#dany and tyrion

[captaincanonly]

none of these make sense. send help. i’ve gone woke…..

[hylialeia]

you don't get it. she loved him once. she didn't have a maester, she had a brother. he sold their mother's crown to keep them fed. he said Dany, please. she loved him, once.

[thewokedragon]

Sometimes I remember the reason I got attached to game of thrones was because it was a story about outcasts the ones who didn’t fit into society, the exile, the bastard, the dwarf, the girl and the queen who wanted to be born male, the broken boy, the boy who was a brother but also a hostage… only for it all to end with the “others” as the bad guys and conformity to win

[visenyaism]

How do you think that Dany will react to how Westerosi peasants, while technically free and not enslaved, live and experience conditions that are very similar to that of Essosi slavery (if Tyrion’s observations are to be trusted, in this context)?

i think she will want to improve their lives

[greenerteacups]

oooh please someday tell us what you think of GOT

oh, no, it's my fatal weakness! it's [checks notes] literally just the bare modicum of temptation! okay you got me.

SO. in order to tell what's wrong with game of thrones you kind of have to have read the books, because the books are the reason the show goes off the rails. i actually blame the showrunners relatively little in proportion to GRRM for how bad the show was (which I'm not gonna rehash here because if you're interested in GOT in any capacity you've already seen that horse flogged to death). people debate when GOT "got bad" in terms of writing, but regardless of when you think it dropped off, everyone agrees the quality declined sharply in season 8, and to a certain extent, season 7. these are the seasons that are more or less entirely spun from whole cloth, because season 7 marks the beginning of what will, if we ever see it, be the Winds of Winter storyline. it's the first part that isn't based on a book by George R.R. Martin. it's said that he gave the showrunners plot outlines, but we don't know how detailed they were, or how much the writers diverged from the blueprint — and honestly, considering the cumulative changes made to the story by that point, some stark divergence would have been required. (there's a reason for this. i'll get there in a sec.)

so far, i'm not saying anything all that original. a lot of people recognized how bad the show got as soon as they ran out of Book to adapt. (I think it's kind of weird that they agreed to make a show about an unfinished series in the first place — did GRRM figure that this was his one shot at a really good HBO adaptation, and forego misgivings about his ability to write two full books in however many years it took to adapt? did he think they would wait for him? did he not care that the series would eventually spoil his magnum opus, which he's spent the last three decades of his life writing? perplexing.) but the more interesting question is why the show got bad once it ran out of Book, because in my mind, that's not a given. a lot of great shows depart from the books they were based on. fanfiction does exactly that, all the time! if you have good writers who understand the characters they're working with, departure means a different story, not a worse one. now, the natural reply would be to say that the writers of GOT just aren't good, or at least aren't good at the things that make for great television, and that's why they needed the books as a structure, but I don't think that's true or fair, either. books and television are very different things. the pacing of a book is totally different from the pacing of a television show, and even an episodic book like ASOIAF is going to need a lot of work before it's remotely watchable as a series. bad writers cannot make great series of television, regardless of how good their source material is. sure, they didn't invent the characters of tyrion lannister and daenerys targaryen, but they sure as hell understood story structure well enough to write a damn compelling season of TV about them!

so but then: what gives? i actually do think it's a problem with the books! the show starts out as very faithful to the early books (namely, A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings) to the point that most plotlines are copied beat-for-beat. the story is constructed a little differently, and it's definitely condensed, but the meat is still there. and not surprisingly, the early books in ASOIAF are very tightly written. for how long they are, you wouldn't expect it, but on every page of those books, the plot is racing. you can practically watch george trying to beat the fucking clock. and he does! useful context here is that he originally thought GOT was going to be a trilogy, and so the scope of most threads in the first book or two would have been much smaller. it also helps that the first three books are in some respects self-contained stories. the first book is a mystery, the second and third are espionage and war dramas — and they're kept tight in order to serve those respective plots.

