Lucerys' Dream

Rhaenyra massaged her collarbone, feeling as if her heart would give in at any time while she watched her son, her small toddler, stuck half of his body inside a dragon’s mouth.

“Luke!” She cried, uncaring of the way her voice quivered and broke in this single word. She felt beside herself with horror, and was sweating cold when she stood on her shaking legs. “Get out, get away from her right now.”

The boy leaned back, turning his head in her direction and even from the distance she could see the worried and confused frown on his babe face, but he still didn’t move his hand away from Vhagar’s tongue.

“Lucerys!” She took a trembling breath, hearing the gasps coming from Rhaenys as the woman leaned on Corlys body, collapsing against him. “Get out now!”

Each second Lucerys spent with his head shoved inside Vhagar’s mouth made her terror rise. What if the dragon closed her mouth? What if-

Daemon got up, limping towards Lucerys and grabbing the boy by his hips.

“Daor!” Luke shouted, trying to hold onto Vhagar’s teeth to stop Daemon from taking him away.

In response to his cries Vhagar roared, lifting a feet and making to advance again, and Rhaenyra heard herself scream, but Laena thankfully put herself between the dragon and Lucerys.

Vhagar, it seemed, would not advance again. The dragon let out a mournful sigh, lowering her head to the ground and Rhaenyra almost felt bad for her, but she was more relieved than anything at the fact that Luke was safe, away from the old dragon.

Because although she knew there was nothing her uncle could do should Vhagar choose to attack, she couldn’t help but feel herself breath more easily at the sight of him holding a crying Lucerys in his arms.

 Rhaenyra heard her son shout something to Vhagar, squirming against Daemon’s grip, but his voice was too garbled and she couldn’t understand him well with the wind between them. Still, she saw the dragon’s head twist towards his direction before Vhagar turned her attention back to her rider, listening to whatever Laena was saying while the woman petted her side and took few steps back, guiding Vhagar away from Daemon and Luke.

“Are they okay?” Rhaena cried against Rhaenyra’s back, her little arms laced around the Princess’ figure and her nails picking on the skin of her belly even through the many fabrics Rhaenyra was wearing. Jace sobbed against her side and she pulled him closer, waving Baela in as the girl scrunched up her face as she tried not to cry. 

“They’re fine, they are all fine.”

She had told the three of them not to look when it became clear they were not the target and instead it was Luke – why was it always Lucerys, why did everything dangerous always involve her youngest son – and Daemon that Vhagar was chasing.

Rhaenyra herself did not wish to look when Vhagar reached Daemon in a matter of seconds and pushed her uncle towards the ground, making him lose his balance. She had been certain she’d lose them both there, the love of her life and a part of her, when instead the dragon simply wanted to play.

“It is alright, children. Rhaenys, they are fine, she was only playing.” Corlys held Rhaenys close to his chest, his hand gripping her head. “You need to breathe, wife of mine.”

Rhaenys was still gasping for air, her face white as powder. Rhaenyra respectfully turned her head away; not only it wasn’t polite to stare at the woman in such a state, but Rhaenys was such a pillar of strength for her it felt frankly felt wrong to see her this way.

“I’m fine, I’ll be fine.” Rhaenys gasped out, coughing a few times. 

When Daemon started to limp towards them, dragging a sobbing Lucerys along with him, she  almost let the children alone to help, but Laenor came first, putting her uncle’s arm around his shoulder to help him walk the rest of the way.

Her legs seemed to tremble even more now that the scare had passed and she couldn’t be more thankful that the children were pressed against her, comforting her as much as she was comforting them. When Lucerys, Laenor and Daemon reached them, she pulled the three of them into a hug, pressing her eyes closed so as to not break down crying.

She could not believe what happened and in retrospect it should have been obvious Vhagar wasn’t about to attack her rider’s husband or a child that hadn’t approached, but at that moment she thought it was over for both of them.

