#ned’s relationships with those closest to him fascinates me

[ladycatofwinterfell]

Devotion

Summary: He loves his wife so dearly and still he has loved Robert for as long as he can remember. He despises Robert for knocking on their door so late at night and yet he follows him outside

Did someone say nedbert fic? Did someone also say nedcat fic? Probably not but that’s what I have for you. Enjoy!

Catelyn’s skin was so soft as he kissed it. He could feel the smell of her hair as he nuzzled her nose into the crook of her neck. The sweet, somewhat flowery scent. The scent of his lady.

The way she flushed red as he kissed her, it never grew any less lovely. Starting at her cheeks, travelling down her neck and over her chest. It rose and fell with every breath she took, increasing in speed as her breathing quickened. Quick, shallow breaths escaping slightly parted lips. Perfect lips.

Her eyes gleamed as he opened her robe, let his lips run down her chest. Gently he kissed every inch of her that he could reach, ran his tongue over every mark and line that bearing their children had left on her, listened to the way her breath hitched as he hit a spot she liked particularly much. He lingered there until her hands in his hair forced him lower. She had only so much patience.

He placed a kiss just beneath her navel before standing upright again, looking into her eyes.

“I do love that stomach of yours” he told her.

The lines that had turned almost silver since Rickon’s birth never ceased to strike him as the most beautiful thing. He loved how soft all their children had turned her, how one could tell she had given him heirs.

“So put another child in it” she said, smiling. “It would be even more beautiful then.”

She took his hands, slowly backing towards the bed with him following. Never did she look away from him, never did her smile leave her lips.

As she sat on the edge of the bed he kneeled before her. For a moment he turned his face up, drank in the sight of her. Stronger than any wine he had ever tasted. Her hair falling over her shoulders, gleaming like fire in the light of the heart. Her flushed cheeks, her soft smile.

“My love” she sighed. “You are going awfully slow.”

“Am I?”

He placed a quick kiss on the inside of her knee. Barely had he leaned away again before she had woven her fingers into his hair once more. He expected her to bring his mouth to between her legs where she so clearly wanted him to be, but instead she leaned down to kiss him.

“Make love to me” she whispered as they parted. “Please.”

As he stood up and began to undress she shed her robe and threw it to the foot of the bed. Taking one’s clothes off required no large amount of intelligence, but his hands seemed to grow worthless as he looked upon his wife.

Though soon he was in her arms, settling between her legs. Was there a sweeter feeling than the pleasure of their bodies joining? Was there a prettier sound than Catelyn’s soft moan as he pushed inside her? Was there a more beautiful sight than seeing her tilt her head slightly backwards, her lips parted and her eyelids heavy?

The thought barely had time to disappear from his mind before someone knocked on the door.

“My lord, the king–“ began a soft voice.

Desmond was interrupted by a banging on the door so hard Ned for a moment feared it would fall of its hinges.

He heard how Catelyn drew a sharp breath beneath him, though not from pleasure. When he looked at her he noticed she had turned her eyes towards the door, looking at it like a frightened deer.

“Ned!” shouted a man on the other side.

There was no mistaking Robert’s voice. If only Robert had not been king. If only he had been the man Ned knew in his youth, the friend he had grown up alongside. If only he had been simply Robert.

“I know you’re in there!”

Catelyn had pushed him off her before he had time to move himself.

“What an honour to have the king knocking on my door” she muttered as she reached for her robe again. “I wonder whatever reason he could have for it.”

Ned had to walk naked through the chamber to take his own robe from the wardrobe. After having wrapped it around himself he threw a glance at Catelyn to make sure she was covered. She was once again sitting on the edge of the bed, that time with the robe completely covering her body and a rather disgruntled look on her face. Her hair was still somewhat messy from the pillows.

“Good evening, Your Grace” Ned said as he opened the door. “How come you knock on my wife’s chamber door so late at night?”

“I want to speak with her husband.”

Despite that it was so late at night Robert did not appear to be drunk. There was not even a slight slur as he spoke, he didn’t sway on his feet. During the king’s time in Winterfell he hadn’t been sober once, at least as far as Ned was aware.

It was strange to see him so calm after he had almost beaten the door off its hinges. Maybe he just didn’t know how to properly knock. There was so much force in him.

“Can we not speak on the morrow?” Ned asked.

He would rather go back to his bed and his wife. Most nights he spent with her he made sure they knew he would rather not be disturbed. Not always because there was something to interrupt the way Robert had, but because he enjoyed having a calm night with his lady. At that very moment all he wished was that Robert had respected what poor Desmond told him. It had been almost two weeks since he and Catelyn had last found peace enough to lay with each other.

“I’m the king and I want to speak with you now.”

“I’m sure my lady wife–“ he began, only to be betrayed by the lady wife in question.

Catelyn had left the bed and moved to stand beside him. He could feel her place a hand on his lower back.

“He’s all yours, Your Grace” she said.

Her hand on his back said something else. Though she had little choice. Robert was a king. Ned could protest because the king was his friend, she could not. He wished she had let him talk Robert out of it.

“Might he dress first?” Ned asked.

If he was to leave the chamber he wanted more clothes than a robe.

Robert looked at him for a moment, his eyes turning downwards as if he hadn’t really noticed Ned was wearing nothing but his robe.

“In this seven times damned cold you’d freeze your cock off if you didn’t. And we wouldn’t want that, would we, Catelyn?”

Ned was surprised at the chuckle that came from his wife at that.

“No, it would pain me” she said.

Catelyn had never been ashamed of particularly much, merely proper. Aware of how she presented herself without being dismayed at most everything. His sometimes rather bawdy lords had taken a liking to her quickly after she became their lady. And still Ned was taken aback by her reaction.

“Not more than it would pain me” he told her.

Robert laughed at that. His laugh was as loud and booming as ever, even as he wasn’t drunk.

