#;; which also speaks to the fact that . . . viserys is the one who must tell himself he's the dragon . . . must “act the dragon”

[kaerinio]

still pulling quotes for this meta, but something that's really sticking out to me is how viserys' hygiene correlates with his descent, much like his father's. daenerys notices this, too! during the journey to vaes dothrak, his clothes practically disintegrate into rags. so much so, dany notes that he looks as though he's clothed in beggar's rags. they also smell, suggesting that he hasn't allowed his clothing to be washed, has allowed for them to become soiled and rotted with the sweat from the journey. all because he doesn't want to let go of the clothing that "makes him who he is", doesn't want to, not even for a second, don the clothing of those he considers inferior. also, viserys keeps a sachet in the sleeve of his tunic. now, the reason for this could either be that he is aware of how awful his clothing smells and he's trying to make it smell better whilst also sniffing it periodically to make his current situation seem less dire . . . or he keeps it to sniff it periodically as an affront to the dothraki, who he openly and frequently makes derogatory remarks about. it could be a mix of the two.

anyway, when dany attempts to give him beautifully crafted and regal dothraki raiment, which she very sweetly requested for him, he reacts with fury. this outburst seems to be driven by his frustration with the dothraki, who he feels have "cheated him" by not going to westeros immediately. the journey has only reminded him of the fact that he has nothing, that the only "thing" he possessed has been given away, and he has no control over what he believes to be his destiny. additionally, he has now been faced with the reality that his sister is now the one with a title, protection, and power, and she no longer cowers before him. mirroring his father, as his tendency toward acting erratically increases, his hygiene deteriorates.

[onthesandsofdreams]

To Find a Bride

Fandom: ASoIaF Pairing: Fem!Ned x Rhaegar (Main), Male!Elia x Ashara, Fem!Jaime x Male!Lyanna (Side) Rating: T Summary: Rhaegar Targaryen is in need of a bride, what better place to find her than in the Tourney of Harrenhal. And as it happens, a certain Wolf-maid catches his eye and the more he knows her, the more he wants her. Words: 2435 Notes: Written for the @asoiafrarepairs‘s ‘A dream of Spring’ event. Day 7: Free Day | Fill a Prompt: Female!Ned Stark X Rhaegar Targaryen, Female!Jaime Lannister X Male!Lyanna Stark, Male!Elia Martell X Ashara Dayne. Tourney of Harrenhall, where Rhaegar has to decide who shall be his future Queen.

Read @ AO3

Rhaegar is tired. Exhausted really. But his father has given the order, and he must comply. He needs to decide who will be his bride. It’s not a decision he takes lightly, and it’s one that he must measure well.

“Brooding again, Rhaegar?”

Arthur. Rhaegar turns, “Wouldn’t you, if you were in my place?”

Arthur grins, “No, I can think of worst things to do, then choose a woman to wed.”

“Of course you would find this amusing.”

“Marry my sister then,” Arthur shrugs. “She would make a good wife, better Queen.”

At that, Rhaegar allows himself a tiny smile. “Have you missed the fact that Prince Elio Martell courts your sister already?”

“No,” Arthur sighs, dejected. “But it was just a suggestion. I know both Lannister ladies are not a good idea, unless you want to antagonize the King. And one of the Starks, it seems that Lady Cerelle has caught the eye of the second son of Lord Stark. But then again, nothing is set on stone as of yet.”

Rhaegar nods, it had not escaped his notice. After all, he needed to know about the possible ladies as much as possible. “Indeed. But I doubt Lord Tywin would approve, he’s either hoping that I or Viserys weds either daughter. And as you say, nothing is set in stone. I can only hope for the best.”

“Speaking of Starks… My sister speaks highly of Lady Eddara. Perhaps you could get to know her?”

Rhaegar frowns, somehow, Lady Stark has managed to somewhat slip out of his mind. A mistake that he needs to fix, apparently. “Perhaps that would be a good idea,” he agrees. “I have not seen her much.”

“She’s on the shy and quiet side of things, I’m told.” Arthur gives him a pointed look. “Perhaps an invitation is in order?”

“Yes, I could speak with Lady Stark.”

“Then, I shall arrange it, but as a forewarning, she does have three brothers. And her older brother, Lord Brandon is on the protective side.”

“My thanks Arthur, and I will heed your warning.”

“Good.”

*****

Rhaegar meets Lady Eddara Stark after they have broken their fasts. Arthur and Ashara trail behind, as escorts, for which he is grateful. They follow at a respectful distance, not too far so they will be out of sight, but not close enough to eavesdrop on the conversation. And it seemed to be like Arthur was not wrong about her brothers, the three of them had been polite, but there was an edge to their words that spoke of retribution should anything happen upon their sister.

Rhaegar had no intention of hurting Lady Eddara, much less allow any harm to come to her. Eddara curtseys, greets him with a small smile, one he returns. Her eyes are deep grey, like smoke from a pyre. She’s tall, taller than other women, her hair falls mostly freely from her hair, only some pieces hold it away from her face. And her face is solemn, large and solemn. And he sees a part of himself reflected on her face.

“Have you ever visited the Riverlands before, my Lady?” Rhaegar asks. It’s a good way to start a conversation.

“I have,” Eddara replies. “I visited with Lord Hoster Tully, I wanted to meet Lady Catelyn, so my father arranged it.”

“Ah, yes, Lady Tully is promised to your brother, is that correct?”

“Aye my Prince, she is to marry Brandon soon. We will depart Harrenhal for Riverrun, in fact. We are looking forward to the wedding.”

“Then I shall endeavour to wish your lord brother good wishes on his upcoming marriage. But, tell me about yourself Lady Stark. I confess that I know little of the North, and whatever little I know, I know because of my uncle Aemon.”

Eddara smiles at him. “It shall please both Brandon and Catelyn, I think.” She dims a little. “I am not very interesting my Prince. Life in the North is not as full as excitement as I imagine life in King’s Landing is. But if you insist, then I shall tell you.”

“I do insist, my curiosity has been sparkled.”

“I read my Prince, I manage Winterfell. Have done so since my mother passed, take care of our people and my brothers. Help my father as best I can. I play the violin, I can’t sing, I’m sorry to say that I’m not a good dancer either.”

Rhaegar’s curiosity grows as he watches her talk, her serious face lights up when speaking about her life and her family. “What books do you enjoy, my Lady? I myself am quite the reader.” He frowns. “Though some dislike it.”

“It’s better to be a well read King than not, my Prince,” Eddara’s voice is quiet, barely above a whisper. “And I enjoy poems, history and legends.”

Rhaegar’s head snaps towards her after her first words. That is a dangerous thing to say, he knows. “Perhaps so,” he matches her tone. “Poetry is a noble pursuit,” this time his voice returns to a normal tone. “And history must be learned, I do admit to liking the legends myself.”

Eddara gives him a tiny smile. “I have always thought that legends must have a smidge of truth, do you not think so, my Prince? Else, how could they come to be?”

Intriguing, Eddara Stark is intriguing. “Indeed.”

*****

Rhaegar himself is not much of a dancer, he dances because he must. So he walks towards Lady Ashara and requests a dance, she curtseys and obliques, but he does not miss the baleful glare both Martell princes send his way. Elio and Oberyn are twins in all but birthwater, it would do ill to antagonize them, but, he must on this occasion.

Lady Ashara is sweet and kind, regales him with tales of Dorne and of her and Arthur’s childhood, she praises his singing and he thanks her. They continue to speak while they dance, and when the music stops he bows and returns her towards her table.

Rhaegar also dances with Lady Cerelle Lannister, earning a glare from Lyan Stark. Cerelle continues to look back, almost as if she were looking for her sister. Lady Cersei’s face is smiling, but it does not reach her eyes.

Then, Rhaegar dances with Lady Cersei and she preens. He pretends not to notice, Lady Cersei sings his praises, carries herself with pride, but he dislikes the edge of smugness that hides in her voice. The song ends and he returns her to her table, Lady Cersei is almost reluctant to let go.

Lastly, Rhaegar requests a dance from Lady Eddara, she bows and takes his offered hand. “I must warn you my Prince,” Eddara says. “I am not the best dancer, so I beg your forgiveness in advance should I step on you.”

Rhaegar shakes his head. “Forgiveness is not necessary, my Lady. Accidents happen, but I am told I am a good dancer, perhaps I could teach you.”

“Then, I’d be honored to have such an excellent tutor.”

The music starts again and Rhaegar begins to lead, “Tell me my lady, what was it like to grow with brothers?”

Eddara’s face lightens and her eyes sparkle. “They were terrors my Prince. Absolute terrors, but I love them dearly, I can’t imagine my life without them. Once they decided to band against me, I was pelted with snowballs. Fortunately, some of our men got in and helped me to pay them back in turn.”

At the end of Eddara’s tale, there is laughter in her voice and Rhaegar finds that he likes the sound. He wishes he could hear her laugh out loud. “That seems hardly fair, three against one.”

“It wasn’t,” Eddara replies, laughter making her eyes sparkle. “But the reprimand that they got from our father was worth the cold.”

“Then I am glad. And see my Lady, you are dancing quite well.”

Eddara blushes. “Perhaps because my Prince leads so well.”

At the end of the song, Rhaegar finds himself reluctant to let her go.

But sees Lady Cerelle dancing with Lord Lyan Stark. And Ashara Dayne has not parted with Prince Elio. Things were interesting now.

*****

Rhaegar’s curiosity about Eddara Stark has only grown. He sees glimpses of an iron hidden underneath a calm exterior, she might lack her brothers fire, but her intellect more than makes up for it. And he knows because he has been able to speak with her more, he will admit to go out of his way to do so. He has no regrets. And at her insistence, he calls her Eddara. Ned doesn’t suit her much, even if she insists she doesn’t mind.

Once, full of curiosity, Rhaegar asked, “What would you do, Lady Eddara if two of your bannermen were arguing and wanted your judgement?”

Eddara looks at him, then blink surprised. She doesn’t answer immediately, instead she thinks for a moment. Rhaegar doesn’t rush her. “Well,” Eddara starts. “I might travel to the lords, but I would take a pair of servants with me.”

“And why is that?”

“Lords can twist words, say something that is not true. But servants talk to each other, and the Lords tend to ignore them, so I would have my servants listen and talk, hear what has been said on both sides of the issue and then make my judgement.”

Rhaegar is impressed. “Cleverly thought, Eddara.”

“Thank you my Prince.” Eddara blushes. “I try to learn from my lord father. He has taught us all, even me.”

“Then Lord Stark is a better man than most.”

*****

“Tell me about your Godswoods Eddara, I have never seen one as grand as Winterfell’s sound to be.”

“It’s quite big, my Prince.” No matter how hard Rhaegar has tried, he has not managed to make her call him Rhaegar. It’s her manners, he knows. But it’s vexing. “The Heart Tree is large, unlike any other here in the South, it’s face carved and almost sorrowful, the red sap gives it a gnarly air, but I like it. The woods are dark and there is a pond near the Tree, there’s a certain something there I can’t quite place. It almost feels like magic, truly it’s… magnificent.”

The ends of Rhaegar’s lips curl upwards. It’s always quite pleasant hearing Eddara speak of Winterfell, the North and her family. She truly comes alive during those particular topics. “Lord Brandon said it was grand, but you make me want to see it.”

“Perhaps one day my Prince will visit Winterfell, I shall endeavour to show the Godswoods to you.”

“Perhaps one day, Eddara, perhaps one day.”

*****

“Have you made up your mind?” Arthur asks one eve, after they have retired. “Because you seem quite taken with Lady Stark.”

“She’s different.”

“Different good?”

“Quite.” Rhaegar answers easily. “She’s quite… something. I like her.”

“I know,” Arthur says, a smug look to his face. “And people have noticed. Yes, you have danced and spoken to several ladies, and yet, you seek Lady Stark outside of formal obligations.” 

“She’s head and shoulder above all others.”

“Then it sounds like you’ve made up your mind Rhaegar. Oh Lord Tywin will be displeased. And so will Lady Cersei.”

Rhaegar’s mouth twitches. “They will indeed. But it seems that Lady Cerella is quite taken with Lord Lyan.”

“Indeed. They seem inseparable.”

“Lord Tywin will be most displeased.”

Rhaegar resists the urge to laugh. 

******

Rhaegar dons his armor for the joust. Prize in mind, he squares his shoulders and readies himself. He’s got a lot of competition to win if he’s to crown Eddara.

One by one, his opponents fall. Each one drawing him closer to victory. Until only Brandon Stark and Ser Barristan are left. Brandon falls easily enough, Ser Barristan is harder to beat, but in the end, he triumphs. Waves to the cheering crowd and takes the crown of blue roses. 

