You were happy.

Especially in comparison to your siblings, as the fifth daughter, you were the least burdened, free from political obligations and the constraints of an arranged marriage. This freedom was your greatest comfort and the only certainty you had, allowing you to dream of life beyond the castle walls.

Yet, this freedom came with its own cost. There was a quiet emptiness that your mother, Alicent, tried to fill with gestures that, though tender, never truly reached your heart. Many believed you were the daughter she truly desired for herself. Alicent taught you knitting and was always present during your lessons in etiquette and history, as if by shaping you, she could create the perfect daughter. For a time, you became just that: the ideal daughter, the faithful companion, the pride of a lonely mother.

But time is relentless. As you grew, so did your desire to explore what lay beyond the castle walls. Like a shadow of your brothers, you ventured into the city streets, following in Aegon’s footsteps to the Street of Silk. Unlike him, you were not discreet, lacking his cunning and Aemond’s coldness. It was no surprise, then, that your sworn sword often found you and brought you back to your chambers, turning your escapades into nights, nights into laughter, laughter into kisses… and these kisses, being forbidden, were intensely desired.

That night, you awaited your lover with eager anticipation, your heart racing. The knock on the door heightened your excitement, and you rushed to open it, a smile ready to emerge. But when you saw your mother’s unmistakable auburn curls in the doorway, the smile died before it could fully form.

“Are you happy now, my dear? You must be, for you gave your body so freely that there is nothing left in you that he might want.” Alicent’s words fell heavily, like stones in the silence, each syllable laced with coldness and disappointment. Her brown eyes, which might have once held a spark of love, now stared darkly, piercing your soul with unending disapproval.