Chapter One: Summons to Sunspear

A/N: So yes, this has been edited and updated, because I've decided (for now) to go ahead and make this a full-length story. We will see how that goes! As always, feedback is highly appreciated.

No one ever spoke of how the Targaryen twins survived Robert's Rebellion. There must have been several among the Dornish who knew the tale, yet none of them wanted to tell a ghost story.

What struck Shaera as most unfair was that they had survived where Rhaenys did not.

Shaera did not remember Rhaenys. She and Aegon had been mere babes when they had been spirited out of King's Landing, entrusted to their mother's family in Dorne. Fortunately for the twins, they had managed to pass as Dornish. Shaera shared her mother's dark eyes, dark hair and olive complexion. Aegon was more difficult to pass off due to his fair hair and violet eyes, but House Dayne were known for such eyes – which is how they came to be Sierra and Alin Dayne, cousins instead of siblings.

Adem Dayne, Lord of Starfall, had adopted the twins without question. In public he referred to them as his niece and nephew, for he knew spies were everywhere. All it would take was a whisper back to the crown, and it could spell the end for Shaera and Aegon. They kept the charade well, and did their best not to let their masks slip.

Shaera's destiny weighed heavily upon her. She was the elder of the twins, and under Dornish law, that meant she had the claim to the throne over Aegon. Her brother had always accepted this with nonchalance, and spoke about becoming her Hand when she ascended as Queen. Aegon's role had always been that of the protector, of the watchful guardian in the wings, willing to do whatever it took to protect his sister and Queen.

If she had not grown up in Dorne, things would have been different. Shaera knew full well that the rest of Westeros did not abide by the same rights of inheritance. Yet her mother had been of Dorne, and she was as proud of her Dornish heritage as she was her dragon's blood.

However, now was not the time to be dwelling on such matters, not when their adoptive father had a training day in mind. Shaera was already in a sour mood when Aegon knocked her on her back and she inhaled a mouthful of sand. Scowling, she pushed herself to her feet. Her shirt clung unpleasantly to her skin because of the humidity and her own exertion.

"Again," Adem Dayne commanded. The Lord of Starfall watched with arms folded over his chest as the twins circled each other. Shaera was overcome by a wave of frustration, but she fought it back as she gripped her knives. Aegon was a master at the blade, as he was with most things. Shaera, on the other hand, was apparently useless with weapons.

It was odd, knowing if she had been raised in King's Landing, she would never have been permitted to spar with her twin as she did now. However, their uncle Doran constantly reminded them that Dorne was different. Growing up in Starfall meant that Shaera had liberties she would not have had in the capital.

Aegon lunged and Shaera spun out of the way. Speed – the one thing she had on her twin. But it was all well and good to writhe around like a snake, for when he grabbed a hold of her, there would be no escape. It took only a few half-hearted traded blows for Aegon to knock both of Shaera's knives spinning into the sand.

"I don't understand why this is necessary," Shaera grumbled, glaring at her adoptive father. "If you want to make me a Queen, I should be flouncing about in dresses, not trying to cut people to ribbons."

"Times are changing. We don't need a benevolent smile, a pretty face and honeyed words. Dornish women can hold their own, and you are as Dornish as you are Targaryen." Lord Dayne permitted himself a small smile. "Besides, you already do enough flouncing in dresses."

Aegon laughed, and Shaera cuffed him around the back of the head, as if they were eight and not eighteen.

Shaera knew what they were doing, Lord Dayne and the Martells. They were forging her into a weapon. She would be more than just a Queen. She had been taught the history and politics of the seven kingdoms. She had been taught comportment and swordplay. The twins had been prepared for Shaera's eventual reign, and viewed it not as her right, but her duty.

"Father, there's a letter from Sunspear!" Edric Dayne, Adem's eleven-year-old son, rushed into the courtyard with wide blue eyes. Shaera could not help but smile fondly. Her adoptive cousin was a nuisance at the best of times, often eavesdropping on conversations and sticking his nose into matters that weren't his business.

Adem sighed. "Did you snatch that letter from Maester Perrin?"

Edric's expression was the epitome of innocence. "No, of course not."

"Did so, you thieving brat." Aegon affectionately ruffled the top of Edric's hair, using the distraction as an opportunity to snatch the parchment from the boy's fingers. "I wonder what Prince Doran has to say…"

Edric was indignant. "I found it!"

"Edric, go wash up and prepare for dinner." For a few moments, Adem and his son's eyes locked as Lord Dayne wore down the boy's defiance. "Now."

