#it always surprises me when people think the beautiful queen isn’t brienne

[ddagent]

How about hand!brienne and king!jaime?

Can’t go wrong with a little canon divergence this fine evening! Thank you for the prompt, Anon; I hope you enjoy it! 

Lannister sails were spotted along the horizon just as they sat down to break their fast. All three of the Evenstar’s children rushed to the window to stare at the fleet of boats making their way from King’s Landing. Their father, a hedge knight who had been elevated far beyond his status, huffed and called for ale. Their mother, the Evenstar, followed her children in staring along the horizon. 

At seeing the familiar red and gold, Brienne of Tarth smiled. 

“All right, children, eat quickly,” Brienne said, depositing a kiss atop the head of her youngest. “The King will soon be upon us.” 

From the table, Ser Hyle Hunt wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Fucking fantastic.” 

Brienne ignored her husband’s outburst and, instead, busied herself with preparing Evenfall Hall for the arrival of the King and his retinue. Rooms had been made up; barrels of wine dragged up from the cellar. The fishermen in the port had been out for days at a time. Ever since the raven from King’s Landing, the whole island had been captivated by the prospect of a visit from the Golden Lion. Some, however, remembered when he was nothing more than a cub. Brienne remembered him that way, too. Soft curls and an even softer smile. 

She was looking forward to seeing that smile. 

As the royal ships docked at the harbour, Brienne and her household finished the final preparations. Far too soon, word came that the King and his procession were making their way towards Evenfall. The people of Tarth lined the streets, and in the courtyard of Evenfall, House Tarth gathered. Brienne, in a sapphire blue tunic, stood proud. Her eldest daughter, Catelyn, stood beside her. Brynden was next; Joanna at the furthest end. 

Her husband brought up the rear. He let out a snort of derision at the sight of the sword resting upon Brienne’s hip. “Truly, Brienne? Even today?” 

“Especially today.” 

Any potential argument was cut short by the clap of hooves against Evenfall’s cobbled walkway. The Kingsguard, their white cloaks flapping in the face of an oncoming storm, were first to enter. Next was the Prince, Harlan of House Lannister. His dark curls tumbled across his shoulders; soft brown eyes settling pleasantly upon Brienne’s eldest daughter. Cat scoffed, earning an elbow to the ribs from her brother. A carriage trundled across the stone, and then – Jaime. 

Even decades on, he was still every inch the handsome knight from the old stories. His hair was darker, now; there were crow’s feet at the corner of his eyes. But his smile was still soft. Still only for her. 

“Brienne.”

Hyle’s hiss of her name was not enough to break Brienne from her reverie. No: while her family and household bowed at their King’s feet, she stood standing. Jaime, never King, lifted a single eyebrow in amusement as he approached. “Do you not kneel before your King, my Lady?”

“I have never knelt to you here.” 

“Both of us know that isn’t quite true.” Jaime wet his top lip; Brienne’s breath hitching at the memory of what they had done in this very courtyard. But the moment passed, and the King addressed his subjects. “As far as I recall, my Lady, our bouts were fairly even before the Evenstar’s daughter and the Lion from the West was called to war.” 

“Maybe during your visit, we could finally determine a winner.”

Jaime simply threw his head back and laughed. He then enveloped her in an embrace; his fingers tight around her shoulder blades. “It’s good to see you, Ser.”

“And you, Cub.”

Brienne allowed herself a single moment holding Jaime Lannister in her arms before they both retreated behind the masks they wore. The King, ignoring the Evenstar’s husband, introduced himself to the children. He challenged Cat to a duel, asked Brynden if he would take him out on the seas, and produced a sunflower for Joanna to wear in her hair. It was then that the Queen emerged from her carriage. 

“Highgarden’s prize rose,” Hyle muttered, before kissing Queen Margaery’s hand when she presented it. “The songs they sing of your beauty, my Queen, are a pale imitation of the real thing.” 

Margaery acted demure as she accepted Hyle’s compliment – more than he had ever offered Brienne, other than a hand in marriage when she found herself with child after the war. The King, however, had no interest in praising his wife’s beauty. He turned to Brienne; his eyes awash with old memories. “I would like to pay my respects.” 

“My love—”

“—of course,” Brienne interjected. “Catelyn, would you ensure Queen Margaery and the court have everything they need?” 

Her eldest nodded. “Of course, Mother. My King. My Queen, if you would follow me?”

While the royal household made their way inside Evenfall Hall, the King and the Evenstar travelled to the Sept overlooking the cliffs. There, a pillar of stones stood in memory of her late father. He had treated Jaime like a son, and he mourned him as such. Brienne’s gaze stole to the harbour and the Lannister ships while her oldest and dearest friend paid his respects. 

When he was done, his hand lingered upon her shoulder. Then they sat, strewn in the grass like they had when they were children. With a wistful smile, Jaime spoke of their children. “I cannot believe how big they are.” 

“Septa Roelle once said children are like weeds. They grow and grow and grow.”

"Especially children on Tarth. Brynden will be taller than me, of that, I have no doubt. Catelyn already is!” Jaime grinned. “I would like to know them better, Brienne. I know I have no right—”

“—they are your children, too. It’s not as if Hyle is under any illusions. He knows Catelyn is not his; she is nothing more to him than a bargaining chip to a lordship.” Brienne faltered, recalling the offer he’d made after she’d returned pregnant with the new King’s babe. The first of three. “He suspects Brynden and Joanna are not, either, although cannot give voice to it. It would mean I was unfaithful, like him, and Hyle cannot fathom anyone but him suffering the agony of bedding me.” 

Jaime’s fingers brushed along hers. “It is an agony I have suffered before, and would for a thousand nights after this one.” He laced their fingers together. “Perhaps we could suffer together in King’s Landing?” 

A line formed across her brow. “What excuse would I give for visiting the capital?”

“You would be my Hand.” Brienne pulled her own away. “I’m serious, Brienne. After Addam, I...” He trailed off. Addam’s sudden death had been a surprise to them all. “I trust you, Brienne. More than anyone. It has to be you. If not you, it’ll be Loras Tyrell, and we both know the only Tyrell we can stand is a Redwyne. Come to King’s Landing. Bring the children. Hells, bring Hyle if you must. We were made to stand together. It has been far too long since I have had you at my side.” 

Brienne did not know what to say. She knew King’s Landing was no place for her; the vipers of the Court were no less poisonous than when Jaime’s sister had crawled among them. It was no place for her children, either; the bastard children of the King, with his smile and stubborn streak. It would be a new kind of hell to see Jaime day in, day out; their last rendezvouses taking place on battlefields, in crimson tents where every day could be their last. But here – Jaime haunted her here. The knowledge of what had been, and the prospect of what could. 

“Let me think about it.” 

“That is all I ask.” 

He asked too much. They both knew it. Like they both knew she would say yes.  She always did. 

[blacksunscorpio]

Scorp you're a genius! So relatable and I love how you don't judge others or anyone who comes to you for help. Keep it up! I just had to ask since I see that you make pop culture references to make analogies with astrology. You've mentioned GoT a few times and im a huge fan! Can you do a quick post on Game of Thrones characters and their potential zodiac signs? I'd love to hear your input! Thank you so much!!

Game of Thrones Characters & Their Zodiac Signs

Aries

Khal Drogo- Impulsive. Warlike. Bloodthirsty. Alpha. Conqueror. Hardcore athlete [did you see him on that horse?] Extremely sexual. Forceful. When he first meets Daenerys, he forces himself on her. Afterward, however, he is the first to go to war if he feels the people around him have been disrespected.

Aerys Targaryen- Impulsive, sadistic. Boastful. imperial. He would be the Emperor [reversed] in Tarot, lol. Not as good with being a tactician as he ought to have been. Cruel. Rage problems. The need to be the first and the best. Fire and blood, anyone?

Taurus

Maergery Tyrell - Classy, wealthy, sexy, laid-back, frank but with an air of elegance. Highgardeners have a love for the finer things in life. A love of fine wines and foods. Beautiful clothing and aesthetics. RICH RICH. Get on their bad side and they will take their time finding a way to subvert your authority.

Robert Baratheon- Love of luxury, bullheaded, strong, takes no shit. Fixed in his opinions of others, highkey jealous. In his youth, he enjoyed the gifts of Venus: Charm, wealth coming from the noble house of Baratheon, widely considered handsome by almost all in the 7 kingdoms. 

Gemini

Tyrion Lannister- Silver-tongued. HIGHKEY intelligent. Social. Charming. Great sense of humor. A freak [in the sheets]. Chatty. Always finds his way out of a sticky situation. Finds a way to use his intel to bolster diplomacy between his family and the families who hate them.

Little Finger- Cunning, quick-witted, works behind the scenes, manipulative, a  snake, jack of all trades. Top dog in the social circles of the 7 Kingdoms. There wasn’t a person who didn’t know of him and his... reputation. He singlehandedly, through his Machiavellian tactics, caused the events of Game of Thrones to unfold. 

Cancer  

Cersei Lannister- Protective, moody, caring [to her kids], motherly, cantankerous, jealous. A savage. People don’t give Cancer’s the credit they deserve in terms of what they’re capable of. Cersei is a prime example of the type of person who can show unrivaled levels of devotion to the one’s they love. “No one matters but us.” She can be cruel because she lets her emotions rule her actions. When her safety is threatened, she makes sure no one else feels safe either. She loves with a ferocity only rivaled by...

Catelyn Stark- Another mother who would die [quite literally] for her children. Fierce, Protective. Doting. JEALOUS. Let’s not forget how she treated Jon all because she believed Ned’s lie about him being a bastard. Followed her son into battle. Damn near lost her hands fighting off Bran’s would-be assassin. 

Leo

Jaime Lannister- Proud. Handsome. Princely. Funny. We seem him go from underdeveloped Leo [arrogant, selfish, bully, prideful, snob, loyal to no one but himself] to developed [Kind, helpful, warm, honest]. Fought bears for his friends. Skilled and proud fighter even without the use of both his hands. Unfortunately, his loyalty caused him to stay loyal to his twin towards the end, but such is the nature of a Leo. They’re hard-pressed to abandon those they truly care for.

Brienne of Tarth- LOYAL. Proud. Devoted. A bit of a flare for drama especially brandishing her sword. Brienne is the definition of Leonine traits. Hard to miss. Devoted to those who show her kindness, i.e Renly, Catelyn, Jaime, Sansa, etc. Always at the front lines in war screaming “STAND YOUR GROUND”. Unrivaled levels of bravery and courage. Not to be fucked with. A true Queen.

Virgo

Samwell Tarley- Intelligent. Scholarly. Methodical. Always with his nose in a book. Unproblematic king. Caught the things everyone else missed, especially when he was an apprentice in Old Towne. Figured out how to cure Jorah Mormont’s affliction on his OWN without any formal training. Genius.

Lord Varys- Remember, Virgo is also ruled by Mercury who is the most cunning of the planetary rulers. Varys always had a spy to collect intel on everyone. A tactician. Never lost his temper. Always had the scoop but didn’t partake in gossip for gossip's sake. Not afraid to be critical or tell those “in charge” his opinion. We can see this specifically when he critiques Aerys, Daenerys, and Robert. 

Libra

Davos Seaworth- a skilled diplomat. Davos is always seen seeking balance and fairness in the situations he finds himself in. The minute you see this man in a scene you know he’s going to give a moving speech and get someone out fo a sticky situation. He convinced the Iron Bank to support Stannis. Convinced Daenerys to entertain Jon Snow when they traveled to Dragonstone. Always breaking up a fight. He is in full support of law and order, especially when he called for Melisandre’s head after discovering her part in Shireen’s death [RIP.]

Rhaegar Targaryen- Had a love of music. Harmony. Balance. He brought two families together [Stark and Targaryen]. He was also blessed by Venus in my opinion because he was said to be extremely handsome. A fabulous singer. A fighter yes, but a lover first. Very good with diplomacy but not the best with defending himself against his cousin sign, Taurus [Robert Baratheon].

Scorpio

Daenerys Targaryen- Many see her as an Aries but I have to respectfully disagree. Daenerys is a Scorpio in my opinion. Remember, Scorpio is honorary fire. She was literally “reborn from the ashes”. A Phoenix, Scorpio’s final form. She went from a silent and meek girl to a skilled and commanding Empress. Unlike Arians, she did not jump headfirst into battle. It took many arrows in her dragons, many slights to her ego, copious council from her advisors, dozens of her loved ones lost for her to go nuclear. Like her father, she hungered for power, a very Scorpionic trait. However she, unlike her father, listened to reason [Jorah, Tyrion, and Barristan Selmy]. She had a long fuse until she didn’t, and then that’s when she rained fire and blood on everyone in King’s Landing. She was skilled at retribution and was unapologetic with it *cough* the Tarleys *cough*.. Unlike Arians who pop off at the drop of a hat, she gave her enemies fair warning if/when they crossed her.

Arya Stark- You already know what it is with this one. Arya is pretty much death [Pluto], personified. Stealthy. A tactician. VENGEFUL. I think we all fist-pumped when she served Filch Walder Frey his sons in that pie. Never forgets a slight. Keeps a list of people who’ve wronged her [All Scorpios can probably relate]. You never see her coming. She is “no-one”. She is the assassin that slips through the back. She may seem calm at first but trust that she has been planning your downfall for a while. LOYAL. The definition of a Scorpio.

Melisandre- Dark. Mysterious. Unafraid of the occult. So much of her life is unknown and I’m sure that’s how she preferred it. Even her Lord of light was mysterious. Strong supernatural abilities and highkey psychic. Knew immediately how many “eyes” Arya would “close.” Had ties to the underworld which is demonstrated with her ability to resurrect the dead. Came through at the clutch in the last battle wielding fire [Mars] with her witchcraft. It’s no secret that Scorpios are some of the most skilled in sorcery.

Sagittarius

Missandei- Exotic. From Naath which is an island just above the mysterious continent of Sothoryos. A world traveler. Lucky enough to escape slavery [until the end]. Jupiter's influence is here in my opinion because she is so kind and friendly. Also a polyglot and gifted with the ability to speak 19 languages. Her fire is seen at the end of the series when she tells her best friend “Dracarys”-- meaning “fire” in High Valyrian. She isn’t afraid to call wrath down on others.

Olenna Tyrell- Loud, unapologetically blunt, zero-filter, feisty. Olenna to me is the definition of Sagittarius. Always speaks her mind. Clap back queen. Will call you out. Was also quite promiscuous in her younger years. Very charismatic and extremely likable despite her penchant for saying whatever was on her mind.

Capricorn

Tywin Lannister- I can’t see the patriarch of the most notorious family in Westeros being anything other than a Capricorn. Methodical. Structured. Business-minded. Karmic [A "Lannister always repays his debts"] Cold. Cruel. Unfeeling. Like Saturn, he is the father figure. Basically ran the 7 Kingdoms for Aerys, [which was probably why the latter was so salty towards him.] Always has a plan. The man you want in charge if we’re strictly talking about law and order. Vindictive [had the mountain kill Elia because Rhaegar rejected Cersei.] He’s the ultimate son-of-a-bitch.

Jon Snow- Brooding hero that he is, Bae Jon Snow is without a doubt a Capricorn in my eyes. Duty-bound. Serious. A leader in his own right. Could also be cold and unfeeling in terms of distributing karmic justice. Lest we forget the “fetch-me-a-block” situation with Janos Slynt. In addition, the moment he was resurrected he took vengeance against the black brothers who betrayed him. Saturn, Like Pluto, is all about karmic justice. The beating he put on Ramsey after The Battle of the Bastards was one thousand percent a karmic beating. A proper lover as well, according to Ygritte, Jon also knew how to handle himself in the bedroom, a trait very akin to Capricorns.

Aquarius

Bran Stark- I thought about making Bran a Pisces, but then I changed my mind. Remember Uranus rules sudden insights and hardcore psychic receptivity. It also rules sudden and unexpected catastrophes or surprises/ sudden breaks. Bran suffered a literal “tower” moment at the beginning of the series which resulted in his psychic powers developing. Once he became the three-eyed raven, he became very detached from the world.

Grey Worm- Aquarius is also androgynous. Grey Worm is a eunuch. He is always down to fight for a cause though, specifically his queen’s. Cares about others, specifically Missandei, and was seen towards the latter season speaking up for the Unsullied against the slavers. Fierce combatant but also very detached. His job is his job.

Pisces

Jaqen H’ghar- Much like Neptune, Pisces’ ruler Jaqen has a mysterious and illusive personality. He wears “many faces”. Skilled at illusion and very very intuitive. Has a soft side though which is clearly seen with how he treats Arya. Hardly ever flies off the handle. Calm. Cool. Collected.

Hodor- Sweet and gentle giant, Hodor is a Pisces to me. Affected by psychic trauma, it’s revealed why “Hodor” is the only thing he can say. Calm. A bit of a baby. Caring. Easily adaptable [think of all the terrain he carried Bran through]

Eddard Stark- I don't care what anyone says, Ned stark to me represents the most developed form of a Pisces. Like the Hanged-Man in Tarot that represents sacrifice and which Neptune Rules, he willingly sacrificed his reputation as honorable for his sister, Lyanna. He later sacrifices himself for his children when he died at Joffrey’s [little bitch] command. He is wise. Though appears cold, he is actually a well of feeling and caring. Unfortunately, he also suffered from the naivety of Neptunian influence which is why he wasn’t very skilled at the Game of Thrones, which calls for more tactical ruthlessness. Pisceans however also have the rage of Poseidon flowing through their veins [which people like to forget]. This was displayed when he pinned Petyr Baelish to the Wall in King’s Landing for daring to dishonor Cat by inviting her into a Brothel. RIP, King Stark.

[lotionalt-writeherman]

A lot of people on the GoT tag like “I expected too much” and “knew there’d be some bullshit ending” but I want to stop that. Because NO. No. You did NOT expect too much. You expected a well-written season that accurately portrayed the characters and show. Like you’ve been getting for years. Like they promised. 

This show has been epic. EPIC. Nearly every fan will tell you, at least up through season six, that this is the best show ever made. And they were right. Because this shit WAS good. We had incredible character arcs, complex plot to go with them, and absolutely beautiful endings. Everything has always come together. It’s always seemed somewhat fitting, or at least made sense looking back. It’s always been one of those things where you scream when it happens, but then later you’re like yeah, it sucked, but looking back I get how we got here. (When Jon was stabbed by the Night’s Watch. When Joffrey was poisoned by Olenna. When Tyrion killed his dad, then Shae. Hell, the Red Wedding, even. When Jon turns out to be a Targaryen) 

And that was good writing. Like, real, quality writing. Characters may have been doing dumb shit, but it made sense for those characters. 

This season? 

Everything went south. I don’t know exactly what happened, to be honest. Maybe it’s because they’re not following the books. Maybe it’s because they’re trying to cram two books worth of plot in one season. 

Either way, it’s garbage. 

Let’s go through the characters they’ve done wrong, shall we? 

