Summary: Fourteen-year-old Diana Dayne is furious when her mother suddenly sends her to King’s Landing to join Queen Myriah’s court. Defiant and unwilling to be used as a political pawn, Diana arrives in the capital ready to rebel — only to discover she is not the only Dornish girl forced into this new life, and that one particular Targaryen prince is determined to make her stay as difficult as possible.
Pairing: Maekar Targaryen x Diana Dayne (OC)
Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Political Marriage, Arranged Marriage, Forced Betrothal, Teenage Rebellion, Defiant Protagonist, Strong Female Character, Mother-Daughter Conflict, Emotional Abuse, Dornish Culture Cultural Clash, Coming of Age, Found Family, Enemies to lovers, Dragons.
A/N:A "LATINA GIRL BEING MESSY" fanfic—and yeah, Daeron's sons definitely inherited that obsession with Latinas, bro. In my head, Maekar was just as stupid as Aerion back in his youth, so you'll notice he's pretty insufferable. Enjoy the fanfic!
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22nd of the Third Lunar Cycle, 189 AC
To: Carolina Martell
From: Diana Dayne
I feel like my blood is boiling, as hot as the fires of ancient Valyria. I’m furious, Caro! I can’t believe my own blood has betrayed me like this. I’ve discovered that my mother has made a deal, through letters sealed with wax and secrets, with none other than Queen Myriah Martell herself.
She has decided to send me to the capital, to King’s Landing, escorted by three maids from other houses. She says it’s a “great honor,” that it’s a favor between old friends… but I know the truth: she’s sending me to be paraded in front of the lords like a mare at a horse fair. They’re looking for a husband for me!
But I don’t want a husband! By the Seven Gods, I’ve only just had my fourteenth nameday. I’m still a girl; I’m too young to carry the heavy chains of marriage or to be handed over to some knight who’s probably twice my age.
What hurts the most is the betrayal by your family. I know your uncles, and especially your aunt the Queen. She is my godmother and the one who gave me my name, just as my mother had the honor of naming her firstborn son. I can’t accept that my own godmother and my mother are doing this to me. They were best friends since they ran through the gardens of Sunspear, long before Myriah married King Daeron II to seal the peace between Dorne and the Iron Throne. I suppose now they plan to use me to seal some other boring political pact.
I feel like a Cyvasse piece my mother has decided to move at her whim. The carriages leave tomorrow. They’re forcing me to leave my home for that city that, they say, smells of rotten fish. I’ve heard rumors that the lords in King’s Landing don’t know what water is and don’t bathe for weeks. If my mother thinks I’m going to smile and accept the cloak of some stinking lord, she clearly doesn’t know me at all. I’m not going to sit back and do nothing.
— DIANA MARIE ALEJANDRA DAYNE! COME DOWN THIS INSTANT!
Oh, it seems my mother has already noticed what I did. I have to go, but I’ll write to you as soon as I know what happens next. I hope for your reply as soon as possible, Caro.
Descending the spiral stairs of the White Sword Tower had always felt like a game to me, but today every stone step felt like a death sentence. My leather boots rang against the floor, a dull echo announcing my arrival at the small private courtyard, that corner of Starfall where the scent of orange blossoms and the sound of the Torrentine usually brought peace.
Today, however, there was no peace. Only shreds.
There she was. My mother, the lady of House Dayne, stood upright like a marble statue amid the disaster. At her feet, what had once been silks from Myr, Dornish linens, and laces as fine as spiderwebs were now nothing but torn rags. I had spent the entire night with sewing scissors, unleashing my fury on every hem and every bodice. If they thought they were sending me to King’s Landing tomorrow, they would have to send me naked.
“I want you to explain why you did this,” she said without looking at me, her voice as cold as the steel of Dawn.
“Mother, you know perfectly well why,” I answered, standing my ground. I felt my cheeks burning, not from the Dornish sun but from the rage rising from my chest. “I am not a show mare. I am not a dowry you can ship off so some fat-bellied lord can stamp his seal on me.”
My mother finally turned. Her eyes shone with a mixture of exhaustion and a severity I had never seen before. She stepped toward a pile of sand-colored silk that I had torn in half.
