#bran iv

[melrosing]

a while back you mentioned bran being a fisher king type of figure if he becomes king. i am so intrigued by that concept. can you tell us more?

so full disclosure, I don't have a great deal of familiarity with Arthurian legend or British/Welsh mythology, which is what the Fisher King really draws upon, so I don't think I can say anything of real substance on this subject! i keep meaning to just sit down and swot up on this stuff but it's. not really something you can do in one sitting lol

HOWEVER i think even to a wiki peruser it's patently clear that GRRM is drawing on the Fisher King concept with Bran (as in, once you know he's doing that, you realise he isn't even trying to hide it). and I do tend to think that GRRM is more likely to stick with the top line of a myth or historical event he means to parallel rather than get lost in the minutiae - e.g. Matilda v Stephen succession crisis inspiring Rhaenyra v Aegon, the Black Dinner of 1440 inspiring the Red Wedding, this is GRRM taking the substance of an event but not the details of how it came to pass.

I'm going to guess that rather than getting into the finer details of the Fisher King mythos, GRRM is going to utilise it much like he's used Shakespeare's Richard III for Tyrion, which is another inspiration that seems painfully obvious from the moment you spot it, but is hardly lifted beat for beat, and I seriously doubt that Tyrion's story ends up anywhere like the end of RIII. but you can see GRRM taking the bits and pieces of RIII he finds interesting and twisting them for Tyrion in ASOIAF.

so with that in mind, I'm just going to quickly list the key points I can personally gather from the Fisher King myth that seem to gesture to Bran, and why I think these are probs interesting to GRRM as a writer (but as I say there are people who know lots about arthurian legend and british/welsh mythology who would probs have a lot more to say here):

the Fisher King is usually depicted as being wounded in the groin/legs/thigh - this is considered synonymous with his inability to have children and so propagate his line. immediately obvious parallel to Bran, and I think through both ASOIAF and F&B, GRRM is trying to show that ruling through dynasties where everything hinges on how the next guy's son turns out, is not a viable way to run a country. Bran will not be succeeded by children of his own blood, but I think much in the way that he himself has succeeded Bloodraven

the Fisher King is one with his land as such: his welfare is the welfare of the land, and when he takes a wound (and becomes infertile), the land too becomes barren. the Fisher King awaits a hero who will heal and restore him and so the land (but I can only imagine GRRM would subvert this - it's clear through GRRM's writing of disability that he doesn't see value in just 'curing' his characters. he wants to actually write them as disabled people). and I think there's a lot in Bran's story about man learning to respect the land he lives upon - the children and the first men's peace pact was agreed upon the grounds that the first men would essentially preserve Westeros and its weirwoods etc, and so I think it's generally agreed ASOIAF could end with a similar kind of pact to end the Long Night (or after the end of TLN)? so again, think this point is about Bran representing a renewed relationship between the lands of Westeros and its peoples - the welfare of all is tied together through him

the Fisher King is guarding the Holy Grail. im way out of my depth on this point, someone with more knowledge re. the Holy Grail needs to weigh in here lol, but I would guessssss that maybe this has something to do with Bran ending the story on the Isle of Faces, protecting the peace from there or SOMETHING idk

then the most obvious point: the Fisher King as he appears in Arthurian legend is thought to draw on the figure of Brân the Blessed, a character of Welsh mythology - which immediately recalls Bran the Broken (something Bran literally calls himself several times). the name 'Bran' also translates to crow or raven in Welsh, so, duh. and Brân the Blessed's story ends with his requesting that his head be buried on the White Hill of London - and as long as it remained there, Britain would be safe from invasion. more about Bran being tied directly to the welfare of the land and its peoples

(again there's doubtless a lot more that could be added here by someone who understands the Fisher King myth better than I do, but these seemed like the most obvious points that anyone could draw on)

anyway I absolutely take it as a given that Bran will be King at this point, and whilst it's really hard to imagine what that looks like, I do think it resonates. GRRM likes writing about dynasties but I don't think he believes in them. I'm sure he feels much the same way about feudalism, but I doubt that will be gone by the end of ASOIAF, too, so this is how I picture it??

