The Manse that we were given was... not what I had expected.

The stone building was effectively a keep on its own, with lands that were ideal for raising horses.

The location of the Manse was a day's ride from Braavos following upstream the Sweetwater River that shared the name with the aqueduct that brought fresh water to the City of Braavos. The mountains to the side made sure that the location was secure from wind and storms and the river itself had created the perfect environment for the rearing of livestock and production of grain that kept Braavos fed by something other than fish. Since the only entry through the Valley was through the delta occupied by the City of Braavos, it was a perfect place to lay low and gain power.

The stone Manse however was rather... decrepit if one inspected it properly. Granted, the deed was given to us, but both sides who made the deal agreed that the property would return to the Iron Bank, who themselves repossessed it from some merchant or other unable to pay his debts. In a way, we ran the place and kept things from further breaking down and Iron Bank let us use it as a base to build more power.

In the end, the entire thing was a test to see if I could run a small keep, to ensure that their investment would be secure. Since the bank did not provide any other starting capital, there was nothing they were risking by giving away a small keep out of the public eye that would probably become a ruin.

"It is a fixer-upper," I said, with a grin and as if on queue, one of the tiles fell on the floor for dramatic effect. I was pretty sure that I was not responsible for that.

"It is a dump," countered Dany, much less political. "Can we go back to the House with the Red Door?"

I chuckled at Dany's grumpiness.

"The house will not go anywhere and we will split our time between the two places once we can find a proper Castellan and get started, but this will do for our purposes." declared Ser Willem before moving on to talk with the old man who was left in charge.

"Nessa, keep an eye on Dany, would you," I said, as I started exploring the not-exactly ruin.

Horse Breeding was one of those hobbies that were acceptable for a Prince to occupy his time with. Granted, those princes often had fathers or forefathers sitting thrones to bankroll such a hobby but it was still something that Ser Willem had no way of complaining against... especially if it allowed me some novel training.

It would also give us a constant source of income while providing me with the horses that I would need to train as a knight. Horses required space that we did not have if we lived exclusively in the City of Braavos. Braavos was not an ideal place to develop into a warrior acceptable in Westerosi Society and even if I never became a knight, learning to ride a horse was essential in this medieval dump that I had found myself in. Even if I did not have any intention to ride to war on horseback, riding would be useful in this world.

The final purpose of this new venture was less... defined as it was to experiment with Horse Breeding... or rather Fleshcrafting.

Fleshcrafting was an ancient branch of Magic that was lost to time after the Doom of Valyria. It was the sort of thing even Valyrians did not do close to their city, leaving their creations in the Flesh Pits of Gogossos where slave women were said to be bred with animals to create half-human hybrids... and that was a bunch of bullshit of course.

It was much more likely that the process involved some form of Shadowbinding that reminded me of the works of Sauron and Morgoth from the Silmarillion. Specifically, it reminded me of the creation of wargs and werewolves.

In the world created by Tolkien, Werewolves were a breed of wolves of some sort... but the important bit was the way Sauron bound spirits into the bodies of wolves to make them better. This led to the Werewolves becoming smarter and larger than the normal breed of wolves. Some theorized that the wargs in the later periods were descendants of those Werewolves, wolves who inherited the greater minds of the Werewolves.

In all honesty, Wargs and Werewolves in the world of Arda reminded me more of the Direwolves in this world that anything else.

While Warg was a term used to describe skinchangers who took the skin of canines in this world, a word that meant "Wolf" in Ancient Scandinavian languages.

Granted the inspiration was probably the same, as the lesser-known of Werewolf myths from my old world were less about man physically gaining wolf features and more about their spirits possessing or taking the form of a wolf... which was not so dissimilar to how Wargs in this world operated on.

I was already aware that Skinchanging and Shadowbinding had the potential to increase the soul-stuff within a vessel like an animal. The increase in soul-stuff also led to an increase in physical abilities.

I knew from the books that Jon Snow would show unnatural feats of strength when emotional and often associated those acts with his direwolf, Ghost. These instances were possibly when Ghost's soul flowed into Jon's body for a short duration, increasing the strength of Jon's soul and giving him the ability to do things like pull out spears from the frozen ground that would take three men to achieve or lift a grown man off his feet.

