(A/N):
Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.
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Leo took her hands, shadows already beginning to coil at their feet as he prepared to Apparate them straight to Eldoria—
Then the message slipped into his mind, calm and familiar.
[Aemma: Take the girl's dragon with her. Leaving it behind will only invite future complications.]
Leo paused mid-step.
"...."
The shadows stilled.
He turned back to Helaena, who was still gripping his hands as if the ground might vanish again at any second.
Her eyes searched his face, uncertain.
"Your dragon," Leo asked gently. "Where is she?"
Helaena blinked, then answered almost automatically, as if recalling something precious anchored her.
-Blink
"...."
"Dreamfyre… she's still in the Dragonpit."
Leo nodded once. Decision made.
-Nod
The world bent again.
This time, the transition was sharper.
Helaena gasped and instinctively clutched Leo tighter as the sensation tore through her senses—pressure, weightlessness, a brief terrifying moment where direction ceased to exist.
When reality settled, stone replaced grass.
She stumbled, barely managing to stay upright.
They stood inside the Dragonpit.
Massive chains hung from above.
Old soot blackened the walls.
The air was thick with the lingering scent of ash and ancient heat.
Moonlight spilled through the broken dome, painting the pit in silver and shadow.
Helaena stared, stunned.
"I— we were just—"
She turned in a slow circle, disbelief written across her face.
"We were at the port."
Leo chuckled softly.
-Chuckle
"You get used to it. Eventually."
She looked at him like he was utterly insane.
He leaned closer, lowering his voice teasingly.
"Go on. Call her. I'd rather not wake a dragon uninvited."
That snapped her back to herself.
"...."
Helaena closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, centering herself the way she always did when Dreamfyre was near.
Her voice rose, clear and melodic, flowing into High Valyrian, the words less command and more comfort.
A whisper at first.
Then—
A deep, resonant answer echoed through the pit.
The chains rattled.
From the shadows, a massive shape stirred.
Dreamfyre emerged slowly, pale blue scales catching the moonlight like frost, silver markings tracing her form like old runes.
Her wings unfurled with a low, powerful sound, stirring dust and air alike.
Helaena stepped forward without fear.
"It's all right,"
She murmured in Valyrian, resting her hand against the warm scales of Dreamfyre's neck.
"We're leaving. Somewhere safe."
Dreamfyre lowered her head, eyes swirling with recognition.
A soft rumble escaped her chest—not aggression, but approval.
Leo raised an eyebrow.
"Elegant. She listens better than most people I know."
He lied openly but it was a success Helaena actually smiled.
They mounted together,
Leo settling behind her with effortless balance.
Dreamfyre pushed off the ground, wings beating once—twice—and then they were airborne, bursting free of the pit and into the open night.
-FLAP. -FLAP.
The city fell away beneath them.
Moonlight stretched across the sea.
Clouds parted like curtains.
The wind rushed past, cold and clean, carrying the scent of salt and freedom.
Helaena laughed—softly at first, then with surprise—as the sound was torn from her by the wind.
"You didn't have to rush,"
Leo said near her ear, relaxed, almost amused.
"We have all the time we want."
Dreamfyre climbed higher, gliding smoothly beneath the stars.
RED KEEP...
Meanwhile, the Red Keep simmered like a kettle forgotten on the fire.
Aegon's voice cut through the chamber, sharp and venom-laced.
"You went to her room,"
He snarled, pacing like a caged beast.
"Don't deny it. Servants talk. They always do."
Aemond stood near the window, arms crossed, his posture rigid, jaw tight. One eye gleamed with cold irritation as he turned slowly.
"And?" he replied flatly. "She is my sister as much as she is yours."
Aegon laughed, the sound ugly.
-HAHAHA!
"Don't dress your ambition in silk words, brother. You didn't go there out of concern. You went there because you thought you could claim her."
That did it.
Aemond's hand twitched, fingers curling as if around an invisible sword hilt.
"You think everything belongs to you just because Father named you heir," he snapped. "You drink, you whore, you disgrace the name we carry—and yet you expect obedience."
Between them, Catherine Hightower pressed her palms together, her voice tight with strain.
"Enough," she said sharply.
"Both of you. This is not the time."
