#this is several layers of fucked up knight-and-king targaryen-siblings firstson-secondson dynamics

[tell-them-the-north-remembers]

I feel like whenever we talk about Aemon the Dragonknight's love and devotion for a particular sibling of his we focus on the wrong one. The singers (and asoiaf fans alike) always speak of how much Aemon loved Naerys and how he would do anything for her. Except he didn't, if he truly loved her more than anything he could save her from the hands of Aegon, and would be willing to pay the price for it. But he did not. He duelled for her honour once, people say, but the only time he did actually fight for her was when he too was accused of treason (adultery) with her. He didn't keep Aegon from impregnating her after she made it clear she didn't want to suffer any more pregnancies, he didn't attempt to whisk her away or just seperate them temporarily (as even Baelor did) even though he was supposedly SO in love with her. And he certainly did not die for her.

Aemon died for his brother. He certainly argued with Aegon (because he did hold affection for Naerys) but he never truly opposed him in a way that mattered. He protected him more than he did anyone, even when Aegon wasn't the king he was sworn to, even before Aegon was a king at all. And at the end of the day Aemon died for Aegon. He could die for Naerys, he could defend her from Aegon and become a kingslayer, a kinslayer too, to protect her. But he chose to protect his brother with his life and he quite literally died for him, leaving behind Naerys to continue suffering her husband's abuse on her own until it killed her.

Aemon the Dragonknight loved his siblings (as arguably most Targaryens do in sometimes screwed-up ways), he loved them in different ways perhaps, but one of them mattered to him more than the other, enough to die for. And it was the one that had been nothing but cruel and hateful to him all his life.

#why is it always aemon's psychosexual fixation on his sister #why is it never aemon's psychosexual fixation with his brother he died protecting even though all he ever did was to hate and spite aemon #naerys and aemon got along well and he liked her #aegon took every opportunity he could to spite and torment and show his hate for aemon and he DIED FOR HIM #this is several layers of fucked up knight-and-king targaryen-siblings firstson-secondson dynamics #aegon iv targaryen #aegon the unworthy #aemon the dragonknight #aemon targaryen #naerys targaryen #asoiaf #a song of ice and fire #got #valyrianscrolls #game of thrones