Laena would be an option since we can pass it off as institutionalizing dragonrider training along the lines of Westerosi knighthood.
It might also be a better way to get Laena into our entourage than making her our handmaiden would be, since mentor-student may be a more justified hierarchy in the Velaryon mind than master-servant. It does, however, rely on Laena wanting to be squired, which she might or might not. We could pitch it as an adventure, but making good on that would require a bit more errantry or campaigning than we've done so far.
To be perfectly honest, burning down the Disputed Lands so that the Triarchy doesn't pester us has so many advantages that I'm pretty set on going for it anyway. Adding Laena to the effort would massively boost the whole endeavor.
Bring Laenor for an Aegon-Rhaenys-Visenya parallel. Leave out Rhaenys and Daemon, officially to secure the home fronts in the Crownlands and Stepstones (and Dorne behind the latter) from Triarchy retaliation, but really for the sake of the parallel. And really-really, to separate Laena and Daemon.
We just need to work out ahead of time what to do with the liberated slaves. Additional peasants are always good as long as you have the land to spare, so we could probably hit up the Hightowers, Starks or Manderlys. The Vale is already strapped for space, so it's likely a bust in that regard. Though we might be able to find some room in the Crownlands. Or just ask dad to allow settlement in parts of the Kingswood, since that's his choice alone and tax paying villages are always good.
Hit up the Night's Watch. Settling a bunch of people in the New Gift to farm the land (not during winter, obvs) alleviates the Watch's short-term food problems. Then, devolve the New Gift back to its pre-Alyssane owners, on the condition that they increase and regularize their contributions to the Watch compared to current levels, given the infusion of newly-productive land.
On the one hand, yes. On the other, we do want a better pretext than "I wanna burninate all y'all to glaze my own rep;" and we also want to sow dissension among the Three Daughters so that when burninating time comes their resistance is weak and divided. Now, who do we know who's good at sowing dissention among enemies and fabricating pretexts for war. . . 🤔
I don't think we need to manufacture anything there. The second Corlys doesn't turn a blind eye towards slave trade through the Stepstones, the Triarchy can either do something or watch Tyroshs economy catch fire.
Fair enough, but for my point it doesn't matter much whether our pretext for war (call it a casus belli if you like, the sense is the same) is manufactured or provided by fortuna; we'd just like it to be better than what we have right now, which is a whim.
It's medieval times. It's not as if we need to move immediately after having a pretext.
This assumes that Rhaenyra will have a choice when the fighting with the Triarchy starts. Which she may, or may not. Westeros control over the Stepstones is a major problem for the Triarchy
