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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warnings:
Graphic Depictions Of ViolenceMajor Character Death
Category:
Gen
Fandoms:
House of the Dragon (TV)Warhammer Fantasy
Characters:
Ikit ClawRhaenyra TargaryenJacaerys VelaryonLucerys Velaryon (Son of Rhaenyra)Baela TargaryenRhaena Targaryen (Daughter of Daemon)Daemon TargaryenCorlys "The Sea Snake" VelaryonHelaena TargaryenAddam VelaryonBackground & Cameo CharactersSilverwing | Alysanne Targaryen's DragonOriginal CharactersJoffrey Velaryon
Additional Tags:
Crack Treated SeriouslyCanon-Typical ViolenceThe Dance of the Dragons | Aegon II Targaryen v. Rhaenyra Targaryen EraAlternate Universe - Canon DivergenceCanonical Character DeathCharacter Turned Into a HumanIkit got isekai'd as Jace's twinSkaven Species (Warhammer Fantasy)Death to all GreensHuman ExperimentationScience ExperimentsIkit is his own warningSilverwing still has shit taste in male ridersPOV MultipleBackground RelationshipsBackground Character Deathshow canon onlyDragon RidersAnimal AbuseIkit is an abusive dragonriderTho he's fairly mellow compared to his SkavenselfGood Parent Rhaenyra TargaryenNo beta we die like LucerysDysfunctional FamilyCannibalismBlood and TortureCanon-Typical BehaviorBAMF Helaena Targaryen
Language:
English
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Published:2026-02-26Completed:2026-04-22Words:181,492Chapters:55/55Comments:1,270Kudos:749Bookmarks:160Hits:33,683
The Rat Prince of Westeros
SkilledWarriorKiwi
Chapter 52: Rhaenyra
Chapter Text
Queen Rhaenyra waited at King's Landing for her two oldest sons to return.
Jacaerys had spoken to her through one of Ikit's odd little inventions, the farsqueaker. Through it he informed her that Ikit and Silverwing had survived the battle with Helaena but were recovering from their injuries. Injuries that currently meant Silverwing couldn't fly, so Jace was staying behind to keep watch over his twin and dragon. It did come with the news that Helaena and Dreamfyre had died and with them both, the end of the civil war.
Alicent had sobbed when Rhaenyra informed her that the last of her children were dead- especially with the confirmation Jaehaera had also died at Storm's End before Ikit even arrived -and yet Rhaenyra felt herself not even caring. She simply left the woman to her grief and shame, to remain imprisoned for the rest of her days. Rhaenyra had been the first visitor besides Elinda for months.
As she waited for Ikit and Jace to return, Daemon and Baela were a welcome sight across King's Landing. Baela had much acclaim in being the one to kill Vhagar, with her retelling how she had shot Vhagar through the eye with the Warplock Jezzail while the great she-dragon had Ceraxes in her grip. There was some words about, once winter was over, going to the God's Eye and attempting to retrieve Vhagar's skull so it could join Meraxes's and Balerion's. Even if her rider was a dishonourable thief, Vhagar still had been important in the founding of House Targaryen and the Seven Kingdoms.
A deep tension had finally dissipated from Rhaenyra's shoulders as she focused heavily upon the rebuilding and recovering of the civil war. The information of the stolen treasury being returned with pleas for mercy from the Houses that had sheltered it, along with Braavos returning the share which had been sent to them. Rhaenyra sent a strongly worded letter to the Iron Islands to cease their raiding upon the Westerlands in the aftermath of the collapse of the Greens and the traitors begging for mercy and reaffirming their oaths.
Corlys was clearly upset with the destruction of House Hightower and Baratheon, mostly due to the idea it would be far harder to plea for peace when the opponents feared annihilation and the loss of such ancient families, but he commented nothing else upon it. Meanwhile Rhaenyra was already writing to House Fell in the Stormlands, to offer them the ascension to Storm's End as their keep due to the destruction of House Baratheon. The ancestral keep needed to recover and be filled, to help bring normalcy to the kingdoms.
