#with myrcella's attack by darkstar

[sansadaynes]

me making this even tho i'm certain 3/5 are probably gonna die and the only way 2 of the 3 are surviving is if they're brutally maimed/disfigured

ASOIAF AU: After the chaos of the War of Five Kings and the onslaught of the Army of the Dead wrought havoc across the Seven Kingdoms, five queens of some of the Great Houses of Westeros came together to forge peace across the continent; Asha Greyjoy of the Iron Islands, Shireen Baratheon of Dragonstone, Sansa Stark of the North, Arianne Martell of Dorne, and Myrcella Baratheon of King’s Landing. The Seven Kingdoms separated into the sovereign states they were prior to Aegon’s conquest.

[agentrouka-blog]

Winds prediction for Lyn? He seems like a smarter and dangerous version of Darkstar.

I have no solid predictions, only vague impressions of potential options.

The Darkstar parallels certainly suggest he's going to be a source of unpredictable danger. Perhaps GRRM is just trying to tease the reader with a potential parallel to poor Myrcella, whom Darkstar tried to murder. But since the mere death of Sansa is not going to be cause for immediate reprisal or dependable reward from any party, there's little motivation for an attack, whereas living she represents a prize many different factions are coveting.

Darkstar's motives are so opaque, I suspect we'll get some insight into them from Areo Hotah's POV since he and Obara are chasing him in Dorne. I suspect the only thing making a flat character like him relevant enough to justify a POV witness would be a connection into a larger conspiracy within the circle of the Sand Snakes, specifically Tyene, potentially Nymeria.

[megashadowdragon]

Doran Martell, Darkstar, and Areo Hotah 25 Days of Winds of Winter Predictions Episode 15

youtube comments

So happy you temporarily suspended your Darkstar bias for one video!! Lol. My ideas about Darkstar are all based on the premise that he's Oberyn's secret son. To start, that's what I think Doran was referring to when he called Darkstar dangerous. When that was said, Doran was chastising Arianne for including Darkstar in her plot. If he's Oberyn's son, then including him is dangerous because you're putting him in close proximity to a Lannister; which gives him a clear shot to avenge his father and start a war. Something Doran wasn't yet ready for and detained Oberyn's other children to avoid. But Arianne unknowingly gave Gerold his opportunity on a silver platter. Incidentally, Darkstar being Oberyn's son is why I think Doran refused to allow Arianne to marry him. As to Darkstar's plot going forward, him being Oberyn's child qualifies him as a "sun's son". So I think he's who Quaithe was referring to in her warning; not Quentyn. And since the "sun's son" was paired with the "mummer's dragon", Darkstar will serve on fAegon's kingsguard. Something he'd be eager to do as it allows him the chance to compete against Ser Arthur's reputation. I think Darkstar is working for Varys and secured his spot on the kingsguard by attacking Myrcella- something Varys would want to destroy the Martell-Lannister alliance. I doubt very much that Darkstar returned to High Hermitage after the attack; I think he'll be wherever team fAegon is and Arianne will reunite w/him in Winds, not Obara and Areo. Lastly, I also wonder if Ser Gerold could have knowledge of the events of the Tower of Joy because he might've squired for his cousin Ser Arthur. Not everything obviously because he wasn't there when Ned arrived; but maybe things that occurred before. It's possible Ser Arthur sent Gerold away for his own protection once he got word Rhaegar died, but he couldn't tell Gerold the full reason why; so Gerold grows up hating him for a misunderstanding. I can't find confirmation on if kingsguard have squires or not though, so that's iffy.Show less

[myrc3lla-a]

He    had    taken    Griffon's    Roost,    she    is    told.    A    dragon    in    their    shores    and    then    Storm's    End,    her    house's    ancestral    seat    while    her    uncle    is    away    in    the    North    and    had    forgotten    to    protect    their    lands.    Myrcella    does    not    allow    this    to    come    to    the    Capital,    instead,    she    chooses    the    strategic    spot    in    the    middle    for    a    middle.    Dragonstone    still    remains    as    her    family's    legacy,    however    stolen    from    his    own    during    the    war    but    it    is    a    move    to    make.    The    now    Queen    of    the    Seven    Kingdoms    sports    gold    and    black    to    hide    her    true    parentage    but    her    looks    are    all    Lannister,    regarding    the    scar    upon    her    features    from    the    Darkstar    attack.    The    terms    of    the    meeting    is    just    a    meeting    so    armies    are    left    for    the    exception    of    advisors    and    a    few    guards.   

She    keeps    the    Sand    Snakes    that    had    been    kept    to    protect    her    and    Lord    Tarbeck,    who    has    been    trained    by    her    grandsire.    She    asked    her    Uncle    Jaime    to    remain    on    the    side    but    he    is    visible    astride    his    white    horse    for    the    other    to    see.    The    Targaryen    features    are    stricken    at    first.    A    ghost    from    the    past.    A    boy    that    should    be    dead,    but    a    stormlander    stands    beside    him    to    support    him,    she    does    her    best    to    not    appear    wounded.    "My    people    have    left    their    weapons    beside    the    door,    I    advise    your    men    to    do    the    same.    You    can    choose    one    champion    if    required    for    your    protection,    and    I    shall    do    the    same."    She    finally    finds    her    voice,    posture    alike    her    mother    but    her    demeanor    is    gentler,    less    sure    of    the    outcome.    "And    as    a    gesture    of    goodwill,    Dragonstone    shall    be    yours    by    birthright    if    this    meeting    goes    well." @aeg3n

[mvrcellas]

perhaps dany was right -- after all, the queen-to-be was sided near myrcella's good and only ear... the attack with darkstar was enough to make the princess realize that yes: she DID overcome a bit. she certainly wasn't the same child from king's landing, nor was she the young girl trying to find her footing here in dorne. she'd lived enough to know that life was full of perils. and JOYS.

she was certain that her mother would be calling for violence if she were to know of her new kinship with the targaryen -- after all, was she not taught her entire life that were daenerys or her brother to come to westeros in order to claim the throne that myrcella would be tortured or killed? was she not warned over and over again about the DANGERS of a new targaryen dynasty? there was much she was taught and more that the blonde has unlearned. daenerys was nothing like she had been told -- and myrcella was grateful for it.

"it will be a terrible one," she murmured almost sadly, offering dany a soft smile. "they're calling for me to be queen -- some, i suppose. even though it was never something i was told i would be or even asked about in terms of WANTING. my mother..." a beat, the girl moved her focus to the fruit in front of her as she peeled the skin off. "i worry for my family. i worry for the people. i worry for tommen. i worry for YOU." myrcella knew that the road was to be paved in blood. there was no avoiding it.

"will you kill them?"

they lay in the shade of the sandship, it's walls high and gleaming in the late morning light. dany felt at home here, the heat a welcome companion. it almost feels like a dream, dany thought to herself, as she pressed another slice of a fruit, bitter and soft, to her lips. to be in westeros at last could be a dream of its' own. but to be in the presence of the daughter of her enemies ...

but myrcella was different. dany had come to realize this over the past several nights she had spent in house martell. the girl held no ambitions for power, only for safety and peace. and the young queen admired that quality. she too wished for nothing more than peace. but that was not the path laid out before her by the gods. the gods demanded blood. the gods demanded a queen.

