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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2014 15:48:30 GMT -5
Elseyris could not sleep on the night before the army was due to arrive at Oldtown. She hadn't really slept properly since the night of the Tyroshi welcome party. That had been her last restful sleep. That was before she had smothered Tybalt, before she had broken her mother's heart by leaving King's Landing to go to war, before her cousin Aemy had been killed.
For all that she had disliked Aemy for being prejudiced against her, Elseyris found her sudden death disturbing.
If the King would order his own daughter killed, then I am even more at risk here than I thought!
Unable to expunge the dark, fearful thoughts from her mind, she eventually got up, pulling on her breeches and boots, then donning a jerkin, not bothering to lace it up all the way.
She slipped out of her tent, pausing to gaze into the sky, the stars seeming like pinholes in the curtain of night. After a few moments, she made her way quietly to Aegon's tent, seeking admittance inside.
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 11, 2014 16:12:33 GMT -5
The tent was heavily guarded, perhaps a sign that Aegon had become less trusting in the wake of his sister's betrayal. Over the last few days, particularly in Maekar's absence, Aegon had cultivated an inner circle of knights that formed his guard -- some he knew from old campaigns, some of whom were just eager to win the Crown Prince's favor. They were well accustomed to Elseyris' presence who had been there before any of them.
"M'lady," One of the knights nods at her. "The Prince may be asleep, I'm not sure."
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2014 16:17:38 GMT -5
"Please will you check for me? If he is not asleep, I wish to ask permission to enter and speak with him."
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 11, 2014 16:31:28 GMT -5
The knight ducks in, and Elseyris hears a brief low murmur behind the heavy canvas of the tent. "He'll see you," the knight says upon his return.
Aegon is sitting in a light camp chair, one of two in the tent, leaning over a small desk. A pair of candles provide a dim light, each of them having been burned well down, the melted wax pooling on the table. Aegon is looking at a map he must have looked at a thousand times before, and he looks very tired.
"Elsey." Aegon gives her a smile, but it is a faint, brief one -- he had not been in much of a joyous mood in the last few days. "Wine?" He gestures toward a bottle.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2014 16:37:15 GMT -5
She returned the smile, though her own was somewhat tight and sad;
"Yes, thank you," she said, gratefully accepting his offer, sitting down in the other chair and taking a long drink of the wine.
"It seems we neither can rest this night."
Her eyes fell upon the table, and she glanced back to him, gesturing her head subtly to the map;
"A silver for your thoughts?"
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 11, 2014 16:56:33 GMT -5
Aegon poured the wine (a dark Stormland red) into a single cup. "I hope you don't mind if I drink from the bottle. I had another cup, but," Aegon frowned. "It broke."
"I don't know if I have the luxury of thoughts other than the war," Aegon rubbed at his temples. "I learn my sister was plotting to murder me. Now she's dead, and Maekar is suffering some sort of nervous breakdown." He sighed. "I am ready for the enemy, ready to die in battle if I have to. It's not knowing who to trust on our own side that eats at me."
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2014 17:06:55 GMT -5
"I know... I heard," said Elseyris, a little awkwardly. "I don't mind you drinking from the bottle, it is your bottle, after all. Frankly, had I a bottle of my own, I would be doing the same."
"Aemy's death, and it's circumstances, trouble me also. I cannot imagine how difficult it must be for you. Is there anything I can do to help?"
She leaned forward, placing a hand over his, her face, though troubled, looking upon him with kindness.
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 11, 2014 17:22:06 GMT -5
"You have done so much already. You are my rock," Aegon tried for a smile, despite the exhaustion weighing on him. "My father, my family... they call you and your sister traitorspawn. They are all fools, too blinded by the past to see the present."
"Thank you for your loyalty." It was something his father would say a prince should never say -- loyalty should be assumed, treachery punished, and acknowledging anything else was weakness. But in the wake of Aemy's betrayal, Aegon wanted to say it.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2014 18:55:16 GMT -5
Being called his 'rock' deeply moved Elseyris. She was surprised by the apparent depth of his trust and appreciation.
"I cannot speak for my brother or sister, but I care for the Realm, and I have wanted to protect and nourish it for as long as I can remember. I value honour, courage, and kindness in people, and I will follow someone who possesses those to the end of the world. Which is why I am here, and will always be, right here, with you, through anything."
She gingerly lifted his hand, placed it between both of hers, and kissed it softly, then raising her head again to look at him, the candlelight reflected in her soulful chestnut brown eyes.
"There is no other man with whom I would rather face the world."
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 11, 2014 21:23:29 GMT -5
Aegon looked into her eyes, feeling her sincerity as she grasped his hand. Suddenly he recalled the favor Visenya had given him and felt both uncertain and unreasonably guilty. He looked away.
"You are better to me than I deserve," Aegon murmured.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2014 6:27:52 GMT -5
She moved one hand up to gently turn his face back towards hers;
"Deserve is not a meaningful word here, where we are now. We will be fighting tomorrow, and while we may ask for the Warrior to be at our backs, it is the Stranger who will decide if we are to die, is it not? We are at the whim of the Gods."
She lowered her head for a moment;
"I was with Lord Toyne when he died, and I know to my very soul that he did not deserve that suffering, but he suffered, nonetheless. This is why I came here tonight, what haunts me. We may fight for the most just of causes, yet still fail. Since the incident in the dragon pit, leaving home, seeing Highgarden in ashes, and... what happened to Aemy... I've been more and more conscious that each of my days may be my last. Tomorrow, all that I am may be snuffed out in an instant, and the devotion and love I bear my family, the Realm, and you, will be rewarded with oblivion."
She let go of his hand and stood then, slowly, her heart thundering, her breath and hands shaky, as she undid the front of her jerkin. She didn't remove it, but stood with her arms tensed by her sides, her slender yet strong shoulders straight, a slim strip of pale, soft skin showing between the open edges of the dark green cloth, from the shapely curve of her half-concealed breasts, a small dragon tooth pendant hanging between them, down to the soft, subtle groove of her navel and her slim waist flaring out into sensual hips.
Stepping closer, placing a hand on each of his shoulders, she spoke quietly, her voice almost crackling with trepidation as she looked at him with a curiously mixed look of sincere adoration and fear;
"I do not want to die a maid, Aegon. Let us leap upon this moment while it may yet be ours. Tomorrow brings much uncertainty, let tonight be good to us."
She bent down to kiss him.
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Horas
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Post by Horas on Jan 12, 2014 19:52:27 GMT -5
Aegon listened as Elseyris poured out her heart to him, echoing the feelings of an uncertain future that Aegon had been grappling with over the course of the last few days. When he first met Elsey, he had thought of her as more girl than woman. As time went on, as they marched further south, he began to see her as a companion in arms, a friend, someone he could rely on. And now?
Aegon's breath caught as Elsey unlaced the front of her jerkin. For a moment he thought of the realm, thought of the lock of Visenya's hair she had given him as a favor, and a thousand other things. Aegon thought too much, and just this once he just did not want to think at all.
Aegon stood up suddenly, pulling Elsey close to him with one strong arm, his other hand tearing at fastenings of her jerkin. He returned her kiss with passion, lifting her and setting her down on the camp table.
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all alone and also really bored 
Hopefully going to kickstart the festival too