#shaera x qoren

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxxvi

summary -

the mind is a fickle thing

(yes I’m reusing a moodboard, I fear I have zero energy to make a new one skskskks)

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the battle of the burning sea - 130 AC | glbh

“it is said that the bloodiest of days during the dance of dragons was merely a bait for prince regent aemond targaryen, set by prince qoren martell of dorne. two men, a sun and a dragon, set the coast alight with their fires, and some say that even the sea burned that day. and at the end, it is rumored that prince qoren only laughed in the face of prince aemond when the latter learned of the true intention of the battle—of the trap he had walked right into, of the insurance he had just lost. some blamed prince qoren for the destruction and death that would follow. some blamed princess shaera for the madness that took prince aemond’s mind and sent him on a holy mission to raze the riverlands.”

- archmaester gyldayn in f&b

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxxvii

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threads of flesh stained by the paint of kin

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxxiii

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a lesson in avarice

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxxi

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mothers are not meant to remember their children longer than they got to know them.

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxix

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and I want your quiet, your screaming and thrashing

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The Prince of Dorne had been felled by a wingless dragon.

- qoren, chapter xiv, glbh

He gathered her into his arms, a burning sun embracing a weeping dragon, and though her grief was like water to fire, he held her ever tighter.

(Once, he had thought her to be the fire of them both—a dragon.

“We can stay here a while,” Qoren whispered into her hair. “Even if you catch fire, I’ll still hold you as long as you need. I may not be a dragon, but I’ll endure it. For you, Shaera, I’ll burn.”

But now…now her tears drowned him like the hot summer sea. How could he ever forget that first and foremost, she was of the sea. And the sea always did well to absorb the sun’s heat.)

- qoren, chapter xxxii, glbh

“But I will certainly strive to make you as happy as I can, even if it’s not half as much as you deserve.”

“I don’t deserve as much as you seem to think, my prince,” Shaera whispered with burning shame.

“Unfortunately for you, Shaera Velaryon, I believe you deserve the world and more.”

- shaera, chapter xxiv, glbh

qoren and shaera from green lies, black hearts

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qoren and shaera, the prince and princess of dorne | green lies, black hearts

a huge thank you to lizzy (@/dragontheofhouse on tiktok) for another stunning edit🤍

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oh, goddamn, my pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand

taking mine, but it’s been promised to another

shaera | aemond | qoren to ivy by taylor swift

- green lies, black hearts

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queen shaera targaryen, the unlikely | GLBH AU, inspired by this edit. this one very much fits older shaera :)

there was not a soul who presumed the quiet firstborn of rhaenyra targaryen would ascend the iron throne, but the dance of dragons had burned away nearly all of house targaryen in a mere two years. with her brothers dead, and her only remaining family her stepsisters and a mere child, shaera velaryon took the name targaryen and was named queen of the seven kingdoms—a sight her half-year queen of a mother would have liked to see. and while she sat the throne in king’s landing, her husband—only in name, some would say—sat the throne in sunspear, officially welcoming dorne into the crown’s purview for the first time. at just twenty years of age, shaera targaryen, the first of her name, had done what her ancestors could not.

but throughout her reign, grief followed her. she had lost nigh her entire family in the war, save only for her stepsisters, baela and rhaena, and her brother, aegon the younger. gone was her dragon, slaughtered by her uncle’s, sunfyre, in a cannibalistic rage. gone was her lover, still chained to his saddle at the bottom of the god’s eye. gone were her brothers and mother and fathers.

similarly to aegon, she wore only black, forever in mourning. however, on the namedays of those she still had left, many claimed she wore velaryon blue and targaryen red, and sometimes a small smile could be seen slipping through her perpetual despair. when she welcomed a daughter back from sunspear a year after the war—one many thought to be a bastard for her pale hair and dark eyes that belonged to a kinslayer—it was only that girl, named visenya for a sister who never got the chance to live, who could truly rouse the queen from the storm hanging over her head. then there was a son, a boy with dark hair and even darker eyes donning the name aemon. though he was surely the son of the prince of dorne, there was little doubt he reminded the queen greatly of her lost love. and when her brother viserys was returned, many claimed to see the first true smile on shaera targaryen’s face—their embrace on the docks of blackwater bay enough to drive many to tears.

