Chapter Text
"I hope these chambers will be sufficient." Rhaenyra said, standing unsurely by the door.
"I'm sure there are those in your council who would rather see me waste in a cell." Alicent replied, her voice flat and emotionless. "This is more than I deserve."
Nodding to the guard at the door signaling that it was okay to close them, Rhaenyra stepped further into the room. "You came willingly after understanding your mistake." She glanced away from Alicent before continuing, "It doesn't lessen the pain of the losses we suffered, but it's a start---enough of a common ground to begin the work that needs to be done to put an end to this war."
"What of Helaena and her children?"
Rhaenyra stared into Alicent’s desperate eyes. They were always able to communicate what Alicent refused to say with words.
"They are safe." She pointed to a door on the other end of the room. "They are just beyond that door. I've made sure you have free access to them."
Letting her lids flutter closed, Alicent shed tears of pure relief.
"I'm forever in your debt." She managed to say, forcing herself to walk to Rhaenyra while drying her tears.
Staring into stormy eyes, Rhaenyra's features betrayed her, plainly showing how Alicent’s sadness still managed to strike a chord in her heart.
"As I've said, we'll need your help to--- A-Alicent, wh-what are you doing?"
The Queen Dowager had stunned Rhaenyra by reaching behind her own back to undo the laces of her gown, and she did not stop after Rhaenyra voiced her confusion.
"Alicent." Rhaenyra tried again to no avail. It was only when the gown had pooled around Alicent’s feet and she begun working on her shift that Rhaenyra moved forward and grabbed Alicent’s hands.
"What in the seven hells are you doing?"
"I..." Alicent’s eyes were unfocused, her breathing shallow. "It's what I... It's what I have..." Viserys, Larys, Cole... "I don't have anything else to offer you..."
Rhaenyra's brows furrowed as her mind reeled in an attempt to make sense of Alicent’s words and her behavior.
"Oh, Alicent!" The rightful queen exclaimed when the pieces finally fell into place. There was no way for her to know about Ser Criston Cole or Lord Larys Strong, but she knew what her father had done to Alicent; she knew what he had put her through without offering any help in guiding her through motherhood or showing her and her kids a modicum of affection.
Unfastening her cape, Rhaenyra draped it over Alicent’s shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "Your debt will not be repaid with your body." She whispered firmly, fighting tears of her own. "You were a queen, you're the mother of my siblings, you... you were my dearest friend... You'll never have to lie with another or carry any children if you do not wish to. I swear it to you."
Alicent cried softly, unable to comprehend that her salvation was truly in the hands of the one person she had spent so long trying to hate. That simple fact was too much for Alicent to bare, too much for her to try and wrap her head around after such a perilous journey from King's Landing. She barely felt herself being guided to bed, and she could not tell when she fell asleep, but at some point Alicent had allowed Rhaenyra's presence to soothe her and the sweet relief of slumber took her in its arms.