#euron greyjoy preference

[justanoasisimagines]

Walking up behind and hugging them - Game of Thrones Preference - Set B

Requests are open! Credit to @cafekitsune for the divider and banner

Jon Snow; Jon glances down and immediately realizes it's you. He's the one who usually does to you. Jon finds himself enjoying the position. Although he doesn't quite appreciate it in the same way. He can't look down at you or lean down to steal a kiss.

Yoren; Yoren appreciates it more than he cares to admit. He's tough as old boots. However, sometimes it gets too much. He lets you hold him tightly, allowing you to ground him. To pretend he hasn't got more stress in his life. You're constantly putting your life in danger to be with him. So sometimes it's nice to have a moment between you and him.

Tyrion Lannister; Your head buried into his neck snaps him out of his thoughts. He'd been at his desk contemplating the current state of things. You are a welcomed distraction. His head is beginning to ache from prolonged concentration. When you suggest he takes a snap, he immediately takes you up on it.

Grey Worm; Grey Worm's lips twitch when he feels your arms wrap around him from behind. He loves how you're not afraid to seek comfort from him. However, he's not a fan of this position. He can't see you. Although he does appreciate the press of your body against his. As he turns to say something to you, you surprise him with a kiss.

Ramsay Bolton; Ramsay turns around swiftly anticipating your move. You jump at the sudden movement. He leans down kissing you, furiously nipping his way down your throat. He loves to play cat and mouse with you.

Jojen Reed; Jojen smiles as he leans back when you wrap your arms around him from behind. He can't say it's his favorite way to be embraced but he doesn't mind it. He'd prefer it if the roles were reversed.

Doran Martell; Doran laughs as you wrap your arms around him. He's looking out of the window admiring the view. He relaxes at your touch, relishing the moment between the two of you. It's hard to make time when you're both so busy. Moments like this are hard to come by.

Alliser Thorne; Alliser's shocked when you wrap your arms around him. While he's not expecting it, he's quick to move you to the front. He's not a fan of it, so he'll always bring you forward. You're the only person who will ever get to see this side of him.

Benjen Stark; Benjen laughs when he feels your arms wrapped around him. It is not often you do things like this but Benjen admires the size difference between you both. How tiny your hands are compared to his. He generally enjoys this type of embrace.

Jorah Mormont; When you hug Jorah from behind, Jorah pretends to not know it is you. It's a game you two play whenever you attempt to sneak up on him. Jorah always acts surprised because it's unlikely you'll be able to creep up on a seasoned warrior.

Varys; Varys doesn't like it. He likes being in control and doesn't like the idea of someone coming up behind him. He's aware that you would never hurt him. Varys would still find your behavior odd.

Beric Dondarrian; Beric immediately pulls your hands up so he can press a kiss to your hands. He's fond of the affection between the two of you. For Beric, it reminds him of what he's fighting for. It enforces what he knows to be true; if you're by his side then it's always the right path.

Samwell Tarly; It surprises Sam but he's pleased to see you nonetheless. He questions what you're up to and when you shrug Sam is content to sit in the moment. With each passing day, Sam believes he deserves to be loved by someone. Moments like this reinforce that.

Euron Greyjoy; Euron smiles. You were bound to come to find him eventually. You've never been one to sleep alone. He allows the embrace for several moments before pulling you to the front of him. He prefers this type of embrace. It makes him feel as if he's able to protect you from the harsh realities of the world.

Barristan Selemy; Barristan laughs at your playful nature. He enjoys moments like this between the two of you. It reminds Barristan of the best parts of being in love. Being carefree and having someone to help release the tension from life.

Gendry Waters; Gendry immediately turns his head to kiss you. As you melt his embrace he seizes the opportunity to turn in your embrace. It's a usual routine for you whenever you hug him like this. It always ends up in you kissing.

Daario Nahris; Daario turns and questions what you're up to. You always embrace him like this when you're being mischievous. When Daario hears you mumble "nothing" into his back, he knows it's something. He turns to face you and within moments you lead him to show him something.

Stannis Baratheon; Stannis is confused. Instinctively, he wants to know what you're doing. He doesn't expect your response. Especially when you explain why. He never expects you to tell him, you're looking out for him. Everyone sees him as a King and a leader but they don't see a man who needs to be looked after. It feels Stannis's heart with a warmth and while he's not sure of the position it does bring him some comfort.

Davos Seaworth; Davos enjoys the embrace. He finds comfort in your arms. He'll place your arms on top of yours as you two enjoy a quiet moment together. It serves as a reminder you both have each other. Through the good and the bad.

Sandor Clegane; Sandor immediately questions what you're doing. When you state the obvious, Sandor's quick to snap back, he knows what you're doing but why? He's comforted by the embrace because he's not been hugged a lot. But he's not going to be a fan of the position so he changes it almost immediately.

[horizon-verizon]

The ASOIAF fandom discourse online is dominated by bitter incels and male supremacists who were infuriated that Stannis, the character they projected onto got a (GRRM confirmed canon) villainous ending so they’ve tried to manipulate and dominate discourse around Stannis and Daenerys for years. I’m happy to see the tide to turn in our favor and Daenerys’ fans critiquing and pushing back against their laughable essays and podcasts.

Anyone with a brain and reading comprehension skills can clearly see that Stannis, FAegon and Euron Greyjoy are foils to Daenerys’s hero’s journey, the “lies she must slay”, anyone who says otherwise is a side character/NPC stan, a contrarian or misogynist.

It's so interesting that Dany is the "slayer of lies" in such a big way, it really gets into an inevitable intersection of philosophy and politics. I wrote a anti-Euron Greyjoy post HERE,

So I won't get into why Euron is a "liar" and a "Father" of lies both the normal way and a sort of spiritual way where he's looking to just exploit magic, belief systems like the Seven, and people through magic to dominate others and realize a dream of being a "god". And because he's supposedly inspiring and charming and seemingly devoted to his crew, he also seems to inspire a lot of blind loyalty.

So he often reminds me of a wannabe cult leader, megalomaniac as he is. It parallels the horror of the Greyjoys' invasion of the Riverlands pre-Conquest, which brings up some interesting queries of Dany re-represented by her ancestor Aegon I (who though not altruistic seeming, maybe) burning down Harrenhal to a less-maintain husk of itself, even thought still "inhabitable." The ironborn, specifically Harren Hoare and his ancestors later, also drove several people many people (esp lower classed) to death to build their castle (as Maegor did the Keep)...

Anyway, FAegon is probably not only not Rhaegar & Elia's son and thus not a claimant, the people who have raised him up (possible Blackfyre supporters) have constructed lies around him to try to control the future throne that way. A simulation of autonomy.

Finally, Stannis doesn't believe in the religion he's using for his own ends, but he does see the results of its very real magic. And as as a TikToker named HallowedHArpy notes, he not only doesn't believe in this god that Melisandre worships and is suing Stannis for to spread the religion, she herself was a real slave and is still a sort of "slave" to the priests' construction of the faith of R'hollor. She is an agent of this spread of religious lies about the Azor Ahai and she will go through a crisis where she realizes it was Dany all along. Which will be painful...as fire is both a cleanser and inflicts pain that can "shock" a thing out of it current state.

Those men & every Dany anti/doubter prefer to think of this fantasy series as purely political...too bad for them.

[lemonhemlock]

OMG HAVE YOU SEEN THE VIDEOS THIS ACCOUNT POSTS

https://youtu.be/T44VzPAPvSc

Oh my god finally someone with brain cells!!! You have to see their videos they make such good points!!

I, too, enjoy Hills Alive's content, anon! I don't agree with everything she says, but I appreciate how she's not afraid to go against the grain and make the unpopular argument.

My thoughts on House Hightower are very similar to hers, in truth. The amount of hate they get from the audience is downright embarrassing. House Hightower are in no way the villains of ASOIAF. Lord Leyton and Malara have been studying something magical and arcane up in their high tower (heh) for nigh on 10 years and are getting ready for an insane showdown with Euron Greyjoy, one of the actual villains of the series.

The Hightowers are connected to the Great Empire of the Dawn, with sorcery and science and religion and, in a lot of ways, represent the very essence and the very best of Westeros. Their modus operandi for most of their history has been to assimilate, negotiate and rely on soft power, as opposed to violence, conquest or trickery. Their interests comprise education, spirituality and the combination of both within the arcane mysteries. They maintain an open mind and are politically adept. They're very rich, but prefer not to participate in regional or country-wide politics, leaving the Gardners and then the Tyrells to be the official representatives of the Reach. The city of Oldtown is beautiful and cool AF, as opposed to the foul stench of King's Landing.

In the context of the HotD fandom, the problem I have with the majority of black stans is their utter refusal to look at the wider picture of Targaryen rule. For the people of Westeros, they are colonisers equipped with the medieval equivalent of nuclear weapons, threatening them with extreme violence and forcing their bizarre customs on them. They do not negotiate, they demand complete submission or else.