" how did i do it? " the question was echoed back to the younger with a tone of equal curiosity, " there was no other choice for me. if i had stop moving, if i had looked back at the ruin of my life for a moment, i would have been lost. " at this, the queen presses up on the heels of her palms, silver hair dancing in breeze. " the seven kingdoms are mine by birthright. there is no other road i can take except the one that leads me home, even if it is a terrible one. "

violet eyes settle on the girl, a smile blooming across sun-kissed features. " but do not speak mildly of your own journey, myrcella. you have overcome much. "

[sayruq]

Doran and Arianne

I just realised Doran and Arianne's plan to cover up what really happened to Myrcella matches Jon Arryn's attempt to cover up Elia's murder.

lying about the events that led to the attack of the princess (Elia was attacked by the Mountain, Myrcella was attacked by Darkstar)

an angry family is involved (House Martell, House Lannister) and the people in charge don't want to start a war so soon after another war ended (Jon Arryn after Robert’s Rebellion, Doran Martell after the War of the Five Kings)

someone is sent to deal with what happened (Jon Arryn, Balon Swann) and the person has a different mission they've been sent to carry out. Jon Arryn was bringing Lewyn Martell's bones and he wanted to threaten Doran into not pursuing war in Elia's name. Balon Swann was sent to retrieve Myrcella, bring the Mountain's head, and harm Trystane

in the aftermath, the people in charge offer justice in the form of handing over the real perpetrators (Gregor Clegane, Gerold Dayne)

then a member of the Martell family goes to join the Small Council (Oberyn, Nymeria)

There are major differences of course

Elia was murdered brutally while Myrcella is alive but maimed

Arianne never planned on anyone getting hurt while Tywin sent his men specifically to kill Elia and the children

Doran was genuinely unaware and when he found out, he sent Areo to intervene

the Mountain was doing Tywin's work but Gerold is not Doran's man nor was he following Arianne's orders

while the Martells were covering up the events leading up to Myrcella's attack (namely that Arianne was trying to crown her), they didn't cover up Gerold's actions. Jon Arryn and Tywin behaved as though Elia died mysteriously. They did this for decades. It wasn't until Oberyn forced the Mountain to confess did the truth finally come out

Gerold's actions were revealed immediately while the Mountain and Amory Lorch were allowed to walk free for almost 2 decades because Tywin planned on continuing to use them and neither Jon Arryn nor Robert Baratheon cared

Most importantly, Arianne took responsibility for it instead of waving Arys' death and Myrcella's injury as acceptable collateral. She felt genuine remorse and self loathing. Something tells me that when Myrcella is murdered under the orders of Jon Connington, Arianne would do what Jon Arryn should have done and that is demand justice

What's really interesting about both of these events is that they occurred before either House ascended into the royal family through marriage. Cersei Lannister married Robert Baratheon and Arianne Martell will marry Aegon VI Targaryen. 

Tywin felt that he came into the war too late and had to make up for it with Elia's corpse but Dorne will join Aegon long before he matches on King's Landing. House Martell would not need to place the corpses of two children at Aegon's feet to contribute to his war. Therefore the murder of Tommen and Myrcella won't come from anyone associated with House Martell but someone else who is desperate, who is running out of time, someone who wondered if Tywin Lannister's approach to war is worth emulating.

[starksinthenorth]

The Winds of Winter Outline

No one asked for this but I don’t have the time to write my full predictions for The Winds of Winter as a fanfic so here is a potential outline. Some plots that I care or know less about probably have more detail plots (ex: Asha and Theon at Winterfell). There are also some chapters I can imagine being separate that could easily be combined (ex: Sansa and the Tourney of the Winged Knights, Sam’s training). 

This is probably 10-15 chapters too long. It might be a little out of order, but this is generally how I imagine things might go.

POV deaths: Barristan, Jon Connington, Aeron, Areo, Victarion

Prologue: Ser Forley Preston, the attack by Lady Stoneheart on Jeyne Westerling and Edmure’s journey to the Westerlands

Barristan I: Meereen, preparing for battle (already released)

Theon I: Stannis’s Northern Camp, sees meetings and advises Stannis, is marked for death (already released)

Dany I: Great Grass Sea, on road with the Dothraki

Sansa I/Alayne I: preparing for Tourney of the Winged Knights (already released)

Jaime I: Riverlands, journey to the Red Wedding 2.0 with Brienne

Arya I/Mercy: learning to join the play scene and killing Raff the Sweetling (already released)

Aeron I: Waters off the Reach, prepping for Euron’s attack (already released)

Theon II: Stannis’s Northern Camp, brought to be executed beneath a weirwood, hears Bran talking about tunnels underneath Winterfell and uses the information to bargain for his freedom

Arianne I: Dorne/Stormlands, heading to meet Aegon (already published)

Asha I: Stannis’s Northern Camp, attack by Ramsey’s people and Stannis winning

Victarion I: Meereen, preparing for battle (already published)

Tyrion I: Meereen, pre-battle, sees the Iron Fleet on the horizon (already published)

Dany II: Vaes Dothrak, joining Dosh Khaleen and being hailed as the Stallion Who Mounts The World

Barristan II: Meereen, the battle (already released)

Tyrion II: Meereen, pre-battle/battle (already published)

Victarion II: Meereen, during the battle

Tyrion III: Meereen, potentially heat of the battle

Victarion III: Meereen, blowing dragon horn and sending at least one of them (probably Rhaegal) towards Westeros, dies

Barristan III: Meereen, more of the battle and winning it until Rhaegal flies away and he retreats into the city (mildly doubtful of this chapter, tbd)

Davos I: Skaagos, arriving, gaining their trust

Brienne I: Riverlands, journey to the Red Wedding 2.0 with Jaime and some of the Brotherhood without Banners

Cersei I: King’s Landing, Kevan is dead, pretrial stress/anxiety, Trial (she wins)

Dany III: Somewhere in Essos, Journeying to Meereen

Theon III: Winterfell, Battle of Ice and leading the people into the tunnels

Asha II: Winterfell, Battle of Ice aftermath, bonding with Mormont ladies, potential arrival of the sellswords from Braavos

Jon I: the Wall/Gift, in Ghost’s brain

Tyrion IV: Meereen, post-battle capture or getting involved with Barristan in the rule of the city

Barristan IV: Meereen, finds Shavepate taking over the city, killing Hizdahr and Dany’s cupbearers, dies

Areo I: Dorne, chasing Darkstar

Arya II: The Little Lost Girl - hears about “Arya Stark in Braavos,” (Jeyne Poole) and “dead Jon Snow” leaves the Faceless Men (this may be two chapters, three max).