Rhaegar can almost hear everyone hold their breaths.

And Rhaegar looks for Eddara, finds her sitting next to Brandon and Lyan, close enough to the arena that should not be a problem for him to give her the crown. He spurs his horse forward until he’s standing in front of Eddara. “My Lady,” he says as he offers the crown. “For you.”

Eddara blushes fiercely, but takes the crown. “You honor me, my Prince.”

Rhaegar ignores the glares he’s getting from both Brandon and Lyan, and simply smiles at Eddara, “Not half of what you deserve.”

*****

“With respect, your Grace,” Brandon’s voice is cold. “What exactly do you intend with my sister?”

Rhaegar should be offended, but he isn’t. He’s been expecting this. “To ask your Lord father for her hand in marriage.”

Brandon is left speechless. His eyes widen and his mouth falls open. Moves his lips but no words come forward. “I - well.”

Rhaegar bites down a smile. It’s almost hard to believe how easy smiles come to him now, especially when it comes to Eddara. “I mean that Lord Stark. The King has graciously granted me the leave to pick my bride. And I have chosen your sister. I sent a raven to your father two days ago.”

“If that’s the case,” Brandon pulls himself up to his full height. “Then, allow me to be an elder brother and say this: If you hurt her, you deal with me.”

“Then, rest assured that I will not do so.”

“I’ll hold you to that, your Grace.”

“I expect nothing less.”

*****

Rhaegar hears from Arthur that Elio is formally courting Ashara now. And he knows that Lyan has written to his father about Cerelle’s hand. He wishes both couples luck, to Elio and Ashara to their faces. To Lyan and Cerelle in his head.

*****

Before they have to part ways, Rhaegar makes sure to speak with Eddara once more. “I have already sent a letter to your lord father, and the King. If they agree, our betrothal will be announced soon.”

Eddara, nods solemn. “Then I hope all goes well.”

Rhaegar squeezes her hand, “Do not fear, Eddara, I doubt my father would have an objection. And I would think that Lord Stark would at least consider it.”

*****

Three weeks after Brandon and Catelyn’s wedding, Eddara is summoned to King’s Landing. Rhaegar goes and receives her, drawing her into his arms. Around them, the commons whisper, he finds that he does not care.

Lady Eddara Stark is received with all the honors she deserves. And the night of her arrival, during the feast, King Aerys announces their betrothal. Rhaegar kisses his bride-to-be softly, and smiles at her blush.

Around them, people cheer.

[aboveallarescuer]

Dany is (relatively) frugal and modest

As I was rereading ASOIAF, I made it my goal to compile all* the book passages demonstrating either certain key attributes of Daenerys Targaryen (e.g. that she's compassionate and smart) or aspects of hers that are usually overstated (e.g. that she's ambitious and prophecy-driven).  Doing such a task may seem exaggerated, but I'd argue it's not, for many, many misconceptions about Dany have become widespread in light of the show's final season's events (and even before).

It must be acknowledged that it can be tricky to reference, say, ADWD passages to counter-argument how she was depicted in season eight (which allegedly follows ADOS events). Dany will have had plenty of character development in the span of two books. However, whatever happens to Dany in the next two books, I would argue that there is more than enough material to conclude that her show counterpart was made to fall for flaws that she (for the most part) never had and actions that she (for the most part) would never take. (and that's not even considering the double standards and the contradictions with what had been shown from show!Dany up until then, but that's obviously out of the scope of these lists)

Another objection to the purpose of these lists is that Game of Thrones is different from A Song of Ice and Fire and should be analyzed on its own, which is a fair point. However, the show is also an adaptation of these books, which begs the questions: why did they change Dany's character? Why did they overfocus on negative traits of hers or depicted them as negative when they weren't supposed to be or gave her negative traits that were never hers to begin with? Another fact that undermines the show=/=books argument is that most people think that the show's ending will be the books', albeit only in broad strokes and in different circumstances. As a result, people's perception of Dany is inevitably influenced by the show, which is a shame.

I hope these lists can be useful for whoever wants to find book passages to defend (or even simply explore different facets of) Dany's character in metas or conversations.

 *Well, at least all the passages that I could find in her chapters, which is no guarantee that the effort was perfectly executed, but I did my best.

Also, people could interpret certain passages differently and then come up with a different collection of passages if they ever attempted to make one, so I'm not saying that this list is completely objective (nor that there could ever be one).

Also, some passages have been cut short according to whether they were, IMO, relevant to the specific topic of the list they're in, so the context surrounding them may not always be clear (always read the books and use asearchoficeandfire). Many of them appear in different lists, sometimes fully referenced, sometimes not.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To justify the existence of this list, let's see examples of widespread opinions that I feel misrepresent Daenerys Targaryen:

Even when Daenerys was kidnapped by a then-hostile Dothraki in season 6, she didn’t look this disheveled. In fact, her hair and outfit were impeccable in the face of relentless desert grit and threatened imprisonment in the Dosh Khaleen. Dany, a woman who has believed she was fated for greatness since birth, has never let herself look anything but perfect. That is, until now. (x)

Dany has not believed she was fated for greatness neither since birth nor as of ADWD. This meta and these lists make it clear enough. But this list is about something else: has Dany "never let herself look anything but perfect"? I would argue that the books tell a very different story.

NOTE: There are few moments in AGOT because Dany is among the Dothraki, so several behaviors that could be considered "frugal" and "modest" are normalized. In other books, she's among other nobles, which highlights these particular traits of her.

A Dance with Dragons

ADWD Daenerys X

The sun was hot this morning, the sky blue and cloudless. That was good. Dany’s clothes were hardly more than rags, and offered little in the way of warmth. One of her sandals had slipped off during her wild flight from Meereen and she had left the other up by Drogon’s cave, preferring to go barefoot rather than half-shod. Her tokar and veils she had abandoned in the pit, and her linen undertunic had never been made to withstand the hot days and cold nights of the Dothraki sea. Sweat and grass and dirt had stained it, and Dany had torn a strip off the hem to make a bandage for her shin. I must look a ragged thing, and starved, she thought, but if the days stay warm, I will not freeze.

~

Hers had been a lonely sojourn, and for most of it she had been hurt and hungry ... yet despite it all she had been strangely happy here. A few aches, an empty belly, chills by night ... what does it matter when you can fly? I would do it all again.

~

The sun grew hotter as it rose, and before long her head was pounding. Dany’s hair was growing out again, but slowly. “I need a hat,” she said aloud. Up on Dragonstone she had tried to make one for herself, weaving stalks of grass together as she had seen Dothraki women do during her time with Drogo, but either she was using the wrong sort of grass or she simply lacked the necessary skill. Her hats all fell to pieces in her hands. Try again, she told herself. You will do better the next time. You are the blood of the dragon, you can make a hat. She tried and tried, but her last attempt had been no more successful than her first.

~

Once I dreamed of flying, she thought, and now I’ve flown, and dream of stealing eggs. That made her laugh. “Men are mad and gods are madder,” she told the grass, and the grass murmured its agreement.

~

Dany wedged herself into that corner, making a nest of sorts by tearing up handfuls of the grass that grew around the ruins. She was very tired, and fresh blisters had appeared on both her feet, including a matched set upon her pinky toes. It must be from the way I walk, she thought, giggling.

~

She wondered how the ants had managed to climb over it and find her. To them these tumbledown stones must loom as huge as the Wall of Westeros. The biggest wall in all the world, her brother Viserys used to say, as proud as if he’d built it himself.

Viserys told her tales of knights so poor that they had to sleep beneath the ancient hedges that grew along the byways of the Seven Kingdoms. Dany would have given much and more for a nice thick hedge. Preferably one without an anthill.

~

Dany, starved, slid off his back and ate with him, ripping chunks of smoking meat from the dead horse with bare, burned hands. In Meereen I was a queen in silk, nibbling on stuffed dates and honeyed lamb, she remembered. What would my noble husband think if he could see me now? Hizdahr would be horrified, no doubt. But Daario ...

Daario would laugh, carve off a hunk of horsemeat with his arakh, and squat down to eat beside her.

 ADWD Daenerys IX

Behind her, Reznak leaned in to whisper in her ear, “Magnificence, hear how they love you!”

No, she knew, they love their mortal art.

 ADWD Daenerys VII

Reznak mo Reznak bowed and beamed. “Magnificence, every day you grow more beautiful. I think the prospect of your wedding has given you a glow. Oh, my shining queen!”

Dany sighed.

~

She sat upon her cushions, listening, one foot jiggling with impatience.

~

Dany envied the Dothraki maids their loose sandsilk trousers and painted vests. They would be much cooler than her in her tokar, with its heavy fringe of baby pearls. “Help me wind this round myself, please. I cannot manage all these pearls by myself.”

~

“The day is too hot to be shut up in a palanquin,” said Dany. “Have my silver saddled. I would not go to my lord husband upon the backs of bearers.”

“Your Grace,” said Missandei, “this one is so sorry, but you cannot ride in a tokar.”

The little scribe was right, as she so often was. The tokar was not a garment meant for horseback. Dany made a face. “As you say. Not the palanquin, though. I would suffocate behind those drapes. Have them ready a sedan chair.” If she must wear her floppy ears, let all the rabbits see her.

 ADWD Daenerys VI

The bride is dressed in dark red veils above a tokar of white silk, fringed with baby pearls.”

The queen of the rabbits must not be wed without her floppy ears. “All those pearls will make me rattle when I walk.”

~

“Daenerys, my queen, I will gladly wash you from head to heel if that is what I must do to be your king and consort.”

“To be my king and consort, you need only bring me peace.[”]

~

Dany hurried off, calling for her handmaids. She would not welcome her captain home in a tokar. In the end she tried a dozen gowns before she found one she liked, but she refused the crown that Jhiqui offered her.

 ADWD Daenerys IV

Oft have I heard that yours is the blood of Aegon the Conqueror, Jaehaerys the Wise, and Daeron the Dragon. The noble Hizdahr is of the blood of Mazdhan the Magnificent, Hazrak the Handsome, and Zharaq the Liberator.”

“His forebears are as dead as mine. Will Hizdahr raise their shades to defend Meereen against its enemies? I need a man with ships and swords. You offer me ancestors.”

~

“Bright queen,” he said, “you have grown more beautiful in my absence. How is this thing possible?”

The queen was accustomed to such praise, yet somehow the compliment meant more coming from Daario than from the likes of Reznak, Xaro, or Hizdahr.

 ADWD Daenerys III

“Let us speak instead of love, of dreams and desire and Daenerys, the fairest woman in this world. I am drunk with the sight of you.”

She was no stranger to the overblown courtesies of Qarth. “If you are drunk, blame the wine.”

 ADWD Daenerys II

Dany seated herself on a cushion, crossed her legs, and gazed up at him.

 ADWD Daenerys I

The tokar was a master’s garment, a sign of wealth and power.

Dany had wanted to ban the tokar when she took Meereen, but her advisors had convinced her otherwise. “The Mother of Dragons must don the tokar or be forever hated,” warned the Green Grace, Galazza Galare. “In the wools of Westeros or a gown of Myrish lace, Your Radiance shall forever remain a stranger amongst us, a grotesque outlander, a barbarian conqueror. Meereen’s queen must be a lady of Old Ghis.” Brown Ben Plumm, the captain of the Second Sons, had put it more succinctly. “Man wants to be the king o’ the rabbits, he best wear a pair o’ floppy ears.”

~

The slippers the Butcher King had sent her had grown too uncomfortable. Dany kicked them off and sat with one foot tucked beneath her and the other swinging back and forth. It was not a very regal pose, but she was tired of being regal. The crown had given her a headache, and her buttocks had gone to sleep.

~

In the afternoon a sculptor came, proposing to replace the head of the great bronze harpy in the Plaza of Purification with one cast in Dany’s image. She denied him with as much courtesy as she could muster.

~

As Dany stood, her tokar began to slip. She caught it and tugged it back in place.

  A Storm of Swords

ASOS Daenerys VI

Her audience chamber was on the level below, an echoing high-ceilinged room with walls of purple marble. It was a chilly place for all its grandeur. There had been a throne there, a fantastic thing of carved and gilded wood in the shape of a savage harpy. She had taken one long look and commanded it be broken up for firewood. “I will not sit in the harpy’s lap,” she told them. Instead she sat upon a simple ebony bench. It served, though she had heard the Meereenese muttering that it did not befit a queen.

Her bloodriders were waiting for her. Silver bells tinkled in their oiled braids, and they wore the gold and jewels of dead men. Meereen had been rich beyond imagining. Even her sellswords seemed sated, at least for now.

 ASOS Daenerys V

“I must have this city,” she told them, sitting crosslegged on a pile of cushions, her dragons all about her.