So the way I perceive House Hightower's role within the wider narrative is that their ideology has always centered on incremental progress and societal change via the proliferation of ideas. The only time we see them getting involved in Westerosi politics is by providing two Queens. This happens at a time when House Targaryen is very set on inter-marriages or, at most, alliances with the Velaryons and the Baratheons, if they have to marry outside the family. Both of those noble houses are of Valyrian descent as well. The Targaryens are still setting themselves apart from the society they have conquered and now wish to rule.

The first of the Hightower queens, Ceryse, marries Maegor in the period immediately following the Conquest. There is a 10-year age difference between them, why her? She is the High Septon's niece. If you ask me, this was the Hightowers' first attempt to try to "domesticate" the Targaryens into something more palatable to Westerosi society. The Faith Militant rises up in rebellion against Maegor when he insists on Valyrian customs like incest and polygamy.

Jaehaerys and Alysanne marry very young, so the possibility of another marriage alliance is out of the question. Alyssa and Baelon, a similar situation. Viserys marries his cousin Aemma, naturally, but what happens the next time there is an opening for the position of queen? Alicent enters the stage.

Now, Targ stans perceive the Hightowers as some kind of overreaching, overly-ambitious upstarts, but they are literally one of the oldest great houses of Westeros. The Great Empire of the Dawn predates Valyria. I am not saying that Otto or Alicent couldn't have their very own personal motivations or ambitions, but I do wonder if there is a sort of ideological background or the concept of a higher purpose informing their actions. Not necessarily as part of the show (hard to prove whether they chose to go down that route), but certainly permeating out of the text material and bleeding throughout the course of Westerosi history.

So, in this sense, Aegon II would, in a way, represent the ideal Targaryen king for them - someone connected to the Hightowers via blood, content to let them administer the realm in his stead, while he goes off and does whatever, as long as he performs his ceremonial roles and doesn't cause the kind of trouble that cannot be contained. For the first time since the Conquest, the Hightowers would finally have control over those feared mass destruction weapons and would be able to enact their particular style of ruling, via appeasement and integration.

What I ultimately find funny and ironic is that the Hightowers do achieve these objectives, just not in the way they may have initially envisioned. The debates involving Rhaenyra's ancestors being the ones to carry on the Targaryen line I ultimately find meaningless, because, in the end, the Hightowers got what they wanted. Yes, they sacrificed an entire branch of their family and lost a great deal of human resources and wealth in the war, but the dragons are gone. They lost their queen(s) and their king, but now the Targaryens are just like everyone else. And they'll have to play by the same rules. If they don't, well, expressing dissent has just become a lot easier.

You can definitely argue that the purpose of every noble house is to advance their own cause and their own family and that the actions of House Hightower should be strictly interpreted through this lens. However, after the Dance, the Hightowers do not seem interested in attempting another takeover ever again and are content to exert their influence throughout Westeros via their two very wide-reaching and powerful instruments: The Citadel, who trains all maesters, and The Faith, the main religion of the land. They effectively opt out of the game of thrones again.

The biggest military advantage House Targaryen held over the Seven Kingdoms has effectively been neutralised. The balance of power is much fairer. This creates the conditions that will allow Robert's Rebellion to succeed years later, finally ejecting the Targaryens from a continent they terrorized. Whereas the Hightowers are still there, thriving in their beautiful city.

If you ask me, the blacks can keep this "victory".

[hollowwhisperings]

Blackfyre Conquest: An Autumn King

i've struggled to find any Meta on how Young Griff's conquest will go, politically & logistically, that don't immediately interrupt themselves with "...but then Dany will show up with Dragons".

A lot of fans are very pro-Targaryen and pro-Conquest: a lot of Westeros would probably be on board too, though for less romantic reasons. No one "loves" the commander of a foreign army & Ned successfully rallied a Rebellion with very good reasons. The Targaryens were never entirely welcome in Westeros but the War of the Five Kings certainly made a "return to stability" with a Targ King an easier sell than it would have been earlier in the series. That this Targ King is non-incestuous, seemingly sane, has a sizeable Army, has multiple houses already sworn to him... and seems to be an Actual Politician? The Lords might frown at exactly "how" legitimate their King really is but, overall, "Aegon VI" would be vastly preferable to who Westeros has currently:

1) an increasingly unpopular Queen-Regent whose family Did The Red Wedding & whose claim rests on a toddler-king of Dubious Parentage.

2) a King who's lost his Lands to the foreign invader, has a Pet Witch (called his "true" queen) who burns people alive, has converted to a Foreign Religion (& burned religious sites), is a rumoured Kinslayer, and was Never Very Popular in the first place (Stannis doesn't take bribes, keeps insisting his disabled daughter is his Heir, went to help the Night's Watch for Some Reason, wasn't as fun as his brothers, makes poor conversation at parties, etc) .

3) Euron Greyjoy.

4) a theoretical infant child of King Robb of the North & Trident... and the Treacherous Jeyne Westerling whom he Lost a war over.

5) Robb's legal heir as per his last Will, his "brother" Jon whom he legitimised as "Stark" but is currently busy being the 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch (it is unlikely that Jon's getting murdered by his men would be Advertised to the Realm & though Jon is almost certainly going to pull a Dany in WoW, he is currently a Ghost).

6) the allegedly sole surviving non-bastard Stark, Prince Rickon, who's spent the past few [books] entirely raised by [Freefolk] & is a toddler.

7) Some Targaryen Girl in Essos, last seen while... on fire & being abductes by her own dragon, apparently.

While most Lords will see Aegon's commanding the Golden Company as a Pretty Obvious allusion to his not actually being the miraculously surviving son of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen & Princess Elia Martell. The "truth" of Young Griff's identity is pretty irrelevant to his successfully conquering Westeros (which seems very likely, give or take a Kingdom). Robert Baratheon's kingship was won by conquest: his grandmother being a Targaryen princess was an afterthought, an extra touch of "legitimacy". Tommen's claim to the Iron Throne is through his legal status as King Robert's surviving Heir. Stannis's claim is through the illegitimacy of Joffrey & Tommen's claims making him Robert's heir instead.

Aegon's claim to the Iron Throne is not actually his alleged parentage: it's through Conquest (the same would be true for Dany, Euron and any Heir of King Robb). Most Lords would see the Golden Company, famously founded to make a Blackfyre king, and conclude that Aegon is a Blackfyre Pretender: this is, in the short-term, irrelevant.

Some might rejoice at the alleged survival of one of Prince Rhaegar or Princess Elia's children: Targaryen Loyalists, the Dornish, smallfolk out of the loop on why there was a Rebellion. Ned Stark Loyalists would know Ned mourned for Princess Elia & her children, that Robert became King because Ned wasn't interested & be more concerned about Winter than how recently incestuous the latest Southron King's family tree may be.

As far as most of Westeros is aware [going into Winds], its Key Requirements for a Monarch are: being Alive & (ideally) Sane, being Old Enough to reign unsupervised (15 at minimum), having a loyal Army (see: Euronpocalypse, the Red Wedding, the lawlessness of the Riverlands), being Male, not being the immediate product of incest (Tommen aside, Prince Rhaegar only had 2 great-grandparents), not being a blasphemous arsonist, & not being in debt to the Iron Bank.

Robb Loyalists, those still surviving, would Wisely stand back and allow the Golden Company to deal with the Bolton-Lannister-Frey alliance: even if Jeyne Westerling is found alive & with an infant son, few would accept her and most would be unwilling to replace one child monarch with another (that applies to Rickon too). Northerners are proud but, as one of those Dead Starks might say, Winter is Coming.

The Wars over the series have made the southern land route impassable: the Twins are held by the treacherous Freys, the Riverlands are a lawless hellscape, King's Landing is run by Lannisters & Tyrells, and the Reach is itself "Tyrell Territory". With such a dangerous land route, the North relies on itself & seatrade. While the North does have eastern ports that allow trade with the Vale, the Vale itself is currently held by Petyr Baelish, publically aligned with the Lannister Regime. The North's primary port, White Harbour (held by Lord Wyman Manderly, known Stark Loyalist) is on its western coast, along the Narrow Sea. Euron & rogue Ironborn aside, Aegon's Armies have already seized Storm's End after coming across said sea. Having already seized Storm's End and with Aurane Waters' having Absconded with the Crown's Fleet that would guard the Blackwater... The Golden Company can comfortably blockade all traffic from Westeros to Essos (give or take a Lys). Even assuming Aurane Waters isn't in cahoots with Team Aegon (he's a Velaryon bastard), he took the Crown's fleet to the Stepstones and thus holds control over naval passage between the eastern & western coasts of Westeros (& to Dorne).

So, unless Sansa usurps control of the Vale from Baelish within the first third of Winds; unless Prince Doran or seadragons take out Aurane Waters' pirate fleet; unless the Golden Company's AND Euron's respective fleets get taken out without ANOTHER navy taking their place... Westeros really, really needs Aegon to successfully conquer Westeros if only to quickly reestablish vital trade routes for Winter.