KL: destroyed. red keep: fucked. some level of politics may continue here post-series, but I think it will no longer be the heart of westeros. the fact that it is in AGOT is I think GRRM trying to show the corruption at the heart of this country - KL is constantly described as a cesspit where the rich play their games and live and eat luxuriously directly atop the shoulders of the poor and downtrodden, divorced from what's happening in the rest of the 7K.

the new heart of Westeros will be the Isle of Faces. this is where I think Bran will end up. we don't know much about it, bc noone is able to sail there, but this was where the pact between the COF and the First Men was created, and it's one of the last places in the south where weirwoods still grow (here, in abundance). and apparently there was once a Green King of the Gods Eye?? if the Green King, of the Rivermen, is in any way the role Bran will soon be occupying, maybe this is where his Tully heritage is somehow relevant. and also like 'god's eye', Bran's whole thing is about learning to see all, so. likely place for him to be. ultimately, I don't think Bran will remain in Winterfell; the story is supposed to be about unity I think, and not northern exceptionalism, so a remaining Stark sibling will take up that seat and as I said before, I tend to think that will be Sansa.

and I guess the most I can imagine beyond this point is Bran living alongside the COF (perhaps in the company of Meera idk?), functioning less as a political entity and more as a figurehead, perhaps an oracle, who lives for the welfare of his people. there will still be politicians to run the country, but they will be guided by Bran in some way, and like Bloodraven, Bran will choose his own successor. what the intricacies of any of this look like i have no idea, but this really does sound to me like the start of GRRM's answer to all his concerns re. dynasties and corruption etc etc

sorry this was all garbled as hell but this is basically what the Fisher King endgame means to me for now. in short, not a whole lot that I can make sense of but I like the feel of it, I think it's consistent with the themes of the text and suggests the start of real change at the end of the story, rather than the start of yet another dynasty.

[asoiafreadthru]

A Game of Thrones, Eddard IV

Bran’s wolf had saved the boy’s life, he thought dully.

What was it that Jon had said when they found the pups in the snow? Your children were meant to have these pups, my lord.

And he had killed Sansa’s, and for what? Was it guilt he was feeling? Or fear? If the gods had sent these wolves, what folly had he done?

[translannisters]

Bran starts his (and our) journey of discovering the inherent transfemininity of direwolves. Ned starts his murder mystery arc but is sidetracked by the worst threesome prospect in history. Samwell Tarly has been here for one chapter and is already 1: the thematic heart of ASOIAF and 2: the character who makes two irony-poisoned Homestuck-poisoned Freud-poisoned podcasters get appallingly earnest and emotional for an hour. https://theshieldhall.wordpress.com/2021/09/07/if-it-is-chains-you-want-samwell-tarly-gender-and-war/ (by @mummer) Chapters: Bran IV, Eddard V, Jon IV

[pixel-moss167]

@clockvenn LIZAR BOIS BATTL

HEREZ VENN GROOVIN FOR TH DELAY

[ceriseo]

anyway my crackpot winds of winter theory is that dany will fully go to war with the free cities that still have slavery & through that forge an alliance with braavos, the city founded by slaves. this is how she meets arya. as someone who has actually lived the life of the smallfolk arya will become passionately devoted to dany's cause. somehow a remaining stark finds this out and then goes to reunite. (crackpot subtheory: bran's training as the three eyed raven is all to help in the fight against the others. he succeeds in using his powers for this but whether or not he stays bran stark is up for grabs. potential parallels w/ arya and the faceless men. he'll guide his siblings down the path to help them through dreams or whatever, so he's the one to transmit the info about arya and the one to send someone to find her) cue overjoyed meeting. atp the starks are gearing up for the fight against the others and this is how dany gets involved with that. my OTHER crackpot theory is that arya does end up completing her faceless man training and then gets sent to kill dany, paid for by the slavers. shes about to do it until she sees dany's devotion to her goal of ending slavery and this triggers memories of past and she is arya stark again! after that basically the same thing re: starklings finding each other to help in the fight against the others. can u tell i havent read the books in a while.

[mummer]

the more i think about it the more im convinced that bran theon and jon are gonna be in each others orbit in twow… theeee ghosts in/of winterfell 💚💚💚 idk why but they feel so connected to me…. the god the prophet the king etc. little alive dead guys

[skxrbrand]

[lateseptemberdawn]

Honestly if I were giving births to like dragons this monthly period thing would PROBABLY make sense then but no. It's more pesky humans.

