Synopsis: An arranged marriage that couldn't have gone better.
Warnings: absolutely none, completely free for all ages!! Both are minors btw
It was not uncommon for Ormund Hightower to receive visitors. The beauty of Oldtown attracted visitors from all over the kingdom, and for anyone interested in making contacts and establishing relationships in the kingdom, Ormund did not deny these visitors the opportunity to stay in his castle.
For Daeron, these visits were no longer unusual; he was already used to receiving them politely, and Ormund felt gratified to show everyone how well he had raised his nephew.
Until one of those visits became strangely different from all the others. His uncle spent the day claiming that he liked this visit much more than the others and that he had prepared a surprise for him. Daeron couldn't help but feel worried, even though he trusted his uncle; the way he spoke sounded strange.
When the carriage arrived in front of the castle, Daeron couldn't help but feel anxious. Whatever the surprise was, it was waiting inside the carriage, ready to be revealed.
When the carriage door opened, Daeron felt his breath catch in his throat. A young woman, a beautiful young woman, emerged from the carriage accompanied by her parents. Daeron felt something he had only read about in books. A feeling that made his stomach churn, his hands sweat and suddenly, the air in Oldtown seemed unbearably warm.
Observing the expression on his nephew's face, Ormund couldn't help but feel proud of his choice. The girl he had handpicked to marry his nephew once they were both old enough.
When her family climbed the stairs to meet them, Daeron felt the urge to run. He didn't know what to do. He was living his life peacefully, and suddenly an angel in the form of a girl appeared before him.
Ormund greeted her parents and her with polite handshakes. Daeron was still paralyzed; it was as if everything around him had vanished, and the only thing he could focus on was her face smiling shyly at him.
"It's impolite of you not to greet your future bride, Daeron." Daeron's head snapped toward his uncle; his words kept repeating in his head. The most beautiful girl in the world would be his bride? Really? Was that the surprise? If so, Daeron believed the gods had been most generous to him, sending one of their angels to marry him.
Suddenly reality hit Daeron; he was making a fool of himself in front of her. This couldn't continue; he wanted her to see him as a worthy knight, a perfect prince, and the proud rider of Tessarion.
She gave a soft laugh at the prince's shyness. She knew about his reputation; Ormund had told her parents he was kind, polite, and had a strong sense of duty. She felt overjoyed that her future fiancé was someone as noble as Prince Daeron.
"Miss..." Daeron held her hands while placing a small kiss on the back of them. When she said her name, he repeated it, testing how it sounded on his lips. It was beautiful, a lovely name that suited a beautiful young woman like her.
"Tonight there will be a dinner to celebrate your future union," Ormund exclaimed suddenly. "We'll give you time to get to know each other better. Take her for a walk in the gardens, Daeron."
So her parents and Ormund left, leaving the two behind. They were looking at each other with the same shy expression, not knowing what to say or do.
"Would you like to come with me? The gardens are very beautiful at this time of day..." he finally said, not knowing where he had found the strength to speak, but he managed. She nodded shyly. He offered her his arm, which she gladly took. Having her so close made Daeron's heart race so quickly that he had to control his breathing.
At the beginning of the walk, neither of them knew what to do or what to say. Daeron wondered where all the words he had learned from books had gone, or all the chivalry that his uncle Gwayne had taught him. Why couldn't he behave properly in front of her?
"My parents told me you have a dragon, is that true?" She interrupted Daeron's reverie with her question, staring at him, searching for an answer. He felt a skip in his heart; had she heard of him? Only good things, he hoped, although there were no bad things he had done.
"Yes, it's true. She's a girl. Her name is Tessarion" He wanted to say more, he wanted to hear her voice more, so he risked asking a question.
"Are you afraid of dragons? Because if you're not, I can take you to meet Tessarion someday...if you want, of course." For the love of the gods, why did he sound so silly? He should have talked about something else, anything.
"Of course! I'd love to meet her!" She nodded, and the smile that he received made him realize that if he wanted to receive a smile like that every time he was silly, he wanted to become the silliest of them all.