Tyrion. Tyrion is the clever one. He’s always a step or two ahead, can always see what’s going on. And this season and the last he’s been... what? Not doing that. Like, really not doing that. His whole thing is that he can’t fight, but he can think. That’s what he has going for him. And in just this episode, he’s not seen Sansa’s reveal of the secret for what it so obviously is, told Varys (literally everyone saw that one coming), and freed Jaime to help their sister (who is evil, whom Tyrion hates) escape. That’s just this episode. What happened?

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention how literally no one in Winterfell was like, “hey, maybe we shouldn’t put all the people who can’t fight where the dead people are. Because, you know, the dead people can come back to life, and we all know that, but we’re ignoring it.” You’re telling me Sansa and Tyrion BOTH overlooked that shit? When every idiot on Twitter was talking about it the MINUTE it was mentioned in Ep 2? Nah. 

Jon. To be fair, Jon’s been pretty in character for what we know about him. He found a queen, he’s loyal to her because he’s loyal and that’s his thing. But how about when Sansa is like “yo, shouldn’t we let our guys rest, since they just fought like a billion dead guys?” and jon’s like, nah, whatever Dany said? I’m calling bullshit. Also this last episode I feel like he kind of does nothing. Which isn’t Jon’s style. He’s a do-er, always has been. And he’s a leader. Yes, he respects Dany and even cares for her, but I find it hard to believe he’s really going to just... step back. and ignore everything she’s doing. and not offer an opinion, like, ever. That’s not his style, it’s never been his style. Ever since he arrived on the Wall, the one thing we know about Jon Snow is that he can’t keep his mouth shut if he thinks something is wrong. And we’re just going to... ignore that?

Jaime. I kind of don’t want to do him, because my boy got done so clearly wrong and everyone is doing him. But whatever, I’ll state the obvious. We had about 3 seasons of pure character development for him, where Jaime was learning that he still had honor, PROVING he still had honor. By himself. No Cersei, just Jaime out there in the world not being an asshole. Because he is honorable. Remember King’s Landing, when he earned ‘Kingslayer?’ Remember when he promised Catelyn he’d protect her girls, and he really did do everything, including betraying Cersei, to keep that promise? Remember when he lost his hand to stop Brienne from being raped? Remember when he leaves Cersei to join the army in the North because he doesn’t want millions to die? So excuse me if it makes no logical sense for the man to decide ‘fuck it, honor what honor imma go fuck my sister again.’ Because he’s changed. They made a point to show us the lengths to which he’s changed. And then the ending he’s given is basically ‘I only care about you, Cersei, I don’t care about the thousands dying in king’s landing.’ That’s disrespect, yo. DISRESPECT. 

Dany. Again, this one’s obvious. And honestly, from what I’ve seen, pretty much everyone can agree that this shit was dumb. Yeah, there were hints that she could someday go crazy. Yeah, she said some stuff seasons ago about burning cities. You know what else she did, though? She saw slavery. She saw how it hurt the individual person, the people, and she wanted it gone. So she ended it, because it was wrong. She spent whole seasons trying not to be her father, to be just. At literally the first sign that her dragons were hurting innocents (burned that one kid) she locked them all up. Because she couldn’t stand to see innocent people hurt. She sees the wrong in her father’s actions, because she knows that he wanted to kill normal, everyday, innocent people. He wanted to burn them all, but all of them dying wasn’t justice, and that’s always been what she’s wanted: justice. Even the Tarlys got a choice: bend the knee or die. In her mind, it was justice. She let them choose, even after they initially fought against her. But then, this season, she flips all that? Goes back on the claim of not wanting to be “queen of the ashes”? Burns the entire city to the ground, including her own troops? No. 

I know that she’s sad because Jorah is dead, because Missandei is dead, because it looks like her advisors have betrayed her, like Jon doesn’t want to be with her. So she’s upset because she’s alone. And that makes sense. You can get a little depressed over it. But she wins. She gets there. She has King’s Landing in the palm of her hand, and instead of going in and taking the Iron Throne like a boss, she completely disrespects the memory of all those who have died for her and burns everything and everyone. Missandei said “dracarys” as her final word, which has been the justification for this decision. But for Dany to take her words to mean “burn the city and every kid in here to the ground” is just as absurd as assuming Missandei would ever want that. Dany knew this girl. She’s had her with her for years at this point. That’s not what she would’ve wanted. It all goes back to justice. That’s what Missandei wanted. That’s what Dany has always wanted. And burning King’s Landing wasn’t it. Continuity is nonexistent for Daenerys here. It’s just gone. 

And I’ll say, again, what everyone has been saying: if this had been set up better, I wouldn’t be mad. I think Dany as a mad queen, set up properly in the narrative, would’ve been fine. I’ve always liked Dany, but I’m not saying any of this because she’s my favorite. She’s not. But I can still see that the way that this was done, in the span of three episodes, didn’t work. There isn’t enough evidence to support this yet. If there had been actions, real actions, even just through the last season that could hint at this, fine. I would’ve accepted it. It’s kind of a cool way for this to go, honestly, if done correctly. But it wasn’t, and that’s what my problem with it is. She was set up as a character with a code of values, a strong belief in justice for wrongdoers and relief for innocents, and has consistently shown through her actions that she follows that code. You can’t completely change a character arc in a span of three episodes based on her actions of justice against those who have clearly wronged her, at least in her mind. That’s not how you write characters. 

Where the actual hell is the decent writing? Because the only cool things this season have been from previous seasons. Like Jon is Aegon Targaryen. That shit was WILD. I loved it. I loved how it’d been set up, everything. But like... that’s it.That’s the only cool thing set up this season. Everything else is this surface level bullshit. It feels like a soap opera. Where is the scheming? Where is the intricate plot weaving that’s been a part of this show since day one? That’s the reason we’re here. That. Not because we like it when characters die, because we want flashy battles and dragon scenes. Those are nice, but not why this show blew up like it did. This show is so impressive because it’s smart. Not because it’s big or gruesome or shocking. Because it’s smart. I feel like that was obvious to everyone. You should’ve known that. You had eight seasons to set up this incredible ending. You knew it was coming. 

Instead, you ignored the previous seasons. The plots, the characters. All the potential there. You had years to plan. You saw the theories, the ideas everywhere. And because you were so intent on being impressive, on surprising everybody and doing something no one expected, you fucked up. Instead of focusing on delivering quality, you focused on shock value. “No one ever thought of this,” You said proudly. No one thought of this because no one thought you would be this fucking stupid.

So.. yeah. fuck d&d. :)

[fuckallthegood0nesweretaken]

The Dove and Her Hound - CH. TwentyOne

Title: The Truce

Words: 2,309

Warnings: Some strong language

Taglist: @tonbluemchen @affection-rabbit @art-flirt @10morgan10 @thatting @iwontdance-dontaskme

