Draeghar Targaryen is firstborn son of Maekar Targaryen and heir to Harenhall. He has since been pushed out by his brother, Maegor who now sitsin that black, charred castle. Draeghar has been with the Kingsguard ever since, defending his first cousin, King Viserys and his children. It was specifically at King Viserys' request that Draeghar took up the white cloak.
The complete opposite of his brother, Draeghar is a man of philosophy and peace. When he pulls out his sword, he does not think of conquest or murder, but what he is trying to defend. When pressed, he'll go until his dying breath to see that what or who he protects lives on.
Even so, he longs for a world in which kings rule by words and not steel. Though his blade is necessary, he hates to hear the sound of steel slip free from the sheath. It is the sound of doom.
Without any family of his own, the Kingsguard knight has taken it upon himself to teach the young Aenys of the world; to appreciate the kinder things in life, but to be vigilant. To protect his heart and use his mind more than his fists to resolve conflict.
Appearance[]
Standing at just six feet tall, this man of two and fifty has a thick, muscled body which is often cloaked in simple, grey clothes with chainmail clinking underneath. On duty, he wears the traditional white and gold armor of the Kingsguard.
Draeghar's white and grey hair is kept to his shoulders, falling in short, swooping locks when wet and is usually pushed back. A closely trimmed mustache and beard of the same colors adorn his face, beneath the sharp eyes of a young Targaryen that possess some inner light and makes them a brighter purple than all his kin.
Though his face and brow are wrinkled after years of hard choices and long battles, he still smiles like a boy who is discovering the world anew. His spirits never seem to darken or match the melancholy of others that may share such a long life. The pains of his age are rarely felt, and his arms work harder than men half his years.
And while youth may be welling within him, his gaze brings pause. With narrowed brow and simple stare, Draeghar can go from looking like a green boy to a man who will humble you in all things.
Biography[]
The firstborn son of Maekar who would become the Lord of Harenhall in two years time. Born in 331, Draeghar cried when he came into the world, perhaps protesting the departure of peace and quiet of the womb. The cold world offered him little warmth, and it is was often said the gods gave him his own fire. It burned within his breast, bringing a bright shine to his purple eyes.
He found life a curious, wonderful thing and under different stars, might have taken up more academic pursuits. Maekar did not want sons so soft, and instead put steel in the boy's hands. But even so, Draeghar never lost interest in the quiet moments of life; the little details of how the world moved and worked. The birds that made their homes in the trees, the caterpillar who became a butterfly, and the movement of the very heavens. While he never learned much about them, he found himself fascinated all the same. Outside of conquest and battle, there was a quiet world filled with life that yearned to be heard if only people would stop to listen.
At the the early age of eleven, he took up squiring with Ser Henley Sunglass, the tireless knight. So called because he often worked himself ragged and tired only once he had completed his tasks. This same regimen of tireless work was Draeghar's to endure. And the knight had more than regular work for Draeghar; more than a lord's activities as well. They would travel to farms and assist for days with the chores there as well as practice more knightly pursuits. Rising early, feeding the horses, milking the cows, and so forth.
Draeghar did not complain for the strange work and began to appreciate all the struggle common folk had to do. He often shied away from telling his father of what he was learning for fear that Draeghar would be pulled away.
However, his teacher was not without lessons of steel as well, and in 342 AC, they both joined the fight alongside his brother and the king Targaryen himself in the war of the Red Banner. Sadly, his father would not live to see the end of that conflict, and Draeghar arose out of its conclusion as the Lord of Harenhall.
Under his guidance and the Lord Tully, the Riverlands became a peaceful land once more. Both the current Lord, Edmyn Tully, and his father worked closely with Draeghar to keep those lands from war. It was this way until 368 AC when he was forced to leave.
It was in The War of the Seven Banners that Draeghar became well-known for his willful drive to end conflict on the battlefield. Much as the tireless knight, it was only after Draeghar's enemies lay dead that he finally sat and slept, barely feeling the six arrows that he had fought through. Even though Harenhall was rumored to evoke madness, his was a kind of calm determination which refused to let him cease until either the threat was gone or his heart gave out.
And what should have killed other men, Draeghar walked away from. Though the pain was felt afterwards, no amount of arrows or sword would drop him. He scarred, of course, but the wounds were not fatal. After five weeks, he was back to swinging a sword around without pause. It would later be joked that Draeghar was a Lord for whom death himself had bent the knee.
