Tumgik
#but that doesn’t mean that sansa can’t wrestle with this
florence-pew · 3 years
Text
The fact that every single woman in GoT - except Gilly - who gained power over the course of the show only did so by shedding each and every traditionally female attribute she had (romance/tenderness/familial ties/motherhood/etc) tells you all you need to know about how the writers couldn’t write a ‘strong female character’ (gag me) without stripping them of their humanity first
6 notes · View notes
aboveallarescuer · 3 years
Text
I love that Daenerys Targaryen has significant parallels with all the major ASOIAF characters (as well as with many of the minor and the historical ones too). I love that comparing and contrasting her with them almost always highlights her epicness and/or how special her place in the narrative is.
Daenerys Targaryen is not just a queen, she’s a queen regnant and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, i.e., a she-king. This means that she can be compared and contrasted not only with Cersei and Margaery or with Alysanne and the other Targaryen queens consort, but also (in fact, especially) with Stannis and Robb or with Aegon the Conqueror and the other Targaryen monarchs that succeeded him.
Daenerys Targaryen is not just a claimant to the Iron Throne like Stannis, Young Griff and Renly, she’s the only one of them who is a POV character.
Daenerys Targaryen is not just one of the POV rulers, she also happens to be the only POV ruler with power in her own right and who isn’t in a subservient position in any way (Jon is Lord Commander, but he’s also the king’s advisor and is running the equivalent of a penal colony, so the stakes are much lower than Daenerys ruling a city and dealing with opposition from half the world; Tyrion and Ned are Hands of the King; Cersei is queen regent, which means that her power stems from Tommen’s kingship). Also, Daenerys has the clearest parallels with Aragorn and her ADWD storyline was deliberately written by GRRM as a response to the lack of information from Tolkien about what makes Aragorn a good king. Finally, if one compares her ADWD storyline with Jon’s, one can see how many roles she occupies at the same time: the administrator (Jon), the monarch (Stannis), the most magical character linked to fire and prophecies (Melisandre) and the leader of the disenfranchised (Mance; note that Daenerys was forced to leave her homeland, was enslaved and currently doesn’t belong anywhere - that’s the exact same situation of many of the former slaves of Slaver’s Bay, who come from different places and have different races, ethnicities and backgrounds. Daenerys empathized with them right away because she is one of them. Her detractors may accuse her of being an outsider, but that’s because they prioritize the viewpoint of the Ghiscari slavers. The freedmen, like Daenerys, come from many different places and are outsiders to the noblemen too).
Daenerys Targaryen is an extraordinary conqueror and strategist. Aegon the Conqueror made the Westerosi bend the knee with the help of his dragons, 15-year-old Daenerys Targaryen overthrew the slave masters primarily thanks to her own battle plans, not her dragons. Robb Stark captured castles in the westerlands motivated by personal injury and his actions had local impact; Daenerys Targaryen conquered three cities motivated by her desire to abolish slavery and her actions had worldwide impact.
Daenerys Targaryen is not a typical member of her family, she is the main leader and representative of House Targaryen in a way that Jon/Bran/Arya/Sansa or Cersei/Jaime/Tyrion can’t ever claim to be. Their fathers Ned Stark and Tywin Lannister had large roles in the main story and, in the Starks’ case, their older brother Robb is more well-remembered than any of them (at least so far). Meanwhile, Daenerys’s father Aerys II was already dead before she was born and before the main story began, which allowed her to carve her own path outside of his influence. Moreover, her accomplishments are already greater than both of her older brothers’. She became the face of her family in a way that matches (in fact, even surpasses) Ned with House Stark and Tywin with House Lannister.
Daenerys Targaryen is not a typical mother, she’s both Mother of Dragons and Mhysa. Her motherhood is transcendental in a way that Catelyn’s or Cersei’s aren’t because it is not related to blood ties or to her fertility. Instead, it’s associated with her unprecedented feat of reviving an extinct species, with her ability to make up the magic as she goes along, with her leadership, with her revolutionary nature, with her compassion for thousands of people. Additionally, unlike the other major mothers, Daenerys is the only one who isn’t doomed to go “mad” despite all the losses and hardships she faced.
Daenerys Targaryen is a hero, which is especially clear when her actions are contrasted with House Stark’s, whose brand of “heroism” has been mostly to react to personal injury so far. Ned Stark participated in Robert's Rebellion because his father and brother were killed. Ned’s son Robb wanted Northern independence because his father was killed. Ned’s vassals want to start another war in the name of the Starks because of their loyalty and their outrage about the Red Wedding. Their motivations, sympathetic as they may be, have never involved the commoners. In contrast, GRRM had Daenerys empathize with the former slaves, start a war in their name and abolish slavery despite them not being associated with her through oath of fealty or blood relations or lands. She was specifically singled out by the author as the one leader who “wants equality for everyone”. It’s a stark contrast (pun intended) to the actions of the main family (at least as a unit) of the story. Sadly, it’s easier (for some fans) to root for the heroes mostly reacting to personal injury who never made any mistakes of large scale consequences since they never got to be in authority. Or for the heroes fighting against ice zombies (though, to be fair, Jon haven’t even faced them in ADWD, his main challenge was to conciliate the Free Folk and the Night’s Watch, so the stakes of his storyline are much lower when one compares his problems with Dany dealing with enemies from all over Essos raising armies to defeat her). It’s harder to do the same with the hero who takes an active stance against social injustices and who wrestles with hard questions about when political violence is justified (which never have easy, clear-cut answers) and all the negative ramifications that come with them.
Oh, and have I mentioned that Daenerys Targaryen is the character with the most overt clues of being Azor Ahai/Prince That Was Promised/Stallion Who Mounts the World? Like with the birth of the dragons, uniting all the khalasars and then leading humanity to victory against the Others will be two more unparalleled feats of hers among the characters of the current timeline. Additionally, as she becomes surrounded and influenced by prophecies, we get to see how Daenerys has a healthy relationship with them in contrast to other characters like Cersei and Stannis.
All these attributes and accomplishments are made even more remarkable when one contrasts them with what doesn’t necessarily make Daenerys Targaryen unique. Yes, Daenerys became the most powerful person in her world, but she also lived in poverty among lowborn people without the privilege of a castle or a formal education, which lends itself to comparisons with Davos and Melisandre. Yes, Daenerys is a queen, but she’s also a young girl who loves songs and stories and idealizes her family members, which lends itself to comparisons with Arya, Brienne and Sansa. Yes, Daenerys is a loving, compassionate mother, but she was also raised by her abuser throughout all of her formative years, which lends itself to comparisons with dysfunctional families like the Lannisters, the Greyjoys and the Cleganes. And so on.
Daenerys Targaryen has a very special place in the narrative, which I think should be acknowledged not only to appreciate her character, but also to understand why GRRM chose to isolate her from everyone else. Why would GRRM be confident that his readers would still be interested in Daenerys despite the fact that she doesn’t interact with any of his other major characters for most of the story? Is it merely because of her dragons, as her detractors say?
No.
It’s because, as the list above showed, Daenerys’s narrative importance and accomplishments are unmatched. They had to be. Daenerys’s character and storyline had to be connected to pretty much everyone else’s in significant, thematic ways in order for her to earn an entire continent, as well as her place as the Fire of ASOIAF. That is why Daenerys is guaranteed to have a major role in all the three main plotlines of ASOIAF. That is why Daenerys is so iconic and represents this book series in a way that no individual Stark could ever do. That is why Daenerys has to be so many things at the same time: a POV character and a claimant to the Iron Throne, a mother and the main representative of her family, the most powerful person in her world and a former slave, a ruler and a conqueror, a she-king and a young girl, quite possibly the story’s main hero and savior. That no other ASOIAF character can come close to her narrative importance or to her in-universe accomplishments is kind of the point because Daenerys had to encompass everything that is great about ASOIAF in order to carry her own storyline. And I'm excited for TWOW because, as she moves closer to Westeros, her importance will only increase more and more.
Daenerys Targaryen is like fine wine. She gets better and better the more time passes, the more you think about her and the more you realize how all the other ASOIAF storylines somehow lead back to hers. Dany’s storyline almost always looks that much more epic and greater in comparison to them because she carries her storyline on her own, so the author had to make sure she caught our attention.
243 notes · View notes
Text
Arya Stark & Femininity
This might turn into a mini rant, so bear with me here. A lot of times whenever I watch old GOT clips, (bc I hate myself) and read stuff about Arya on fansites, I realize that there’s been a lot of misconception about her and her character. Particularly about her being a woman. And a lot of times i see this sort of “justification” from her fans that the reason why she’s such a fan-favorite character in the show (and to some extent, the books?) is because Arya is esentially this “bad-ass ninja asassin tomboy who’s out for revenge against those who’ve killed her family.” And some of her fans and especially her anti’s will call her out expressing that “Arya’s only a child who doesn’t like girly things like dresses and boys and doing her hair. She “identifies” herself as a tomboy because she likes “boyish things” like sword play, and playing in the mud, and gore, wrestling, etc. I was scrolling through the Jonrya tag here on Tumblr, this is a comment I found regarding Arya:
Tumblr media
The moment I read that I straight up just wanted to rant! Lol! Also, I’m sorry for the formatting, I’m writing this on mobile. :( Anyways, these people who make those claims about Arya, esentially only see her as this small girl who likes fighting and getting dirty. They completely disregard everything else that makes Arya, Arya. Pretty much just limiting her to her sex, understanding that because Arya likes boyish things, she’s NOT ALLOWED to inherit things, like the North, fall in love and get married, have a high position in the hierarchy and in politics. It’s because that these people see her as someone who hates needlework or everything that isn’t Sansa, everyone believes that she hates everything that makes her FEMALE. Everybody here knows that Arya’s my favorite female character in the books, so I just wanna talk about how the general public views her, and how their views tend to go against Arya’s entire character.
People have this view that she is the “exact opposite” of Sansa. And while that’s true in terms of their different characteristics, it doesn’t mean that Arya is against everything that makes Sansa, feminine. Now lemme elaborate here. Sansa is everything that represents “femininity.” Especially in terms of the inspired time period that ASOIAF takes place in. She’s very girly & lady-like, is mannerful, “soft-spoken.” She daydreams about boys and being a princess. She’s graceful and elegant. She knows her place in terms of society, and as a woman. AND YEAH, Arya is the exact opposite of that. Yes, she has this boyish nature. She’s wild and free spirited. Loud also adventerous. But that’s the thing: Arya has a lot of femininity in her. It’s just not the femininity that we’re used to. What society percieves as “normally feminine.”
Arya is not Sansa. And it’s because she doesn’t act like a “lady” that the audience sees her as this girl who “doesn’t want” or most importantly, should not want/get the same treatment as the typical noblewoman in Westeros should recieve. This idea was engraved into people’s heads because of the show, and that’s how we’re supposed to see her. As this cold hearted ninja assasin warrior who happens to be a girl, but doesn’t act like a typical girl. The audience pretty much places her in the “I’m not like other girls” trope. Which is honestly, so wrong to me. Because yeah okay, Arya isn’t like the typical lady. But god, she is far deeper than that, and is a much more complex character.
Here’s the thing, Arya does not reject being a female, and most importantly, she does not reject the typical ideals of what makes a lady feminine. Of course not. In fact, she actively encourages that women be included in all things, especially in things only made for men. She believes that women should not be held back or ignored because of their sex and femininity.
“The Lannister’s are proud,” Jon observed. “You’d think the royal sigil would be sufficient, but no. He makes his mother’s House equal in honor to the king’s.”
“The woman is important too!” Arya protested.
This excerpt is from Arya’s very first chapter in AGOT. It is also my favorite Jonrya moment, lol. And asides from the scene foreshadowing potential plot points for not only Jon & Arya, the scene introduces to us and examines Arya’s perception of society and more specifically, the women in society. In this scene Arya joins Jon in observing Prince Joffrey, talking about the Lannister/Baratheon coat of arms. Jon makes a point that while the Baratheon sigil should be enough to prove that Joffrey is of royalty, the Lannisters (Cersei) are a proud house, married into the royal family. So therefore Joffrey is of house Baratheon AND Lannister. That is why the Lannister sigil stands besides the Baratheons. Because they, specifically Cersei, should be seen as equal to the king.
And while Jon makes this seem like it’s wrong or not needed, Arya disagrees with him. She tells him that the women should not be forgotten, as they should be seen as equal to the men. That the women are just as important as the men, and that it would be of good conduct to not forget that. And with that being said, she never acknowledges that Joffrey’s mother is too lady-like or too feminine to be seen as an equal to the king. Nope. Although she does question later as to why if women cannot fight, why should they have a coat of arms. Though that is hardly the point of her argument.
Another point that makes people believe that Arya is not feminine or does not support femininity, is when she flat out says to Ned that she hates the idea of being a lady.
“Your mother and I have charged her with the impossible task of making you a lady.”
“I don’t want to be a lady,” Arya flared.
Alot of people misinterpret this as Arya not wanting to be a noblewoman, because she only likes to play with swords, and get dirty. Because acting like a lady is stupid and not her. This is simply not true. Arya has no problem with women, or being a lady. She is a lady. A highborn one. What she does have a problem with is that being a lady often means being trapped in the conformities of what society percieves to be the acceptable standard for women in this time period.
All of the acceptable standards is what Sansa is. And she is not like Sansa. She does not believe herself to be a lady like her sister or her mother. When she first reveals her true identity to Gendry in ACOK, he immediately apologizes to her for his behavior and calls her m’lady. :3 Arya unfortunately sees this as a form of mockery and an attack because while Gendry acknowledges that she is a lady, Arya doesn’t act like a typical lady or even look like one. That insecurity of not being a lady like her mother and sister makes her believe that Gendry is using her sex against her. Like a form of irony. But I mean, we all know that’s far from the truth, lol!
And Jon recognizes this too! It’s the reason why they are so close and tightly knit together. Because Jon understands Arya, and sees her insecurity like how she sees his. They are one and the same. Jon sees and understands Arya’s frustrations of sexism viewed in Westeros. He acknowledges that Arya is to become a lady. But he also sees that Arya is not the conventional type of lady wanting to stick to the norms. She is a different type of lady, and to him, that is okay. He may tease her for it once in a while, pointing out all the unfair limitations that women have to go through. But he accepts her for being this unconventional noblewoman, and often encourages her to pursue being different.
“Girls get the arms but not the swords. Bastards get the swords but not the arms. I did not make the rules, little sister.”
Later when Jon and Arya say their goodbyes, Jon gifts Arya with the swords. Needle. This is his way of saying, fuck all them haters, be who you wanna be. Solidifying the idea that he supports her and accepts her for who she is. Kinda like how Tyrion told him to use his identity as armour, Arya should do the same to herself. It’s okay to be different than the rest. Fuck the rules.
It’s not that Arya hates the idea of being a lady. It’s a far cry from that. It’s the sexism that goes along with being the typical lady that infruiates her. Arya loves running around, riding horses, playing with swords, being loud and adventurous. She has a firery temper to her. And just because she likes doing all of that, and is all of that, it doesn’t mean, shouldn’t mean that she isn’t a lady. That she can’t be a lady. All of those things shouldn’t limit her to being viewed as a girl, a highborn lady. She is a woman, and she identifies as one.
“Listen to him, boy.”
“It was the third time he had called her “boy.” “I’m a girl,” Arya objected.
That is why, even though she sees herself as a woman, she often tells herself and other people that she is not a lady. Despite others telling her that she is one. Her insecurity and her frustrations do not allow her to see herself as a lady because she isn’t a “conventional woman.”
But the thing is, even though Arya doesn’t enjoy most of the typical lady-like things, she still has a ton of femininity to her. And people often ignore her more feminine traits in favor of her more “badassery” side, which unfortunately are most often occupied by men. People forget and downright ignore that Arya is really intelligent. She particularly excels in math. It’s one of the few things that she’s better at than Sansa. She loves flowers—like her aunt Lyanna. The very person who she’s said to look and act like the most. And a really important one is that she has motherly instincts. It’s what helps her protect other kids throughout her journey. Her ability to empathize enables her to be more social with outcasts and befriend others without judgement. She is well-mannered and kind to strangers. (An example of this would be when she apologizes to a common woman who lent her a dress to wear, and she accidentally destroys it because she and Gendry were playing by the acorn tree.) She can also cook and clean just like any other woman—or any other person. All of those are feminine traits, and are traits that make her more human. And the show opted to get rid of all that and gave us some cold-hearted, angry, ninja.
The audience perceives that because Arya is this ninja warrior who rejects the common standards of being a lady, it means that she can’t have these other more female traits. Nope. She’s not allowed to have or want more rights and power because that’s not her. She’s a warrior and nothing more. She can’t find love because she has to be this bad-ass independent woman who don’t need no man. That’s not her, that’s her sister. We can’t have Arya be any more female than she already is because she rejects the idea of being female. Leave all that crap to her sister! Sansa’s the princess—and we can’t have Arya being a princess or queen. Arya’s only allowed to carry a sword.
And it’s the audience’s perception of her that goes against everything that Arya is, and everything that she believes in. Because remember, Arya hates the idea that being a lady means being trapped in the societal norms. And it can be said vice versa too. Arya still respects those who want to be more of the conventional type. Arya may not have the more typical feminine traits that make her a lady, but to hell with it! It doesn’t mean that she’s not allowed to have the other things that the more conventional woman would/should have. That goes against all of her views and beliefs. The audience puts Arya at an unfair standard because she doesn’t act like a conventional woman.
