syndrossi

[syndrossi]

Veteran AU: Grey Shores, Part 1

Part one of Vet!Jon bringing his little brothers to meet an utterly blindsided Daemon in the Stepstones.

x~x~x

Daemon’s first glimpse came after a low pass on Caraxes over the pre-dawn push by Ryndoon’s men. His dragon’s neck turned from the battlefield, peering northward, and Daemon followed his gaze. Against the lightening sky, a large, dark shape had emerged from the clouds. Vhagar, he thought in surprise, picking up a hint of green. Had his brother at last decided to throw his support behind defending the Stepstones?

The men below took up a cry of warning at the sight of a second dragon. A horn sounded, signalling retreat, and the Triarchy’s rats quickly scurried back into their caverns, abandoning the field.

He and Caraxes turned as one back toward camp, setting down just as the incoming dragon began its descent. Not Vhagar, Daemon realized swiftly. He knew his father’s mount well, even if he had not seen her often since she had been claimed by Laena Velaryon. His mind set to racing, for there were no other dragons of such a size, claimed or unclaimed, and his grip on his saddle tensed, his body half-readied for a fight.

The dragon landed no more than hundred feet east of the camp, kicking up a spray of pebbles from the shore that scattered across the sides of nearby tents. Even at that distance, it towered over them all, nearly thrice Caraxes’s size. Even larger than Vhagar. Daemon narrowed his eyes, trying to spy the rider from atop his own dragon, unwilling to dismount until he was certain of the man’s intentions.

But the figure that dismounted had the slender frame of a youth not yet fully grown, his hair dark and pulled into a small knot at the back of his head. Rather than turning to address the watching camp, however, he extended his arms back up the saddle. One small form dropped into his waiting arms, equally dark of hair, and then another, hair light as Daemon’s.

Children, he thought, startled. They were but a few years older than Rhaenyra’s eldest, if he were to guess—perhaps seven or eight. The knights who had been clutching their weapons eased their grips at the sight, and that was when Daemon noticed that each was carrying a small creature in their arms. Hatchlings? 

Daemon quickly worked himself free of his straps, leaping the short distance from Caraxes’s hasty crouch to the ground. He had spotted Corlys’s billowing cape of turquoise and silver at the opposite edge of camp, closing rapidly, and lengthened his stride so that he would be the first to greet the camp’s new arrivals.

The trio met Daemon halfway, the teen holding the hands of each child, leaving their other free to clutch at their hatchlings. The sun had crept at last over the horizon, its rays from behind crowning each youth in gold while casting their faces in shadow.

“Hello, Father,” the rider said.

Daemon’s next breath did not come. He stared at the boy, mind utterly blank for a span of seconds that stretched into something alike eternity. His one and only child had died sixteen years before, taken and killed by hill tribesmen while under his wife’s care. Daemon had been hundreds of miles distant in King’s Landing. By the time he had rushed back to the Vale, it had been too late for anything but fiery vengeance.

The boy standing before him was of the right age to be his son, and Daemon’s eyes flicked from feature to feature, taking in his frown, his brow, his eyes—a storm-touched violet, as his son’s had been—the line of his jaw, the lankiness of his frame…

That is my son.

There was no other explanation. No other reason for a child who looked as though he could be his own to appear on a dragon larger than any alive.

“I do not understand,” Daemon managed at last, his voice so thin that he barely recognized it.

They had found the body of an infant, burned beyond recognition save for the tiny boots his son had worn, and scraps of the blanket he had been wrapped in.

“I was taken,” his son said, frown twisting into a snarl. “By the very men who nearly took my brothers.”

Brothers—? Daemon’s gaze snapped to the children at either side of his son. In his shock, all else had been swept from his awareness, including them. They looked to be the same age. Twins? The dark-haired child was a window into his son’s past, possessing almost the very same features, though softened by childhood. His eyes were pure storm, their solemn grey shimmering with unshed tears, and his mouth quivered, stubbornly holding back whatever sorrow sought to loose itself. Daemon was reminded of his own father, able to spy more of his features the longer he stared.

