I Love You My Darling Daughter

Maelis had rushed to find her granddaughter, Rhaenyra before word could get to her about her mother. Maelis found her at the Godswood with her friend, Alicent Hightower.

Rhaenyra looked up from where she was standing with Alicent, smiling as she saw Maelis rushing towards them. Her smile faded as she noticed Maelis's tears and the grief in her eyes, and her footsteps stopped.

"Grandmother? What's wrong?" Rhaenyra asked confused.

"I'm sorry sweetling," Maelis said softly. "She didn't make it." 

Rhaenyra's face went white, staring at Maelis with a mixture of denial and disbelief. The smile was gone on her face, and her eyes slowly filled with tears. She shook her head slowly, her voice breaking. "She's gone? No, that-that can't be-" 

"I'm sorry, my sweet," Maelis whispered moving closer to her only granddaughter.

Rhaenyra's mouth opened and closed, but no words left her as she was still trying to comprehend it. She shook her head, tears slowly sliding down her cheeks. She swallowed tightly, her voice cracking and shaking. "Grandmother, this can't be true, it's-it's not fair-" 

"It's the way of life, my sweet dragon," Maelis murmured, holding Rhaenyra close to her. "We have royal wombs you and I. The childbed is our battlefield. We must learn to face it with a stiff lip even if it kills us." 

Maelis said the same quote Aemma had told Rhaenyra a mere few days prior.

Rhaenyra clutched to Maelis, as she was lost in the throes of grief, her world shattered and torn apart by this news. She nodded numbly, her slender body trembling as she buried her head in the crook of your neck.

"But it's not fair, grandmother...Why her, why so young-" Rhaenyra started.

"Sometimes men make decisions that would affect the whole family. And most of those decisions kill their wives in the process of them wanting a son," Maelis replied.

Rhaenyra closed her eyes tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. She clutched onto Maelis as if she was the only anchor in her chaos, her pain, and confusion clear.

"Why would they care more about a son, if the cost is someone you love?" Rhaenyra asked.

"Because men think with their cocks and not with their heads. They think since they are males, they are stronger than women. They go off into the battlefield while we must attend to their needs," Maelis said softly. "That's the way the world works." 

Rhaenyra was quiet for a few moments, her head buried in the crook of Maelis' shoulder, before she spoke up again, her voice hoarse and muffled. "These men are fools..." 

Maelis let out a small laugh.

"They can be," Maelis said.

Rhaenyra was quiet for a moment, still clutching onto Maelis tightly, before she spoke up again. Her voice was quieter, softer. "Grandmother.... can I.... ask you something?" 

"Of course, my dragon, anything," Maelis said.

Rhaenyra looked up at Maelis, a faint hint of hesitation and trepidation in her voice as she asked, needing assurance and guidance from Maelis in these difficult times. "How...how do you survive it, grandmother? Losing so many...How do you keep going with the pain?" 

"I've watched many of my family die sweet ones. I'm the last of my parents and siblings. Including my husband Lord Rodrik Arryn and my two sweet boys." Maelis said. "I've grown used to it, my dragon. Why? Well, death happens all around us and we must get used to the fact that those we love won't always be with us. But they will always remain in our hearts.