Sansa II/Alayne II: the Vale, Gates of the Moon, the Tourney of the Winged Knights

Dany IV: Meereen, definitive ending to the Siege of Meereen, mourning Barristan, getting Ironborn support, leaving the city

Sansa III/Alayne III: the Vale, Gates of the Moon, post-or-during-Tourney, ends with Sweetrobin’s death

Arya III: journey from Braavos and arrival in the Saltpans

Melisandre I: the Wall, post-Jon death’s chaos and noticing him in Ghost, “Arya Stark” arrives at the wall then heads to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea to go to Braavos

Bran I: Beyond-the-Wall, some kind of training and visions of Jon and the Others

Tyrion V: Meereen or the dragonroads, Meeting Dany, potentially narrator for some of her events and battles

Sansa IV/Alayne IV: the Vale, chaos post-Robert’s death, she’s kidnapped

Arya IV: Riverlands, Inn at the Crossroads, unites with Gendry

Arianne II: Stormlands, heading to meet Aegon

Sansa V/Alayne V: rescued by maybe Harry, reveal of who she is

Jaime II: Riverlands, Red Wedding 2.0 and forced to fight Brienne

Brienne II: Riverlands, Red Wedding 2.0 aftermath after running away from the Brotherhood

Tyrion VI: Dragon Roads, general advising Dany and gaining her trust, potentially an attempt on his life for Cersei that spreads news he’s dead (so Sansa can get married without that sticky plot point)

Sansa VI: Wedding, potentially poison reveal and blame on Littlefinger

Cersei II: King’s Landing, Tyene Sand is up to some mischief as her Septa companion, dealing with Mace Tyrell naming himself Hand of the King, potentially Myrcella arriving back in King’s Landing, Mace goes to Storm’s End to deal with Aegon

Arianne III: Stormlands, meet Aegon + siege of Storm’s End

Jon Connington I: Stormlands/Crownlands, wary of Arianne and the Dornish

Arianne IV: Stormlands, plans / agreement to marry Aegon after siege is ended

Arya V: Riverlands, Somewhere, Gets Nymeria’s Wolfpack (maybe near Harrenhal? I feel like one of the Starklings end up back there at some point)

Cersei III: King’s Landing, scheming, trying to get back in charge, Nymeria chaos on the small council

Asha III: Witnessing Winterfell, politics of the North, Theon gets to live for identifying a living non-Arya Stark child

Davos II: Skaagos, finding Rickon, convincing Osha to take him to Winterfell and his people as the last remaining Stark

Sansa VII: gets some kind of news (maybe Stannis claiming the North and looking for Lord of Winterfell), head to Gulltown to launch North

Arianne V: Stormlands/Crownlands, wedding or maybe POV for the Second Sack of King’s Landing (little later if its that second option)

Areo II: Dorne, chasing Darkstar, something at the Tower of Joy(?)

Melisandre II: the Wall, raising Jon from the dead

Dany V: Volantis, conquest of the city and freeing of the city, being hailed and crowned as Azor Ahai

Arya VI: Riverlands, Around Riverrun, Meets (and Kills) Lady Stoneheart

Cersei IV: King’s Landing, siege by Aegon and co.

Jon Connington II: King’s Landing, sack of King’s Landing, probably orders a mass slaughter when the bells are rung in celebration of Aegon’s coming even though they claimed the city peacefully

Cersei V: King’s Landing, siege part ii, Tommen’s death and fleeing King’s Landing

Bran II: Beyond-the-Wall, “Hold the Door” attack by the others

Davos III: Skaagos/Sea off Skaagos, journeying to White Harbor, see things (wights) moving in the water

Sam I: Oldtown, learning things and preparing for the soon attack, sending Gilly and Little Sam to Horn Hill, realizing important info about Wall, Jon, or Dragons

Dany VI: Roads of Essos, gets notice about Aegon in Westeros, turns towards Pentos

Sansa VIII: Maybe lands in White Harbor

Arya VII: Riverlands, Around Riverrun, somehow the 10/12 yo takes control of the Brotherhood without Banners and convinces them to follow her to end the remaining Freys at the Twins and free the Northerners there; potentially uses the reclamation of Riverrun to rally the Riverlords and ladies to her side (using friendship with Lady of Acorn Hall)

Bran III: Beyond-the-Wall, retreat south, visions

Cersei VI: Riverlands, running from chaos in the city

Jon Connington III: King’s Landing, feeling guilty when there are reports of greyscale in the city

Dany VII: Pentos, destruction of

Arianne VI: King’s Landing, crowned, marries Aegon if not yet, catches him with Elia Sand, maybe breakout of greyscale in his people

Jon II: the Wall, arisen from death, punishing those who did him wrong, someone tells him that “Arya Stark was at the wall,” he goes to follow her to Braavos 

Sam II: Oldtown, learning things and preparing for the soon attack, seeing Ironborn on the horizon

Aeron II: Oldtown, siege and bearing witness to Euron’s attack

Sam III: Oldtown, the Ironborn attack, seeing Euron’s Monsters of the Deep (Eldritch Apocalypse), escaping

Dany VIII: Pentos, giving it to the Tattered Prince and burning Illyrio Mopatis alive for betraying her, ends with her symbolically turning west

Areo III: Dorne, encountering Darkstar and dying

Sam IV: Horn Hill, after fleeing Oldtown, also his father may be there, sent by Cersei, sends out the ravens to warn Westeros of the threat of the Eldritch Monsters, heading North to help at the wall

Arya VIII: Riverlands, Around the Twins, claims the Twins, gets news of Stannis claiming Winterfell and trying to name a Lord of Winterfell, heads North with support of the Riverlands to claim her birthright as Lady of Winterfell since she thinks she’s the last Stark

Cersei VII: Casterly Rock, establish a court in exile and crowning Queen Myrcella

Davos IV: White Harbor, giving Manderly his King

Jon Connington IV: King’s Landing, dragon attack and death in wildfire

Jon III: Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, abandons his watch, someone tells him “Arya” had really pretty brown eyes, he realizes its not his little sister and determines to head “somewhere warm” or else somewhere South (potentially Winterfell - I go back and forth on if he’ll end up at the Tower of Joy or Dragonstone himself)

Sansa VIX: go to Stannis/fly banner over Winterfell, potential arrival/tension with Rickon and Davos and death of Littlefinger if he’s not dead yet

Brienne III: Riverlands, gets news Sansa is heading North / married in the Vale and that Tommen is dead; parts with Jaime - him for Cersei and Myrcella and her for Sansa

Dany IX: Dragonstone, her homecoming and arrival and crowning

Aeron III: Oldtown, going to the top of the Hightower and watching Euron blow his horn, dying

Melisandre III: the Wall, invasion of the Night and Others

Bran IV: the Wall, it falls

[goodqueenaly]

What's the purpose of Gerold Darkstar in the novels? To show to Arianne how fragile were her plot to crown Myrcella?

Gerold Dayne seems to have two narrative purposes - one accomplished, one yet to be accomplished. On the accomplished side, Gerold Dayne violently attacked Myrcella, nearly killing her. He didn’t succeed in his ultimate goal, but what he did succeed in is in casting a harsh light on Arianne’s worst qualities - her naivety in thinking that she could carry off a sudden plot to crown the “Baratheon” princess, her recklessness in trying to counteract this supposed plot to steal her Martell birthright. Arianne unknowingly enabled Gerold Dayne’s violence; in trusting him as much as she trusted dear cousin Tyene or Garin or Spotted Sylva, Arianne turned what was a poorly planned but ultimately doomed to bloodless failure plot into a bloody, tragic affair. She misunderstood him and in that misunderstood her own abilities, leading to her crucial self-analysis in “The Princess in the Tower”.

His second purpose, which I think will come via Areo Hotah in TWOW, will be to lead Areo, and by consequence the audience, to Starfall, where we will learn more about House Dayne and its part in the tower of joy. I’ve made no secret of my belief that the abandonment of the five-year gap pretty much screwed over House Dayne, turning it from a potentially big player in the final war against the Others to a House whose lord is still squeaking through puberty. But, of course, the likelihood that the Daynes were involved, to varying degrees, in the tower of joy is quite high, so there may well be secrets at Starfall that need to be introduced for the ultimate revelation of R+L=J. Enter Darkstar: a Dayne who is Very Clearly Bothered by the fact that he is a lesser cousin, a bannerman of little Lord Edric, destined to be forgotten in favor of the storied Ser Arthur. It’s not unimaginable to me that Darkstar, who so very much wants to be known and remembered, would take advantage of the Lord of Starfall’s absence to take it and/or Dawn, inside it, for himself. 

