Chapter Text
The wedding preparations were going smoothly. Too smoothly, he feared.
There were some hiccups, though, but not related to the festivities. The investigation had started in earnest, and while it was proving difficult to figure out who Otto may have told the information about that accursed night, they still had a trail to look into.
Because he had opened his mouth. There were some minor lords who were trying to spread rumors about Rhaenyra, all of them loyal to his former Hand. But they were easy to deal with. All he had to do was to divert attention to another scandal, and nobles had a lot of shameful secrets, didn't they? Release one, and they will chase after it like hounds.
Rhaenyra was subdued after that darned man was disposed of. So was Daemon, come to think of it. But the most significant change that occurred was in his wife.
She had only come to him once to ask about her father. Viserys didn't answer her properly, preferring to end the conversation earlier. All he said to her was that Otto had disobeyed his orders, and they needed to investigate the fallout of those actions.
He never thought Alicent would display her displeasure in such a flagrant manner.
No, not displeasure, treason. Because that is what that pair of father and daughter had been doing recently. Disobeying him on every single turn.
Gods, he thought Daemon was a plague to his reign. Turns out that someone managed to outdo him when it came to giving Viserys a headache.
As soon as she heard of her father's house arrest, Alicent confronted his daughter again. The kingsguards accompanying both dragged them before the situation could get out of hand.
But the most flagrant display of her displeasure was the green dress she had adorned on his daughter’s wedding.
If not for the guards shadowing his daughter and wife at every turn, he would have turned a blind eye to this open disobedience and treason.
This came as a surprise because green was Tyrell's color, not Hightower. What exactly was she trying to accomplish?
And so, he ignored her for the entire feast, snubbing her greeting and ignoring her paltry attempts to start a conversation. He firmly turned away from the increasingly nervous visage of Alicent, who was now beginning to fidget with the increasing attention on her from others. Something that many noticed but did not say out loud out of his fear. Viserys cared not.
Again, the order he gave for shadowing both his daughter and wife came in handy. On the one hand, he regretted having intimate information about his daughter and goodson trying for a child. It had come to a point where they were bringing others to bed to have some success.
He had promptly summoned Laenor and had made it clear that if his daughter bore any child other than his and rumors spread about her virtue, he would be the one to pay.
But on the other hand…
Never was he more insulted in his life. He had never denied that his second marriage was a duty. He was aware that he could never give Alicent the same place as his beloved Aemma, and he had said it to her plainly. Before their marriage, he had made it clear that he was marrying her because she was his daughter's close companion. He believed that she would never harm his chosen heir, that she would always care for Rhaenyra as she had done in their younger years. She had comforted him in a perilous time, and he would be grateful to her for this; as a reward, he could give her the crown.
Viserys couldn't believe how blind he was.
His grandfather was right. Daemon was right. There was no man in the world who would not want more. Why would Otto Hightower, his oldest and most honorable “friend,” be any different? Why wouldn’t he want more when he was so close to his goal, already having a grandson with the King’s blood.
How could it be possible that Alicent would not want more?
Already, she had started to whisper in different ears. Whispers of his daughter carrying a bastard, Laenor being a sword swallower, and the most damning: Rhaenyra being a whore. She spread rumors about her daughter's virtue as if it was not one of the highest treasons, as if he had not forbidden anyone in the know to not speak of the incident to anyone. His wife learning about the incident…
He was happy that he had not ordered Alicent to be forbidden from meeting her father. Otherwise, he would have lived on in denial and ignorance.
Well, no more.
So he finally accepted Alicent's invitation for dinner in his solar. He needed to talk to her and end this farce once and for all.
The dinner itself was a quiet affair. Despite her desire to strike up the conversation and address the elephant in the room, Alicent was too nervous to speak up, even though she had struggled to get this chance. Viserys refused to help her out even in this. He had been running on anger for months at this point.
Privately, he thought that if Daemon was the one to do the deed, he wouldn't have been this angry. But the words of that audacious man that pawed on Rhaenyra despite being given the task to protect her, as well as constant whispering and disobedience of his goodfather and wife, had not helped in calming the rage that burned inside him.
