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istumpysk · 2 years ago

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Operation Stumpy Re-Read

A FEAST FOR CROWS

Summary & Foreshadowing Smorgasbord (Part I)

Get in loser, it's foreshadowing time.

AFFC Part I: UNDER THE CUT

Sansa Stark, Queen in the North

Jon Snow, King in the North

Jon (Aemon?) Snow

Ahoy Matey! Arya Stark Sails the Ocean Blue

Bran the Broken, King of Westeros

High Septon Rickon?

Pick Your Poison: The Twins Meet Their End in the Bowels of Casterly Rock . . . or King's Landing

Younger and More Beautiful Cersei

AFFC PART II: CLICK

Dark Daenerys Highlights & Laughs

Let's Dance: Stark vs. Targ

A Rat in a Maze 🐀🔪

The Usurper's Knife

Storm x Storm 🦑🖤🐉

Squid Game

AFFC PART III: CLICK

Chapter Transitions

JONSA 🐺❤️❄️

Previous books:

AGOT Summary & Foreshadowing: CLICK

ACOK Summary & Foreshadowing: PART I / PART II

ASOS Summary & Foreshadowing: PART I / PART II / PART III / PART IV

Stumpy note:

If I didn't give you credit for discovering something or if I missed any foreshadowing, please contact me and I'll rectify that.

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who participated in the reread project. All of you have great observations and comments, I wish I could highlight them all. 🙂

SANSA STARK, QUEEN IN THE NORTH

The lady of the house has duties to perform.

"In the game of thrones, even the humblest pieces can have wills of their own. Sometimes they refuse to make the moves you've planned for them. Mark that well, Alayne. It's a lesson that Cersei Lannister still has yet to learn. Now, don't you have some duties to perform?"

She did indeed. She saw to the mulling of the wine first, found a suitable wheel of sharp white cheese, and commanded the cook to bake bread enough for twenty, in case the Lords Declarant brought more men than expected.

[...]

The solar next. Its floor was covered by a Myrish carpet, so there was no need to lay down rushes. Alayne asked two serving men to erect the trestle table and bring up eight of the heavy oak-and-leather chairs. For a feast she would have placed one at the head of the table, one at the foot, and three along each side, but this was no feast. She had the men arrange six chairs on one side of the table, two on the other.

[...]

It might be that the lords would talk late into the night. They would need fresh candles. After Maddy laid the fire, she sent her down to find the scented beeswax candles Lord Waxley had given Lady Lysa when he sought to win her hand. Then she visited the kitchens once again, to make certain of the wine and bread. All seemed well in hand, and there was still time enough for her to bathe and wash her hair and change.

[...]

Alayne met them in the Crescent Chamber beside a warming fire, where she welcomed them in Lord Robert's name and served them bread and cheese and cups of hot mulled wine in silver cups.

Petyr had given her a roll of arms to study, so she knew their heraldry if not their faces. - Alayne I, AFFC

"Then he has none to throw at me. Isn't there some work you should be doing? And you, Maddy . . . are all the windows closed and shuttered? Have all the furnishings been covered?"

"All of them, m'lady," said Maddy.

"Best make certain of it." - Alayne II, AFFC

"Lord Robert is feeling stronger," Alayne told the serving women. "Fetch hot water for his bath, but see you don't scald him. And do not pull on his hair when you brush out the tangles, he hates that." One of the squires sniggered, until she said, "Terrance, lay out his lordship's riding clothes and his warmest cloak. Gyles, you may clean up that broken chamber pot." - Alayne II, AFFC

Petyr Baelish was clear across the Vale, though, attending Lord Lyonel Corbray at his wedding.

[...]

Alayne understood all that well enough, but it meant that the burden of getting Sweetrobin safely down the mountain fell on her. - Alayne II, AFFC

+.+.+

JON SNOW, KING IN THE NORTH

Are you sure?

Mance's blood is no more royal than mine own. He has never worn a crown nor sat a throne. He's a brigand, nothing more. There's no power in brigand's blood. - Samwell I, AFFC

+.+.+

Jon's acting like a king.

Lord Janos would have sent Snow ranging naked on a mule. 'Scamper on up to Craster's Keep,' he would have said, 'and fetch me back the Old Bear's cloak and boots.' We saved him from that, but now he has too many duties to drink a cup of mulled wine by the fire?"

Grenn agreed. "His duties don't keep him from the yard. More days than not, he's out there fighting someone."

[...]

Jon, he'd said, but Jon was gone. It was Lord Snow who faced him now, grey eyes as hard as ice. "You have no father," said Lord Snow. - Samwell I, AFFC

Only Robb and baby Rickon were still here, and Robb was changed. He was Robb the Lord now, or trying to be. He wore a real sword and never smiled. His days were spent drilling the guard and practicing his swordplay, making the yard ring with the sound of steel as Bran watched forlornly from his window. At night he closeted himself with Maester Luwin, talking or going over account books. Sometimes he would ride out with Hallis Mollen and be gone for days at a time, visiting distant holdfasts. Whenever he was away more than a day, Rickon would cry and ask Bran if Robb was ever coming back. Even when he was home at Winterfell, Robb the Lord seemed to have more time for Hallis Mollen and Theon Greyjoy than he ever did for his brothers. - Bran IV, AGOT

+.+.+

Many monarchs are implicated, so we'll put it everywhere.

Should Jon fear his black brothers?

On the morning after the battle, the crows had feasted on victors and vanquished alike, as once they had feasted on Rhaegar Targaryen after the Trident. How much can a crown be worth, when a crow can dine upon a king? - Jaime VI, AFFC

+.+.+

Sounds like a steward with royal blood.

Thank you, @agentrouka-blog!

Did you know the Darklyns were kings in Duskendale before the Andals come? You'd never know t'look at me, but I got me royal blood. Can you see it? 'Your Grace, another cup of ale,' I ought to make them say. 'Your Grace, the chamber pot needs emptying, and fetch in some fresh faggots, Your Bloody Grace, the fire's going out.'" She laughed again and shook the last drops from the pail. - Brienne II, AFFC

"There is no shame in being a steward," Sam said.

"Do you think I want to spend the rest of my life washing an old man's smallclothes?" - Jon VI, AGOT

+.+.+

Looks can be deceiving.

"Looking for mermaids, Slayer?" asked Dareon when he saw Sam staring off across the bay. Fair-haired and hazel-eyed, the handsome young singer out of Eastwatch looked more like some dark prince than a black brother. - Samwell II, AFFC

+.+.+

Sworn to protect the realm.

"The Iron Throne must defend the Faith," growled a hulking lout with a seven-pointed star painted on his brow. "A king who does not protect his people is no king at all." - Cersei VI, AFFC

+.+.+

JON (AEMON?) SNOW

Sounds familiar.

"He was a good man," he began . . . but as soon as he had said the words he knew that they were wrong. "No. He was a great man. A maester of the Citadel, chained and sworn, and Sworn Brother of the Night's Watch, ever faithful. When he was born they named him for a hero who had died too young, but though he lived a long long time, his own life was no less heroic. No man was wiser, or gentler, or kinder. At the Wall, a dozen lords commander came and went during his years of service, but he was always there to counsel them. He counseled kings as well. He could have been a king himself, but when they offered him the crown he told them they should give it to his younger brother. How many men would do that?" Sam felt the tears welling in his eyes, and knew he could not go on much longer. "He was the blood of the dragon, but now his fire has gone out. He was Aemon Targaryen. And now his watch is ended." - Samwell IV, AFFC

+.+.+

Little Aemon Steelsong (he has a song!) with the royal blood will be passed off as a bastard.

Thank you, @sherlokiness!

"Maester is not a name. You could call him Aemon, though."

Gilly thought about that. "Dalla brought him forth during battle, as the swords sang all around her. That should be his name. Aemon Battleborn. Aemon Steelsong." - Samwell IV, AFFC

"I do," said Sam, "but I could lie in a letter. I'm better with a quill in hand. I had a . . . a thought. When things are more settled here, I thought maybe the best thing for Gilly . . . I thought I might send her to Horn Hill. To my mother and sisters and my . . . my f-f-father. If Gilly were to say the babe was m-mine . . ." He was blushing again. "My mother would want him, I know. She would find some place for Gilly, some kind of service, it wouldn't be as hard as serving Craster. And Lord R-Randyll, he . . . he would never say so, but he might be pleased to believe I got a bastard on some wildling girl. At least it would prove I was man enough to lie with a woman and father a child. He told me once that I was sure to die a maiden, that no woman would ever . . . you know . . . Jon, if I did this, wrote this lie . . . would that be a good thing? The life the boy would have . . ."

"Growing up a bastard in his grandfather's castle?" Jon shrugged. "That depends in great part on your father, and what sort of boy this is. If he takes after you . . ." - Samwell IV, ASOS

+.+.+

AHOY MATEY! ARYA STARK SAILS THE OCEAN BLUE

Did Princess Nymeria do anything other than sail on ships? It's hard to tell.

There were two seats on the dais, near twin to one another, save that one had the Martell spear inlaid in gold upon its back, whilst the other bore the blazing Rhoynish sun that had flown from the masts of Nymeria's ships when first they came to Dorne. - The Captain of the Guards, AFFC

He rolled off of her to sprawl staring at the ceiling. A great crack ran across it, from one wall to the other. He had not noticed that before, no more than he had noticed the picture on the tapestry, a scene of Nymeria and her ten thousand ships. - The Soiled Knight, AFFC

She leaned her back against a fluted pillar and wondered if her brother was looking at the same stars tonight, wherever he might be. Do you see the white one, Quentyn? That is Nymeria's star, burning bright, and that milky band behind her, those are ten thousand ships. She burned as bright as any man, and so shall I. - The Queenmaker, AFFC

We are in part, Your Grace. Nymeria's blood is in me, along with that of Mors Martell, the Dornish lord she married. On the day they wed, Nymeria fired her ships, so her people would understand that there could be no going back. Most were glad to see those flames, for their voyagings had been long and terrible before they came to Dorne, and many and more had been lost to storm, disease, and slavery. - The Queenmaker, AFFC

Arianne would have given much and more for a copy of Ten Thousand Ships or The Loves of Queen Nymeria, anything to occupy her thoughts and let her escape her tower for an hour or two, but such amusements were denied her. - The Princess in the Tower, AFFC

+.+.+

We could be like Nymeria, and sail beyond the Sunset Sea.

Lord Gylbert began to speak. He told of a wondrous land beyond the Sunset Sea, a land without winter or want, where death had no dominion. "Make me your king, and I shall lead you there," he cried. "We will build ten thousand ships as Nymeria once did and take sail with all our people to the land beyond the sunset. There every man shall be a king and every wife a queen." - The Drowned Man, AFFC

+.+.+

The ship has a name.

"Just so. Your father was oarmaster on a galley. When your mother died, he took you off to sea with him. Then he died as well, and his captain had no use for you, so he put you off the ship in Braavos. And what was the name of the ship?"

"Nymeria," she said at once. - Arya II, AFC

+.+.+

Arya dreams of home while on a ship.

His father was shouting orders. Sailors scrambled up and down the three tall masts and moved along the rigging, reefing the heavy purple sails. Below, oarsmen heaved and strained over two great banks of oars. The decks tilted, creaking, as the galleas Titan's Daughter heeled to starboard and began to come about.

The star of home. Arya stood at the prow, one hand resting on the gilded figurehead, a maiden with a bowl of fruit. For half a heartbeat she let herself pretend that it was her home ahead. - Arya I, AFFC

+.+.+

Like any other person who seeks adventure.

Arya never seemed to find the places she set out to reach. - Arya I, AFFC

+.+.+

Arya prefers the boat.

She had crossed the narrow sea to get here, but if the captain had asked she would have told him she wanted to stay aboard the Titan's Daughter. Salty was too small to man an oar, she knew that now, but she could learn to splice ropes and reef the sails and steer a course across the great salt seas. Denyo had taken her up to the crow's nest once, and she hadn't been afraid at all, though the deck had seemed a tiny thing below her. I can do sums too, and keep a cabin neat. - Arya I, AFFC

+.+.+

Arya likes the sailors and harbors best of all.

Only Braavosi were permitted use of the Purple Harbor, from the Drowned Town and the Sealord's Palace; ships from her sister cities and the rest of the wide world had to use the Ragman's Harbor, a poorer, rougher, dirtier port than the Purple. It was noisier as well, as sailors and traders from half a hundred lands crowded its wharves and alleys, mingling with those who served and preyed on them. Cat liked it best of any place in Braavos. She liked the noise and the strange smells, and seeing what ships had come in on the evening tide and what ships had departed. She liked the sailors too; the boisterous Tyroshi with their booming voices and dyed whiskers; the fair-haired Lyseni, always trying to niggle down her prices; the squat, hairy sailors from the Port of Ibben, growling curses in low, raspy voices. Her favorites were the Summer Islanders, with their skins as smooth and dark as teak. They wore feathered cloaks of red and green and yellow, and the tall masts and white sails of their swan ships were magnificent. - Cat of the Canals, AFFC

+.+.+

No matter where she goes, Arya always comes back to the harbor.

Some days she rolled her barrow past the towers of the mighty to offer baked clams to the guardsmen at their gates. Once she cried her catch on the steps of the Palace of Truth

[...]

Customs officers from the Chequy Port would buy from her, and paddlers from the Drowned Town

[...]

One time, when Brea took to her bed with her moon blood, Cat had pushed her barrow to the Purple Harbor

[...]

Other days she followed the sweetwater river to the Moon Pool.

[...]

But she always returned to the Ragman's Harbor. – Cat of the Canals, AFFC

+.+.+

A young man hurts his hand, and has to become an oarsmen. I don't want to get into it, so you'll have to trust me that the Arya is strong on this one.

"You come work with me, Cat," urged Tagganaro as he was sucking mussels from their shells. He had been looking for a new partner ever since the Drunken Daughter put her knife through Little Narbo's hand. "I give you more than Brusco, and you would not smell like fish."

"Casso likes the way I smell," she said. The King of Seals barked, as if to agree. "Is Narbo's hand no better?"

"Three fingers do not bend," complained Tagganaro, between mussels. "What good is a cutpurse who cannot use his fingers? Narbo was good at picking pockets, not so good at picking whores."