The other child had Daemon’s own coloring, the violet of his eyes perhaps a shade darker and his hair a shade lighter. But it was his uncle that Daemon saw staring back at him, albeit with a wariness that stabbed him in the gut. The emotion that roiled in the child’s twin was buried far deeper in him, carried instead in the jaw and shoulders, and the way he hugged his hatchling to him, seeking comfort.

They could not be more than eight years old. More likely closer to seven, which would put their conception—

“That bitch,” Daemon whispered.

His brother had commanded him upon his banishment eight years before to return to his wife and fulfill his marital duties. He had lain with the bitch only the once before departing for the Stepstones, so that he could say in truth that he had obeyed the king’s command.

She hid them from me. She stole them just as surely as our son was stolen.

“Our lady mother,” his son said sharply, “is dead.” He released his siblings’ hands, drawing a rolled-up slip of parchment from a satchel at his belt that he offered to Daemon. “I am now lord of Runestone.”

Daemon took the parchment, hands cold. The writing was not Rhea’s, but the words were, confessing that she had hidden her pregnancy and passed her twin sons off as her sister’s. His focus jumped back and forth between paragraphs, sentences, not daring to linger on any for too long, the tremble of his hand threatening to close into a fist at any moment.

He sucked in a breath, and handed it back to his son. Dozens of questions cycled through his thoughts, each dancing on the tip of his tongue, but stronger than any was the need to hold his children, to feel them in his arms and know that they were flesh.

“Jon,” he said, voice catching on his son’s name.

It had been Rhea’s choice, not his, but it had grown on him in the months after his birth, his son’s bright smile upon hearing it impossible to resist. He had buried those memories after, wishing he could purge himself of them with the same cleansing fire he had used to purge the Dragon’s Spine of hill tribesmen.

He gripped his son by the shoulder and pulled him close, at a loss as he tried to reconcile the babe he had strapped to his back on dragon rides with this boy on the cusp of manhood, nearly of a height with him, sword sheathed at his side. It did not matter how tenderly Daemon embraced him now; they were strangers to one another.

“I did not know,” Daemon whispered, willing him to understand. “I would have come for you.”

He felt his son sigh. “It is past.”

That was the cold truth of it. His son’s childhood was gone, wrested away by whoever had taken him. By whoever sought to take my other sons. Daemon pulled back, looking between the children. I have three sons. 

Mere days before, he had dared a Triarchy scout to shoot him dead, certain that his own brother would barely mourn him. And now I have three sons.

One near grown, a dragonrider who had rescued both himself and his little brothers. And two still children, looking both exhausted and overwhelmed as their gazes shifted between the men watching from camp and Daemon. Where did the bitch hide them? Who protected them, tended to their sorrows? Who allowed them to nearly be taken?

By his wife’s own admission, they had not known themselves to be anything other than orphans of House Redfort.

Daemon placed a hand on their shoulders. “Did your brother explain who I am? Who you are?”

“Yes,” the fair-haired one said, watching him with a guardedness that made Daemon want to scream. “You are Prince Daemon, our father.”

I do not know their names, he realized, a bitter gorge rising in his throat. Not only had he been denied their early childhood, he had been denied the rite of naming his own sons.

“What are you called?” Daemon asked.

“My name is Raymar,” the child continued. “But if I am to be of House Targaryen, I would be called Rhaegar.”

“If?” Daemon repeated blankly. “Of course you shall be of House Targaryen. You shall be presented to the king, and attend lessons with the royal tutors, and be raised as the princes and dragonriders that you are.”

Rhaegar. Even now, with the bitch dead, he would not be able to name his own sons. They were old enough to choose their own.

“And your name?” he asked his other son.

“I am also called Jon,” he said, offering up the ghost of a smile. “I do not know what other name I would choose.”

Jon. So his wife had also seen the specter of their lost son in him, to the point of giving him the very same name. “There will be time to decide,” Daemon said.

