#rolph spicer

[alleyskywalker]

I think about the Westerlings a lot. Because, man, there’s another family that gets thrown under the bus by the fandom in the name of Stark stanning.

[goodqueenaly]

Hello, good Queen. My question is the following (I hope it hasn't been asked before): Is Tywin swindling the Spicers by making them Lords of Castamere? Regardless of its rich mines, Castamere is, basically, a flooded ruin.

I hesitate to use the word “swindle”, because that word might imply that Tywin specifically held out Castamere to the Spicers as more valuable than it was worth or otherwise misled the Spicers about its current state. (As opposed to, say, Tywin almost certainly misleading Sybell Spicer about “a bride from Casterly Rock”.) Indeed, by Tywin’s own admission, the Westerlings “are well aware of Castamere”, and I would presume that extends to the Spicers as well. After all, what happened at Castamere was the very opposite of a secret: not only was it publicly know about and recorded enough to be included in an official maesterly history book, but “The Rains of Castamere” has been liberally used and cited as a piece of Tywin’s terror propaganda, reminding its listeners of the fate of the Reynes (and, by extension, their castle). So I don’t think the Spicers would have been unaware of the current state of Castamere at least as a (former) seat.

All of that is not to say, of course, that Castamere is particularly valuable as a castle (or as a mine itself), given the obvious and substantial (and relatively recent) flooding. At the same time, it’s difficult to say the total value of the Castamere lordship in the current novels. There are at least some gold mines in the area, because the Greatjon was said to have seized mines near Castamere during Robb’s campaign in the west. Whether or not there are any Reyne bannermen left, or other industries in the general vicinity of Castamere which would historically have given their revenues to Castamere, are both likewise unclear; these might also be sources of income for the newly ennobled Spicers of Castamere. At the very least, in any event, the Spicers would have to invest in building a whole new keep, since “[t]he halls and keeps above them [were] put to the torch by Tywin Lannister” - a likely hefty expense for the new Lord Rolph.

Yet even if I don’t want to use the word “swindle” here, I can certainly acknowledge that Tywin was not exactly acting selflessly either. Indeed, this grant to the Spicers fits perfectly in Tywin’s model. As with his wedding present to Joffrey, Tywin had with Castamere given a gift that had cost him nothing to obtain; just as Tywin had given Joffrey the most elaborate present by reforging the Stark sword which had been effectively sitting in his lap, so he had did not have to dispossess any of his bannermen in order to further ennoble the Spicers. Likewise, as with his grant of Harrenhal to Littlefinger, Tywin had given a petty lord a great ruin in recognition of that petty lord’s service to House Lannister.

Of course, there’s another important factor to consider here, and that’s what this gift means to the Spicers on a symbolic level. Putting aside the practical considerations of the castle’s status, Rolph Spicer has been made “Lord of Castamere”. That’s a huge deal in terms of status for Rolph, and by extension the Spicers. To go from second generation petty nobility, the grandchildren of a merchant and his Essosi bride, to the lordly masters of a very ancient Westerlands castle (with a royal history of its own) sworn (presumably) directly to Casterly Rock is an enormous socio-political leap for the Spicers. So there’s a way in which the Spicers might not care (or might care less, at least) that they were given a ruined castle for a seat. Compare, say, Davos’ mild acceptance, in considering Stannis’ other bannermen, that “[m]y grandsons will joust with theirs, though, and one day their blood may wed with mine”, so that “[i]n time my little black ship will fly as high as Velaryon's seahorse or Celtigar's red crab”; Rolph might similarly bet that it would be difficult for the blue-blood aristocrats of the Westlands to ignore the Lord of Castamere, their nominal feudal equal, even if it takes a few generations (as opposed to how they could scorn the upjumped Spicers and their petty lordship).

[ladystoneboobs]

[Sybell Westerling to Jaime:]"She would not give up the little crown the rebel gave her, and when I tried to take it from her head the willful child fought me." "It was mine." Jeyne sobbed. "You had no right. Robb had it made for me. I loved him." Her mother made to slap her, but Jaime stepped between them. [...]

Jaime had to canter past the Westerlings as he rode down the column on his way back to Riverrun. Lord Gawen nodded gravely as he passed, but Lady Sybell looked through him with eyes like chips of ice. Jeyne never saw him at all. The widow rode with downcast eyes, huddled beneath a hooded cloak. Underneath its heavy folds, her clothes were finely made, but torn. She ripped them herself, as a mark of mourning, Jaime realized. That could not have pleased her mother. 

[Jaime, to the Freys:]"Tell me, is Ser Raynald Westerling amongst these captives?" "The knight of seashells?" Edwyn sneered. "You'll find that one feeding the fish at the bottom of the Green Fork." "He was in the yard when our men came to put the direwolf down," said Walder Rivers. "Whalen demanded his sword and he gave it over meek enough, but when the crossbowmen began feathering the wolf he seized Whalen's axe and cut the monster loose of the net they'd thrown over him. Whalen says he took a quarrel in his shoulder and another in the gut, but still managed to reach the wallwalk and throw himself into the river." -Jaime VII, aFfC

And Robb. Robb who had been more a brother to Theon than any son born of Balon Greyjoy's loins. Murdered at the Red Wedding, butchered by the Freys. I should have been with him. Where was I? I should have died with him. -Theon I(/VII), aDwD

something just so endearing to me about the way robb finds love and friendship with the children of enemy families. their parents still consider him an enemy and work for his downfall, and it would be in their own interests not to get so emotionally involved over the guy who took their castle by force (in jeyne w. and her siblings' case) or the heir of a captor/would-be executioner (in theon's case). but it just keeps happening with robb anyway. he just replaces one enemy's offspring at his side with even more of them. sybell spicer westerling and her brother rolph were secretly still loyal to tywin, but all her kids just gladly transferred their loyalty to a new king with no apparent misgivings. well, almost all of them, we can only guess and assume in eleyna's case. (bc we don't really see her after their intro scene, jeyne's-hips-don't-lie conspiracy theorists! you will not take jeyne's best moments away from her!) robb's younger brother-in-law was so eager to squire for him he was disappointed not to join his last war march and wasn't even ready to leave robb alone with catelyn after he introduced them. jeyne refused to hide her widow's grief once robb was gone and her mother's true feelings were known to her, risking physical abuse from her mother to boldly make her true loyalty known to the lannister regime who murdered her husband and have responsibility for her future. and jeyne's other brother, raynald, he died for robb at the red wedding, no, to be precise, he died for grey wind at the red wedding. robb's direwolf may have distrusted sybell and rolph spicer, and made jeyne uneasy, pushing robb away from his lupine other half at riverrun, until only the lack of most of the westerlings got the wolf back at robb's side where he belonged on the way to the rw, but when the freys came to kill grey wind it was that westerling knight who fought to aid him. when grey wind died, possibly with robb's spirit also inside him, raynald westerling was the one there dying loyally with him.

