296 AC
Dorne, The Water Gardens
Doran:
It never seemed that a day would pass without the pain, by this point, a full year after his diagnosis, the gout only seemed to be getting worse. 'Woe to the day this thing finally takes me', Doran sighed and sat down on the nearby bench.
Close but out of sight stood his Captain of The Guard, Aero Hotah. It still suitably amazed him to this day the level of self-discipline the Norvoshi maintained, even after all these years, his bodyguard never faltered, not for a moment, it was as if he measured the tactics and abilities of any person who was not himself or Doran any time they entered his presence.
The letter in his hand had not been set down for the last hour, he had re-read the letter nearly ten times, the feeling of accomplishment almost overwhelming in his chest, but Doran always ensured to hide his emotions, even to those he trusted. He listened to the approaching set of boots 'Oberyn' he knew immediately.
Into his solar entered his younger, infamous sibling, paying Aero with a respectful nod and nearly collapsed lazily onto the sofa pillows.
"Is there something important, dear Brother, I and dear Ellaria were in the middle of a rather engaging encounter with these two beautiful boys, one was on top of her and the oth-"
"I have no wish to know Oberyn" He sighed, he leaned back and handed him the letter and prepared for the likely reaction.
At first his brother only half-paid attention, using only one hand and slightly ached his head side to side, suddenly his laid back demeanor left his body and Oberyn jolted up out of his seat. A snarl enveloping his handsome features that would terrify most men and women, not Doran though, even still, Aero approached and created a barrier between the two Princes of Dorne. He knew his brother had not read the full content.
"You cannot be serious, you would have the Usurper's spawn wed my niece, your daughter !" the younger Prince glared a thousand spears towards the elder. The passionate blood of Princess Nymeria was strong and ever present in his brother.
"A prince of the Crown and a Princess of Dorne, it is a good match, Oberyn, and it will aid us in our vengeance"
Oberyn stared still, clearly not believing him... yet
"Have you forgotten, the last time a Princess wed a Prince of the Crown ?" Oberyn all but growled
It was Doran's turn to glare, "Do not ask me that, of course I do, I remember every single day" Oberyn backed off and sat down, slightly calmed but still on edge.
"I love you always Doran, but so help me, if you-"
"I urge you to read the full contents of the letter, dear brother" Doran cut him off.
With a huff, Oberyn did just that, absorbing every word from the paper
"Not the Crown Prince, you wish to betroth our Arianne to the younger one ?"
Doran smiled faintly, the only kind it seemed he could muster with the passing of time
"Yes, Prince Wylam"
For a moment, even Doran was unsure of of how his Red Viper brother would react. Aero maintained his stance, ready to handle Oberyn.
To the surprise of both the ruling Prince and his Captain, Oberyn laughed, not mocking, but as if he was finding something funny only he understood.
The Red Viper ceased his bout of laughter and looked towards Doran "I hear he has quite the scandalous reputation, he is said to befriend sellswords and smugglers, and prefers the company of whores and wanton women to Ladies and fights without honor, they call him Daemon The Rogue Prince reborn"
Doran lightly chuckled, 'Sounds like he bears a slight resemblance to someone I know and hold close to my heart
Oberyn smiled and scoffed 'As if any man could surpass me in these things, clearly taking pride in his infamous(or famous inside Dorne) reputation.
"You would betroth Arianne to such a boy ?"
"If any woman can tame such a man, it is our dear Arianne, besides, you know she enjoys a challenge"
Doran fetched two cups of wine from the table, his hands slightly ached, but he ignored it. He would ask his captain if he would partake in a drink, but Aero always maintained a rule of never consuming alcohol while on or off duty. One day he would need to find a way to convince Aero to take a break, he mused.
Pouring Dornish Red into the cups, Doran continued "The boy will foster here in Dorne and get to know Arianne, and learn what is to be expected of him as the Prince consort"
Oberyn held of look of deep thought on his face and spoke 'As a second son, the Prince holds no lands or titles, a hedge knight in all but name. Becoming Arianne's consort will be the best he could ask for, no reason he should not be anyway, my niece is a true beauty' Oberyn smiled thinking of his beloved niece.
Doran took a sip of his wine 'Precisely' licking his lips of the refreshing substance.
"How will this help us avenge Elia, and our niece and nephew ?" Oberyn had a slight lump his his voice at the mention of his dear sister and her children. Even after all these years, Oberyn, Doran and every Dornish man, woman and child wished to see their deaths avenged.
