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It's Nice To Have A Friend

Chapter 5: My Heart, My Hips, My Body, My Love

Summary: Fate is cruel on how it goes about obtaining its desires. It must be fate, because there is no other explanation for how perfectly molded Y/N and Helaena are to one another. They complement one another like opposite sides of a coin. Where Helaena is shy, Y/N is outgoing. Helaena has a photographic memory. Y/N has emotional inteligence. They have the right temperament to be the missing piece in one another’s lives. Ying and Yang. Then there are the boys. Love them or hate them, they’re there. Even the adults cannot escape the Targaryen chaos, and the fallout doesn’t spare the minors simply because they’re adolescents. Follow how Y/N and those around her carve out lives for themselves amongst the weight of the Targaryen legacy in a modern Westeros.

Word Count 6.2k

Pairings: Aegon x Y/N, Aemond xY/N, hints of Jace x Y/N, Platonic! Helaena x Y/N, Father Figure! Harwin x Y/N, Mother Figure! Rhaneyra x Y/N, Mother Figure! Alicent x Y/N

Warnings: 18+ you’ve been warned

Lots of profanity, sexual innuendos, drug and alcohol use, boys being stupid jerks, infidelity, divorce, you get some smut this chapter!

A/N: Chapters drop on Thursdays. Please, please, please, please share your thoughts. I wanna hear them. I don't bite, promise!

Additionally, don't come for me with the Valyrian god names. Take it up with the official wiki I consulted.

Sereies Masterlist

Y/N would describe nostalgia as the misty scent of pine furs mixed with Weirwood sap. It was that scent that filled her senses during childhood adventures. If you added a whiff of smoke, countless parties came to mind. It was a tradition, the outgoing senior send off. Of course, some college students would attend as their siblings or close friends were that year’s crop. Afterwards, they were welcomed into the local bars. This was the toast to it all; a goodbye to the sanctuary of revelry they’d spent the last four years enjoying. Storries from previous years lingered like a legacy. What tales would their send off leave behind?

Y/N’s obviously flopped. It went from a proposed bacchanalia to a nearly year long feud with Aemond. That was over now; apologies made and friendships mended. Y/N could hold a grudge, but she wasn’t so cruel that she’d ruin Aemond’s send off in retribution. It was Jace’s as well. Part of her considered this a potential redo. She could leave pleasant memories in place of scars.

Y/N made it to the clearing earlier than most party goers. Her intent was to arrive before Aemond and Jace, to help set up. This was for them and they shouldn’t be responsible for preparation.

In a refrigerated bag, Y/N carried a few handles of liquor and litters of mixers. There never came a time where they had to ration booze, but if you wanted something specific, you had to bring it. She left her contribution on the empty kegs turned tables from years prior. Graduation years were spray painted across each one. They went back decades.

Y/N planned to start directing drink set up when she caught the familiar sight of long silver hair on a masculine form. Aemond was crouched on one knee next to the firepit looking like he wanted to start it.

“You shouldn’t be setting up. This party is for the graduates. That includes you.” Y/N’s announcement startled Aemond, though to the untrained eye, he hadn’t reacted at all. Y/N knew his tells, but she knew better than to tease him. He’d be in a sour mood for the rest of the night.

A faint frown draped over Aemond. Part of him knew she’d gotten to him. He also hated Y/N seeing him struggle, and starting this fire wasn’t easy. “Well since it’s a party for me, I had to make sure it was done right.”

“Control freak.” Y/N rolled her eyes and smirked knowingly. Before joining Aemond on ground level, she rearranged the firewood so air could better circulate and feed the flames.

Aemond scoffed, though he was slightly amused. “Says the girl literally taking control.”

Y/N kneeled down and claimed his tools. She worked, engaging in his obvious desire to spar. “Aemond, your talents surpass others in many things. Lighting a fire, I fear, is not one of them.”

She stroked his ego while taunting him. His favorite flavor of fun. “And yet the heiress knows how.”

“Huh,” It was a dry and dark utterance from Y/N. “With my history, yeah.”