and ofc, there's still theon too. theon, who, even after everything, after fighting against the starks at wf, so that robb spent his last months waiting to come home and kill him, after all that, he still idealizes robb as his only true brother, wishing he could have been able to die with him at the twins as raynald westerling did. (catelyn was more right than she knew when she thought jeyne's brothers were standing in for those robb had lost, theon included.) part of that is surely down to just how badly theon's conquest at wf worked out for him, earning him the enmity of all the northmen and ending in his prolonged torture by the son of robb's killer, a kingslayer who thanked theon for helping bring down the starks, all giving him cause to idealize his earlier captivity at wf (and feel guilt for his deeds there), but we know his brotherly affection for robb was not merely invented by trauma after the fact. the love was always there, even if it was hidden.

that's what made robb such a potentially good king if circumstance and youth had not been against him. his charisma was such that he not only won the undying loyalty of most of his bannermen but could also win the hearts and minds of those who should have only been enemies. sure, he couldn't change the minds of their parents, who were ultimately in charge, but that wasn't really his fault. and it doesn't nullify the love he did inspire in those children of his enemies, their love was real and it still mattered. it's true both of his sisters gained the protection of the hound, joffrey's dog, and that bran and rickon had the fierce loyalty of osha after she first met bran trying to rob him, and ofc jon snow had multiple wildling allies after he used to fight against them, but robb's the only starkling to gain the love of would-be enemies from two different enemy regions, isn't he? it's just all really indicative of robb's greatest inheritance from ned: ruling through getting to know all your people and making them care for you (with robb taking it further by extending this to hostages) as opposed to the lannister method of ruling only through fear. sansa was right that love is a surer route to people's loyalty than fear, it's just an unfortunate fact that not everyone can be won that way.

[isefyres-archive]

𝔑𝔢𝔴 𝔞𝔡𝔡𝔢𝔡 𝔪𝔲𝔰𝔢𝔰:

Captain Hallis Mollen: called Hal, is a member of the household guard of Lord Eddard Stark at Winterfell. Hallis is muscular and has a square brown beard. He has a tendency to state the obvious and has a loose tongue. During the battle in the Whispering Wood, Hallis personally commands the guards protecting Catelyn, after asking for the honor. Robb, now King in the North, sends Hallis, twenty guards, and five lordlings to protect Catelyn when she goes south to meet Renly Baratheon and negotiate a possible alliance. At Winterfell, Barbrey Dustin, Lady of Barrowton, tells Theon that should Ned Stark's bones emerge from the Neck, the escorts will be prevented from going north of Barrowton. Carrying the remains of Eddard Stark and aware of the taking of Winterfell, Hallis makes the order to go to Castle Black to Jon Snow. Canon. Song Era.

Queen Jeyne Westerling : is the eldest daughter of Lord Gawen Westerling and Lady Sybell Spicer. Robb Stark, the Young Wolf, agrees to marry a daughter of Lord Walder Frey as part of the alliance between Houses Stark and Frey. Jeyne's father, Lord Gawen Westerling, is captured by Robb's army captures during the battle in the Whispering Wood and held at Seagard. During the westerlands expedition of Robb, now the King in the North, his army storms the Crag, the ancestral keep of House Westerling. Since Robb is wounded by an arrow, Jeyne's mother, Sybell, and uncle, Ser Rolph Spicer, encourage the girl to nurse the Young Wolf. While recuperating at the Crag, Robb receives a message that his younger brothers, Bran and Rickon, have been killed by his former friend, Theon Greyjoy, who captured Winterfell. Jeyne comforts Robb in his grief and they sleep together. To protect her honor he marries her the next day, but the marriage leads directly to the break-up of Robb's alliance with Lord Walder. Canon. Song Era.

Lady Regent Allyria Dayne: Allyria Dayne is a noblewoman of House Dayne, and according to semi-canon sources the younger sibling of Ser Arthur Dayne and Lady Ashara Dayne. She is the aunt of the young Edric Dayne, Lord of Starfall, whose father was her older brother. Having been revived several times by Thoros of Myr, Lord Beric Dondarrion admits that he has forgotten the hair color of the woman he was pledged to marry. With Berric dead, the alliance with House Dondarrion dies with him. Regardless, Allyria offers Princess Arianne safeguard at Starfall as well, backs up a second plan if she wished to Crown Princess Myrcella again. Allyria is under the impression that her sister, Ashara was in love with Ned Stark and thus, has no ill thoughts toward the man or the North. Canon. Song Era.

Lady Myrielle Lannister. Daughter of Genna Lannister, having been born out of wedlock after the death of Genna's husband, she bore the name Lannister instead of Frey. Myrielle often felt neglected by her aunt' paying more attention to Jaime and Cersei than to herself and thus, she was often spending her days with other lesser Houses or her cousin Joy Hill, to the dismay of her mother, as she made friendship with a bastard. She is send reluctantly to King's Landing to become a lady companion of her ocusin when Tommen is crowned King. OC. Song Era.

Lady Mellario of Norvos: Lady Mellario is a noblewoman of the Free City of Norvos, and the estranged wife of Doran Martell, the Prince of Dorne. She had three children by him: Arianne, Quentyn, and Trystane. Mellario was born in Norvos. Accompanied by her guardsman, Areo Hotah, she met Prince Doran Martell when he was visiting the city of her birth. Doran caught her eye during a festival, where the three bells of Norvos were ringing and the bears were dancing.[6] When Doran returned to Dorne, Mellario went with him, escorted by Areo. Hotah Doran and Mellario were betrothed. They would marry not long after, as their first child, Princess Arianne was born in 276 AC. Two more children would follow: Prince Quentyn, born in 281 AC, and Prince Trystane, born in 287 AC. Since divorce in Westeros is uncommon, Mellario eventually returned to Norvos. There's some bitterness about this from Mellario, as Doran was the Prince of Dorne, which enabled his children to stay with him, while she had to leave them behind. Canon. Song Era.

