[closed]

[freeing]

Who: Daenerys Targaryen & Four
When: who the eff knows - backdated
Where: in front of the apartments
What: drama
Warnings: none



[ Daenerys likes the power she has when meeting strangers. Her name in Essos meant something – more than just the noble titles she acquired. Her name was symbolic with hope and magic. With overcoming the odds. Here, this was the closest form of power she can acquire – to choose when to arrive.

She chooses to show up, not shunning the girl entirely although she does not understand her motive. Their meeting had left a sour taste in her mouth, partially due to the dubious calling of it all. However, the message Four sent... it was unlike the girl who she met on the rooftops.

Cautiously, she arrives far later than anticipated. It was a power she wielded. Daenerys keeps her distance for the time being, insisting Ser Jorah stay nearby but not to encroach upon their meeting. Both hands clasp in front of her, each step more prideful than the last. Soon, her voice calls out – ]

My lady.

Comments

[foursakes]

[ time flew by, but for four, it felt like a massive drag with each pull of her needle. she’s working on an embroidery design clasped into a wooden frame, for better use of her hands and fingers— skilled and detailed in something, she often finds herself thinking. a good way to make a living as commoners do. this one was a commission, a gift to a harpy lover.

four looked nothing like a harpy, and so far she was glad for that. her hands remain hidden beneath wrist length gloves, the base of her nails blackening, and, while they don’t grow alarmingly, they still look . . . off. sickly. scaly, even. those are being treated with creams, and as for her black feathers— well, none are in sight. she has plucked them all, and continues to do so like a neurotic girl would pluck her eyebrows into shape. any blemish would be deemed unfit and gone before it could grow any further. how much she’d be able to keep up was an entirely different tale, but she’ll adapt. somehow.

she had to fit in better somehow.

what happened with dany was an absolute tragedy. how could i have done that? four thinks, the entire time she sits and waits. not because she cares for the other woman. her reason was personal and moved by her own attempt at gain. what was she to her now? a loon. not a girl that was proper and quaint and able to carry lovely conversations about dragons— just a broken girl with a broken life so hollow that she couldn’t bare to sit in the fact alone.

what’s worse! she lost control of herself. how . . . barbaric. she’ll never be able to feel better that way. she’d never get the recognition she very much deserved having tantrums like any of her other sisters (in her head, they had tantrums). yet, awful thoughts wave in and out of four’s mind like a rippling tide. she wonders if she would’ve felt better if she shoved the blond off the roof’s ledge when she had the chance.

no. she wanted this woman’s acknowledgement very much like she wanted zero’s, and one’s, even if the same woman made her gut want to churn with jealousy in her most intimate core.

four was about to get up, about to leave when she thinks this is taking too long, wondering if the woman would somehow use this as a punishment. the letter through the magical watch made a weight in her stomach pull down, like the anchor of a ship at sea, and again she asks herself: why do you feel this way? the voice is what makes the intoner’s heart lurch from her chest to her throat, swerving her head with wide eyes to bare.

when she swallows, it feels to dry. enough to see the movement forcing down her neck. ]

Lady— [ a pause, then she bows her head, as respectfully as she could. ] Lady Daenerys. It’s, ah. [ the well’s ledge that she sits on, she scoots, folding at her skirt to offer plenty of space. ] please.

[freeing]

[ It was easy to fall into the rhythm of being distrustful to everyone. Daenerys had been betrayed her whole life – her blood, her followers, her allies... they all turn on her at some point, even if they did not do so with harmful intent. With Daenerys, came a power. Her dragons, her beauty, her undying will. It was tiresome, but she feared the same here. That people who were brought here same as her, would use her to their advantage.

Being brought against her will to the rooftops gnawed at her, struck a chord dubiously. Magic – magic, she despises the thought of it right now. Of the power it holds.

Yet... that damn gentle heart of hers. Once the rage and offense boils down, she agrees to a plan. To allow the woman a chance to speak properly with her, to assess the sincerity of the woman's actions. Jorah is in the distance, waiting for her command if such an action does need to occur, but she does not make it known that she looks to the girl with anger.

It is clear that her features show indifference and respect – who knows if she needs it, right now. There is hesitance in the offering, but this was not the girl on the rooftop – her stomach churns at the offer of trust, carefully she approaches but does not yet sit. ]

Are you feeling better? [ Her first question, even if it can be taken initially as taunting – there's genuine care in her next statement. ] Have you visited a clinic for treatment on your wounds?

[ So many feathers... she recalls seeing them ripped so vividly from the girl – that was her first concern. ]

[foursakes]

[ indifference may sometimes be worse than hate or care. four would rather have one or the other, but never indifference. her voice constricts and her throat clears when the first question comes, and by the gods did she want to recoil and strike in return. how dare, says her thoughts, but what she truly does is force a smile too weak to remain on her lips for long.

do not break, she tells herself again. do not bend no matter how splintered you already are. ]

You seem better yourself. [ . . . continuing! four puts aside her work, for good, and places her hands in her lap, gloved fingers lacing and inhaling a quaint breath. ] I have sought aid, yes. It’s as if they were never there to begin with. [ a small dip of her head. ] As things should be.