If he had to choose there were other parts of him he would rather lose to frostbite. A couple of fingers he could do without, he’d like to keep his manhood.

“I’d have to dress in black for mourning” Catelyn said.

Once again Robert laughed. Ned could feel himself smiling, somewhat against his will. Catelyn gave him a look that tattled on just how satisfied she was with herself at the moment before drawing back into the room again. As he looked at Robert again he heard how she opened a drawer of her dressing table.

“Black never was my wife’s colour so to spare her from having to wear it I’ll get dressed” he told Robert. “I shall be with you shortly.”

“I’ll be waiting for you outside the keep.”

He only had time to close the door and turn back to face the room again before Catelyn’s lips were on his. One hand in his hair and the other opening his robe again.

“What are you doing?” Ned managed to get out.

“Twice he’s taken you from me, and soon he’s doing it again” Catelyn said rather firmly. “He can wait a little while, it will not kill him.”

“You want me to go south with him.”

Even before Lysa’s letter she had urged him to go, told him it was necessary. For the future of their house, for all it could give them, he had to go south. And after the letter it was to protect Robert and uncover the truth.

“I wish he had never come here, but I know you have to go. You couldn’t refuse his offer.”

He leaned down to catch her lips in another kiss. They had already spoken about it, he felt no desire to do so again. And it would be unwise to keep Robert waiting for too long. Catelyn seemed to agree with him.

The sense of urgency took the enjoyment out of it, at least for him. And he noticed as he tried to make Catelyn reach her pleasure with a hand that it took much longer than it usually did. The frustration was apparent on her face even after he managed to touch her in a way that made her come undone. As she pushed him to his back and straddled him it was hard to think of anything but that she didn’t look very satisfied.

“Catelyn, we don’t–“ he began.

If she didn’t want it he didn’t want to do it.

“No, I need it.”

He couldn’t remember it having been so bad since they grew close with each other. Since it had been so much more duty than pleasure. His body told him it felt good but his mind seemed to be of a different opinion, he had to focus to be able to come at all. Even as she seemed to use every trick she knew.

They stay joined for a moment after he had finished and Catelyn seemed to soften then. As she leaned down and kissed him before moving away. He was glad for that kiss.

Ned was silent as he dressed, his wife was just as silent. She pulled the furs over herself and turned her back to him, he would have believed her to be asleep if it hadn’t been for that her breathing was wrong. It had started so good, he had liked it so much, slowly taking in every inch of her. Then it had all been ruined. He felt somewhat filthy for a reason he could not say.

“I will not object should you wake me upon your return” she mumbled just as he was about to leave. “If that is your wish, of course.”

Usually those words would have him seeing the beauty of it before him. His mind spinning, dreaming of how he would come back to find her still wet and wanting for him, how he would take her again. He would most likely feel it later. When he came back knowing what she had promised him.

“Hopefully I won’t be long.”

The sky was clear above them, the moon and the stars watching over the castle. The clear nights were the coldest, whatever reason could Robert have for wanting to go outside? He had done nothing but complain about cold and summer snows since he arrived there.

Robert stood and looked up at the starry sky with a member of his king’s guard next to him. Only as Ned came closer to them did he see it was Ser Jaime. One could never escape the damn Lannisters.

“Robert” Ned said.

He had meant to call him by his royal title, but his name was what had escaped. It seemed he would never get used to it.

“Leave us, Ser Jaime” Robert said instead of greeting Ned in return.

“Your Grace, it is my duty to–“

“Ned, when was someone last murdered within your castle walls?”

Then Robert looked down at him, his eyes could have been stars. He had been so handsome once, what had happened? Was it the throne that had made him so or had it been inevitable? Was it grief over what had happened during the war that had made him resort to drinking? Or had he always been to fond of the pleasures of life?

“Hasn’t happened during my time as lord” Ned responded. “Not in my lifetime, I believe.”

Not that he could remember. Though there had been no kings to visit in his lifetime.

“And do you believe your people to be loyal to their king?”

He knew the people of his castle, almost as if they were his own blood. They wouldn’t harm a king, even a southern one.

“I do.”

“Listen to Lord Stark and leave us.”

The hand that rested on the hilt of his sword seemed to grip a little tighter.

“Yes, my king.”

The bitterness in Jaime’s voice shone through, at least to Ned.

Robert began walking away, seemingly without a clear plan as to where. Ned followed him, but glanced over his shoulder at Ser Jaime. He had moved to stand by the doors to the keep together with the household guards, seemingly opting to not go inside. He had to be cold in that armour, it wasn’t meant for the North.

“Cersei has started asking to return south sooner than planned” Robert told him.

“I’m not surprised.”

While she remained civil at least in front of Catelyn she had also made it no secret that she disliked the north. Too cold, too dull, too stern. Without colour and life. Ned would have taken offence if it hadn’t been for that many people of the south shared her opinion.

“She’s a thorn in my side, the golden bitch.”

“And still you need her.”

Robert might have disliked his queen, but she was still his queen. Her children were Robert’s heirs, the eldest would be king after him.

“I need her family’s money.”

That couldn’t be denied.

“Do you love Catelyn?” Robert then asked.

Was there another word for it? She was his Cat, had been so for years. He appreciated her company more than anyone else’s, didn’t see the appeal in other people’s beds anymore. She was the one he desired, the one he felt safe with. It had been that way for years.

“I do” he said.

After all their years together, after everything they had slowly built, how could he not? They had made children, given each other love.

“You didn’t marry her for love.”

“No, I didn’t.”

He had married her for her father’s armies. The rest had come later. Of course he hadn’t been happy about leaving her behind in Riverrun during the rebellion, she was his wife after all, but he hadn’t really missed her. When he left her to beat back the Greyjoys as she was expecting Arya it had hurt. He had missed her, spent the nights thinking about the day when he could be back in her arms again.

“When did you know it was love?”