“I understand you’re afraid of leaving us, Diana. Starfall is all you know,” she began, softening her tone just a little. “But in King’s Landing there are far more opportunities and wealth than here. Myriah is going to make sure you receive the best education, that you become a highborn lady worthy of your name. She is the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, for the gods’ sake—she is your godmother!”
“Mother, I already told you I don’t want that!” I shouted, and my voice echoed off the stone walls. “I don’t care about wealth, or balls, or the intrigues of the Red Keep. Here I can ride to the coast, I can study the stars with the maesters, I can be myself. In the capital I will only be ‘the little Dayne,’ just another piece on your friend’s board.”
My mother sighed, crossing her arms over her purple silk dress.
“Then what do you want? Do you want to be a septa? Do you want to spend the rest of your days praying to the Mother and the Crone in a silent crystal cloister?”
“Mami, no!” I shuddered. The idea of white robes and absolute silence was almost worse than a forced marriage.
“Diana, you have to grow up,” she declared, turning her back on me to walk among the remains of my wardrobe. “You are a noblewoman from one of the oldest houses in Westeros. In this world, for a woman of your position, there are only two real options.”
“Marriage or becoming a septa, I know,” I muttered, lowering my gaze to my hands, which still bore small marks from tearing the fabrics. “But I’m fourteen years old. Fourteen. My aunt Myriah married King Daeron to bring peace, I understand—it was a heroic sacrifice. But what peace am I sealing? What war am I preventing by marrying some heir from the Stormlands or the Reach?”
“It’s not only about wars, it’s about alliances,” she replied, turning back toward me. She approached and took me by the shoulders. Her hands were cold. “Dorne has only just joined the Iron Throne. We are new in that nest of vipers. Queen Myriah needs familiar faces, needs trustworthy Dornish blood around her. Her message to the realm that Dorne has come to stay.”
“Well, let her stay,” I whispered rebelliously. “I prefer the sands and the sun.”
“Tomorrow you leave for the east,” my mother said, ignoring my tantrum with final firmness. “And you will do so in one of my old dresses, since you decided to destroy your own. There will be no more arguments, Diana Marie Alejandra. Your father has already given his blessing and the ship is waiting at the port.”
“It’s unfair!” I shouted as she began walking away toward the tower. “I’ll write to Carolina! I’ll tell her they’re treating me like a prisoner!”
“Write to whoever you want,” she answered without stopping, “but do it while you pack what remains of your dignity.”
I was left alone in the courtyard, surrounded by my torn dresses that now looked like flags of a war I had just lost. The wind blew in from the sea, stirring the shreds of silk. “I’m not going to give up,” I thought, clenching my fists. If they wanted to take me to King’s Landing to find me a husband, they would find out that Dayne blood is not so easily tamed.
“DIANA MARIE ALEJANDRA DAYNE! COME HERE THIS INSTANT!” I heard my mother’s shout again from inside the tower, probably because she had found the last dress I had hidden under the bed to burn later.
I sighed, picked up a piece of silver silk from the ground and slipped it into the deep pocket of my cloak. A small, ragged reminder of my rebellion.
“I’m coming, Mother…” I muttered, starting up the spiral stairs, already planning in my head exactly how I would ruin my first dinner in the capital. If Queen Myriah wanted a Dornish doll to display, she was going to get a desert scorpion instead.
The next morning, my mother woke me when the sun had not even peeked over the horizon. The sky above Starfall was a violet blue, cold and indifferent. In the main courtyard, gravel crunched under the boots of the servants. Horses snorted in the morning mist and the heavy oak-and-iron carriages were already ready.
Yawning and rubbing their eyes, my four brothers stood in front of the main door: Ares, Bruno, Carlos, and Esteban. They had been dragged out of bed to say goodbye to me, and none of them looked happy about it. They formed a messy line, wrapped in thick wool cloaks. I, for my part, stood a few meters away with my arms crossed, while Ser Vorian, one of our house’s sturdiest guards, held me firmly by the elbow to make sure I didn’t run off to the stables like I had the night before.
“Let go of me, Ser Vorian, you’re cutting off my circulation,” I growled, trying to wrench free from his iron grip.
“Orders from your lady mother, Lady Diana. I’ll let go when you’re inside the carriage,” the knight replied with an apologetic expression, but without loosening his hold even a fraction.
