#PRINCESS OF DRAGONSTONE [ . . . ] arc.

[deaneyrs]

@vydmak : from atop the dias, the queen watches and waits as the figure strides through the great hall toward her seat. the journey now must be far easier than fairing the churning sea that had been his companion for a night, but it was long regardless. still several hundred yard away, the figure is not close enough for her to make out his features, only the shape of him and the color of his hair. odd, she thinks, that it is as silver as my own.

for a few moments, there is the only the sound of footsteps and sir jorah's breathing lapping against obsidian stone. the girl inclines her head towards the woman to her left dressed in simple but official garments of black and red, who promptly nods, and begins to speak her rehearsed lines: you are standing in the presence of daenerys stormborn of house targaryen, queen of the andals and the rhoynar and the first men, khaleesi of the great grass sea, princess of dragonstone, rightful heir to the iron throne, protector of the realm, breaker of chains, the mother of dragons.

as misanndei voice quiets, as the man stops short of the steps to her throne, daenerys can hear the beating of wings far above dragonstone and smiles. her children, home at last. " which lord or lady has sent you to bend the knee on their behalf? " when she speaks, the room falls silent, the air thick with the weight of her words & for a moment, sir jorah swears the great hall is a cold as the land beyond the wall. " or, are you a lord yourself, come to disavow the usurpers and swear fealty to house targaryen? "

[strangesmallbard]

pondering an asoiaf war of the five kings au where ned decides to tell robert about cersei/jaime (maybe his death was less imminent or ned believes he’s honor-bound to tell him before he signs that document about joffrey), and in response, robert pulls an aegon 4 and legitimizes all his bastards right before kicking it. he tasks ned with finding and protecting his heir, conveniently not mentioning who that heir is.

of course, much would stay the same after that. for example: joffrey still executes ned, sansa is imprisoned, arya flees the red keep, etc. i think cersei still orders robert’s now trueborn kids killed, but with more urgency; news of the legitimization travels fast (varys helps spread it to destabilize the lannisters even more in preparation for young griff), so cersei and co have to work double time to refute the rumors and bury the evidence (the kids).

beyond robert’s kids, the biggest story change would be stannis’ arc. i think he’d also send people to find robert’s kids; he specifically wants to find robert’s eldest trueborn son, but instructs all newly baratheon kids sent to dragonstone. however, i think it’d be interesting if renly, rather than making his own claim, decides to throw his support behind edric storm. after all, a noble bastard could be more readily accepted and he’d have five years as his regent. to bolster edric’s claim, renly begins searching for the kids as well.

as a result, you have Many People looking for kids with black hair and blue eyes. i think gendry (+arya, hot pie, weasel, and lommy) wind up at dragonstone. lysa immediately sends mya there as well, not wanting the war on her doorstep, but she’s intercepted by renly’s team, who promptly take her to storm’s end. (mya’s pov chapter is vivid in my head; as she’s very comfortable in her role and responsibilities at the vale + she’s technically the eldest sibling overall, her perspective on Suddenly Being a Princess could be really interesting).

i’m unsure where bella rivers ends up; maybe she’s the only bastard found by cersei’s guards? i can’t think of a reason cersei would keep her alive except to psychologically torment her like she does sansa, but sansa already has that arc. OH maybe she’s the one who winds up with the brotherhood without banners instead of gendry? (i think gendry ends up there either way; him and arya sneak out of dragonstone at some point).

anyway, aside from plot points i haven’t quite worked out the “why” factor. why change these events? what is the overall purpose? which themes could be illuminated with this change? does this change affect jon’s story at the wall or dany’s story in meereen at all? and so on. but if this au has inspired any ideas (even lore corrections LMAO), i’d love to hear them!

[queendaeron1]

I always found Rhaenyra’s supposed rant about Nettles suspicious, and I think we really need to talk about it once and for all because we’ve been sleepwalking on it. I’ll speak about other things as well

Not only does it seem completely out of character, but there’s also no cited source to back it up. Precisely because it never happened. Rhaenyra never said any of that and Mysaria was NOT THERE. This is going to be very long! VERY LONG! If you don’t have a lot of time, read this later…

For starters, Mysaria (who was NEVER officially part of the Council) suddenly appears in the room, and for some reason, Rhaenyra supposedly needed this one extra reason to justify ordering Nettles’ execution. This is in stark contrast to Addam Velaryon, whose ARREST she ordered without hesitation after the council’s deliberations, even though his dragon was right there in King’s Landing. And Joffrey, who actually had a seat on the council as Prince of Dragonstone, is never even mentioned in this account… should he not be?

Another detail I thought about: no one on the council gave any reaction or answer to Mysaria’s intervention, which is something very strange: Torrhen Manderly was known to dislike Lyseni. Mysaria was a Lysene woman: he WOULD have said something. No one would’ve taken the Consort’s former mistress seriously if she just pulled up like that and said that. Let’s be serious for a second. Why do you think GRRM explicitly said a few pages prior that she never sat in the council? Why did he make it clear that Rhaenyra and the Blacks had NO TIME to discuss the matter thoroughly?

Eustace provides no source for Rhaenyra’s alleged words. In fact, the language he attributes to her sounds VERY similar to his own descriptions of the Northerners, who don’t follow the faith of the Seven, while Rhaenyra herself has never expressed such sentiments anywhere else in the text. It doesn’t align with her character AT ALL.

Why would she accuse someone of sorcery when she’s literally Visenya’s most loyal stan? Why would she allow Jace to organise the Red Sowing, enabling bastards to claim dragons? Why would she doubt the parentage of a girl who was born on Driftmark, of all places? (You’ll say: because Nettles was Black, but that’s something that would only bother a Green leaning septon, not a Valyrian whose sons look like Rivermen…)

Why would she suddenly change her mind about Nettles’ claim to her dragon? Why would she care about anyone being a bastard, when the real problem was that she didn’t know these people, and that the one she knew best had just fled before she could even question him?

When Addam fled before she could QUESTION him, it (in her eyes) confirmed her suspicions. Time was running out, the council was panicking, Tumbleton was closer to KL than Maidenpool was and at that point, Rhaenyra believed that at least 3 dragonriders had turned against her. She had no way of knowing where Addam was heading. She couldn’t afford to take any risks. “Best take no chance”. It was a regrettable sacrifice they felt they had to make, believing the Greens’ dragons were only a day away at best from KL

Did Rhaenyra truly say those words?

In The Princess and the Queen, the novella centred around Rhaenyra and Alicent’s arcs during the DotD, this entire conversation doesn’t exist. Mysaria is barely mentioned, and most importantly: Eustace wasn’t even there in the room. He provides no explanation as to where he got this information “this one told me this, the other, that”

For those who don’t know: TPATQ was already a part of the completed text covering the Dance in f&b. However, GRRM and his editors had to edit some parts to fit in a novella format, for the anthology Dangerous Women, which focuses on the different types of dangerous women, whether they’re villains, or VILIFIED. The final text appears in f&b, and THIS book explores the theme of medieval historiography

The reason why I use the novellas as a tool of comparison for f&b is because TPATQ is actually about Rhaenyra, while f&b is also about how she’s PERCEIVED AND DEPICTED by external sources. F&B is a lesson about the methods of medieval historiography and how they shape the figures of “problematic” women (like Rhaenyra, Mysaria, even Nettles… all in different ways, but still in one way or another) in a patriarchal society

Side note: Nettles isn't a gotcha against Rhaenyra or Valyrians in general. She shares many significant parallels with Dany, and I just cringe every time I hear someone claim she isn't Valyrian: many Valyrians/Targs did not have Valyrian looks (the Otherys kids, who were black, Rhaenyra's sons, Baelor B, one of the Daerons, Almost-Queen Rhaenys and little Princess Rhaenys, etc). Nettles was born on Driftmark, and Addam and Alyn are definitely not Laenor's sons. There's the theory of Daemon being her father (she was probably inspired by Nettle Farseer from the Farseer Trilogy, written by Robin Hobb, a good friend of GRRM. Nettle is the bastard daughter of a Prince; they have magical abilities, but she only met her father later in her life) She could also be a descendant/daughter of a Velaryon/descendant of a Velaryon. Velaryons and Targaryens intermarried several times even before the Conquest, so... you wouldn't say that if she weren't Black (And like I'm saying, Rhaenyra never said that either)

So when something from Eustace’s account in F&B pops up but it doesn’t appear in TPATQ, it means you seriously need to consider its veracity… just look at the HUGE difference between f&b! Rhaenyra and TPATQ! Rhaenyra