Lord Rennifer Longwaters: Rennifer Longwaters is the chief undergaoler of the dungeons beneath the Red Keep. He is descended from Ser Jon Waters, the bastard son of Princess Elaena Targaryen and Lord Alyn Velaryon. As chief undergaoler, it is his duty to keep the counts of the prisoners in the cells of the Red Keep. Ser Jaime Lannister enquires into Rennifer's role in the escape of his brother, Tyrion Lannister. Rennifer explains how the cells work, and boasts of having royal blood. When Ser Jaime seeks out Ser Ilyn Payne before departing for the riverlands, Rennifer lets Ser Jaime into Ser Ilyn's quarters. Considering the youth of the new Lord of Driftmark, Rennifer disputes that perhaps a relative of age should take place until the boy is of age. Canon. Song Era.

[jedimaesteryoda]

"House Westerling has its pardon, and your brother Rolph has been made Lord of Castamere. -AFFC, Jaime VII

It seems Sybell Westerling made sure to get as big a piece of the pie for her family as she could. She didn't just stop at her own children, getting marriages to heirs for her daughters and an apparent good match for her son, but she also made sure her own house, the Spicers, were taken care of by having her brother Rolph Spicer made Lord of Castamere. Castamere was a rich plum which the family that once occupied it the resources to be the second most powerful family in the Westerlands.

The just takes into account what happened to the previous Lords of Castamere.

"The Crag is not so far from Tarbeck Hall and Castamere," Tyrion pointed out. "You'd think the Westerlings might have ridden past and seen the lesson there." -ASOS, Tyrion III

The Reynes had once allied with House Tarbeck with Ellyn Tarbeck having once briefly ruled the Rock and showered the Reynes with offices, honors and lands. They rebelled against House Lannister to displace them as Lords Paramount of the Westerlands, but their ambition ultimately proved to be their undoing.

Tywin sealed the entrances to the mines that made up 90% of the castle, and then diverted a nearby stream into the mines, drowning all those below. Their name has been often punned with "rain," and so in a bit of tragic irony, the Reynes died by water.

Eventually, Tywin's son who was much his image, Tyrion, will come back to the westerlands to claim Casterly Rock from his sister Cersei who is much the hot-tempered, ambitious woman Ellyn Tarbeck was. House Spicer also owes its place to the Lannister regime in King's Landing, and that means if King's Landing falls, so do they as they were complicit in the Red Wedding.

Much of the castle including the mines that gave Castamere much of its wealth are flooded, and what remains above is in ruins. While Rolph may not have to worry about being flooded out, the keep above has its own vulnerability.

Tyrion won't be coming alone, he will be bringing a queen with three dragons. Spice often has been associated with heat, making dishes hot and many come from the east. In a fate just as ironic as the previous Lords of Castamere, House Spicer dies by fire, specifically dragonfire brought from the east.

[lykosog]

Robb,  like  all  of  the  Stark  siblings,  has  a  very  deep  connection  to  his  direwolf  and  it  has  significantly  contributed  to  many  of  his  victories.  For  example:

“How  did  the  king  ever  take  the  Tooth?"  Ser  Perwyn  Frey  asked  his  bastard  brother.  "That's  a  hard  strong  keep,  and  it  commands  the  hill  road.”

“He  never  took  it.  He  slipped  around  it  in  the  night.  It's  said  the  direwolf  showed  him  the  way,  that  Grey  Wind  of  his.”

I  believe  that  in  his  dreams,  Robb  experiences  visions  through  Grey  Wind's  eyes.  Yet,  when  he  wakes  up,  he  remembers  very  little  of  them  and  has  to  send  scouts  to  explore  the  possible  areas  where  the  place  he  saw  could  be  until  they  locate  it,  allowing  allowing  him  and  his  men  to  use  it  as  needed.

Due  to  his  vague  memories,  Robb  didn't  initially  realize  his  abilities.  and  it  is  only  later  on,  as  his  bond  with  Grey  Wind  grew  stronger,  that  he  began  to  understand  how  he  moved  and  sensed  things  in  his  dreams.  Although  his  connection  was  never  strong  enough  to  experience  the  taste  of  a  kill,  this  realization  frightened  him  and  made  him  wary  of  both  his  abilities  and  his  direwolf;

And  there's  the  heart  of  it,  Catelyn  thought.  “He  is  part  of  you,  Robb.  To  fear  him  is  to  fear  you.”

“I  am  not  a  wolf,  no  matter  what  they  call  me.”  Robb  sounded  cross.

In  my  opinion,  this  is  the  main  reason  why  Robb  distanced  himself  from  Grey  Wind,  believing  that  the  farther  apart  they  were,  the  less  it  would  continue  happening  to  him.  This  decision  had  significant  consequences,  as  ignoring  Grey  Wind's  signals  ultimately  led  to  his  downfall.  Everything  around  Robb  reeked  of  treason  and  betrayal,  and  Grey  Wind  was  the  only  one  who  could  sense  it:

Sybell  Spicer,  who  made  sure  Robb  never  had  any  children  with  Jeyne:

“Growling  and  snapping  [...]  he  terrifies  her mother.”

Rolph  Spicer,  who  was  part  of  the  plan  that  led  to  the  Red  Wedding:

“I  am  not  going  to  banish  him  just  because  my  wolf  doesn't  seem  to  like  the  way  he  smells.”

The  Freys,  at  the  Twins:

Grey  Wind  edged  forward,  tail  stiff,  watching  through  slitted  eyes  of  dark  gold.  When  the  Freys  were  a  half-dozen  yards  away  Catelyn  heard  him  growl,  a  deep  rumble  that  seemed  almost  one  with  rush  of  the  river.  Robb  looked  startled.  “Grey  Wind,  to  me.  To  me!”

Instead  the  direwolf  leapt  forward,  snarling.

and:

There  was  more  trouble  at  the  gatehouse.  Grey  Wind  balked  in  the  middle  of  the  drawbridge,  shook  the  rain  off,  and  howled  at  the  portcullis.  Robb  whistled  impatiently.  “Grey  Wind.  What  is  it?  Grey  Wind,  with  me.” But  the  direwolf  only  bared  his  teeth.

[nogoodsheepstealing-greatgrandma]

[gotcasting]

Rolph Spicer

Jeffrey Dean Morgan - 51 years old, American.

(Accent.)

[istumpysk]

Operation Stumpy Re-Read

ASOS: Jaime IX (Chapter 72)

The king sat at the head of the table, a stack of cushions under his arse, signing each document as it was presented to him.