[hisvictory]

bran's 2 nice it's a problem, but also he'll stab a mother fucker so like, take that kindness w/ a grain of salt and always remember: he drove an ice pick through the mouth of a d2 tribute

[givemetherapyimawritingtravesty]

Wolfstar. But also Jegulus. Just... The black brothers at their boyfriends.

[asoiafreadthru]

A Game of Thrones, Catelyn IV

Littlefinger hefted the knife lightly in his hand, testing the grip. He flipped it in the air, caught it again with his other hand. “Such sweet balance.

“You want to find the owner, is that the reason for this visit? You have no need of Ser Aron for that, my lady. You should have come to me.”

“And if I had,” she said, “what would you have told me?”

“I would have told you that there was only one knife like this at King’s Landing.”

He grasped the blade between thumb and forefinger, drew it back over his shoulder, and threw it across the room with a practiced flick of his wrist. It struck the door and buried itself deep in the oak, quivering.

“It’s mine.”

“Yours?” It made no sense. Petyr had not been at Winterfell.

“Until the tourney on Prince Joffrey’s name day,” he said, crossing the room to wrench the dagger from the wood.

“I backed Ser Jaime in the jousting, along with half the court.” Petyr’s sheepish grin made him look half a boy again. “When Loras Tyrell unhorsed him, many of us became a trifle poorer. Ser Jaime lost a hundred golden dragons, the queen lost an emerald pendant, and I lost my knife. Her Grace got the emerald back, but the winner kept the rest.”

“Who?” Catelyn demanded, her mouth dry with fear. Her fingers ached with remembered pain.

“The Imp,” said Littlefinger as Lord Varys watched her face. “Tyrion Lannister.”

[g0lightly]

my tinfoil hat is on but how funny would it be if jeyne lothston -- rumored daughter of aegon the unworthy -- was married off to a whent and therefore the canon-era tullys already have targaryen blood so rhaegar "fulfilling the prophecy" with jon was kind of redundant? the whents were knights in service to the lothstons when they held harrenhal and we know that "dishonored" daughters of noble houses are sometimes married off to household knights which can elevate that knight's status. lollys' marriage to bronn comes to mind. this would give a bit of extra weight to brynden rivers choosing bran as his mentee, as he would also be a descendent of aegon the unworthy.

the only snag is that it is said that jeyne contracted a pox from aegon, which is why she was dismissed from his court. not sure if that would prevent her from having children. it's also always possible jeyne had a bastard by aegon that was not noted in AWOIAF but i will certainly keep my eyes peeled for houses lothston and whent's lines in blood and fire.

[thesundowncrew]

“What was your plan A? Why would you take your barrier down if you weren’t leaving?”

Before Samhain could say anything, Nightshade answered with a disdained scoff. "Obviously cus he thought he could take on the big baddie all by himself!" The words, true as they were, still felt like a slap on the face. Even as Samhain stood up from the bed and stretched his limbs, he couldn't look Nightshade in the eyes when she was mad at him like that.

“You must’ve known what would happen… didn’t you?”

"Ah... admit ah overestimated my abilities to take control o'me own unconscious," Samhain confessed, rubbing the back of his neck as if it were stiff from a few hours of sleeping the wrong way. It wasn't. "Ah've done it only a few times before an' ah thought it wouldn't hurt to test out some limits.." Whether it was the creature's limits of controlling the dreaming or his own ability of taking it, or both, Samhain didn't elaborate.

He held the dream draught in his hand for a bit before stuffing it into his pocket. "It won't happen again," he said, resolutely.

"But o'course ah knew what would happen if I failed, which is why I left a emergency line directly to Nightshade in case anythin' happened," he defended once again only to be shot down immediately by his aforementioned Plan B. "Uh-HUH, yeah, leave the supernatural hotline to the kid, of course! Smart idea! Probably cus if you told anyone else your hare-brained scheme, no-one would've let you!"

"Nightie, please."

"You're lucky she called at all! And right after, too!" Suddenly Nightshade let out a little gasp, remembering sweet little Nettie was expecting her today, "Oh no! I better get going!" It was raining so everyone must've come inside by now and her absence would be noticed, no doubt.