Of course, there is no talking about Gerold Dayne without talking about his failed purpose, and that was to be Oberyn 2.0, “the most dangerous man in Dorne”. But while Oberyn had an edge to him, a deft balance between easy, cynical wit and viperous danger, “Darkstar” is about as edgy as a butter knife. He’s Ghirahim without the actual magical powers, a preening ego desperate to impress a 10-year-old with his neo-emo look and catchphrases (and utterly failing at doing so). That’s not to say he’s not violent or dangerous at all - again, this is a man who tried to kill an innocent little girl, who might have poisoned her - but he’s hardly the sort of badass I think the author was hoping he would be.

[poorquentyn]

So how do you see the plot of WoW playing out?

It’s been a while since I did one of these, and I’ve changed my mind on a couple points, so why not? TWOW spoilers below, natch.

In the East

Barristan and Victarion smash the slaver coalition (with a li’l help from those ever-treacherous sellswords), but neither get to savor their victory for long. Vic burns, either from without thanks to Rhaegal or within thanks to Dragonbinder. Barry returns to the city in triumph only to find that the Shavepate has wiped out his enemies root and branch, including Hizdahr and the child hostages. Furious and heartsick, the white knight goes for Skahaz’ throat, but is overwhelmed and killed by the Brazen Beasts.

Dany burns Khal Jhaqo and leads his riders to Vaes Dothrak, where the dosh khaleen declare her the Stallion (as she saw in the House of the Undying) and all the Dothraki are gathered into one gigantic khalasar at her back. All roads meet at Volantis: Dany and the Dothraki, Tyrion and the Second Sons, Moqorro and Benerro, Marwyn the Mage, etc. After overthrowing the Old Blood and being officially declared Azor Ahai Reborn, Dany consults her many advisors as to what to do next. Moqorro tells her to keep breaking chains, Marwyn passes along Aemon’s warning and urges her to fly north before it’s too late, but Tyrion plays his trump card, revealing Aegon’s existence and advising Dany to confront Illyrio about the “mummer’s dragon.” She burns the cheesemonger alive when he confesses that Aegon is not Rhaegar’s son but his, and turns Pentos over to the Tattered Prince.

Somewhere in all this, Tyrion becomes a dragonrider (possibly with Bran’s help, echoing Tyrion’s gift of a saddle in AGOT). 

In Braavos, the Faceless Men kick Arya to the curb and try to eliminate her after learning she killed Raff. She runs away…and slap bang into Justin Massey and Jeyne Poole. Hearing the latter referred to as “Arya Stark” leads the true Arya to give up all other identities for good. She returns to Westeros with them; her TWOW storyline ends with her reuniting with Nymeria. 

In the South

Jon Connington takes Storm’s End and then defeats Mace Tyrell, thanks in large part to the Golden Company’s “friends in the Reach” (I suspect Randyll Tarly may literally stab Mace in the back). Arianne calls Dorne’s spears north to join them. 

Meanwhile, in King’s Landing, both Cersei and Margaery win their trials, leading to the former sending Robert Strong to kill the latter. The city erupts as Aegon’s army arrives; Nym and Tyene kill Tommen and Myrcella, and the High Sparrow throws open the city gates to his new king. Cersei evades capture thanks to Qyburn and Robert Strong, and flees below the Red Keep to arrange a wildfire explosion. Aegon sits the Iron Throne, and Arianne is Queen.

In the Riverlands, Lady Stoneheart frees Edmure and kills Jeyne Westerling and her mother in the Prologue. She then launches the Second Red Wedding at Riverrun, massacring the guests at the Daven-Frey wedding while forcing Jaime and Brienne to bear witness. Our POVs escape towards King’s Landing as the Riverlands rise up once more. Jaime is horrified to find Cersei about to pull an Aerys and kills her, fulfilling the valonqar prophecy. The “jade holocaust” is averted…until Dany arrives, attacks Team Aegon with dragonfire, and in so doing, sets off the wildfire. (My guess is that this happens in the book’s penultimate chapter from Arianne’s POV, with the Wall coming down in the final chapter; TWOW ends with eruptions of Fire and Ice.) 

In the Vale, Sweetrobin succumbs to sweetsleep during the tourney, and Littlefinger frames Lyn Corbray. In the chaos, the Mad Mouse tries to make off with Sansa; he fails and is executed along with Ser Lyn, but Sansa’s identity is revealed in the process. She marries Harry, they are declared King and Queen of the North and Vale, the knights of the Vale muster at Gulltown, and they all set sail for White Harbor.

In Dorne, Darkstar retreats to Starfall, but the main branch of the Daynes refuse to help him, and he’s killed by his pursuers; Areo Hotah then kills Balon Swann on Doran’s orders. We learn some crucial R+L=J information from the Daynes, and Dawn is brought into play. 

In the Reach, Euron annihilates both the Redwyne fleet and his own in a massive blood sacrifice. Damphair’s final moments are spent watching something huge and hideous rise from the depths in response, realizing that Euron was right all along: the humanoid god Aeron rebuilt his life around was a projection, and the real deal is a monster. Meanwhile, Sam buries himself in books as Marwyn advised, but keeps being distracted by all the weird goings-on in Oldtown. He eventually ascends the Hightower and finds Leyton and Malora very receptive to his stories about the Others; they take an immense interest in the horn Sam’s been carrying around, and he leaves it with them. Then the Crow’s Eye arrives with his “black and bloody tide,” kraken tentacles tearing down the city’s defenses so Euron’s reanimated followers can invade. Euron himself kills Leyton and Malora, and as Sam and Sarella flee Oldtown one step ahead of the Ironborn wights, they hear him blow the Horn of Winter from atop the Hightower. 

In the North

Stannis defeats Hosteen Frey at the Battle of Ice; with the help of the Karhold men formerly in service to Arnolf, he then feigns his death. Ramsay buys it, sending the Pink Letter to Jon before killing Roose and Walda out of anger at the latter’s pregnancy. Stannis then takes Winterfell with Bran’s help, loosing Ramsay’s dogs on him while Theon watches. The younger Greyjoys (assuming they both survive all this) eventually return home thanks to Dagmer Cleftjaw. 

On Skagos, Davos finds Osha and Rickon, and convinces them to return to the mainland with him (helped along by Shaggy immediately falling in love with the onion knight, a la Brown Ben and the dragons). They wind up in White Harbor, staring down Sansa and her army. 

Bran continues his wizard training, learning about the Children’s earth magic as well as greensight, and has visions related to R+L=J, the Others, Euron’s apocalypse, etc. When the Others attack via the cave’s “back door,” Bran and Meera escape into the tunnels, while Jojen, Bloodraven, the remaining Children, and poor Hodor are killed. 

At Castle Black, Mel uses a glamour to swap out Jon’s body for Cregan Karstark’s, preserving the former in the ice cells before resurrecting him. Jon executes Bowen Marsh, sends Mel and Stannis’ family to Winterfell, and then rides for Hardhome with Tormund and his fighters (leaving Dolorous Edd in command). There, Jon reunites with Benjen, who reveals R+L=J before being killed in a wight attack. Jon and Tormund retreat back to the Wall…only to see it come crashing down thanks to Euron. The Long Night returns.