My theories were easy to test on myself with the application of Occlumency. I could pull back my entire self and feel that I was stronger and faster than I had been a moment before. It was not by a large margin, as I did not have the soul of a direwolf to boost my own, but the difference was easy to notice.

It was how I have been able to practice nearly six hours a day in the yard now that Syrio had taken to sparring with me, along with my normal daily training with Ser Willem.

While my Magical Training involved a lot of experimentation and self-study, my martial education was rather strict and guided by experts in their fields.

Ser Willem was the Master At Arms of the Red Keep. He had been the man who trained Rhaegar in his youth to a level that Rhaegar could go toe-to-toe with the man who would be the Demon-of-the-Trident. While their fight was relatively close matched, Rhaegar had been stupid enough to use a sword against a fully plated opponent, a fault that had led to his death as Robert was using what amounted to a spiked iron mallet. The results showed themselves, as Robert only needed a single solid hit to win the fight, which was what he had done in the end.

The old Master-at-Arms did not seem pleased with adding another teacher to the one he was charged with. That being said, he was pragmatic enough to understand that I could benefit from learning more than a single sword style, especially as he was aging, having gone half blind, a fact he kept well hidden from strangers and preferred to sit by the side and give instructions rather than sparring with me. He was far from useless, as the cane he used was actually a cane sword that Ser Willem had gotten after a recommendation from Syrio. Carrying a sword in the City of Braavos was an invitation to be challenged to a duel, and the cane-sword was a good idea to not have either of us unarmed.

I knew that my Magic would be the primary source of my power, but appearances had to be preserved. One of the reasons for the Blackfyre Rebellions was because Daemon was more martial than Daeron the Good, and that was the type of small-minded Westerosi way of thinking that most subscribed to.

I would have to be trained as a knight and knighted.

There was also the fact that I needed to make sure that I could survive without magic if it came down to it. Relying on a single skill to survive was dangerous in the end. Footwork and physical training would supplement my magic in the long run, but dead was dead, whether through magic or a sword through the chest.

So I trained as though my life depended on it, which was just the case.

Using Occlumency allowed me to push past my limits in different ways. The most useful tricks I was able to achieve were to be able to keep going even when exhausted and some minor increase to my physical abilities when I pulled back my soul in its entirety into my body. I had no hope to match the Mountain That Rides in strength, but if I could survive long enough, I could use Magic to win such a fight, outlasting him and boosting my strength when needed.

Using Skinchanging as part of Fleshcrafting also had the basis on the Skinchanger Borroq and his unnaturally large boar. The size of the boar had me start thinking if an animal with more soul-stuff could have a larger size. Of course, that entire thought led me back to the obscure details of Dragon Lore, but the idea was tempting for more than one reason.

For now, I would experiment with Horses and dogs, try and figure out if I could breed some improvements. It would help in the future and giving away such lavish gifts as war-horses to loyal knights was the type of thing a ruler had to do in the end.

Then there was the logical end goal of applying these methods on myself, to increase my physical abilities through rituals, which was... tempting.

"Two mares good for breeding and a stallion," said Ser Willem, taking a seat on the chair while I was busy trying to make sense of the ledgers I had found in the old keep. "Rest of them are not as impressive, though they are not in the worst condition either."

"The disrepair is rather troublesome as well." I nodded, as I got a general idea of how much the upkeep would cost from the records that existed. This place would end up being a money sink if we were not careful.

"It appears that we have been tricked, your grace." said the knight with a smirk.

"I prefer to see it as a test, but the horses won't return a profit for a few years," I stated simply. "For now, we have a place to lay low away from the city and a potential source of income in the future. Most of the cost would be fodder for the horses and all the wooden posts and tiles that need replacing."

"Wood is expensive in Braavos." nodded Ser Willem, having been running the household for more than three years now. While there were forests around Braavos, those acted as a natural barrier from the cold chill of the sea and it was illegal to cut down trees without permission. That of course made wood one of the primary demands of the city and gave me an idea.

"Do you think we can find a cheap source?" I asked, thinking of options.

"My nephew ought to have some forests left to his name." suggested Ser Willem, making me suppress a smile "If the Usurper did not strip him off those lands as well, that is," he added bitterly.

House Darry paid a lot for their loyalty to the Targaryens. While they had a keep, their lands were nearly halved after the Rebellion and most of their resources were cut down to leave them weaker.