It’s the same thing as the audience saying that Jon Snow doesn’t want a title or power, because he’s devoted his life to the Nights Watch and is unselfish. False. Very false. Just like Arya. Arya’s young. She still has time to grow, and no doubt she doesn’t think of all those things now because of other priorities. But she’s slowly getting there. And there is so much foreshadowing of her finding love, becoming a woman gaining power, etc, etc. She’s not there yet, but that’s a part of her growth. Just because she defies the typical female standards, it doesn’t mean she doesn’t want or wont want all those things later.
Like com’on. Everyone knows that Arya is the only legitimate candidate right now to inherit the North. Everyone knows. The Northmen know, the Nights Watch knows, the people in Kings Landing knows. Hell, even the damn wildings know this. And it’s because of this knowledge that formed the majority of the northern plotline in ADWD. People are going to war for her. She is the true key to the North, and that’s why the Boltons lied and said that they have her. It’s why Jon went to war and died for her. I don’t think Arya will truly believe it if/when she finds out that people are fighting for her because she holds the power to the North. Unless Jon’s gonna be the one to tell her himself. The fact that she is being set up to inherit all this power, and yet people deny it and believe that she doesn’t want it because it’s “not her” in regards that she’s not feminine enough, is seriously infuriating.
I mean look at the type of women Arya respects and idolizes. Where do you think she got the name Nymeria from? Nymeria’s name originates from the Princess of Dorne herself, Princess Nymeria of Ny Sar. Princess Nymeria was said be very beautiful, strong-willed, cunning, and full of wisdom. She was a “warrior-queen.” From that alone, her femininity clearly did not matter. She was a woman whose goals were not held back because of her femininity and sex.
Arya does not hate femininity or things that makes women more feminine. She doesn’t truly hate wearing dresses or being a lady. It’s being conformed to the general standards that she hates. It’s her sex being used against her that makes her angry. It’s not being able to be herself that she despises. And thanks to Sansa and her mother’s judgement of her, Arya’s insecurity only heightened. Despite looking exactly like Lyanna, Arya herself believes that she’s not beautiful enough to even be considered a lady. Only Jon and Ned allowed Arya to be Arya. Only they called her beautiful, and only they encouraged her to be who she wanted to be. Arya loves her fellow women. And yeah, she also loves Sansa despite her being such a pain in the ass bitch, lol.
Arya’s character encourages women to just be women. She encourages us the audience to just be ourselves despite all the conformities forced upon us. Her character explores the limitations of sex, gender, and especially the loss of identity. Arya not wanting to be a lady doesn’t actually mean she doesn’t want to be a lady. She doesn’t want to be held back by the standards of being a lady. Her question, her argument is that why should women be limited only to being this or that. Women are far more than meets the typical standard, and if society can’t accept it, then fuck that! Women can be knights and still be a lady. They can be fierce and passionate and emotional and still be a lady. Women can be warriors and still be a lady. Just because there are some women out there who don’t fit the ideal standards of what it means to be lady, it shouldn’t make them feel like less than one.
314 notes · View notes
sailorshadzter · 3 years
Text
work on one of my multi chapter fics? nah. write another one shot? yah. 
you guys know how i am  🤣 🤣 🤣
She rises along with the sun, a glimmer of pink and gold along the midnight blue horizon.
At the window, she rubs the frost away until she can see through the glass, staring out into the cold, winter morning; a chill races the length of her spine, but she knows it's not from the cold seeping into her bones. Across the back of the nearest chair is her dressing robe and so she reaches for it, wrapping it around her shoulders, tugging it close before returning her gaze out the window. Somewhere in the distance, Ghost is howling, his as distinct as the sound of Jon's footsteps, something she would know even in the most crowded of rooms. In the long weeks of his absence, Ghost has been her one constant, her only source of comfort in her world without him. And though Jon is home again, she has never felt further from him.
She sighs, turning from the window, as if it is the reason for these dreaded feelings coursing through her. Crossing the room, she drops into the chair nearest the hearth, which has dwindled down to mere embers, casting no light nor warmth into her chambers. It is early, so early that even Brienne has not slipped inside to light the fire as she does every morning, though Sansa has told her before she needn't do so.  Truth was, in moments such as these, she doesn't mind the cold. In fact, she almost prefers it.
It's not long before she decides that sitting alone in her rooms was the last place she wished to be and so she dresses in her warm, woolen gown, made with material Jon had brought to her not long after their retaking of Winterfell, and then escapes into the halls.
Given the early hour, Sansa is alone as she makes her way through the corridors.
She steps out into the cold, empty courtyard, where already a light dusting of snow has begun to fall. By now the sun has risen a bit further into the sky, now more pink than inky black, though the gray clouds of a storm already beginning to drift into view. Her footsteps lead from the courtyard down towards the path towards the godswood, seeking out perhaps the only place in all of the world that she feels any sense of peace at all. Once, Jon had provided her that peace, but ever since his return... No, she pushes those thoughts from her mind, ever intent to simply not think about it. About him.
But as she steps beneath the cover of weirwood leaves, she sees that the solitude she yearns for down beneath the heart tree would not be found.
At the sound of her approaching footsteps, Jon turns, looking as if he's not all that surprised to see her there. "Sansa..." he greets, his raspy, tenor vocals sending a shiver down her spine. It was the way he spoke her name, just something about it filled her with a sensation she knows no words could ever explain. She's wondered, in the days since his return from Dragonstone, if he's felt it, too, that sharp ache of knowing they've begun to drift apart. She wonders if he knows the pain as she does. But now that she's standing before him, as his gaze raises to meet hers, she can see it in his eyes. The pain is so evident that in that single moment, it's all she can do to keep herself from reaching for him. The pain she sees is far deeper than what she knows, than what she understands, and it twists her heart. "I dreamed of you last night," he suddenly says, his words surprising him as much as they surprise her. "I-I mean... I dreamed of us all last night." He stumbles, cheeks flaming, his chest tightening with the realization of what he's just said.
She lets out a laugh at his expense and suddenly, in that instant, things were as they always had been. Slipping past him, she sinks onto the old wooden log that even their father once sat upon, a heap of black skirts as she draws her knees close. It takes no time at all for Jon to drop down beside her, the slight brushing of his shoulder against hers lighting a fire beneath her skin. "Tell me," is all she says then, shifting so she might face him, giving into the moment and allowing her to forget every other emotion that she's felt this morning.
Jon wonders if she knows he's lying, that he'd not dreamed of them all last night, but rather just her. Only her. It was always just her. He dreamed of the softness of her ivory skin beneath his touch, of her fire kissed hair, so sweet to his nose as she drifts by him. If she does, she doesn't show it, but rather laughs and talks along with him as he regales her with not a dream, but a memory from childhood still so vivid it feels as if it had been only yesterday. In it, he and Robb had wrestled in the courtyard, egged on by the cries of their younger siblings, Arya shouting the loudest of them all. She smiles at this, sadly, as if she knows those days are so long gone that they will always just be a memory. "The sun was so warm..." He recalls the warmth of it against his skin and he remembers the blinding radiance that was the sunlight woven into her red hair.
"Summer will come again," she says softly, blue eyes finding his solemn gray ones. "It always does." She thinks of every moment that have brought them here, to where they are right then, right there, and she knows, somehow she knows, that in the end all will be alright. "I've missed you, Jon." She says without preamble, speaking the words she knows she should have said to him the moment he'd come home. But she had been blinded by anger and jealousy- anger that he'd so easily been swayed by the dragon queen and jealousy of her soft, moonlit beauty.
Hearing her say such words is nearly enough to break him, a reminder that not all is lost, that there is still something soft and wonderful between their hearts, their souls. He's never been good with these sort of words, but he finds he almost always knows just what to say when it comes to her. "I missed you, too, Sansa." The familiar syllables of her name on his lips bring him a sense of comfort. "There's something... Something I want to tell you." He goes on, knowing that he owes her the truth, especially with the war that looms overhead. Jon can't help but to wonder which truth it is that he wants to share the most. She's leaning in then and he can't stop himself from wrapping her in his arms, drawing her in, breathing her in. "My father..." His breath is warm against the shell of her ear, his one hand wandering from the small of her back up the length of her spine to thread through the length of red hair that falls freely from braids. Now that the moment is here, he finds he cannot speak the words. Every rehearsed speech, every practiced line is lost to him now that he's got her in his arms. How is it that she renders him so very helpless?
As if she senses his discomfort, his uncertainty, she draws back just enough so she might look him in the eyes. Those eyes... The ones that remind her of Arya, of their father... Eyes full of wisdom and pain and everything in-between. "Tell me tomorrow," she says softly, her lips curving with the smallest of smiles.
"What if it doesn't come?" The fear spills over before he can stop it and he watches as her face changes, softens. It is her hand that slides into place against his cheek, the skin of her palm soft and warm against the scruff of his beard. He wonders to himself how it is that even her hand fits so perfectly against his face, just as his fits against hers. It is as if they were made for one another, each other's other half.
"It always does," she reminds him, just as she had said of summer.
Now it's his turn to smile, his heart turning over within his chest. He's leaning in again, forehead to forehead, so close now that he can feel the twitch of her lips as she chuckles softly. "Aye, I suppose it does," he murmurs, the feel of her other hand slipping into his giving him the comfort he needs. As always, she is all he needs. There's so many things he wants to say to her now, so many things he needs her to hear, to know, to understand. But it's as she's said... He would tell her tomorrow.
23 notes · View notes
winterrose527 · 3 years
Note
For the wip games (I'm so slow sorry), I wanna hear about Dancing on the Strings or Fairytales, if you haven't already talked about them :))
Hi love, thanks for the ask! Dancing on the Strings is a WIP I have on AO3. Myrcella goes to the Vale to find her half-brother Gendry, and finds the Starks, a Snow and a Greyjoy at the same time. It’s the usual pairings, but one of my favorites that I hope to return to soon.
I’ve included the one shot Fairytales below.
It was one of those clear nights that chilled the bones the moment you stepped outside. It had been years since she’d been able to see her breath and she relished it now as sounds from the party wafted through the double-paned glass windows of the Stark’s mansion. 
Not for the first time, Myrcella Baratheon thought to herself that all of the fairytales were lies. In the fairytales everyone rejoiced when their lost princess was returned to them, but she had been brought back from Dorne as unceremoniously as she’d been sent there three years prior. Her mother had been hovering over her and Tommen had been sweet as always, but no one else had shown any indication that her absence nor her presence made the least bit of different. Uncle Jaime would be happy to see me, she thought, but her handsome uncle was seeing to the family’s interests across the Narrow Sea. If her family’s reception had been lukewarm, it had been positively emphatic in comparison to that of the other society girls. Where they had once at least been obsequious if not kind, they now ignored her, fluttering around the Tyrell girl with the necklines of their gowns at their navels. 
In truth it mattered not to her. She had only come to this party at the insistence of her mother, an attempt for the Starks and Lannisters to mend fences as it were, and if she could not have her feet in the Dornish sand then it mattered not where she was. 
“You’ll catch a cold out here,” a deep Northern voice said from behind her. 
Her fifteen year old self would have swooned when she found that it belonged to Robb Stark, the eldest son of her father’s dearest friend, but Myrcella had grown in the past three years, and it would take more than his presence to daunt her now. 
“Then what are you doing out here?,” she asked with a challenging raise of a brow. 
The old fashioned lanterns cast him in a hazy glow and he’d loosened his bowtie. He had always been handsome and bright, the heir any father would want, as her father often pointed out to Joffrey, but there was something else to him now. He had changed too in these three years, and now at twenty there was something almost dangerous about him. Though perhaps that was just the blue of his eyes. 
“I was sent to fetch you,” he explained, “That dress can’t be doing much to keep you warm…”
She looked down at her gold Elie Saab confection. Thought it was more conservative than most of the girls’ gowns, with its high neck and long sleeves, it had an open back and was thin and beaded. 
“Not sure that is its purpose,” she agreed, though pretended to consider, turning this way and that and giving him an ample view of her. The Dornish men, and women, had taught her to appreciate her form, for others always would. 
“You’ve changed,” he said, as though trying to work her out.
“You say that as though you knew me before I left…,” she said, though there was something in his gaze that made her unable to meet his eye. 
“Perhaps not. But I’d like to know you now.”
The admission made her bold, and she was better at these games now than he was. 
“I thought you were with the Tyrell girl, the pretty one,” she said, which was a useless denotation. All the Tyrells were pretty, the garden was overgrown with them now, all of them more scantily dressed with a prettier laugh than the last. 
“Marg?,” he asked and rubbed his chin, “No…no we aren’t together. Though you have your Martell heir, don’t you? Tristan is it?”
“Trystane,” she corrected. Poor, sweet Trystane. “No. Warring families are so 16th century, wouldn’t you say?”
“Oh I don’t know,” he said, and took his first step closer to her. She held her ground, drawing herself up to her full height. At 5’8, 5’11 in her heels, she was no match for him, who must be 6’2 at least, but she felt better with straight posture, always had. “Doesn’t everyone love a doomed romance?”
Now that he is closer she can see the stubble on his chin, she can see the light dancing in his eyes, she can see that his body is made for fighting. He had been born in the wrong century, in a different age he would have been a great warrior, a leader of men. Now he probably boxed at the gym her family used with its $300 a month membership. 
“Who sent you to fetch me?,” she asked, changing the subject, keeping him on his toes, leading him in a dance of her choosing. 
“Y-your…mother,” he said uneasily. The best predators are those who look like prey. 
“You’re a terrible liar,” she sighed, then turned on her heel and started walking down the terrace. 
“Wait! Myrcella? Where are you going?,” he asked her and she smiled to herself as she heard him run to catch up to her. 
Once he’d fallen into step with her she pointed out, “Well if no one sent you to fetch me, that means no one is looking for me.”
She stopped to turn towards him and he turned towards her as well. The music drifted out of the home and she could see the couples turning round and round inside, the icicles melting on the window panes and casting them in an otherwordly glow. 
She heard him sigh, but then he was stepping closer and easing his tuxedo jacket over her shoulders. It was warmed from him, and it smelled like pines and snow. 
“Then come along, there’s a place I’d like to show you,” he said and offered her his hand. 
She’d been warned against this, love is a poison, so she placed hers in his. 
He led her down the stairs, down the gravel path the surrounded the manicured garden. Winterfell was an ancient home, but it was Catelyn Stark who had created its enviable garden out of something once referred to as the tilt yard. 
Her hand felt small in Robb’s, and she was distantly aware that only he knew where they were going, but he squeezed her hand and grabbed her other one when he went to lead her down more steps in the dark, and she found that she didn’t quite care because she’d go wherever he lead. 
He opened an ancient door and all of a sudden she was hit with the smell of lilacs and lavender, peonies and roses. He turned on a small storm lamp that cast the room in a warm light, and she saw that it was a kind of green house. I have not been this warm since Dorne, she thought and automatically raised her face towards the ceiling, as though the sun might warm it even now. 
“Here,” he said, letting go of her hand as he went to get something. “Close your eyes,” he said. 
She gave him a challenging gaze and he gave her a puppy-dog expression that looked so out of place on his chiseled features that she acquiesced. 
All of a sudden a smell, more delicate than the others filled her senses. 
“It smells like -,” she started. 
“You,” he finished and she opened her eyes to find him holding a jasmine plant. She looked at him questioningly and he set it down. “I noticed it for the first time when you were twelve. Your parents were fighting so you and your brother Joffrey,” she did not miss the note of disdain she heard in his voice at that, “Came to stay with us. Joffrey preened around, being rude to the staff, flirting with Sansa…but you kept to yourself. You read for hours and hours every day, and then Grey Wind started disappearing. One night he came back and I went to wrestle with him and I smelled it. You.”
Myrcella thought back to those days. She’d spent much of the time by herself, both she and Sansa too shy and awkward at twelve and thirteen to really befriend one another, and Grey Wind had been her only friend. He would sit by her side for those hours as she read under a big white tree she’d found. 
“You never spoke to me…,” she reasoned. 
“We were children,” he protested. 
“You were seventeen when I left,” she pointed out. 
“And our families were at war. So 16th-century, wouldn’t you say?” he asked her with a small grin.
“And who says this peace will hold?,” she wondered. 
An uneasy truce had been reached, a tacit alliance as they all dealt with the larger issue, the Targaryens. 
He took a step forward, taking her hands in his and raising them to his chest, “Doesn’t everyone love a doomed romance?”
This was foolish, rash, ill-advised. He was too much, too all-consuming, too dangerous. She was smarter than this, she had always been smarter than this. 
“Let’s find out,” she suggested, because at eighteen she was ready for foolishness, even for danger if it came with the feel of Robb Stark holding her. 
He grinned and touched his lips to hers. It was full of sweetness and reverence and ever after she would remember it when she smelled honeysuckles. 
***
Three years later, on a terrace that was adorned with the flowers from Winterfell’s glass gardens, Myrcella Baratheon became Robb Stark’s wife. 
In the end, the peace held. Robert Baratheon got the heir that he wanted so dearly, and her husband as well, and no shyness kept Sansa and Myrcella from one another as they grew as close as any sisters. 
Often Myrcella would wake to find a freshly cut peony on her pillow. She had called it right all those years ago, Robb Stark was dangerous. He had stolen her heart that evening, and had never returned it. 
Their union brought about an era of peace and prosperity, reviving the economy and the spirit of Westeros after the defeat of the Targaryens. 
The princess had returned to find her prince, who had been waiting for her those three long years she was gone. He had fallen into a spell, awakened only by her return. She saved him that night, and he saved her right back. 
After all, not all fairytales are lies. 
