𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 | Woods and Creaks

{ Coren }

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𝕲laring sun assaulted Coren's eyes as he tried to hide from its rays. Out here, in the wilderness, there was little to no protection from the sun and Coren could feel it affecting him. If he had his way, he would not be out in heat this severe, but they were running low on water and thus, he had stepped into the sandy heat.

The buckets were full, and Coren began to tie them together, hauling them over his shoulder as he trudged away from the oasis and back into the sand of the desert.

The oasis was not far from his home. It was far enough that no one was able to find him from it, far enough that his footsteps would disappear into the sand in a matter of moments, but not far enough that he would not be able to hear Falkor's distress if something or someone was to go near Rhaenerys or their home.

Coren had spent a lot of time planning where he and Rhaenerys could go to hide with Falkor. The first, and most obvious thought, had been a city. But white hair would stand out and Falkor could not quite fit through the narrow streets that most cities in Essos hosted. Then, the thought was to go back to the grasslands, where he was most comfortable, but then Dothraki hordes would be able to overpower him in an instant, and Falkor had still been too small when they had first left Mereen and Daenerys. 

So, Coren had taken them to the Red Waste. It was hot and sandy and food was scarce, shelter was limited, but no Dothraki horde or army would dare enter it. Falkor was more than capable of flying further afield to find food and return, bringing food back with him. Once they had found the oasis near the farthest peaks that he could find, he had set about creating his home in the mountains, finding a large enough valley for Falkor to happily live, and ensuring that it was all safe for his daughter.

He did not like leaving her when he had to travel to find food and drink, but Falkor kept a watchful eye over her more than anything.

Coren continued to trudge back, head down and all exposed skin covered as he kept his eyes on his waypoints to ensure he reached home safely. For anyone else, they would get lost in the haze of sand and mountains and dunes, but Coren had acclimatised to this.

Finally, he reached the start of his valley home, clambering over rocks, all the while trying to spill as little water as possible. His shoulders ached, hands covered in blisters as he turned another corner, ducking into the shadows of the cliff face with a sigh. 

There was a quiet screech of greeting, and Coren grinned, looking up at the large dragon ahead of him. 

The simple way to put it was Falkor had grown. Where he had been the largest of all his brothers when they had left Mereen, Falkor was now starting to fill the valley with his wingspan, towering far over Coren, his scales a deeper ruby red than they had been when he was born. When the large dragon attempted to nudge Coren now, it would often send the man flying, but Falkor never dared to do such a thing with Rhaenerys.

"Dada!" There was an incoherent babble of words after that as Coren let the buckets hit the floor gently, before pulling his masks down to grin at his daughter. She was approaching her second birthday now, having grown far too quickly for Coren's liking, as Falkor had done. Her white hair was longer now, pulled back into a small ponytail at the base of her neck, as that was all Coren was good at, her eyes a bright violet. Coren could have sworn when certain light hit it, they looked more blue though, which had amused Rhaenerys for hours when she had found her reflection in the gleam of Coren's sword.

The little girl was sitting by Falkor's head, holding onto crudely carved horses and wooden soldiers that Coren had made for her, a bright smile on her face. There was no one better to care for his daughter than a dragon when Coren was not here.

"Hello little dragon." Coren beamed as Rhaenerys abandoned her toys, rushing over to hug him. Coren crouched down in an instant, sweeping her into his arms and peppering kisses all over her pale hair and skin. "What have you and Falkor been up to?"

"Nothing." Rhaenerys grinned, eyes sparkling with a mischief that Coren knew was often present in his own. He laughed at that, holding her up with ease as he set her on his hip, before he turned to the large dragon. Falkor had been watching them with one golden eye open, before he began to stand up. He towered over Coren, who was quick to cover Rhaenerys as the dragon shook and displaced all the sand that had covered his scales. "Kor, Kor!"

"Yes, it's Falkor." Coren agreed as the dragon bent down to blow hot air over the pair. Coren scratched at his nose, before reaching up to scratch behind his horns as the dragon grumbled and tilted his head further. "Getting bigger, Falkor? More scales are shedding. I don't think you need to grow further, you are already big enough."

Falkor shot him an unamused look as Coren grinned.

"Are you going hunting now?" Falkor chuffed, before pressing his nose further into Coren's arms as Rhaenerys giggled. Falkor was still a large lapdog, but Coren hardly minded. He stayed that way for another few moments, before pulling back and yawning. "Bring some back for us."

Falkor chuffed again, before Coren pressed his back to the wall as Falkor stalked out of the crevasse that they were situated in.

"Alright, Rhaenerys, get your toys." Rhaenerys rushed off as Coren hauled the water back onto his shoulders. They began to walk further into the depths of the crevice, to the very furthest point where their home was, though at the pace of the toddler beside him.