Speaking of Euron's fleet and Trouble at Oldtown... there is Trouble At Oldtown and no one is equipped to keep it contained: on land, the sons of Lord Hightower have been taking the Ironborn threat seriously (with Lord Hightower seemingly having Anticipated the supernatural threat Euron seeks to invoke though how successful his & his daughter's Efforts may be remains Unknown); at sea, the Redwyne Fleet is Worried & very probably in Cahoots with Aegon. It will be a Trip, going back to sea from the Stormlands & then South to Oldtown, but a Redwyne-Velaryon-Blackfyre Naval Alliance is the Best and Geographically Closest forces available to Oldtown.

There are a few characters who've been sent to seek aid from Essos, given the Ironborn threat & the general political instability: Prince Quentyn was one (RIP) and Lord Hightower's youngest son, Ser Humfrey, is another. If the Hightowers weren't Team Aegon before, they soon will be.

The Reach is an increasingly vital kingdom to the survival of Westeros: with the Riverlands in the state it is & with the ongoing socio-economic fallout of Dany's very sudden conquests of half the Free Cities, The Reach is the most reliable source of food for the entire continent. That's part of why the impending Euronpocalypse is so Worrying to those otherwise removed from the Oldtown plotlines: Oldtown is one of the most important ports of Westeros, exporting grain from the Reach & importing goods from Essos.

Oldtown is also the Headquarters for the Citadel, where maesters are trained to: manage rookeries, the interkingdom communication system; learn histories, including those of long Winters past & who survived to give tips on Resource Management; and study medicine (to varying degrees of competency but Still).

The maesters are imperfect, often outright incompetent (as much by accident as by any potential Conspiracy): they're still the ones in control of the [telegram] network, the meteorologists, the ones able to not only access the historic archives but how to read them & any knowledge therein. It is certainly more helpful to have scholars than to not have scholars, especially with Winter nearing and many surviving Lordlings having known only Summer (& never educated on "How To Lord" due to how far down the line of succession they were before the Wars).

For those in Westeros who hold to the Faith of the Seven, Trouble At Oldtown would be an apocalypse all of its own: Oldtown is the centre of their Faith and its destruction would greatly demoralize persons of all stations, especially with increased Magical Activity and rumours of [fire zombies, ice zombies, wolf zombies, dragons].

Team Aegon seems the most likely to "contain" the Euronpocalypse, having both method (naval power) & means (the Golden Company, 4 kingdoms' worth of vassal lords) to do so. Aegon's also one of the few "primary" characters who would even know that there IS a Euronpocalpse: Team Aegon, Prince Doran, Queen Cersei, Lady Olenna, Lord Manderly, Asha's faction of Ironborn, the Reacherlords, the Iron Bank, & (probably?) Brynden Rivers are the only ones who could plausibly know of a Euron Threat, let alone organize a Timely Response to it. Regardless of how successful said Response may be, Team Aegon helping with Oldtown smooths the way for his becoming recognised as a Legitimate Leader for Westeros.

I'm fairly certain that Team Aegon will conquer (most of) Westeros over the course of Winds, I doubt he'll have the time to be crowned King or even spend time on a throne: he'll be too busy.

Aegon's Conquest being successful is Pretty Dang Important to the greater scheme of things: it will introduce Key Characters to each other (Arianne & Dorne, Sam & thus the NW, "Alayne" through Baelish, Team Oathkeeper through Jaime's controlling the Crown's armies); restore supply routes; "consolidate" power to enable discussion of Continental Threats long neglected (through both Regional & Interpersonal Conflicts). Aegon's Conquest would act as a kind of "triage" for Westeros, a quick means of uniting different groups (for & against him) and he won't actually need to sit the Iron Throne to do it. It is most likely that, after securing the Reach & Stormlands, Aegon will find that the Frey Civil War had "taken care of" the North & the Riverlands, with Robb Loyalists willing to Play Nice but (understandably, thinketh Aegon) wary of bending any knees. Dorne, regardless of Prince Doran's personal opinion on Aegon's identity, would act "compliant" due to Arianne's involvement & the Rocky Dornish having been in Cahoots with the Blackfyre Regime from the get go. Even a false Aegon would be preferable to a Lannister, as far as the North & Dorne are concerned. The Ironborn post-Euronpocalypse would go back to battling themselves internally, likely while facing heavy [sanctions]: they'd be too busy licking their wounds to be much of a threat to anyone.

That leaves three kingdoms: the Westerlands, cornered at all sides & bereft of much of its Leadership through Wars & the Frey Civil War; the Crownlands, King's Landing likely being besieged for Cersei to later blow up; and The Vale.

Who runs the Vale? The worst, most consistently dangerous backstabber of them all: Lord Petyr Baelish. It will probably be Baelish who undoes all that triage work Team Aegon started, likely via assassinating the kid or "exposing" him to the Right Wrong Crowd (whether Petyr has actual knowledge or evidence against Aegon is irrelevant: this is not his first Smear Campaign).

Assuming it hasn't happened already (in great tonal dissonance with the Euronpocalypse), Little Lord Robert Arryn would get his Tourney at the Gates of the Moon just in time for Aegon to secure his "final" kingdom.

The Frey Civil War would have affected the Vale just as it affected the rest of Westeros (Dorne excluded) but, from the clues I've found in the Vale & Darry-branches of Freys, it's likely that the Vale Freys will have fared better than every other branch of their extensive family tree, likely due to their joining the Aegon Bandwagon prior to Lord Walder's death.

Others have drawn parallels between what we know of "Alayne's'" Tourney and the historic Tourney of Ashford Meadow: essentially, the Tourney is implicitly tied to the themes & character arcs of both Sansa Stark (in the role of "Lord Ashford's 13 year old daughter", defending Queen of Love & Beauty) and Brienne of Tarth (in the role of her ancestor, Duncan the Tall: knightly but never technically Knighted underdog). The Ashford Tourney is best remembered for being the Introduction of Ser Duncan the Tall, a Sudden Trial of Seven, a quietly averted Blackfyre Rebellion, and the tragic death of the greatly beloved Crown Prince Baelon "Breakspear" (& Some Guy from House Hardyng).

Yeah. Dany doesn't even need to leave Essos: Aegon's doom will come courtesy of Thematic Parallels and Foreshadowing.

Prince Baelon "Breakspear" was a living representation of a Westeros at peace: he was the product of one of two political marriages that peacibly joined Dorne to the Seven Kingdoms (the Second Marriage featured one of those Princesses Daenerys); he was a Competent ruler, becoming his Father's Hand at age 26; his nickname was gained when he bested Ser Daemon Blackfyre (yes, THAT Blackfyre) at a tourney (the Wedding Tourney of his Aunt Daenerys); he had two adult sons, presumably with a wife (the sons are the only proof of her existence); and one of Baelon's sons was healthy enough to score 7 victories at the Ashford Tourney!

Which he. Uh. Very unexpectedly died at. Baelon, that is. The Crown Prince. The People's Prince. The Golden Child who promised a Peaceful & Prosperous Future. The son of a Targaryen prince & a Martell mother. A character who Very Strongly Reminds One Of Young Griff, the hopeful Aegon VI.

Aegon is likely to attend the Vale Tourney in order to diplomatically add the Vale to his collection of Kingdoms: Baelish is likely to trade [Sansa]'s betrothal with Harry the Heir for the Shinier Prince Aegon (whether he dissolves the existing betrothal via Having Harry Killed By Tourney or by outing Alayne as Sansa "Key to the North" Stark-Lannister, who was, btw, Spared the marriage bed bc Child Bride so Totally Eligible my dude just Sign Here).

Then Brienne will show up, probably with Jaime, and Some Kerfuffle will Ensue (if only because Sansa & Brienne are Alleged Kingslayers) that leads to Robert Arryn's Tourney becoming Brienne's Trial of Seven for Sansa's Innocence, just as Ser Dunk's defense of the (common) maiden Tanselle so changed the Ashford Tourney.

There is a Rather Formidable enemy of Young Griff whom I have only hinted at: allow me to combine the Clues.

There exists in the ASOIAF series a Certain Character who Knows More than they Should, who has an implied past connection with a young Euron Greyjoy, who is infamously opposed to Blackfyres, who was present for the Ashford Tourney, whose Past & Present can connect just about every active plotline in the series: a disappeared Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, a Hand to two Targaryen Kings & the Master of Whispers to more (with his "thousand eyes and one"), one of the three Great Bastards born to Lady Melissa Blackwood by King Aegon IV, and current tree-wizard mentor to an entirely separate Kingly-coded character.

Brynden Rivers.

If Aegon survives Euron, Cersei, Jaime, AND Baelish? He certainly won't survive Brynden. Whatever Brynden may be right now (tree abomination, Old God Hivemind, puppet king to Feyfolk, Bran Stark's lunch, the distant Blackwood cousin of every surviving Stark), there is no reason to believe Brynden would allow a Blackfyre to go unchallenged, especially in the guise of a "true" Targaryen.

