A/N: This OC was originally written into a TVDU/GoT crossover and I have decided to incorporate her into House of the Dragon. She will be a little different but I hope to still keep her interesting. As with my previous stories, I wanted to make a note about a few things. One, you can expect the usual Game of Thrones themes of abuse, miscarriage, traumatic childbirth, underage marriage, violence, incest, etc. Two, it will be depressing in many aspects and have a great deal of angst. Three, I am basing this off the book and show. I will be incorporating book!Alicent among other more Fire & Blood accurate elements and timelines. And four, as with my past fics, the main point is NOT necessarily the love story, it's about the growth of the character. Aegon and Aemond will be the main love interests.

If you're still interested, go right ahead. A lot of this chapter will be worldbuilding since I've created an original house with lore for the fic. Bear with me as it starts a little dense. For reference, the OC's faceclaims are Ruby O'Leary (young version, played Gyda in Vikings) and Ella Rattigan (older version), but of course with Valyrian features. When it is time for the time skip to go from the young version to older version, I will let you know.

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The Red Keep, King's Landing, 120 AC

Her parents' visits rarely brought joy.

One would expect the opposite from a girl who resided so far from home. Many might not wish to understand that her home wasn't truly a home, not when she couldn't remember it and not when they were there to bring cold into a place that was meant to remain permanently warm.

Still, there were things expected of a young lady. A girl of nine should already be capable of sitting, walking, and talking like a lady. She should respect her parents and heed their words, no matter what they were. It was the proper thing to do, that which she'd been taught at court.

Yet, even at nine, she knew that whenever her parents chose to journey from Tarth to the Crownlands, it was always purposeful. The time it took to sail from there to King's Landing would never be wasted unless fruit was meant to be borne. An outsider might have assumed her parents rarely made the journey because of illness or old age– neither were true. Others may have attributed it to their own guilt for having given their daughter to ward and finding difficulty in facing the outcome of their choice. That wasn't it, either.

She kept a detailed-enough tally of the times they'd come to see there was no pattern to it. It wasn't as though they arrived each year precisely on her nameday. Some years they didn't visit at all. Whatever their trips coincided with, she was the person that suffered for it.

She hadn't gotten to grow up watching her mother get dressed. She hadn't grown up carried around on her father's shoulders. She'd never felt their hands run through her hair. The only thing she could remember from every single visit was that she was expected to listen, and if she didn't do this well enough, there would be consequences. It made her good at remembering, and it soon led to the inevitable conclusion that her parents were dangerous, calculating people who saw their daughter as a small part of a whole.

The Queen herself fetched her when her parents arrived that morning. That woman intimidated her almost as much as her mother did. Tall and lithe, with that look on her face as though nothing ever satisfied her and everyone disappointed her. She supposed that must be true; this woman was the Queen. There was not an ounce of warmth in the woman as she took the girl's hand to lead her towards the guest apartments on the other side of the castle.

She held tight to the Queen, staring at the septas, maesters, maids, and knights who strolled past her, none as disturbed by this event as her. Only she knew that she was in for hours on end of a new lecture to be learned immediately. Everyone else simply saw it as a small girl gladly receiving her distant family.

But she wasn't foolish enough to believe that. Perhaps, the first two times (when she was five then six) she'd been elated and had spent a week talking to her only friend about how excited she was for her mother and father to come. Yet, after that, she became very aware that her less-than-once-a-year 'gift' was not a gift at all for her. It was a game she didn't fully understand and didn't wish to play.

She almost didn't want to let go of the Queen's hand when they neared the guest apartments. Better the chill of the Queen than the cold of her parents. If she let go, it meant she had to stay there with them and only them for however long they decided to lecture her. The knight ahead of them opened the door, announcing, "Queen Alicent, with the little Lady Rhysaenya."

She saw her mother first, the woman wearing a blood-red dress adorned with golden lace. Her golden hair was pinned up in layers that resembled a cascade of waves on the beach. She smiled wide when she first saw her daughter, and it would have fooled anyone into thinking she was the sweetest woman in the world, her beautiful features having already brought everyone comfort from the first. Yet, Rhysaenya knew that the moment the door closed, her usual expression would return– a sort of sneer as if everything and everyone she was looking at was beneath her.

