Chapter 46 Daenerys V Dany is being forced to eat the raw and bloody heart of a stallion under the watchful eyes of the crones, Drogo and his bloodriders. She bites into it, the taste threatens to gag her but she must not show fear. The heart of a stallion would make her son strong, swift and fearless, or so the Dothraki believed, but only if the mother could eat it all. Are they nuts? If she choked on the blood or retched up the flesh, the child might be stillborn, or come forth weak, deformed, or female. I think eating a raw stallion heart actually might make the child be stillborn!! And female?? These Dothraki irritate me beyond belief. To prepare she had dined on bowls of half-clotted blood to get used to the taste and starved herself for a day and a night. I’m pretty sure all this is not very good for an unborn baby. She has to chew with her teeth and her stomach heaved but she keeps on, jaws aching, face smeared with blood. Drogo looks on, his face hard although towards the end she thought she noted pride in his eyes and then she is finally done. One crones start speaking, saying he is a strong boy. The others begin to chant and then one says she has seen his face and heard the thunder of his hooves, that he rides swift with a khalasar behind him that covers the earth, that his enemies will tremble before him, that he shall be the stallion who mounts the world. They ask what he will be called and Dany says Rhaego and the Dothraki start chanting the name over and over She leaves, riding with Drogo, a procession following behind, the crones first. Each of the old women had been a khaleesi once. When their husbands died and a new khal took his place, with a new khaleesi beside him, they were sent here, to reign over the vast Dothraki nation. It gives Dany the shivers to think that one day she would be sent to join them, whether she wanted to or not. Behind the crones came the other khals, their bloodriders, handmaids, servants and slaves. Drogo ask her the meaning of the name Rhaego, in the common tongue, which she had been teaching him, his accent is so thick though that neither Jorah nor Viserys can understand a word he says. She tells him that it as to honour her brother Rhaegar, who Ser Jorah says was the last of the dragons. Viserys and Dany are dragons so Rhaegar wasn’t the last one. He thinks it’s a good name. Dany goes to wash in a lake, strips naked and when she emerges Drogo is aroused, picks her up like a child and thrusts himself inside her as she wraps her arm around his shoulders. He’s done after three strokes but she doesn’t seem to care or at least she doesn’t complain. They then go on to a huge open tent-hall where there is a feast. There is lots of people there, she keeps hearing many voices saying ‘the stallion that mounts the world. There is drums and horns playing, huge open pit fires roasting meat and fermented mare’s milk to drink. Ewwwhhh!! There are many man drunk on it tonight but there will be no bloodshed in the sacred city. Khal Jommo and Ogo are given seats of honour beside Drogo, bloodriders below them and farther down their wives. Dany looks for Viserys but can’t see him. She sees Jorah near the centre of the hall, a place of respect, she sends Dany and Jhiqui to bring him although I don’t know why it’s a job for two people. She asks where Viserys is and he says he had gone to the Western Market in search of wine. Viserys hated the fermented mare’s milk the Dothraki drank, can’t say I blame him, it sounds gross. She thinks Viserys spent most of his time in the bazaars these days, seemed he preferred the company of traders to hers. Jorah says he has hope to recruit men for an army. Dany points out he has no gold, she says Jorah should have gone with him to keep him safe. He reminds her that they are in Vaes Dothrak where no man can carry a blade or spill any blood. She reminds him people still die, often strangled. Jorah says that Viserys had wanted to take her dragons eggs until he’d warned him that he’d cut off his hand if he touched them. Dany is shocked, says they are hers, they were a gift. She asks why he would want them and Jorah says they are worth a fortune, that he could buy many sellswords with them. She says he should have them, that he is her brother and her true king she adds reluctantly. Jorah agrees that he is her brother. Dany reminds Jorah that Viserys lost everyone, father, brother, mother and if hadn’t been for him she wouldn’t know anything about them. Jorah says she belongs to the Dothraki now and in her womb is the stallion who mounts the world. She asks what that means and Jorah says that there is a prophecy about a child who bring all the khalasars together and he will rule all the people of the world. She says she named him Rhaego and he says that will make the usurper’s blood run cold. Doreah interrupts to tell her that Viserys has arrived, drunk, hair in a tangle, a sword at his side. The Dothraki start muttering and the music dies away. Viserys wants to know where his sister is, arrogantly asks why they have started eating before him. He calls Dany a whore, says she can’t hide from him. Jorah goes to him, takes him by the arm but Viserys is belligerent and tells him to get his hands off him, that no one touches the dragon. Drogo, Jommo and Ogo begin to laugh, their laughter makes Viserys go to them. Drogo speaks and Jorah interprets, tells him his place his not on the high bench, that his place is at the back of the hall with the lowest of the low. Why are they being so mean to him? Visery isn’t pleased. They all begin to start laughing at him and calling him Sorefoot King and Khal Rhaggat. Jorah grapples with Viserys and knocks him to the floor and Viserys draws his sword, telling Jorah to keep away and starts waving the sword. All the Dothraki are shrieking at him. Dany cries out and Viserys turns to her, saying ‘there she is’ and starts stalking toward her, still slashing at the air with the sword. She tells him to put the blade away, that it is forbidden. Jorah tells him to do as she says before he gets them all killed. Viserys scoffs, says they can’t kill us, they can’t shed blood but he can. He lays the point of the sword at Dany’s breasts and then slides it down to her belly. He tells her he wants what he came for, the crown he was promised. He says Drogo bought her but hasn’t paid. He tells her to tell him he wants what he bargained for or he’s taking her back, that he can keep the foal, that he’ll cut it out himself. He is weeping and laughing and she knows that he is going to die but she doesn’t do anything about it, in fact she seems to accept it very quickly. Jhiqui is sobbing, pleading that she dared not translate Viserys words. Dany says she will tell him, which she does and then Drogo speaks a few brusque sentences. Viserys asks what he said and she tells him he said he shall have a splendid crown. Viserys smiled and lowered his sword, agreeing that was all he wanted, what was promised. She knows they are going to kill him and yet she puts her arm around Drogo’s waist as his blooddriders seize Viserys. Haggo shatters his wrist with a single sharp twist, Cohollo pulls his sword away. Viserys doesn’t seem to have grasped the situation, whether he is still drunk or not, tells them he can’t touch them. Drogo takes off his belt, commands his slaves to put it in a pot over the fire and watches as the gold melts. Viserys starts to scream as he realises whats happening. Jorah tells her to look away but she doesn’t. Viserys looks at her, pleads and then Drogo pours the gold over him, saying ‘a crown for Cart King’ and Dany calmly thinks he was no dragon, fire cannot kill a dragon.
Posted on: Sun, 23 Nov 2014 10:00:00 +0000