Doran smiled a sad smile, "One of our men in King's Landing has made quite the discovery'" an understatement if Doran had ever heard one, "It would seem that the three other of the Usurper's children are not as they seem.." Oberyn gave him an irritated look ' May we please dispense with the crypticism, Doran. It leaves me restless' Prince Doran downed his glass and set it down, wiping his lips on his sleeve he looked toward Oberyn, "The three children are no true Baratheons, they are the bastard children of Jaime and Cersei Lannister."
Oberyn gave Doran a neutral look for what felt like a whole minute "So it is true" Oberyn said, bringing to mind the rumors and hushed whispers for the last few years of the Lannister twins's close relationship, usually it was the open point of mocking inside Dorne's taverns and town centers.
Doran stood up and walked to the side of his brother who was still thinking, he placed his hand onto his shoulder "It is only a matter of time until the rumor becomes well-known throughout the realm, somebody else will figure this out, if they haven't already done so. With Wylam, we will have the trueborn heir to the Throne, and Arianne his Queen. We will ensure Tywin Lannister, the Mountain and Amory Lorch suffer for their atrocity against us"
Oberyn gulped down his wine and stood up to face his brother "You promise me Doran... vengeance at long last."
"Believe me my brother, from this day, the fall of House Lannister is at hand"
Oberyn went to the door, to go back into the arms of his beloved Ellaria, he stopped at the door "Will you tell Arianne or shall I ?"
Doran sat down onto his chair, "ask her to come here, I will inform her myself."
King's Landing, Chataya's brothel
Wylam:
'"h yes my dear Price, harder, deeper !"
Wylam indulged Daisy - His favorite whore - and he buried his face into her tanned and soft breasts while pumping into her as recklessly as he could, it only took a minute to earn their climax.
He grunted pleasurably and collapsed next to her, taking his cup of Dornish red and drank greedily, the two had been at it for an hour, he looked towards the curvy and seductive Lyseni girl as she buried her face into his hard chest 'I thought cuddling cost extra' he lightly jested, though in truth it was not far from the reality. He always made sure to give any whore he took his pleasure on hidden extra coin to keep for themselves and not the owner.
She opened her drowsy eyes and smiled "For you, it's free my Prince." she lightly started to stroke his manhood, which was already beginning to get aroused again "You're going to drain me of my coin, Dais" he only half cared about that, and began to kneed and suckle on her breasts 'You love it though my Prince' she purred. Wylam was about to begin another round of passionate fucking until he heard a knock on the door.
Wylam grunted, this time in annoyance 'What is it ?" "The King requests your presence in the Throne Room" he heard and recognized the voice, his uncle Jaime.
"Fine, I'll be right there", he reluctantly disengaged himself from from Daisy's embrace and began to get dressed, he smirked at her adorable pout. 'Seems I'll have to reconvene our vital engagement later tonight. Daisy got up, unashamed at her nudity and gave him a deep kiss and whispered seductively in his ear. 'Dancy and Marei are available tonight, the more the merrier, my dear Prince" she giggled, licked and lightly bit his ear.
Wylam fought against his instincts to take her all over again ' Sounds like something I could use after whatever my beloved father wants' he spoke sarcastically. He held no real enmity towards his father, King Robert Baratheon, but it always felt like he was left to raise and find himself. The true issue lay with his Mother...
'My Prince' Uncle Jaime spoke louder, clearly impatient.
'On the way' he gave his regular "unofficial tip" to Daisy, winked at her, receiving the sight of her beautiful cunt in turn 'Please let this meeting be short' He was looking forward to tonight. He came through the door, and walked alongside his Kingsguard Uncle. As usual his uncle stood, handsome and beautiful, the Maidan's dream come alive, if only he ever showed any interest any woman. Jaime spared him any amused looks, long having got used to his proclivities.
Near the exit of the Whorehouse, alongside the retinue of knights was his sworn shield - a Sellsword called Bronn. The Mercenary had appeared to have already been informed of the King's order and was dressed and ready to go. The last time he'd seen Bronn, was as he was being led to the usual suite, Bronn in the process of choosing his own entertainment for the evening. He looked as happy at having the evening interrupted as the Prince himself did.
'Do you know what this is about Uncle ?'