the trouble begins with A Feast for Crows, and arguably A Storm of Swords, because GRRM starts multiplying plotlines and treating the series as a story, rather than each individual book. he also massively underestimated the number of pages it would take him to get through certain plot beats — an assumption whose foundation is unclear, because from a reader's standpoint, there is a fucke tonne of shit in Feast and Dance that's spurious. I'm not talking about Brienne's Riverlands storyline (which I adore thematically but speaking honestly should have been its own novella, not a part of Feast proper). I'm talking about whole chapters where Tyrion is sitting on his ass in the river, just talking to people. (will I eat crow about this if these pay off in hugely satisfying ways in Winds or Dream? oh, totally. my brothers, i will gorge myself on sweet sweet corvid. i will wear a dunce cap in the square, and gleefully, if these turn out to not have been wastes of time. the fact that i am writing this means i am willing to stake a non-negligible amount of pride on the prediction that that will not happen). I'm talking about scenes where the characters stare at each other and talk idly about things that have already happened while the author describes things we already have seen in excruciating detail. i'm talking about threads that, while forgivable in a different novel, are unforgivable in this one, because you are neglecting your main characters and their story. and don't tell me you think that a day-by-day account tyrion's river cruise is necessary to telling his story, because in the count of monte cristo, the main guy disappears for nine years and comes hurtling back into the story as a vengeful aristocrat! and while time jumps like that don't work for everything, they certainly do work if what you're talking about isn't a major story thread!

now put aside whether or not all these meandering, unconcluded threads are enjoyable to read (as, in fairness, they often are!). think about them as if you're a tv showrunner. these bad boys are your worst nightmare. because while you know the author put them in for a reason, you haven't read the conclusion to the arc, so you don't know what that reason is. and even if the author tells you in broad strokes how things are going to end for any particular character (and this is a big "if," because GRRM's whole style is that he lets plots "develop as he goes," so I'm not actually convinced that he does have endings written out for most major characters), that still doesn't help you get them from point A (meandering storyline) to point B (actual conclusion). oh, and by the way, you have under a year to write this full season of television, while GRRM has been thinking about how to end the books for at least 10. all of this means you have to basically call an audible on whether or not certain arcs are going to pay off, and, if they are, whether they make for good television, and hence are worth writing. and you have to do that for every. single. unfinished. story. in the books.

here's an example: in the books, Quentin Martell goes on a quest to marry Daenerys and gain a dragon. many chapters are spent detailing this quest. spoiler alert: he fails, and he gets charbroiled by dragons. GRRM includes this plot to set up the actions of House Martell in Winds, but the problem is that we don't know what House Martell does in Winds, because (see above) the book DNE. So, although we can reliably bet that the showrunners understand (1) Daenerys is coming to Westeros with her 3 fantasy nukes, and (2) at some point they're gonna have to deal with the invasion of frozombies from Canada, that DOESN'T mean they necessarily know exactly what's going to happen to Dorne, or House Martell. i mean, fuck! we don't even know if Martin knows what's going to happen to Dorne or House Martell, because he's said he's the kind of writer who doesn't set shit out beforehand! so for every "Cersei defaults on millions of dragons in loans from the notorious Bank of Nobody Fucks With Us, assumes this will have no repercussions for her reign or Westerosi politics in general" plotline — which might as well have a big glaring THIS WILL BE IMPORTANT stamp on top of the chapter heading — you have Arianne Martell trying to do a coup/parent trap switcheroo with Myrcella, or Euron the Goffick Antichrist, or Faegon Targaryen and JonCon preparing a Blackfyre restoration, or anything else that might pan out —��but might not! And while that uncertainty about what's important to the "overall story" might be a realistic way of depicting human beings in a world ruled by chance and not Destiny, it makes for much better reading than viewing, because Game of Thrones as a fantasy television series was based on the first three books, which are much more traditional "there is a plot and main characters and you can generally tell who they are" kind of book. I see Feast and Dance as a kind of soft reboot for the series in this respect, because they recenter the story around a much larger cast and cast a much broader net in terms of which characters "deserve" narrative attention.

but if you're making a season of television, you can't do that, because you've already set up the basic premise and pacing of your story, and you can't suddenly pivot into a long-form tone poem about the horrors of war. so you have to cut something. but what are you gonna cut? bear in mind that you can't just Forget About Dorne, or the Iron Islands, or the Vale, or the North, or pretty much any region of the story, because it's all interconnected, but to fit in everything from the books would require pacing of the sort that no reasonable audience would ever tolerate. and bear in mind that the later books sprout a lot more of these baby-plots that could go somewhere, but also might end up being secondary or tertiary to the "main story," which, at the end of the day, is about dragons and ice zombies and the rot at the heart of the feudal power system glorified in classical fantasy. that's the story that you as the showrunner absolutely must give them an end to, and that's the story that should be your priority 1.