"Your Grace," said the woman, curtsying deep to Queen Alicent, her mother having always towered above her Queen. "And my sweet girl." She strode to her daughter, dipping down to kiss her cheek. "Gods, you are nine now, my darling, look at you! How you've grown from when I last saw you."

Her father emerged behind her, a man no one could mistake as being 'sweet' in any way, even if he hadn't been wearing all black. He was the tallest man that Rhysaenya had ever seen, taller than Lord Corlys Velaryon and the Kingsguard Ser Harrold Westerling. His stare had always been the kind that made her feel cold, shadows always seeming to hang on his eyelids, making his eyes gleam beadily like a predator seeing everyone as prey. His features were sharp, a chin that could pierce and cheekbones that could cut. He always had his long fingers tapping together, and he did so even as he looked Rhysaenya up and down, seemingly disappointed with her.

The Queen seemed to tense as he approached them. Even a woman like her, with her biting tongue and spread sneers, could see that there was a greater predator in the room. Rhysaenya thought that while the Queen was a suspicious lioness, her parents were battle-hardened and calculating dragons. "Queen Alicent," said her father, lips curling into an unsettlingly thin smile. He bowed deep, spreading his arms. "Thank you for bringing our daughter to us. Do send my regards to your father when you've a moment."

"Of course, Lord Karrhys," said the Queen as kindly as she must have been able to. "I'll leave you all, then. If you've need of anything, please do let me know." She nodded to Rhysaenya's mother, who was caressing her face in delight, "Lady Rhaelyn." She took her leave, the door slamming shut behind her.

Rhysaenya watched her mother's face change, as if a switch had gone off in her head. Serious now, with a cold and cruel stare, "Come, sit. There are important things to discuss."

She shuffled over to a pair of chairs by the window, next to which a table with fruit and wine had been prepared. Her father reached out for a cup of wine, standing over the two even as her mother sat across from Rhysaenya, leaning back in her seat.

"You are nine years old now," said her father, voice sharp like a blade over a whetstone, the sort of voice one would expect to hear whispering in the dark. "It means you're old enough to learn the real history of our family. Today marks the beginning of a new age for our house. To make this certain, you must heed our words and you must never repeat to others what we will tell you now. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Father," she said quietly.

He gestured to his ear, raising his eyebrows expectantly. "When we last came, we were told you'd hit and yell at the Queen's sons if they did things you did not like. I know you can speak louder than that."

"Yes, Father," she repeated, much louder.

"Good," he said, moving to stand behind her mother's chair, leaning his hands over it. Rhaelyn reached back for his cup of wine, drawing a sip and saying, "It is very important you do not reveal to anyone what will be said in this room. It will be our secret, a secret that only the members of our house know. Eilryd and Arrwyth accepted this responsibility long ago, and now it is your turn. Do you accept your duty to your family?"

She nodded, speaking clearly, "Yes, Mother. I won't say anything to anyone."

"Good. Tell me about our house. Everything you remember." She pushed toward her a bowl of grapes. "Show us that you know our history before we fill in gaps."

Rhysaenya took a grape, chewing slowly and staring out the window. Her mother tapped her fingers against the table, stopping only when the girl began, "We are of the oldest of the Valyrian houses, so old that our names did not come from their customs. Many believe our ancestors came from an underground city beneath the Red Waste and settled in Valyria after its collapse. While others found dragons in the Fourteen Fires, we found another creature: the phoenix."

She swallowed hard, continuing, "Houses Agni, Ilaiv, and Xanghis could not control dragons, but they could control the phoenix. They used its power to forge weapons and build, until they created a fleet of their own. When the phoenix experienced its first rebirth, only House Agni believed it would not be permanent, while House Ilaiv returned to the Fourteen Fires to find another and House Xanghis prepared to run away, believing it a bad omen. House Agni was the only one present when the phoenix was born again in flames, and renamed themselves Ignividus, 'Masters of the Phoenix.' House Ilaiv was dubbed House Lavasy, 'Born of lava,' for their devotion to the phoenix and House Xanghis were ridiculed as cowards. House Ignividus became named the leader of their Triad.