That was the nail in the coffin to any quips Aemond could retort. How do you win an argument when the trauma card is played? “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“No, no, I took it there.”

“Are you… okay?”

“Yeah,” Y/N sighed and relaxed back onto the forest floor with a plop. She crossed her legs and left her now free hands in her lap. “I just…wanted to understand it. The ways to start it, manage it, end it.”

Aemond nodded in consideration and focused on the unlit logs. “I can see why.”

“I know it’s fucked up.” Y/N continued and refused to look up from her hands and the lighter in them. “But sometimes I wonder what they went through.”

Y/N sparked the lighter and orbited her hand around the flame. Her fingers danced nearer and then distanced from the light like she dared it to grow and claim her too. “What did they feel last? Was it the flames? Or the smoke that did them in. Like if I know the feeling, I could go back and stop it all together.”

Aemond wasn’t skilled in comfort. He sharpened his tongue long ago and dulling the edge with sweetnesses was a difficult act. He tried the best he could, sharing what he knew. “Our ancestors used fire as a tool of divination and sorcery.”

She scoffed at his ridiculous connection. “And it only brought death and destruction to their enemies and to them.”

Aemond shrugged. Regardless of feelings of morality, it was their legacy and legacy was everything to Aemond. “It gave us what we have now.”

Her hard focus snapped to him. Defiance and a tad of horror lived within her gaze; though her words sounded like a caress. “Was it worth it?” He blinked and withdrew in slight intimidation. She spoke of how horrid fire and flame were, yet here he felt their heat radiate off of her. “The histories say they used dark magics to inject fire into their blood and the blood of their descendants.”

“Perhaps that’s why you’re always so hot headed.” Y/N mumbled.

His immediate reaction was a sharp laugh. “Very clever.”

Y/N side eyed Aemond with a sleek smirk. “I have to be, to keep up with you.” The lighter sparked a piece of kindling. She tossed it into the larger pile beneath the main wood. Then she earnestly addressed him. “Now, the question is, can you keep up with me?” The pair shared an understanding smile.

Hours in and the party was at its height. Many graduates seemed invested in this graduating class. Empty cups already littered the ground. This year’s keg was half tapped. Delinquency filled the entirety of the forest clearing.

Jace and a few of his tourney teammates arrived together like the rowdy pack of boys they were. Aegon and Helena, the last of age Targaryans left in the house, made their way together. Aegon didn’t mind returning to the familiar surroundings. Here, he was the biggest dragon in the clutch. As a rising third year university student, he was admired simply for his age and experience. Soon to be university freshman girls flocked to him like a moth to a flame. Each started by asking for his advice, but it quickly devolved into shameless flirting. A giddy sense of pride filled his chest. Aegon craved the desirability and praise he’d often been neglected. Having this many admires was the drug he spent the summer searching for.

Aemond was further up Y/N’s ass than normal this summer. Almost every time Aegon sought her out, Aemond was there. He was used to tolerating Helaena’s presence. She and Y/N were best friends. Aemond though, he’d never been this open with his desire to be close to her. Often as Aegon went to sneak in a smoke with Y/N, Aemond deterred his efforts. Aegon became frustrated with the lack of Y/N’s attention, but he’d never admit it. He felt like an addict in relapse with the attention he was currently receiving. Still, nothing truly felt the same as the first dose. In his case, that was Y/N. He hoped that the party being for Aemond, he’d actually drink to the point of getting drunk, and Aegon could claim some of Y/N’s affections.

He excused himself from his collection of fans with the excuse that he needed a new drink. Helaena happened to be by the drink stand with one of her other friends. Though few they were. It was the perfect opportunity to check in on everyone’s status and whereabouts.

“Sister. Rayel.” Aegon acknowledged as he poured a fresh concoction into his plastic cup.

“Hey Aegon.” Rayel’s smile was bright and wide. Aegon added her to the tally of girls he could claim.

“Where’s the party animal and Y/N?” He hoped the sarcastic replacement for Aemond’s name would make the question casual enough to avoid suspicion.