“I am so, so sorry. I don’t know what came over her.” Laena was explaining, but Rhaenyra could barely understand her by the way her voice was quavering. She herself couldn’t manage to let go of Luke and Daemon long enough to comfort her lover and was only able to breathe in their smell to assure herself that they were alive and well in front of her.

There were hands against her back, touching her arms, but she didn’t know whether it belonged to Corlys, Laena or Rhaenys.

 “We’re fine, we’re fine. It’s alright.” Daemon kept repeating against her ear. She only held him tighter.

After closing the door behind her, Rhaenyra pressed her back against it, letting out a deep sigh. 

Luke was inconsolable. The boy simply wouldn’t stop crying and refused to speak to any of them. He was so upset they had to give him a calming tea so he wouldn’t have problems breathing.

Laena and Laenor were with their mother; the whole ordeal had taken her harder than the rest.

“Is he still upset?” Daemon asked from his armchair, lazing around the main room with a wine on his hands. His right leg was propped up onto a stool since earlier he’d visited a Maester and found that he’d twisted his ankle during the fall and now needed to keep his feet immobilized for a week.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“So you say.”

She lifted her eyebrows at him, trying to contain her amused smile. “What are you doing here, uncle?”

He pointed with his thumb to the room on the right. After Luke’s recent scare, she decided to put Jacaerys closer to her room instead of leaving him alone in s different room, as it was custom now that he reached five years of age.

“Rhaena and Baela wanted to visit their brother.” He always made that face when referring to the twins calling Lucerys and Jacaerys their brothers, as if it gave him the right to be smug about it. “Well, how is he?”

“He stops crying for a few minutes and then goes back to it all over again.” She sat on the arm of his chair, massaging her temples. Daemon caressed her back with his free hand.

“Is he still tight lipped about what upset him so much?”

“Well, I believe it is because he wishes to keep petting Vhagar’s tongue.” She sighed and leaned her body against his, laying her head on his shoulder. The hand on her back moved to hold on her arm and he pulled her closer against him. “I won’t let him come near her again, Daemon. He put his entire head inside her mouth. One bite and he would be gone!”

He offered her his cup, inclining it in her direction. She downed it in one go. 

“How’s your foot?”

“Mnh, it shall be fine.” He mumbled, tapping on his leg. Then, a suggestive smirk took over his face and he leaned back against the chair, turning his good leg to the side, opening it for her.

Rhaenyra’s lips twitched as she watched him, knowing exactly what he wanted, but they couldn’t. As much as she wanted, they couldn’t because the Luke could change his mind and want to talk at any minute or the twins and Jace could wish for something and she couldn’t let them leave the room and see her and their kepa on the middle of sex.

“You know we can’t.”

He let out a discontent sound, but didn’t contradict her. 

They stayed in silence for a while, enjoying the warmth between their bodies. When her mind started to revisit the events from the early morning, she grabbed one of the full bottles on the floor and drank a few gulps from it. 

“Why do you think Vhagar advanced on him?”

Daemon took the bottle away from her hands, drinking from it too. She could count at least three empty bottles against the armchair and wondered how he was still able to drink.

“It sounds insane even to think of it, but it looked to me as if she recognized him.”

“He’s never met her before.”

“I know, but the way she looked at him… and he was trembling.” He trailed off, staring at something that wasn’t there – his eyes far away. “I was holding on to his shoulders back then – thought if I didn’t he’d wander off towards her.” He snorted. “In the end it didn’t matter, she was the one who went to him.”

“Lucerys was trembling?” She hadn’t paid any attention to them before Vhagar first moved, too entranced by the old dragon and how outer worldly beautiful Laena looked close to it.

“Like a leaf on hard wind days.” He passed the bottle back to her. “Then he stopped, called her gevie of all things and it was as if she’d heard him because right after-”

Understanding came over her. “She went to him.”

“Yes.” 

“And she ignored Laena. Laena told me she’d never done it before.”

