The realm apparently decided that two royal weddings were not enough.
The first letters concerning Rhaegar and Aerion arrived before Gaemon completed his second month of life. At first there were only a few, written carefully enough that no father openly admitted he was attempting to place a daughter beside one of Rhaenyra’s sons.
They offered congratulations upon Jace’s marriage, praised Lucerys and Rhaena’s union, expressed delight at the birth of Gaemon, and then, almost as an afterthought, mentioned an unmarried daughter, niece, or granddaughter of excellent character.
Within a fortnight, subtlety disappeared. Vaeron brought an entire bundle into the Small Council chamber one morning and dropped it beside my hand. "These are yours."
I looked at the stack. "They appear to have royal seals upon several of them, which suggests they are technically Rhaenyra’s."
"My sister-in-law has already informed me that they concern your sons and are therefore equally your problem."
Rhaenyra sat at the head of the table and made no effort to deny it. Tyland examined the pile with visible amusement. "The realm has discovered that the queen still possesses unmarried princes. This should surprise no one."
"They have known that since the boys were born."
"Yes, but Jacaerys and Lucerys occupied everyone’s attention. One was the heir, while the other already had a long-standing match with Lady Rhaena. Now both are married, which leaves ambitious fathers with fewer obvious places to direct their enthusiasm."
Lyman Beesbury looked over his accounts rather than the letters. "As Master of Coin, I would prefer the court to remember that royal weddings cost money."
"Perhaps that should become part of the selection process," I said. "The father willing to finance the entire celebration receives additional consideration."
Rhaenyra gave me a warning look. "Do not say that where anyone might take you seriously."
"I suspect several houses would begin bidding before sunset."
"That is precisely why you should not say it."
The letters concerned Rhaegar and Aerion in almost equal measure.
That surprised me. The two boys were the same age, but no one who met them would mistake one for the other. Rhaegar had returned from his time on Driftmark with a growing interest in ships, ports, and the complicated relationship between naval strength and royal authority.
Vhalalor suited him. The dragon possessed a restless curiosity that encouraged long flights over the coast, and Rhaegar had developed the unfortunate habit of believing that every harbour looked more understandable from above.
Aerion preferred speed.
Tyraxes was smaller than Vhalalor but quicker through turns, which Aerion considered proof of superiority in every category that mattered. He had little patience for ships unless they carried him somewhere interesting and less patience still for the administrative work Rhaegar had begun taking seriously. Aerion wanted horses, dragons, hunts, weapons, and any activity containing a reasonable possibility of bruises.
Yet both were princes. Both were dragonriders. Both stood high enough within the royal family that a daughter married to either would place her house permanently near the centre of the realm.
Once the court recognised that fact, the offers multiplied.
Some came from loyal houses expecting recognition for service during the war. Others came from former rebel regions hoping marriage might transform pardon into trust. Reach lords offered daughters raised near Highgarden, Oldtown, or the Arbor. Riverlords reminded us how much blood their houses lost fighting for Rhaenyra. Western families carefully emphasised that they had merely obeyed Jason Lannister rather than supported Aegon from conviction.
Even the North sent several letters. None came from Cregan. Sara found that particularly amusing. She was seated beside Gaemon’s cradle when I mentioned it one evening. Siren had grown enough to climb out without assistance and was currently sprawled across the blankets near Gaemon’s feet, wings twitching in sleep.
"Cregan knows better than to send another Stark south before the court has recovered from me," Sara said.
Jace sat near the fire with a report from Dragonstone. "The North contains other houses."
"That does not mean my brother wishes to encourage them."
I looked towards Jace. "Did Cregan ever discuss possible matches for your brothers while you were at Winterfell?"
"He discussed almost everything except that. At the time, I was still intended for Baela and Luke for Rhaena. Rhaegar and Aerion were young enough that no one expected decisions."
Sara adjusted the blanket Gaemon had kicked loose. "They are still young enough that decisions are not urgent."
"That opinion appears unpopular outside this room."
