Chapter Text
You were fourteen when you and forty-nine other girls were lined up in a single file line at the street of sisters. you were wearing a yellowed white milkmaids dress which had a blush ribbon around the waist, your hair was tied into a tight plait with a small pink bow at the bottom. Even though your mother had scrubbed you from top to bottom you still had that seemingly permanent dirt under your nails and greyed skin from living in flea bottom, as did most of the residences.
"Now sir Otto Hightower shall assess each one of you" bellowed a masked guard, you stood up straighter hearing that, your chin pointing at an angle to give the illusion of confidence. You weren't confident.
It took around twenty minutes until he was in front of you but you felt like you hadn't moved an inch since his arrival, it had started to hurt your neck.
Otto looked you up and down "So what makes you think you'll be picked to look after the children of the red keep?" you had heard him ask that to the other three girls before and they all had compelling answers, you had tried to think of your own arguments when you first heard him utter the words but nothing came to your head, so when his tall frame stood in front of you all you could do was look past him and avoid eye contact "well..." you coughed, he raised an eyebrow at this- like he could smell the nervousness radiating off of you, "I don't personally have any younger siblings to vouch for me but in flea bottom, there are a lot of children who wander around alone and get them self into danger, I help them aLOT!" you voice broke on the last word but you kept going "I have very quick reflexes and am a quick thinker so if somehow a child would get into trouble I would protect them." he hummed at this, you decided to look at him only to see him glaring down, his wrinkled face scrutinizing your very being "what would you do to prevent them from getting into trouble in the first place?" your face dropped and you blurted out words before you could register them "I would pretend that they're in danger all the time...i suppose" his eyes turned into slits before sighing and turning his back on you "this one will do" and then he just walked off and you just stood there while forty nine girls stared at you in anger and the ones closest enough to here the encounter, disbelief, you included.
You were now standing at your front door, two armoured royal guards standing at either side of you. You held one large bag filled with clothes, two pairs of shoes, and three pink hair ribbons. Your mother, father, and three older brothers stood in front of you, mouths agape.
"You sure you can't take the dogs with you?" your mother shrieked.
Your three large, beautiful, black mutts. You did wish you could take them with you, but alas you knew the king wouldn't dare allow three flea-infested dogs to roam the clean halls of the red keep, you just had to hope by the time you can visit, they won't be dead.
"I'm sure...I think for everyone's sake...you should let them go." you said, trying not to imagine your three angels roaming the streets of flea bottom alone, "good, they are not even guard dogs- well to you maybe but us? all they do is growl if we get near them." mentioned one of your brothers, you ignored him in favour of giving your family a nod, "I shall send you the coin I will receive, please send me a letter if anything bad happens, I shall wish to know." and with that, you turned and began to walk out.
Your family, the Mordere's, weren't pleasant; your father was a drunk, your mother- a suspected whore, and your three older brothers? Useless.
You weren't special either, you knew that but compared to them and the rest of flea bottom you would be labelled a diamond in the rough to any outsider.
You hadn't lied when you told Otto Hightower you helped children around your town, you stole food for the needy, and patrolled the dangerous streets at night with your three dogs; Ghost, Lady, and Summer. You even made a name of yourself, hidden under a black cloak. People thought you were one of the seven, roaming the streets to take revenge on anyone who hurt the innocent- they called you the stranger and his three hounds.
You knew the people making these rumours were to be drunk because your hounds were only three dirty mutts and you were only a small girl under a large cloak who carried a rusted shovel for protection, still, it made you happy you were making more of an impact than the king's guard, but now you have to hope the fear you struck into many peoples hearts will stay like that, at least until you're able to come back.
You were to get to the castle via carriage, it wasn't as fancy as the ones you've seen before but the seats were cushioned and the ride was smooth. You sat facing the way you were headed while the two guards were in front of you, you didn't know if they were looking at you due to their helmets but their heads and bodies stayed facing toward you for whole the twenty-minute ride, it was tense and you would've looked out of the window to distract yourself from the fear of the creeping unknown if only they weren't covered with a thick red curtain on both doors.
the sound of wheels and talking was an indication you had made it to the red keep before the carriage even stopped. You grabbed your bag as the two guards made their way out of the left door and the smaller two held it in case a gust of wind slams it in your face.
