they should have killed the masters

book-only fics and edits for asoiaf. favs are arya and arianne, then jon, but i like most of em tbh. i ship most anything interesting, also love platonic shit idc

[aryaarianne]

If anybody has any good ideas for ASOIAF FCs from late 20th century films, send them to me! Right now I’m just beginning to compile some from Letterboxd, for possible fancast projects. Ideally I’d be able to do one fairly sized cast list from each decade or otherwise defined era, so reply or message me if you have ever watched an older movie and an actor reminded you of a character (other than Keanu as Jon, since he’s practically a fandom staple, although you’re welcome to send asks about it regardless)! NOT limited by country - if you have a good foreign film FC I’m absolutely here for it.

[hewantshisbrideback]

"M'lady? You look sad. Are you thinking of your sister?" The dwarf patted her on the hand. "The Crone will light your way to her, never fear. The Maiden will keep her safe."

"I pray that you are right."

Brienne II, A Feast for Crows

[hewantshisbrideback]

The Parallels of Περσεφονη and Princess Arya Stark

You had best run back to your room, little sister. Septa Mordane will surely be lurking. You'll be sewing all through winter. When the spring thaw comes, they will find your body with a needle still locked tight between your frozen fingers. A Game of Thrones, Arya I

[hewantshisbrideback]

Thinking about how Arya parallels Odysseus, using her wits to defy physically monstrous captors, repeated separation from her allies, sailing across the sea, isolated occultists who rely on transformation and poison luring them in and using a combination of coercion and magic to keep them under control, long, arduous journeys often misinterpreted as lighthearted adventures when the entire point is that our hero(ine) is desperate to get home to their family and loved ones after suffering through a war like none before.

Which got me thinking about connections between Arya and Jon, and Odysseus and Penelope, obviously... like, I'm thinking of Penelope putting off her duty to remarry until Odysseus, the only husband she wants, returns and Jon denying his duty to claim Winterfell until it's Arya, the only bride or blood he ultimately can't deny, on the line.

[hewantshisbrideback]

Different Roads: Castle Black

So cold, he thought, remembering the warm halls of Winterfell, where the hot waters ran through the walls like blood through a man's body.There was scant warmth to be found in Castle Black; the walls were cold here, and the people colder. No one had told him the Night's Watch would be like this; no one except Tyrion Lannister. The dwarf had given him the truth on the road north, but by then it had been too late. Jon wondered if his father had known what the Wall would be like. He must have, he thought; that only made it hurt the worse. Even his uncle had abandoned him in this cold place at the end of the world. [...] Three days after their arrival, Jon had heard that Benjen Stark was to lead a half-dozen men on a ranging into the haunted forest. That night he sought out his uncle in the great timbered common hall and pleaded to go with him. Benjen refused him curtly. "This is not Winterfell," he told him as he cut his meat with fork and dagger. "On the Wall, a man gets only what he earns. You're no ranger, Jon, only a green boy with the smell of summer still on you." ❦ Jon III, A Game of Thrones

[swordmaid]

a girl who is a noir detective man and a guy who is a femme fatale

[highgardenart]

Bellegere Otherys

“it was said that [she] had a husband in every port and that Aegon was but one of many.”

[hewantshisbrideback]

ARYA STARK AND THE GODS ❦ BOURNE FOR THE GOD OF DEATH

Thirty different gods stood along the walls, surrounded by their little lights. The Weeping Woman was the favorite of old women, Arya saw; rich men preferred the Lion of Night, poor men the Hooded Wayfarer. Soldiers lit candles to Bakkalon, the Pale Child, sailors to the Moon-Pale Maiden and the Merling King. The Stranger had his shrine as well, though hardly anyone ever came to him. Most of the time only a single candle stood flickering at his feet. The kindly man said it did not matter. "He has many faces, and many ears to hear."

The Many-Faced God, also known as Him of Many Faces, is a deity worshipped by the Faceless Men, a guild of assassins established in the Free City of Braavos. The tale of the guild's beginnings centers around a figure of unknown origins, the first Faceless Man, who heard the prayers of the slaves to their various gods of death and came to conclude they all prayed to the same god "with a hundred different faces", the Many-Faced God, and that he was "that god's instrument".

This belief came to be reflected in the Guild's temple, which has a large public sanctuary that contains idols of thirty death gods. The religious order refills its pool of black water with a poison, so that drinking from it leads to a painless death. Visiting worshippers light candles to their god, then drink from the fountain using a stone cup, then go lie in one of the alcoves. Others take advantage of special alcoves, called "dreaming couches", which have special candles that bring visions of the past, for a sweet and gentle death.

