(Third Person POV)
"I see the way everyone looks at me." Aerion said as he sat next to Rhaenyra during the banquet, "The way there is fear in their eyes. They think of me as a monster, a manslayer, a maniac who seeks blood."
Rhaenyra looked at him, seeing that he was staring ahead. His eyes were serious, there was a disturbed look in them, exactly what Lady Rhea had told her. Rhaenyra knew what Rhea meant at that moment; the War in the Stepstones possibly changed Aerion. It was to be expected, Aerion was but twelve years old when he departed.
"Aerion...." Rhaenyra said, "You...."
"My comrades in battle, they feared me too. You are not called The Bloody Dragon by not killing a lot of men." Aerion said, "My enemies and my comrades were afraid of me. Even my own Father was unsettled....."
"Daemon was?" Rhaenyra asked with a surprised look
Aerion nodded, "He was." He said, "But he got used to it."
"I see...." Rhaenyra said
"Upon returning, those who did not participate in the War looked at me with fear in their eyes." Aerion continued, "I believe the stories reached their ears. The Queen and her children, your siblings, do not come near me. They are afraid of me, which is not something I would be surprised by. All of those self-proclaimed warriors, they do not look at me in the eye, which is a bit disappointing..."
"Oh...." Rhaenyra said simply
"Imagine my disappointment when I saw that you looked at me like that as well." Aerion looked at her, "You, too, are afraid..."
Rhaenyra frowned, "Uhm...." She said softly, "I am sorry, Aerion...."
Aerion nodded, "It is fine." He said, "I should have expected it."
"You changed so much." She said, "You were also a serious and calm boy, very blunt....and kind of arrogant sometimes.....but when I saw you...you were different....taller....bigger....and a scary look in your eyes...."
"I made a mistake." Aerion said
"Mistake?" Rhaenyra asked
"I thought that a War would be nothing. That it would be similar to going around and fighting the Mountain Tribes in the Vale." Aerion said, "I had killed before The Stepstones. I had slain around six or seven bandits prior to going to War. But War.....War is different...."
"I know." Rhaenyra said, "That is why your Mother was worried."
"And I realized that a year in...." Aerion said, "I was too absorbed in the battle, thinking that I needed it....eventually becoming something that everyone feared...But..."
"But...?" Rhaenyra looked at him
"It is over." Aerion said, "I ended it....and returned.... "
"That is the good thing, right?" Rhaenyra asked, "That you are home, safely?"
"Sure." Aerion nodded, "You could say that."
"You are a Knight now." Rhaenyra said with a smile, "Do you remember what you told me?"
"I do." Aerion said
"W-What do you think?" Rhaenyra asked, "I-It is going to happen."
"Not much I can say about it. It will happen." Aerion said bluntly
Rhaenyra chuckled and smiled, "Always the blunt one." She said, "I missed that about you."
Aerion crossed his arms and tilted his head, "Mother had asked me if I thought about you." He said, "And I told her that I rarely thought about her, which made it difficult for me to think about you."
Rhaenyra looked at her, "I thought about you." She said softly, "Almost every day."
"Mayhaps that is why my body never tasted steel." Aerion said as he looked at her, "I had you thinking of me."
Rhaenyra looked into his eyes, noticing that they were devoid of light, just as she had thought. It was clear to her, who was older than Aerion, that the War had changed him. It had a major impact on him. A young boy who witnesses such bloodshed will be permanently scarred; it is not something Rhaenyra would deny especially if the young boy is the one who creates the bloodshed.
Aerion was affected by the War significantly and Rhaenyra realized it immediately, just by looking at his eyes.
"Aerion...." Rhaenyra said as she reached for his hand
She grabbed his hand to which Aerion simply looked down at hers, saying nothing. Rhaenyra felt no warmth from his hand.
Perhaps it was in her mind; the cold sensation from Aerion's hand.
"I do not want you to think I do this against my will." She said, "I...I am glad to be ma-"
"I know." Aerion said, "That this bothers you."
"Eh?" Rhaenyra said
Aerion lifted his hand, the one that Rhaenyra was grabbing, and simply looked at it.
"You were forced to be pure....to be a maiden..." Aerion said seriously, "Being caught up in a dispute between a King and his brother....promised to a boy who you did not look with any romantic interest. Your privacy was eliminated, you were shut inside a castle for years.....not allowed to have any freedom...it is like I had said those years ago...."
"Aerion..." Rhaenyra frowned
"Does it bother me?" Aerion said, "I do not know if it does. I will simply do as my duty commands, I am a Knight after all. But know this, I will be good to you. Or at the very least, I will try...because it is the way I was taught...it is the way I was raised....and nurtured...."
"I am the Heir, Aerion." Rhaenyra said, "Do you understand what that means?"
"That there is even more pressure on you." Aerion said softly, "You need someone to aid you handle said pressure. And I will try my best to be that someone."
"It also means that you will have a target on your back." Rhaenyra said softly, "To be the consort of the Heir.....who is a woman....what man would not want that power?"
"Power?" Aerion said, "Is that what this is about? Hm, who am I kidding? Of course it is."
Aerion then brought her hand towards him, which was still raised by his, and kissed it gently. This action surprised Rhaenyra, who widened her eyes slightly.
"A-Aerion...." She said, blushing
"It matters not." Aerion said as he looked at her, "If Fate decides that we are together....if it decides that I am to stand by your side, as your Consort...then so be it....I cannot fight it, can I? And neither can anyone else."
Rhaenyra nodded, "I see...."
"We are to be married." Aerion said, "It is inevitable."
"I suppose it is." Rhaenyra nodded, "Thank you, Aerion."
"For what?" Aerion asked
"For being yourself." Rhaenyra smiled, "It....gladdens me that you are still that boy who left."
"Oh, but you are wrong." Aerion said, "The boy who left two years ago is gone. Who you see is a Man, a Knight, and your future Husband."
Rhaenyra smiled even more, "Oh, Aerion...."
In the distance, a lone man stood next to a crowd of nobles that were conversing.
It was Harwin Strong, Lord Lyonel's son and a Knight of The Realm.
He was holding a cup of wine and clenched it when he saw that Aerion had kissed Rhaenyra's hand.
"Tch..." Harwin said
"Bothers you, does it not?" a voice said
Harwin turned to see Daemon standing a few feet away.
He cleared his throat, "What does, My Prince?"
"That you will not have her." Daemon said
"I do not know what you are referring to." Harwin said
"Cut the shit, Breakbones." Daemon said, "She is to marry my son, sure....let us get to that. But if I am to find out that she is not a Maiden and that she has been lying this whole time....well, I cannot punish my son's wife, can I?"
Harwin scowled, "What are you getting at?"
"Oh, you know...." Daemon said as he stepped closer, "You know exactly what I am talking about. If I find out that she is no maiden.....well, there are two targets in my mind. And you are one of them...."
"I will kill you, Harwin Strong."