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Elia wasn't sure what to expect when she learned that her goodsister would be marrying a northman.
Her husband took her hand, his face almost pleading for her approval. Since their family's tragedy a year ago, he had come to the devastating conclusion that he would not risk her life in childbed again, which made Ashara his heir for the foreseeable future. As such, her choice of husband became of great concern. Allum had always been protective of his little sister and would only consider a gentle hand for her.
When Ashara had gone to Lord Whent's tourney at Harrenhal, the girl had lost herself in love to a boy near her age, a son of Lord Stark. She was fond of retelling the story of how he had been too shy to ask her to dance himself, and instead his brother had asked on his behalf. Elia knew nothing about him, but Allum approved the match heartily. By law he didn't require Elia's consent for the match, as he was the head of House Dayne, but Allum had been going out of his way to soften the blow of denying Starfall to Elia's blood.
She knew he was trying to protect her. She understood his concerns. Her frail body had been her blight since her too-early birth, and now the reason her husband did not wish to get her with child again, but nonetheless it stung. And now he was asking for her approval of the man whose children would inherit what she had wanted for her own children. Elia was not childish enough to scorn the northman for a choice Allum had made long before he had entered their lives. If it wasn't this northman, it would be someone else. She might as well not break her goodsister's heart.
Elia forced herself to smile, "If this Eddard Stark has made such a good impression on both you and Ashara, I'm sure he's the right choice."
"He prefers to be called Ned," Allum nodded.
Unfortunately for Elia's bitterness, Ned Stark was a pleasant young lad. Polite and modest and always stumbling over his words, the perfect opposite of her brother Oberyn. Then Elia understood why Allum gave this man Ashara's hand. A wolf without teeth couldn't bite his precious little sister. Ned kept looking at Ashara throughout the wedding ceremony as if in awe that such a beautiful creature had deigned to be his wife. In truth, he didn't cut nearly as impressive a figure as his father or older brother, but Elia knew Ashara liked her men soft and sweet.
Because Winterfell and Starfall sat at opposite ends of the continent, Lord Hoster Tully had gladly offered his hospitality to both families for the wedding. Elia guessed he mostly wanted a chance to show off his wealth and boost about his new grandchildren to all who would listen. In the past year he had married his older daughter Catelyn to Ned's brother, Brandon, and his younger daughter Lysa to Ser Jaime Lannister, heir of Casterly Rock. The sisters had been married together and gone to childbed together, with each sister producing a son. When the Tully women offered to let her hold their babes, Elia bit down hard on her lip and declined as politely as she could.
Allum had brought his youngest sister, Allyria, to the wedding as well. She was barely five years old and had never been outside Dorne before, but she was clearly enjoying herself. King Aerys had given Ser Arthur leave to attend Ashara's wedding, but he spent most of his time bonding with Allyria. Elia couldn't blame him. Allyria had still been in the cradle when Arthur joined the Kinsguard, so the little girl barely knew her big brother.
Normally she would try to make friendly conversation with the other guests, but Elia had not yet recovered her good cheer. She spent all her time clutching Allum's arm, watching as everyone else twirled around the hall during the wedding feast. She danced once with her husband and goodbrother, then claimed fatigue to stay in her seat. Ashara was a little butterfly, dancing with her new husband, his kinsmen, his best friend Lord Robert Baratheon, his friends from the North and the Eyrie, and even the Lannister men. Elia remembered visiting Casterly Rock with her mother and brother, how she had almost been married to Ser Jaime. Perhaps Lord Tywin's rejection was a blessing in disguise. She did not wish to imagine what that man would have done to her if she failed to give his son an heir.
The bedding ceremony came and went in the blink of an eye, but Elia noted with amusement that Ashara seemed far more comfortable with it than her new husband. Shortly after that spectacle, Elia told Allum she wished to retire. After giving Lord Tully their thanks, the Lord and Lady of Starfall slipped away from the feast.