Rhaenyra ordered Nettles’ execution because:

1/ Addam had been warned IN ADVANCE and fled, which (in her eyes) meant Corlys had betrayed her (and may have even known about Tumbleton before she did, for all she knew) Also note that Corlys was said to refuse to speak a single word which means that all Rhaenyra knew was that he told his heir to flee at the same time that 2 of her dragonriders betrayed her. And still he won’t tell her if Addam is a threat or not… I’m sorry but I would be “paranoid” too, especially since Rhaenyra and Corlys’ relationship had kind of reached its breaking point. There was no trust between them. Corlys refused to take chances… sounds familiar

2/ Nettles had a dragon, and Rhaenyra couldn’t risk her staying in KL in case she’d turn out to be a traitor. Rhaenyra herself couldn’t fly to Maidenpool; Syrax was needed to defend the city, especially since Addam had disappeared. Also, the people in KL SAW Addam leave, and they didn’t see him coming back. The atmosphere was already extremely tense because of the fear of the nearing green armies: imagine if the smallfolk had seen their last adult dragon leave? It would’ve left them COMPLETELY EXPOSED. The ideal ingredient to trigger other bloody riots. When you can’t protect your people, at least give them the illusion that you are protecting them lol

3/ Time was running out. She couldn’t afford to interrogate Nettles. “Best take no chance” again, as Torrhen Manderly said

Rhaenyra sent the warrant for Nettles ONLY AFTER Addam fled before she could question him, and Corlys refused to speak and tell her whether Addam intended to join the two betrayers, or even Nettles and Aemond. It may seem far-fetched, but the whole point is that she DID NOT have time to express caution and wait. She had to imagine every possible scenario. Rhaenyra can’t fly to Maidenpool herself, she can’t send a messenger on horseback (takes too much time), and she can’t send a raven to Daemon and only Daemon, because ravens go through Maesters (Norren in Maidenpool)

That isn’t paranoia, this is what EVERY monarch has to deal with. Just read the main series and you’ll find a ton of other examples of such dilemmas. But it’s easier to call women paranoid and grief-stricken. “She became like that because she lost her children” That’s a VERY old-fashioned way to describe women…

Mysaria’s role in all this was simple: Rhaenyra’s letter stated that Nettles was Daemon’s lover and therefore guilty of high treason. Eustace, ever biased, framed it as if Rhaenyra was manipulated into this decision because of Daemon’s later assumption (A Queen’s words, a whore’s work). But Daemon is not reliable here: he’s blaming Mysaria because he’s emotionally unable to blame his own wife. We aren’t supposed to take his words for granted here. He’s not in Kings Landing, he’s depressed and tired and he can’t get his hands on Aemond. The letter is the reason why that rumour spread

But Mysaria WAS NOT with Rhaenyra during the council session! Eustace fabricated a supposed conversation within the Black Council: he wanted to fill in the gaps, using whatever little information he had. But more importantly, he inserted his own biases. And well…

Eustace was the one who described Nettles as having a slit nose (a punishment for THIEVES), but no other source confirms this (it could be true, HOWEVER, in this particular context, the intent behind this account is very sus). He describes Nettles as an unlikely paramour for a prince. Remember when “Rhaenyra” said that it was obvious that Nettles had no Valyrian blood and Daemon would NEVER take such a “creature” as his lover? Do you connect the dots?

If Nettles had been white, Eustace would’ve never claimed she had a slit nose… what Nettles looked like FOR CERTAIN was: skinny, small, black girl, young, black hair and brown eyes. Maybe crooked teeth, because it’s not like she had any access to dental care, but that’s all

(What I’m 100% certain is that her physical appearance has NOTHING to do with whether she was Daemon’s lover or not. That man probably fucked half of Essos when he used to travel there at the beginning of his brother’s reign: I’m sure he made a lot of fine encounters with many people of different backgrounds)

He was the one who claimed Daemon was in Mysaria’s thrall, just as he later describes him (through “Rhaenyra”) as being under Nettles’ thrall. And then proceeded to fatshame Mysaria in the VERY same page he did Rhaenyra. IT’S ALWAYS the same range of vocabulary. Spells, thralls, creatures, savages, cold/soft voice/eyes…. the way he describes Rhaenyra’s voice “cold as ice” is exactly how he describes Cregan Stark’s cold eyes

In both cases: he can’t stand their asses (Rhaenyra is a woman pretender, Cregan is a northerner who doesn’t follow the Seven)

In any case, Mysaria didn’t say anything and didn’t sabotage Rhaenyra because SHE. WAS. NOT. THERE. Just like Rhaenyra she was VILIFIED by the men around her. It’s one of the main themes of this storyline

Look at the pattern. Eustace paints women he disapproves of as:

1/ Manipulative “witches” (Mysaria and Nettles)

2/ Unattractive (all three women)

3/ Promiscuous (Rhaenyra had bastards, Mysaria was a consort’s whore, Nettles allegedly resorted to prostitution to buy sheep) Gyldayn puts forward the idea that Nettles sold her body to buy the sheep she fed Sheepstealer: how creative… she probably worked for a shepherd or sold oysters on the docks. She lived on Driftmark: I’m pretty sure she didn’t lack for small jobs. Even though we do know that she was cunning and perseverant) I'm not saying it is not possible, only that it shouldn't be our first assumption. So it tells a lot about how Nettles was vilified for being a lowborn Black woman who claimed a dragon, who had a power few people in the world had, and for being esteemed and valued

It’s blatant racism and misogyny, especially when it comes to Nettles. It’s also xenophobia to Mysaria: Lysene women are often depicted as seductresses and witches in ASOIAF, but it kind of extends to foreigners in general. It’s easy for Eustace to say that Mysaria enthralled Daemon, which is why she would claim that Nettles enthralled Daemon as well. Again: WITCHES vibe. Mysaria really gives off witch vibes.

Did Rhaenyra actually believe Daemon and Nettles were lovers?

No. And frankly, that wasn’t even her priority. Her people were being burned alive, 3 of her dragons had just been lost, and she had to keep her remaining allies in line. To do that, she had to hide the truth, and this is what we’re going to discuss from now on

In the TPATQ it goes like this: she needed a pretext to convince the Mootons to obey her without revealing how dire her situation truly was. She claimed adultery because it IS high treason. And the Mootons, unlike her council, weren’t even aware of Tumbleton yet. That was the whole point. They could not be, and must not be. Adultery was only a PRETEXT. Grave enough, but it still doesn’t lead one to realise that they have 3, maybe 4 hostile dragons above them in the skies. No one in there cared whether it was true or not: a Lord receives such a command, he must execute it. Unless he wishes to be attainted

And the fact that this comes from a woman makes it easier to believe. Jealousy is a woman’s condition. That’s why they didn’t suspect anything else more sinister. They did not care about the rest, they were afraid of Rhaenyra, but even more of Daemon AND HIS DRAGON

But why did she believe Nettles’ death was necessary? And why lie?

The people of King’s Landing had just watched their second to last dragon leave the city. They also saw him NOT come back. The knights sworn to House Velaryon were starting to abandon Rhaenyra’s cause after she arrested Corlys. In short, things weren’t going very smoothly in the capital. People were growing hungrier, angrier and more afraid by the day, the city was becoming dangerous, and Rhaenyra’s reputation was crumbling. These are the roots of the incoming bloody riots that caused Rhaenyra’s demise

The only efficient way to settle things was to bring Daemon back. He was well known and liked by the smallfolk, Caraxes had a fierce reputation, and Daemon might’ve been able to repair the fallout with Corlys, which could’ve locked down Velaryon loyalty again (AND THEIR FLEET) That’s what Rhaenyra meant by “urgent need”. Having Daemon at her side would be a show of strength; his presence (and that of his dragon) would reassure the people, they would feel protected, or at the very least cared for. They believed that 3 grown dragons were coming for them, and Daemon still wasn’t here

The problem was, she was afraid Daemon could become a target and be harmed: either of the traitors already on the run, or maybe even Addam. And she was worried Nettles might turn on her too (which has been the whole fucking point since the beginning). And maybe even the Mootons. But she couldn’t exactly tell Manfryd Mooton “Kill her because she might become a traitor and we’ve already got three on the run” She was scared the men would turn on her (and unfortunately, she wasn’t wrong in the end)