They continued walking until they decided to sit under a tree. They were still awkwardly close to each other. Daeron thanked the Gods that she couldn't tell how nervous he was in her presence. She, in turn, felt grateful that he had offered her his arm to hold, since she wasn't sure her legs would hold her up.
"What do you like to do?" She turned around quickly as if she had been waiting for this moment.
"I like to write. My mother says it's foolish, but I like expressing myself this way." She seemed uncertain as she spoke, perhaps afraid of Daeron's reaction. Maybe he had bad thoughts about it, just like her mother.
"I don't think it's foolish. I actually find it interesting. You can send me letters when you're away…" Daeron seemed surprised by what came out of his own mouth. But before he could apologize, a loud laugh echoed; she was laughing, at him, but she was laughing. Not a suppressed laugh, but a genuine one.
When she realized what she was doing, she stopped immediately. That wasn't how she had been raised; she should be a more refined young lady—her mother had told her so many times.
"By the gods, forgive me, my prince. I shouldn't have laughed. Please don't tell your uncle and don't tell my parents." Daeron felt sad; he knew what they thought of a lady who laughed like that. But he didn't want her to be polite to him; he wanted to truly get to know her.
"Don't apologize, I wasn't offended, and I won't tell anyone." He hesitated before continuing, "You can laugh with me or at me, I want us to be ourselves with each other, my lady, if you don't mind..."
Her face showed surprise but quickly relaxed at the prince's affirmation. She knew that most men didn't bother to get to know even the women they were getting married to, but deep down she knew Daeron would be different.
"Of course I would like that" she said, smiling broadly at the prince.
After that, their conversation flowed so naturally that they didn't even notice the time passing. She told him about what she wrote and everything she liked to do when she was at home. He, in turn, told her about what it was like to ride a dragon and what it was like to live in Oldtown. He also told her that he knew how to play the lute. He stated that someday he would like to read something she wrote, and she said she would like him to play the lute during dinner.
As the days passed, they grew even closer, with Daeron showing her all the good things there was to do in Oldtown. He took her to meet Tessarion. It was said that dragons were deeply bound to their riders and Daeron couldn't help but wonder if Tessarion's calmness around her meant something. He played beautiful music on the lute for her not just at dinner and she seemed enchanted by his talent; someone who wielded a sword very well also knew how to create the most beautiful melodies. He introduced her to his uncle Gwayne, and as he already knew, the two got along very well.
During those moments he could get to know her better: the way she showed curiosity towards Tessarion, how beautifully she smiled while he played the lute, and how intelligent she was during their conversations.
Daeron still felt nervous around her, and he suspected that this would never change. But now there was something worse about it all: she wasn't just beautiful, she was interesting and very intelligent, and this made Daeron feel something he knew how to name but didn't want to rush into anything yet.
The day she was to return home dawned cloudy. Daeron knew this day would come, but even so, he couldn't contain his sadness. He knew he would see her again, but when? What if she forgot him? What if she changed?
Before she left, she called Daeron for one last walk. She seemed sad, so he thought that perhaps she hadn't felt anything alone. This cheered him up, but it didn't lessen the pain her departure would leave behind.
"I know we'll see each other again, but I can't help but be afraid" she whispered, looking directly into Daeron's eyes. Before he could say anything, she continued, "I'll send you letters every day so you'll remember me fondly and wait for me."
"My lady, I would remember you even if we were separated for millions of years." He held her hands. "Our time together has made me happy than I have in a long time. Your conversations are interesting, I like your laugh, your intelligence captivates me, and your beauty has taken my breath away since our first meeting." He took a deep breath before continuing. "I know I shouldn't say this so soon, but I couldn't let you go without telling you... I love you."
She cautiously leaned in and gave Daeron a chaste kiss on the lips. She didn't respond with words, but the kiss was all the certainty he needed to know that she loved him too.
Author's notes: I know it's quite short, but I really wanted to write something sweet for him. I love his personality in the books, and besides being a great knight, he's also polite and knows how to play an instrument.
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