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Every khal had his bloodriders At first Dany had thought of theuard, sworn to protect their lord, but it went further than that Jhiqui had taught her that a bloodrider was uard; they were the khal’s brothers, his shadows, his fiercest friends "Blood of o called thele life The ancient traditions of the horselords demanded that when the khal died, his bloodriders died with hiht lands If the khal died at the hands of soe hirave In some khalasars, Jhiqui said, the bloodriders shared the khal’s wine, his tent, and even his wives, though never his horses A lad that Khal Drogo did not hold to those ancient ways She should not have liked being shared And while old Cohollo treated her kindly enough, the others frightened her; Haggo, huge and silent, often glowered as if he had forgotten who she was, and Qotho had cruel eyes and quick hands that liked to hurt He left bruises on Doreah’s soft white skin whenever he touched her, and soht Even his horses seeo for life and death, so Daenerys had no choice but to accept the her father had been protected by such uard were ever noble, valiant, and true, and yet King Aerys had been murdered by one of theslayer, and a second, Ser Barristan the Bold, had gone over to the Usurper She wondered if all doms When her son sat the Iron Throne, she would see that he had bloodriders of his own to protect hiuard

"Khaleesi," Cohollo said to her, in Dothraki "Drogo, who is blood of my blood, commands me to tell you that he ht, to sacrifice to the gods for his safe return"

Only men were allowed to set foot on the Mother, Dany knew The khal’s bloodriders would go with him, and return at dawn "Tell my sun-and-stars that I dream of him, and wait anxious for his return," she replied, thankful Dany tired ht of rest would be o’s desire for her, and of late his embraces left her exhausted

Doreah led her to the hollow hill that had been prepared for her and her khal It was cool and dim within, like a tent made of earth "Jhiqui, a bath, please," she commanded, to wash the dust of travel from her skin and soak her weary bones It was pleasant to know that they would linger here for a while, that she would not need to climb back on her silver on thehot, as she liked it "I will give ht," she decided as Jhiqui ashing her hair "He should look a king in the sacred city Doreah, run and find him and invite hiirl than to her Dothraki handister Illyrio had let hio to the bazaar and buy fruit andbut horseflesh"

"Horse is best," Irri said "Horse "

"Viserys hates horsemeat"

"As you say, Khaleesi"

She brought back a haunch of goat and a basket of fruits and vegetables Jhiqui roasted theit with honey as it cooked, and there were ranates and plums and some queer eastern fruit Dany did not know While her hand she’d had s of crisp white linen, leather sandals that laced up to the knee, a bronzedragons The Dothraki would respect hiar, she hoped, and perhaps he would forgive her for sha, after all, and her brother They were both blood of the dragon

She was arranging the last of his gifts--a sandsilk cloak, green as grass, with a pale grey border that would bring out the silver in his hair--when Viserys arrived, dragging Doreah by the arm Her eye was red where he’d hit her "How dare you send this whore to give hly to the carpet

The anger took Dany utterly by surprise "I only wantedDoreah, what did you say?"

"Khaleesi, pardons, forgive me I went to him, as you bid, and told him you commanded him to join you for supper"

"No one co! I should have sent you back her head!"

The Lysene girl quailed, but Dany calmed her with a touch "Don’t be afraid, he won’t hurt you Sweet brother, please, forgive her, the girl misspoke herself, I told her to ask you to sup with me, if it pleases Your Grace" She took him by the hand and drew him across the room "Look These are for you"

Viserys frowned suspiciously "What is all this?"

"New raiment I had it made for you" Dany smiled shyly

He looked at her and sneered "Dothraki rags Do you presume to dress me now?"

"Pleaseyou’ll be cooler and htmaybe if you dressed like them, the Dothraki" Dany did not kno to say it without waking his dragon

"Next you’ll want to braid my hair"

"I’d never" Why was he always so cruel? She had only wanted to help "You have no right to a braid, you have won no victories yet"

It was the wrong thing to say Fury shone from his lilac eyes, yet he dared not strike her, not with her hand and the warriors of her khas outside Viserys picked up the cloak and sniffed at it "This stinks of manure Perhaps I shall use it as a horse blanket"

"I had Doreah sew it specially for you," she told hiarments fit for a khal"

"I ae with bells in his hair," Viserys spat back at her He grabbed her ar belly will protect you if you wake the dragon?"

His fingers dug into her arain, quailing in the face of his rage She reached out with her other hand and grabbed the first thing she touched, the belt she’d hoped to give hi it with all her strength

It caught hio of her Blood ran down his cheek where the edge of one of the ets hi that day in the grass? Leaveyou out And pray that Khal Drogo does not hear of this, or he will cut open your belly and feed you your own entrails"

Viserys scrado his torn face, leaving her gifts behind him

Drops of his blood had spattered the beautiful sandsilk cloak Dany clutched the soft cloth to her cheek and sat cross-legged on her sleeping mats

"Your supper is ready, Khaleesi," Jhiqui announced

"I’ry," Dany said sadly She was suddenly very tired "Share the food a yourselves, and send some to Ser Jorah, if you would" After a gs"

Irri fetched the egg with the deep green shell, bronze flecks shining amid its scales as she turned it in her s the sandsilk cloak across her and cradling the egg in the holloeen her swollen belly and small, tender breasts She liked to hold the close to theer, braver, as if soons locked inside

She was lying there, holding the egg, when she felt the childout, brother to brother, blood to blood "You are the dragon," Dany whispered to hion I know it I know it" And she s of home