There had been some debate over Addam, with Corlys suggesting that perhaps he would be given the lordship in reward for his loyalty and service within the war. However she was hesitant to offer such a strong, ancient keep to someone with little family name. If he could marry into House Fell, as Lady Alora Fell had several daughters, then she would accept it. For now neither she nor Addam seemed eager to send him away. She also did not like how scattered the dragons were getting, Seasmoke was large enough she was not about to let him stray.
She also focused more on helping stabilize King's Landing. The rest of Tumbleton and death of the traitors had helped immensely, along with Daemon's return as he quickly took control of his goldcloaks once again. She did not like that, considering the scarring she had seen on her husband in the aftermath of the God's Eye and knew he still ached, but Daemon insisted. The people had to be pacified especially as the mornings grew ever more cold.
Joffrey was also an immense help to her surprise, as he seemed to know a great deal about the common fears. He was the one who encouraged her to feed the people more, intentionally limiting her own feasts and offering 'poor man banquets' in several dozen squares across King's Landing where the commonfolk could partake in foods prepared by the lords kitchens. That helped immense in satiating the more vicious mutterings from the people, especially as word of the utter destruction of the Hightower spread across the Seven Kingdoms.
The Dawn of the Second Sun, Rhaenyra heard the event being referred to from people of the Reach, from the Citadel and maesters. All accounts of the utterly gargantuan explosion of green light which swallowed all of the Hightower and left nothing behind, as if a sun was exploding high in the sky. Something enthusiastically recounted by the people of the Three Towers and surrounding allied keeps but with immense fear and anger from others.
Some of those who lost their vision had it recovered, even if it was so spotty and dark with only disfigured shapes. However many remained blind and the annihilation of two great Houses during the Dance- Hightower and Baratheon -kept nervousness high.
The onset of winter kept those claims to a minimum, if only due to the fact a large portion of the realm would be snowed in, and with Oldtown they would have to focus on rebuilding the grand harbour.
Rhaenyra felt like she should care more about the sheer death her son had brought to Oldtown. That even with Addam, after he asked for a private meeting with her, told her everything he remembered of Tumbleton- the cannibalism, the devouring of Tessarion, the retribution and death -and then the great emerald sun in the sky which devoured a tower that rose even higher than the Wall, just felt distant.
She had sacrificed so much to keep the realm safe. She attempted to reach a diplomatic solution even in the fact of Otto and Alicent's treason, even when that news brought upon the stillbirth of her children and Rhaenyra knew the damage of that birth meant never again would she be pregnant. When she learned those who remained loyal to her in King's Landing was butchered she continued to try and reach a peaceful resolution.
After Lucerys was murdered and the Kinslayer celebrated by the Usurper King, again she continued to try and find peace. To the point she even reached out to the mother of the man who butchered her child, Alicent who spent years poisoning her children and filling the realm with lies and whispers against Rhaenyra. After Ser Arryk attempted to murder her in her bed she tried. After Princess Rhaenys and Meleys were killed she tried. After she violated her House's sanctity of dragons and allowed Hugh Hammer to tame Vermithor she still tried. After those across the realm who remained loyal were being butchered she still tried to reach a peaceful resolution with feckless cravens and treasonous thieves.
It was only after the Greens invited in the Triachy and she nearly lost two sons- and believed Viserys had in fact been killed until Ikit returned with him -did Rhaenyra finally give up. She had given up enough of herself to the realm, let enough of her children suffer, that she no longer cared.
Her enemies were dead and the means to get her upon the Iron Throne was bloody and vile- yet it was all the fault of Alicent and Otto.
She did not care if they whispered behind her back anymore. She no longer cared she was referred to as 'the Mother of Monsters' for giving birth to Ikit to which many were now calling him 'The Savage' or even 'The Mad'. Ikit had been the one to help destroy the invading fleet, had been the one to rescue Viserys and kill King Aegon the Usurper. Had been the one to force Oldtown to its knees and then kill Helaena and Dreamfyre.
And now Rhaenyra simply did not care anymore. She had attempted to reclaim the Iron Throne peacefully and all it gained her was dead children. The smallfolk wouldn't help her. Even in the food riots they didn't manage to kill Alicent or Helaena.