Esteban, the youngest of the boys and the most unbearable, stepped forward with a smug smile that made me want to throw a rock at him.
“I hope it goes well for you, little sister. Try not to bite any lords in the capital.”
“Shut up, Esteban,” I snapped, glaring at him. “You’re only happy because you’re going to get my room in the East Tower, which has a better view than your little hovel. But don’t get too excited—I swear I’ll be back soon. Even if I have to walk all the way from the Crownlands.”
Ares, the eldest and heir of the house, let out a tired little laugh and stepped forward to ruffle my dark hair.
“Don’t listen to him, Diana. Just behave. King’s Landing isn’t Dorne; the court of dragons is full of traps. Keep your eyes open.”
Before I could answer Ares, the murmurs in the courtyard fell silent. My father, Lord Dayne, descended the main staircase. He wore his dark leather doublet embroidered with the falling star and crossed sword of House Dayne in silver. His face, weathered by the sun and marked by years of rule, wore an unreadable expression.
I had always known I was my father’s favorite among all my siblings. He spoiled me, let me ride bareback, and forgave my escapes to the river. But unfortunately for me, I came second in his heart; the absolute first place belonged to my mother, and she had convinced him to approve all this marriage nonsense.
He approached me slowly. Ser Vorian released my elbow and bowed before stepping aside. My father took me by the shoulders and placed a rough kiss on my forehead.
“My rebellious star,” he murmured, looking me in the eyes. “I know you hate me today, and perhaps you’ll hate me tomorrow.”
“I’ve hated you since the moment you signed the Queen’s parchment,” I replied, my voice trembling with a mixture of rage and the urge to cry that I refused to release.
My father’s face hardened, adopting the mask of the Lord of Starfall.
“Diana Marie Alejandra Dayne,” he said, and the use of my full name rang like thunder in the silent courtyard. “Listen to me well. You are going to that city and you are going to represent our house with pride. If I hear even one complaint about your behavior during your stay, if Queen Myriah sends me a raven saying you have dishonored her… I swear by the Seven Gods I will send you to the capital of the Faith in Oldtown to become a septa, young lady. And you will spend the rest of your days praying to the Crone in total silence. Do you understand me?”
The weight of his threat was real. Becoming a Silent Sister or a cloistered septa was my greatest fear. I held his gaze, refusing to look down, but my throat closed.
As my only answer I stuck my tongue out at him.
My father let out a long sigh, half exasperated, half amused, and before he could say another word, he gestured with his hand. Two guards grabbed me by the sides, lifted me into the air ignoring my kicking, and literally threw me into the luxurious oak carriage.
The heavy doors slammed shut with a dry crash. I heard the bolt slide from the outside. They had locked me in.
“Cowards!” I shouted, pounding the wood with my fists. “This is kidnapping!”
The carriage gave a sharp jolt as the coachman cracked the whip, and we began to descend the winding stone path that led from the castle down to the docks of the Torrentine. I slumped against the purple velvet cushions, breathing hard. The space smelled of lavender and old leather. I was alone. I supposed my mother had decided it was safer to send me without a lady’s companion on the short trip to the ship, fearing I would convince her to help me escape.
The journey to the port was a torture of bumps and dark thoughts. When the carriage finally stopped and they opened the door, the smell of salt, raw fish, and tar flooded my nostrils. We were at the port of Starfall, where the river met the Summer Sea.
The sun was just beginning to tint the waters gold and orange. In front of me, moored at the stone dock, rose an imposing three-masted galleon. Its sails were furled, but on the main mast flew the banner with the sun and spear of House Martell. It was a royal ship.
“On you go, Lady Diana,” said Ser Vorian, offering me a rough hand to help me down.
I ignored his hand and jumped down from the carriage on my own, smoothing the skirts of the stupid blue linen dress they had forced me to wear (one of my mother’s old ones, which was too big in the shoulders). The dock was bustling with activity, but I felt a knot in my throat that kept me from speaking. I walked up the wooden gangway with my chin held high, refusing to look back. If they expected tears, they were going to be disappointed.