Rayel jumped in before Helena could respond. “Oh, I just saw them walk off that way.” The enthusiastic girl pointed in a direction that was through the thick of the crowd.

“You just missed them replenishing their drinks.” Helena clarified in a more even tone.

Rayel nodded in agreement. Her helpfulness, though nice, came across as an obvious attempt to hold Aegon there. “Yeah, they were talking about some favor she owed Aemond and wanted to talk in private. I think they’ll be gone for a while.”

Helena and Aegon locked widened eyes. Both were all too familiar with Y/N and Aemond’s history. Every detail was well known as they endured nine months of ranting. Aemond wouldn’t bring up that cataclysmic affair for nothing. Helaena’s alarm made Aegon more perturbed. She knew more about this summer’s events than anyone else. If she had cause for concern, Aegon was fucking terrified.

…

Aemond had Alys in the corner of the room where the lights dimmed. His slender fingers lightly held her hips. Her graceful arms lazily draped over his shoulders. He was beaming. She was laughing. They looked good together. It was early second semester of his first year and he’d found someone just for himself.

Y/N watched on. She had a perfect view from the couch. It was a bittersweet feeling. Aemond had Alys, and she was happy he was happy. Helena had something with her classmate Jenning that no one could quite comprehend, but she was content. Jace pursued a girl named Anya. Aegon and Rhaela had their girls. Baela was satisfied with the title as the campus’ biggest flirt. Everyone had someone or something, and Y/N was stuck on the couch- drink in one hand, phone in the other, eagerly awaiting a text that would never come. She downed the remainder of her drink and allowed her head to rest on the couch’s back. She hoped the alcohol would quickly kick in or someone offer her a smoke.

The gods deliver, because she felt the couch cushions shift with someone’s weight. “Our little bird has left the nest.” Aegon, and his voice was jovial. Score, there was her plug and she’d play along. He was good company for her.

“Yes, he spread his wings and flew!” She was amused by the irony of it all. Her head lulled to the side to address him and she didn’t try to hide her sentimental distress.

Confused and slightly suspicious, Aegon dramatically placed his hand to his chest. “Don’t tell me you’re upset by it.”

“Not at all.” Y/N wistfully giggled. “I’m happy fo him. Just kinda… lonely. Yah know?” She shrugged like the feeling was a passing phase, something common.

Aegon rolled his eyes and reclined into the couch, clearly over whatever she was going on about. “You need to stop being a doormat for that guy.”

Y/N narrowed her vision, but remained friendly. “You’re one to talk. I can see at least three girls shooting daggers at me for daring to hold your attention. Cause you have them on the line!”

“Yeah, but they’re not you.” He stated as if it were as obvious as the sky being blue.

Her narrow vision rounded in confusion. “What does that mean?”

Aegon’s hands came down on his knees. “Ugh, you’re killing my buzz. This is a crossfaded conversation.” He rocked into a standing position and offered her a helping hand. “Come on.”

Y/N couldn’t help but smirk as Aegon pulled her through the mass of individuals huttled in this off campus house. She didn’t care what it looked like he was directing her to do. Onlookers could gawk or mind their business. She didn’t care. He jiggled a few closed doors. When he found one unlocked and empty, he held the door open for her.

Y/N had no reservations about sitting on a neatly made bed. Aegon stood in front of her with a blunt between his lips. His lighter was sparking, trying to light the damned thing. Once he got it going and took a puff he handed it off to her. She inhaled and watched as he claimed the space next to her. They placed themselves on the edge of the bed, arm to arm.

Y/N coughed a little on the exhale. This wasn’t of the highest quality. “So you were saying.”

With the blunt between his fingers, Aegon took puffs between his thoughts. “You’re not the just-for-fun girl. Yeah, you’re a girl and sometimes you like to have fun-” His lips pouted in a very Aegon suggestion. “But you’re not the long term just-for-fun girl. You’re special. Yeah the ones on the line,” He curled his fingers to quote her. “Were mad because you’re the one my attention was on, but at the end of the day they know it’ll never be something serious. How many times has that ass made you think it would be?” Even with the mix of liquor and drugs entering her system, Y/N still hung her head in shame. “Every time.”