But the damage was already done.
Aegon turned on her, eyes burning.
"She's gone, Mother. Vanished. And he"
—he jabbed a finger at Aemond—"was the last one seen near her."
Catherine's breath hitched.
"Gone?" she repeated. "What do you mean, gone?"
"The guards searched her chambers,"
Aegon continued, feeding on the moment.
"The secret passages. The stables. Her dragon remains in the pit, riderless. She ran."
Silence fell.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Aemond's expression shifted—not to guilt, but to something darker. Calculation.
"She wouldn't leave without reason," he said slowly.
Aegon rounded on him.
"And whose fault do you think that is?"
Aemond stepped forward, closing the distance between them, his voice low and dangerous.
"Careful, Aegon. You speak as though you're innocent."
Catherine moved between them, placing a hand on Aemond's chest, another toward Aegon, her voice rising with desperation.
"Stop this at once. Both of you. Your sister is frightened, alone, and somewhere beyond our reach—and instead of finding her, you tear at each other like animals."
Aegon scoffed.
"She didn't just run, Mother. She ran from us."
Aemond looked away, toward the darkened window, his jaw clenched.
From that moment, something unspoken settled into the room.
Helaena had escaped.
And in doing so, she had left behind two brothers whose rivalry had just crossed a line it could never retreat from.
Outside the Red Keep, ravens were already being prepared.
Inside, the seeds of blood were quietly, irrevocably taking root.
The doors to the chamber burst open with a sharp crack against stone.
A guard stumbled inside, armor clattering, breath ragged as if he had run his lungs raw.
He dropped to one knee before Aegon so fast his helm rang against the floor.
"Your Grace," he gasped, head bowed.
"Princess Helaena's dragon—Dreamfyre—has left the Dragonpit."
The words landed like a thunderclap.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Catherine froze mid-step, color draining from her face.
Aemond's eye narrowed instantly, sharp and alert.
Aegon stared at the kneeling guard as if he had spoken another language.
"…Left?" he asked slowly.
"Yes, Your Grace,"
The guard said, voice trembling.
"The pit shook. Dreamfyre answered a call and took to the sky. The chains were still intact when she moved—she broke free herself."
Aegon's fingers curled into fists.
"Could it be," he said, almost to himself, "that she contacted her somehow?"
His mind raced. Helaena was quiet, withdrawn, lost in her own strange visions—but she was still a dragonrider.
Dreamfyre had bonded with her deeply.
Aemond took a step forward, boots scraping the floor.
"She wouldn't leave without reason," he said coolly.
"Dragons don't answer fear. They answer will."
Catherine shook her head, disbelief giving way to dread.
"No… she wouldn't do something so reckless. Not alone."
The guard hesitated, shoulders tightening.
"There is more, Your Grace," he said.
Aegon's gaze snapped back to him.
"Speak."
The guard swallowed.
-Gulp
"Several pitmen swear the dragon did not rise in distress. There was no struggle. No panic. Dreamfyre ascended calmly… as if she had been summoned."
The room fell into a suffocating silence.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Aegon felt it then, a cold knot forming in his gut.
If Helaena had summoned Dreamfyre—
Then she hadn't fled in fear.
He turned sharply, already reaching for his cloak.
"Saddle Sunfyre. We'll bring her back."
Aemond straightened as well, his hand brushing the pommel at his side, a thin smile forming.
"If she's flying, she won't outrun Vhagar."
"Wait—" the guard said, voice cracking.
Both brothers stopped.
"There's more?"
The guard hesitated, then lowered his head further.
"She… she was not alone."
Silence returned, thicker than before.
"...."
"...."
"...."
"I saw her leave the pit," the guard continued carefully.
"A man stood with her. I could not see his face, but he moved as though the pit were his own. One moment he was there—then the next, both were gone. Together."
The words struck like a blade.
Catherine staggered back a step, gripping the edge of the table.
"A… man?" she whispered. "That's impossible."
Aegon's face drained of color.
"No," he said hoarsely. "You're lying. She wouldn't—she couldn't—"
Then—
laughter shattered the silence.
-HAHAHAHA!!!
Aemond threw his head back, a sharp, unrestrained laugh echoing off the stone walls.