Maybe during the Greyjoy rebellion. Maybe when she placed Sansa in his arms for the first time. Maybe when she kissed him after he told her he was to build her a sept. Maybe when he returned from the Greyjoy rebellion and they made love to each other from sunset to sunrise.

“You have an awful lot of questions.”

And Ned didn’t have an answer to all of them. When had he known it was love? He couldn’t say. He couldn’t remember the first time he had thought of that he loved her. He couldn’t remember first time he had told her he loved her. He just knew he did.

“It feels unfair you get to love your wife while mine gives me nothing but hell” was Robert’s response to that.

“You are free to love whoever you wish, you’re the king” Ned reminded him. “And your queen has given you children, they cannot possibly be hell.”

“You get to be happy in your marriage, you don’t understand.”

No, he didn’t understand. He was aware of that Cersei Lannister wasn’t as sweet as she looked, he understood Robert wasn’t happy with her. But the misery of their existence together that he had glimpsed during their time in Winterfell, that he didn’t understand.

“Your marriage to her certainly hasn’t stopped you from looking elsewhere.”

Ned almost believed the whores in Wintertown had grown richer than he was during the royal visit. According to Catelyn both Tyrion Lannister and the king were generous in their payments. She had overheard it from two of the women in the kitchen as she went there to search for Bran and Rickon. ‘Soon we’ll be able to raise the taxes without them complaining’ she had muttered.

“Though I will never share a life with someone worth loving. The fucking Targaryens took that from me.”

In the end everything always came back to Lyanna. No matter where they turned, no matter where they walked, it was always her. And even she was just a fantasy for him. She hadn’t wanted to marry him, especially not after he had his first bastard.

“You didn’t know her like I did” Ned said. “You don’t know what they took from you.”

He braced himself for the anger that would flare up in Robert as he said it, though nothing came. The fury of the Baratheons stayed calm.

“We should have been family, you and I. Not spend the rest of our lives apart from one another. You up here, buried beneath winter snows and I stuck in that city forsaken by the gods.”

As they turned around a corner Robert stopped and looked at Ned once more. A visible shiver went through his body and he wrapped his cloak tighter around himself. It must have been the largest cloak Ned had ever seen. Golden with a crowned black stag embroidered on it. A cloak for for a king.

“When you return to that city I’m coming with you.”

Not because he wanted to, but because he had to. He didn’t want to leave Catelyn and two of his sons behind in Winterfell, he would despise every moment of it. King’s Landing wasn’t where he belonged. Though still there was a small joy in knowing it would mean less of a burden for his friend. He had known Robert since they were boys, loved Robert since they were boys.

“That’s the only relief I have” Robert chuckled. “Knowing it will be you and I again. Gods, those were better times.”

“Well, they were certainly easier.”

Everything had been so easy. Spending their days doing whatever they wanted, taking every chance they got to drive Jon halfway to madness. He was sure Catelyn would have been wide eye and stuttering had she got to know half of it.

“Less of a charm to it now that Jon won’t be there to yell at us when we take things too far” he added.

“In his last years it was mostly the other way around, but damn I miss the man.”

And Ned hadn’t even been there when he died. It had been years since the last time he saw Jon Arryn. And now Jon Arryn was dead and all that remained of his youth was Robert.

“As do I.”

Ned looked up at the clear sky above them, at the stars. Did Jon look down on them from one of the seven heavens he had believed in? Did he know? Did he fear for Robert as Ned did?

Suddenly Robert had taken him by the arm and forced him to look down again.

“I’ll never let you leave me again, Ned” he said.

“Was it me who left you? I’m not the one who came out of the war a king.”

“You left me down south.”

“I became Lord of Winterfell, I had no choice.”

“You could have had a seat on my council.”

“And who was to govern the North? My boy of less than a year? My southron bride?”

“I don’t care, damnit, I care about having you by my side.”

“And I will be.”

Many years ago they had walked different paths and Ned had been sure of that he would never be side by side with Robert again. Though there he stood with Robert holding his arm. There was a desperation for in his eyes Ned could not recall having ever seen before. Anger, joy, grief, lust, fear, he had seen it all. But he hadn’t seen desperation.

There were traces of the beauty he had possessed in his youth still left in him. His eyes were the same, clear and blue. His hair and beard black as coal. As Robert held his arm they were so close to each other their breaths became one cloud between them when they looked at each other.

“Like when we were young” Robert said.

“Like when we were young.”

Except for that it was different, so very different. Or maybe it was Ned that remembered it wrong. Neither of them were shaven clean anymore, and Robert’s body against his didn’t immediately feel right. It could have been all the years with Catelyn that made it so. Though they were not so unlike each other, there was a hunger in them.

Robert moved his hands to Ned’s shoulders as they kissed, held onto him as if he would suddenly disappear. Ned didn’t know when he had grabbed the front of Robert’s clothes, burying his fists in the fabric, he just knew he was doing it.

He was the king’s man, was he not? The king’s hand. What was he to do if not serve? If not show Robert his devotion?

Before he knew it Robert’s hands on his shoulders had pushed him down on his knees. Gods, he was strong. Not as strong as he had been when they were young, but still enough for it to be impressive. Strong enough for Ned to be in awe.

It had been so long since Ned kneeled for a man. Since he had wed Catelyn he had stayed loyal to her, even if he in the beginning had been somewhat put off by the idea of her. She was a woman, he had never been very drawn to them. Though he had found that women worked as well as men, at least she did. She was the only woman he had ever been with. The only one he had loved.

Still he didn’t hesitate, moved his hands up to undo the laces of Robert’s breeches. With his gloves on it was somewhat hard, but he managed it. He knew neither of them could take off their gloves in the cold, but he would have liked to feel the roughness of Robert’s hands again.

He was already hard when Ned wrapped his hand around the base of his cock and took the tip into his mouth. The taste of salt as he licked off the fluid that had already spilled from him was somehow surprising. He had forgotten he somehow enjoyed it.

