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CHARACTERS: Ahad and Daenerys
DATE: Post Winter Ball
WARNINGS: None, for now.
SUMMARY: Drama comes to a head.

[ It's long enough past the Winter Ball for everyone to have managed to stumble back to their rooms and potentially sleep. While he had caught glimpses of Dany at the ball itself, it seemed a poor time to interrupt her. Dany deserved to have some enjoyment, without worrying about the mess that Ahad had allowed to fester. He could at least admit that much responsibility for the situation, even if it had only grown worse due to Loki's efforts to prove...whatever it was he decided he needed to prove.

So Ahad, who was somewhere between irritated and concerned, found himself knocking on the door to Dany's room. He had debated bringing wine with him, but decided to err on the side of caution and bring something closer to breakfast instead. Of course, his idea of breakfast consisted of a plate of fruit and small pastries, and leftover sparkling wine from the night before, but then they might need the wine before this conversation is over. ]

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[ Ahad is in luck; her own idea of breakfast is fruit and wine--and only the wine, when she is restless. Without her scribe here to chide her for that choice, she isn't likely to amend poor habits for her own sake.

When the knock comes, Dany wakes with a start, her mind fogged but always poised, still, to be awakened by ill tidings. It takes her a moment to realize she has no handmaids to unlock the door for her, so there is some rummaging for her lion pelt to gather it around bare shoulders and wrap it around her body. It is this sight that will greet him as the door is cracked, her eyes soft with sleep. ]

What is it? [ she asks, some of the fuzziness fleeing her gaze when she recognizes her company. The door is pulled the rest of the way open then. ] Come, [ she invites. She fell asleep later than most, as she is wont to do; later still than usual, after so much dancing (then walking, then flying). ]

[ He'll hesitate in the door for a moment, before leaning down to press a kiss against her cheek (but only if she seems amiable to the act). ]

I've come with an offering.

[ Her belly flutters at that, stirring amidst the haze of recent wakefulness. She tilts her cheek into the gesture, eyes softening further still. ]

I see. How could I refuse? [ comes the sleepy tease. If her lashes have lowered, if her gaze is warmer, then he has only himself to blame. But jape or not, an offering is given in hopes of some aid. The irony of a god asking something of her is not lost on her.

Her room is furnished minimally, for she came with very few possessions. There are little hints, here and there, of status (a set of golden bangles, a finely-embroidered cloak), and a leather dragon harness is draped over the foot of the bed. Newly-arrived since he was here last is a small bow, elegantly-carved and propped almost affectionately beside the headboard.

She leads the way to her bed with a slight hobble in her step, a lingering pain from too much dancing and walking. Some books on her nightstand are easily pushed aside to make room for the glass, curtains parted, and then she is patting her bed for him to join her atop the sheets. For all that she is a queen, she can be curiously informal in the way she chooses to meet with people in her chambers. ]

I hoped you would not. [ It's said playfully, but there's something seriously lying just under the surface. He'll take in the room and any changes before approaching the bed, but not linger on any of them. If Dany wishes to discuss additions, he assumes she'll mention them.

Ahad doesn't hesitate to join her, once he's invited. The wine and food are carefully placed on the nightstand and within easy reach, but he doesn't move to sit next to her. He'll lay down instead, resting his head on her lap. ]

[ Dany's hands, normally folded and held regally in her lap, are lifted up in slow, readying astonishment to make way. Her lap, covered only by the thick pelt of white lion fur, ought to prove a soft landing.

He has never done this before, and yet she takes to it as though it is only another step in some dance. More than once in her time with ALASTAIR, she has wanted for easy touch and affection. Her hands brush strands of long, dark hair from his beautiful face. ]

What is it? [ she prompts again, fighting off a yawn. ] What's happened?

[ His hair is soft against her fingertips. ]

Edited 2016-12-29 08:04 (UTC)

[ To a certain degree, it is another step in their dance. He'll allow his eyes to slip closed for a moment, enjoying the feel of her hands brushing aside his hair. He's made no effort to tame it, so it's likely everywhere... ]

Nothing has happened. [ As he speaks, his eyes will slide open to stare up at her. ] Not in that sense.

[ It's not an emergency, in other words. ]

[ She cants her head downward, watching his face. Once she had found his unwavering stares unnerving, but now they are only another part of him.

Her hands cup his face for a moment, the touch casually tender, and then she is gathering the strands, patting them into place so that she might run her fingers through his hair. She has missed that. ]

You did not come only to recline in my lap. [ He will catch the faint tease. ] Tell me.

Didn't I? [ A similar faint tease is echoed back at her. ] It is a fine lap; I may consider reclining on it more often in the future, with your permission.

[ It's only a short distraction, however. After a brief pause, his eyes will lose some of their intense focus and he'll begin again. ]

Does it...upset you, that you are only one among many that I have laid with?

[ You are a god. She is still gathering hair, but her hands falter.

It is a queer sort of question for anyone to ask her. Had she wedded boys, either time she was made to enter the bonds of marriage? Drogo had made no mention of children, but Hizdahr had sired two. Instead, she says only, placidly: ]

You are with me now. [ Her fingers are busy again. ] Have you asked the same of Loki?