'I have no idea, my Prince, I tend not to care much for the details that don't include protecting the King' His Uncle looked bored rattling off the rehearsed line, in other words 'I won't tell you because I was told not to, thanks Uncle Jaime' He mused, he was already half-annoyed, now he wasn't even given a reason to be called. After the ride from the 'Street of Silk' The Journey led them to the Red Keep, passing through the gates, Wylam still could not figure out why he was being called to see father, he'd made sure that anything he'd been tasked with (Assisting the Gold cloaks in stopping the latest streak of murders and robbery of royalty taking place throughout King' Landing, fourteen men had been hanged as a result) 'If this is about what I did to that cunt, Allar Deem, I have nothing to apologize for, the sick fuck shouldn't even be wearing that cloack'
He had learned from Daisy that Deem had been using his position to beat and rape the younger girls at one of the poorer brothels, the twelve year old who Daisy had shown him looked as if she was attacked by a wild animal, Wylam clenched his fists through the reigns hard over his horse as he remembered how hot his blood had boiled upon seeing the horrific sight. He'd immediately tracked Deem down towards the Gold Cloak barracks and beat him within an inch of his life, 'Hit me back if you dare' Deem had been recuperating for three months since then. No Gold Cloak that he'd heard of had been taking advantage since. He knew it wouldn't last, the shock factor of a Crown Prince asserting the rules would wear out soon, and if he was no longer here, things will go right back to how they were.
The retinue of of the Prince dismounted their horses and entered the Keep, the throne room was packed with nobles, merchants and others (Lickspittles and opportunists all) King Robert, first of his name, sat upon the monstrosity they called a Throne 'Makes one wonder about the interests of Aegon the Conqueror, not many men that I know of love to be surrounded by big swords, other than Uncle Renly of course' He chuckled at his childish jabe and walked to the center of the room, the many fools making way for the man boy they were calling 'The Rogue Prince Reborn', Never in front of his father of course, the King would have the head of any man stupid enough to compare his brood to any Targaryen; dead or alive, 'I guess father never heard of a man called Orys before... oh well'.
'Ah my son returns, I trust you've been using your sword wisely in protecting the innocent women' His father loved his jabs, usually Wylam would be more than happy to go back and forth, even in front of the lickspittles and fools, but on this occasion, he wanted to know what he was here for.
'Always, Father, you called me hear for a reason' Wylam always liked these things to get straight to the point.
His father muttered in agreement, having Grand Maester Pycelle fumble around with a letter he was preparing to read out. He took a breath 'I heard you were once the warrior reborn father, how did it get to this ? He still could not believe how badly out of shape his father was, the man had doubles chins which he hid well with the beard, his belly hung uncomfortably low, and often moved faster to places than Robert himself did, he'd often sweat a river from just from walking from one side of the room to the other. His indulgences would be the end of him, Wylam had made peace with that a long time ago. Of course he Wylam too loved his vices, both Father and Son bonded over their mutual love of women, physical competition and wine, but that was the limit as to how far his father ever opened up. Unlike the King, Wylam always ensured to never let his vices control him and always kept in top shape from countless hours of sparring and exercise.
He noticed Pycelle continued to fumble, the King soon lost patience and snatched the letter himself and read it out:
'I, King Robert, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm and Prince Doran Martell of Dorne have arranged a betrothal between my beloved son, Prince Wylam and his beautiful daughter, Princess Arianne. We both feel that it is in the best interests of the Realm to bring Dorne back into the family of Kingdoms, so a new age of prosperity can bloom. Prince Wylam will arrive in Sunspear by the end of the week, they will become married within a years time'
Wylam did not realise he had been holding his breath, 'married... and to a Martell' Wylam was all too familiar with the tension between Dorne and the Crown, the crime against Princess Elia and her children, an act which upon hearing was done on the orders of his Grandfather, he had made sure to always keep a distance from. He remembered that he even asked his father why his Tywin Lannister was never punished for it, after his fostering with Uncle Stannis, his father's response still disturbed and sickened him to this day 'Those Dragonspawn took Lyanna, killed her, I'll celebrate every one of their deaths. Never question it again boy !' That day, Wylam had lost respect and any positive feelings towards both his parents, the good man who his father was at one point was long-dead, buried deep under a surface of boiling anger and grief.
The crowd had long began muttering and sniggers at the announcement while Wylam was in his thoughts 'The boy should be pleased, he gets a Dornish whore to keep his bed warm' 'The Rogue Prince Reborn... reduced to a cock to keep the Martell line going'
He could care less for these fuckers and their opinions, Wylam never had any problem with any woman having power, if his future wife held a higher position of authoritythan him, he took no issue with that 'It could be an issue if she wants you dead though' He shuddered at the thought.