Robert grabbed his hair, forced him to take him deeper. He had to suppress the urge to gag, stopped for a moment to breathe through his nose so that he wouldn’t suffocate. He was rusty.

Though Robert didn’t seem to have anything to complain about. At least as far as Ned could tell from the sounds he made when he began moving his head. Running his lips and tongue up and down his cock.

Robert was rather rough, didn’t seem to consider Ned’s comfort at all, he didn’t care so much. He had always been rough, Ned had never minded. As he came close to reaching his pleasure he began thrusting into Ned’s mouth and once again he almost gagged. For a moment he wondered what it was that made him different from the whores of Wintertown then and there. Could it be anything but love?

“Ned” Robert groaned, tightening the grip on his hair.

Then Ned moved away, sitting back on his heels. He was out of breath as he looked up at the king.

“I’m too old to swallow” he told him.

His knees were aching. Soft snow covered the ground and still it hurt to kneel. His neck had also seen better days. Since last time he had grown old.

Robert finished himself with a hand as Ned found his feet again. As it was all over he felt cold. He had left Catelyn in her bedchamber only to go and do that. And while he couldn’t say he had not enjoyed it he knew it was all wrong.

“Too old to swallow, but the years have not taken your skilled tongue from you” Robert said, sounding just as out of breath.

“I have maintained it.”

He bent down to brush snow from his clothes. It had already began to melt, leaving wet patches on him.

Catelyn was also rather fond of his tongue and he didn’t mind using it. There was a pleasure in pleasing, in tasting and listening to what it made the other feel.

“I don’t know if I envy you or Cat more.”

Ned was fairly certain of that he himself didn’t envy neither Robert nor Cersei in the least. He missed Robert, he did. Though was it right? What he had done, was it the right thing? Most likely not. But then and there it had felt good.

“Why would you envy her?”

“Your hers, are you not?”

Ned had never known Robert to hesitate about taking what he wanted. Why was he saying that when he had already taken Ned? He was leaving his home, his wife, to serve Robert.

He couldn’t look at Robert any longer, turned his back to him. He waited until the king had laced up his breeches before he began walking back towards the keep. The night didn’t seem so pleasant anymore, the stars must have judged him.

Robert followed him, silent for once. All Ned heard was his heavy steps, the snow that creaked under his feet.

Ser Jaime was still standing by the doors to the keep, Ned didn’t look at him as one of the guards opened the door so he could enter.

“The bear, the bear, and the maiden fair” Jaime muttered as Ned passed him.

“Better that than a kingslayer.”

All the way up until when he was about to pass her door he was certain of that he was walking towards his own bedchamber. He could not join her in her bed after having pleasured the king with his mouth. Though she had to be asleep by then. He knew his wife, she had probably been asleep before he had closed the door behind him. He didn’t want to be alone. It was selfish.

Just as he had suspected Catelyn was asleep when he entered her chamber. Curled up underneath the furs, just as she had been when he left her. Lost in her peaceful slumber, unknowing. His wife, his Catelyn. What had he done?

He undressed as quietly as he could, did everything to avoid waking her despite that he knew she always slept heavily. Ever since Rickon no longer needed her attention at night she had been near impossible to accidentally wake.

He didn’t take her into his arms, merely slipped into the bed beside her and turned his back to her. It would have felt wrong to do so as if nothing had happened. Though of course he had barely settled before she had turned to him in her sleep and laid an arm over him, her hand resting on his chest. He couldn’t bring himself to push her away even as the betrayal hung over him like a sword above a doomed man’s neck. Instead he took her hand, weaved their fingers together, held them over his heart. The familiarity of it was almost overwhelming. How was he to survive leaving her behind in Winterfell?

“Too tired?” she sighed.

It took a moment for him to realise she was awake, that she was not merely mumbling in her sleep.

“Exhausted” he responded gently.

She moved even closer to him, pressed herself against him. Even as she had been beneath the furs she was cold.

“Me too.”

He felt how she placed a gentle kiss on his neck before letting her head rest against the pillows again. A moment later she had drifted off to sleep once more.

She had told Robert Ned was all his, that was most likely not what she had meant.

[lordofpinecrest-blog]

SEASON 8 EPISODE 4 THE LAST OF THE STARKS

While most of Episode 4 may have had a slow pace, the end was packed with action. This time, I will even throw in some book references. Relationships dominated the episode. Filled with good byes, which may or may not last. The episode started where we left oft last week, the end of the Battle of Winterfell and the Long Night. The sun has risen, and our leading survivors are mourning the ones closest to them. week. First we see Daenerys mourning Jorah, followed by Sansa and Theon. Sansa pins Theon with the Stark sigil, a true sign that she accepted Theon as a Stark. As Daenerys and Sansa walk back to the living, we see the sadness in the eyes of the living. The camera pans  out wide angled to show the thousands that died. As we come back to the living, we see a tattered Ghost is prominent in camera angle. The camera stops on him and it is good to see that he survived. But why did the camera focus on Ghost? Was it for the fans or something more?

Before setting afire to the dead, Jon gives a rousing speech. The key phrase was that they “put aside their differences to fight together and to die together.” That is how they won. But will they stay on that path to defeat Cersei? Doesn’t look good, but I get ahead of myself. The leaders come out with torches to set the Viking like pilings on fire. Here we see Arya by Beric,  Sam by Edd and Jon by Lyanna. Before going on, some theorized that last week the Night King was not killed and nor were the White Walkers destroyed. If that were true, these dead could have awakened, which they didn’t. So let’s end that theory. After last week’s killings, I thought it was a fitting beginning and a good emotional tribute to the dead.

What is death without a Wake Northern style? If I recall correctly, the last time we had that big of a party in the Great Hall of Winterfell was in Season One when Robert Baratheon came to town. And now we see Jamie and Tyrion back there celebrating. One of the biggest differences from Season One was that Catelyn Stark refused to let Jon join in. Outside and brooding, Tyrion said of Jon being a bastard “Wear it like armor and it can never be used to hurt you.” Did the Imp know something? More on that later.

