( Though she may not understand dragons the way her children do, she does understand them on another level. They hog resources to be fed and properly maintained. Multiply that by the number of beasts they have at their disposal; it is a heavy levy on the Crown's coffers. Many a discussion has been had regarding the dragons, and they are a powerful resource despite how much of a burden they can be — the more dragons one has, the more powerful they are.
As well-behaved as they appear outwardly, being their mother, she knows their looks and feels the tension between her two sons. One that grows under that smug grin slithering across Aemond's face. She can head it now, how she's playing favorites and loves him more than Aemond.
It isn't that she loves any of her children more than the others; it just seems that she now holds a different type of love for Aemond.
Mother. Gods, that word will be the end of her every time it leaves his lips. Pointed and purposely tainted to prod at her, to get a reaction despite how innocent it sounds.
The action he manages to goad out of her is subtle — her chest stops moving as her breath catches in her throat, but the pendant on her necklace vibrates and shifts with how hard her heart pounds within her chest as she looks at him. It takes her a moment to remember where she is and to breathe; when she does, a shiver runs through her spine, something she blames on a cooking summer breeze from an open window.
She dismisses him with a nod, turning her attention back to her plate to finish it and whatever conversation might linger with her father before eventually excusing herself once it's just the two of them that remain. The Hand offers to escort the Queen to her chambers, but she declines, saying that he has much ahead of him with preparation and she shouldn't keep him.
Alone, she starts her ascent to her apartments. Hopeful and terrified of who she might run into along the way, wondering if he had his fill of her, if he would want more, or if it was a fleeting weakness. He was purged of his sins, and she left with them, but if anyone were to bear the weight of such corruption, it should be the mother.
Once at her apartments, she wishes Ser Criston a good night, closes the door behind her, and begins preparing for bed. Removing her ornaments and jewelry, she sets them atop her vanity and, with the help of Talya, removes her dress and slips into a thin sleeping gown, one with a silken fabric that if barely there, with a green robe over the top. Dismissing her lady-in-waiting, Alicent sits and brushes her hair, allowing her thoughts to wander where they shouldn't. She tried to read afterward, but couldn't, thoughts leaving her throbbing with want and distracted, so she tried to sleep it off.
If she has no visitor in the night, she sleeps it through but plans to visit the Dragon Pit come morning. )
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As well-behaved as they appear outwardly, being their mother, she knows their looks and feels the tension between her two sons. One that grows under that smug grin slithering across Aemond's face. She can head it now, how she's playing favorites and loves him more than Aemond.
It isn't that she loves any of her children more than the others; it just seems that she now holds a different type of love for Aemond.
Mother. Gods, that word will be the end of her every time it leaves his lips. Pointed and purposely tainted to prod at her, to get a reaction despite how innocent it sounds.
The action he manages to goad out of her is subtle — her chest stops moving as her breath catches in her throat, but the pendant on her necklace vibrates and shifts with how hard her heart pounds within her chest as she looks at him. It takes her a moment to remember where she is and to breathe; when she does, a shiver runs through her spine, something she blames on a cooking summer breeze from an open window.
She dismisses him with a nod, turning her attention back to her plate to finish it and whatever conversation might linger with her father before eventually excusing herself once it's just the two of them that remain. The Hand offers to escort the Queen to her chambers, but she declines, saying that he has much ahead of him with preparation and she shouldn't keep him.
Alone, she starts her ascent to her apartments. Hopeful and terrified of who she might run into along the way, wondering if he had his fill of her, if he would want more, or if it was a fleeting weakness. He was purged of his sins, and she left with them, but if anyone were to bear the weight of such corruption, it should be the mother.
Once at her apartments, she wishes Ser Criston a good night, closes the door behind her, and begins preparing for bed. Removing her ornaments and jewelry, she sets them atop her vanity and, with the help of Talya, removes her dress and slips into a thin sleeping gown, one with a silken fabric that if barely there, with a green robe over the top. Dismissing her lady-in-waiting, Alicent sits and brushes her hair, allowing her thoughts to wander where they shouldn't. She tried to read afterward, but couldn't, thoughts leaving her throbbing with want and distracted, so she tried to sleep it off.
If she has no visitor in the night, she sleeps it through but plans to visit the Dragon Pit come morning. )