Again! Unlike Bran, Tommen requires cushions. We'll look past this one. He's only a smol bean.

Bran preferred the hard stone of the window seat to the comforts of his featherbed and blankets. - Bran I, ACOK

Who had the last chapter?

"I have too many councillors and too few cushions." Dany turned to Reznak. - Daenerys I, ADWD

+.+.+

Jaime watched from the foot of the table, thinking of all those lords who aspired to a seat on the king's small council. They can bloody well have mine. If this was power, why did it taste like tedium?

Again! Unlike Bran, Jaime finds this whole process tedious.

"As you will, my prince," said Ser Rodrik. "You did well." Bran flushed with pleasure. Being a lord was not so tedious as he had feared - Bran II, ACOK

Who had the last chapter?

The rest was a tedium the queen knew well. She sat upon her cushions, listening, one foot jiggling with impatience. - Daenerys VII, ADWD

+.+.+

"This grants said lands [Riverrun], incomes, and castle to Ser Emmon Frey and his lady wife, Lady Genna." Ser Kevan presented another sheaf of parchments to the king. Tommen dipped and signed.

Boo.

+.+.+

"This is a decree of legitimacy for a natural son of Lord Roose Bolton of the Dreadfort. And this names Lord Bolton your Warden of the North."

Hiss.

+.+.+

Every muscle in his body ached, and his ribs and shoulders were bruised from the battering they'd gotten, courtesy of Ser Addam Marbrand. Just thinking of it made him wince. He could only hope the man would keep his mouth shut. Jaime had known Marbrand since he was a boy, serving as a page at Casterly Rock; he trusted him as much as he trusted anyone.

x

I should have gone to Ser Ilyn Payne, Jaime reflected. The King's Justice was not a friend as Marbrand was, and might well have beat him bloody . . . but without a tongue, he was not like to boast of it afterward. All it would take would be one chance remark by Ser Addam in his cups, and the whole world would soon know how useless he'd become. 

I don't understand why George has him sparring with Ser Addam Marbrand once, then switching to Ilyn Payne. Why not start with Payne and offer the same reasoning? It wouldn't change the story.

Stupid stuff like this makes me so suspicious when it's likely nothing. Will Ser Addam talk?

+.+.+

"This grants Ser Rolph Spicer title to the castle Castamere and raises him to the rank of lord." Tommen scrawled his name.

[...]

"This is your royal pardon for Lord Gawen Westerling, his lady wife, and his daughter Jeyne, welcoming them back into the king's peace," Ser Kevan said. 

Now wait just a second! A royal pardon for House Westerling? How unlike Tywin Lannister.

If you need any more proof that House Westerling will be decimated, look no further than Rolph Spicer being gifted Castamere.

+.+.+

Though he had Joffrey's golden curls and green eyes, the new king shared little else with his late brother. He inclined to plumpness, his face was pink and round, and he even liked to read. 

George loves Tommen.

+.+.+

He is still shy of nine, this son of mine. The boy is not the man. It would be seven years before Tommen was ruling in his own right. 

George has created a bit of dilemma for himself. Bran will require a Lord Regent and Protector of the Realm for several years.

Edmure? Blackfish? I don't know. If it's Davos I'll scream.

+.+.+

"My lord of Bolton expects us. Here she is now."

A groom led a fine grey mare out the stable door. On her back was mounted a skinny hollow-eyed girl wrapped in a heavy cloak. Grey, it was, like the dress beneath it, and trimmed with white satin. The clasp that pinned it to her breast was wrought in the shape of a wolf's head with slitted opal eyes. The girl's long brown hair blew wild in the wind. She had a pretty face, he thought, but her eyes were sad and wary.

(A girl in grey!)

+.+.+

Jaime studied her closely. "You know me, then?"

She bit her lip. "You may not recall, my lord, as I was littler then . . . but I had the honor to meet you at Winterfell when King Robert came to visit my father Lord Eddard." She lowered her big brown eyes and mumbled, "I'm Arya Stark."

If that's not a natural mannerism, that's pretty impressive work by Jeyne.

+.+.+

Jaime had never paid much attention to Arya Stark, but it seemed to him that this girl was older. "I understand you're to be married."

"I am to wed Lord Bolton's son, Ramsay. He used to be a Snow, but His Grace has made him a Bolton. They say he's very brave. I am so happy."

Then why do you sound so frightened? 

I am upset.

+.+.+

Well, Gregor is paying for it now. Grand Maester Pycelle was tending to the man's wounds, but the howls heard ringing from the maester's chambers suggested that the healing was not going as well as it might. "The flesh mortifies and the wounds ooze pus," Pycelle told the council. "Even maggots will not touch such foulness. His convulsions are so violent that I have had to gag him to prevent him from biting off his tongue. I have cut away as much tissue as I dare, and treated the rot with boiling wine and bread mold, to no avail. The veins in his arm are turning black. When I leeched him, all the leeches died. My lords, I must know what malignant substance Prince Oberyn used on his spear. Let us detain these other Dornishmen until they are more forthcoming."

+.+.+

"Then I fear Ser Gregor may die."

"Undoubtedly. I swore as much in the letter I sent to Prince Doran with his brother's body. But it must be seen to be the sword of the King's Justice that slays him, not a poisoned spear. Heal him."

Grand Maester Pycelle blinked in dismay. "My lord—"

"Heal him," Lord Tywin said again, vexed.

Trying to steal another person's homework.

Like his kids, Tywin always believes he's the smartest person in any room. As if Ellaria Sand and three hundred Dornishmen weren't aware the blade was poisoned, you clown.

+.+.+

"You are aware that Lord Varys has sent fishermen into the waters around Dragonstone. They report that only a token force remains to defend the island. The Lyseni are gone from the bay, and the great part of Lord Stannis's strength with them."

Oh no, where has Stannis gone?

+.+.+

Most likely he will land at Storm's End and try and rouse the storm lords. If so, he's finished. But a bolder man might roll the dice for Dorne. If he should win Sunspear to his cause, he might prolong this war for years.

Sounds like a conversation about Aegon VI.

+.+.+

"He is a boy! A frightened little boy who saw his brother murdered at his own wedding. And now they are telling him that he must marry. The girl is twice his age and twice a widow!"

He keeps doing this. It's kind of making me wonder if Tommen dies first. I don't know how that would work.