 ASOS Daenerys IV

Dany sat crosslegged on a cushion, and Viserion spread his white-and-gold wings and flapped to her side.

~

“Do all the Yunkai’i whine so over a singed tokar? I shall buy you a new one ... if you deliver up your slaves within three days. Elsewise, Drogon shall give you a warmer kiss.”

~

When the old man came, she was curled up inside her hrakkar pelt, whose musty smell still reminded her of Drogo.

 ASOS Daenerys I

The narrow sea was often stormy, and Dany had crossed it half a hundred times as a girl, running from one Free City to the next half a step ahead of the Usurper’s hired knives. She loved the sea. She liked the sharp salty smell of the air, and the vastness of horizons bounded only by a vault of azure sky above. It made her feel small, but free as well. She liked the dolphins that sometimes swam along beside Balerion, slicing through the waves like silvery spears, and the flying fish they glimpsed now and again. She even liked the sailors, with all their songs and stories. Once on a voyage to Braavos, as she’d watched the crew wrestle down a great green sail in a rising gale, she had even thought how fine it would be to be a sailor.

~

But later that night, as Balerion plunged onward through the dark and Dany sat crosslegged on her bunk in the captain’s cabin, feeding her dragons—“Even upon the sea,” Groleo had said, so graciously, “queens take precedence over captains”—a sharp knock came upon the door.

[...] Dany pulled up a coverlet and tucked it in under her arms. She was naked, and had not expected a caller at this hour.

 A Clash of Kings

ACOK Daenerys V

She was breaking her fast on a bowl of cold shrimp-and-persimmon soup when Irri brought her a Qartheen gown, an airy confection of ivory samite patterned with seed pearls. “Take it away,” Dany said. “The docks are no place for lady’s finery.”

~

"I have won no victories," she tried telling her handmaid when the bell tinkled softly.

Jhiqui disagreed. "You burned the maegi in their house of dust and sent their souls to hell."

That was Drogon's victory, not mine, Dany wanted to say, but she held her tongue. The Dothraki would esteem her all the more for a few bells in her hair.

~

“I regret if we caused you alarm. If truth be told, we were not certain, we expected someone more ... more ...”

“Regal?” Dany laughed. She had no dragon with her, and her raiment was hardly queenly.

 ACOK Daenerys III

Rhaegal hissed and dug sharp black claws into her bare shoulder as Dany stretched out a hand for the wine. Wincing, she shifted him to her other shoulder, where he could claw her gown instead of her skin.

~

“Weep, weep, for the treachery of men.”

Dany would sooner have wept for her gold. The bribes she’d tendered to Mathos Mallarawan, Wendello Qar Deeth, and Egon Emeros the Exquisite might have bought her a ship, or hired a score of sellswords.

~

The crown was the only offering she’d kept. The rest she sold, to gather the wealth she had wasted on the Pureborn.

~

“Did I not give you an army, sweetest of women? A thousand knights, each in shining armor.”

The armor had been made of silver and gold, the knights of jade and beryl and onyx and tourmaline, of amber and opal and amethyst, each as tall as her little finger. “A thousand lovely knights,” she said, “but not the sort my enemies need fear. And my bullocks cannot carry me across the water[”]

~

“The Milk Men shun him. Khaleesi, do you see the girl in the felt hat? There, behind the fat priest. She is a—”

“—cutpurse,” finished Dany. She was no pampered lady, blind to such things. She had seen cutpurses aplenty in the streets of the Free Cities, during the years she’d spent with her brother, running from the Usurper’s hired knives.

~

“No trick,” a woman said in the Common Tongue.

Dany had not noticed Quaithe in the crowd, yet there she stood, eyes wet and shiny behind the implacable red lacquer mask. “What mean you, my lady?”

“Half a year gone, that man could scarcely wake fire from dragonglass. He had some small skill with powders and wildfire, sufficient to entrance a crowd while his cutpurses did their work. He could walk across hot coals and make burning roses bloom in the air, but he could no more aspire to climb the fiery ladder than a common fisherman could hope to catch a kraken in his nets.”

[...] “And now?”

“And now his powers grow, Khaleesi. And you are the cause of it.”

“Me?” She laughed. “How could that be?”

The woman stepped closer and lay two fingers on Dany’s wrist. “You are the Mother of Dragons, are you not?”

 ACOK Daenerys I

“I fear no ghosts. Dragons are more powerful than ghosts.” And figs are more important.

 A Game of Thrones

AGOT Daenerys III

“You dare!” he screamed at her. “You give commands to me? To me?” He vaulted off the horse, stumbling as he landed. His face was flushed as he struggled back to his feet. He grabbed her, shook her. “Have you forgotten who you are? Look at you. Look at you!”

Dany did not need to look. She was barefoot, with oiled hair, wearing Dothraki riding leathers and a painted vest given her as a bride gift. She looked as though she belonged here.

AGOT Daenerys II

Other gifts she was given in plenty by other Dothraki: slippers and jewels and silver rings for her hair, medallion belts and painted vests and soft furs, sandsilks and jars of scent, needles and feathers and tiny bottles of purple glass, and a gown made from the skin of a thousand mice. "A handsome gift, Khaleesi," Magister Illyrio said of the last, after he had told her what it was. "Most lucky." The gifts mounted up around her in great piles, more gifts than she could possibly imagine, more gifts than she could want or use.

AGOT Daenerys I

“We will have it all back someday, sweet sister,” he would promise her. Sometimes his hands shook when he talked about it. “The jewels and the silks, Dragonstone and King’s Landing, the Iron Throne and the Seven Kingdoms, all they have taken from us, we will have it back.” Viserys lived for that day. All that Daenerys wanted back was the big house with the red door, the lemon tree outside her window, the childhood she had never known.

~

When he was gone, Dany went to her window and looked out wistfully on the waters of the bay. The square brick towers of Pentos were black silhouettes outlined against the setting sun. Dany could hear the singing of the red priests as they lit their night fires and the shouts of ragged children playing games beyond the walls of the estate. For a moment she wished she could be out there with them, barefoot and breathless and dressed in tatters, with no past and no future and no feast to attend at Khal Drogo's manse.

[jonroxton]

@scratchybeardsweetmouth​:  uh-huh uh-huh. hahaha yeah the dragons being around her when the kiss happened is something that kinda makes me giggle every time. not a peep from them. as soon as she stood from her bed, she has not made note of them in the chapter, nor has she made note of their reactions during her recalls of the kiss. it may be a shocking and confusing moment for dany, but never a dangerous one.

it’s… insanely subtle and easy to miss! under a cut bc this got long!

after the kiss the feeling dany most experiences is expectancy. she tries not to think of jorah at all except as a commander and how he relates in that regard to her negotiations with kraznys. she tries. and fails completely. in fact the more she tries the harder it is to stop herself and we learn she actually HASN’T stopped thinking about how hot the kiss made her!

1. Keeping cool, stayin cool. I got this:

The gods of Ghis were dead, and so too its people; these Astapori were mongrels, Ser Jorah said. Even the Ghiscari tongue was largely forgotten; the slave cities spoke the High Valyrian of their conquerors, or what they had made of it.

2. Pff I’ve called him my bear before. Still cool. Yeah. Totally cool. Also I guess he’s not handsome but he’s so smart. My bear is so smart.

“They might be adequate to my needs,” Dany answered. It had been Ser Jorah’s suggestion that she speak only Dothraki and the Common Tongue while in Astapor. My bear is more clever than he looks. “Tell me of their training.”

3. I don’t want to think about jorah so i’ll leave him behind with my most priceless possessions, the most important weapons in the entire planet.

The old man had not wanted to sail to Astapor; nor did he favor buying this slave army. A queen should hear all sides before reaching a decision. That was why Dany had brought him with her to the Plaza of Pride, not to keep her safe. Her bloodriders would do that well enough. Ser Jorah Mormont she had left aboard Balerion to guard her people and her dragons. Much against her inclination, she had locked the dragons belowdecks. It was too dangerous to let them fly freely over the city; the world was all too full of men who would gladly kill them for no better reason than to name themselves dragons layer.

4. look at how cool i am this is not word association ok

Ask her if she wishes to view our fighting pits,” Kraznys added. “Douquor’s Pit has a fine folly scheduled for the evening. A bear and three small boys. One boy will be rolled in honey, one in blood, and one in rotting fish, and she may wager on which the bear will eat first.”

Tap tap tap, Dany heard. Arstan Whitebeard’s face was still, but his staff beat out his rage. Tap tap tap. She made herself smile. “I have my own bear on Balerion,” she told the translator, “and he may well eat me if I do not return to him.”

5. arstan lying to dany’s face since he met her: moral relativism is??? stupid?? jorah mormont is a piece of shit??? dany: wow i really never dealt with my sexual trauma i must stop this right now.

“When I leave Astapor it must be with an army, Ser Jorah says.”

“Ser Jorah was a slaver himself, Your Grace,” the old man reminded her. “There are sellswords in Pentos and Myr and Tyrosh you can hire. A man who kills for coin has no honor, but at least they are no slaves. Find your army there, I beg you.”

“My brother visited Pentos, Myr, Braavos, near all the Free Cities. The magisters and archons fed him wine and promises, but his soul was starved to death. A man cannot sup from the beggar’s bowl all his life and stay a man. I had my taste in Qarth, that was enough. I will not come to Pentos bowl in hand.”

“Better to come a beggar than a slaver,” Arstan said.

“There speaks one who has been neither.” Dany’s nostrils flared. “Do you know what it is like to be sold, squire? I do. My brother sold me to Khal Drogo for the promise of a golden crown. Well, Drogo crowned him in gold, though not as he had wished, and I… my sun-and-stars made a queen of me, but if he had been a different man, it might have been much otherwise. Do you think I have forgotten how it felt to be afraid?”

6. BUT WE’RE HERE NOW I GUESS WHAT THE FUCK

He has a good face, and great strength to him, Dany thought. She could not understand why Ser Jorah mistrusted the old man so. Could he be jealous that I have found another man to talk to?Unbidden, her thoughts went back to the night on Balerion when the exile knight had kissed her. He should never have done that. He is thrice my age, and of too low a birth for me, and I never gave him leave. No true knight would ever kiss a queen without her leave. She had taken care never to be alone with Ser Jorah after that, keeping her handmaids with her aboard ship, and sometimes her bloodriders. He wants to kiss me again, I see it in his eyes.

What Dany wanted she could not begin to say, but Jorah’s kiss had woken something in her, something that been sleeping since Khal Drogo died.

jorah’s kiss sounds like a fandom thing, like the unkiss. but yeah no it’s straight up how dany describes it. like it was something given to her, not taken in exchange for something (LIKE HERSELF TO DROGO!)

7. Listen I don’t want Jorah but here’s six to eight paragraphs of me having wet dreams and losing my shit..

The next day, it all seemed a dream. And what did Ser Jorah have to do with it, if anything? 

8. Nada. nope. Ok maybe she’s not cool but eight thousand puppies geesh...

Aggo helped Dany down from her litter. Strong Belwas was seated on a massive piling, eating a great haunch of brown roasted meat. “Dog,” he said happily when he saw Dany. “Good dog in Astapor, little queen. Eat?” He offered it with a greasy grin.

“That is kind of you, Belwas, but no.” Dany had eaten dog in other places, at other times, but just now all she could think of was the Unsullied and their stupid puppies. She swept past the huge eunuch and up the plank onto the deck of Balerion.

9. REALLY DANY? IS THAT ALL YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT? 

Ser Jorah Mormont stood waiting for her. “Your Grace,” he said, bowing his head. “The slavers have come and gone. Three of them, with a dozen scribes and as many slaves to lift and fetch. They crawled over every foot of our holds and made note of all we had.” He walked her aft. “How many men do they have for sale?”

“None.” Was it Mormont she was angry with, or this city with its sullen heat, its stinks and sweats and crumbling bricks? “They sell eunuchs, not men. Eunuchs made of brick, like the rest of Astapor. Shall I buy eight thousand brick eunuchs with dead eyes that never move, who kill suckling babes for the sake of a spiked hat and strangle their own dogs? They don’t even have names. So don’t call them men, ser.”

“Khaleesi,” he said, taken aback by her fury, “the Unsullied are chosen as boys, and trained—”

“I have heard all I care to of their training.” Dany could feel tears welling in her eyes, sudden and unwanted. Her hand flashed up and cracked Ser Jorah hard across the face. It was either that, or cry.

Mormont touched the cheek she’d slapped. “If I have displeased my queen—”

“You have. You’ve displeased me greatly, ser. If you were my true knight, you would never have brought me to this vile sty.” If you were my true knight, you would never have kissed me, or looked at my breasts the way you did, or…

OR WHAT DANY?