"Millenia later, House Xanghis tried to gain more control by betrothing their heir, Zyto, to House Lavasy's eldest daughter Elisii. But Agratzli Ignividus stole Elisii and the phoenix away. He took the fleet and the bulk of their houses' men and went west to find a new land. They arrived a year later in Tarth and overwhelmed the Andals, establishing their dominion and threatening the Storm Kings with phoenix fire. They treated quickly for an alliance with House Velaryon and renamed the castle the Phoenixfort, where Agratzli and Elisii were wed and became King and Queen."

Rhaelyn hummed, pulling the bowl of grapes away before Rhysaenya could have another, Karrhys's snake eyes tracing over Rhysaenya's face as she turned from the window to her feet. "You've a great memory, little one," said Rhaelyn admirably. "I imagine you could go on to tell me of their lineage— what couple birthed what children, what members of House Ignividus married into the Velaryon and Targaryen lines."

Not seeing this as an observation and instead a question, Rhysaenya nodded, "They gave resources to Aenar and his family when they landed in Dragonstone. Aegon, Visenya, and Rhaenys had a great deal of Ignividus blood because of Etzli Ignividus– granddaughter of Agratzli and Elisii– marrying Aerys Targaryen and her niece Arazza Ignividus marrying her son Daemion Targaryen. Arazza's parents were Agraz Ignividus and Aelyna Velaryon. The sons of Macoatl and Neitli Ignividus– both children of Agraz and Etzli, who married after their spouses passed– later helped the Three Dragons on the ground during the Conquest."

"Then," said Karrhys, "you must certainly recall why it is said that House Ignividus was cursed?"

She said carefully, "They had many sons but hardly any daughters, almost all of whom died in childbirth following one or few children. The first were Princess Nyzalli and Lady Farra, and it convinced Prince Higaal of the devastation to come. The pattern continued, as if every woman married into or born into the Ignividus line was destined to die. It was difficult to maintain the bloodline pure. They married many Tarths and took wives from houses in the Reach. That is why despite their Valyrian blood, House Ignividus has hair more gold or brown than white. Some of us have our purple eyes, some of us do not. Yet, what we have kept firm is our great height and resistance to fire."

"You are different," said Karrhys as Rhaelyn reached out, curling a strand of Rhysaenya's pale blonde hair around her finger. "You hold a Valyrian beauty not seen in a very long time. I have barely any Valyrian blood left... most of what I am made of is the blood of the First Men and the Andals. Yet, I have not forgotten the teachings of House Ignividus. Tell me, what are our words, daughter?"

"Born to Burn," said Rhysaenya. "Many think it is because we claim to be reborn like phoenixes, always starting new beginnings, but it is because we are not only blacksmiths, builders, healers, and... witches. We are also warriors. We burn circles into our flesh to signify our kills. We fight with fire, kill with it, burn others without need for dragons. In a way, we are phoenixes. Some even called us the true dragons. Our other words are 'With Fire We Return,' to show we do not forget an offense and will always come back to reassert our power. We will destroy anyone who does us wrong."

"Precisely." Rhaelyn's voice was a low whisper. "Many in our line have been robbed of an opportunity to be real Queens. After Aegon conquered the Seven Kingdoms, Aniiro, Caytell, and Agrazos gave up their crowns and bent the knee, and since then, we have not been given the power we deserve. When Maegor usurped the throne, Sytli and Rhysilla Ignividus defended Jaehaerys, they even killed their father and staged it as an accident to ensure there was no uprising, they trained their sons Rhystli, Arlys, Moyric, and Eilryd to defend Jaehaerys's claims. And you remember, don't you, the crimes of Maegor against Sytli and his family..."

Rhysaenya knew very well. Sytli had tried to rescue Viserys Targaryen, Jaehaerys's older brother, from Maegor's hold. Sytli was caught and fed to Balerion. Viserys, tortured and killed. Maegor took Rhysilla to wife by force as a Black Bride, but she would not go lightly. She fought him with her own sword until he had no choice but to cut off her head, Rhysilla refusing to share his bed. Her eldest son, Rhystli, had taken control of the Phoenixfort and held off against Maegor's attacks. The men he sent to take Rhystli's head never returned alive.