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Masterlist

~~~~~~~

It had been a long voyage to King’s Landing. Jon and Daenerys were apparently now an item and you had learned something about you. Tyrion had successfully convinced Jaime to talk to Cersei and there was a temporary truce. You and Daenerys still weren’t getting along, but for Jon’s sake you were civil. Now you were walking along with Tyrion, Jon, and Sandor. When your group of people met another, you saw some familiar faces. Brienne of Tarth and Podrick Payne.

 “Welcome, my lord’s. And my lady’s. Some of your friends arrived before you. I’ve been sent to escort you all to the meeting,” the man leading the other group said.

Sandor’s grip on your hand tightened and you looked to see where he was looking. His eyes were glued to Brienne and hers to him. She looked at you after and bowed slightly. You nodded your head back and she looked surprised. Following her gaze, it lead to your intertwined hands. You blushed lightly and a goofy smile found its way to your face. Her eyes still held surprise, but understanding.

 The Dothraki protecting your group went and walked ahead with some of the Lannister men Cersei had sent with Brienne and Podrick. You were still with Sandor when everyone else started moving. Tyrion and Podrick stopped for a second to chat and he bowed his head as you walked past.

 “What’s in the box?” A Lannister soldier asked Sandor.

 “Fuck off,” he replied. The soldier backed off and Brienne took his place.

 “Thought you died,” she said.

 “Not yet. Came pretty close.” You stiffened slightly and held onto Sandor tighter.

 “I was only trying to protect them.”

 “You and me both.”

 After a moment, Brienne spoke again. “She’s alive. Arya.”

 “What?” You said.

 “Where?” Sandor asked.

 “Winterfell. She’s with Sansa and Bran.”

 “Who’s protecting her if you’re here?”

 “She can take care of herself. The only one that needs protecting is the one who gets in her way.” You let out a laugh at that.

 “It won’t be me,” Sandor said. “I have too much to protect here.”

 “Hey! I can take care of myself, thank you very much!”

 “I know you can, but it’s not just you anymore.”

 “What do you mean?” You and Sandor looked at each other. He motioned to go ahead and you looked at Brienne with a blinding smile.

 “I’m with child!”

 Brienne was shocked and gave her congratulations. You couldn’t keep the smile off of your face and if you looked at Sandor you could see the happiness in his eyes. Soon after you dropped that bomb on Brienne, you had arrived at the Dragonpit. You waited for Sandor to finish hitching his horse and cart then walked with him to the pit. Cersei wasn’t there when you were escorted in. It made you uncomfortable. The place you were in was the perfect place for an ambush.

 “I don’t like this,” you said lowly to Jon. Your hands were splayed protectively over your stomach. You were only four months pregnant, but you couldn’t help it.

 “Neither do I. Please stay close to me or Sandor.” Jon looked at you, worry in his eyes. “I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

 “I promise.”

 Hearing clinking, you looked towards the entrance. Cersei, Jaime, the Mountain, and two men you’ve never seen before were approaching. They took their seats and after they sat down you sat next to Jon. Sandor was standing behind you. He stepped out in front of everyone and approached his brother. You straitened up slightly and watched with hesitant eyes.

 “Remember me? Yeah you do. You’re even fucking uglier than I am now. What did they do to you? Doesn’t matter. That’s not how it ends for you, brother. You know who’s coming for you. You’ve always known.” After his little monologue, he went to go get the Wight.

 “Where is she?” Cersei asked Tyrion.

 “She’ll be here soon.”

 “Didn’t travel with you?”

 “No.”

 Cersei looked angry. She looked at Jaime. He looked back when the sound of wings flapping echoed through the air. He got up in a panic as the shadows of her dragons covered the Pit. They were beautiful yet they still filled you full of fear.

 Drogon roared and made his way down the side of the Pit. You could see the uneasiness in all of the Lannister men and in Cersei and Jaime. Daenerys got off of her dragon and made her way to her seat. Drogon took off into the sky to join his remaining brother.

 “We’ve been here for some time,” Cersei said, venom lacing her voice.

 “My apologies.” You could feel the tension in the air. Tyrion got up and stood in the center of the platform.

 “We are a group of people who do not like one another. We have suffered at each other’s hands. We have lost people we love at each other’s hands. If all we wanted was more of the same, there would be no need for this meeting. We are capable of waging war without meeting face to face.”

 “So instead we should settle our differences and live together in harmony for the rest of our days,” Cersei said.

 “We all know that will never happen.”

 “Then why are we here?”

 Jon stood up and joined Tyrion.

 “This isn’t about living in harmony. It’s just about living,” he spoke. “The same thing is coming for all of us. A general you can’t negotiate with, an army that doesn’t leave corpses behind on the battlefield. Lord Tyrion tells me that a million people live in this city. There’s about to be a million more soldiers in the army of the Dead.”

 “I imagine for most of them it would be an improvement.” Cersei seemed to think this was a joke.

 “This is serious. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t.”

 “I don’t think it’s serious at all. I think it’s all a bad joke.” She looked towards Daenerys. “If my brother Jaime has informed me correctly, you want a truce?”

 “Yes,” Daenerys said. “That’s all.”

 “That’s all? Pull back my armies and stand down while you go on your monster hunt. Or while you expand your position. Hard for me to know which it is with my armies pulled back. Until you turn back and march onto my capital with four times the men.”

 “Your capital will be safe until the Northern threat is dealt with. You have my word.”

 “The word of a would-be usurper.”

 “There is no conversation that can erase the last fifty years. We have something to show you,” Tyrion interjected.

 Sandor came up the steps with the Wight’s box on his back. He set it down and unlatched it, everyone who knew what was in the box was on high alert. When Sandor pushed the lid off of the box and stepped back quickly, your heart beat rapidly. Nothing happened and Sandor kicked the box. The Wight started running towards Cersei and you could see the panic in her eyes. The Wight was stopped before it reached her and Jaime stood up from his seat.

 When it saw Sandor, it rushed towards him. Pulling out his sword, he cut it in half. It still tried to get to him despite not having legs and when it reached out, Sandor cut his arm off. After that, Sandor took his place behind you. Jon took the arm from one of Cersei’s men and Ser Davos lit the torch in his hand.

 “We can destroy them with fire.” He lit the arm on fire and the Wight screamed in agony. “And we can destroy them with Dragonglass. If we don’t win this fight, then this is the fate of every person in the world.”

 Jon stabbed the Wight with his Dragonglass dagger and it fell to the floor, dead for good.

 “This is the only war that matters. The Great War. And it is here.”

 “I didn’t believe it until I saw them. I saw them all,” Daenerys said.

 “How many?” Jaime asked her.

 “Hundred thousand at least.”

 “Can they swim?” Euron said, twirling the Wights hair around his fingers.

 “No,” you answered.

 “Good. I’m taking the Iron Fleet back to the Iron Islands.”

 “What are you talking about?” Cersei said tersely.

 “I’ve been around the world. Seen things you couldn’t imagine. And this, this is the only thing that terrifies me,” Euron said to Cersei. To Daenerys he said, “I’m going back to my island. You should go back to yours. When Winter’s over, we’ll be the only ones left alive.”

 Daenerys looked unimpressed and just looked at Euron as he walked away.

 “He’s right to be afraid and a coward to run. If those things come to us, there will be no kingdoms to rule. Everything we suffered and lost would’ve been for nothing.” Cersei looked at Daenerys. “The Crown accepts your truce. Until the Dead are defeated, they are the true enemy.”

 You let out the breath you had been holding and your frame became less rigid. Then Cersei kept talking.

 “In return, the King in the North will extend this truce. He will remain in the North where he belongs. He will not take up arms against the Lannisters, he will not choose sides.”

 “Just the King in the North? Not me,” Dany said.

 “I would never ask that of you. You wouldn’t agree to it and if you did I would trust you even less than I do now. I ask it only of Ned Stark’s son. I know he will be true to his word.”

 Jon looked at you for a moment, then looked at Dany. The both of you told him with your eyes to say yes. Please say yes.  

 “I am true to my word. Or I try to be. That is why I cannot give you what you ask. I cannot serve two Queens. And I’ve already pledged myself to Queen Daenerys, of House Targaryen.”

 You went tense again, and Sandor put his hand on your shoulder. Everyone was looking at each other, waiting for someone to speak. You knew that Jon had said the wrong thing and now nothing good would come of it.

 “Then there is nothing left to discuss,” Cersei said as she stood. “The Dead will come North first. Enjoy dealing with them. We will deal with whatever is left of you.”

 Jon looked as if he wanted to speak to Cersei as she passed him by, but he could not find words. They all walked by him and Brienne was the only one to talk.

 “Ser Jaime,” she said, going after him. You didn’t hear the rest of the conversation and you looked to Sandor. He said nothing and only took your hand.

 “I wish you hadn’t done that,” Ser Davos said when Cersei was gone.

 “I’m grateful for your loyalty, but my dragon died so that we could be here,” Daenerys said. “If it’s all for nothing, then he died for nothing.”

 “I know.”

 “I’m pleased you bent the knee to our Queen,” Tyrion said. “But have you considered learning how to lie every now and then?”

 “I’m not gonna swear an oath I cannot uphold. Talk about my father if you want. Tell me that’s the attitude that got him killed. But when enough people make false promises, words stop meaning anything. Then there are no more answers only better and better lies. Lies won’t help us in this fight.”

 “You’re right,” you said to Jon. “But the more immediate problem is that we’re fucked. Are there any ideas of how to change that?”

 “Only one. Everyone stays here, and I go and talk to my sister.”

 “She’ll kill you before you can say a word,” you said.

 “I know. But we have to try something.”

 ---

 While Tyrion went to try to talk to Cersei, you sat with Sandor. You were growing restless with the waiting and all you wanted to do was get out of King’s Landing. You had always hated this shit city and never wanted to go back. But here you were, trying to get an army from your most hated enemy. You didn’t think that Tyrion would be able to talk some sense into his sister and that would most likely lead to the death of everyone here.

 “It’ll be alright, Dove,” Sandor said to you. You looked up at him and smiled faintly.

 “I don’t know about that. You know Cersei. If she doesn’t get what she wants she’s going to kill us all.” Sandor sighed and pulled you onto his lap. He held you close and put his hands on your stomach.

 “I won’t let that happen. She will not touch you or our babe.”

 You put your hands over his and rested your head in the crook of his neck. You were both silent until Tyrion showed up. You got up out of Sandor’s lap and stood. When Sandor saw Cersei walking back behind Tyrion, he stood as well and put a protective hand on the small of your back.

 “My armies will not stand down. I will not pull them back to the capital. I will march them North to fight alongside you in the Great War. And when the Great War is over, perhaps you will remember that I chose to help, with no promises or assurances from any of you. Call our Banners, all of them.”

 You were dumbfounded, but relieved that Tyrion was able to actually talk to Cersei. She left just as quickly as she came and after a few minutes, you followed. Sandor was by your side, still touching your back and didn’t let go until you were safely on the ship. It was time to sail back to Dragonstone and get ready for war.

[sailorshadzter]

Post season 8 prompt. "I want to go home" - said Jon Snow.

thanks for the request, sorry for how long it took to get to this one. :)

send me prompts

Jon Snow wants to go home.

It's been several long months at the Wall, back at his duties in black, though what was the Night's Watch has no name anymore. He and who was left of them merged into to the Wildling army and sometimes Jon thinks they are more Free Folk than anything else now. Not that it matters much now.

He's come in here hopes of forgiving himself for what terrible things his actions have caused, but in truth he's only found more sorrow, more pain. Jon had thought the punishment of being without her would allow for him to atone for what he's done and someday, he would feel free from the shackles of guilt. But here we are, seven months in, and he feels only worse without her presence.

Sansa... She comes to him often, like a beacon in the darkness, like the warm sun on the coldest of days... Though she is only in his mind, she is there all the same, the thought of her the only thing able to rise him from his furs each day. She is the first thing he thinks of when he does wake in the morning and she's the last thing he thinks of at night. Despite the distance between them, she is what keeps him going. If only... If only he could see her again.

Jon knows he probably could go home. Sansa would welcome him home, he knows, but would everyone else? As far as he's concerned, he's become a war criminal, the man who did not stop Daenerys Targaryen in time. Back then, he had still hoped, still prayed, that Daenerys would not do the terrible things that she had done. He had been stupid to believe she would not stoop to the level that she had- and millions of innocent people had paid the price for that belief. No, in truth, Jon isn't so sure that he deserves to stand by her side or within the walls of Winterfell. He's done his crime, so now he must pay.

[ x x x ]

"Careful, little crow."

It's Tormund's voice cutting into his thoughts just a moment before Jon nearly walks into two men carrying a load of wood between them. Just off the back of Castle Black, men are building small cottages for the elderly, to ensure they remain warm through the lasting winter months. "Sorry," he grunts at the two before they're on their way again; he sighs, reaching up a hand to run through his unruly curls.

"Lost, eh?" Tormund falls into step beside him, the two making their way across the courtyard towards the stables. "Little crow..." He puts a hand to Jon's shoulder, forcing him to stop in his paces. The face that turns back to look at him is pale, drawn, a man that does not sleep except when the ale takes him out. Tormund does not take his hand from his shoulder. "You look like shit."

Jon laughs, he can't help it. Trust in Tormund to always speak freely and truthfully. And the truth was, Jon felt like shit. "I couldn't sleep," he admits after a moment, sobering somewhat as he looks up into his companion's face. What he doesn't tell him is how he was woken from a dream of dragon fire and distant screams. Guilt weighs heavily upon his heart, still yet, probably until his dying breath.

"You need a night with a woman," Tormund replies, to which Jon again smiles. If only it were so easy, Jon thinks, knowing there was almost nothing that could save him from this pain inside. But the only thing that might ever provide him any comfort was hundreds of miles away and truly, was better off without his presence around her.

"I need to go home," he whispers before he can stop himself. "I want to go home."

Tormund blinks and then softens. "Then go, little crow."

Jon looks up, surprised. "I can't, I-I-"

"You nothing. You don't owe anyone shit. You coming here was of your own choice and you know it." Tormund says with a quick shake of his head. "She pardoned you before you even arrived here, you chose to ignore it and stick around here with us as some sort of self imposed punishment." Jon is staring up at him and once again, Tormund reaches out to touch the younger man's shoulder. "So go home. Go to her." Tormund knows how deeply Jon loves that girl, the new Queen in the North, and so he should be with her if it's what will make him happy.

It couldn't be that easy. It just couldn't be.

But then again, perhaps it was... Perhaps this was all he needed to do.

[ x x x ]

She's settled at the desk in her solar when a knock sounds upon her door.

Looking up from where she sits, the door swings open and in comes Lord Royce. "A letter, your grace," he says when he raises himself up from his bow. "It bears no name." He adds as he hands the folded parchment across the desk and into her hand. "Shall I wait for a reply?" It takes a moment, but she looks up and offers him a smile, shaking her head. Lord Royce bows his head and exits the room, just as she's breaking the seal upon the back of the letter.

The handwriting is still familiar, after all these months. The slight slant of the letters, the smudges of ink that prove how hard handed he is when it comes to a quill. He was a man better suited to a sword, it was true. She dares not believe the words written upon the page, for fear of suffering more pain, and yet...

Meet me in the godswood. Tonight.

Those words are so simple that they must be true. It's like a plea, words from a man full of pain and desperation. Sansa can feel the tremor in her own heart as she thinks back to the last time they saw each other, the last time they held each other. Sometimes, she can still yet feel the way he had clung to her that day on the docks.

With a sigh, she tucks the letter in among the others, and returns to work.

[ x x x ]

When darkness has fallen, she slips from her chambers, silently making her way through the halls of Winterfell without detection. Being queen has brought with her a true lack of privacy- it is rare that she finds herself ever without a guard, whether it be Brienne or another. They mean well, she reminds herself, only wishing to keep her safe from harm, but in this new world of peace, Sansa feels no fear.

As she steps out into the cold, dark night, a wolf howls somewhere in the distance. The sound sends chills down her spine and she knows, almost at once, that it is Ghost that howls. Her heart picks up its pace as she crosses the courtyard and pushes through the small gate that separates the trail that wil take her down towards the godswood. With only the light of the moon to guide her way, Sansa walks slowly until standing there at the heart tree, she sees a figure.

"Jon..." His name is upon her lips just as he turns around to face her.

Standing there in the glow of the moon, Jon swears she's never been more beautiful. He finds that now that she stands before him, all the words he's rehearsed to say to her are gone. "Sansa, I..." He begins, his heart skipping a beat as she takes a single step closer to where he stands, looking more shocked than anything else. "I'm sorry...-"

Whatever else he was going to say is stopped when she throws her arms around him.

He wraps his arms around her then, perhaps this was all they needed.

[ginmo]

You're not delusional for entertaining the possibility of Brienne as YMB

“If you think anyone but [Insert Queen, most commonly Dany] is the YMB then you’re delusional” is something I have seen quite frequently, so I’ve been inspired to explain why that’s uh...well, complete bullshit.

To be delusional, you need to be spewing garbage without any reason or support and lack any sense of reality. But… there is plenty of evidence and reasoning, based in reality, to simply entertain a theory that isn’t [Insert Easy Choice].

Let me state that I'm not saying with total confidence that Brienne is YMB. I am not saying she is or is not. My claim is that Brienne is a perfectly logical candidate, and that being completely sold on a traditional choice, to the point where you’re publicly making asshole cocky comments about it, is risky af. I’m tired of people shutting down any discussion of it.

This is GRRM. This isn’t supposed to be easy (he literally said this, as shown below). There should be multiple interpretations to this prophecy. People who think it’s Brienne or Sansa or Marg or whoever may be wrong, or people who think it’s Daenerys may be wrong. Or maybe this is supposed to be ambiguous and we’ll never get a definitive answer. Maybe it’s multiple people. It all depends on what angle GRRM is going with. He could be going very literal and traditional with this, sure. Or, he could be going a more poetic route, which is also a style of his writing. Obviously by this post, I prefer the latter, but I see different angles. I’m not going to pretend I’m psychic by claiming I’m right and you’re wrong, and I’m not going misuse the word delusional. If you come after me later with, “LOL I TOLD YOU SO” I’m just going to say you missed the entire point of my post and my point is still 100% valid.

SO. Here is why you all have NO RIGHT to a) be so damn confident in your traditional choices and b) put down others for entertaining Brienne.

Hang on tight. This is long as fuck. First, you need to promise me you’ll do two things.

My two rules:

Consider authorial intent when thinking about meaning and trajectory and

Step outside the bubble and look at this story from a professional angle. A good narrative written by a professional author has structure and purpose.

Before I properly dive into this, let’s see what GRRM has to say about prophecies:

Prophecies are, you know, a double edge sword. You have to handle them very carefully; I mean, they can add depth and interest to a book, but you don’t want to be too literal or too easy…

I mean…. That should be enough to shake your confidence. He even gives an example.

In the Wars of the Roses, that you mentioned, there was one Lord who had been prophesied he would die beneath the walls of a certain castle and he was superstitious at that sort of walls, so he never came anywhere near that castle. He stayed thousands of leagues away from that particular castle because of the prophecy. However, he was killed in the first battle of St. Paul de Vence and when they found him dead he was outside of an inn whose sign was the picture of that castle! [Laughs] So you know? That’s the way prophecies come true in unexpected ways. The more you try to avoid them, the more you are making them true, and I make a little fun with that.

So you always want to frustrate our expectations, am I right?

Yes, it was always my intention: to play with the reader’s expectations. Before I was a writer I was a voracious reader and I am still, and I have read many, many books with very predictable plots. As a reader, what I seek is a book that delights and surprises me.  - GRRM

A physically beautiful Queen, or physical beauty in general, would essentially be the Lord being correct of his fate and dying in that castle. The Lord expected to die in that castle. Cersei’s only expectation to YMB is to be “cast down and take all you hold dear” by a literal beauty, literal Queen. That is obviously the reader’s expectation as well. Hello fandom! Cersei doesn’t know who this literal beauty/literal Queen is. She constantly obsesses over WHO, but is always wrong, maybe because it isn’t surface level obvious and it’s her incorrect interpretation, just like lord’s interpretation was wrong. He didn’t die in a literal castle.

See, I’m obviously so delusional for thinking GRRM might be doing, um… exactly what he said? There’s nothing from reality to support an idea that GRRM may not go the easy, literal route. There’s absolutely no reason for me to think this may not be so simple.

.

..

….

….

-__-

Right.

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-Younger, More Beautiful-

Brienne is a possible candidate for the YMB.

...it was always my intention: to play with the reader’s expectations.

For both Cersei and the readers (again hello Freefolk, Twitter, Tumblr), Brienne as the unexpected YMB is a twist to the literal interpretation, fitting GRRM’s idea on how prophecies should be written.

“But everything that has happened about the prophecy was literal so duh this has to be literal!”

The literal parts of the prophecy were marrying the King and the number of children she’ll have. Yeah… there isn’t anything subjective to that, so it’s not surprising that it’s straightforward. She asked a question, Maggy gave her an answer. Besides the part with the children dying, the bit we’re talking about was stuff Maggy added in. Also, is there like a prophecy rule book somewhere I’m not aware of? Maybe consider that we got easy literal bits mixed in so we (and Cersei) are misdirected by the actual focus? Maybe consider that it’s possible for a prophecy to have some literal elements and some not? Maybe consider that a way more subjective (-cough-beauty-cough-) part of the prophecy isn’t as straightforward?