(not that i believe Brynden hopes for a Targaryen Restoration via Dany or Jon: it very much appears that Brynden & the Singers are grooming Bran Stark for kingship, though where & who exactly they expect him to rule is still Unclear)

I hope to do more exploration into what Aegon [Blackfyre]'s Conquest might look like, cobbling together clues from Quentyn's Doomed Quest and Queen Marge's Court (as "microcosm' to the Reach in macrocosm) and historically Targaryen/Blackfyre loyalist Houses. I'm fairly certain I can figure out how the Aegon Conquest will play into the resolutions of the Frey Civil War, (some) Winterfell Conspiracies, the specifics of the Euronpocalypse, & my "Dornish Spring" Theory as well. I'm much less certain on how Stannis would fare against Aegon: would he demand Legitimacy? would he sic Melissandre on him? would Stannis Get Over Himself in service to the Looming Winter? would he even have a leg to stand on the matter?

And would Aegon survive long enough to meet Daenerys, let alone Argue Legitimacy with her? (They'd both be rulers by conquest, not inheritance & it's not like Dany has any backing for her identity beyond "I look traditionally Valyrian" and "these are some dragons i hatched from stone mid-resurrection". The layyer it should be noted, is considered a Death Magic-induced Miracle, not some Secret Targaryen Blood Limit: it's Unique to Daenerys Stormborn, not to "House Targaryen")

[jedimaesteryoda]

Aeron is the youngest of the Greyjoy brothers, and currently the only Greyjoy who didn't pursue a crown for himself. He instead backs other candidates.

"Who shall be our king?" The drowned men began to slam their driftwood cudgels one against the other. "Damphair!" they cried. "Damphair King! Aeron King! Give us Damphair!" Aeron shook his head. "If a father has two sons and gives to one an axe and to the other a net, which does he intend should be the warrior?" "The axe is for the warrior," Rus shouted back, "the net for a fisher of the seas." "Aye," said Aeron. "The god took me deep beneath the waves and drowned the worthless thing I was. When he cast me forth again he gave me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a voice to spread his word, that I might be his prophet and teach his truth to those who have forgotten. I was not made to sit upon the Seastone Chair -AFFC, The Prophet

When offered a crown by his fellow Drowned Men, he refuses. He states that he is sworn to the Drowned God as a priest not a king. Instead he calls a kingsmoot, and does so with the goal of keeping Euron off the Seastone Chair and place his conservative tool brother Victarion on it. Of course, this fails spectacularly as Euron is acclaimed king as Aeron failed to grasp that Euron and his plan are the Old Way taken to its logical point. He finds himself at a loss as to find an alternative to who should be king of the Iron Isles.

He ends going to raise the smallfolk only to be captured and imprisoned by Euron beforehand.

On Old Wyk, twoscore priests gathered beneath the bones of Nagga to place a driftwood crown on one of their own, a barefoot holy man called Lodos who claimed to be the living son of the Drowned God. Other claimants soon arose on Great Wyk, Pyke, and Orkmont, and for a full year and more their followers fought each other by land and sea. -WOIAF, The Iron Islands: The Greyjoys of Pyke

One will have to take a look at the political situation on the Iron Islands by the time Aeron returns. Euron will have died in Oldtown, likely vindicating Aeron who will say the Drowned God cast him down. However, his preferred candidate Victarion will likely die in the east, Asha may die in the Battle of Ice and the only remaining son of Balon, Theon will be in a ruin and castrated, with Aeron knowing the Ironborn will never accept him as their king. House Greyjoy appears to be extinct, and with the extinction of House Greyjoy, it leaves a power vacuum. The Ironborn lords will be fighting each other over the driftwood crown with Ironborn spilling the blood of Ironborn. Aeron may be driven to the point of desperation knowing the Iron Islands needs a king.

“Aeron, my good and faithful servant, you must tell the Ironborn to stop spilling the blood of Ironborn, that the Seastone Chair by rights belongs to … you.”

That is when he realizes that he is the last living male heir to House Greyjoy. There is precedent for Drowned Men claiming the driftwood crown with Lodos in the political chaos that ensued after Aegon extinguished House Hoare at Harrenhal.

After having spent so much time and effort trying to find an answer as to who should be king, he does an about face, and proclaims himself King of the Iron Isles with the Drowned Men behind him. He proclaims himself the voice for the Drowned God, his messiah.

On Old Wyk, the priest-king Lodos turned to his god, calling on the krakens of the deep to drag down Aegon's warships. When the krakens failed to appear, Lodos filled his robes with stones and walked into the sea to "take counsel" with his father. Thousands followed him. Their bloated corpses washed up on the shores of the isles for years to come, though the priest's own body was not amongst them. . . . Beneath the castle walls, the waves still smash against the remaining rock stacks day and night, and one day those too will doubtless crash into the sea.

-WOIAF, The Iron Islands: The Greyjoys of Pyke

The point of land on which the Greyjoys had raised their fortress had once thrust like a sword into the bowels of the ocean, but the waves had hammered at it day and night until the land broke and shattered, thousands of years past.

-ACOK, Theon I

The reign of Aeron as king will be quite short-lived. The pursuit of crowns as the Reader noted "is a madness in our blood," and led to the demise of every Greyjoy who pursued a crown with Theon being the lucky survivor (relatively speaking). Aeron's desire to crown himself will be met with the same fate.

When the Targaryen fleet inevitably arrives, Damphair may call upon the Drowned God to drag them down to sea. However, Bloodraven and/or Bran are the only ones who respond. The land on which Pyke was built is unstable, and the castle has been slowly eroding into the sea over time. It has been compared to the Broken Arm of Dorne by maesters which was swallowed by the Hammer of the Waters, and even Theon uses the word "hammer" to described the waves hitting Pyke.

The first time they rebelled, Robert sends a fleet to bring them down with his war hammer. This time, Bloodraven and Bran send the Hammer of the Waters to Pyke where Aeron resides likely along with his followers, much of the Drowned Men.

The Drowned Man(en) dies by drowning.

Ironic and fitting yet at the same time hilarious.

The sea swallows Pyke and Aeron, the last desperate stand of the Old Way. That would be taken as a sign by the Ironborn.

[westerosoliviapope]

Theon Greyjoy - A Day in the Life

I loved this Theon segment so much, I want to give it room to breathe outside the other shenanigans in my latest update.

From Warrior in a Suit (Scandal Westeros - Finale) on A03

"That's the one."

Gods, Theon thinks. Don't let it be the expensive one. He flips the view on his phone so Sansa can inspect the selection of rings on the tray.

"Far right. 1.5 carat, round cut, white gold," she says. "It looks just like the one on her Pinterest board."

Of course.

He nods to Sabitha, the smiling saleswoman behind the counter. A mere six months ago, those tits peeking through her scandalously-buttoned white shirt would have compelled him to give her something more fleeting than the healthy commission she's about to collect.

He's in love, not blind—but neither Sabitha's turnips nor the significant dent in his credit card can cool the warmth in his chest imagining Jeyne's face when she sees this ring.

Theon Greyjoy. Betrothed. He's tempted to pinch himself.

You learn a thing or two watching your best mate spin out from a broken heart. Namely, you don't want to be the bloke who lets the girl—the One—get away.

Day two of their trip to wine country, having dinner on a balcony at Redwyne Family Vineyards as the sun set over rows of red grapes as far as the eye could see, when the light caught whatever Jeyne put on her face that evening to make her cheeks shimmer and all of a sudden he couldn't breathe, Theon knew.

He was done for. Over. So long to the Sabithas of the world.

Maestro, you can cue the wedding march…

The Riverlands' rains don't bother him —a walk in the park compared to the icy storms he grew up with. As far as he's concerned, it's 70 degrees and sunny as he whips his Tesla through the Capitol nodding to the sounds of Jaero Hovys. He became a fan while stationed in Tyrosh, sharing a base with Braavosi soldiers who couldn't get enough of Jae's layered, braggadocious rhymes. When you spent your days trying not to get your cock blown off by landmines, you took confidence where you could get it. For Theon, that meant chanting lines like "I will not lose" and "allow me to re-introduce myself" while waiting in the fields, rifle at the ready.

He generally prefers the earlier stuff to the recent releases with his wife, Bellegere Otherys. Since taking Jeyne to see the pair in concert, however, he appreciates the newer tracks. He doesn't even skip when "Boss" thumps out of his custom speakers.

"Everybody's bosses/ till it's time to pay for the office—"

Fucking hell. How does the phone always know to ring right before the best part of the song? His frustration is quickly replaced with a shit-eating grin when he sees the name flashing across his dashboard.

"Ms. Poole," he answers. He swears he can feel the ring burning a hole in his pocket, even though it's locked in his safe at home. She has no idea… he thinks. Or does she? Bloody hell, if Sansa spoiled the surprise—

"Are you seeing this thing with Arya and your uncle?"

He tries—actively—not to see anything about anyone in his family, except maybe Asha. But keeping the Greyjoy name out of his feeds is difficult of late. What with Euron emerging from bumfuck Asshai and casting himself as Westeros' new main character. Running around with Cersei Lannister. Going viral for shitposting celebrities and the government. Now, apparently he's arguing with Arya on Twitter.

Once he's at his desk, Theon goes through the tweets. All 319 of them. Arya listed the 318 victims of the 2002 Bear Island Attack, a name per tweet, and ended the thread with:

"The media wants you to forget, so they can use the theatrics of a suspected terrorist to boost their ratings. Please think of your Northern neighbors before you platform/share/boost Euron Greyjoy. Time changes many things—it doesn't bring back the loved ones we lost at Bear Island. #TheNorthRemembers."

