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"You think I handled the meeting poorly." Khaleesi said as we walked through Winterfell.
I could see her muscles tensing as she wanted to do nothing but pull her coat closer to her. She was used to the heat of Essos but couldn't handle the cold of the North. Just like her children. I swore there was a look of jealousy as she saw how easily I took the harsh weather. If she had been born and raised in the North she would have learned to deal with the cold that never went away.
"Lady Stark plays a fierce game." I replied politely. "In Essos there aren't the same political games. It is understandable that you didn't see how she was toying with you."
"I saw how she was playing with me." Daenerys retorted. "I decided not to lower myself to her level. I am the one who will sit on the Iron Throne. I am the one who will carry on the Targaryen name. I must show the strength that my ancestors did before me."
Khaleesi's strength had very often carried her to greatness that I had never imagined possible. Early on I had made the mistake of doubting her strength. Not so now. Yet she still had far to grow and my duty was to make sure she overcame her weaknesses. I had mistook her mistakes in the meeting as her not understanding what Sansa was doing.
In Essos she had learned that strength was power. She hadn't been taught that political scheming was a way to gain power. My love thought that she could disregard the rules when she saw fit as she had physical might to back her. She thought that Sansa would learn to respect her physical powers.
"You're in Westeros now, Khaleesi." I said. "No one will respect you if your skills in political dealings are lacking. In Essos strength was a very physical and visible thing. To gain respect you had to show what would happen if anyone dared disagree with you. In Westeros strength is not so visible. It is subtle but no less deadly. To gain strength in Westeros you must battle just as fiercely in meetings as you do on the battlefield."
"Fighting atop Drogon is much different than talking with Sansa." Daenerys argued.
"I would imagine so. But if you wish to gain the respect of the Westerosi people, you need to change your perspective."
Ghost ran back towards me. He was an amazing creature and I could see Jon in him. Like the man, the direwolf had a quiet strength to him. Each time his paws hit the ground, it was as if he gained more power. He stopped in front of me and looked at Daenerys. Once he was assured we were both fine, he ran off again. It would be good for him to let out his energy now so he would be able to adapt to King's Landing easier. Hopefully.
"I was the Lord of Bear Island at one time." I continued. "I couldn't just threaten my foes with force. My people needed to perceive me as strong. If I failed in that task my foes could lie about how poor of a ruler I was. My foes could then move to usurp me."
"But you were proven to have done wrong." Khaleesi pointed out.
"And I was able to hide that for so long because no one thought I'd ever sink that low. Perception is everything in ruling. It doesn't matter how good of a ruler you are, it only matters what people perceive you to be. If you fail in politics, you leave yourself opened to be perceived as someone you aren't."
Khaleesi was a great woman and leader. It was not often that someone like her was granted any amount of power. She would be able to gain the hearts of the Westerosi people as well as keep her House strong. She just needed to learn how to tame the fire inside so that her kindness could be seen by everyone around her.
"I won't play their games all the time." Khaleesi argued.
"You don't have a choice." I replied sadly as we entered the remnants of the godswood. "To gain and keep the Iron Throne you must play the game of thrones. You must learn to notice when foes present themselves and when allies are starting to doubt you. If you are too rash then you make your demise all too easy for your enemies."
"I can deal with a few assassins."
"But it isn't only a few assassins that will attempt to stop your reign time and time again."
"Then I will deal with the traitors."
"One traitor can turn into a whole kingdom if you're not careful enough."
In Meereen Khaleesi had encountered the Sons of the Harpy. Their fierce attacks against my love were done out of a need to keep their way of life. One woman had helped murder the Unsullied because she saw my love disregarding the beliefs of Meereen. That was the first time my love had tried to rule and so her not being subtle was understandable. She couldn't make such a mistake again in Westeros.
Sansa had been trained by Littlefinger so having her as a foe would not be idle. Especially if Khaleesi held onto the idea that she could decide not to play the game of thrones whenever she wanted. She needed to learn to play by the rules better or else Sansa could use her influence. Unlike Khaleesi, Sansa had turned into a great political strategist. She could lead someone into a trap without them thinking they were being betrayed.
Littlefinger had fooled people to gain power. Sansa could use her newfound knowledge to bring Daenerys' reign to an end before it could truly begin. Since I didn't want to give my love the wrong impression, I held back a small smile at how dangerous Jon's sister truly was. She didn't need any dragons. Nor did she need to wield a sword. She was more powerful with her words than the strongest warriors could hope to be.
"Your words, as always, are wise." Khaleesi said and we stopped where the ashes started. "I admit I have failed where political dealings are concerned."