Moving on.

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

It’s common to see “younger more beautiful QUEEN” (YMBQ) floating around fandom. Technically, Maggy never says the person is a Queen, whether literal or symbolic. She says “another.” An equally valid interpretation of that can be, “someone else who is younger and more beautiful than you.”

“Um no, it definitely implies a Queen because the words after and because of the context.”

If you really want to argue that GRRM definitely implies Queen, well, here’s something to chew on.

I’m not going to describe how Brienne’s arc is definitely not ending as her being someone’s bodyguard for the rest of her life. That’s for another time. But that doesn’t even matter really, because it has been made intentionally clear that Brienne is her father’s only heir. Once Brienne’s father dies, even if she’s still active on the battlefield, someone’s bodyguard, or still fucking off somewhere, she will still technically be the Evenstar.

- The Evenstar -

The Evenstar was a title given to the Tarth Kings. That title is still used. Why? It’s interesting to think that GRRM gave random minor House Tarth a specific title used for Kings, and that he allowed the House to continue using that title. Because he created that title for that House and allowed them to keep it, that title becomes symbolic of their previous kingdom. This is similar to our real world where some nations or groups retain titles from their history as more of a symbol. Selwyn Tarth is still known as the Evenstar. Selwyn Tarth is a symbolic King. When he dies (which will probably happen soon), Brienne automatically inherits that title, making her a symbolic Queen. And we all know how much GRRM loves symbolic meaning.

“I still think it’s a LITERAL Queen.”

I mean, a possible theory is that the throne will be destroyed at the end of this and the realm will split back into separate kingdoms. Sooo, if that happens……………………….

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- What does Maggy mean by beautiful?-

I have a really hard time believing that GRRM wants everyone to sit down and argue over who is physically more beautiful between his characters. In every story there are themes explored and messages woven within, so each character with an arc is going to have themes and messages associate with them. One of the themes being explored with Cersei is beauty. (This theme is explored through both Jaime’s and Brienne’s arcs as well, which isn’t a coincidence.)

Cersei’s interpretation of beauty lies on the exterior This is an element of her narcissism (word by GRRM).

(“Cersei isn’t narcissistic????”

You can argue, well, does she genuinely love her children, or does she just love them because they’re her children? There’s certainly a great level of narcissism in Cersei. She has an almost sociopathic view of the world and civilization. - GRRM  

Don’t even go there)

In her eyes, a person’s worth is tied to how physically attractive they are. She is obsessed over being beautiful, and her twin being beautiful. Her attitude towards her twin changes when he returns handless. Cersei’s interpretation of the prophecy is that she will be cast down by a physical beauty, which is why she goes after Margaery (Dany most likely later on/Dany in the show). But remember this?

you don’t want to be too literal or too easy

It’s possible GRRM isn’t talking about physical beauty here. a) too literal and b) Cersei is being taught a lesson, and the readers are being sent a message. Like, you know… what good quality literature does. This is important to understand. Maggy probably realizes this about Cersei (like any classic Beauty and the Beast Witch), thus fulfilling the prophecy on her own, her own downfall being caused by her inability to recognize power with inner beauty.

“But Cersei is bringing her own downfall by obsessively trying to avoid the prophecy. As GRRM said, ‘The more you try to avoid them, the more you are making them true.”

And by obsessively going after her interpretation of what beauty is, she’s missing what’s right in front of her face.

“He took Raventree and accepted Lord Blackwood’s surrender,” said her uncle, “but on his way back to Riverrun he left his tail and went off with a woman.”

“A woman?” Cersei stared at him, uncomprehending. “What woman? Why? Where did they go?”

“No one knows. We’ve had no further word of him. The woman may have been the Evenstar’s daughter, Lady Brienne.”

Her. The queen remembered the Maid of Tarth, a huge, ugly, shambling thing who dressed in man’s mail. Jaime would never abandon me for such a creature. My raven never reached him, elsewise he would have come.

- CERSEI I, ADWD

I mean… this right here, imo, is pretty significant, but it’s frequently ignored.

We see Cersei feeling a bit threatened by her rapid fire questioning of what, why, and where.

She places emphasis on Brienne’s looks.

The use of Her. That’s rather strong. GRRM could have taken “Her” out and started her thoughts with, “The queen remembered” but there’s something forceful - as if making a point- to use Her. GRRM also made sure the readers knew that Cersei knows of this woman, and knows what she looks like. From a narrative standpoint, if Brienne’s inner beauty contrasting her outward appearance isn’t an important element in the downfall of Cersei, then there’s literally no reason why Cersei needed to have seen Brienne before. Remember my rules? Yeah, apply them to this one.

“Er, Brienne’s appearance is mentioned so that Cersei knows to not be jealous.”

…I think, “Jaime would never abandon me for such a creature” is basically saying “LOL well he did.” It’s GRRM telling Cersei, and the readers, that her answer is right there, right under her fucking nose, but she’s too dense and superficial to see it, which is the point of the Brienne theory.

“It’s there just to show that Brienne is taking Jaime away even though she’s ugly, but it has nothing to do with YMB.”

Yes, that is also the point. Again, an interpretation of a key message of the prophecy is that beauty isn’t literal, and beauty lies within. If we’re looking at the prophecy as a lesson to both the readers and Cersei, similar to The Witch in Beauty and the Beast - a tale and theme GRRM has been confirmed writing, then… why wouldn’t that be connected? “Brienne the Beauty” is literally the only character to challenge Cersei’s superficial perceptions, and the only one who has been set up to do so. In other words, for this particular theory, narcissism and superficiality drives Cersei’s downfall.

Also, I find it curious that instead of saying, “Lord Selwyn Tarth’s daughter, Lady Brienne” which would have been way more straightforward and which he could have easily done, GRRM instead used his other title, “the Evenstar’s daughter” which basically translates to, “the Princess.” A possible nod to the future Evenstar, the future symbolic (or even potentially literal) Queen, if Cersei and readers want to interpret the person as a Queen.

Reminder: that’s a fact. Not wishful thinking. Regardless of what Brienne is doing or where she is, she will literally inherit the title the Evenstar.

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- Brienne the Beauty -

BRIENNE IS AN INNER BEAUTY. This has been intentional and made crystal clear over and over. Brienne is the Beastly Beauty. A… beauty who gives a lesson by challenging Cersei’s perception of beauty and…. She is intentionally written as younger and….. she will have a title that’s a symbolic Queen and… her story is tied to Cersei’s lover? :O

Look, it’s no secret that one of GRRM’s favorite narratives is Beauty and the Beast. As mentioned above, he is writing an adaptation of Beauty and the Beast.

George R.R. Martin said what he wanted to do was to take the traditional format of Beauty and the Beast and change the roles — and also the genders. - Gwendoline Christie

[GRRM] also said that when he wrote the story of Jaime and Brienne, he was taking the formula of Beauty and the Beast and turning it on its head. He wanted to see what it was like for the man to be the beauty and the woman to be the beast and how that would play out. - Gwendoline Christie

I spoke to George R.R. Martin about this, and he said that it was always his intention with Jaime and Brienne to take the classic Beauty and the Beast story, and turn it on its head. Brienne is not ‘unconventionally attractive’, she’s ugly, and she’s ugly to society. She is the beast.- Gwendoline Christie

He’s taking the traditional format (a romance) and switching the genders and roles. The entire point of BatB is to destroy the idea that love and beauty are determined by superficial qualities.

Guys again, I’m so delusional. There is nothing to see here. None of this is from anything real.

“But that’s just for Jaime.”

There can be other characters in a Beauty and the Beast adaptation. It’s an adaptation, not word for word. Other characters can be used to deliver the message, especially if the character is uh… linked to and romantically involved with one of the BatB inspired characters. For example, in the Disney adaptation we have Gaston (who… now that I think about it, actually has a similar Cersei way of thinking, ngl lol).

Brienne is the one character who has the actual name of Beauty associated with her. She is Cersei’s opposite. Brienne is the epitome of what Cersei cannot understand. A theme explored through Cersei is beauty, which is a theme that’s heavily explored through Brienne as well. Brienne’s character has been shaped around rejection due to her appearance. Literally every page in her POV is about how ugly and undesirable she is. Therefore, it’s very possible their characters are connected by a shared beauty theme.

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- The Prophecy -

Okay, the rest of this stupid thing for YMB. Here we go.

”Will I wed the prince?” she asked.

“Never. You will wed the king.”

Beneath her golden curls, the girl’s face wrinkled up in puzzlement. For years after, she took those words to mean that she would marry Rhaegar until after his father Aerys had died.

GRRM straight up telling the readers that Cersei interprets this shit incorrectly.

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

“Aye.” Malice gleamed in Maggy’s yellow eyes. “Queen you shall be… until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down and take all that you hold dear.

“But ginmo, -sigh-, Cersei doesn’t hold Jaime most dear. The thing she holds most dear is power.”

Is she not always jealous and bitter over how Jaime is born to be heir and she is not? Does Jaime not represent the Lannister legacy she craves? Does Ms. “my brother is worth a thousand of your men” not lose any amount of power if Jaime stops doing what she wants? Is Jaime’s identity shift not influenced by Brienne the Beauty? Where is Jaime in both books and show? Couldn’t Brienne’s influence on Jaime mean Cersei loses power, a lover, her legacy? Jaime is power.

And then, again, there is also the straightforward route with the Kingdom splitting up possibility and Brienne the Evenstar….

Then we get this perfect little nugget.

Anger flashed across the child’s face. “If she tries I will have my brother kill her.”

I WILL HAVE MY BROTHER KILL HER I’M DYING. This is something that is repeated TWICE. Here in the prophecy and later in the chapter when she’s talking to Qyburn about the prophecy.

”...another queen, who would take from me all I loved.”

“And you wish to forestall this prophecy?”

More than anything, she thought. Even in the tent. “If she tries I will have my brother kill her.”

This is another moment to apply my two rules. There is literally no point to this being thrown in there if Jaime is not connected to the YMB, and definitely no point to emphasize a second time that she’d have her brother kill her. The words are not, “I will have her killed,” which could have left it ambiguous and easily been done. No, she (which is GRRM) specifically uses “my brother will kill her.” The irony is that, JAIME IS IN LOVE WITH HER. HE’S IN LOVE WITH THE BEAUTY.

“No, the irony is that by that time Jaime won’t listen anymore to her.”

I mean, that’s possible obvioiusly, but… yawn? That has practically zero emotional weight attached to it. I personally lean more towards this being a massive hint, that Jaime is the LAST person to kill the YMB, because he lost his heart to her, which makes it so delicious and juicy. GRRM is essentially having a massive evil laughing fit.

Another small note, during the Maggy the Frog scene, after delivering the YMB message to Cersei, Melara asks if she’ll marry Jaime. When they leave, Cersei kills Melara for wishing to marry Jaime, which is GRRM telling the readers that Jaime most certainly represents something Cersei holds dear, or else she wouldn’t be killing her. It’s not a coincidence this was right after she learned about the YMB.

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- Cersei is her own downfall -

The more you try to avoid them, the more you are making them true

In the show Cersei is threatened by Dany as YMB (since it’s possible she incorrectly interpreted the prophecy, wow what a concept that’s not possible at all). This was made clear by the script notes. Apply my rules here as well.

But what’s the meaning of Cersei being taken down by a physical beauty? That just… proves her right? That would be the Lord dying in the literal castle? It just supports Cersei’s superficial world view by sending absolutely no message to her character? From a narrative standpoint, there’s no point to have YMB be a literal beauty. Again, is it possible he’s going the literal route? YES. But considering GRRM implements a ton of metaphor and symbolic meaning in his work, that he literally said he’s writing a BatB narrative so Beauty Within is definitely present, and he straight up said he doesn’t like his prophecies to be entirely literal, I’m going to at least have fun and entertain the non-surface level interpretation, and I’m therefore not delusional for doing so.

And since Cersei is bringing her own downfall, how would Dany even fit? Dany would have been going after that throne regardless of whoever’s ass was sitting on it. Dany’s pursuit of the throne has absolutely nothing to Cersei, and everything to do with what she believes is her right. My point is, if Cersei’s butt wasn’t there, Dany would still be doing exactly what she’s doing. So how is Dany taking the throne a consequence of Cersei bringing it upon herself? Cersei and Dany are completely separate from one another. Even if AU Cersei was nice to all of her allies and Jaime, Ned knew the identity of her children, and therefore a fractured Westeros would still exist. She wouldn’t have had enough men to fight off Dany. None of that really matters anyway, because Daenerys still would have converted Houses through the use of her dragons. In the show, it’s been made clear that she thinks it’s now Dany so...… going back to my points outlined above, if she thinks it’s Dany, maybe it’s possible she’s wrong.

You know the one character Cersei will NEVER see as a threat, due to her narcissistic inability? Brienne the Beauty.

(Also for show!Cersei, I love how fandom is like “Valonqar can’t be Tyrion because Cersei thinks it’s Tyrion” and then in the same breath they go, “DO YOU SEE? Cersei thinks Daenerys is the YMB so it’s Daenerys!”..................................................... Like I said, GRRM and D&D could be going that way, but to use that logic is just…… what)

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-Book Structure-

Hey did you guys know that there’s actually thought and technique that goes into the formatting and structure of a book, especially a book series? That the structure of chapters and the format aren’t just randomly thrown together? DEFINITELY apply my two rules here.

When was this prophecy introduced? AFFC, the book Cersei AND Brienne conveniently got a POV, the book that is mostly Jaime, Cersei, and Brienne centric. Who has a POV chapter immediately after Cersei’s prophecy? Brienne. Why is it structured this way? Was it random that the book was mostly a Lannister twin + Brienne book? No...

What can that possibly imply?

The main story running through each of those characters is the same. In other words, those three are connected to the same subplot - BatB- and are therefore connected through the same themes.

POSSIBLE? Yes.

DELUSIONAL? No.

Also my favorite. Look at this chapter ending. LOOK AT IT. Feel the dramatic pause. DO YOU CLAIM THIS IS RANDOM?

I dare you tell me that there is no thought that goes into a chapter end.

I dare you to tell me that the Cersei chapter following is meaningless, like the structure of a book doesn’t go through an editing process, that chapter ends aren’t significant and the structures aren’t another element in the story telling process.

I dare you to tell me that “Brienne the Beauty” weren’t words intentionally chosen by a professional author.

We first hear about “younger, more beautiful” in CERSEI III - AFFC, and then Brienne is referred to as, “Brienne the Beauty” shortly after in BRIENNE III - AFFC. The only other time Brienne's nickname of “Brienne the Beauty” was mentioned was when Catelyn made note of it. It wasn’t in ASOS when there were plenty of opportunities, and it only came up again (...four times) right after Cersei thinks about YMB for the first time.

yEAH GUYS, DElUSIOnAL, wHat IS naRraTive StrUcTuRe AnD pROfESsIONAL fOrMAtTiNG? nOt rEaL LMFAO bRiEnNe’s nOt pOsSIbLe aT aLL

[jackoshadows]

There was a recent discussion on another forum about the most disappointing media in the last decade and naturally Game of Thrones won the poll beating even the recent Star wars trilogy by a large percentage. Someone linked to a Rotten Tomatoes review of the final season and it struck me how much the show veered from the books in terms of it’s underlying themes and stories – not really surprising considering D&D felt that ‘themes were for 8 grade school reports’.

But the thing that stood out for me, was how much so many folks saw GOT as some kind of feminist work about women rising to the top in a man’s world. 

On Rotten Tomatoes, pretty much most of the reviews are similar to this:

Critics Consensus: Game of Thrones' final season shortchanges the women of Westeros, sacrificing satisfying character arcs for spectacular set-pieces in its mad dash to the finish line.

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/game-of-thrones

After season 6, we get these interviews:

After several seasons of troubling character starts and vocal backlash after season 5, the women of Westeros are now “running the show.”

“In the beginning it starts off with something of a stereotypical view of women, ss the wives, the girlfriends the ones that are always under other people’s control,” Sophie Turner explained to Variety. “And as the show moves forward you see these women rising to power and the evolution is phenomenal.”

Where did the change stem from, the fans. “We heard what audiences want, and what they want are more female characters,” Gwendoline Christie said. “And they want more complex, female characters.” 

https://variety.com/video/game-of-thrones-the-women-of-westeros/

Now it’s their turn: On HBO’s Game of Thrones, the show’s powerful female characters are about to take center stage more than ever before.

The ascension of Thrones’ female characters isn’t a new strategy. Showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss, working from the narrative template established by author George R.R. Martin, introduced Westeros five years ago as a male-dominated world ruled by figures like Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa) and Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance). One by one, these strong and commanding men have suffered tragic turns of fate that have cleared the way for a fleet of heroines who have learned new strategies to survive and conquer in a brutal world.

https://ew.com/article/2016/03/24/game-thrones-ew-cover/

With covers like this:

How many of these women ended up winning at the end?

Did people really think that an old white dude writing a fantasy story in the nineties was writing about female empowerment in the medieval ages? Really?

GRRM’s books did have complex female characters - Catelyn Stark comes to mind. But the last thing he was doing was writing about how the women of Westeros were going to win in the end using their wily ways. Characters like Cat and Cersei have to navigate their world having less power than their husbands and sons. Arya has to go around in disguise as a boy, Sansa has to endure abuse and stay silent to survive.

At the end of the day, GRRM was writing about female characters in a man’s world and as such they were limited in what they could do. Quite a few times, they are the characters pulling the strings behind the men (Lady Olenna), but there are rare open displays of their power - because they only get that through the men.

The audience complaining about all the rape and violence on the show? The books are much worse in terms of what happens to female characters. What was done to Jeyne Poole in the books is far, far worse than what was done to Sansa. Jeyne suffered a torturous existence - getting send to LF’s brothel and then to Ramsay because she is unimportant in the grand scheme of things  while Sansa escaped that fate because she was a noble woman belonging to a great house.

GRRM’s romances? We get Dany wanting to die after being repeatedly raped by Khal Drogo and then she falls in love with him. We have 27 year old Sandor Clegane in love with 11-12 year old Sansa as GRRM writes his beauty and the beast romance and Brienne falling for a guy who mocks her appearance and verbally abuses her. Even Jon/Ygritte has consent issues because 19 year old Ygritte coerces 15 year old Jon into sleeping with her by threatening to out him to Mance as still being a brother of the NW watch. GRRM’s romances all belong to the ‘forced seduction’ trope commonly seen in the bodice rippers of the eighties and early nineties.

In GRRM’s world if Sansa snarked at Littlefinger about ‘seizing the last word’ she would be lying dead in a ditch somewhere, Cersei would be dead/deposed if she blew up a sept full of people and Arya would not just magically recover after getting stabbed 10 times and then go take out the entire house Frey. 

And that’s why the show became more and more nonsensical over the seasons as D&D threw out GRRM’s world building and rule book and characters could do whatever they wanted with no consequences.

In the books the only female character who has real, hard power is Daenerys Targaryen. And that’s because she has what are the equivalent of nukes. Dany did get a semblance of power before her dragons grew - but she got that by charming Drogo, convincing him to invade Westeros for her and slowly and surely grabbing power away from her brother. When she stopped the rape of the  Lhazareen women, she was only able to do that because she was the Khaleesi - Drogo’s wife.

This changes when she hatches the eggs and her dragons grow - what happens in Astapor is a game changer with a new power in town. That’s why the moment was celebrated and enjoyed by book fans. This shit?

This is what actual power looks like in the books.

Dany is pretty much the only female character who can actively effect change and fight for the throne like the other male contenders because she has the weapons to do so. That’s why she’s unique in the books.

And that’s why the show ending was so disappointing to many fans. Because the men ended up back in charge (other than the nonsensical part where Sansa alone is able to randomly remove the North from the 7K by way of shit writing) despite all these proclamations from the showrunners/cast/HBO about how the women were now running things. Because, ultimately, GRRM was not writing about female empowerment or defeating the patriarchy or about women getting to the top in a man’s world.  He was writing a coming of age story for his main characters that included 3 men:

Five central characters will make it through all three volumes, however, growing from children to adults and changing the world and themselves in the process. In a sense, my trilogy is almost a generational saga, telling the life stories of these five characters, three men and two women. The five key players are Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, and three of the children of Winterfell, Arya, Bran, and the bastard Jon Snow. All of them are introduced at some length in the chapters you have to hand.

If D&D and HBO wanted female characters at the top in the end, they could have just written their own ending incorporating these ideas.  The disconnect happened because of their ‘The women are winning!’ writing and then ending up with GRRM’s ending.