587k retweets

In reply, Euron posted a photo from Robb's campaign with Theon featured prominently among the Stark siblings.

"Seems you aren't triggered by all Greyjoys. Just the ones who don't kiss your 'honorable' arses. Westerosi elites use every trick in the book to censor me because I tell the truth. Don't let the sob stories fool you.

869k retweets

How long before his phone starts buzzing with requests for comment? Theon gives it two, three hours tops.

When he left Pyke to join the armed services at 18, he thought his days of explaining his family ties were over. He enlisted as Theon Harlaw with no plans to return to the western shores of the Narrow Sea. Once the Three Daughters' conflict settled, he'd find a local Tyroshi girl—a buxom waitress, bartender, or the like—and have a stable full of blue-haired sons who'd never hear their family name associated with words like "extremist," or "cult."

He was in Tyrosh a year when a new crop of cadets came over from the Military Academy at Storm's End, and the name "STARK" appeared over one of the bunks in his unit.

When the Bear Island Courthouse fell, he and Asha were already emancipated, having won their freedom with the assistance of their Uncle Rodrik. The national media knew of Balon Greyjoy, the Iron Islands governor who didn't publicly support the Church of the Drowned God, but—conveniently—never brought the full force of the law down on its extremist sect. They knew the masterminds behind the attack, and applied the term to Aeron and Victarion without irony. And they knew of the enigmatic Greyjoy brother whose "business" took him to Qarth—known drug and money laundering capital of the world—a month before the attack.

They knew little of the wife who divorced Balon ten years prior on grounds of spousal abuse. Or the pair of teenage orphans left to fend for themselves when she died.

His mother's surname let him and Robb coexist peacefully when he first arrived. As the legend of the Young Wolf spread, Theon stayed cordial, but distant. They worked together when duty called. Otherwise, Theon spent his leisure time with the Braavosi unit. With their music, brashness, and penchant for good liquor, they were more his speed than the boy scouts from the Military Academy.

Leave it to Balon to blow it to shit.

News of his father's stroke came via letter. Addressed to "Theon Greyjoy." Like it was bloody designed for shouting in the unit for everyone to hear.

Theon learned three things that day.

One: He wouldn't receive a penny of his trust fund without the Greyjoy name.

Two: Robb has literal bricks for hands.

Three: A fist fight can be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Moments like tonight—watching his name turn into a trending topic because he didn't just have "a" crazy uncle, but came from a family of hucksters who amassed power by deluding an impoverished region with the fantasy of subjugating women, never paying taxes, and attacking merchant ships in the Sunset Sea like a band of old time pirates—makes him wonder if being a Greyjoy is worth the money.

Hovys said it best. Take the good with the bad or throw the baby out with that bath water. Theon Harlaw couldn't drop $21k on an engagement ring.

Fuck waiting out the storm. He may as well steer into it. Smother this baby in the crib before it hits Robb's radar and turns into a real shit show. It's the last thing they need after that Westerling business.

And yes. Perhaps, somewhere in the back of his mind, Theon liked the idea of eye candy in the office when that bloke from the Lorathi embassy gave him her resume. How was he supposed to know Robb would lose his godsdamned head?

Before Jeyne—his Jeyne—not Slutty Fanfic Jeyne…

Well. Okay. Theon would've done the same. Or at least tried. But he didn't unzip Robb's pants and stick his cock in the girl. So, not his fault.

"WNTH. How may I help you?"

"Theon Greyjoy for Wylla Manderly."

Hound that she is, Wylla barely lets the phone ring. Gods save anyone standing between her and an exclusive. "Your uncle has half the republic calling you 'Theon Sheepboy.' Care to comment?"

Sheepboy? Oh. Wolves. Sheep. "Charming," Theon retorts, tapping his pen on his desk.

Time to earn his keep as comms director.

"I'd like to say, on the record, that I have been honored by the gracious warmth and welcome I've found within the Stark family, and stand ardently with them in support of the families and victims of the Bear Island Attack. Euron Greyjoy is a photo on a mantle in a house I barely remember. And I'd like to keep it that way."

"Got it."

"One more thing, Wylla…"

"Aye?"

"The headline is me and my uncle. The family's been through enough without Euron goading them into a brawl." Better Euron's army of bots calling him "sheepboy" than whatever vile shit they'll say to Arya.

"Careful, Greyjoy. People might start thinking you're galant."

"Me?" Theon smiles. "Never."

[dontbotherwiththepronunciation]

I'm following the shipping anthropology like it's my paid job ofc but was there anything interesting about gen preferences ? Iirc exacty if there was a question about it/what it was like but I'm curious if anyone shared

Sorry for the last response! I went over the answers many times already and one of my regrets is not digging deeper into general non-romantic dynamic preferences so I am sorry I will have to disappoint you when it comes to it since I was too short-sighted. Here are the stats for Greyjoy dynamics, some comments on Robb and Theon as friends and a few general comments on possible friendships. Character studies type of gen fanwork sadly wasn't mentioned.

Extremely surprised by Theon & Euron being more interesting than Theon & Balon to the common fandom.

Many throbb people and also less Theon-centric people who answered the survey also spoke of Theon and Robb as friends or friends to lovers which I found interesting because this wasn't the case with other ships that are are based on somewhat positive interactions/emotions, like show! theonsa or theyne (who I don't consider his friends either).

i picked theon/robb mostly because that's been his healthiest relationship during his life but i generally don't engage with shipping content besides occasionally seeing fan art. i enjoy the dynamic of childhood friends turned lovers as well as like maybe them bonding over their mistakes in the afterlife. i like to think robb would forgive theon eventually, he doesn't seem the type to give up on his loved ones. -

Very close tie between Theonsa and Throbb for me. I enjoy a dark twist on the childhood friends trope, I like the potential for exploring Theons trauma from being a hostage vs his genuine love for Robb and Sansa

I don't feel strongly about it, I don't think Theon and Robb would ever say or do anything explicitly romantic/sexual "in canon", but I get that it can be fun to explore it. I like to explore how their friendship developed, how they grew so close, and the crushing guilt, regret and trauma of the betrayal

I live for TheonxRobb fics but mostly the ones about the war time, the angst about betraying Robb or his family, reactions to the red wedding, angsty flashbacks to their childhood and so on. it's the childhood friends to lovers to enemies to tragedy that does it for me. but when I'm in mood I can get super into fluffy fics of the two, since Robb isnt really a pov character there's much more leeway for the writer, I can read I fic about them and not be bothered if Robb is ooc (hard to be out of character when you are not much of a character lol) because I'm not familiar with inner thoughts and all that, theres more freedom for imagination.

I find Theon/Robb interesting because the themes of friendship/brotherhood/betrayal are really interesting to me. Theon's guilt, mania, depression and his complex relationship to the Starks are best shown through the Throbb (ew name lol) dynamic. I also think it's hilarious. Mordern AU throbb is insane..

I wish he was in AGOT a little more! Like I don't think we get a full conversation between Theon and Robb besides when Robb yells at Theon, which sucks because they are basically best friends.

I feel like Robb was Theon's only friend in Winterfell for a long time. Like he was the only person the idiot could sorta trust

Catra from she ra! Redemption and identity and sexy bad boy stuff again. Childhood friends to lovers. Enemy/rival of the childhood friend/lover. Most of the characters in Yellowjackets. (Jackie is Robb).

I just ignore things that bug me. I don't like calling him reek. I don't think he was "right to betray the Starks" or that he didn't betray them. I think he did betray them despite being a ward, or at the very least he betrayed robb who was his friend. Theon says as much, what he did was wrong and it supposed to be wrong.

Others

let him have other friends in modern aus, the whole botley family is right here.

Back to the iron islands support group thing we came up with. I would really love it if Wex, Falia, Jeyne & Theon would become friends (and maybe it develops into something else with one of them, maybe it doesn't). Not found family, he has a family, but friends! Good friends who treat him right and don't look down on him. He had friends in Winterfell and he had friends in the Iron Islands! He is not unloveable or unloved but life has made it very difficult for him to keep those friendships or for those friendships to even be healthy and these three people have gone through similar situations in their life and could find some happiness and carelessness in each others company.

I need to know who his dead or grown into strangers friends were. Was Botley one of them? Was that the reason he looked down on him and Qarl later on? Was Baelor one of them? grrm why add that extremely relatable line and not expand on it?!? You know me, I know you. Killing ourselves over this.