"Merry says the same." Cat was sad. She liked Little Narbo, even if he was a thief. "What will he do?"

"Pull an oar, he says. Two fingers are enough for that, he thinks, and the Sealord's always looking for more oarsmen. I tell him, 'Narbo, no. That sea is colder than a maiden and crueler than a whore. Better you should cut off the hand, and beg.' Casso knows I am right. Don't you, Casso?"

The seal barked, and Cat had to smile. She tossed another cockle his way before she went off on her own. - Cat of the Canals, AFFC

+.+.+

BRAN THE BROKEN, KING OF WESTEROS

I bet they trade places.

"A letter to King Tommen?"

"At Winterfell Tommen fought my brother Bran with wooden swords. He wore so much padding he looked like a stuffed goose. Bran knocked him to the ground." Jon went to the window. "Yet Bran's dead, and pudgy pink-faced Tommen is sitting on the Iron Throne, with a crown nestled amongst his golden curls." - Samwell I, AFFC

+.+.+

The five year gab is abandoned, and the author immediately produces new history of a 10-year-old Stark chosen to rule.

"My lord, when I was looking through the annals I came on another boy commander. Four hundred years before the Conquest. Osric Stark was ten when he was chosen, but he served for sixty years. That's four, my lord. You're not even close to being the youngest ever chosen. You're fifth youngest, so far." - Samwell I, AFFC

+.+.+

He meant to call a council.

Rhaegar had put his hand on Jaime's shoulder. "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. We shall talk when I return." - Jaime I, AFFC

+.+.+

A man who sounds a bit like Bran tries to win an election.

Thank you, @decadelongsummer!

The Farwynds there were even queerer than the rest. Some said they were skinchangers, unholy creatures who could take on the forms of sea lions, walruses, even spotted whales, the wolves of the wild sea.

+.+.+

Many monarchs are implicated, so we'll put it everywhere.

(Three-eyed?) Crows are dining on kings.

+.+.+

Jaime Lannister slays kings, and makes kings.

"They belonged to Criston Cole, who served the first Viserys and the second Aegon." Jaime closed the White Book. "They called him Kingmaker." - Jaime II, AFFC

The man looked over at the woman. "The things I do for love," he said with loathing. He gave Bran a shove.

Screaming, Bran went backward out the window into empty air. There was nothing to grab on to. The courtyard rushed up to meet him. - Bran II, AGOT

+.+.+

Crowns switched to bells, then passed to a cripple.

Jaehaerys and his queen slept there during their journeys, it is said. For a time the inn was known as the Two Crowns in their honor, until one innkeep built a bell tower, and changed it to the Bellringer Inn. Later it passed to a crippled knight named Long Jon Heddle, who took up ironworking when he grew too old to fight. - Brienne VII, AFFC

+.+.+

HIGH SEPTON RICKON?

An eight-year-old boy is selected as High Septon.

"After that one died, an eight-year-old boy was elevated, once more at King Baelor's urging. The boy worked miracles, His Grace declared, though even his little healing hands could not save Baelor during his final fast."

Lady Merryweather gave a laugh. "Eight years old? Perhaps my son could be High Septon. He is almost seven." - Cersei VI, AFFC

+.+.+

Any number of boys.

Cersei did not doubt that there were any number of boys who would do more honor to the crystal crown than the wretch on whom the Most Devout had chosen to bestow it. - Cersei VI, AFFC

+.+.+

Might not have to look too hard.

Are you a priest or a greengrocer? "And what might I do to make it . . . riper?" If he dares mention gold, I will deal with this one as I did the last and find a pious eight-year-old to wear the crystal crown. - Cersei VI, AFFC

+.+.+

PICK YOUR POISON: THE TWINS MEET THEIR END IN THE BOWELS OF CASTERLY ROCK . . . OR KING'S LANDING

You're going to need the original theory to make better sense of this.

If you want to read the theory in its entirety (including the new evidence below), click on the link. I strongly suggest this option.

If you're familiar with the theory and only want the AFFC additions, keep reading.

To summarize:

Jaime and Cersei will intentionally drink poison as a castle crumbles above them.

The valonqar prophecy.

The old woman was not done with her, however. "Gold shall be their crowns and gold their shrouds," she said. "And when your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

Cersei wakes from her valonqar nightmare choking in the same manner as Joffrey. . . when he drank poison.

The valonqar shall wrap his hands about your throat, the queen heard, but the voice did not belong to the old woman. The hands emerged from the mists of her dream and coiled around her neck; thick hands, and strong. Above them floated his face, leering down at her with his mismatched eyes. No, the queen tried to cry out, but the dwarf's fingers dug deep into her neck, choking off her protests. She kicked and screamed to no avail. Before long she was making the same sound her son had made, the terrible thin sucking sound that marked Joff's last breath on earth. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

Like what?

Father found no better man. Instead he gave me Robert, and Maggy's curse bloomed like some poisonous flower. - Cersei V, AFFC

He touched one of the crystals lightly with the tip of his little finger. Such a small thing to hold the power of life and death. It was made from a certain plant that grew only on the islands of the Jade Sea, half a world away.

[...]

Cressen no longer recalled the name the Asshai'i gave the leaf, or the Lysene poisoners the crystal. In the Citadel, it was simply called the strangler. - Prologue, ACOK

+.+.+

The twins are dry, and need some wine.

It's ill luck not to eat the pie," he scolded as he filled his mouth with hot spiced pigeon. "See, it's good." Spitting out flakes of crust, he coughed and helped himself to another fistful. "Dry, though. Needs washing down." Joff took a swallow of wine and coughed again, more violently.

[...]

The boy's only thirteen. Joffrey was making a dry clacking noise, trying to speak. - Tyrion VIII, ASOS

The little queen is making excuses for her brother. Cersei's mouth was dry. I need a cup of Arbor gold. - Cersei VII, AFFC

"I was just . . . remembering." Her throat was dry. "You are a good friend, Taena. I have not had a true friend in . . ." - Cersei VII, AFFC

"It was. I know it was." Cersei shuddered. "My throat is raw. Be a sweet and pour me some wine." - Cersei IX, AFFC

So passed the longest night that Cersei Lannister had ever known, save for the night of Joffrey's wedding. Her throat was so raw from shouting that she could hardly swallow. - Cersei X, AFFC

"I've sent him wine."

"Wine?" Brienne was lost. "Robb? Or . . . Theon Greyjoy?"

"The Kingslayer." The ploy had served her well with Cleos Frey. I hope you're thirsty, Jaime. I hope your throat is dry and tight. "I would like you to come with me." - Catelyn VII, ACOK

+.+.+

Ser Ilyn keeps mocking Jaime.

The boy's only thirteen. Joffrey was making a dry clacking noise, trying to speak. - Tyrion VIII, ASOS

Ser Ilyn opened his mouth and made a clacking sound. A laugh, Jaime realized. Something twisted in his gut. - Jaime III, AFFC

The pockmarks on Ser Ilyn's face were black holes in the torchlight, as dark as Jaime's soul. He made that clacking sound.

He is laughing at me, realized Jaime Lannister. - Jaime IV, AFFC

He made that clacking sound that might have been a laugh and drew his sword up Jaime's throat till the point came to rest between his lips. Only then did he step back and sheathe his steel. - Jaime V, AFFC

"If I keep at this for another year, I may be as good as Peck," Jaime declared, and Ser Ilyn made that clacking sound that meant he was amused. "Come, let's drink some more of Hoster Tully's good red wine." - Jaime VII, AFFC

+.+.+

Cersei's feeling tight.

It is blood I need, not water. Tyrion's blood, the blood of the valonqar. The torches spun around her. Cersei closed her eyes, and saw the dwarf grinning at her. No, she thought, no, I was almost rid of you. But his fingers had closed around her neck, and she could feel them beginning to tighten. - Cersei I, AFFC

Seated on her gold-and-crimson high seat beneath the Iron Throne, Cersei could feel a growing tightness in her neck. - Cersei VII, AFFC

+.+.+

Cersei's going to have Jaime kill the younger and more beautiful queen.

Cersei is the younger and more beautiful queen. (Next section)

Anger flashed across the child's face. "If she tries I will have my brother kill her." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

She did. I knew it all along, she thought. Even in the tent. "If she tries I will have my brother kill her." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

Jaime Lannister, The Kinslayer.

He never said he meant to kill our father. If he had, I would have stopped him. Then I would be the kinslayer, not him. - Jaime I, AFFC

The height of folly was reached when a plump fool came capering out in gold-painted tin with a cloth lion's head, and chased a dwarf around the tables, whacking him over the head with a bladder. Finally King Renly demanded to know why he was beating his brother. "Why, Your Grace, I'm the Kinslayer," the fool said.

"It's Kingslayer, fool of a fool," Renly said, and the hall rang with laughter. - Catelyn II, ACOK

+.+.+

A dragon's coming for the twins.

"The puppet lions grow greedy and arrogant as this treasonous tale proceeds, until they begin to devour their own subjects. When the noble stag makes objection, the lions devour him as well, and roar that it is their right as the mightiest of beasts."

"And is that the end of it?" Cersei asked, amused. Looked at in the right light, it could be seen as a salutary lesson.

"No, Your Grace. At the end a dragon hatches from an egg and devours all of the lions." The ending took the puppet show from simple insolence to treason. "Witless fools. Only cretins would hazard their heads upon a wooden dragon." - Cersei V, AFFC

+.+.+

But where will it happen: King's Landing or Casterly Rock?

King's Landing

Cersei's asking for a storm to rock the Red Keep.

"No one wants rain," said Cersei. For herself, she wanted sleet and ice, howling winds, thunder to shake the very stones of the Red Keep. She wanted a storm to match her rage. - Cersei III, AFFC

"Even if Tyrion were still hiding in the castle, he won't be in the Tower of the Hand. We've reduced it to a shell."

"Would that we could do the same to the rest of this foul castle," said Cersei. - Cersei III, AFFC

+.+.+

God forbid dragonfire enters into the equation.

Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous." – Cersei III, AFFC

+.+.+

Cersei's front row seat.

The Tower of the Hand gave out a sudden groan, so loud that all the conversation stopped abruptly. Stone cracked and split, and part of the upper battlements fell away and landed with a crash that shook the hill, sending up a cloud of dust and smoke. As fresh air rushed in through the broken masonry, the fire surged upward. Green flames leapt into the sky and whirled around each other. Tommen shied away, till Margaery took his hand and said, "Look, the flames are dancing. Just as we did, my love."

"They are." His voice was filled with wonder. "Mother, look, they're dancing." - Cersei III, AFFC

+.+.+

Who's going to die beneath the Red Keep?

Unless my brother murdered Varys too, and left his corpse to rot beneath the castle. Down there, it might be years before his bones were found. - Jaime I, AFFC

Tyrion hung back a moment. Varys had already betrayed him once. Who knew what game the eunuch was playing? And what better place to murder a man than down in the darkness, in a place that no one knew existed? His body might never be found. - Tyrion XI, ASOS

+.+.+

A dragon has been waiting for Jaime beneath the Red Keep.

He remembered the sullen orange glow of the coals in the iron dragon's mouth. The brazier warmed a chamber at the bottom of a shaft where half a dozen tunnels met. On the floor he'd found a scuffed mosaic of the three-headed dragon of House Targaryen done in tiles of black and red. I know you, Kingslayer, the beast seemed to be saying. I have been here all the time, waiting for you to come to me. And it seemed to Jaime that he knew that voice, the iron tones that had once belonged to Rhaegar, Prince of Dragonstone. - Jaime I, AFFC

+.+.+

Jaime's going to have some problems if he's ever down there again.

Jaime had led a dozen guards below, with torches and ropes and lanterns. For hours they had groped through twisting passages, narrow crawl spaces, hidden doors, secret steps, and shafts that plunged down into utter blackness. Seldom had he felt so utterly a cripple. A man takes much for granted when he has two hands. Ladders, for an instance. Even crawling did not come easy; not for nought do they speak of hands and knees. Nor could he hold a torch and climb, as others could. - Jaime I, AFFC

+.+.+

Casterly Rock

Tywin's under the Rock. Is he asking for company?

Her brother was growing his beard again as well. The stubble covered his jaw and cheeks, and gave his face a rough, uncouth look. He might at least have waited till Father's bones were interred beneath the Rock. - Cersei II, AFFC

There were watery caverns deep below Casterly Rock, but this one was strange to him. "What place is this?"

"Your place." The voice echoed; it was a hundred voices, a thousand, the voices of all the Lannisters since Lann the Clever, who'd lived at the dawn of days. But most of all it was his father's voice, and beside Lord Tywin stood his sister, pale and beautiful, a torch burning in her hand. - Jaime VI, ASOS

+.+.+

Cersei's place.

Her uncle was unmoved. "If you are resolved against another marriage, I will not force it on you. As to the other, though . . . you are the Lady of Casterly Rock now. Your place is there." - Cersei II, AFFC

+.+.+

Rolling thunder echoed off the Rock.

She was ten when she finally saw her prince in the flesh, at the tourney her lord father had thrown to welcome King Aerys to the west. Viewing stands had been raised beneath the walls of Lannisport, and the cheers of the smallfolk had echoed off Casterly Rock like rolling thunder. - Cersei V, AFFC

+.+.+

Jaime practically asks for it.

Harrenhal had seen more horror in its three hundred years than Casterly Rock had witnessed in three thousand. - Jaime III, AFFC

+.+.+

Makes for a big target.

She's known no home but Harrenhal, he reflected. Every castle in the realm will seem small to her, except the Rock.

Josmyn Peckleton was saying the same thing. "You must not judge by Harrenhal. Black Harren built too big." - Jaime IV, AFFC

+.+.+

What will the queen do?

"This city is a cesspit. For half a groat I would move the court to Lannisport and rule the realm from Casterly Rock."

"That would be an even greater folly than burning the Tower of the Hand. So long as Tommen sits the Iron Throne, the realm sees him as the true king. Hide him under the Rock and he becomes just another claimant to the throne, no different than Stannis."

"I am aware of that," the queen said sharply. "I said that I wanted to move the court to Lannisport, not that I would. Were you always this slow, or did losing a hand make you stupid?" - Cersei's III, AFFC

+.+.+

YOUNGER AND MORE BEAUTIFUL CERSEI

Thank you for the theory, @agentrouka-blog!