1) Tell the Mootons the truth about Tumbleton

- they deflect because they're afraid of the greens dragons

2) Tell them to HOLD Nettles

- same + may restrain Daemon TOO who knows??? They even considered killing him, and only didn’t do so because they were afraid of Rhaenyra’s eventual reaction. This is something she had been afraid of and which in great part motivated the council’s final decision

3) Tell them to send Nettles and Daemon back to her

- Same + or Nettles could flee on the way

4) Not kill/arrest Nettles:

- Daemon MUST STILL go back to KL and if she doesn't tell them why, they might deflect too or even snitch on Rhaenyra about her catastrophic position. In any case, Aemond is still around, so without Daemon, Maidenpool would turn into an open bar

5) Not doing anything:

-The greens are literally a day away, the smallfolk saw Addam leave and know something's wrong, which worsened the mood. Corlys still won't say anything about Addam's intentions, and having Daemon could maybe appease things with the Velaryons (and their fleet). Side note: Rhaenyra and Corlys’ dynamic is the pivotal (and patriarchal) relationship of the Dance, not Rhaenyra and Daemon. Corlys went behind her back to save Addam, but he would’ve absolutely advised Rhaenyra to not take risk, like her council told her, if it weren’t for him being directly involved because it’s his son and heir. So Corlys had nothing to gain anymore in supporting her cause, and she knew that, and he knew that

Rhaenyra certainly had not imagined that Daemon would care so much for Nettles. My theory (key word: theory) is that she had Laenor's death in mind: either she knew Daemon was the culprit, or she suspected him to be the culprit. It'd mean that Daemon was willing to kill someone fairly close to him for the "greater good" (here it was to marry Rhaenyra). It's just a theory though, but I think it makes sense. And remember, she didn't order Daemon to kill Nettles; that was directed to Manfryd Mooton. She told MANFRYD to kill Nettles, and then she commanded him to send Daemon back to her because she had "urgent need of him". Since Daemon wasn't supposed to know the content of the letter, he wasn't supposed to see the INDIRECT accusation of infidelity

Rhaenyra most likely believed that even though killing Nettles was a very drastic action and one that he might dislike, he would catch the hint. But his having the knowledge of the nature of the High Treason that Rhaenyra declared led him to believe that she had gone mad. While killing Laenor allowed Daemon to marry Rhaenyra, killing Nettles for allegedly being his lover, while they have an indispensable need for dragons during this war, didn't ring like a decision for "the greater good", but a cruel one that, according to the text, he had never expected

But this is the advice she had been given by her councillors. Her MEN. Yet I don’t see anyone in this fandom, including tb, say they were paranoid. But they weren’t paranoid, indeed, so why would Rhaenyra be? She was put in an impossible position, yet this entire fandom blames her for following her council’s advice and doing what every (male) monarch would have done in her place

The ones notably in favour of the death warrant were the Manderlys, respected for both their intelligence and loyalty, by everyone, even post war. And yet there’s no record of them throwing Rhaenyra under the bus. They never trash her reputation or try to shift the blame of what happened onto her

If GRRM really wanted us to think she was paranoid, he would’ve made them the source, or had them argue against her. Even Gerardys, who argued for Nettles, likely wasn’t even present when the death order was given. It’s pretty clear there were two separate meetings: one after Corlys betrayed them,and since Rhaenyra later says she couldn’t trust Gerardys either, he probably wasn’t included. Meaning: everyone in that second meeting was in favour of the order

There’s also Largent, captain of the Gold Cloaks, someone who saw firsthand what was happening in King’s Landing (he was the one sent to arrest Addam) and how the people were feeling day by day. He witnessed the growing unrest up close, and he knew they needed Daemon (who was also his close friend)

Then there’s Marbrand, someone Rhaenyra had known for a long time, to the point that she actually mourned his death later on. That tells us he was probably a good man, and definitely loyal

Even Celtigar’s stance wasn’t just about his usual beef with bastards: he pointed out that the two traitors had fought bravely at the Gullet, and still ended up betraying the Blacks. He had somewhat of a point here

I think Rhaenyra believed the Mootons would obey because this wasn’t their first time dealing with something like this. Jonah Mooton (most likely Manfryd’s own father…) had been Princess Saera’s lover during Jaehaerys’ reign. And Jaehaerys himself killed one of Saera’s other lovers (Braxton Beesbury) under his own roof because of the affair, in a combat, because as the monarch, he had declared Braxton guilty of treason. The nobles at the court are the Crown’s guests. That’s almost exactly the kind of situation Rhaenyra crafted with Nettles. Jaehaerys later married Jonah off to a woman, basically forcing him to “repent” for his sins

So ever since the Mootons had learned to keep a low profile, and that’s why the line “The Old King would’ve never asked this of any man of honour” is honestly hilarious in hindsight, because the Old King literally did the same thing. Suddenly the whole “guest right” argument starts to sound pretty shallow. They were scared though, so honestly I don’t even blame them. But it was more about fear than it was about loyalty or conscience

And the truth is, Jaehaerys was a man, Rhaenyra wasn’t, it made the whole difference, one that GRRM wanted to paint by mirroring these two situations. Had Rhaenyra been a man, I’m pretty sure Daemon would’ve ended up hacked into pieces. In any case, GRRM wrote Jaehaerys' reign AFTER Daemon and Rhaenyra's stories: he definitely wrote Rhaenyra's dilemma with Jaehaerys in mind. I believe there's a lot between them, unfortunately, too many people don't know how literary analysis works or that there's different types and levels of connections. They will jump at you to assume every connection you point out is the same grade of almost "conspiracy theory". But to me the parallelism here is UNDENIABLE because GRRM gave us several clues :

1/Jaehaerys killed Braxton, a very arrogant young man, in a single combat = Daemon killed Aemond, a very arrogant young man, in a single combat. Aemond and Braxton both believed they could win the fight against the "old men" (in the text, Jaehaerys declares that he's the old man Braxton will face; Daemon is called "the old prince" during his confrontation with his nephew)

2/Jaehaerys shoved Blackfyre into Braxton's eye = Daemon shoved Dark Sister into Aemond's eye

3/Jaehaerys and Daemon were both 49. Braxton was 19, Aemond was 20

4/Saera was forced by Jonquil Darke to watch the duel from a tower, she witnessed Braxton's death, who was her lover = When Daemon sent Nettles away, Caraxes screamed, and the windows of Jonquil's Tower shattered. Alys watched the Battle of the Gods Eye from a tower, and she witnessed Aemond's death, who was her lover. Alysanne refused to watch the duel because she was afraid of Jaehaerys dying; Rhaenyra didn't even know about Daemon's final fight and she never saw him again

What GRRM is telling here is that Rhaenyra was (IS) a victim of double standards. She was deemed cruel and paranoid for doing things that other Kings before her had done, and not during a civil war involving dragons. And yet, Jaehaerys was nicknamed 'the Conciliator". Rhaenyra was Maegor with Teats. Were it not for misogyny, people would see it as the tragic story of a king backed into a corner and forced to take risk, and make sacrifice no matter what he does. A king who would be in an impossible position, with a painful dilemma to face. Just like Empress Matilda, Rhaenyra went from the Realm’s Delight, to Maegor with Teats for doing things KINGS did. It’s how historiography portray those women

Now Cregan Stark. He didn’t even care. After hearing what happened, he blamed the people who led the rioters, AND Corlys. Because “guest right” doesn’t really apply in a situation like this, or let’s say the circumstances (DRAGONS) change everything. Otherwise, the Warden of the North (especially one famous for his strict sense of honour) would’ve freaked out if his own bannermen had broken it

The Mootons had begged Rhaenyra to send dragons: she sent them two, and they were happy about it. But now she was not only ordering them to kill a dragonrider, but also to send the other one back home, leaving them exposed to Aemond once again. AND NOW King’s Landing was under imminent threat (and would possibly be destroyed, as we saw at Tumbleton), and it was the last barrier between Tumbleton and the northern Crownlands

Telling the Mootons that KL might fall (again, after the first time was bloodless), which meant that they would be next, that Aemond was still burning random towns and villages, that Addam was on the run God knows where, and that they were hosting the last dragonrider with the power to burn them… none of this exactly encourages loyalty (and indeed, they deflected for less than that)

Daemon, on the other hand, did believe Rhaenyra had gone mad and that Mysaria had poisoned her mind against him

(kind of like when the people of Duskendale accused Lady Serala of manipulating her husband Lord Darklyn, leading to the Defiance of Duskendale, leading to Aerys to annihilate the whole place…

…but since they LOVED their Lord, they refused to blame him and scapegoated his FOREIGN wife: she was from Myr and they called her the Lace Serpent. Mysaria was from Lys, and she was called the White Worm. Serala's female parts were torn apart, and Mysaria was stripped naked and was made to cross King's Landing; she was whipped to death. Those very gendered deaths. Doesn’t it sound a bit familiar to you?)

