Vaemond Velaryon

Vaemond Velaryon was the Lord of Driftmark and served upon the Small Council as Master of Ships until his death in 407. He was the widower of Princess Vaella Targaryen, with whom he fathered five children; Shiera, Aurane, Lucerys, Rhaella and Corlys, the namesake of his lord father.

History
Born upon the island of Driftmark to Corlys II Velaryon and Saera Celtigar, Vaemond would be the sole product of their union. He inherited his titles as an infant when his father fell victim to the Summer Sickness mere moons after his birth. After Corlys' abrupt and grievous death, Vaemond's uncle, Daeron, ruled Driftmark in his name as his regent alongside the guiding hand of his mother.

It was Daeron Velaryon that introduced his nephew to the might of Driftmark's ships as a child. His acquaintanceship with them inevitably blossomed to a love that would prove to be unrivaled; the waves beneath him could calm all his fusses and soothe the storms that clouded his young mind. He was a troublesome youth, but not unmanageable with the stern hand of his uncle posing a viable threat, and there further for aid was the companionship of his bastard cousin, Addam Waters. Though the duo culminated sizeable mischief as boys, Vaemond would soon grow wiser of his duties as the Lord of the Tides both scholarly and in understanding as a squire beneath King Aenar I Targaryen, who had been a beloved friend of his father and family.

Good Aenar's mentorship molded young Vaemond well and true. Lessons in honor and humility accompanied his shaping into a fine commander and swordsman, both; by the age of five-and-ten, he had won the king's confidence that Driftmark would remain a sea fortress well-managed and better represented by the man he would surely become. His trust in Vaemond grew by the day and doubled by each year he spent in King's Landing and in 362, he was wed to Aenar's willful daughter, Princess Vaella Targaryen.

Tantalized by her adventurous spirit, Vaemond Velaryon never felt his marriage with the young princess dutiful, but a gift of the heart that would strengthen ties between the Crown and his house in equal measures. Much of his upbringing had been matters of study and learning in the hopes of filling the shoes of his father, and for Vaemond, Princess Vaella was both his privilege and pleasure. Vaella Targaryen brought with her the dragon, Seastar, to Driftmark upon his return now as its Master and Lord of the Tides. Together, they would spend the sweet beginnings of their marriage upon the isle, and more indulging her wanderlust until Vaemond was summoned to King's Landing to serve as Master of Ships upon Aenar's Small Council in 370.

Following his appointment, Vaemond flourished in his position with his wife alongside him. Vaella busied herself in the revelry of life at court, even in the height of her pregnancy. In 371, their firstborn was born within the safety of Maegor's Holdfast - a daughter that the princess would name Shiera, another ode to her affinities of old. Shiera Velaryon would live the first moons of her life as one of King's Landing's youngest courtiers until her father received word of Daeron's death upon Driftmark. His bastard son, Addam, would thenceforth take his place as castellan and Vaella, her dragon and their infant daughter would return home.

Though their time apart did pain Vaemond deeply, the next few years would be characterized by his tender, much longed-for visits to the island, where he spent many nights basking in the company of his growing family. By 382, Shiera's birth had been followed by four other children; Aurane, twins Lucerys and Rhaella, and lastly, Corlys - the youngest of their brood, named for the father he had only grown to know through stories told. Still, Vaemond remained faithful to his service to the Crown, and to his seat at that round table he always returned promptly and dutifully. In the coming years, he took a squire of House Dayne of Starfall - Ulrick, whose family sought better proximity and found his placement with Lord Vaemond suited him. Aurane Velaryon would be groomed as an heir might alongside his father's squire at the capital whilst Lucerys squired beneath Prince Aemon Targaryen at Dragonstone, but they were not the only young men the seasoned captain's eyes oft scrutinized - Perceon Vance was another he studied, and all the closer for his apparent interest in his eldest daughter, who had grown accustomed to life at court.

It was with a hardened father's gaze that he watched Prince Viserys Targaryen's squire grow, both with apprehension and an ounce of knowing for Shiera. Vaemond did what he could to ward the boy off as he had with his daughter's other potential suitors, all the while piecing a string of words together for his father in Harrenhal. Though his words for Perceon had betrayed the letter he had written, a betrothal was finalized and in 387, they were wed. For Vaemond, nothing had been quite so taxing on his nerves as giving away the hand of his daughter, but for all his studious surveillance he trusted that Shiera would be well cared for. She was the first of his children that Vaemond had sought a match for; Aurane would be the second. For his heir, he had been meticulous in consideration of many a maid - in 391, his son would take Princess Baela Targaryen of Summerhall to wife, and in addition to the clutch Seastar had laid upon Driftmark, she would bring another dragon egg to their marriage.

Whilst Vaella allowed Seastar free reign of the skies above the isle, the dragon eggs would be kept deep within the bowels of Driftmark, protected and secured. As a boy, House Velaryon had overcome the threat of extinction, and with them and their ties to the Targaryens, their future had been restored - and made all the more powerful, at that. Vaemond would serve faithfully as he always had, for both the better interests of the royal family that had seen him prosper and for the better interests of his own. In 392, he would choose to seal an alliance between Starfall and Driftmark by wedding his youngest daughter to Ulrick, the boy he had mentored that was by then a man grown; it was the same year an egg would hatch, and the dragon that emerged would be bound with the second of his infant granddaughters.

After the death of Viserys, Vaemond was appointed as Hand of the King in 398. still editing fml

Timeline

 * 345 AC - Vaemond is born to Saera Celtigar and Corlys II Velaryon. His father dies, another casualty of the Summer Sickness, few moons later.
 * 356 AC - Departs Driftmark for King's Landing to squire for King Aenar.
 * 362 - Weds Vaella Targaryen.
 * 370 - Becomes Master of Ships.
 * 371 - His firstborn daughter, Shiera, is born.
 * 372 - His uncle and castellan, Daeron Velaryon, dies.
 * 375 - His firstborn son and heir, Aurane, is born.
 * 378 - Twins Rhaella and Lucerys are born.
 * 382 - His youngest son is born and named for his father, Corlys.
 * 387 - Shiera is wed to Perceon Vance.
 * 391 - Aurane takes Princess Baela Targaryen of Summerhall to wife.
 * 393 - Rhaella is wed to Ulrick Dayne and becomes Lady of Starfall.

Family

 * Corlys II Velaryon, d. 345
 * (m) Saera Celtigar, d. 379
 * Vaemond Velaryon, b. 345
 * (m) Vaella Targaryen, his wife, d. 404
 * Shiera Velaryon b. 371
 * (m) Perceon Vance
 * Ser Preston Vance, b. 387
 * Rhialta Vance, b. 389
 * Paxter Vance, b. 395
 * Minisa Vance, b. 399
 * Aurane Velaryon, his firstborn son and heir, b. 375
 * (m) Baela Targaryen of Summerhall
 * Valaena Velaryon, b. 391
 * Daenaera Velaryon, rider of the dragon Erinnon, b. 392
 * Ser Lucerys Velaryon, rider of the dragon Seastar, b. 378
 * Rhaella Velaryon, b. 378
 * (m) Ulrick Dayne, d. ?
 * Their children
 * Corlys III Velaryon, b. 382