The sea voyage turned out to be, against all expectations, a respite. The Summer Sea rocked me with its gentle waves and the Dornish crew was kind. However, I didn’t speak much; I spent the hours leaning on the railing, watching the sandy and rocky coasts of my home disappear on the horizon, chewing on my frustration while the salty wind tangled my dark hair.
When we finally made land at Oldtown’s western harbor on the shores of Crakehall, the impact was brutal. I was left breathless. I had never been anywhere that wasn’t Dorne, and the amount of vegetation seemed overwhelming. Titanic trees, so thick that ten men holding hands couldn’t encircle them, rose toward a grayish sky. The green was so intense, so damp and dark compared to the terracotta, gold, and reddish tones of Starfall, that for a moment I felt I had landed in another world.
But there was no time to even breathe in the scent of pine. We didn’t rest for even two seconds before I was pushed into another carriage, this one much larger and more ostentatious, flanked by guards in gleaming armor. On the dark oak doors stood the emblem of House Targaryen: the red three-headed dragon on a black field.
The overland journey was long, tedious, and, above all, desperately boring. The roads of the Reach and the Crownlands seemed endless. If I hadn’t wanted to talk on the ship, here in Westeros I wouldn’t have spoken even if they paid me with Casterly Rock gold. I knew the Common Tongue, of course. My mother had hammered the vocabulary and grammar into me with maesters since I could remember, but speaking it? My tongue felt heavy and clumsy every time I tried to form a sentence. I only knew the basics to keep from starving, and my Dornish accent—that fast, fluid sing-song so characteristic of my family in Starfall—gave me away immediately. I preferred silence to having some lord from the Reach mock my pronunciation.
We arrived at King’s Landing almost a week later. The stench hit me before I even saw the walls. It smelled of sewage, woodsmoke, rotten fish, and too many people living piled on top of each other.
“Disgusting,” I muttered in Spanish, wrinkling my nose as the carriage crossed the Gate of the Gods.
But then something eclipsed the bad smell. A massive shadow swept across the cobblestone streets, darkening the sun for a second. I stuck my head out the window, ignoring Ser Vorian’s shouts, and looked up.
My breath caught in my lungs.
Gliding through the sky at its leisure, a beast of copper scales and immense wings that looked made of fire and leather drifted over the towers of the Red Keep. The sound of its wings beating was like the crack of a sail catching a gale. In my history books they said dragons were majestic, but no illustration in the library of Starfall prepares you for the residual heat they leave in the air, nor for the primitive terror that freezes your blood when you see them. We were ants to them. Suddenly, marriage seemed like a tiny problem.
The carriage continued its ascent up Aegon’s Hill until it passed through the imposing gates of the Red Keep. I was escorted through endless corridors of red stone, tapestries embroidered with bloody conquests, and guards in white cloaks who glanced at me sideways. Finally, a stern-faced septa pushed me into a spacious hall bathed in the light of the setting sun.
“The maidens’ chambers, my lady,” the septa announced in the Common Tongue, before closing the heavy oak door behind me, leaving me alone in the room.
“Finally another one! I was starting to go mad with the silence in this castle.”
I spun around, startled. Sprawled on a crimson velvet sofa, eating grapes with an attitude of total disinterest, was a girl with red hair and lively eyes. She wore a dress in the black and purple colors of House Dondarrion, but when she spoke, the unmistakable Blackmont accent filled the room. It was rhythmic Spanish, sung in a way different from mine.
“I’m Jennie Dondarrion,” she said, jumping to her feet and brushing crumbs off herself. “My mom is a Blackmont. And by that sour face you’re wearing, you must be the Dayne the queen Myriah talks so much about.”
“Diana Dayne,” I replied, relaxing my shoulders at hearing my mother tongue. I let out a sigh I didn’t know I was holding. “Girl, I thought I was going to be the only prisoner in this tower. What a pain of a trip.”
From the balcony overlooking the training yard, a second figure leaned out. She was tall, with pale skin and her black hair gathered in complex braids. Her dress bore the white feathers and scrolls of House Penrose, but the blood of her mother, from House Gargalen, was evident in her sharp features.