Poor Margaery, twice wed and twice widowed. - Sansa V, ASOS

x

Twice wed and twice widowed, and only sixteen. - Tyrion IX, ASOS

+.+.+

"He is your son . . ."

"He is my seed. He's never called me Father. No more than Joffrey ever did. You warned me a thousand times never to show any undue interest in them."

"To keep them safe! You as well. How would it have looked if my brother had played the father to the king's children? Even Robert might have grown suspicious."

Big difference between the father and the guy who supplies the seed. Isn't that right, Jon?

Laughing at the thought of Robert growing suspicious. In hindsight, Ned and Cersei had very little to worry about.

+.+.+

I'm not ashamed of loving you, only of the things I've done to hide it. That boy at Winterfell . . ."

"Did I tell you to throw him out the window? If you'd gone hunting as I begged you, nothing would have happened. 

Three books later, Jaime finally expressing some regret for that whole Bran thing.

+.+.+

"Yes, I hoped the boy would die. So did you. Even Robert thought that would have been for the best. 'We kill our horses when they break a leg, and our dogs when they go blind, but we are too weak to give the same mercy to crippled children,' he told me. He was blind himself at the time, from drink."

[...]

"You don't think he said it to Ned Stark, I hope? Of course we were alone. Us and the children."

[...]

"Perhaps Myrcella sent this man with the dagger, do you think so?"

It was meant as mockery, but she'd cut right to the heart of it, Jaime saw at once. "Not Myrcella. Joffrey."

[...]

"A child hungry for a pat on the head from that sot you let him believe was his father."

I'll include it, just to wrap this up already.

+.+.+

"I don't care why," Cersei said. "He can take his reasons down to hell with him. If you had seen how Joff died . . . he fought, Jaime, he fought for every breath, but it was as if some malign spirit had its hands about his throat. 

Okay, that's enough for me. It's poison. They'll both purposely drink poison when the end is near.

Terror closed a hand about his throat. Then his sword went dark, and only Brienne's burned, as the ghosts came rushing in. - Jaime VI, ASOS

x

"And when your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you." - Cersei VIII, AFFC

I know what happens! I don't know where it happens!

+.+.+

"Does it matter? Some lord or other. Someone Father thinks he needs. I don't care. I will not have another husband. You are the only man I want in my bed, ever again."

"Then tell him that!"

She pulled her hands away. "You are talking madness again. Would you have us ripped apart, as Mother did that time she caught us playing? Tommen would lose the throne, Myrcella her marriage . . . I want to be your wife, we belong to each other, but it can never be, Jaime. We are brother and sister."

"The Targaryens . . ."

"We are not Targaryens!"

That's right! Only Targaryens marry their sisters.

Man, he is so far gone. In what world does Tywin allow this?

+.+.+

Jaime felt himself responding. "No," he said, "not here." They had never done it in White Sword Tower, much less in the Lord Commander's chambers. "Cersei, this is not the place."

Jaime needs dead kids and the holy spirit to get it up.

+.+.+

Larger emeralds were set in the golden spiderweb that bound her golden hair. 

x

 Cersei removed her hairnet and draped it over a bedpost, then shook out her golden curls. 

x

"You great golden fool. He's lied to you a thousand times, and so have I." She bound up her hair again, and scooped up the hairnet from the bedpost where she'd hung it. 

If this is symbolizing something, it flew right over my head.

+.+.+

"Oh, an angry cripple. How terrifying." She laughed. "A pity Lord Tywin Lannister never had a son. I could have been the heir he wanted, but I lacked the cock. And speaking of such, best tuck yours away, brother. It looks rather sad and small, hanging from your breeches like that."

Lol.

Small cock. Canon.

+.+.+

"Steelshanks is on his way back north, to deliver Arya Stark to Roose Bolton."

"You gave her to him?" she cried, dismayed. "You swore an oath to Lady Catelyn . . ."

"With a sword at my throat, but never mind. Lady Catelyn's dead. I could not give her back her daughters even if I had them. And the girl my father sent with Steelshanks was not Arya Stark."

"Vows made at sword point are not valid," the maester argued. - Bran V, ACOK

There's layers to this. There's Sansa, there's Lyanna, but there's also Lady Stoneheart things.

+.+.+

The wench's mouth got stubborn. "I will not believe that gentle girl a poisoner. Lady Catelyn said that she had a loving heart. It was your brother. There was a trial, Ser Loras said."

[...]

Brienne looked at him. "You do not believe he did it."

Jaime gave her a hard smile. "See, wench? We know each other too well. Tyrion's wanted to be me since he took his first step, but he'd never follow me in kingslaying. Sansa Stark killed Joffrey. My brother's kept silent to protect her. He gets these fits of gallantry from time to time. The last one cost him a nose. This time it will mean his head."

"No," Brienne said. "It was not my lady's daughter. It could not have been her."

"There's the stubborn stupid wench that I remember."

Gallantry? Please shut up. I love that this conversation is taking place chapters before Tyrion kills his own father.

Somehow Brienne knows Sansa better than Jaime knows his own brother, and what he's capable of.

+.+.+

Blood and black the ripples shone. A finger of reflected light ran red along the edge. "Is this Valyrian steel? I have never seen such colors."

Back to this Ice sword, that's morphed into a Targaryen.

The light streaming through the diamond-shaped panes of glass made the blade shimmer black and red as Lord Tywin turned it to inspect the edge, while the pommel and crossguard flamed gold.

[...]

Most Valyrian steel was a grey so dark it looked almost black, as was true here as well. But blended into the folds was a red as deep as the grey. The two colors lapped over one another without ever touching, each ripple distinct, like waves of night and blood upon some steely shore. "How did you get this patterning? I've never seen anything like it."

"Nor I, my lord," said the armorer. "I confess, these colors were not what I intended, and I do not know that I could duplicate them. Your lord father had asked for the crimson of your House, and it was that color I set out to infuse into the metal. But Valyrian steel is stubborn. These old swords remember, it is said, and they do not change easily. I worked half a hundred spells and brightened the red time and time again, but always the color would darken, as if the blade was drinking the sun from it. And some folds would not take the red at all, as you can see. If my lords of Lannister are displeased, I will of course try again, as many times as you should require, but—" - Tyrion IV, ASOS

If Jon Snow were a sword.

So where are we going with this?

He is not my father. The thought leapt unbidden to Jon's mind. Lord Eddard Stark is my father. I will not forget him, no matter how many swords they give me.

[...]