The saying 'With Fire We Return' had been coined the day that three chests arrived to the Red Keep with the sigil of the phoenix. Within were the heads of Maegor's assassins, eyes all burned out with a fiery poker, a threat for him to watch and see what'd happened if he kept at it. If he dared levy a further insult against House Ignividus. Furious, Maegor took to Balerion and made for the Phoenixfort, intent on burning them all to bits inside their keep.

It was later said that when he descended over Tarth, a light shone so bright, the entire sky disappeared. All that anyone heard below was the terrified roar of Balerion, who from that day, refused to fly in the direction of Tarth. He'd fall into a wild panic if he even sensed Maegor's anger towards House Ignividus. The people began to whisper that Ignividosi anger was the most dangerous type of anger, for their rage both blinded them and strengthened them to make someone pay dearly for what they'd done– consequences be damned.

(Even now, some claimed that Maegor had both killed himself and been killed on the Iron Throne. On the day of his death, Rhystli had been seen in the Red Keep. Some preferred to believe that Rhystli forced him to take his own life and fall upon the throne. Others say that Rhystli's own monstrous strength had slammed Maegor down until the swords ripped into his flesh. Karrhys never weighed into this, but his eyes seemed to gleam anytime someone mentioned it.)

"After that," continued her mother, "when Elissa Farman stole Queen Rhaena's dragon eggs, members of our house led the hunt for her. Were we rewarded for any of this? No. Sons of our family were married to girls of the Reach, their blood was further diluted. Those who went after the eggs never came back and nothing was given in return. Never, never has our family been given the respect they deserved. And so, a plan was hatched."

Rhysaenya began to feel nervous, her mother reaching out to hold her. "When Aithryd and Katia Ignividus died, their sons Rhys and Aitwyth were raised by their grandparents and then their uncle and aunt: Kitwyth and Kaesenya Ignividus. They began to teach the boys about the power they could hold if they only seized it, if they kept the phoenixblood strong and stopped bowing to others. Rhys took this advice, he wed his cousin Kaelena— daughter of Kaeden and Selena Ignividus— and sought to change the ideas of the next generation. But Aitwyth was not so focused..."

"I don't know who you speak of," said Rhysaenya, confused. "You never said the name Aitwyth when teaching me history, you said Rhys and Kaelena were your father and mother, my grandparents."

"That's what we told you, when you were too young to keep secrets," said Karrhys, the 's' at the end of secrets dragging along his viper tongue. "But the truth is, Rhys and Kaelena were not your mother's parents, only mine. She is not my sister. She is my cousin. Your mother was born to Aitwyth Ignividus and the girl he fell in love with... the Princess Viserra Targaryen."

Rhysaenya furrowed her brows. "You said Viserra Targaryen died in an accident, escaping a betrothal."

"An accident, yes, and escaping surely. But mainly to hide her pregnancy. Aitwyth brought Viserra to the Phoenixfort, where she gave birth to your mother. They left her with my parents and attempted to flee before anyone could discover it. Their horse took a tumble and they snapped their necks before they even left Tarth. So, my parents pretended that your mother had been born to them."

She thought of this for a moment and said carefully, "So... my mother is Viserra's bastard child. That is why my hair is like the Targaryens?"

"That is what we told His Grace," said Karrhys. "That the gods masked the traits in Rhaelyn in Viserra's final plea, but did not seek to hide them in you. Yet, that is not the truth of why you look as you do. Your mother resembles House Ignividus because Aitwyth was her father. And you resemble House Targaryen because of who your father is."

"But you are my father," she said uncomfortably. "I've called you 'Father' all my life."

He seemed to smirk, "Yes, well, calling your real father 'Father' would have caused more problems than it would solve. A necessary arrangement." He leaned over Rhaelyn, and for a moment her mother seemed uncomfortable, too, "Why don't you tell her, my love? Tell her why she's not my child."

Rhaelyn's jaw twitched, and she said to Rhysaenya, "You know you have three brothers, yes?"

"Eilryd and Arrwyth," said Rhysaenya. "Your sons with..." It no longer felt right to call Karrhys 'Father.' "And then Moyric. My half-brother."