But let’s be honest: Daemon was a bit of a fool for not questioning why Rhaenyra was acting so drastically. He should have known something was seriously wrong. Instead of flying back to King’s Landing to get answers, he assumed the worst and abandoned her entirely because he had lost trust in her (the same way Corlys distrusted Rhaenyra so much that he accepted the risk of being arrested and executed) then, he committed suicide. To me he seemed like the mentally unstable one, and not his wife. But he’s a man, so people will overlook this and frame Rhaenyra as a mad woman instead

It all comes back to trust at the end of the day, and guess what: Daemon and Corlys were the ones who no longer trusted Rhaenyra. She had no idea… if that’s paranoia, then she’s not very good at it

Eustace wrote that Rhaenyra had been betrayed so many times that she expected the worst of any man, even the ones she loved. I'd remind you that Eustace wrote his account YEARS after the war, with the benefit of HINDSIGHT. Obviously, he knows Rhaenyra was going to suffer multiple betrayals: he wrote everything after it all happened... her decision was not motivated by some paranoid reasoning, but by the urging of her councillors. She hadn't expected a usurpation, or Luke's death, or the Gullet, or the assassination attempt on Dragonstone after Blood and Cheese, or the disappearance of Aegon II and his children, or the theft of the royal treasury, or Tumbleton, or the Mootons' deflection, or Corlys' betrayal, Addam and Nettles' flight, Daemon's suicide mission, the dragons murdered in the Dragonpit, Joffrey falling from the sky, Dragonstone falling to the enemy. But I hear every day that she was broken by grief and paranoid The double standards and the misogyny are absolutely INSANE. Eustace is basically blaming her by saying that she alone caused all those betrayals. But Addam had been warned in advance: even if Rhaenyra had decided to do nothing, he had already fled, which means that she was betrayed before she even knew. People are saying that Rhaenyra’s flaws caused her own demise, she had a hand in her fate. Well, that’s the narrative that was crafted around her, or around women in general. It’s the year 2025, but little has changed But there is ONE person who could’ve fixed all this mess: DAEMON. He could’ve gone back to King’s Landing, without killing Nettles, he could’ve told Rhaenyra that Nettles was trustworthy and brave. No one will ever convince me that Rhaenyra wouldn’t have listened to him. The whole point was that she was afraid Daemon would be harmed. All he had to do was to come back. But the man was an awful communicator, it’s one of his biggest flaws

And the raven Rhaenyra sent WAS NOT ADDRESSED TO HIM. Something I explained here

A little side note: once you untangle all of those historiographical elements and their sources, it goes like this:

-> Letter with the mistress high treason declaration

-> Daemon blames Mysaria

-> The rumour spread after his death because of his assumption

-> Mushroom brings up the rumours in his testimony AFTER THE WAR without adding any of his usual sordid details, because he wasn’t there either + Eustace (who was not in the council room when Rhaenyra asked her men what to do after Tumbleton) writes his own reconstruction AFTER THE WAR (aka “Rhaenyra’s” rant) based on the rumours he heard AND his own assumptions and biases and RACISM and CLASSISM and MISOGYNY

-> Gyldayn puts Eustace and Mushroom together

-> He brings up Maester Norren’s chronicles and their infamous bathing-together part, to back up this story. The phrase "But in light of what followed" means that the alleged affair between Daemon and Nettles was crafted in hindsight

Everything stems from the letter. Rhaenyra did not hear of the rumours, she CREATED them You will notice how none of this is mentioned in TPATQ: Mushroom’s contribution to this whole mess doesn’t exist either. Norren’s description of the events is also nowhere to be seen, save for the conversation between Mootons and his men, and when he gives the letter to Daemon

Basically, the allegation of adultery is mentioned: when they receive the letter; when the singers claimed Daemon spent the rest of his days with Nettles. And that’s all

What I’m saying is: the fake conversation between Mysaria and Rhaenyra did not happen. It was fabricated by Eustace (who is the source here) based on what he knew and thought. He’s the one speaking through Rhaenyra. She did not act upon jealousy; she and her council did with what they could, hoping it would work, and she didn’t actually believe that Daemon had cheated on her (and in case I wasn't clear enough, this post isn't about whether he cheated on her or not. He might have had an affair with Manfryd Mooton for all I care, the ending remains the same lol)

This is how men wrote about her because queens are jealous and emotionally volatile and they can’t even control their consorts’ hungers and they’re easily manipulated and and and ——-

so they shouldn’t rule…. It’s also strange how people are so quick to jump to "class consciousness" when it comes to Rhaenyra, in a way they won’t for other lords or monarchs. There isn’t any proof beyond misogyny that she was particularly dismissive of the smallfolk. She NEVER threw a feast for Joffrey, she began to PLAN one, FOR THE FUTURE. She did nothing Jaehaerys wouldn't have done, AND even her taxes (cf: Jaehaerys's regency) were directed at merchants. If masses had been starving in the streets during Rhaenyra’s reign, Gyldayn would've NEVER shut up about it. One major starvation epidemic was after the war, during the winter. As for Jaehaerys, he BENEFITED from taxes similar to Rhaenyra's, from BEFORE his reign. His Master of Coin was a competent Pentoshi man, who was murdered in the streets during a riot in King’s Landing… just like Rhaenyra’s Master of Coin, Lord Celtigar. What Rhaenyra faced were the usual hard economic times because of a war. The taxes she implemented were abolished during the early reign of her son. Aegon II had all his treasury safe in other places, yet he didn’t abolish his sister’s taxes, and commissioned statues of his brothers with the money it brought him. GRRM drew so many parallels between Jaehaerys and Rhaenyra. Jaehaerys killed the men who had murdered Lord Rego: he refused them the Night’s Watch, and instead they were hung from the walls of the Red Keep, and DISEMBOWELED. He even called them “lower than rats”. I don’t see anyone call him cruel or classist for that though…

A Septon being racist, misogynistic, classist, xenophobic… who happens to be the ONLY AND ABSENT source behind this conversation…. doesn’t that make SO MUCH MORE sense to you? Instead of Rhaenyra, who’s constantly misperceived?

This conversation is what we could call an etiological tale: it means that this is Eustace trying to explain the events that occurred in the Black Council. Sara Snow is also an etiological element. Etiology is EVERYWHERE in historiography. I posted this to analyse the scene and the clues GRRM gave us

It doesn’t have to be the truth. Here, it’s indeed not what truly happened

[franzkafkagf]

How do you personally think they massacred his potential? I fully agree, by the way. He could have and should have been a fan favourite. He's one of the most tragic characters I've seen, honestly. He's interesting and definitely the most complex character of the season, but the lack of catharsis the writers gave him for his issues is anger inducing.

the concept is just so good to me. the prince with no sense for duty or responsibility, who did not want the throne but feels forced to take it anyways. he takes the throne to save his family and yet, he watches all of them die anyways.

At first, the prince refused to be a part of his mother’s plans. “My sister is the heir, not me,” he said. “What sort of brother steals his sister’s birthright?” Only when Ser Criston convinced him that the princess must surely execute him and his brothers should she don the crown did Aegon waver.

that's just amazing. i cannot stress this enough; it's so profoundly tragic and sad. i don't hate everything they did with him in the show; they have many good ideas actually. him rejecting his valyrian heritage, him being kind of a failure at everything, him being desperate to my accepted/loved... this is all profound and good stuff! but i feel like his tragedy has been squandered by how the writers decided to frame the story. i could go on about how rhaenyra and alicent are potrayed so blandly in this show in order to make their embarrassing gender essentialism theme going but this is about aegon so i won't go into that.

aegon reminds me so much of theon greyjoy. maybe it's just me, but in my head theon and aegon start the story in similar places. they're spoilt, vain and indulgent. then they get their "calling", for aegon it's the crown. it's the first time in his life that he has a reason to get out of bed, to actually do something good for once. also, him believing his father actually wanted him to take the crown and it hurting him when otto scoffed at him for believing it? AMAZING stuff. I love s02xe02 to bits.

because [my father] didn't like me

theon's calling is to finally get his father's approval. balon, obviously, has no fatherly affection towards him and theon kind of knows it, he still betrays the only person he ever truly loved. and what happens to theon? he loses everything, absolutely everything; he is stripped of his pride, his dignity, of his entire identity. i've never seen a character go through something theon went through.