"thank you" you mumbled politely as you jumped off the step.
it was much sunnier up here than down at your home, people seemed to be in rushes and maids laughed together in huddles as they carried baskets of laundry to the maid quarters. it was happy here, you hoped the environment would have the same effect on you.
after a moment of gawking the two guards began marching up to the main doors, you scurried after them- trying not to trip over your laces, which had gone loose since you last tied them. This may sound weird but once you had made your way up a small flight of stairs and to the open large wooden doors that led inside the castle, they smelled sweet- almost like maple even though they appeared dark oak, it swept over a feeling of calm so you thanked the gods you swore not to believe in.
After a few minutes of a mix of walking and rushing, you and your two silent companions made it to the great hall, where you knew the legendary iron throne was situated, you wondered if it was as big as people said it was and if it truly held thousands of swords.
"Oh, my days."
it was bigger and better than your little brain could have ever conjured up, the throne gave off such an inviting aura to you like you were meant to be in its presence, it didn't intimidate you one bit.
"Welcome." you heard a voice call. the voice came from the iron throne, King Viserys I sat upon it and smiled down at you, he had a kind smile, a kind of smile which made you give one back. "thank you, your Majesty." you curtsey low, dropping your luggage to the side of you. The king laughed light-heartedly at this "I think you're the one to thank at this moment, according to Otto you shall take a lot of strain off of mine and my family's hands." you stood up straight "Yes, of course. I shall not disappoint you, my king." you said this as seriously as possible, trying to make the king understand the measures you will go to fulfil your duties as a maid.
"that is all I needed to hear...now I have duties to attend to but you will be shown to your quarters" You nodded, wondering how the maid's quarters will look and you hoped they will be clean...
the king let out a sigh as he stood up "I'm sure you know that you will be living next to the children I presume?" he said cheekily like he knew you weren't expecting that, which of course you were not "Oh... I, I did not know that, my king, thank you for informing me." you croaked out, he smiled at this as he walked down the steps of the iron throne and onto the same floor you stood on, he placed a large hand on your shoulder before walking past you and out of the throne room. Just as he left a tall ginger-haired lady walked to your side "I am Tayla, the queens Lady-in-waiting" She looked strict "Pick up your bag and follow me, girl." she also sounded strict, you did as you were told and followed her gaunt frame through multiple halls as she spoke to you.
"You shall be situated across the hall from Prince Aegon and Princess Halaena" You nodded at this, and she continued "The prince is fourteen and the princess two years younger." he was your age, you noted.
"you will also be attending to the youngest of the king and queen's children, Prince Aemond who just had his tenth name day" You did remember your brothers using that excuse to go out drinking last week.
"Will I only be watching the queen's children?" you enquired "No." you personally already found a list of three children very overwhelming, never mind more. "you will be looking over the Princess Rhaenyras children also, Prince Jacaerys and Lucerys, aged currently aged seven and six" young.
"and of course, if any other children are brought to the keep you may be expected to tend to them also" You smiled at that, how exciting.
"Should I introduce mys-" you began before being cut off with a sharp "Of course not." you snapped your mouth closed "We need to get you cleaned up and in proper attire." you thought you would be clean enough...
"you smell like flea bottom"
ouch.
You made it to a door in a hallway and Tayla opened it, you followed behind her. The room was big and spacious, as soon as you walked on you squinted due to the large window to the right, underneath it was a window seat with small scatter cushions. to the left were a large fireplace and two armchairs surrounding it with a low table in the middle of them. this was bigger than your whole house you thought. in the middle was an arch that lead to a smaller space that held a four-poster bed and a small dressing table with a mirror in the center.
"This isn't my room...right?" Tayla side-eyed you "Why would I take you into someone else?" she asked rhetorically, "why have they given me such a big room?" you questioned further "Maids who work closely with the royal family get special accommodations, now help me get your bath sorted" she ordered, you obeyed.