“Right,” Aegon passed back the blunt. She needed it. “He wants the benefits of being with you but none of the restrictions that come with it. He doesn’t see how special you are, dump him, for good.”

“It’s easy to say, but sometimes I think Jayton is the only one who will ever make me feel-”

“Feel what?”

“Special. He called me his twin flame, and, and…” Y/N’s eyes welled with tears.

“Oh my fucking gods!” Aegon groaned and placed his palms to his eyes. “I’m gonna have to kick his ass.”

Y/n turned to him with amused disdain. “Don’t!” She exclaimed but she wasn’t too adamant, and shoved him.

Aegon used the force of her shove to recline back with her sculpted into his side. Her head rested on his chest and she felt safe enough to silently cry. He took the blunt from her so she could curl up how she liked. He took the hits he wanted and passed it back when she requested. They went on like this until they finished.

Once her tears dried, she shifted herself so she was chest to chest with Aegon. Her hands folded on one another and she rested her chin there. Y/N sighed, gratified.

Aegon propped his head up against a pillow. “It’s been a while since we’ve done this.”

“Yeah,” She pondered the timeframe. “Why is that?”

“You were stuck up a jackass’ ass.”

She chuckled. She was high. He amused her. “Oh yeah, by bad.” They laughed together for a good minute. It felt nice to be this close again. “When did you become so wise?” She wondered aloud.

“Always have been.” He shrugged despite her laying on top of him. “Just never show it.”

“Why haven’t you found someone?” It was a sharp turn in the conversation, but Y/N was simply following her thoughts.

Aegon frowned. “Who’s going to put up with me?” She huffed. “I can think of several girls.”

“No, I mean the mess that is my family, my stupid behavior, my vices. They’d run the first time the rose colored glasses slipped.”

“Please, if that were true you’d only see me at mandatory functions.”

“Doesn’t count.”

“Why not?”

“You’re special.”

“You keep saying that.”

“It’s true!”

Silence. Y/N didn’t feel like arguing and Aegon didn’t feel the need to prove the point any further.

Y/N’s chin popped up, proud and adamant. “I think they’d be a fool to see you- the real you- who loves and cares till it makes him bleed, and run.”

“You think?” His brow raised in disbelief.

Y/N sighed and shook her head at how ridiculous she found his self deprecating beliefs. “You’re handsome.” The smile that enveloped her lips and twinkled in her eyes was like reflected sunlight. “But there’s something ethereal about you when you let your guard down.”

Some of his curls clung to his forehead from the sweat he worked up earlier. She brushed them aside. It forced him to gulp. “Really?”

“Syrax, god of wine, ecstasy, and the handsomest of them all.”

Aegon’s Adam's apple bobbed. He searched for any sign of sarcasm, that she was teasing him. He found none. He received his fair share of female flirtations, but it felt different coming from Y/N. Her words were kind and genuine and seeped down into his very bones. He believed the compliments when they came from her. Her words reached the lonely little boy, starved for affection, within him. The very one that sought her attention from their first meeting.

His eyes glazed over in desire. Slowly, he lifted his head so his lips were within a hair of hers. He hesitated, looking from her eyes to her lips. There was a breath. Then another. Then they dove into the unknown together. Once their lips met, there was no hesitation. Almost a decade of history relived in a singular act. Every fight, compliment, insult, embrace, comfort, shame, fear, joy, pain, acceptance poured into their efforts like freshly spilled blood from an open wound. That’s the only way to describe the intensity of the moment; pouring, blending into one another. Their motions weren’t rough but desperate.

This was a form of companionship they’d stood just beyond the reach of for too long. Each chased the other, afraid the feeling would dissipate if they came up for air. The room spinned, and between the drugs, darkness, and lack of air- faces were fuzzy. When they latched once again, Y/N’s fingers intertwined within the mess of knots in Aegon’s hair. His fingers danced along her sides in a track leading from her hips up to the swells of her breast. In his greed, he wanted to feel everything she had to offer.