[someoneintheshadow456]

After reading the sheer WTF-ery that was GOT Season 8 Plot Leaks (seriously they are AWFUL and I'm praying to God they're fake) and getting depressed because of them, I did a lot of thinking about the quality of GOT as a whole.

The first four seasons were awesome and 90% stayed true to the books, and whatever changes they made from the books were minuscule or enough to hold the same spirit of the original. However season 5 and onward feels like a completely different show, and that was the point where D&D lost GRRM's input. The plot became more thin, characters started becoming more predictable, and the realism was starting to go away. 

So I decided... how to fix GOT? How should the adaptation of The Song of Ice and Fire have gone? What would have been ideal?

Seasons 1-4 would be left as is with a few minor tweaks:

Drogo will no longer rape Dany on the wedding night just like in the books, but the "controlling" scene will still be there to show her respect. 

The "most girls are idiots" line Arya says to Tywin will be removed because Arya in the books wasn't a "not like other girls" girl. 

Arya's warg powers will be hinted at just like in the books, she will have dreams of wolves howling, etc. Jon will also be hinted at to have warg powers. 

Ygritte will tell Jon the story of the first Stark king whose daughter married a magic Wildling and thus all the Starks have wargs powers.

Stannis will be more close to his original incarnation, and his excuse for believing  in Lord of Light (his parents' deaths) will be incorporated. Plus those people he burned were also traitors just like the books and not just burned for no reason. 

Doreah doesn't betray Dany, instead she just dies like the book

Shireen will have black hair (because when Season 1 emphasized it so much it looks strange to see a blonde Baratheon)

Renly will be more like his original incarnation in the sense the part where he mocks Stannis for not having sons will be there, he will be less sympathetic. 

Loras character focus will be more on his nature as a warrior and less on his sexuality (because we don't want flaming gay stereotypes)

Varys was supporting the Quentin Martel thing instead of Viserys 

Yara's bisexuality will be hinted at from the start instead of out of nowhere

Tysha will be mentioned by Tywin and he says she died after the whole incident 

Now comes the point where the changes start getting made, starting with the absolute worst of the bunch, Season 5:

Rhe Maggy the Frog flashback will have explicitly stating Cersei liked Rhaegar like the books, and the Valonquar prophecy will be mentioned and hinted at. 

DORNE DORNE DORNE - Dorne subplot will be almost identical to the books, with Aerys Oakheart, Arianne Martel, Quentin, all that stuff. 

But Jaime and Bronn will still go to Dorne on a diplomatic mission to protect Myrcella because somebody (Darkstar) is creating tension between the Sand Snakes, Arianne, etc. and the tensions could get Myrcella killed

Jaime and Bronn spend the time observing everything that's going on and initially start suspecting Ellaria but she tries to prove her innocence, when they overhear that the Sand Snakes want to kill everyone who isn't Myrcella they try to stop them and get into a REAL FIGHT SCENE THAT SHOWS THEIR TRUE POWER UNLIKE THE STUPID ONE FROM THE SHOW

The same confrontation with Darkstar happens but when they find out it's too late and Myrcella dies (a change from the books) in the scuffle. The Sand Snakes and Arianne realise their mistake and grieve over Myrcella but Cersei has not forgiven them and wants them dead.

High Sparrow - No more references to modern day issues, but they will have the same type of power they did in the show. 

They don't try to arrest Loras for being gay, Cersei tries to get them to arrest Margery for not being a virgin before marriage just like in the books. But in the process of Cersei trying to do that, high sparrow finds out Cersei's incest and same like the show happens. 

...but in spite of that Margeary gets arrested for something else and pretends to be pious just like in the show 

Danaerys subplot - Instead of marrying Hizdar, she will marry Quentin, and Hizdar will instead be the slimy guy with connections to Sons of Harpy like the books. And same Quentin subplot will happen like the books. 

Dany doesn't feed people to her dragons (I HATED this part)

BARISTAN SELMY DOESN'T DIE

But Jorah will still have the Greyscale and Tyrion/Dany stuff will be just like the show

And Littlefinger will still give Sansa to the Boltons, but Sansa will be more active in trying to get out of there and she convinces Theon to get out of his "Reek" mode and escape with her

Brienne and Pod won't go to Essos (because that was one good change from the books) and instead protect Sansa and she along with Theon will make a plot to escape from Bolton

Jon Snow subplot will still be the same but his last word will be "Ghost" just like the book

STANNIS F*** STANNIS - Ramsay's "20 good men" don't derail his campaign. Instead they are derailed by a sudden blizzard that freezes most of their food. 

Selyse and Melissandre have Shireen burned in secret without the knowledge or consent of Stannis and his men. Stannis asks where is Shireen but Melissandre and Selyse lie to him and they go fight Battle of Winterfell which ends in a close cut instead of a massacre for Stannis, and he is killed by Ramsay but Ramsay is badly wounded. Selyse hangs herself.

Red woman sees the error of her ways and goes to Castle Black

Arya's Faceless Man subplot will be the same but with more hints that Jaquen is Syrio

Season 6 (...mostly the same, I wouldn't change much)

⦁ Cersei wants to get her revenge on the Martels for Myrcella's death but Martels don't care about direct revenge they want to find a Plan B for Operation Get with Dany after Quentin died. Dorne shows up in one episode discussing that. 

⦁ Instead of Arya not seeing it coming that the Waif was attacking her, she prepares for it. She gets Needle and goes underground, waiting for the Waif to come and get her and they have a fight scene and it's a close match before Arya cuts the light and she kills Waif.

⦁ Rickon DOES run zigzag and makes it to Jon, who doesn't run towards him listening to Sansa's advice. But he has an archer from a hidden location shoot an arrow at Rickon as soon as he reaches Jon. 

⦁ Sansa doesn't lie to Jon about Riverrun or the Vale knights. She tells him right away so that Battle of Bastards is much easier and there is less pointless conflict. 

⦁ It's stated that the Umbers lost respect for the Starks after Robb and the Red Wedding which is why they joined with Ramsay 

⦁ When she says she is Arya Stark of Winterfell and she is going home. Jaquen finally takes his mask off to reveal that he was Syrio Forel all along and bids her farewell.

⦁ In the whole Sept of Baelor thing, Loras makes it out alive and he and Olenna Tyrell vow to get vengance on the Lannisters and join with Dany. 

⦁ Edmure and Rosalyn escape the seige on Riverrun and take refuge.

 Season 7:

 Instead of the Dragonglass thing (something we ALREADY KNOW), Sam instead finds a book saying there is an Ice Dragon's egg buried in Castle Black. He sends a raven to Dolorous Edd and Jon Snow about both the dragon glass and the ice dragon

⦁ In the boat scene, there is a proper fight and the Sand Snakes and Yara are captured to be tortured in Cersei's dungeon. Arianne Martel and Ellaria escape and join with the rest of the group. 

⦁ Instead of Theon getting PTSD in the boat scene, Yara shakes her head when Euron says "rescue her" so it was planned that Theon would jump off the boat

⦁ When Jon meets Dany he mentions Aemon Targaryen so she gets a soft spot for him

⦁ Dolorous Edd follows the instructions of the letter that Sam gave him and he finds the Ice Dragon egg. He has it sent to Jon and Jon decides to keep it until he knows how to hatch it. 

