82 Star Gazing

'Do we mate for life? You could say so...

To fuck the world is a lifetime commitment.'

- 'A Treatise on Dragons' by Rhaenar I Targaryen

><>

As the night progressed, the group found themselves unaffected by the concoction.

"Am I supposed to feel anything?" Rhaenyra questioned.

"… Not sure," Rhaenar admitted, "Feels like it's been hours. What do you think, Brien?"

Brien's attempt at reassurance was evident in his awkward gesture, "We've taken the proper amount."

Rhaenar said, "A dud?"

"Maybe we need more?" Rhaenyra said, already reaching for more wine from the pot.

"I'm not sure that's wise," Brien cautioned.

Rhaenyra stirred the pot clumsily with the ladle, a crude mimic of her brother earlier, "There's not much left. It'll be fine."

"It'll be fine, she says," Rhaenar parroted, "See what I have to deal with, Brien? I'm surrounded by madness."

Brien peered into the bowl, "I suppose there's only another cup left for each of us."

"Seven hells," Rhaenar said, "Are you sure you want those to be your last words?"

"I'm sure you'll write some better ones for me," Brien joked.

And so the trio committed the cardinal sin of taking another dose before fully understanding the effects of the first.

Alicent observed quietly as the transformation unfolded.

It started with outlandish topics of conversation as if their minds had been unlocked to abstraction.

Lemon-flavored melons, floating castles and buried cities. The origin of dragons and the existence of magic.

They laughed over grumpkens, snarks, and conspiracies, often getting lost in tangents at the silliest things.

"That's preposterous," Rhaenar exclaimed after Brien made an outlandish remark.

Giggling uncontrollably, Rhaenyra echoed, "Preposterous!"

"Preposterous," Rhaenar repeated, relishing the absurdity of the word, "Prepoperous.."

Alicent couldn't help but smile at the sight of the siblings smiling and leaning on each other. Their laughter blended with the crackling of the fire. 

Suddenly, Rhaenyra went "woah" as she studied the backside of her hand.

"What?" Rhaenar said, snatching her hand and holding it close to his eyes, "Woah!"

There he saw great plains, a vast field of dry expanse. Her skin rippled and lined, and he could see the way blood pulsed in those tiny blue veins, B-Bump, B-Bump.

But it was when he looked up and beheld Rhaenyra in the eyes that it hit him like wildfire.

Colors bounced with a comic, almost ironic vibrancy, as if mocking themselves.

Strange creatures formed from the shadows cast by the fire, only to disappear and become another before one could even focus their mind on them.

On the outskirts of vision was a wavy effect, as if the air itself was jiggling back and forth in visible form.

Rhaenar was abashed. Still holding her tiny wrist, he said, "What the f—"

At that moment, Brien sprang from his seat with sudden upright straightness. He stood wide-eyed, as if someone stuck a pole through him.

The sudden outburst concerned Rhaenar in his compromised state. For a moment, he regretted taking that second cup. He was stricken with a terrible fear that something bad was about to happen, and he'd have to snap back into battle mode.

"Brien?"

"I need— " Brien mumbled.

By then, everything amused Rhaenyra. "What is it?" she asked.

"I… need to… write down… my thoughts…"

With that, the would-be maester stumbled into the darkness.

Alicent recalled her duty as trip sitter, "Should we be concerned?"

Rhaenar swallowed hard at the question. He could feel his moist neck tubes, the trickle of saliva. His train of thought kept switching as he regarded Alicent's hazel eyes, those rosy cheeks, the exposed collarbone.

"He can handle himself," Rhaenar said. He rubbed his eyes and got lost in the explosion of colors. Green dots shot out like flowery fireworks, turning blue to yellow to gold.

"Shit. I think we made a grave mistake.."

Rhaenyra stuck her beak up to the air and laughed, "You can be so serious sometimes. Ser Serious! I think it was a great idea! Ooo, speaking of, shall we watch the stars?"

The suggestion was so incredibly perfect that Rhaenar felt instantly tethered to the ground. His warped feeling of having no control washed away for a brief moment. 

"Have I ever told you how smart you are?"

"No, but feel free to start."

So it was that Rhaenar focused enough to set up a comfortable station.

He placed cushions on the ground and against the wall in such a way that when the trio sat down and leaned back, it would not strain their necks to be constantly looking up; a terrible affliction when star gazing.

Rhaenar almost got lost in the comfort as he felt the cushion absorb him like sinking in melted cheese.