[hell-heron]

I’ve been thinking about your Theon-takes-Bran-and/or-Rickon to Alannys more than I probably should and I’m dangerously curious to know how you think his family members (particularly Alannys) would feel in such a situation. Of course, if you’re actually making this a fanfic, you don’t have to answer to this. If you want to daydream in public though…

ooooh glad to have inflicted Thoughts <3

I also am lol and I do not think I would ever be able to make it a fanfic so glad for the opportunity to daydream in public - I anyhow was going to make a post to address all you guys' reply lol. So lets make a little list of thoughts

A lot of my canon divergence fantasies for Theon are victory fantasies, as point-missing as that is, fantasies where he's succesful and loved lol. So the majority of the ironborn including Harlaws and Greyjoys are positively surprised and delighted with this incredibly wild success story. I feel like they would be, it is objectively politically expedient and militarly impressive. Particularly the Harlaws even would be glad as it puts them in a position to negotiate a land concession from the North rather than whatever Balon's plan was... but overall it's just A Win For Theon, politically. May or may not start to feel a little hollow when the morality of what he did catches up to him

Some drawbacks: he may be under lots of pressure to kill one of them given he has two, which he would definitely need to spin this giving-one-to-Alannys-as-spoils-of-war carefully to avoid. Can he? Canon Theon is not this master manipulator lol but they are his hostages. There may be more physical fighting in the battle planning room lol but he's keeping them. Another is that this really seals his claim I feel - it may not be enough for Balon to officially claim him as heir but he would imho win the kingsmoot and he would be at strong risk of being killed by Euron.

This means Asha is just... physically emitting steam all through this. Is she able to swallow her pride and offer him an alliance the way she does with Victarion? Good question. It's more humiliating and personal. He comes and he wins what she's been working on all these years and he dazzles mom when she's been the one bearing that grief and emotional difficulty all these years... this girl is SNAPPING. Interestingly, something Theon probably is not quite able to grasp is that the Harlaws are Asha's supporters and so in this universe he gave her an advantage through giving them a hostage. Could be a fun fic by people who can plot.

An interlude to say I genuinely didnt vote anything in that poll bc I genuinely have no preference/opinion. The nature of Bran's disability is such I don't know which of the two Theon would think is the strongest political threat to keep closer, and the nature of Pyke is that idk whether Theon would think Harlaw or Pyke is the safer place. I also can be convinced by both arguments on which is the most interesting - I liked alley and wexpyke's arguments for Rickon, that he's more mouldable (the idea of Alannys starting to call him Rodrik :///) and unlikely to reveal unpleasant truths (lmao alley I am not picturing Bran telling Alannys about Theon's warcrimes and banging Kyra in Ned's bed. Though probably the worst thing he could reveal in Theon's eyes is how genuinely he was friends with Robb). On the other hand I am sensitive to your argument of Bran being specifically Cat's favorite (and Cat is still alive and might well live, too) and I had considered already the fact he's almost 10 too. Plus cola-fiend gave me the image of him being cooped up in Rodrik's library potentially finding out about important prophecy stuff and ahhhh love it. Though I would also love for him to potentially interact with Euron. I also loved the idea of the hostage being Beth after the noose thing - maybe a version where instead of all this plot happening, he decides to go home when Asha tells him lol. But it's a darker different idea

Now, Alannys's Opinion. Eeeeh good question. It is something I struggle a bit to imagine. I mean how mentally present is she, how much she's able to find out about how Theon's hostage situation went before he leaves for some other war crimes... But overall I imagine for her too it grows hollow. For one thing she would start missing Theon and feeling bitter about this replacement and taking it out on the boy in question I think - it is unavoidable that he can only really stay with her a little while. I think she would be hungry for stories about Theon's years that she missed but get upset about them and not believe them often. I think with Rickon she may genuinely throw herself into raising him whenever she has the lucidity for it and liking how fierce he is and forget she's not actually her little pet project she can send to raid on the Stony Shore in 10 years. Overall the fact these kids are probably getting traded back soon-ish would be hard for her to deal both in term of attachment and of revenge. I think with Bran there's a degree to which she would enjoy to make him her little page boy and have him read to her and like hold her yarn or whatever it is she's able to do to spend her time but find she doesn't really feel satisfaction in it, Theon is weird and cagey about this feelings about having been subservient to the Starks so she doesn't really now how much of this is payback and Bran is sweet and mellow and serious and does not give satisfaction at all. I can see her too both having episodes of calling them Rodrik or Maron or mistaking them for her previous wards and (esp with Bran) or thinking she had a child post-rebellion and somehow forgot. Just very weird for everyone

[azmenka]

good morning my lovelies !! some minor changes to the carrd have been made ( largely concerning Maron's potential allies ) and I'll eventually settle down and update his verses, too, but my slow ass is - you guessed it - slow af at the moment. scusi.

we're still in the process of icon-making because my brain is a dumb bitch and insisted I should, so bear with me until I've got a proper batch to properly tackle ic replies. which, given my current motivation, may actually happen today. yay!

verses I'm meaning to include or change around: -> general asoiaf verse ofc -> general got verse, though book-based is and always will be preferred -> the kingsmoot never happened canon divergence ( all hail the Iron King etc etc. ) -> staying with Stannis canon divergence -> supporting Euron canon divergence (aka the fullblown evil verse) -> robert's rebellion AU -> house of the dragon AU -> modern AU -> stranger things AU ( yes, really ) -> potc AU ( just to be a pest to @thecodekeeper . affectionately. ) -> potential general fairytale AU ( Maron as a merman anyone? no? yes! ) -> private verse with @goldenngore ( Greyjoy/Tyrell alliance. very gay. so gay. good lord. ) -> private verse with @dracharenae / @zobrietikuni ( Greyjoy/Targaryen alliance taking over the iron throne. oof. )

[letsasoiaftogether]

Preference...

...their reaction to being in love with their sister (who returned their love)

Ramsay Bolton - If he fell in love with his sister, he wouldn’t let anyone around you. He’d even help you dress so no one could see what was meant to be his. If you returned his feelings, he’d smirk proudly and swear that nothing and no one could keep you apart.

Viserys Targaryen - If he fell in love with his sister, he’d be a little surprised. Yes, he believes in the Targaryen tradition of marrying brother to sister, but he had never imagined that you would share his feelings and the fact that you had known about your feelings for him before he had known about his own...he’d be gentle as he pulled you close and kissed you, marking you as his own. The two of you would marry asap.

Joffrey Baratheon - If he fell in love with his sister, he would definitely be amused and use it as a way to further mock his mother over Cersei’s affair with Jaime. Joffrey would probably say that it was meant to be since his parents had also been siblings. If you returned his feelings, it would only further his amusement and delight. He would definitely be protective and possessive of you.

Euron Greyjoy - If he fell in love with his sister, he would definitely make a joke out of it for a few days until it hit him that he really, truly had feelings for you. Then he would grow quiet and possessive. If the gods saw fit to give him these feelings, than he wasn’t going to shy away from them. If you returned his feelings, he would laugh and make sure you were always at his side boasting about how you’d take over the world together.

Rhaegar Targaryen - If he had a sister to fall in love with, it wouldn’t be a surprise to him. He’d welcome it as a part of tradition. He wouldn’t try to hide it, telling you and your parents immediately. When you returned his love, he would almost be surprised. He hadn’t expected you to, not after the two of you had grown up watching the Queen’s pain at the hands of the King. Still, he wouldn’t turn you away and would love you fiercely. 

[horizon-verizon]

I think if GRRM really want to be truly subversive with Daenerys’ arc, pairing her with Jon is very negative and regressive, because it destroys the work of gender subversion and reversal and reconstruction and shifts her arc back to status quo heterosexuality. I want her to have children. The daughter of dragons, mother of dragons, bride of fire, daughter of death, slayer of lies, and breaker of shackles, the prince that was promised, Aegon the Conqueror with teats, was created for greater things than being some man’s soulmate. I want her to have children but NOT with Jon.

*distant chants as all put down their iPads* cut them off, cut them off, Cut Them Off, CUT THEM OFF!

Again, all, this is lieu of the recent anons arguing that Jon is the most dangerous candidate (aside from Euron Greyjoy) Dany could have as a husband and even just an unmarried romantic partner because of the baggage of his lineage that could present huge issues for her attempts to claim the Iron Throne, even if he was never seen or made to be legitimate. And anon brings up sexuality and Dany regressing back to a destructive heterosexuality when it's Jon I THINK (plz correct me if I am wrong) Jon is very typical of a heterosexual man even with his repeated preference for behaviorally nonconforming women AND his maybe-crush on Satin in that he stands to gain so much more from being with Dany and may likely demand more form her than she can and from him for his political goals and she already will have to deal with how the Westerosi will work against her. Why hetero when she has relationships with Hid Loraq (not really) and Daario (yep)? Because Loraq proved having a male ruling "equal" was dangerous for Dany while Daario was not any sort of equal, ruler, or competitor for authority, and Jon being closer to such than both of these men through his lineage and having lived as a sort of higher authority while having done what a lot of Dany fans have not seen as sacrificing something for a woman & sublimating himself presents a likely development into a fantasy-conventional-power-man using a powerful woman's assets to become more powerful...very much a power fantasy favored within the patriarchy that uses heterosexuality to subjugate women..

Her having a child adds a whole other sort of layer it bc another pressure is patriarchal systems trapping women or binding her materially and psychologically to the father. Which is what I am assuming why this anon wants Dany to never have a kid with Jon, which, fair. Perhaps anaon, you also think that a child from DanyxJon would also still endanger Dany? If so, and only if so, please explain, I think iI heard this arguement before and I haven't really understood it.