The prophecy.

"I will be queen, though?" asked the younger her.

"Aye." Malice gleamed in Maggy's yellow eyes. "Queen you shall be . . . until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down and take all that you hold dear." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

One more time.

The younger her.

"I will be queen, though?" asked the younger her. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

While dreaming of her encounter with Maggy the Frog, Cersei frequently switches to third-person narration, giving the impression the girl is someone else.

She dreamt an old dream, of three girls in brown cloaks, a wattled crone, and a tent that smelled of death.

[...]

Cersei watched the girls huddling, whispering to one another. Go back, she tried to tell them. Turn away. There is nothing here for you. But though she moved her mouth, no words came out.

[...]

Lord Tywin's daughter was the first through the flap, with Melara close behind her.

[...]

Leave her be, the queen wanted to cry out. You little fools, never wake a sleeping sorceress. Without a tongue, she could only watch as the girl threw off her cloak, kicked the witch's bed, and said, "Wake up, we want our futures told."

[...]

The girl with the golden curls put her hands upon her hips. "Give us our foretelling, or I'll go to my lord father and have you whipped for insolence."

[...]

Beneath her golden curls, the girl's face wrinkled up in puzzlement.

[...]

Anger flashed across the child's face. "If she tries I will have my brother kill her." Even then she would not stop, willful child as she was.

[...]

"What is a valonqar? Some monster?" The golden girl did not like that foretelling. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

One more time.

"Begone," she told the girls, in a croaking whisper.

"We came for a foretelling," young Cersei told her. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

Are there two queens present?

"Here," she whispered, "give it here." When Cersei offered her hand, she sucked away the blood with gums as soft as a newborn babe's. The queen could still remember how queer and cold her mouth had been.

"Three questions may you ask," the crone said, once she'd had her drink. "You will not like my answers. Ask, or begone with you."

Go, the dreaming queen thought, hold your tongue, and flee. But the girl did not have sense enough to be afraid. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

In the middle of the dream, we're told Maggy the Frog was young(er) and (more) beautiful when she arrived at Lannisport, but age and evil had left their marks on her.

Sounds familiar.

The old woman's eyes were yellow, and crusted all about with something vile. In Lannisport it was said that she had been young and beautiful when her husband had brought her back from the east with a load of spices, but age and evil had left their marks on her. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

"You are being foolish. I am only here to help you."

"To help me to my grave. I asked for you to leave. Will you make me call my gaolers and have you dragged away, you vile, scheming, evil bitch?"

Cersei gathered up her skirts and dignity. - Cersei X, AFFC

+.+.+

In a later chapter, Taena Merryweather reassures Cersei by telling her she was young(er) and (more) beautiful than the hateful Maggy.

Taena took her hand and stroked it. "This was a hateful woman, old and sick and ugly. You were young and beautiful, full of life and pride. She lived in Lannisport, you said, so she would have known of the dwarf and how he killed your lady mother. This creature dared not strike you, because of who you were, so she sought to wound you with her viper's tongue." - Cersei IX, AFFC

+.+.+

Immediately after waking from her dream, Cersei calls on old Pycelle. Younger Pycelle used to be a magnificent man, but the cells and razor ruined him.

Sounds familiar.

Pycelle had been old as far back as Cersei could remember, but there was a time when he had also been magnificent: richly clad, dignified, exquisitely courteous. His immense white beard had given him an air of wisdom. Tyrion had shaved his beard off, though, and what had grown back was pitiful, a few patchy tufts of thin, brittle hair that did little to hide the loose pink flesh beneath his sagging chin. This is no man, she thought, only the ruins of one. The black cells robbed him of whatever strength he had. That, and the Imp's razor.

"How old are you?" Cersei asked, abruptly.

"Four-and-eighty, if it please Your Grace."

"A younger man would please me more." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

She screamed and kicked and howled until her throat was raw, at the door and at the window. No one shouted back, nor came to rescue her. The cell began to darken. It was growing cold as well. Cersei began to shiver. How can they leave me like this, without so much as a fire? I am their queen. - Cersei X, AFFC

They brought lye soap, a basin of warm water, a pair of shears, and a long straightrazor. The sight of the steel sent a shiver through her. They mean to shave me. A little more humiliation, a raisin for my porridge. She would not give them the pleasure of hearing her beg. I am Cersei of House Lannister, a lion of the Rock, the rightful queen of these Seven Kingdoms, trueborn daughter of Tywin Lannister. And hair grows back. - Cersei II, ADWD

+.+.+

Another prophecy.

Cersei and Jaime will intentionally drink poison.

+.+.+

Cersei says she'll have her brother kill the younger and more beautiful queen. In other words, Cersei will have Jaime kill Cersei.

Anger flashed across the child's face. "If she tries I will have my brother kill her." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

She did. I knew it all along, she thought. Even in the tent. "If she tries I will have my brother kill her." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

+.+.+

Cersei wakes from her valonqar nightmare choking in the same manner as Joffrey. . . when he drank poison.

+.+.+

Cersei fears the prophecy because Maggy foretold Melara's death, yet it was Cersei who chose to kill Melara that evening. Cersei's actions are making the prophecy come true.

Cersei did not want to hear that. "This maegi made certain prophecies. I laughed at them at first, but . . . she foretold the death of one of my bedmaids. At the time she made the prophecy, the girl was one-and-ten, healthy as a little horse and safe within the Rock. Yet she soon fell down a well and drowned." Melara had begged her never to speak of the things they heard that night in the maegi's tent. If we never talk about it we'll soon forget, and then it will be just a bad dream we had, Melara had said. Bad dreams never come true. The both of them had been so young, that had sounded almost wise. - Cersei VIII, AFFC

A young girl sat beneath a fountain, drenched in spray, and stared at her with Melara Hetherspoon's accusing eyes. - Cersei II, ADWD

+.+.+

Cersei is destroying herself.

"You would not believe half of what is happening in King's Landing, sweetling. Cersei stumbles from one idiocy to the next, helped along by her council of the deaf, the dim, and the blind. I always anticipated that she would beggar the realm and destroy herself, but I never expected she would do it quite so fast. It is quite vexing. I had hoped to have four or five quiet years to plant some seeds and allow some fruits to ripen, but now . . . it is a good thing that I thrive on chaos. - Alayne II, AFFC

+.+.+

The beginning of the end.

In her final chapter, Cersei is imprisoned, but not before claiming the younger and more beautiful queen is finished.

Maggy the Frog should have been in motley too, for all she knew about the morrow. Cersei prayed the old fraud was screaming down in hell. The younger queen whose coming she'd foretold was finished, and if that prophecy could fail, so could the rest. No golden shrouds, no valonqar, I am free of your croaking malice at last. - Cersei X, AFFC

+.+.+

AFFC: Part II

Touch me.

Dark Daenerys Highlights & Laughs

Let's Dance: Stark vs. Targ

A Rat in a Maze 🐀🔪

The Usurper's Knife

Storm x Storm 🦑🖤🐉

Squid Game

+.+.+

#operation stumpy re-read #foreshadowing smorgasbord #affc summary #sansa stark #jon snow #bran stark #ship girl #rickon stark #house lannister #asoiaf

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aegor-bamfsteel · 3 years ago

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Hi there! First of all, I loved your nickname and blog description! Very creative! I just stumbled across a very nice post about Bloodraven and I would like to ask: What do you belive it's Bloodraven's agenda? We know he's not a good person and he has no good intentions with Bran. Do you also belive Bran will end up killing him somehow? I fear Bloodraven will try to harm Bran.

Hi there! Thank you for the compliments about my blog handle and description. It’s always good to know when people appreciate my silly sense of humor :)

(Post being referenced is here.)

I took a long time in answering this because not only am I not great at creating my own theories, I‘m not exactly familiar with all of the theories regarding Bl00draven and where he’s going (although thanks to this ask, I did have the dubious honor of watching Alt+ShiftX’s videos and this video by InsideGeek). From what I can tell from my cursory research, the prevailing view of BR is an “antihero” who manipulates events from behind the scene for what he believes is “the greater good” for the realm; this of course is completely opposite my own view of him an immoral character (we’ve seen what kind of characters murder children, murder surrendering hostages, burn down 1/4 of their city in a humanitarian crisis, neglect vassals in need, deny safe passage and guest right, who kinslay.…for what they believe is right or even just revenge. They are not heroes. They are villains whose plans inevitably fail) who isn’t nearly as intelligent or above emotional manipulation as thought, and prefers to rule visibly than behind the scenes. Some of the theorists have to misinterpret the details to depict him as a hero (attributing Aegor’s encouragement to rebel as rejection by Shiera, not even mentioning Aemon/Naerys, or that Daemon’s sons were children, squishing all the rebellions together to argue killing Aenys was justified…I fast forwarded through most of the rest of the BR biography). From a fan perspective, I can understand—with several GFM considering him a hero or at least a necessary mentor for Bran and Jon—your frustration; that thematic or character parallels seem to get thrown out the window when people discuss BR. I don’t think BR is working to protect the realm considering a deep connection with said realm (although Varys’ connection with the realm is obviously shallow) has never been established (in fact his actions have hurt the realm) nor with its rulers. There’s also GRRM showing that the Blackfyres are not bad people and are even capable of good; for people to claim that BR “protected the realm from the Blackfyre rebels” (thanks AltShift 🙄), it has to be established that the Blackfyre rule would be demonstrably worse than BR’s regime, which was so terrible it turned previous Red supporters (ex: Lord Smallwood) against him. As it is, it’s portrayed as two rival factions of a civil war, like Stannis vs the Lannisters at Blackwater, or Robb Stark vs the Lannisters; Blackfyres are hardly an inhuman omnicidal threat like the Others.

All right, I’ve ranted long enough about what I don’t think BR’s plan is (to train the next greenseer to save the world from the Others). Once again, I’m not the best at speculating, so apologies if this is hard to follow: The immediate goal seems to be to get Bran to lose his connection with his human body/humanity primarily by teaching him how to warg birds. “The strongest trees are rooted in the dark places of the earth. Darkness will be your cloak, your shield, your mother's milk. Darkness will make you strong.” essentially to replace the ghosts of his family with the “darkness” of the weirwood roots (which, as I’ve explained in another meta, are where the blood from human sacrifice enters the tree and allows greenseers to see through them.) This is a good parallel to Arya training to lose her identity and become “No One” as a Faceless Assassin, or even Sansa having to become Alayne Stone for Petyr Baelish.

Even more speculation under the cut.

We know that despite his short time in the cave, Bran is losing track of time and what is reality:

You have to wake, he would tell himself, you have to wake right now, or you'll go dreaming into death. Once or twice he pinched his arm with his fingers, really hard, but the only thing that did was make his arm hurt. In the beginning he had tried to count the days by making note of when he woke and slept, but down here sleeping and waking had a way of melting into one another. Dreams became lessons, lessons became dreams, things happened all at once or not at all. Had he done that or only dreamed it? —Bran III, ADWD

Dreaming into death through too much warging? Sounds a little like Bran is living Haggon’s warning to Varamyr:

Men were not meant to leave the earth. Spend too much time in the clouds and you never want to come back down again. I know skinchangers who've tried hawks, owls, ravens. Even in their own skins, they sit moony, staring up at the bloody blue. —ADWD Prologue

Alright, so warging into birds isn’t safe. Unlike Varamyr’s shadowcat and snow bear, who went insane when Varamyr bent them to his will, birds will turn the warging against the skinchanger and make them insane, wanting to leave their human flesh behind. And what does BR promise Bran? To teach him to fly. The first thing Bran wargs in that cave? A raven.

Then there’s this promise about how powerful Bran will get:

Nor will your sight be limited to your godswood. The singers carved eyes into their heart trees to awaken them, and those are the first eyes a new greenseer learns to use … but in time you will see well beyond the trees themselves."

"When?" Bran wanted to know.

"In a year, or three, or ten. That I have not glimpsed. It will come in time, I promise you. But I am tired now, and the trees are calling me...."

Hardly sounds like time is of the essence for Bran to learn this, if BR is allegedly so concerned about an imminent war with the Others. It also sounds like seeing beyond the trees isn’t something BR can do, since he’s still connected to them. And then he immediately changes the subject and stops teaching, claiming he’s tired (a dude who doesn’t seem to eat or sleep). That’s so suspicious it‘s practically a cliche, especially compared with Moqorro to Victarion “I have seen the glory that awaits you” in the same book.

Then there’s this wholesome decor:

"Bones," said Bran. "It's bones." The floor of the passage was littered with the bones of birds and beasts. But there were other bones as well, big ones that must have come from giants and small ones that could have been from children. On either side of them, in niches carved from the stone, skulls looked down on them. Bran saw a bear skull and a wolf skull, half a dozen human skulls and near as many giants. All the rest were small, queerly formed. Children of the forest. The roots had grown in and around and through them, every one. A few had ravens perched atop them, watching them pass with bright black eyes. —Bran II, ADWD

A passage lined with human bones? Just a misunderstood hero

There’s a ward on the cave to prevent dead things from coming in, so everyone was alive when they entered. It seems that at least some of those skulls belonged to greenseers whose flesh has been fully eaten by the weirwood. You’d think that their consciousness would have gone into the trees. But then there’s the ravens atop them, ravens with wargs inside them:

"Someone else was in the raven," he told Lord Brynden, once he had returned to his own skin. "Some girl. I felt her."

"A woman, of those who sing the song of earth," his teacher said. "Long dead, yet a part of her remains, just as a part of you would remain in Summer if your boy's flesh were to die upon the morrow. A shadow on the soul. She will not harm you."

"Do all the birds have singers in them?"

"All," Lord Brynden said. "It was the singers who taught the First Men to send messages by raven … but in those days, the birds would speak the words...”

I don’t have to tell you that any normal raven that a “long dead” child of the forest warged into probably would’ve also been dead, but she’s still there. So congratulations, there’s another form of quasi-immortality at a price that doesn’t involve the trees. If I had to guess, that’s probably what BR meant by seeing beyond the trees: Being trapped in a raven’s body forever after your human body has rotted away (because you got so addicted to warging you neglected your human life). Okay, so BR wants Bran to lose his connection to humanity. What does he gain out of this?