“She hasn’t, not that I know of. Vhagar adores Laena, sometimes I think they have a stronger bond than Caraxes and me.”

Rhaenyra didn’t know what to think. There were many things she couldn’t explain about her youngest, things she’d rather not even think about, but Daemon was right. There was something there. She’d never heard of a dragon that stopped listening to its rider in favor of focusing on someone else when their intentions weren’t murder.

They stood in silence again while they finished the bottle of wine, but the moment Rhaenyra put it down on the ground, the resounding sound seemed to pull Daemon out of his thoughts and he turned to her, eyes alight.

“You know the story, about how Aegon the Conqueror used to pet Vhagar’s tongue?”

Rhaenyra smiled. “What, are you saying she thought Aegon the Conqueror and Lucerys looked alike?”

Daemon shrugged carelessly. “Would it be that much of a surprise? We all have traits in common.”

It was madness, but she had no way of denying that he could be right. And it could explain why Vhagar advanced, but not attacked. They all heard about Aegon’s relationship with Vhagar and how as a child he would be always found near her. 

But it had been years. How could Vhagar still remember her first rider’s brother’s face? As a child nonetheless? Dragons remembered people by their smell.

No, she thought. There ought to be another explanation. Besides…

“It doesn’t explain why Luke would pet her, however.”

“He must have read it somewhere.” Daemon said mindlessly. “Well, it’s nothing to worry about now, we just need to keep him away from her.”

It was late and Jacaerys could barely keep his eyes open as she sang the third song of the night, voice coming out a bit hoarse from all the shouting of earlier.

It was always that way; Jace struggled not to sleep and by the end of the melody he was dead to the world. 

Lucerys, unlike his brother, was sitting on the end of the bed, refusing to even look at her. It was the first time he’d acted like that towards her, and it hurt. Rhaenyra didn’t know why it was upsetting her so much, he was only three, it was expected that tantrums would happen. Jacaerys himself had thrown many of them before, but it was different when it came from Luke. 

Luke was the calmest of the two, and despite being the youngest he sometimes acted more mature than Jace. But at the same time, that personality of his, that independence of his, was something that got him into trouble. Jace came to her at every little problem, asking for help and she always made sure to explain everything as well as she could and give him options over what to do because although he was only five, he also needed to start making decisions for himself; he’d be king one day.

Lucerys was the opposite. He struggled with asking for help and did everything by himself even when he didn’t know what he was doing or had difficulty doing it. The only person he came for help was Jace, and Jace was not much older than him.

The sound of the door opening almost made her scream; her nerves still all over the place. 

Laenor seemed exhausted when he entered the room, but his face lightened up when he saw he’d managed to get to Jace before he fell asleep.

It was why she’d let the boy stay up for so long; Jace didn’t like to sleep without saying goodnight to everyone, but as time passed and Jacaerys began to yawn and take long seconds to open his eyes after blinking, she had to put him to bed. 

Laenor had been trapped in a reunion with Corlys and his advisors right after his visit with Rhaenys. Rhaenyra stood with him for an hour before it became clear the men were going to keep suggesting ways of keeping Lucerys safe and that all of them were different manners of saying the boy should be locked in his room at all times for his own safety.

“You came!” Jacaerys shouted, adjusting himself on the bed. 

“Of course I did.” Laenor crossed the room in large strides, kissing the boy on the forehead. “Goodnight, Jace.”

Jacaerys closed his eyes, smiling. “Goodnight, father.” 

Lucerys jumped from the bed, holding on to the bed’s side so as not to fall and then walked past them towards the door. He didn’t once look up.

While Laenor followed the boy, she leaned over the bed to fix Jace’s covers, but he held her hand, opening one eye. “Luke came to see me last night.” He whispered.

She felt cold all over. “What?”

“He came to sleep with me last night.”

How could Lucerys have gone to see him? He was with them when she woke up.

