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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ walking the halls to look for his cousin . may the gods prevent him from having to witness him entangled in the sheets with his dornish friend or another oafish fool .
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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀why were they marching towards a lake when she had a bath tub and handmaidens to wash her ? why was she bare feeted when the ground was littered with stones and dirt ? he cleared his throat . " I may as well escort you to your chambers ? "
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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀he lets out a silent huff of a laugh, not wanting to be impolite despite his struggles . " I am fine, your grace . " as he turns and meets her eyes for a second, he sees something unfamiliar there . she was not fine as much as he wasn't . &&
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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀now, rhaenyra’s dragons will not spare us out of gratitude . be angry with me if you must, but know that every strike of my sword is meant only to carry me back to you . pray for my return, my love . it is all that keeps me going .
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⠀ ⠀ you speak as though I packed my saddlebags out of boredom, leonette . as if I would rather sleep on frozen dirt than sit at our table and see our children, see you . blame my uncle all you wish, it changes nothing . If I lay down my steel &&
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my love, you fight to honor your uncle’s mistaken desire to rule the world. my children do not deserve to grow up without a father, and the realm was quite fine with the order of things left behind by the late king. was it not for your cousin’s and uncle’s ambitions, we would —
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⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀it is neither ego nor vanity that drives me . it is duty to our house, our king, and our children's future . I fight so they inherit a realm, not a grave .
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