𝒈𝒐 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 ───── a house of the dragon fanfiction.
⚘ written by 𝒍𝒆𝒊𝒍𝒂 . . . 2024
𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏𝒆

𝒕𝒘𝒐 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓...

𝑨 𝑹𝑨𝑽𝑬𝑵 𝑨𝑹𝑹𝑰𝑽𝑬𝑫 at the castle, its wings fluttering towards the nearest window and perching itself atop a sill, a dire message installed into its beak.

Kaleyna was practicing her literature with her tutor when the black bird sang outside her room in urgency. Her dark brown eyes darted up to the window with a light gasp. Despite her tutor's remarks to stay seated, the young girl flung open the pane and held the bird still, enough to pry the letter from its squawking mouth.

Jumping down from her tiptoes, she hastily unraveled the parchment with excited eyes, her family's seal planted onto its opening. Her father hadn't written in months, even though he swore to after Ormund wed the last year and ventured to the North.

Though, her wide eyes drooped into ones of confusion, her bushy brows furrowing a deep knot on her forehead. Her hands roamed the paper, just slightly trembling in its shadow.

"My lady, we've only so much time left in the day-" Her tutor and accompanied maid spoke with soft demand, yet trickled into a hushed whisper as Kaleyna lifted her head up to meet her eyes. They welled with tears, pricking at her corneas, begging to be released. "What is it, my lady?" The maid asked, a look of concern painting her pale face.

In a rush, the eight year old collapsed into the peasant's arms, her small body shaking with frenzy. The older woman gently hushed the child, brushing her hair back with the palm of her hand.

A large bag sat on an unmade twin bed, as Kaleyna tossed dresses into its opening. She had had her suspicions for some time now, yet the death of her father still struck the same as if she had not known at all.

The door just barely creaked open, revealing a head of platinum blonde hair. "Daemon, please just leave me be. I have to be packed for Oldtown by this evening." She groaned, continuing to rummage around her wardrobe. His figure slipped in between the crack of her door and placed itself beside her luggage, watching as she prepared to leave for the funeral.

He was thirteen now, measuring up to his older brother's height with each passing day. Kaleyna hated it because it meant things would change. No more late night roaming through the library, no more side glances in court, and certainly no more of the made-up games they would busy themselves with in the gardens. He was no longer a boy, but a thriving teenager. And yet, she stayed behind, five years below him, forever competing to maintain a balance between them.

"Why not just send in your maid to do this?" Daemon brows furrowed in bewilderment at her choring around. He grew up allowing servants to follow his every move and cater to his every request. She did not.

"This is something I need to do myself, Daemon. And besides, she won't be accompanying me on my trip. Ormund suggested I ride alone, as it's such a short distance for such a short stay. There's no need for her assistance." Kaleyna explained, plopping down next to him.

His violet eyes narrowed further. "You mean you're going alone? No chance, Kaleyna. It's a day's ride all the way out to Oldtown from here." His voice held a sense of protectiveness, a craving to shield her from the outside world and keep her wrapped in his social bubble; partly because he would once more be alone when she left, spending his days walking the halls with no real destination.

"I'll be fine, Daemon. Uncle said to stay low and hidden if anything were to occur." She referred to Otto Hightower, Hand to his father, the King. "Nothing of such circumstances will, anyways." Kaleyna added, buckling her luggage together in finalization.

Daemon glared at the object in distaste. "How long will you be gone?" He finally asked, his eyes softening as the usual fierceness within him dissipated, the only true friend he had within the castle walls leaving him in a moment of complete urgency.

Kaleyna thought momentarily before pursing her lips. "Two weeks, at best. I won't be gone long, I promise." She moved her small hand to lay atop his larger one, the veins in them pulsing with vexation, not because of her, but because of the stories she had shared with him numerous times - all revolving around the absence Hobert Hightower had left in her life. And now, he was taking her from him. Daemon removed his hand from hers, cursing to himself as he let a mere child counter his every thought. He was supposed to be grown now, supposed to prepare to rule Westeros, not surround himself with such antics.

"Well, you'd better get on before it turns dark." The straightened sheets of her bed crinkled beneath him as he stood, his eyes slimmed with growing distance. The girl held her place on the edge by one of the four posts, watching with confused eyes as he departed in hidden haste.

Kaleyna searched for Ormund's rough hand through the thick blackness of his cloak, blowing ever so slightly before the tombstone of their father, the small gathering of flowers straying across the soil as if they were fleeing the grave entirely.

The nineteen year old boy stood stoically, his cheeks pale without a trace of tears. He knew it was wrong to display such enmity towards their late father, standing before his very own deathly grounds, but the travel to see such a thing felt tasteless and utterly exerted. His wife, Valaena Celtigar, held his other hand tightly, her blonde hair stark from the two's dark. She was with their first child.

And before long, that child would construct a deep rift between the two Hightower siblings, holding both Valyrian and Hightower blood within his very veins, construing a possession for Ormund's complete allegiance- and a lifelong desire to poison Kaleyna's inheritance entirely.

𝑨𝑼𝑻𝑯𝑶𝑹'𝑺 𝑵𝑶𝑻𝑬

i wanted to add a few details about kaleyna's family, to clear up any confusion!! although hobert, ormund, and valaena are very real characters in fire and blood, they are completely separate from the books in this story, acting as an au of sorts!

as always, thank you for reading. i promise this fic will get more interesting once we reach act two 😭

𝒈𝒐 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 ───── a house of the dragon fanfiction.
⚘ written by 𝒍𝒆𝒊𝒍𝒂 . . . 2024
𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏𝒆

words . . . 1099.
written . . . 5.25.24.
published . . . 6.22.24.