I am not going to go into all that happened at the Wake. Lot’s of eating and drinking. But from the start, our Queen did not look like celebrating. But Danny did show she could be a clever leader when she crowned Gendry “Lord of Storms End.”  That made the Northerners happy as they raise their cups to him. The only scowl comes, of course, from the Hound! As the scene moves along, we see some happy and some not. Jaime, Tyrion, Brienne and Pod playing a drinking game which eventually leads to Jamie bedding Brienne. All to the chagrin of Tormund. And at this time, we think Jamie has come full circle. And we have another quip from Tyrion “we may have defeated them but we still have us to contend with.” How true was that!

Tyrion also says that Bran is the only living true born son of Ned Stark to which Bran does not immediately reply. Ser Lane Abraham thinks Rickon Stark is still alive. Could that have been a hint? Stranger things have happened.

Tormund raves on about Jon about how Jon rode a dragon-and who would to that- a madman or a King? And while the Mother of Dragons  looked upset as the Northerners rallied around Jon, it was no accident that behind her on camera was Lord Varys. Why? I believe the Spider always knew the Jon was the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and that Jon is the rightful King of the Seven Kingdoms. I will get to that later-book spoiler!

Sansa with the Hound was a good one. After all, had Sansa left King’s Landing with the Hound, she would not have become what she has. Sansa is longer a little bird. Best line was when the Hound asked Sansa how she killed Ramsey and she said “hounds.” First true laugh from the Hound and a good one. One more thing. The Hound said there is only one thing that will make him happy. Any doubt that thing is killing the Mountain? Nope.

Poor Gendry. Proposes to Arya and gets turned down. As Arya declines, she repeats a line from Season One where she basically said to her father “I am not a lady, I never have been. That is not me” Do you remember where she said almost the same thing? Last Season to Nymeria, when Arya wanted Nymeria to come back with her to Winterfell and stop running wild.  Nymeria turned away and Arya said “That’s not you.” Both have to be free to run and in many ways, both are the same. Could that line also mean we will see Nymeria again? Hope so.

Later we see the strife beginning to swell between Jon and Daenerys. Even though they love each other, they cannot recapture that love. Danny wants Jon to keep his heritage a secret as she is afraid the North will rally around him and crown him King.  Don’t you think she is right? I do. Jon, as naive as ever, thinks that by bending the knee, and declaring Daenerys Queen, that the North will follow her. Danny, to her credit, knows better. But Jon says he cannot keep the secret from Sansa and Arya, his family. Jon and Danny do not leave happy campers. Is Jon ready to be king? He military strategy is poor at best, and he is naive. So why would he be a good king? Because of his heritage? And while in the end, Jon may sit on the Iron Throne, I don’t think he has what it takes to actually win the Game of Thrones. Agree?

Question: When Her Grace says that after she sits on the Iron Throne, no men will live in fear, do you believe her? After all, she does show signs of being the Mad Queen. Or she is just trying to convince herself that she is not like her father?

In the War Room, we see how devastated the combined armies are. Daenerys wants to strike fast, but Sansa says to wait while the troops heal. Jon overrules Sansa and sides with the Dragon Queen. That leads to Arya and Sansa calling Jon out for not taking the family side. In the Gods wood, and after Jon make Sansa and Arya swear to keep what they are about to learn a secret,  Bran tells them that Jon is really Aegon Targaryen. Okay a few things. First, did Jon have Bran tell Sansa and Arya the truth because he was afraid they might not have believed it if Jon told them? Certainly possible. And do Sansa and Arya keep the secret? More on that later.

Question: When Her Grace says that after she sits on the Iron Throne, no men will live in fear, do you believe her? After all, she does show signs of being the Mad Queen. Or she is just trying to convince herself that she is not like her father?

In some ways, the next scene defies reality. How the hell did Bronn get through all the guards and into the chambers where Jamie and Tyrion were? As predicted, Tyrion offers Bronn more than Cersei, so Bronn switched sides. Plus he thinks Cersei will not win. But what may be important is the way Jamie insulted Bronn. And even though Bronn left, I think those two could meet again.

That is followed by the Hound and Arya riding off to fulfill their destinies. Both have unfinished business. The Hound to kill the Mountain and Arya Cersei. Neither one plans on coming back to Winterfell. Does that mean Arya dies?? I don’t think so. Does the Hound die?  My prediction is he dies after killing the Mountain. I wish we had more quick scenes with these two as their back and forth is always spirited. And Arya made the Hound laugh again!! Both Drogon and Rhaegal are healed and fly to the delight of their mother. Armies marching south. The Imp trying to convince Sansa to trust Daenerys. Was there ever a truer line than when Sansa said “The men of my family do not do well in the Capital.” To which Tyrion replies “As Jon once told me, he is not a Stark.” Jon said that to Tyrion in the same scene from Season One that I referenced above. And when Sansa turns away looking distressed, the Imp asks Sansa if she is okay. The scene cuts away leading some to think that Sansa told Tyrion who Jon really was.  I don’t think so because Sansa is a pure Stark. Sansa made a promise to keep a secret just as her father did with his sister.  So in my opinion, Sansa would never betray a promise given to a Stark, which Jon is. More on that later.

And then some goodbyes for Jon. First with Tormund, who says Jon has the real North in him. Jon wants to deny it, but he does. Why do I think we will see Tormund again?   And then Sam. That are besties!  Gilly is pregnant and we know that this child will come into play in the future.  And while it was hard for me to accept that Jon would leave Ghost behind, Ghost does belong in the North. But that would never happen in the books as they were part of each other. But again, the show does not give any time to that special bond. And as Jon rides off, how sad did Ghost look? Have we seen the last of Ghost or will he warg with Nymeria to help save the day? Just my fantasy. SIGH!