⦁ The fight with Highgarden is won by Loras and his army and Dany takes all the Lannister gold and food. So the only one they lost is Dorne. However Randyl and Dickon refuse to bend the knee and they still die.

⦁ Nymeria meets Arya with her wolf army and she "tests" Arya by attacking her without killing her to see if she can match her. Arya passes the test using her newly discovered warg powers and Nymeria and her wolf army join with Arya. During this time Ghost leaves Jon and joins with Arya's wolf army. 

⦁ Jaime survives the fight and surrenders. He sees Olenna is dying (of natural causes), on her deathbed she confesses to killing Joffrey. 

⦁ So the Iron Bank doesn't get their debt paid and Cersei is screwed but she still thinks she can win somehow

⦁ Bran didn't "die in the cave," but he is traumatised by what he saw beyond the wall. There is a point about Meera being in love with Bran but it's one sided

⦁ The Stark Sisters bullshit drama is made more clear that it's bullshit. There's a bit of extra parts where Sansa and Bran tell Arya Littlefinger is a bad guy and will try to turn people against each other. 

⦁ Dany and Jon will take time to fall in love and mostly clash at this point instead. Jon doesn't bend the knee to Dany. By the end they have respect towards each other. 

⦁ Gendry and Jon bond about ARYA NOT NED. 

⦁ Because Highgarden was already won, Dany flies over EastWatch with Viserion and Drogon as the rest of the group does the capture opreation. 

⦁ Jon's name is Jahaerys Targaryen not Aegon Targaryen 

⦁ The final shot is Sam and Bran talking about Jon's lineage as Jon's dragon egg hatches in Eastwatch Castle to reveal a female ice dragon, who Jon names Ygritte. 

Season 8 Speculation (assuming the leaks are unfortunately real):

⦁ It has been a year and now Ygritte has become a big dragon

⦁ Initially North doesn't trust Dany but Jon urges them to work together until the White Walkers are gone.

⦁ Team Dany and Team Jon band together to defeat Cersei who is basically screwed save for having Euron's forces. But Sansa and Arya stay in Winterfell to keep watch. Team Wildling Army also stays behind to check for White Walkers.

⦁ Jon rides Ygritte into battle and she and Dany and Drogon both fight.

⦁ Robin Aryn is back and while he is not strong, he is very clever and it was found he is intelligent and reads a lot of books like Sam. He goes to Winterfell because it is no longer safe in the Vale and he and Sansa bond.

⦁ Arya/Gendry and Brienne/Jaime shipping moments will be there.

⦁ Melissandre goes back to Volantis and says her role is done because Ice and Fire are now one

⦁ Jon and Dany's relationship will be expanded.

⦁ Theon kills Euron while Jaime fulfills the Valonquar prophecy before killing himself.

⦁ CleganeBowl happens and Sandor wins but he also dies as he was mortally wounded in the fight.

⦁ Loras, Sand Snakes, Ellaria, Brienne, Podrick, Grey Worm, all die in the final battle

⦁ Once Cersei is taken care of, everyone bands together to fight the White Walkers. Boat Scene happens on the way back.

⦁ Bran tells Jon about his true lineage. This causes a conflict between Jon and Dany about the throne. Jon angsts about his lineage but decides he is not Jahaerys or Jon or Stark or Targaryen, he is himself.

⦁ In the end Dany decides she will abdicate the throne, Jon says no because she is also good at ruling. They decide they will marry.

⦁ White Walkers come and the fight begins.

⦁ Arya uses her wolf army to fight the White Walkers. Bran wargs into Rhaegal who was left behind. Jon defeats the Night's King.

⦁ Tormund, most of the White Walker Squad, Bran, all die in the White Walker battle.

THE ENDING (assuming the leaks are real):

 Sam becomes Lord of the Reach and Gilly marries him

Edmure and Rosalyn rule over Riverrrun 

Arya marries Gendry Baratheon and she becomes The She-Wolf of Storm's End. They have a son - Syrio Baratheon

Sansa marries Robin Arryn who instead takes his wife's name and becomes Robin Stark, so Sansa is Lady of Winterfell. They have a son - Eddard Stark

Arianne Martel rules over Dorne in the absence of her other relatives

Jon is King of Westeros with Dany as his queen, they have a daughter - Lyanna Targaryen. Tyrion, Missandei, Davos, etc. are all advisors. 

Dragons are back again as Jon's dragon Ygritte and Dany's dragon Drogon become mates and have more eggs. 

Bran's corpse is taken to beyond the wall and he is made the new Night's King and the cycle begins again 

[aion-rsa]

Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire: Will the Books Have a Different Ending Than the TV Show?

http://bit.ly/2F1U5G8

What does George RR Martin have in store for the literary fate of Westeros with the conclusion to A Song Of Ice And Fire? Spoilers!

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This article comes from Den of Geek UK.

This article contains major spoilers for all seasons of Game Of Thrones.

We finally have an end to Game Of Thrones, but not everyone is happy with the way things turned out. Showrunners David Benioff and DB Weiss have come under a lot of fire from unhappy fans, but we know that George RR Martin shared the overall plan for the book series with them long ago. Will there be any significant differences in how things play out in the book series A Song Of Ice And Fire?

George RR Martin himself has actually answered this question on his blog, and the answer is "Yes. And no. And yes. And no." As Martin points out, books and television are different media, and they have different requirements. He also lists a number of characters who never even appeared in the TV show but whose fate we will learn in the books: Jeyne Poole, Lady Stoneheart, Penny and her pig, Skahaz Shavepate, Arianne Martell, Darkstar, Victarion Greyjoy, Ser Garlan the Gallant, Aegon VI, "and many more."

But it’s the fate of the major characters that fans are really interested in at this point. And while we know that at least some of them are heading towards the same fate in the books, we are also fairly sure at least some of them will be going somewhere slightly different – here’s who and why.

Major differences

We have one main reason for suggesting that the story in the books will work out differently in most of these cases: prophecies. A Song Of Ice And Fire is absolutely chock-full of prophecies, many of which never made it into the TV series.

There has, so far, been one notable example of a prophecy that was not fulfilled (relating to Dany’s son Rhaego), and George RR Martin has suggested that prophecies cannot be trusted, so no guesses based on prophecy are entirely certain. Several characters in-universe have commented on how unreliable they are, and even Melisandre suggests that although what she sees in the fire is never exactly wrong, she may mis-interpret it.

read more: Game of Thrones Season 8 Spinoff Sequel Possibilities

However, we have to assume, in the grand tradition of fantasy literature, that most of them are going to be fulfilled at some point of the story – it simply does not make a satisfying story to provide numerous prophecies that are given lots of attention, and then fail to follow through on any of them. The interpretation may turn out to be quite different from what the prophecy initially seemed to suggest, but the fires will turn out to be correct in their own special way in the end.

The fate of Cersei Lannister and her children

The prophecy given to Cersei by Maggy the Frog is longer and more detailed in the books than in the show. She will be Queen; she will have three children and the King will have sixteen; their crowns and shrouds will be gold (i.e. all three will be monarchs, and all three will die before her); after their deaths a younger and more beautiful Queen will take Cersei’s place, and eventually, “the valonquar” (younger brother or younger sibling) will strangle her to death.