It was when they had their fill, if one would call shoving the food around on their plates eating, that his wife finally broke the silence.
"Pardon my rudeness, but can I inquire something, your Grace?"
Viserys hummed in a non-committal manner. She soldiered on.
"How long is my father going to be imprisoned?"
He replied in a disinterested tone. "With the way you meet him every day and provide him every comfort of a noble guest, I would disagree with the term prisoner. But to answer your question, as soon as the investigation is concluded. Or when he confesses who provided him false information and to whom he whispered it."
She continued despite her hesitation. "I don't know what Rhaenyra told you, but my father is most loyal to you. She had been around her uncle a lot in those few days. Mayhap she had been influenced by Prince Daemon and made accusations-"
"I was the one to give the order to imprison him," he cut her off harshly. "It has nothing to do with Rhaenyra. Actually, it is related to her, but she did not have the chance to say anything about your father."
She stared at him, wondering why he would do such a thing. And then she asked. "For what crime?"
He looked at her. "I informed you a long time ago, didn't I? But here is the list: treason, disobeying his King, trying to ruin the reputation of the heir to the Iron Throne, making false accusations about my daughter, sowing discontentment. Take your pick."
Her mouth was hanging open at his accusations. "But he said-"
"What? What did he say? That Rhaenyra had him imprisoned? That she is coming for you after getting rid of him? Or maybe she will go after our children?"
She looked faint. "How- what- where did you hear that?"
He leaned on his elbows, putting his head in his hand. "You don't really think no one could hear what you were saying to each other? I didn't take you to be that naive, considering some of your recent actions proving otherwise."
She trembled. "Your Grace, we were not saying any treasonous-"
He interrupted her, making his comment sardonically. "So you did not say explicitly that Rhaenyra is a whore? That she fucked her uncle and now wants to hide her sin by naming her bastards as Laenor’s?"
She clenched her jaw. "Is that not what happened? So what if my father said this? Is he lying?"
Viserys pretended to be in deep thought. "Considering my daughter entered into her marriage with her maidenhood intact, I would say that your father is, indeed, lying about her."
Alicent was becoming angry, a rare occurrence. She never showed her temper in front of him. "And how do you know the Princess is not lying to you? What proof do you have of this?"
“I know that she and my brother did not fornicate with each other. My word should be enough.”
“But how can you even prove that?”
"I am, in no way, answerable to you." He informed her harshly. "Neither is Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra is my daughter. Mine. She is answerable only to me. You are not her mother. You are not her elder. You are nothing but a former friend of hers. Sure, the first time your friendship eroded was by my actions, but the second time can be credited to you only.
Neither you nor your father has any authority to make such inquiries from us."
Her eyes glittered with malice, something Viserys had not noticed before. "I have no authority? My father has every authority! He has been the Hand to two kings and has been running the Kingdom all on his own for both of your reigns!"
His frown deepened. “Be careful of how you speak. Otto became the Hand only after my Father's death. Shortly after his death, the Council was held, and I was declared heir. King Jaehaerys ran the Kingdom all on his own. His work is exemplary and does not need the help or credit of other people. Otto Hightower only served him in the last years of his life, which are very few.
As for me… I will acknowledge that Otto had taught me to govern, but that does not mean that everything could be credited to him. I would like to remind you that your wording is very dangerous, lady wife.
She would commit every stupidity today, it seemed. “And what about me? What about my right? I have every right! I am your wife and the Queen of this Kingdom! I have every right to make such inquiries."
He nodded. "Precisely. You are my wife, but not her mother. With her mother dead, I am the only one responsible for her, and now that she is married, her husband is too. You only have the position of queen because you are married to me and nothing more. Do not presume to go beyond your station."
"And what about the children I gave you?"
"What about them?"
She was close to tears. "I gave you children. Son! Heir to this Kingdom! And you are telling me I have no authority beyond being your wife."