Jon slid the sword back into the silver-banded scabbard. If not the blade he would have chosen, it was nonetheless a noble gift - Jon VIII, AGOT

I would not be surprised if Brienne offers this black and red abomination back to Jon and House Stark, and he declines.

Garnets, not rubies!

+.+.+

 Before she could think to refuse, he went on. "A sword so fine must bear a name. It would please me if you would call this one Oathkeeper. One more thing. The blade comes with a price."

Her face darkened. "I told you, I will never serve . . ."

". . . such foul creatures as us. Yes, I recall. Hear me out, Brienne. Both of us swore oaths concerning Sansa Stark. Cersei means to see that the girl is found and killed, wherever she has gone to ground . . ."

Brienne's homely face twisted in fury. "If you believe that I would harm my lady's daughter for a sword, you—"

"Just listen," he snapped, angered by her assumption. "I want you to find Sansa first, and get her somewhere safe. How else are the two of us going to make good our stupid vows to your precious dead Lady Catelyn?"

The wench blinked. "I . . . I thought . . ."

"I know what you thought." Suddenly Jaime was sick of the sight of her. She bleats like a bloody sheep. "When Ned Stark died, his greatsword was given to the King's Justice," he told her. "But my father felt that such a fine blade was wasted on a mere headsman. He gave Ser Ilyn a new sword, and had Ice melted down and reforged. There was enough metal for two new blades. You're holding one. So you'll be defending Ned Stark's daughter with Ned Stark's own steel, if that makes any difference to you."

[...]

"You say Sansa killed him. Why protect her?"

Because Joff was no more to me than a squirt of seed in Cersei's cunt. And because he deserved to die. "I have made kings and unmade them. Sansa Stark is my last chance for honor." Jaime smiled thinly.

Brienne becoming Catelyn's sworn sword, Renly's sword, Catelyn asking Brienne for her sword before freeing Jaime, the tournament sword versus the bear, Oathkeeper, noose or sword... every major Brienne highlight features a sword.

I have no real comment beyond that, but I wanted to share a series high point.

+.+.+

"Besides, kingslayers should band together. Are you ever going to go?"

Even if I don't think it will happen, I should probably point out that the above could easily be foreshadowing Brienne killing Stannis.

+.+.+

As dusk began to settle, he lit a candle and opened the White Book to his own page. Quill and ink he found in a drawer. Beneath the last line Ser Barristan had entered, he wrote in an awkward hand that might have done credit to a six-year-old being taught his first letters by a maester:

Defeated in the Whispering Wood by the Young Wolf Robb Stark during the War of the Five Kings. Held captive at Riverrun and ransomed for a promise unfulfilled. Captured again by the Brave Companions, and maimed at the word of Vargo Hoat their captain, losing his sword hand to the blade of Zollo the Fat. Returned safely to King's Landing by Brienne, the Maid of Tarth.

When he was done, more than three-quarters of his page still remained to be filled between the gold lion on the crimson shield on top and the blank white shield at the bottom. Ser Gerold Hightower had begun his history, and Ser Barristan Selmy had continued it, but the rest Jaime Lannister would need to write for himself. He could write whatever he chose, henceforth.

Whatever he chose . . .

Two books later and there's still little to add.

If Jaime is the one who completes his history, I wonder if he treats it more like a confessional.

Reveal what Aerys plotted, acknowledge his incestuous relationship with Cersei, acknowledge his children, confess to pushing Bran, the Tysha thing, freeing Tyrion, etc. etc.

Jaime seems far more interested in owning his crimes than trying to accumulate honourable deeds. This makes more sense to me.

Final thoughts:

I'm guessing Tommen has Widow's Wail? Do we get clarification on that?

-> return to menu <-

[klaradox]

THE LANNISTERS: MARTYN AND WILLEM LANNISTER

Martyn and Willem Lannister are member of House Lannister. They are the twin sons of Ser Kevan Lannister and Lady Dorna Swyft

Martyn is a squire and a part of the army gathered by Ser Stafford Lannister at Oxcross. He is among those captured when King Robb Stark and his army take the Lannister force by surprise.

Willem is a squire too and a part of the army of his cousin, Jaime Lannister, that invades the Riverlands. He fights in the Battle of the Whispering Wood and is captured there together with another cousin, Tion Frey, by Robb Stark.

Tyrion Lannister and Robb Stark attempt to negotiate Willem's release but no agreement is reached. During his captivity in Riverrun he shares a room with Tion. Both get killed in prison by Lord Rickard Karstark and his men.

After the murder of his twin brother Martyn Lannister is exchanged for the freeing of Robett Glover at Duskendale. Rolph Spicer delivers Martyn to Lannister forces at the Golden Tooth.

This image will be featured on my upcoming map of the Westerlands.

[goodqueenaly]

House Words Wednesdays: House Spicer

Welcome to House Words Wednesdays! Each week, I take a House without known canon or semi-canon words and present what I think could make sense as that House’s motto. You’re free to suggest more as well, if your favored House has not yet been suggested; take a look at this link to see what has already been suggested, and shoot me a tweet or ask through Tumblr if you have another House you’d like to see done. 

House Spicer is a family that probably needs no introduction for readers of the main series, but as this is HWW, I'm going to give them one. The Spicers are the most minor of minor westerlands nobility, a family whose origins lie (unsurprisingly) in the spice trade. The grandfather of the current Spicers was a "trader in saffron and pepper", as Kevan Lannister notes dismissively, "almost as lowborn as that smuggler Stannis keeps" (poor Davos!), who compounded the error of his career in trade (or so highborn Westerosi would have seen it) by marrying a woman he had “brought back from the east”. This woman was none other than Maggy the Frog, the fortune-teller who so scarred Cersei as a young girl with her prophesying on the younger, more beautiful queen who would unseat her and the valonqar who would kill her. Perhaps quite surprisingly, given this double blow against any chance of respectability among Westerlands blue bloods for their children (a merchant father and a lowborn Essosi mother! Mon Dieu!), Lord Tytos Lannister ennobled the son of this union, creating House Spicer as a petty lordly House. This son later had two children, Rolph and Sybell, the current members of House Spicer. It was presumably he as well who made the Spicer sigil: three black pepperpots on a saffron bend (subtle, Father Spicer, really), across a field of green and silver stripes.