and i see parallels to aegon here! aegon is quite literally made and broken by the weight of a crown he never wanted. his story is more tragic than theon actually; the thing that destroyed him was quite literally forced on him. it actually kills me to think about it. he rushes into rook's rest because he feels powerless; because everybody around him shows him not even one ounce of empathy. his baby is dead and no one seems to care!

and he fails; of course he does. he is BETRAYED by his own brother, the brother he thought was loyal to him. this is just such good stuff my head hurts. his arc after the fall of KL is so amazing too, i'm desperate to see him go on his adventure to dragonstone and actually grow into the type of man that can turn rhaenyra's own people against her.

now, what could've been done to make his arc better in the show? well. let's start with not making him a rapist. i cannot stress this enough. the single worst choice was to introduce him as a rapist. it's actually crazy to me. it's so easy too... just make him like theon; make him promiscuous, make him vain, make him spoilt! they should've introduce his adult version with a drunk sex scene actually. set the tone for his character from the beginning.

he is not suited for the throne; he seeks pleasures, doesn't care for his valyrian lessons (based!), he drinks all day... like, what was the POINT of making him a rapist? what was it? -> the answer is obvious.... they didn't want us sympathizing with him. they were scared of people liking the villain. why is this hbo show scared you might have people sympathizing and pitying the "villain"? are you okay? YOU HAD ONE JOB. DEAR GOD.....

so with that said; make his motivations clearer. have him scream at aemond after jaehaerys dies, change up the godawful brothel scene to actually drive the point home; he is still grieving and his way of grieving is lashing out and drinking himself half to death! focus on his alcoholism and his rashness. I actually rewrote the brothel scene here

make us understand him bettter; there are moments like the "do you love me?" or all of ep 1 and 2 of season 2, but it's too little, too late. the writers in general have such a hard time with writing characters with actual qualities. all of them are so empty and act like robots. only aegon, criston, daemon and rhaenyra (in episodes 1 and 2 at least... then we went right back to robot mode lmao) show moments of actually being a character with rich inner workings. i hate it so much.

[catofadifferentcolor]

Now That's What I Call Buns: A GOT/ASOIAF Terrible Fic Idea Master List

In my time on Tumblr, I've posted a number of terrible fic ideas. These are the ones for A Song of Ice And Fire and Game of Thrones. (Click here for House of the Dragon.)

Jon Snow AUs:

(45) Aelor the Accursed: In which Jon Snow and Daenerys Stormborn are reincarnations of all the doomed Targaryen lovers who came before

(43) Aegon the Adopted: In which Jon Snow was born Aegon, son of Rhaegar and Elia, becomes a bastard, and finds his way back to his birthright

(36) Aegon the Undying: Jon Snow reincarnates through all the Aegons of House Targaryen, focusing on Aegon, son of Baelon, and the Dance of Dragons

(33) Aegon the Unyielding: Jon Snow/Rhaenys Targaryen arranged marriage; part romance, part zombie apocalypse, part revenge fic

(32) Aemon the Adventurous: Jon Snow flees Westeros, becomes a sailor and merchant prince, and brings forth dragons from the ruins of Old Valyria

(37) Aerion, King of the Ashes: After King’s Landing is destroyed in the Wildfire Plot, Princess Lyanna Targaryen leads a second conquest in the name of her newborn son

(34) Baelor the Brave: Would-be Kingsguard Jon Snow assumes the throne after the death of his half-brother, Aegon; part court intrigue, part war story, part murder mystery

(56) Bastard of Winterfell: In which no one suspects that Jon Snow is the son of Brandon and Lyanna Stark, and that’s probably for the best

(74) Black Prince: In which Jon Snow, the most infamous knight of his generation, has an affair with Crown Princess Rhaenys

(50) Daemon the Destroyer: In which mercenary captain Jon Snow is a little too much like his namesake

(35) Daeron the Desired: Targaryen restoration romcom, with eventual Aegon VI/Rhaenys and Jon Snow/Daenerys

(75) Duncan the Damned: In which Jon Snow, the infamous bastard of King Rhaegar, has an affair with his aunt, Princess Daenerys

(65) Jon the Fair: In which Robert Baratheon tries to pass off his best friend's male bastard as his second wife

(77) Jon the Just: In which Lyanna Stark’s son avenges her rape and kidnapping at the hands of his father

(47) Jon Whitefyre: In which Jon Snow is very much Ned Stark’s son, but still ends up the face of the Targaryen Restoration

(41) Lord of the Dance: Jon Snow heads south, gains a nickname, saves his sisters, and becomes Prince of Dragonstone

(73) Lord Protector: In which Jon Snow, the most gallant and chivalrous knight of his generation, has an affair with Queen Margaery

(78) Lost Prince: In which Rhaegar finds his long lost son living among the Starks

(71) Maekar the Maester: In which Jon Snow joins the Night's Watch too young and finds a father in Aemon Targaryen

(17) Prince Consort: In which Rhaenys survives in Essos, gains a dragon, and makes a dynastic marriage with King in the North Jon Snow

(14) Prince of Summerhall: Queen Rhaella gives birth to a bastard, determines her eldest son is nearly as mad as his father, and inadvertently starts a war

(42) Rhaegar the Righteous: In which Catelyn Tully is a little more accepting, Jon Snow a little more Southron, and all Olenna Tyrell’s dreams come true

Female!Jon Snow AUs:

(30) Alys the Storm Queen: f!Jon Snow/Renly Baratheon arranged marriage in which Robert is the best thing ever to happen to the Targaryens

(02) Alysanne the Winter Queen: Following Catelyn Tully’s death, Ned Stark marries his niece f!Jon Snow and almost accidentally puts her on the Iron Throne

(48) Daena the Dreamer: In which f!Jon Snow is the Old God's Joan of Arc and prophet for the return of her half-brother and eventual husband, Aegon VI

(40) Dyanna the Defiant: In which f!Jon Snow takes after her most famous foremothers, runs away to Essos, and insults Viserys III into being a better person

(64) Elia the Magnificent: In which Ned Stark’s bastard niece fosters at Bear Island, falls in love with a Hightower, and is the wildcard in the War of Five Kings

(15) Jeyne, Lady of the Rock: f!Jon Snow/Jaime Lannister as reluctant soulmates and an even more reluctant Tywin forced to chose between Jaime and Cersei after Robert's death

(72) People's Queen: In which female Jon Snow is raised by her mother's lowborn maid

(67) Queen of Nightingales: In which Rhaegar Targaryen's bastard daughter falls for Robert Baratheon's bastard son

(05) Queen Mother: Robert Baratheon takes f!Jon Snow as second wife, leaves her as regent to their son, and is once again inadvertently the best thing to happen to the Targaryens

(68) Rowena the Red Queen: In which Tyrion marries Ned Stark's bastard daughter and gains a crown

(51) Rhaella the River Queen: In which f!Jon Snow marries Edmure Tully, changes the course of a war, and becomes cousin to dragons

(31) Serena, Queen of the Skies: f!Jon Snow becomes the fourth Lady Arryn, the regent of a great house, and mother of dragons

(52) Shiera Snowbird: Together Bloodraven and f!Jon Snow fight the Others and return magic to the world

(66) Visneya the Victorious: In which AMAB Jon Snow becomes a warrior queen

(72) Wierwood Queen: In which Ned Stark’s bastard niece is widowed thrice, Queen in the North twice, and foremother of the second Targaryen dynasty

(48) Wolf Queen: In which Ned Stark's natural daughter lives up to every stereotype of a bastard and still gains a crown

Others:

(82) Chronicles of Winterfell: Narnia AU in which Jon, Sansa, Arya, and Bran return quite changed from their time as kings and queens

(29) Golden Stags: In which Cersei’s children are legitimate Baratheons

(06) Lysa Tully SI: In which Lysa is the face of Westeros’ age of enlightenment

(49) Rhaelle Targaryen & Lyman Stark: Robert’s Rebellion gender swap, in which the crown princess runs away with Lord Stark’s third son

(70) Tomorrow We Get To Do It Over Again: In which Ned Stark takes issue with what happens to his family after his death and travels through time to prevent it.

More Terrible Fic Ideas

[witheredoffherwitch]

Why's everyone acting like Helaena was supposed to be a main character in the books? She barely did anything there, she's just a plot device in the book too. Saying her story got changed to boost others is total nonsense when she actually has some personality in the show at least. The only ones who even care about this are shippers like you. 