They stood apart still as they studied one another, separated by the length of his arms, and he ached to pull them close. At last, he could bear it no longer. Daemon gathered them in, mindful of the hatchlings that they held, but he could not help the tightening of his embrace. “No one will take you from me.”

The younger Jon eased into the embrace, cheek pressing into his chest, while Rhaegar held himself motionless, back straight and stiff, his hatchling letting out a quiet hiss as she shifted to his shoulder to peer at Daemon. He gazed past them to his eldest, who was watching solemnly. As their eyes met, Jon gave him a nod—either of approval or permission.

Daemon had known his son for mere minutes, but he already understood. He would see my love given to his brothers and keep none for himself. As though Daemon did not possess enough for all three. His jaw clenched. Fire and blood. These are the words of our house. Perhaps the bitch’s family could not spare but a few scraps of affection for their own children, but I would burn the entire Vale if doing so would bring them even a moment’s joy.

Corlys was approaching, his presence an abrupt reminder of the decade Daemon had wasted here when he could have been seeking his son—his sons—to give them the childhood they deserved.

He drew back, eyes locking upon Jon’s once more as fury roared to life in his chest. “Who did this? Who stole you from me?”

Whoever had done so had been in possession of dragon eggs. More than one, if his younger sons had also come to hatch dragons of their own, and the implication made his blood boil all the hotter. They had my sons, at least for a time. There is no other explanation.

The softness in Jon’s expression gave way to a grim fury of his own. “Volantis.”

x~x~x

Still trying to decide what the next POV should be. So many tempting options! We have vet!Jon, Corlys, Daemon again, or either of the twins...

[syndrossi]

im stalking your account a regular amount to see that veteran!jon au first meeting with dadmon. i havent had time for tumblr much, but i make time for this

Sorry it's been taking a while! Ended up having a hectic weekend, so I didn't have a lot of time for writing, but hoping to squeeze in some time today! I definitely get the siren song of Dadmon meeting his children for the first time.

[syndrossi]

What do you think would've happen if Viserys had publicly declared Jon & Rhaegar as hostages? Would everyone would think, 'What did Daemon do this time?'

There is a certain optics to publicly declaring them hostages that I don't think Viserys would ever go for. The most I could see would be him informing the small council of his intentions, and maybe that slowly trickling through the court.

Cynical members of the court might assume that it's to do with the twins' hatchlings. Aka that perhaps Daemon stole dragon eggs again, and to curb his ambitions, Viserys has made hostages of them. Others might think that it's Viserys's version of tearing at his hair in an attempt to find some way to make Daemon stick around this time without acting out.

So...probably yes, some variation on "what did Daemon do this time?" 😅

[syndrossi]

I want a heartfelt moment of humor at some point to, you know, go with all the angst of Daemon being nearly assassinated. Maybe a spider can invade Rhaegar's room and he is attacked (read: surprised) and screams (don't judge him, surprise spiders are terrible) and people (kingsguard, Daemon, Jon, etc.) all burst in to rescue him.

Would Jon ever stop giggling at him if this happened though...

Humor? HUMOR? You call potential spider trauma for Rhaegar humor? *clutches pearls* This is basically my original crack scenario, though, for Qelebrys to find her dragonflame, aka that Rhaegar gets jump-scared by a large spider, screams, and Qelebrys incinerates the, uh, threat. Cue everyone else bursting in, and he has to find an explanation for why a portion of the wall is now blackened and Qelebrys looks so smug.

Because if he fails to find an explanation, or fails his persuasion check, then Jon assuredly will bring this up for the rest of their lives. That's, like, Brothering 101.

Resonant definitely could use some levity in the near future, you're not wrong about that!

[syndrossi]

In Resonant, if Daemon marries Laena or Rhaenyra in the future, what would happen if they have a child that is really a summerhalled Daenerys with PTWP characteristics?

And with and without Daenerys in the picture, who would be a possible marriage match for the twins in the future?