“Don’t tell me there’s still one missing?” she said, approaching with elegant steps, speaking with a slow, almost melodic accent that emphasized the vowels at the end of words. “What’s up, Diana. I’m Aelinor Penrose. We’ve been here two whole days waiting for Queen Myriah to call us. I swear if they make me wear one of these court corsets one more day, I’m going to suffocate, dude.”
“My ribs already hurt,” intervened a third voice, soft but full of complaint, coming from a chair beside the unlit hearth.
It was a delicate-looking girl with slightly lighter skin and striking blue eyes that betrayed her Vale heritage, wearing the sky-blue of House Arryn. However, when she stood up, her way of walking and the accent of her mother, a Dalt of Lemonwood, came through.
“Damn, you must have had a terrible trip,” she said with empathy, offering me a cup of lemon water. “I’m Alys Arryn. And I bet they brought you here with the story that you came to ‘see the court,’ right, ñaña?”
I walked over to them, taking the cup Alys offered me. I looked at the three of them. All of us had fathers from noble houses of Westeros—the Marches, the Stormlands, the Vale—but our mothers were Dornish. Living bridges of Daeron II’s recent peace, and all of us had fallen into the same trap.
“They told me it was for my education,” I snorted, taking a sip. “But I know the truth. They brought us to show us off. They want to marry us to secure Dorne’s loyalty.”
“Oh, obviously!” exclaimed Jennie with her characteristic frankness, hands on her hips. “My dad Dondarrion and my mom Blackmont couldn’t agree on breakfast, but to send me here—bam, they teamed up real quick! What a pain, seriously. I don’t want to marry some lord from here who doesn’t even wash his head.”
“Listen, I overheard some maids talking in the hallway,” commented Aelinor, crossing her arms and lowering her voice as if sharing state secrets. “They say the lords here are afraid of dragons, but they’re more afraid of Dornish women. They think we’re savages.”
“Well, how cool that they think that,” Alys smiled with mischief, an expression that contrasted deliciously with her good-girl-of-the-Vale appearance. “If they think we’re savages, girls, we shouldn’t disappoint them. If they want to use us as decoration, we’ll prick their hands.”
Before I could laugh at Alys’s comment, I heard hurried footsteps and the rustle of silk on the other side of the heavy oak door. The conversation died in our throats. The door swung open with a dull thud and, like a flock of frightened swans, ten maids entered the room in perfect formation, lowering their gazes and stepping aside. Then Queen Myriah Martell made her entrance.
She wore an orange Dornish silk dress that flowed around her like liquid fire, highlighting her olive skin and her long black hair that cascaded down her back, adorned only with a fine net of golden threads. She was imposing, a true ruler, but the moment her large dark eyes settled on me, the mask of monarchical coldness vanished completely.
As soon as she entered, she crossed the room in long strides, ignoring all protocol, and wrapped me in an embrace with almost inhuman strength. Her ruby rings dug into my back, but the warmth of her hug was the first real piece of home I had felt in weeks.
“My love, God, how big you’ve grown!” my godmother exclaimed, pressing me against her chest.
The last time I saw her, I was about seven years old and barely reached her waist. Now, at fourteen, I almost looked her in the eye. I stayed rigid for a second, my rebellious side fighting against the genuine affection I felt for her. Finally, I returned the hug, letting out a trembling sigh.
“Godmother…” I murmured, feeling the anger deflate a little. “They sent me against my will. I thought that…”
Myriah pulled away, taking my face between her warm hands. She studied me, reading all the frustration, fear, and rebellion I was trying to hide. Then she let out a small laugh, turning to look at the other three girls who watched us in silence, rigid as statues.
“Oh, by the Seven, just look at you. You all have faces like you’re heading to the gallows,” the queen said, and to my surprise, she said it in perfect, fluent Dornish Spanish. She sighed and gestured to her ten maids. “Leave us. And close the door tightly.”
Once the servants disappeared, Myriah walked to the central table, poured herself a cup of Arbor red with absolute confidence, and dropped into the armchair where Jennie had been sitting earlier.
“Sit down, girls. We need to talk,” she ordered, and though her tone was soft, it was still a royal command.
We glanced at each other and obeyed. Jennie sat on the edge of the sofa, Aelinor leaned gracefully against a high-backed chair, Alys curled up hugging her knees, and I remained standing with my arms crossed, on the defensive.