Throughout the entire ordeal, he noticed that his mother was not in attendance 'Probably celebrating that she's finally got rid of me I'd wager' He signed thinking of his mother, all throughout his life, she had always treated him with cold and quite disdain, as if he was a bastard. Always preferring instead to coddle his older brother or his younger siblings to a lesser extent, realizing he'd be gone for Gods knows how long, he could only pray that they'd be safe from Joffrey and his cruelties. With his mother open in her hatred and his father hopelessly lost in the memory of a dead woman, he'd been forced to raise himself, he'd spent time fostering with his Uncle Stannis from the age of six until he was ten, years later he'd then spent time traveling with his favorite Uncle Tyrion, who'd introduced him to his first woman, a young thing, pretty, I was told she was a virgin and it was an honor for her to loose it to me 'Coin didn't hurt to' he smirked.
Since then, Wylam had gone onto develop quite the reputation for a Prince, he seduced whores, common women all the way to High Ladies. As well as the Lannister side of his family, he'd never been close to his Uncle Renly or his Tyrell friends, Renly's preference for men, with his relationship with Ser Loras Tyrell was an open secret to those in the know. His Uncle had always been arrogant and selfish, even to his family, during the Rebellion, Stannis had held Storm's End for a full year while The Fat Flower, Mace Tyrell, had led the siege, ensuring Renly survived through thick and thin. In response, Renly openly mocked Stannis for the fact he held Storm's End as Lord Paramount, none of this had softened Wylam's perception of his younger Uncle.
"Ahhh the Prince of Whores himself" a snickering, almost girl-like voice shouted across the Red Keep hall. "Joffrey"...
'This must be a dream come true for you, Wylam, married to the Princess of that desert of degenerates and cowards, you'll fit right in' To his right and left stood their mother's two stooges, Ser Preston Greenfield,and Meryn Trant", Trant held his usual cruel snigger, but Greenfield looked only in disgust: a typical Westerman - always thinking he was superior to the rest of Westeros.
''Why brother, that's no way to speak to your future Good sister, she is said to be enticingly beautiful, smart and passionate, one can never hold anything against such women' Wylam smirked
'Of course you'd run to a woman as if she was equal to you. "Intelligent" woman do as they are told, nothing more.'
"And why is that brother, what difference exists other than the lack of a cock ?"
Joffrey snarled "Woman are nothing more than creatures meant to serve, the fact that you leave for a country that allows women to act as men shows that they are barbarians, and so are you."
Knowing he'd won. Wylam left to head to his room, suddenly, he heard Joffrey shout "Of course you'd want a whore, who else would love you otherwise, nobody does or ever will, including Father and Mother, nobody wants you Wylam, you only know how to shame yourself and us !"
Wylam breathed in and out, he heard the cruel laughter of Joffrey and the Kingsguard, he felt tears begin to well but left quickly down the hall as to not give them the satisfaction '"remember... never let him see it, it makes it worse'. As He came to the door to his room, Wylam suddenly saw a flurry of Gold and Red coming down to the corridor - 'Mother"
He made to enter his room, his fingers grasping the handle "Wylam" a soft, but dagger like voice called out, his mother's voice, he quickly tried to wipe the tears away before facing her.
Her face looked as cold and distant as it had always been, would she finally give some words of comfort, " love you Wylam, I always have', I'm sorry for what I've done" It would be neither.
"Do not embarrass your brother again, he is your future king" and promptly strode off with her Guards in tow.
Wylam opened and smashed his door closed and broke down. He sat on the bed and let it out, now with nobody watching to call him a "weak baby"
Did either of his parents love him ever, Mother certainly not, father never cared to be in the present anymore. The thoughts of the rest of his family did little to help: Renly barley acknowledged him as if they were not family, he even joined Joffrey in mocking him on occasions. Uncle Stannis was a just man who taught him much, and he knew he cared for him, but always struggled to show it. The only people he had always loved and they loved him in turn were Shireen, Myercella and little Tommen. But they were only children and could never provide the support he wanted or needed.
His thoughts went to the Martells, would they treat him the same way, alienate him and ensure he never was one of them ? he hoped not. One way or another, he'd know by next week.
Author note:
Hey guys, I understand that the canon ages of certain characters won't always add up or make sense. I've aged up and de-aged some of them to make the plot work. Other than that, I'll try my best not to disrupt anything else.
Next chapter should focus on Arianne, the Sand Snakes and Cersei. If you want to have anyone else as a POV chapter (Bronn for example), I'm open to ideas, so don't hesitate to let me know.
P.S this is my first ever story. :)
Other than that, hope you guys are well and stay safe in these trying times.
Joffrey aged 16
Wylam aged 15
Arianne aged 18