14 notes · View notes
scoundrels-in-love · 4 years
Text
I've dreamt about you (nearly) every night this week
The hour is too late, Jaime is too shirtless much on their videocall and Brienne's fantasies run away from her at mention of 'pillowtalk'. Also on AO3. Part of Braime Monthly Madness/Mutual Pining March.
She misses Jaime.
It’s frustrating to admit, but true nonetheless. While Brienne does enjoy the vibrating, ever-changing air of her profession, she discovered early that she needs at least a few reliable things in her life to keep her sanity and happiness. Working out on specific days, a call to her father at least once every two weeks, even if she has to keep it brief, a lengthy brunch with Sansa and (or) Margaery once a month or more often if their schedules allow it though they text and call each other plenty, are part of her subtle routine. 
Somehow, Jaime has become one such pillar of stability. Snuck his way deeper and deeper into her weeks with a wink and takeout box as he comes over for a movie night, with surprise visits to her set when they don’t share it. Embedded himself in countless ways that leave tiny holes through which blankness presses through, now that he’s gone for the third month, doing promotions for his newest movie and shooting a reality show in Dorne. 
It’s not the first time they’ve not seen each other for a while, but this is certainly the longest in the last two years. And so, she is lying in her bed, staring at her ceiling and trying not to think of how much she misses his voice and laughter, and definitely not about the photos of him shirtless on beach that had been plastered all over yellow pages and Weirnet that he had the gall to forward to her with a cheeky comment how he can’t let her forget how handsome he is.
(As if she could, as if her dreams aren’t often invaded by his smile, the warm light in his eyes that’s one spark from incinerating, his breathy laughter in her ear, his hand slipping lower ... )
She finally wrestles all the images away and feels sleep beginning to blur the edges of her thoughts when her phone begins buzzing. Her sleepy frown dissolves at Jaime would like to start a videocall.
It’s a little later than their usual calls, but she accepts. If she’s got to end it soon, at least she can do so after smothering some of her insatiable longing. “Hey Jaime,” she starts, but whatever was meant to follow dies on Brienne’s lips.
Jaime’s reclined on a pillow and he must be holding the phone with extended hand, as she can see most of his exposed chest, almost glowing in the warm light of lamps. Because he’s shirtless. And grinning at her in a way that’s a mix of faux innocence and glee, as if he knows exactly how her stomach leaped or maybe knotted up - she’s not exactly sure but it definitely did something. 
“It’s hot in here,” he offers as an explanation and she hopes she hasn’t been silent for as long as she thinks she’s been. She’s also utterly unconvinced and drops the phone to the side, much to his immediate protest, to shift her pillows so she can do this more comfortably and with less double chin inducing angles. Like seeing her face in the corner of the screen, compared to all, well, that, isn’t enough of a reminder that her fluttering longings aren’t meant to survive the frost of reality. But the one time she tried to turn off her camera, Jaime protested so loudly it almost convinced her he misses her face, too.
“It’s 11pm, Jaime, don’t you have early filming tomorrow?” she asks when she’s settled, trying to avoid looking at anything but his face, though it’s hard when the screen is comparatively small. Isn’t his arm getting tired?
“No. Besides, I just need to tell you what nonsense Lysa Tully pulled today - you know there’s no one else I’d rather complain to.”
She wants to joke that it’s because he has no other options anyway, but doesn’t because it’s true. Jaime cannot call his siblings to joke about the latest nonsense on set, Bronn would only ask for dirty parts, Addam’s probably predisposed with something of his own. Even Elia and Lyanna are not exactly available these days, enjoying their family holiday. Though he has found tentative friendship with some of her friends and co-workers, it’s not the sort for such late night talks. And in truth, there’s no one else she’d rather speak with after a long day, either. 
So, how can she deny him this? “Fine, I’ll bite. What did she do now?” 
One story turns into another and an hour later, they both have shifted to be laying down more comfortably (thank the gods, now she can lie to herself that she’s unaware how he’s shirtless beyond the frame). The conversation putters out bit by bit, replaced by warmth and sleepiness. Or perhaps it’s the first, the sense of safety, that brings about the second. 
“We should do pillow talks like these more often. In real life, too.” 
Suddenly, she feels quite awake. And thankful the dim light hides the blush burning across her face. 
There is no way his word choice is deliberate, but the want goes from thawed and simmering on low fire, to molten steel in a flash. It’s not just the images of him sweaty and mussed up that her brain unhelpfully provides based on his post-training looks, it’s also basking in warmth of his grin, discovering if she likes to be genuinely held afterward, the softness of his voice and his hair as she would brush it out of his face, trace hand down his stubbled jaw that has left a pleasant burn across her--
The word holds too much promise, if only in her mind’s definition. And not one she can clarify with Jaime.
Especially since he loves to tease her, has outright told her he loves to make her flustered. Flirts only to see her fumbling reaction, just as Margaery does (even now, that she has proclaimed Brienne to be ‘tragically straight’). 
So, Brienne grasps at something safe instead. “You fell asleep on my shoulder last time you were over,” she reminds him, smiling a little at the memory. One of the reasons why they don’t R.aven movies together when they’re separated like this is because nodding off at end of second or third movie individually just isn’t the same, compared to the way they slowly gravitate toward each other when sharing a couch until someone (usually Jaime) is falling asleep on the other. The other is that reading his typo riddled, rushed commentary and responding to it is incredibly distracting and makes Brienne miss half the movie. 
“Speaking of which, we both should go to sleep.” It’s past midnight and he might not have an early morning (which Brienne doesn’t entirely believe), she actually does.
“Five more minutes,” he asks, not unlike a petulant child, but she doesn’t have the heart to deny this mutual indulgence.
Brienne doesn’t know when the five minutes turn into maybe twenty or thirty and when they dissolve into dreamless sleep, but she wakes up trying to nuzzle her face into the phone which definitely does not compare to the comfort of her pillow. The clock informs her it is almost 4am and upon unlock, the videocall goes fullscreen once more.
She can’t tell if Jaime propped his phone up quite so right before she fell asleep or after, which would mean he didn’t end the call when she nodded off. The thought should be uncomfortable, and there are definitely twinges of embarrassment as she had had to wipe drool away from the screen, instead she feels detached from anything but a tender longing that cocoons her thoughts, tangles them up and drags them away from any logic. 
Perhaps this sleepy, slow warmth is poison that will kill her, but Brienne is willing to risk it, just to stay in this kind of liminal, magical space in which their lives cross with the impossible reality where their pillowtalks adhere to her wistful definition. 
He has twisted away from the phone some, she can mostly only see the pillow, stump and his profile at an angle. For a while, she feels content just to watch him, taking in his relaxed features and the calm rise and fall of his chest. Sometimes, she has indulged in looking when he falls asleep next to or on her, but the urge to touch becomes too much quickly. (Work is where the best of both worlds cross paths and she has cover easily available, but at the same time her mind is occupied with the task at hand.)
Here, she doesn’t have to cover the reason her touch lingers, is safe from waking the man with a finger tracing his lips or skirting down his neck to rest on his exposed chest. The thought of pressing kiss below his ear, to his collarbone, scraping teeth across the hollow of his throat doesn’t pull her closer to him like the world's most powerful magnet drags a huge, crude iron rod. (Merely because he isn’t tangibly there.) She can risk-freely think of the little noise he would probably make before opening eyes, pupils blown wide for more than the low light. “I thought we were supposed to sleep,” Jaime would say, voice husky like it sometimes dips when they’re alone in the makeup trailer, even lower still, but he would already be reaching for her. “Well, there is more than one meaning to the word,” she would say and -- 
Brienne pushes the end call button with speed that outraces her heart. 
There are things that can be squinted at until they grow blurry enough to be seen as ‘we are friends and he is a very attractive man, a stray thought or two is bound to happen’. (Though she has been with a friend, and it wasn’t even starlight during the day compared to the scorching sun that is Jaime.) And then there are moments that cross any and all borders of appropriate, of what she can afford. This is definitely of the second sort. Worse, not only it is the indulgence of the highest degree, it also skirts too close to being a creep. Shame washes away last threads of desire. 
Jaime deserves better than to be ogled while asleep and groped at in her fantasies. He is her friend, with his confusing comments and heated gazes and face she cannot get tired of in or outside work, and a smile that can fill her with dread just as much as bone melting gladness. And she can’t, can’t erase it from her life just because he is so lovable and so beautiful there is ache behind her breastbone, trickling all the way into her fingertips. 
She double checks if her alarm is on and then puts the phone on the bedside table. Tosses and turns in the dark, as if heaviness in her has somehow slipped into the mattress and made it all lumpy. But eventually, sleep reclaims her and when she wakes, a text from Jaime already waits for her (so much for not having an early morning): What happened to call
I guess it timed out or something. Maybe WiFi got temporarily disconnected. she responds after a respectable amount of time, right before she drives to the studio. It’s only a white lie, far more innocent than the real reason. But that doesn't help her rapidly growing guilt, at all. 
He texts back almost immediately: Shame wanted u to be the first thing I see when I wake up
And if she replies only hours later, with a random update of her day, it’s definitely not because me too rang so loudly in her chest that she forgot all other words. 
53 notes · View notes
kellyvela · 4 years
Note
That "might burn your family" tweet is indicative of what I know is going to happen in fandom: sure, people are indignant now about Dany but most people don't like to be rebels; they like to be co-signed by authority (the "I'm right b/c its canon" crowd"). And no matter how it was sugarcoated, GOT canon is that Dany is a mass-murderer. Those who are not stans will slowly but surely fall in line with this reading of her, not the least b/c they don't want to be wrong AGAIN when the books come out.
If you didn’t see it already, this is the HBO_UK tweet the anon refers: 
Tumblr media
You sound very hopeful Anon. I agree that, in general, most people don’t like to be wrong, and certainly they don’t want to be wrong again about the same issue. 
But this fandom is something else…
Certain part of it just decided to live in denial and delusion (oh the irony): “I would never post a pic of dead dany”, “dany belongs to her fans that really love her and not to the misogynist show/books creators” (copyright what?), “I would never read the Books if that is the final”, etc, etc, etc.
We also have the actress that played dany saying/doing things like these:
I stand by Daenerys.
Clarke revealed that she met Beyonce at an Oscars after-party hosted by the musician and her husband, Jay Z. There, she was approached by the host herself, who gushed about Daenerys Targaryen. Beyonce, however, like the rest of the world, was at that point ignorant about Daenerys’ dark turn in Season 8. “All I wanted to scream was ‘Please, please still like me even though my character turns into a mass-killing dictator! Please still think that I’m representing women in a really fabulous way,’ ” Clarke said of the encounter. [x]
About the backlash on the final season: “It was profoundly flattering. Is what it was, because when someone cares that much, that they’re ready to make such a noise about how they believe the characters should have been… should have been finished, and how the story should have been gone. That’s just enormously flattering, that just shows how much everybody loved it.”        
She is using Dany and Drogon images to promote her charity.  Dany is not bringing fire and blood for once, she is a cute little nurse bringing help to those in need.     
We also have certain group of “asoiaf experts“ so called BNF, that decided not to watch the Show years ago, because it’s “sacrilege“, only the books are canon (in this I agree), but they have created their own canon, the way they interprete and understand the Books, and their followers buy everything they say as “the canon”. They still believe in their 20 years old theories that include Dany is the hero, maybe she would have a brief “dark phase“ but then “enters Jon” and they gonna fall in love, make love, celebrate life, have a baby, defeat the big bad guys walk walkers and sacrifice themselves to save the humanity. Tyrion will be the third head of the dragon, etc.  
As you can see Anon, that very human sentiment to hate being wrong, sometimes includes the belief that you can’t be wrong. So all these people (fans/stans/experts/etc) will stand by their beliefs and theories till the very end (when the books are at last published and they read them). And even after that they would say that GRRM is wrong, just like right now they are saying D&D are wrong.  
Dark Dany is not new. It have been theorized for years, And according to Elio García, co-author of the World of Ice and Fire, GRRM himself complimented that Dark Dany essay: “(…) he referred very specifically to the Meereenese Blot website and the knot essays. He said he was told about them, read them, and was very pleased that someone was able to get his difficulties and his intentions perfectly.”
And for those that paid attention, it was clear that the Show was taking that route at least since season 2. Her conversation with the Spice King is very telling. There is also this conversation with Hizdahr Zo Loraq in season 5 that is very much the same conversation she had with Jon just before he killed her. 
The Battle of the Bastard’s script says: “She doesn’t have to look. She only allows the faintest hint of a smile. A smile that says: my tyranny is not ended, motherfucker. It’s only just begun.”
People also have season 7 and even after watching those seven episodes, they believed that GOT was going to have a happy ending, a Disney one, with Targaryen restoration, jonerice wedding, king and queen coronation, boat baby and all. 
But you are right, the sugarcoat was real. They change season 7 - episode 2 title from “The Mad King’s Daughter” to something more poetic/whitewashed: “Stormborn”: 
What I was impressed by was the little hints that we saw of potentially her (Daenerys) becoming like her father in those conversations ( her talking with Varys). You know, threatening to burn somebody alive, in any universes, it’s not great.
Bryan Cogman: She has dragons, an effective form of execution.
But knowing what her father was doing to people that line sticks in your ear and also when inviting him ( Jon) down and she wants him to immediately bend the knee
Bryan Cogman: Yeah, I mean, she sees this as her birthright… it’s plain and simple, you know, they took this from her, it’s hers.
And so much of the episode ( really the whole season) not just for Daenerys but for a lot of our characters is dealing with the legacy of their families and the generations that preceded them and dealing not only with how they feel about it and what they might share with some of those ancestors but how other people perceive you.
That legacy it’s kind of why I wanted to originally call it the Mad King’s daughter (I like Stormborn, I think is a great title actually), I really wanted to call it the Mad King’s daughter and actually it would have made more sense.
In the original edit there were more characters referring to her like this in pretty much every scene and I think some of that was lost in the final edit but in the original script and in the original edit ( which was longer) pretty much every character that wasn’t in the Daenerys‘s circle was referring to her as “the Mad King’s daughter is here” .
Considering this idea that she’s got a reputation before she has ever set foot there, because she has a brother’s reputation too, that first scene is definitely about her reconciling with that, wrestling with how much of that legacy is good for her brand and what isn’t and certainly that is a big part of the no-fire bombing strategy.
It’s like: you could come in here and torch the whole place and everyone would be horrified and what have you achieved? If you want to rule, you need to take a different approach.
But under that, and I think you picked up on something in that first scene, is that she’s got a real kind of need and desire to go in guns blazing and from an emotional point of view the scene has to set up this.
Game of Thrones’ Writer Bryan Cogman: In Conversation (Part 2)
The Mad King’s Daughter, she’s got a real kind of need and desire to go in guns blazing. 
Yeah, hero material you all.
And even during season 8, after episode 2, Bryan Cogman made this really telling comparison between Sansa and Dany:
Sansa knows that of all the Starks that were ripped from Winterfell, she suffered the most to get it back. She’s the driving force for getting it back. Now she’s being told, “It’s not yours, and it’s not the Starks’ anymore. It belongs to Hitler’s daughter, the worst person in the world’s daughter, the daughter of the person who murdered your grandfather and uncle in the worst way possible. And guess what? Your brother, who you convinced to step up when he wanted to fuck off because of his death experience, bent the knee to her and is telling you that she’s your queen.” What part of Sansa’s reaction to any of this is irrational?
At the same time, if you’re Dany, this is the family that stole your family’s legacy. You grew up as a child living in constant fear that you were going to be murdered the next day. Then you’re married off to a warlord, and you’ve scraped and suffered and endured, and here you are. You’re going to help these people who destroyed your life and your family’s lives. Where’s the gratitude?
Even if he described both sides’ positions and sentiments, if you say one side’s reaction is not irrational, and then call the other side “Hitler’s daughter”, you know exactly who is the good guy and who is the evil one. 
D&D surely sugarcoated Dany, they were not calling her plainly “The Mad King’s Daughter”, but they were subtly telling us that she indeed was Aery’s pretty version: 
Jon: She’ll be a good queen. For all of us. She’s not her father.
Sansa: No, she’s much prettier.
—GOT season 8 - episode 1
In that “I stand by Daenerys” article, the interviewer recalled Kit Harington’s words about Jon killing Dany, during season 8 filming:
“I think it’s going to divide,” Harington says of the finale’s fan reaction. “But if you track her story all the way back, she does some terrible things. She crucifies people. She burns people alive. This has been building. So, we have to say to the audience: ‘You’re in denial about this woman as well. You knew something was wrong. You’re culpable, you cheered her on.’”
Harington adds he worries the final two episodes will be accused of being sexist, an ongoing criticism of GoT that has recently resurfaced perhaps more pointedly than ever before. “One of my worries with this is we have Cersei and Dany, two leading women, who fall,” he says. “The justification is: Just because they’re women, why should they be the goodies? They’re the most interesting characters in the show. And that’s what Thrones has always done. You can’t just say the strong women are going to end up the good people. Dany is not a good person. It’s going to open up discussion but there’s nothing done in this show that isn’t truthful to the characters. And when have you ever seen a woman play a dictator?”
After reading what Kit said, Dany stans gone rabid. They said things like HBO forced him to say those words and others simply insulted and hated him. Because, you know, he is wrong. D&D are also wrong. They are just a pair of white misogynist dudes that can’t stand women in power… SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!
I mean, look at these headlines. Dany stans/targ lovers are now justifying genocide. They are making/selling/buying “Her Satanic Majestic” T-shirts. 