“I know exactly what your mothers and fathers told you,” Myriah began, taking a sip from her cup. “And I know exactly what you’re all thinking. You think the evil Queen of Westeros brought you to King’s Landing to sell you to the highest bidder. That tomorrow I’m going to marry you off to some lord from the North who smells of wet pine or to a knight from the Reach who’s twice your age.”
“Well… it’s not a lie, is it?” Jennie blurted out with her usual frankness, wrinkling her nose. “My mom packed me like I was a cow for the fair, Your Grace.”
Myriah smiled sideways, acknowledging the Blackmont accent.
“No, Jennie, it’s not a lie that you’re here for politics. But you’re very wrong if you think I’m going to marry you tomorrow. You’re fourteen, fifteen years old. You’re girls, no matter how much Dornish blood makes you think you’re invincible warriors.”
I frowned, stepping forward.
“Then why did you bring us, godmother? What’s the point of taking us from our homes?”
The queen looked at me with an intensity that reminded me why Daeron Targaryen had fallen in love with her.
“Because this court is a nest of vipers, Diana. Westeros still hasn’t fully accepted that Dorne is part of the Seven Kingdoms. They look down on me, they whisper behind my back. I need my people. I need the daughters of peace. I brought you here to be my pupils, my ladies-in-waiting. For the next four years, I’m going to train you.”
“Train us?” Aelinor repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me, like we’re soldiers?”
“Better than soldiers. As court ladies,” Myriah corrected, her eyes shining with ambition. “You will learn the Common Tongue until you speak it without a trace of accent when necessary. You will learn history, politics, how to dance the capital’s dances, how to embroider poison into your smiles and read lords like open books. And when you turn eighteen… then, and only then, I will present you officially in society to find you husbands. But listen to me well: I will make sure you are the ones who have the final say. No one will force you to marry a monster. You will be the envy of the Seven Kingdoms.”
Silence filled the room. The four of us processed the information. There was no imminent marriage. There would be no disgusting lord waiting for me in the sept tomorrow. I felt an anvil lift from my chest. Four years. Four years was an eternity; in that time I could plan a hundred ways to escape or, if Myriah was right, learn to control this stupid game of thrones in my favor.
“Damn, that sounds… less bad,” Alys admitted, breaking the ice with a shy smile. “Four years to become the mistresses of the castle. I’m definitely in, girls.”
“Well,” I sighed, relaxing my arms. “I suppose I can stand four years of boring classes and tight dresses if at the end of the day I don’t have to share a bed with an ugly old man. But I warn you, godmother… I won’t stay quiet if they pick a fight with me.”
Myriah let out a vibrant laugh that echoed off the stone walls.
“I expected nothing less from Daniela’s daughter, my little rebellious star. Now, sleep. Tomorrow morning I will formally introduce you to my husband the King and my sons, the princes. I want you to be impeccable. And please,” she added, looking at us with mock severity, “try not to stab anyone before midday.”
The next morning, the sun of King’s Landing poured through the huge windows of our room. Waking up wasn’t the problem; the problem was what came after.
Six maids attacked us at dawn armed with ivory combs, rosewater perfumes, and, worst of all, corsets.
“Don’t pull so tight, you’re taking my air away!” I complained, clinging to the bedpost while two maids yanked on the laces of my corset at my back.
“Oh, what a pain!” Jennie complained from the other side of the room, fighting with a velvet skirt that weighed more than an iron shield. “Dude, I can’t breathe in this. It feels like a constrictor snake swallowed me!”
“Hold on tight, güey,” Aelinor shouted at her, already ready and looking incredibly majestic in a white and gold dress that honored House Penrose, though her loose wild waves of hair screamed Dorne from every strand. “Whoever wants sky-blue has to pay the price.”
Alys emerged from behind a screen, looking like a Vale angel in a dress of pale blue silk.
“Damn, at least they didn’t put us in thick wool. Look on the bright side, we look gorgeous.”
I looked at myself in the full-length mirror. They had put me in a deep lavender silk dress, the color of the sky at dusk, with silver details on the sleeves and bodice. The skirt wasn’t as wide as the ones the ladies of the Crown wore, which allowed me some freedom of movement (a demand from Myriah, no doubt). My dark, almost black hair fell straight over my shoulders, held only by small braids on the sides adorned with tiny silver stars. I looked like a highborn lady.
