#this is why I don't like arya anymore

[synchodai]

just an aegon ii rant

The thing about Aegon that makes people root for him more than Joffrey is that Aegon just seems like everyone's punching bag in a way that Joffrey wasn't?

Aegon did horrible things, don't get me wrong. He raped a woman, he bullied his younger brother, he's implied to have his bastard children join fighting pits (this was never outright confirmed — Arryk only lightly alluded to Aegon doing something shady while they were looking to crown him), and he executed innocent ratcatchers as retribution for his murdered son.

But his rap sheet isn't any worse than Daemon's (murder, grooming, being a cop, etc.) or Criston's (his murder of Joffrey Lonmouth was downright homophobia /jk) or even Rhaenys's (talk about killing innocent people, right?), but for some reason all the characters hate Aegon's guts specifically? Given the people on this show, why?

It's like if Joffrey Baratheon threatened to kill Arya's direwolf and her best friend in episode 1, but he never does anything extraordinarily malicious or sadistic in the next episodes after that. And yet his own family just keeps treating him with outright contempt anyways despite him being their key to power.

Yeah, Aegon should be shamed and punished by the narrative for the horrible things he does...but nothing ever going his way and emphasizing how much of failure he is at every turn is just overkill, man. At some point, this amount of narrative humiliation has nothing to do anymore with dealing with the consequences of his bad actions or his personal failings, and it just makes every character look like they're taking turns unloading their frustrations on an acceptable target.

It's not fun to watch someone get kicked around by their entire family for no reason when he's never done anything especially horrible to hurt them other than be somewhat gormless. Otto most likely doesn't even know or care about Dyana, so does he despise his grandson simply for being a drunkard? For having an addiction? He was plotting to install him as king but all they ever did to prepare him for it was....yell at him and slap him around?

And on Aegon tormenting Aemond with his bullying, it's not like Aemond especially hates humiliating people in public since he regularly does it himself. When Lucaerys smirked at Aemond when they were served a pig in that dinner scene, Aemond bullied Jacaerys and Lucaerys back and Aegon was on his brother's side defending Aemond from getting attacked. Aemond isn't some put-upon victim who's been tolerating his brother's constant abuse — he obviously punches back. He has a hair-trigger temper and has messed up more things for his family's plans than Aegon has. Aemond's the one who was involved in the Driftmark fight that almost implicated Alicent for treason, Aemond's the one who made the Strong toast, Aemond's the one who killed Lucaerys and damaged their cause. And all three times, Aegon defends him!

This is all to ask why? Why are they writing his character like this? Why does the story and other characters keep piling on this dude? Why make Aegon's family hate him? Why make him awful at everything and good at nothing, not even riding his dragon who he has had for over a decade? Why give him these almost sympathetic moments with his brother, son, smallfolk, and dragon, only to have all the characters not show him a lick of sympathy?

Why do they all hate him for being an incompetent king when he straight up gave them the option of him abdicating by running away to Essos? They all act like he's the one imposing his incompetence on them, but they're the ones who forced the position on him. "Every man on that council earned their seat." YEs, Aegon didn't earn his seat — because it was forced on him and I am clawing at my eyes wishing the show would acknowledge that!

Is it supposed to be a deliberate commentary on the tragedy of hereditary monarchy? To show the Hightowers' cycle of abuse (even though no other Hightower is getting consistently hit and berated even after committing the WORST crime)? Is the show making him so pathetic and incompetent to make Rhaenyra more dignified and regal in comparison? Or is it doing this deliberately to woobify Aegon? To have his family and life be horrible so the viewers have built up their sympathies for when he gets his emotionally-resonant plot beats in the end?

Even if that's the case, the means certainly don't justify the ends. There's just no logical consistency to how these chracters treat and view Aegon and it's getting frustrating to watch sometimes.

[forgotten-fossilised]

The h0td writing is so bad, how can they go on and on about the prophecy unless the writers plan to reveal that lol the Stark kids are actually Aemond's descendants via Alys so that hotd can connect to got's ending? I would love for the Starks to have no connections from the Targs at all (except Jon) so it can be a f u to whole house T4rg but seriously with how the writing goes, I feel like it has a 70% chance happening now... Also is it just me or Alys' actress kind of look like Arya?

But yeahhh, after the previous episodes, I've finally decided to drop the show...

hello, thank u for the ask🫶

shhh don't give condal & co. any more ideas!! now that you mention it the actresses do look kinda similar. honestly I'd never have thought of that explanation, but at this point anything is possible! everytime I think it can't get worse I get unpleasantly surprised. completely understand why you don't wanna watch anymore, I do just to see how bad it can get. i can't stop, it's so amusing 😭

this stupid prophecy pissed me off on so many levels. "he called it the song of ICE and FIRE" ok but why tho. did it change its meaning over the years or what. I wonder if it's gonna be explained at all or did they just throw it in bc its the lazy convenient way to justify Rhaenyra's actions. if they really wanted to include it the great way would be to tie it with Cregan and Jace somehow? (their alliance being literally called Pact of ice and fire...) but nah apparently they just cut out the whole northern storyline. maybeee we will be shown some flashbacks regarding that but idk

on a side note, as far as I remember the prince that was promised prophecy isn't inherently tied to the targaryens at all, and it definitely doesn't originate from Aegon, so I wonder if they changed that in the show canon (like Dany's dragon eggs coming from Syrax) or do the targs just believe that bc of course who else would be the chosen one if not them.

[lavalais76]

I was reading terrible things about Sansa Stark and now my blood is boiling. How could people HATE an 11 yr old child who has absolutely no control over her own life. They went as far as to saying the mountain-clan will kidnap her and she will marry Timit!!!!😳

They also say Sansa will remain in the Vale until the end of the last book, but have no objections to Arya and Dany on a revenge killing spree. And for God's sake don't mention Sansa with Jon. They absolutely go INSANE, saying Dany and Jon will save humanity. Dany can't save anyone if she is killing millions of people and burning others alive.

Sansa will kill LF with the help of Timit is what they say and OHHH, Jon will marry Val. How TF can Val be QINT when she is a wilding and no real princess. She looks the part as Jon says, but we ALL know what kind of woman Jon REALLY CRAVE. A high born willowy creature who brushes her hair waiting for some knight to save her.

Jon craves Sansa Stark aNd I personally believe he always HAVE. My response to "these idiots was this: (and I could be wrong) but who knows.

Alyas Karstark was a red herring. Sansa is definitely the girl in grey. Miranda also has a grey cloak that went missing and WHY would Miranda mention Jon being LC to Sansa? There is a reason for all of that. Just like Arya and Jon were to fall in love in original version, it's going to be Sansa and Jon.

Jon even says he has no sister (,5Never considered Sansa a sister) he then says “my half sister truly” (that's what he and Sansa referred to each other as) He mistakes Melsandra for Ygritte, and says all robes are GREY in the dark, yet suddenly hers were RED. Martin is a hell of a writer, and I was in denial about Sansa being the grey girl as well. Not anymore.