Well, he gets…Bran’s body to warg into. All of the benefits of warging a human (aside from not being able to walk, although the greenseeing and skinchanging is still there), he can leave the cave and influence events in a second life as Bran Stark, and Bran won’t even put up a fight like Thistle did Varamyr because he’s too occupied as a bird. BR actually seldom manipulated events behind the scenes when he was in power; he made sure that he was at the top of Weeping Ridge, raining down arrows on Daemon Blackfyre and his 12 year old sons; he was Aerys’ Hand of the King and essentially ruled the realm with an authoritarian police state while Aerys was preoccupied by dragon prophecy (seems like this could be a metaphor for BR taking King Bran’s skin and exerting power through him); he improbably survived Maekar’s reign as Hand as well. He purposely created an air of fear and mystery around him to keep his subjects in line, making gory displays out of those who spoke against him. The one time it‘s implied he worked behind the scenes was at Whitewalls, where he glamored himself to look like the ordinary hedge knight Maynard Plumm. So exercising lots of brutal power over the realm, even if he has to wear someone else’s skin, isn’t exactly out of character.

Then there’s Bran warging Hodor, who he promises he won’t hurt but he just wants to be strong for awhile…imagine if the tables were turned somehow and he was the one warged (We’ve never seen what it feels like from that side). And he’d be losing his connection to Summer as well, since Varamyr tears Haggon’s second life from him, and later Summer forces Varamyr as One Eye to make his pack submit; once you submit the warg to your will, you get his animals too. This could be why Ghost as Jon can no longer sense one of the direwolves (“Four remained…and one the white wolf could no longer sense” when there are two dead siblings he knows of, and he knows Nymeria is OK. Something happened to Rickon or Bran’s warg connection that made Ghost no longer recognize the wolf as his sibling).

To summarize this speculation: BR wants to warg into Bran’s body to get back into power, and is using teaching him to warg the ravens and greensee to make him lose his connection to his humanity in order to make this easier. Obviously this is already taking a mental toll on Bran. Now for your other question:

Do you believe Bran will end up killing him somehow? Definitely. I’m not sure of the details (then again, I’m not sure of anything, even what I just wrote) but thematically it makes sense. Sansa will end up killing Petyr Baelish—probably after a trial where his crimes are publicly known—the “evil mentor” who sought to groom her to take power for himself. Arya is definitely going back to Westeros, reclaiming her identity, and it’s possible she destroys the House of Black and White (she already disagrees with their warped sense of “justice”). Bran also has an “evil mentor” who wants to use him for potentially selfish reasons, so it follows that Bran turns the tables on BR (even if indirectly), resulting in his death (the punishment for deserting the Night’s Watch, as meted out by Ned, Arya, and Jon) or even a fate worse than death (living as a “shadow on the soul” of a raven subordinate to Bran?)

“He died weeping and alone when I ripped his second life from him. Varamyr had devoured his heart himself. He taught me much and more, and the last thing I learned from him was the taste of human flesh.” A grisly end for a mentor who taught him to warg. I don’t think Bran would be that vicious as to order Summer to eat him (although Summer has already eaten dead men), but BR reduced to flesh, alone without his powers, no second life waiting for him would be a karmic ending to someone who wanted to grasp far reaching power founded on blood and dehumanization. It’s even a parallel to how BR’s hated half-brother Aegor Rivers died, “defeated and alone, a broken man in an alien land” (The Lost Lord, ADWD).

But again, these are all just guesses about what could happen.

Feel free to keep asking. You’ve been warned about my slow response rate, though!

#ask #anti bloodraven #bran stark #asoiaf #asoiaf speculation #greenseer

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sailtheplains · 7 years ago

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I still feel like we’re being purposefully mislead. If Sansa and Arya were both presented as having become clever badasses but can’t even detect when Baelish is playing them--I will be profoundly disappointed.

And when Petyr suggested using Brienne against Arya, Sansa then sent Brienne away.

And Arya leaving her people-masks under her bed in a bag in plain sight and then giving the dagger to Sansa after Waif-threatening to cut her face.

It all just felt weird. I don’t like it when they do this. It creates a feeling of “false drama” when what we want--is to see them actually communicate, show some of that intelligence and maturity that they gained in their years apart.

But its difficult to tell if Sansa and Arya are both circling Petyr because of the role that Sansa plays for Petyr and the role that Sansa is playing for Arya (it began after Arya’s nasty look when Sansa confirmed that Jon had left her in charge--Sansa immediately played into it because she’s learned very deeply that people around her think she’s stupid and when they were young, Arya was no exception. Which is actually....really sad when I think about it. Sansa doesn’t care that she’s considered pretty. People have been grinding her mistakes in her face since she left Winterfell). She tells Petyr she doesn’t trust him, she tells everyone else not to trust him---but then confides about how she doesn’t understand Arya anymore and mentions that Arya would kill if she thought Sansa was betraying Jon. By this point, she knows its dangerous to give him information like that, he gave her crippled brother a dagger. She ought to know better. And what does she mean, “how did she get [the letter the Lannisters forced her to write]?” Sansa is fucking lady of Winterfell, she can go to their interim maester and start to look into it.

It’s sad, a bit. because doing this to Sansa just seems unnecessary.

Which is why I do kind of hope we’re being purposely misled instead of it just actually being that the two of them combined were still too slow and still too stupid to take on Baelish.

It would also explain Arya’s behavior when she in particular should know better than to hold on to such grudges. (The whole “pretty” conversation.) It made her sound like a selfish little kid again. I thought it was pretty pathetic considering everything she’s been through.

But since she’s a wild card that Baelish wasn’t expecting, they could be working together (exaggerating Arya’s unknown-possible crazy bit, and really showcasing Sansa’s awesome acting skills) to force Littlefinger into some kind of trap (or to trick him into attempting to manipulate Arya).

Which is what I hope is the case. Because I will be really really disappointed otherwise. Because that would kind of indicate that their role in the story is basically over, if they can’t even outplay Littlefinger. If they have to wait for Jon to get home so that he can sort it out...I will be disappointed.

Also, Night King is a fucking Olympian, am I right? Do you think that Jon will be able to connect/take control of Viserion because he came back from the dead like Dany did. But his was in ice and hers was in fire.

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xxthewolvenstormxx · 4 years ago

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Chapters: 1/15 Fandom: Game of Thrones (TV), A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jon Snow/Daenerys Targaryen, Grey Worm/Missandei, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Gilly/Samwell Tarly Characters: Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Grey Worm, Missandei, Arya Stark, Gendry Waters, Gilly (ASoIaF), Samwell Tarly, Jaime Lannister, Harry Strickland, Cersei Lannister, Shireen Baratheon, Val (ASoIaF), Margaery Tyrell, Olenna Tyrell, Dickon Tarly, Randyll Tarly, Varys (ASoIaF), Tyrion Lannister, Tycho Nestoris, Petyr Baelish, Melisandre of Asshai, Tormund Giantsbane, Brienne of Tarth, Thoros of Myr, Sandor Clegane, Beric Dondarrion, Davos Seaworth Additional Tags: Canon Era, Canon-Typical Violence, medieval politics, Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen, Canon Divergent after Battle of Bastards, Attempted Fratricide, Shireen Baratheon is alive, Female Friendship, Mean Girls Bullshit, Growth, Like Emotional and Personal, Eventual Smut, plot heavy, s8? what s8?, Margaery Tyrell is Alive, Women of Westeros, Only Women Narrators, Greenseers, Elephants, Mammoths, direwolves, Warging, all men must die, But We are Not Men Summary:

Five Queens rule Westeros. Cersei Lannister holds King's Landing in an Iron Grip, sealing its borders against the threats that seem to enclose the Capital. In the Reach, Margaery Tyrell prepares for the coming Winter, hoping the this final harvest will last the coming Winter. From Dragonstone, Daenerys Targaryen sweeps across the Crownlands, conquering and claiming territory on Dragonback. In the vast expanse of land, from the Trident to the Gift, Sansa Stark plots the downfall of those who have wronged her family. And at the Great Wall of Westeros, Shireen Baratheon faces Death itself, with nothing but a ragtag army of Bastards, Beggars, and Broken things.

But now at the Eve of Winter, the Queens of Westeros gather at Harrenhal, to decide the future of the Seven Kingdoms, and if they can unite to save their people from destruction.

All Men Must Die. But We are Not Men

Inspired by: this kickass GOT Fan Song by Karliene”

youtube

Excerpt After the CUT

Missandei works diligently to untangle the knotted mass of her braids as the men rest on the side of the road. Tyrion pacing in front of them, reviewing their strategy for their arrival at Harrenhal.

"The Tyrell's will have arrived first, no doubt," he states, repeating the same conclusion he's come to a half dozen times already. "Sansa and Margarery were long time friends, and in this matter, their interests align. Sansa needs grain and food stuffs, and Margaery needs security. And they both hate Cersei fiercely."

"We've been over this Tyrion."

"We need to come up with a strategy to ally with them against Cersei."

"I know,” she answers coldly. They've discussed this more times than she can count. Joining with the Queen of the Reach and the Queen of North was their best strategy to win the War for Westeros. Otherwise the perpetual stalemate will drive the country to ruin.

But the traditional avenues of alliances have failed them. The Queens of Westeros are all unmarried and childless. Varys claims there are no viable marriage prospects remaining in any of the great houses.

So the remaining path open to them is the leverage of mutually assured destruction during the coming winter. The Westerosi Maester confirmed what the Sages of the Dosh Khaleen had prophesied. This winter will be long and difficult. If they don't kill each other in the coming wars, starvation will.

If only the suffering of others could force men to action.

'But we are not men,' she reminds herself. And perhaps in that fact there is still hope yet.

#got fanfic #jonerys fanfic #Game of Thrones Fic #Jonerys #A Woman's Game

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yenslilac · 5 years ago

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Femininity in Game of Thrones - Sansa, Margaery and Daenerys (feat. Arya)

In Game of Thrones Sansa, Margaery and Daenerys represent a different ideas of femininity, and they operate within these ideas, how the stereotypes of their roles influence their behaviour and storyline, and how they affect each other.

[A Note: I talk a lot about the ‘ideal’ woman, or stereotypical feminine/masculine traits a lot. These don’t reflect my view, instead I tried to write this with Westerosi values in mind. Many of these points you might disagree with, that’s because they are valued by a fictional medieval society.]

Sansa represents the idea of Traditional Femininity - the ‘ideal’ woman, who is generally passive, beautiful and sweet, with an affinity for domestic duties.

Sansa likes sewing and dancing, and plays the high harp, and dreams of gallant knights. Both Arya and Catelyn Stark recognise she is very much suited to the life of a noble lady.

“Sansa was a lady at three, always so courteous and eager to please. She loved nothing so well as tales of knightly valor.”

- Catelyn VII, A Clash of Kings

The qualities of Traditional Femininity are not always negative, but it cannot be ignored that it is this example that many women have been forced into or compared against in-world and in our own reality, and I’ll discuss this effect on Arya and Brienne later.

But Sansa is praised by many for her lady-like qualities, and because of this for a lot of her life she has lived in a privileged and sheltered life. This makes it difficult for her during her time in King’s Landing as she finds it difficult to understand and adapt to her life as a hostage, because she was taught to obey her lord, who was Joffrey.

Her passiveness shows within her storyline, as she never actively pursues a goal like Margaery or Daenerys. She is promised to Joffrey by her parents, her role in Joffrey’s death was unknown to her, and her escape from King’s Landing was in the hands of Dontos Hollard and Lord Baelish. She has two brief moments with Joffrey - one which she pleads for her father’s life, but this falls under ‘woman begs for a life to be saved’ and she relies on her sweet gentleness to sway Joffrey. The second is when she is brought to see the heads of her father and other members of the Stark household in King’s Landing.

“Maybe my brother will give me your head.”

- Sansa VI, A Game of Thrones

Sansa shows that her passive gentle nature could evolve into a way that uses to advance herself. A way to use her power and influence to sway decisions and gain power by leaning into these qualities that she possesses and that people expect of her. An example of this could be Lady Macbeth, or on a more positive note, Margaery, who is up next. We actually see this again in more deliberate way, in the Vale. After Lysa’s death Sansa cries and absolves Petyr Baelish and herself of any guilt or responsibility. However, in Season 8, this is tried several more times, but ends up making her look catty and bitchy, because they did not lean into her strengths. In the end she is made Queen with the permission of brother, and we see no election creating her as Queen. As was at the start of the story, she returns to a passive role and lets others lift her up to new positions of power.

Margaery represents what could be considered the Femme Fatale - she has control and ambition, particularly regarding her own body. She is willing to push the boundaries of acceptable society, but she is also aware of the expectations of women, and leans into them, just as Sansa began to do. She plays innocent and passive while also manipulating the likes of Joffrey and Tommen with her body language.

Margaery learnt from the likes of her grandmother the power thet women have without being physically aggressive. This is important for Margaery as a noble lady, because she has to conform to society's expectations in order to succeed. She plays innocent and passive, conforming to the ideals of society.

[If you’re really interested in how she manages to manipulate people I would really recommend watching this video from Charisma On Command, which explains how she is able to get Joffrey on her side as well as other characters.]

But Margaery is also willing to push against the restraints of this persona, baiting Cersei when she knows her own power will soon outstrip the others. She wears less modest clothing as opposed to the more reserved clothing of Cersei (highlighting her youth and beauty) and meets with the poor and orphans.

Like I mentioned before, Margaery uses her position and persuasion to influence decisions. She gets both Joffrey and Tommen alone and builds their trust of her, acting innocent and gentle for Joffery, making him feel dominant and powerful, and playful for Tommen, who, a younger boy was a little in awe of a beautiful woman. She submits to the High Sparrow, avoiding the Walk of Shame, and allowing her back into the Red Keep.

But this also leads to her downfall. Her constant pushing against Cersei and manipulation leads to Cersei correctly viewing her as an active threat. Cue the Sept of Baelor explosion. But does this mean that Margaery's ambition, manipulation and pushing against society's rules are a bad thing? Not at all. These actions allowed Margaery to pursue her goals on her own terms. It was Cersei's actions that put her in a position where she was stuck - and even then I have seen many criticisms of the whole Sept of Baelor, so this can maybe be put down to D&D wanting a quick way to kill her off.