[freeing]

Now that I am awaken on my own accord, yes.

[ Daenerys did not feel as if she was violated, no. It was an awakening to her. Just as she had learned trust can be lost, she learned not to give it so easily. ]

I feared you would not have. You seemed as if you did not want anyone to see you in such a way. [ Sympathetically, she does bow her head, hands clasped together. ] I hope it causes you no further pain.

[foursakes]

Well . . . I’ve taken care of myself. [ her aid was held on the basis of healing substances, but not hands. if anyone asked, she’d say they were rashes. ivy. whatever she could to snuff out the trail she could leave. she was an Intoner, and nothing else. ] I have cared for my sisters more than they have themselves when we traveled.

[ she can sense the sympathy, and the words tied to them. what’s worse is that there is no lie in them, and it . . .

how could that be true? ]

Do you— [ she seems to search for the words, pressing her lips together. ] dislike me?

[freeing]

[ The question comes harsher than she'd expect. It was odd – "dislike"... something so unimportant in the grand scheme of where they find themselves. She thinks of the feathers and the lulling singing above all else, the changes rooted in her core – and maybe even Daenerys. She had been feeling more angry, more impulsive lately... No scales had sprouted, but she wonders if there was a spell cast upon her far more ingrained than Four's singing. ]

That is your concern?

[ She questions, a softer and sympathetic tone. Not full of criticism or disgust. She wants an answer, a true one. Maybe Four can muster one for her. ]

[foursakes]

I, [ four’s lips purse together, and her eyes wander for a moment. was it a truthful question? another one that comes partially spoken for, for four held other reasons for being here, calling her. a child was very much solitary and begging for attention, and another, wicked from the chills of life enough to make her heart just as frigid, wants her gone. who would win out? her next words, softly from her lips, drop with melancholy. ] yes.

[ four pauses after inhaling deeper than she would’ve liked. she hated her. she hated her, she hated her so much but oh how she admired her. ]

It was not a lie, when I said I was . . . Lonely. [ but quickly, the intoner shakes her head. ] But that is not why I deserve your sympathy.

[ though when she says it, four sharply hopes that she does. ]

[freeing]

[ Daenerys did not wish to bait the girl or anything like that. It was something she couldn't quite understand – not after the sight she had witnessed. Of all things – Dany's dislike was her priority?

She remains silent, stewing in the woman's words as if trying to parse together to pieces that do not fit. It's difficult, but the push of her eyebrows down and the scrunch of her bottom lip shows a woman weighing things. ]

It is not sympathy that you need. It is help. [ In the general term, anyone who could help her. She isn't sure if she can be that person. ] Your loneliness... is that why you were alone...? Singing to the skies?

[ Her hands clasp tighter in front of her then. Her words almost sound pleading: ]

What kind of help could I even offer you? Tell me.

[foursakes]

[ four goes quiet at the first question, and as an answer bubbles on her tongue she purses her lips together to hold it in. she was singing to coax someone to her, to play her games and drag them down the gutter with her, so she wouldn’t be so lonely in it. misery loves company. she nods, seeming ashamed but frees her from the detail. ]

My songs coax the living, now.

[ she admits. life after death, when you’re the only one here, is agonizing. at least for four. she hasn’t done anything wrong. zero hates her, and that’s why she’s here. five should also be here, yet she is not. the one perhaps the most deserving of loneliness, and it was her older sister that was here to carry the cross.

that’s how it’s always been, hasn’t it? ]

Would you— be my friend? [ she says rather abruptly, her cheeks flushing a deep pink as her fingers fidget with a loose string of her handiwork. ] . . . I may never return to my sisters, if what I last remember is true. Even when I stood atop of the Land of Mountains, my companion, [ a small head dip ] Decadus, was his name— he was self centered. Lewd, even.

[ he never took a hint and would always moan about how cruel a mistress she was. her throat is tight and it’s thick to swallow, but— she does, and finishes her thoughts. ]

I have a roommate, her name is Paloma. We hardly see each other. [ so . . . ] That may be all I truly need.

[freeing]

[ Daenerys has limited experience dealing with women of their own free will. Many of them were indebted to her either by her status as Khaleesi or by her role as a Queen. Only Missandei of Naath had come to her side as a 'friend', so communication like this fills the dragon with confusion.

Why... was friendship important? It was not an allegiance that brought much of anything. It was something built off years of trust, she thinks... years of experience and natural. Four wishes something into existence when Dany can not even process it. It falls hollow to her ears and something inside of her wishes it didn't. ]

I do not know if I am the friend you wish to seek. [ Can she pin this on herself? Spare the girl heartache? No. There was a discomfort that Dany can not forgive or forget – one on dubious bringing and the sight on that rooftop. ] What came before – who came before in your world... I am not them, but I do not know if friendship is what you need. What you want.