Sansa is getting the hell out of the Vale. There will be no kidnapping from mointain-clans or falling in love with a secondary character such as Timit. What sense would that even make? Some people act as if Sansa doesn't matter, or she is some side character when she has one of the most tragic SAD stories in the whole series. She is scared and do whatever she has to do to survive, even if it means allowing LF to kiss her and molest her in which she has NO CONTROL over. It also blows my mind how people were “shipping” (and I hate that word) Sansa Stark and the HOUND of all monsters. Sansa has had 4 FALE BEASTS in her life. Joffery, Tyrion, The Hound, and LF. These men are evil and takes advantage of a young lonely 11 yr old girl who has been captured like a butterfly in a Jar. They are evil, YES; BUT they are NOT the real BEAST.

The real BEAST is Jon Snow. As we know, Jon was already a bit ruthless before the stabbings. (I do not think Jon died that night) For ONE: We need to think about the SNOW and hypothermia which can save the lives of people who are bleeding by knife wound or gunshot would. It's simple Science. Will Jon be on the brink of death and have a Near death experience? YES. There will be a lot of chaos at Castle Black and the wildings are very loyal to Jon. Eventually they will be ruling the wall while Jon recovers along with a few other loyal CROWS that love and respect Jon.

Master Ameon had a dragon dream when him, Gilly and Sam sailed off. He couldn't shake the feeling that he needed to tell Jon Snow that “ the cold preserves.” A fan asked GRRM about Jon's resurrection, and Martin said, “You think Jon is dead do you?” Maybe he was toying around, but everyone automatically assumed he DIED when there is absolutely NO EVIDENCE.

“He never felt the 4 knife only the cold” How do we even know there was a 4th knife or any other knives afterwards? Why was Jon’s hand clumsy when he tried to pull his sword out? Did they drug him? Why was Ghost acting hostile before the stabbings? Of course Ghost knew what was up. There is no telling who is involved in the attempt on Jon's life. Melsandra told him to watch the ones who smile in his face while they sharpen their daggers. I don't even rule Satin out, as Ive said many, many times.

On the show, Ollie was Satin in my opinion. They did not want to give it away. Back to Jon and Sansa and a few other things. First I want to say, Melsandra will definitely burn Shrinee thinking Stannis is actually dead. She will play absolutely NO PART in bringing Jon back from his “coma”. It's going to be Jon's wolf who saves him and release his soul back into his body, and Ghost will die, also sliding his shadow into Jon because Jon IS GHOST.

He will definitely be a beast and he will not be the same Jon as we know him. This is where Sansa Stark ( girl in grey) will come along and temper Jon just like she did the hound. They will eventually work together and fall in love and struggle with these feelings because keep in mind, Jon and Sansa does not know each other AT ALL. Yes, he will welcome her in open arms and be extremely protective of her, and yes they will fight while trying to get their home back or when they have to rebuild Winterfell together. (The blood of Winterfell)

Sansa Stark is destined to go North because she is the only one out of all the Stark children who has her wolf buried at Winterfell, and as Melsandra like to say: “the bones remember"

[torchwood-99]

So I first heard Rachel Zegler's comments about Snow White and thought, good, they're doing something different with the story. No point in their being a remake if they don't. And her growing into a leader? Makes sense. She's a princess, heir to the throne, she's been usurped by a tyrant, there's a whole untapped mine of drama there. And of course, she can be all this and still fall in love and be ladylike and elegant, where does it say she won't?

But you know what? Why the fuck should she? All these people throwing a tantrum that "women aren't allowed to be feminine and strong anymore" and I have to laugh because what, did they think that 2015 Cinderella wasn't "feminine"? Or Belle or Ariel? That they weren't elegant and gracious and beautiful and very much fitting in with gender norms? They had some grit, they had dreams outside marriage and love as well as beyond, but they were far from GNC.

So to eff with it. Snow White has been a servant for a good chunk of her life, she's been mistreated and she hasn't been taken etiquette lessons. Let her spit. Let her get dirty. Let her be rough and vulgar and ready to get dirty and rough house for the sake of it. Let her do that because it's fun and it suits her and it's part of who she is, not because she want to be like the "boys" and girls like her just want to be NLOGs, but because that stuff is just what she likes. Let's have a princess who takes what the world tells her is "feminine" and stamp on it.

If people are going to get into a hissy fit about female characters not being allowed to be "feminine" anymore, let's give them something to really piss them off. They'll see how good they have it. Right now, Eloise Bridgerton in her bows and her desire for basic autonomy is pushing the boat too much. Princess Peach in a bright pink jumpsuit is butch. Daenerys Targaryen and Arya Stark have "male privilege" because they are warriors and leaders and don't engage in traditionally high class "feminine" pass times. I think these viewers need to see a female character who is all the things they fear, and realise just how narrow and limited their view of women and "femininity" is.

And it's really telling that all Rachel is saying here is that Snow White is going to be thinking on things other than romance, is going to rely on herself instead of her true love alone, that she's going to be thinking about herself as a leader and a ruler, and fans took that as "Oh why can't Snow White be feminine anymore? Why can't a character be feminine and strong!?!"

No one was talking about Snow White's femininity, just her role as a leader and her gaining some proactivity. That's her strength, there. But the mention of it has you saying that she's not being allowed to be feminine. And you're upset that women can't be "feminine" and can't be "strong" at the same time. But you're worried that in being a leader and being proactive means that Snow White is no longer "feminine".

If that's what you're saying, then the only people saying that women can't be "feminine" and can't be "strong" are in fact, you.

And you know what, a live action princess who is rough and reckless, properly dirty and uninterested in how she looks, who never gets a glow up, isn't a "secretly/wild beauty" type, who gets to get rowdy and not have this held up as her somehow rejecting being a woman, but just a person being true to herself, would be really bloody brilliant. Brilliant for the little girls at home, who get to see there are options for them, brilliant to watch on screen and brilliant to follow on a journey. And you don't want to watch a character like that? You want someone who wears dresses and wants romance and fits in with "feminine ideals". Go ahead. You'll see that you have plenty of options.

[atomic--peach]

Her Grace's Handmaiden Pt.11

(Cersei Lannister x Fem Reader x Sandor Clegane

Cersei x Jaime: murder, fluff, mentions of pregnancy)

AO3 VERSION: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48276340

"OoOoOoOh gods"

You fell stomach first onto the bed that had been supplied for you and your husband in the keep the party had stopped at for the night. You didn't remember the keep's name, nor it's Lord or Lady, and frankly you didn't care at this point.

When you promised Lady Stark you would watch out for her girls, you hadn't fully realized what you were getting yourself into.

Arya, sweet as she looked, was practically feral. News of what happened by the river had swept through camp like wildfire, Cersei was an absolute mess of rage, and now the woods were full of Lannister and Stark men all looking for the lost girl.

Your husband was out there as well, doing gods knew what.

It was well after dark, and you decided Sandor or no Sandor, you were getting some sleep.

It felt weird, sleeping alone.

Once upon a time it had been all you ever knew, but now the bed felt empty without another body in it. You supposed that's why Cersei kept so many bed maids.

It was the middle of the night when you heard a ruckus from below your window. You glanced over the sill for a moment to see red capes surrounding a small figure.

Her father must not be far behind, you told yourself as you looked out into the darkness with bleary eyes.

From the shadows you watched a large black horse trot down the dirt road and sighed.

Finally.

Letting you eyes focus, you frowned when you realized there was something draped over the back of Stranger's saddle.

No, not a something. A Someone.

You crawled back under the covers uneasily and wavered between sleep and awake until you heard the door open followed by heavy foot steps. You flipped his side of the covers up and patted the cushion.

"Come to bed"

"Go back to sleep" your bear sighed.