After taking a few days for everyone to rest from the festivities, House Dayne took their leave of Riverrun. It took them a week to reach the small port town of Hag's Mire and from there take a ship to Starfall. In a short time, Starfall had become nearly as dear to Elia as Sunspear or the Water Gardens and the sight of its tall, white towers rising against the Red Mountains filled her with contentment and warmth. The day following their arrival home, Elia took to her bed at Allum's suggestion to recover from the strain of travel. She appreciated his concern, truly, but there were times it felt suffocating.
Meanwhile Ashara took joy in showing her new husband every wall and window Starfall had to offer. Ned felt incredibly out of place in the sweltering heat of Dorne, his furs and boiled leather traded for light linen and silk. Many in Dorne made jokes about it, but Elia didn't have the heart to join in. She had not experienced such a drastic change in environment when she wed Allum, but she knew how it felt to leave behind one's home and loved ones for the good of her family. Still, watching Ned learn to be a Dornishman quickly became a rather amusing past-time. As the following weeks and months passed, Elia gradually grew accustomed to Ned's presence. She did not seek out his company nor he hers, but their interactions became more comfortable and amiable.
Before she had even noticed it, Elia found her thoughts frequently drifting back to her babe, her poor little Donnia. Had she lived, she would have reached her second nameday by now. Allum hardly ever talked about their daughter and Elia had little wish to talk of such sad things with him either. She liked to think they could move past it, but Donnia's death seemed to always linger, like a shadow trailing their marriage.
When Ashara announced her pregnancy with uncharacteristic shyness, Elia knew the trepidation was for her benefit. It made her feel weak, too fragile to handle another woman's joy. "I'm so happy for you," Elia said insistently as she wore a smile clearly too wide to be natural. Afterward she quickly excused herself like the air was full of smoke and she couldn't breathe. She hoped no one noticed the oddness of her behavior.
She hoped.
Ned came to confront her later that day. Elia had been taking a quick meal with Allyria on a balcony of the Palestone Sword, the glowing sunset turning their silhouettes a burnt orange.
"Princess Elia, may I have a word with you in private?" Ned asked. His tone was perfectly polite, like always, but his eyes had turned a sharp grey that resembled the blade of a sword. Mayhaps the wolf had teeth after all. Elia gave Allyria a fond pat on the head and bid the girl go to her chambers. Ned watched their little goodsister curtsy gracefully and take her leave of them. When he turned his attention back to Elia, he accused, "You're not happy about Ashara being with child."
His boldness surprised Elia. "What would make you think that?" she dodged. "I love Ashara like a sister."
"That does not mean you'd love her children." Ned stated, looking at her carefully. Elia rose to her feet in anger. How dare he! "Pardon me for bringing up such personal matters, but Allum told me of your condition. That you cannot bear children."
Despite her best efforts, Elia's face twisted into an ugly grimace. "You don't know what you're talking about," she hissed.
"My father warned me that you might grow to resent my children for they will be your husband's heirs, in place of the children you could not give him."
Before she was fully cognizant of her actions, Elia slapped him with all her strength. She hissed again from the needle-sharp sting of her palm right afterward, but the bright red mark on Ned's skin gave her a measure of satisfaction. "I know you northmen are brutally honest, but one would think time spent with Jon Arryn would teach you some tact. What would your mother say if she knew you spoke in such a way to a princess? Your own goodsister, no less!"
Ned looked properly shamed. All the ice left his eyes. "I...I did not mean to...I beg your forgiveness Princess Elia. My comments were...insensitive. I should not have spoken to you so."
"You shouldn't have," Elia agreed with a shaky voice. Suddenly she felt foolish for slapping him like a hot-tempered child. Mayhaps she was becoming too much like Oberyn.
With growing discomfort on his face, Ned said, "I shall take my leave, if that pleases you."
"It does please me," Elia muttered. Ned had barely taken three steps when she called out, "No, wait."
Ned looked back at her with trepidation. "Princess Elia?"
She awkwardly gestured to the seat Allyria had not long vacated. "Will you sit with me a while? I think there's something we need to talk about." When he had taken the seat across from her, Elia asked, "Did Ashara or Allum tell you about my daughter?"
His surprised expression gave the answer before his lips did. "A daughter? I thought you and Allum had no children."