“It was just a dream, Jace.” She smiled, feeling the fear release its grip on her chest. “Luke was on bed with us all night.”

His son shook his head, then stopped and peered over her side. She looked back. 

Laenor and Luke were still outside.

“Luke came to see me. He left this.” He showed a candlestick, and when she recognized it immediately as the one that was on her chambers. She’d thought it was beautiful, the first one made of argent she’d ever saw.

But how could Lucerys had walked all over Jace’s room without her knowledge? 

Heart beating fast, she gripped on her fabric covered leg to regain control over herself. Lucerys was fine, he was alright. What could have happened didn’t matter because he was fine.

But if Luke could just walk up outside of their room like that without any of them noticing…

“What if he goes to see Vhagar? What if she hurts him?” Jacaerys asked, his eyes big with fear.

Now she understood why he’d told her when he was the first one to keep his lips shut over who did something wrong back at home. 

“He won’t. I promise.”

Jacaerys searched her eyes for a few seconds before letting out a deep breath and brushing a hand over his eyebrow, just as Corlys did when he received good news on his time as part of her father’s council. 

It was such an adult reaction to see on a child Rhaenyra smiled and brushed his hair out of his face, kissing him on the forehead, amused by the similar ticks her boy shared with his grandfather. “Thank you for telling me; leave the rest to me.”

When she left the bed, sleep was the last thing on her mind. 

The first thing she did after leaving Jace’s room was to push the couch in front of the door. The second was to tell Laenor what their son said.

“Wait, what?”

She let him process the news for a couple seconds. “I’ll take the first turn, and when the clock hits two in the morning I shall wake you up.”

His eyes darted between the now barricaded door and Lucerys, who was now laying on bed, staring at the Houses of Westeros book. Now that Jace told her about Luke’s visit, she could see the purple underneath the boy’s eyes were darker than usual.

Luke always faced troubles to sleep, but now she wondered if he was even sleeping at all.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to take the first one?”

“You’re more tired than me, you spent the day surrounded by meddling old men.”

Laenor let out a small laugh at that. “Alright, that is true.”

He made his way to the bed, while she stayed on the main room. She’d spend her half of the night sitting on the couch, watching the boy.

When Luke saw his father approaching alone, his eyes darted to hers and then to the couch. She arched an eyebrow at him and he held her gaze, unimpressed.

This tantrum of his was going on for far too long. Tomorrow he would stop it or she would make him stop.

He was the one to look away first, – because she wouldn’t lose a staring contest to a child, her own son nonetheless – and he turned to the side, putting his book on the furniture beside the bed and showing his back to Laenor.

Rhaenyra grabbed one of the many books in politics she had yet to read and sat on the couch. 

Being named heir at such a late age left her behind her lording peers in almost every sense of the word and even after seven years Rhaenyra still found herself lacking a deeper knowledge on certain areas.

She tried her best to overcome the issue by reading on them every night, but she sometimes feared it wouldn’t be enough. It was part of the reason she admired Laena so much; Laena was a woman, but she was raised knowing as much as Laenor and, if for some reason, one day were to rule over Driftmark, the only aspect of a lord’s life she’d have to learn would be the physical one.

Rhaenyra, on the other hand, only held the knowledge on how to be a Princess during sixteen years of her life. She knew nothing of politics, economics, or battle strategies and suddenly she needed to understand it all while holding her duties as heir and raising children at the same time.

She was about half in on the third chapter of the night when she heard a small sound. The Princess raised her head, looking around the barely illuminated room to find the source of the noise.

Another sound came, and this time she recognized it.

A sob.

She wouldn't stand for it anymore.

Rhaenyra put her book down, walking to the bedroom so she could hold Lucerys. She didn’t care if the boy didn’t want to be comforted, he was her son and she wouldn’t let him suffer alone.

Surprisingly, he let her hold without the complaints he did throughout the day, his face wet with hot tears and red with the effort it took to keep quiet.