Jace smiled. "That is because the people writing the letters do not have to marry anyone."
That was the heart of it.
The realm wanted an answer because uncertainty created opportunity. Every month without a betrothal allowed another father to believe his daughter might become the one chosen. Court gatherings became exercises in arrangement. Girls who previously spent little time in King’s Landing suddenly appeared beside mothers and aunts with plausible reasons to visit.
Rhaegar discovered that ladies who had barely spoken to him a year earlier had developed passionate interests in ships. Aerion encountered several young women who claimed great enthusiasm for dragonriding despite having never approached a dragon closer than the walls of the Dragonpit.
Neither boy was foolish enough to miss what was happening. Aerion found it entertaining. Rhaegar found it exhausting. They confronted us together after a supper during which Lord Mooton’s niece had asked Rhaegar whether Vhalalor preferred flying above sea or land and then listened to his answer with such intense concentration that Aerion nearly choked on his wine trying not to laugh.
They followed us into the family solar afterwards. Rhaegar closed the door behind them. "Are you planning to betroth us without telling us?"
Rhaenyra stopped beside the table. "No."
Aerion looked at his brother. "I told you she would answer that immediately."
"You also said Father would avoid answering."
I sat down. "I am offended that you think my reputation for evasion exceeds your mother’s."
"It does."
"That is probably fair."
Rhaegar did not share his brother’s amusement. "There are rumours everywhere. Three different people asked me this week whether I prefer a wife from the Reach or Riverlands. I have never discussed marriage with any of them."
Aerion dropped into a chair. "I was asked whether I value beauty, intelligence, or loyalty most strongly in a future bride. I said I preferred someone capable of staying on a horse, which apparently offended two families before luncheon."
Rhaenyra folded her arms. "You could have answered with more care."
"I could have lied."
"You could have said that character matters more than a single quality."
Aerion considered that. "That would have offended everyone equally."
"That is sometimes the purpose of diplomacy."
Rhaegar looked towards me. "Have you and Mother chosen anyone?"
"No."
"Have you made a list?"
"There have been lists."
Aerion groaned. "That sounds worse."
"The lists contain names sent by other people. They are not decisions."
Rhaegar remained standing. "Jace was allowed to consider what he wanted. Luke and Rhaena were asked whether their old match still suited them. I do not want to discover that because we are younger, our marriages have become convenient rewards for houses that fought on the correct side."
"You will not," Rhaenyra said. "Your marriages will matter politically, because there is no avoiding that while you remain princes. That does not mean politics will be the only consideration."
I gestured towards the chairs. Rhaegar finally sat.
"The realm has just watched Jace marry Sara, and Luke marry Rhaena," I said. "It has therefore convinced itself that the next sensible question is who receives Rhaegar and Aerion. I disagree with the urgency."
Aerion leaned back. "You do not intend to betroth us soon?"
"Not unless circumstances change."
His relief was immediate. Rhaegar’s came more slowly. "Why?"
"Because our family has spent the last several years arranging alliances, fighting a civil war, conducting trials, redistributing lands, holding weddings, and producing an heir for the next generation. I have no desire to turn every child we possess into another political announcement before the realm has learned to live with the previous one."
Rhaenyra sat beside me. "Your brothers needed decisions sooner. Jace is the heir, and the death of Baela left his future marriage unsettled. Luke already had a long-standing match with Rhaena, and both were ready to confirm it. Neither situation applies to you."
Aerion glanced at Rhaegar. "So we may continue disappointing everyone."
"You already do that without royal approval," I said.
He smiled.
Rhaegar remained more thoughtful. "Eventually we will have to choose."
"Yes."
"And when that happens, will we be allowed to know the woman first?"
"If possible."
Rhaenyra continued more carefully. "You should understand that circumstances may limit the choice. A marriage could one day become necessary to settle a region or secure something important for the crown. I will not promise complete freedom that royal birth rarely gives. I will promise that neither of you will wake one morning to discover your life has been traded away without discussion."