It is not the past, but the present and future that concern Loki.

[ Which is the crux of the problem, as Ahad knows it. Clarity is not something he sought, perhaps, he could admit now, to his own detriment. ]

[ Another matter that is beyond the power of a queen. She has stumbled upon many and more of them, these nine moons past. ]

Have you quarreled?

[ Her tone is curious; it must have been done out of her presence. ]

No. [ The response comes immediately, but after a pause for reflection: ] Yes. I suppose we have.

During the last mission, we needed money. Loki did not react well, when I suggested that I could sell myself again. [ This is something of an understatement, but not a large one. Loki only threatened to kill clients at first, but then did amend that to tricking them out of their cash. ]

[ Old discomfort tickles at her, remembering Barsena and the pit fighters who had chosen the same ways they had held before she'd freed them; she would not have liked his idea, either, though not for the same reason. ]

I remember. [ That they had needed coin. She remembers, too, how Daario's jealousy had been dangerous to behold. ] What became of it? The argument?

[ She strokes the hair away from his face in a slow, gentle motion. ]

Edited 2016-12-31 19:44 (UTC)

He now seems determined to prove that he can manage his jealousy. [ Her ministrations seem to keep him from becoming too tense, but she can likely feel it in his body anyway. ]

Did you see me at the ball?

Only for a time, [ she admits. ] I wished to be young, and there were too many dances.

[ She could tease him for not being one of them, as she would have liked, but he is arriving at some reveal. Instead, she looks back down at him. ]

You were with another Loki. [ One that she trusts decidedly less. ]

Do you hold many doubts about your youth? [ It's a gentle tease, and probably more of an attempt at diffusing some of the rising tension within himself. Dany may be young, but she has had the youth of a queen; there is no time for childhood or youthful joys for one such as her.

He'll close his eyes against her directness, before responding. ] I was with another Loki, because Loki placed my name on a list for a "blind date". [ He actually raises his hands and puts quotes around the words. It's likely a habit he's picked up from their Loki, but one that Ahad intends to never use in front of him. ] You can see how well that ended.

[ You know the answer to that. She smiles, but gives no answer, moving to his shoulders. Perhaps she will find knots. ]

A blind date, [ she repeats, trying to piece together the meaning. No one has explained dating to her. ] Ahad, before I am certain how loudly I wish to sigh, I must confirm that my understanding of dating is sound. Tell me that, if you would be so kind.

[ Her tone is flat. There is a special kind of impatience here, one she has not displayed since Meereen. ]

[ There's tension to be found, in his shoulders. He'll glance at her again in mild surprise, when she shifts her hands to them. ]

It would be safe to sigh loudly. [ He'll indulge in that himself, before explaining. ] Dating is an informal method of courting.

[ Her fingers are searching, but nimble and steady. Though it is not one of the skills expected of a queen, it's clear she has massaged away tension before. ]

As I thought.

[ Indulgently, she sighs, too (it's a sigh party), as her queenly entitlement has allowed even before people she ought to otherwise tolerate. She must keep up her ministrations. ]

To affix your name to the list was ... misguided. A grave affront. How else can I condemn it? [ Her tone sounds strained, as she tries to be kind. She is capable of far more unkind words. ] He did not mean to give offense, I'm certain. He loves you.

[ That is plainer to her than the sunshine filtering onto her bed. She falls silent, waiting, uncertain why he has come to her with this. ]

Wait, no. [ He'll reach up and cover one of her hands with his. ] He would not do such a thing, without my consent.

[ It's clearly important to him that Dany understand this. He isn't here to condemn any action taken by Loki. ]

[ Her hands still entirely, her brow furrowing in dainty confusion. ]

Then why have you come to me with this? [ She forces her tone to gentle. ] I cannot speak for him. You know that.

Perhaps I simply wished for a moment of comfort?

[ This is clearly false, because Ahad would never admit to needing something like that. But it's come out entirely wrong and Ahad isn't certain that it's worth the bother of trying to untangle it. ]

[ She stops herself before she can sigh again; this time, at him. ] You had hoped to avoid speaking to him, you mean.

[ Her palms press into the bed. ]

His jealousy will continue to fester. Your confusion will not fare much better.

It is not simply confusion. Jealousy is what led to my creation and enslavement.

[ He'll stir a bit, but does not quite meet her eyes. ] This situation is obviously not the same, but my discomfort has strong roots.

Then impress upon him that.

[ He may not meet her eyes, but she is looking all the same. They had been lovers for months before she had been stolen away from the Dothraki Sea, and yet in some ways, she is on more plainspoken footing with both of them. How can that be? ]

How else is he meant to understand?

That may risk further attempts to prove that he can manage his jealousy.

[ That's what Ahad believes is at the core of this blind date ridiculousness. Loki wanted to prove a point, but the point ended up being more painful than he planned for. ]

[ She reaches for the wine, drawing a sip, and silently grateful she had only been asked to resolve matters of state in her court. She has never thought she would be thankful for anything Meereenese. ]

I am a queen, and I hear only may, not will. [ Playfully. She has oft sought refuge in uncertainties. Then, more seriously: ] I doubt that future omittance should serve.