for thirty years, shaera targaryen was queen, wearing not the crown of her mother—for that had been sold in exchange for a betrayal rhaenyra would never recover from—but the crown of both a conqueror and usurper. though her reign was largely peaceful, some say the rubies of aegon’s crown were cursed, reddened by the blood spilled to form the seven kingdoms and break them apart as well.

first, her husband would pass quickly. his death would come in the form of a letter brought by ravens from the south, sent by his firstborn daughter, who inherited dorne and loved rhaena of pentos. shaera was said to have grieved quietly and in private, only thirty years old and already made a widow—some would say for the second time. she would not take another husband despite the urgings of the twins, who only wished to see her happy.

next went her son. aemon was only two-and-ten when he was found dead. some said the greens still had supporters so long after the war, some said there was a wish to push the queen to madness so her brother, aegon, could take over—now a man. some said the boy merely had a weak heart and succumbed to an illness that hid deep within him. but the death of aemon was enough to remind many of the queen before, who at the death of jacaerys velaryon seemed mad with grief and chose only to haunt the halls of dragonstone and the red keep. such was a similar state for shaera, who after her son was burned on a pyre, seemed incapable of ever smiling again.

neither her sisters nor her brothers could bring a semblance of peace to her. even the sight of morning, rhaena’s pink dragon, couldn’t stir a moment of nostalgia in her heart—she and aegon were similarly broken by the dragons of old. for namedays, the birth of baela’s and rhaena’s children, the visits from aliandra martell, shaera simply sat upon the iron throne, a crown of rubies upon her dark and greying hair. she only ever watched. she never partook. the last time she danced was with a man lost to a lake.

it was only when her daughter, visenya, wed aegon in an attempt to stall any potential civil wars before they could build, that some say shaera actually cracked a smile, small and weak as it was. though the realm saw them wed per the seven’s wishes, shaera had them wed per their house’s true religion on dragonstone—with fire and blood. neither were truly happy, for their lives had been nothing but loss, but for a moment, many say visenya and aegon found peace. and some say, while aegon always wore black for his mother, visenya always wore green for her true father.

from their marriage came three children: daemon, daenerys, and aenys. but grief was great and sorrow ever present for two children born in a civil war, and visenya was left widowed when aegon died of consumption at only six-and-thirty. some say she could not bear to live without him, and her heart broke one night, slaying her in her sleep, leaving her children to baela and alyn, who took the three in without issue.

shaera, hearing news of her daughter’s and brother’s death, called for her remaining family to return to the red keep. many wondered if she would abdicate to viserys for her grief was too great. she named viserys her heir, baela her hand, alyn the master of ships, rhaena the master of laws, and aliandra the master of whispers. when all was said and done, shaera bid her court a farewell, claiming she was far too tired to continue and that she would return to court on the morrow with news for the approaching winter. lord cregan stark, a dear friend of hers, was set to return after years protecting the north.

however, when he returned to see his queen, he was met only by a corpse. in her sleep, at the age of fifty—almost thirty years of ruling—queen shaera targaryen died. some claimed foul play. some said she deserved it for being a woman on the throne. some simply wrote songs about the grief she endured, and the peace she had brought, unlikely as she was. death had swept through house targaryen once more, but shaera ensured it stood strong, for she settled succession and protected her youngest brother’s claim before she passed. lord cregan stark was known to have lauded her for knowing when her time was near but remaining selfless enough to not return to her family, who all undoubtedly waited for her beyond the living veil, until all was settled.

unlikely, unwilling, shadowed always by grief in a black veil that never seemed to leave her hair, shaera targaryen was a good and just queen despite it all. and while her mother ruled only for half a year, she protected rhaenyra’s memory and claim for thirty long and prosperous years. years that many claim to be better than they should have been. years that went free of blood after so much was spilled before.

reunited once more with her family in death, some say baela and rhaena and viserys and aliandra all had similar last words—that they wished to return to their families. some even claimed that shaera’s last words were a breath of relief, at finally being free, and she called to her brothers and mother and fathers and daughter and son and husband.

and to aemond targaryen, who shaera velaryon loved before she was shaera targaryen. who the good queen refused to let him be known as a kinslayer in all of the histories written in thirty years of ruling. he was merely prince aemond to her.

and she was his shaera, reunited once more.