Followers of Him of Many Faces consider death to be part of the natural order of things and a merciful end to suffering. The guild will agree to kill anyone in the known world, for a price, considering this contract to be a sacrament of their god. The price is always high or dear, but within means of the person if they are willing to make the sacrifice. The cost of their services also depends on the prominence and security of the target.

The High Valyrian words associated with the cult and its assassins are valar morghulis, or "all men must die", and its traditional response, valar dohaeris, or "all men must serve". This philosophy runs deep. Members are made to forsake their identities for the service of the Many-Faced God, and may only assassinate targets they have been hired to kill. They are not allowed to choose who is worthy of the "gift" by themselves.

[georgescitadel]

When Jaime and Roose are having dinner at Harrenhal and talking with each other, it’s a key chapter in Roose's decision. At that point, I don't think Roose is completely committed yet. He's trying to decide which side he's gonna come down on, and he's been presented with Jaime, whose hand has been cut off by men who are ostensibly fighting for him, so he's concerned - “Am I gonna be held responsible for maiming Lord Tywin's favorite son? A Lannister always pays his debts!”. Roose is really feeling out Jaime in that scene, there's a lot of careful dialogue in that sequence. There's two men, neither one really saying what they're saying.

- George R.R. Martin, Game Of Thrones DVD

[kraehenkunst]

a boy no longer

Catelyn, Robb and Greywind in the Riverlands. I’ve been asked to draw Robb a couple of times now, so here he is! As always, house Starks clothes are inspired by mongolian and russian fashion ❄️

[secretlyatargaryen]

So the other day I saw someone describe Tyrion as having a “hero complex” in relation to his wedding to Sansa, and I think what’s always bothered me about these types of criticisms is that from Tyrion’s perspective the wedding to Sansa represents something that he’s denied as a disabled man in Westeros, and I’m not talking about sex or love but the kind of social legitimacy that marriage to a noble lady brings. Tyrion’s desire to protect Sansa comes from a place not only where he is identifying with her as a fellow abuse victim, and also projecting Tysha onto her a bit, but that he on some level wishes that he could be Sansa’s “knight”. Tyrion’s thoughts about Sansa or Shae are closely linked to how he’ll never be like Jaime or that knight that flirts with Shae on the stairs, or even Loras, he’ll never be the one who gets to rescue the maiden, his one moment of glory during the Battle of Blackwater results in him nearly dying and winding up scarred, and in a reduced position of power and even more isolated than he was before.

Of course the whole idea of chivalry is sexist, which is why Sansa’s narrative is largely about deconstructing the relations between knights and ladies, but disabled men are also excluded by chivalry so I find it hard to blame Tyrion for wishing he could inhabit that role.

I mean the idea that Sansa owes Tyrion anything is complete bullshit, and it’s horrible that she is even forced into that position, but I don’t understand why people think it’s progressive to criticize a disabled person for fantasizing about being a hero.

That’s why it’s powerful when Tyrion says that he can be good to Sansa or when he compares himself to the Knight of Flowers or when he tells Joffrey that Sansa is not hers to torment or when he thinks about how it’s his duty to protect Sansa as her husband. He’s doing something that’s entirely unexpected of him as a disabled person and presenting himself as someone worthy of the same kind of idealized masculinity that able bodied men are expected to have.

I also think though that Tywin specifically puts Tyrion into this situation with Sansa because of an expectation that it doesn’t matter whether Tyrion is forced to do something dishonorable, like sleep with a child. Tyrion isn’t bound by knightly vows so Tywin isn’t violating any codes by forcing Tyrion into marriage. Whereas I think people would see it as disreputable if Jaime were forced into a situation like that, Tyrion is both regarded as a threat to Sansa’s sexual purity and a laughingstock for NOT having sex with her and trying to protect her. The idea that he’s trying to be chivalrous with Sansa is treated as ridiculous, made explicit when Jaime describes Tyrion protecting Sansa as a “fit of gallantry” with faint amusement at the idea that Tyrion would attempt to try and play a role wholly unexpected for someone like him.