Most of this prophecy is more or less covered in the TV show. Myrcella never becomes a Queen in the series, whereas the books have her at the centre of a Martell plot to put her on the throne, and since Jaime doesn’t go to Dorne in the books and Arianne Martell is a significant character, her death will probably play out differently. But Cersei’s sons both became kings, all three of her children died before her, and she was supplanted by a younger and more beautiful Queen (first Margaery, then Daenerys).

Cersei’s death, however, will play out quite differently if this prophecy is accurate.

The identity of the "valonquar" has been hotly debated among book fans for years, but whoever it is (prime candidates include Jaime, Tyrion, Arya or Sandor Clegane), it seems safe to say she won’t be killed by falling rocks, wrapped in Jaime’s arms. Unless he mercy kills her in the middle of the destruction of the Red Keep. But we suspect not.

Jaime abandoning Brienne for Cersei, and his death

In A Storm Of Swords, when Jaime is being escorted away from Harrenhal leaving Brienne behind, he falls asleep against a weirwood tree (that’s the ones with the creepy faces that are central to Bran’s visions) and has a weird and very long and complicated dream. He dreams about himself and Brienne being in a dark place full of water underneath the Lannister stronghold of Casterly Rock. He sees his father, Joffrey, a bunch of other blonde Lannisters and, most importantly, Cersei. They all leave him – which suggests, since Joffrey and Tywin both die long before Jaime and Cersei, that Cersei will die before Jaime does.

In the dream, Jaime and Brienne both have burning swords, and Cersei tells Jaime that when the flames go out, he will die. They are then approached by the ghosts of the late King Aerys’ Kingsguard and Rhaegar Targaryen (clothed in snow, suggesting this might in reality be Jon Snow and his men), who go to attack them and the flames on Jaime’s sword go out – and he wakes up. It is this dream that prompts Jaime to insist on going back to Harrenhal to rescue Brienne from a bear.

It doesn’t take much of a dream interpreter to work out that last bit. If Martin sticks to this prophecy – and weirdwood tree dreams are usually the more reliable prophecies in the world of Westeros – Jaime will die fighting back to back with Brienne (who will, hopefully, survive). In the dream he wants to follow Cersei, and metaphorically he may consider death to be "following her" assuming she is already dead, but he won’t leave Brienne for her, and he won’t die with her.

Ghost and Nymeria

At the beginning of the series, the Starks adopted six direwolves. Two are dead in both books and show (Lady and Grey Wind). Two died in the show but are still alive in the books, so whether they have anything important to do remains to be seen (Summer and Shaggydog). But two were never killed off in the show, no matter how little we saw them because all the VFX budget had been blown on the dragons – Ghost and Nymeria.

In the books, Bran is not the only warg in the Stark family, as both Jon and Arya have shared dreams with their direwolves. We think it’s safe to assume that Ghost (who may or may not hold on to Jon’s soul until Melisandre can resurrect him) and Nymeria (running wild in Westeros as head of a wolf pack, and presumably a useful ally against the army of the dead) will have bigger roles to play in how things go down in the book version of this story.

Arya’s assassination skills

As many, many memes have pointed out, Arya spent years learning a neat set of assassins’ skills, including the ability to swap faces, only to use them once (on the Freys) and then never again.

read more: Game of Thrones Season 8 - What Happens to Arya?

The Freys have already been nearly wiped out in the books, mostly under the orders of Lady Stoneheart, with the detail about serving some of them in pies provided by a (very) minor character called Wyman Manderly. Arya, meanwhile, is still in training and has not changed faces at all yet. We assume that her arc concerning almost abandoning her identity, but then reclaiming it (having stashed away Needle instead of getting rid of it) will play out in a similar way, and it’s unclear whether she will go so far as to gain the ability to swap faces. But however her time at the House of Black and White ends, we suspect that the skills of an assassin that she has learned will have a bigger role to play in the conclusion of the books.

Arya killing the Night King

There is one other source we can draw on for working out what may have been Benioff and Weiss’s invention – their own statements. In "Inside the Episode" following Season 8, Episode 3, Benioff talked about the choice to have Arya kill the Night King, which suggests that this was their choice, not something laid out for them by George RR Martin. Protecting Arya so that she could kill the Night King also turns out to have been Ser Beric Dondarrion’s destiny – but Book Beric long ago gave up his extra lives to resurrect Lady Stoneheart, so we know that will play out differently as well.

Considering the Night King will likely be killed, as in the show, in battle, this is not especially surprising. Arya is an assassin, not a soldier, and is more likely to kill Cersei or some of non-TV characters. As for who will kill the Night King – well, Jon Snow still seems the most likely candidate, but perhaps Martin will spring another surprise on us at the last minute.

The Night King being killed before Cersei and Daenerys

We suspect, if the book’s prophecies are to be fulfilled, that the books will deal with the human storyline first, and then turn to the defeat of the Night King. Jaime’s vision suggests that he and Brienne will end up fighting zombies in Casterly Rock, many thousands of miles south of Winterfell. But there are other prophecies that suggest that some things that play out in the same way may have a different meaning, and therefore result in a different order of events, in the book version...

Things that will probably work out roughly the same

Jon Snow’s resurrection

All the pieces are in place – Melisandre is at the Wall, and Ghost is nearby for Jon to warg in to and preserve his soul (so he doesn’t end up cold and detached like Lady Stoneheart). There’s no reason to think this will be significantly different in the books.

The burning of Shireen Baratheon

Most of the really horrible stuff that happens on Game of Thrones has its roots in the books. Theon’s mutilation happens off page, but it happens; Ramsey’s abuse is inflicted on a different wife, but it is no less horrible for happening to Jeyne Poole instead of Sansa Stark. The Red Wedding, Ned’s execution, Oberyn Martell having his head popped – none of these are inventions of David Benioff or DB Weiss. The burning at the stake of a young child who is also one of the most likeable characters in the series is the moment Stannis crosses the line and becomes irredeemable – and it’s almost certainly Martin’s idea. It may play out differently – perhaps Stannis himself will be at the forefront, if Melisandre has switched allegiance to Jon Snow, and perhaps this will turn even loyal Davos Seaworth against him – but we suspect it will happen.

Jon and Dany’s love affair

The series is called A Song Of Ice And Fire after all – that would suggest a saga that is ultimately about Jon Snow (Ice) and Daenerys Targaryen (Fire). It is prophesied (at the House of the Undying) that Daenerys will ‘ride’ three ‘mounts’, ‘one to bed and one to dread and one to love’. If we want to be a bit gutter-minded in how we interpret that, this could refer to three lovers – Khal Drogo (to bed), Daario Naharis (to dread, for reasons as yet unknown relating to book plot developments) and Jon Snow (to love). Their romantic entanglement provides a sense of epic tragedy as the series draws to its close, because something else that will also probably work out much the same is...

Daenerys’ descent into madness and murder by Jon

Melisandre frequently conflates a prophecy about The Prince That Was Promised with the resurrection of a mythological/historical character called Azor Ahai. Azor Ahai defeated the forces of darkness before, but only by forging a special flaming magic sword called Lightbringer. His method? Plunge the hot metal into his wife Nisssa Nissa’s heart so that her soul becomes part of the sword. Melisandre used to think Stannis Baratheon was Azor Ahai reborn (other parts of the prophecy referred to a bleeding comet and being born among smoke and salt, which could refer to any number of people, including Dany, Jon Snow and Stannis) but she seems to be leaning towards Jon Snow more recently.