"Trying" you mumbled, rolling over to face him with half closed eyes

"Sandor?"

"Yes?"

"Do I want to know what happened in those woods tonight?"

There was a long silence between the two of you in the pitch darkness of the room. You could hear the buckles of his plate unlatching as he shrugged his armor off.

"No."

"The butcher's boy?"

"You don't want to know" he growled. "Trust me."

You fell silent.

In matters such as these, you knew it was just best not to pry.

You knew what he was when you married him, even before that, and you chose to stick around all the same.

"Come to bed" you repeated, patting the bed again. "I can't sleep alone anymore"

The bed sunk under his weight as he all but collapsed into his side of the bed. Instinctively you rolled towards him and draped a leg over his hip while burrowing yourself under his arm.

There was a heavy peace, filled only with the sound of your combined breathing.

"Go to sleep" you finally said, pulling the blanket up over him and closing you eyes.

Hopefully tomorrow would be better.

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

It hadn't been.

Nor the day after that.

But when you finally saw the silhouette of the Red Keep in the distance you almost went slack with relief.

Only a few more hours.

You wished you were able to ride ahead, cut the time as much as possible. But Cersei had insisted you ride with her today, and as much as you would usually appreciate that, the walls of the carriage felt claustrophobic.

"I've asked the driver to keep us behind a bit, so the messenger bringing your dress can meet us outside the city" she explained.

You could not help but think it would just be easier to meet the messenger at the keep itself. But after this last disastrous month of travel, it was best not to ask any challenging questions.

"Your Grace" a steward knocked on the carriage door, "a messenger has brought a package for you."

"Finally" the queen breathed, opening the door and snatching the brown paper wrapped box half the size of your body from the steward's hands.

The windows and doors shut creating a stifling atmosphere but you tried to remain good natured as the queen opened the box.

"I had him make this one specifically for our arrival. It's best to arrive looking like you belong. It will make things easier for you."

The closer you got to Kings Landing, the more you realized how daunting your arrival would actually be. You had left a servant, nameless. You would be returning a married lady and favorite of The Queen. There would be so many questions to answer and you weren't sure how to go about it.

"Your Grace" your voice shook a little as she unwrapped the gown, "what am I to say? If anyone asks? I mean if they ask who I am, why I'm here?

Cersei's eyes traveled your face for a moment before snatching your hands into hers. "You, my dear little doll, have nothing to explain. Just keep close to me, and I will do all the talking."

This was a great relief to you and you leaned back on the seat with a sigh.

Getting dressed in a carriage also proved a greater challenge than you had anticipated. Cersei did her best to make sure all you hems were straight and the dress fit as it should.

It was a little tight actually, pressing your bust and ribs, but the queen assured you it would be fine.

"Clegane" she called out the window, beckoning your husband to double back. "I have something of yours I thought you might like to escort into the city personally."

"Tired of her already?" He deadpanned. "I supposed I can take her off you hands."

He pulled over a just long enough to let you get out of the cramped carriage and his breath caught in his throat as you climbed out.

He honestly hadn't ever given a damn about house colors, but the sight of you decked out in black silk trimmed with yellow gold was overwhelming. The draping sleeves Cersei had styled after her own gowns were edged with embroidery beaded with black glass. At the bottom there was a scene of hounds prowling around your skirt etched out in black glass and silk thread.

He assisted you up on Stranger's back with one arm and tried not to tense as you wraps your soft arms around his chest.

Cersei was pleased beyond words. Her plan was working out perfectly.

The King's Gate opened for them to the sound of blasting horns. The small folk gathered eagerly to catch a glimpse of the parade, and you felt a million eyes suddenly land on you.

You told yourself you were overreacting, that no one would even bother to look your way, after all you were just another lady on a horse. But as the procession left the poorer straights of the city and drew closer to the castle, you could hear the whispers through the sounds of wheels and hooves on cobblestone.

"Looks like The Hound mounted himself a Bitch" was a comment that stood out from the crowd, and while you couldn't tell who said it, you tightened your grip on Sandor.

"Keep your eyes ahead" he muttered under his breath. "Don't even look at them"

As the keep grew closer, the crowd grew wealthier and soon you were through the gates and stopped fully.

You didn't remember getting off the horse, or bowing deeply as Robert and Cersei left the group first, followed by their children. When they were gone, the rest of you were free to move.

"Keep close" Sandor trapped your hand in the crook of his elbow as if you would be swallowed by the crowd. "And keep your mouth shut."

You nodded and plastered the least offensive smile you could across your face.

It didn't take long for someone to approach, and that someone ended up being a face familiar to you.

"Clegane" a jovial young man decked out in green bounded up to them. His face was handsomely made with a trimmed black beard and dark eyes. "I hear you've brought back some plunder from the North."

"Something like that."

"Lord Renly Baratheon, a pleasure to meet you, My Lady." The King's youngest brother scooped up your hand and kissed the back of it politely. You curtsied deeply in response.

"Where's Stark?"

"He hung back" Sandor shrugged, "We had some trouble on the road with one of the wolves"

"Ah" Renly nodded grimly, "so we've heard. Well, I'll leave you two alone" he winked cheekily before slipping away.

"One down" you breathed with something that might have been relief.

The air was knocked out of you as Sandor swept you out the the court yard and behind a stone pillar.

"Seven Hells" you grunted, trying to breath with his arm gripping you tighter than it ever had before. "Sandor, Darling. Please"

"Sh" he hushed you harshly, peering around the column.

There he was, bold as fucking brass.

Gregor Clegane towered over even his brother, living up to his name as a mountain among men.

He was looking for you.

"Fuuuuck fuck fuck fuck" Sandor swallowed, trying to figure out how to get you out of here with being seen.

"Sandor, my love." You wiggled out of his arms and straightened your dress, you had never seen him afraid before. It frightened you.

"Listen, maybe it's best to just get it over with now. There are plenty of people around, if he does anything the guards will help. And he clearly already knows so hiding me won't make any difference."

Sandor thought about this, shaking his head instinctively. You took his hand in your smaller one and kissed it gently.

"Come on. It has to be done."

You were right.

Gods did he hate that you were right.

Gregor caught sight of Sandor before he ever saw you, but when he did you felt like a rabbit in the eyes of a bear.

"Brother." Sandor grunted plainly.

"You got married" Gregor squinted at you, wincing as if in pain.

"Aye"

You moved in front of Sandor so your new brother could get a proper look at you. He sniffed, unimpressed.

"Pregnant yet?"

"I'm not sure" you confessed plainly, trying to keep the fear out of your voice.

"Hm"

That was all he said, leaving the two of you and stomping between courtiers towards the training pits.

You blinked, "do you think he already knew my name?"

"I don't think he really cares" Sandor breathed a sigh of relief that the worst part was over.

The Hound's Quarters were well furnished enough to impress you but small enough to be unintimidating. You had no trunk to unpack or belongings to move from the servants' quarters, but outside the door you were greeted by a small, tanned man with a mousey look to him.

"The fuck are you?" Sandor growled.

The small man sputtered either out of indignation or fear. "Her Majesty the Queen has sent me for the Lady Clegane"

"The Lady Clegane is indisposed"

"Sandor" you admonished him with a patient smile for the man. "What has Her Grace sent you for?"

"My Lady" he gave a short bow before motioning to a small tower of boxes stacked beside the chamber door, "a gift from her Majesty, made by my own hands. Only the best quality, I assure you."