So there you have it Anon. Some of them decided to believe Dany will still be the hero in the Books, because she ended slavery you know, that’s not what villains do, if you think different, you are a slavery apologist, also misogynist, and surely a Stark stan, those fucking classists xenophobes…   
Some others just joined “Her Satanic Majesty” cult. Those ungrateful peasants deserved to be burned alive because they didn’t love Dany. it was their fault that Dany had to go in guns blazing on them. Burn them all! Dracarys! Fire and Blood! 
It would be a long ride Anon.  
141 notes · View notes
morghulis · 4 years
Text
@cllgood​ said: "When I danced with Sansa last night," he asks, and taps the grass stalk he's been playing with against the tip of her nose. And grins. "Were you jealous?"
they’re supposed to be mending their tack, and in truth they’d been doing just that. for a while at least. in between bouts of redfaced wrestling, silly competitions such as who could hold their breath the longest ( bert, it was always bert gods damn him ) and watching the clouds scuttle past overhead while they lay on their backs, gesturing them into fantastic shapes with wild tall tales attached. but now arya’s got her horse’s bridle in her lap, mending the noseband with a bone needle and thick thread where the stitches had started to loosen. not the kind of needlework mordane would approve of. that’s work for the stable boys! but it’s the only kind of needlework she really minds. 
bert has already set aside the bits and bobs he’d been working on, still on his back staring up at the clouds. eventually, he rolls over. she can feel his eyes on her, mischievous, and tries not to show how her body tenses. like a pair of cats, each waiting for the other to pounce. 
“ when i danced with sansa last night, ”   he asks, and taps the grass stalk he’d been playing with against the tip of her nose. and grins.   “ were you jealous? ”
she blinks at the light touch and then his words sink in beneath the distraction, and so too does and instant flood of annoyance. 
Tumblr media
“ jealous? ”   the word comes out in a sharp hiss, her face an open book full of seething disgust and irritation.   “ why the hells would i be jealous of that? ”
Tumblr media
part of her knows this is the reaction he might have been fishing for. over the top. absurd. a dead giveaway built on a purposeful misinterpretation. but where her perfect sister is concerned, arya can’t quite help it. it stings is what it does, and she doesn’t have the wherewithal to wonder if the depth of that sting had been bert’s intention after all. did he know how deep her jealousy for sansa ran? the gnawing insecurity that their mother preferred sansa over her? the certainty that septa mordane, despite raising them both, enjoyed sansa’s company more than arya’s? 
oh it was well and good to break what little rules they would let her get away with, to pretend that that was enough. not quite fitting their mold but not allowed to break it either, trapped in some uncomfortable inbetween while her sister excelled at all the courtly things. but it wasn’t always enough to practice with jon and bert in fields away from prying eyes. to take her sword lessons in private with syrio as if it were some great shame and not her right. to be denied the chance to earn and bear her father’s guns one day. because there are already too many sons. because of the ghost of a woman i never met, but that everyone who knows her says i look like.
to be the least of her siblings. 
the shape of all of these thoughts flashes in her bright grey eyes, but only for a moment before she pushes back at the true depth of them, startled by that sudden bleak expanse. bert is only being a nuisance with this cheek ; she can tell by the look in his eye. she huffs and turns her attention back to the bridle, frowning still to hide an ill fitting but growing smile. 
“ you’re so stupid, allgood, ”   she says, mean and haughty, the smile tugging harder at the corner of her mouth. it’s only a little painful, the smile, and growing less so by the second. he’s still watching her, waiting. 
Tumblr media
when she pounces he’s ready and laughing, both of them soon cursing in their play fight. somehow arya ends up sitting on cuthbert’s chest ; he lets her stay there, folding his arms behind his head as if it’s the most comfortable position ever, as if she weighs not a single stone. 
“ if you fall in love with my stupid, perfect sister, ”   she says, pointing a finger in his face.    “ i won’t be jealous. i’ll pity you. ”
“ really? ‘cause it seems t’me like you’d be je-- ”
arya presses her hands over his face, squishing his mouth shut though she can feel him trying to continue his own muffled conversation.   “ sorry, can’t hear you bert, ”   she half shouts before collapsing in a brief fit of giggles in the grass beside him. eventually the laughter dies away, until all that’s left is the whisper of the wind in the tall grass, the sound of their breathing settling into a rhythm. after a while, they start to trace out the shape of castles and giants in the clouds again, and tell each other fantastic stories about them.
11 notes · View notes
medschoolash · 5 years
Note
Confirmation about Sansa from where?
From the whole episode. 
Let’s start with the dinner shall we…
So Sansa is once again seated at the table next to Jon who is next to Dany. Once again giving us the imagery of the love triangle that was promised. 
First Sansa has a slightly flirtatious moment with Jon where she tells him that she believes in him. I know people might think this is a reach but to me that scene read as Sansa trying to have a light hearted moment while she flirts with Jon in a very subtle way, in a way that only she will know it’s flirting but others will think it’s just banter. When has Sansa ever been that casual with Jon in public? Never. 
Then their banter is interrupted by Jon and Dany making heart eyes at each other which VISIBLY BOTHERS SANSA SO MUCH SHE ANGRILY LEAVES THE TABLE. I mean…. At this point they have made it OBVIOUS that Jon and Dany’s relationship bothers Sansa sansa and this scene frames it as clear jealously. It’s not played like she’s annoyed that Dany is manipulating Jon, that Dany wants to subjugate them, it’s played like she’s angry Jon and Dany are “together”. 
Then we get to the scene where Sansa watches in a corner with he drink at Podrick and The Hound flit with a group of women. Sansa is all alone while everyone else is with someone they share or hope to share romantic or sexual relatinships with. Arya and Gendry were paired up, Jon and Dany were paired up. Thromund is off to have sex with a woman. Podrick is flirting with a woman and has hit it off and even the hound as the attention of a woman, Jamie and Brienne have left together and yet SANSA IS ALONE, this isolation is done on purpose. It’s supposed to make it obvious that THIS IS WHAT SANSA IS MISSING. The night after they have all survived everyone wants to do what is natural, they want to share the night with the people the love or with someone they can be with but Sansa is the only one with no one to share her night with and the only person she had any real interest in being around JON was too busy making heart eyes at Dany so here she is, a mere spectator to love and affection who’s forced to look at it all with LONGING. There was clear longing from Sansa and that longing wasn’t for the Hound, it was for genuine romantic attention which she has been deprived of this while time and the subtext here is that THERE IS SOMEONE SHE WANTS IT FROM BUT SHE CAN NOT HAVE BECAUSE THEY BELONG TO ANOTHER. 
Hold on to that thought we’re gonna come back to it soon.
This is why she seeks the hound out. She wants attention even if its from him. She wants to feel connection even if it’s shallow and short lived, she wants to feel like someone cares about, someone values her, someone looks at her romantically even if it’s from the hound of all people because she desperately wants it from someone else. 
Now let’s go to the scene with Tyrion, which is the first time we see Sansa AFTER the parentage reveal and the Sansa that we find is uncharacteristically emotional and upset. Why is she upset? we learn that answer to that question later. She’s watching those dragons with disdain and unease, She clearly wants them gone and she resents their presence now more than ever. 
Tyrion approaches Sansa the the first thing she asks is “why her?” That’s what’s on Sansa’s mind. Why does everyone want Dany to be queen? Why do they want to follow Dany? WHY DO THEY WANT DANY? WHY DOES JON WANT DANY? That’s what on her mind Post learning that Jon is no longer her brother but her cousin which changes their entire dynamic. Learning the truth about Jon makes her fixate on his relationship and attachment to Dany even more ,not less. Sansa 
Tyrion brings up that Dany loves Jon and Sansa once again voices her displeasure with Dany and it’s so extra that Tyrion notices that Sansa doesn’t just dislike Dany, she’s DETERMINED TO DISLIKE DANY which implies there is some much deeper underlying reason that Sansa does not like Dany besides the obvious issue with the north. 
When Tyrion brings up the idea that Jon will spend most of his time in KL with Dany and not in the north SANSA DOES NOT WANT TO HEAR THIS. She quickly cuts him off and says that it’s up to him sharply. She also visibly gets even more annoyed at the thought that Jon is going to be with Dany is KL and stay romantically involved with her
Tyrion is so puzzled by her feelings and her behavior. The confusion is all over his face and he even prompts her to look at him because he wants a deeper look into her emotional state since he knows SOMETHING IS OFF HERE even if he doesn’t know what that is. Sansa has to gather herself before she can even look at him. Tyrion is both confused about Sansa and worried for her. He knows what Sansa insisting on antagonizing Dany means for her, he’s afraid for her and he’s trying to get through to her but he’s failing because he can’t see what her real issue is yet. Tyrion then drops the most revealing piece of tea in the whole exchange
Sansa benefits from Jon leaving. That’s a fact politically. With Jon gone she is the ruling power in Winterfell, something she is very good at and yet THIS DOES NOTHING TO CALM SANSA DOWN, She doesn’t care about having power in Winterfell. Jon’s relationship in theory can benefit the north AND her and yet SANSA IS NOT HERE FOR IT. All of her political concerns have been laid out to bear to the audience and yet the writers have shown that Sansa is STILL REFUSING TO RELENT IN HER DISLIKE FOR DANY. WHY? because it’s not JUST about politics. It’s about Jon, it’s about EXACTLY what Dany said it was about. It’s about Jon being with Dany and Dany being with Jon and Sansa being left out in the cold. IT ALL GOES BACK TO HER FEELINGS FOR HIM. There is no reason to constantly frame Sansa’s feelings about Jon and Dany the way they have UNLESS there are romantic feelings there. Both times this is reveled Sansa attempts to brush off the obvious and make it about something else or change the subject. This time she jumps on Tyrions concern to change the subject. 
When Sansa senses his fear she attempts to persuade him that her reasons for antagonizing Dany is because she doesn’t want Jon to go south because men in her “family” don’t survive down south only that logic doesn’t hold water to when you think about how Jon has already gone south and has come back and this time he leaves with the woman he “loves” not with the some random. She attempts to place her fixation on Jon being with Dany as familial when ITS CLEARLY NOT FAMILIAL. 
When Tyrion has a good reply to her rationale Sansa grows even more visibly upset to the point that Tyrion has to ask her if she’s alright. Sansa is both worried for Jon AND she’s upset about him being with Dany and it’s a confusing rush of emotions that she can not hide well. She even has tears in her eyes. WHY ELSE WOULD SANSA HAVE TEARS IN HER EYES UNLESS SHE’S HOPELESSLY IN LOVE WITH THE IDIOT THAT SHE NOW KNOWS SHE’S ALLOWED TO LOVE ONLY HE’S LEAVING HER TO BE WITH ANOTHER WOMAN, ANOTHER DANGEROUS WOMAN?
Tyrion reminding her that Jon is not a stark makes those raw emotions come flooding back. He specifically refers to him as her brother and not a stark. Which makes sansa get visibly upset again because Tyrion is both right and wrong. Jon is not her brother. She knows he’s not her brother, Tyrion reminding her he’s not her brother makes it all the more real. He’s also right, Jon is not a Stark in the sense that he’s not Ned’s son, he’s not her brother, he’s her cousin which means Sansa can have what she truly wants but and he’s leaving with another woman to fight in her war and Sansa HATES IT, SHE HATES IT WITH ALL OF HER BEING.  I know some people will say that her behavior is out of fear for Jon’s life but if Sansa truly feared for Jon’s safety, she wouldn’t have told Tyrion about Jon’s parentage later. I think she’s both afraid for him AND she’s wrestling with her own real feelings about him not that she knows the truth and now that she sees it’s impossible for her to escape her feelings. 
AT certain points of the exchange I was waiting for Tyrion to straight up ask Sansa if she’s in love with him THAT’S how obvious it was. That’s how thick the underlying drive of her emotions was. Tyrion is completely and utterly confused because Sansa is NOT behaving like a sister should and he’s worried about her and that consequences of her behavior. She’s clearly in love with Jon and her motivations for disliking Dany clearly go beyond their political differences. This episode pretty much set that in stone. 
459 notes · View notes
wackygoofball · 5 years
Note
Any chance you could make my dreams come true and please make a J/B Sound of Music moodboard?? 🙏🙏🙏
Hi @tarthserjaime! Thanks for a) believing my moodboards worthy enough to fulfill dreams - I did not know they had that much power, and b) for such a lovely prompt.
I have to send two things ahead, however:
1) I have not watched the movie (I know. *rings Shame Bell*), which is why my knowledge is based on synopses and short clips I saw. I hope the moodboard transmits the vibe nonetheless.
2) I set this story in Westeros because I never feel comfortable setting those characters in real life, which is why I did away with the Nazi regime plot as I wouldn’t want to associate any of the GoT/ASoIaF characters with that ideology. I went with Daenerys Targaryen as the factor to push them away from home because she canonically has reasons to want Jaime gone and because she seized government control in canon as well. But I want to keep her in the background here as I want to put my focus on that curious family and this most curious couple instead. So yeah, just as a heads-up.
Either way, here is the moody board to go along with it, and I certainly hope that it makes your dreams come true!
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Jaime x Brienne - The Sound of Music AU
Brienne of Tarth, postulant at the Citadel, is livinga life in hiding ever since her father’s passing. While she loves the otherseptas and the Elder Sister dearly, she always feels out of place because sheenjoys fencing and activities not associated with a young lady. More often thannot, she finds herself stealing away to the hills to pursue her privatepassions of fencing and singing.
Eventually, the Elder Sister takes her aside afterBrienne came late for service yet again. Brienne is very apologetic, but theElder Sister, as usual, is mild with her and instead makes the suggestion toher about to change her entire life:
To go out into the world and get to know it.
“But I am to become a septa.”
“If you so choose, but I believe you cannot take thevow in good conscience before you have seen what else the world holds for you,my dear. You spent many years here without seeing what lies beyond the hills,and I believe it is about time that you do.”
And so, Brienne is sent to the Lannister family,living in a large estate on the outskirt of the capital. She is to become thenew governess for the children in Commander Lannister’s care – his deceasedsister’s and Catelyn Stark’s two daughters. There she meets the recentlyretired war veteran Commander Lannister, a soldier who lost his hand in the warand his reputation after he murdered Aerys Targaryen. And Brienne must say… sheis anything but impressed.
The man always keeps his distance, something Briennecannot understand for just a single second. She knows what a blessing it is tohave a family, and what a curse it is to be without. And here is a man who haseverything and instead spends most of his time being miserable over the loss ofhis hand.
The children, in turn, are on their very own paths,some of whom need much discipline whereas others would do better with a littleless.
Brienne finds it hard at first to connect to thechildren. After all, she never thought she would have an opportunity to raisechildren, as all of her engagements ended before they ever began and she knowsfor a fact that she is an ugly thing with queer antics. Septa Roelle likelyalways had the right of it when she told her that with this kind of attitude,she could only ever make it as a septa, which later inspired her to join the Citadel,once her father came to pass and she didn’t know what else to do with her life.
However, unexpectedly, she finds a way out of themisery: It is the mixture between discipline, which she teaches the childrenwanting to learn how to fence, and encouragement that seems to turn the tablesfor her. Brienne also realizes that the children, stuck at the mansion for mostof their time, are longing to see what lies beyond the fences of the residence.Thus, she makes it a habit to take the children out into nature, teach them howto fence and later on gathers the courage the sing for and with them, too.
However, not all is well at the mansion, as Briennealso makes the acquaintance of Jaime’s brother Tyrion, a man she finds is ofquestionable character at best. She is irritated by his closeness to DaenerysTargaryen, who has, not long ago, wrestled power from their sister and overthrewthe government. Because she cannot imagine that this woman likes the Lannisterfamily very much. And yet, the man prides himself with his massive intellectand how that will all play out to their advantage.
Thus, Brienne keeps her distance and instead focusesall of her efforts on the children, who soon grow on her more than a lot.Commander Lannister’s behavior eventually has her snap, however. After yellingat the children returning from a boat tour, ushering them back inside as heforbade them to go out, a drenched to the bone Brienne of Tarth has had enough.She calls him upon his behavior, but when he keeps deflecting, Brienne informshim that she cannot continue to work for him under such circumstances and willpresently return to the Citadel.
Later that day, the Commander comes to her chamber andfinally shares with her the reasons for his behavior: He doesn’t want thechildren outside that much because he is afraid that he will fail to protectthem against Daenerys Targaryen. For now, she is busy with other things, but heknows that his presence poses a danger to them because he killed her father –if for very good reasons, as he explains.
As to the reasons for his distance, Jaime admits that heis afraid that someone will realize that Cersei’s children are actually notRobert’s but his, too. His sister beat it into him to stay away from them andnow he has a hard time reconnecting with them without giving away who he trulyis to them. Things worked for a while when the children were with her while hetook care of Catelyn’s children as he promised it to her when she released himin exchange for them during the awful hostage situation during the war thatkept building up between the two factions back in the day.
“Lannisters always pay their debts, and I owed Catelynthat much… or rather, she would have deserved more, but I am afraid this is allI can give.”
Brienne is shocked to hear the news, but she also hasto realize that despite what she finds more than questionable about him, shecan’t fault him for loving, and she can’t deny that, deep down, he is a goodman. When Jaime asks her to stay, she agrees, under the condition that he willchange his old ways and try to grow closer to the children again.
“You owe a debt to them as well, but foremost toyourself. To finally have that family you thought you’d never have.”
