After several days of recovery, Lyanna had finally regained her strength from the grueling childbirth.
Once her condition was confirmed to be stable, Rhaella sought her out personally.
Lyanna's child had black hair and black eyes, lacking any clear Targaryen traits, which left Rhaella somewhat disappointed.
But it was just a bastard child; she didn't concern herself too much.
Lyanna was cuddling her newborn son, whose eyes hadn't even opened yet. When she saw Rhaella enter, she quickly sat up on the bed.
"Your Grace," Lyanna and her maidservant greeted in unison.
"Enough. There's no need for you here. Leave us. I want to speak with Lady Stark alone."
In Rhaella's eyes, since Lyanna and her son had not had a proper wedding, she still addressed her as "Lady Stark."
Lyanna, well aware that Rhaella would not like her, avoided meeting those violet eyes, instead focusing on the hem of the queen's skirt.
Rhaella did not sit. She stood tall, looking down at Lyanna from above. Now that only the two women remained, the heavy, tense air in the room made it hard for Lyanna to breathe.
"Lady Stark," Rhaella began, her voice cold, "I want to hear everything about what happened between you and my son."
She bit down hard on the word "everything."
"I don't know where Your Grace would like me to start," Lyanna answered, her voice firm despite the situation.
Though she was under another's roof now, Lyanna's spirit remained stubborn. She knew that showing weakness would do no good. She had to protect her son.
Rhaella frowned slightly and closed her eyes before speaking again.
"Start with your second encounter—when the rumors began, saying Rhaegar had 'abducted' you."
Lyanna anchored her thoughts to more than a year ago.
At first, pain crossed her face, but it soon softened, as if something warm had soothed her.
"Your Grace, you must not believe Rhaegar kidnapped me, do you?"
"Of course not," Rhaella said, her expression tight.
"Then I must warn you, what I am about to say may be quite improper."
"Speak."
"Rhaegar didn't abduct me. He saved me."
"And this is how you repay him?"
Rhaella's voice rose, her hands twisting the handkerchief she held, her shoulders trembling slightly.
"That day, I don't even remember exactly what happened. When I regained consciousness..." Lyanna paused, clearly distressed by the memory, "King Aerys was trying to undress me."
Boom!
It felt as though something exploded inside Rhaella's mind. She swallowed hard and asked:
"And then?"
"Rhaegar burst in, pushed him away, and took me with him. But there were pursuers close behind, so we had no choice but to flee."
Lyanna's voice lightened as she spoke, recalling the night they galloped away together.
"At first, Rhaegar wanted to send me back to Riverrun, but by then, the rumor had already spread—that he had kidnapped me."
At this point, Rhaella could already piece together much of what had happened.
Still, there were a few uncertainties.
"We never expected the situation would escalate like it did," Lyanna continued. "Even though I cared for Rhaegar, I knew he already had a wife and child." She glanced down at the baby in her arms.
Rhaella followed her gaze, her eyes seeming to say, 'If you knew, then what is this?'
"We hid for a time, cut off from news of the outside world," Lyanna said quietly.
"When I learned my father and brother had died at King's Landing, I knew war was inevitable. If there was any chance to stop it, it would have to be through proving our love—by having a child."
Rhaella considered this. It wasn't a great plan, but perhaps if she had appeared before Robert and Eddard with a child, they might have hesitated to raise arms.
Of course, there was another reason Lyanna hadn't said aloud: she didn't favor the marriage her father had arranged for her.
Lyanna was sharp; she had long seen that Robert Baratheon would never be faithful.
"Rhaegar confided in me about his troubles," Lyanna went on. "King Aerys didn't trust him. The lords were restless. And my father was expanding the North's influence southward.
When I suggested bearing him a child, Rhaegar refused.
He said crowning me with the wreath at the tourney was merely a gesture of goodwill toward the North. That the whole tournament had been to dissuade my father."
As Lyanna spoke, the image of the melancholic, solemn prince seemed to rise between them.
Then who had spread the rumor of Rhaegar abducting Lyanna?
The answer was clear now—Aerys.
Realizing this, Rhaella's hatred for her late husband deepened. Lyanna smiled then, daring to lift her eyes to meet Rhaella's.
"Do you know how I convinced him?" she asked.
Rhaella shook her head.
"Rhaegar spoke often of a prophecy—the dragon must have three heads."
Rhaella nodded.
"I told him, 'Rhaegar, do you remember? Your Targaryen family still owes the Starks a princess. Time to repay that debt—with yourself.'"
At this, Lyanna's smile grew, carrying a trace of pride.
Rhaella understood at once. She spoke of the 'Pact of Ice and Fire', the ancient promise between the Starks and Targaryens during the Dance of the Dragons.
Initially, Rhaegar had still refused, but he had found it hard to resist Lyanna's persistent teasing.
At the memory, Lyanna's expression softened into girlish mischief.
She remembered every moment spent with Rhaegar—his harp playing, the way he shared his knowledge of the world with her.
The affection shining from her eyes moved even Rhaella.
For a moment, she envied this girl. After all, who could know better than she just how exceptional her son was?
There was no need for more questions.
From the information she had gathered from Gerold and the others, Rhaella was confident she now knew the full truth.
Her demeanor softened. She sat down beside Lyanna and gently brushed the baby's tiny head with her hand.
"Have you thought of a name for him?" she asked.
"Rhaegar already chose one," Lyanna said.
"He did?"
"Yes. He named him Aegon."
Rhaella blinked in surprise. It dawned on her that Rhaegar likely had no idea that Elia had also given birth to a son during his absence.
(Rhaegar and Lyanna disappeared at the end of 280 AC; young Aegon was born the following year.)
And once Lyanna realized this, she knew immediately that it wouldn't be right to name her son Aegon as well. After all, the bloodshed of the Dance of the Dragons had been sparked by two princes bearing the same name.
Besides, Lyanna wasn't particularly fond of the name.
Recently, the two most famous Aegons had both met disastrous ends—one incited the Blackfyre Rebellion, the other brought about the Tragedy at Summerhall.
So she quickly thought of an alternative.
"Aemon. Aemon Targaryen."
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