"No living children," Elia corrected. She should not have found comfort in his horror, embarrassment, and guilt, but for some reason she did. "I was so happy, but scared. My mother had lost two boys in the cradle before I had been born. I came too early and my health has been fragile ever since. When I gave birth to my daughter, I nearly died. And Donnia..."
A steady stream of tears flowed from her eyes, coating her long, black eyelashes and running down the sides of her nose. Elia had always been a quiet crier, from the time she was a babe. Her throat seemed to close up tightly when her eyes became wet. She did not bow her head to hide her grief from Ned, nor turn away to spare him discomfort. To her surprise, he reached into his shirt and presented her with a dark blue handkerchief. Insensitive, but not unchivalrous. When Elia wiped her face and got her bearings, she unfolded the small cloth and noticed the clumsy stitches of a young girl spelling "ES".
"From your sister?" Elia guessed with a smile, remembering the humorous, vivacious girl from the wedding.
Ned smiled back, "She likes me more than she hates embroidery."
Elia's smile faded as she got back to the topic at hand. "Donnia lived for only seven days. I was so weak, I never got to hold her. I couldn't leave my bed for half a year, not even for her funeral. You should have seen Allum; it broke him. He feared losing me too."
By now Ned's eyes were softer than morning fog. Dusk had crept up on them, orange and red giving way to blue and purple. In the corner of her eye, Elia noticed a servant filling the lamps with oil and setting them alight. Crickets joined the song of the Torentine. Elia stretched out her arms to grasp Ned's pale hands in her own brown ones. Somehow it felt like holding Oberyn's hands.
"I am so happy for Ashara," Elia whispered, "I'm just sad for myself."
Ned reciprocated her gesture and covered her hands. His fingertips were rough and calloused from swordplay, so unlike her smooth skin. "You have my condolences Elia."
She liked her title, but sometimes it was nice to just be Elia. "They are appreciated. And you have my congratulations Ned."
"Thank you," Ned smiled sadly. "My child shall have a wonderful aunt."
From that evening, Ned became an unexpected friend. Elia found that they had a similar temperament. He understood that she at times felt overwhelmed by her younger brother, just as he felt overwhelmed by his older brother. True, Doran had a calmer disposition, but he was much older than her and had not been present for much of her childhood. It had been her and Oberyn, joined at the hip for as long as she could remember.
Ned had many stories to tell of the North, some she had to coax out of him because he deemed them to frightening for a gently born lady. She decided to surprise him with tales that could make a maiden blush, and to her never-ending amusing they made Ned blush. When he wasn't devoting his attention to his pregnant wife, Ned could be found in Elia's solar; if not working with her on some important task, then simply enjoying her company.
Ashara gave birth to a baby girl with her father's pale blonde hair and Ned's grey eyes. Elia did not try to hold back her sobs as she held her niece for the first time. Allum wrapped his arms around her shoulders as Ned placed a hand over hers.
Arya Dayne was named for her great-grandmother, a lady of the Northern Mountains, and she made the Red Mountains of Dorne her own little kingdom. Everyone in Starfall doted on the little girl from her birth. She loved the outdoors, feeling the sun on her skin. And unlike other children, she had four parents rather than two: her father, mother, uncle, and aunt. She did not remain alone in that distinguishing trait for very long, for soon after reaching her third nameday, the gods blessed Ashara with another daughter, whom she named Corlia.
And she wasn't the only woman in Starfall the gods had smiled upon.
Allum's face went white with livid fear when Elia whispered the news to him one evening in his solar. "How could this have happened? We were so careful. Perhaps the moon tea was not strong enough..."
"It's done, my love," Elia clasped his hands, trying to reassure him. "Whatever happens now is in the hands of the gods."
Elia would be lying if she said she wasn't scared. It wasn't death that scared her so much as helplessness. After having Donnia, she had been confined to her bed for day after day after day, unable to care for herself or her dying child. Unable to comfort her husband when he broke down in tears as he told her that Donnia had gone with the gods.