"Spares. They are spares. And when Rhaenyra has her own children, even that would be secured. I will always be thankful to you for giving them to me, but that does not mean I will allow you or your father to besmirch my house's honor. Your comments about both your father and your children… The way you speak is treason, and if it were anyone else, you would have been punished harshly. Otto Hightower is not the King; I am. You married to me, into my family. You are, first and foremost, answerable to me. You need to respect my wishes, not your father’s. It is high time you are reminded of the fact.”
She gritted her teeth. “Apologies, your Grace, but that still doesn’t negate his right to criticize the character of the current heir as part of the council that runs the kingdom under the King.”
He stared her dead in the eye. “The heir is also my daughter in question, Alicent. Tell me, which father would accept to hear such bold, false accusations made about their own girl? Accusations that would have her, your own former friend, someone you cared about so much, ruined?”
She also stared back at him with firmness. "You keep deflecting, your Grace. All I am asking is this: as your Hand and your most trusted advisor, does my father not hold the right to criticize your chosen heir? You also cannot provide proof that would disprove all these accusations despite my repeatedly asking about it. Rhaenyra can and will alienate Velaryons by presenting her uncle's bastard as their blood, and then what will you do?”
He leaned back, thoroughly fed up with the conversation. "I have already explained neither you nor your father has any right to make such demands and that my word is enough. But you insist on playing this charade so fine: tell me, how would you have responded if someone had gone to your father and told him you were of loose character when you started visiting me in the middle of the nights after Queen's death?"
She was aghast. “How can you compare this situation to ours? You know nothing untoward happened!”
"And neither did your father. What did he tell you, that Rhaenyra and Daemon went to pleasure house and then came back to Red Keep and copulated?" At her nod, he continued on, not allowing her a chance to interrupt him. "But Otto never saw them doing it, did he? He had no proof, but he still made such an accusation. How is that situation different from the accusations either of my shields or Rhaenyra or practically anyone else that saw you coming to my room could have made towards your character?"
“It is different! How can you compare Rhaenyra going to that den of sin to me comforting you?”
"And how will anyone else differentiate? Seeing you bedecked in your best jewels and supporting gowns that bared your shoulders and entering into the room of a man in the middle of the night, a man who is not your father, brother, or uncle? How can anyone differentiate between your situations?”
Tears were now pouring from her eyes. "So you mean to say I am a whore who ruined my honor?"
He sighed in frustration. “No, what I am so desperately trying to get in your skull is that just like I or anyone else have no right to make false accusations about you, no one has the right to make such about my daughter and ruin her reputation. Why is it so hard to understand?”
She stood up suddenly, the chair falling from the force of her sudden action. "Rhaenyra Rhaenyra Rhaenyra! It's always about Rhaenyra! You only think of her, only she matters to you? What about me? Have I not done enough for you?"
He refused to respond in the same manner. “What do you want me to do then?”
She leaned forward. “Release my father! He had done nothing to deserve this unjust imprisonment.”
He groaned. “Have I been talking to a wall for the past hour, Alicent? I told you that your father can walk free right now if he tells me who informed him of such egregious notions. Why is it so hard for either of you to understand?!”
She sneered. "So that you could punish the innocent messenger who brought the truth about your precious daughter? You have never shied from pardoning her excusable behavior. Now, you are willing to punish the just, innocent men for hiding her sins to let her hold a position she does not deserve?"
“And who else,” he looked at her, daring her to say it. “In your mind, who exactly deserves the position Rhaenyra holds?”
Finally, finally, she let out what she had been trying to suppress for a long time. "My son! Your son! Aegon! Men have always come before women in inheritance, and more than that, he is my blood! He will not turn out to be a lying, hypocritical, undeserving whore who tramples on-"
“ENOUGH!” he roared, standing up and kicking the table between them with enough force to throw it down. Obstacle removed, he grabbed Alicent by her upper arms and shook her harshly. "I have given you enough leniency, but speak one more word about my daughter in disrespectful manner, and I will forget who you are and have your tongue removed myself!"
She flinched at his venomous tone and started to cry silently. Viserys let her go and breathed harshly, regretting his lapse of control.
