The Grand Maester was tending to King Aegon when Y'olanda stepped into the room. Her presence was not announced so the Grand Maestar was taken aback by her.
"Forgive me, Grand Maester, I just wanted to meet the King." The maester opened his mouth to protest but Y'olanda was faster, "I know he is not well, withal I assure you I am not here to stress the King further. I brought a book." She showed the man who looked towards Aegon.
"His Majesty needs to rest so I suggest you spend a few minutes with him."
"Thank you Grand Maester." She smiled and he left the two of them.
Y'olanda walked up to Aegon's bed, pulling a chair with her and sitting beside his bed.
"Good Morrow, Your Majesty. I'm Yolanda Yaquinn Kambel. How are you feeling today?"
Aegon looked scared. One side of his face was charred, his leg arched and held up by sticks. She shook her head. The Targaryens were an odd entity.
One was crippled for life, one had an eye, one was deemed mad, and the oldest, Rhaenyra fathered bastards. Wonderful indeed.
"What do you want?" He clenched the sheets, eyes filtering around the room. He would call for help if the words made it past his throat.
"I am not your enemy. I find you intriguing and whatever I find intriguing is set for scrutiny." she smiled lightly, "I brought a book. I'll read it to you." she wasn't asking for his permission. His eyes eased a bit.
"This book is a record of decisions past Kings made to settle disputes and stop wars before they start. I do fear it is rather lengthy, but we have all the time in the world, don't we?" He didn't say anything but she knew he wanted to ask questions about why she chose this book.
"Your Majesty, if I may ask, does the Queen Dowager ever visit? Do you have visits from people who are not trying to use you for their politicking?" Y'olanda hadn't opened the book yet, as she helped the king drink a cup of water.
For some reason, Aegon felt like he could trust her. She didn't appear particularly kind but the usual duplicity he saw in everyone was not there. He was always a means to an end. A disgrace to even his mother. Aegon shook his head.
"Right," she nodded. "I don't expect she would want to see you, seeing staring at you would be looking into the mirror." All the things she did wrong. But she was his mother. She didn't care about him but he was truly pitiful.
"King Aegon, they have taken everything from you but not your mind. You can build your mind. If the war does turn in your favor, in the aftermath what kind of King do you want to be? Not everyone is cut out for war and sometimes the greatest Kings are the wisest. The peaceful ones and it is not a weakness to want peace. It's compassion, a trait that I admittedly lack." Her Brown eyes met his and she could see emotions swirling in them. He was listening to her.
She was too logical to be swayed by emotions. She could protect but not care. They were different.
The things he did to women were horrible. The world had always been unjust to them and they were crippled and hopeless. A fitting punishment to become what he looked down upon. The gods really were funny.
"They think of you as a child, your council. The counsel of many wise men indeed win wars but counsel not orders nevertheless at the end of the day you are the King and your words are law. You could become wiser and smarter. Learn how to play the game better than they do. I think Aegon the Wise sounds glorious." It was tiny and fleeting but she caught it. His lips curled up.
"Shall we begin then?" The young girl opened the book and read to the King, though sometimes she would trail off and tell him stories or ask questions about the Westerosi and he replied the ones he could.
This was what the Grand Maester saw when he came into the room. Unlike most visitors the king had, he didn't look perturbed by her presence and was even listening to the foreigner.
He cleared his throat, "I'm afraid the King needs to rest my Lady."
"Oh. Then I'll see you tomorrow King Aegon." she rose to her feet and curtised.
Aegon grabbed the hem of her green dress in his hand. "Aegon."
"I don't think I understand."
"Aegon. My name." he choked out and she beamed. "Your wish is my command." Nodding at Maestar Orwyle, she walked out of the room.
"Lady Y'olanda." The cackle-like voice called out to her. She stopped in her tracks taking a deep breath before turning around to face the man.
"How can I help you, Lord Larys? Do you need me to carry you down the stairs?" The sarcasm might be lost to the ears for some.
Larys stilled, his palm wrapped around the knob of his cane. "I see you went to see the King."
"Seeing that he is the King of the seven kingdoms, I might as well meet the man. Why do you think everyone is like you? Always wanting more than what was served to them?" Her tone was biting.
"Ah! I was wondering when your true colors would show. After all, you did use your sister to stand in these Halls today." Y'olanda didn't flinch at his words.
"Speaking of Halls, Lord Larys, shouldn't you be at Harrenhall?" As if remembering something, she laughed, "No you can't! First, it was magically burned then the Blacks seized control of the place. That place truly is cursed. Well, I do know that the Red Keep is the best place to be if things slip from your grip."