I don’t know what’s funnier: you calling me a Helaena shipper or suggesting I ever said on my blog that Helaena was meant to be a main character. Anyone who skimmed my blog for even 2 seconds would know that my bias has always been with Alicent over Helaena. Honestly, Alicent and Aemond are the only reasons my blog even got close to TG when I literally stan Rhaenyra besides those two - and if I ship anyone, it’s Rhaenicent first. So let me be reiterate once again: Helaena’s entire arc is built around Alicent, serving mainly to make Alicent seem more sympathetic in the show. And when she isn’t doing that, she’s there to solidify Team Black as the ONLY right choice in this story. Nothing Helaena does is really for her own character - it’s all about advancing someone else’s story. I’m not saying that just because her arc deviates from the books; it’s more about how the writing never really gives her focus, even during her own scenes. She “forgave” Alicent to sweep her previous actions under the rug, and she didn’t get to fully grieve about her son to balance out the fallout from B&C with the commonfolk’s losses. Sure that second point makes sense in theory, but Helaena shouldn’t have been the one chosen to deliver that message in the show. I mean, she’s a freaking princess - critics even mocked that scene because it turned her into some sort of empathetic noblewoman. And if that was really her character, then her actions feel way off timing, especially since her own faction is responsible for huge disasters affecting the very people she’s supposed to feel for. That writing misfire is basically excused by painting her as a dreamer, but it just messes up the message if you think about it deeply for even a second, kind of like what we saw with Bran in season 8.

I’m not sure what I said to get you riled up, but it’s obvious that Alicent’s arc is using Helaena as a crutch to reach its own conclusion. While I still prefer Alicent overall, I feel like the narrative really shortchanges Helaena. That’s just my take. Alicent was missing from B&C, yet everything after that scene is somehow still centered around her (and Aegon). I’m even thinking that they deliberately removed Alicent from that scene because they had planned that final Rhaenicent reunion in Dragonstone from the start… which would have been less effective if she had to witness the horror Helaena endured in the same episode. While writers barely give Helaena any human moments, Alicent always gets to be real and “complex”. She won’t be as forgiving as her daughter if that were the case lol.

[thewriterjulchen]

MASTERLIST TIAGYE

From this lucerys centric fic where instead of dying he (and Arrax) time travels to Rhaenyra's teen ages.

Link to the first chapter

Summary (spanish/link to english ver)

Chapters Arcs to guide yourself

Arc I "The boy who fall from the sky and the Heir Princess" : Prologue - XX

Arc II "The Royal Hunt and the beginning of the tour" : XXI - XXIII

Arc III "Harrenhal" : XXIV - XXXI

Arc IV "The North": XXXII - XL

Arc V "Storm's End" : XLI - Interlude II

Arc VI "Driftmark" : XLVIII - Letters II

Arc VII "Dragonstone" : LVI - LXXXII

Arc VII "King's Landing": LXXXIII - Letters III

Arc IX: (Currently writting...)

Rhaenyra's Court

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Other characters

[xxpeppermintxx109]

hiii! so i’m sorry if i’m being annoying but there is any chance that you will continue the dance of dragons? i love rhaenyra and rhaegar so much 😩 and i can’t wait to read the relationship with her and jaime, i know it would be chef kiss

Hi hi!! Not annoying at all! I pinky promise tdod is not abandoned or anything! I’ve been slowly writing the next chapters because I’ve been so consumed by glbh lol and outside writings! But there is a chapter written for it, and I just need to add some more stuff. I hit a block with my timeline and spent so long trying to fix it, and just wasn’t happy with the draft, so I restarted, and now it’s indeed alive but need to post! Especially cause these next chapters at Dragonstone will have spoilers for GLBH KSKSKSKS!

But here’s a snippet cause I’ve kept y’all waiting for so long!

(Arthur accepted his role. He did. He accepted that his love could only exist in his dedication to his princess.

But he wanted to ask.

He wanted to ask her if she loved Rhaegar. If she kissed her brother for the first time on their wedding day, or if she had known the prince’s lips long before as he assumed was the case. If she never loved him as much as she loved Rhaegar.

He wanted to ask Rhaegar if he knew how much Arthur yearned for Rhaenyra Targaryen, and still pursued her despite it all.

Surely Rhaegar would never do such a thing?)

It’s not much but it’s something hehehe ;)

And ahhh yes the Jaime arc is gonna be so delicious!! IT WILL BE WELL WORTH THE WAIT I PROMISE!!

thanks again anon!!

- mint🤍

[lya-dustin]

Queen

Idea @toms-cherry-trees suggested last year where Aemma says that line Mary Tudor tells Anne Boleyn on the Tudors (the I know no queen but my mother)

Takes place in the Someone will remember us universe.

Sorry Alicent/team green stans, in this universe the greens (sans Helaena and Daeron and Aemond post redemption arc) are all awful

There is a strange thrill of knowing her darling goodfamily cannot harm her.

Aemma may be a hostage, but rules and traditions dictate that as an honoured guest and kinswoman she must never come into harm by them.

Especially by those who claim to be obedient little slaves to the gods like her infernal goodmother.

Alicent has never liked her, always finding fault with her since she can remember. These acts of defiance irritate her more than the puppet rulers she installed into place.

Aemma chooses not to address Helaena as Queen nor does she curtsy as she passes by as etiquette dictates.

After all, Aemma has been named Princess of Dragonstone by her mother despite being Aemond’s wife and hostage to Alicent and outranks Helaena.

“You disrespect your queen at every turn, did your Septa not teach you better?” Alicent, really sets herself up for these, the princess inwardly smirks.

“My Septa taught me well, she taught me the will of a king cannot be broken even by his wife.” Aemma answered in a falsely sweet tone she knows grates her darling goodmother. “I know no queen save for my mother, Lady Alicent.”

If she didn’t love Aemond she would have never attached herself to this family no matter how good Aemma gets along with Helaena and little Daeron.

“Your impertinence will cost you, child.” The auburn haired widow schools her face into a serene mask as she comes to kneel at the feet of the Mother, made in the likeness of the Queen Aemma was named for.

This Aemma cannot see anything but the vindictive bitch who had her maids hold her down while she and the maester inspected her maidenhead.

She hates her like she’s never hated anyone before. Aemma will dance on her grave and cast her bones to the dogs when she finally dies.

“It gained me your favourite son, didn’t it?”

[asongofgoldenfireandblackblood]

hello! is this still active and what are some of your most wanted characters? thank you!

Hey there!

Yes, we are very much still active! And as a matter of fact, our third arc starts tomorrow (!!!) with both our latest plot drop and new starters from players launching for it at Noon EST on February 2nd!! As stated in our mobile nav as well, we currently have 23 players, and are very interested and enthusiastic in having more friends join us 🫶

Our Most Wanted Page is currently a touch out of date and scheduled to be updated this weekend! That said though, our current most wanted characters who will be on there soon are as follows:

Prince Aemond Targaryen (of Dragonstone) (Hand of The Queen and Betrothed of Princess Rhaena)

Princess Obella Martell (Youngest sister of Ruling-Princess Aliandra and betrothed of Prince Lucerys Velaryon)

Prince Daeron Targaryen (of Dragonstone) (Youngest son of Queen Alicent and current Commander of The Gold Cloaks)

Lady Ellyn Baratheon (Third of The Four Storms of House Baratheon)

Lord Lyonel Hightower (Newly inherited Lord of House Hightower and soon-to-be husband of Lady Sam)

Lady Vaella Darklyn (Youngest sibling of Lord Gunthor, close childhood friend of Princesses Baela and Rhaena, and Lady in Waiting to Princess Rhaena)

Lord Triston Vance (Lord of House Vance, husband of Lady Roslin, and close friend of King-Consort Daemon Targaryen)

Lady Jenny Tully (Wife of Lord Elmo and mother of Kermit, Oscar, and Abby)

Thanks so much for the ask!! Queen Ivory 💗

[deaneyrs]

@wintefell : snow falls in the north, thick and dry, and the older queen shivers in the great hall. she is a creature of fire and blood, not built for the cold. a fact made apparent by the many furs that wrap themselves around her, layer upon layer heaped upon her frame until she is more fur than queen. still, she holds herself aloft, a queen in her own right, even if she has yet to take the iron throne.