"Half-brother," repeated Rhaelyn. "Karrhys's son by some..." She rolled her eyes, "Woman in Driftmark. Really, Moyric is more a distant cousin of yours. And yet, perhaps the most important reason you were even born. Karrhys and I..." She heaved a sigh as Karrhys breathed down her neck, "Were upset with one another for a long time after Moyric was born. He refused to send him to Driftmark with his mother and wished to claim him as Caytell Ignividus claimed his sons. He wanted Moyric to learn alongside Eilryd and Arrwyth and I hated the idea. We were still angry at each other when Princess Rhaenyra was going to be married. Even so, we worked as a unit and offered Eilryd as a husband to the Princess. He was only four years younger, of a strong Valyrian house, with the makings of a warrior. King Viserys stated it would be Rhaenyra's choice and she did not choose him."

"And then, of course, your mother was angry with me about it," said Karrhys, as if it was a game. Rhaelyn certainly wasn't enjoying how gleefully he spoke of the matter. "As if it were my fault that House Targaryen no longer valued us. Surely it was my fault that Eilryd wasn't a prime candidate for Rhaenyra's hand. But that's where it gets interesting."

"If it is so interesting to you, tell her yourself," said Rhaelyn curtly.

Rhysaenya flinched as her father seized her mother's throat from behind, apparently not squeezing hard, but threatening to, "Or you will admit to her and all the gods aloud why she is the way she is," threatened Karrhys. "You claim to have made the central piece on the board, tell her how you made it."

When he let go, Rhaelyn spoke steadily, "Nine years ago, Prince Daemon Targaryen wished to take Princess Rhaenyra to wife after the tourney for the King's anniversary. He failed. Do you know who he came to, looking for a distraction? Me. I came to the tourney alone because I was cross with Karrhys. I hated how he coddled his little bastard boy, so I left him in Tarth to care for all three of them. Daemon had convinced me that he desired me, and so I asked Daemon to kill Karrhys and take me to wife after he bedded me. He refused. He only wanted someone to take his mind off what he could not have."

Rhysaenya couldn't believe she would say such a thing aloud in front of her husband, no matter if he'd heard the story before. But Karrhys didn't seem hurt or surprised, rather, satisfied. "And then he married Laena Velaryon anyway," said Karrhys. "I got to live... lucky me. She tried to hide her pregnancy by pretending to forgive me, but I knew... I knew that something had happened while she'd been away. She was going to have Eilryd poison me, you know, to hide the truth."

He laughed, a low derisive laugh that made Rhysaenya look away from both her parents. It seemed a game to Karrhys, who said, "You know, your mother and I had thought of my death before then. For the sake of our house, even while furious with one another, we'd staged a plan to fake my death so she might marry King Viserys after Queen Aemma's passing. Unfortunately for us, Otto Hightower was a step ahead... as usual. As was I with your mother. I knew she would make a move and I caught her in the act... she foolishly used the exact same plan we'd made to poison my wine during an evening meal. The phoenix had told me as much..."

He ran his tongue over his lips as Rhaelyn plucked herself a grape from the bowl and pretended to be very interested in eating it. "I demanded she tell me what happened. And oh, when she did, I knew we had what we needed to see our house rise into glory. See, I knew that the only way we could seize our power was to break our curse, to create daughters as often as sons where there scarcely were any. I noticed your mother was born to Viserra, the influence of a Targaryen enough to make girls where Ignividosi failed. And so, I knew you would be a girl. We prayed to the gods for months, we mixed herbs and sacrificed men to see it done. We ensured you were born a perfect Valyrian beauty that could bring House Targaryen to heel.

"Daemon Targaryen gave your mother a gift that night," said Karrhys. "He gave her you. A weapon to be used against his family. And so, reconciled, your mother and I decided to use the lessons of Kaesenya and Rhys Ignivius to write our family a new story– it is for them you are named after. We have carved House Ignividus a new path to the throne."

As he leaned over her, she felt her skin crawl with dread, watching his fiery eyes burn with hunger, the sort of hunger for power she'd learned to recognize at court. "A path," whispered Karrhys Ignividus, "that will make you Queen of the Seven Kingdoms."

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A/N: Hope you liked it! As I mentioned, it will start out a little dense but that is to thread the new house into this world. If you have any questions, feel free to drop them in the comments <3