In the course of the events, the Commander and his governessgrow closer and closer, because, as it turns out, there is more to connect themthan meets the eye. Both share a passion for music, and for the first time inher life, Brienne finds someone more than accepting of her “queer antics”,volunteering to give her private fencing lessons.
“May I have this dance, Miss Tarth?”
Things take a sudden turn when no one other thanCatelyn Stark winds up on their doorsteps. Sansa and Arya are more thanoverwhelmed with their mother’s reappearance after everyone assumed her to bedead, but as it turns out, Catelyn was saved by the revolutionist group TheBrotherhood, led by Beric Dondarrion. They rescued her and hid her away and eventuallyhope to bring her back home North, an area that fought hard for and finallygained its independence.
Catelyn is overly thankful to Jaime for expanding hispromise to take care of the girls and not just return them back North. Jaimeinvites her to stay at the residence with them. Brienne, sensing the closenessbetween the two, grows more and more weary of her growing feelings for Jaimebecause he and Cat have such a history going back that she can’t imagine herdream of a life together as a family will ever become true.
Not that this stops the feelings from making her blushin his presence by any means, however.
In a private moment, Jaime and Tyrion discuss thelatest developments. Jaime is shocked when Tyrion proposes to him that heshould ask Catelyn Stark to marry him. The younger brother makes a valid point,by Jaime’s own admission, that Cat is in an impossible situation as a widowwithout her family’s wealth available to help her start over – and a womanstill searched for by militias who continue to have their feuds with anyoneassociated with the Starks or Lannisters, for that same matter. Tyrion addsthat it may be a useful union for both of them as Catelyn may be their way outof this situation with Daenerys Targaryen.
Jaime doesn’t know what to make of that, after all, hehas feelings for Brienne already. At the same time, he cares for Cat and herdaughters as though they were part of the family already, and leaving them indanger or having them try to make their luck in the current situation thecountry is in feels wrong to him.
It would be without honor, after all.
Tyrion, believing himself on the right track withthings at last, carries the idea over to Catelyn before waiting for Jaime’sanswer. Cat, unaware, finds herself entertaining the idea more than maybe sheshould.
Brienne does not remain blind to those circumstances. Drivenby both her wish to protect the family she came to love so dearly – and the manshe grew to love in particular – and her belief that he could never choose herover Catelyn, Brienne feels any urge to leave the household and head back tothe Citadel.
Not that she tells anyone about those thoughts justyet, of course.
Having witnessed the children performing, Tyrion hasanother fabulous idea to help the cause, which is to have them perform forDaenerys Targaryen. If they succeed to get her on their side, or so hebelieves, they may get to keep the mansion and she won’t persecute his brotherfor murdering Aerys Targaryen.
Currently, there is no searching order for him and hewas not yet summoned to her, but Jaime is under scrutiny, everyone knows, even moreso because he’s made himself rare in an effort to keep the children guarded. Jaimeis very much against it, not believing that the woman can be swayed in his oranyone’s favor after all that’s been.
Wanting to give the children an opportunity to performnonetheless, Jaime arranges for a private party to which only friends areinvited. That evening, Brienne mostly stays with the children outside, feelingvery much out of place all over.
Some things just never seem to change.
When Tommen asks her about a particular dance thepeople inside are performing, Brienne explains that it is a dance that used tobe reserved for royals back in the days of knights and kings, though somefamilies still require their children to learn it.
“And did you learn it?”
“A lifetime ago.”
“So can you teach me?”
“Oh, I don’t know… I don’t believe I should.”
However, the children insist, and so Brienne starts todance the same steps she used to take back at Evenfall Hall when she didn’t yetknow that she was the ugliest girl in the world.
She is shocked when someone wants to take the nextturn – and it turns out to be Jaime. After all, he used to learn it himselfback in the day.
“May I have this dance, my lady?”
Brienne accepts and dances with Jaime, forgetting allher troubles and insecurities for a moment to listen to the music and dance toit, unafraid.
With him.
When the music dies out, Brienne finds herself evenmore in emotional turmoil, only to run away when Catelyn comes outside to seeabout what’s going on.
Brienne packs her things in a hurry, wanting to leaveand return to the Citadel. Cat comes to her room and they come to talk aboutJaime. Catelyn admits that she doesn’t bear romantic feelings for him.
“But… against all odds, I came to see that he is agood man who does right by the children he helps raise – and my own, which is arare gift in these most troubling times.”
“He is a good man, no doubt. I think you could be veryhappy… together.”
“And would you be happy with us together?”
“Me? Why does my opinion matter?”
“You tell me.”
Brienne says nothing to that and walks out of theroom, letting Catelyn know that she truthfully wishes her all the luck in the world.
“Because no less do all of you deserve.”
Later that evening, the children perform and all arein awe with the act. Brienne watches them with fondness, proud of how far theycame as a family, how close they grew, but she tries her best to stay clear ofJaime, even though he desperately wants to talk to her.
Heartbroken, Brienne returns to the Citadel, wantingto take her vows as a septa. The Elder Sister calls her out on her feelings forJaime and tells her that she must return to the Lannister residence because shecould not take Brienne’s vows in good faith if all the promise would meanrunning away from her true feelings for that man. She encourages her to returnto the residence to look for her life.
“You never ran away from a fight, my dear, why startnow?”
Brienne comes back to the Lannister residence to learnthat Cat and Jaime got engaged. With a heavy heart she agrees to stay as agoverness for the children until they found a replacement for her.
Jaime is fed up with her trying to sneak away, whichis why he corners her eventually to finally have honest conversation with her. Hewants her to understand that he proposed to Catelyn, believing she’d never comeback.
“We don’t marry for love. She doesn’t love me and Idon’t love her. It would be to keep her safe and ensure the girls don’t have tolive a runaway life.”
“I understand all that. And I am happy for you. Who knows,maybe you will grow to have more feelings for one another over time. My fatherdid with my mother, did I ever tell you?”
“That is all you have to say about this?”
“What else is there to say? I am… I am happy.”
“You are.”
“I am. Because the best part of my life, this family,will get its happily ever after. What more could I wish for… Commander?”
“You tell me.”
Wanting to protect the family to the best of herabilities, Brienne makes a daring proposal: She wants them to give up on theresidence and try to get to the independent North to start over there insteadof hoping for Daenerys Targaryen to go mildly on Jaime.
Jaime and Cat are perfectly in shock at the proposal. Whilethey have some money on the side, they don’t share enough to make for a livingthere. Jaime essentially lives off of his savings because he can’t hold a jobafter his crippling. And selling the property would draw unwanted attention tothem all the same.
“That should be no issue.”
“Money is sadly an issue, always.”
“I will provide for it.”
“You are… a septa.”
“Postulant. Since I haven’t taken my vows just yet,the Citadel has not demanded of me to give my money away just yet. And I havemore than a lot from my father’s inheritance.”
“You do?”
“How else would I know that dance, hm?” she huffs. “The money was meant to go to charitable causes, but Ibelieve I have a more personal cause now. I want to invest. Into the children,into their futures… into yours. You want to look for Catelyn’s sons – and youshould – but you can only do that in the North. In the independent zone, youwill be safe from Daenerys Targaryen and her accusations against you. So… takethat money to pay the Brotherhood to help get you to the North before thesituation grows more severe and you will get the future I want to invest in.”
“I can’t accept that.”
“Of course you can, now don’t be a stubborn idiot…Commander.”
“And what of you in that alternative?”
“I will return to the Citadel and take my vows. I canbe happy there, but only if I know this family protected. So please, let meprotect you.”
Whereas Brienne and Jaime continue to struggle tobalance their oaths and their undeniably strong feelings for one another,Catelyn also has to decide on how she wants to carry on in life, whereas the children have more than a hard time coping with losing either of the three. 
However, all of that is soon overshadowed by thethreat of Daenerys Targaryen pushing charges against Jaime for murdering herfather, which may tear this family apart before it can ever hear the sound ofmusic again…
Additional Image Sources: The Sound of Music (1959), http://gwendoline-christie.com/
138 notes · View notes
kitten1618x · 5 years
Text
GoT Afterthoughts ep. 08x02 ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ (Jonsa Edition)
Guys this episode was sooooooo good! Okay, okay, okay, let’s unpack here! I have lots of thoughts and since this isn’t broken up into parts, this is going to be a long post, so I’m gonna drop this bad boy under a read more. 
We begin in the Great Hall. It appears Jaime is on trial. Queen Dany sits at the head of the table—and imagine having the fucken audacity to sit in Winterfell — in Rickard fucken Starks seat—and in front of his grandchildren, talking about the extermination of Aerys Targaryen like he was some noble king that was just slaughtered by the big bad kingslayer, and NOT the murderous fucken mad Targ king, whom crimes’ you just recently apologized to Jon for, and called him evil to conveniently set yourself apart from him—or did you just forget all that, Dany? Hmmm? IMAGINE the big hairy pair you have to have to actually sit in between the Starks in their own home and utterly disrespect them like that—all while claiming to be in love with one of them? Wow. Just wow. And no, I’m not even sorry for that amazingly clunky run-on sentence, either.
~
I see that Jaime still has no interest in setting the record straight on why he killed Aerys Targaryen. It appears only Brienne will truly ever know about the millions of people he saved that day in doing so. Jaime stands his ground, though, and gives up Cersei’s plans. Tyrion tries to stand up for him, but Dany cuts him off at the knees (no pun intended), embarrassing him in front of everyone, as per ush.
~
For a moment her and Sansa have common ground. Sansa doesn’t trust Jaime either because of the wrongs he committed against her family. Jamie won’t apologize for any of it— their houses were at war. But Brienne vouches for him—my courageous, yet shy bb (God, I love her), and Sansa relents, her mind changed when Brienne says she’d fight beside him. Sansa trusts Brienne with her life, therefore Brienne trusting Jaime with hers is good enough for the Lady of Winterfell.
Tumblr media
Dany is clearly not pleased with this turn of events. She turns to Jon, addressing him as Warden of the North and asks him what he thinks — assuming he will take her side, but—
Tumblr media
He does not.
~
Dany finally relents as well, grounding out a “very well” between clenched teeth, as Tyrion breathes a sigh of relief that his big bro will not be extra crispy or original recipe’d today. GreyWorm returns Jaime’s sword—rather forcefully, knowing his queen is displeased—as Jaime thanks Dany for her uncharacteristic mercy.
~
Scene Highlights:
Bran blurting out “the things we do for love” and leaving Jaime shooketh
Sansa immediately standing up and leaving without waiting to be dismissed by the queen, and Jon ducking his head to avoid eye contact and then dipping as soon as Dany turns to face him.
~
Which takes us into the corridors of Winterfell and Dany resorting to her favorite pastime when she’s angry about things not going her way: berating her Hand in front of everyone. Luckily for Tyrion it’s just Jorah and Varys to witness it this time. Once again she accuses him of treason, and Tyrion is pretty sure that his time as Hand in her service is fast dwindling.
~
We jump to the forge where Arya stands back admiring Gendry work his magic—a callback to their time at Harrenhall in their younger years. They have a little flirty weaponry banter, and Arya wants to know what the AotD are like. She utters the iconic ‘many faces of death’ lines from the trailer while she impresses Gendry with some dead ass accurate blade throwing. He’ll be getting right on making her that weapon, by the way—and probably walking a little funny while he does it. 😉
~
Jaime seeks out Bran in the Godswood. He apologizes for what he did and tells Bran he’s not that person anymore. “You still would be if you hadn’t pushed me out that window, and I’d still be Brandon Stark.” Wow. Jaime wants to know why Bran didn’t tell them what he did, and Bran basically tells him it’s because they need him. When Jaime inquires “what about afterwards?” Bran drops an ominous “how do you know there will be an afterwards?”
~
We jump back to the Winterfell courtyard, where the Lannister brothers are catching up and commiserating about being in Winterfell again. Dany is different, Tyrion tells Jaime, and Jaime doesn’t seem so convinced. Tyrion wants to know if Cersei lied about the baby, and Jaime tells him that was true (as far as he/we know, people). But what I REALLY love about their conversation is this part:
~
J: She’s always been good at using the truth to tell lies. Don’t be too hard on yourself. She’s fooled me more than anybody.
~
T: She never fooled you. You always knew exactly what she was, and you loved her anyway.
~
The funny, or actually ironic thing about this conversation is they’re talking about Cersei, but if you flip the dialogue between the Lannister brothers here, the same could be said for Dany—especially the bolded part. Think back to the things Tyrion said to Jorah when he kidnapped him back in season 5 — he was confused by Jorah’s blind loyalty, too. How the mighty have fallen, Tyrion.
~
They move their conversation up to the battlements, where Tyrion finds the silver lining that at least he won’t die at Cersei’s hands, and perhaps once he’s torn apart by the dead, he’ll march to Kings Landing and rip her apart too. But he’s talking to himself, because Jaime is too busy watching Brienne supervising the training of her ranks just outside the gates.
~
And my Braime heart is siiiiiiiinging!!!
~
He joins her below, and she calls him out for acting weird and not insulting her as per ush. lol It’s really just an adorable little love spat — complete with awkwardness and frustration and plenty of UST. And as the music lulls romantically, he basically admits that she’s the reason he’s here and even though he’s no longer the fighter that he used to be, he‘d be honored to serve under her command if she’ll have him—which is basically fucken a straight up declaration of love, okay? He literally just said—complete with puppy dog eyes—“I love you.” CHANGE MY MIND!!
~
Brienne is taken aback by this declaration of love and is at loss for words — and so she ducks out, leaving him to watch after her forlornly. And my Braime heart is still siiiiiiiinging!!!!
~
We head back inside of Winterfell, Dany is alone in her chambers — and they aren’t the Lord’s Chambers, that’s for damn sure. She’s not having a very good day, and her expression here certainly reflects that. Jorah enters, asking her forgiveness, reminding her that forgiveness is important. This leads into a conversation where he basically asks her to take it easy on Tyrion and give him another chance.
~
While book!Jorah might be a creep, I truly adore show!Jorah, who laments that when he found out Dany gave Tyrion this position, it broke his heart, but he still believes that Tyrion was the right choice; he’s smart, he owns his mistakes and he learns from them.
~
What I find odd is Dany’s reply: “You’re advising me to forgive the man who stole your position?”
~
Wait... what? When did Tyrion do that? I recall Dany proudly pinning that golden hand pin on a very humbled Tyrion in the season 6 finale—not some rabid dwarf attacking an unsuspecting Jorah and wrestling the position from his gnarled greyscaled hands—and what-the-ever-living-fuck kind of crazy ass dialogue are they giving this girl?
~
Jorah has one other suggestion for her, if she’ll allow him such liberties. Annnnnd now the Sansa/Dany scene makes so much more sense. Dany didn’t seek Sansa out of her own accord to try and bridge the icy gap between them because she’s just so humble and wonderful and loving and good!!!! !!!! !!!! It was actually Ser Jorah’s idea.
~
So Dany takes him up on his suggestion and seeks Sansa out, finding her in the library with Lord Royce. But ahhhh this scene is just so fucken good, so let’s unpack it, shall we?
~
Dany enters and asks that they speak in private, and Sansa cedes to her wishes, dismissing Lord Royce.
~
D - I thought you and I were on the verge of agreement before... about Ser Jaime.
~
S - Brienne has been loyal to me always. I trust her more than anyone.
~
D - I wish I could have that kind of faith in my advisers.
~
Here she takes a low blow at Tyrion again, but Sansa defends him.
~
S - Tyrion is a good man. He was never anything but decent towards me.
~
D - I didn’t ask him to be my hand simply because he was good. I asked him to be my hand because he was good and intelligent and ruthless when he had to be. (See, I told y’all Tyrion didn’t steal the position... and yes, I’m being petty lol). Dany steps closer into Sansa’s space as she continues. He never should have trusted Cersei.
~
S - You never should have either.
~
Sansa drops a truth bomb, insinuating (rightly) that Dany shares the blame here, and Dany doesn’t like this at all. She swallows, containing her anger and paints on a fake smile in her irritation at Sansa’s words.
~
D - I thought he knew his sister.
~
S - Families are complicated.
~
Dany smiles at that and pulls up a seat, indicating for Sansa to do the same.
~
D - Ours certainly have been.
~
S - A sad thing to have in common.
~
D - We have other things in common. We’ve both known what it means to lead people who aren’t inclined to accept a woman’s rule. And we’ve both done a damn good job of it, from what I can tell...
~
Sansa smiles briefly at this. Clearly, Dany is using the compliment strategy again, but not so shallowly this time. Even if she truly believes this, the commonality of them both being women ruling is where this similarity ends. We’ve seen how differently they run things via season 7’s blatant comparison of ‘the three queens’. Sansa stores food, Cersei steals it, and Dany burns it (and yes, I’m going to keep bringing this up). But honestly, who could forget?
Tumblr media
vs.
Tumblr media
D - (cont.) ...and yet I can’t help feeling like we’re at odds with each other. Why is that?
~
Sansa takes a deep breath but doesn’t reply.
~
D - Your brother?
~
Yeah y’all, they really did that. But again I say, no love triangle brewing here, folks.
~
S - He loves you, you know that? *(I’ll address this in a minute)
~
D - That bothers you?
~
S - Men do stupid things for women. They’re easily manipulated.
~
D - All my life I’ve known one goal. The iron throne. Taking it back from the people that destroyed my family, and almost destroyed yours. My war was against them until I met Jon. Now I’m here, half a world away, fighting Jon’s war alongside him. Tell me, who manipulated whom?