Daenerys represents the Masculine Femininity - a combination of typical masculine and feminine traits. Daenerys dresses in typically feminine clothes - long dresses with intricate embroidery, and she has long braided hair. She does not make her more masculine, and falls into the bracket with Margaery and Sansa, as they are all very feminine characters. The difference between them and Daenerys, is that Dany has many more traits typically attributed to men - she is willing to take an aggressive approach herself, usually involving her dragons. She is also much more direct in her threats -

“We will lay waste to armies, and burn cities to the ground. Turn us away and we will burn you first.”

This is unlike the other two feminine women, Margaery and Sansa, who are not so aggressive, but this does not make this a bad thing. Daenerys benefits from her drive and ambition, and her direct attitude allows her to be taken more seriously when dealing with the slave masters in Essos.

Daenerys does not uphold a persona, and lays out her cards on the table. People see her genuinely, and her compassion and sense of justice gains her friends as well as enemies. This clash of stereotypical male and female traits e.g. compassion vs. strict justice, gentleness vs. aggressiveness, creates her character, and often draws criticism from other characters. Like Sansa was considered foolish, Margaery provocative, Daenerys is persuaded to be more gentle and forgiving, which she ignores. She is told be less gentle and compassionate, when wanting to free the slaves of Yunkai, but ignores that as well. Just like Sansa and Margaery ,who began to learn to take other’s expectations as an advantage, Daenerys embraces both sides of her nature, understanding when to be merciful and when to be stern - Like a mother!

Considering that characters like Jon Snow are never criticised on screen for executing Janos Slynt, or Tyrion Lannister using wildfire on Stannis’ army, the fact that Daenerys faces negativity whenever she suggests aggressive action, such as executing one of her advisors after he killed an imprisoned Son of the Harpy, or flying to the Red Keep to confront Cersei (in Season 7, she never actually says she will burn it down), it could be concluded that Daenerys as a woman, is being unfairly leashed, while her male counterparts dole out dubious acts of justice without someone in the back saying “maybe instead, you could be nice to them!”

Arya is probably one of the most central non-feminine characters in Game of Thrones. She rejects the traditional ideals of the gender - Arya rejects the expectations placed upon her as a woman, and the restraints that come with it.

Arya in the show is a cold blooded killer, especially in the later seasons. She calmly slices a man’s throat, and bakes his sons into a pie. Arya in the books however is compassionate, protective, and is much more inclined to typically feminine things than in the show. In the show, Arya does show love and kindness, but to a lesser degree than in the books (which I think is a damn shame).

Arya and Daenerys are characters who receive a lot of hatred and criticism. It could be called coincidence, but both the characters fall into categories OUTSIDE the ‘ideal woman’. Sansa and Margaery are compassionate and gentle and are (or believed to be) passive. Daenerys and Arya are also compassionate (depending on the media for Arya) and protective, but unlike Sansa and Margaery, they do not appear as passive to onlookers. They are direct and often aggressive in their approach to things, but also practice restraint and impulsivity in situations.

Arya is most definitely disliked for the fact that she, a woman, dresses and carries out actions unlike what she is supposed to do. Sansa fed Ramsey to the dogs, and rightfully so, because he raped and abused her. Arya kills Meryn Trant and Walder Frey in brutal ways, but I have seen a lot of hate towards her that is generally not directed at Sansa. Perhaps it could pinned to the fact that Sansa herself did not directly kill Ramsey, and walked away as he died. Arya killed them herself, and watched as they died.

Both women clearly took pleasure in the killing, so I think it would not be wrong that many people see Sansa’s action as triumphant, her smile a small crack in her ladylike demeanor, and then turn around and condemn Arya for doing the same, because she is less ladylike and more masculine. Sansa does not engage in the dirty work, Arya does. Sansa is a gentle lady exacting justice upon a cruel man, but looks away from the gore. Arya is a psychopath who gladly takes a hand in brutal murder.

These situations are essentially the same, yet Arya is shamed and insulted by the audience for it. It is similar to Daenerys. Every harsh action - the execution of Mirri Maz Duur, Doreah and Xaro Xhoan Daxos, the slave masters, the Tarlys. All of them are analyzed and judged and she is hated for it. She is physically powerful (I say this because of her dragons) and ambitious, and like Arya, often has a hand in the execution of her enemies.

Daenerys does not take pleasure in most of these scenarios, mainly because unlike Arya, the executions are usually not revenge motivated. Yet again, she is villified, almost for the opposite reason to Arya. She dresses feminine yet acts in ways often interpreted as masculine. Many might argue that this is not the sole reason for the hatred directed towards, and I agree, but I definitely think that it plays a strong part, especially as other male characters, and Sansa do not have essays painting them as villains and specifically using the executions they carry out.

I also want to address the claim that many Sansa stans have, which is the reason I felt prompted to make this in the first place. Many of Sansa’s fans feel that she is hated because she is feminine, unlike other characters, which I felt is wrong, and I think I’ve provided enough evidence for that. It cannot be denied that the specific type of femininity that Sansa exhibits has been used against women in her own universe and ours. If you are not modest, you’re a slut, women should be quiet and gentle, they should be homemakers. These ideas are old but they still are quite common in many aspects of society today, which is also why I made this post, because it seems that this could one of the reasons that Arya and Dany are disliked so much. I also wanted to show that Margaery, while different, definitely fits into Sansa’s femininity, and I see hardly any hate posts about her.

So, to conclude, Sansa, the Traditional Femininity earned her praise and allowed her to rise up the ranks, but also left her passive and naive, when she was younger, because of the shelter her privilege gave her (the privilege I refer to is the respect and admiration of her friends and older women in her life, something Arya did not have due to her lack of talent/interest in feminine duties). Margaery used Traditional Femininity as a cover which allowed her to orchestrate her own ambition and desires, while subtly manipulating those around her. Daenerys used strength to intimidate her enemies and generosity to gain her friends, but these qualities drew a lot of criticism to her character. Arya is similar - she faces criticism for not being ‘a real woman’ (which I have seen people say). None of these characters are at fault for how they are written and the consequences that result from their characterisation, but it is us, as an audience, to recognise these differences between characters especially in regard to how we view women, and how they influence our view of the characters.

#sansa stark #margaery tyrell #daenerys targaryen #arya stark

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targaryen-stronghold · 5 years ago

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Sexist Tropes in “Game of Thrones”

Missing Mom Trope / Death by Childbirth Trope

Missing Moms are considered more unusual than missing fathers, and they are more likely to have their absence explicitly explained (usually with death). Death by Childbirth is very often the cause of a Missing Mom, as not only does it get the mother out of the way whilst keeping her sympathetic but it adds an extra touch of tragedy to the protagonist's life

Lyanna Stark (Aisling Franciosi): Jon Snow’s mother

Rhaella Targaryen: Viserys and Daenerys’ mother

Joanna Lannister: Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion’s mother

Straw Matriarchy (Powerful Women are Evil) Trope

Women are shown to be fundamentally incapable of governing or utterly evil and castrating in their power-wielding

Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey): Queen Regent; Queen of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men and Protector of the Seven Kingdoms

Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie): Lady of the Vale

Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma): Prince Oberyn’s paramour

Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg): did whatever was necessary (including murder) for her family to remain in power

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke): Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea; Queen of Meereen; Queen of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men and Protector of the Seven Kingdoms and Lady of Dragonstone

Hysterical woman Trope

Women as less rational, disciplined, and emotionally stable than men, and thus more prone to mood swings, irrational overreactions, and mental illness

Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie)

Myranda (Charlotte Hope)

Selyse Baratheon (Tara Fitzgerald)

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke)

Women Who Enjoy Sex are Evil Trope

Sex is regarded as fraught and dangerous

Doreah (Roxanne McKee): murdered Irri and helped Xaro Xhoan Daxos stealing Daenerys’ dragons

Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey): murdered every enemy she could get her hands on to remain in power

Shae (Sibel Kekilli): betrayed Tyrion Lannister by blaming him for Joffrey’s murder

Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma): murders Myrcella Baratheon and Doran Martell

Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie): murdered her husband, Jon Arryn; lied to her sister, Catelyn, blaming the Lannisters for Jon’s death; tried to kill Sansa Stark out of jealousy

Myranda (Charlotte Hope): helped Ramsay Snow in his torture games; tormented and tried to kill Sansa Stark

Tyene Sand (Rosabell Laurenti Sellers): alongside with her sisters, Nymeria and Obara, helped her mother, Ellaria, betraying House Martell

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke): burns down King’s Landing

I Was Quite a Looker Trope

You all know them. That kindly old lady who lives down the street. The tiny, wrinkly, owner of the local dojo. The aged, fading seductress. Wrinkled, aged, musty... but they weren't always that way. Once upon a time they were attractive, very attractive.

Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg)

Disposable Woman Trope

This character has a familial or romantic relationship with a protagonist, which allows creators to derive heart-wrenching sorrow from her death.

Talisa Stark (Oona Chaplin): provided a minute of Man Pain to the protagonist Robb Stark before his murder by Roose Bolton

Ygritte (Rose Leslie): provided Man Pain to the protagonist Jon Snow

Shae (Sibel Kekilli): provided Man Pain to the protagonist Tyrion Lannister

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke): provided Man Pain to the protagonist Jon Snow

Disposable Sex Worker Trope

The prostitutes are killed because they know something they shouldn't, or a villain thinks they do.

Ros (Esmé Bianco): Petyr Baelish gifts her to Joffrey Baratheon to torture and kill because she’s been working for Varys

Woman Scorned Trope

What’s the only type of woman more dangerous than a Mama Bear? A woman who’s been dumped, cheated on, or otherwise done wrong by her significant other. Especially if she’s been hiding some sanity problems,

Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie): tried to kill Sansa Stark out of jealousy

Ygritte (Rose Leslie): go on a murdering spree after being betrayed and abandoned by Jon Snow

Shae (Sibel Kekilli): testifies against Tyrion Lannister in his trial for Joffrey’s murder for believing he didn’t care for her and was shipping her off

Myranda (Charlotte Hope): tried to kill Sansa Stark out of jealousy

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke): slaughters every men, women and child in King’s Landing after being rejected by Jon Snow

The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry Trope / Sibling Rivalry Trope

There are two sisters, close enough in age to have a relatively equal relationship, but light years apart in personality.

Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) vs. Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie)

Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) vs. Arya Stark (Maisie Williams)

Tomboy and Girly Girl Trope

The "Girly Girl" will highly care about her appearance, pursue "girly" interests, and is often (though not always) The Chick. The Tomboy will be into sports, mechanics, or the like. The two ladies will have some sort of relationship with each other, whether they're best friends, sisters, on the same team

Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) vs. Arya Stark (Maisie Williams)

Mama Bear Trope / Motherhood Is Superior Trope

Like many other mammals depicted throughout history as predators, bears are actually passive animals, and won't attack humans unless provoked. Despite this, if you even think about getting between a mother bear and her cub she'll tear straight through you. Threaten her children, and you are in for a world of hurt.

Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley)

Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey)

No Guy Wants an Amazon Trope

All Guys Want Cheerleaders, but no guy wants a girl who can beat him up.

Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie) is unceremoniously dumped by Jaime Lannister because he wants to return to his traditional feminine ex-lover, Cersei

Female Misogynist Trope / Not Like Other Girls Trope

Considers other girls to be inferior- not like her. People will remind her that she's a girl herself, but she will deny it - or consider herself an "honorary dude" or claim she's "not like the other girls" (i.e. she's ''better'' than the other girls, in her mind).

Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey): I should have been born a man. I’d rather face a thousand swords than be shut up inside with this flock of frightened hens

Arya Stark (Maisie Williams): Most girls are idiots.

Fiery Redhead Trope

A Fiery Redhead is a red-haired character who is strong, Hot-Blooded, outgoing, usually outspoken, and (if a love interest) often female. She has a big personality and she's not afraid to use it. Whatever you do, don't get on her bad side, or there will be hell to pay.

Ros (Esmé Bianco)

Melisandre (Carice van Houten)

Ygritte (Rose Leslie)

Sleeping Their Way to the Top Trope

There are many ways to rise to the top, some more pragmatic than others. Some people decide to use their charms and sex appeal to boost their career. It's usually frowned upon by other characters, and may have certain downsides to it, but for some it proves to be the key to their success.

Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer)

Real Women Don't Wear Dresses Trope

A woman is shown as weak, incompetent, and ineffectual unless she dresses and behaves in a masculine manner, or is otherwise applauded for being "not like other girls."

Arya Stark (Maisie Williams)

Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie)

Ygritte (Rose Leslie)

Yara Greyjoy (Gemma Whelan)

Nymeria Sand (Jessica Henwick), Obara Sand (Keisha Castle-Hughes) and Tyene Sand (Rosabell Laurenti Sellers)

Madonna–Whore Complex Trope

A pattern of thought that divides female-humanity into two mutually exclusive categories: Madonnas and Whores. The virtuous Madonna figure, possessing and protecting social virtue is an object of worship and everything that all females should aspire to be. However, sex is not part of this. The Whore, always with massive sex appeal, catering to the male gaze, is often evil and scheming

“The Whore” Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) vs. “Madonna” Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner)

“The Whore” Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer) vs. “Madonna” Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner)

“The Whore” Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) vs. “Madonna” Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner)

Sour Prudes Trope

Accusing other women (or sometimes men) of being "skanks", "sluts", "cheap" and whatnot.

Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie) vs. Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner): Lysa falsely accuses her niece, Sansa, of sleeping with Petyr Baelish

Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) vs. Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke): Sansa implies Daenerys is (sexually) manipulating her brother, Jon Snow

God Save Us from the Queen! Trope

While kings and princes can be good or evil, and nice or mean, and princesses are (almost) always good, queens tend to be the royalty version of Always Chaotic Evil. Once a queen is in charge, things get nasty.

Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey)

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke)

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ao3feed-gendrya · 4 years ago

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A Woman's Game

read it on the AO3 at https://bit.ly/33zuYau

by TheWolvenStorm

But now at the Eve of Winter, the Queens of Westeros gather at Harrenhal, to decide the future of the Seven Kingdoms, and if they can unite to save their people from destruction.