Quietly, she brought him outside the room so as not to wake Laenor, and closed the door.

"What is it, sweet boy?"

Why was Lucerys so obsessed with Vhagar? She'd never heard of it before, Targaryens usually only adored one dragon; their own.

"You didn't-" His voice broke down and he hid his face on her shoulder. She shushed him and massaged his back, shifting him into her left arm so she could rest her right one. Lucerys took a deep, trembling breath. "You didn't let me say goodbye." He sobbed out. "I won't see her for a long - for a long time, and you didn't let me say goodbye!"

Rhaenyra was completely taken aback. It was the most upset she'd ever seen him; Lucerys was usually a very unbothered child. He took everything in stride, even when he disliked it, but there he was, making his displeasure known and it was as if she was staring at another person, a version of him she'd never seen before.

And she didn't know what to do. She didn't know why he was so affected by being kept away from Vaghar, he'd just met the old dragon. 

And yet, as his mother, Rhaenyra felt his pain as if it was her own.

She would regret this very much, but seeing her son so miserable- how could she not try? This wasn't like Lucerys at all so whatever this link between Vhagar and him was it was important to him and losing it upset him deeply.

It would be only this one time.

Daemon would kill her if he knew. Laenor would never forgive her.

That was a terrible idea.

Still, despite everything in her body screaming at her not to do it, she held both her son's cheeks between her hands and stared into his red, wet eyes. "Promise me you won't put your head inside her mouth again."

She'd never seen him beam as brightly.

On the morrow, while Laenor was trapped inside another reunion with Corlys' advisors, and Daemon was trapped watching the children, she went to Laena and asked for her help.

Later, while Rhaenyra watched from a few feet away as Laena brought Lucerys close to Vhagar - the boy smiling that beautiful large smile of his - she knew she'd done the right thing.

As for Laenor and Daemon… well, they didn't ever need to find out.

“And why do they only want to see me?” He asked, letting his grandmother hold his hand while she walked with him through the hallways of High Tides. 

She’d left his siblings playing on the play room and brought only him along, but he didn’t want to. Lucerys was liking that game! 

“Because someday these will be your people.” His grandmother stopped walking once they reached a large brown door. She knelt in front of him, passing her hands through his cape and hair. “You are the heir of Driftmark and they wish to see you.”

He thought it over. It made sense, but…

“Why don’t they want to see Jace too? He’s heir to the throne. He’s more important.”

“You shouldn’t think like this. You are both equally as important. Do you understand me?”

Lucerys didn’t know if he agreed; Jace would rule over seven different kingdoms and he would only rule over one. Didn’t that make Jace more important?

“Not really.”

His grandmother sighed, cupping his face. “Do you care more for Jace than for Rhaena and Baela? Or do you care more your mother than your father?”

“No.”

“Then they’re all equally as important to you.”

“Yes.”

“Well, your mother and brother will rule over the Iron Throne someday. Baela, Rhaena and Laenor won’t. Shouldn’t that make them more important in your eyes?”

He thought about it for a minute. “Oh.”

His grandmother smiled. “Yes, oh.” She pulled him into a quick hug and got up, fixing her own dress. “Now, when I open those doors you will wave and smile really big, alright?” He once again nodded. He could do that. “Show me your big smile. Yes, just like that.

It felt strange, having to smile this way, but if it would make her happy he would do as he was asked. His grandmother was always nice and her name made something flutter on his belly and her dragon was really nice.

He didn’t expect the noise that came over after his grandmother knocked on the door and the guards opened them.

There were so many people there, faces he’d never seen. 

Lucerys stared, wide eyed, before he remembered what his grandmother asked and smiled. 

The noise only got louder.

“Prince Lucerys!”

“Lucerys Velaryon!”

They kept walking until they were looking over the rail and his grandmother picked him up so he could see everyone more clearly.

It frightened him, seeing so many people at once, shouting his name and asking him to look over at their direction. He liked the people who stared at him in silence and unmoving.