so you do a hack and slash job, and you mortar over whatever you cut out with storylines that you cook up yourself, but you can't go too far afield, because you still need all the characters more or less in place for the final showdown. so you pinch here and push credulity there, and you do your best to put the characters in more or less the same place they would have been if you kept the original, but on a shorter timeframe. and is it as good as the first seasons? of course not! because the material that you have is not suited to TV like the first seasons are. and not only that, but you are now working with source material that is actively fighting your attempt to constrain a linear and well-paced narrative on it. the text that you're working with changed structure when you weren't looking, and now you have to find some way to shanghai this new sprawling behemoth of a Thing into a television show. oh, and by the way, don't think that the (living) author of the source material will be any help with this, because even though he's got years of experience working in television writing, he doesn't actually know how all of these threads will tie together, which is possibly the reason that the next book has taken over 8 years (now 13 and counting) to write. oh and also, your showrunners are sick of this (in fairness, very difficult) job and they want to go write for star wars instead, so they've refused the extra time the studio offered them for pre-production and pushed through a bunch of first-draft scripts, creating a crunch culture of the type that spawns entirely avoidable mistakes, like, say, some poor set designer leaving a starbucks cup in frame.

anyway, that's what I think went wrong with game of thrones.

[nightingale2004]

The daughter of Khal Drogo and Daenaerys Targaryen

Khalakka Rhaella Targaryen

Faceclaim: Alycia Debnam-Carey

She was originally a twin to Rhaego, but after he passed shortly after he was born, Rhaella was born shortly after, alive and healthy

Rhaego was prophesied to be the stallion who mounted the world, but what they missed was his sister, the dragon who would've flew the skies by his side while they mounted the world together

Rhaella has her father's savage and wild spirit that no man or woman can tame. Dany would describe it as the soul of a true dragon

Rhaella also inherited her mother's confidence, strength, determination, honor, and compassion

Despite looking like her father, she is her mother's daughter

She has some silver white streaks in her hair and purple eyes in which she inherited from Dany.

Daenerys was the mother of Dragons, but Rhaella was their kin. Their sister and dragon master

When she was a child, she always wanted to wield a sword. Her mother didn't allow it until way later

Drogon, Viserion, and Rhaegal love Rhaella and are completely soft for her and Dany.

Rhaella rides Viserion

She is a master swordsman and a part of her mother's council

Loves Missandei and sees her as family

Despite not knowing her twin or her birth father, she feels like their spirits are within the dragons

Rhaella loves flying on Dragon's back

She practices her Valyrian a lot to communicate with the dragons

Loves playing with the Dragons

The Dothraki and the many soldiers and servants who are truly loyal to Daenerys love Rhaella and consider her a fearful wild spirit but also a true delight

Tolerates Tyrion

Despite being skilled in a fight, she is actually very strategic and intelligent to understand politics

Has never bedded anyone

Knows her history of both her Dothraki and Targaryen heritage

She made a promise to herself that she would help her mother sit on the iron throne, and dragons would soar the skies freely along with House Targaryen being restored to their might once again

Wants to be a strong leader like her mother and father someday, who can also carry a sword and restore peace to the realm. She also wishes to be fair and different from the Lannisters (especially Cersei)

[jonsnowunemploymentera]