All Men Must Die. But We are Not Men

Words: 16986, Chapters: 1/15, Language: English

Fandoms: Game of Thrones (TV), A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, Gen

Characters: Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Grey Worm, Missandei, Arya Stark, Gendry Waters, Gilly (ASoIaF), Samwell Tarly, Jaime Lannister, Harry Strickland, Cersei Lannister, Shireen Baratheon, Val (ASoIaF), Margaery Tyrell, Olenna Tyrell, Dickon Tarly, Randyll Tarly, Varys (ASoIaF), Tyrion Lannister, Tycho Nestoris, Petyr Baelish, Melisandre of Asshai, Tormund Giantsbane, Brienne of Tarth, Thoros of Myr, Sandor Clegane, Beric Dondarrion, Davos Seaworth

Relationships: Jon Snow/Daenerys Targaryen, Grey Worm/Missandei, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Gilly/Samwell Tarly

Additional Tags: Canon Era, Canon-Typical Violence, medieval politics, Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen Vs. Queen, Canon Divergent after Battle of Bastards, Attempted Fratricide, Shireen Baratheon is alive, Female Friendship, Mean Girls Bullshit, Growth, Like Emotional and Personal, Eventual Smut, plot heavy, s8? what s8?, Margaery Tyrell is Alive, Women of Westeros, Only Women Narrators, Greenseers, Elephants, Mammoths, direwolves, Warging, all men must die, But We are Not Men

read it on the AO3 at https://bit.ly/33zuYau

#IFTTT #ao3feed #fanfic #gendrya #arya x gendry #axg

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hylialeia · 6 years ago

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Hi! ^__^ I have a Davos question, hehe. On the show, he's barely even on my radar 😔, but i love him so much in the books, almost as much as Book!Sansa/Arya/Jon :') and i wanted to know if you had any feelings/thoughts about his ADWD and upcoming TWOW storylines and if you think he'll be successful in retrieving Rickon? :) Thank you! 💛💛💛

As it happens I’m actually re-reading ADWD right now, so this question came at the perfect time!

Davos… I love him. Like, a lot. Davos stands out as one of the few lowborn POVs in the series, the type of person Arya or Brienne might chance encounter on the road in their respective chapters. Davos is so completely and entirely average, and yet it does nothing to downgrade his complexity as a person. ADWD brings that majorly into play.

Thanks to Davos’ mission in this book, we have the internal confrontation that’s been building up since we met him: Davos the Smuggler vs. Davos the Hand. This is highlighted by the juxtaposition between Davos’ mission (winning the Manderlys to Stannis’ cause by speaking to them as a royal envoy) and the way he goes about accomplishing it (smuggling himself into towns and cities to avoid capture).

When Davos finally gets to White Harbor, we’re treated to his smuggling side. He thinks about his past, the different cities he’s visited and smuggled in, and navigates the general public naturally. He even heads to a tavern to listen to gossip, treating us to some fun dramatic irony as the other customers talk about situations we-the-readers are a lot closer to.

Then we get this:

Ser Axell Florent had entertained the table with the tale of a Targaryen princeling who kept an ape as a pet. This prince liked to dress the creature in his dead son’s clothes and pretend he was a child, Ser Axell claimed, and from time to time he would propose marriages for him. The lords so honored always declined politely, but of course they did decline. “Even dressed in silk and velvet, an ape remains an ape,” Ser Axell said. “A wiser prince would have known that you cannot send an ape to do a man’s work.” The queen’s men laughed, and several grinned at Davos. I am no ape, he’d thought. I am as much a lord as you, and a better man. But the memory still stung. (Davos II, ADWD)

We’re reminded rather harshly, just as Davos is, of what others think of the common people of Westeros. Davos was a smuggler, a peasant, part of the “smallfolk” that characters like Tywin Lannister so disdained. And now he’s not only a lord and a knight, but a King’s Hand.

In terms of status, Davos Seaworth has risen as high as Petyr Baelish, yet his character couldn’t be more different. Whereas Littlefinger plans and manipulates, Davos basically got shoved into the deep end and is paddling for dear life. Littlefinger wants more; Davos, as we see in ADWD, wants home.

Davos sat beside his candle and looked at the letters he had scratched out word by word during the days of his confinement. I was a better smuggler than a knight, he had written to his wife, a better knight than a King’s Hand, a better King’s Hand than a husband. I am so sorry. Marya, I have loved you. (Davos IV, ADWD)

Davos has a wife and children, and he thinks about them in almost all of his chapters. One of the undeniably best things about Davos Seaworth is that he just… unabashedly loves and misses his wife. He wants a good life for his children, one where they won’t have to steal or lie or cheat, he wants to live happily with the woman he loves, and he wants to do right by his king and his friend. That’s who Davos is.

In ADWD, we get to see him entering further into the role of Stannis’ Hand of the King, an office that has been held by Ned Stark, Tyrion Lannister, and Tywin Lannister (though for different kings). Davos’ reservations are clear throughout his arc; he’s an average person, a good man thrown into a situation he doesn’t feel fit for.

But being a good man ends up enough in this situation.

“Death,” he heard himself say, “there will be death, aye. Your lordship lost a son at the Red Wedding. I lost four upon the Blackwater. And why? Because the Lannisters stole the throne. […] What does Stannis offer you? Vengeance. Vengeance for my sons and yours, for your husbands and your fathers and your brothers. Vengeance for your murdered lord, your murdered king, your butchered princes. Vengeance!"

"Yes,” piped a girl’s voice, thin and high. (Davos III, ADWD)

Davos doesn’t lie or twist the truth; he means every word he says, and it gets Lord Manderly to trust him with going after Rickon.

As for TWOW, I do fully expect Davos to find Rickon and Osha, and since GRRM has hinted he’s enhanced Osha’s role in the series, I lean towards them playing a significant part in the endgame. Davos’ journey has been one video-game side quest after another, all for a greater goal, so I fully believe most of his TWOW arc will be him returning Rickon home to Winterfell (alive and well), and in the process learning more about wargs, wildlings, and White Walkers.

As for the ending of that storyline, I tend to think Davos arrives at a crossroads in terms of loyalty, and that Shireen’s fate will be the determining factor. How exactly that plays out, I’m very interested in seeing.

#ask #rorylgilmore #davos seaworth #asoiaf #asoiaf meta #asoiaf speculation #rickon stark #bless you and your book questions #you keep me sane <3

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it-happened-once-in-a-meme · 1 year ago

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ASoIaF/GoT Characters and If They’d See Barbie💗 or Oppenheimer💣 Part 2 (Lannisters, Petyr & Varys)

Part 1

Tywin Lannister: Doesn't really have time for movies. Isn't interested at all in Oppenheimer, what could that movie teach him that he doesn't already know? Maybe Barbie, that servant of his (Arya 😄 hehe) mentioned it once. [Author's note: Can show Tywin and Arya please watch Barbie together? 🥺🥰 Just a little girl and her voluntary fatherly figure employer]

Jaime Lannister: He's just Ken and that's kenough. Can't he be seen as good for once? He's done so much: served as a knight for multiple regents but worked against Aerys when the people weren't safe from him. People always speak of the Kingslayer and talk about dishonour behind his back, not seeing that killing isn't just simply an evil act.

Cersei Lannister: Both. The women should get something about themselves for once. She also wants to look into "the world of men", so Oppenheimer as well.

Joffrey: Are you kidding? Barbie's banned in King's Landing. The ladies need to stop refusing proposals when the lords talk shit about that movie. Pink's a stupid color anyway, let the Boltons have that.

Tommen: Barbie, Ser Pounce gets an extra cute pink tie.

Myrcella: Barbie, she really gets to bond with her mother.

Varys: Illegal network of people handing out copies of Barbie. Someone has to do it.

Petyr Baelish: Movie about a mastermind for someone who sees himself as a mastermind: perfection combination. Also Barbie, he needs to know what all the fuzz is about and whether he should employ some Barbie or Ken lookalikes at his brothel.

Also, he totally watches Barbie with Varys and they discuss both movies afterwards. In great detail. "Oh, what do I see Littlefinger discussing there with the Spider? Are they talking about the politics?" No. No, they aren't. They're talking about Barbie.

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mebongster87 · 6 years ago

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House Stark Video Breakdown: S8 Predictions

The House Stark video is bloody brilliant! Here are my thoughts.

At face value, it summarizes all the key events that have happened to the Starks from S1 to S7. In subtext, it predicts what’s possibly about to happen in S8.

The video begins with Ned and Jon talking about his mother when Jon is leaving Winterfell to join the Night’s Watch while Ned is making his way to King’s Landing.

Then the scene shifts to the Tower of Joy where Lyanna is dying and asking Ned: “Promise me, Ned. You have to protect him”.

The video starts with a “theme of protection” how Ned promises Lyanna to protect Jon as part of the pack. This theme is very important. The Starks are a pack and they protect each other. This theme keeps recurring throughout the video and in fact, the video even ends on the same theme.

Then we have Robert Baratheon showing up at Winterfell to make Ned the Hand of the King and now the political drama begins. What’s interesting to note is the choice of this shot where Robert tells Ned:

“There’s a war coming Ned, I don’t know when, I don’t know who we’ll be fighting but it’s coming.”

At face value, it means the Great War against the NK, but is it though?

(Sure the fight against NK is a very big deal, but it’s not the only war that will be fought next season)

Remember the context of Robert’s premonitions? He was talking about Daenerys marrying Khal Drogo, a Dothraki horselord, who has 100,000 fighting for him and could potentially invade Westeros.

Currently who has the same Dothraki horde of a 100,000 strong fighting for her? Daenerys Targaryen, together with 2 dragons and the Unsullied!!!!!

Ned Stark to Robert Baratheon: “What of it? Should we send her a wedding gift?”

to which Robert replied, “A knife perhaps, a good sharp one, and a bold man to wield it.”

This is very very important ..I will come back to this later!

I think the subtext of including this shot was to foreshadow a potential fight against Daenerys, her Dothraki horde, and her dragons in S8.

This is Dance of the Dragons 2.0 we are talking about. There is another shot that alludes to this happening.

This shot of a ruinous Harrenhal (from Season 2) they deemed to include in this video!!!

I was wondering about why would they show Harrenhal?

Aegon the Conqueror, atop Baelerion, roasted this place with Harren the Black and his sons inside it. That was the start of the reign of the Targaryens in Westeros.

You know what else happened at Harrenhal?

A battle between two dragons at the start of the first Dance with Dragons between the two opposing factions of greens and blacks of House Targaryen when Queen Rhaenryra was fighting Aegon II’s forces.

Caraxes and Vhagar fought each other in the Battle Above the Gods Eye with Harrenhal at the backdrop. This is happening at Riverlands, close to the Trident, where I am sure we will see another fight between the last two dragons, Daenerys and her nephew Jon. If Jon rides Rhaegal, then we could definitely see a Drogon vs Rhaegal fight. Most battles of note in ASOIAF happened in the Riverlands, why will this be any different?

(Also wouldn’t it be ironic that the place where Aegon the Conqueror launched the reign of House Targaryen with fire and blood destroying one of his biggest opponents is the same place where the reign of House Targaryen is ended by his namesake Aegon the last of his name aka Jon Snow? Aegon the Conqueror obliterated House Hoare that day when he burned down Harrenhal, maybe this foreshadows Jon Snow defeating Daenerys and ending House Targaryen.)

Additionally, it also probably foreshadows another castle like the Red Keep or King’s Landing burning (similar to Harrenhal) at Daenerys’s hands (who is foreshadowed as Aegon the Conqueror come again.)

Moving on...

Let’s focus on the next trio of shots with Brienne’s voiceover saying:” Nothing is more hateful than failing to protect the one you love” over a shot of Sansa being tortured by Joffrey.

when Brienne says “the one you love” they show us Sansa!

I think they are implying Jon and Sansa here. Let me explain..Jon swore a vow to Sansa “I will protect you, I promise” and if any harm comes to Sansa, Jonny boy is gonna lose his shit (all those scenes in S7 where they showed us Jon was protective over Sansa were Chekhov’s guns waiting to go off and now in S8 they will go off).

Does this mean that Sansa will get kidnapped by Cersei and the GC? Or will Daenerys threaten Sansa after seeing her influence over the Northern Lords, the Vale, and the Riverlands and especially after seeing how much more competent Sansa is in terms of ruling her people? Who knows..but suffice to say that if Sansa comes under any threat, Jon will most definitely lose his shit.

This also extends to Arya, who has been thriving on hate towards the Lannisters and the Freys and anybody who has harmed House Stark. If anything happens to Sansa or any of the other Starks, rest assured Arya is going to cut a bitch.

Moving on....

This next bit is my personal headcanon...they show Jamie and Brienne talking about Sansa

Jamie: In my opinion girls like her don’t live very long.

Brienne: I don’t think you know many girls like her.

This means Sansa will survive.

My personal headcanon about why they inserted this, is D&D, Bryan Cogman, and GRRM’s way of serving up a sick burn to all those Sansa haters and so-called ASOIAF/GOT know-it-alls who do not get her character at all and twist themselves into knots trying to come up with theories about how Sansa is useless and serves no purpose to the story and needs to die. Wait till Sansa survives it all and becomes Queen of the 7Ks. (end of rant, sorry!)

Moving on....

The video then shows the journey of the last remaining Starks... Sansa survives the fall and makes her way to Castle Black to reunite with Jon, Arya makes her way to Braavos and trains to become No One, Bran becomes the 3ER and so forth.

Then they include a shot of Longclaw right after Sansa and Jon hold hands from that scene in Castle Black when Sansa says to Jon that a monster has taken their home and brother and they have to save them both. Needless to say, Longclaw is going to be important. Hold that thought..I will come back to it.

Then the Starks start taking revenge...A TIME FOR WOLVES!!!

They show a montage of shots of 2 wolves (meant to depict Nymeria and Ghost) interspersed with the Starks..

Arya is ticking people off from her Kill-List....Jon is fighting in the Battle of the Bastards, Ramsay Bolton being eaten by his (dis)loyal hounds, Petyr Baelish getting his comeuppance, Freys getting massacred, and Joffrey dying.

with Arya saying “the last thing you are ever going to see before you die is a Stark smiling down at you”.