“Damn, I look like a porcelain doll,” I muttered, not entirely convinced. “If I run, I’ll break.”
“You look beautiful, Diana,” Alys encouraged me, linking her arm with mine. “Come on, if we’re late for our own presentation, the queen will hang us.”
We walked through the corridors of the Red Keep escorted by two members of the Kingsguard. The castle was a labyrinth of red stone, tapestries of dragons, and statues that seemed to look at you with contempt. We reached the Small Gardens, a private courtyard surrounded by high walls where red roses and bougainvillea imported by Myriah from the south bloomed.
There, under the shade of a leafy oak, a long, elegant table had been set. At the head sat King Daeron Targaryen, a man of wise appearance, slightly stooped shoulders, and kind eyes, conversing in low tones with my godmother. But my attention wasn’t on the monarchs.
Seated along the table were the princes. The sons of the dragon.
When we crossed the stone arch, the conversation stopped. The princes looked up.
“Your Graces,” announced one of the Kingsguard, striking his halberd against the ground. “Her Majesty the Queen’s pupils. Lady Aelinor of House Penrose, Lady Jennie of House Dondarrion, Lady Alys of House Arryn, and Lady Diana of House Dayne.”
We performed a synchronized curtsy, just as our mothers had taught us, lowering our heads just enough but without losing our haughtiness.
“Come closer, girls, they don’t bite,” Myriah said with a smile, gesturing for us to take seats across from her sons.
King Daeron welcomed us with kind words and a paternal smile, but I barely paid attention to his speech. I was busy scanning my “new court companions.”
To the king’s right was Prince Baelor, the heir. He had his mother’s dark hair and olive skin; if it weren’t for the dragon emblem on his chest, he could pass for a pure-blooded Dornishman. He smiled at us warmly. Beside him was Aerys, a pale, thin boy who barely looked up from a huge leather-bound tome, murmuring a distracted greeting. Further along was Rhaegel, who seemed to be having an intense mental debate with a lemon pastry.
And then, at the other corner of the table, was him.
Unlike Baelor, Maekar had inherited all of his father’s Valyrian genetics, and then some. He had dazzling silver-blond hair, cut short so it wouldn’t get in the way under a helm, and eyes of such a dark violet they almost looked black in the tree’s shadow. But what caught my attention most wasn’t his coloring, it was his attitude. He sat with his arms crossed, his broad shoulders straining the black leather of his doublet. His jaw was clenched and he wore a permanent expression of annoyance on his face, as if breathing the same air as us was a personal offense.
As soon as we sat down, Myriah began introducing us one by one to her sons. Baelor was charming, greeting Jennie and Aelinor with chivalry.
“And of course, you know my goddaughter, Diana Dayne of Starfall,” Myriah said with pride, looking at me.
I smiled at the queen, but before I could say a polite word in the Common Tongue, a harsh, deep voice cut through the air.
“So this is the famous wildling from Starfall you talk so much about, Mother,” Maekar said, not bothering to hide his disdain. His Common Tongue was impeccable, sharp as a newly sharpened sword. He looked me up and down, lingering on my loose hair and my less-than-rigid posture. “I expected her to at least know how to sit up straight. I suppose chairs are a new luxury in the sands of Dorne.”
The silence at the table was deafening. Baelor frowned.
“Maekar, behave. She is our guest.”
I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. The Dornish fury my mother so feared ignited like a barrel of Valyrian fire. I forgot all my father’s warnings and the capital’s protocol. I turned toward him, planting my elbows on the table (an offense to etiquette rules) and stared straight into his violet eyes.
“Excuse me, do you have a problem, sparkles?” I shot back in Spanish, dragging the syllables with brazen sarcasm. “Because if the words are stinging your mouth, you can go wash them with river water, see if it takes away the bitterness.”
Jennie let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like a stifled laugh. Aelinor’s eyes widened in wonder at the drama, and Alys covered her mouth, scandalized but amused.
Maekar clenched his fists on the table. His annoyed expression turned into pure, absolute indignation. Clearly, he understood Dornish Spanish because of his mother, even if he didn’t speak it.
