[General — Lore]
Sansa has a nightmare that she is being stabbed by her attackers from the riots. She wakes up to find her mattress bloodied by the onset of her first period. Shae tries to help Sansa conceal the evidence as it means she is ready to bear Joffrey's children. The Hound catches them and (reluctantly) informs the Queen. Cersei gives Sansa advice on motherhood, reassuring her that even if she never loves Joffrey, she will love her children with him. However, Cersei tells Sansa not to love anybody except for her children, "The more people you love, the weaker you are."
Joffrey says that he would be honored to return Margaery's love, but regrets that he is promised to Sansa. Cersei suggests Joffrey set Sansa aside because of her family's treachery. Joffrey accepts the betrothal. Joffrey states that he will adore her from this until his last day - the same endearment he once offered Sansa. Sansa turns away, feigning sadness but allowing herself laughter once she has privacy.
Sansa's revelry is halted by Petyr consoling her; she pretends to be upset. Petyr crushes her hopes of freedom and warns her that her situation has worsened, as she will no longer have the token protection of becoming Joffrey's queen but will remain his captive. Petyr tells her that she reminds him of her mother and vows to help her return home. Sansa is reluctant to trust him and maintains her facade.
In the castle gardens, Sansa and Margaery watch Loras spar with his squire . Sansa confidently remarks on his fighting ability, and inquires when she and Loras will wed, as per the Tyrell plot to keep her out of the hands of Baelish and/or the Lannisters. Margaery replies that she will "plant the seed" of the idea after she and Joffrey are married. Sansa is skeptical Joffrey will let her go but Margaery is confident he will do it to please her, once she is his wife. However, Loras begins a sexual relationship with his squire, whom he tells of his engagement. Olyvar then passes that information on to his employer: Littlefinger. A short time later, Littlefinger meets with Sansa, offering her a place on his ship that will take him from the capital to the Vale of Arryn . Sansa practices lying for a change, and tells him that they should wait until after Joffrey's wedding, primarily because she fears for his safety if the plan fails. A master manipulator, Littlefinger is clearly suspicious of her motives, but doesn't press the matter for the moment. Instead, he says he is touched by her concern for his safety, and insists that she call him "Petyr."
Margaery consoles her that Tyrion might be able to make her happy, given his skill as a lover. She concedes that there are worse Lannisters she could be wed to. Margaery informs Sansa of the variety of a woman's sexual interests, which baffles Sansa, asking if her mother taught her these things. Playing on Sansa's innocence, Margaery replies "Yes, sweet girl, my mother taught me."
Tyrion then spends the wedding feast becoming steadily drunker, annoying Sansa, who asks if he will pardon her from their table, which he does. Against Cersei's ineffectual protests, Joffrey follows Sansa and taunts her that she finally found a way to marry a Lannister and soon she will have a Lannister baby. Joffrey ponders that it doesn't really matter which Lannister gets her pregnant and asks if she would like it if he would pay her a visit later when his uncle passes out. Although Sansa doesn't answer him, Joffrey sees that she is not enthused by the prospect but he brushes it off and says Meryn Trant and Boros Blount will hold her down.
Joffrey then claps his hands and declares it is time for the bedding ceremony , which visibly horrifies Sansa. Tyrion says there will be no bedding ceremony but Joffrey brushes him off, prompting Tyrion to loudly slam a dagger into a table and threaten his nephew with castration if he doesn't stop. Joffrey seethes with outrage but Tywin defuses the situation by telling Joffrey that his uncle is clearly quite drunk. Taking the hint, Tyrion plays along and takes a visibly relieved Sansa out of the room before Joffrey can take it any further.
Sansa remains despondent over the deaths of her mother and brother. Despite encouragement from Shae and Tyrion, she refuses to eat, even declining her favorite lemon cakes. She tells Tyrion that she lies awake all night thinking of how Catelyn and Robb died, how Robb's body was desecrated, and how Catelyn's body was dumped into the river . Sansa excuses herself from the table, saying she is going to the godswood. When Tyrion offers that prayer can be helpful, Sansa reveals that she no longer prays - the godswood is the only place she can go where nobody talks to her. While in the godswood, Sansa is watched by Jaime and Brienne , and later finds herself being followed by someone.
Her pursuer corners her, revealing himself to be Dontos Hollard, whose life she had saved earlier. Dontos expresses his gratitude to Sansa for speaking on his behalf while no one else would and offers her a necklace that had once belonged to his mother, saying it is the last heirloom of House Hollard . Sansa turns it down at first, not wanting to take something with such sentimental value but after urging from Dontos says she will wear it with pride.