At sea with the Targaryen fleet. We see the conversation between the Spider and Tyrion. Both know that Jon is Aegon Targaryen, And while only a few know that now, the Master of Whispers knows the news will spread and both realize the consequences of that. And as they discuss it, we get the feeling  that Varys thinks Jon is better suited to sit on the Iron Throne. Tyrion not so much. Fascinating discussion until all hell breaks out. Should we disqualify Daenerys like Maximum Security over a little thing like heritage?

But before we get to that hell, the question comes up, how did Varys and Tyrion know that Jon was not Ned’s bastard son and really Aegon Targaryen? As I said before, some think Sansa spilled the beans, but I don’t think so as she would ever have broken her promise. So let’s start with Varys. He knows everything. Even while serving King Robert, he was always loyal to the Targaryens. When the Spider first came to Westeros, he served as the Mad King’s Master of Whispers, and he would have heard things and figured them out. As for Tyrion, like Sam, he is a reader and who is to say he didn’t read what Sam did? And when he saw Jon ride a dragon, he put 2 and 2 together and confirmed it in his mind. Makes sense to me.

And here is where the books may come back to play, at least to some degree.  In the fifth book, “A Dance with Dragons,” we learned that Varys had Rhaegar's infant son, Aegon, swapped with a lowborn baby and smuggled to Essos to be raised in hiding by Rhaegar's friend Jon Connington, who was exiled by the Mad King for failing to defeat Robert. So when the Red Viper, Oberyn Martell, battles the Mountain, he thinks that the Mountain had killed his sister’s two infant children. But in the book, we learn he had not. As A Dance with Dragons continues, we learn that Aegon has been tutored to be a kind and learned person like his father and is being raised to sit on the Iron Throne.  And guess who else learns this secret in the books? Tyrion. So maybe the show is throwing us a curve ball with Jon being Aegon and Danny being a little mad. And while we readers of the books always thought Jon’s parents were Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen, he could not have been named Aegon because Rhaegar already had a son named. Plus Rhaegar and Lyanna did not know that the infant Rhaegar was supposedly killed. So maybe the show names Jon Aegon to peak the curiosity of those who read the books. Book readers, what do you think?

Euron Greyjoy has set a trap for the Targaryen fleet and shockingly, shoots  Rhaegal out of the sky. Jon’s beloved dragon dies as he falls into the sea. DAMN and DAMN. Was that scene as shocking to you as it was to me? Daenerys is force to retreat on Drogon but Euron’s navy destroys Danny’s fleet. This is the second time Euron has done this. Is there a spy in Danny’s camp or was it just simple to figure out as Daenerys was sailing to Dragonstone?  Any idiot could have figured that out! And while I was not surprised that another dragon died, I did not see it coming here and it sucked!! And here is a question: The weapons that were shooting at the dragons were all on the front of Euron’s ships. Why didn’t Daenerys fly and circle back and burn them all from behind?? The Maginot Line. I told you Yara should have burned Euron’s ship before she escaped. Another thought also came to mind. When was the last time we saw Drogon breath fire? It was before his battle with Viserion. And even here, we did not see Drogon fire up. Could he be hurt more than we know? Remember the scene where Danny was worried Drogon was eating enough. Maybe he hasn’t recharged. Rest in peace Rhaegal.

This all leads us closer to the next war. As we see, with the death of her second child, Daenerys is ready to use Drogon and her army to lay waste to King’s Landing. Varys and Tyrion object to this. They must see the Mad King in the Mother of Dragons. I am sure they both know that that the Mad King was saying “Burn them all.”  But Daenerys thinks it is her destiny to rid the world of tyrants so she is determined to kill Cersei and take the Iron Throne. So who is the tyrant? Both? And once again, we have Tyrion and Varys discussing who will make the better ruler. Jon is the Aegon from the book. A Stark mother and Targaryen father. FIRE AND ICE! And just as Varys told Ned Stark, he serves the realm and will do what is best for it. Great scene and dialog. And next, another twist and defining moment. Sansa talking to Brienne when Jamie encounters them. Brienne  tells Jamie what happened to Daenerys’ fleet and that “ I always wanted to be there when they executed your sister. Seems I won’t get that chance.” At that point, the real Jamie re-emerges.  He is about to get on his horse and leave when Brienne tells him he is not like his sister. She begs Jamie to stay. But no. Jamie tell Brienne what he had done for his sister and that he would still do anything for Cersei. That he is a hateful person like his sister. Certainly, we could see Jamie burning them all for Cersei. As Jamie rides off, I yelled at Brienne “KILL HIM!!” Anybody else do that?  What will Jamie’s reaction be when he gets to King’s Landing and encounters Euron? That will be interesting. Certainly, both cannot coexist with each other. Maybe that is where Bronn comes back in. I say yes-what do you think?

And next we see a Cersei who is just as determined. She has her walls, lined with archers. And the dragon catapults. She is confident she will win, and why not? After all, in most of the skirmishes against team Daenerys, Cersei has out smarted her. Examples of this are the two times Euron Greyjoy’s fleet took them by surprise or when she emptied Casterly Rock before the Unsullied attacked. In both cases, she wiped out Targaryen allies. First the Dornish and then the Tyrells.

Tyrion and Qyburn volley their peace talks, to no avail. But then Tyrion gives it one last try. Talk about stares, especially the look of hate Cersei gave to her brother. Tyrion plays the mother card, which looks to have an effect on Her Grace. Ser Jeffrey Littman said some fans  raised the question of how Tyrion knew Cersei was pregnant. The answer is last season, he guessed it and even told Cersei that before he left King’s Landing. And that raises the question-will Euron figure it out and what will his reaction be? I smell blood.

Cersei’s motherly emotions do not last for long. She leans over to Missandre and like on death row, asks her to say her last words. To which Missandei shouts “DRACARYS.” Dragon fire in High Valyrian. At which point, like her son Joffrey, not thinking of all the consequences, she orders the Mountain to chop off Missandei’s head Ned Stark style.