"You didn't fail, Khaleesi." I reassured her. "You learned."
My blood turned to flame as I looked upon the Night King's crimes. The godswood was not of its former glory as Viserion had burned much of it when killing Bran Stark. Why had anyone thought using the poor boy as bait would result in a favorable outcome? Why hadn't someone pointed out that dragons weren't bound to walls? Why had I remained silent on the matter? Had I been afraid?
"I did learn." Khaleesi said. "I have learned much since my dragons hatched. I have learned to know when my heart will lead me to ruin. I have learned that not all who smile mean well. There is not much more time to learn before I sit on the Iron Throne."
"You have always surprised me with your wisdom." I replied. "You will find the strength and knowledge to rule by the time we reach King's Landing."
Khaleesi would find the strength because she had to. Just as she had to be strong enough to carry on after Khal Drogo's death. Just as she had to free all the slaves in Essos. Time and time again she had been given weaknesses to overcome. Time and time again she had. No matter how weak she felt, she would be strong when she sat upon the Iron Throne.
"I didn't think you'd smile here." Khaleesi said.
"Sorry, my love." I replied. "I was just thinking about everything you overcame to reach this moment."
"I should've done more. I shouldn't have let Viserion die and be...I sometimes worry I'm not the woman you think I am."
"You are greater than the woman I think you are."
We started walking around the burned part and tried to avert our eyes from the damage. The scent still entered my nose and I tried not to gag. Bran Stark, Theon Greyjoy, and the others with them had all perished. All that life wasted for nothing.
"Sansa shouldn't have tried to play with me so." Daenerys said stubbornly. "We are supposed to be allies. We are supposed to be working together for the good of Westeros. Yet she showed her true colors when she tried to undermine me."
I held back a sigh. With all of her wisdom, Daenerys was still burdened with stubbornness. That was not a weakness against certain foes. The need to not change against all odds was a great asset at times. But Sansa was not an opponent who could be beat by staying true to yourself. You had to be honest with one such as her but still hide anything that could be perceived as a weakness. Guiding my love to do the most politically advantageous thing would be hard. Yet guiding her was not impossible.
"Before Sansa Stark went to King's Landing, she was as naive as you were." I began calmly. "But the Lannisters were certain to teach her about how childish thoughts can get you killed. Joffrey Baratheon proved to have no care for anything but violence. Thus he proved himself not to be the charming prince she thought. Cersei Lannister proved to not care for Sansa when the Stark thought her a maternal figure. Thus she proved that not even royalty had to be pure of heart."
"So she doesn't trust my title because she was betrayed by Cersei?" Daenerys asked.
"Yes. She was forced to learn the ugly of truth about the world and that left little room for trust."
Khaleesi had learned very early on that not even family was able to be trusted. Instead of taking care of his sister, Viserys had turned to tormenting her. It wasn't until she was given to Khal Drogo that she found a strong woman inside a broken shell. If I could connect Sansa's story to hers, my queen might finally see sense on the matter.
"Sansa then trusted Littlefinger who turned out to be a snake that gave her to Ramsay Bolton." I continued. "So she learned that those who acted as friends could be the deadliest of enemies. She was also forced to go undergo the constant torment of Ramsay. If not for Theon Greyjoy she might have died before Jon reclaimed Winterfell."
I didn't mention that if not for her, Jon might never have reclaimed Winterfell. The mention of Theon caused me to pause. He had come back to Winterfell to serve Sansa. He had come back to serve House Stark. He might have even come back to earn some form of forgiveness. And his journey had ended in the godswood. And his journey had ended for a foolish plan.
"You seem to know a lot about her." Daenerys said.
"I talked with Jon before we arrived here." I explained. "He talked about Sansa to me. I am his friend and so he tells me about his family. It's good we did have such discussions."
"And you didn't think fit to tell me all this before?"
"You understood her enough. You knew that she didn't trust you. You knew that she wanted to keep the North's independence. You knew that she was more politically adept than you. There was no reason to tell you her story."
It was a weak defense, but true. How would knowing about the hardships of Sansa's life help Daenerys? Even after knowing to be careful of Sansa's political knowledge, she had ignored that. Tensions between the two women might have gotten worse if my love had known exactly where to strike her blows effectively. Nothing I told her would have changed what had happened in the last meeting. Or maybe I wasn't trusting her like I should.
"You know my life hasn't been easy." Daenerys said. "My own blood sold me into slavery. I made it through the Red Waste only to find that the easiest part of my journey. I had to kill Drogo. I had to watch Viserion die twice. The Sons of the Harpy tried to disrupt my rule in Meereen. Do I have to name anything else?"