The Spicers - despite, or far more likely because of, their lowly origins - were and are nothing if not ambitious, and specifically eager to attach themselves to powerful families. In a great dynastic coup, Sybell managed to win for a husband Lord Gawen Westerling, head of an ancient Westerlands family that could boast a Targaryen queen in its lineage (doubtless because the Westerlings were, by the time of Gawen, pretty impoverished, and Sybell's mercantile background promised a fat dowry - though I’m sure rumors among the blue-blooded families of the Westerlands had Sybell “tricking” Gawen into marrying her). In classic nepotistic maneuvering, Sybell (presumably) had Gawen name her brother, Ser Rolph Spicer, castellan of the Crag, a position of trust and power during the absence of the ruling lord. When the Crag was invested by Robb Stark and his forces during the War of the Five Kings, Sybell Spicer negotiated a cruel but effective (for the Spicers) deal with Tywin Lannister: Sybell would assure that Jeyne, having married Robb, would never bear the Young Wolf an heir, and in return, Tywin would pardon the Spicers and Westerlings and reward them with lands and marriages after Robb was finally vanquished. Sybell secretly drugged Jeyne to prevent her from conceiving (while lying to her about it, doubtless playing on her desperate desire to fulfill her basic function as Robb’s queen to ensure that Jeyne took the secret contraceptive she offered - pretty damn brutal, Sybell), Robb was murdered, and the Spicers got the former Reyne seat of Castamere and promise of good marriages for Jeyne and Elena (though poor Raynald Westerling was almost certainly murdered by vengeful anti-Westerling Freys).

I decided that the Spicer words should be By Itself Nothing. Spice is hardly if ever consumed on its own: instead, it is used to add to a dish, to give it flavor or help preserve it. Likewise, I thought this motto reflected the Spicers' lowly state in the Westerlands, as well as their ambitions to go much higher. On their own, the Spicers are nothing: grandchildren of a man who hawked saffron and cloves on the streets of Lannisport and his similarly lowborn Essosi bride, children of a man given a scrap of nobility by a weak and ill-remembered Lord of Casterly Rock. But, just as spice becomes really special when paired with food or a whole dish, so the Spicers became important by attaching themselves to greater nobility. Conscious of their House's lack of real strength, the Spicers have made use of connections to far greater names - Westerling, Stark, and Lannister - to advance themselves and their family. By themselves, the Spicers were nothing; but their actions with greater Houses influenced the end of the War of the Five Kings in a dramatic way.

Let me know how you like this motto for House Spicer. Next week is [drumroll] the HUNDREDTH HOUSE FOR HOUSE WORDS WEDNESDAYS!

[lykosog]

Robb’s warging  abilities

Robb, like all of the Stark siblings, has a very deep connection to his direwolf and that is actually the reason behind many of the victories he had. Like for example:

“How did the king ever take the Tooth?" Ser Perwyn Frey asked his bastard brother. "That's a hard strong keep, and it commands the hill road.”

“ He never took it. He slipped around it in the night. It's said the direwolf showed him the way, that Grey Wind of his.”

My take on this is that in dreams Robb does see things through Grey Wind but then, when he wakes up, remembers very little of them and has to send scouts to explore the possible areas where the place he saw could be until finally they do find it and he are able to use it for whatever they may need.

However, because of the vague memory he has, I don’t think Robb completly realized of his abilities  at first and it would be later on when that connection between him and Grey Wind grows stronger and that he is able to realize in his dreams how he moves, how he senses things ( though it was never as strong as to have tasted his kill ), and so on...that he begins to get scared of what was happening to him and of his direwolf:

And there's the heart of it, Catelyn thought. “He is part of you, Robb. To fear him is to fear you.”

“I am not a wolf, no matter what they call me.” Robb sounded cross.

Which is the most important reason for me behind why he pushed Grey Wind, believing that the farther away they were from each other the less it would continue happening to him. A decision with many consequences because ignoring his direwolf’s signals was what eventually led to his own end as everything around Robb smelled of treason and betrayal and Grey Wind was the only one able to sense its smell:

Sybell Spicer, who made sure Robb never had any children with Jeyne:

  “Growling and snapping [...] he terrifies her mother.”

Rolph Spicer, was part of the plan that led to the Red Wedding:

“I am not going to banish him just because my wolf doesn't seem to like the way he smells.”

The Freys, at the Twins:

Grey Wind edged forward, tail stiff, watching through slitted eyes of dark gold. When the Freys were a half-dozen yards away Catelyn heard him growl, a deep rumble that seemed almost one with rush of the river. Robb looked startled. “Grey Wind, to me. To me!”

Instead the direwolf leapt forward, snarling.

and:

There was more trouble at the gatehouse. Grey Wind balked in the middle of the drawbridge, shook the rain off, and howled at the portcullis. Robb whistled impatiently. “Grey Wind. What is it? Grey Wind, with me.” But the direwolf only bared his teeth.

[poorquentyn]

How exactly does Sybell serve as Tywin's agent during their "wolffish" days? What actions does she take to remain loyal to Lannisters?

It’s laid out in Jaime VII AFFC: 

Jaime turned to the daughter. “I am sorry for your loss. The boy had courage, I’ll give him that. There is a question I must ask you. Are you carrying his child, my lady?”

Jeyne burst from her chair and would have fled the room if the guard at the door had not seized her by the arm. “She is not,” said Lady Sybell, as her daughter struggled to escape. “I made certain of that, as your lord father bid me.”

Jaime nodded. Tywin Lannister was not a man to overlook such details. “Unhand the girl,” he said, “I’m done with her for now.” As Jeyne fled sobbing down the stairs, he considered her mother. “House Westerling has its pardon, and your brother Rolph has been made Lord of Castamere. What else would you have of us?”

“Your lord father promised me worthy marriages for Jeyne and her younger sister. Lords or heirs, he swore to me, not younger sons nor household knights.”

Lords or heirs. To be sure. The Westerlings were an old House, and proud, but Lady Sybell herself had been born a Spicer, from a line of upjumped merchants. Her grandmother had been some sort of half-mad witch woman from the east, he seemed to recall. And the Westerlings were impoverished. Younger sons would have been the best that Sybell Spicer’s daughters could have hoped for in the ordinary course of events, but a nice fat pot of Lannister gold would make even a dead rebel’s widow look attractive to some lord. “You’ll have your marriages,” said Jaime, “but Jeyne must wait two full years before she weds again.” If the girl took another husband too soon and had a child by him, inevitably there would come whispers that the Young Wolf was the father.