We end with stares and faces. Tyrion’s face showing the despair of what is to come. Cersei’s face  all contempt. And we leave with Daenerys’ face, contorted in hatred. The MAD QUEEN ready to rain dragon fire down on King’s Landing.

But again, who is the Mad Queen? Daenerys is willing to burn down King’s Landing and kill all its citizens to rid the world of Cersei and sit on the Iron Throne. Cersei, on the other hand, has already used wildfire to burn down the Red Keep and certainly would be willing to do it again. And while some believe that the Mad King was referring to himself when he said “Burn them all” many, including me, believe it was a reference to somebody else. Why not Cersei? In one of Bran’s visions he sees the Mad Kind say this, but did that mean that King Aerys was going to burn King’s Landing? Or when Bran warged into Aerys did he inadvertently reveal the White Walkers to the Mad King which mad him go mad and shout “Burn them all?” My money is on that and that either Daenerys or Cersei, or both, will be killed to prevent the burning of them all.

And what about the title “The Last of the Starks?” Jon, while not a Stark by name, is still a Stark and Danny could be pregnant. And if Arya gave birth to Gendry’s child, could you envision Gendry sitting on the Iron Throne with a Stark heir? What if Sansa and Tyrion re-marry and have a child? And if Ser Lane is right, Rickon is still alive. Under any scenario, I do not see Bran as the last Stark. What do you guys think?

We now have only two episodes left. Who will win and who will die playing the Game of Thrones? I have my thoughts but will save them for next week.

The blog is late because I just returned from NYC where Prince Louis and Princess Laura gave birth to Jacob Dean Littman, the First of his Name. The writing is dedicated to Jacob, who, after all, could be a future Lord of Pinecrest!!!

The Lord of Pinecrest.

[sailormiyoung89]

I’m really looking forward to this read through because I bought the books a few years ago and then never ended up opening them. It was the end of Spring- beginning of Summer and there was a LOT of garden work to be done outside. Therefore I ended up listening to Roy Dotrice and his…interesting at times voices :D I also kind of ‘yada yada-d’ the first two books as I have watched the show and I knew that it had begun as very loyal to the books. So it should be interesting to see if I pick up more on a reread now that I can actually take my time reading through. One thing I will say though is talking about asoiaf makes me very uncomfortable. Which probably sounds weird but from my perspective, the fandom is so intelligent, I feel like I have nothing to add and am just blabbering on. So please bear with me to an extent and excuse me when I inevitably say some really dumb things.

The way I will be writing this up is I will be reading a chapter and writing a mini chapter review and then I’ll continue. Rather than reading a clump of chapters, forgetting details from ones I read closer to the start and writing one review on several chapters.  

Do keep in mind that I HAVE ‘read’ the books once and am up to date on the TV show so I can’t promise first time book readers that I won’t discuss spoilers.

I’ll put everything else under the cut! :D

 Prologue:

I found Waymar Royce a pretty interesting character. He’s arrogant and standoffish and a poor commander but not unintelligent which tends to accompany those kinds of characters. He was quick to point out that if the wall was weeping then it wouldn’t be cold enough to kill them. It was also interesting to see that George established so early on the ways that those in power can really screw over those underneath them.

One thing that I was wondering that didn’t make a lot of sense to me is that George doesn’t really call them ‘white walkers’ as much as he does ‘others’ and I was wondering why D&D changed it for the show? Calling them ‘white walkers’ just causes more confusion with ‘wights’ and George chose to call them Others because of the idea of ‘the great other’ and changing their name loses some of that.

 Bran I:

Bran was a great character to open up the series proper. As he’s so young and it’s his first time going with Ned to execute a deserter, we can gain a lot more exposition through Bran without it feeling very artificial.

Also, Robb is quick where Jon is fast? Maybe I’m being dense but is there a difference between being fast and quick?

Also, I feel like Theon wasn’t this awful in the show. Kicking around the head of the deserter and his quickness to kill the direwolves…so far book Theon is MUCH more unpleasant.  Also maybe I’m reading too much into this but is the one that Theon tried to kill Grey Wind? Robb hands baby Grey Wind and another of the pups to Bran to hold and it’s one of those that Theon tries to take from Bran and kill.

*edit I reread it and it’s probably Summer. I thought Robb was letting Bran hold Grey Wind but he just told him to pet him.

Also, let’s talk for a minute about the aging up of the characters in the TV show. I can understand why they did so for Dany; after all watching a 13 year old have sex with an adult on TV would be completely unacceptable. Not to mention they probably couldn’t film a sex scene with a teenage actor even if they wanted to. But I don’t understand why they made Jon and Robb the same age as Theon. With Theon being a good bit older than the other two lads, Robb and Jon obviously have a lot more in common and are much closer. Theon isn’t so much the outsider and the prisoner of war whereas you do get a bit more of that in the book. Making them all the same age in the show made them kind of interchangeable at the start; three lads of the same age growing up in the same family unit who’re probably friends. You certainly don’t get the sense that there’s much dislike between Jon and Theon.

Also one part towards the end of the chapter really stuck out to me.

‘“Can’t you hear it?”

Bran could hear the wind….but Jon was listening to something else.’

Jon then dismounts from his horse and find Ghost. What I found interesting was that we later find out that Ghost makes no noise. And it’s something that Jon can hear that Bran and the others cannot. Therefore I think that even in this first encounter with the wolves, Jon has ALREADY unlocked his connection with Ghost.

Catelyn I:

I love Caitlyn. On my first read-through, my favourite chapters were Cat, Sans and Cerseis’.

One thing I found interesting is when Ned tells Cat that ‘the man died well’, which is the same as what Robb said in the previous chapter, setting up the first parallel between Robb and his father. However in the previous chapter, Jon immediately disagrees with the notion that the deserter died ‘well’ or ‘bravely’ which is a notion that Bran seems to side with. And as our POV character for that chapter, we’re set up to side with Bran. So I certainly found that fascinating.