[annoni-no]

I’ve been going back and forth and back and forth on how to respond to this, because I don’t want to tell someone that it’s #Problematic to find something empowering, especially when it involves marginalized groups, but I just don’t agree with this framing of the dynamic between Tyrion and Sansa.  It strikes me as being in the same category of cheering for Cersei for refusing to be sidelined by misogynistic men, or Jaime for ending of siege of Riverrun without bloodshed because of the personal ambition/chivalry/virtue/what-have-you that the writer finds most commendable, while eliding what the character is exercising that ambition/chivalry/virtue/what-have-you in service of.  And you can’t!  Cersei is right to call out the Patriarchy’s bullshit, she’s right that she’s frequently dismissed for her gender rather than (her very real) lack of competence, but I just cannot cheer for her striving for power when her goal for and use of that power isn’t to help anyone else, but solely to serve herself and hurt those she hates (or who impede her, or are incidentally in the way, or she couldn’t be bothered to care if they would be hurt by something else she was trying to achieve, or…).  Jaime’s right that it would be bad to murder even more people, he’s right that the Freys and Sybell Spicer are monstrous people worthy of no respect whatsoever, but he still engineers that ‘bloodless’ (NEVER FORGET THE THOUSANDS SLAUGHTERED AT THE RED WEDDING) takeover to reward those same people he so rightly has such contempt for!  What should I celebrate in that?  That he’s not committing further crimes to reward an atrocity that is already destroying the fabric of society by the time he returns to the Riverlands?  The means and the ends both matter.

Tyrion himself points the audience toward the fundamental problem of how he’s relating to Sansa when he compares himself to the Knight of Flowers.  The Knight of Flowers is exactly one of the False Knights Sansa has had to learn to guard herself against!  Loras Tyrell was gallant and chivalrous toward her to the exact limit of what benefited himself and House Tyrell, and not a whit beyond.  Tyrion absolutely had more concern for Sansa’s personal wellbeing than Loras, but both Knights of Flowers in the end put the their House’s gain before Sansa’s personal well-being.  Yes, it is objectively better for Sansa for Tyrion to protect her from Joffrey’s beatings.  Yes, it is objectively better for Sansa to not be raped than to be raped.  Yes, it is objectively better for Sansa to be kept in a cage with nice cushions and food and other comforts than for her to be kept in a cage of metal gratings and a bare metal floor.  But it is objectively bad to keep her in a cage at all!  THAT is where I have a problem with applauding Tyrion’s behavior towards Sansa in their marriage: he never acts as a TRUE knight for her interests.  Even though he knows full well that it’s the marriage to a Lannister, ANY Lannister, that is most painful for her, he never once considers a way to spirit her away to DISSOLVE THE MARRIAGE SHE WAS FORCED INTO AT SWORDPOINT.  He thinks about them leaving together, but that’s as much if not more about his own discomfort and abuse from his family than what would actually make Sansa happy.

I’m not trying to say that Tyrion should have been able to make this step at that point in his character development.  I’m aware that he’s also an abuse victim, and that it’s hard to break away from abusive environments.  Tyrion doing so at that time would probably have been as unrealistic as Theon moving to rescue Jeyne any sooner than he did.  Nor am I under any illusions that it wouldn’t have been extremely dangerous for Tyrion, especially as a disabled man.  ADWD proved that, didn’t it?  But I think Martin is uncompromising in what it means to be a hero:

“Seven, Brienne thought again, despairing.  She had no chance against seven, she knew.  No chance, and no choice.

She stepped out into the rain, Oathkeeper in hand.”

And honestly, I agree. 

I’m sure Tyrion will be one of the three saviors of the world, but he’s not there.  Yet.

TL;DR I disagree that we should ever celebrate the upholding of inherently abusive power structures just because a marginalized individual has managed to make themselves Exceptional within them.  Especially when that exceptionalism is explicitly at the expense of another marginalized person/people.  Let’s tear down the structures altogether so no one is marginalized at all.

[secretlyatargaryen]

The equivalence you make between Tyrion in the marriage to Sansa, Cersei striving for power in a misogynistic society, and Jaime doing damage control in the Riverlands is a false one, though. Jaime is acting from a place of power in order to uphold a corrupt status quo, whereas Cersei and Tyrion are both victims of their situation, to varying degrees. Cersei is not praiseworthy for abusing others but she is praiseworthy for refusing to be sidelined by misogynistic men (and those two things should not be conflated with each other), and you can acknowledge that both of those things exist at the same time. You can also acknowledge Tyrion is praiseworthy for trying to play a “heroic” role in terms of Sansa while also acknowledging that Sansa should not be in that situation, and that is not the same thing as supporting Sansa’s abuse because Tyrion is not the one who has control over that situation. You seem to acknowledge this but also say that Martin’s definition of “hero” is uncompromising, but the problem is that what constitutes a hero and the agency to act heroically look different in abusive situations, and Tyrion is put into an abusive situation by his father when he is told that his familial duty is to abuse Sansa. Tyrion tries to do what he can in that situation and I think it’s unethical and a misunderstanding of what abuse actually looks like to criticize him for not being able to run away with Sansa. Neither Cersei, when she uses her power as Queen to abuse others, or Jaime, when he plays enforcer at Riverrun, are in situations where they are forced to do anything. No one is making them do those things. And it’s a false equivalency to compare this to Tyrion forced into a marriage against his will and demand that he do things that you already said you think would be impossible for him. Tyrion exercises the agency he has to do what he can for Sansa and sometimes that is what being a hero looks like, and I think that kind of thing is no less important to celebrate than those who have the agency to face off against seven people at one time.