OR WHAT? 

10.  NOPE NOT COOL. annnnnd that’s when they come back

“As Your Grace commands. I shall tell Captain Groleo to make ready to sail on the evening tide, for some sty less vile.”

“No,” said Dany. Groleo watched them from the forecastle, and his crew was watching too. Whitebeard, her bloodriders, Jhiqui, every one had stopped what they were doing at the sound of the slap. “I want to sail now, not on the tide, I want to sail far and fast and never look back. But I can’t, can I? There are eight thousand brick eunuchs for sale, and I must find some way to buy them.” And with that she left him, and went below.

Behind the carved wooden door of the captain’s cabin, her dragons were restless. Drogon raised his head and screamed, pale smoke venting from his nostrils, and Viserion flapped at her and tried to perch on her shoulder, as he had when he was smaller. “No,” Dany said, trying to shrug him off gently. “You’re too big for that now, sweetling.” But the dragon coiled his white and gold tail around one arm and dug black claws into the fabric of her sleeve, clinging tightly. Helpless, she sank into Groleo’s great leather chair, giggling.

“They have been wild while you were gone, Khaleesi,” Irri told her. “Viserion clawed splinters from the door, do you see? And Drogon made to escape when the slaver men came to see them. When I grabbed his tail to hold him back, he turned and bit me.” She showed Dany the marks of his teeth on her hand.

“Did any of them try to burn their way free?” That was the thing that frightened Dany the most.

i haven’t completely chewed on this yet tho but THE DRAGONS WERE RESTLESS. jorah’s just agreed to change course again but dany believes completely that she CAN’T BC THERE ARE RULES DAMMIT.

jorah is a knight. she is a queen. dragons are weapons. all serve the purpose: obtaining the iron throne. everything else, wanting anything else, viserys beat it out of her. EVEN WITH DRAGONS SHE DOESN’T THINK SHE CAN HAVE THE THINGS SHE WANTS.

and this is already far too long hope this made sense!

[gascon-en-exil]

Joining the Game Late: S1E3 “Lord Snow”

Synopsis

The Night’s Watch are for the most part pathetically incompetent but they and Tyrion continue to put Jon in his place. Jon’s older male relatives are all the proverbial two days away from retirement, sucks for all that exposition he’ll miss out on. Lots of quick intros for the king’s council that have assembled because Robert can’t manage money, no surprise there. Jaime plays the twisted knightly loyalty card for all it’s worth. Robert is a very visceral king in every way imaginable - no surprise too that his war stories include defecation. Two of King’s Landing’s biggest schemers head off Catelyn and reveal the former owner of the dagger used by Bran’s would-be assassin, which they do in a brothel because it’s funny secret. Cersei and Ned are both kind of bad at parenting but at least they’re trying. Viserys engineered his own impotence and only now realizes it, and also Dany is pregnant but that won’t last. Bran’s old nurse explains Westeros’s abnormal seasons, but not very well.

Commentary

As expected now that the bulk of the action in the Westeros storyline has moved to King’s Landing I’m getting more invested, as there’s a much wider range of characters and plot threads to take interest in. Granted some of the intros in this episode go by a bit too quickly to really appreciate them; of the king’s council I just had time to register the two schemers (one with balls, one without), the gay otter (yay!), and an old guy whose name I can’t even place after the fact. Of these only the schemer with balls, a.k.a. Petyr Baelish, a.k.a. Littlefinger shows some real early development through the crush on Catelyn he doesn’t bother hiding and his admittedly funny decision to bring her to meet him in a brothel - that he owns, no less - because it’s a safe location. Ned’s just a killjoy about it, and it’s hard to tell how much of that is basic prudery and how much of it is fear of being cuckolded. Ned strikes out with Sansa too, but he does get some good bonding in with Arya leading up to the episode’s ending scene where she’s allowed to learn from a sword instructor offering both development for father and daughter and combat-based worldbuilding.

Cersei’s own attempts at parenting are equally hit-or-miss, and you can get a feeling for why Joffrey turned out the way he did. Half her advice boils down to “when you’re king you can do what you want,” so when she follows this by trying to temper her son’s inability to understand any tactic other than adolescent aggression it doesn’t quite work as well as might have otherwise. I enjoyed more her scene with Jaime, as well as Jaime in general this episode. He reveals himself to be more than just an evil knight in shining armor, via an amoral opportunistic streak and a violent love (like that) for his sister. That last bit is especially noteworthy looking back on the show when one knows how it ends. Of the two of them Jaime is the one who undergoes a redemption arc only foiled at the eleventh hour, while Cersei becomes more solidly evil as the series progresses. Based on these early scenes though you’d be forgiven for expecting the reverse.

Taking a break from King’s Landing, Dany’s storyline fleshes out for the first time the Dothraki beyond abstractly racist stereotypes, with speaking roles for more of them and what looks to have been a real effort to craft a Dothraki language and use it realistically alongside the language rendered as English to convey a sense of the language barrier and where Dany and others are breaking through it. That’s more than can be said for the significant scene leading up to Dany’s confrontation with her brother, because the setup feels artificial. Dany asks about the slaves kept by the Dothraki, and this bothers her which introduces the hatred of slavery that becomes one of her defining traits and really muddles the message when she eventually becomes a Mad Queen. She then orders the horde to stop, dismounts, and wanders off the path alone for no apparent reason only to be assaulted by Viserys moments later. Granted the subsequent scene is pretty awesome (but for the fact that Viserys has never been much of a threatening antagonist), but what was Dany doing?

The Night’s Watch recruits got some screentime as well, appropriately since this episode is titled after the protagonist in their ranks. Tyrion and Benjen keep Jon from getting a big head though, and the two of them do some verbal sparring of their own that reminds us that while Tyrion is playing tourist up at the Wall he’s being implicated in Bran’s attempted assassination back in King’s Landing. Ooh, mysterious. At least Tyrion does follow through with his plan to piss off the edge of the Wall - priorities, you know.

Some bits of necessary exposition from the bedraggled men of the Night’s Watch and from Bran’s old nurse provide the first explanation for Westeros’s abnormal seasons, although at this point I’ve still got more questions than answers. It seems as though there are only two seasons in their world, and it’s universally assumed that summer = good and winter = bad which I’m calling foul on as someone who’s suffered a lifetime in the subtropics. Of course it must be awful for the temperate parts of the continent when the Night King is “Let It Go”ing all over the land for years on end, but what about climates where the winters are short and mild but the summers are a scorching, sweltering hell hostile to human life without the central AC that these people definitely do not have? That old woman ought to feel a Louisiana summer before she “oh my sweet summer child”s anyone. That line used to be a meme, right?

[tomakeitbeautifultolive]

Hate Rhaegar Targaryen? Here's why you're wrong.

Re: “Fuck Rhaegar Targaryen”: A lesson on how to read between the lines in fiction to learn the truth.

On George R. R. Martin:

“I think there are two types of writers, the architects and the gardeners. The architects plan everything ahead of time, like an architect building a house. They know how many rooms are going to be in the house, what kind of roof they're going to have, where the wires are going to run, what kind of plumbing there's going to be. They have the whole thing designed and blueprinted out before they even nail the first board up. The gardeners dig a hole, drop in a seed and water it. They kind of know what seed it is, they know if planted a fantasy seed or mystery seed or whatever. But as the plant comes up and they water it, they don't know how many branches it's going to have, they find out as it grows. And I'm much more a gardener than an architect.”

On Elia Martell: Considering GRRM's self-described gardening style, Dorne and its culture were almost certainly built around Elia Martell. Rhaegar's wife was polyamorous, and the author needed a way to tell us that, thus the culture of Dorne was given this attribute.

Further, while Rhaegar crowning Lyanna queen of love and beauty is known as the moment all the smiles died - it's emphasized that “Elia’s reaction to the event remains unknown” ...Well isn’t that convenient?

On House Martell: Do even the Martells blame the Targaryens for what happened to Elia and her children? Here’s what it says in the wiki:

“During the Sack of King's Landing, Ser Gregor Clegane raped and murdered Elia and also killed her son, Prince Aegon Targaryen. Another Lannister knight, Ser Amory Lorch killed her daughter, Princess Rhaenys Targaryen. After hearing of these deaths, Oberyn attempted to raise Dorne for the exiled Prince Viserys Targaryen.

Oberyn and his brother Doran worked in secret for years planning on bringing an end to the reign of King Robert I Baratheon and destroying House Lannister. Oberyn traveled to Braavos, where Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen were living with Ser Willem Darry. Oberyn and Willem signed a secret marriage pact, with the Sealord of Braavos as witness, promising Viserys the hand of Princess Arianne Martell in marriage, in return for Dorne's help in reclaiming the Iron Throne from House Baratheon.”

If Rhaegar was solely responsible for Elia’s death, why would Oberyn work to align Dorne with the Targaryens once again, to put them back in power? Because he only wants revenge on the guilty parties: Lannister and Clegane.

On Aegon and his sister wives: Aegon had two wives. A first wife married out of duty, and a second wife married out of desire. Sound familiar? Good. It's supposed to. GRRM uses historical parallels like this as hints all the time, and Rhaegar’s obsession with the three heads of the dragon and naming his children after these historical relatives is a way to link them in our minds.

The fact that Rhaegar likely believed he needed three children to fulfill a prophecy - Aegon, Rhaenys and presumably Visenya... is also a hint that Elia, who could not bear him a third child, might've even encouraged Rhaegar to take another wife.

Sound absurd? Rhaegar tells his wife, as she holds his newborn son, that there must be one more, as is seen in Daenerys' vision in the House of the Undying:

“There must be one more. The dragon has three heads.”

                    "History is written by the victors."

On Robert Baratheon: Virtually everyone had a good opinion of Rhaegar expect for Robert Baratheon. The victor. This man harbored a negative opinion of the prince based on jealousy and a personal vendetta.

Ned says to Robert:

“You never knew Lyanna as I did, Robert. You saw her beauty, but not the iron underneath.”

Think Lyanna is just some silly trollop? Try again. The woman who would run away with an already-married man had this to say about Robert:

“Robert will never keep to one bed. I hear he has gotten a child on some girl in the Vale. Love is sweet, dearest Ned, but it cannot change a man's nature.”

Again, Rhaegar and Robert seem to be complete opposites in every way. So if Robert is the type to whore around on his wife, perhaps that's yet another hint that Rhaegar didn't, wouldn't, and wasn't. Rhaegar's reputation as a villain stems from this man alone, Robert Baratheon, who was not a good person.

Even on the show, Bran confirms that the Rebellion was built on a lie - so, why do so many opt to believe Robert Baratheon, a terrible king, husband, father and person - over three of the noblest men in the series - Barristan Selmy, Ned Stark, and Arthur Dayne?

On Rhaegar Targaryen: Arthur Dayne, one of the most chivalrous and noble knights, was Rhaegar's oldest friend.

Ned Stark never once has a negative thought about Rhaegar, even letting us know that he didn’t think Rhaegar the type of man to cheat on his wife:

“For the first time in years, he found himself remembering Rhaegar Targaryen. He wondered if Rhaegar had frequented brothels; somehow he thought not.”

Even Jorah understands who Rhaegar was, time and again telling Daenerys how different her brother Viserys is to Rhaegar, that Rhaegar was the last dragon and Viserys is “less than the shadow of a snake”. (...and I really should not have to recount why Viserys is a terrible person. That shit ain’t subtle at all.)

When Daenerys saves the life of a lamb girl, she says:

“I will not have her harmed. I claim her. Do as I command you, or Khal Drogo will know the reason why.”

She and Jorah then have this exchange:

“You are your brother's sister, in truth.” “Viserys?” “No. Rhaegar.”

Lastly, Barristan Selmy, who watched Rhaegar grow up, has this to say:

“Even as a child, your brother Viserys oft seemed to be his father's son, in ways that Rhaegar never did.”

So we've got two people now, telling us Rhaegar and Viserys were different. Viserys is directly compared to Aerys, whereas Daenerys is compared to Rhaegar after she saves someone's life and helps them.

When Daenerys asks Barristan whether there was any good to be said of her father, he replies:

“There is, your Grace. Of him, and those who came before him. Your grandfather Jaehaerys and his brother, their father Aegon, your mother... and Rhaegar. Him most of all.”

Barristan also confirms Rhaegar’s feelings toward Elia:

“Princess Elia was a good woman, Your Grace. She was kind and clever, with a gentle heart and a sweet wit. I know the prince was very fond of her.”

On the show, Barristan tells Daenerys of Rhaegar's character. Confirming that Rhaegar found joy in singing, not killing. Recounting tales about how Rhaegar would sing to the common folk, giving his money away to them, to orphanages, or taking his lifelong friend and guard out for drinks.