A dark, winged shape, flew over the top, Falkor soaring to his usual hunting grounds, as they headed through an archway, that towered far above them, and emerged into their home. It was so different to what Coren had always been used to, far more simple but still better than being on the streets.

The home, though it was really a shack, was merely one room that was made from a small cave with covers between the different rooms. The first had a fire pit, though Falkor burnt most of their meat for them before he dropped it with them. There were cushions on the floor for Rhaenerys to sit on whilst they ate, and other toys that Coren spent time carving. Food was hidden further upwards, so that Rhaenerys' little hands could not grab them, and Coren placed the water down onto one of the ledges.

The gap between that room and into the next one was a mess of pillows and a sheet and a mat to keep them off of the floor. There was a bag of clothes for Rhaenerys beside it whilst Coren's armour sat, unused for the past year, next to that.

"Alright, come here." Coren crouched down, throwing his cloak down onto their makeshift bed. Rhaenerys had thrown her toys away, holding her hand out for Coren to wash them quickly. He wiped over her face and neck, before kissing her head. "Good girl."

"Story?"

"Dinner." Coren corrected. "Then clean up and then possibly story."

Rhaenerys huffed, rolling her eyes as Coren cocked an eyebrow. He prodded below her ribs, causing her to squeal with laughter. As long as Rhaenerys was protected, he would live in this harsh environment, determined to keep her safe.

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"Time to sleep." Coren hauled his daughter upright, brushing her hair back as she yawned.

"Story?"

"What story do you want?"

"Mama?" Coren hummed, sitting down beside her. His daughter crawled into his lap, leaning her head on his chest.

"What about mama?"

"More." Coren chuckled at his daughter's words, before leaning back.

He never quite knew how to broach the subject of Daenerys with Rhaenerys, who could not remember her mother in the slightest. It was hard to explain to a child that their mother was a Targaryen and controlled armies and cities and was ruling half a world away, on the other side of Essos. That was far too complicated for Rhaenerys to understand.

So, Coren would speak about what he admired about Daenerys, what she was like, hoping that the anecdotes would sate Rhaenerys' curiosity.

"Your mama is kind and caring and beautiful." Coren explained softly, his heart dropping at the thought of Daenerys who had missed so much of their daughter's life already. "She loves you more than there are stars in the sky."

"That's a lot." Rhaenerys muttered, clinging onto Coren's tunic as he hummed. "Where is she?"

"Mama has to do something incredibly important and I know that she wants to be here with us right now, more than anything." Coren smiled, before running his hand through his daughter's hair. He hated when his daughter looked up at him, asking him the question that he could never truly answer, especially when she looked so much like her mother. "She had hair like yours and eyes like you too."

Rhaenerys hummed, sucking on her thumb as Coren cooed. Her eyes were fluttering closed.

"Alright, little dragon, bed time."

"No." Her eyes snapped open at that, as if trying to fool her father into thinking she was actually awake.

"That was not a question." Coren corrected, putting Rhaenerys down onto the mat and tucking her in. He pressed a kiss to her head, before tucking the sheet tightly around her. "Good night. I love you."

"Night dada." Rhaenerys whispered, as Coren blew out the majority of the candles in the room bar one. Standing up, he ducked out, before stepping outside into the cold desert air to take a moment to breathe and focus himself. Leaning back against the wall, he took up his post, ensuring that Rhaenerys remained asleep and waiting for Falkor to return.

It was not until the early hours of the morning that he did, soaring overhead almost silently, before Coren heard him landing. Coren checked, finding his daughter deeply asleep, before grabbing his sword and hurrying to meet Falkor.

The large dragon was nursing his side as Coren grew closer.

"Falkor." The dragon snapped, though only to tell Coren that he was in pain as the man reached for him. He pressed his dragon's nose to the side and out of the way, before seeing the claw marks that were scraped down the side of his chest. Only a dragon could cause that kind of damage on another. Coren knew better than to reach out and touch them, merely huffing, before turning to look back at the large dragon. "Those are dragon claws. Drogon?"

Falkor huffed, turning his head away as Coren's brain whirred into action. He had an inkling about what this meant.

"Rest up. I think this is our sign." Coren patted his dragon's nose, as Falkor watched him curiously. "We return to Mereen when you're healed."

Hiya,

So, Dany's not with them, Rhaenerys is a sweetheart and Coren is trying his best. Falkor's a mood, and also not a happy older brother at the moment. I did explain on my profile guide why i've been gone, but the gist is i've got a dissertation to write and i'm procrastinating big time oops?

Let me know what you think,

Love Li xx