“I have two sons as well,” Lady Westerling reminded him. “Rollam is with me, but Raynald was a knight and went with the rebels to the Twins. If I had known what was to happen there, I would never have allowed that.” There was a hint of reproach in her voice. “Raynald knew nought of any…of the understanding with your lord father. He may be a captive at the Twins.”

Or he may be dead. Walder Frey would not have known of the understanding either.

Sybell and Tywin had to have come to this “understanding” while the former was still at the Crag, because from there, she went to Riverrun, where she has no influence over the maester. The planning for the Red Wedding was already on–Roose gives the treacherous orders RE Duskendale before a bird arrives from the Twins bearing news of Robb’s marriage to Jeyne–so as soon as Sybell let Tywin know that the Young Wolf was in their castle, he knew how to proceed, and so he made an offer: prevent a pregnancy, and your family will be well rewarded.

[makerkenzie]

In which Lord Tywin is a shady bastard:

Another little thinky before I pack it in for the night:

Tywin...doesn't do much to protect the families who contributed to Robb Stark's defeat.

He left the Westerlings especially vulnerable. Jeyne really really wanted to accompany Robb to the wedding, and if she'd gone, she would've died with him. Robb wanted to take her with him. Catelyn convinced Robb to leave Jeyne at Riverrun. Good thing, because Sybell Spicer had no idea about the Red Wedding. If she'd known, she wouldn't have allowed Raynald to go with Robb.

Not that Sybell Spicer is a model of transparency, but I believe her when she says she wouldn't have let Raynald go to the wedding if she'd known what was planned. She didn't have the tools to protect her children from the Freys.

It's a given that the Freys knew nothing about what Tywin arranged with the Westerlings. If they'd known about any of that, then Lord Walder's arrangement with Tywin would've been a non-starter. The old weasel might have even stayed loyal to King Robb. To the extent that the old weasel was ever loyal to anyone besides himself, anyway. If I'm right about how Sybell and Rolph set Robb up, and if Lord Walder had known anything about that, he likely would've recovered from the betrayal of Robb marrying someone else's daughter.

There was no way Tywin could've given Walder Frey any indication that the Westerlings were not to be harmed, but he could have given Sybell Spicer some clue about what the Freys had in mind for the Starks. Was he afraid she'd spoil their plans? I don't think she would've spoiled their plans. Sybell didn't give a fuck about the Starks. Whereas, her ordering her children to sit out the wedding maaaay have aroused some suspicions amongst the Stark-Tullys. Maybe. Good thing for them, Catelyn already had some suspicions.

That, and, well...seems Tywin didn't exactly trust the Spicers. They've been rewarded for their help, yes, and those "rewards" include making Uncle Rolph the new Lord of Castamere. Yes, THAT Castamere. The one that's been vacant since Tywin drowned everyone in the tunnels below. That's less of a reward and more of a warning.

[honourofwesterling]

HOUSE SPICER TREE 1/??

Once there was a queen, who's beauty struck anyone who passed by her. A spice trader came from Westeros and fell head over heels for her. He begged her to be his wife and she accepted. For with him she felt loved for who she was, not the symbol she represented. And so Isybellum, married her spice trader. With him, she had three children. Siaka, Amara, and Dayo. When her children were grown and her husband died, she disappeared. (Only to reappear years later in Lannisport, but that is another story.) Amara became a septa after her mother's disappearance. Dayo married into a minor house and has a son named Samwell. Siaka, after his mother's disappearance, became a knight for House Lannister. He put his life on the line for the Lord at the time, and the Lord granted him a small title. Siaka was able to marry Margot Algood from that. She was not a rich match by any means, dark haired and beautiful though, she bore him a son, Rolph and a daughter who he named for his mother Sybell. Margot died when Sybell was young and she learned very quickly to raise herself up in the world. While they did not have lands, they were very rich. The Spicer's had a small keep, so small that it could just be considered nothing in the land of the Lannisters. Sybell caught the attention and eye of Gawen Westerling. While a noble match, Gawen's family had little to offer for the bride price. His father having gambled most of their money away. Gawen had to make a rich match. Not only did he make a rich match but it was a love match. Sybell would go on to have four children with Gawen, Raynald, their heir, Jeyne, Eleyna, and Rollam.

(insp.)

[doublehex]

I am linking this post to /r/asoiaf because THIS GUY FUCKING GETS IT.

Catelyn is not fucking stupid oh my god. Most people seem incapable of realising that while yes WE know Littlefinger is suspish as fuck, that Tyrion didn't send the catspaw, etc, SHE HAS NO WAY OF KNOWING THESE THINGS. "But she should see that Littlefinger is obviously evil, she's stupid!" No. Littlefinger is explicity stated to be NOT suspicious because he acts like everybody's friend. Show!Littlefinger might be trying to be Irish Batman, but book Littlefinger is genial and polite to everyone, and is sure to butter them up with whatever they want. She grew up with him! She considers him a little brother! She has no way of knowing he's an evil fuckface!

Catelyn is REALLY, REALLY SMART. This is demonstrated on multiple occasions. When the Northern army is all DAKINGINDANORF, Cat is like, hey, guys, can we maybe sue for peace? Because this is going to end horribly? Do they listen? The fuck they do. She TELLS Robb not to trust Rolph Spicer because Grey Wind doesn't. Does he listen? The fuck he does.

Releasing Jaime Lannister? Irrational, sure. A political mistake. But I completely see why she did it and empathise. Imagine being a mother whose (as far you know) children are being held hostage, and no one wants to rescue them because they're not "valuable" enough.

Lysa is psychologically traumatised from A FORCED ABORTION BY HER FATHER, leading to a string of miscarriages. Do you realise how mentally scarring that would be? Yes, she raped Littlefinger and that was AWFUL. I am not excusing that in any way, at all, ever. However, that doesn't make Hoster's actions justified. By the time of AGOT, she is clearly a deeply mentally disturbed and traumatised individual, which is why she's so insanely protective of Sweetrobin.

Edmure is hotheaded. That doesn't make him stupid. Robb never saw fit to tell him about the trap, so he did what seemed logical. Edmure cares about the smallfolk, so instead of the more strategically sensible decision to let them die, he makes the empathetic and kind one to let them into the castle. It's even stated that in peacetime, he would make an AMAZING leader. He's not cut out for war, especially since no one fucking tells him anything and then gets pissed off he didn't magically read their minds.

tl;dr: the Tully kids are not fucking stupid, and Hoster Tully is a douchebag.