" i am honored to be your guest at winterfell, your grace. " her voice rises just enough to carry over the chatter of northmen in the hall. from her seat, she can see them for what they are: rough and full of life. " i hope it will bring about a strong union between the north and the realm. "

[g0dswood]

quentyn nymeros martell » au verse: the dance of the dragons

nephew of prince qoren martell, about the age of the princess rhaenyra's brothers and eldest sons. same as in his main story, he has been fostered at yronwood for most of his life and feels like he needs to prove his martell name.

dorne has just suffered another loss against the targaryens in the form of failed support for the triarchy in the stepstones. qoren does not trust daemon targaryen, and has had fruitful trade with the triarchy controlling the narrow sea, so he backed them in the war.

dornish armies, of course, don't have a great track record against dragonfire, so he seeks a way to somehow get a hold of a dragon for himself. kinda paralleling quentyn's arc in adwd, his uncle sends him to king's landing and/or dragonstone to see if he can get a hold of an alliance, dragonrider or dragon egg. he either dies trying to pose as a dragonseed or under similar circumstances trying to bag a dragon and making stupid choices :P

[catofadifferentcolor]

Aelor the Accursed: In which Jon Snow and Daenerys Stormborn are reincarnations of all the doomed Targaryen lovers who came before

Aegon the Adopted: In which Jon Snow was born Aegon, son of Rhaegar and Elia, becomes a bastard, and finds his way back to his birthright

Bastard of Winterfell: In which no one suspects that Jon Snow is the son of Brandon and Lyanna Stark, and that’s probably for the best

Daemon the Destroyer: In which mercenary captain Jon Snow is a little too much like his namesake

Daena the Dreamer: In which f!Jon Snow is the Old God's Joan of Arc and prophet for the return of her half-brother, Aegon VI

Dyanna the Defiant: In which f!Jon Snow takes after her most famous foremothers, runs away to Essos, and insults Viserys III into being a better person

Jon Whitefyre: In which Jon Snow is very much Ned Stark’s son, but still ends up the face of the Targaryen Restoration

King of the Ashes: After King's Landing is destroyed in the Wildfire Plot, Princess Lyanna Targaryen leads a second conquest in the name of her newborn son, King Aerion

Lord of the Dance: Jon Snow heads south, gains a nickname, saves his sisters, and becomes Prince of Dragonstone

Rhaegar the Righteous: In which Catelyn Tully is a little more accepting, Jon Snow a little more Southron, and all Olenna Tyrell’s dreams come true

Rhaella the River Queen: In which f!Jon Snow marries Edmure Tully, changes the course of a war, and becomes cousin to dragons

Shiera Snowbird: Together Bloodraven and f!Jon Snow fight the Others and return magic to the world

An Incomplete List of Jon Snow AU Fic Ideas

Aegon the Undying: Jon Snow reincarnates through all the Aegons of House Targaryen, focusing on Aegon, son of Baelon, and the Dance of Dragons

Aegon the Unyielding: Jon Snow/Rhaenys Targaryen arranged marriage; part romance, part zombie apocalypse, part revenge fic

Aemon the Adventurous: Jon Snow flees Westeros, becomes a sailor and merchant prince, and brings forth dragons from the ruins of Old Valyria

Baelor the Brave: Would-be Kingsguard Jon Snow assumes the throne after the death of his half-brother, Aegon; part court intrigue, part war story, part murder mystery

Daeron the Desired: Targaryen restoration romcom, with eventual Aegon VI/Rhaenys and Jon Snow/Daenerys

Lady of the Rock: f!Jon Snow/Jaime Lannister as reluctant soulmates and an even more reluctant Tywin forced to chose between Jaime and Cersei after Robert's death

Prince Consort: In which Rhaenys survives in Essos, gains a dragon, and makes a dynastic marriage with King in the North Jon Snow

Prince of Summerhall: Queen Rhaella gives birth to a bastard, determines her eldest son is nearly as mad as his father, and inadvertently starts a war

Storm Queen: f!Jon Snow/Renly Baratheon arranged marriage in which Robert is the best thing ever to happen to the Targaryens

Queen of the Skies: f!Jon Snow becomes the fourth Lady Arryn, the regent of a great house, and mother of dragons

Winter Queen: Following Catelyn Tully's death, Ned Stark marries his niece f!Jon Snow and, almost accidentally, puts her on the Iron Throne

Young Queen: Robert Baratheon takes f!Jon Snow as second wife, leaves her as regent to their son, and is once again inadvertently the best thing to happen to the Targaryens

[lemonhemlock]

What r ur thoughts on daemon x rhaenyra relationship

Daemyra nation, rise up! For how much I shit on these two, you wouldn't realise I actually like them. I am not immune to Tik Tok edits with Unholy in the background. The chemistry between the actors draws you in, that's a given.

[I am not going to get into a heavy-handed disclaimer about this not being a healthy relationship, because that's just been dissected to death by now.]

I have to admit that Ryan Condal's declaration that Daemon was maybe in love with Viserys and wanted to be intricately connected to him explains so much about his character. But, at the same, it's so jarring to see how the majority of the audience insisted on perceiving him; the lady asking the question is a perfect example, she felt "betrayed" by the scene of Daemon choking Rhaenyra because she really wanted Daemon to have a heroic arc. But that's just not who he is a character and that's reflected both in his fucked-up relationship with Rhaenyra and in the way the audience insists on ascribing them a dynamic of wholesome domestic fluff that just isn't there.

I really find it very interesting how many genderbending questions this show indirectly poses about the characters. Would Rhaenyra have been much happier had she been born a boy and could have, therefore, married Alicent herself? Would Daemon have been happier born a girl and married to Viserys? It makes a lot of sense for someone so intent on cannibalizing Viserys to move on to the closest person with whom he could possibly recreate that, i.e. Viserys' own daughter.

In many ways, Rhaenyra truly is the wife Daemon always wanted - a perfect Targaryen princess with Targaryen parents & Valyrian looks, who could give him unmistakably Targaryen sons, place him in close proximity to the throne & forever connect him to Viserys. And, in many ways, Daemon is the husband Rhaenyra always wanted - a provocative, intoxicating bad boy that is such an arsehole to anyone BUT HER. He's a teenage fantasy. *cue Katy Perry's Teenage Dream playing in the background* I have no doubt that they're sexually attracted to each other. That they even get along fine on a day-by-day basis.

But I would like to challenge Daemyra citizens on the following points. Overall, I think Rhaenyra is a much better partner to Daemon than he is to her, because Daemon invariably seems to bail out on her whenever things get tough:

He abandons her in the brothel. I mean, kudos for deciding not to take her maidenhead after all, I suppose, but how in the world is she supposed to get back to the Red Keep? Does she even know the way? She could get both discovered and/or assaulted. Does Daemon think this a thrilling possibility somehow - of something happening to Rhaenyra, but him not being directly responsible? Or does he only think of himself in that moment and of his need to get away?

He abandons her at the wedding brawl. She was just challenging him to abscond with her to Dragonstone and marry her. Wouldn't a commotion like this be the perfect opportunity to slip away? Why ditch her immediately and not even try to protect her at least? Isn't she the reason he came back from his exile in the first place?

He abandons her during the eye-gouging trial. Rhaenyra could have been in big trouble here and Daemon doesn't lift a finger to help her in any way. Even though he is one of the few people who could have actually had some input, considering his girls were also hurt. He could have diffused the situation or even backed her up a little - anything. I would have been terribly pissed with him if he simply materialized by my side after I'd have been cut with a knife & he just stood there smirking by the door. Even Matt Smith added that Daemon would have been happy just to see them all implode. The only explanation I can think of is that it's in Daemon's interest as well for the Strong boys to be called bastards, since he gets closer in the line of succession if they're disinherited.

He abandons her during her difficult labour and miscarriage. I understand he may have been triggered and I'm even willing to consider the deleted scenes with him mourning on the beach as proof that he was genuinely saddened by all this, but come on. Rhaenyra is crying out for him and he ignores her. He can hear her through the castle walls; it's cruel. At some point, you've got to man up and go to your screaming (and possibly dying) wife. Even Jace & Luke go and see her & they're teenagers! Even Viserys has the decency to stay in the birthing room with Aemma.*

The choking scene has been debated to death already.

There is, nevertheless, more to this. I'm not going to deny that he respects Rhaenyra, as much as he can respect anyone anyway. He gives her back the egg. He begrudgingly follows her lead on the bridge when they're facing Otto in the final episode. He moves to stop Ser Criston when he rushes to aid knifed-up Alicent. He crowns her. He cuts Vaemond's head in half - but is this just because he insulted Rhaenyra or was he just itching for violence and saw an opportunity?