[fedonciadale]

What are your thoughts about the Greyjoys ? Specifically Asha, Euron and Aeron.

Hi there!

Sorry, it took me so long to answer!

I think all the Greyjoys are a bit over the top? Almost walking clichés.

Asha is the bad-ass warrior but at the same time she is super sexy and is also having fun with sex. I rather like her but she seems like a dudebro’s walking dream, female fighter in high heels and bikini. Something like that. Of course it is a little bit more than that. What I like about Asha is that she thinks out of the box, not only in regard to her own claim but also in regard to the Ironborn way of living. She’s open minded in a way and her affection for her mother and her well educated reading uncle shows that she is not frozen in her mind set. So, she has nuances.

Euron is almost a cartoon villain: misogynist, child abuser, evil magician, violent, he has no respect for nothing and no one. He is also full of hubris. I mean, he wants to become a god, or maybe even the Only God. Although he is so evil that he could be funny, I can’t laugh about him. He makes my skin crawl. On the other hand he is the Greyjoy with the least nuance.

Aeron is one of the types I dislike very much: religious zealot. I mean he obviously has PTSD, fleeing from the trauma of his childhood to the security of the Drowned God, a God who will probably fail him in the next book. And as much as I pity Aeron as a victim I still dislike his zealotry very much. I just hate the type who says: Your God wants you to starve yourself, to walk barely clothed, freeze and basically demands abstinence in every regard. Sigh. So, Aeron repulses me and at the same time I pity him.

Victarion is soo dumb he makes my head hurt. I mean it could be funny, if he would be the kind of idiot who is nice. But he also reeks of toxic masculinity, and thinks himself so superior, when he barely has enough intelligence to manage to run over a bucket to spill water (as we say in German). I actually think that Victarion is already dead. He has been revived by the Red Priest and is too dumb to realize that. lol.

Balon? Oh man, I hate him. Competes for the worst father prize and he is high on my list even though he has tough competition.

Theon certainly has the most nuance and he really made me realize how GRRM uses the “Be careful what you wish for, you might get it”. How I disliked Theon in ACOK. In his first PoV chapter we have his interaction with the captain’s daughter, a scene that always makes me want to retch, then there is the Theon and Asha scene, his humiliation by Balon and at some point after his conquest of Winterfell I suddenly became aware that Theon is fucked up by being held captive, by his deep longing for affection which he tries to fulfill by getting respect. I began to pity him even before he was captured by Ramsay. When I saw him again, I could have cried with pity - and I still didn’t like Theon very much. I think his redemption is interesting, because GRRM is courageous enough to keep some of the dislikable characteristics of Theon’s, despite the fact that he is utterly crushed by Ramsay’s torture. I sort of wish a good ending for Theon, because he’s suffered enough and I want a good ending for him so that I can absolve myself for wishing him bad back in book 2. lol.

So, there you have my thoughts. I actually like Asha, I wish Theon well, but as for the other Greyjoys? I really want Victarion and Euron to die and Aeron is a goner already.

Thanks!

[spectrum-color]

Does anyone else love Euron Greyjoy just because he’s a terrifying dark sorcerer in a series that is mostly pretty light on magic? Like he has a collection of priceless magical artifacts he claims to have found around the world, including in the ruins of a place so damaged by a magical catastrophe no one comes out alive, and keeps warlocks he’s captured as slaves and cuts out their tongues so they can’t testify to anything he does, and I’m p sure he wants to summon an Eldritch abomination and become a god. He is a bonkers character and I mean that in the most positive way possible.

[empressofmankind]

And the Crow's Eye, Euron Greyjoy.

He looks unchanged, Victarion thought. He looks the same as he did the day he laughed at me and left. Euron was the most comely of Lord Quellon's sons, and three years of exile had not changed that. His hair was still black as a midnight sea, with never a whitecap to be seen, and his face was still smooth and pale beneath his neat dark beard. A leather patch covered his left eye, but his right was blue as a summer sky.

His smiling eye, thought Victarion.

- AFFC, The Iron Captain

[arianadevareux]

Game of Thrones Preference

How they are as couples:

(For anon)

Khal Drogo x Margaery Tyrell

Margaery knows how to adapt to anything that comes at her, so she’d be respected by Drogo and the Dothraki in no time. Drogo would be impressed by her relaxed demeanor and how quick she’d be to learn their customs. He’d quickly see that she doesn’t fear him or his men (or if she does, she’s hiding it at an expert level) and that alone would give him the puppy dog eyes for her. For Margaery it would be once he softened up with her a bit and showed that he saw her as an equal that would make the bond form. It would take a while for them to form a genuine, healthy bond, but once they did they’d be pretty unstoppable.

Yara Greyjoy x Tyrion Lannister

They would have a particularly slow start. Hearing the name Lannister would make Tyrion unappealing to Yara. However, with time, she’d grow to enjoy his cunning and ability to lead in times of crisis. They’d slowly grow a mutual respect for one another. After that, it would be Yara’s ability to see through Tyrion’s attempted charms that would interest him in her. She wouldn’t care about the way he can fluff up a story, just the end goal. The two of them would be about the biggest pair of smartasses you can find. If they both go after someone simultaneously, prepare to transport them to a Maester for a severe case of burns. They may not agree on a lot of things, but they’d develop a mutual understanding and have a good relationship overall.

Sansa Stark x Ygritte

Sansa and Ygritte would balance each other out really well. Sansa is a master of soft skills and Ygritte is a fierce warrior. Combining their skillsets would be like adding marshmallows to hot cocoa. They’d run into the snag of Ygritte wanting to remain among the Free Folk and Sansa being required in Winterfell, but if they could work that out somehow then I think they’d have the best relationship out of these couplings. They both have wit on their side and would have fun teasing each other here and there. Ygritte would never let anyone forget that Sansa is a badass, and Sansa wouldn’t let anyone disrespect Ygritte for being one of the Free Folk. They’d have that same vibe as your aunties who always show up stylish with the best gifts and that keep the whole family in line.

Daenerys Targaryen x Euron Greyjoy

If these two  could manage to get along a little bit and agree on some things, they’d make a terrifying couple for Westeros. Dany wants the throne and Euron wants to be throne adjacent. They’re both ruthless but in different ways. I don’t know if they could ever come to a place of agreement, but there’s a chance that they would and then everyone better get outta Dodge. Within their relationship, Daenerys would take the lead on most things. Euron would basically be along for the ride. She’d tolerate his crude behavior only as much as she found him useful, and she’d have no problem letting him know that. Once they reached that understanding (and Euron came to fear her) they may be able to reach that place where they start getting along.

[lovelyladyabsinthewrites]

Misfit

Pairing(s): Daenerys Targaryen x Greyjoy!Reader

Warnings: minors dni, mentions of rape, dubcon, mentions of inc3st, trauma, healing, please do not read if you think you’ll be triggered by any of these warnings.

Words: 2439

Summary: Nightmares, your nightmares were filled with the blazing symbol of a kraken. As you travel with your siblings to Meereen you hope Queen Daenerys would be willing to help you in defeating Euron.

You lunge in your bed as the waves outside crashes against your sister’s massive ship; fingers twisting in your sheets while you draw in ragged breaths. Eyes darting about your cabin wildly for any sign of your terrible uncle. You knew though that he wouldn’t be there. You were far away from his grasp. The fact gave you little relief though, your heart still in a panic. A heavy film of sweat madde your hair stick limply to your face as you got up on unsteady feet. Legs wobbled uncontrollably and not because of the ship. A nightmare like that always rendered you of your mobility.

Dawn was barely emerging from the blanket of night when you managed to make it up on the deck. Even with the cold night air smattering against your soaked skin you still felt unbearably hot. A feverish kind of warmth that made you feel ill.

You padded off to one side of the ship and grasped tightly at the edge while leaning your face overboard.

Just the thought of him made you sick.

“They’ll start saying you’re sea sick if you keep it up.” Asha’s voice breaks over the sea. “What kind of Ironborn would you be if you were prone to seasickness.”

Body quivering as you wretch overboard, Asha’s hand rubs your back.

“I’m sorry (y/n). You’re away from him now.” She whispers to you. “Once we have Daenerys on our side, Euron will pay. “We’ll hang him by the neck. Not even the Drowned God will take him.”

With the back of your hand you wipe your mouth. “A nice sentiment Asha. That is if we can even talk to the Mother of Dragons before she feeds us to her children.” Asha laughs loudly. “Don’t worry about that. She’ll talk to us. I’ve heard she’s been trying to get to Westeros for years. This is her chance. She’d be a fool not to talk to us.” You always admired your older sister. Ever since childhood, Asha had consistently been so confident with herself. Undoubtedly she would’ve made a great queen. Her shipmates admired her as a captain and would go anywhere with and for her. Although they respected you too you lacked the authority that Asha had. You never had a ship of your own. Unlike everyone else on the Iron Isles you preferred to stay on land. Considered a disgrace by many it made you a sort of misfit. Even your father had been disappointed in you. You didn’t really care. You brushed him off and dreamed of a place filled with grass and trees. You partially envied Theon for being taken to Winterfell after the failure of the Greyjoy Rebellion. You wished it had been you. The Iron Isles were a cold place that possessed no love or affection. Asha had always been the one to give you any kind of warmth. She was always there to support you as an older sibling should. Your sister taught you how to wield a sword with a patience she showed no one else. When your father had given up on hopes of you having and fulling utilizing your own ship it was Asha who enticed you on board with stories of Westeros and other far off places. It was the only reason why you even learned how to conduct a ship; with hopes of sailing away from your dreary home. Asha never really did understand why you hated Pyke, but she always supported you and whatever made you happy.