"They can send the wood through the last bend of the Trident to Saltpans, ship it off through Braavosi ships." I thought out loud. Learning about logistics was one of those things I needed to do and while it took me some time, I nearly memorized the entire Map of Westeros and Western Essos just in case. "We can have the Iron Bank act as the Middle Men as they have access to ships. They will be more discrete than some sailor and much less likely to tip their hand with Varys sniffing around."

"Would Robert not object if he finds out?" he asked, wary of the idea.

"Lords borrow from the Iron Bank all the time." I countered, knowing that Iron Throne could make the entire venture obsolete by asking for a large Trading Tax. "A bit of nice book-keeping and it will look less like trade and more paying off debts from being impoverished. Robert will have a laugh, Darry will get paid, and we will take a cut that will ensure that we are not losing from what we already have."

"Do we have access to enough coin?" asked Ser Willem "We have some of the Treasury from Dragonstone, but not enough to risk on a venture of such scale."

"The Iron Bank agreed to provide the coin to invest in if I could show that the investment is worth it. They are not willing to give us the money directly but they are willing to provide a line of credit to our ventures if they think them safe enough." I stated while cursing my luck that I was essentially acting as an investor for the Iron Bank, I did not even do this in my old life.

"And by that, you mean..." started the old knight.

"I impressed some of the Keyholders, enough that they are willing to take our suggestions and give us a cut of the profits," I explained. "We will use the coin to handle the upkeep of the castle, get some Westerosi Horse while at it and we should make enough to not touch on the savings we stashed away."

"Counting Coppers should not be your duty," stated Ser Willem.

"Viserys the Second was fostered in House Rogare of Lys and served as Hand while Daeron warred and Baelon prayed. Both Kings spent enough money to bring the realm to ruin, not to mention the state Westeros was in after the Dance." I explained, "He was a man who excelled at Counting Coppers and the realm prospered."

"He was a King for a year." countered Ser Willem.

"Yeah, well, he was a shitty father and his son probably killed him." I countered "Not the worst thing Aegon the Unworthy had done... the cunt."

Ser Willem chuckled, probably amused at my hate for my idiotic ancestors. `Potentially not even that, if rumors of Aemon and Nerys were true.` I mentally added.

"It is good to see you take your studies so seriously, your grace." said the aged knight, a tired smile on his face. "I beg your forgiveness for this is most I could provide you," he added, sounding... defeated.

"Loyalty you showed is without equal, Ser." I countered "I would not trade it for all the gold in the world."

"You are too kind, your grace." bowed Ser Willem, with a smile on his face "You might just have what it takes to take back your Throne," he added, complimenting me in a way that made me... thoughtful for a moment.

"And you shall see it, Ser," I responded, fully intending it at that moment, even if I knew it to be unlikely. The Winter Chill was what had taken Ser Willem, but I had three years to prevent it.

"If the gods are good, I will live long enough to see the day you sit upon the Throne of your forefathers, your grace." said Ser Willem "but I am old, and I have made my peace with that long ago."

"Thank you, Ser," I nodded, accepting that it was a possibility, even if I would work to undo such fate.

"Yet your point stands." I stated, "Both me and my sister need proper education fit for Royalty. There are a few learned men in the city that we can hire."

"And Princess needs Courtly Training as well." asked Ser Willem "One fit for Royalty."

"She is barely three. Her histories, letters we will arrange and sewing and embroidery are things that Nessa can already teach her" I countered before releasing a breath "But I will try to figure something out for it as well."

--- 288 AC ---

It took five months before we were able to establish the trade deal with Darry. Secret messages went between the sides under the guise of Tycho Nestoris traveling to Darry to provide a loan from the Iron Bank. It was not technically illegal and my name was not involved in the documentation. Tycho was the one who had made the deal with a reference from Ser Willem Darry and once the lumber arrived, we took possession of it as the Middleman.

Dancing around Varys' spies was not that hard since I knew how he worked. While the children without tongues who knew how to read were hard to find, a bit of Mental Manipulation had them avoid certain ships and warehouses out of irrational fear, a side effect of the Compulsion Charm I had placed on them. All it took was a variation of the Legilimency spell with a bit of Pavlovian Conditioning to bring forth dread when I felt them approach one of the important locations we used.