If Jon Snow is indeed Azor Ahai reborn, then a sequence of events that essentially replays his story might play out. It’s possible that Daenerys goes mad, and Jon decides he must kill her, but in doing so, he creates a new Lightbringer merged with her soul. This is why we think the order of events may be different – Jon, the new Azor Ahai, can then move on to defeat the Night King using the new Lightbringer.

Of course, it’s possible that this prophecy will not play out the way we expect it to, or may not even happen at all. It’s possible that someone really unexpected will turn out to be Azor Ahai – Jaime Lannister is one of the hot tips to murder his lover/sister Cersei, was born by the sea and dreams of fighting with a flaming sword, so it could even be him. Or this may be a prophecy that is never fulfilled at all, and another way of defeating the Night King is found.

We still think Jon and Dany’s story will turn out roughly the same, though. Daenerys receives many, many prophecies relating to herself throughout the series, including one that she will know ‘three treasons – once for blood and once for gold and once for love’. We’ve seen blood (Mirri Maz Duur) and gold (Ser Jorah) which just leaves Jon to betray her for love, possibly his love of his people, or (if things play out in a similar way to the show) of his sisters. Or perhaps the events of the story will be the same, but the meaning again different – perhaps Dany, sensing herself starting to turn to the dark side, will volunteer to play the role of Nissa Nissa, to save Westeros from both the Night King and herself.

Things that could go either way

The wholescale destruction of King’s Landing

We are fairly confident that Dany will descend into madness, but whether she will actually succeed in reducing King’s Landing to rubble is another issue. Jaime killed Aerys just before he was able to do the same, and it’s rather frustrating to see all that effort go to waste when it turns out that fate was only put off by a few years. It may be that in the book version, Daenerys is about to destroy King’s Landing when she is stopped – but this was changed for the television show because actually seeing the destruction makes better television.

Another of the Undying’s poetic prophecies to Dany is that she will ‘light’ three fires – one for life (the birth of the dragons from Khal Drogo’s funeral pyre), one for death and one to love. It’s possible that the fire for death will be the destruction of King’s Landing – or perhaps Cersei won’t destroy the Sept of Baelor, but Daenerys will, thus sparing most of the population but still making a pretty big mess and coming across as a major over-reaction. That might leave the fire ‘to love’ as her soul being absorbed into Jon’s sword and becoming Lightbringer, the flaming sword born of their love, perhaps even willingly.

Who becomes King or Queen of the North and/or the Six/Seven Kingdoms

You’d assume that this fairly major point would be the same, and it may well be so. Bran is the first point of view character in the first book, following the prologue (whose point of view character immediately dies) and, like Jon, is a typical fantasy hero, a noble boy who overcomes physical disability with magical powers.

There is a really obscure possible alternative to Bran that may have seemed insufficiently dramatic for the TV series. In the books, Margaery and Loras Tyrell have an older brother called Willas, who is the heir to Highgarden and who is studious and physically disabled, with a bad leg. (Bronn will not end up Lord of Highgarden in the books – he has his castle and noble bride already).

read more: How Bran Stark Played Us All

Just as the Starks and Lannisters are loosely inspired by the historical British Houses of York and Lancaster, the Tyrells’ closest historical analogue is the Tudors – the House that eventually emerged triumphant from the Wars of the Roses when Lancastrian Henry Tudor defeated Richard of York in battle and married Elizabeth of York to ally the two sides and put an end to the wars. Willas was adapted out of the TV series, and it may be that the showrunners felt it would be more satisfying to put a character we have been following from the beginning on the throne – but making that character Bran, also physically disabled and unable to walk, is a nod to the originally intended Willas.

The spanner in the works here is Sansa Stark. A few years ago, publisher Harper Collins made public some of Martin’s early plans for the series, which were in some ways very different to the story he ended up writing (Arya Stark and Jon Snow as star-crossed lovers was a major change). Sansa was one of the characters who seemed to have changed the most from her initial outline, as she was initially intended to betray her Stark family for her husband Joffrey and their children. Her story is also substantially different to that of the her TV counterpart, as the television version merged her with the minor character Jeyne Poole, who in the books is claimed to be Arya and forcibly married to Ramsey Bolton.

read more: Sansa Stark as Queen in the North has Historic Roots

Whereas the characters of Arya, Jon, Bran, Tyrion and Daenerys (Martin’s original five who would make it all the way to the end) have largely retained their basic nature even as the plot has changed, Sansa is a wild card – different in the TV series, different in the original plan, and the character that has probably changed the most over the course of the books published so far as well. What that means is that it’s impossible to guess what Martin’s plans for her are now. Will she ultimately be the ‘younger and more beautiful’ Queen who takes Cersei’s place? Will she fight for an independent North, as in the TV show? Will she go a different direction entirely, leaving Bran as King? Will she even find happiness in a Lannister marriage after all, re-marrying Tyrion to unite Houses Stark and Lannister, leaving the two of them to reign? Will she be married to Willas Tyrell, to fulfil the same role as a fictionalised Elizabeth of York and Henry Tudor?

Honestly, we have no idea!

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Feature

Books

Juliette Harrisson

Jun 11, 2019

Game of Thrones

A Song of Ice and Fire

George R.R. Martin

from Books http://bit.ly/2X4AJu4

[undauntedlioness]

“ You want to ask, so ask. ”

‘   THE SECRET HISTORY   ’  SENTENCE STARTERS.

“Do you believe he is to blame?”

Different questions beg to be asked instead, but she settles for the matter that involves both of them less directly — not to say it does not affect them for it does, likely him much more, yet in different manner. She was not yet ready for those other questions, so focus was turned elsewhere. 

Much happened in absence, both to her family and herself. Most of troubles mother had placed under uncle Tyrion’s guilt, including brother’s murder and attempt at her own life. Myrcella was but a child during all of the time Tyrion had been part of her life, and had never found faults in him as Joffrey always did. To acknowledge someone she had been fond of as a cruel family murderer was not simple matter as mother had intended it to be. 

Mother was so resolute on blaming and Myrcella wouldn’t dare burdening little brother when his shoulders were already so heavy, so minor conflict was kept to herself. Her kingsguard uncle would understand, though, would he not? She trusted him well enough, and uncle Jaime had never shared mother’s hatred towards his brother. 

“Tyrion, I mean. Do you also think he was the one to poison Joffrey and send Darkstar to attack me?”

[poorquentyn]

It seems Myrcella is doomed which is tragic, both in the obvious child death sense but also because Myrcella just owns every scene she is in and seeing her grown and in a position of power would be something to behold since its not many eight year olds that put Joffrey in his place, impress Tyrion, get Robb Stark grinning like a loon, charms Sansa, makes you feel for Cersei briefly and still find time to win at chess and tend a garden. Do you think she will die as that girl or as a plot point?

I hope Myrcella gets the spotlight before she goes, especially given that we haven’t seen her since Darkstar attacked her. M’self, what I’d like to see is her tell Cersei off in some capacity. 

[poorquentyn]

I don't think I've heard before about the possibility that Darkstar poisoned Myrcella. Do you think he used a poisoned blade (à la Oberyn) when he attacked her or is it something else?

Given Darkstar’s general reputation and the precedent of Oberyn (Darkstar being basically mini-Oberyn), I think it’s possible that his blade was poisoned, and that the show preserved the cause of Myrcella’s death while changing the context.