Now that they were in a poised position and had a task for the foreseeable future, the safety of not having to think anymore took hold.

He no longer feared a sudden interruption from a messenger who carried ill tidings.

"Ahh," he exhaled in relief. When Alicent sat next to him, he noticed her holding her elbows. "Are you cold, my lady?"

"A little," Alicent said meekly.

"Say no more!" he said, springing up and collecting all the blankets available. The three of them must have shared a dozen blankets. The weight on them was palpable.

Alicent almost instantly got too warm because of it, but she did not voice her concern. She didn't want the dragons to think she couldn't take the heat.

Rhaenar took his seat between them and pulled the blanket up to his shoulders, feeling its roughness scratch his chin. "There we go. Much better."

Rhaenyra displaced the blanket from his right shoulder and laid her head there, "I'll say."

Together, they looked up at the sky. Moonlight filtered down like ghostly smoke. The starry expanse stretched on endlessly.

Any fool would have been rendered breathless, and Alicent felt the urge to articulate her wonder. But before she could, the twins gasped in cartoonish awe.

"By the gods," Rhaenar exclaimed.

Rhaenyra's eyes were dilated pools of black. They mirrored the cosmos above. "Are we dreaming?"

At least that was something Rhaenar was certain of, "No way."

Each star was akin to a dream that beckoned its own array of colors and thoughts, alright.

They seemed to sway in his wavering vision yet remained still when he focused directly on them. He tried to catch them in the act to no avail. He swore the stars were playing tricks. 

Then as he gazed upon the celestial banquet, Rhaenar felt a pang of longing. 

Despite his knowledge of these stars, each constellation remained a stranger.

He wasn't in another time or place, or hemisphere. It was another world altogether.

He missed the Southern Cross, the hunter's bold stride in Orion, the majestic glow of Carina. How Jupiter shone brilliantly. The warmth of Sol.

"Tell me," Rhaenar said, his lips moving almost of their own accord, "Do you think it's possible for a man to change his stars?"

Alicent misunderstood his meaning. A bit of the wine was speaking, "Perhaps. Father changed ours. Sometimes I think if he didn't rise above his station, I would have never have met you."

"Don't be ridiculous," Rhaenar said, "Even if Ser Otto never became Hand, I would have befriended you in a heartbeat the moment we met in Oldtown."

Alicent wanted to believe it. "You really think so?"

"I know so."

Alicent was suddenly grateful the flush of her cheeks would be unreadable in the nightly glow. She fondled her thumb under the blankets. "You're just saying that."

"Not true," Rhaenar contested, "My stars would have changed the moment we locked eyes."

Her heart fluttered. She looked down from the sky as she summoned her courage, "I-.. Is that what happened when we met?"

But already, Rhaenar was back to being absorbed by the ever-changing sky. His mind kept losing focus with each passing moment. His vision a dazzle of swirls and colors and shapes. 

And then he saw it, that captivation of the stars not unlike his homeworld, a fascination imbued in each nebula.

All the thoughts no longer rattled in his mind. The visual display before him had him lost in the pure consciousness of the here and now. His lips parted.

Alicent suddenly became aware of their altered state.

She glanced over at Rhaenar, who was fixed childlike wonder. Rhaenyra pressed into him, her closeness almost desperate.

"What does it feel like?" Alicent asked. "That potion. What do you see?"

"It feels like my body has no barrier," Rhaenar said. "When I close my eyes, I can't tell where I stop and the world begins. Each color is more vibrant, it's like I can hear them. Each time you speak, the sounds almost manifest in physical form. Even the strange touch of the blanket is enough to send me elsewhere, like a coded message my hands can decipher. I can't focus on anything. My mind wanders~"

And so they star gazed.

At one moment, Rhaenar noticed his sister was in her own world, her blazing hot flesh pressed against his.

Beneath the blankets, she had slipped her hands through his loosely fitted shirt. One hand clung to his hip, drawing them closer together, while the other roamed his body. 

Rhaenyra used one finger to trace the edges of his abs, moving up the crevice in the middle.

She got lost in the uniform ridges of rib, feeling the hard feedback of pecs as she squeezed.

Her touch moved in every direction. A slaver inspecting her goods.

Rhaenar pondered the coded messages she might be receiving in her exploration. The unsung truths of the universe transmitted through her touch.

How long had she been feeling him up like this? Their skin was so hot that it made it hard to discern any feeling if he didn't focus on the area.