I'm pretty sure if Daemon and either Laena or Rhaenyra have a PTWP daughter, Viserys is betrothing her so fast to Jace. That's basically his dream outcome of a Daemon match: a workaround for the inconvenient fact that the royal children who seem to be TPTWP are nowhere near the throne in terms of the succession.

There could be an argument made, of course, that perhaps PTWP children should wed one another, so it's possible that Viserys also would consider a Jon/Dany match.

As for other matches, it's a well-known problem that we have an excess of princes and a shortage of marriageable princesses, other than Helaena! Even if Laena has her twins, with or without Daemon, they're much closer in age to Rhaenyra's sons than the twins. Slim pickings, otherwise. Obviously, House Baratheon has a surplus of daughters, but I doubt Jon's going to be thrilled with that prospect for either him or Rhaegar.

[syndrossi]

My heart is so full right now! ❤️

Silly dresses? Nonsense, I love them! I especially love the idea that hair-braiding days (they absolutely must become a regular occurrence) are days that everyone dresses up for, and even Jon puts on a nice shirt. Let's start here, in fact.

First, the theme of ruffles, in all their various styles, shared across the three girls! Love the see-through medici collar that Rhaenyra's rocking, along with the texture/volume of the sleeve bubble-y ruffles (idk what they're called!). And then Rhaella has the short, more upright collar. And finally little Helaena's draping collar (it's so cute). It gives the suggestion of multi-generational styles, which fits in with your thinking of Rhaella getting to wear an ancestor's dress. I'm torn between Rhaenys and Alyssa. I feel like Alyssa would have haaaated the constriction in the sleeves, but it's not like she needed to be ready to draw a sword or hop on a dragon at all times! 😂 There is just something about Viserys seeing a daughter of Daemon's in their mother's dress (especially when Daemon himself often reminds Viserys of Alyssa).

Guh, Rhaenyra's gown is gorgeous. I'm sorry, the red embroidered pattern? STUNNING. (I keep trying to figure out if it's mean to be anything in particular, or if it's "just" swirls.) Oh! I just noticed the translucent bottom of her sleeves that match the fabric of the collar. It's so delicate! So pretty! And her jewelry, as always, is flawless.

I don't think Rhaella's gown is too simple at all! Like you said, the adjustable lacings are practical for a girl of *squints* ten-ish? (I wonder if she takes an evil thrill in updating Jon on the status of her bosom, since she's the one who has to undergo a different puberty this time. It's only fair that he suffers too!) And you know she loves the little dragons at the bottom of the dress. The question about her necklace isn't who got it for her (obviously Daemon), but just how many ruby ones she has. 😅

And then Helaena's mirroring the complexity, pattern-wise, of Rhaenyra's. Given how short a window there is for a little girl to wear any of her dresses, it really speaks to her royal birth that she has one so intricate!

I also love Jon's shirt. It looks comfortable and stylish, which is perfect!

Now for the captured moment / everyone's expressions. The softness on Rhaenyra's face is so sweet. You can tell she feels so content getting to pretend she has a daughter for the day. And hey, her braiding may be more simple, but it looks stylish on Rhaella!

I think Rhaella's expression is my favorite? I 100% read it as her staring in transfixed horror at what is being done to Jon's hair, along with mild concern that he may not be able to get said hair out of some of Helaena's, uh, braids. (Meanwhile, what an adorable hairstyle she has going on Helaena with those pigtail-y braid loops!)

Helaena's is as cute as she is. It looks like a sort of shock mixed with glee that someone is actually willing to let her do whatever she wants to their hair. I can't tell if she's handing Jon some ribbons to hold while she works, or if he just handed them to her at her request!

Joooonnnnnn! ❤️ I take it back, he's totally getting handed the ribbons and is faintly wondering wtf is going on back there with his hair while he eats tasty snacks from the bowl and plots what a campaign against the Others would look like in an era of dragons, if necessary. I just love how willing he is to go with the flow, even as he senses he might regret it.

And on to the miscellany...

I always enjoy your backgrounds, and so naturally I love the mint wallpaper here and the fancy textured rug.