Write a ‘feminist’ adaptation of the books. Kill off Jon Snow in the battle against the AOTD - it’s not like he had any story that was about him for the last 3 seasons. Have Dany kick out Tyrion for his bad ideas and defeat Cersei. Let her reward Arya with Storm’s Landing for killing the Night King. Let Brienne dump Jaime after realizing he’s a waste of space.  We would have Dany on the Iron Throne, Arya in the Stormlands, Sansa up North and Brienne setting off to start a school for young girls like Gwendoline Christie wanted. All of this makes more sense than the farcical King Bran/queen Sansa ending we got, so they could have done this.

It is disappointing as a book reader to know that the ending involves GRRM disposing of the only female character who actually has real power in the world of the books, and that of the main 5, she is the only one who ends up dying.  But maybe that’s why she ends up dying  - because Dany is an anomaly in GRRM’s fictional world and with her death Planetos reverts back to the usual patriarchal structures with the men in charge of everything. That’s a depressing thought. I can only hope that book Arya at least ends up with more power to effect change rather than getting shuffled off in a boat to some ‘west of westeros’.

[throne-of-games]

Thoughts on 8x04

Ah, shit here we go

Sansa crying over Theon’s body, giving him the direwolf pin, I AM CRYING

I also really liked that we got a shot of Jon watching Sansa mourn Theon

My thoughts when I first saw Ghost in this order: BABY BOY! Christ couldn’t someone have washed him a bit at least

Okay is it just me or did Jon’s speech sound so hecking odd?! Like not even the speech itself but the way he was talking? Was it just Kit with early onset laryngitis or does Jon just really hate giving public speeches? (If it’s the latter, can’t really fault you there, cause I’m right there with ya buddy.)

I think the way they did the burning of the pyre scene was nice, each character sending off the person they had a connection with i.e Sam and Edd, Jon and Lyanna, Arya and Beric

So looks like Dany has started a bit of a PR campaign with the legitimization of Gendry and I have to admit, she’s on the right track here. Making it a public spectacle, starting off with the whole you’re dad sucks and tried to kill me spiel before finishing with but I’m making you a lord because I’m the queen and I can. 

And I absolutely love that they have Sansa understanding exactly what just went on there because if anyone knows how to play the game it’s my baby girl

I thought it was kind of funny how they kept showing Dany sulking in the corner during the feast

“I don’t really want anymore.” Lmfao jesus Bran, you need to take your whole weird cousin at the family gathering you avoid because he’s continually talking about how time is a social construct and nothing is real and you’re all I just asked you to pass the peas can you not aesthetic down a notch

Omg Tormund forcing Jon to drink and saNSA PLAYFULLY ENCOURAGING HIM WAS THE MOST PRECIOUS GD THING IN THIS WHOLE EPISODE AND YOU CAN QUOTE ME ON THAT

I highkey liked that Arya didn’t really give two shits about being at the feast because it’s just so her to not want any praise for what she did and I just—I love her.

Oh my GOD the jealous Sansa in this episode was way too gd real and as soon as she walks out Jon looks after her and this is just prime fic material right here

This Jaime/Brienne/Tyrion/Pod drinking game scene was real cute and funny up until that virgin quip then it was just cringe as hell. CRINGE I TELL YOU!

I thought it was interesting to see Dany’s reaction to the love Jon receives from the northmen and how later on she pretty much says she’s never not been adored by her people before and it’s a really tough pill for her to swallow. Whether you’re a Dany fan or not, it’s easy to see how very out of place she is in the North and in Winterfell. It’s not a strike against her, it’s just a basic fact that she doesn’t belong there while Jon very much does belong in the North and I think this scene did a terrific job of highlighting all of this.

And then we get this ominous shot of Varys side-eyeing Dany while she side-eyes Tyrion and Jaime as well as Jon enjoying the feast with his people until she seemingly can’t take it anymore and promptly leaves the feast. I almost feel bad for her. Almost.

Lmao Tormund crying over Brienne. Funny, but once again: the horse is dead guys, time to quit beating it!

Okay so I was actually enjoying this Sansa and Sandor scene until he fucking brought up what Ramsey did to her like that and now I really want  to reach into my fucking screen and strangle him.

The look on Sansa’s face when he says she’s changed is honestly heartbreaking. It’s like in that moment she fully realizes exactly how much she’s been forced to change and all the trauma she’s gone through and just how fucking cruel the world turned out to be and I just—I need a minute.

Ah, Gendry and Arya. First off—Damn, boy didn’t wasted any time did he? His eagerness was cute but it felt a bit cheesy to me. As for Arya’s response, I think it makes total sense for her to answer the way she did. She might love him or what have you but since season one she’s always wanted to be a lady warrior and not someone’s wife which is valid as fuck. She’s right, it isn’t her. It doesn’t mean they’ll never cross paths again or that they don’t love each other. Arya’s basically just the Westerosi version of a modern millennial woman.

Jaime and Brienne—You sound quite jealous!! I’m not a huge shipper of it but I think it’s cute and honestly it’s funny to see people who actually claimed they were strictly platonic (sorry wut?) eating their words but the whole thing was a little awkward. But maybe it was meant to be considering it was Brienne’s first time

We can, I’ve just told you how. Jesus, Dany was a bit manic this whole scene but that line and the absolute drain of emotion we see on her face? Uh oh.

Sansa says hey maybe we should let the soldiers rest a little before jumping right back into another war, Dany somehow hears betrayal in that, goes to KL anyways and loses majorly. When will people learn to listen to the Queen in the North?

Not really digging that look Jon gave Sansa. I guess you could interpret it as Jon knowing Dany doesn’t like Sansa and he wants to keep her from harm at Dany’s hand so he’s trying to get her to keep a lid on it around the lady with crazy eyes and dragons or something, I have no idea. With that being said, D&D can have season 7-8 Jon. I will only be keeping season 1-6 Jon. Thank you.

Lmao did anyone else notice Jon moves the dragon chip to where he’s going and Greyworm moves it away?! Funny as well as dubious.

That look Sansa shoots Brienne when Tyrion mentions Jaime...she knows her friend just got some good good

I absolutely love that it’s Arya telling Jon all the hard truths. We don’t trust your queen. She’s not one of us. 

We didn’t get to see the reactions of Sansa and Arya finding out about Jon’s parentage. Disappointed but not surprised. Although I liked that they showed the contrast between Sansa and Arya reassuring Jon of his Starkness and Dany rejecting him as the last of her Targaryen family because of his claim.

The old Sandor/Arya team is back together and you know what? I aint mad. I wish Arya would have told her siblings she was leaving again though but it makes sense why she didn’t. I headcanon her and Sansa had a really emotional goodbye scene wherein Arya leaves her with a dagger and gives her a quick lesson on how best to use it and Sansa makes Arya a beautiful Stark cloak so she can have a piece of home with her where ever she goes.

Here comes all the Sansa betrayed Jon and told Tyrion!! posts. If that’s what you’re going to claim then you best drag not only Jon for telling Sansa and Arya but Dany for asking Jon to keep a secret like that from his family in the first place.

Sansa not wanting Jon to go south and getting defensive when Tyrion implies that Jon wouldn’t stay in Winterfell is everything. She loves him so much. Ugh. Someone help.

“You’re afraid of her.” Sansa hitting the nail on the head, per usual.

The ghost scene. We’re not gonna talk about it. WHERE’S THE REAL JON?! WHERE IS HE?!

Tyrion is sure trying to push this good queen Dany narrative. Methinks the lady doth protest too much.

Later, Rhaegal. It was nice knowing you. (Not really so much though.)

Lmfao Euron’s smile was the creepiest/most unintentionally funny thing I’ve ever seen. AKA me reading all the leaks earlier.

Jesus, Dany has like eleven men left, no ships, and is now one dragon less. Should have listened to Sansa and held off for a bit, maybe?

Varys tells Dany she’s making a huge mistake and is putting thousands of innocent lives at risk. Her response? This is my destiny, I will serve it no matter the costs. Am I surprised? Not a bit. Will the antis find a way to justify even this? You bet.

Have you considered the best ruler might be someone who doesn’t want to rule? Why yes Varys, yes I have!

They’re not getting married Tyrion, drop it already. Jeez, you’re worse than the antis.

Poor Brienne. She’s reassuring him that he’s good, that he’s worthy of honor and redemption and although it’s something he’s been chasing after for a while now he ultimately chooses to reject the idea that he’s deserving of it. My eyes are all wet now.

Lmao Tyrion and Qyburn. You surrender! No, you surrender!

Oh, Missandei. I knew it was coming but that didn’t make it any easier to watch. And Greyworm’s reaction was fucking brutal. Christ.

Overall? This episode was bad. Like unquestionably bad. Like wow, I thought the last episode sucked but I guess D&D are eager to outdo themselves. I stand by my claim that the showrunners are flying through this season because they just want to wash their hands of the show already and uh, I mean I can’t really say I’m surprised. 

[gaygoetia]

GoT S8E1 Ramble/Analysis

It’s endlessly fascinating to me how a bunch of people can watch the same scene and interpret it in totally different ways, and this is something that seems to have happened a lot this episode. 

One of the most interesting examples of this IMO is the differing readings of Sansa, Dany and Jon and their behaviour in this episode. I’m mostly gonna be focusing on different readings of Sansa in this post but I might touch on the others.  First of all there’s the scene where Sansa (very reasonably) questions how they’re going to feed all these new allies given that Winter is upon them and food is scarce. While most people generally read the scene the same way “Sansa undermines Dany in front of the Northern bannermen” what differs is people’s interpretations of why.

Quite a few people seem to view this as a reflection of Sansa’s personal dislike of Dany but I honestly couldn’t disagree more. In fact the whole thing seems very impersonal to me and in my opinion this scene is actually a great example of Sansa’s ability to keep personal feelings out of political decisions in favour of a approaching problems from a more objective standpoint. 

Sansa doesn’t address her question to Dany, but to Tyrion who is acting as Dany’s representative. This could be seen as a passive aggressive move to subtly undermine Dany and to be fair that wouldn’t necessarily be out of character for Sansa. But in my opinion this isn’t just Sansa trying to publicly humiliate Dany. It’s her expressing genuine concern about a problem that needs to be addressed. 

Considering that Tyrion is not only someone who Sansa knows and trusts but someone she knows to be politically and strategically minded like herself, it makes sense to me that she would direct the question to him. As Dany’s advisor he is the most likely person to be able to answer her. 

And this decision isn’t just sensible, it’s consistent with Sansa’s character. She’s acting as she has been since season 7, in the best interest of Winterfell and the North. This scene mirrors her challenging Jon in front of the Northern bannermen last season when she was concerned about his military strategy. She wasn’t acting out of dislike for Jon or a desire to usurp his place as ruler of the North (as many people theorised at the time). She was simply looking out for her people. 

The second and most divisive scene from the episode that I want to talk about is the conversation between Jon and Sansa where she asks him if he’s in love with Dany. On initial viewing I didn’t see any ambiguity in my reading of this scene. Sansa is concerned that Jon’s feelings for Dany are blinding him to what’s best for The North and their people. But looking online I was genuinely surprised to see so many people interpreting this scene as confirmation that Sansa has romantic feelings for Jon.

The scene starts with Sansa relaying the news to Jon that they have lost allies due to Jon’s decision to bend the knee to Dany and for me this sets up the main conflict of the scene - not the fact that Jon has chosen to ally with Daenerys but the fact that doing so has caused them to lose support from their Northern bannermen.  Of course this doesn’t disprove any theories that she might have feelings for Jon but it does emphasise Sansa’s priorities; keeping the Northern bannermen on side. Like in season 7, she wants to retain the loyalty and connections that the Starks have had with the other Northern families for generations. 

She explains that the Northerners feel understandably betrayed that they democratically elected a leader only for him to immediately transfer that power to a complete stranger with no apparent connections to the North or its people. 

Jon repeats his mantra that they can’t defeat the white walkers without Dany’s dragons but in comparison to Sansa’s hard logic, Jon’s vague argument that “we need her” isn’t exactly convincing. He insists that “who holds what titles doesn’t matter” but Sansa knows that it *does* matter. Because she values the loyalty and support of the North and while Jon is only thinking about the battle ahead Sansa is thinking about what happens next. 

Jon tells Sansa that Dany will be a good queen but he doesn’t offer any evidence to support this. He expects that the faith Sansa has in him is strong enough for her to take him at his word. But when you consider everything that Sansa has been through it’s not surprising that she’s skeptical. As she touched on last season, Robb died because he made stupid decisions. More specifically he died because his love for a woman caused him to go against his word and lose valuable allies. From Sansa’s perspective history is repeating itself right in front of her eyes.  “She’s not her father” Jon says and Sansa replies “No, she’s much prettier”.

I have seen sooo many people interpret this line as jealousy over Dany’s beauty and/or Jon’s love for her but given the context of the scene I really don’t think it’s that at all. 

The whole reason this line is significant is because Sansa’s arc from the beginning has been about learning not to trust appearances.

Joffrey and Cersei were beautiful but cruel. She considered The Hound and Tyrion to be ugly but they were kinder to her than anyone else at King’s Landing. Brienne and Arya look nothing like the traditionally beautiful women she grew up idolising but they are unfailingly loyal to her and would protect her with their lives.

She phrases it as a joke but on a deeper level she’s implying that maybe Dany IS like her father, but that Jon can’t see past her appearance to what she’s really like underneath.

In my opinion, the sadness in her face in that moment is not because she’s jealous of Dany’s beauty or of Jon’s feelings for her. It’s because she knows that looks can be deceiving and she fears that Dany’s beauty is causing Jon to overlook the danger she poses to him and to the North. It’s because she knows that loving Dany could get him hurt. 

Finally she says what I suspect she’s been thinking ever since Daenerys arrived in Winterfell; “Did you really bend the knee to save the North, or because you love her?” I know that a lot of people interpret this as Sansa wanting to know if Jon loves Dany because she has feelings for him herself. But reading the scene and taking into account Sansa’s actions and motivations over the past two seasons I really don’t think that’s it. Sansa wants to know if Jon loves Dany because she’s worried about him and about what it could mean for their people. She’s worried that Jon’s bias could cost them their lives and cost them the home they’ve fought so hard to get back to. She’s also understandably concerned that Jon is making major decisions on behalf of the North based on personal feelings rather than a genuine desire to do what’s best for their people. Ultimately, in Sansa’s eyes, Dany is dangerous and she wants to know exactly what power she holds over Jon (and by extension the North).

*EDIT* Some things I forgot to mention:

Dany’s utterly unhelpful response when asked by Sansa what dragons eat. “Whatever they want”. Really Dany? I don’t know what response she was hoping for here but I really don’t think she thought through the implications of this comment. She’s essentially saying to a room full of Northerners who already dislike her that if her dragons want to eat them, their livestock or their children she’s gonna do fuck all to stop them. Unlike Sansa and Jon Dany doesn’t care what happens to the Northerners. Her dragons and her desire to rule are always gonna take priority over everything else. 

The fact that reading Sansa’s distrust of Daenerys as jealousy or cattiness does a huge disservice to her character. As someone whose main concern is protecting The North and its people, it’s no wonder she’s not going to immediately warm to Queen ‘Imma let my dragons eat your people’. 

[ansheofthevalley]

Till the sun grows cold and the stars grow old - chapter six: Only holy devotion can keep the devils at bay

A/N: you can also read here

The winds were as harsh during the day as they were during nighttime. But Winterfell was a big castle, full of thick and warm walls that could shield you from the winter. There was a hidden little spot, just between the Library Tower and the Kitchens, perfect for a shadow to blend in with the great grey walls.

"Why did you bend the knee?" he heard the Stark boy ask the newly appointed Warden of the North.

"To protect the North" Jon Snow replied, quickly and firmly.

One of his fears was now confirmed. Winterfell's Bastard is playing the game. A dangerous game, he thought with surprise in his mind and fear in his heart. Nothing good can come out of a fight between the Dragon and the pack of Wolves. His thoughts were turning somber at great speed.

"And why do you feel like you have to protect it?"

"Because it's my duty, It's always been. Ever since I swore an oath"  he heard Jon Snow say. His duty lies with his family and with his people. Like everyone in this realm... but he mentioned his oath, he reflected.

"And that duty, that desire to protect the North, where does it come from?"

"I protect it because it's my home, a part of me"  

"Your home, and you love it. Sometimes, duty and love go hand in hand, but sometimes, we must choose between one and the other. Father chose both, his love was with your mother, as same as his duty. Robb chose love, forsaking his duty. Jon, you've chosen duty over love so many times. You have the chance to choose love, now". What the youngest son of Ned Stark said left him wondering.

"His love was with your mother..." he repeated that over and over in his head. Lord Eddard Stark never said the name of his bastard's mother. Some said it was a lowborn woman, others said it was Ashara Dayne, but no one had a definitive answer. Why would Eddard Stark's love and duty lie with a mysterious woman, when he was a devoted husband to Catelyn Tully, when it was known that there was love in their marriage? He had heard of the time when Lady Stark had visited the capital, a lifetime ago... He felt as if he was looking at some forbidden image, without being able to decipher its meaning.

"But what about my duty? What about Daenerys?"

"Everthing will work out the way it's supposed to"

The sound of the dragons flying over the castle broke him from his thoughts. He took it as a sign that it was time for him to leave.

He headed towards the Kitchens, trying to look incospicous. He asked one of the maids to bring him some warmed dornish red, along with some broth.

"Alright, m'lord. It'll be in your room in a moment" said the young maid.

He just bowed his head as a wordless "thank you".

He took his time getting out of the Kitchens. He could see that Lord Eddard's daughter had managed to bring all the grains and resources she could. He heard whispers of the Lady of Winterfell, how she took care of her people. The movements in the Kitchens and in the Armory were a testament of that. Who knew that little girl that once was Joffrey's plaything could become such a competent ruler, he reflected. It shouldn't be surprising, though. She learned how not to do things from the most incompetent monarchs in recent history... And Littlefinger, he remembered. He heard whispers of him teaching her all he knows. If it's true, that wouldn't only make her a competent ruler but also a skilled politician. He dwelled on that thought for a while.

He wandered a bit in the courtyard, watching the men and women train for the umpending battle against the dead. He saw Brienne of Tarth, commanding a small garrison of soldiers, teaching them all she could, given the little time they had. But the training of soldiers didn't capture his attention, the little She-Wolf did. He saw Lady Arya practice her shooting. All of the arrows she had fired had hit the bullseye. Just as he was turning his eyes to her again, he found her staring at him. She still had the bow tensed, the arrow ready to be fired. They locked eyes for mere seconds, but in those mere seconds she hit the bullseye yet again, all while glaring at him. Then, just as she arched an eyebrown, a small smug smile forming on her lips. He felt as if he had given her something. Unsettled, he bowed his head to her and left. He felt an incredibly strong need to be alone. Things are not going as planned. The pups are wild beasts now. And we must act accordingly, he thought.

While making his way towards the Guest Keep, he saw Jon Snow all but run towards the Great Keep, with Winterfell's maester trying to keep up with him. He looked like a soldier, marching towards the battlefield. A man with purpose, he told himself. And again, the conversation he had with his brother came back to him. With all of this in mind, he headed towards his chambers.

                                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"My dear friend" Tyrion greeted him.

"I was under the impression you wanted to have a few words with Jon Snow"

"Well..." Tyrion grabbed a cup and started pouring some of the warmed Dornish red he had asked for, "I think he's a busy man" he said before taking a long sip. "But what about you? I came here to talk about our Queen, only to find an empty room" he told him with fake dissapointment. "Are you already weaving your little webs, Lord Varys?"

"You must have information, valuable information, in order to weave anything. And I think you'll agree with me, my friend, when I say that northmen aren't the sharing type" pointed out the Spider. After this, silence surrounded them. He did the same as Tyrion; grabbed a cup and poured some Dornish red. The warmth of the drink relaxed him a bit; if he closed his eyes, he could almost pretend they were south of the Neck. Almost.

They both had their missions. He had to find out any valuable information that would be useful, and Tyrion had to make the Starks understand the situation they were all dealing with, without offending anyone.

"Well... Have you found anything?"

"Nothing good. Turns out Jon Snow isn't as much of a fool as we all thought. His loyalties lie with the North and the Starks"

"But then why is he-" Tyrion stopped on his tracks as realization dawned on his face. "He managed to bring her all this way North to fight alongside him" he said while rubbing his neck. He opened his mouth to say something, but inmediately closed it. He jumped out of his chair and started pacing around the room. "Do you realize what this means? One wrong look, one wrong word, and we're fucked" he claimed.

"We can still salvage this alliance. She still believes him to be loyal to her" Varys tried to appease his friend.

"She believes him to be in love with her" he claimed, while coming to a halt. He looked at Varys with pleading eyes, reminding him of something only the two of them knew. "Did you found anything else?" he sighed.

Varys had his doubts about telling him about the rest of the conversation he overheard "I can't bring up an assumption and speak of it as if it were the truth" he thought. "I must keep digging". He took a long sip of his cup. "No. Not yet, at least".

Tyrion let out a long, heavy sigh. "Well, then" he said as he put his cup on the table and made his way to the door. "Since the Warden of the North is busy, it seems I must talk to my Lady wife" he jested.