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xxxii

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the blood is rare and sweet as cherry wine

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Qoren Martell dilf with his controversially much younger wife enthusiasts really won this chapter is all I’m gonna say

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green lies, black hearts - chapter xv

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the lady’s favor

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I have seen multiple writers add more love interest even after the fic was published it’s genuinely really not crazy enough to call someone an “imposter” or some shi like that 🤠 also I highly doubt that they have “proof” that they are willing to show seeing that they plan on staying on anon to complain about FAN FICTION about a FANTASY WORLD 🧍‍♂️

what gets me is like… Qoren’s been tagged for so so long. He’s been in the fic officially as a pov character since chapter 10 of a total 60. He’s been in almost every chapter published. He has flirted time and time again with Shaera. He would never be an option for her however IF AEMOND DIDNT KILL LUKE WHICH WAS ALWAYS GONNA HAPPEN!! MCD is tagged!! I’ve never shied from that. I think people got unrealistic expectations though because of other aemond fics where Luke lives and Aemond goes team black, but I’ve never made the fic out to be like that. Ever. I think too the honeymoon bliss period for shaemond was so long, people forgot I still had over half the fic to complete lol

As my beloved friend and LONG TIME reader of GLBH (genuinely here since chapter 1 was posted and that’s how we met) Elysesium, stated to me:

Shaemond is just like the Kurt Wagner quote from X-Men 97 “There is no love without sin, love is best measured in what we forgive”

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Tumblr deleted my account but did you REALLY think it would stop me from being xxpeppermintxx109's most dedicated fan?

I was listening to Ivy by Taylor Swift yesterday (again) and it reminded me of your work (again). Is this not heavily Laena x Robb x Tywin coded?

Clover blooms in the fields

Spring breaks loose, the time is near

What would he do if he found us out?

Crescent moon, coast is clear

Spring breaks loose, but so does fear

He's gonna burn this house to the ground

How's one to know?

I'd live and die for moments that we stole

On begged and borrowed time

So tell me to run

Or dare to sit and watch what we'll become

And drink my husband's wine

Anyway I had to send this in because I have an itch I cant scratch (thanks again tumblr) but yeah

- Goth 🕯️

GOTH MY BELOVED😭

No cause you’re so right. This song is THEM (all three skskksks). I fear every TS song can be applied to the glbh-u and I think that’s so funny cause I went into these fics listening strictly to Icelandic blues rock and some Tom Odell LMAOO

The way this song is also so aemond x shaera x qoren

AND rhaegar x rhaenyra x jaime

i fear I have brain ROT when it comes to this sort of dynamic

WE WILL GET YOU BACK, TRUST!!

