The second Aurelia closed her chamber door, she leaned against it and dropped her confident façade, breaking into quiet laughter. Only then did she notice her heart pounding, the butterflies in her stomach, the rush of adrenaline from what she'd pulled. Her handmaids made their way into her bedroom via the discreet staff passages, all with mixes of horror and shock on their faces, only to find their mistress in a fit of giggles by the door. 

What she'd done had been crazy, and [i]so[/i] far outside of the acceptable behaviour of women of her stature, but she couldn't help but be childishly proud of herself. Not only had it been great fun to watch Ser Asher squirm, but it had been [i]exciting.[/i] Come to think of it, it was the first time anyone aside from her closest staff had ever seen her naked. And yet she'd done it, prowling over to him, barely covered, close enough to [i]smell[/i] him, close enough that he could have touched her. Yet, the binds of duty, invisible as they were, were strong. [i]That[/i] was what excited her most, knowing that she could pull such stunts without repercussion, that size and strength mattered not when one held the power of the crown. 

It was exhilarating. 

She rode her adrenaline high only as long as it took her to get ready for bed, egged on by the buzz of excitement from her handmaids as they chattered giddily about what they'd just seen. By the time they had stopped, the novelty of the situation had quite outlasted its welcome. It had been a fun distraction, but it was only a matter of time before Aurelia's thoughts returned to her future, and dread crept back into her gut. 

She dismissed her handmaids, telling the most senior of them to send word the moment her father became available, and was suddenly plunged into solitude. It had never bothered her much - in fact, after a day surrounded by hovering attendants it was usually quite welcome - but the silence that came with it disturbed her. Without the quiet chatter of her attendants, or at least the faint sounds of them going about their chores, Aurelia had nothing to distract her from the gravity of her situation. 

She knew she should sleep, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Even if she thought she could fall asleep in the first place (which she doubted, given the quivering in her gut) she didn't want to miss her father before he retired himself. So, Aurelia decided to abandon her bed for the time being and take up a place on her favourite lounge, taking with her a book of poetry she'd loved since childhood. 

However, when her chamber door quietly opened only about an hour later, Aurelia had fallen victim to the exhaustion of stress, and somehow managed to fall asleep, curled up in her chair. It was then that her father crept in, as gently and quietly as his old bones would let him, and took a seat on a nearby couch, not wanting to disturb her. When she awoke a few minutes later, he offered her a sad smile, and her eyes welled up with tears. 

The two talked for some time, Aurelia moving to sit closer to him. She held her father's hand, embraced him. They each took turns in tears, laughter, and quiet conversation, until the sky began to lighten with the oncoming dawn. It was only then, having said everything she thought she could have said, that Aurelia willingly slept, and her father crept out one last time.