The boy made a disgruntled noise before running back inside. There was a weariness in Adem's expression as he watched Edric leave, and Shaera was reminded that the Lord of Starfall had lost much too. His brother Arthur, killed at the Tower of Joy. His sister Ashara, who took her own life not long after Arthur's demise.

Aegon was reading over the letter he'd swiped from Edric, his expression grim. Shaera put her knives away and crossed over to her twin, suddenly curious.

"Well, what does it say?"

"You and I have been summoned to Sunspear." Aegon tore his violet eyes from the parchment. "Prince Doran does not say why."

Shaera felt a shiver of unease. Although she and Aegon were always welcome in Sunspear, this was the first time they had received an official summons. She wondered what could be so important that Doran wished to see them so urgently. Both she and Aegon turned to glance at Adem, weighing what he thought of the news.

"Then you must go. I daresay you are old enough now to make the journey yourselves."

"Perhaps he's found you a husband," Aegon crowed delightedly, nudging his sister in the ribs.

Shaera rolled her eyes, both at her brother's enthusiasm and at the idea that this was about marriage. In another life, she and Aegon would have married – Targaryens had wed brother to sister for generations. The idea repulsed Shaera, for her feelings for Aegon had never crossed into the threshold of lust. He was her brother, her best friend. Anything more than that simply felt wrong.

"I don't think so." Her tone was dry. She was comfortable here in Starfall. Them leaving this place was inevitable, but they were not children anymore. Each day brought the question of when she would have to leave to fulfil her destiny. Perhaps that was why they had been summoned. Perhaps today was that day.

"You should pack your things tonight," Adem stated, and there was something sad in his eyes as he examined the twins, "Leave tomorrow. The Prince of Dorne is not a man to be kept waiting."

Farewells were easy when they were temporary. Over the past few years, Shaera and Aegon had had their share of adventures, but they had always known that those journeys would end in their return to Starfall. This time, however, Shaera wasn't so sure. When Adem embraced her, it was tight and lingering. The smile their adoptive father had given them was sad. That was when Shaera had first begun to doubt their return.

Aegon was more cheerful about the experience than his twin, but then, he was more cheerful about most things. He whistled insistently for the first hour of the ride before Shaera told him to shut up.

Their entourage was small, no more than two dozen. They were only the niece and nephew of Lord Dayne, after all. Anything too large was sure to attract attention and suspicion. Although Dorne was a safe haven for the twins, Adem had always told them to question everything. As much as they might want to trust people, people had ulterior motives.

"Perhaps we should tell tales instead to pass the time," Aegon suggested.

"You just want to hear about your hero Arthur Dayne again," Shaera sniped back.

It was no secret to Shaera that Aegon examined Dawn with a mixture of awe and longing. Her brother had confessed to her, years before, that he one day hoped to be worthy of the title Sword of the Morning.

"You like tales," Aegon reminded her, "Even the morbid ones from Robert's Rebellion."

That was because, to the twins, they were only stories. Many people older than them had lived through those times, suffered in some way or another during the war. The loss of their mother Elia, a woman who neither of them could remember, was like a shadow hanging over Dorne.

It had been three years since the twins had last been in Sunspear. Shaera fondly remembered her family – her uncles, Doran and Oberyn. She dwelled on her cousins, the Sand Snakes. They too had been trained to be proficient with weapons, however rumour had it they were a lot better than she was. While Shaera struggled to best Aegon, any of the Sand Snakes could have taken him down in the blink of an eye. She did so hope to be able to witness that fight when they arrived in Sunspear.

It was only a few days' ride to Sunspear, and Aegon and Shaera had opted for tents over seeking the comfort of local towns. They had always enjoyed setting up camp, and this time was no different. Whilst Aegon retreated to the sanctuary of the tent, Shaera would lie under the stars for some time in quiet contemplation.

You think too much, Aegon often told her, that's why you hesitate so much in fights.

It was on the fifth day they made their final approach, and Shaera found excitement and nervousness rising and intertwining within her. She had been to many festivities here in the past – and remembered one particular incident where she had helped a very drunk Aegon to bed.

How would things have changed, in the three years since they had last been here? Would they still be welcomed as warmly? Doran and Oberyn had never been anything but kind to the twins, but times and people changed. Shaera found she was anxious because she had no idea what to expect.

You are their Queen, Adem had constantly reminded her, never forget that.

Shaera didn't want to be that kind of Queen, the one who invoked her title whenever she was feeling threatened, the sort who pressured people into obedience. It would be naïve to think people would follow her because they loved her, but she would at least earn the respect that so many others demanded. Trust went both ways, after all.

"Come on." Aegon flashed her the charming smile that made so many girls in Starfall giggle and blush. "Let's see why our dear uncle has summoned us, shall we?"