The trade proved profitable and allowed us to use a small amount of the lumber to start with the repairs of the keep, while the rest was split into two, one part sold to nearly thrice its original cost to return the initial investment and the rest to be stockpiled in the keep for the winter, when we would sell them at a larger profit still, as Braavos hungered for wood to burn in Winter.

While more trade voyages would take place, it had proven to the Iron Bank that I was a safe presence and gave us some much-needed source of income.

During that time, I had grown decent with a Horse. The makeshift tilt yard we had assembled allowed me to practice under the constant watch of Ser Willem and Dany enjoyed the cleaner air away from the city and the open space where we did not need to hide indoors as much.

The keep was known as a location, though none but the Iron Bank actually knew who we were. The staff of the Manse was mostly employed through the Iron Bank, and we had established a cover as a Westerosi knight in exile and his grandchildren. Ser Willem was old enough to pass for our grandfather and for safely, we had concocted a lie that we used to live in Lys where both our grandmother and moth were both from.

I continued my experiments with Magic, the first of which was rather simple.

Jamie Lannister would claim that Jousting was two-thirds horsemanship, which was at least partially correct. While using the lance was also something important, a bad rider did not a good jouster make.

Partially skinchanging into a horse while riding it was a logical conclusion of what I could do with Skinchanging and that was exactly what I was practicing. The combined mind of man and beast allowed for a control that was nearly impossible to match with motions and queues that could be trained into a horse and I sort of understood how Lyanna Stark had managed to unhorse three low-level knights as the Knight of the Laughing Tree.

I was not a combination of man and horse when riding... but rather both at the same time. A bit of Occlumency to keep the connection and control over both while keeping the bodies separate and I had near-perfect lance control. Granted the lance was a third of the weight of an actual lance and half the length for now but being good at hitting things with a stick was what I had signed up for, so I was happy.

Honestly, it was a pity that I was not suicidal enough to ride in a Tourney or something like that.

We were back to the House with the Red Door once more, as Nessa greeted us.

"Any trouble?" I asked while warming myself as I sat near the Hearth.

"None your grace," said Nessa with a proud look. Ser Willem ruled the House with an iron fist, that much everyone knew, but it was Nessa who had taken the responsibility of controlling the servants and being left in charge when we were not within the City. It had left watching over Dany to Ser Willem who seemed to enjoy spoiling her as though she was his granddaughter. Given that Ser Willem was the closest thing we had to a grandfather, I did not fault the man.

The treasures we had brought from Dragonstone were stashed away in a location that was known to only me and Ser Willem and required either magic or pick-axe to get to, so they were rather safe and in an unknown place, but my paranoia was hard to suppress as I took these long absences from the city.

The events in the Original Timeline made me cautious about the servants as they were responsible for Viserys and Daenerys living on the streets. Sure, I had gotten rid of the ones who were disloyal by using them to develop my abilities with Mind Arts and leaving them simpleminded, but I would rather be cautious than homeless.

Heading to my room after washing off the dust from the road, I found an iron coin on top of my pillow, with a hooded man on one side and the face forming a full moon split in the middle on the other.

"Hmm..." I mused, my right hand resting on the pommel of my wand, my mind finding no one but the familiar minds of the servants within the House. "I might as well give them a visit."

AN:

Kudos to anyone who knows where the title comes from.

To those who asked, yes, rituals will be a thing... after testing everything on animals first because Wizerys is not an idiot. There are a few that I have pretty much fleshed out and waiting to be written.

There is some setup for the breeding of Magical Animals, with a focus on what Direwolves may be. While a Direwolf exists as a real-world species, the one in the canon is definitely some sort of a magical creature.

To the person who asked about Dany's Training as a Lady, it is something I have been thinking over as well for a while now and I have a rather unorthodox but pragmatic idea about which direction it will go after there is a time skip so she is slightly older for the instructions to be worth anything, so maybe a year or so after this chapter.

The main problem with the pacing is to show some progression in magical abilities of Wizerys and go into full detail of how Magic works because that is one of the parts I really enjoy writing about. So for now, the progression is slow because I have certain plans and an overall arc like structure up to the canon timeline. First arc is going to take place primarily in Braavos.

Also I got Grammarly to work and reviewed the older chapters. Hopeful there will be fewer errors from now on.