Like this is ominous but much-needed. The Starks are all out for blood and they will fight like wolves. So far they have managed to exact revenge on anyone who has wronged them but the kill-list is not done yet.

The Stark video then winds down to show the roles Jon, Bran, Arya, and Sansa will play in S8.

Bran, as the 3ER, will be up against the NK. Benjen Stark reminds him of that and says that when NK makes his way to the realms of men, you will be waiting for him. Cue Bran vs NK. (I personally feel Jamie and Brienne will have a big part to play in it...They both have the two parts of Ned’s greatsword Ice)

Then we have a shot of Cersei against the Iron Throne when she is first crowned Queen of the 7Ks in S6E10.

followed by a shot of Sansa saying “Winter is Here” implying that Winter is here and coming for all the enemies of House Stark, chief among them is Cersei Lannister. This shot also foreshadows that Sansa will become Queen of the 7Ks, like Cersei.

Then we have a shot of Arya with the Valyrian steel dagger in her hands

followed by a shot of the Lannister Army

I believe that we will see a Stark-Lannister Coalition, spear-headed by Jamie, which will be instrumental in fighting against both NK and Daenerys and her dragons. What this shot also tells me is that this is a foreshadowing of Arya killing Cersei...the most important person still left on Arya’s list is Cersei and in S7 she said that she will go to KL to kill Cersei, that will come to fruition. Additionally, if you remember the lyrics of The Rains of Castamere,

And who are you, the proud lord said, that I must bow so low? Only a cat of a different coat, that’s all the truth I know. In a coat of gold or a coat of red, a lion still has claws, And mine are long and sharp, my lord, as long and sharp as yours. And so he spoke, and so he spoke, that lord of Castamere, But now the rains weep o’er his hall, with no one there to hear. Yes now the rains weep o’er his hall, and not a soul to hear.

They are showing us the sigil of House Lannister because a lion is a big cat.

One of Arya’s persona is “Cat-of-the-Canals”, she is the cat of a different coat in this song and in Braavos she becomes “NO ONE”.. Remember how Tywin Lannister destroyed House Reyne and how Cersei destroyed House Tyrell and they were playing this song? Well, justice will be served and Cersei (who is Tywin Lannister 2.0) will get the same fate at the hands of No One aka Arya.

The final bit that I want to talk about is this shot of Jon Snow about to thrust Longclaw into the body of a soldier at the Battle of the Bastards.

This shot awfully reminds me of this really old shot of Jon Snow from Season 1′s GOT “Iron Throne” preview....where he is about to thrust a sword into someone after a shot of him sitting on the IT as King.

This is very interesting. Why would they call back on a shot like this if this does not mean something? Who is Jon about to kill or rather going to kill in S8?

Here is where I want you to remember what Robert Baratheon said to Ned Stark from the lone shot they show us at the beginning of the House Stark video?

Ned Stark to Robert Baratheon: “What of it? Should we send her a wedding gift?”

to which Robert replied, “A knife perhaps, a good sharp one, and a bold man to wield it.”

I think Jon will be the “bold man to wield it” and kill Daenerys using a good sharp long knife called Longclaw (he could also use the Valyrian steel dagger but that would be too literal.)

Why Jon? Because he is the rightful King of the Andals, Protector of the Realm and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms.

The use of “a bold man” reminded me of the following scene

This is what Jon said to Mance in Season 5 episode 1.

And now to all those crowing about kinslaying and this being dishonorable well here is what Jon has to say...

Jokes aside, this will pose a major “conflict of the heart” issue for Jon. He will definitely not want to kill Daenerys but “the things I do for love” may just force Jon to do this. Jon and Jamie are foils..Jamie pushed Bran out of the window, Jon may end up killing Daenerys if it means protecting the realm and House Stark/Sansa. I would rather Arya do the deed, it saves Jon from the sin of kinslaying but we shall see.

Finally, the video ends with Sansa saying the House Stark words about the pack survives and protecting the pack, ending on the “theme of protection” including this shot of Sansa and Arya in front of Ned’s statue in the crypts with the collective voiceover of Arya and Ned saying “in winter, we must protect ourselves and look after one another”.

The video starts with Ned protecting Jon and ends with Sansa reiterating Ned’s lessons thereby showing that Ned’s legacy lives on within the current Starks and they will survive the Winter and come out victorious because the pack that stays together, always survives. A Time for Wolves indeed.

#jonsa meta #jonsa #jonsa is endgame #jon x sansa #jon snow #sansa stark #arya stark #house stark #got s8 #trailer speculation

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thedreamergirlofsummer · 6 years ago

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I am kinda... confused?

The whole "Sansa is betraying Jon" and "Danakin is her family too!" argument doesn't make sense to me. Also Sansa some how has brainwashed Arya into hating the Dragon Queen?

If Arya saw Danakin's good heart and felt she and Jon were perfect, if they were family and she's their loving aunt, Arya would say so. Last seasons Winterhell plot was all about Arya harping on how Sansa betrayed their House by writing a letter to Robb, so if Arya actually thought that Sansa is putting Jon in danger and Danakin is a good person, and that Sansa is betraying their family, Arya would speak up and say so.

It's ironic how when it comes to Danakin vs Sansa it's all about "stop pitting women against each other you misogynistic fucktard" but Arya + Sansa makes some fans burn with a jealous rage and they make moronic reaches like "hey Sansa is brain washing Arya into siding with her, it's not as if Arya is a person that can think for herself, she only exists as a spy for Queen Danakin, and as a little sister that will have her hair braided and go on dragon rides with the gracious angelic queen."

About Danakin being the Starks family, I call bullshit. There's not a single instance where Danakin behaved like a family to the Starks, not even post parentage reveal. It's always "me, mine and what is mine." The first thing that came to her mind post reveal is the threat to her claim, there is no point in the story where she treats the Starks as a family or tries to assimilate them. If she wanted to behave like a family, the first thing she would do is takethe Northern Independence seriously and agree that just like she wants her home, the North also has a right to their home.

About Sansa not liking Danakin and being hostile to her, she has very valid reasons, which we already know. Also to highlight how "non-Stark" and conniving Sansa is they highlight how Ned tried to protect Dany and Cat yelling at Lysa "does family mean nothing to you?"

Ned protected Dany because she was a child, not because she's his family. Ned hated the murder of children and he extended the same mercy to Cersei and her children by offering exile. So by that extent is Cersei also Ned's family?

Also talking about the Cat and Lysa scene, Lysa lied to Cat, she was manipulating her sister due to Baelish, so Lysa doesn't really give a fuck about Ned or Cat or anyone. Only her and Petyr. Also this same aunt to Sansa tried to have her murdered by throwing her out of the Moon Door over a perceived affair between her and Baelish, so excuse me if Sansa is wary of mentally unstable aunts.

[P.S I'm keeping this on my blog instead of answering the OP because I don't want their trash on my blog, I'd also appreciate it if the reblogs are also tagged anti-dany]

#anti daenerys

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sailtheplains · 7 years ago

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Gendry, grow your hair back immediately. Also, slow down on the cocaine.

Also, he is manic panic fun. If this was Rob B as a young man, I can see why people liked him. His intensity might be able to match Arya’s. Cause she won’t be able to handle anything less. (Also triple points for seeming to like Jon immediately, extra points in Arya’s book because then Jon seems to like him too)

I hope Gendry maybe mentions Arya to Jon. They talk about her a little. That’d be nice.

Like, when those three collide and, Jon will help Arya balance her humanity. It will snap something I hope, that will help her adjust. This is her first real test since coming to Westros. Petyr Baelish is one of the most dangerous players in this game left. He didn’t get to be in the last dirty dozen by being average. Arya, we can see, has mastered her chosen weapons. But now we see if she truly gathered the spying ability from the House of B/W. Like, how is she playing this game.

Was Baelish once connected to the Faceless Men (”A boy from nowhere”)? Ever since we see Arya walk around with her hands behind her back, intending to go home, I wondered about that. And sometimes there are little things he says that make me wonder. That would be a pretty good test of her observation skills, though. Baelish is clearly a pretty good player. But we have no concept yet of just how much the spy parts soaked in for Arya because we have no one in Westros for reference that she’s gone up against yet.

Which is why I think we’re being purposely misled. Hopefully, we’re about to see Arya own this sumbitch and prove that she’s a force to be reckoned with.

#arya stark #petyr baelish #a boy from nowhere #faceless men #littlefinger #gendry #grow your hair back immediately #gendry x arya #warhammer #a girl is arya stark #gendry baratheon #spy vs spy #eastwatch #game of thrones #Frat of the North

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wargwhatisitgoodfor · 6 years ago

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GRRM’s Much Ado about Mirrors - An Introduction

NOTE: The following is entirely speculation. Also in the latter portion of this meta, I will be introducing the possibility that a specific character has been tortured and sexually assaulted since season seven.

Within a story’s framework, mirrors can draw connections amongst characters and events and can convey conscious/subconscious thoughts, truth vs lies, etc. In a reference to the practice of hydromancy, The Lord of the Rings contains a basin of water, Galadriel’s mirror, that provides visions of the past, present, and possible future. Inspired by Tolkien’s device, GRRM uses mirrors not only in an allegorical manner in his series A Song of Ice and Fire (e.g. Sansa Stark as the positive mirror image to Cersei Lannister) but also to consistently foreshadow major events with water as well as to allude to previous scenes that haven’t yet been revealed to the reader (this will later compare to Melisandre’s pyromancy).

Of particular note, both Arya Stark’s confrontation with Joffrey Lannister alongside the waters of the Trident and Dæny’s clash with her brother Viserys in the midst of the “Dothraki Sea” serve to FORESHADOW THE CLIMAX OF THE ENTIRE SERIES.

GRRM successfully misdirects his readers and builds suspense though by also utilizing inversions, parallels, and consistently and purposefully leaving out scenes. Just as GRRM emulates and references multiple primary sources in his narrative, the show writers have looked at the most successful adaptations of the material that inspired him in their creation of the television show. In fact, this upcoming season will be tying together narrative threads in a major plot point that was seemingly inspired by Peter Jackson’s adaptation of LoTR.

Examining GRRM’s narrative techniques within the text itself and to his literary/historical sources reveals a great deal about Game of Thrones Season Eight, such as “The Kidnapping Plot”, “The Parentage Reveal”, “Will Dæny get her house with the red door?”

MIRRORS:

1. In the Series - Lady Crane is to Bianca as Sansa is to Cersei… AKA “THE KIDNAPPING PLOT”:

Jaquen H’ghar assigning Arya to rewatch her father’s death is certainly a reference to Hamlet testing Claudius; however it is also a mirror of the threats that Sansa and the Stark siblings/cousins will face in season eight. On stage, Bianca’s feelings and murderous plans for Lady Crane foreshadow Cersei’s targeting of Sansa. When the action moves back-stage as the actors remove costumes and wigs in front of mirrors, most of the doubles change but Lady Crane remains the stand-in for Sansa (e.g. the other actors’ comments that the crowd loves Lady Crane references book!Sansa’s pledge in A Clash of Kings: “... IF I AM EVER A QUEEN, I WILL MAKE THEM LOVE ME”).

The writers make this point irrefutable when they both acknowledge the criticism levied against them (Lady Crane: “The writing’s no good”) at the same time as they foreshadow how they plan on elevating the series from everything else that has come before it with Arya’s response: “(this story) would all just be (more of the same) without (Sansa the subversive heroine).”

Just as the threats to Lady Crane shifts, Sansa/the Starks will be targeted by a different force mid-way through the season when ALL of the Stark siblings/cousins will be involved in a violent stand-off, which will center on the FATE OF THE NEXT GENERATION OF STARKS.

2. To a Primary Source - Howland Reed and Petyr Baelish are the reconstruction/deconstruction of a trope and historical character:

Yes, just as Petyr Baelish has been ushered out of the action, the show will finally deliver Howland Reed!

Early on in season eight, Jon Snow will meet Howland Reed after trouble has ensued in the North.

(Leo Woodruff was cast as Howland as he had been on set for several years and wouldn’t attract any attention with his presence on set.) The show, as well as the book series, has quietly but consistently foreshadowed the ironic “event” in which Howland will enter the present narrative beginning with several comments from Robert Baratheon in season one and continuing on through Jaime and Cersei’s last argument in season seven. In fact just as some fans have noted that “The Spoils of War” mirrors “Hardhome”, Howland’s arrival should flip another notable scene (and reference an important moment in Westerosi history).

Given the nature and atmosphere of his appearance, Howland will not only privately discuss Jon’s parentage (the show’s opportunity to do a weirwood tree vision/flashback of the Tournament of Harrenhal) but will also reveal Ned Stark’s contingency plans

(the means by which this story will starts to conclude its theme of the futility of war… for more details, see the section on parallels between Ned and Doran Martell). NOTE: This meta on Howland Reed and Petyr Baelish will be part one in this series.

INVERSION:

1. In Show/Series - Jon Snow and Jaime Lannister:

There are many metas on the connections between the two; however I haven’t seen one yet explore the respective secrets that both characters have NEVER disclosed to anyone; it is those secrets that have largely dictated their individual characters arcs and are the main reason the show has the two having a conversation with each other in season one. To be sure, Cersei’s line about Jaime being the “stupidest Lannister” in the last episode of season seven will in retrospect be ironic. These narrative threads should be exposed with all the action and fallout surrounding “SANSA’S GIFTS” early on in season eight.

2. To a Source - Dæny and her character’s main inspiration:

Dæny was not only partially inspired by a Shakespearean MALE CHARACTER (there are very few, if any, one-to-one correlations) but her narrative will ultimately contain elements from one of the most well-known and subversive adaptations of that particular character. Coincidentally, as Dæny is the inverse of the main male character, Jon Snow is the positive mirror of one of the main supporting characters in the same play. GRRM’s purposeful lack of additional POVs in Essos can make it difficult to recognize that her narrative arc not only takes her full-circle but has her regress; however it should be irrefutable upon her final conflict, which has her face the same question as many of her predecessors: “What do you do with the children of those who threaten your power?”

Dæny’s clash with the Starks over this question is the MOST VISUALLY REFERENCED SCENE in the whole tv series.

(THE COLOR OF THE EGG IS IMPORTANT.)