On who is actually to blame for Elia's death:

Aerys Targaryen, Tywin Lannister & Gregor Clegane (Duh)

It's not Rhaegar’s fault for neglecting to assume a lifelong House Targaryen ally would betray him and his family. If you think this, you are victim blaming.

(Victim blaming occurs when the victim of a crime or any wrongful act is held entirely or partially responsible for the harm that befell them.)

Tywin waited until he knew which side would win the Rebellion before picking either. Fuck, Tywin wasn't even certain he'd betray the Targaryens!

Was Rhaegar aware of all the ways his father offended Tywin Lannister? Oh, absolutely. Which is part of the reason he was almost certainly conspiring to de-throne his father, for offending the entire damned realm left and right!

“When this battle’s done I mean to call a council. Changes will be made. I meant to do it long ago, but... well, it does no good to speak of roads not taken.”

Jaime tells us that it was not Rhaegar who forbade Elia’s escape, but Aerys:

“Rhaegar met Robert on the Trident, and you know what happened there. When the word reached court, Aerys packed the queen off to Dragonstone with Prince Viserys. Princess Elia would have gone as well, but he forbade it. Somehow he had gotten it in his head that Prince Lewyn must have betrayed Rhaegar on the Trident, but he thought he could keep Dorne loyal so long as he kept Elia and Aegon by his side.”

Jaime feels immense guilt that lingers for not protecting Rhaegar's family. He blames himself, not the prince, even defending himself to the ghost of Rhaegar, who tells him:

“I left my wife and children in your hands.” “I never thought he'd hurt them. I was with the king...”

Even Jaime Lannister never thought the children would be hurt. Tywin’s fucking son. You'd have to be pretty daft, at this point, if you think Rhaegar is the one responsible for the murder of his children. Further, note that Jaime’s internal characterization of Rhaegar cares about his wife, Elia, and their children.

On Jon Snow: Love Jon Snow but hate Rhaegar Targaryen? Too bad. Boy was written to be just like his daddy, and no, I don’t mean Ned.

Like his father, he was “born in grief” and is described as sullen, and his father, melancholy. They've got similar lean builds, dark-hued eyes, both observant and good fighters, described as noble, honorable and good (and ‘comely’). Even the way Jon died echoes Rhaegar’s death:

“Jon fell to his knees. In the cold night air the wound was smoking. 'Ghost,' he whispered.”

“Rubies flew like drops of blood from the chest of a dying prince, and he sank to his knees in the water and with his last breath murmured a woman's name...”

Lastly, in the show, when Jon meets Daenerys, she says, “We all enjoy what we’re good at” and Jon replies, “I don’t.”

Just like Rhaegar. Because, after all, Barristan told Daenerys that Rhaegar “never liked killing”. Jon Snow is his father’s son.

To any Rhaegar Targaryen haters out there who managed to pick up on literally zero of the above clues - You badly need to work on your deductive reasoning skills.

Also, please never write a book.

[secretshamewriting]

Taming the Dragon-Chapter 4 (Viserys x Reader fic)

Chapter 3

Original Link

Warnings: Drinking/Alcohol Use

Viserys POV

(Y/N) sprawled on the lavish floor pillows, and continued on as if he wasn’t even there. It was Illyrio who seemed intimidated by his presence, cowing and seeking his approval, wishing to include him. “That’s very interesting, is it not, Your Grace?”

Viserys glanced over to the fat man, waving his fingers to acknowledge in the same instant he turned back to watch (Y/N). She produced a hand drawn map of the Khal’s manse, she detailed the aspects of the party from what wine they chose to each guest. He and Magister Illyrio had been making arrangements of their own. There would be a fine Meerenese silk dress sewn for Daenerys and Illyrio had assured there would be gold and gems to match, everything they needed to show the Khal she was a Targaryen Princess.

He listened to every word, analyzed every inflection, watched every ounce of body language. His father had seen him trained with Varys, the Master of Secrets, when he was young.

The boy must know when they are lying to him. Once there was a time every soul in Westeros feared the Targaryen’s and now they think us fools! Everyone will try to deceive him, and if Rhaegar does betray me- Viserys will take the throne. He must be a strong king. We have to make them fear us again.

A conversation of years long past played in his mind, the raspy, trembling voice of his father ringing in his ears. That night he’d had that gleaming, rabid look in his eyes, the one that always made his mother send him off to study his letters.

They called him Aerys the Mad King. And though none dared say that name in the presence of the young Prince, he’d heard it often enough whispered in the halls. And while he may have been…irrational, the world had taught Viserys the truth of his father’s words. Hidden daggers told him not to trust anyone. The kind words, and eager help that had been offered by ‘friends’. Merchant Princes, Nobles from Braavos to Pentos, Magisters, all had started out open handed enough but that all changed. Their amorous stares, greed of befriending the rightful King of the Seven Kingdoms, soured to bitter glares as if he was a diseased pauper, a raving mad man. What they didn’t know was that he would reclaim his lands, his throne and then they would regret turning him away when he was in need. He reveled in the thought of the cheese-mongers turning up to him to ask for fairer trade, the spice merchants complaining of taxes, how he looked forward to those days.

Viserys was thankful for his lessons with the Spider. He had learned to catch insects in their own web of lies. The lessons had served him well in the years moving from city to city. How to see one’s nervous twitches when they lied, to perceive if it was an exaggerated truth or straight out fiction. The way someone held themselves and how it belied their emotions, their intentions.

But watching (Y/N) she was nothing but, at ease? Comfort laid in her every word, her honest tone bearing all the layers so there was nothing further to analyze. He still would not dare to speak of his plans with her, he would wait until she left and speak with Illyrio alone. Not that he trusted the Magister either, but he had shown himself to be truly hungry for Viserys’ friendship.

So she shared what she came to share, then politely excused herself. Viserys and Illyrio discussed everything that would happen in the coming month to prepare Dany for meeting the Khal, they talked of how they hoped the night to go, and of days in the future. Once he had heard everything the Magister had to say, he took his leave.

The first stop was to check on Dany in her room. Viserys was delighted to see her sitting there, reading books and for the old gray handmaid who was looming over her asking questions. He strode in confidently and went to read over her shoulder, scooping the hair that was falling into her face so it would tamely lay down her back. “Study hard, sweet sister. Knowledge is a woman’s weapon. Men will always be more powerful with a sword, but your mind should best any man’s.” He stood up straight, smiling at the memory of his mother sharing that little tidbit with him, hoping she would be proud how he was preparing Dany.

A humorous scoff broke the otherwise still of the room as his sister focused on reading, but she immediately broke her attention to look up at her brother, what he’d found funny. “Not that you shall need much wit to deal with the Horselords.” smirking deviously before shrugging and offering “But it’s for every other man you shall meet. I imagine your husband won’t want me around all the time, well enough. So I won’t be able to keep as close an eye on you.” he could see the fear in her eyes. And as much as she might also fear him, the respect and need for his care was greater. The little sister was lost without the older brother to lead the way.

But he knew she was terrified of everything happening with the Khal, she had hardly slept a wink since he’d told her the plan a week past. That reminded him, “And you must sleep tonight. Do you think the Khal wants a girl with bags under her eyes like an old worn-out woman? If you do not I am assured one of the healers can make a draught to put you to sleep, but it’s been known to give terrible nightmares” he leaned his face close to hers now, his voice strained as if he had been telling one of the ghost stories of the Others. Dany squeaked at that and covered her mouth with her hands. Viserys raised his eyebrows and gestured to the bed “Then you must sleep” standing now and walking to leave the room, pausing long enough to add “or don’t think I won’t use it.”

The echoing steps were the only thing to accompany him as he walked the manse. Viserys feebly searched for something to occupy him, when what he really set out for was a way to speed up time so he could see the pieces of his plan begin to fall into place. There was the Magister’s libraries, but he had read all the dry tomes worth reading ten times over by now. He craved a story of Aegon, or Nymeria, something to sate his lust for a concurring force arriving to sweep all under their rule. The Free Cities had their share of conquest and blood, Viserys only read them to gain the experiences of another culture but they weren’t his stories. Regardless of the fact that he’d spent more time away from Westeros than in it, everything across the narrow sea was foreign to him, and always would be.

Eventually his restless mind and wandering feet found themselves walking for the wall. Somehow staring at the sea with a plan in mind made his heart ache less for home, loosened the grip of responsibilities that hung around his neck like a hangman’s noose. Fleetly he climbed the stairs, only to be surprised by what he found at the apex. (Y/N) was sitting atop the railing, one leg dipped over the side and the other resting up on a table. A table that held a flagon and a cup identical to the one in her hand.

“What are you doing up here?” he questioned as he stepped up onto the platform.

Without even looking his way, eyes focused on the beach some yards below, the gentle sound of waves crashing on the sand the only background to her answer “Enjoying a beautiful summer evening.” But now she turned to face him, a smile lighting up her face as she held up her cup, saying with a laugh “and some wine. Care to join me?”

Viserys grasped the stem of the goblet, holding it out “Yes, I believe I shall.” But when he only got an amused look from (Y/N), and she made no move to fill his cup, did his swelled ego deflate. Internally grumbling how he was a King and should never have to pour for himself, having gotten quite used to the aspect of having servants around, he filled the glass anyway.

He threw one of his long legs over the wall to straddle it as well, looking straight across to (Y/N). She smiled again, raising her glass and tipping her head before taking a sip. Viserys joined her in the silent toast and only after she had taken a deep gulp did he try his own. A honey wine. He was pleasantly surprised, a welcome break from the usual stock of sour reds that filled the better part of Illyrio’s cellars.

They finished their first cups in silence aside from the lulling sound of the sea. This time (Y/N) leaned forward, grabbing the tankard and filling his before pouring for herself. The last few drops falling into her glass caused him to look listlessly around for some servant to fetch them more. That was when he heard the metallic tink of the glass being set on the stone “I didn’t think Illyrio would miss one cask”. She had set down her glass to reach for the cloth strewn across the table, flipping it up to reveal it was infact a barrel of wine. He eyed her with surprise, to which she giggled while stroking one hand across the top of the barrel and whined “Poor thing was forgotten, shoved all the way in the back.”

Viserys took a sip and mused “It must have been so lonely”.

“Oh, quite” she grunted as her dagger pried open the top of the barrel. She dipped it down into the barrel, the flagon greedily gulping up the cloying wine and dripping as she removed it. Golden dribbles tracing along the glass to be caught by her fingers. Viserys watched over the top of his cup as she drew them up the length, and sucked the liquid off. She glanced to him as she slurped her middle finger, their gazes met as her face turned bright red under his grin. But that didn’t last as she looked away mumbling “It’s a shame to waste good wine”.

Viserys chuckled at her shyness, only hours earlier she boldly undressed herself, knowing he was there, and now she blushes at his smirk. Hurriedly she used the pommel of her dagger to hammer the lid back into the barrel, reset the tablecloth and the flagon. By then she had regained herself, settling back in to stare across the water. “Tell me” she mumbled quietly, looking out of the corner of her eye to meet where he still watched her every move “of the Seven Kingdoms.”

Feeling as sweet as the wine he mused under his breath “My home.” He swirled his cup, staring into the golden liquid as if it held a story in it’s depths. In a way it did, the sticky sweet taste of honey on his tongue brought forth a memory. “When I was a boy, we travelled to some flower festival, a weak excuse for a tournament and for Mace Tyrell to host my family. There was red tulips as far as the eye could see.“

(Y/N)’s eyes widened in surprise but then softened to a sweet smile. She expected some story of Aegon, or a bitter telling of the Usurper’s rebellion. A story of strong knights and fair maidens..

"We had gardens in King’s Landing, but” he admitted humbly “Highgarden’s did put it to shame. Their’s stretched the entire inner yard, something always in bloom. They even boast massive glass gardens, growing roses even in the depths of winter.”

She was enraptured by the story, tucking her legs up and looking like a child at story time, her eager eyes glued to his face. “House Tyrell’s sigil is a rose. So they grow them in every color you can imagine. My mother and I walked the gardens, gathering one of each. We made a crown of roses and took turns wearing it.” He laughed deeply, a new part of the memory coming back to him “Even my father wore it, to a meeting with Mace Tyrell and everyone was too afraid to comment on it so he wore it around for an entire day.”

That beautiful ringing sound greeted his ears once more, her eyes crinkling as she laughed. “Who would dare question the King about what crown he chose to wear.”

Viserys tilted his head, lifting his mug to his lips to speak into it. “Especially my father” hummed in the glass as he took a sip. Watching her he could see the shining look of intrigue in her eyes, the way she was studying him as well, and took the wiser course of not bringing up any further questions on his father. Part of him wondered if she had heard stories of the Mad King, how much she truly knew about the Seven Kingdoms. Instead Viserys brought the cup down, his wrists resting across his legs as he inquired “Do you know how a tournament works in the Seven Kingdoms?”