“Speak in the Common Tongue, my lady,” he growled, pronouncing my title as if it were an insult. “You are in King’s Landing, in the Red Keep. Here we speak like civilized people, we don’t babble barbarian idioms as if we were selling spices in a cheap bazaar.”
I leaned back in my chair without breaking eye contact and switched to the Common Tongue. My vocabulary was limited, and my accent was thick, strong, rolling the r’s and singing the ends of sentences, but I made sure every word dripped venom.
“I speak your language perfectly, Your Highness,” I said, dragging the words. “The problem is that your ears are so full of wax you can’t hear anything that isn’t your own voice. You are a spoiled little boy wrapped in black silk.”
“DIANA!” Myriah gently scolded me, though I swore I saw a flash of amusement in her eyes.
Maekar stood up abruptly. He was tall, much taller than me, broad-shouldered, and cast an intimidating shadow over the table.
“I will not tolerate an insolent little girl speaking to me this way in my own home,” he roared, his brow so furrowed it looked carved in marble. He pointed an accusing finger at me. “My mother may believe you can be tamed and turned into court ladies, but mud always smells like mud, no matter how much lavender you pour on it.”
I stood up too, in a single jump, kicking my chair back. I didn’t even reach his chin, but I lifted my chin with such ferocity it seemed I was driving an invisible spear into his chest.
“Well, what a shame for you, dude, because this mud is staying here for four years!” I shouted, mixing my languages again out of pure rage. “And if you don’t like it, you can throw yourself from Maegor’s Tower. You’re heavy, you’re annoying, and frankly, you have the personality of a wet rock.”
“You are unbearable,” Maekar muttered, leaning toward me, his violet eyes burning with an intensity that took my breath away for a microsecond, though I would never admit it. We were inches apart. I could smell leather, clean steel, and a faint trace of smoke on him.
“The feeling is mutual, prince,” I whispered, baring my teeth in a smile completely devoid of joy.
“ENOUGH!” King Daeron’s authoritative voice rang out, calm but firm, cutting our fight like an axe.
Maekar and I turned toward the king, breathing hard, but not completely breaking eye contact with each other.
“Maekar, sit down. Lady Diana, please take your seat,” Daeron ordered. “We are not here to recreate the Dornish War at the breakfast table. You are family, or at least you will be by association. You must learn to tolerate each other.”
Maekar clenched his jaw so hard I feared his teeth would break. Without another word, he picked up his black cloak from the chair, gave a tense bow to his father and mother, and then gave me one last look full of absolute contempt.
“With your permission, Your Majesties. My appetite has left me. I’m going to ride Vermithor,” he said coldly. He turned and left the garden with long strides, looking like a storm about to break.
I dropped back into my chair, crossing my arms with a victorious air, though my heart was pounding wildly in my chest.
Baelor let out a nervous little laugh and took a sip of wine.
“Well… that was, without a doubt, the most animated conversation my brother has had in weeks, Lady Diana. You have spirit.”
Jennie leaned toward me under the table, giving me a conspiratorial elbow.
“Uff, dude. That guy really hates you. And you him, I don’t even have to ask.”
“He’s an arrogant piece of shit,” I muttered under my breath, rubbing my temples. “If he thinks I’m going to be afraid of him just because he’s a Targaryen, he’s very wrong. He’s going to eat his words.”
Aelinor, on the other side of Jennie, smiled as she spread butter on her bread.
“Don’t tell me, Diana. You made him so mad he almost breathed fire. This is going to be so much fun. Four years of you two fighting. The drama is going to be good.”
Alys nodded, taking a bite of her lemon cake.
“Definitely, ñaña. But be careful… dragons burn when you get too close.”
I looked toward the stone arch where Maekar had just disappeared. The anger was still boiling in my stomach, but deep, very deep down, I felt a small pang of adrenaline. King’s Landing no longer seemed like a prison. Now it was a battlefield. And I didn’t plan on losing to a bitter prince with a superiority complex.
“Let him try to burn me, Alys,” I replied, picking up my own cup of water and raising it in a silent toast to my friends. “I am from Starfall. We are born from shooting stars. And stars… shine brighter than any fire.”