Rhaegar accepted that answer. Aerion frowned. "How long do you expect us to wait?"
I looked at him. "You were complaining about marriage thirty heartbeats ago."
"I am not asking because I want one. I am asking how long I may enjoy not having one."
"That depends largely upon how successfully you avoid creating reasons for us to marry you quickly."
Rhaenyra looked towards him. "Your father means that if you begin producing scandals around King’s Landing, your freedom may shorten considerably."
Aerion’s expression became almost offended. "I have produced no scandals."
"You are young."
"That sounds like very little faith."
"It is experience."
Rhaegar laughed, which finally removed the seriousness from the room. No betrothals were announced. That did not stop the letters. If anything, silence encouraged them.
By the next month, Vaeron had assigned a separate clerk to sort marriage proposals from ordinary correspondence. Dick heard about it during one of his visits from the Arbor and suggested charging a filing fee. Lyman Beesbury supported the idea until Rhaenyra reminded both men that monetising access to royal princes would create the appearance of selling marriages.
Dick replied that if the court insisted upon behaving like a market, it should at least pay market taxes. Vaeron nearly agreed. I prevented the matter from reaching an official proposal.
The most persistent houses began adjusting their methods. Fathers invited Rhaegar to inspect ships, estates, or hunting grounds conveniently located near unmarried daughters. Aerion received invitations to tourneys from lords whose letters contained entire paragraphs about the quality of their stables and only later mentioned female relatives.
The boys responded differently. Rhaegar became increasingly careful about accepting hospitality. Aerion accepted almost everything until Rhaenyra informed him that repeatedly attending events hosted by marriage-minded families could be interpreted as encouragement.
He complained that politics was destroying hunting. I told him politics had been destroying enjoyable things for thousands of years. Jace watched the entire process with the satisfaction of an elder brother who had survived something his younger siblings had yet to experience.
"You should enjoy the attention," he told them during a family dinner. "Once Father begins reviewing candidates seriously, you will miss the days when the letters remained someone else’s problem."
Rhaegar looked towards Sara. "Did he behave like this when his marriage was being discussed?"
Sara shifted Gaemon against her shoulder. "He behaved worse. Jace attempted to appear indifferent while remembering every detail anyone mentioned about the candidates."
"I was evaluating the situation."
"You were curious."
"Those are not opposites."
Aerion pointed towards Siren, who had climbed onto the edge of Gaemon’s cradle and was making an unpleasant chirping noise at anyone approaching too closely. "At least Gaemon already has his dragon. Perhaps you can arrange his marriage next and leave us alone."
Jace looked horrified. "He is two months old."
"That would give you plenty of time to prepare."
Rhaenyra placed down her cup. "No one is arranging Gaemon’s marriage."
"Good," Sara said. "I was deciding whether Winterfell had room for us if necessary."
Jace looked towards her. "You cannot flee every time my family becomes irritating."
"I have not tested that yet."
The table dissolved into laughter. I looked around it and understood why I felt no urgency.
Jace was married and learning fatherhood beside Sara. Luke and Rhaena were beginning their own household. Rhaegar and Aerion still had time to become men before the realm required husbands from them. Viserys remained younger still, while Aemma and Maelor deserved years in which marriage meant nothing more than ceremonies involving too much food.
Our family had been governed by necessity for too long. Otto’s ambitions had once turned every relationship into calculation. The war that followed made children into envoys, dragonriders into weapons, and marriages into fortifications against rival claims.
Peace should allow us to slow down. The realm might want another announcement. It would have to wait.
Rhaegar and Aerion would marry one day, and when that day approached, politics would undoubtedly crowd around them again. Houses would offer loyalty, bloodlines, wealth, fleets, castles, and daughters described as impossibly accomplished.
For now, I intended to leave the letters unanswered beyond courtesy. Two sons had already walked beneath wedding banners.
I saw no reason to march the others beneath them before they had finished deciding who they wished to become.