When the Queen said she would be sending for new clothes, you thought she meant a two or three gowns to be presentable at court, not an entirely new wardrobe, complete with slippers for each gown.

After toting arm loads of boxes in at a time, the dressmaker made you promise to come to him if you needed any alterations before being hastily escorted out the door.

"Mother's Mercy" you breathed, eyeing the stack. "Did she tell you it would be so much?"

"You think she tells me things?" Sandor scoffed. "What a spoiled little thing you've turned into."

"I am not spoiled." You protested, leaning against him and pulling his arms around your shoulders.

"Spoiled rotten" Sandor teased, laying kissed over your hair "just look at you"

"What do I look like?" You prompted him, motioning to your new gown that wrapped you in the colors and symbols of his house. "Hm?"

"You look-" he breathed, taking all of you in for a moment.

Like a vision.

Perfection.

Like my wife, he wanted to say

My wife, my life, my Lady, mother of my children

"Like you need a good spanking."

"Sandor!" You pushed him away laughing, "don't you dare!"

-----------

Cersei weighed the emotions in her breast as she watched you and Sandor from the balcony over the courtyard.

She wondered if the two of you looked as natural as you did with him.

How you shimmered in that gown, the glass beads catching the light and the golden silk glinting in the afternoon sun.

Had she ever looked like that? Had she and Robert, even once, looked as happy as you did with Sandor?

She should have had you wear the red one, she thought jealously then reconsidered it. Undressing and redressing you in her mind.

"You look lost in thought" Jaime approached, stripped of his armour and dressed in a quilted vest of Lannister red over a plain white shirt. "What are you thinking about?"

"I gave her to him to keep her close" she murmured, "but I didn't think she would sink so perfectly into him. I didn't think it was possible for anyone to do that."

"Well," Jaime crossed his arms, leaning against the wall in the shade. "I tried to tell you they'd get attached to each other."

"I knew he'd get attached to her, I just didn't think-" she snapped at him before sighing contritely. "I'm sorry"

"You know." Jaime approached her closely and lowered his voice to a whisper. "Since you've taken on your little project, I can't lie. I've been a little jealous myself. It's like you've been avoiding me since that nastiness in Winterfell."

Cersei looked away. The prospect of Bran Stark waking haunted her every moment.

But she couldn't hate him for it, not really. After all, he'd done it for her. For them.

You may have been a bright and shiny new toy for the Queen to play with, but Jaime knew that you were no replacement for her other half.

"Don't worry about it." Jaime soothed his twin kindly, a strange light behind his eye. "She'll be with child soon anyway. And when she is, I'll still be here."

[blububblgum]

Arya stark: bloodhunter, order of the ghostslayer.

Once again, reasoning in incredible detail under the cut

Ok for arya, i once again wanted to subvert obvious expectations (and play more in the dnd space) so instead of the rogue subclass (with either thief or assassin as her subclass) i settled on bloodhunter for her class. First, to be clear on why not rogue; its not really that different from how she is in the actual world of asoiaf, and if i'm committing to an au then i might as well branch out (the same reasons stand for why not fighter). Bloodhunter is a class that was created by matthew mercer for campaign 2 of critical role, and it is deeply interesting to me (as well as being suited to arya)

Bloodhunters are a martial class that is based around the use of blood magic in order to destroy evils in the world, while resisting giving into the dangerous magic they work with. The subclass that i chose for arya is Ghostslayer, which is "the oldest of the bloodhunter orders" and they focus on everything around death, with an obsession with ridding the world of the undead. While the House of Black and White is not like, focused on ridding the world of undead, it does align well with how she could have come into these powers/fighting style. Beyond the House of Black and White, arya herself has so many personal vendettas that work with the motivations of ghostslayers (especially when you think of the white walkers, though i know she doesn't know about them).

Though ghostslayer (and bloodhunter really) have some magic, it doesn't really give the specific power of changing appearance, and that is kinda crucial to what arya learns in the House of Black and White. So!! In order to make this work, i think dnd arya is not a human (or at least, not a human anymore). Instead she is a shifter, which is descended from a were-creature. The shifter option that suits arya best is swiftstride (which isn't the one that is recommended for werewolves but whatever), since it gives extra movement/increased speed, and matches how arya fights. However, arya still can't change her faces, so this is where feats come in. The Eldritch initiate feat allows one invocation (something that warlocks get as part of their deal) and though arya is definitely not a warlock (though i did think about hexblade for her, i just couldn't figure out what her patron would be), the Mask of many faces invocation allows the character to cast disguise self at will, which works as a dnd take on changing faces. If she were higher level then Master of myriad forms makes more sense (it gives the spell alter self at will, which actually changes the form of the caster, whereas disguise self   is an illusion spell) but i decided to plan her at about 8th level, so whatever lol.

Some bonus thoughts (i know i have already rambled a lot oopsies); her fighting style is either duelling or two-weapon fighting, depending on whether she uses exclusively needle or if she also fights with a dagger. Her crimson rite damage would be cold, as a little nod to her stark side. For her blood maledicts (bonuses that are useful in fighting) i decided on the Blood curse of the Eyeless which lets her temp blind people (fun!) and Blood curse of Binding which reduces peoples speed to zero for a bit (good for just fucking sprinting away). Since i'm thinking of her as 8th level, she can have another feat (which is more interesting than an ability score improvement) and i decided on magic initiate (wizard, since its intelligence based), which gives 2 cantrips (spells that don't require spell slots) and 1 first level spell. For the two cantrips, mage hand and booming blade would give some helpful bonuses to her both in and out of combat. For the one spell, i thought find familiar would be fun! Find familiar doesn't have wolf, but if you just  use cat stats for wolf then that's fine, find familiar is cool cause the caster can look through the eyes of the familiar when they are in range, and they can be summoned in a different form when it is recast. Lastly, i think her stats (highest to lowest) are: dexterity, intelligence, constitution, wisdom, strength, charisma.

Again, if you read all this, thank you!!!! I hope it made sense and lmk ur thoughts.

[esther-dot]

"You are Arya of Winterfell, daughter of the North. You told me you could be strong. You have the wolf blood in you." (Arya X ASOS)

The old gods legitimately spoke to Arya using Ned's voice in order to give her strength to leave Harrenhal. So the gods of the North is using the former Lord of Winterfell's voice while calling Arya a "daughter of the North" apparently means nothing ? Seriously though, if Sansa had a similar scene Stansas would never shut up about it and claim it's proof for Sansa ruling the North, but apparently when it's Arya it means nothing ? Typical. Just how Arya naming her direwolf after a queen and said direwolf is leading a huge pack of wolves also means nothing even though we know the direwolves names are foreshadowing for their owners, means nothing as well. And this isn't even accounting the fact that Arya fits Varys' ideal ruler speech, and all of the other rulership/queen foreshadowing Arya has which is way more than what Sansa has. Arya has also expressed wanting to build castles, is the current Lady of Winterfell by proxy, has enacted Northern Justice, has offered protection and food to a man of the Night's Watch, and has major themes of mercy, justice, and service/humility, which are all essential to being a good ruler. Stansas could only dream that Sansa had all of this, but she doesn't, and I think GRRM has put so much in Sansa's way of ever ruling the North that it has to mean something. So unless Sansa jumps through twenty complicated hoops and changes who she is fundamentally than it's highly unlikely she'll ever rule the North.