"She's not the same girl we've both seen at the Capital" he reminded him.

"I know" he replied, all humor gone from his voice, "she made that perfectly clear the same day we arrived" he declared, with a sour tone. He stood still, facing the door, but Varys knew Tyrion. He had more to say. He was right; Tyrion pivoted and took long steps towards him, as long as his legs would allow him. "I think she knows about the Reach" he confessed.

This surprised Varys. "You think she knows about what exactly?" he inquired. "About the Tarlys?"

Tyrion just shook his head. "I don't know, all of it?"

"How could she possibly know all of it?" he wondered, "news don't travel as fast during winter".

"Well, somehow the Lady of Winterfell knows about what our Queen did" he noted.

"This is not good" Varys pointed out. "These Stark children are definetely not like their parents. More difficult to read, and even more difficul to handle" he thought.

"We're fucked, Varys. Sansa can say all those very convincing words, and Daenerys can choose to believe all of it" he scoffed. "But that doesn't change the fact that none of us are welcomed here. Not you, not me, and definetely not our Queen" he went back to table and poured the rest of the Dornish red in his cup. After taking a very long sip, he continued "We have to be careful"

"With whom?

Tyrion sighed yet again. "With all of them" he said after putting down his cup. He marched towards the door, and when he opened it, the cold air of the North crep into the room.

"It's so fucking cold" Tyrion muttered as he left.

Finally, Varys was left alone. Alone with his thoughts, and other people's truths and secrets. But it's not enough, he reminded himself.  He dwelled on these thoughts while eating his broth, until a hard knock echoed in the whole room.

He opened the door and was surprised to see one of the Unsullied. "Queen Daenerys requires your presence" the warrior announced, his back straightened and his eyes looking at some fixed point behind Varys.

"Very well" he said to the young Unsullied.

                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He found the young Targaryen queen looking at the snowy fields of the North through a window. "It's a beautiful place, the North" she said with some melancholy in her voice, still looking through the window.

"It is, Your Grace. Though it's far too cold for my liking" he offered, politely.

"As it is for me" she replied, looking at him over her shoulder. "Please, sit" she gestured with her hand at the chairs that were by the hearth. Then she gave a single nod to the Unsullied. Now, they were alone.

"I guess I wasn't summoned to talk about the chilly winds of the North" he said as he sat down. The firewood from the hearth were cackling, making little noises, yet as he seated close to it to fight the cold, he couldn't help but wonder... How can something be there to protect you from something but also be a threat itself?

"No, you were not" she agreed. "I summoned you because I want to talk about the North" she said as she seated across him by the hearth.

The conversation he had with Tyrion earlier came back to his mind.

"We have to be careful"

"With whom?"

"With all of them"

"I know they don't want me" Daenerys said, with a mix of sadness, dissapointment and anger tinting her voice.

Varys only sighed. He knew she was far from over, that she needed to vent, so he let her.

“Not the North, not the lords and ladies, not Lady Sansa and her family" she remarked, anger starting to show in her voice and features. "I'm here to save them, can't they see?" She then looked at him with her beautiful eyes. Eyes filled with doubts. Eyes trying to mask a thunderstorm.

"Your Grace, the northmen are known for being proud. They just need a little more time. To get to know you" he offered her. At his words, Daenerys seemed to relaxed a little, fixing her eyes in the fire. He took it as a sign to continue. "You have to remember that the last memory they have of Targaryens are those of your father and eldest brother. They are not remembered fondly here".

The mention of her father and brother made her snapped her eyes back at him. "And pray tell, Lord Varys, what do I have to do for the people of Westeros to realize I'm not father nor my brother?" she fumed.

"You can't expect them to forget the last two decades, my Queen. But you can show them that there is more to the Targaryen name than your father and brother" he insisted.

She returned her gaze to the flames. The way she seemed to be so enthralled by its dance reminded him of the red priestesses of R'hollor. Although the hearth gave the room some warmth, he still got chills.

"I will show them there is more to the Targaryen name" she echoed, still looking at the flames. But a thought seemed to snap her out of its spell. "What about the Starks?"

"What about them?"

"Jon has been avoiding me since we arrived. Lady Sansa is courteous, yet I can see the ice in her eyes". she said in an exasperated tone. "How do you suggest I win over the Lady of Winterfell?"

"You are both women of power, maybe you can try by starting there. Maybe you can open up to her about your experiences in Essos, let her get to know you" he proposed.

She looked at him, with narrowed eyes, analyzing what he just said. Then, she turned her eyes to the flames again. "What about Jon?" she sighed.

"Lord Tyrion wasn't able to reach him this morning. Winterfell's maester said he was busy discussing some strategies on how to defeat the Night King with his brother and the Tarly boy"

"If he was discussing strategies, weren't we suppossed to be ther-" she complained, but stopped herself when realization dawned in her eyes. "Did you say Tarly boy?"

"Samwell Tarly, Your Grace. Randyll Tarly's eldest son. He's a sworn brother of the Night's Watch. They tell me he's close friends with Jon Snow" he explained.

The implications of what he just told her didn't escape her. Her queenly mask was slowly coming off. Varys could only look at her. Enthralled by the flames, she just stood still. The flames made her eyes shine in a beautiful and disturbing way.

"That will be all, Lord Varys" she said, never taking her eyes from the fire. "Thank you for your counsel".

He respectfully bowed and walked out of her chambers as fast as propriety allowed. She shouldn't be alone right now, he thought. When he arrived to the entrance of the Guest Keep, he told one of the Dothraki posted there "Go find Missandei of Naath. Tell her her Queen needs to speak to her".

He hoped Missandei's friendship and presence would act like a balm to the Dragon Queen's strong passions.

                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He was in the Kitchens, eating some hot broth, when a young maid came to him. He had asked his little birds to fly around the Wolves' castle, looking for anything that might be useful. Most of them came empty-handed. But this young maid, Darla, she was one of the good ones.

"M'lord, this is all I could find" she said as she handed  him a piece of paper. "I tried to write as fast as I could" she explained.

Varys opened the piece of paper and read it, but he couldn't believe his eyes. He reread what Darla had written. "Where did you find this?"

"The chambers of that man from the Night's Watch. It was in an old book" the young maid looked at him with impatient eyes. "So, is it any good?"

"You have no idea, young girl" he told her as he gave her five gold dragons. At this, the young woman nodded and mouthed a "thank you" and left as fast as she could.

Now, the conversation between Bran Stark and Jon Snow made more sense. This changes everything, he thought. And his mind filled with those familiar doubts, but now they found a new partner in some treasonous thoughts.

                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Varys liked the view from the battlements. The view of the vast snowy fields surrounding Winterfell could be an image that brought him peace and comfort; but given the threat of eternal winter, the view made him as if were staring at the flames, like he did all those years ago. He let out a heavy sigh, the cold air making it visible. If only I could see things like I see this, he reflected, then maybe I could make my move.

He remembered Littlefinger, then. Always eager to make his move, one that drive him forward, closer to his goal. And because he's always so eager he leaves chaos in his wake. Chaos that loves to prey on others, he thought. He remembered what Lady Sansa has said about him during the welcoming feast. "He went to the Vale, to oversee some things regarding the food” Ned Stark's daughter has said. But he knew Petyr Baelish, he knew him very well, and it was not like him to miss such an opportunity like this. He's the master of chaos, and a Targaryen in Winterfell would be just the kind of situation he would like to exploit. Maybe Lady Sansa was telling the truth. But if it is the turth she was saying, that means she has power over him. And to have power over someone like Littlefinger...

His thoughts were interrumpted by the sound of someone approaching him. He turned around to find Ser Davos Seaworth. The man was a loyal and trusted advisor of Jon Snow. Maybe he can give me some insight of what's Winterfell like under the rule of Eddard Stark's children, he thought.

"Ser Davos" he greeted him with a light bow.

"Lord Varys" he said, with some surprise. "I'll say I didn't expect you to find out here. It's freezing cold"

"Just admiring what the North has to offer, ser" he replied, returning his eyes to vast fields covered in snow.

"Not a lot to admire, I'd say. But we don't get to see this much snow on the South, so I think there is some beauty in it" he commented.

"What brings you here? Like you said, it's freezing cold" he asked

"War council. We're trying to figure out how to make best use of the battlements and the high grounds. We must use any advantage we have" he answered.

"I'm not a military man, I do not understand the art of war" he admitted "but if there's a war council being held soon, let me know so I can inform our Queen"

Davos Seaworth turned his head to him when he said our Queen. He was one of the very few that knew that Jon Snow was no longer King in the North. Hopefully, it stays like that until the North warms up to Daenerys, he thought.

Just as he turned his head to him, he turned it back to the fields. But they didn't capture his attention, since he turned his head back at him again, his eyes narrowed. "May I ask you a question, Lord Varys?" He nodded in response. "Why do you serve Daenerys Targaryen?"

Varys smiled at the bold man. "She's not like any other ruler the Seven Kingdoms have seen" he offered. A nice, short and safe answer.

"No, she's not" he agreed. "She has dragons, but I guess that makes her like her ancestors"

"You're worried she might be like some of them? Like the worst of them?"

"Consider me a subject interested in his new Queen. You see, Lord Varys, while Jon and I were in Dragonstone, we didn't get the chance to know much about her" he replied

"A wasted opportunity, I know. I advised her to let her people know her. I believe that will bring peace of mind to many"

"Maybe. But northerners are tough, they're loyal to their own" he argued. A small laugh left his lips after he said this, it was as if he was remembering something. "You don't earn their trust easily. It took me a long time and a bloody battle for me to earn the trust of many around here".

"She will make a good Queen, ser Davos. You have my word"

Ser Davos chuckled at his answer. "Can I be honest with you, Lord Varys?"

"Always" he said, with a little bow

"It's not your word they need. Like you said, they don't know her, and for them to accept her would take time" he confided. "But time is something we don't have. I hope Queen Daenerys earns the North's trust. I really do" he sighed.

"It's what's best for the realm, dear ser" he assured him.

"And what if she doesn't? What happens then?" He had his narrowed eyes fixed on him.

"Let's hope she does earn their trust, ser Davos" he replied, the answer he really wanted to give him hidden in the words he said.

Davos Seaworth's narrowed eyes now widened. He seemed to understand what he meant to say. He took a deep breath while staring at the white snowed fields surrounding the castle, "Let's hope she does" he echoed. After a few moments of silent meditation, ser Davos turned to him once more. "Lord Varys" he said as a goodbye.

He just nodded. The words of the onion knight echoed in his mind. Whether someone sent him or not, one thing was clear. Daenerys wasn't wanted here. Not as Queen, anyways. The North seemed very content with Sansa Stark as Lady of Winterfell and Jon Snow as their King. A great pair, he thought, a most capable politician and a renowned warrior. He let out a long sigh. He knew what this meant. The Queen doesn't handle rejection very well, what happened at the Reach is testament of that, he reflected. He decided he had enough of the winter winds for one day and headed to the Great Keep, looking for the only person able to appease the people.

He walked across the courtyard, where many men, women and children old enough to fight were training. Some with sword, others with bow and arrow. There were even some with spears, being trained by Greyworm. As he walked, he wondered how many people would die fighting for the living. Let's just hope we win, otherwise it would've been all for nothing.

When he arrived at his destination, he took a deep breath to give himself some courage. Give some in order to get some, he reminded himself. That's what this is about. Information.

"Can I help you, m'lord?" a northern man, no more than three-and-twenty, asked him.

"Yes. I'd like to talk to Lady Stark" he replied. He could see the anxiety in the young man's eyes. Sansa Stark is not one to inspire fear. Something must've happened.

"Wait here, m'lord". After that, the young northman entered Lady Sansa's solar. A few minutes passed until the guard came out. "Lady Sansa is waiting for you inside, m'lord" the young man said with a light bow of his head.

As soon as the heavy wooden doors closed, Sansa Stark stood up. "Lord Varys, I didn't expect you to see you so soon" she said, not as the little lady he remembered from King's Landing, but as Lady of a great castle.

"Well, I'm afraid, my Lady, we weren't able to finish our conversation"

"I think we did" she said as she approached him. "You were very clear on your stance, Lord Varys, and I like to believe I was very clear on mine" she continued. "I think there's nothing left to discuss".

"Forgive me, Lady Sansa" he replied. "But I'm afraid it's not our last conversation that brought me here today".

"Then what is it that brought you here today, Lord Varys?" she asked, her face relaxed, but with ice in her eyes.

"Your family. And the future of Westeros" he stated.

And at that, Sansa Stark gave him her full attention.

[insp1rationalx]

Spoilers for Game of Thrones season 8 episode 5 below

Just as a warning I did not enjoy this episode, and this post is going to be very negative. I have very few good things to say about this episode so if you genuinely enjoyed it then this probably isn’t the post for you. I don’t want to taint anybody’s perceptions if they enjoyed it, I hate spoiling the fun for others. On the other hand, if you like reading more negative (and maybe overly harsh) reviews or you just want a hot take then feel free to read on. 

Honestly, I really hate to say this, but this episode was by far my least favorite of the entire series for many reasons; the main reason that I’m going to complain about is the fact that the writing was not good at all in my opinion. This 1 hour and 20 minutes episode did not need to be this long. There was so much unnecessary editing and prolonged shots on the characters making shocked faces with no real purpose or meaning. Just a bunch of “Oh my gosh look at Daenerys! Oh my gosh look at the burning people!” Like yes we get it. No need to show each character doing it 10 times. I feel like this episode could have shaved off 20 minutes or even 30 minutes. There were so many moments during this episode where I realized I was just bored and unimpressed, and that’s horrifying to me because I have never felt that way before when watching Game of Thrones. There have been moments that I don’t find as captivating or interesting, but I would never go so far as to say I was bored and just excited for the episode to be over. It didn’t feel epic, or badass, or shocking, or tense. Just a whole lot of blah for me. 

I feel like the whole bit with Daenerys looking like she is going to show mercy when she hears the bells but then deciding to burn anybody anyway was pointless. The audience and characters already know Daenerys’ mental state isn’t great at the moment, and that the horrors of her life and immense pressure she is under are messing with her head. But Daenerys has never been one to go back on her word or her promises. She agreed to spare the people if she heard the bells, then did the exact opposite. It would have made far more sense for her to tell Tyrion immediately that she wasn’t going to listen to him and that she would just do what she felt is right. Tyrion had no reason to be shocked and mortified when Daenerys burned everybody. She is The Dragon, she is the Queen, and she has killed thousands before without hesitation. She views it as a sacrifice for the greater good which will come when she has secured the iron throne; he knows this better than anyone as her adviser. And Tyrion is incredibly intelligent. So why do I feel like he was so stupid this episode? There was no reason for him to help Jaime escape. Cersei has been nothing but cruel to him and Tyrion has no desire to help Cersei, and releasing Jaime was a guaranteed death sentence. Tyrion should have known his escape plan was destined to fail and that it wasn’t going to be an easy in-and-out secret operation. Its like a huge part of his character was completely forgotten. 

Jon Snow dealt with the same thing that Tyrion dealt with. Huge emotional shock and dismay at Daenerys killing people but again, Jon Snow, you already knew this! You saw the destructive power and iron fist she rules with. You know how she gains power. You know that she will slaughter, readily, easily, for the sake of the millions across Westeros and Esteros. So why do you look so surprised? I understand that there’s this ongoing theme with Jon Snow wanting to see the best in people and then being surprised when he sees their true colors, but this one was even more blatantly obvious than all the others!

Jaime spent 8 seasons building and developing his character, both individually and alongside Brienne of Tarth. For all of that development and change to be discarded in the span of one episode, for the sake of a love that was mutually abusive and downright evil with how Cersei has treated him, is such a slap in the face to all the writers and producers/directors who did genuinely try to make his character multidimensional. And what did this ending for him accomplish? It just tells us that Jaime will always go back to his old ways -- except we as an audience already know that he doesn’t. This change in his character was so sudden and it came out of nowhere, with weird timing. In a show that tries to tell us that people aren’t always as they appear, that even horrible people are capable of great change, and that forgiveness can be given to anybody who seeks it, they did a great job a making a character who neglects to take part in any of that in the end. What a waste of potential. Even if he didn’t end up with Brienne, its still a waste. 

And now Arya and the Hound. Well done Arya, you make it all the way to King’s Landing to kill Cersei and you turn and run as soon as the Hound tells you to. Since when do you take orders from him? Since when did you abandon the will to follow your own path? If she and the Hound faced Cersei and the Mountain together maybe they each would have survived, and Jaime could have gotten the fuck out of there without getting trapped in some dingy, dusty basement. Maybe the Hound wouldn’t have had to waste his strength and ultimately his life to take down an enemy that wasn’t even concerned with him at that point, because Arya would have been there to help him. Instead they think a slow-paced, anticlimactic fight is the way to go. Seeing them both go over the edge and into the flames was a relief because it meant I didn’t have to watch that pathetic fight any longer.

Also, Arya did nothing this episode except run around helplessly like the weak little girl we know she is NOT! Scared face after scared face, just her getting progressively grosser and weaker. Trying to help people even though its pointless and they aren’t going to do as she says. There was no point in her being in this episode if this is what we were going to get. She was so great at Winterfell! There was no need to taint her great victory against the Night King with this pathetic show. 

Cersei Lannister is a great character, although I do not like her in the slightest. But I will admit, she is crafty, manipulative, and ultimately very rational. She makes calm and informed decisions, and always has a game plan ready to be put into action. Instead we were given a weak and quivering Cersei, who is in denial about the fact that King’s Landing will fall and she will lose this battle. This would have been a great opportunity to showcase these abilities and skills of hers. Instead she is just degraded and the essence of her character is lost. It would have been believable if we saw a slow deterioration into this shell of herself, but instead we were thrust into it and expected to believe it. 

Yara’s part in the story was apparently forgotten. I guess shes just not relevant, so I don’t know why we wasted so much time on her. I would have really liked for her to ride in and face Euron but eh. Also, I’m glad Euron was killed, but I wish he wasn’t killed by Jaime. It just makes Jaime look like the jilted ex lover. 

Overall I felt no sense of urgency, stress, fear, anticipation, or tension in this episode. Even when all those scorpions were pointed at Drogon I did not care after the first few seconds because it was so obvious exactly what direction this episode was going to go. That paired with the shallow portrayal of grieving for Missandei that we were so graciously gifted put a bad taste in my mouth immediately. I wanted and expected far more from this episode. I feel as though this was a pathetic climax (or near climax) for such a great and intense show. I feel as though my time has been wasted. If the last episode follows in the footsteps of this one then I do not have high hopes for my enjoyment of it, which is terribly concerning because other than this episode, I do quite like this show and its characters. But hey, I’m just a fan. At the end of the day the writers and producers are free to create whatever they see fit, and I have little to no right to make demands. I’m just disappointed. I want to like it but I just couldn’t. 

Things I enjoyed in this episode

- Daenerys/Emilia Clarke is a goddess in my eyes

- Beautiful flying lizard breathes fire

- Cersei and Euron died

- ???? 

It means a lot when I say I disliked this episode almost as much as I disliked Avengers: Endgame. Because honestly... I don’t think I liked Endgame. Yikes. 

I’ll add more to this post if I think of anything else

[cchellacat]

Game of Thrones Finale

Here be spoilers for the last season of GoT.  Turn back now or forever hold you peace.  Trust me, I am not holding my peace, I feel like going to war and breaking a bloody wheel over the back of D&D’s heads.

I knew going in, this wasn’t the ending I had been hoping for, or even expecting for nine years.  After the penultimate episode the writing was clearly on the wall, so I watched this final chapter, ready for crushing disappointment and grief. D&D did not let me down. 

They completed their character assassination of Daenerys with all the clumsy, lazy, pretension and dreadfully written dialogue as one might have come to expect, if they had been paying attention since the start of the season. 

When left to flounder in the seas of uncertainty without the masterfully crafted scaffolding of GRRM’s books to hold them afloat, the writers sunk the whole thing gleefully. I’m absolutely certain they took great pleasure in destroying every logical expectation.

This constant need to justify their own twisted ending and eradicate certain characters development and arcs, left me feeling bewildered and horrified.  The beautiful woven foreshadowing that had been building since season one seemed to be cast aside at the last and replaced with some Frankenstein monster, cobbled together from a need to be “different”  to “surprise”, to be “edgy”  and “subversive”.  

This isn’t how good writing is done.  You don’t change the track of a story just because it’s deemed predictable or because fans guessed the ending. 