The fruit bowl! With the tiny little dragon in front! Why does this not exist in real life so that I may own it? 😭 But also just the extra depth it adds to the story of what's happening. The fact that someone made sure that snacks are available for their spa/torture-Jon day. Also, wait a minute, slices of DRAGONFRUIT in the DRAGON bowl? 👀 I see what you did there!

How much do I love the little utensil sticking out of Jon's mouth. IT'S SO STINKING CUTE. Yes, good, eat your snacks, Jon!

And of course the box of brushes and ribbons. Well. It was probably just for ribbons, but it makes a handy spot to place the brushes! Very good addition, thank you, Helaena.

In conclusion: this is best post-stressful-week gift anyone could dream of! ❤️❤️❤️ Thank you so much for thinking about me, and I feel forever fortunate that you continue to be inspired by my menagerie of AUs. 😅

Bonding time between the girls (+ Jon)

+

Fanart for @syndrossi ‘s au fic “Reversal B track”

A small treat for this job seeking & prep week, we your fans are crossing our fingers!🤞

In this verse they wear silly dresses... but in myy defense they could have been worse.

Rhaenyra has that sheer fabric that makes that cleavage “there but not there”

Helaena’s wardrobe is probably 60% greens, but she has golden/yellow hues too!

Rhaella’s dress is somewhat different cause I love the idea of her wearing an ancestor’s old dress (maybe Rhaenyra’s maybe Rhaenys’ maybe maybe Alyssa’s!)

Also, at that age I imagine having strings to adjust the width of the bodice is a sound choice... I still feel kinda bad I gave her a "less fancy" dress... -_-;

Also, I was wondering about the hairdos:

Is Rhaenyra’s work and easy French braid because she’s not used to doing a child’s hair? Or maybe she’s still skilled after her childhood and is doing something fancier?

Rhaella must be so good at doing hair, I bet she can do lots of things… I don't, so just imagine she made something cool

A child as young as Helaena would either try to be as professional as possible with their work or a complete mess… I’m still unsure what’s the outcome here….meh, Jon doesn’t mind.

That’s Healena’s box…she has so many ribbons

Man I want to eat dragon fruit right now…

[syndrossi]

Oh, hey! Just got updates from both companies. For Company A, sounds like they're struggling to find time for the interviewers to have a full debrief, but my recruiter said that things looked positive and asked to be kept informed on if any offers were imminent from other companies. For Company B, they're now trying to schedule the next set of interviews (5 of them).

Alas, the reward is always more interviews. 😂

Interviews for the week done! Waiting to hear back from Company A, who I interviewed with Mon-Tues. I feel like I did okay but not spectacularly with those, so it could go either way. If they want to move forward, it would be another two interviews before an actual hiring decision. For Company B, I did the initial interview, which is a live-coding exercise. I often get nervous about/flub the live coding interviews, but this one I crushed, so that was nice. My intensive studying push actually really helped with it. I expect I'll hear back from Company B early next week about getting the next set of interviews scheduled.

Hoping to have a little Vet AU treat for everyone later tonight. (It's at 1.2K right now with quite a bit more to go.)

[syndrossi]

Interviews for the week done! Waiting to hear back from Company A, who I interviewed with Mon-Tues. I feel like I did okay but not spectacularly with those, so it could go either way. If they want to move forward, it would be another two interviews before an actual hiring decision. For Company B, I did the initial interview, which is a live-coding exercise. I often get nervous about/flub the live coding interviews, but this one I crushed, so that was nice. My intensive studying push actually really helped with it. I expect I'll hear back from Company B early next week about getting the next set of interviews scheduled.

Hoping to have a little Vet AU treat for everyone later tonight. (It's at 1.2K right now with quite a bit more to go.)

[syndrossi]

Poor Veteran!Daemon is bluescreening so hard right now. *pats him*

[syndrossi]

Vet!Jon AU, you say? (Inspired by @jessalina's reply here, as well as being utterly sick of interview prep and stress.)