(about this ask)

"I think GRRM has put so much in Sansa's way of ever ruling the North...."

Let's sit and think about this for a moment. LF, the evil mastermind, is currently scheming how to retake Winterfell with Sansa, is working to get her the great fighting force of the KotV, and you're telling me that Martin is placing obstacles in Sansa's path re: getting North/ruling it? We have a character who has successfully schemed his way from nothing to positions of great power working to install Sansa as leader of the North and you want me to believe there's nothing to indicate she's gonna be in a position of power? We have a prophecy about Sansa slapping LF's head on Winterfell's Wall, so we know the girl goes North, we know she out-maneuvers that bastard, and you're telling me that's Martin's way of indicating it’s impossible for her to end up ruling the North?

I deliberately didn't use general tags on my other posts because I know y'all screenshot anything in the anti tags to harass us, and I don't like arguing anymore because it's such a waste of time. I politely disagreed with you, I told you your effort is wasted on me, I don't know why you're persisting. In my last message, I tried to explain that all of our beloved POVs are used to discuss certain themes. I stipulated that a large chunk of Arya's story involves justice/mercy, but explained that since so many characters examine the same idea, we can't say "hey, hey! Justice=leadership=endgame queen!" I mean, Dany and Cersei are the women with experience ruling and both of them are gonna end the series dead (regardless of how you interpret Dany, tragic hero/fall arc etc, everyone knows it ends badly for her). 🤷🏻‍♀️

"Stansas could only dream...."

I don't need to dream. Sansa watched Ned handle things at court while hand, she's learning how to work people from LF, she is running a household, she's taking care of a kid, she's now being forced to charm a loser....honestly, this is stuff that is just as important for a woman to know if she is to be LoW or a queen, and let's not even get into how, while a prisoner herself she intervenes to save a life, how, although she is powerless, Martin writes her to inspire people to be more, to be better, to loyalty and protection. Don't try to pretend that Sansa doesn't have gobs of stuff that are just as easily used to defend spec she ends up in a leadership role in the North. In addition to LF’s plans we even have the other smartpants Tyrion thinking about what a great queen she would be. We’re meant to draw some conclusions from that. 😅 And, considering Martin's anti war/anti violence stance, her compassion for her enemies and her mercy are why thematically she would be part of a better future for the North.

But, we have the revelation that King Bran is Martin's endgame to factor in. I thought Sansa was destined to be a queen, King Bran has made me question it (why would Westerosi Lords select a Stark to lead them if the North goes free/has it's own queen?). So, I now look at what we might otherwise call foreshadowing with a little more skepticism. Jon literally has a raven screeching, "King" in his ear and we have arguments about a) his legitimacy and b) whether or not he will be a ruler of any kind pretty routinely, so I'm not targeting Arya when I say, nah, that's not foreshadowing. My favs are Jon and Sansa, and I now rethink what certain passages indicate for them.

Maybe it would help if you think of it this way. This isn't some sort of competition in which whoever has the more popular theory will magically manifest it or if you harass people into silence their theory will be wrong. Martin has known his ending for decades, I don't think I will ever get a chance to read it, so the only "winning" there is for us is to enjoy the fandom experience. It is a waste of your time (and mine!) to harass strangers on the internet when none of us will ever be right or proven wrong. Make your peace with us all disagreeing, forever being dissatisfied, and go have fun! The only ending I will ever get is not one that made me happy, but you don't see me making that other people's problem.

[syndrossi]

what/when/how are you planning on getting jon and rhaegar to the north? bc i have this weird vision in my head of, in several years when the boys are older and the dragons ridable, something upsetting jon and causing him to run away to winterfell (in the night). maybe he was already having a bad week and something reminded him or arya, and he realized he hadn’t thought of her in a while, maybe someone insulted the north and he got tired of hearing insults directed at the place he grew up, idk. but bc he left at night and his dragon is black they don’t know where he went and rhaegar has to be like “don’t ask me why i think this but we should really go north”. but also when they get there jon could have a conversation with rhaegar about how he whatever he was looking for wasn’t there anymore ,and how can he know his way around the keep but have it be so unrecognizable, and was this how rhaegar felt for all the years they’d been in the keep? idk if this fits with what you have planned but it’s been stuck in my head for a while now, and i didn’t really know where else to let it out.

I don't want to spoil things too much, but there's an event 1-2 years in the future that would take them up north to Winterfell. Unsure if they arrive there some other way beforehand but they'll definitely make it there then. *squints* I'm guessing they'd want to wait for spring, so probably more like 2 years from now, barring other things occurring.

I like the parallels you mentioned of Jon experiencing some of those ghosts and uncanny same-but-not that Rhaegar felt at the Red Keep in Winterfell, because I think he absolutely would be feeling it.

On the "where to let it out" front, I've been pondering trying out the new Tumblr communities feature, as that would let people post things they want to chat about but don't want cluttering up their main blog without having to go the send-an-ask route. It's still in beta, though (and people might not even want/need something like that), so I've been holding off.

[modern-inheritance]

Human Rider Changes

Brom wasn't altered the way Eragon was, but in MIC I'm gonna say even the human Riders were altered by the bond, beyond the slightly more elfish appearance and pointed ears.

Over time Humans start getting the more pointed tooth shape that unaltered elves are born with. It takes FAR longer, but they also start to grow a very thin version of the controllable tapetum lucidum, but most can't use it the way elves can at will.

Human Riders also begin to get faster reflexes, larger energy stores, slightly higher than normal strength and endurance for their physiques, increased night vision in general, and I really really want to say longer periods of high neuroplasticity (ease of learning, adaptations, etc) going further into adulthood (though neuroplasticity IS seen in adults, it's not to the extent seen in childhood, but don't quote me on that I haven't read up on it very much lately) but I don't have a reason for that really. I feel like elves naturally keep a fairly high level of neuroplasticity, maybe some effect of dragons ancestral memories (god damn i wanna explore that too and for some reason I think it would lead me to papers and fish and birds and I'm....I'm not up for that just yet).

Magic use can speed up these changes, though it's still a very gradual process. One of the risk factors, however, is that while their strength is not terribly increased, there's still a posibility that their strength can be dangerous to them. Magic use is typically restricted to practice and training while being taught by masters so that explosive use of magic won't lead to a far faster increase in strength, before the bones have adapted to it.

Elves, when they have access to it, incorporate a leafy green called Tinleaf into their diets, along with a variety of (currently unnamed, let me cook) fruits and other vegge that grow in Du Weldenvarden and were brought to the Rider's island. Tinleaf and these other foods are high in dietary titanium, nickel chloride/sulfate, and zirconium silicate, all used in their bone structure which incoperates alloys that allow them to be so resistant to their strength without shattering bones by walking and hitting things. When out of the forest/not around sources of these food/plants, elves have supplements they can take if without natural sources for too long.

wait what was i talking about

OH.

These changes are why Arya is still a bit baffled/confused when she's with the Varden and learning of all these things these humans can't do/don't have going on with their bodies. Brom's changes were still early stage, but he still had some, and she just kinda assumed they were all like that. She was practically a kid at that point, confused why the books she read didn't mention any of that stuff, and then Caleb, Sam, Simon and the rest are having to explain a LOT.