The onus then, is on the writer, to follow through and complete the story while still making it enjoyable and intriguing.  It isn’t to upturn the apple-cart and refill with limes.  It’s to take the damn apples and make pie.  Make it interesting, draw the audience in, there is nothing wrong with giving the audience what they want. There is nothing wrong with delivering a satisfying and sensible conclusion.  There is nothing wrong with giving the main character/s a happy ending.

Their fear of cliche, lead them straight into trope hell.  The “face heel turn” of Daenerys from Liberator and Mother to Tyrant and Murderer was sloppy, poorly written and did not have a justifiable history to back it up. 

Do not even get me started on how they killed her.  JFC.  Could they have been anymore obvious about how that was gong to go down?  Talk about cliche. 

Murdered by the man she loves, who loves her and who is also her only family.  We’ll talk later about what they did to poor Jon.  Just for reminders sake though, here she is, held in the arms of the man she loves as he promises her she will always be his queen, kisses her and stabs her right in the heart.  **blood boiling**

Turing Sansa into Littlefinger 2.0 made my inner rage monster scream.  Her transformation from  the “The High Queen”  to “The Chess-master” makes me think the North isn’t in any better hands than it would have been with Littlefinger in charge.  How convenient that none of her siblings will be nearby to notice.  Bran in the south, Jon in the True North and for some inexplicable reason, the girl who spent eight season finding her way home, decides to go gallivanting off into the west on some LotR, knock off elf quest. 

Arya’s end is as unsatisfying as every other one.   She spent years growing stronger, learning to kill, striving to be No-one.  Her whole character arc was about her coming to terms with her loss and recognising that no matter how far she ran, she would always be Arya Stark. 

Then is was her journey home, learning that she could go back, that even changed by war and blood, family meant everything.  Her clarion call, that the “lone wolf dies but the pack survives” has been with her every step.  It’s the message her father taught her, one she held too.  Why on earth would she leave her pack behind? 

What even was the point of having her and Gendry meet again and come together if she was just going to walk away?  I’m not saying a character has to be defined by a romantic relationship, but why bother giving the fans a few crumbs just to spit on it an episode later?  This is clearly baiting of the worst kind.  I’d rather they met as friends and parted as friends than the shit show of having Gendry propose, only for her turn him down.  I mean, she could have learned another lesson with the Hound, that defining your life by revenge and forgetting to live only ends in death.  Her returning to Gendry after that would have made sense.  It would have made sense for her to go build a pack of her own.  But no, that would be too easy.  What shall we do with Arya?  Lets put her on a bus!

He did love her.  Jon was crazy about Dany.  She was crazy about him.  This is the man who puts family first, who lives by his honour.  He is his Uncle Ned come again.  Ned, who lived and died by his oaths.  The only time he broke them was to protect his sisters son, to protect Jon, his family. 

This is why they had to destroy Daenery’s character so completely.  They had to make her the worst villain imaginable to make it look even remotely plausible that Jon would;

1. Break his oath of fealty

2. Murder his own blood.

3. Betray the love of his life.

They had to preserve Jon’s good name, oh yes, because Jon wouldn’t kill her for power or because she lost her temper and disagreed with him.  No.  They destroyed both Jon and Dany with this plot. 

Jon is now Queen Slayer and Kin Slayer and he has broken his word, his oaths of loyalty, his unspoken oaths of love and protection, which she rightly expected from him as her blood and her lover and has been reduced to a shadow of the man he was meant to be, the king he could have been. 

He is cursed by the gods in the eyes of most Westerosi, or he would be if they knew the truth.  After all, look at how the nobility treated Jaimie after he killed the Mad King.  It didn’t matter to them that the King was evil, no, what mattered was that he broke his oath.

Oath breakers are anathema in Westeros. 

So much for a Targaryen Restoration.  Goodbye Iron Throne.  The whole point of Jon’s character was just erased.  Did he defeat some great evil?  No.  Did he overcome war and death and end triumphant on the throne as the last dragon?  No.  There was no point in bringing him back after his death in season six.  Anyone could have went to bargain with Dany and the outcome would have been the same.  Ugh!

Jaime and Brienne.  The love story/redemption arc I was so invested in.  One hand gives and the other takes away.  In the end it seems that Jaime learned nothing, according to the writers that is.  I call bullshit.  Jaime had redeemed himself.  If he had to die, it should have bee while killing Cersei.  The foreshadowing of him being Cersei’s death has been around for years. Cersi didn’t love Jaime, she loved controlling him.  Cersei loved no one but herself.  That was the lesson Jaime was meant to learn.  Thanks so much for taking away eight season of character development and self realisation.

Tyrion got shafted too.  His speech near the end, it was a load of cow dung.  In the end they left Tyrion to be Westeros’ own comic relief.  The Small Council was a bloody farce.  All that scene did was reinforce my belief that nothing in Westeros has really changed.  It doesn’t matter what title you give someone, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Give it ten years and Bron will be the power in Westeros in all but name. 

Now who have I forgotten?  Ah yes.  My Special Mention.

Sandor went out the way he meant to, bringing an end to his brother.  But not before the writers gave him a brief moment with Sansa.  There you go Sansan fans, he called her little bird!  Now shut up and let us kill him in a fiery fall of doom. 

Death by fire, the worst death they could give this man.  He wasn’t a good man, it’s arguable that none of the characters were good people.  However, Sandor Clegane suffered more than most.  He spent his life, angry and bitter, seeking revenge for himself and his sister and father.  I think, if they had to kill him, they could have given the man a better exit than him tossing both himself and his brother into the flames.  It was cruel to make that the only way out, the only triumph he could claim.  I think Sandor should have lived.  He deserved to find a life of peace after all the fighting he did.   It is not poetic or clever to kill a character off with the object of their own fear.  It’s not clever when they do it to a villain, it’s doubly unfair to do it to a hero.  He was a hero by the end.  Sandor deserved better.

Now look, I‘m not saying that in a show like this, that everybody should live or necessarily get the end they deserve, but, they went too far in the name of shock value, leaving no one happy, well, virtually no one. I guess the rabid Sansa fans who loathed Dany are feeling pretty good about now. 

(Yes, okay that was mean, but I got sick of seeing it in my timeline and unfollowed a few people.) 

I was always very much of the belief that Sansa and Dany had more in common than would drive them apart.  I didn’t expect an easy friendship or alliance, but I did expect them to find common ground and be able to build a relationship over time.  Strong women supporting each other is what we need more of on TV.  Not this misogynistic desire to see two strong women fight over a man, which is essentially what they reduced Sansa and Dany too with poor Jon caught in the middle.  

In conclusion...

I feel as though the writers went into season eight with a clear idea of where they had been building and then someone get a bee in their bonnet and posed the question, “Who is the least likely to end up ruling Westeros?”

The answer of course is Bran.  Bran the Broken, how fucking ignorant is that?  How about Bran the Burdened or Bran the Broker or Bran the Benevolent, if you’ve really got such a hard on for alliteration?

So now Bran, who is so disconnected from feeling that he can’t love anyone, sits the Iron Throne and is somehow meant to be a good ruler. 

All that’s needed to achieve this happy ending for the writers?

Goodbye Character development and epic love stories, hello smear campaign, death, destruction and the end of one of my favourite canon ships to ever sail.

Rest in Peace Jonarys.  I believed in you. 

[sanrionharbor-blog]

For Everybody Still Worried About the Leaks

Clues from the Cast Interviews, GRRM Hints, and My Own Gut Feelings

Disclaimer: Hey, nobody knows nothing, but life’s too short to stress about things we can’t control, and stories are supposed to be maps to help us learn more about ourselves and about life in general–not hair-pulling inducements.  So I’m going to enjoy all the speculating that I can regarding the GOT season finale, and want to share some thoughts on why I think certain “leaks” are most likely bunk.

I’m mostly focusing on the pervasive “Does Tyrion die by trial?” leak, and everything that links to that, including any betrayals or major deaths.

Tyrion’s Ending and The Ending, In General

First, let’s quote Peter Dinklage himself:

I had all these ideas in my head and a version of one of them is how it ends up [for Tyrion]. David and Dan have a brilliant version of what I had. If I use any adjectives it will give it away. But I love how it ended up. And how it ends up for everybody. They had a beautiful gentle touch with some, and a hard touch with others.

But that’s just on Tyrion’s ending. Before I get into what that quote tells us, let me quote what other people have said about the Overall Ending of Game of Thrones:

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau:

I’ve never read anyone who got the whole thing. And when I read it the first time, I was blown away.

George R.R. Martin:

So many readers were reading the books with so much attention that they were throwing up some theories, and while some of those theories were amusing bulls*** and creative, some of the theories are right…At least one or two readers had put together the extremely subtle and obscure clues that I’d planted in the books and came to the right solution.

What the above quotes tell me is:

No one has guessed the ending completely–but parts of the ending? Yeah, they’ve been guessed. Which just goes to show how much this show and its themes have resonated not only with GRRM, but with his audience. Because,as a writer, I can tell you that no storyteller tells a story alone. There’s something guiding us and we can’t put a finger on it but it’s often the source of our best ideas. And it’s the same ineffable something that stirs all of us when we’re creating, sharing, and participating in stories. It’s the reason you see the same patterns in stories over and over. In short, the fact that part of the ending CAN be guessed is NOT a bad thing. It’s natural. Some postmodern storytelling theories have taught us that tricks and surprises are where it’s at–but a story isn’t true unless it can surprise us and, in retrospect, give us the only answer that makes any sense. You can see a pithier version of this kind of storytelling in Ye Olde Riddle–for example, the Sphinx in Oedipus Rex could tell us the answer to her riddle is orange, and that would throw us for a loop, but it would tell us nothing and mean nothing and add nothing to the story and thus would be forgotten. Surprise doesn’t count unless it has a ripple effect. So, about-face turns and OOC arcs may shock and subvert, but they’ll ultimately end up as dross and not as gold. (But hey, more on my thoughts on what can and can be accepted as canon in the last blurb below!).

Now, has anybody assumed that Tyrion would betray Daenerys and end up dead simply for 1) loyalty to the Lannisters, 2) suddenly losing faith in humanity?, or 3) suddenly wanting to usurp power himself? No. This is not a popular theory by a longshot. Tyrion dying? Sure. Somebody betraying Daenerys? Sure. Tyrion as a ruler? Sure. But this very specific, shoehorned version of the story is simply too contrived to have been picked up by fans organically.

The leaks so far have painted nothing but harsh endings for ALL the characters. Don’t tell me those leaks are pro-Stark. Those leaks point out backstabbing, loneliness, and emotional stagnation–forget what characters live, think about what these leaks have said about these characters. Not only does this not jive with the “bittersweet” aspect of the ending, it doesn’t jive with Dinklage’s assertion that, while some characters will go down harshly (R.I.P. Missandei especially–at least Edd and Jorah and Beric got heroic deaths and funerals), others will be treated gently. A heartbroken Brienne? A cold, lonely, manipulative Sansa? A suddenly hopeless, headless Tyrion? I don’t think so. (I also don’t think that means that Brienne and Jaime will necessarily ride into the sunset–but I do think we’ll have Jaime’s feelings for her confirmed, along with the completion of his redemption arc. I also don’t think that means Tyrion definitely won’t die–but I don’t think he’ll be character assassination, either. And I also don’t think that Sansa WILL end up in a canon relationship–but, logically, they can’t leave all the Stark’s COMPLETELY UNABLE TO LOVE, and um, somebody has to be willing to have legitimate heirs to the Stark House. Ok, just to continue this aside, but it seems theoretically impossible to me that the Stark House, which is all about the continuation of the Starks and the independence of the North, would not be given any canon marriages/alliances at the end of their arc. Arya’s already rejected marriage, Bran drove Meera away, and Sansa’s always wanted a happy marriage, even if she’s got very understandable trust issues right now. Anyhow–).

Peter Dinklage was able to guess how his character arc ended. What are the odds that Betraying Somebody He Cares About Without Good Reason (Daenerys–I could see him betraying her reluctantly, but not easily)/Being Betrayed By Somebody He Cares About (Sansa)/Dying Guilty After All The False Trials His Character Has Been THrough were in the mix? I don’t think so. Dinklage has gone on record multiple times to say how much he admires Tyrion and thinks he’s a good person. He’s also gone on record stating that Sansa and Tyrion’s relationship is full of true affection. Even if Tyrion dies and/or he and Sansa don’t end up as a couple, betrayal just seems so far out of the scope of what these characters’ storylines have been building to. And again, I can’t see that being even one version of one of Dinklage’s headcanons. What I think is most likely? A) Hand to the Ruler, B) Part of a new council that replaces or supplements the King/Queen, C) the King himself, or D) a heroic death.

How Long They’ve Planned the Ending:

They had talks with GRRM in 2014

They’ve been planning the ending for five years

They’ve known it was Arya who would take out the NK for three years

So some decisions weren’t set in stone, even by GRRM (such as who would take out the NK…an interesting thing not to know, actually, but that just points out how inflated the importance of the Others/White Walkers was–do I still think it will be handled better by GRRM, yes, but that’s another story), and even if D&D’s execution feels more like “here’s an outline of what’s happening” rather than “here’s the organic progression of that storyline,” I can only imagine that if core pieces were given by GRRM AND they’re not completely winging it, then there will be a certain amount of narrative cohesion once this comes full-circle.

Let’s not forget, we still have a third WTFudge moment that was came straight from GRRM himself, with the other two shockers being Hodor’s origin and Shireen Baratheon’s death. Could this third twist be Dany going completely mad? Maybe, though it doesn’t fall into the same category of completely-unexpected-but-honestly-possible, like Shireen and Hodor. Only because the foreshadowing for Dany’s madness was heavy-handed in the last few seasons (taking away the ‘unexpected’ bit), and is now quite uneven here in Season 8.

I think the third twist will likely be a specific action (a la Shireen’s death) or another origin story-type twist (a la Hodor). Some people have speculated that “Tyrion’s Trial” would make for that final twist, but here’s why I don’t think so:

The Nature of the Leaks

It’s very interesting to me that this leak, supposedly this Huge Most Important Leak, was one of the very first ones released. Like, months ago. While the rest of the leaks, the ones that have actually been accurate, are usually only released at the max a few days before each episode airs.

It’s also interesting to me that HBO has not done more to shut down this particular leak.

And, I would not put it past HBO to have actually filmed one entire fake-out scene. Most of the Dragon Pit/South scenes were filmed after the first three episodes, so they probably knew that they had the time and money to just throw fans for another loop. Sound tinfoily? Perhaps, but the idea that this big twist–and a twist that so far doesn’t make much sense given what we’ve seen in what is now ⅔’s of the season–was such an easy leak just makes me suspect.

Another possibility? Tyrion IS on trial, but is pardoned. Or Tyrion thinks he’s on trial, but it turns out to be somebody else’s funeral (a la that Littlefinger Fake Out 2.0.). I’m not saying any of this makes for the best handling of his character or for a particularly compelling scenario, but considering we haven’t seen it, I can’t say for certain.

GOT’s Recent “Plot Twist” Pattern

D&D have switched to information-withholding tactics in the last few seasons. Just look at Sansa and Arya’s arc and the Littlefinger Fake Out. Were these well-written? Not entirely–but they don’t make for the worst entertainment either. Yeah, we had better quality storytelling in the first four seasons, but soap opera can still be fun.

And how long have they been teasing Dark!Sansa without actually delivering? And let’s not forget–show-Sansa’s arc is still, broadly, based on book-Sansa’s arc. Book-Sansa remains far more in tune to the archetype of the Lady/Maiden, while show-Sansa is slightly blended with Jeyne Poole’s arc (and, unfortunately, a dash of Pop Feminism). But the fact remains that whatever meeting D&D had with GRRM back in 2014 contained information based on the broad trajectory of Sansa’s arc as GRRM has been writing it. (I’m writing a character arc meta on Sansa that’ll be out…soonish).

And let’s just say I don’t see Dark!Sansa hinted very well in the books at all. Sansa learning to pull strings like Littlefinger and Cersei and Margaery? Heck yes. But Sansa will do it Sansa’s way.

So, given that D&D usually try to shock us by hinting at a character’s worst possible tendency AND by withholding information AND by trying to get us to see one scenario while giving us another (another example being Jon Snow vs. Night King actually being Arya vs Night King), I can very well see them turning Sansa into a reluctant last-minute ally of Daenerys, Tyrion being pulled out of hot water at the last minute, Jaime’s running to Cersei being about taking out Cersei not making out with Cersei (yeah sorry/not sorry about that one), and heck, maybe Dany won’t go mad–she’ll just realize she doesn’t want the Iron Throne anymore, or the Iron Throne shouldn’t exist, or she dies tragically but not as a monster. Time will tell.

Who We Haven’t Seen So Far That Can Introduce New Complications

1. Edmure Tully

Tobis Mennzies (Edmure Tully) has been confirmed to return this season. Could it just be a cameo? Maybe. But I wouldn’t put it past Sansa, Arya, and Bran to be planning a back-up plan to help out Jon (and thus Dany). Arya is probably planning on killing Cersei, Sansa can rally what’s left of the Tully’s, and Bran will hopefully do something Three-Eyed Ravenish (or regain some of Bran’s humanity–which would be a twist worth waiting for).

2. Khal Drogo

Motherhood is an important theme in Dany’s life. I think ultimately, book and show wise, it’s what’s truly important to her. She just doesn’t realize it. In this way, Dany is a very interesting parallel with Cersei. Both of these women are tempted to replace their intimate losses with power. They believe power will protect them and their own. And that mentality can slowly shift into the classic Mother Bear conundrum: Us vs. Them.

Now, Khal Drogo not only represents a happy time in Dany’s life where she was both powerful and protected, but where she was a mother. After her losses, she gained her dragons. She truly loves her dragons as children, but they are also a liability to everyone but Dany. Interestingly, Dany’s human child with Khal Drogo was a liability to everyone but the Khalasar. The priestess from season 1 knew this, and so she prevented it. It doesn’t make the loss any less of a tragedy, however.

Will we see the same thing play out here in the final act of Game of Thrones? I’m not sure, but Khal Drogo’s presence will be heavily symbolic. Either Dany will meet him in the afterlife or reject death another time–but perhaps she’ll realize that her true desires were always for belonging and motherhood (just not at the expense of her own free will).

And, as an aside–I’ve really come to see Dany in a different light this season. I’ve always been anti-Daenerys as Ruler, but Daenerys as a character is truly fascinating. So what I see implied in her final arc is truly heartbreaking (and I hope it’s handled better overall than it was, in snapshot, here in 8x04). [Dany’s also my dad’s favorite character, haha, and I respect my dad’s opinion almost more than anyone else’s, so she gets props for that too lol].

3. Robin Arryn

I have a feeling this will be a cameo, but honestly the worst-case scenario for me would be Sansa being engaged to him lol. It would certainly be a Margaery Tyrell move on her part (knowing she won’t have to marry him for some time and he’ll be easy to influence), but the Knights of the Vale are already dedicated to her and I’m a Sanrion shipper so you know where I stand on any other Sansa ship. ;-)

Regardless, the Vale could become an important wrinkle in the plot, and I’m all for us not having a complete Doomsday scenario.

And In The Worst Case Scenario

The worst case scenario is that the leaks are legit. Bran as an emotionless king? The Starks are forever alone? Tyrion’s character assassination? Bleh.

But I’ve already hinted at my philosophy on canon storytelling.

Look, most fanon is crap–but so is most fiction. There are millions of stories out there, but it’s hard to find (and tell) one that resonates across all borders of sex, ethnicity, age, and epoch. You know what CAN exist in both fanon and canon–and what actually matters as canon in the end? The stories that are true.

If characters don’t act true to themselves, if deep-in-the-bones themes suddenly drop off, if crucial scenes that are present in every single successful outline are missing (don’t go postmodern on me–just read The Story Grid), then that story is incomplete. And it’s a lie.

Madeleine L’Engle once said “All truth is God’s truth.” She was trying to make the point that fantasy, and fiction in general, is important because it tells the truth. It’s not about the facts (dragons aren’t real! This is just a TV show! Etc.). It’s about the truth (dragons can be beaten! There is wonder in the world! We are united by our mythologies!).

So no, fanon can be a lot more than making heterosexual characters gay or inserting fluff without dealing with the consequences of character actions or erasing parts of canon. Fanon can be more true than canon when the author is on the tail of the actual Story.

Steven Pressfield does a much better job of explaining this in The War of Art. Madeleine L’Engle does a much better of explaining this in Walking on Water. Shawn Coyne does a much better job of explaining this in The Story Grid.

So don’t just take my word for it.

For me, then, I’m excited to see how the show plays out. And I’m fine if certain things that I only WANT don’t happen–but if the story doesn’t have what NEEDS to happen, then I’ll sadly and reluctantly reject it, and wait for GRRM’s books to come out, or simply contribute to the ASOIAF lore as best as I can. Hopefully not as wish fulfillment, but simply to respect the core of the story itself.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

[fortunatelylori]

1) How do you think the Westerlands will go? Lannisters currently control it. Cersei is not surviving. Tyrion may not survive either, plus he's lost all credibility with Jon. His allegiance with Dany makes him untrustworthy. Then there's Jaime. I can see him siding with a Jonsa alliance but Idk if I see him as Lord. He has more knight's arc. Also, he would need an heir. Brienne would be a viable candidate to solidify the Westerlands in a Jonsa reign but I don't see that for her as well.