- your number one supporter, mint

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Pep!! Here (again) to tell you how incredible chap 20 was!! :') My absolute favourite part was Aemond's initial response to Shaera's collapse. Not flying into a rage or going numb or being sad but wondering how she'd act in the situation as if she wasn't the one who was injured. Trying to play make-believe as if she was gonna walk right in as a spectator. The part where he wanted to clean the blood hit me so hard I literally cried bc that resonated so much with my own experience of grieving. I think a lot of stories tend to gloss over/neglect the fact that denial is one of the first and most instinctive ways humans respond and process traumatic/sorrowful events. When I first knew that someone close to me was terminally ill, I didn't react by crying or being upset. My initial thought was about when I'd get a chance to cook with them again- which is ludicrous bc I knew deep down that would never happen anymore- but that was how I found myself dealing with the heaviness of everything. The way you wrote that part in the story truly makes me think that you know what it means to live as the characters you write- that they're real, complex individuals that live and experience things the way we do too. Love you for that!! On a separate note, Baela and Qoren really stuck out to me so much this chapter!! Baela- I LOVE HER. The way she's both the family's voice of reason and so loving of her family is amazing. Baela really shone in this chapter- what with cleaning Shaera's blood and supporting Rhaenyra and comforting Joff, this queen had A LOT on her plate. Second mother of the blacks honestly. I especially appreciate how grounded Baela is in the reality of everything that's happening, while Shaemond are fools in love and all. But obviously the backdrop of their relationship is immensely tense and political, and I think Baela provides that timely reminder. Also Qoren omfg, I've always been neutral towards him but I loved him in this chapter??!!?? The way he managed the whole poisoning fiasco and the realisation of what it was that Shaera drank AND how he still cares so deeply about her in spite of what he knows. Honestly if Shaera's not gonna husband him up, I AM. Qoren x ayalou truther now!!! Also I think the manner in which you've laid out the relationships between the blacks and the greens in this fic is so intricate. And it really came to the forefront this chapter. A regret I've always had after reading f&b is that there wasn't much room given to exploring the complexity of the relationships between both parties. It was pretty clear they hated each other, yes, but there wasn't the same kind of tension and layeredness to it as GLBH imo. Anyway I can't believe I've written a whole essay in your asks AGAIN (when I struggle with writing 1-paragraph long discussion posts for school lol)- sorry if I was rambling!! TLDR: I love you + your work so much and cried multiple times reading this chapter. Sending you warm hugs!! <3

AHHH HI AYA! THANK U FOR THIS DEVASTATINGLY KIND ASK!! I’ve been wanting to post a little something but I like to give people like 5 ish days before I post anything about the chapter, so I hope that’s okay!!

THE DENIAL!! While Aemond is certainly the most rash out of all of them (in my opinion cause of his actions in f&b and even a little in hotd), I think there’s a certain hesitance. And denial! Because why would anyone think that Shaera of all people has been poisoned? Shaera mf Velaryon?? The girl who literally could not even hurt a fly?? There’s also a realization that the girl he very much is infatuated with is doing something she should not be (bleeding) and that’s fucking horrifying. He knows blood bothers her and he knows that he would do anything to keep her from bleeding if it meant she was comfortable, but he can’t do that, and I think that makes him go error 404 for a moment, and even then that denial carries over to when he finds out about the betrothals. Now he’s agitated and clearly ready to snap (and he does a little), but when he hears about the marriages, he has to shut down again before he does something bad and there’s something dangerous about him rn. He’s not acting poised—save for when he goes to Shaera’s bedside, but even then, he’s brought to tears even if he doesn’t realize it—and that’s not the Aemond that Alicent (and Criston) raised, and only his siblings are realizing that.

I’m so glad you loved Baela and Qoren this chapter!! They’re some of my favorite characters to write! Baela truly is the voice of reason and she cares so much about keeping everyone safe and happy, even if that means risking the short-term happiness here and there. She truly thinks like the future Queen of the Seven Kingdoms and she’s certainly the best of Daemon and Laena, and that’s why I love her so fucking much (even if people are upset she’s not team shaemond LMAO—Guys it’s for a good reason!!). And Qoren!! My dilf. My king. My baby girl. Qoren certainly has his jealous moments prior to this chapter but there’s a certain smugness about him. A security. He knows that he has Shaera’s hand secured and at this moment in time, he could care less who she’s fucking (though he certainly has his suspicions and it’s not a happy thought) because that’s not what matters. This isn’t the right time for him to get jealous (or at all) and he understands that because he’s older, more mature, and has many more life experiences than some people sksksksk. His goal isn’t even to save Shaera cause he wants to marry her but because she deserves to be saved. She deserves to live, and Qoren will not see another woman die unnecessarily if he can help it (and he can certainly help it this time, whereas with his wife, he couldn’t.)

I’m so glad the relationships are landing. That means so much to mean cause I spend so much time on making sure I build them as organically as possible. They take a lot of time, but I always feel so pleased with how they turn out with each chapter and I’m so happy that people love them all just as much as I do.

Thank u so very much for this lovely comment aya. I loved it and I hope this response ,does it justice <3

-p