“I have seen you grow up with Rhaenyra. You are not my daughter, but your honor is as sacred to me as hers. Yet why is it not the same with Otto? Rhaenyra grew up under his eyes with his daughter, and yet he looks upon her as a wolf looks at its prey. Why can he not think the same about her as I did for you? Just like it is unbearable for you or your father to have someone cast doubts on your characters, the similar is equally outrageous to me.”
It was probably a remnant of her anger that she made her following statement. "You don't make a wife out of a girl you think of as a daughter."
"I never thought of you as my daughter; I only stated that your honor and future are as sacred to me as Rhaenyra's. You came to me, you comforted me, something I am grateful to you for. I sought to reward you by giving you the highest position in this Kingdom: a queen's crown. Do not behave as if I forced this upon you, as if countless other women would not line up for the same opportunity you took advantage of."
He stared at the remains of the cutlery rolling on the floor. “I clearly remember when I first informed you about my intent to ask for your hand. Rhaenyra was not here. Your father was not here, both having traveled to Dragonstone. We were scared, you more out of the fear of what could happen. And then, my daughter returned, allowing us both a sigh of relief. And then your father did, too, wiping away all your fear. I asked your consent when he returned, did I not? I made my intentions clear. Your father knew of this, evident by his confidence and your presence in the room despite me never calling you to be present in the Small Council. I was honest with you from the beginning. I did inform you that I may not be able to give you the same love and attention I gave to my first wife, but I can give you all the power that came with marrying me. I told you that you were my first pick, not because you comforted me or remained my companion or any such reason. It was solely because you were Rhaenyra's friend. You gave me your word that you will not go against my daughter, that you will not raise her enemies. That she was your dearest friend, and you will support her no matter what trouble befell you. And I trusted you when it came to Rhaenyra and her status! I trusted you to remain steadfast in your support for her when I would not trust anyone else, where I would have been suspicious of anyone else who could have been in your position. And yet here you stand today, complaining as if I forced myself upon you. Here you are, boldly declaring that my daughter does not deserve the position of Heir that I gave her, that your father suggested, that you promised to help her achieve. Is that the worth of your word, your oath? Was having a son enough to change your mind? Is that what it takes for a Hightower to go back on their oath? A small chance of barely more?”
He took a long breath. She continued sobbing.
“But it’s a good thing this happened. At least now we can talk to each other without any facades.”
She lifted her head. “About what?”
He didn't even bother looking at her. "About the fate of your father. And you, too, now that it has come to this."
Alicent sucked in a harsh breath. Viserys continued on.
“Otto Hightower is to be sent to Old Town at the end of this month, provided he gives up the name of his informant. Otherwise, he will be directed to take the black. I don’t care what he chooses.”
“And what about me?”
He looked down, staring at the ring of his dead beloved. "Do you remember when you used to spend those nights with me? When you came to comfort me? I always thought that you were wise beyond your years. You would always advise me on matters that sounded so beyond your age. You had the understanding of situations that no other maid of your age would even learn about, and you spoke to me about them. You always seemed wise, much more than any of your peers. I always thought you understood my pain and the harshness of this world.
You were beautiful. It was as if an angel came to me in my time of need, when I needed help most. I used to think that gods sent you to me as a boon, a balm to my wounded soul. But all of that was nothing but a fanciful dream of mine. A lie."
She remained quiet.
"You never loved me, did you? You never wanted me, never cared for me beyond what was required. I was infatuated with you, but all you thought of me was a mere duty, a duty that is akin to a noose around your throat."
She jerked up, trying to refute his words. “That’s not-”
"Don't try to deny it," he stopped her from saying anything else. "Do you and your father take me as a fool? After hearing all the outrageous things both of you have to say to each other, I would not wizen up and investigate your movements in the castle? I can summon your tails right now and have them repeat everything you said this last week. So do not try to refute it."
She squared her shoulders, trying to look taller. “At least let me say something in my defense before you say your word!”