~
Y’all are you serious?!?!? This entire fucken monologue is like literally POLITICAL!JON — I mean, it’s like D&D are literally fucken trolling this relationship so hard. Nothing like hiding some shit right out in plain sight for all the world to not see it. *And if you think for one minute that Sansa is not playing the game here, and that she actually did a complete 180, then I don’t know what to tell you other than, just wait and see.
~
There was a reason that they cut that office scene between her and Jon in the last episode, and after mulling it over with a few of my comrades, I think that it’s possible that Jon came clean and brought Sansa in on it. They have been a unit since they reunited, and a major part of Sansa’s hostility in the last episode was because she felt Dany was encroaching upon that, and she was losing Jon. Romantic or platonic, no one can deny the dynamic is there between Jon and Sansa. I happen to think it’s romantic, and I will die on this hill—but political!jon and jonsa aren’t mutually exclusive!!! !!! Okay, back to our dialogue.
~
S - (releases a small laugh and looks down—and I can’t help hearing Catelyn’s voice in my head: ‘you always look at your feet when you lie’) I should have thanked you the moment you arrived. That was a mistake. 
~
D- (reaching down and placing her hand atop of Sansa’s). I’m here because I love your brother, and I trust him. And I know he’s true to his word. He’s only the second man in my life I can say that about. 
~
S - Who was the first?
~
D- Someone taller. 
~
They both giggle. I assume the other man she’s talking about is Drogo. In any event, I feel Dany is being truly sincere here. This is why people (her stans and the GA both) have a hard time seeing the darkness in her—because one minute she’s sitting narrow-eyed at a table, fighting off a tantrum while she drones on about her father—the fucken mad king—and how her and her brother fantasized about what they would do to the man that murdered him (one can only assume she wasn’t implying knitting him a sweater and mittens), and the next minute she’s all gentle heart and eyes and soft tones about loving and trusting Jon, and giggling with his sister about her ex being much taller than him. I get it. I really do.
~
But here’s the thing about political!jon that the antis and the jonerii always get wrong—at least the version I subscribe to (and yes, there are several variations of it because we aren’t a hive-mind like we’re always accused of being): Jon has every intention of fulfilling his pledge to Dany and whatever that entails—which is why he keeps trying to convince everyone that she’ll be a good queen (including himself). But he doesn’t love her. He simply used the feelings that he recognized that she had for him, to manipulate her to his cause. This doesn’t mean that he’ll throw her out of winterfell and bone his sister when it’s all said and done—because no, Jon isn’t a creep, but he is actually rather cunning when he deems it necessary.
~
However, he won’t have to keep up the charade, or boot her ass out of the north, or any of the other things the jonerii accuse us of ‘fantasizing’ about, because Dany is going to go dark, and everyone will see her for what she truly is. So, let’s return to our dialogue so I can get tf off of this scene! lol
~ S - And what happens afterwards? We defeat the dead, you destroy Cersei, what happens then?
~
D - I take the iron throne. 
~
S - What about the North? (Sansa’s tone drops here as she becomes emotional about her home and her people, the music becomes more ominous as the softness ebbs from Dany’s face). It was taken from us, and we took it back. And we said we’d never bow to anyone else again. (Her tone gets sharper, as she asks again). What about the North?
~
Dany looks angry now. She’s done playing nice, as she pulls her hand back from Sansa’s. The ominous music drones on as they stare at each other, and the maester interrupts them.~Theon has arrived at Winterfell. The music swells, and Theon looks first to a very visibly emotional Sansa, then Dany, and then back to Sansa again before customarily bowing to and acknowledging his queen. Suddenly Dany gives a flying fuck about her ally and inquires about Yara. Theon explains she’s taken back the Iron Islands in her (Dany’s) name.
~
“But why aren’t you with her?” Dany asks, confused at his presence, while the music swells again and Theon looks again, to Sansa—and not his queen. Dany of course notices this, and turns to look at Sansa as well, as Theon directly addresses—you guessed it—Sansa, and not his queen: “I want to fight for Winterfell, Lady Sansa. If you’ll have me.”
~
And oh dear god, I’m so emotional rn, as Sansa’s eyes flood with tears and she runs to envelope Theon in a hug — Theon whom through his own trauma, not only helped to get her away from Ramsay and safely to Jon — but also cared enough for her and the Starks and what he did, to come back and finish making amends!!!! And you know Sansa is so proud of him!!! And I just had a conversation earlier with my bb @scullylikesscience that Theon would likely pledge to protect Bran, and that he will also likely sacrifice himself somehow to save one of the Starks, therefore completing his redemption arc, and I just can’t even rn— 😭😭
~
Scene Highlights:
Lord Royce leaving only when Sansa dismissed him.
Dany witnessing firsthand the devotion that Sansa and the Starks inspire in people.
Also... don’t forget
Tumblr media
We’re back out in the courtyard, where Dadvos is serving up dinner to the Northerners with a side of confidence, and Gilly is advising a woman where to go below in the crypts. A little orphan(?) girl with burns on the side of her face asks Davos where she should go and my fucken heart is shattering again because you know he sees Princess Shireen in her!!!
~
And Fuck you Bryan Cogman, you’re killing me!!!
~
She’s not sure where to go because she knows the children are going to the crypts where they’ll be safer, but both of her brothers were soldiers and so she wants to fight too. Auntie Gilly to the rescue: she tells the girl that she’d feel much safer if she was down in the crypts protecting her and her son, and with a purpose, the girl happily accepts her bowl and heads off as Gilly smiles softly at Davos. And god dammit, Liam Cunningham played this scene so well. He literally has me tearing up here!
~
The horn blows for a new arrival, and Edd is here! The last of the Nights Watch are back together again — and Tormund. lol He glomps Jon, affectionately dubbing him his ‘little crow’, and they let Jon know that Last Hearth is done for and anyone else who’s still out there is pretty much part of the AotD now. They have until sunrise to finish preparing. 
~
And the war council has commenced.~We get a little glimpse of what the NK wants, I guess??? Bran says “he wants to erase this world, and I am its memory.” —but why? And then Sam says something pretty poignant that I want @thelawyerthatwaspromised ‘s thoughts/opinion on: “That’s what death is, isn’t it? Forgetting. Being forgotten. If we forget where we’ve been and what we’ve done, we’re not men anymore, just animals.Your memories don’t come from books, your stories aren’t just stories. If I wanted to erase the world, I may not start with you.”
~
Pretty sure those that theorized that Sam is writing A Song of Ice and Fire were right, y’all —  and with such a ‘poetic’ title, to boot.
~
They strategize a plan to ferret the NK out using (a volunteering) Bran as bait in the Godswood. Theon volunteers himself and the Iron Born to stay with Bran and protect him (and jfc here comes the end I predicted for Theon and I hate it so much), as Jon shares that taking out the NK will likely diminish the entire army. They cement their battle plans and Dany insists Tyrion stay in the crypts because she intends to keep him on as Hand. Tormund announces that they are all going to die, but at least they’ll die together, and Jon suggests everyone get some rest. Avoiding eye contact with Dany, he utters “your grace,” and then quickly ducks out on her ass again, leaving her looking confused and frustrated.
~
Scene Highlights:
Jon’s commanding presence in this meeting — even so far as to dismiss everyone, despite the fact that Dany is the queen and supposed to be the one calling the shots. Even her people look to him here for leadership, which is interesting.
Aegon Targaryen and his sister-wives.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Thank you @goodqueenalys ❤️
Alys Karstark making another appearance here, standing beside Theon—yeah, I’m becoming more and more convinced we’re getting a Sansa death fake-out at the expense of this ginger beauty.
~
We head back out to the courtyard where a lonely looking Missandei attempts to befriend some northern children. Unfortunately, she came with the Dragon Queen, so they want nothing to do with her. Grey Worm joins her and the two make plans to leave for Naath after Dany takes the throne — which means that one of them is probably going to die. Sigh.
~
Way up high on the ramparts, Sam asks Jon if he’s told Dany yet. He has not, and so Sam prods him a bit — and oh look, there’s Ghost, off to the side looking like they literally photo-shopped him into the scene. ��
~
Edd joins them, and the last of the Watchers On The Wall commiserate, and poke a little fun at Sam. I’m very emotional as Edd says “last man left, burn the rest of us” (which most likely won’t be him) as they pan out to the northern scenery in the distance.
~
The Lannister boys are reminiscing again, this time by the hearth and are joined by Brienne and Podrick. Momma Brienne allows Pod a half cup of wine (which Tyrion overflows) and Jaime encourages her to join them (smitten fool). She does, as well as Davos and Tormund, too—who is fucken hilarious here as he tries to impress Brienne with one of his tall tales, then sloppily downs his horn of sour goats milk. It’s all rather strange. lol
~
There’s a brief scene of Arya and the Hound on the ramparts. She wants to know what he’s doing here—when’s the last time he fought for anyone but himself, as to which he replies: “I fought for you, didn’t I?” True enough. Beric joins them and Arya takes her leave, declaring she doesn’t intend to spend her last hours with these two miserable old shits. lol
~
I’m not sure where she headed off to, but Gendry finds her and presents her with her weapon. Arya wants to know what the red woman wanted with him. He tells her his blood because he’s Robert Baratheon’s bastard — which leads into Arya wanting to know how many women he’s been with. Gendry avoids the question, but Arya persists, many face gaming his ass until he relents. LOL
~
The number is 3, and Arya wants to be number 4. She wants to know what it’s like before she dies. And holy shit, they went there! They kiss passionately, with Arya taking the lead. She orders him to take his own bloody pants off and takes the bull for a ride—if ya know what I mean... 😉
Tumblr media
We return to the group before the hearth in the hall. Tyrion remarks that almost all among them had fought the Starks at some point, and yet, here they all are defending them. But yeah, this story is about a Targaryen restoration.
~
In their battle banter, it comes up that Brienne is not a Knight—and while Tormund would happily Knight her gorgeous big-womaned ass ten times over, tradition does not allow her to be one because she’s a woman. Oh the irony that the most honorable of them all—the one who actually is a true knight, cannot be named one. Until Jaime says, “hold my beer!” (or wine, rather).
~
Okay guys, like honestly, this is probably my most favorite scene of the entire series. Everything about it is so beautiful and wholesome, as Jaime declares any Knight can make another Knight and bids Brienne to kneel. She looks to Pod who, with an adoring face, gives her a little nod of encouragement, then she looks to Jaime, and he does the same.
~
The lovely music, the proud faces of all the men who look on with awe as Brienne kneels and Jaime says the words, pressing his blade gently from one shoulder to the other and makes some fucken Westerosi history when he says proudly: “Arise Brienne of Tarth, a Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.”
~
Guuuuuuuys!!!! Omg!!!! I’m definitely ugly CRYING here!!!! Brienne’s eyes welling with tears, her proud smile, all these men clapping and their proud faces!!! Yeah, this is definitely 10/10 my most FAVORITE ever GoT scene!!! Just beautiful!
~
We jump back out to the courtyard where a very adorable and yet insanely stubborn little Lyanna Mormont is arguing with Jorah about going to the crypts. She pledged to fight for the North and she intends to, so she bids her cousin good fortune and leaves to take her place. Sadly, I think that she will not make it through the battle for Winterfell.
~
Sam has come to give Jorah Heartsbane. This is another very loaded and lovely scene, and my heart is pretty heavy, because I’m not very confident that Jorah will make it out of this battle alive, either. Sam tells him: “your father taught me how to be a man. Taught me how to do what’s right. This is right,” as he presents him the sword. Jorah accepts this heartfelt gesture and declares that he will wield it in his memory, to guard the realms of men.
~
BRYAN COGMAN!!!! I’M COMING FOR YOU FOR MAKING ME CRY ALL DAMN NIGHT!!!!
~
But seriously, the dynamic between Jorah and Sam has just been so beautiful. And all the antis can fuck right off with their shit-talking of this beautiful and wholesome creature that is Samwell Tarly!
~
We jump back to the crew before the hearth who are loathe to call it a night. Tyrion wants a song, and we are treated to Pod’s beautiful rendition of Jenny of Oldstones — and this entire montage is so beautiful, as we see how everyone is prepping for battle, spending their last hours with those they love and saying their goodbyes. The desperation in Missandei and GreyWorm’s very passionate goodbye kiss is extremely moving and makes me think this is probably their final kiss goodbye, and Jorah looks so gallant as he swings ‘round his horse, making his father proud and my heart is just swelling with love and dread and ughhhhhhhh!!!!!
~
At first I was a bit upset that none of the Starks were actually together here, but in my rewatch, I’ve come to understand why a little bit more. It seems as if they’ve all revisited their own life’s journey prior to coming home (in this episode). Jon, on the ramparts with Ghost and his remaining brothers of the Nights Watch. Arya, first sharing a brief moment with the Hound and Beric (brothers without banners), and then with Gendry. Sansa sharing a meal with Theon out in the courtyard in the home that holds both good and traumatic memories for both of them. He redeemed himself through her (as Jon said), and they share a bond of both surviving Ramsay and his horrors.
~
Bryan Cogman did NOT disappoint with this lovely episode, which has been what we will surely look back on as a bittersweet eulogy of sorts to some of the beloved characters we’ve come to know over the years. Yeah, this was beautifully done.
~
Ahhh, and lastly, we delve down into the crypts where Jon stands before the statue of his mother. Dany has very obviously (and understandably) grown tired of being avoided and sought him out. When he acknowledges her presence with a brief glance and a very faint smile, she cautiously moves closer and wraps her arms around him. And yep, here it is—the reveal. I honestly thought he would keep it from her as long as he possibly could, but I guess he figures they might all bite it anyway, so fuck it... (i’m kidding!! Or am i??)
~
Dany is taken aback by his words. She releases a shuddering breath and immediately steps away from him, denying it: that’s impossible. Jon tells her he wishes it were — and I fully believe him. Aside from the full-on identity crisis he’s been experiencing, you all know he has no interest in the Iron Throne... all this man has ever wanted was to protect his home, and the ones he loves.
~
Dany thinks there’s a conspiracy against her between Bran and Sam—and now Jon’s tone and demeanor have changed a bit. He takes a step towards her and insists that it’s true, calling her Dany because it’s informal and personal, and he knows now that she’s his aunt—that means she’s still his family—and I think he’s hoping that they’ll still be able to find some common ground with that.
~
But the fact that she’s found actual family—that she’s not really the last Targaryen alone in the world anymore—doesn’t seem to affect her as much as the fact that Jon is the last male heir of their line, and so therefore his claim for the throne overrides hers. A claim he has expressed no want or intent for, mind you. Maybe he intended to tell her no one would have to know, and he’d never contest her claim if she’d agree to leave the North independent when it’s all said and done... who knows? Certainly not Jon, because it’s clear he’s taken aback by her response here.
~
D - if it were true, it would make you the last male heir of House Targaryen (she grounds out those bolded words through clenched teeth and Kit’s micro expressions are on point—jfc, Watch his eyes!!). You’d have a claim to the iron throne.
~
And with the final utterance of Dany’s last words, the war horns sound. As if that doesn’t seem like a harbinger of Targbowl?!?!
~
But I will say, in my honest and most humble opinion, that his delivery here was all wrong. The way Jon lamented the story, it kind of came off as if it’s something he might have known all along... and therefore she most certainly will feel betrayed at this. Especially considering her earlier conversation with Sansa. Which, the crazy ass irony of it all is, with political!jon, he was actually already betraying her—just not about what she’ll think it was. Did I say that right? lol
~
They join Tyrion on the Ramparts, the dead are here. Jon looks towards Dany, nodding as if to ask if she’s ready, and she storms off ahead of him, anger evident on her face.
~
Ahhhhhhhhh, I’m really scared for Jon here, guys...!!! What are your thoughts?
~
Remember to care for yourselves and stay hydrated as we slug through this hellish week!
~
ty @farmgirlusa for your dialogue corrections. 
198 notes · View notes
ladytp · 5 years
Photo
Tumblr media
(EDIT: Oops, I thought I had posted this already a while ago but apparently forgot, as it still sat in my drafts... D’oh!)
The second and the last chapter of my Sansan Christmas in July 2019 fic to @sincerelydayyy, “Jumping from the Ropes” takes us into the conclusion of this short and hopefully sweet story… “The Jump” is also up at AO3. Merry Christmas in July once again!
Sansa
The Hound had been right: the shit did hit the fan soon after.
Bobby Baratheon suffered a massive cardiac arrest, and while he was recuperating in the hospital, his wife and co-owner Cersei Lannister called a meeting of the WWA board and announced a ‘friendly’ takeover with her and Joffrey at its helm. The board agreed, and sooner than one could say ‘contractual obligations’, Ned Stark was out of a job.
He took it well though, telling Sansa that he preferred not to work for ‘that woman’ anyway. In a family meeting it was decided that Ned would fly home and consider his next step back in the North, while Sansa would finish her semester before following him.
As for the Hound, Sansa saw him in the shows, of course, defending his championship and delivering his characteristic brusque promos, threatening to gut any of the ‘gnats’ who imagined themselves to be a match for him.
He saw her too, often glancing in her direction during the show and between the matches. Sansa was usually seated in the prime seating area – advantages of the Premier Pass she had received from her father and which even Cersei in her pettiness hadn’t revoked. That meant that she was close enough to the action to be fully aware of his looming presence and attention – which, however, was quickly withdrawn when she looked back at him.
Only once had he and Sansa spoken, and that more by accident than by design. She had gone backstage after the show, and when turning the corner, had almost collided with him, only her abrupt halt preventing a head-on crash. Instead, she had found herself eye level with his sweaty, heaving chest, covered with dark hair.