"Oh,"
He said between breaths, eyes gleaming with cruel delight.
"This is perfect."
Aegon rounded on him.
"Shut your mouth."
Aemond ignored him, pacing slowly, savoring every word.
"Running away was one thing. But running away with a man?"
He clicked his tongue.
-Tch
"Brother, it seems our dear sister made her choice."
His gaze locked onto Aegon, merciless.
"And it wasn't you."
The laugh came again, louder, edged with mockery.
-Pfft!
-Hahaha!!!
"All that talk of duty, of blood, of keeping it pure—and she fled at the first chance."
He smirked as he was looking at the clown.
-Smirk
"Not even for me. Just… someone else."
Aegon lunged.
Catherine cried out as Aegon grabbed Aemond by the collar, slamming him against the wall.
"Say her name again,"
Aegon hissed, shaking him.
"Say it again and I'll—"
Aemond only smiled wider, blood at the corner of his lip.
"You see?" he said calmly. "Even now, you don't care where she is. Only that you lost her."
The guard remained kneeling, trembling.
Catherine forced herself between them, voice breaking.
"Enough! Enough, both of you!"
She turned toward Aegon, tears streaking her face.
"She is your sister. Whatever pride you've lost tonight is nothing compared to what we stand to lose if this becomes known."
Aegon released Aemond slowly, chest heaving.
"A man," he muttered again, the words tasting like poison.
"Who?"
Aemond straightened his cloak, his laughter fading into something colder.
"That's the real question," he said quietly.
"And something tells me… this wasn't a common fool."
Beyond the chamber walls, Dreamfyre's distant roar echoed faintly through the night.
Helaena was gone. Aegon snapped.
The thought burrowed into his skull like a worm he couldn't crush.
'Why would she choose someone else?'
Not him. Not the heir.
Not the future king.
His breath came fast, uneven, chest heaving as fury burned up through his veins.
The room felt smaller, tighter, as if the walls themselves were closing in to mock him.
"Why?" he snarled, pacing like a caged beast. "Why would she do that?"
Catherine reached for him, hands gentle but urgent.
"Aegon, listen to me—"
He shrugged her off.
"I am the crown,"
He shouted, voice cracking with rage.
"I am the one the realm bends to! And she—she dares—"
His words failed him for a moment, choked by humiliation.
Aemond watched from the side, arms crossed, one eye sharp and glittering.
He said nothing at first, which somehow made it worse.
Aegon's thoughts spiraled.
'What will they say?'
The court. The lords. The whispers that slither through halls faster than ravens.
'The princess fled with another man. She rejected her brother. She humiliated the heir.'
The image burned him alive.
"They'll laugh,"
Aegon growled, voice low and poisonous.
"They'll laugh behind their goblets and smiles. They'll say I wasn't enough. That my own sister looked down on me."
His hands trembled, nails digging into his palms.
Catherine stepped between him and Aemond now, her voice firm despite the fear in her eyes.
"This is not about you," she said sharply.
"Helaena is frightened. She's sensitive. She—"
"She made a choice,"
Aegon cut in, eyes wild.
"A public one."
Aemond finally spoke, his tone smooth, almost amused.
"Well," he said, tilting his head slightly,
"it does seem she made her preferences… clear."
Aegon whipped around, fury blazing.
"Say that again."
Aemond's lips curved into a thin smile.
"The realm will talk," he continued calmly.
"That much is certain. A princess fleeing on her dragon with an unknown man? Songs will be written. Mocking ones."
Catherine spun on Aemond.
"Enough!"
But the damage was already done.
Aegon stopped pacing.
He stood very still now, shoulders squared, eyes burning with something darker than anger.
"They will not laugh at me," he said quietly. "Not for long."
The room seemed to chill.
"If she thinks she can discard my name and stain my claim,"
He went on, voice steady and dangerous,
"then I will remind the realm who holds power."
Catherine felt a knot of dread twist in her stomach.
This wasn't wounded pride anymore.
This was vengeance taking shape.
Outside, far beyond the Red Keep, Dreamfyre cut through the night sky—and with her departure, something fragile inside Aegon finally shattered.
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(Author's POV)
(A/N)I hope you guys are enjoying the story.
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