Y/N’s straddle widened to accommodate Aegon’s hips. They’d been in this position before. When they were younger it was in the heat of a disagreement. As they got older, boundaries thinned and it became a dangerous standoff. They knew how to play this game. Y/N ground her increasingly wanting core against the already firm bulge in Aegon’s jeans. He hissed against her lips. She chuckled in triumph until she had to moan. Aegon thrusted his hips up in a circular motion. The moans Y/N made were sinful.

In retaliation, she leaned in to nibble down his neck and to his exposed collar bone. He whined. Actually whined. He groped the supple flesh of her bottom to stabilize himself. That backfired. She was in a skirt, so he truly clutched a handful of her skin. She was in a godsdamned thong.

“Fuck.” He spoke in an extended exhale. Y/N straightened her posture to grind on him like he was a fair’s mechanical dragon. He was awestruck by her unabashed lust. He himself sat up and chased her lips in need of their bruising bliss. His hands slid up her now untucked shirt and over her breasts. He kneaded them and it caused them both to groan.

“Aegon.” Y/N was pained by desperation. He reflected the same distress. “I want to feel good.”

He nodded with abandon. He wanted it to. He’d come into his own hand, and occasionally other girls, at the prospect of the dream he now lived. “I will. Sevens help me I will. I lo-”

His near declaration was cut off by an intruder clearing their throat. Aegon’s grip on Y/N tightened to hide any potentially exposed skin. Startled, they searched for the origin of the disruption. There stood Aemond with a glare from the depths of the seven hells. Alys’ eyes were awkwardly downcast and arms crossed.

Y/N scrambled to untangle herself. She tried to look more presentable. It wouldn’t make her any less guilty.

Aegon was deeply annoyed with the intrusion. “And you’re here because?” He looked over his brother like he was the weird outcast from the back of the class trying to sneak a seat at the popular kid’s table.

“Seems the same as you.” Then his lips sneered as he addressed Y/N. “But at least we’re sober enough to know what we’re doing.”

“Hey,” Y/N’s guilt faded into anger at his accusation. “We’re equally stoned.”

“I can see.” Aemond snorted. “That’s why you let him paw at you like a rabid dog. Or was it desperation?” He cocked his head to the side, words flowing with condemnation. “What happened to being the one person he’d never touch?”

Y/N retreated into herself. It was all too much. Her disappointment from earlier, the substances, Aegon’s words of comfort, the feeling of his lips on hers, where it was leading, and his near admission. Now Aemond. It all spiraled in her mind like water circling a drain. She was a sinking ship. This was it. She found it more difficult to fill her lungs with air. She needed out. She needed to get out. She needed to get out now.

Without a second thought to her state of dress, Y/N flew off the bed and to the door. Her words vomited out her mouth as she was on the move. “I, I, it just happened okay. Don’t make it a bigger deal than it is.”

With no regard for himself, Aegon went after her in his disheveled manor. His single focus was to make sure she was okay. Aemond caught his forearm before he could make it out the doorway.

Blind malice had a hold over Aemond. He spat his words into his brother’s panicking face. “Hurts to be interrupted once you finally achieve what you’ve always wanted, doesn’t it?”

Aegon shook his arm free. He would’ve decked Aemond if he wasn’t so concerned about reaching Y/N. “Fuck you, you jealous, unwanted, scarred, creep.”

He jogged down the hallways of the building and out the back looking for Y/N. She only stopped when her feet touched the dew soaked grass.

Aegon encircled her from behind. His arms applied the grounding pressure she needed. Her sobs were heartwrenching. “Hey, hey, shh. It’s okay.”

Y/N didn’t cease her cries. “He’s right. He’s right.” Her head dropped forward in defeat. “I was desperate to feel wanted and I came onto you. And I shouldn’t have! You’re my best friend’s older brother, and we’re at each other's throats all the time. I crossed a line I shouldn’t have. I’m so stupid.”

“You’re not stupid.” Aegon rubbed his face into the crook of her neck. He couldn’t let go. “You’re smart, and sweet, and perfect, and I wanted to.”