But she was happy. She almost tasted the joy like honey in her mouth. A child of her own, an heir for her beloved husband, a cousin for her dear nieces. Elia imagined singing her baby to sleep, Allum sitting his child on his knee while he worked. Oh, Ashara would be such a wonderful aunt and Ned a fantastic uncle. The dream was so close she could reach out and touch it.
Yet she feared that if she tried, it would turn to dust on her fingertips.
Allum shook his head, "I should not have taken you in that manner, even with the moon tea. Forgive me, my love."
"If you will recall, I was a very active and willing participant," Elia joked. Her small smile did little to alleviate her husband's fears. "I want a babe. I want to be a mother. I know it's dangerous, but I don't want to live in fear of my own body my entire life."
"You'll be risking your life," Allum pleaded.
"I'm aware." Elia replied. Her tone came out colder than she had intended, judging from the hurt look on her husband's face. She rose from her seat and draped her petite form over his lap.
Allum rested his head on her shoulder, closing his eyes. "I beg you, don't make me face a life without you."
"What would you have me do, Allum?" Elia murmured against his cheek. "How could you ask me to give up my child?"
"How could you ask to me give you up?" Allum murmured back.
Elia ran her fingers through his long, silvery hair for a few moments, then lifted his head so that they were staring each other in the eyes. "You can never give me up, for you can never lose me. A piece of me will always be with you, even if I die."
"Don't talk like that!"
"Don't fight me, Allum. I will have this child. I want it," Elia stated with finality. "I would very like it if my husband wanted it too."
"I want," Allum paused, then closed his eyes in resignation, "I want my wife to be happy."
After what happened with Donnia, Oberyn had returned from his misadventures in Essos to be by his sister's side and he did the same when he learned that she was with child again. Watching her brother befriend her goodbrother despite the vast gulf in their personalities was a welcome distraction for Elia. Oberyn once tried to teach Ned to milk venom from a viper's fangs, but Ned couldn't bring himself to even touch the creature. Elia was sure Oberyn would never let him live that down for the rest of his life.
Elia grew weaker and more sickly as she neared her confinement, but it was not nearly as bad as the first time. Instead of letting his worries known, Allum busied himself with Elia's comfort. All the attention was tiresome, but Elia would not complain. Ashara spent each morning in the sept praying for a safe delivery and healthy babe. Even Ned prayed to the old gods of the North in the godswoods, though Elia silently wondered if they would hear him from Dorne.
When the time came, Allum held tightly to Elia's hand as she brought forth their second child, tears clouding his vision the entire time. The delivery was mercifully quick. Elia sagged against her pillows as the sharp, high cry of her babe filled the air. A strong, lusty cry.
"A son, my lord," the maester announced, "He is healthy and well-formed."
Healthy. Healthy. Healthy. That's all that matters, Elia thought to herself as she found herself drifting to sleep.
She had closed her eyes in the early morning, and when she opened them, it was morning again. Confused, Elia groped around for something familiar and found Allum's hand. He started, now awake as well.
"Elia, my love," he whispered roughly.
"How long?" Her throat cracked from disuse.
"Two days," Allum wiped his tears with his sleeve. "Your heart still beat, but you would not wake. We feared..."
"Our son?" Elia asked desperately.
Allum's face broke into a wide smile, "Beautiful. He is so beautiful and strong, just like his mother. He's with Ashara now. She's been nursing him, but I think Corlia is jealous." Elia couldn't help but giggle. The exhaustion caught up with her once more. She fought to keep her eyes open, but Allum kissed her forehead and said, "Rest, dearest Elia. You've earned it."
She was bedbound for a year after having Edric. Recovery was miserable work, but it was worth having her son. He was a happy, playful child from birth, with far too much energy for Elia to handle by herself. Not that she minded. She loved every inch of him, from his pale hair to his big, blue eyes, to his little toes. Visitors often remarked that he would be remarkably handsome when he grew to manhood, especially his uncle Doran. Elia hugged her older brother tight when he came to Starfall, sending a prayer of thanks to the gods for letting her see him once more.
When she grew strong enough to rise from bed, Elia would take her son on long walks through the gardens, the clear, clean spray of the Torentine keeping them cool in the burning sun. And sometimes Ned would join them.