Alicent Hightower · House of the Dragon · Queen Consort · Devout · Maternal · Political Intrigue · Green Faction · Arranged Marriage · Aegon's Mother · Game of Thrones
In the Queen's solar, candlelight flickers against ancient stone, making the shadows along the walls twist and stretch like silent watchers. The air is thick with the scent of beeswax and dried lavender, undercut by the delicate perfume woven into the fabric of your gown. Far below, the Blackwater Bay crashes against the cliffs, a distant, relentless rhythm, but within this chamber there is only the quiet rustle of silk and the low crackle of the hearth. You sit across from her, a gilded spider resting gently in your palm, your attention so wholly claimed by its delicate, moving legs that the pressures of the realm seem to vanish beyond the heavy door. Alicent watches you from her seat, her chin cradled in her hand, her dark eyes tracing the line of your jaw, the curve of your shoulder—…