I also found it very interesting how early in the books the isle of faces is established as a place in Westeros in the South which also has weirwoods. Given the significance of the Isle of faces to most R+L=J theories and the significance of the weirwoods in future books it’s veeeeery interesting how quickly it was brought up as being a thing.  

It’s also quiet interesting how this is the second time we’ve seen Ned now and he’s very different in Catelyn’s eyes than he was in Bran’s. In Bran’s POV chapter we see Lord Stark of Winterfell whereas in this chapter he comes across pretty introverted and we really get a sense of him being a ‘quiet wolf’. The Stark and Lannister feud is also established very quickly when Ned describes the queen’s (whom he doesn’t refer to be name or title) family as an ‘infestation’. It’s also pretty funny how he goes on to say that no living man has seen an Other the chapter after he executed the deserter. I’m sure most people caught that particular piece of irony but I still found it amusing nonetheless.

Daenerys I:

I don’t really have a lot to say about this chapter to be honest. It’s a good chapter. I find Viserys and Dany to be an interesting parallel to Robb and Jon in the previous chapter. Viserys and Robb are both heads/future heads of their families. Both boys have these expectations of people. Robb insisting that the deserter died bravely, Viserys choosing to believe that Ilyrio is loyal to him and that he will retake the iron throne. They both have to project power and certainty. Whereas their younger siblings both see through that. Jon knows that Will was terrified. Deaneries hears what they are called in the streets, she mistrusts Illyria.

And this is going to sound weird considering that he literally ends the chapter saying that he would allow the entire khalasar to rape his sister, but a part of me also feels really awful for the life of fear and terror and running that Viserys would have experienced as a child. Not excusing his actions by any stretch but I do empathise with what he went through.

Another detail which I’m sure most people picked up on but I’m going to point out anyway is the golden collars and how Drogo is described as being so rich that all his slaves wear them and Daenerys is also given a golden collar and called a princess.

Also this chapter set up and name dropped SO MUCH. Stannis, the lord of light, Tyrells, Greyjoys, Unsullied, Elia Martell. I’m sure there are more that I missed but I think this is probably the chapter so far with the most setup, which is really interesting when you consider that Dany’s storyline is the most removed from the main story.

Eddard I:

While Daenery’s I was the chapter with the most set up, Eddard I is definitely the chapter with the most exposition so far. In this chapter we learn about Robert’s Rebellion, the Greyjoy Rebellion and how Theon came to be Eddard’s ward. It also hints at R+L=J and we’re also introduced to the crypts of Winterfell.

I never really paid much attention to the descriptions of weapons before but they’ve really grabbed my attention on this reread. In Bran I, we’re given a description of Ice and it’s described as being as wide as Robb and taller. Taller than a teenage boy. I don’t think we were given Robb’s height but he HAS to be at least 5’5. And yet despite the strength it must take to wield Ice, Ned can hardly even lift Robert’s warhammer. Which really says more about Robert’s strength than anything else George might have written.

Jon I:

Acrobatic Tyrion. Is this the dumbest thing that George has ever written? And it has NO plot significance. Unless Winds is released and we hear that Tyrion has been refining his abilities all this time and does a back flip onto a flying dragon or some shit.

Also, I have 0 time for entitled, whiny, bratty Jon. He is so mean about Myrcella. (I may or not be 10000% on the side of ‘protect all these small children in this asshole universe so I will always object when they’re treated horribly, particularly the really young kids). And I KNOW it’s supposed to highlight that highborn ladies are not the kind of women he’s into. And I KNOW he’s probably projecting his feelings about his relationship with Sansa onto Myrcella. But fuck you Jon Snow. You are so fucking whiny. You have absolutely 0 appreciation for how good your life is. As Catelyn is well aware, most men don’t bring their bastards home with them and raise them along with their other children. You have it really good compare to most others born in your position. And I can’t help but compare him to Dany who is brought up by her abusive brother constantly on the run. She had a much, much shitty childhood than Jon. And yet SHE doesn’t complain. The closest we get is towards the end when she tells her brother that she wants to go home….yeah so far I don’t like Jon very much at ALL.

Although I did find it interesting that his role model was Daeron Targaryen. Apart from the obvious Targ connection, Daeron was a terrible conqueror.

Moving on to his discussion with Tyrion at the very end of the chapter and George’s establishment of Tywin’s belief that Tyrion is the son of Aerys.

‘“You are your mother’s trueborn son of Lannister.”

“Am I?” The dwarf replied, sardonic. “Do tell my lord father. My mother died birthing me, and he’s never been sure.”’

I’ve honestly never been a fan of the ‘____ is a secret Targ’ theories. But it’s certainly interesting.

Catelyn II:

I know that a lot of people hate Cat for her treatment of Jon. I am not in that camp. Of course I don’t think that it’s fair but given the world they live in, where bastards can be such a big problem in terms of succession rights, it’s understandable that she feels very threatened by this bastard child who is brought into the family, is of age with their firstborn and is treated equally to the other children (in her eyes). Catelyn is a smart, pragmatic woman. She is as well educated as other highborn. She knows about the Blackfyres. So rather than seeing him as a kid, she sees him as a threat to the lives and futures of her own children. It’s nothing personal against Jon himself. And in that situation, I don’t think there are many mothers who WOULDN’T treat him with hostility. If there’s anyone to blame for Catelyn’s treatment of Jon in this environment, it’s Ned. I definitely think that Ned should have trusted his wife with the truth. I know it’s a risky secret to entrust people with but he should have trusted Cat.

On another note, how fucking big are Luwin’s sleeves?!

“Luwin was always tucking things into those sleeves and producing other things from them: books, messages, strange artifacts, toys for the children”.

I’m just imagining that he’s put Hermione’s undetectable extension charm on his robes.