[ Dany grows a bit closer, stepping until she was looking to the woman a mere foot or two away – ]

I've... never had friends, my lady. Not like you. Not like me. [ GIRLS!!! She thinks of sweet Missandei, misses her dearly... but part of her wonders if she follows her for a Queen, not a woman. ] I am not sure how to even offer such a thing, offer what you seek.

[foursakes]

[ the hollow echo in four is all she claims she does not hear. this would help when the sound comes through, it wouldn't echo so much inside her, she imagines. it may not make her whole, but it may fill her with a placebo.

all of this has truth, but it's all excavated of anything worth while, all the same. four's smile pushes through the beginnings of dejection. she could hold onto this. she could hold onto something, couldn't she? ]

May we try? [ her expression, features, they all comes close to beseeching. ] I have never had any myself. I suppose . . . [ she picks up her needlework, and after a glance down at the swans, a sniff, she holds it out to the woman. ] It's something we can tread through, together. For as long as it lasts.

[ it's too good to be true. but she's so desperate— she's even created memories of her older sister, events that have never happened, to chase her grief away. ]

[freeing]

[ Dany isn't sure how to approach it. It felt almost pleading — felt heavy-hearted and a request that was different than the ones she demanded on the rooftops. ]

I... [ There's hesitance in her voice, one that breeds from her own social inexperience. Her hands bundle in front of her, thumb reassuringly brushing to her own knuckles. ] There is only so much trust I can offer, my lady. I have been betrayed, been hurt in my lifetime. I do not openly or return faith in just anyone. It is a right to be earned.

[ She keeps her walls up, keeps her guard up. ]

I do not hate you. Do not recoil at the sight of you. A friendship takes time, please truly accept that. [ Accept that it is not a 'no', but not a clear 'yes'. ] Accept that there is more to a friendship than simple words.

[foursakes]

[ there is more to a friendship than simple words. she speaks the truth, and for once (or yet again), four can not have her way simply by pleading. by playing sweetly. by being the girl everyone wanted. zero had said the same thing once. i don’t hate you. but she then added i just want to kill you.

somewhere, deep within the memories of rose, knows that perhaps that’s what friendships are always destined for. betrayals. dany is not wrong. after a stretch to compose herself, four sees that. she picks it up, brings her items back to her lap— and forces a smile to at the very least, curve her lips. ]

I understand. [ something about her voice is cold, her meaning detached, as much as she smiles or laughs. she almost fears that the woman sees right through her hollowness. hears it ring like a bell tower. she brings the top of her gloved hand to the corner of her eyes, properly dries them, avoiding any make up blemishes, and tries her hardest to make her sniff subtle. her smile pulls through better this time, enough that her teeth show in them as she laughs, breathlessly and short. ]

Please— do not feel poorly, I hope you don’t. Time— time will tell.

[ humiliated, she was. ashamed, she was. lonely and hurt, she continues to be, and a problem must always have a source. pinning it on herself has always been tiring.

I will have her, says a voice so deep in four that she hardly hears shrill like the whistles against a window left ajar. i will have her, and i will hurt her. it’s the only sentiment that makes her feel like she’d be repaid in some way. ]

I understand that. You’re not wrong, m’lady.

[freeing]

[ There's a strange discomfort. One that feels more emotional than she was use to. It was not fear that brings her this way or a disgust at the sights seeing. Part of her feels empty, as if her ability to befriend this girl was gone – was never there in the first place. This girl had no loyalty to her, no belief that Daenerys was someone spectacular. Something as simple as a friendship... it may seem like she can't grasp it.

This is not like Missandei. Not like her handmaidens who had betrayed her or died because of her – no. There was no... debt or following. Something mutual, something worked through together – she freezes. ]

Lady Four. [ Her voice grows firm, different than the sympathy she showed prior. ] It is I who should be saying that to you. No one should be alone in this world. I've learned that, but I do not know if I can show you a companionship you need. Perhaps both of us need.

[ She just doesn't know how. ]

I will... be here if you truly need it, however I can.

[foursakes]

[ you’re too kind, four would say on one hand. this bitch is playing with me says the other that she rightfully condemns. you’re not improper, are you, four? the woman has rejected you. what else shall a silly girl like you do? she cannot argue. she cannot weep. she could only smile, weakly, and agree with little to no quarrel. her lips press, and quietly, she gasps. oh, bringing her creation back to dany’s view. ] Would you like to keep this, once I’m done? [ two swans, bright as snow, threaded into fabric with golds, oranges and silver. ] It’s a hand cloth.

[freeing]

[ Dany may know of a woman's betrayal, but she may not know too closely to the manipulation they were capable of. There's pity in her eyes, she can't help it. Stiffening her stance, the gesture tugs at every bit of vulnerability Daenerys had. On missing someone, on feeling alone and never truly known the companionship of women –

Respectfully, she bows her head. ]

If you would like the part with it, I will not deny a gift of such craftsmanship. Thank you. It's already beautiful.