She kept pulling at his hip with her other claw to draw them closer. And each time, she nuzzled inch by inch. From shoulder to neck, to eventually resting cheek on chest.

"Rhaenyra?"

"I'm tired, brother," she lied with glossy eyes, "Let me sleep a while."

Rhaenar rested his chin on her head and looked back up to sky. The stars were spinning now, his vision a nauseating blur. 

He felt like he was going to be sick. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to steady himself.

Blocking outside stimuli helped, but it was his sister's wandering touch that prevented him from spinning out completely.

Rhaenar had the sudden urge to get up and take himself to bed while he still could. 

Rhaenyra hindered his movements the moment he tried. It felt like her weight kept increasing, her head heavy on his chest, making it hard to breathe. Sinking deeper and deeper into the cushions, trapped in comfortable quicksand.

All he could do was squint his eyes and minimize the spinning lights from the stars above. 

He glanced at Alicent. She was still focused on galaxies. Maybe she could save him? All he had to do was ask for help getting up. 

His tongue wouldn't move. His sister's touch strayed ever downward. Fingertips lightly crawled on his lower stomach, making him shudder.

That was like an invitation to Rhaenyra. With each movement from her brother, she sensed an otherworldly comprehension dawning within her. It was as though she could decipher him through the subtle twitches and shifts in breathing. 

Her hand went lower.

For a moment, she simply let it rest there softly against the bulge of his member. She could feel its plumpness through the cotton breeches, the sharp intake of his lungs. 

Rhaenar's eyes widened as he looked at Alicent, relieved she hadn't noticed the skulduggery. The shared blankets had concealed Rhaenyra's actions from view.

Exhaling a silent sigh of relief, Rhaenar reached down and discreetly moved his sister's hand away from its inappropriate placement. 

She simply returned it there, finding amusement in the attempt at secrecy. 

The game persisted, with Rhaenyra growing increasingly bold with each exchange. She seemed entitled to that spot. It was hers.

Her defiance intensified with each displacement. She chuckled softly. 

Alicent heard her, "Is that you, Rhaenyra?"

Rhaenyra kept her eyes shut, "Mmm. I'm having funny dreams."

She began poking, touching, tapping, anything to gauge his response. Slowly gathering information, taking her time. Rhaenyra relished the complete freedom to explore her brother. The way she had seized control electrified her.

She rubbed now, her curiosity increasing with each stroke. Each movement elicited a quiver. She liked how his legs began to spread subtly and how his heart raced. 

She coiled a leg around his to stop him from denying access. Rhaenyra felt the heat permeate, how he was hardening at her touch.

His desire only spurred her on. She breached the waistband underneath his trousers. A hot wave of air met her fingertips. She traced from hip bone to hip bone, inching lower with each lap of her forbidden track.

Rhaenar let out a light groan. He wanted so desperately to flip his cock upward. The way it bulged so hard and southward had him worried. If Rhaenyra wasn't careful, it might spring back with such force that Alicent would hear it slap against his stomach.

Alicent turned concernedly, "Everything fine, my prince?"

"W-," 

Rhaenyra went for it the moment her brother was about to answer. She squeezed his head with such sudden strength he had to hold his breath.

Rhaenar found his tongue, "Y-yes, my lady," he said, scanning his mind for subject matter, "W-.. what's your favorite star?"

He tried his best to listen as his sister toyed with his cock.

Rhaenyra was instantly struck by the heat of it. She didn't know it could be so wet and ready. The way it pulsated in her hand. She caressed up and down his shaft like a cartographer mapping his veins. Every nook and cranny touched time and time again.

When Alicent finished pointing out her favorite stars, Rhaenyra was fondling the balls.

"What's your favorite, my prince?" Alicent asked.

"Ooh that's good!" he blurted.

"Pardon?" Alicent asked.

"Mmm. I mean," Rhaenar stammered, hastily pointing to the sky to divert Alicent's attention. 

He prayed Alicent did not see how dedicated his sister was beneath those blankets. 

"That star over there is... ma..g..nif..I..cent. I prefer stars more up there, though. Up. Upper. There you go. Yeah, that's it. Oh yeah, that's my kind of star!"

.

..

…

..

.

Brien never made it back to his quarters. They found him passed out in the gardens with a copy of Jade Compendium by Colloquo Votar on his person.

Rhaenar woke with crusted pants. 

Rhaenyra woke with smelly hands. 

None recalled how they got back to bed. Oblivious to what happened.

All that was left was a memory of blankets.

Blankets and Star Gazing~