I also found it both jarring and a nice reminder when reading Murtagh (shhhh look okay I just want the fancy cover one and then I'll finish it the ADHD is not good with these things I can't just sit and read anymore it's painful and I don't know why. You know what, send me a hurricane, knock my power out for a week, and I'll finish it before the deluxe release.) that Eragon is NOT the norm for human Riders. He is not human anymore. He is more elf. His strength and energy stores are FAR beyond what human Riders were capable of, unless i just haven't reached some plot twist yet.

I would say that it made the Forsworn make so much more sense, but a VAST majority of the Forsworn we know were elves. Human Riders could have had so much resentment towards their elven counterparts, even with their partners by their side and all the gifts the bonding gave them, it could have been almost crushing to see what elf Riders could do even without formal training.

I wanted/want to put Murtagh on somewhat more even footing after the war in MIC. Without Galbatorix's spells, he's still far more human than Eragon, but he's stronger than any other human man of his size, stature and physique, he's faster, he learns faster, and he can maintain and cast spells well beyond what a regular human mage can, even with training. With more Ancient Language under his belt, more time with Thorn, more practice, he would be (and is) well beyond anything any human could accomplish even with both training for decades and a wealth of natural talent.

Maybe at some point a more significant though still gradual increase in strength, speed, ect, all the elfy things, is introduced to the Rider Bond using the Word/the Name. Resentment from the non-elven students is something I worry about if other Rider species/races are left with nothing to put them at an equal level.

this got off the rails. whoops.

[lemonhemlock]

I'm a 'Martin won't ever publish another ASOIAF book' truther but in addition to King Bran being profoundly idiotic, Martin has major structural issues that are now too 'big' to 'fix' imo. Namely, the ages of the characters are ridiculous and are all wrong for where their arcs need to go. The characters on the show were aged up and even the younger ones grew up on screen so Bran and Sansa and Arya were at least into late teens/adulthood at the end of the show - one is 13 and other is currently 11 and Bran is like, what, 8 in books? sksksksksk Just absolutely disastrous.

The characters should have been in their mid to late teens at the start of AGOT, at minimum. Especially because Martin essentially treated them, and has them act, like adults. I'm sorry, but I don't think that man has any understanding between the mental and physical developmental differences between, say, a 14 year old girl and a 17 year old girl. Every character appears and acts like they are anywhere from 3 to 5 years older than they are.

Also, the POV structure, while interesting, has also been disastrous in actually getting the story moving because certain characters have to be in certain places for things to happen while others are just sitting around killing time.

Hmmm, I don't really agree about the POV structure. It functioned fine for three books and offered compelling court drama, battles, magical elements and intriguing plot-twists. AGOT / ACOK / ASOS are pretty well paced and I've even seen someone making the case that the series could even have ended in that point and would have been one of the best fictional fantasy experiments. I found myself agreeing and disagreeing. I think the ASOS ending would have still distinguished ASOIAF from other fantasy series in its toppling of the good-guys-win-everything type of wrap-up, but it would be way less ambitious than what GRRM ended up pursuing.

The pacing problems came about with AFFC/ADWD. And I'm not one to talk here, because I'm an AFFC truther and it's always been my favourite of the series, so my two cents on this is that Dany's Slaver's Bay plotline is too damn long. Tyrion is also taking too damn long to get to her. It's a drag. In the book she is supposed to solve the Quaithe riddle,* escape Vaes Dothrak, get herself an army + navy, make the decision to leave Slaver's Bay AND sail to Westeros, so that in TWOW she can fight Young Gryff, face-off the Others, become a mask-off tyrant AND get deposed? It's a lot.

I honestly think he should just give up the 7 book compartmentation, admit defeat and just add another damn book to the series to get Dany to Westeros and fit in his fAegon plotline. It's not like he doesn't have the pages. No one's gonna care if there are 8 books instead of magic no 7. But my guess is that he's hung up over some decisions he's made in the past and kept trying to make the gargantuan plot fit inside this neat box he envisioned - 7 books, King Bran, Caesar!Jon etc. It would explain why he tried a time skip between ASOS and AFFC and had to scrap it - it would make more sense for the Stark children to be older. But he characterized himself as a gardener-style writing who doesn't plan everything in advance and lets the story grow organically. In that case, he should make allowances if the story grew in a direction he did not initially predict and make the required changes! Maybe King Bran made sense when he first wrote the initial three-book outline, but that was a long time ago & many other plot points changed.

My advice is to just stop trying to make the plot fit the previous designs, stay true to the way the characters evolved and respect the themes you've painstakingly developed over the course of nearly 30 years. Otherwise what's the point? If your original ending doesn't fit anymore, think of another ending ffs. The show is irrelevant at this point, so what if the endgame will be different? IDK, I'd be thinking that this is my life's work and I have every right to do it justice. Perhaps that's what he's thinking too and why it's taking him so long.

I agree that the ages of the characters are ridiculous, but if a time skip really, really can't fit anywhere, it's better to compromise on the age issue and leave off with a teen monarch than it would be to impose a surveillance state in Westeros as the solution with all-seeing, all-knowing Bran. That's a starkly dystopic ending, if you ask me.

Not to mention that it clashes directly with the end of magic - how is Bran supposed to be the Tree of Sauron if there's no magic anymore and everything goes back to normal? On what basis does he even get to be king at all if he's just a regular boy? How will he even survive being pulled out of the weirwood net if magic leaves the realm of men?

*“To go north, you must journey south. To reach the west, you must go east. To go forward you must go back, and to touch the light you must pass beneath the shadow.” JFC, if Dany has to get to Asshai, I will fucking scream.

[dhaaruni]

Just remembered a particular stupid 2014 era discourse in ASOIAF/Game of Thrones fandom where a Sansa fan said that many modern day readers/viewers probably felt drawn to Sansa because they were introverts that liked to read while Arya's arc about being a child soldier was more magical in nature, and harder for the average suburban teen or 20-something to relate to even if Arya was also a good character, and man, did the Arya fans lose their minds over that very anodyne statement.

"Um there are still child soldiers in the world today, stop dismissing their experiences to support the stereotypically feminine girl instead of her GNC sister :(" and "Sansa, an 11-year-old girl, bullied and actively oppressed Arya, a 9-year-old and Arya putting sheep shit in Sansa's bed was fair retribution" like grow up lol.

Everybody knew perfectly well that nobody was dismissing the experience of child soldiers in sub-Saharan Africa, they were making a point about why modern readers/viewers felt affinity towards a character who was commonly considered "unlikable" when the books first came out 25 years ago but gained popularity with the advent of online fandom, and especially when young girls and women became started becoming more involved in the ASOIAF/GoT fandom.

I don't hang out in fandom spaces anymore but I just remembered that and eye rolled so hard, so I thought I'd share.

[bluebellhairpin]

Please use this as an excuse to ramble and talk about your got oc and Sannem!

An excuse to talk about Sandor and my selfship oc? You don't have to tell me twice! (BEWARE. I DIDN'T HOLD BACK LOL)

They're both actually so special to me, but I haven't given myself a chance to really think about them. I do know that their relationship doesn't change the plot a whole lot - however because all my oc's are female I like having them do something to further the plot. I just haven't decided what exactly that is for her yet.

Well I do know one thing, but I'll talk about it later. What I'm mostly trying to get at is I know more fixed lore about the oc than the relationship she has with Sandor. A lot of it is still up in the air lol.