“I wanted to, too. Gods I wanted you.” Her breaths were rigid and alternating between too deep and not enough. “But the thought of ruining things… all I want is peace.”

….

The senior send off was just another party. Another time for Y/N to be a social butterfly. However, this time Aemond managed to keep up with her most of the night. She was oblivious to the curious glances cast in their direction. She focused on the conversations in front of her. Aemond was quieter, more reserved, and aware of his surroundings. He noticed. He enjoyed the presumed envy.

He left her side to refill their drinks. Making his way from one side of the crowd to the other wasn’t easy. He was taller, but his presence wasn’t as vibrant as Y/N’s or Aegon’s. They tended to have an easier time navigating the crowds.

When he arrived at the drink station he was greeted by his sister and one of his classmates, Rayel maybe. He faintly remembered only because Y/N and Helena seemed to enjoy the girl. She was too eager for his taste. She appeared disappointed when Aemond didn’t embrace her in conversation. Why would he? She wasn’t anyone he wanted. Still, he didn’t want to receive backlash for being rude, so he indulged in simple one word answers. Perhaps that took up more time than he thought, because soon Y/N emerged from the crowd.

“Ah, I see what’s taking you so long.” Y/N stepped around Aemond and hugged Rayel. “Good company keeps you busy.”

“Sure.” Aemond curtly answered as he added mixers into their cups of alcohol.

Y/N rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. “Ignore him.” She said to Rayel.

“We certainly do.” Helaena chimed in. She smirked at the grimace Aemond sent her way.

“How was your summer exchange program in Dorne?”

“Oh my gods Y/N, you would not believe how incredible it is down there. I was telling Helena, first you think it’s going to be all miserable dessert but the residence is centered around an oases!”

Aemond filtered out the conversation. He had no care for what this girl did in Dorne. None of it was important. Tonight, it was him and Y/N. He’d spent the party by her side, allowing many exchanges, was pleasant with those who she exchanged with, and even gotten a dance out of her. It was time to move on to what he’d hoped for all night. He listened in once more.

“We should add that to our travel list.” Helena suggested. Y/N nodded.

“Before or after Valyria?” Aemond mused. He’d play along for what he needed.

Y/N chuckled and batted at his arm gently. “No, this is for my trip with just Helaena and I, you ditz.”

Aemond hummed. “I see. So long as we still have our trip…”

“Yes, our trip.” Y/N circled her index finger to signify Helaena’s inclusion.

“Here, let me show you some pictures I haven’t posted yet.” Rayel chirped and pulled out her phone to show the girls. Aemond rested his drink on one of the kegs, turned tables and used his free hand to gently grasp Y/N’s forearm.

“Your drink.” The cup was exchanged and Y/N grinned a small but bright smile. Aemond suddenly felt like the only person here with her; like everyone else were just blobs of colorful reflected light. This wasn’t a solo occurrence.

“Thank you.” Y/N took a sip and Aemond preened.

“Hey, can we go back to our conversation earlier?” Aemond was too focused on Y/N to notice Rayel’s peeking.

“What? The one where you were bragging about restoring that old dragon modeled sports car or the one where you said Landon Hills has as much class as his stepdad has Lannister loans?”

“No,” Aemond collected his drink and cocked his head. “The one about the favor.”

“Oh that conversation.” Y/N played along. “Must be important for you to bring it up twice.”

Aemond was smug with his banter back. “So important that I’d rather discuss it away from frivolous girls and their coddled trips.”

Over the years, Y/N became accustomed to Aemond’s open disrespect to others. It was hard not to. He wasn’t always subtle. She simply shook her head and wrapped her arm around Aemond’s. “Someone’s feisty tonight.” Before taking a step she turned to Helaena and Rayel and spoke louder. “We’ll be right back.”

Y/N pulled Aemond through the crowd. She was going in the direction of the lake, but Aemond had other ideas.

“This way.” He took the lead and turned their direction to where paths forked. Exiting the sea of people he shrugged away her confusion. “I thought it’d be nice to take a walk where you didn’t have to shout in every conversation.”