When his grandmother carried him away, several minutes later, he was glad. And when the doors closed behind them, the noise stifled down, he was relieved.

“You have done well.” She told him, kissing the top of his head. “I’m very proud.”

He held on to her, still feeling overwhelmed and hoped not to do it ever again. He didn’t like it, didn’t like the eyes.

When they got back to the play room, his parents were waiting inside and his father was the angriest Luke had ever seen, his face contorted with rage, but his mother was the one who spoke first. “What have you done?”

His grandmother put him down and he hurried to Baela, Rhaena and Jace’s side, not wanting to be between the grown ups while they fought.

“I did what the two of you should have done, strengthened our family.”

His father snorted and shook his head before he opened the doors to the side room, motioning for his grandmother to enter.

As soon as his mother and grandmother entered, he closed the door and the shouting restarted.

“You went behind my back, behind our backs, mother, and you did it because you knew we wouldn’t approve!”

“One of us had to do it and the two of you were putting emotions in front of duty.”

“He’s your grandson and he’s three! How could you do this to him?”

Rhaena winced beside him, looking scaredly at the door on the right end of the room. Luke put his hands on his ears, not wanting to hear the shouting anymore, but the thought that they were fighting because of him was nagging him.

“Is it my fault they’re fighting?”

“No, Luke. Grandma should have asked first.” Baela shook her head.

He bit his lip, still staring at the door.

“Let us play. Master Geradys taught me another move, want to see?” Rhaena pulled the chess board between them and he nodded, watching her move the pieces interestedly. “It goes like this-”

“This game is boring. Let’s play knights and ladies!” Jace suggested.

“No!” Baela refused. “You are always the knight and then Rhaena and I have to stay in the same place forever while you battle the dragon.”

“That’s because girls can’t be knights!”

“Can too!”

“Cannot!”

Rhaena winked at him and pushed the board closer, scooting up in his direction until their knees were pressing together. Her hand picked the white piece again and she started moving it, both of them ignoring the ongoing discussion between Jace and Baela. “It’s called the Knight’s bluff. See?”

He watched, nodding his head.

“Want to try?” She extended the white piece. Lucerys took it and put the pieces back in position, repeating her motions. 

It felt easy and he did it almost without thinking.

His muñna had gotten a sleeping tea for him and he was almost asleep, his body relaxed between his mother and father’s warm embrace when the cold surrounded him, spreading from a point in his chest towards the rest of his body. 

Lucerys woke up with a start, cold sweat dripping down his back and face, leaving his shirt wet and making him feel disgusting and sticky.

Laying on the bed suddenly felt uncomfortable, the cold sheets rubbing against the skin of his legs, leaving a bad feeling behind and Lucerys squirmed his way out of his parent’s embrace, unable to take it anymore.

He felt tears well up in his eyes and wanted to cry in frustration. He thought once they returned to the Red Keep he would stop thinking about the dreams, but they didn’t go away and Luke wanted to sleep! Why couldn’t the winter man just get out of his head and let him sleep?

Huffing angrily, he picked up his boots, putting his laces inside them. He had decided! He was going to find his grandsire and talk to him about the winter man and find a way to block him out while he slept!

Leaving his parents’ room was easy; his father snored lots and it was so loud it made all the other noises seem lower than they were.

The cracking sound the door made when he opened it didn’t even make his parents twitch. 

Lucerys knew he shouldn’t leave – even as he walked down the hallways he knew he should have stayed there and woken his muñna or his kepa first, but he needed to talk to his grandsire Viserys now and he couldn’t wait until morning because it would take a long time to come and Luke hated waiting.

He was about to enter the King’s wing when he heard steps coming his way from the end of the hallway. He looked at the person approaching; from far away they looked like a child, but as they approached he realized it was a red headed man. A very small man with a big head. Lucerys was in awe, the man was the same height as him! He wanted to ask why, but thought it would be rude and so he didn’t.