"No, my love." I replied.
"So you know that I could be manipulative since I had a hard life."
A grin came on Daenerys' face as if she thought she'd won our argument. It was a cruel grin that could cause enemies to rethink their course of action. Her gin didn't make me feel uneasy. She was happy which caused me to feel hope for her future.
"I agree that you haven't been manipulative." I said. "But that is because you weren't trained to be. You weren't trained to view everyone as chess pieces on an elaborate board. In Essos you saw every enemy fall once enough pressure was applied. You earned the Dothraki's loyalty by burning their Khals. You earned the Unsullied's loyalty by massacring their masters."
"And is that all Sansa sees me as?" Daenerys asked. "A chess piece?"
"Sansa cares for others but is still extremely guarded. You are a queen that she is unsure of. So, yes, for now you are a chess piece. Just like I am. Just like everyone that isn't a Stark. She has been trained to view people that way. She saw the political treachery in King's Landing and learned from that. Littlefinger took her as a student and she found out how to use her knowledge as a weapon."
"It doesn't disturb you that she thinks of you only as a chess piece?"
"No. That is the way of things in Westeros."
We each took a deep breath and walked through the burned parts of the godswood. The destruction told a powerful story that ended with the villain being killed. All the ashes had been avenged. Khaleesi had helped fight the Night King and Heartsbane had been instrumental in destroying the dead. Even in the darkest of nights, there was still hope. The godswood was a reminder of that.
If only the horrific scent was easier to bear. It would be a good place for reflection if not for the scent of death that overrode anything else. Hopefully in a year or two Sansa would be able to have this place flourishing like before.
"If she cares for her family, why did she allow Bran to needlessly sacrifice himself?" Daenerys asked. "Or are you just making excuses for her?"
"It wasn't Sansa who suggested Bran go into the godswood. It was Bran who formed the plan." I pointed out. "It wasn't only Sansa who allowed Bran to needlessly sacrifice himself. It was all of us. His blood is on my hands, your hands, and Sansa's hands."
I put a hand on the stump of the heart tree and tried to avoid Bran's ashes while doing so. The gods were watching and I prayed they would show mercy. Though since we had allowed this to happen, the gods were not going to listen to our cries.
"You really think the gods will listen?" Khaleesi asked and I continued to look at the tree.
"The gods so rarely grant us mortals mercy, I doubt this time will be any different." I replied solemnly. "It was us who burned the godswood to the ground. It was us who allowed the Three-Eyed Raven to die."
If my role was that of Azor Ahai the gods would have to grant me help. If there was something more cruel than he Night King, I would need their help. Cersei Lannister was a cruel woman but at least she was alive. At least her motives could be understood. At least she could not see like the Night King had been able to.
"What if I am Azor Ahai?" I asked Khaleesi. "How could the prophecy be speaking of something other than the Night King?"
"I don't know." She replied. "But whatever you have to face, I will be beside you."
I let go of the heart tree and turned to embrace her. No matter the dangers we faced in the future, we would never abandon each other. Our love was true and could stand the test of time. Nothing would ever tear us apart. Whatever the gods had destined for me to kill would crumble soon after meeting me.
"Sansa might be an ally." Daenerys said once our embrace ended. "I don't agree with how she manipulated me, but there is something to be admired in her tactics. There's something to be admired in closing off your emotions so you can figure out a solution to your problems. If she is on our side she will be more than valuable. If she becomes an enemy then she will be hard to destroy."
My love was learning. If she knew that there was an art to what Sansa did, she might be more open to political maneuvering in the future. Admiration might turn into imitation and Daenerys could become even more powerful. She would learn how to hold onto power once she sat on the Iron Throne.
"Maybe we could spend a few months here after our wedding." I said with a sad grin. "I would love to show you all the places from my youth."
"After I claim the Iron Throne we will have eternity for you to show me." Khaleesi said and cupped my face in her hands. "You will have eternity to show me many things."
She had not changed her mind. She was going to move quickly instead of taking Sansa's offer. Though if my love changed her mind now, it could signal to Jon's sister that she was indecisive. That was a weakness that could be exploited.
So I took comfort in the fact my love was learning and would improve in the future. I found it comforting that our wedding would take place in the North. I took comfort in the fact that we would have many years as husband and wife. We kissed in a way that was both gentle and extremely intense at the same time.
"I love you, Jorah." Khaleesi said in between our kisses.
"I love you more than I can ever express in words, Khaleesi." I replied.
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