Daemon’s first glimpse came after a low pass on Caraxes over the pre-dawn push by Ryndoon’s men. His dragon’s neck turned from the battlefield, peering northward, and Daemon followed his gaze. Against the lightening sky, a large, dark shape had emerged from the clouds. Vhagar, he thought in surprise, picking up a hint of green. Had his brother at last decided to throw his support behind defending the Stepstones? The men below took up a cry of warning at the sight of a second dragon. A horn sounded, signalling retreat, and the Triarchy’s rats quickly scurried back into their caverns, abandoning the push. He and Caraxes turned as one back toward camp, setting down just as the incoming dragon began its descent. Not Vhagar, Daemon realized swiftly. He knew his father’s mount well, even if he had not seen her often since she had been claimed by Laena Velaryon. His mind set to racing, for there were no other dragons of such a size, claimed or unclaimed, and his grip on his saddle tensed, his body half-readied for a fight.

[syndrossi]

Pick any verse you've written or plotted -- what is Harwin Strong up to in that verse? Does he ever get to meet the twins? Would he think they're good influences on his sons *cough* Rhaenyra's sons?

How is Larys' torturing coming along? I assume he's having a fun time wringing secrets out of Reyne... Do you think he'll get along with the twins or set off all their warning bells? Rhaegar is a very empathetic and kind disney princess on top of being whip smart, and Jon had an entire arc about not judging people, re: bastards/cripples/broken things but also, Larys is... Larys...

Ooh, there are potentially some fun Harwin Strong dynamics in a few AUs! I haven't had him as Lord Commander of the City Watch in Resonant 'verse like he is in show canon (he was a captain in the gold cloaks in the books, but not their commander), but it might be worthwhile giving him the position in one or two AUs, because that puts him right at the forefront of Red Keep security.

Lynda's Letter AU might be a good candidate, when the boys are four or five? Jace would be born already, and possibly even Luke, and even though we don't get the hatchlings in that AU (since the twins end up with Vermithor and Silverwing), that doesn't mean the warlocks aren't still after them. Volantis also has a little sunk cost fallacy at play, perhaps.

So we'd get Daemon and Harwin working together on keeping the kiddos safe and the awkward specter of their affections for Rhaenyra looming between them. At least for Daemon he has a lot of distractions!

I feel like Harwin and Jon are an obvious choice for forming a bond, given Jon's little Lord Commander tendencies. (Doubtless also provoking jealousy from Daemon.) Jon also being quick to protect Jace and Luke if/when they endure insinuations about their birth would also win him over. Though I'm sure he'll also grow an appreciation for Rhaegar's peace-making abilities within the family. 😂

Meanwhile, in Resonant land...

I feel like Larys feels both impressed by the scope of some of Reyne's ambitions / how far he got and shocked that he managed to go unnoticed for so long. Like. Was anyone paying attention? (Or were certain people willfully blind because it benefited them? Is it worth reporting said people to Viserys, or better to use this information against them for his own ends?)

I'm almost certain that Jon retained nothing about Larys from his history lessons. His interest in spymasters would have been near zero when there were so many knights and conquesting kings and proud historical figures of the North to focus on! Rhaegar OTOH would know enough to be wary, since even after the war, no one had a clue whose side Larys ultimately had been on, or what he even hoped to achieve. Larys himself will want some kind of connection to the twins he can leverage, given how important they seem to be both internationally and domestically (with Viserys). They're quite the puzzle, and I'm sure he's dying to know why Volantis and their warlock allies are throwing near-infinite resources at what must be an extremely expensive, high-risk endeavor.

[syndrossi]

@immortalwalnut just shared some gorgeous art of Shadow with me and gave me the go ahead to repost for y’all to see. What a way to celebrate baby’s first dragonflame kill! (You can find my gushing below.)

Shadow, my sweet not-so-baby dragon! Why do I feel like he’s either laughing at my joke, or the last thing I ever see? 😂 (I swear, I’m not an assassin!)