Besides, the man also was wearing strange clothes, clothes Luke hadn’t see before but they were funny and that was even more interesting than his height.

They both stared at each other, eyes wide, until Lucerys lifted a hand and waved. “Hi, man, Ser. I like your clothes.” He said, because it was true.

The man’s lips twitched. “Thank you, but I’m no Ser, my prince.”

“Oh. What are you then?” 

Before the man could answer, new steps approached and Lucerys looked around, searching for a place to hide behind when he settled on an ugly vase right beside him. Quickly, he ran there, almost dropping the vase in his rush, and crouched down. “Don’t tell them I’m here!”

The red-headed man laughed, but nodded and Lucerys waited with a baited breath, hoping the small man wouldn’t say anything. A dark haired knight made his way past Luke and his new friend – because the redhead helped him, so he had to be his friend – and continued on, but before he went around the corner, he stopped walking.

“Keep on walking, dwarf. Small thing like you could get hurt when alone.” 

Luke was outraged. How could the Knight talk about his friend’s height!

He was so offended he forgot he was hiding and got up, clenching his hands, but the Knight was already gone.

“He shouldn’t have said that, it was mean!”

The redhead stared at him appraisingly, just as Luke’s mother did when he tried to choose his own clothes, and his mouth opened a few times as if he didn’t know what to say. “It’s alright, my prince.” He as silent for a while. “But you are a child, you shouldn’t be here alone. Do you want me to accompany you towards your destination?” 

“I’m not alone.” Luke answered, just as his Aunt Laena had told him to. He wasn’t afraid of this man as he had been of his uncle Vaemond, but he was still a stranger, even if he was now his friend. He didn’t even know his name! “My Kepa Daemon is with me, he’ll bring me to my des- my destination.”

But the red-headed man didn’t react the same as his uncle Vaemond did. Instead, the corners of the man’s lip lifted. “Yes, I’m sure he is.”

Nevertheless, he didn’t stay any longer and resumed walking down the hallway, going to the same direction as the Knight’s. Before he could round the corner, Luke shouted. “Wait, you didn’t tell me your name!”

The redhead stopped, looking back. “You may call me Mushroom. Take care, my prince.” 

And he was gone. 

Luke stared at the direction he disappeared for a while longer and was about to also continue on his way, but stopped short when he noticed a black stone craved on the wall, right behind the ugly vase. 

He knew that stone.

He bit his lip, pondering his options. He was supposed to visit grandsire, but the stone was pretty and he remembered it. 

The curiosity won and he pushed the stone, watching as it slid onto the wall.

The sound of rock rasping against rock made him wince, but he kept pushing it, watching in awe as a door opened right inside the wall!

He smiled, eyes wide. A secret passage!

Nice.

Lucerys forgot all about his plan to visit grandsire Viserys, looked at both sides of the hallways – making sure no one was seeing him and was going to tell his parents about what he was doing – and entered the room.

The moment he stepped onto it, the same feeling of reconnaissance that he got every once in a while hit him and despite the fact that the hallways inside the walls had no light, he held no fear and knew exactly where he was going, where to avoid and where the steps were.

Being there felt as if he was wrapped on his blankets back at home, as if he was being embraced by his muñna and kepa.

He had no idea where he was going, though, but turned on the corners that felt most right and the more he did it, the more he knew whatever he was going to find would be special.

On the last corner he turned left and came across a door, the design carved onto it one that he saw many times in his dream. He turned it around, pushing it forwards and found himself in a large red room where a boy read, his back turned to Luke.

The image was so implanted in his mind he broke into a smile, stumbling on his feet in his urge to get closer. “Orys?”

He didn’t know how he knew that name since he only remembered his dream brother’s face and when the boy turned around Lucerys was sure he’d seen him before, but it wasn’t Orys, – the face from his dreams. This boy’s eye colors were different, but he looked strikingly alike.

It was his uncle Aemond.