Something rubbed against his leg beneath the table. Jon saw red eyes staring up at him. “Hungry again?” he asked. There was still half a honeyed chicken in the center of the table. Jon reached out to tear off a leg, then had a better idea. He knifed the bird whole and let the carcass slide to the floor between his legs. Ghost ripped into it in savage silence. His brothers and sisters had not been permitted to bring their wolves to the banquet, but there were more curs than Jon could count at this end of the hall, and no one had said a word about his pup. He told himself he was fortunate in that too. His eyes stung. Jon rubbed at them savagely, cursing the smoke. He swallowed another gulp of wine and watched his direwolf devour the chicken. Dogs moved between the tables, trailing after the serving girls. One of them, a black mongrel bitch with long yellow eyes, caught a scent of the chicken. She stopped and edged under the bench to get a share. Jon watched the confrontation. The bitch growled low in her throat and moved closer. Ghost looked up, silent, and fixed the dog with those hot red eyes. The bitch snapped an angry challenge. She was three times the size of the direwolf pup. Ghost did not move. He stood over his prize and opened his mouth, baring his fangs. The bitch tensed, barked again, then thought better of this fight. She turned and slunk away, with one last defiant snap to save her pride. Ghost went back to his meal. Jon grinned and reached under the table to ruffle the shaggy white fur. The direwolf looked up at him, nipped gently at his hand, then went back to eating.

Jon I, AGOT

It's interesting that GRRM would dedicate several paragraphs to a seemingly unimportant exchange between a boy, his wolf, and an unfriendly third party. But there's just something about this passage that has continued to nag at me for years since I first read it because, considering how heavy handed GRRM was with the foreshadowing in AGOT, this feels important.

Jon is sitting at table full of squires - aka would be knights. We don't really know who they are or what families they belong to, but it's safe to assume that they come from a certain level of privilege; this is considering the fact that it cannot be financially easy to be a squire. And these boys already have a slew of tales detailing all their previous knightly exploits regarding "battle and bedding and the hunt" which suggests that they have some capital. So you have boys who will soon be men. And they will, presumably, become men of some power.

These lads eat their fill of the chicken until only half remains, which Jon then gives to Ghost. The direwolf's name is not so important here but what he represents is. Throughout the series, we're told that Ghost is reminiscent of the weirwood trees (because of his red eyes and white fur). He's stated to be of and from the Old Gods and since he's a personification of the weirwoods, he might as well be one of them. It's almost as if Jon is presenting whatever is left on the table to the Old Gods (Ghost). He lets them devour his offerings while he silently watches. And the motif of watching is so interesting here because it's kind of like Jon takes on a stewardship role - to watch over land/people/etc. He oversees Ghost eating the chicken, so he's overseeing whatever has been given to the Old Gods. This is not new imagery to his arc. As a brother of the Night's Watch and eventually its leader, we have several instances where he leads people to adopting the Old Gods in some fashion. In ADWD, several recruits swear their vows to the Old Gods while he watches on as their Lord Commander. The Old Gods are also primarily of the North and we're told that Jon has more of the north in him than his brothers; interesting that this also includes Bran. So perhaps whatever is being offered to the Old Gods relates to the North.

We must also note that Jon initially thinks to give only a small portion, a leg, before pivoting and providing the entire thing. It feels to me a bit like the process of carving up a kingdom or something similar. The lords (represented by the squires) take what they want and leave aside what they don't; or perhaps they have eaten to their fill and can take no more. Then when his time comes, Jon first considers a small piece of land/group of people before eventually absorbing all of whatever is left behind. The concept of carving up a kingdom rings harder considering that we have several callbacks to the ideals of kingship in this chapter. Robert, Jaime, Tyrion, and even Mance though we don't know it yet, all play into this. And then there's the aspect of Jon letting the chicken slip between his legs which evokes birth/fatherhood, a very curious choice when GRRM could've just had Jon place the chicken on the floor. So land/people are carved up and Jon then uses whatever is left to birth his own type of kingdom. And this kingdom is one for the Old Gods.

This also touches on something that has been quite prevalent throughout Jon's arc. It's the concept of accepting the "others" or "those left over" who live apart from the accepted social norms. Arya (a tomboy), Sam (a gender non-confirming boy), the Night's Watch (criminals, extra sons, and men who have no future left or place to go), and even the wildlings are all examples of this. And Jon takes on a leadership/paternal role to every single one of them. He looks after them as a leader would/should. Sometimes, in the case of Arya and the wildlings, he's equated to a king. He's a steward/shepherd/king. There's messianic undertones to this:

Come unto me, all you who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30).

If you're familiar with Judeo-Christian tradition, you'll know that Jesus is often personified as one who spent the majority his time among the outcasts. The idea is that he came to save them too and that anew kingdom (or new earth depending on your translation) would spring up after the end of the world where he would forever rule as king; which presents the idea of a final king after the earthly ones are done away with. Now GRRM isn't so heavy handed with Christian allusions as other authors out there, but he does have a Catholic background and Jon is so overtly a Jesus figure. And in Revelation, Jesus is king and god at the very end....