Over the course of her life she gets four nicknames. They progress from The Mouse -> The Thousand Times Bitten -> The Bitch -> The Untouched. (Link are to other post's I've made about why she's called that, and at what point she gets them. BUT THIS IS GOING TO GO WAAAAY MORE INTO THAT.)

I think I mentioned it in the description for The Mouse, but if she was in the show we'd first meet her at Winterfell. She runs errands, and her manner is likened to a field mouse. She knows the Starks, and probably would be around the crowd feasting when King Robert Baratheon visits. I can imagine her catching Sandor sometime then, and perhaps also on the road again a bit later - something clicks and they're friendly enough for acquaintances.

I can imagine her turning into an envoy for Robb during the War of Five Kings. She knows all the routes everywhere, especially in the North and around the Vale, and knows how to keep hidden - whether it be in crowds or empty spaces. It would be this envoy work that leads her to the house of Ramsay Snow. She's caught there, unable to leave. Eventually Ramsay chooses to hunt her, and she almost makes it out of the woods when his hounds get her. She bares her back to the dogs. When the others find her, they leave her there, saying that if she survives the night on her own, she'd be The Thousand Times Bitten.

She does survive, or at least that's what's told since the next morning she wasn't where they left her. Really she was picked up by a farmer and his wife who were coming home late. They nurse her back to full health over the next few weeks, however she cannot stand hounds anymore.

Eventually she leaves. She refuses to be a burden to the family anymore, intent to meet up with Catelyn and Robb Stark. Really though she wanders for a while instead. Eventually she meets Sandor again, and sees Arya. Right as they meet, Arya said that her mother and brother both died the night before, and seeing as she has nowhere else to go, she joins them both. The trio get along well, but during this time is when she starts being called The Bitch. Time with Ramsay has caused what once was sweet to turn bitter, and while before she might have laughed off curse actions and comments she becomes more violent, lacking in self preservation. This and her fondness for Sandor, and his fondness for her, garners her a new name.

She travels with Sandor and Arya until they all meet Brienne of Tarth. She gets lost among the fight. She finds Arya walking towards the road and asks what happened to Sandor. Arya replies that he's dead (at least to her), and she believes it. She's unable to bring herself to go see for herself and instead makes her way back North to the Wall. She meets Jon Snow, who is Lord Commander of the Watch, and uses that time to be taught how to fight properly.

She offers to join Jon on the trip to Hardhome, but he denies saying that she isn't experienced enough, and won't risk her life there. She spends all that time training more, to prove she could've gone. During this time she discovers a fondness for using two blades which are slightly smaller then swords. These become her weapons of choice.

When Jon dies at Castle Black, she is one of the people drawn outside by Ghost's howls. After he's brought back to life, she chooses to join him in leaving as the Wall was never a place for a woman. This plan is foiled when Sansa Stark shows up. In the days the follow, a letter comes from Ramsay goading them to fight him for Winterfell. She is eager to join in, having sworn to see Ramsay die for what he'd done to her, and now to Sansa - and threatened to do again.

She fights at the Battle of the Bastards, and lives without a scratch on her. The training from the Watch paid off. She rises that day as The Untouched - a name garnered from her days at Castle Black, since the moment training moved from pretend swords to real ones, no one could land a blow on her - and now a name solidifying her into a battle legend.

Staying true to her promise, she watches as Sansa sets Ramsay's hounds on himself. Sansa walks away, but she stays. She promised she'd see him die - really she wanted to do it herself, to feel his blood warm her hands, but watching the life leave him was really the only thing she wanted to do before she died. Now her life was no longer in service to herself. Now she was ready to serve someone else again.

Lo and behold, once again there is now a King in the North.

AND THAT'S ALL I HAVE SO FARRRRRRR <3 (I could write more, since I have seen a few more seasons since I decided on all this, but this post is getting loooooooong. So if you've lasted this long I'm giving you a nice cup of tea and/or hot chocolate and kissing ur forehead THANK YOU SO MUCH I LOVE YOU <3333)

[buttercuparry]

how do you think or what do you imagine as the best case scenario of the storylines of the Riverlands, the North and the wall as it pertains to certain groups intention to find Arya? Not that you have to unveil a fanfic for us or anything but if you like 😂 jk jk

Thank you @nymehrias for the ask from this.

In Riverlands, I think a lot of people have said that the most logical sense it makes for Arya's storyline is to come in contact with BwB, which LS is leading right now. It fulfills her direwolf being named Nymeria in part. Thoros says that BwB is not what it once was. Before, they still were trying to fell Lannister men, hold them accountable for the destruction of Riverlands. And not only that, I think they would have done the same to northern men too ( remember that mad hunter was warned not because he imprisoned Karstark men, but because they were stuffed in crow cages and left in the sun for days without water....so torture).

But they had other duties as well. Harwin when ordered by Arya says that he no longer has any pledge or any duty to any House. It ended with Lord Stark's death. That he now works with the rest of the brothers as an organization on ground helping the smallfolk during the war, because no matter who is it, be it the lion or the wolf, it is the smallfolks who end up paying the price. So helping bring in food and other resources, helping the orphans have a safe place, helping communities that have sprouted up in unlikely places to maintain their hideouts and lead the Lannister men away from those places. Under LS they are simply mercenaries hunting down Freys on her orders. Nothing else.

So I do think they fit extremely well with Arya's storyline who has been repeatedly told throughout the course of the series that it doesn't matter who is in power, ultimately when war breaks out and the lords play their game of thrones it is the smallfolks who suffer. She has suffered along with them too. So her taking back control of the order from LS, or rather LS willingly relinquishing the BWB to her seems to make sense. It remains to be seen whom amongst the brotherhood chooses to follow Arya and who refuses to do so.

The North: has Stannis and co camping in cold weather trying to reach Winterfell. They have already found "Arya" and has sent her to the Wall. I think the question becomes is now what? In the sense what does Stannis plan to do with ''Arya". Jon believes that he should send "Arya" to Braavos with Tycho because if she were to remain in Westeros, Stannis would seek to betroth her to his own men. Previously Stannis has tried to offer Winterfell to Jon- to maintain a control over North with Jon as his ally. Jon has rejected this offer, though he at this time does play Stannis's ally. But maybe Stannis wants a stronger hold? So of course why shouldn't he betroth "Arya" to one of his men just like the Lannisters did before him. It remains to be seen what happens when Manderly comes in with Rickon. And of course we have LF in Vale with Sansa and we have Bran with Howland Reed's children ( 👀👀 Starkbowl 2025?). As you can see I am not really sure what can happen in the North but a power tussle seems to have its seeds sowed already.

The Wall: oh who is at the Wall except for Jon? Who was waiting for Arya at the Wall except for Jon and all because he wanted her to come back home. We all know Jon would be resurrected. Melisande won't lose Jon Snow now that she is unsure of Stannis being the one who would lead them in fight of the Long Night. I think the question is, what happens next. Because Jon would realize that "Arya" was never Arya to begin with. The girl he thought he died for was never there and there is nothing holding him to the Wall anymore. His Watch ended with his death...so why not give in to his ambitions? And boy does Jon Snow have his ambitions ( STARKBOWL WHEN?????).