The bath, unlike at your old home, was big and could fully submerge you instead of leaving you out and vulnerable to a draft. it was also warm, not freezing or lukewarm like in the summers, actually warm enough to relax your tense muscles. Tayla helped you wash you she didn't trust you to do good enough due to your previous state, she didn't seem to care if she was being rude but in the end, it was nice to be pampered and preened. The bath had bubbles due to the blood orange-scented wash that had been stirred into it. Tayla had soaped your body a grapefruit soap and scrubbed it in with a rough cloth, after making your whole body a scarlet shade she sudded up a lemon shampoo and massaged it into your scalp. all these scents were new to you but all they did was make you relax and feel a feeling of nostalgia from another life beyond this one.
after half an hour of scrubbing and rubbing and the water turning cold, you were rinsed off and towelled dried by a large, soft red towel.
"Being assigned a royal, or in your case, royals, gives you special privileges even if you are severely lower-class." she began, you couldn't help but scowl at her tone as if she was speaking to a stray dog "This means you get a wardrobe which you can choose for yourself." this made you perk up, you were sitting on your bed with the red towel wrapped around you and your legs slightly swinging "oh?" "the only exception is that you are assigned a colour as it will be unique to you as a made and easy for you to be picked out of the crowd." that was strange, couldn't they just put an apron on you? "the queen herself decided on-" please be a nice colour, please be a nice c- "pink." oh thank the seven "a light pink though of course, as magentas and fuchsias and any other similar pinks are only for the higher class and royals." you nodded "that is perfect for me." "even if it wasn't you would have no say in the matter." why was she so mean?
still sitting on the bed, your damp hair sticking to your exposed neck Tayla told you to get ready and pointed to where all your clothes were, you didn't say anything but it wasn't like she was expecting you to as she walked out, closing the door soundlessly behind her. You sighed and sat in front of the large mirror, looking at the vanity's contents; a brush, a handheld mirror, and various makeup and skin products. You opened a small drawer to find various hair ties and clips. You dried your hair until completely dry with the towel and began to brush your hair with the intricately detailed brush until you spotted a small brown glass bottle, hair oil you suspected- so you applied the tiniest amount and rubbed it into the ends of your hair which were dry and riddled with split ends. after you plaited small braids into your hair and left the rest to droop over your shoulders gracefully- you looked into the mirror and smiled softly, you felt cleaner than you ever had, you swear you even saw a small freckle on your nose from being exposed to the pure sun and not from behind clouds or smog.
you wished to apply makeup but didn't know the first thing about it, you didn't wish to look like a jester or worse, your mother in front of the whole red keep, so you simply opted to pick out your clothes.
you put on paper white and soft small clothes first. you made your way over to the large wooden wardrobe and opened it slowly, gasping once you saw the insides of it "I'm dreaming" you whispered to yourself, almost as if you were to talk too loud you would wake up. The insides were decked out with long and short dresses with poofy or small sleeves. some had embroidered patterns on them and others had white lace, Gods if it weren't for the fact you were rubbing a silk dress across your palms you would have actually believed to have died and gone to heaven.
Five minutes of debating went by and you had decided to go simple, by that you meant a floor-length powder pink dress with long sleeves that went past your fingertips, and the ends of the dress and sleeves had embroidered images of feathers and small blue tit birds and robins, all in a white thread which could only be seen if close up. the dress had a square neckline with white gold trimming. you could only see the very tips of your shoes so you opted for a plain white ballet flat shoe.
you felt beautiful, you felt like a Targaryen, a powerful and beautiful force to be reckoned with, no one could steal your moment.
Tayla barged in, touché.
"Okay, you are ready, follow me" She then walked right back out without shutting the door, an indication that you must follow now, which you did.
"the two Velaryon princes need you to look after them while their parents are attending to duties" You only turned the corner before being at the door of their shared room "Is there anything I need to know?" "no." she replied swiftly before opening the door and pushing you in, shutting it softly behind you but not entering herself. you were alone and very, very nervous on your first day.