Pleased with the new subject she shook her head, her intent stare begging him to continue. So Viserys leaned forward, explaining every intricacy from the reasons why a tourney was held to the customs. In vivid detail he recounted some of the most renowned fights that had gone into storybooks. By the time they were two more glasses in he found himself spending an unusual amount of time on the awards given out, knighthoods or announcing new squires, but most of all about the Queen of Love and Beauty.

It was the wine, it had to be he told himself. But her gentle smile, the way she hung on his every word and somehow still seemed so calm and collected, it was irresistible. Apparently the same as the wine as he finished the bottom dregs of another. He found that he could handle his fair share, especially since his stay with Illyrio where it seemed to flow anytime of the day.

And flow it did as (Y/N) reached for the flagon to fill his cup again, her hand coming to rest on the back of his as she poured. He had told himself to slow down but found they had gotten onto the topic of siblings, perhaps some tournament story of Rhaegar’s, and (Y/N) was describing the little brother she’d had ‘a lifetime ago’. To which he mentioned Daenerys. “I have taken care of her all her life. But she’s thirteen, a woman grown now-”

However he was cut off by with a snobbish laugh as (Y/N) shook her head dismissively. “She is not grown. I have ten years on her and I am still growing.” Viserys eyed her up and down suspiciously, impressed he had correctly gathered her age to be close to his own and then wondering how she had meant ‘growing’. Only the very back of his mind questioned why she had interrupted him, disagreeing with no qualms for his opinion. Noticing this she laughed, looking down at her body before playfully rolling her eyes “Growing, changing. Always learning something new.” He certainly hadn’t thought it was physically.

He shook away any misgivings, moving instead to the deeper thought that plagued him, that look in Dany’s eye earlier when she was studying in her room. “I have been with her nearly every day of her life…” the plans still churning in his stomach, even if he was set on getting back his kingdom there was a pang of guilt. “She won’t know what to do with herself. I suppose she will just listen to her husband not her brother. Still just being a child.” That’s what she was. Viserys had still only regarded her as such, but it was Illyrio who always insisted now that she’d had her blood she was fit to wed. Surely that was true, however he couldn’t help but think of the little who would sneak into his chambers in the middle of the night, spouting stories of nightmares and begging to crawl under the covers with him.

He also remembered of the timid fear that hid behind Dany’s porcelain mask, just earlier that day. She was terrified by the thought of the Khal, the thought that her big brother wouldn’t be around to guide her. She didn’t want this, Viserys still wasn’t entirely sure he did but how was she to understand what they were missing. Dany didn’t have the same drive he did to reclaim the Seven Kingdoms. She didn’t want to read books and study languages, she wanted to go play in the fountains with the other children. But they couldn’t do that. He was the last dragon and she the last Targaryen princess. Their line ended there.

Chapter 5

Index

[sxpiosexualx]

Jon Snow knows some things.

I’m on a re-read of A Game of Thrones and I noticed that one of the first things we’re told about Jon is that he’s observant.

“A bastard had to learn to notice things, to read the truth that people hid behind their eyes.” - Jon I, A Game of Thrones.

As @sneakystarks pointed out, he picks things up about people quite easily. He decides his opinions on them without needing much:

“Jon saw only a fat man, red-faced under his beard, sweating through his silks,” - Jon upon seeing Robert Baratheon.

“Jon noticed the shy looks she gave Robb as they passed between the tables and the timid way she smiled at him. He decided she was insipid. Robb didn’t even have the sense to realize how stupid she was; he was grinning like a fool,” - upon seeing Myrcella.

“Sansa looked radiant as she walked beside him, but Jon did not like Joffrey’s pouty lips or the bored, disdainful way he looked at Winterfell’s Great Hall.” - upon seeing Joffrey.

 “Jon found it hard to look away from him. This is what a king should look like, he thought to himself as the man passed.” - upon seeing Jaime Lannister.

I’m aware the show makes a point to downplay some of Jon’s abilities especially when it comes to being more political. This maybe even to prop up Jonsa as a pairing since Jon takes up the role of the military man on the show, with Sansa being the more politically aware character - the Vale plot would’ve shown her growth but alas, we never truly saw her train - but it’s book canon that he notices things, and he has a skill of picking them up quickly. 

There’s plenty more evidence in Jon I, A Storm of Swords.

“Mance Rayder’s outriders closed in as they emerged. Jon took their measure with a glance: eight riders, men and women both, clad in fur and boiled leather...”

“Both the white-bearded man and the bald one were warriors, that was plain to Jon at a glance.”

I chose this chapter because often when debunking the possibility of the Undercover Lover theory(or political Jon theory), people ignore how Jon managed to fool the Wildlings into believing he was for them. The reality is, he knows how to choose his words carefully, he knows how to sell himself:

“Jon took another swallow of mead. There is only one tale he might believe.”

He says this before he asks Mance if he saw where they had sat him during the feast with King Robert at Winterfell, in contrast to where his other half-siblings were sat.

“And did you see where I was seated, Mance?” he leaned forward. “Did you see where they put the bastard?”

He knows he has to sell Mance a story that would make him buy Jon’s support, and that’s exactly what he does.

Now, for much of season 7 once Jon meets with D*enerys, it almost feels as if we get shut out from his thought process. Some people have speculated that in the books, at least during his time with D*enerys, we’re likely to not be given his POV chapters as well. But as pointed out by @thelawyerthatwaspromised in their data analysis of diction and the amount of dialogue Jon has, it’s not that Jon is a silent person, he speaks just as much as anybody, he just does significantly less speaking when around D*enerys. Almost as if he’s wary of his words, and is trying to figure her out.

The only time we see Jon speak freely without trying to keep up with seeming courteous is when he asks Missandei about her relationship with D*enerys, in terms of whether or not she’d let her go back to Naath if she wanted. And what does he say to her?

“You believe that?”

It shows that despite what he’s heard about D*enerys, he still questions how reliable of a source Missandei is. And truly, once you think about it, does she really have a choice? I want to believe D*enerys would allow her, and Grey Worm, and her other unsullied/dothraki army to leave if they want to but part of me doubts it just as much. We’ve seen how absolute loyalty is something D*enerys expects from her followers, Varys is threatened to be burned alive if he ever so much as thinks about the good of the realm being something D*enerys can no longer offer, and Tyrion’s loyalty has constantly been questioned this season as well. It is an occurring theme. In fact at this point, she no longer cares if the people want to follow her, they only have one choice: bend the knee or die. Way to go you feminist icon facist.

So the question here is, what is the new and better world D*enerys T*rgaryen wants to build, and can she achieve that? I stumbled across a quote @shinynewrevulsions shared yesterday, by GRRM:

“Dragons are the nuclear deterrent, and only D*enerys T*rgaryen has them, which in some ways makes her the most powerful person in the world. But is that sufficient? These are the kind of issues I’m trying to explore. The United States right now has the ability to destroy the world with our nuclear arsenal, but that doesn’t mean we can achieve specific geopolitical goals. Power is more subtle than that. You can have the power to destroy, but it doesn’t give you the power to reform, or improve, or build.” -  George R. R. Martin, 2011 Vulture magazine interview, quoted in Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Moreover, the real question is, what little has Jon seen of her, and does he truly believe that she deserves the throne?

He sees her unwillingness to put aside her quest for the throne and help save the North(who will be attacked by the real threat first) in the cave scene, because for some reason, it doesn’t matter if the North is under attack, they aren’t worth saving unless they’re her people. 

He witnessed her little temper tantrum on the beach, humiliating Tyrion and questioning his loyalty in front of her people. Jon and Sansa may disagree from time to time but at least Jon has the sense to talk to her afterwards in private.

She comes back after ambushing an army with her nuclear weapons, telling him she has less enemies now, to which even she notices, “you're not sure how you feel about that.”

And even after seeing the threat, as @nutellaninja0001 pointed out, she still insists on that truce with Cersei, examine 7x06 where she says she doesn’t regret the trip beyond the wall:

now contrast that with 7x07 when she realises Cersei wasn’t willing to call a truce:

In the span of 7x06 to 7x07 we’re presented and reminded that D*enerys will always put the throne first before the lives of other people. Her saviour act where she swoops in in white(the only time she isn’t wearing black and red - embracing more of her Targaryen roots), like the angelic messiah the show wants us to see her as, would not have happened if she wasn’t already smitten with Jon.

She may have had a good heart once before, but Viserys did too, until his ambitions got the better of him. And who do we know is beginning to dress like Viserys? D*enerys. 

I hold the opinion that the ASOIAF series sheds light on the corruption that befalls characters who strive for power. We see it happen with Viserys, and again with Stannis. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

So, no, I don’t favour the notion that Jon falls into bed with her because of her good heart, because nothing from what we’ve seen unfold on screen truly supports that. The number one criticism was the lack of chemistry, and while that is subjective, the show has an obligation to make sure we as an audience, get to see this relationship build up to b*atbang. That means shared smiles, maybe some teasing and banter, not other characters butting in to say “hey I saw you look at her tits haha” or “pshh he looks at you like all the time girl he’s so into you!” The fact remains, the majority of us don’t feel as if it was deserved.

What I do see, is Jon beginning to play the game. He has to. He’s this far into the story, it’s time. I’ve seen so many people get disgusted at this idea of Jon manipulating D*nerys into fully committing to the cause. But can you blame him? She tells him: 

“I can’t forget what I saw North of the wall, and I can’t pretend Cersei wont take back half the country the moment I march North.”

And I think some part of him has been trying to manipulate convince her for a while. Take a look at the way Jon tries to get her attention, as pointed out by @tiny-little-bird​:

it parallels the way Sansa gets his attention:

Jon knows how receptive he is when Sansa pulls the good ole arm grab:

and he pulls the same move on D*enerys:

grabbing her arm, guiding her to what he wants her to see, to convince her to see where he’s coming from - much like what Sansa does with Jon(both instances, were to get him to listen to her). Jon is learning.

I don’t doubt that Jon is still honourable, I keep seeing Jon Snow/J*nerys stans argue he would never do this and to that, all I have to say is:

“You will have little joy of your command, but I think you have the strength in you to do the things that must be done. Kill the boy, Jon Snow. Winter is almost upon us. Kill the boy and let the man be born.” - Jon II, A Dance With Dragons.

You need to fully grasp what his motives are from every angle to try to understand why he does what he does. Jon knows the real threat is the Night King, but he’s also seen what D*enerys’ weapons of mass destruction dragons can do. She burns her enemies, that much is clear to Jon. 

So what motivates him? Who does he fight for? The living, yes, but what else? What elicits a response from him more primal than others? 

up to this point, it’s been Sansa. Whether or not you ship Jonsa or see them as merely platonic half-siblings, there is no denying that one of Jon’s top priorities is protecting Sansa - the only family he has left.

And the stakes are raised, when he learns that Bran and Arya are back at Winterfell. He has even more to fight for, even more people to protect. And what does he say?

“I thought Arya was dead. I thought Bran was dead.”

Did you, Jon? Because I thought Sansa convinced you to fight to reclaim Winterfell because it was their homes too, wherever they are. Continuity error or not, this was another chance for Jon to open up to D*enerys, much like she has been doing. But he doesn’t. He never opens up to her, not of uncle Benjen, not of the other brothers he’s lost. Why?

Whether or not you believe in the theory that Jon’s been manipulating her, killing the boy Jon Snow and letting the man be born is expected of his character. It almost becomes his own mantra whenever he’s faced with a difficult decision. He needs her to commit to his cause, because it’s the only threat that truly matters and D*enerys comes off as selfish for not committing herself to it completely already after witnessing the Night King herself. He’s tried everything else, taking advantage of her feelings for him to ensure his people live is something that’s necessary at this point. And guess what?

Lastly, I leave you with a quote GRRM said about death:

“All that time I thought Gandalf was dead, and now he’s back and now he’s Gandalf the White. And, ehh, he’s more or less the same as always, except he’s more powerful. It always felt a little bit like a cheat to me. And as I got older and considered it more, it also seemed to me that death doesn’t make you more powerful. That’s, in some ways, me talking to Tolkien in the dialogue, saying, “Yeah, if someone comes back from being dead, especially if they suffer a violent, traumatic death, they’re not going to come back as nice as ever."”

Jon’s death has come and pass in the show, don’t expect him to be the same.

[rhegar]

Show!Rhaegar: You’re Not Really Meant to Look That Deeply into Him.

Or, How Game of Thrones Bastardized Rhaegar to Unbastardize Jon. 