“He’s never going to hurt you again (y/n). I’ll make sure of that. And you know I keep my promises.” She reminds you a little sternly.

You smile meekly and finally turn away from the side of the boat to face her. “I know. And I know you’ll talk Daenerys into joining us. You do have a way with convincing people to your view.”

Her grin is crooked. “C’mon. Lets get you back to bed. We should be reaching Meereen soon.”

Right, you had to try and get some rest. It had been so long though since you’d had a peaceful nights sleep. Even if you were so exhausted sleep never did come easy to you. It was like trying to grasp mist and keep it your captive in your hands.

When you closed your eyes that’s when you saw Euron the most…

Meereen was completely different from Pyke. Worlds apart from the salt air and fog filled island that you had grown up on. Sun hot on your sensitive skin making you perspire as you and your entourage set out from the docks and to the great, towering, pyramid where Daenerys Targaryen was. Many observed you with naked suspicion. Soldiers in odd looking helmets followed slowly off to the side, watching like hawks.

“Don’t let them intimidate you. I hear all of her soldiers have no dicks-” Asha pales slightly and quickly shoots wide eyes over to poor Theon. Hiss shoulders stiffen and his face turns down to the ground. “S-Sorry. . .”

He had been through so much under the tyranny of Ramsay Bolton. Even though you had been through your own horror you couldn’t possibly imagine all the things that Ramsay did to him. Theon had returned with less fingers as well as other body parts that left him timid and fearful. Not that you remembered much of him from before he left for Winterfell. You had been very young.

Word had already spread and gotten to the Queen of Meereen of the arrival of the Greyjoy fleet. The guards welcomed you with untrusting cordialness.

You were in awe of everything. You had only ever left Pyke with Asha years ago to go to the mainland for trading. You hadn’t had much time to look around before Asha ushered you back on the ship.

Statues of bare breasted women with wings instead of arms met you at every turn. Vicious and domineering as each one glared down at you and your siblings.

None of them compared to the Mother of Dragons herself. Even the dimness of the room where she accepted you couldn’t dampen her beauty. Of course you had heard that she was a great beauty, you thought all of the rumors had merely been hype. You were a fool to have assumed such things. You were never certain about your sexuality, but once you saw her you knew it was anything that involved Daenerys Targaryen.

What you weren’t expecting was the Lannister dwarf at her side. His focus was entirely on Theon. Such heat and furocity coming from someone so small. You wondered what had transpired between the two to make Tyrion Lannister glare at him with such animosity.

You stood on the other side of Asha, trying to perpetuate the strength and pride of House Greyjoy. Iron you tried to will your body to be. Iron like Asha. Resilient and strong against your enemies.

Against Daenerys? Well, you never had behaved much like a Greyjoy before. Why would now be any different.

Once Tyrion started berating your brother on how he acted last they saw one another you knew it would be a rocky conversation. Would the Half Man discourage Daenerys from such an alliance just because of the ass your brother was years ago? She seemed to trust his judgement since he was standing by her right side. Her right hand man. Somehow he had become her counselor. He could ruin everything. That would mean Euron. . .

You felt ill again.

If Daenerys wouldn’t help you defeat Euron. . .

Daenerys’ strong voice pipes in after Tyrion. “You’ve brought us a hundred ships from the Iron Fleet, with men to sail them. In return I suspect you want me to support you claim to the throne of the Iron Islands?” She was addressing Theon.

“Not my claim.” Theon corrects her. His head inclines toward Asha who stood between you and Theon. “Her’s.”

You had never seen someone with her color eyes. Such a rich, yet gentle, hue of lavender. They move from Theon then to Asha, quickly flicking toward you before going back to Theon. “What’s wrong with you?”

He hesitates and you inwardly cringe as he is once again reminded of what had been done to him at the hands of Ramsay. “I’m. . . I’m not fit to rule.”

“We can both agree on that at least.” Tyrion remarks.

There’s interest on Daenerys’ face. The thought of another queen. It could potentially put her own position at risk, you realize. Dread was clawing deep at your gut. You couldn’t help but feel the searing of your wrists; the remnants of the time spent under your uncle’s control. “Has the Iron Islands ever had a queen?”

Very briefly Asha glances at you. For anyone else it was nothing out of the ordinary. You and Asha knew though.

Asha purses her lips before answering smoothly “No more than Westeros.”

The Queen of Meereen smiles. That was a good sign, right? Theon thinks so as he continues calmly. “Our Uncle Euron returned after a long absence. He murdered our father. He took the Salt Throne from Asha. He took (y/n). . .” Theon pauses and uncertainly looks to you to see if it was okay. Shakingly you nod. It would come out eventually. You had to be brave like Asha. Be brave like Theon was trying to be. That was the very least you could do. “Took (y/n) as his bride. . . unwillingly. . . He would’ve murdered us all if we hadn’t left.”

You weren’t anticipating the immense amount of sympathy that the queen held for you. Her face softened and her true feelings bled through. “I’m sorry that happened to you. It must have been horrendous. . .”

For the first time you speak up. “I-It was. That is why we seek your help. I, seek your help. . .”

There’s a moment of silence, kept company by the furious beating of your heart that you hoped no one else could hear. Then Daenerys subtly turns to Tyrion. “Will their ships be enough?”

It would take a while for the queen to load everything onto your ships as well as the ones she had taken from the masters. Who the masters were, you didn’t entirely know and didn’t care. You were all too relieved when Daenerys accepted your alliance. So relieved that once you were alone you cried. For the first time in a long time you cried out of joy.

Daenerys had let you and your siblings stay in her great pyramid until they were done loading the things necessary to sail to Westeros.

You were grateful to actually take a bath. A large steaming pool at the base of the pyramid. Ancient figures and sculptures kept a look out for you as you lounged in the heated water. Never had you felt so at ease. Daenerys and her dragons would take down Euron in a heartbeat. You smile to yourself. He would pay for what he did to you.

(e/c) eyes shift to your naked body, the smile wilting. What he had done to you. . . His own niece. God knows you had tried to forget. How could someone forget such violent acts done to them though? Asha would’ve never let anything like that happen to her. She would’ve stuck a knife in his neck the moment he laid hands on her. You were gentle though. Always gentle. And that was your downfall. Your father had been right all along.

“For someone who has just succeeded in getting my help, you sure don’t look very happy.”

Jolting you quickly use your arm to cover your chest. “Your Gr-”

Oh boy. She was naked too. Gloriously naked. Her attendants helped her in and as they did she looked like some sort of mythical creature, much like her dragons. You tried not to stare. Tried to blame the steam and heat of the water for making you blush. You were still ever the gentle child that your father scolded you for being; even though you and Daenerys had to be around the same age.

Her smile is kind as her handmaids go about unbraiding her hair and letting it flow into the water. “Forgive me for startling you.”

“N-No forgiveness is needed, Your Grace. It is I who seeks it. I’ll leave.” You go to stand, aware that that would make you bare for her to see.

“No, please stay. I would like the company.” says Daenerys.

Still covering yourself with your arms you sit back down into the water. She had probably already seen the kraken shaped brand on your hip anyway. There was no hiding what Euron had done to you. It was different, her seeing it and Theon telling her what had happened.

“I truly am sorry for what your uncle has done to you. It’s despicable. He will pay for it, that I promise you.” She tells you earnestly. Her eyes are trained on the rippling of the water. You could tell she’s lost in thought. Perhaps a memory she was thinking back on. “No woman should have to go through that. I’ll make sure he never does it to anyone else again. I know giving your sister her Salt Throne won’t erase what has been done to you. Even killing Euron what take back what he did. But. . . I hope you can learn to move on from it. That you can let yourself live a happy life despite what has happened to you. You deserve that much and more.”

Your lost for words. All is caught in your throat.

The sound of water moving makes you look at Daenerys as she wades toward you. Once she’s in front of you she gently cups your cheek. Try as you may, your tears spill forward.

You would’ve flinched from such contact had it been anyone else. However your body melted into her touch.

*

Asha smiled gently at the scene and decided best to leave them alone. It had been quite a while since she had seen her sister so relaxed around another person. Euron had taken her sense of security. Even around Asha and Theon, (y/n) would still flinch if they accidentally touched her of if they moved in a way that looked like they were going to strike her.

Her fingers curl into her palm tightly at the thought of what Euron had done to (y/n). Violently shaking she stalks out of the pyramid of Meereen to get ready to sail back to Westeros.