She accepted the conclusion without any objection. It would be nice not to strain her vocal cords for five minutes. Plus, Aemond put up with the crowd for hours now and she knew that drained him. She could be nice and go along with his suggestion.

They walked down a trail in silence, sipping their drinks for a few minutes before Y/N stopped at an old picnic table. Thinking that was as far as he needed, she took a seat on the table top.

Aemond’s lips upturned slightly, gently, and he shook his head. Once again, he used his free hand to grab onto her. This time, he took her hand instead. He was firm in decision but soft in execution. It wasn’t strange for him to be this tender every now and again. Momentary hand holding wasn’t odd either, but then he kept her hand. He folded his fingers between hers. His thumb glided over the smooth skin of the back of her hand.

They continued further down the trail until they came to a small clearing. The main party clearing was the size of a sport’s field. This clearing was the size of an inground swimming pool. It was easy to see an array of stars overhead, the light pollution of King’s Landing dulled by the vast forest estates of King’s Woods. The noise of the party and its music were a hum behind them. Y/N placed her cup down on the grass below and looked up at the stars above.

“Oh…” Her voice was hushed to match the stillness of the situation. “They’re beautiful.” She looked over to Aemond to find agreement, but all she found was the intensity of his gaze. He looked at her the way she looked at the stars. It was at that moment she truly understood the old saying: he looks at me like I hung the moon and stars. It caused her to swallow deep and it felt like a rock plummeted down her throat to her stomach. Trepidation tickled her skin like a current of electricity. There was no friendly excuse for the moment. She was on the edge of an unknown cliff about to fall, and part of her was excited for the drop. Everything in her was conflicted.

“Beautiful.” Aemond agreed, but they both knew he wasn’t talking about the stars. He was relaxed, and tender, and everything like the magnetic person he could be- if he just let the invisible weight of expectations fall. He shifted so that he went from being shoulder to shoulder, to being directly in front of her. She tried to hide herself by looking to the forest floor, their shoes, blades of grass, anything but meeting his eyes.

Aemond never dropped her hand. With his other, he took her jaw with his thumb to her chin. Through thick lashes she blinked and caught sight of how close his face was to hers. Her free hand laid flat against his chest. Whether to push him away or hold him close, she didn’t know. She took steps back but didn’t realize that she was pulling him along with her, still connected. Surprise took hold over her once she felt tree bark graze her back. She’d caged herself.

Y/N tilted her head forward to rest on Aemond’s shoulder. It felt like the safest option. The familiarity lulled her into pliability. Aemond dropped her jaw and instead cupped her cheek. He lowered himself so his temple rested on the top of her head. Eons passed in the seconds they stood together.

“We can’t” Y/N’s voice shook breathily from the difficulty she had breaking the silence.

Aemond’s hold on her cheek firmed as his fingers raised to brush through her hair. “We can.” He spoke with such conviction, beyond his normal tone of certainty. “I promise you, you’ll enjoy it.”

“I-” Their breaths mingled and she breathed in the alcohol scented puffs they exhaled. It enveloped her like the wind rustled the leaves off trees. The stomach lurching drop slowly crept to the forefront again.

“Just one kiss so I can know what it’d feel like” He tried to reason with her. He pulled back so he could tilt her for ease of access.

Her focus darted back and forth over his face. The dim light around them reflected off the whites of her eyes. Hypnotizing was the way he’d describe it. She was the maiden, a nymph, the goddess of love, Meleys herself. Everything he dreamed since he was ten. Before he knew what love and longing meant. It was right here in front of him, in his grasp.

“One little kiss.” He urged further. “To break the spell and maybe I can move forward.” In what direction, he did not specify.

“One?” Y/N croaked. Her eyelids fluttered closed and lips parted ever so slightly. Submission.

“Yes, one.” Aemond assured. Before he darkened his vision, he memorized every detail of her face. There was the way her brows creased in impatience. Orange blossom perfume lingered on her neck. Her perfectly plump lips were ready for him to seize and he did.