So, now that I can finally access the internet from my computer for an unlimited amount of time, I wanted to write down what you’re meant to make of show!Rhaegar, why he annulled his marriage to Elia (even though that shouldn’t even be possible) and how close he is to being book!Rhaegar. And while we’re at it, let me tell you all the reasons why book!Rhaegar would never do such a thing (even if he could.)

I have definitely gotten a lot of inspiration and ideas from @lyannas and @oadara especially about annulment and the complications of Jon being and then not being a bastard, and gotten a lot of useful info from A Wiki of Ice and Fire.  So huge thanks <3 The article contains mentions of rape and dubious consent. 

To begin this, we need to take a look back on what the show has made of Rhaegar so far, and the differences between the show and the book depictions. 

1. In season one, Robert mentions Rhaegar’s kidnapping of Lyanna, but not in detail, just that Rhaegar did something bad to Lyanna. At the end of the season, in episode 10, Bran mentions specifically that Rhaegar kidnapped Lyanna and that Robert started a war for that and killed him, but Lyanna died. Somewhere in the middle of the season, Jorah mentions that Rhaegar was the last dragon while “Viserys is less than the shadow of a snake” painting Rhaegar, for the first time on the show, in a positive light. 

Now, one thing in season one that interested me that nobody else ever notices (or if they do notice, they never talk about it) is when Jon was having a talk with Aemon. I always watched this conversation carefully as it is the first time that Jon communicated with a Targaryen and heard him speak of the family. One odd thing that Aemon said that I noticed is, (as well as I can remember) “But when I heard how they murdered my brother’s son, and his poor son, and the children... even the little children,” and then Aemon later clarifies the line of the latest Targaryen kings on the show, saying that his father was Maekar, and then Aemon’s brother Aegon V (Egg) ruled after him, and then came his son Aerys. This is unlike the books where Aerys is actually the son of Jaehaerys II, not Aegon V, so there’s a king in between that the show skipped. 

Back to the first quote now. When Aemon said “They killed my brother’s son,” he was talking about Aerys. “And his poor son,” that’s Rhaegar. Why would Aegon talk about Rhaegar especially that way? Was there some type of connection between them? Why would Aemon sympathize with Rhaegar especially? In the books, we know that Aemon exchanged letters with Rhaegar, but on the show, Aemon is now dead and we never knew (unless there’s going to be a flashback or if someone is going to find Rhaegar’s letters in Aemon’s records at Castle Black, but I don’t personally think the show gives so much regards to continuity or that Castle Black is going to exist for very long at all.)

2. In season 3, Barristan gives Dany a talk about Rhaegar and how he fought at the battle of the trident and how his men died for him because they believed in him and loved him. Again, Rhaegar is painted in a positive light, as a charismatic and well-loved leader who inspired loyalty. 

3. In season 4, the very first episode. Oberyn finally appears to give us the perspective of Elia’s family on Rhaegar’s deeds. Oberyn calls Rhaegar “beautiful and noble” sarcastically and says that he left Elia for another woman after Elia had been nothing but good and kind to him and his children. He also went as far as to say that Elia loved Rhaegar. What kind of love did he mean? Did she truly love Rhaegar or was she “fond” of him? We can’t tell. 

4. In season 5, the writers seemed to be in a hurry to catch up with reminding us who Rhaegar is, by inserting talks about him twice in one episode, for pretty long conversations. That is, of course, episode 4, in which Littlefinger tells Sansa the story of the tourney of Harrenhal as we all know it, quite objectively, and then asks, “How many men had to die because Rhaegar chose your aunt?” and Sansa replies, “Yes, he chose her, and then he kidnapped her and raped her.” The second time he is mentioned in that episode shows how much contrast there is between the two ways people see Rhaegar, when Barristan again paints him in a positive light by telling Dany that he liked to walk among the people, sing to them, give money to orphans and poor singers, and that he never liked killing, but loved singing. 

5. And of course, in season six, came the (bastardized) conversation between Ned and the three (now two) Kingsguard at the ToJ, most importantly Arthur. Ned reminds them of Rhaegar’s defeat and asks them why they weren’t there to protect him, and Arthur replies that Rhaegar wanted them at the ToJ. And at the end of the season, Bran presses play and we resume watching this scene, leading up to the big R+L=J reveal. 

6. In season seven, we are told that he (somehow????) convinced the High Septon at the time to annul his (four-year, consummated) marriage to Elia and married him to Lyanna (or to “someone else” as Gilly puts it, but we all know it’s Lyanna) in a secret ceremony in Dorne. 

So, what has the show missed?

1. In all of this, there isn’t a peep about the prophecy, when in the books we are told three times that Rhaegar cared about it and it motivated his actions a great deal: a. At the House of the Undying b. When we’re told that he found a scroll that changed his life and made him feel that he “must become a warrior” and c. When Maester Aemon discusses his communications with Rhaegar concerning the prophecy with Sam. So, as much as the show is concerned, Rhaegar never even heard the word prophecy, and would think The Prince that Was Promised was the name of a rock band if he heard of him. 

So, the part of Rhaegar’s character that escaped with Lyanna because they must have a child together who is ice + fire (and I plan on exploring why this had to be the case, why Lyanna specifically when he could have had a third child on any milkmaid or handmaiden on Dragonstone with no political consequences) basically doesn’t exist on the show. Show!Rhaegar was NOT motivated by the prophecy (and I know one could argue that he is but we just haven’t heard that yet, but I personally find it weird that we haven’t heard about this whatsoever in seven seasons, when we could have seen the scene at the HotU or at least been told by Aemon or even Barristan).

2. Rhaegar as a melancholic (potentially clinically depressed) person and an intellectual scholar is not mentioned. Again, in the books, those are important aspects of Rhaegar’s personality that also seemed to motivate his actions and affect his way of thinking. 

3. Rhaegar as a politician is not mentioned. We don’t hear anything about the rift between him and his father, his plans to establish a regency/overthrow Aerys, his possible involvement in organizing the tourney of Harrenhal, and the fact that he held his own court at Dragonstone and had his own backing. Show!Rhaegar doesn’t seem to have politics in mind much either.

So, what does the show tell us about Rhaegar?

That Rhaegar never once thought of himself as a prophetic figure/a father to one. That he was a man who liked the smallfolk and mingling with them. That Rhaegar was charismatic, well-loved, the last dragon, and seemed like a sympathetic figure to someone as smart as Maester Aemon. And finally, that he ran away with Lyanna Stark and annulled his marriage for her, and at this point, only one reason for that is left by process of elimination: Love. 

So, basically what the show did, is try to simplify Rhaegar into someone that the viewer doesn’t need to look too deeply into. He was a spirited singer who didn’t care about politics but loved the people (who here wants to bet that show!Rhaegar also called all the nobles fake, made fun of fat noblewomen and made a lot of dick jokes?) and he was married to Elia for political reasons/because he needed to marry someone, but along came Lyanna Stark, he fell in love, and set aside everything (including his own family) to marry her, not even caring about all the political repercussions because, hey, he’s spirited! And all the nobles are fake! Who cares about politics, kids? Of course he later paid with his life and the lives of his entire family, but who cares, still got laid.

It’s basically the same thing that the show did with Jaime. Take a complex character that has a core struggle and a life mission, simplify it into a one-dimensional character that doesn’t really require any effort to understand or depict. The writers of the show know that they don’t have nearly as much talent or IQ as it takes to depict either of them with their full complexity and depth in the books, so they simplified things up for themselves and for the members of the audience that don’t really want to look too deeply into things either. 

Now, if we look completely away from Rhaegar... why would the showmakers do this whole annulment nonsense, you say? Why did they waste screentime on it and energy writing it? Because Jon Snow is their favorite, and bastardy is such a bad thing (not just an invented and bigoted Westerosi social stigma) that, on his nameday, they decided to take it away and give him legal rights to a kingdom that he never wanted, fought for or thought of having. Even though bastardy wouldn’t have affected his ability to be a hero, and even though we already have a legal claimant with an army and three dragons, who’s struggled and fought plenty for that kingdom, there’s a small problem: She’s a woman, and she’s not everyone’s favorite like Jon Snow is. Must keep the ratings up, guys. 

Now, as to all the reasons why book!Rhaegar would never annul his marriage to Elia (even if it were possible, which it isn’t, because their marriage was beyond a shadow of doubt consensual and consummated, and Rhaegar needs to be a king to set her aside and take another wife, which he wasn’t yet. Source) (UPDATE: Linda Antonsson, a writer who has collabed with GRRM on A World of Ice and Fire and is very familiar with ASOIAF content, has said on twitter in criticism for the episode that the idea of an annulment is bizarre and that it would be very difficult for Rhaegar to obtain one and the fact that those “records” exist in the citadel is very odd. I also asked her if she knows for sure that an annulment would make Rhaenys and Aegon bastards, and she said there’s no definite answer but it’s likely that yes. Her twitter)

1. Let’s assume that Rhaegar absolutely held no value for Elia whatsoever and had no problem giving her the ultimate humiliation of annulment. Elia is a princess of Dorne, and Dorne has only ever joined the fold of Westeros by marriage. No Targaryen king was able to defeat Dorne and forcibly make it kneel to him. If Elia is returned to Dorne with such an insult as setting her aside, this threatens that Dorne might disassociate itself from the rest of Westeros again, taking away a huge asset from Rhaegar (the Dornish were his biggest allies against his father.)

2. For reasons mentioned here by Lyannas, it’s most likely that this annulment would result in Rhaenys and Aegon to become bastards. Not only would Rhaegar not do that to his children who are also important prophetic figures to him (two heads of the dragon) but also it threatens civil war in the future. If Dorne decides to not only remove itself from Rhaegar’s backing but also align themselves behind Aegon against Lyanna’s (”legitimate”) children in the case that Rhaegar does become the king and the line of succession continues normally, a civil war similar to the Blackfyre Rebellion could break and the future of House Targaryen will be majorly threatened. Who has time for that when you’re trying to stop a zombie apocalypse? 

Book!Rhaegar may have been a lot of things, but he wasn’t that big an idiot as to jeopardize his future on the throne and the future of his children like this. But of course, show!Rhaegar who was practically an idiot had no problem with all that.

I want to conclude by saying that we have been looking at show!Rhaegar the wrong way. We’ve all had book!Rhaegar in mind while thinking about show!Rhaegar, but the truth is, they’re two completely different people. And while book!Rhaegar is smart and sensible enough to know that he couldn’t and shouldn’t annul his marriage to Elia, show!Rhaegar, who is merely a wasteful bastardization of everything that Rhaegar is, totally would. He’s a miracle man who was able to obtain an annulment from a marriage as steady as rocks because he’s THE Rhaegar Targaryen. And while thousands of metas and rereadings have been done to understand the dilemma of book!Rhaegar, show!Rhaegar only needs you to clear your mind of book!Rhaegar, forget about any depth or intellect or savior complex, watch the show, and enjoy his jackassery. 

Oh, poor George...

[raynakrahl-blog]

#Jonsa vs #Jonerys

***********************EPISODE 6 SPOILERS AHEAD*******************************

I’ve been reading a lot of these #jonsa and #jonerys posts and I feel like people are confused about Jon’s feeling for both of them... let me explain...

So #Jonsa fans like to point out how he looks “longingly” at her and how they have more romantic chemistry etc. I can see how you might be confusing brotherly love and admiration as romantic feelings (I guess). I can at least see where the looks can be misinterpreted.  What you need to realize here is... He fully believes he is her BROTHER right now. Also, they haven’t seen each other in years and the last time he had any contact with her, she was a dumb little girl full of stupid dreams who was a real b*tch to him. She even admits to it. 

Not only that, but she has been through some horrible life experiences since she last saw him. She’s been tortured by Joffrey and Cersei, manipulated and sold off by Littlefinger, raped by Ramsey, almost dies running away from him... so OF COURSE she is going to be overjoyed to see him! Hell, for all she knew at the time, he was the only sibling she had left! She knew that because Jon was like her father, that he would never let any harm come to her... THAT’S WHAT BIG BROTHERS ARE FOR!!! Of Course he is going to be fiercely protective of her after everything he’s heard that she’s been through, not to mention the fact that (until recently) he thought she was the only sister he had left! ((Do none of you have an older brother?))

The looks between them, imo, are an admiration of how much they have changed and grown since they saw each other last. For her, she sees how battle strong and tactically smart Jon is, but that he has still kept his kind heart and it reminds her of her father.(Which is why she embroiders the stark cloak for him... “Like Father’s, or as close as I can remember”) For him, he sees how much she has grown as a person. She’s no longer that air-headed dreamer he once knew. She’s smart and she stands her ground. He’s proud of the woman his sister has become and he sees her strength, something she never had before. He is also aware of the things she’s lived through... and he does love her... but as a sister.