"No," he shook his head. "I have heard enough. I have given you and your father enough concessions, have I not? I gave you both the highest honors and the highest positions. I may not have loved you like Aemma, but at least I cared for you. I gave both of you the highest positions in my Kingdom: your father, the pin of the Hand, and you, the crown of a Queen. When did it become too little for you? When did you both start thinking that what you received was insufficient? That you wanted more, that you needed- no, desired more? But this is my limit. Today is the evidence of this: no matter what reason I try to make, it is not enough. No matter how much I give to you, you will never be satisfied. And before, I could have let it go for the peace, but now that you are so blatantly planning treason in my own home, against my daughter, I cannot."
She had started to sob again. "So what? You will imprison me, too? Just like father?"
"No," he shook his head. "Every single time, you take the wrong conclusion from what I say, and I am tired of trying to correct you. I will give you what you want most: freedom."
Her eyes widened, and she leached ahead, grabbing his arm. “Your Grace- no, Viserys, husband, please-”
He continued on, unaffected by her attempt to beseech him. “I have already summoned and talked with the High Septon. He has agreed to annul our marriage,”
“No, Viserys, please-”
“To declare our marriage null and void, and you to be a maid again, free to entertain the suits of any knight that might catch your fancy.”
"Husband, please-”
“This is what you wanted, isn’t it? A life free of worries and a charming tale of a knight sweeping you off your feet. Well, I am giving you that. Do not worry; I will be the one to supervise the process, no one else, if you are fearful about any retribution. The crown will provide your dowry, a handsome amount, and surety that you are suitable for a respectable match."
"What will our children think? Don't do this, for their sake-"
He cut her off again. "Your children will not be declared bastards unless they try to commit treason against the crown. You will be allowed to meet them, under supervision, of course. I do not want the repeat of what happened between you and your father."
She fell down to the floor, crying heavily. Viserys refused to look at her again for fear his resolve would crumble.
"All of this could have been avoided. You could have enjoyed the luxuries and power of the queen and your father, the Hand, but you just had to want more, didn't you? And for that, both of you chose the most heinous method, besmirching the honor of my daughter.”
She sobbed loudly, and he went to exit the chamber, wanting to clear his mind. But he left one last thing for her.
“All of this was useless. All this, over what, someone telling your father that Rhaenyra might have coupled with her uncle? Both of you remain stubborn in your belief and allow yourself to be ruled over by treasonous desires. Well, let me inform you, all of it was useless. Both of you squandered your positions over nothing.
It is a fact that Rhaenyra went to the city with her uncle, and they also visited the pleasure den." He started softly, mindful of his tone. "I will not claim my brother had the most honorable intentions when he took my daughter. All I know is that he abandoned her in that place, and she had to make her way back to the Red Keep on her own, which has been corroborated by various Gold Cloaks." Well, only one, Harwin Strong, but that didn't matter. "I happened to visit her when she arrived back, only to find her drunk senseless and her shield pawing at her. The man had been executed, and Rhaenyra thoroughly checked over for any other signs. This is how we know we have not lied when we say her maidenhood is intact. Say what you want, but you have no basis to accuse her, neither right, and your father had none, too. All of this happened because of your greed, not anyone else. You betrayed her, breaking the word you gave to me, and in the process, you lost all respect I and my daughter had for you."
He left her there to sob and wail. His head ached fiercely, and he had no desire to go another round with her.
A few days later, as promised, he released and allowed his former Hand to return to Old Town. It was either misfortune or perhaps the work of an assassin that the saddle of his horse broke right at the border of Reach, killing Otto Hightower instantly. Viserys never confirmed nor denied the rumors.
He strictly forbade Lady Hightower, his former wife, to be in his or his family's presence until she accepted her fate and chose a new husband. Viserys did not care how long that process took. House Hightower defiantly raised a stink, but he gave the task of handling them to the Velaryon boy. The boy was his goodson, and it was high time the man started pulling his weight beyond giving him a grandson. Laenor, as promised, took care of the taxes, trade, and relevant matters to pressure Old Town to back off.
But the King couldn't care about those things. All that mattered right now was that he held his grandson, Jacaerys Velaryon, in his lap and cheered on the knights that came to participate in the tourney celebrating the birth of his legitimate grandson, the heir of his heir.