One last thing: the mention of the mongrel who challenges Jon has always been rather interesting but confusing to me. A mongrel doesn't really relate to one specific type of dog. But it's interesting that Jon notes several roaming about where he is. They follow the serving girls who carry the food to be offered. Mongrels are used to describe antagonist/villainous groups in ASOIAF. Sometimes, they're used to describe slavers in Essos. But what's interesting is that most of the time, they're used to describe Euron's Ironborn especially in Victorian's POV. So I don't think the mongrel who challenges Ghost is a supernatural threat of death (i.e., the Others) but rather a human one. They represent those who are called to the scene once the lords have finished playing their games. It almost feels like a feast for (carrion) crows....

But it doesn't really matter because this mongrel isn't much of a challenge for Ghost. Though the mongrel is much larger, the direwolf is able to fend her off very effortlessly. Given that "mongrel" is used to describe Ironborn raiders, could this exchange between Ghost and the mongrel point to reavers or sea raiders who rise and fail challenge Jon kingdom? There is a historical King Jon Stark who did this....

When sea raiders landed in the east, Jon drove them out and built a castle, the Wolf's Den, at the mouth of the White Knife, so as to be able to defend the mouth of the river.[1][2] His son, Rickard, followed him on the throne and annexed the Neck to the north.

ref.

So this might shed some light not only on Jon's already published arc, but also on what we can expect in the future. We have some foreshadowing through Jon's ADWD dream that he will not only rise with the dawn (thereby live through the Long Night), but will be in a position to lead people (wildings in that chapter) to a new peace after a hard fought war. Also remember that the wildlings, rather enthusiastically, swear oaths to him as if swearing oaths to their king. In this instance, the supernatural (a dream of the war for the dawn) is followed by the natural/human. So perhaps this particular passage (and Jon's dream) can be used to predict that Jon comes out on top, and quite effortlessly too, as a leader. And he becomes a leader who rules by association with the Old Gods; or rules a kingdom for them.

To end, I think it's of note that this passage immediately precedes Jon's conversation with Benjen where he voices his desire to go out on his own - the hero's call to action. This is the adventure that's going to kickstart his growth as a man, warrior and most importantly, a leader. So it looks like before we even began, GRRM telegraphed how it would all end in just three short paragraphs.

[a-chaotic-dumbass]

my inner demon trying to convince me to only read sansa's jaime's davos's and catelyn's chapters in asos

[a-libra-writes]

to my ASOIAF homies who havent read the books yet and/or enjoy audibooks. .. may I please offer ... this fantastic amateur recording by DavidReadsASOIAF

[selkiewife]

Tyrion and Daenerys ☾ Tyrion's Seasons of Love

Dany introduces Tyrion to Viserion. He unchains and bonds with the dragon that was named for her brother. Bound together through dragonriding, Tyrion and Dany find love as well as family in each other.

[a-d-nox]

web of wyrd observation: moments when actors/actresses fit their persona so well

the best thing you can do is to lean into your persona number when acting or playing a part in front of others. people naturally have a predisposition to seeing and assuming you are a certain way and it is all governed by that leading public persona number. the more you lean into it the more you are likely to be seen and even recognized/rewarded for your association to that energy.

EXAMPLE ONE elijah wood as frodo in lord of the rings (lead number / public persona number as 10, the wheel of fortune, which gives grand adventure vibes)

EXAMPLE TWO florence pugh as dani in midsommar (lead number / public persona number as 3, the empress, is 100% may queen energy - pugh even looks like empress in the scene depicted below)

EXAMPLE THREE daniel radcliffe as harry potter in the 8 movie franchise (lead number / public persona number as 5, the hierophant, where could you get better dark academia vibes than at hogwarts? potter even teaches his peers in the 5th book and movie)

EXAMPLE FOUR orlando bloom as will turner, particularly the best movie in that franchise, pirates of the caribbean: at world's end (lead number / public persona number as 13, death, "part of the crew part of the ship, part of the crew part of the ship" vibes for sure)

EXAMPLE FIVE peter dinklage as tyrion lannister in the tv series game of thrones (lead number / public persona number as 11, justice, i have never seen a more politically and morally neutral character thanks george r. r. martin but also THANK YOU casting crew because no could've picked a better tyrion)

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[growingstrong2019]

If only Dany had listened to her and not Tyrion, she could’ve took Kingslanding without losing missandei and Rhaegal. And probably wouldn’t of gone insane and burnt Kingslanding to the ground.

