him for the rest of his life until darkness took away that seedy world, but a feeling of deep sadness invaded him as if he knew that no matter what he decided, everything was going to fade away like ashes as if the future were just pain and fate mocked his hopes, as if the time he had left with the beautiful man in front of him was running out and becoming ephemeral forever.
His promises were worthless, Daeron always knew it.
”I promise”