While Sansa had murmured her apologies, he had asked what she was doing there and if she was looking for someone. Then Joffrey had walked past and greeted her – and The Hound had slid away without another word.
Still assailed by the intensity of their meeting at the party, Sansa had stooped as low – as per her usual standards – as to find out everything she could about him from the internet, searching by both his ring-name and his real name, Sandor Clegane. His biography was scanty, he rarely featured in news or articles outside the usual wrestling sites, and his social media presence was non-existent. His only entry on Twitter, apparently forced upon the employees by the WWA, was a one-liner, “So here I am – enjoy”, not followed by any other tweets.
Even adding “girlfriend” after his real or ring-name didn’t bring up any hits in Google – which was unusual by itself. If not real news, most wrestlers’ profiles were inundated with gossip and speculation about who they were dating or not – but not him.
All she could glean from her search was his career development from a solitary youth, who had discovered pro-wrestling as an outlet to whatever demons he had on his back - and now Sansa knew what they were – via indie circles, hard-core death-matches and small promotions, all the way to the WWA. That, and that the cause of his scars was universally accepted to be a house-fire in his bedroom when he had been just a child - just as he had first told. His brother’s – another wrestler in the WWA under the ring-name ‘The Mountain’ – web entries had lots of information about his career, but no hints about the atrocity he had committed.
---
It was the day of Sansa’s departure. She had packed all her belongings and sent most of them ahead by airfreight, leaving only one carry-on bag to take with her on her flight.
She eyed her room for the last time. It had been a good year and she had enjoyed every moment of it, and part of her felt sorry to leave it all behind, but another part was keen to get back home to her family and friends. This year things were going to be different for her: she was going to move away from her parents’ house, possibly with her best friend Jeyne. She was going to focus on finishing her studies, maybe get a part-time job… she was going to start her adult life for real.
Sansa sighed and glanced at her watch. She still had a few more hours to kill before she had to be at the airport so she decided to pay one last visit to her favourite café only a block away.
Stepping out of the front door, she was hit by a blast of brilliant sunshine. The weather was warm and there was a hint of spring in the air, lifting her spirits even higher. The sun in her eyes blinded her so that when she first heard the humming sound of a car engine slowing down beside her and heard a shout, she had to squint her eyes and cover her brow to see better.
“Little Bird!”
The car was big and black, one of those four-wheel utility drives favoured by rugged outdoorsmen and adventurers with extra cash. The tinted side window lowered and she saw the man driving it.
The Hound.
“Hello,” was all she could manage, surprised by his unexpected appearance. Why was he here – had he come to find her? Or maybe it was just a coincidence that he was driving by at that precise moment?
“You have a minute?”
The car had stopped right next to her, but the motor was still running. If she said no, explaining that she was in a hurry, would he take her at her word and drive away?
The thing was, she didn’t feel like saying no.
“I do have a moment, but not much more than that,” she said, bending to peer through the window. She saw the same big black dog on the backseat, its ears perking up as it saw her. The Hound reached for the door handle and with a click, the door opened.
Once Sansa had settled in the seat, the Hound steered the car to the first available parking spot and stopped, this time turning the ignition off. The silence following the death of the motor was deafening - he didn’t even have a radio on.
“So, how are you?” Sansa asked. That’s what people ask after not seeing each other for a while, don’t they?
“I’m leaving.”
“You’re leaving WWA?”
“Everything.” The Hound’s hands rested on the steering wheel, which looked awfully small in comparison. The backs of his hands were hairy but his fingers were unexpectedly long and there was something delicate in the way he slowly rubbed the spokes of the wheel, probably not even realising he was doing it.
“I told Cersei she can shove my contract where the sun doesn’t shine and packed my bags. I’m done with the Baratheons and Lannisters.”
Well, he had told her so, so Sansa wasn’t terribly surprised.
“What do you plan to do?” she asked, out of genuine interest.
“Don’t know yet. I could be a free agent for a while, wrestle in indie circles.” He looked at Sansa then. “I think I’ll leave the city, go somewhere else for a while. North, maybe.”
Sansa’s heart started to race. It was quite ridiculous, really. What was it to her what he decided to do? In the name of mutual sharing, she decided, however, to tell him about her plans.
“I’m leaving too. As a matter of fact, I have to be at the airport shortly for my flight to Wintertown.”
“I know.”
“How?”
“Cersei told me.”
“She did?” Sansa remembered mentioning her departure in the parting email she had sent to Bobby and Cersei. They had been welcoming to her and her father when they had first arrived and it was only good manners to bid them farewell, no matter how things between their families had ended. Besides, Ned and Bobby’s friendship still endured, and Bobby had sworn to pay his old friend a visit as soon as he had recovered enough to do so.
The Hound turned to her fully. “I could give you a ride.”
“That’s very nice of you, but I’ll be fine. I only have a carry-on bag and I can easily take an Uber,” Sansa said.
She wouldn’t have really minded accepting the offer, but what would have been the point of it? They were probably not going to see each other again, and the awkwardness of their interactions was unlikely to pass during the short drive to the airport. There was something between them, Sansa had realised over the last few weeks, something that had been ignited that evening at the university party. Something unsure and fragile, something that was more of a promise of potential rather than a thing on its own.
Yet it didn’t matter. Even should he move to the North and wrestle there, their life situations were so far apart that…
“I didn’t mean to the airport.”
Sansa’s trail of thought was so abruptly interrupted, she was confused at first. If not to the airport, then –
Oh!
“You can’t mean Wintertown? It’s halfway across the country!”
“I know.” Seemingly realising that it was not enough, The Hound continued. “I like driving. And I’d hate to confine Stranger in one of those crates for the flight. And I couldn’t leave him behind.” He reached to scratch the ear of the dog, who had poked its head between the seats. Sansa looked at the dog warily. Those breeds had a reputation, after all.
“Go on, pat him. He’s a big sook,” The Hound urged – and she did. The dog’s fur was silky and soft and its nose, when it sniffed her hand, was cold and wet. Tentatively, it licked her fingers.
Sansa’s head was whirling. For her, the notion was crazy. It would take at least four or five days to drive up, whereas in a plane it would be a matter of hours. She would be back at home this same night, embraced by her mother and her many siblings. Why should she even consider such an offer?
“That’s a very long drive,” she offered. As if he didn’t know.
“They say the route along the coast is pretty. And the scenery in the Vale is supposed to be breathtaking. I might take a few side trips. Haven’t seen enough of this country, as it is.”
The Hound glanced out of the window, which he had wound down when they had stopped. He might have appeared nonchalant and not caring a whit whether Sansa accepted his offer or not, but his fingers, tapping against the wheel at an increasing tempo, gave him away.
He is nervous, Sansa realised, to her astonishment. And something warm started to bloom inside her chest.
Every sensible brain cell in her head screamed 'NO' – it would be the height of stupidity to ditch the plane and join a man she hardly knew for such a long ride. Gods, if her mother knew she was even passingly contemplating it, she would have a fit.
And yet, every cell in her body and every nerve-ending that was ignited by his proximity screamed 'YES'.
She would be safe with him. It didn’t make sense to think so, but deep in her core, Sansa knew it to be so. True, he was a gamble, all odds stacked against him – but maybe he was worth the risk.
“Okay, then,” she breathed out.
The fingers stopped their drumming and The Hound stiffened. His eyes widened and brows lifted so high that it actually looked a bit comical, and Sansa had to stifle her instinct to giggle.
“Okay what?”
“I accept your offer. I need to call the airline to cancel my ticket – luckily it’s fully flexible – and get my bag from my room, and then we can be on our way.” She glanced at the back of the car and saw two large suitcases and a couple of boxes. “Do you have all your stuff with you already?”
“You’re for real?” The Hound stared at her, brows furrowed. “I mean… we wouldn’t have to take any side tours. And we could drive just as fast and directly as you want. And stay in proper hotels for the nights – in separate rooms, of course.”
Was that a flush creeping up his face? Sansa’s amusement grew. He was like a dog chasing after a car, who didn’t know what to do when one actually stopped.
“I’d certainly hope so; I hardly know you. But side trips would be fine. I haven’t seen enough of this country myself.”
Getting no answer from his flustered companion, Sansa clutched her handbag in her lap and straightened herself in her seat. “Well, I better get my things and make the necessary calls. Can you take us into the parking lot next to my building, the big red one in front of which you saw me?”
It took a moment longer before The Hound acted, turning the ignition on and manoeuvring the car around.
“What should I call you, then? I think ‘The Hound’ may not be quite appropriate. I know your real name is Sandor – do you mind if I call you that?” Sansa asked while he was reversing into an empty spot.
“Ah, yeah, sure – call me Sandor,” he muttered, seemingly still in shock at the turn of events.
“My name is Sansa, not a Little Bird. Can you wait for just a moment, Sandor? I’ll be right back.”
When Sansa climbed the stairs to her room, something vibrant and exciting started to bubble inside her. She felt lightheaded and couldn’t stop grinning. The whole thing was outlandish and bizarre and against all common sense.
It was… as if she had just climbed up the turnbuckle again and was standing high up, looking into the bright lights of the stadium, into the middle of the ring, so far away. She was nervous, she was anxious – but it felt right. Sandor was going to be there to catch her if she leapt.
It was time to jump from the ropes.
                            -- THE END --
40 notes · View notes
malyen0retsev · 5 years
Note
I do not know if you were asked about this, but what are your expectations about the winds of winter? what are you waiting for? what do you want to see? or what you don't want?
Oh man, there’s so many things - I’m not expecting the War for Dawn, because that absolutely won’t happen until A Dream of Spring, but I’m certainly expecting numerous events that will be leading us up to that finale.
The Northern Conspiracy will be reaching boiling point at this stage; we already know (from GRRM’s released ‘Theon’ chapter) that Theon and Jeyne survived jumping off Winterfell’s walls by the piles of snow outside, though were severely injured doing so. We also know that the only reason they survived after that is because of the Northern lords outside. The fact that Northern lords loyal to the Starks are that close to Winterfell, and immediately rescue Theon and Jeyne from Ramsay’s grasp, speaks volumes about the anger of the North right now. I’m intrigued for where Theon will go and what he will do, and I’m also intrigued for Davos rescuing/finding Rickon, Shaggydog, and Osha. As things stand, it would make more sense for them to bring him to Jon, wherever it is Jon will be.
Which, speaking of Jon - if Jon’s resurrection isn’t tied to him living as Ghost for a while, I will be bitter. I am so so ready to see Jon emerge and literally feel part wolf; angry, feral, and frankly murderous. Because y’know. He’s just been murdered. Jon will still be Jon but he won’t be the same Jon we knew before. He’s going to go dark, the darkest we’ve ever seen him go, and that will be tied to the fact he died. I’m pumped for that. I also think this will present to us a Jon who has now fully accepted that he is a warg, and his bond with Ghost will be incredibly strong. Jon will be at the front of the Northern Conspiracy, we will probably have a ‘Battle of the Bastards’ type face off, but the depth of it will be 10x more than was in the show. He thinks Ramsay has Arya, the person he loves most in this world and the person he just died for. He is going to be raging, and will also be broken when he discovers it is actually Jeyne, and he still doesn’t know where his little sister is.
It’s likely Sansa will be revealed as Sansa in the Vale in this book, and it’s obviously heavily implied they will join forces with the North to kick Ramsay out of Winterfell. We will see tension with Jon and Sansa, as I do believe Jon will be crowned King in the North (and obviously Littlefinger’s scheming is so she will be Queen), but that tension will actually make sense in the books - Sansa hasn’t been through the same type of trauma as in the show, she doesn’t have a massively personal vendetta against Ramsay, and it will feel as though she and Littlefinger have been building up this role for her only for Jon to be given it (though he will have earned it, might I add). Additionally, whilst Sansa and Jon have thought of each other a few times at this point in the books, they still by far have the weakest relationship of all the Stark siblings. She is the only Stark sibling to call Jon her ‘bastard brother’ or ‘half brother’ - and the dynamic will suddenly be switched to Jon being higher in the social hierarchy than Sansa.
I do believe that this will be the book where Arya reclaims her identity as Arya Stark of Winterfell, and returns back to Westeros - but whether the book will end with her doing so, or that be midway through, I don’t know. I’ve long believed Arya will come to the Riverlands, reunite with Gendry and the Brotherhood, and give the gift of mercy to her mother, ending the Brotherhood’s twisted purpose now of revenge and bringing a close to Arya’s list. She will let it go. I also believe she’ll reunite with Nymeria, and that whole group (possibly including Brienne, Pod, and Jaime) will head North. But I can’t say what I think will happen in TWOW and what will happen in ADOS, because I don’t know. 
Daenerys is definitely going to turn dark, like Jon, in this book (their journeys parallel each other, I mean, obviously); she’s embracing her identity as a dragon and the destructive nature of being one (”dragons plant no trees”) and like Jon, this will lead to some dark and morally grey decisions. f!Aegon swooping in to take what she has been working for will put her in a messy place - but unlike show!Dany, she will absolutely come back from it. I think TWOW will probably end with her accidentally destroying King’s Landing when facing f!Aegon, potentially setting off wildfire caches, and to redeem herself she will also head North to fight for humanity. But once again, it’s difficult to say if that will be in TWOW or ADOS.
Cersei’s days are numbered, in my opinion, as I think this will be the book that f!Aegon removes her from the throne. She was made far more threatening than she really is in the show, because of Lena Headey being such a good actress. Obviously, to get to this point, we have to have Tommen and Myrcella die, so whilst I think Cersei is a goner in TWOW, it could also be in ADOS. It’s difficult to properly predict the timelines. The Battle for King’s Landing will take place before the War for Dawn though, I’m pretty sure of that.
Characters such as Bran and Tyrion and Arianne I’m less sure of; they all have very important parts to play, obviously, but I’m not entirely sure what those will be or how they’ll get there. Bran will be becoming the Three Eyed Crow and wrestle with his identity; Tyrion will most likely join Daenerys; it’s predicted Arianne will wed f!Aegon. But beyond those things, I don’t really know what those characters’ arcs are going to be. 
TWOW will be the darkest ASOIAF book we’ve had yet, that much I’m pretty damn sure of. But it will also be the book where we see the Starks starting to publicly reappear and unite, which makes for an interesting political dynamic heading into ADOS.
49 notes · View notes
mollyraesly · 5 years
Text
Time with Wolves -- Chapter 16
“Jon!” Arya screeched from the back. “What are you doing here? Where’s Robb?” Jon turned to look at Arya. “He and I were hanging out, but he’d had a few beers when you texted, and you know I don’t—well, not since—” He swallowed strongly. “Anyway, I said I’d come pick you up. Robb lent me his car.”
“What happened to yours?” Sansa almost said, and might have, had she not been so overwhelmed with shock at seeing him beside her.
Jon moved his head back to face the steering wheel. “He only said Arya and Gendry. I didn’t know—“ he trailed off as his eyes flicked to Sansa. Or he wouldn’t have come, was the unspoken message. Sansa felt her heartbeat pick up with each second his eyes were on her. Although she was merrily dizzy with drunkenness only a couple of minutes earlier, she felt as though someone had doused her in water. 
She didn’t like the feeling of being under his gaze and not knowing what he was thinking. Sometimes, late at night when she couldn’t sleep, she had imagined what it would be like to see Jon again – when he wasn’t in a hospital bed. But in all her imaginings, she had never been drinking so heavily or so sweaty from dancing.
She resisted the urge to pat down her hair or swipe at the eyeliner she was sure had smudged. There was no need to look nice for him anymore, she reminded herself. Keeping her eyes glued forward, she wrestled with her seatbelt until it finally clicked. “Seatbelts back there?” Gendry and Arya murmured and groaned, but a few moments later after some rustling and giggles Gendry grunted that they were good. Jon nodded. “Good. Safety first.” He sighed. “I’ll just, drive you home then.” For all the talk of fries and burgers, neither Arya nor Gendry mentioned anything about the Ice Shack, for which Sansa was grateful. She didn’t want to do anything to make this trip any longer than it had to be. She also could not stomach the thought of eating anything now, when her entire body felt like it had been taken over with nerves. But even though she was glad there was no talk of the Ice Shack, she was more anxious about the lack of talk altogether. From a quick peek into the back seat, she discovered that Arya was all but asleep as she rested against Gendry’s shoulder, and he was practically snoring. The traitors. Sleeping while she had to deal with Jon alone in the front. She wished she could feign sleep and join them, but her fidgeting hands would give her away. For a few minutes, Sansa sat stiffly, determined not to look at Jon or speak. It was terribly rude. But she couldn’t think of anything to say that didn’t make her angry or tearful. And when should she be the one to speak? To make him feel less awkward? She desperately didn’t want to care what he felt. By the fidgeting of her hands, she knew she was going to break soon, but then Jon spoke first when they settled in behind a line of cars at a light. His voice was so soft she would have missed it, had not she been so tense and aware of his every movement. “Did you have a nice Thanksgiving?”
She couldn’t answer for a moment—surprised by how mundane the question was. But then, strangely, she thought about a networking event she had attended and the advice Cersei Lannister, one of the most formidable professors she had ever known, had given her about dealing with men you’d rather avoid: Never let them see your weakness. Be a pretty bird for them all to gaze upon and try to encage. Then, when it’s time, gauge out their eyes and fly away.
She’d thought it was rather pessimistic advice—from a woman who’d always struck her as embittered. But there was some truth to it, even if she didn’t like it. Sansa would never again be a little dove, the way Cersei would have liked, but she could be strong, and over the years, she had been getting better at masking her feelings and at wearing her courtesy like knights wore steel.