[ Slowly, her hands return to his hair. ]

Speaking of your own reasons shall not be enough. What do you understand of his?

Edited 2017-01-02 22:11 (UTC)

[ He's stubbornly silent, but the return of her hands to his hair seems to ease some of the tension within him. Nevertheless, Ahad is aware that he's neglected to truly investigate Loki's feelings on this. ]

He does not like to be reminded that I share myself with others. Not that we have discussed it in any detail. [ He's referring to sexual experiences with others, but a general discussion of these issues has also been neglected. ]

[ Then do it, she might have sighed, but she holds her tongue, remembering how he had flinched from her moons ago. I am not his queen. It forces her to think a moment longer than her nature would prefer, but the answer is more graceful for it. ]

And if that is so, then why? [ She has not stopped stroking. ] Have you asked him to explain? Has he given a sound answer? [ He must see the pattern in her responses by now. ] You are opposed to speaking of yourself, you are opposed to examining his reasons. What do you mean to do?

Edited 2017-01-04 13:56 (UTC)

[ This silence is less about stubbornness, and has more of a feel of resignation to it. There really is only one conclusion, as little as Ahad wishes to arrive there. ]

...perhaps there is some merit, to keeping to the family. [ He doesn't entirely mean it, especially because he cannot stand most of his siblings and has reservations about his parents. Limiting himself to family would allow him to avoid the trouble of explaining anything, though.

This is also, however, a sideways acknowledgment of his difficultly with his own nature. Avoiding attachment means he will never again be hurt by another being, but he will always crave and be strengthened by intimacy. Allowing anyone in carries a large risk, and he remains uncertain that is worth it. ]

[ Why does that make her feel so lonely? Beneath her pelt, she feels suddenly cold. ]

Then I should have only my dragons for company, and they will not bring me wine.

[ It is delivered more distantly than she intends. ]

Even for people, it is never a simple thing to trust. [ Less so for queens than for others--and once won, trust is easily broken. ] Be that as it may, I would trade one hundred listening ears for two, if I could tell them everything. There is little that compares to being loved, and sharing all.

[ Perhaps he's never known that. ]

[ After her words sink in, Ahad will reach for one of her hands. If she allows him to take it, he'll pull it toward him and kiss the back of it in apology. ]

I would do well to always listen to your wisdom.

[ Trust is always a thorny subject. He has been hurt too much and for too long to trust anyone completely; sometimes he wonders if he ever will be distant enough from his past to ever do so. It is the sharing all that always gives him pause. Who would want to know the darkest parts of him?

But he does raise an eyebrow at her, injecting a bit of mischief back into their conversation: ] The dragons, however...perhaps they could be trained for it?

[ You would do better to convince my people of the same. Her body unstiffens slightly at the kiss. ]

I could as well persuade the cats to sing, [ she says sweetly, watching his face. It makes a tempting retaliatory target for her pillow, but that is not easily accessed from beneath her seat. ] No. I want you.

[ She leans back against the heardboard, sighing. Pushing him at Loki has only reminded her that she is still lonely on the top of her pyramid, wondering whether gods ever felt alone. She has her answer, at least. ] Leave me now, if you must. You have many words to form.

If I must? [ He is not unaware of her loneliness, because intimacy and the desire for it is well within his purview. Leaving now would be an act against his nature; a nature which he had chosen to stop fighting at every turn.

He'll turn her hand in his, so he can kiss her palm. ]

I feel no pressing need to form words, for the next few hours. Unless you have no use for me here?

[ You know I cannot make you stay. If she had truly wanted him gone, she would have demanded it. There's a soft inhale at the kiss, and then her breathing stills in her throat. It is too easy, even after several months, to stir at his touch.

She wants to feel whole, wants to fall into him. But something gnaws at her, in the spirit of other shades of intimacy, and she wants for something she has never asked, too. ]

Hold me first. [ Slightly breathless, she pushes away the emptiness for now. The wine will forgive her; it must needs wait. ] I want that. Please.

[ Her unclaimed hand traces the curve of his shoulder. ]

Edited 2017-01-07 12:48 (UTC)

[ He responds not in words but actions, first blinking up at her and then gently detaching himself from her hands. Remaining with his head in her lap isn't very conducive to holding her. ]

Did you think I could ever refuse such a request?

[ Before she even has a chance to answer, he'll move to sit next to her on the bed and wrap an arm around her waist. ]

[ She turns herself toward him, lashes lowering, melding into the touch readily. Her lion pelt slides from her shoulders from the movement, but she makes no effort to tug it back into place. ]

I don't make enough requests. [ An admission that she could be freer, less queenly and distant. There is something fiercely hungry with need beneath the surface, wanting everything at once, but so too is it wistful. ]

Your requests would be welcome.

[ They both hold back, in their own ways. Ahad expects to solve none of this with one conversation, but the topic is open now. Perhaps they will both begin to ask for more, when they need it. ]

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