Guh, the details (and lighting/shadows) are so stunning. His spikes and webbing and scales and plating always leave me in awe. Just—dragon anatomy! How What sorcery is this?! The way the light falling on the bronze of the webbing makes it almost look like distant flame when you really zoom in is so gorgeous. And the bronze of his underside almost shining like actual bronze!

Awww, his pearly toofers! (At least we know he hasn’t eaten anyone recently.) And of course, his expressive eyes and dragon grin. That inner ring of bronze within the turquoise is so pretty! He is the handsomest, fiercest young dragon in the realm! Black and bronze has never looked so good.

Then there’s the ~mystery~ in the background. It must be VERY smoky or misty for his wings to already be partly obscured by it, hmmm. Winterfell in the height of winter’s gloom? The Red Keep, smoky from flame? The mists of Dragonstone? IDK, I just love the glimpses of background story in all of your Shadow art, whether you had something specific in mind, or intentionally leave open for the imagination of anyone seeing it. Thank you, thank you, thank you both for being inspired and sharing this!

[syndrossi]

“Fuck Otto,” Daemon said, his voice hollow. “And fuck you, if it was at his counsel that you refused me.”

The grip on his shoulders tightened briefly, and for a moment, trepidation found its way through the churn of fury and anguish. His brother was king. No one spoke to him thus, not anymore. 

Does Viserys let Rhaenyra & Otto get away with speaking to him like that?

Otto would not dare, but then, he's not the type to approach Viserys while worked up into an emotional state. I do think he would challenge Viserys on various matters. Probably most often (in Regret and Resonant) on Daemon himself, since Viserys has actually fired Otto in the past for effectively scheming against Rhaenyra and thus he knows at this point that she's not a safe target. Whether he "gets away" with attacking Viserys's relationship with Daemon generally depends on how strong that relationship is at the moment (and how recently Daemon has fucked up).

As for Rhaenyra...I'm also not sure if she's bold enough to actually curse at him. When she's shown defiance in the more distant past, he has threatened her position as heir, even if he backtracked after. I think her defiance more often takes the form of acting out (which ends up hurting her own position) or avoidance/cold shoulder, which usually works in Otto's favor. The furthest I could see her going is to call Viserys a fool, and I doubt he would react well to it. She would "get away with it" in the sense of not being punished, but Viserys would probably not respond well to it.

Rhaenys seems to be the one person most capable of getting away with calling him a fool...which could be down to her not outwardly saying it. She challenges him and speaks frankly, but with enough outward respect to preemptively smooth any ruffled feathers. (I maintain that her being the eldest in their generation, and the presumed heir after Aemon for a long time when growing up with her cousins, left Viserys with a certain respect for her.)

[syndrossi]

Mm, speaking of Regret AU... how is young!Rhaenyra doing upon finding out Daemon has two kids?

Well, it's a bit overshadowed by the "House Royce is plotting treason/rebellion by keeping Targaryen children in secret with dragon eggs that just hatched" intel that everyone is currently operating off, and Daemon going MIA. 😅 But I'll bet she's dying to see them, because they must be adorable if Daemon is their father and she's super curious to see him in that role. (I'm sure Aegon, Aemond, and Helaena are adorable as well, but her feelings about them are much more complicated.)

There is likely also an inkling of "hm, Daemon's marriage will certainly be annulled, so what does that mean?" We're not at a point yet where Viserys will be super receptive to the match, as he hasn't had his PTWP alarm bells go off yet, but I'm almost looking forward to a dynamic where Viserys is playing matchmaker. (House Targaryen, y'all.)

[syndrossi]

I'm currently reading Regret AU Part 1 & I wanted to comment on this part. Viserys is annoyed when Daemon wakes him up in the middle of the night, demanding to see him.

“Daemon,” his brother said, a note of warning in his voice. “You cannot make demands of—”

Does Viserys react in a similar way when Otto does it? Knowing Otto, he'd be more polite about it.