He ended her anticipation and brought the full force of his desire crashing down onto her. It was a tidal wave washing her out to sea. His lips molded against hers. His hold constricted, bringing her impossibly closer. She whined ever so high pitched and it caused him to smirk into the kiss. Everything was perfect in the world. He had everything he ever wanted in his grasp for him to devour- till he didn’t.

A bruising hand yanked him backwards by his shoulder. Aemond stumbled, heel catching a root, and he fell to the ground. He quickly went through the feelings of alarm, embarrassment, dejection, and finally hate. Above him, between his spot on the ground and Y/N, stood Aegon with balled fists. He looked ready to kill Aemond with his bare hands. After recognizing Y/N’s bewildered expression behind Aegon, Aemond could say the same.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Aegon wasn’t shouting, but his voice boomed in a serious way that caught both Aemond and Y/N off guard. “So desperate and depraved that you’d wait till she’s drunk to cash in a favor.” Aegon mocked Aemond with the word favor; like it was something pathetic. Like he was pathetic.

Something about Aegon’s words snapped Y/N back to reality. She was trying to get Aegon’s attention, pulling on his arm, hoping for his attention. “It’s not like that.” But there was a crumbling belief to her words.

“It is!” Aegon hadn’t centered his tone for her. Though he wanted her to remain behind him, she rounded to be in the middle. In desperate exasperation he waved in the general direction of Aemond. “That’s been his plan the whole night! Hells, the whole summer! Control the situation, again!” Despite Y/N blocking his path, Aegon hollered over her to spit at Aemond. “Isn’t that right?”

Wounded pride turned Aemond into a predator. His rise was slow and calculated like he was building energy to pounce. Y/N didn’t recognize the look behind his eyes. Once angelic, now appeared demonic. He was blind to the rest of the world, including her.

Aegon pushed Y/N out of the way in time to avoid being caught in the crossfire. Though Aemond was the better fighter, wounded pride made his consciousness go blank and his base instincts weren’t enough. Aegon easily sidestepped Aemond’s first attempt at a blow. Aegon had gone in the direction of his weaker eye, giving him the advantage. Using it, Aegon uppercut into Aemond’s stomach, a sure way to make him collapse.

History wasn’t linear, but a never ending, chaotic loop. Here Y/N was again, flinging herself into one of their scuffles. She ignored that all their most recent brawls devolved over her.

Aegon had done enough. Aemond was down and gasping for the air he lost. He needn't do more. Y/N made sure Aemond wasn’t dying before standing with Aegon. It was an image that burned into Aemond’s mind like a brand. Every failure, every time he wasn’t good enough, that he felt small, helpless, pathetic, weak, and Aegon was there proudly looming over him with Y/N to watch. He’d never lose that picture nor the feelings that came with it.

“He’s right.” A meak echo came from Aegon’s side. Y/N. “ We shouldn’t do this. I don’t want things to change.”

Aemond’s palm raised and slammed into the ground. It spooked Y/N. He spoke in a hiss. “You said to give you the summer.” He had no right to claim her. The logical part of his brain had no conflict with it. The wounded boy in him wanted to tear his surroundings to shreds then set them ablaze and watch everything turn to ash. All that so he could be the one standing proud over the ashes. He felt owed that.

Y/N found enough courage to toughen her words. “I said I might not change my mind at all. And you…” Her arms folded over her chest as they always did when she felt the need for protection. Aegon placed a comforting arm around her shoulders. She was shaking after all. She’d coiled into herself very serpent like, ready to strike. He watched as the emotions wracked her. She landed on disgust. “You never changed. I’m just a thing to possess to you, without autonomy. Screw you!”

She sobbed a curdling cry and collapsed into Aegon’s hold. Aegon forgot about Aemond. Everything was Y/N. He whispered soothing endearments to her. She was in his grasp at last. He’d take care of her from here.

A/N 2: So... thank you for reading. Let me know how you've enjoyed the story thus far. Any guesses as to what will come next. There will be a pause in new chapters for one to two weeks as I need to rewrite the next chapter. However, that means a better reading experience. Yay!

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