And so much of what these books are about IS about this, about people acting within the boundaries they are forced into, and I think ignoring those boundaries is very much NOT a good approach to that Brienne quote. This is like saying that Sansa should fight seven men and free herself from King’s Landing or die trying. It’s unreasonable to expect that of her and victim blaming to criticize her for not doing that.

I’m not sure what you mean about exceptionalism except maybe you think I’m saying that Tyrion is The One Good Man to Sansa and that he deserves her? Because that is not what I’m saying. I’m saying that sometimes doing the heroic thing means helping in whatever small way you can, even if it’s not enough, and that heroism looks differently when you’re in an oppressive or abusive situation. I don’t really see how that’s “upholding an abusive power structure” because Tyrion neither chose nor wanted the marriage to begin with. Tyrion’s in a position where the people in power are using him to uphold an abusive power structure, which is different from Cersei and Jaime using their power to gain more power for House Lannister.

My post was also less about praising Tyrion for his behavior towards Sansa and more about commenting on criticism of him for wishing he could do better. Because sometimes wishing you could be better is the best you can do, especially in abusive situations. Sometimes you do have the opportunity or the skill or the will to pull off the suicide mission and sometimes you have to work within an oppressive system, and I think Martin’s books are about that, too. I would point to Sansa as exhibit A for that.

[secretlyatargaryen]

@annoni-no I’m also not sure how Tyrion can dissolve the marriage? He does think about how the High Septon is in Tywin’s pocket and won’t be granting an annulment against Tywin’s wishes.

There’s also a difference between that situation and Brienne’s because Brienne’s is an idealized heroic situation. Dying in battle for the greater good is idealized in Westerosi society. Disobeying your family and refusing to go through with your marriage duties is not. I guess Tyrion could hide Sansa away somewhere or go on the run with her but I think it’s much less likely for any Westerosi character to do that than to do what Brienne does, regardless of that character’s personal morality. It’s kind of easy to make a heroic choice when you are facing the possibility of an honorable death vs being put in an abusive situation where neither of the choices are ideal. Tyrion isn’t facing death if he goes against Tywin but that’s what makes doing so hard, he has to live with the consequences of his choices and that’s what the heroic sacrifice narrative doesn’t acknowledge: sometimes there are no good choices and you have to live with it.

[elfheim]

“the problem is that what constitutes a hero and the agency to act heroically look different in abusive situations” “that’s what the heroic sacrifice narrative doesn’t acknowledge: sometimes there are no good choices and you have to live with it“

[secretlyatargaryen]

It’s kinda baffling that people who claim to love Sansa or Brienne do not understand this. Brienne’s narrative says it outright. People sing songs if you die in battle, but no one sings songs for ladies who die in childbed, women expected to pop out heir after heir under dangerous conditions, sometimes under coercive circumstances. Some women do take the suicide route, the heroic sacrifice, and we also see Sansa contemplate this and decide that survival is better. Same with Tyrion, and no one has a right to criticize someone for being abused because they did what they had to do to survive.

[hewantshisbrideback]

ARYA STARK AND THE GODS ❦ WARD OF THE RED GOD

Arya remembered Thoros of Myr in his bits of old armor, worn over robes so faded that he had seemed more a pink priest than a red one. Yet his kiss had brought Lord Beric back from death. She watched the red god’s house drift by, wondering whether these Braavosi priests of his could do the same.

The religion’s prime deity is known by many names to his worshippers - the Lord of Light, the Heart of Fire, the God of Flame and Shadow. Beyond his following, he is most commonly referred to as the Red God, and his proper name is R’hllor. The religion is based on a dualistic, manichean view of the world, with near equal import given to R’hllor’s nemesis, the Great Other, whose name may not be spoken, who is also referred to as the Lord of Darkness, the Soul of Ice, the God of Night and Terror.