Fighting together, King Viserys and Draeghar became close friends in that conflict and thereafter.
His brother, Maegor, ever a greedy, self-absorbed child was born only three years after Draeghar. Maegor always had to be better and ruthlessly took what he thought was owed. Maegor squired for Aemon Targaryen. Maegor was more bloodthirsty. Maegor fucked and drank, and did not care for much except "winning" at life. The pair would fight over everything, eventually even the seat of Harenhall itself.
When he was forty years old, after trying to bring the next generation into the world for years and failing with many women, it was made plain to the world that Lord Draeghar Targaryen could not have children (Infertile). Lonely and childless, it was salt in the wound that family he did possess would oust him from his birthright. In 386 AC, Maegor arrived at the seat of Harenhall with armed men and a simple edict: "Abdicate or be killed."
It was shortly after this that Viserys called Draeghar to his side. Vows were made, and Draeghar rose as his Kingsguard. "Defend us. There are so many who seek to destroy what peace we have." Viserys looked aged and much changed. His life was not filled with the relative peace his father's reign had known. Draeghar was welcomed by the small council and the kingsguard, many of whom either saw first-hand his exploits in the War of the Seven Banners or heard tales.
For the past twelve years, Draeghar has kept this promise to Viserys. He keeps a close relationship with the crown prince and princess, hoping to give them wisdom when he can. Those who squire with him receive the same lessons as the tireless knight showed him; he often gives them council they find odd, talking about philosophy more than war. For instance, telling someone the difference between justice and might; how one cannot give might to the just, so we must give justice to the mighty.
In recent months Viserys would routinely call Draeghar to his sickbed. Draeghar smiles and the pair share laughter when he hears that Viserys has called for the "healthiest" dragon to be by his side. It is common knowledge amongst the small council and Maesters that attend the king that Viserys, when calling for Draeghar has said, "Perhaps if Draeghar is with me, death will turn away as he has done with so many times with that man."
In these last few weeks, Ser Draeghar's ever-youthful eyes have been stricken with worry. The king's death looms and the young prince will need protection now more than ever. Recently, and despite his protests, the king has urged Draeghar to keep the crown prince and princess closer than the king himself.
Timeline[]
- 328 AC: Draeghar is born to Maekar Targaryen as his first-born and heir to Harenhall.
- 339 AC: Draeghar becomes the squire for Ser Henley Sunglass, The Tireless Knight.
- 342 AC: The Battle of the Red Banner takes Maekar's life. Both Draeghar and his brother fight to avenge their father. Draeghar becomes the Lord of Harenhall. Under Draeghar's control and a relationship with the Tully's (first Edmyn Tully's father and Edmyn Tully himself), helps to retain the peace of the Riverlands.
- 364 AC: Joins King Viserys' battle in the War of the Seven banners. Here they become close friends. Draeghar becomes renowned for his efforts alongside Viserys for his aid in this conflict.
- 368 AC: With no heir and Maegor, his brother, ever the cruel man, Draeghar is forced to give up his seat at Harenall. He leaves for King's Landing and there becomes a knight of the Kingsguard under Viserys' urging.
Family[]
- Uncle King Aemon I Targaryen (307-352 AC)
- m. Aunt Queen Saera Celtigar (307-348 AC)
- Father Maekar Targaryen of Harenhall
- Self Draeghar Targaryen of Harenhall
- Brother Maegor Targaryen of Harenhall
--------- More Family ---------
- Uncle King Aemon I Targaryen (307-352 AC)
- First Cousin King Viserys III Targaryen (b. 327 AC)
- m. Queen Ashara Martell (322-346 AC)
- Second Cousin Princess Jaehaera Targaryen (b. 343 AC)
- Second Cousin Crown Prince Aenys Targaryen (b. 374 AC)
- m. Queen Myrisa Rogare (b. 3XX AC)
- Second Cousin Prince Aenys Targaryen (b. 374 AC)
- First Cousin Prince Aegor Targaryen (b. 331 AC)
- m. Princess Daenerys Targaryen (b. 336 AC)
- First Cousin Prince Baelor Targaryen (b. 333 AC)
- m. Princess Daena Targaryen (b. 329 AC)
- First Cousin Prince Daeron Targaryen (b. 335 AC)
- m. Princess Jaehaera Targaryen (b. 343 AC)
- First Cousin Princess Daenerys Targaryen (b. 336AC)
- Second Cousin Naerys Targaryen