Honestly, I doubt anyone other than Daemon dares be so, uh, forward about demanding the king's attention in the middle of the night. For Otto, there would need to be a literal emergency of a national security nature. He's a man of decorum.

But if he did, Viserys would be more polite for the sheer fact that Otto is more likely to have a "good reason" than Daemon. The very thing that Viserys most often likes about Daemon, aka that he does treat him more like a person (a brother), also annoys him if it crosses a very tenuous line that Daemon struggles to read because it changes so often. (It's a huge source of conflict between them, tbh. Half the time, Viserys is perfectly fine with Daemon being too familiar, but it's impossible to predict when he isn't.) Though in fairness, if anyone else pulled what Daemon did that night, they likely would have spent a night cooling off in the dungeons.

It certainly helped that Daemon had very good reason to be upset with Viserys, and he knew it.

[syndrossi]

In Resonant, who do you think would be more suited to rule as the next king, Jon or Rhaegar? And in that case who would be more suited be the other twin’s hand of the king?

I like the idea of either of them succeeding Viserys as his heir, but I have trouble seeing it happening without Viserys’s and Rhaenyra’s sons dying.

Which would be a plausible scenario where that happens without them dying?

And in Veteran how do you think Daemon would react to finding out about veteran Jon ?

Thank you so much for writing, I ADORE Resonant and it’s side verses💕✨✨💕

Jon's had quite a bit of seasoning, so he has a definite leg up there. I see him as more of a "rock the boat" kind of king, willing to challenge the existing status quo and force change upon the realm. Where he would struggle, IMO, is in doing so without tipping the whole boat over. We saw in ASOIAF how his more "radical" notions set him up for the mutiny. For example, Jon is less likely to see the "point" of an expensive tourney when the money could go instead toward something more practical. Which is admirable! But tourneys are actually important for drumming up popular support, showing off all you've done for the realm, and shmoozing with the lords of the realm. Even kings need to network!

So Rhaegar would have his hands full, pun intended, as Jon's Hand in balancing Jon's more straightforward approach with getting buy-in from the various lords and ladies of the realm (and in winning over the hearts of the smallfolk, which is just as important). But I do see their styles and strengths as very complimentary.

I don't think Rhaegar would make a bad king himself, but I feel like his heart would be less into it? It seemed very much a duty that weighed heavily on him in canon. (Potentially up to the point where he finally "snapped" and chose to do something reckless/selfish, to the ruin of House Targaryen.) Not as much would change under his rule vs Jon's, assuming Jon as Hand doesn't talk him into a bunch of reforms, which is certainly possibly/likely. He would be a more involved king than Viserys for certain, but also distracted by his own passions (dragons, namely). I could see him undertaking a few ambitious projects that Aerys attempted and failed at, like rearchitecting/designing King's Landing itself to something more manageable.

It's a bit academic right now, since like you mentioned, there isn't really a clear-cut path to kingship for either of them given how far down they are in the succession, outside of a lot of death or Viserys going full send on the PTWP prophecy and deciding (like Jaehaerys does in Regnal AU) that it actually confers the responsibility of ruling upon them.

As for Veteran AU, Daemon basically finds out all at once about all three of his sons when Vet!Jon flies to the Stepstones with his little twin brothers and their hatchlings in tow. Vet AU is...a bit shaky in terms of Jon backstory, since it basically depends on a) Jon being born right around when Daemon married Rhea and b) Jon disappearing in a way that either no one in the realm knows about him other than Rhea or everyone is aware of + mourns the apparent death of a child who would have been fourth or fifth in line to the throne (Baelon -> Viserys -> Rhaenyra? -> Daemon -> Jon). If the latter, then obviously Daemon is flummoxed/gutted that his child lived and was actually stolen. And absolutely furious that Rhea chose to steal his other two children by sending them away to live with Allard.

[syndrossi]

Rhaegar, knows he’s in trouble but isn’t confessing: You want to tell me what I did?

Viserys: Do you want to tell me what you did?

Rhaegar: I don't know what I did.

Viserys: Then I don't know what you did.