They are locked in an eternal struggle over the fate of the world; a struggle that, according the ancient prophecies from the books of Asshai, will only end when Azor Ahai, the messianic figure, returns wielding a flaming sword called Lightbringer, the Red Sword of Heroes, and raises dragons from stone. A prophecy found in ancient books of Asshai claims that after a long summer, an evil cold darkness shall fall on the world. Azor Ahai, wielding the sword Lightbringer, shall be reborn to combat this darkness.

Worship of R’hllor is practiced primarily in Essos and the Temple in Volantis has been called the greatest temple in the known world. All those who serve there are slaves who were bought as children and trained. Whether this is the case in other cities is unknown. Red priests are taught prayers and spells, and are trained to see things in fires. According to the priestess Melisandre, the Lord of Light cherishes innocent and beautiful people and items, making them the most precious sacrifice.

Red priests attribute their god’s fire to life, hence his symbol: a fiery heart. The death rite administered by priests to the deceased is known as the last kiss. The priest fills his mouth with fire and breaths the flames inside the deceased person, down his throat to his lungs, heart, and soul. The performance of this rite by Thoros of Myr upon Ser Beric Dondarrion coincided with the latter’s inadvertent, inexplicable resurrection, and the Lightnign Lord is rumored to have gifted the same to Lady Stoneheart through a kiss of his own.

[preasoiafsource]

I am Cersei of House Lannister, a lion of the Rock, the rightful queen of these Seven Kingdoms, trueborn daughter of Tywin Lannister. And hair grows back.

[asongoficeandfiresource]

It had been five years, in truth; five cruel years, for Lysa. They had taken their toll. Her sister was two years the younger, yet she looked older now. Shorter than Catelyn, Lysa had grown thick of body, pale and puffy of face. She had the blue eyes of the Tullys, but hers were pale and watery, never still. Her small mouth had turned petulant. As Catelyn held her, she remembered the slender, high-breasted girl who’d waited beside her that day in the sept at Riverrun. How lovely and full of hope she had been. All that remained of her sister’s beauty was the great fall of thick auburn hair that cascaded to her waist.

ASOIAF Minor Ladies Week || Day Two: the Riverlands

[bookdaenerystargaryen]

♕ DAENERYS APPRECIATION MONTH ♕ Day 2 → Favourite Book Moment

‟I was alone for a long time, Jorah. All alone but for my brother. I was such a small scared thing. Viserys should have protected me, but instead he hurt me and scared me worse. He shouldn’t have done that. He wasn’t just my brother, he was my king. Why do the gods make kings and queens, if not to protect the ones who can’t protect themselves?ˮ

‟Some kings make themselves. Robert did.ˮ

‟He was no true kingˮ, Dany said scornfully. ‟He did no justice. Justice… that’s what kings are for.ˮ

[theonsource]

THEON MONTH 2022 || Day 20: Gods and Religious Themes

Lifting the skin, his uncle pulled the cork and directed a thin stream of seawater down upon Theon’s head. It drenched his hair and ran over his forehead into his eyes. Sheets washed down his cheeks, and a finger crept under his cloak and doublet and down his back, a cold rivulet along his spine. The salt made his eyes burn, until it was all he could do not to cry out. He could taste the ocean on his lips. “Let Theon your servant be born again from the sea, as you were,” Aeron Greyjoy intoned. “Bless him with salt, bless him with stone, bless him with steel.”

~ A Clash of Kings

The old gods, he thought. They know me. They know my name. I was Theon of House Greyjoy. I was a ward of Eddard Stark, a friend and brother to his children. “Please.” He fell to his knees. “A sword, that’s all I ask. Let me die as Theon, not as Reek.” Tears trickled down his cheeks, impossibly warm. “I was ironborn. A son… a son of Pyke, of the islands.”

A leaf drifted down from above, brushed his brow, and landed in the pool. It floated on the water, red, five-fingered, like a bloody hand.

~ The Winds of Winter

THE GODS ARE NOT DONE WITH ME

[donewithwoodenteeth]

I've been meaning to ask you, will you do a write up on what you think the death of Lady means for Sansa? I do think it foreshadowed the death of Sansa Stark- the identity, not the person. As we see now, she's Alayne Stone. But beyond that, what are the ramifications of being the only Stark child without a wolf? And, Arya doesn't have her wolf either, but Nymeria is alive, leading a pack in the Riverlands, and Arya wargs with her every night from Braavos. Their connection is only strengthening.

Well, the whole connection between Stark and direwolf is interesting and very symbolic. It’s also very powerful and important, which means that Sansa and Arya have had to struggle through being separated from theirs.

It’s pretty complex in my opinion.

Unpopular opinion:

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