If I’m right about all of this, you will see the same looks (with a little added fear and apprehension) when he finally sees Arya again. Arya has always been his favorite sibling, but he won’t have to be as protective of her as he will of Sansa, simply because Arya can take care of herself, whereas Sansa is more the diplomat.

(The affection of a brother who love his sisters)

(Protective older Brother.... He can smell the horrible intentions on Little finger’s mind. This also mirrors when Ned did the same thing to him outside of his brothel over Cat... Protective like wolves)

(Because Arya- whom she is speaking to- and Jon were super close, he gave her Needle after all.)

(Brotherly comfort, both of them have been without family for so long and now they have each other, brotherly equivalent to the one below)

Now as far as Dany goes. Everyone keeps complaining that there hasn’t been any chemistry between them until episode 6 because he is secretly planning on betraying her. Let me explain how I think this is incorrect.

Of course they are not going to trust each other right away..... they’e never met before.Dany is frustrated because she can’t intimidate him into bending the knee. They are going to butt heads for a little while. especially because, for someone who knows nothing about WW... you sound nuts. She just wants her Throne, which frustrated Jon bc he knows he sounds crazy.He softens her up with the drawings in the caves and that’s when his glances start to hold a little longer... which makes him feel guilty. He’s still not fully over Ygritte. He blames himself for her death, and like he told Melisandra, he still loves her. 

(Both are weary of each other, but feelings are blossoming, which is why Jon instantly shifts uncomfortably... that’s guilt people)

He starts to allow himself a few lingering stares, but he starts to feel guilty. He’s Jon Snow after all. He’s not going to move on easily, especially because he blames himself for Ygritte’s death. He also knows there are more important things to deal with at the moment, like building her trust and gathering dragonglass, and most importantly, convincing her that the threat is real. The way I see it, if he were going to knowingly betray her, why on earth would he not just agree to bend the knee straight away? Give her what she wants so she’ll agree to help and then let the Northern lords know what he was up to? Clearly, her final betrayal is going to eventually be revealed to her... so why drag out the whole “Bend the knee” crap?As they get to know each other, Jon starts to have feelings, but he’s still weary of her because she’s very temperamental and impulsive, and he does still need her. Be she eventually softens up toward him after Drogon approves, and she sees how kind hearted Jon is.

(This builds Dany’s trust in him, because Drogon has never acted this way toward anyone who wasn’t her before... so he must be worth her trust)

I don’t think Jon will allow his feelings to show completely until she proves her loyalty toward her people and to him. Risking her own life, and the life of her children for a bunch of people that most would have left to die (as Tyrion suggested) definitely showed him that she really cares for the people who choose to follow her. He mirrored her selflessness by standing between an entire horde of white walkers and Drogon, essentially protecting her son, and sacrificing himself in the process. The looks the give each other during that scene is very telling. 

( He’s basically saying, “Leave me and save yourself”.)

Once on the boat, they still don’t fully know if they can trust one another. They still have only known each other a week or two, but there is no denying the feelings. Dany again proves herself to him by backtracking on her own word and vowing to fight with him no matter what. ( And No, even if he didn’t “bend the knee” afterward, she would never go back on that promise... the night king killed her baby!) I feel like the fact that she agreed to fight with him, even after her baby died, and even knowing the other two will be at risk of following him to an early grave, she broke down a few more pieces of his emotional wall... and he’s right, once the white walkers head toward Winterfell, and the entire Kingdom sees that she is willing to get on the battlefield and fight for them... they will join her as well and welcome her with open arms. I’m sure there will be some bumping of heads, especially if Jon returns to Winterfell before the wall comes down, but that problem will work itself out.

(This is sympathy for her loss and longing to comfort her.)

This scene shows how much they care for each other. She’s the Queen, yet she is sitting patiently by his bedside. His first words to her when he opens his eyes are, “I’m sorry, I’m soo sorry.” Instantly trying to comfort her, because he cares about her and her feelings. He knows how much the Dragons mean to her, but this still is just budding feelings. I’m sure we will see more of these little loving exchanges in the next episode. 

However, I do feel like things may get a little rocky once Jon finds out that she had Drogon roast the Tarly’s. I predict Samwell will help convince Jon that, at the very least, his father deserved it. I also believe this will make Dany see the error of her ways. I believe Jon to be the Yin to her Yang. He and Jorah will be able to talk sense into her until Tyrion is able to prove his loyalty to her again.

As for the betrayal by love.... IMO,Viserion’s the betrayal by love. Her own child has been turned against her, and having to watch him kill 100s of 1000s of people is going to definitely feel like a major betrayal. It would also be poetic because Viserys betrayed her as well, by selling her off to Drogo. However, my little tinfoil hat theory is that since “only death can pay for life”. Viserion’s death will allow her to become pregnant with Jon’s baby. 

The whole insest arguement is void too, because... If #Jonsa is true... he’s her cousin.. Daughter to his uncle. If #Jonerys is true, she’s his Aunt. Either way, they’re both related to him. 

My final argument is “There must always be a Stark in Winterfell.” That Stark has to be Sansa. Bran no longer considers himself a Stark, as he said in episode 4. Arya doesn’t want to be Lady of Anything, so that leaves Sansa. I feel like Sansa and Gendry will possibly get together... finally fulfilling Robert’s wish to join the houses Baratheon and Stark.

Thoughts? Opinions?

[sublimetravelerpolice]

Opinions Like Kittens: The End Of Thrones

By Grant Johnson

All roads reach their terminus.

It sucks that it’s over, but alas, all good things must come to an end. True that may be, but it’s still difficult to swallow, because reaching the end of any journey is bittersweet. You left home, and ended up somewhere else, the new place may be exciting, but it isn’t home.

Naturally, the Game of Thrones conclusion was met with the inevitable backlash, and it was inevitable. People are almost always dissatisfied with the ending of TV shows. Sure, there are exceptions, for every Breaking Bad, Veep, and Justified, there is LOST, Dexter, and How I Met Your Mother (I’ll also throw in the entire second season of True Detective, because people destested that also). Now the latest finale on the chopping block is Game of Thrones. Sure, not all finales are handled with as deft a touch as Six Feet Under or Avengers: Endgame, but I think it has more to do with audiences not wanting any ending, than the ending itself. Maybe some endings get caught under the weight of the audience expectations, maybe it’s just the burden of wanting more, which, to me, means the story is ending exactly where it should. Leave them wanting more.

She was The Mother of Dragons.

Does that mean the Iron Throne should belong to her? As strong and powerful a character as she was, Dany was so caught up in her quest for The Throne, believing it was her birthright, that she never stopped to think why she really wanted it, she only knew her brother wanted it. Compounded by the fact that she never seemed to come to terms with the man her father was, or what he did, or would’ve done (if not for Jaime). That being said, I was still ready to back Dany, even after the burning of King’s Landing. It made sense to me, in a Fight Club sort of way, you have to destroy what was there to build something new. I think she would’ve been a great ruler, but maybe that’s the problem, she was always a conqueror, not a leader. She never quite nailed down the political aspect of the job. She repeatedly wanted to take King’s Landing by fire, and repeatedly, she had to be talked down by Jorah, by Varys, by Tyrion, and by Jon. Not to mention, she never seemed able to separate vengeance from justice. Her hunger for power could never be slaked, that’s even more dangerous when you consider she has the dragons, the equivalent of several atom bombs, at her disposal. Still, I would’ve liked to see Dany recreate the world as she saw fit. There’s a whole other story there (that’s where those few more episodes would’ve come in handy). Ultimately, I think her story is a cautionary tale about the pitfalls of wish fulfillment.

The Boy Who Would Be King.

Jon would’ve been a good King. However, he didn’t want it. If he had worn that crown, where would that lead? Would he have grown weary of it? Apathetic? Mayhaps. The idea of him being forced into the role of King doesn’t feel right. I want more for his character. Because he wanted one simple thing, to go back to that cave with Ygritte. After everything he’s been through, something resembling that end feels right for his journey.

Of Snow and Fire.

Dany and Jon are opposite sides of the same coin. One believed the Iron Throne was her birthright and was willing to take it by any means necessary. The other had the better claim to the Throne, but didn’t want it. Jon was willing to deny his claim for Dany, but Dany would, under no circumstances, reciprocate the gesture for Jon, or for Westeros. Because her entire ego had been built around the idea that she was the rightful heir to the Throne. Once her claim to the Throne was usurped, she completely lost sense of her identity. When everyone is celebrating after prevailing in the Battle of Winterfell, Tormund is applauding Jon for his valor, and for riding a dragon in battle. Dany looks over at Jon, her eyes filled with somber jealousy, and in that moment she becomes her brother, Viserys. Filled with anger for everyone giving Jon the adulation that she believes is owed to her.

Ultimately, no matter how much we should’ve been able to predict the trajectory of some characters, we didn’t, that, above all else, has been my favorite thing about this story. It’s hard to find a story that has been as consistently unpredictable as GoT. I’ll never forget my introduction to the TV series, a friend suggested that I watch the show because, “It has all the things that are great about the fantasy genre, but without the usual tropes.” I was sold from that pitch alone.

I didn’t read the books until somewhere between season 4 & 5, and fell in love with them, and George R. R. Martin’s sublime writing. On the Ink To Film podcast, Luke Elliot and James Bailey covered the first book and season of A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones (they also did a great postmortem of the show for a Patreon bonus episode). They discussed one of GRRM’s brilliant literary talents, his ability to subvert expectation. Whether it’s the reader’s expectations or the expectations of the characters, Ned will make it out of this, right? It constantly keeps you off-kilter, the moment Ned’s head leaves his body, all bets are off. No one is safe. That moment, that feeling, permeates throughout the series, much to our indignation. This is why I could never compete in the fan theory debates. What do you think will happen? Who do you think will end up on the Iron Throne? I don’t f***ing know. There’s no way I could’ve guessed, and it’s a good thing I didn’t place any wagers on my predictions, because that money would be long gone now. I was prepared for the Night King to eradicate everyone. But, at the end of the day, I’ve been happy to nervously watch it all unfold from the edge of my seat. I’ve appreciated the times the TV show has cranked the story up to 11, for instance, Talisa (AKA Jeyne Westerling) being present at The Red Wedding. In the book she stays back at Riverrun, therefore, she wasn’t present at the massacre. In the books she is still alive and...well, no one in the ASOIAF universe is doing well.

I’m not saying the final season is without its flaws, it certainly has them, no work is perfect. But I think it gave as satisfying an ending as this story would allow. George R. R. Martin has been very vocal about his love for J.R.R. Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings. He’s also stated he wants to emulate the ending of LOTR in Thrones. More specifically, its “bittersweet” ending. Although, even without that knowledge, if we thought Game of Thrones was going to have anything resembling a Disney-style happy ending, then we weren’t paying attention. Like Tyrion speaking of the corruption in King’s Landing, “If you’re looking for justice, you’ve come to the wrong place.”

There are still aspects that irk me, like Jaime pulling a full 180 (or a 360, depending on how you look at it), but I think Jaime is a self-punishing character, he doesn’t believe he deserves redemption, so he set about making sure to deny himself that redemption by returning to Cersei. The show runners could’ve given everything more time to breathe. Maybe they should’ve done a ten-episode season, especially since the writers wanted to pack so much into the season. Who knows, maybe if they had done a full ten, we’d all be sitting here talking about those four episodes where nothing happened. However, I think at least two more episodes of watching Dany unraveling, being a complete dictator would’ve solidified the arc. Some thought the Night King battle was pushed too far forward in the season, that he should be a final boss. The problem with that is, after dealing with the Night King, no matter what, the living still have to deal with each other. That being said, the final season did give us one of the most satisfying episodes (A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms), and arguably the most epic (The Long Night). Sure, the season felt rushed, but that’s because we didn’t want it to end.

All of this makes me more eager for GRRM to finish the books. I’m curious to see how he closes it out. So let’s all wish him good health. I’ll be very surprised if the books end like the TV show, but hopefully we will find out.

Ultimately, If you didn’t like the final season, I get that, we all have our issues with it, it’s part of being a fan. We all think it should’ve ended this way or that way. It doesn’t mean the way it ended was wrong, just different from what we expected. Was the second season of True Detective bad, or did we just want more Matt McConaughey and Woody Harrelson? Time will tell. I think the second season was fantastic and in some ways superior to the first. When Sopranos ended, its finale was met with venomous contempt. Now, more than a decade later, it’s revered as one of the best finales. One of the finales that “got it right.” Maybe, after the dust settles, the Thrones finale will be re-examined, and maybe the public will feel different about it. Just don’t let the ending mar the story as a whole, because, “A good act does not wash out the bad, nor a bad act the good.”