“Yes, it was very nice,” she said in a clipped, but courteous voice. Sansa smoothed out the hem of her skirt and wished that it covered more of her thighs. “How was yours?” Politeness forced her to ask. “Good,” replies Jon, tapping against the wheel and staring at the traffic in front of them. “Quiet,” he added. “With just me and Mom.” In the past, Sansa might have taken the initiative to invite Jon and his mom over, but the heavy silence between them seemed to suggest that they both knew that was no longer a real option. “It was good to see Robb tonight,” Jon continued. “We haven’t been the best at keeping in touch. He’s—he’s had a lot going on.” “A baby on the way,” Sansa almost wanted to stay, but instead she just hummed noncommittally. As the cars ahead of them began to move, they reached the intersection just as the light switched from yellow to red. “How—how are you? I’ve wondered—Arya, she tells me little bits and pieces, but never—“ He was looking at her, really looking at her now. And Sansa could not help but to turn and look back at him. The sight made her catch her breath, because even after all these years he was still Jon. Still wearing black and smelling too good. In the years since she had seen him, he had filled out. He’d never been that scrawny, but she could tell that there was more muscle to him, even underneath all his layers. He was wearing a coat she recognized as Robb’s, and she could not help but wonder—despite herself—what had happened to the jacket she’d gifted him so many years ago.
She looked to his face to chase the thought away.
His hair was tied back into a bun. Sansa had always been somewhat indifferent to that fashion trend on men, but, maddeningly, on Jon it not only worked—it was dead attractive. It drew attention to his cheekbones and his eyes, which were tired, but nevertheless soft and pleading. Sansa looked away. “I’m good,” she said finally. “I like school. I have nice friends.” “I’m glad.” She frowned. She hated that she still cared about his opinion. Her life at school was so separate from her life at home; it was something of her own that she’d fought for. Her time at Riverrun was proof that she was no longer the stupid, trusting girl she was. And yet, here she was sitting in a car with Jon.
She wished Gilly,  Meera, or Brienne were here to bring her strength and wisdom and to remind her of the woman she’d become.  She turned to study the traffic and wondered how there could still possibly be so many cars on the road this late. Perhaps many other people had gone out drinking; she’d read once that the holidays were horrible for bringing out alcoholic tendencies. Perhaps because they reminded people of things from their past they’d rather forget. They were stuck at another light. “What are you studying?” “Politics and, uh, Gender Studies. I’m hoping to go to law school actually.” “Really?” “Yes,” she said, a bit defensively, even though he sounded more surprised than dismissive. “That’s—that’s really great, Sansa. I’m happy you’re—“ Sansa stopped listening. In the backseat, both Arya and Gendry were still dozing, and it was just too much to be in the car with him, with the heat cranked up, and his voice so sweet. There was so much she wanted to ask him about the past—why he stopped talking to her, why he dated Ygritte, why he’d led her to believe her cared about her only to suddenly forget her. And, to her surprise, there were so many things she wanted to know about him now—questions that perhaps she’d been wondering but had never allowed herself to ask truly. Had he left the army for good? What was he planning to do next? Did he visit Ghost when she was gone? And more personal still—Had his wounds healed? Had he killed anyone when he was up North? What was it like to almost die?  And then—Had he thought about her? Why did Sam know her name? Had Jon really written letters? But instead, she folded her hands nearly across her lap and thought of something Gilly once told her: Someone else’s bad past behavior doesn’t mean you can’t move forward. They pulled up the her house. Sansa turned to Jon and cut off whatever he was saying. “Thank you very much for the ride. I’m sorry to have inconvenienced you.” “It’s not a—“ But Sansa was already out of the car. She opened the door to the backseat. “Wake up,” she said, forcefully, but not unkindly, as she leaned over Gendry to prod Arya on the shoulder.  Her little sister opened her eyes slowly and gave her a tired smile.
“You have to get up,” Sansa said, but Arya didn’t seem to have understood her. “Sansa, you’re so pretty. You could be a princess—or a queen—like Alysanne from A Dance wi—” “Thank you, but now isn’t the time. You’ve got to get up.” “I’ll help,” Jon said from behind. Sansa tried not to show how startled she’d been that he appeared so close to her and quickly moved out of his way. “Jon!” Arya chirped. “When did you get here? Don’t you think Sansa is pretty?”  Sansa went to the other side of the car to avoid hearing his answer. She opened the passenger door and started grabbing Arya to get her out.  “Ouch! Your fingers are so bony!” “That’s from all the knitting!” Sansa grumbled. “C’mon!” She yanked Arya out of the car at the same time Jon was hoisting out Gendry. It was slow moving up the driveway and around the path, but after a few minutes, Sansa had Arya propped against the front door and was only slightly sweating beneath her heavy winter coat. She fumbled with her keys, the sound of Jon behind her and grunting underneath Gendry’s weight making her lose her concentration. At last, she got the door unlocked and open. She pushed Arya through and made room for Jon to do the same for Gendry.  Sansa would have very much liked to have closed the door as soon as they were all inside, but she couldn’t do something so rude after he’d come out in the cold to get them past three and the morning and had physically lugged Gendry out of the car. Sansa spent thirty minutes on the elliptical a few times a week, but she was not strong enough to have handled both Arya and Gendry in drunken stupors on her own. So instead she lingered at the threshold, one foot inside, one outside. “Thank you for your help,” she told him.  Jon shoved his hands into his pockets. A lock of hair had escaped his bun and had fallen into his eyes. “It was no problem, Sansa. It—it was nice to see you.” He studied her face with an expression she couldn’t understand, and after a moment, gave a curt nod and turned to go. “Jon!” she took a step forward into the night air and called out to him without meaning to. He spun around. “I—I met a friend of yours at school. Samwell Tarly.” The words were out of her mouth before she could think to take them back. Jon blinked. “Samwell Tarly? How—he—but he’s with the Watch still.” “He got a few days leave.” Jon frowned, the lines of his forehead furrowed. He hadn’t had such deep lines there when they’d been in high school. “But why’d—“ “I’m dating Sam’s brother Dickon,” she said, trying to sound unaffected as she delivered the news; to her own ears, she just sounded squeaky. “Oh,” Jon replied. His face shifted from astonishment and confusion to something else. He opened his mouth, as if to ask a question, but then closed it again.  “He—he said something about letters.” “Sam loves old letters and books. Just like you. He’s always going on about a collection or something from medieval history—“ “No—these were your letters. Letters that you—well, you’d written to me.” Jon frowned again, deeper this time. “He shouldn’t have said anything to you about that.” “Is it true? Did you—“ Jon cut her off with a look. “You should go inside, Sansa,” he said gruffly.  She crossed her arms over her chest, showing no indication of leaving until he gave her answer.
Jon sighed, and when he spoke, he sounded tired. “When I first joined the Watch, I was feeling homesick. Reception is really bad that far up north, so I used to write letters.”
“To me?” Sansa pressed.
Jon’s shoulders sagged. “In a sense.”
“I don’t know what that means,” Sansa replied, voicing her thoughts aloud.
“I—I—” he sighed and gave her a look that made her heart drop. “It’s late,” Jon replied with more softness in his voice. “And you’re drunk.” “But, I—“ He gave her a little smile. “It really was nice to see you. Good night, Sansa.” And then he turned, walked back to Robb’s car, and drove into the night.
26 notes · View notes
sailorshadzter · 4 years
Text
the first of many prompts thanks to folklore. 
And it's another day, waking alone.
She lays in the stillness of the morning for several moments before the door swings open, her ever prompt, ever loyal handmaiden Shae, striding in with a smile and nod. Shae understands her, Shae knows her, and so she leaves her lady to her own thoughts all while she feeds kindling into the dying fire, returning it to it's former golden glory. When she's finished with that, it's across the room she goes, thumbing through the wardrobe in an effort to find a gown for that day. As always, and without much effort, she knows how to pick the perfect gown. And so it's Sansa's favorite black and gray wool gown, cut in a fashionable style with draping sleeves that Sansa had spent hours embroidering white flowers along. "It's time, my lady," Shae finally says, knowing that if they waste much more time, it will be afternoon before she's ready for the day. Sansa can't help but to smile; there in private, Shae still yet refers to her as she had all those long months in King's Landing.
"Send for a bath, won't you?" Sansa asks as she swings her legs over the side of the bed, rising up as Shae brings her robe. As if summoned by thought, there comes a knock on her door and Sansa smiles as Shae turns to open it for the arriving pair of maids.
It doesn't take long for her rooms to be full of activity; two grooms have brought the copper tub in and while one maid hangs the privacy sheet, two others haul in the buckets of hot water, spilling them into the tub until it's dangerously full. Shae takes over then, dropping the perfect amount of rosewater into the bath, sent specially for the Queen in the North from Dorne, a gift from their ever persistent prince. Stripping from her robe and night gown, Sansa allows Shae to help her into the tub, sloshing water over the sides as she sinks below the surface.
On this day, there's to be a celebration, but the truth is Sansa doesn't care much for celebrating. Not when yet again, just as she had been at her coronation, she would be alone. It was true, she has Shae, and Brienne too, but she is without her family. Her pack. Arya had yet to return from her travels and Bran was of course in King's Landing. Though her younger brother wrote her often, it was not the same as being together beneath the roof of Winterfell. And... No, she cannot think of him, it's far too painful yet to think of him.
And yet...
She does. She can't help it.
She thinks of Jon when the sun warms her skin in the courtyard. When she sits in the great hall, sitting alone where she once sat at his side, she thinks of him. Though the lords of the North cheer to their Queen in the North, she wishes they might cheer to their king. In the godswood, the only place she can find an hour to herself, she loses herself in the memory of him. Of his hands, tangled in her hair. Of his Stark gray eyes, softening only when gazing at her by the moonlight spilling in through the curtains. The truth was, everywhere she went, she was reminded of him, reminded of the pain that was the loss of him. She thinks of him always. Always.
"My lady..." It's Shae, dropping to her hunches at the side of the tub, reaching out to tenderly stroke her queen's cheek. Until that moment, she had not realized she'd even begun to cry. "Today is a happy day." Shae says in a tone that brooks no argument, one which brings a halfhearted laugh from Sansa's lips.
If nothing else, Sansa has Shae, and for that she is thankful.
[ x x x ]
It's a long day of celebrations.
The feast lasts long into the evening, with dozens of toasts to the queen and to the coming of spring. They toast to surviving another year, they toast to those who had died just over a year ago so they might live.
But now it is late and all she can think about is stripping from her heavy gown and climbing back into her bed. To her surprise, Shae is not within her room when she enters, though the fire is burning and her bedclothes lay out on the bed as they always do. Sansa sighs as she lifts her crown from her head, setting it aside on the table, thinking perhaps she might read through the letters she had not had time to read that morning, but it's just as she's breaking the seal on the first one that Shae slips into her room. "My lady," she dips her a curtsy, rising up to meet Sansa's gaze with one of her own. "I have heard that there is a rider at the gate." She says and at once, Sansa is casting aside the letter she once thought she might read, a knot twisting in her belly.
"This late?" She hears herself ask, to which Shae nods.
"Lord Royce instructed him to be fed and given a bed for the night-" Shae begins, watching as Sansa's eyes widen, surprise taking root.
"H-him?" The young queen squeaks, daring not to believe it, though against her better judgment her heart has begun to beat wildly in her chest. "It is a man?" It could be anyone, she tells herself, it could be any man seeking shelter from the cold night, it could be any other man but him. And yet...
Somehow, she knows.
"Send him to me." She commands and Shae nods, backing from the room to head downstairs, to where the man was eating in the kitchens. Left alone, Sansa rises from the chair she's been sitting in, suddenly far too nervous to remain still. Instead, she paces back and forth, doing everything she can to calm the racing of her heart, to steady her uneven breathing, telling herself that it won't be him that walks through her door. It won't be...
There comes a knock and she nearly leaps from her skin. The door opens and at first, it is Shae that steps into the room, though a man follows in behind her, a man with a head of dark curls she would recognize anywhere. "Jon..." She whispers aloud the name she's only spoken in her mind, the name she's refused to utter aloud to anyone, even to Shae, even to Brienne. It is the name she's dreamed of for the last year, the name of the man she's loved all this time.
Before she can say another word, Jon is approaching her, his Stark colored gaze steady as it finds hers. "My queen," he speaks, his voice thick, but it is the voice she knows, the voice she loves. Behind him, Shae ducks from the room with a smile, but neither Sansa nor Jon even notice. He unsheathes Longclaw and sinks to his knee then, offering his sword in reverence to her as every Lord in the North has done. But not a single one of those pledges of loyalty could mean what this one does. "I have come a humbled man, unworthy to stand in your presence. But I hope... I hope I might beg your forgiveness." He tilts his head back so he might look up at her and just as her eyes fill with tears, so do his. "I have come in hopes you might allow me to once again stand at your side."
For the last year, Jon has thought of little else beyond the woman that stands before him. She has consumed him like a fire; in his dreams and waking thoughts alike, she was always there. In the stunning blue skies, he saw her eyes. When the sun sank beneath the horizon and the skies faded to crimson and gold, he saw her hair. When the wind blew past him, it was the whisper of her voice against his skin.
For the last year, he has wrestled with feeling undeserving of being beside her, of even allowing her to lay her eyes upon him. But as the day marking one year of her reign approached, he'd been unable to wrestle any longer. And so he had set out with Ghost, to return to the place he once thought he might never return to.
It takes only a moment longer, but she's raising him up, hands somewhat shaking as they reach for him. They slide into place against his cheeks, rough with stubble, a reminder of nights long ago. "Sansa..." He whispers her name, soft and slow, and it is enough to undo her entirely. Without another thought, without another word, she's in his arms, sinking into him. Jon wraps his arms around her, the gesture still familiar, still imprinted upon him.
"Welcome home," is all she's able to whisper before his mouth finds hers.
32 notes · View notes
nongotfan · 5 years
Text
S8E4: The Last of the Starks
Steve Jobs would never have allowed this to happen. ★★★½☆
Scratch the surface of any Game of Thrones fandom these days, and you’ll find discussions about how things have gone downhill since they “ran out of book”. These range from complaints about the show’s compression of time and space since season 7, to straight up “how it would have gone if George had written it” fan-fiction.
What these commentators all gloss over is the fact that George hasn’t written it, and not for lack of trying.
When I was a lad, Fantasy authors either wrote stand-alone novels or they wrote trilogies. Sometimes the stand-alone novels shared a world and built on each others stories as they went, and sometimes the trilogies were stretched over five books, but the general rule was you got a complete story with a beginning, middle and most importantly an end, in somewhere around 500,000 words.
Then the 90s happened, and somehow in the course of a decade we got not one but two hugely successful series of books that put the “sprawl” in “sprawling fantasy epic.” The second of those series was by George R. R. Martin and is now a ground-breaking TV series, the first was from Robert Jordan and they’re threatening to inflict an adaptation of that on us next, braid-tugging and all.
What each of these series demonstrated in their own special ways was that if you get a million words into your fantasy story and still can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, you’re in trouble.
Martin has spent the best part of the last decade wrestling with the beast he created. Books have been delayed, reworked, split in two, distracted with prequels and then delayed again. This is not the picture of an author who knows how to get his complex plot and demanding characters to whatever ends he has planned for them.
The producers of Game of Thrones, on the other hand, had to come up with solutions now, and where Martin can ask for whatever page count his plot demands, rising production costs forced the TV show’s last two seasons to be cut from twenty episodes to thirteen.
In Season Seven, this meant teleporting armies from one side of the continent to the other to fit all the battles in. In Season Eight, this means making use (a second time) of the Strangely Invisible Fleet to (for the second time) motivate Danaerys to rash action while cutting down her advantage in a way that reminds you that Game of Thrones doesn’t care about your feelings.
But I Digress
It’s easy to overlook, given the problems the show has fitting everything that needs to be done in a shortened series, how brave a decision it was to change the pace so drastically this episode and just sit at Winterfell watching the aftermath. There are a hundred reasons and ways the show could have skipped this, and would have been lesser for the decision.
80% of this episode was vintage Game of Thrones: moving the plot forward steadily just by having well fleshed-out and motivated characters all trying to advance their own interests either with, over, or against each other. Nothing flashy, just strong scenes that give them space to do their thing.
Which I guess is why the remaining fifth was so jarring. This week we are here, next week we need to be there, and we just can’t get there in time unless something drastic happens.
Other Stuff
The seven Harry Potter books clock in at just over a million words, the equivalent of reading The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and then winding down with the Dragonlance Chronicles. The same word-count would get you just about to the end of the third volume of A Song of Ice and Fire, or a little way into book four of Wheel of Time, but only two thirds through Proust’s A la recherche du temps perdu.
I can’t remember who pointed this out on Twitter, but Missandei could have solved an awful lot of problems by grabbing Cersei and jumping off the wall.
I don’t really feel qualified to discuss That Line From Sansa, except to say that one aspect of the TV adaptation you can’t blame on pacing or plot complexity is “they put in a lot more rape”.
Similarly, maybe you shouldn’t ▉▉▉▉ your show’s only ▉▉▉▉▉▉ ▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉?
Watching The Hound and Arya ride off together was a great moment, and you kind of have to assume they’re in the castle already, but I really can’t see them giving Cersei’s scalp to Arya on top of everything else.
Bronn still has a part to play in how this turns out, because otherwise including his scenes at all makes no sense
If I was forced to sum up the theme of Game of Thrones, it would be, to quote Dark Helmet:
“Evil will always triumph, because Good is dumb.”
1 note · View note