I don't believe that Jon would be cruel to Jeyne. He will send her to Braavos but I do think the fact that Jeyne is not Arya would be hushed up. Tycho would know perhaps. It would be fascinating to see what happens in Braavos then. The Iron Bank/the HoBaW/the sea lord are all connected. The whole political structure of Braavos is interconnected and they have an interest in what happens in Westeros. Smarter people than me have theorized that Arya was sent to Izembaro's to disrupt the Lannister envoy's purpose of visit, so that the Iron Bank may publicly refuse to deal with the Lannister's anymore. Would Braavos let go of Arya Stark so easily? The HoBaW has a Brother in Oldtown...they know the dragons have come back. Would Jeyne and Arya meet? Or would the news of Jon's death reach Arya first and she would have to make a deal with HoBaW to leave the order. ( I mean lol it is unlikely that she can fight her way out as she did on the show...and of course the order may let her go all the sane but it seems like they may have a vested interest in her.)

[la-pheacienne]

The ASOIAF fandom IMHO lives in a mind state comparable to conspiracy theory circles. Do they actually bellieve their takes? Why do they not at least once in a while doubt their own hypocrisy that is so laughably obvious to everyone outside their circle jerk? Like it's the case with non-fictional conspiracy freaks, it's their emotional investment in the objects of their bad takes that explains the cognitive dissonance IMHO. They just really really hate the characters who threaten their desired outcome fantasies and gave in to a permanent intellectual bad faith attitude about everything. They decided to forget about lying and making stuff up and simply perform lies and twists as truth, through passionate investment and constant repitition. You are simply denied the right to call that out, that's the strategy, they'll just ignore.

I love that. If you really think about it, hating on the Targs as a whole, actually believing Rhaegar is a pedo who raped Lyanna, shipping Alys and Aemond, thinking Alicent is justified, I mean these are literally ideas that can be considered "in universe" conspiracy theories.

Us boomers, when we don't like something, we just, you know, find something else. Which is something not possible anymore apparently. They don't like this story, they like nothing about the story, literally nothing. They don't like the 5 key players/outcasts of the story, they don't like Rhaelya who is literally the most tragic/romantic couple in the whole asoiaf, they don't like asoiaf mythology/the fantasy element with the dragons, they don't like a faux medieval setting where everyone has sex so so young and characters start wars and kill people, they don't actually read the literary text, they don't feel anything, literally anything about the actual narrative and yet they poison the fandom with their nauseating headcanons and on top of that they actually believe these nauseating headcanons make them morally superior and give them the right to flex that superiority on people who actually read the story. It's insane. Passionate investment and constant repetition, the pipeline to internet fascism, quite literally.

Even the anti tags annoy me. Why should I put an anti Aemond tag when I'm literally describing the canon character? Why should I put an anti Sansa tag for saying Sansa bullied Arya? She did. It's in the text of the book you're SUPPOSEDLY reading.

[magalidragon]

Guess who’s back for Halloween Part 2? 😏😈 | a fic teaser

I don't like haunted houses," he announced, to no one in particular.

Violet eyes locked onto his. Uh-oh, he realized, swallowing hard. He just invited the devil to play.

"Oh?" Dany echoed, coy. "Why not?"

"Bad experience as a kid."

"Is this like why you don't like Santa Claus anymore? Did someone make you dress up after losing a bet?" she teased.

He rolled his eyes. It was, in fact, exactly like that. "For your information, when you spend hours and hours in a hot ass wolf costume, hungover too I might add, you wouldn't like them either."

Naturally, his cousin had to get in on the ragging. “His ex-girlfriend made him do the haunted house thing in high school.”

"Arya!"

Dany scowled; any mention of his ex-girlfriend usually had her dragonfire flaring. Not in jealousy, but more dislike for how he’d been treated. "The wildling?"

"The bitch," Arya corrected.

This was going in a really, really bad direction and Jon could sense it. He stood quickly and took Phee, flashing a fast smile at Dany. "I don't like haunted houses and I'm going to go take this one to change. You go take your pictures, Realm's Delight."

She stuck out her tongue, wagging the skull charm she had there. Phee made a grab for it, always fascinated by the jewelry while Rhae rolled her eyes. She was not impressed. "Scaredy-wolf."

"It's not entertaining for me," he sniffed. He really didn't like haunted houses. He didn't like scary things and she knew it. "It's too fake." That was an outright lie. Most of the time it was too real and he really didn't find it funny. He had a rather healthy fight or flight reflex, developed from his time as the shunned child, the "bastard", the troublemaker, and then the military man. Not to mention the military guy who was set upon by his own men.

He shivered; if there was anything in that house related to the Night King, he did not need it. That story traumatized him as a child. Old Nan made sure of it. He wouldn't be able to sleep for days and he already didn't sleep with a three-month old in the house. Plus Rhae, who sometimes would stand next to their bed and just stare at them while they slept.

Dany cocked her head, a smile playing on her painted lips. The skull makeup with her silver hair and old-fashioned black and red gown gave her the impression of a marionette, hands on her hips. He half expected her to start dancing awkwardly. "Oh?" she echoed.

"Oh what?"

"Could it be because you don't like haunted houses and ghost stories?"

"No." Yes.

She stepped towards him so they were toe-to-toe, peering up, even in her high heeled boots. "You know Jon, some might say that you have to face your fears if you want to conquer them. You were able to get back in the Santa suit earlier this year, remember?"

He turned pink. "That was one time!"

Arya furrowed her brow. "What one time, I thought you burned it?"

"Never you mind!"

Dany chortled. She was having too much fun with this. "I'm just saying Jon, maybe it isn't as scary at you think it will be."

He didn't need to find out.

[finitefall]

So GRRM said that Tyrion, Arya, Dany, and Jon are his four most popular characters! Coincidentally they are also his favorites as he admitted. And also coincidentally they are the main characters along with Bran. And Dany and Jon and Arya are my three favorites and he knows their fates. I really hope it’s “good” fates

I'm smiling seeing another message from you! We have the same favorites, for me it's Dany (obviously), then Arya, then Jon.

I already knew Tyrion was his favorite, he said it multiple times, and that Aya and Dany were his two next favorites. I'm glad I saw this post where he mentioned Jon as well. It makes sense they're his favorites though: otherwise, why would he chose the outcasts as his key five characters? And it also makes sense that he already knows their endings. Changing things as he writes or not knowing where he's going with every character (like Dolorous Edd or Hot Pie as he said) is normal, but he does know what he's doing when writing the key five. It would be quite awkward to not even know where the key five characters' arcs are leading.

I also hope they're not bad fates. We know the ending is bittersweet, but the problem is that some people seem to think that it means at least one of the key five (if not more) needs to die. Huh... why? Just because they're still alive at the end of the last book doesn't mean they're not traumatized by what they've been through and their losses and that there's not a lot of work to do anymore. I've already said an ending with Dany dying would be awful, Arya dying would be an awful idea as well. Jon's already dead at the end of ADWD, him dying a second time for good would be a bit much in my opinion. There's less speculation about Tyrion's death, I don’t see him dying as a clever ending either.

Honestly, I don't think it's cliché for the key five to be alive in the end. It doesn't mean the ending won't be bittersweet, and it's more interesting to see what they're gonna do after everything that's happened to them and around them. What's cliché for me is to just get rid of some characters, like Dany and Jon dying to save the world, because the author can't think of another ending for the heros of his story. Now, I'm not fooling myself, I have absolutely no hope of ever reading the end. But Martin falling into clichés and easy endings for the key five characters after subverting tropes in the previous novels would be very disappointing.