The Dark Dragon || Game of Thrones

Flint's Finger

After a long journey through hills and woods, the seat of house Flint could be seen a few miles away from where Rhalla's traveling party were standing.

"Welcome to Flint's Finger, my lady. Or should I say, my queen." Robin placed his horse next to Rhalla who was admiring the view, reminiscing to when she first got to Winterfell.

How things had changed..

Rhalla used her legs to speed her horse after giving simply a nod of gratitude to the lord, impatient to arrive to the castle and set her dragons free.

She couldn't bear to see them locked up and contained in their small shelters, for that was not where a dragon belonged.

Flint's Finger was much smaller than Winterfell. Compared to it, it would be called an estate rather than a castle or a keep, but its majesty was unique nonetheless.

The walls were strong and high, the fortifications well guarded, and the men dressed in the Flint's arms with all pride.
Cold winter winds and dark shades of grey colored the area, a reminder that Rhalla was back in the North she thought she'd never see again.

When the gates opened at Robin's orders, the travelers unmounted their horses in the courtyard and had them tended to by stable boys.

There weren't any belongings to be unloaded for Rhalla, so Robin had one of the servants show her and Kyra to the best quarters he owned in his large castle, and the furthest from any activity so that no one would be aware of her children's presence, or existence.

Rhalla didn't let anyone touch the shelters, so she carried them like a backpack and walked her way up the stairs to her new room.

A bath, a hot meal and a warm bed were all to Rhalla's disposal, and as tempting as they all were, she only cared about her children's freedom.

She opened the leather seals with her delicate fingers and rejoiced to the sight of the healthy little creatures that had already grown since their birth.

They shrieked and filled her heart with joy as they looked at her with their bright and colorful eyes, thankful to finally see the light before they went on their scouting of the quarters they would share with their mother from now on.

Rhalla ate her meal as the dragons played with each other and devoured the food she shared with them, then she proceeded to take a long and relaxing bath as she thought of what would come next for her.

She needed allies, that was for certain. She wanted to prove herself. She didn't want her claim to solely rely on her Targaryen blood, for she wasn't the only one to have it. She wanted to show she was capable of change and evolution, and not make her way to the throne via brutality and pointless murder.

But she did need an army, and that was going to be one of her biggest issues. How does one acquire an army? She didn't have the gold to recruit mercenaries, and even if she did, she wouldn't want to.

Mercenaries were only loyal to gold, and she wanted men who would be loyal to her, and follow her because they believed in her.
Seeing Robb with his troops, and the respect his men had for him and his father inspired her.

She had much to prove, and all of what she wanted wouldn't simply come overnight. But she was ready to do whatever it took to achieve her goals on the long run.

*******************************************
After breakfast was brought to Rhalla's chambers, and Kyra helped her get ready, they both headed downstairs to meet lord Robin in the castle's main hall after making sure to properly lock the door to her room.

They had much to talk about, and even if her handmaiden advised that she take more time to rest before making her plans, she couldn't wait or delay any longer.

Robin was standing in his leather attire with his house's arms embroidered into the collar, his hand firmly surrounding the pommel of his sword.

Rhalla wore the warm grey dress that Sansa had made for her when she first arrived to Winterfell. It was slightly larger around the waist since she had lost weight during the long and exhausting journey, but she looked regal with her hair braided and away from her lovely face.

"Good morning, lady Rhalla. Lady Kyra." Robin greeted them in turns with a large smile.
"Lord Robin." Rhalla inclined her head and watched with intrigue the door behind him where two guards were standing.

"Please, follow me." he ushered her to follow and she did just as much after sharing a knowing look with her friend, then they walked into a dusty old room with a round table and multiples chairs, torches hang on the walls and a small embrasure overlooking the wilderness outside the castle.

Robin then walked to the table and unfurled two large parchment papers, scrawling a painted and detailed map of Westeros and Essos, with very few map markers shaped in hands, Flint's house sigil.

The lord disposed them on their current location on the map, then he pinned the sides of the parchment to the table to keep it in place before his hands gripped the edge of the table.

"This shall be our.. war table, if you'd like to call it that." he addressed Rhalla, "We have never really found use for this room, so I apologize for its state."

"Well, now you have." Rhalla walked around the table with a mysterious smile on her lips.
She took one of the figurines and inspected it, feeling the metal and the small carved details on it.

"That, I have, my lady." he smiled back.

Soon, the sound of rain echoed in the room where Rhalla, Robin and Kyra stood in utter silence before the princess inhaled deeply and looked into the lord with a determined look on her face as she put the marker back on the table.

"Alright. Shall we begin?" she announced, but before they could all carry on, footsteps resounded in the hallway before the door swung open, revealing a guard with a small piece of paper that he handed to Robin.

"News from the king, Ser." he told.
"Which one? I lost count." Robin said sarcastically before he checked the direwolf sigil on the seal and dismissed the man with a nod.

Rhalla's heart skipped a beat when she heard of Robb, so she ran to Robin's side to pry on the letter and watched impatiently as he broke the seal, arms crossed with her thumb between her teeth in nervousness.

Robin was too tall for her, and she couldn't see through the paper, though she could see the frown on his face as soon as he was done the rather short letter, which didn't bode well.

"What is it?" she asked with curiosity, her blue eyes glowing with inquiry.
"King Robb is now.. married to lady Talisa Maegyr." Robin said hesitantly, regretting doing so when he saw the look on Rhalla's face.

The look of someone who had their world torn apart.

_______________________________
So sorry for the late update (... again), turns out university's exhausting!!
But I hope you liked this simple chapter, in the next one we'll have a time jump, and exciting stuff is coming up.

And can I just mention that this book is close to getting 50K views?? I mean it's crazy, and it's all thanks to you!! ❤❤