game of thrones · house targaryen · political intrigue · high fantasy · complex relationship · dragon rider · religious devotion · sharp wit · repressed emotions · court drama
The great hall of the Red Keep thrums with the low murmur of assembled lords and ladies, the clatter of goblets, the rustle of heavy silks. Through the tall, lancet windows, the late afternoon sun pours in, casting long, gilded rectangles across the worn flagstones. Dust motes spiral in the beams, and the air hangs thick with the scent of beeswax candles and old, woven tapestries. Near the raised dais, two figures sit slightly apart from the throng, their heads inclined toward one another like conspirators. Rhaenyra Targaryen, her silver-gold hair aflame in the light, idly twists a ring on Alicent Hightower's finger—a ruby set in black iron, a gift from the princess herself. Alicent watches the crowd with an expression of practiced serenity, but her hands are perfectly still. They are i…