Let them say whatever horrible things they wanted about her. Rhaenyra had survived along with near all her loved ones by her side. She would never be able to bring back Lucerys or Visenya, but now that just reminded her of what she sacrificed for such ungrateful people across Westeros. She didn't care anymore.
And it's why she did not care when Addam told her of Tumbleton, of what happened at Oldtown. She listened, accepted and filed away the information and how to deal with future repercussions, but she largely didn't care. She would never turn her back upon her children, none of them. It mattered not what Ikit did, she would never stop loving him.
Tumbleton was proof that the Green side of the war were simply vile opportunists. The butcher, the rapes, the abuse and horrors. Then her son appeared and gave the survivors of Tumbleton justice, gave them fire and blood. Addam did tell her that, the way the folk of the town embraced Ikit so eagerly and with such joy. Then the fear and terror of Oldtown but the High Septon vocally spoke of the Faith of the Seven and their support to Rhaenyra and her rule.
From how Addam described the sun weapon, or as Ikit called it a 'Doomsphere' the thing truly lived up to its name. Even Balerion left Harrenhal's skeleton behind. But for the Hightower there was simply nothing.
Good, was all she felt, while in public she acted as the dignified, regretful queen. She lamented the senseless war while inside in private gloated over her dead half siblings and hoped they were burning in the Frozen Hell.
So she split her time between courts and council, and being with her family while using the farsqueaker to communicate with her two wayward sons. According to Ikit, Silverwing was growing stronger each day but he did not want to overindulge in using the serum upon her least she go 'mad-mad' as he put it. Jace also mentioned she was healing well, as was his twin, even if both princes were spending their time on the beach or hunting fish and seabirds. Velaryons, despite how much dragonblood burned.
But they were recovering. She still spent nights jolting awake, panic and terror clenching her stomach and nearly making her retch, thinking she would find her children butchered despite Daemon's attempts to comfort her. Their little Aegon wasn't much better, even if he was recovering from his grief and guilt over Viserys and many nights he would spend in their bed. His grief over Stormcloud remained even if Viserys had returned, as they tried to comfort their child.
Daemon suggested they could try introducing Aegon to either Morghul or Shrykos, the dragons of the late Jaehaerys and Jaehaera. Both could be fitting for either of their dragonless sons. However Rhaenyra felt it was still quite soon for Aegon who was still suffering immense grief so they agreed to come back to the topic after winter was over. Rhaena was also only a day away from arriving in the city from the Vale, and she knew she would be a welcomed sight for her two brothers. Baela loved her siblings dearly, but it was much like Daemon's own love and could be bristling and forceful at times. The temper of a dragon when the children could do with the soothing echo of waves.
So despite the bloodiness of the civil war, and the anger and whispers and blood still staining the realm, things were slowly quieting. If only due to the worsening snows, Rhaenyra knew there would be more quarrels. For the Triarchy, she felt almost gleeful when she was brought word at how each of the Three Daughters were accusing each other of being responsible for their catastrophic losses in the Gullet then Silverwing's attack upon each city. It was so bad many speculated a civil war would explode from it, especially as assassinations and squabbling were sweeping across the cities.
Rhaenyra wanted to know more but with Mysaria's disappearance she was missing a Master of Whisperers. Daemon hadn't been surprised when she told him of the White Worm's disappearance, speculating that with the end of the Dance she knew her usefulness was coming to an end and left while she still had enough standing and prestige. Either way Rhaenyra wasn't sad to see her go, not liking how forward the woman had become and in hindsight realizing Mysaria's manipulations masked as sympathy and touch.
Then when the first snow began to fall over the city, a messenger came to her council chambers to inform her of Silverwing and Vermax being sighted approaching the city along with a boat bearing the flag of the Arryns. Rhaenyra eagerly dismissed her council and let Daemon take her arm even as she sent Elinda to fetch the rest of their children, so the whole family would be gathered to greet the twins at the Dragonpit and then Rhaena.
Finally, her family would be back together.
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