I do feel like Rhaenyra has some terrible blind spots in relation to Daemon. The appeal of their relationship is that it's exciting and enticing and taboo, but, ultimately, it will break down because both of them have this idealized image of the other that neither lives up to. Rhaenyra thinks of herself as the perpetual exception for Daemon and, while I don't believe Daemon would ever truly give her up, he does seem the most comfortable recreating a dynamic in which he is the senior, worldly partner that can impress a young, guileless girl and be somewhat of a mentor to her (young!Rhaenyra, Nettles, even Mysaria was in an inferior social role). I don't think he knows how to handle a relationship of equals. He seems to struggle a lot with the idea of Rhaenyra topping the hierarchy.

*So many parallels with Viserys, actually. He stays with Aemma, holds her hand and even tries to comfort her, but decides to kill her for the baby anyway. Whereas Daemon doesn't go to Laena, but refuses to allow the surgeons to perform a cesarean on her. I feel like he would refuse it for Rhaenyra as well, but, then again, he prefers to keep away and not offer her any support.

I also wonder if Viserys doesn't mirror Daemon in his choice of bride, too. Daemon wants Rhaenyra as a way to always keep close to Viserys, but what if Viserys chose Alicent because she was Otto's daughter, as well? As a way of keeping close to his dear friend whom he cherished and respected. Isn't Viserys' fondness for his Hand another reason why Daemon has a bone to pick with Otto?

[aegor-bamfsteel]

"Dany is nothing like her ancestors and she is going to break the pattern by going to be a good queen."- Dany stans. Only they don't acknowledge that she is repeating her ancestors mistakes. Basically her whole arc is why Targs sucked.

“Däny is nothing like her ancestors…” Better not tell her that:

I am blood of the dragon, she told herself. I am Dænerys Stormborn, Princess of Dragonstone, of the blood and seed of Aegon the Conqueror. —AGOT Dâny II

I am Dænerys Stormborn, Dænerys of House Targaryen, of the blood of Aegon the Conqueror and Maegor the Cruel and old Valyria before them. I am the dragon's daughter, and I swear to you, these men will die screaming. Now bring me to Khal Drogo." —AGOT Dâny IX

Remind your Good Master of who I am. Remind him that I am Dænerys Stormborn, Mother of Dragons, the Unburnt, trueborn queen of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. My blood is the blood of Aegon the Conqueror, and of old Valyria before him." —ASOS Dâny II

Mother of dragons, Dænerys thought. Mother of monsters. What have I unleashed upon the world? A queen I am, but my throne is made of burned bones, and it rests on quicksand. Without dragons, how could she hope to hold Meereen, much less win back Westeros? I am the blood of the dragon, she thought. If they are monsters, so am I. —ADWD Dâny II

No. You are the blood of the dragon. The whispering was growing fainter, as if Ser Jorah were falling farther behind. Dragons plant no trees. Remember that. Remember who you are, what you were made to be. Remember your words. "Fire and Blood," Dænerys told the swaying grass. —ADWD Dâny X

Dæny constantly invokes her ancestors/bloodline as well as her dragons to keep herself brave, to impress others, to remind herself of who she is. Her last chapter has her embracing that Tárg legacy (specifically the one that plants no trees aka destruction), not turning away from it for a lasting peace. The Tárg legacy (or at least her idea of it) is a huge part of her character; you can’t say she’s nothing like her ancestors when she keeps invoking their memory and refuses to listen about any of the ill they (not even Aerys II) did.

“She’s going to break the pattern by being a good queen” there’s certain Tárg kings who are considered good rulers, such as Jæhaerys I and Viserys II. GRRM went out of his way in Fire&Blood to show how awful J1 was (to the dismay of a few fans), hanging small folk by their entrails and mistreating his wife/daughters; and he made sure in ASOS that Oberyn Martell accused V2 of poisoning his nephew. Then there’s Dâron 2 and Aègon V, who fandom considers good, but both caused massive rebellions and A5’s obsession with dragons led him to an early grave. Basically every time there’s a Tàrg that’s supposed to be a good ruler, GRRM ends up showing they’re either violent/murderous, abusive, paranoid, prophecy-obsessed, and kinslayers, not unlike the other Tárgs.

“Basically her whole arc is why the Tárgs suck” you’re right that the Tárg legacy is destructive and holds itself up as superior to the exclusion of others. It’s one of the reasons why I don’t like GRRM’s supplemental books on them (other than being a massive downgrade in characters/plot), because their point was already proven with Dâny, and trying to make sorta competent kings confuses the issue (J1 planted trees/built roads, so there’s still a way for D to honor her family but be a good ruler, when it ignores the context of how the Iron Throne was founded). Basically Dâny has a good arc using the Tárg legacy and dragons to give her the courage she lacked growing up, and struggling to balance her wishes for peace with her reality of trying to take the Throne she views as birthright by conquest, all on her own. But I guess GRRM needs more money and HBO needs more to milk out of the franchise.

[inferniso]

✢⁎. each loop we die through

@ofdusk sent:

In a blip of thought that certainly belongs off of the battlefield, Corrin realizes she is something like giddy. Facing Idunn, being presented with an opportunity to properly see someone like herself in combat...

Not the time.

"I trust you won't go easy on me just because we're friends!" Playful challenge alights in the crimson of the princess' eyes, her fingers twitching eagerly around the hilt of her blade. "You must genuinely try to kill me!"

Corrin (6/6) attacks Idunn with Sunder (Venin Edge). Roll: 18, Hit! -2HP (Critical Damage, Sunder) and Idunn is inflicted with Minor poison! (Idunn 4/6)

She is light on her feet as her body springs forward, dragon's blood thrumming eagerly in her veins. The sword feels right in her hand, a glittering flash in the afternoon sunlight as it is arced downward and upon her opponent. It's hardly her divine blade or the power from which she has come to expect, but that's all for the better in this moment, anyway.

It’s an order it had received many a time before, so,

How could it refuse?

“Corrin, of N-oh...” begins the dragon, its hands fumbling with the satchel around its waist, “Very well. If this is what you wish, then I will fight. Again.”

Perhaps it is for the best that Idunn is struck before having the chance to transform. Corrin’s blade seeps into its skin, slicing through human scales and manakete flesh the mere instant a pair of arms can raise to block the blow. In that swift motion, Idunn produces her dragonstone, but she is still mortal when the string of venom permeates her form.

It hurts. It almost makes it cry.

But the dragon--half-demon, half-divine--stands firm, injuries and all. It has survived much worse, and will again. Backing away a few paces, it prepares to follow Corrin’s orders. You must genuinely try to kill me, she said. Idunn doesn’t quite understand why someone would wish this upon themselves, but can think of only one way to complete this order:

Her stone begins to gleam; sparkling light is its chrysalis.

From Idunn’s body rips and morphs an unsightly beast, with scales the color of ink and feathers dyed by heaven’s embrace. It is an amalgamation of virtue and sin, sporting a tail of mixed design, mismatched wings, the body of a god and head of a demon. It roars, and when it does, vocal chords tuned to neither night nor day know not the kind of sound they should produce. It comes out hoarse and pure, ringing high and dropping low all the same. 

But above all, it is a sign that Idunn is in control. Its crossfade of eyes lock in on Corrin--she who wishes to be killed--and begin an assault.

Idunn (4/6) counterattacks Corrin with Phoenix Claws. Roll: 1, Hit! -1 HP! (Corrin 5/6)

From those lungs it spills flaming breath, fueled by the boughs of paradise and stoked by the heat of inferno. It covers the area around Corrin with the mere turn of Idunn’s neck, instantly transforming their battlefield into a display of divine judgement.

But it does not go much further, for the accumulation of toxins in the dragon’s blood has it recoiling; it hurts to breathe, too.

Idunn (4/6) loses 0.5 HP to Minor Poison! (Idunn 3.5/6)

So instead, it readies its mighty claws. They had once slashed at pegasi and horses, decimating both steed and rider. Today, they seek Nohr, each flying in one long thrust from Idunn.

Idunn (3.5/6) attacks Corrin with Fading Blow (Venin Knuckles). Roll: 16 and 7, Hit and Hit! -1 HP and Corrin is inflicted with Minor Poison, -1 HP and Corrin is inflicted with Toxic Poison! (Corrin 3/6)

When they land, the other of its kind will find that the poison has spread into its claws. Whether as an immune response or byproduct of the sheer volume of corrupted blood now flowing from Idunn, its scratches are laced with the same kind of hurting venom that Corrin sought to use against it.

How ironic.