Rhaenyra had always had a lot of love to give out, she never had trouble throwing herself into a relationship, and even survived some pretty brutal heartbreaks. Love was what life was about after all, and how could she stop herself from falling over and over? She’d been dumped before and had dumped others, yet still, she threw herself back out there each time. Convinced that the next time would be different and that she had grown from her last relationship, yet all seemed to end the same.
Her first boyfriend had been a friend originally, who she had grown up with throughout her childhood. Laenor Velaryon was the catch of the town, with his handsome looks and wealthy pockets, yet what drew Rhaenyra was his family. She had grown up with an absent father and her mother had passed when she was only eight, so when she first saw Laenor’s family she was enraptured. The Velaryons were so much warmer than she had expected, with Corlys’ dry humor and Rhaenys’ welcoming embrace. Truly, Rhaenyra thinks she could have been happy with Laenor, but she doubts she could have made Laenor happy in the long run. As she found out four months in, that Laenor was gay, and had been trying to force himself to conform to please his parents. Rhaenyra put a stop to that soon after, and while she never joined the Velaryon family through marriage, she became a welcomed guest at their house. As she and Laenor maintained a strong friendship, and she even stood by his side when he married his husband Joffrey Lonmouth.
After Laenor, Rhaenyra started to date her bodyguard, Criston Cole. He was a bit older and worked for her father, yet the two hit it off rather quickly. He was handsome and charming, yet oh so possessive, as he was known to glare at anyone who lingered too close to her. And maybe that's why people warn not to mix business with pleasure, as she and Criston’s spark burned out just as fast. She couldn’t stand how he tried to control her, censoring her outfits, looking through her phone, and even canceling a couple of her plans to meet up with friends. It was a pretty rough breakup overall, as Rhaenyra had no intention of letting him get fired, but Criston made that impossible with his actions. After the breakup, he began calling her all kinds of foul names, spreading rumors about her apparent exploits, and word quickly getting around to her father. Who handled this issue as well as he usually handles things, by ignoring it and trying to sweep it all under the rug.
After the mess that was Criston, Rhaenyra tried dating someone a bit closer to her age, more specifically her childhood best friend, Alicent Hightower. Who had been there for her through all kinds of changes in Rhaenyra’s life and who had always had feelings for Rhaenyra. Things were great at first, with them both setting clear boundaries for their relationship, as Rhaenyra had no interest in repeating her mistakes with Criston. And Alicent had her skeletons she wanted to avoid, but she managed to keep off one important factor in their relationship. Alicent was still in the closet, meaning Rhaenyra wasn't allowed to be open with her affections, nor could she even call Alicent her girlfriend. In all honesty, Rhaenyra didn't handle it the best, she had never been one for secrecy and hated not being able to openly be with Alicent. They got into many arguments over this, as Alicent had no intention of coming out and had no intention of letting Rhaenyra slip away once more. But, despite how much they fought to stay together eventually, it was too much for them both. Their breakup was one of Rhaenyra’s hardest, especially since she couldn't find comfort in Alicent after it.
She attempted to take a break from dating after Alicent but after a few months of wallowing in self-pity, Rhaenyra decided to throw herself back out there. Her next girlfriend was Laenor’s sister, Laena Velaron, who was another one of Rhaenyra’s friends. Their energies matched perfectly and they both had just gotten out of messy breakups, maybe it was a recipe for disaster but both jumped headfirst into their new relationship. It was an enjoyable time, full of road trips, and motel rooms. They backpacked around Europe together, just learning to be happy and how to deal with themselves after a breakup. They both knew they wouldn’t last long, but both were fine just enjoying their time together. That’s the relationship that taught Rhaenura, to never settle for less than what you want, because in truth Laena was perfect in every way. But, she still wasn’t Rhaenyra’s home…
After Laena was Harwin, who truly was the closest Rhaenyra came to her happily ever after. The two fell easily into love, mainly due to his caring nature, and his kind demeanor. Haewin was her everything for the years that they dated, and truthfully she’s pondered whether or not he was the one. They dated for three years and had been married for five, they had three sons together whom Rhaenyra loved more than life itself. They made a happy family, with their precious boys, but after a fatal car crash, Rhaenyra’s world shattered. Harwin died protecting her, having unbuckled his seatbelt to lean over her pregnant belly, before the airbags could kick in. The trauma had sent her into early labor and had caused her to miscarry their little girl, this was agonizing for Rhaenyra and the boys. It took a long time for them all to recover, and even after all their exterior wounds healed the haunting pain remained. Rhaenyra was rendered barren after the crash and the damage to her uterus, and both Jace and Luke we're still having nightmares about the crash.
But, that’s when Alicent returned to Rhaenyra’s life and managed to pull all of them out of their newfound melancholy. Though Rhaenyra was reluctant at first to reunite with an ex, she never could stay away from Alicent for long. The two started up a tentative friendship soon after, filled with rehashed arguments and clarity, both determined to not let the other slip away once more. Alicent got along with the boys quite easily as well, and thanks to Harwin’s curly brown hair, often got confused for their mother instead of Rhaenyra. It took a while for Rhaenyra to heal from the pain of losing Harwin, but Alicent made each day easier with her gentle comfort. Alicent had always been Rhaenyra’s escape and had been who she ran to for comfort after each of her breakups. Rhaenyra was glad that she had her friend back, but could not deny that a part of her wanted more.
She wanted Alicent in every way possible, and she knows Alicent wants her to, yet neither knew how to move forward without acknowledging their past. After all, how can Alicent trust Rhaenyra won’t runway again and fall for someone new? And how can Rhaenyra be sure that Alicent won’t try to hide how they feel for each other again? Both had their insecurities about their past relationship and neither knew how to broach the topic. It was, funnily enough, Rhaenyra’s son Joffrey who set them back on track with the most absurd question. He’d been only two when Harwin passed and now was seven, and had nearly no memories of a father figure. He’d been given an assignment about his family history and needed both sides of his family tree for a project, hence why he asked Alicent if she’d be his father. Which sent both Alicent and Rhaenyra into a choking fit, as Jace and Luke laughed at them both and a confused Joffrey pouted at all the laughter.
It took a while for Rhaenyra to explain why Alicent couldn’t be Joffrey’s new father, all while Alicent smiled like a woman who had just won the greatest prize ever. All because both Jace and Luke chimed in saying that while she couldn't be their dad, she could technically be their other mother. Which had Rhaenyra a blushing mess, as her kids teased her relentlessly, and it became clear that she and Alicent hadn’t been as discreet with their affection as they had thought. And maybe it was the approval of Rhaenyra’s children that spurred Alicent into asking Rhaenyra to start over, to just move on from the past and try again. Because while they never would be perfect, they would always be Alicent and Rhaenyra, and maybe that was enough for them both.