Samhain nodded. "Before ye go, Nightie, could you take these with you?" he asked, handing over his belongings as well as the items on left on the drawer, save for the music box. "Mr. Arthur made this for you," he took her hand and placed the cat carving in her palm; green, beady eyes looking up at her in matching glee.

"(GASP) Is that lil' ol' me???" she squealed until she remembered she was still mad at the ghoul, clearing her throat and looking away. "I mean (cough) It's cute, I guess. Don't think you'll get off that easy."

"Yer welcome," Samhain chuckled. Now that he knew all his items were in Nightshade's safekeeping, he turned to Bran. "Maybe you should stay with Nightie an' keep Nettie company. As for me," the ghoul said with a smirk, green eyes looking up as if he could see all the way through to the attic above them. "Ah think it's time ah have a little chat with Feldmire~"

Bran watched them banter with each other, wide-eyed, struggling to follow along. Samhain’s answer to his questions only bewildered the boy more. He understood Nightshade’s frustration, but he still winced in sympathy when she tugged Samhain’s ear and pulled at his cheeks. That looked painful.

Dream draughts… Nightshade had made dream draughts. Bran’s gaze flickered to the little pouch on the bed. Was that her creation? From the few details he gathered from her flood of scolding, it sounded like it offered protection in a dream. How much had these two figured out about Feld’s methods?

Samhain addressed him at last. An apology. Bran shook his head, fumbling for words. Their argument had given his heart some time to slow its pace, so his pulse no longer thundered in his ears, but the sense of disorientation lingered. This had never happened before. A guest had never rejected the dream and broken free from Feld’s trap. What happened now?

“If— if Nightshade was your plan B,” Bran began, regaining his voice at last, “what was your plan A? Why would you take your barrier down if you weren’t leaving?” His tone held more confusion than any sort of anger — along with a hint of hurt, a sense that he’d been deceived in some way. A chill passed through him, like the chill that had overcome him last night when he’d discussed the contract with Samhain. A certainty that this would have consequences.

This time, though, the chill seemed to emanate from somewhere above them. The attic. Maybe a window was open up there, letting the rain blow inside. Dread spiked through Bran at the alternative. Surely Feld had realized Samhain was awake by now…

A rabbit-like instinct to run suddenly tugged at him. Bran wrapped his arms around himself and inhaled shakily. “I’m sorry, I just— I don’t understand. You must’ve known what would happen… didn’t you?”

[caraecethrae]

I need to buckle down and figure out what my personal understanding of Ceirt/Cert is.

it's fascinating how it seems to have these two diametrically opposing possible meanings (not unlike nGétal), one being tied to coir and right judgment and kingship, which actually fits apple extremely well folklorically, and one connected to madness, misfortune, sacrifice, and illness, which fit both potential etymologies of either Rag or Bush.

it seemed clear to me in the past that the secondary meaning had to be original, especially given my/the bias against the crannogham, but it's still very frustratingly simple that the current Modern Irish meaning is Rightness.

perhaps the meaning of the word shifted to match the evolving understanding of the fid, given the medieval love for the arboreal and more recentness of the Immrama? of course that's a reach but ...

[skxrbrand]

Khornates when they determine someone is too feminine

[stormbcrn]

My muse has died. Send in your muse’s reaction.

Rhaella:

Dead…..no no she couldn’t be dead.

Rhaella shoved away the knight who had come to tell her the new, racing through the halls and out ot eh pit. Her brilliant daughter had hatched dragons back into the world and the beasts were kept there freely coming and going through the open roof. Rhaella herself didn’t ride, her body to broken from life to handle it but her little princess was a wonder on them.

The knight was wrong, her baby couldn’t be dead.

What had he been saying? Something about a fall, the height, the dragon….but she never fell. In all the years she never even slipped.

Maybe it was Rhaella’s fault, maybe she had let her daughter go up to often. Maybe she should’ve insisted on the girl not trying.

Maybe she should have been a better mother.

Her daughters body was clearly broken, though someone had gone to the effort of trying to straighten everything out. There was no sound as she dropped to her knees and clutched at the still warm body. Tears fell silently as shock stole her voice, body heaving in great sobs that were soundless as the knights tried to figure out what to do.

When she found her voice again not even the dragons matched her scream.

daenerys is dead – send in your muse’s reaction!