Chapter Text
By that cold morning, Alicent Hightower woke up with a smile on her face. She would plan her routine perfectly, step by step, just like her father taught her to. But it wasn't the reading, which was mandatory, or the new and huge chamber she had gotten when she moved to the castle, that made her smile while staring at the ceiling. It was the plan scheduled right after breakfast: a trip with Rhaenyra Targaryen to see how her dragon, Syrax, was dealing with her riding.
Alicent got up, put her light blue long-sleeve dress and as soon as she prepared her hair, read a couple pages of the Book of Names. Then waited, holding her own hands tight and biting her nails, as if her life depended on that.
"M'lady, isn't it early for you to be ready? Princess Rhaenyra has't waken up yet." A maid said, as she took the rest that was left of breakfast. Alicent took a deep breath and left the room.
Knocks on the door
gets silence as an answer.
The guard gave her a disapproval look, which made her feel bad for a moment.
They were friends long enough for her to feel comfortable on taking that next step.
Opens the door slowly
hears a low snor coming from the bed covered with the most splendid silk.
Gets close
feels scared of making a huge mistake
Her heart stops for a couple seconds when she gets close enough to see her face, sweet and angelically pacific. Alicent had never seen Rhaenyra sleeping, she was used to see her laughing at the jest of the court, screaming as she'd ride her dragon, yawning as studying, but never like that. Somehow, she felt something she couldn't name, but had felt before. Rhaenyra would smile sometimes as if she was having a good dream, one Alicent didn't dare to interrupt, not even to stop the anxiety that was eating her alive.
So she left the chambers and decided to wait a couple hours so that the princess would go see her. Somehow, her hands stopped struggling with each other.
"Were you in my chambers this morning?" Rhaenyra asked as they were in their way to dragonpit. Alicent felt a twinge in her stomach.
"Yes, you were late, I wanted to call you, so..."
"I knew it." She smiled, as if she'd proved herself a point.
"What?"
"I knew you would be ready two hours before."
"I was not, you were late."
"I'm the princess, I'm never late, you're the one who's early." Alicent sighed and Rhaenyra smiled, holding her hand after. "I'm sorry I was late. You should've stayed and lay in my bed, it's big enough for the both of us." Alicent felt her cheeks turning red, so immediatelly looked outside the window of the carriage, trying to understand why the idea of having that sight of Rhaenyra sleeping peacefully right by her side brought that twinge in her stomach again.
"I didn't want to wake you up." She said, almost whispering.
"I wouldn't mind." After holding a little tigher Alicent's hand, Rhaenyra turned hers to her own hair, trying to fix a loch that was left out of her braid. "Do you think Syrax is going to be hard to ride this time?" Alicent finally felt that feeling in her belly going away and her face turning into the normal color, so she looked at Rhaenyra again.
"I don't know, but I'm sure you will be great." They smiled.
Alicent took a long look at dragonpit as Rhaenyra walked to her dragon. While the princess was climbing Syrax, her best friend started to look at her, with a smile on her face. The animal was bigger than ever, and still, it was like if Rhaenyra was part of her, as if they were one powerful and magic weapon.
So she flew, and disappeared in the clouds. Alicent tried to follow her with her eyes, but it was useless, Syrax was too fast, and Rhaenyra, too fearless.
As she waited, Alicent went back to the carriage, where she started to count every detail of it as a way to make time pass faster.
A couple hours later, Rhaenyra went back, the princess didn't want to make her friend wait longer than she already had on that day.
"You didn't take long this time." Alicent pointed as Rhaenyra got close.
"Yeah, I have more plans for today." Alicent looked down, with a smile on her face.
"Syrax is growing quickly, soon she'll be as large as Caraxes."
"That's almost large enough to saddle two." There it was again, the twinge in her stomach, but the two hours waiting made her deal with that better this time.
"I believe I'm quite content as a spectator, thank you." If Alicent had seen the look in Rhaenyra's eyes as they went back to the carriage, those two hours would have meant nothing.