Larys tapped his cane on the floor very close to Y'olanda's foot, "First Aemond, now Aegon. You have such high ambitions. People with high ambitions tend to fall the fastest."
"So that's what happened to you when you were born. The fall must have been very nasty," her eyes landed on his leg. "Fate is cruel in its jokes. Well, I must take your leave Lord Larys." Larys watched her retreating with hooded eyes.
The woman dared to blackmail him and she had no regard for him. People who underestimated him never had good endings. She would be one of them.
****
Out in the courtyard, she saw Aemond, Ser Cristian, and a man she presumed to be Queen Alicent's brother readying their horses. Ambly, she strode towards Aemond and Cole.
"Leaving without saying goodbye, my Prince?"
They both turned to see Y'olanda, standing before them with her hands at her back.
"Why would I say goodbye to you?" He eyed her and she looked stunning with the sun shining on her caramel skin.
"My Lord Hand, the Prince loves to wound me every time we meet. I came to wish him good luck and he rebukes me." She turned to Cristian who didn't know how to respond to her complaints.
"What do you want? To marry me? I am already betrothed." Why did she insist on being around him? Did she want power?
Something in her stomach dropped. Her voice was a little strained, "Really? Who's the lucky lady?"
"We have a war to fight not to answer your stupid questions. Leave." He ordered and Y'olanda looked affronted.
"My questions are not stupid, little dragon. You are being a royal prat. You want to go ride on your ugly Dragon and terrorize the world with your charming personality not fight a war!" Cristian Cole tried to contain his laughter.
Aemond's eyes flashed with anger, "Do you know who you are speaking to? I will have your tongue for this!" The menace and the way he stepped towards her, towering over her made her shiver. He could kill her but a challenge was always accepted by her. How dare he threaten her?
"My, my, I must say you are simply a vision when you're raging. Ser Cole, the knights in battle must fall to their feet and surrender when he flies in with his appalling beast." Aemond's hand flew to the hilt of his sword.
"If you kill your future wife, what good would that do for you? Patience, little dragon. Patience. I'll see you at the gazebo for tea tomorrow afternoon?" She batted her eyelashes innocently and Aemomd's jaw clenched.
"You want to marry me? I'm afraid I can't be with a foreign whore. You are not worthy to be standing here. I don't know what you and your sister did to be here but you are nothing but filth. Repulsive dirty little whores especially your slut of a sister-"
The air stilled as Y'olanda raised her hand and hit Aemond across the face, harshly. The sound resounded in the courtyard. Aemond's head snapped to the side not because it was painful but because he wasn't expecting that a woman would hit him. A whore for that matter.
His head creepily turned to her. "Seize her!" Two guards came to her sides and held her by the arm, another held up her neck so she could Aemond in the eye.
"I will have your head. I want your head!" he drew his sword ready to behead her but Cole stepped in, "We have a war to fight in. We don't have time for this."
"It won't take time to cut her worthless head. I want you to beg for your pathetic life. Beg for the worthless thing called a life you have." His voice dripped with so much cruelty and sadism that Y'olanda's eyes widened with fear but she still held her ground.
Her cowering and trembling thrilled Aemond. Her fear was palpable but she was too stubborn to not evade his eyes. Her jaw was ticking and his cock twitched in his trousers.
"This is all you can do! Treat people that are lower than you like filth," she moved but their grip tightened, "because deep down you know that you are lower than us, so this is how you deal with it!"
He wanted to strike her but he restrained himself because his mark on her face wasn't where he wanted. He wanted to mark her in another way. A way that would have her screaming and pleading. Y'olanda squirming was something that made him smirk.
However, he was furious that she had humiliated him in front of his subordinates. "Leave her be. When I get back I'll deal with you accordingly. You will be punished for your impetuousness."
They let her go, roughly and she almost fell. He glowered at the men and she sneered at Aemond. "I'm honored you will be returning from the war because of me. Your charming persona comes through in such times." With that, she stormed off.
"I'm surprised you didn't raze her to the ground. Do you have some affinity for the girl?"
"Tame your tongue, Cole or I'll have it." He warned, ready to ride his horse to Vhagar.
"Mine you'll have but not hers. Some might think that she's softening you, my Prince." He got on his horse before Aemond could start a fight.
Aemond watched the place where Y'olanda had disappeared. He touched the place where she had hit. His blood boiled. No one dared to hit him now and survived. He would ruin her for what she did. The last people who did, died or were suffering for what they did. Lucaerys, now Aegon.