[leupagus]

All of my GOT ships are some variation of "It's rotten work. Especially to me, especially if it's you. I'll fucking do it but christ alive." The fun thing is that each member of each pairing gets to switch it up periodically

"'All dwarfs are bastards in their father's eyes.'" 

Tyrion needed a few moments to understand what was happening — or rather, how much of various things were happening all at once. Queen Daenerys was standing in his quarters. She was scowling at him impatiently while wearing her flying boots and leather coat. It was halfway through the hour of the owl. He was naked in bed.

"What?" he managed, wrapping the bedsheet about his waist and trying not to think of the dozens (hundreds?) of times Jaime had marched into his chambers in just this fashion. He'd never bothered to cover himself — Jaime had changed his smallclothes when he'd been an infant — but a queen was a different matter.

"'All dwarfs are bastards in their father's eyes,'" Daenerys repeated. She had, in addition to the boots and the coat, a scroll in her hand; she waved it at him now.

Tyrion was still lost. "Please refer to my previous question, Your Grace." He scooted to the edge of the bed and slid off, keeping the sheets firmly bunched about him as he rummaged through a chest of drawers for a pair of trousers.

"A message from Volantis has just arrived," Daenerys said, stomping over to his wardrobe to take out a shirt. "You'll need this, too," she added, tossing it on the bed.

"Will I, indeed?" he asked, pulling out his trousers and flapping them at her. "Turn round, please, Your Grace."

Daenerys rolled her eyes, but turned obligingly. "It's from Kinvara, the high priest of the Red Temple in Volantis. She claims someone from Westeros has come with a warning."

"She wants you to go to Volantis?" Tyrion demanded as he hopped on first one foot, then the other, to get his trousers on. Fortunately the shoes were easy in Meereen: nearly everyone (including Daenerys, unless she was flying) favored the practical sandals that could be easily slipped on and off. "The same place that tried to foment rebellion in every city on the Bay these past two years?"

"It's a risk," Daenerys agreed, "but Kinvara was the one to first inform us of Volantis's betrayal; she could have had me overthrown a year ago, but she sided with us instead."

"That's due in large part to our agreement to let one of her priestesses sit on the Congressional Council," Tyrion countered, "but pray go on, Your Grace."

She huffed. "Second, I've informed Grey Worm that in the event I am captured or killed, he is to bring the entire force of the Unsullied, the Second Sons, and the Free Fleet of Meereen down on Volantis's head. Not only that, but I'm leaving Viserion and Rhaegal here; if anthing happens to me they'll burn the entire city to ashes and molten rock."

"A proportional response, to be sure," Tyrion agreed. Personally he'd rather have Daenerys alive; no doubt he was growing sentimental in his old age. "What's the third reason? You always have at least three reasons to do anything."

"The third is — can I turn around now?"

"Your Grace is free to do as she likes," he said as he wrestled the tunic on. He emerged to find her regarding him thoughtfully. "It's clean," he said defensively.

"I know, I picked it out," she said absently. "No, I was just thinking I should've made you visit the barber earlier."

"Ealier than when?" he asked, but she simply turned on her heel, obliging him to scurry after. "And what's the third reason?"

Daenerys handed him the scroll. "I've had a jacket made up for you, which should help with the cold, but you'll need some sort of boots. Meereenese have no idea how to dress warmly."

"Dress warmly for what? Earlier than when? And what's the third reason?" Tyrion must be dreaming; that explained it.

Daenerys snatched the scroll back and read it out loud. "'To the most revered—' et cetera— 'I am bid to tell you that two of your countrymen have arrived, with information that cannot wait for our slow ships to make their way to you. I beseech you to come at once to Volantis, as you are capable of arriving far more swiftly, and what information I have cannot wait. If you doubt the veracity of this message, or the sincerity of its messengers, one of these messengers asks that Tyrion Lannister be remembered to him, for all dwarfs are bastards in their father's eyes.'"