2) I see more of a Kingsguard arc for them. Any thoughts on who would be in control of the Westerlands if there were no Lannisters?

Hey, nonnie!

Honestly, when I made the post about the alliances that Jon and Sansa could rack up in season 8, the Westerlands didn’t even feature in my thought process. I genuinely forgot all about them. Part of the reason for that, as I explained in the comments section, was that Casterly Rock is really of no use to anyone. It doesn’t have a strategic location like the Riverlands do nor is it the source of wealth it once was, because of the mines having gone dry, as Tywin pointed out. 

The greatest irony in season 7 for me was Tyrion saying to Jaime that Tywin would be proud of him for having shown no sentimentality and abandoning their childhood home. That was one of the biggest mistakes Tyrion did in season 7. He took it for granted that Jaime cared for Casterly Rock as much as he does. 

Tyrion loves that place, dreams of it and wants it for himself. In that respect he is closer to Tywin than Jaime is because Jaime doesn’t give a fuck about Casterly Rock and he never has. If he had, the place would have been his a long time ago. That’s one of the points of contention between him and Tywin. Because Tywin, just like Tyrion, loved that castle and all that it once represented which is why he can’t bring himself to give it to the imp son he despises so much. 

As for the Westerlands as a whole, I keep thinking that its only importance is perhaps as the source of gold that Westeros will desperately need at the end of this story. But as for whom could potentially bring it into the fold, it would have to be a Lannister, wouldn’t it? I mean is there any character, even a minor one, with any real chance at it aside from the lions? I guess the Hound is from the Westerlands but the Hound isn’t going to end up lord of anything. His is the true knight arc and he’ll probably die in Cleganebowl. 

Some random new character could pop up in this story in season 8, just like some fans dream that Harry Hardyng will suddenly turn up at Winterfell and sweep Sansa off her feet, despite all evidence to him being a fuck boy and a disposable one at that. But how likely are any of those 2 things?

So the Lannisters it is. If I were to cast a bet, I’d say Jaime has the best chance of making it out alive and in a ironic twist that GRRM loves, he’ll get Casterly Rock and the Westerlands precisely because he never wanted them. 

I’m sort of torn up about it because part of me still feels there would be a strange, kind of beautiful tragic endgame for Jaime to die alongside Cersei. In season 1, Cersei said that she and Jaime were more than brother and sister, they were one person and had come into the world together. It would be a fitting end for them to die together as well. 

The show has also romanticized the Jaime/Cersei relationship more than the books do. In the books Cersei is using Jaime because he’s the only man who has never abandoned her, envies him because she wishes she was him and is ready to discard him at the earliest opportunity only to call him back when she needs him again. In addition to that, in spite of their 20+ year long toxic relationship, she still dreams of Rhaegar, her unfulfilled obsession (what is it with women and this idiot? I mean how pretty was he that everyone is pinning and sighing for this monumental fuck up?!?). 

In the show, Jaime and Cersei hurt each other, attack each other but are also bound together in a way that is very hard to deny. 

As for Jaime and Brienne, I don’t know if I agree that they have a King’s Guard arc more than a Lord and Lady of the Westerlands endgame. Brienne’s desire to be a knight stems from her quest for acceptance and finding a purpose in a world that keeps rejecting her. She wants to serve honorably. I think that if by marrying Jaime and ruling the Westerlands, she would be serving the realm and her king and queen, that would be in line with her arc. 

As for Jaime, he’s completely disenfranchised from the King’s Guard and always has been. He tries to uphold his vow but is thwarted every step of the way so I wouldn’t be surprised if he abandons it all together by the end of the story. 

Also to tell you the truth, I’d kind of like if Westeros as a whole would move away from the orders of the King’s Guard and the Night Watch. I mean the King’s Guard, in particular, has this image of these honorable, legendary heroes but is that really a true assessment? Is it honest to glorify people that stood by and let innocents burn by wildfire because they made a vow to a crazy person? Is it ok to admire a knight like Arthur Dane who guarded the Tower of Joy where a woman was imprisoned and was bleeding to death against the brother that had come to save her? I guess this echos our own real life fascination with the Knights Templar and similar orders but the more we find out about these groups, the more they reveal themselves as a pretty unsavory bunch who did more harm than good. 

Both the King’s Guard and the Night Watch feel more like cults to me than proper institutions of government, where people are indoctrinated to believe in the glory of service to the detriment of all personal pursuits and even reason and empathy itself. Perhaps it’s time for both of them to end. 

Thanks for the ask!

[phosphorescent-naidheachd]

GOT 8x01 liveblog below the cut:

--Love the new opening credits!

--Poor Missandei and Grey Worm look so uncomfortable rn

--Jon: “I had a choice: keep my crown or protect the North.” But that’s... not what we saw onscreen?? Not unless some variation of political!Jon is actually true. But knowing D&D, this may simply be their retconned explanation for the nonsensical writing last year. Well, that or Jon is trying to make his stupid decision look better in front of the lords.

--Sansa, I love you, but do you have to smirk when you raise your (very valid) concerns? It’s not helping anything and you have to know it.

--Yessss, mentions of the food shortage!! Now let’s see if they’ll actually do anything with it...

--Show!Dany, I’m still trying to like you, but you’re not exactly making it easy, what with the whole “whatever they like” reply to “What do dragons eat, anyway?”, and smirking when the dragons swooped in and scared the fuck out of everyone in the Winter Town. The Northerners haven’t given you the warmest of receptions and I understand your frustration over that fact, but that’s no reason to think their fear is funny.

--Ah, yes, the oh-so-subtle handholding in front of the entire hall. *sighs at Jon and Dany* [ETA: never mind, they aren’t actually holding hands... Dany is just resting one of her hands on Jon’s arm. Which isn’t all that much more subtle lol.]

--It’s 100% my shipper confirmation bias at work, but the way that they’ve blocked this scene really does make it feel like a Dany/Jon/Sansa love triangle to me. #sorrynotsorry That said, if TPTB choose to go a belligerent sexual tension route w/ Dany/Sansa I wouldn’t turn it down. ;-)

--They’re actually letting Arya show human emotion again? *tosses confetti in celebration*

--Bran and Jon reunion!! My Stark Feelings heart overfloweth.

--Sansa and Tyrion reunion! I like that they’re keeping that hint of tension between them over the way they parted.

--Tyrion: “Many underestimated you. Most of them are dead now.” Subtext: I have no intention of repeating their mistakes.

--Sansa: “I used to think you were the cleverest man alive.” Talk about a burn!

--OK, Bran is looking at Tyrion Significantly(TM) with music playing in the background almost ominously.

--Confirmation that Yara is alive!!! Also, she and Euron are a disturbing but kind of hilarious dynamic at the moment.

--The Arya and Jon reunion was A++. Sweet and heartfelt, but with a hint of underlying tension. And Arya’s comment that Sansa is the smartest person she knows just made my heart an even bigger pile of Stark Family mush.

--Oh, and the “Have you used it?” line re: Needle just hurts because it shows us and Arya how little Jon knows about what Arya has gone through and who she’s become. And Arya’s “once or twice” line just tore out my heart. She doesn’t want to tell Jon what she’s done, both because she’s afraid of how he’ll react and because that will finally make it real to her.

--I feel kind of terrible for Cersei. Yes, she’s made her own bed, but the fact that Euron Greyjoy is lying in it... *shudders* The fact that she’s still forced to resort to sleeping with a man she despises despite ostensibly being the most powerful woman in the realm is incredibly depressing.

--Ahhh, and now we have The Temptation of Bronn(TM)

--The rescue mission! Theon getting to shoot arrows!!

--Greyjoy sibling feelings!!!!

--And Theon is headed to Winterfell! ...He’s going to die there saving a Stark, isn’t he? *braces self for emotional pain*

-- ...you couldn’t have proposed this Jon/Dany marriage, oh, four or so episodes ago, Davos?? The mind still boggles that no one brought this very obvious diplomatic solution up on Dragonstone last season.

--Varys: “Nothing lasts.” 

Camera: *pans to Jon & Dany* 

Me: I n t e r e s t i n g

Also me: Is this foreshadowing, or a red herring to up the dramatic tension?

--Is that... something resembling a smile from Jon around Dany? And he actually looks like he might genuinely enjoy her presence and/or care about her? It’s a miracle! ...A miracle that we really could have used some of last season too, GOT!!

--“She doesn’t need to be my friend. But I am her queen. If she can’t respect me--” *nods* That’s more or less what I figured their initial dynamic would be like. And their attitudes make sense on both ends of the equation! (Note: I can’t decide whether that was a veiled threat from Dany or not; if so, though, she jumped to them pretty darn fast.) I’m curious to see where D&D go with this.

--Oh, only that many goats and sheep. *rolls eyes* I mean, I get it, the dragons are huge; they need a lot of fuel! But on the other hand, that’s an awful lot of food the people don’t get anymore... It’s a no-win situation.

--“They don’t like the North.” Huh, I wonder what it means that the literal breathing symbol of the Targs aren’t fans of being in the North. [/sarcasm]

--Look, I’m glad Dany feels comfortable enough around Jon to be playful, but... would it have been that difficult for her to give him one or two tips before he mounted this incredibly dangerous flying weapon of mass destruction??

--How are these waterfalls not completely frozen over?! It’s the North and it’s winter. I know, I know, I shouldn’t expect anything resembling realism from this show, but still...

--Ah, so Dany is the one who has the line about how they could “stay here a thousand years and no one would find us”, not Jon. But on the flip side, Jon has his eyes closed for the kiss, not open... at least, not until the dragons start to talk lol.

--Emilia Clarke has such a beautiful smile!

--Yeah, I’m still not feeling the J0n3rys ‘chemistry’. Oh well; you can’t win them all. At least they aren’t totally unbelievable as a couple this episode.

--Ugghhh, yet another joke about balls (or the lack thereof) in this episode.

--Arya and Gendry reunion? Arya and Sandor reunion? Yes!

--Wow, Arya/Gendry are so awkward together right now! Sweet, but awkward. And yeah, here come the shippy feelings again... I’m predictable that way lol.

--“As you wish, m’lady.” *squeals delightedly*

--“You don’t know any other rich girls.” The look on their faces!!

--Can I mention again how much I love that they’re letting Arya and Dany emote so far this episode? It makes a world of difference. Now all we need is for Bran to be allowed to show emotions...

--Ooohh, this must be the promised Jon/Sansa argument scene. 

--Good. I’m glad that there are already some consequences from the lords for Jon having bent the knee... the decision would feel incredibly cheap otherwise.

--And already we have more emotion from Jon in this one scene than in all of his scenes with Dany combined. I’m not saying Jon/Sansa is where the show is going, but it still works much better for me than Jon/Dany does. YMMV, of course, and that’s as it should be.

--”Do you have any faith in me at all?” “You know I do.” <3 <3 <3

--*sighs* Jon, it’s all very well and good to say that Dany will be a good queen, but you could, I don’t know, give Sansa some examples to help her understand why you think that instead of just expecting her to go entirely on your word?

--Ah, this must be the scene with Sam and Dany!

--Oh, poor Sam. I’m so glad they’re letting him be upset about it, though. His dad may have been an abusive dick, but his brother wasn’t... and besides, emotions aren’t always that clear-cut.

--“Now’s the time.” OK, but why now? Why now? Also, is it just me or did Bran’s voice sound different there?

--Jon and Sam reunion!!!

--Ouch, poor Jon. This revelation was always going to hit him hard.

--Jon (in a whisper, looking horrified): “That’s treason.” Uh, Jon, that doesn’t seem like the normal reaction of someone in love with another person? Just saying.

--“You gave up the crown to save your people. Would she do the same?” Samwell Tarly, asking the important questions! This question has always been one of--if not the--cruxes of Dany’s arc, IMO. That and her search for home/belonging.

--Ooo, is this the rumored scene with the WW symbols on the walls?

--Hmmm, this actually looks a bit like that clip from the trailers. Is Edd going to show up soon then?

--Hah! Called it.

--“Stay back, he’s got blue eyes!” “I’ve always had blue eyes!” LMAOOO

--Called it. I knew little Ned Umber was going to be the first named character death of the season. (For the record, I have him slated as the first named character death in my AU S8 fic outline, even though the chapter in question hasn’t been written yet.) Also, wow-- talk about a creepy way to display him!

--Still, that’s odd that he’s just dead rather than a wight-- oh, never mind he is a wight after all!

--Hmm, who are you, tall and mysteriously hooded man? (I mean, realistically everyone onscreen in the North should have their hoods up right now when they’re outside, but this is TV.) Could you possibly be... Jaime Lannister?

--Hah! Called it again.

--They’re going to cut to the credits now that Bran & Jaime have locked eyes, aren’t they? Yep, they just cut to the credits.

Additional Thoughts:

--I wonder where Brienne is... we haven’t seen her this episode IIRC. [ETA: Never mind, she is there in the background in several scenes, she just doesn’t say anything.]

--I wish D&D had given Dany more space to react to the news about undead!Viserion. This should be a big deal for her. Also, why is no one freaking out about the Wall coming down?

--Honestly, the pacing and tone of this episode could have used a little polishing IMO.

--I’m delighted that the show is letting characters speak positively about Sansa and her skills, but I wish the writing wasn’t so very heavy-handed about it.

--Ooo, interesting trailer, though still nothing terribly surprising. I’m curious to see what they do next episode... but not nearly as curious as I am to see what happens in 8x03 and beyond. ;-)

Overall, I enjoyed this episode! So many callbacks to earlier seasons. I may have deeper thoughts on a rewatch.

[entireoranges-creativity]

Carriers Of Light

Title: Carriers Of Light Fandom: Game Of Thrones Ship: Braime Note: Jaime never left the North; or if he did he returned (really it's not important lol) Disclaimer: I don't own, don't sue

“What about you?” Queen Sansa asks with a twinkle in her eyes.

“Pardon me your Grace?” Brienne has a suspicion of what was being brought into question; this topic had occurred several times the last few months; though never directly from Sansa.

“A child. When will you and Ser Jaime be bringing a new life into our world?” The fact she was able to say Jaime without biting back a snarl or anything far worse impressed Brienne.

“Oh I’m not sure...” In truth Brienne was.

“Despite my personal misgivings about him and yes I realize some are undeserved and perhaps with time I shall learn to forgive him fully; but regardless of all that I can tell you care about him deeply. He to you as well.”

“Thank you.” She looks down embarrassed filling her skin redding her cheeks.

“After all those lost on all sides it’s a beautiful thing all these babies and pregnancies.’ Sansa pauses and rubs her swelling belly. ‘You should really consider it.”

“Yes. Perhaps.”

That evening Brienne sat across from Jaime in their shared quarters. He reading and lost within the words. Without meaning to she sighs. He snaps up eyebrows raised.

“Everything ok?”

“It’s fine. Sorry to disturb you.”

“You do realize your a horrible liar my love. Now speak.”

“I think it is time we dissolve this relationship.”

“What in the Seven Hells are you talking about?!” Brienne is battling tears as Jaime stares at her his face emoting both anger and confusion.

“You deserve better.”

“I deserve better?!’ He repeats snapping the words. Brienne nods not trusting herself to say more. ‘Woman I don’t deserve better because I already have the best woman in all the kingdoms and beyond. And it’s not about what I deserve or don’t deserve because we both know I’m truly not worthy of the love you give me; yet you do and I’m humbled every moment. If anything it you who does not deserve my love.” Jaime leans forward taking a strong hold of her hand squeezing.

“I can’t give you what you want.” Her words are soft, barely audible.

“I want you. And I have you.”

“Jaime you should have children, heirs and carriers of your name. You should be able to love and nurture a child in ways I know the Gods intended for you.’ Brienne stops talking to surrender to the tears and sobs racking her, Jaime’s hand never moving. ‘And I, I, I won’t give that do you.”

“Brienne please calm down. I hate to see you like this.”

“I wish I could be the one to give you a hundred children.”

“I certainly do not wish for a hundred children!” He attempts to laugh hoping for her to follow suit; her cries only became deeper.

“You deserve....a strong, courageous, and...a beautiful child.” Jaime removes his hand and leans back to his chair in the proper position and stares at her.

“Is that what this foolishness is about?”

“Foolishness? What is foolishness is me not realizing this sooner!” Jaime’s befuddlement raises as her crying stops and is replaced with rage.

“Oh Sevens help me.” He mumbles.

“I mean it’s pretty obvious you do not desire to have children with me. And I’m not a fool! You believe any child we sire will be a hideous monster and sully your legacy!” She leaps to her feet towering over him. Jaime knows perfectly well the him of the past, the him before she entered his heart and soul would have agreed and made a knife like wound with an insult of her appearance. Him now? Would not ever consider that. It wounded him to think she believed he was still capable of such thoughts.

“Our children will be strong and courageous. But also beautiful and that beauty will come from you!” He is on his feet too, he goes for her hips, she jerks away.

“You don’t need to be condescending!”

“I’m not!”

“Why does this even matter?” He immediately regrets his words.

“You have no idea. No idea! What it feels like! You and are fucking perfect hair, stunning eyes, chiseled chin...people just look at you and they threw stuff at you! Me? Well long as I can remember I have been teased verbally and physically for my appearance. I act as if it never bothered me but Hells Jaime it did and it does. I don’t think I can reasonably subject a child to that. Even with your looks mixed in. It won’t be enough to undo this ugliness.” She begins to cry again, Jaime this time successfully is able to make contact and pulls her into him.

“I wish I knew what to say. Besides I’m sorry for being apart of those jabs. But you are stronger then this. I know that you know that Brienne.” She shrugs.

“It’s not just my appearance.’ She takes a breath before pulling back from his embrace. ‘You don’t have to lie or keep stringing me along. We should dissolve this.” That damn word again!

“Perhaps I shouldn’t have children with you because I’ll lose my fucking mind with the stubbornness they’ll surely gain from you! For the final time what are you talking about?! When have I ever given any indication I was unhappy with you? With us?!”

“You think I’m stupid. Don’t say a word! You think I don’t overhear conversations and talk. This place isn’t as large as you tend to believe it is nor are you as soft spoken as I’m imagine you think you are. I have heard you speaking about the mere idea of having children a few days back. With Stefan I do believe it was? When asked by him if you were having any I saw you make a face and shrugged. And then when he made a quip of yeah looking at your woman I don’t blame you. What did you do? You laughed.” Jaime clenches his eyes tight, pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a few calming breaths.

“You didn’t hear all the conversation.”

“I heard and saw enough Jaime.”

“So you saw me slap him and swore to him if he ever even thought anything like that again let alone said it I would skewer him upon my sword?”

“No.” Comes softly.

“Exactly. And I wasn’t making a face because I did not want children; I was making one because I’m tired of discussing the matter with strangers! Ever since the decree was lifted and this allowance of all children I have been questioned relentlessly over it! I should have been discussing it with you it would appear.”

"Fine. Tell me now, how do you feel about it?"

"I do want children. I'd be lying if I didn't relieve to you I'm scared though."

"The same as my fears?"

"What? Gods no! Brienne you need to let that go!' She mutters, he know it's best not to call her out over it. 'I have experienced the pain of losing children, all three of mine. And though I was not their father in the traditional sense I did love them. The death of a child no matter the circumstance is the worse anguish you could ever imagine. My name or things done in my name has made many enemies for generations long. I'm scared I won't be able to protect any child we have from a father or mother seeking revenge for those sins. My heart is almost scarred from that pain; but you my dear? I could not bear to see you endure anything like it." Before he knows it Brienne has her arms draped around his neck, kisses his forehead.

"Please forgive me, I never considered that. And it's honorable you wish to protect me. But what you speak of is out of our control. Of course we all take all precautions to keep them safe, at the end of the day we just need faith in the Seven.' Jaime wiggles from her hold, places his lone hand on his hip. Smirking. 'What?"

"I thought you didn't want children with me. I thought you wanted to end our relationship to allow me from the freedom to fuck some North whore..."

"Jaime!"

"Of course you worded it far nicer. The sentiment was still there though. And now you're willing and ready?" Brienne exhales deeply.

"I'm scared too Jaime. Of those fears I mentioned; you really can not stand there and say or think I'm overreacting when you did not yourself experience the taunts. And yes I agree this world even with the peace this year is a tentative and dangerous place. There is still beauty and light. I want to help create more light." It is now Brienne surprised by Jaime kissing her hard, desperate, but as always gently.

"So I can't hook up with a Nor..."

"Don't you dare finish that sentence."

"Sorry my love. But I no longer wish to date you." Brienne jerks back, eyes wide.

"But I thoug...' She seizes talking and breathing all together as Jaime lowers himself to one knee and stares up at her; with a look that melts her every time.

"I don't have a ring on me, I promise one day soon I'll get you all the jewels and gold I can lay my hands on..."

"I don't care about that."

"I know. Now shush I'm trying to propose here!"

"Of course, go right ahead,"

'Well you sort of ruined the moment!' He stands back up laughing softly, she echos it back.

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"Gods yes Jaime! Yes, I will marry you."

"Oh! Really?!' Her laugh now he is sure all the Kingdoms could hear. 'I mean don't get me wrong but you were the one started this conversation by telling me you wanted to break up. You can understand my confusion."

"Your lucky I love you."

"And why is that?"

"Because if I didn't you'd surely be dead right now."

"Oh I'm positive you would have killed me a thousand times before now. And this why I know our child or children will be the fiercest creatures ever. If they are even a fraction like either of us that's a force no one will dare tussle with!"

"I can only hope. Um do you think we should...um?" Brienne finds herself growing embarrassed.

"Do I think we should try to make a baby? Hells yeah!'

"It may not happen right away. Or at all."

"It will. Because the Gods will know that we are worthy to be the carriers of more light." Brienne's lips fall onto his one more and gently guides her to their bed.

+++The End+++