PARALLELS:

1. In the Show/Series - The Plans of Ned Stark and Those of Doran Martell:

Due to the trauma that they both experienced during Robert’s Rebellion and their steadfast love for their sisters, both Ned Stark and Doran Martell worked steadily and inconspicuously towards shoring up separate plans for their respective families. Besides recruiting their younger brothers’ help and their focus on strengthening political alliances in their respective regions,

THE CORE OF EACH OF THEIR PLANS RESTS ON A SECRET MARRIAGE BETROTHAL.

Unfortunately, their differences (Ned is for protection/reactionary and Doran is about vengeance/aggression) may lead to entirely different ends for their houses (I’m still holding out hope regarding Sarella’s future collaborative efforts with Samwell Tarly and Marwyn and her eventual governance of Dorne). Ned’s contingency plans should not only hint at an ironic ending but at the theme of the futility of war.

2. To a Source - Varys and his character’s inspiration:

Despite the substantial differences between show!Varys’s plot and his counterpart in the book series, his ties to his character’s main inspiration remain intact - his secret identity and his visits to political prisoners. These core characteristics will lead him to be an active participant in his death, similar to his narrative source; in an ironic twist, Varys will end up aligning with the Starks and will save the life of one of their most important allies with the help of Melisandre. Varys is another testament to GRRM’s belief that anyone can make the choice to be heroic.

MISSING SCENES -

GRRM intentionally leaves out critical scenes throughout his series as it enables him to surprise his reader. Because it would be too obvious to leave out the most important scenes, GRRM does it in MANY instances. “Why don’t we have more insight on Sansa’s female relationships?” “Why don’t we have a chapter with Catelyn saying goodbye to all of her children?” “Why don’t we have a Dothraki POV?” The writers for the show have successfully used this device since season one. It isn’t until season seven though that the show makes it evident that some of the most important scenes are not always shown to the audience.

It may seem like the writers are cheating the audience with leaving out scenes, but they have always provided us with ALTERNATE VERSIONS OF WHAT IS MISSING.

1. In Show/Series - Ramsey is to Theon as Yara is to Euron:

Once Yara is taken captive and paraded through King’s Landing, the audience doesn’t get to view another scene with her nor learn second-hand what is happening to her. Theon does express two beliefs about his sister’s fate: 1.) Yara is still alive, and 2.) Euron is holding her captive rather than Cersei. However, Euron’s comment to Yara in season seven about the King’s Landing crowd (“... THIS IS MAKING ME HARD”) along with book!Aeron’s terrifying memories of Euron visiting his bedroom at night (”No mortal man could frighten him, no more than the darkness could... nor memories, the honest of the soul. The sound of a door opening, the scream of a rusted iron hings. Euron has come again.” A Feast for Crows, “The Prophet”) indicate that

Euron not only commits gratuitous violence against his ship’s captives but that he enjoys sexually assaulting his family members.

Is that enough foreshadowing for the tv show’s general audience? Perhaps it isn’t, which may be part of the reason why the show writers decided to repeatedly show graphic scenes of Ramsey torturing Theon... those scenes also serve as a stand-in to what Euron is doing to Yara.

What would be the purpose of delaying this revelation about Yara? The most obvious answer lies in a conversation that Theon has with Ramsey about his father during season three: “Those men, they said that my father knew what they were doing to me.” As the audience knows, Balon Greyjoy does learn what is happening to his son and still refuses to him him.

If Ramsey and Theon are a stand-in for Euron and Yara, then the audience can extrapolate that THEON IS AWARE OF WHAT EURON DOES TO FEMALE CAPTIVES (EVEN THOSE RELATED TO HIM) AND EXPLAINS TO DAENY WHAT YARA IS EXPERIENCING. We also know from the Dragon pit meeting that Dæny does not ask for Yara to be returned.

This possible narrative may lead the audience to unexpected topics: Will an abortion be part of the plot in season eight of Game of Thrones? If Yara has been the subject of Euron’s heinous, violent acts, what does this mean for the other familial pairing - Jon and Dæny? Jon’s arrival at Dragonstone and his departure for Winterfell does roughly correspond to the same time frame as Euron taking Yara hostage and Theon heading off to rescue her.

Thus, are Jon and Dæny a MIRROR of Yara and Euron, or are they the INVERSE of one another? Was Jon summoned to Dæny‘s room? Or did he come of his accord? Is the show exploring the topic of “submission vs consent” with two of its most popular characters?

2. To a Source - “Sansa’s Gifts” and Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings Trilogy:

Similar to Dæny and Cersei respectively in seasons five and seven, Sansa will receive “gifts” from someone who is trying to convince her of his/her loyalty towards the end of episode one or towards the beginning of episode two. Not only will this complete the “rule of three” for all of the queens in the last season, but this plot point was inspired by a narrative device that Peter Jackson created in adapting The Lord of the Rings.

To maintain the surprise of this plot twist, the show left out TWO CRITICAL SCENES that happened early on in the series. Just as Theon and Ramsey are a stand-in for Yara/Euron, there are two scenes that serve as a double for the ones that the audience will never see; however those scenes have been alluded to, and the audience has witnessed evidence that they occurred.

This show’s writers have been planning this since the beginning, and “Sansa’s gifts” actually fits ALL of the narrative devices mentioned in this meta:

Mirror (In Show AND Source Material)

Inversion (In Show AND Source Material)

Parallel (In Show AND Source Material)

It also INSPIRED ALL OF THE “GIFTS” THAT WERE CREATED SPECIFICALLY FOR THE SHOW, including the thimble Sam gave Gilly, Ellyria sending Myrcella’s necklace to Cersei, Davos giving his carvings to Shireen, Littlefinger bringing a falcon to Robyn Arryn, etc.

Truly, the narrative impact that this will have on the outcome of the entire series cannot be overstated. Just as Ned’s death overturned the audience’s expectations as it also impacted the trajectory of the entire narrative, so will “Sansa’s gifts”.

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silkygoldmilkweed · 7 years ago

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Petyr Baelish vs Sandor Clegane: A Tale of Two Suitors

GRRM will be dead before he finishes the books so we’ll never get a chance to ask him about the construction process once the whole thing is out there, but until he says otherwise, I believe that he created Jon, Dany, Arya, Sansa, Sandor, Ned, Bobby, Rhaegar, Lyanna, Cat and Robb, and then built out many of the other characters as mirrors and foils to them.

Theon is failed Jon.

Joffrey is the anti-Jon.

And I believe with all my heart that Littlefinger is the anti-Sandor.

Name almost any character quality and Sandor has the opposite aspect to Littlefinger. Littlefinger is words. Sandor is deeds. Littlefinger is manipulation and lies. Sandor is brutal honesty. Littlefinger is selfish. Sandor is selfless. Littlefinger is either amoral or immoral or maybe both. Sandor lives by a strict personal code of how men, women and people generally are supposed to behave. Littlefinger is sinuous and simpering and sly like Hiss in Disney’s Robin Hood movie. The Hound is bold and strong and aggressive and all heart.

But both of them want to fuck Sansa Stark.

(My headcanon, BTW, is that Littlefinger’s nickname is really because he has a tiny dick and that it was Brandon “Wild Wolf” Stark that gave him the nickname. Sandor, of course, is prodigiously endowed. LOL.)

I think the show grants Littlefinger’s death scene a few nods to the SanSan subtext in Sansa’s life, and Littlefinger’s failure gives us some insight into where the Hound succeeded, even though it may not have been acknowledged at the time.

“Lady Sansa, I’ve known you since you were a girl. I’ve protected you–”

OK, this is excellent. When was the first time they met? According to Littlefinger circa season four, “The first time I saw you, you were just a child. A girl from the North, come to the capital for the first time. Not a child any longer.” So the first time they ever met was the Tourney of the Hand, and at that time, Sansa was officially a “child” or a “girl.” (Sandor met her just before that, and then won the tourney in question by protecting Loras from Gregor.)

Anyway, LF’s been creeping on Sansa from the get-go (he puts his hand on her at the Tourney and Ned gives him a death glare) but more importantly, beginning as early as season four (MAYBE) but most certainly by season seven, Sansa is no longer a girl but a woman. SophieT is only 21 or something, but in Westerosi terms, Sansa is a twice-married widow of maturity and dignity. The way she dresses she could pass for a middle-aged spinster, but of course her face gives away her youth.

Long story short, the show wants you to know that it’s no longer creepy if Sandor thinks she’s hot, because age difference or no, they’re both adults now and free people, and able to consent to sexual intercourse if they’re both of sound mind and body, etc.

“Protected me? By selling me to the Boltons?”

Littlefinger is first and foremost a flesh peddler. A whoremonger, as Lord Royce calls him. He sells Sansa’s body as readily as he brokers a street prostitute’s blow job work.

Counterpoint: Sandor Clegane doesn’t run around pimping out little girls. Can you even imagine? Quite to the contrary, he spends all his free time running interference between creeps and his Stark girls. Honestly, one of the most striking underanalyzed moments in the histories of the Hound is when he and Arya are with the farmer and his daughter, and the father is doing his prayers to the Seven. “We ask the Maiden to protect Sally’s virtue and keep her from the clutches of depravity,” says farmer dad. It’s at that moment that he interrupts, “Do you have to do all seven of the fuckers?” Now, mostly he’s literally starving and he just wants to get on with it, but I also think there’s an unspoken freaked-out reaction there: There’s no point in praying! The gods aren’t going to keep her from getting raped. They never stop any of that shit. You either can fight it off yourself or she’ll suffer it, same as all the other maidens.

The spectre of sexual assualt looms heavy over Sandor and Sansa’s “relationship,” not least because of the “fuck her bloody” line but also because of the size difference, the age difference, the power difference, his known predilection for violence, and his obvious overwhelming desire for her (not to mention Gregor’s history as a rapist, most famously of Elia Martell). But even though he could take her at any time, and she is quite often in very vulnerable situations with him, he never does anything untoward. (Show canon only, I know the book canon is slightly more salacious and risque, in word if not in deed.) But even though he could have stolen her against her will, and he should have, most likely, he politely asked her if she wanted to be absconded with and when she said no, he walked away.

As he and Omar put it so succinctly, “A man’s got to have a code.” No stealing girls who don’t want to be stolen.

Or as the vows of Westerosi knighthood put it, “In the name of the Maid, I charge you to protect all women.”

Littlefinger grossly exploits women’s bodies. Sandor puts his own body between women and danger. Littlefinger sells. Sandor frees. What a difference.

“If we could speak alone, I could explain everything.”

Littlefinger is a sneak. And a liar. He can’t do anything in the open, because he needs to lurk in the shadows to play his little games. It’s a kick to rewatch once you understand the extent of Littlefinger’s dishonesty, because you can absolutely see Aiden Gillen adjust his performance ever so slightly when LF is lying. It’s outstanding acting, although of course I loathe anything and everything LF-related.

Sandor, meanwhile, is honest to a fault. “A dog will die for you, but never lie to you.”

“Sometimes when I’m trying to understand a person’s motives, I play a little game. What’s the worst reason you have for turning me against my sister? That’s what you do, isn’t it? That’s what you’ve always done. Turn family against family, turn sister against sister. That’s what you did to our mother and Aunt Lysa, and that’s what you tried to do to us.”

If we play this game with Sandor’s motives, I think we come to the conclusion that the worst thing he could want was to have consensual sex with a girl who was too young and too highborn and too fragile and too weak. He didn’t want Winterfell. He didn’t want money. He didn’t want power. He legitimately wanted to help Sansa, and later Arya. (I will insist on my deathbed that the Arya-for-ransom deal was bullshit generally but at best a poorly-thought-out plan to get him an entree to House Stark.)

The other thing is the sister divisions bit. I would add that Sansa and Arya (”different as the sun and moon”) have but a handful of things in common: Winterfell, their parents and siblings, and Sandor Clegane. He’s one of the things that binds Sansa and Arya together, rather than tears them apart. They approach him from different positions but end up in the same place.

Last but hardly least, he is the one single person who ever fought for both Sansa and Arya, who were almost completely abandoned after their father was killed.

They were left alone in the wilderness. Arya had a little of Yoren and Jaquen and Gendry, but she was overwhelmingly scrapping on her own. Sansa had a little of Varys and Olenna and Littlefinger, but again, she was basically out there all by herself, being hunted by lions. The Hound was the only one who fought for them both. He is a tie that binds.

“Sansa, please.”

Ah, the pathetic begging. Show!Sandor never grovels for her attention. On the contrary, he discourages and frightens her on several occasions. He doesn’t need her the way Littlefinger is desperate for Sansa, both sexually and politically. Why? Because Littlefinger is weak and needy, whereas Sandor is strong and needy. Sandor desires Sansa Stark, but he doesn’t debase either of them to get what he wants. If what he wants is not freely given, he can walk away, whereas Littlefinger always crawls closer.

“I’m a slow learner, it’s true. But I do learn.”

Oh, my sweet Sansa. To me this line is so evocative and nostalgic and tragic. If viewed from a pure SanSan perspective, this is Sansa saying that she had to suffer through years of loneliness and torment at the hands of villains to be able to see what a good and rare and precious thing she had once had in Sandor Clegane.

This line pairs beautifully with the other heartbreaker from Sansa to Littlefinger: “Back then I only thought about what I wanted, never about what I had. I was a stupid girl.” She’s had years to think about how her girlish, inexperienced, naive and entitled values prevented her from seeing that her True Knight was standing in front of her the whole time, right behind the beautiful, odious, vicious idiot king.

“Give me a chance to defend myself. I deserve that.”

Ugh. Let’s return to season six to reply to this. “I don’t believe you anymore. I don’t need you anymore. You can’t protect me. You won’t even be able to protect yourself if I tell Brienne to cut you down.”

Sansa sees now that she is much stronger and more powerful than Littlefinger ever was or could hope to be. He is a grubby little pretender and he destroyed her family for his own selfish ends, and he deserves every bit of the justice that he is about to receive.

Basically, my girl has become a woman, and she is free of all the bullshit men who have been using her for years. Tywin is dead. Littlefinger is dead. The Boltons are dead.

She is unbound. She is a woman, and she can choose for herself, and I’m pretty sure what she chooses will be Sandor Clegane.

#sansan #sansan meta #Sansa Stark #Sandor Clegane #petyr baelish #sansan marriage

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