"Jon Snow," Tyrion said, remembering that summer eve in Winterfell, so many (was it really so many?) years ago. "It's something I told him once. He's a member of—"

"Of the Night's Watch, I know," said Daenerys. "That's the third reason. Though I'm a bit puzzled as to how it could be him — Lady Stark believes him dead, doesn't she?" She continued onto the Nursery, calling over her shoulder, "There's no time for a barber now, but really, Tyrion, a whole flock of hummingbirds could nest in your hair."

"We don't all have attendants to braid our hair to within an inch of its life each morning. Unless it's the hummingbirds doing it for you."

"I braid my own hair, thank you very much." They came to the Nursery door and met with Missandei, who was holding a leather jherkin and an apprehensive expression. "Thank you," she added to Missandei, far more sincerely.

Boots, Tyrion thought stupidly, just as Daario came strolling up wearing a brown-and-red leather coat and stout riding boots. He held a smaller pair in his hands. "Boots. Jackets. Wait."

"First flight on dragonback?" Daario asked, sketching a bow to Daenerys as he handed the boots to Tyrion. "Mine, too — though I've been angling to get a ride for months." 

"And I'd advise against doing anything that makes me reconsider," the queen replied, and went through the door to the Nursery. Daario followed her with a broad wink to Tyrion, leaving him alone with Missandei and a jacket.

"She can't mean for me to go with her," Tyrion said even as he numbly accepted her help getting his boots on, along with the new jacket. It had large brass rings affixed by stout leather strips, so that one might be strapped into the saddle of a— 

"The first time is the most frightening," Missandei said solemnly, taking his sandals. "I hardly ever vomit from terror anymore."

"'Enemies in each direction,'" Tyrion muttered as he trod off obediently to his doom.

There was a saddle for Drogon now, but it couldn't accomodate three people. "It's fine," Daenerys said as they climbed the steep steps to the balcony. Drogon was already there, staring down into the darkness of the city at rest. "We'll ride bareback."

"We absolutely will not," Tyrion objected. He may not still be entirely awake, but he'd be damned if he climbed aboard a dragon in the middle of the night like some lunatic Targaryens he might mention.

Daenerys rolled her eyes. "It's perfectly safe!"

""For you, Your Grace. What if Drogon doesn't like us riding on him?" Tyrion asked. At that, Drogon's great head curved around to poke him in the stomach. "It's a fair question!"

"Drogon won't let me fall," Daenerys said breezily, and Tyrion found himself sharing a rare moment of fellow feeling with Daario as they caught one another's eye. 

[arthmis]

i'm currently reading asoiaf so. medieval fantasy people as i've been imagining them :-)

[throwawayasoiafaccount]

when the long night inevitably ends and the previous social structure has crumbled and both westeros and essos are in chaos, do you want characters who genuinely care about creating meaningful change to be in power, or do you want them to die/not be in power because “feudalism is bad” and therefore these characters who derive some of their authority from the class they belong to cannot hold any power after the long night bc that somehow contradicts one of asoiafs most prominent messages. (despite the fact that many of our main characters suffer due to the current social systems in place)

personally, i’d prefer it if the characters who are able to see the good in the undesirables of society (and protect/empower these undesirables) are able to live on in order to restructure society in a way that protects all people.

to be frank, i don’t think it’d even be possible for the world of asoiaf to return to feudalism after something like the long night occurs.

but the thing is, society needs structure and humanity will naturally restructure itself whether people like it or not. so when spring comes, i want the characters who wish for a better tomorrow for all people to be in power in order to create a better world.

so to everyone who thinks that certain characters being in power only perpetuates the cycle of class violence and oppression, i’d like to ask you what you think is a better alternative way for asoiaf to end.

[greenbloods]

love that the first lesson jon had to learn at the wall from donal noye and the first lesson that tyrion had to learn in exile from penny were that they might be outcasts, yes, but that they were afforded luxuries due to the privilege of being highborn that they should never forget. that they are mistreated by their world but that they lived lives of comfort that the people around them could only imagine, and that two things may be true at once.