Meanwhile, Joffrey amuses himself with a farcical "reenactment" of the War of the Five Kings , with each king being played by a dwarf. The dwarf playing Robb wears a wolf's head that is eventually knocked off by the dwarf playing Joffrey. Sansa again looks on in grief. When Tyrion makes a veiled reference to his nephew's cowardice during the Battle of Blackwater, a furious Joffrey pours wine over his uncle's head and orders him to be his cupbearer to humiliate him further. Joffrey drops his goblet on purpose and then kicks it under the table when Tyrion tries to pick it up. Sansa, seemingly feeling pity for Tyrion, picks up the goblet and hands it to him.
At Sansa's behest, she and Tyrion try to leave, but Joffrey calls them back and demands Tyrion bring him the cup again. Tyrion grudgingly obliges but unbeknownst to everyone, Olenna had slipped some poison into Joffrey's cup. The poison had come from one of the stones on an unaware Sansa's necklace, which Dontos had given her and Olenna fiddled with earlier, allowing Olenna to retrieve the poison. Later, as Joffrey lies dying from being poisoned, Dontos Hollard approaches Sansa and encourages her to leave in order to save her life, a suggestion Sansa takes to heart.
Petyr visits Sansa in her cabin and Sansa deduces that he was involved in Joffrey's death. After he tries to deny it, he simply ends up telling her everything about the wedding. Sansa is confused because of everything that the Lannisters have done for him and tells him that she doesn't believe that he would risk his life just to confuse the Lannisters. In response, Baelish states that he would risk anything to get what he wants. She asks him what he wants and he vaguely says "everything."
Later that night, an annoyed Sansa can't sleep due to Lysa's constant screaming from consummating her marriage to Petyr. The next day, Lysa brings Sansa lemon cakes and tells her that Petyr brought three crates from the capital for Sansa. She tells Sansa a story about Catelyn when she was young, getting fat off how much sweet food she had, which makes Sansa feel self-conscious. She stops, but Lysa tells her to carry on. Lysa abruptly turns antagonistic, accusing her of having sex with Petyr. Sansa panics and tries to assure Lysa that she is a virgin. Lysa disregards this, grabbing her hand and squeezing hard. Sansa starts crying while saying that all Petyr says that she is a stupid little girl, with stupid dreams, who never learns and is a terrible liar. Lysa puts on a polite face again and assures her that it is all alright and after Tyrion is executed she can marry her cousin Robin. Sansa is not sure what to make of this.
Later, Baelish visits Sansa and asks why she lied on his behalf. Sansa explains that she has no idea what Royce and Waynwood would want from her if Littlefinger were eliminated, but she knows exactly what he wants. Later on, as Littlefinger and Robin prepare to depart on a tour of the Vale, Sansa accompanies them, appearing with noticeably darker reddish-brown hair and garbed in a feathered black dress with a plunging neckline.
Sansa, still under the alias Alayne, attends a sword jousting session for Robin at Runestone , along with Littlefinger and Yohn Royce, visibly unimpressed with Robin's sub-par skills at swordsmanship. Sansa notices that Littlefinger receives a raven message. Soon after, they leave Robin in the care of Lord Royce, for further training. On the carriage ride, Sansa questions Petyr as to why they are heading west when Lord Royce was told they would be traveling to the Fingers , unsure of his source of distrust. Petyr promises her that they are going somewhere far away, where Sansa will be safe from Queen Cersei .
On their journey, Sansa and Baelish stop for lunch at an inn, where she tries ale for the first time. Sansa can't see what all the fuss is about, although the entire episode is designed to catch Littlefinger off-guard so she can ask about the raven-message he received back at Runestone. Baelish doesn't answer the question beyond indicating that the old saying "dark wings, dark words" doesn't apply in this instance. Shortly thereafter, Brienne appears unexpectedly and declares herself for Sansa. Baelish doubts that Sansa would want a sworn shield who let both of her previous masters die, even when Brienne reveals the true, somewhat unbelievable circumstances of Renly's death. Sansa seems inclined to agree with Littlefinger, pointing out that Brienne was present at Joffrey's wedding, to which the warrior replies that neither of them wanted to be there. Sansa rejects Brienne's offer of service and watches as she quickly defeats the guards and escapes.
At dinner, Ramsay is initially well-behaved, toasting his wedding to Sansa, but is soon back to his old self as he forces Reek to apologize to Sansa for murdering Bran and Rickon. With much difficulty, Reek finally mutters an apology. Ramsay suggests that Reek be the one to give Sansa away at the wedding since he is the closest thing Sansa has to kin; Roose accepts this suggestion. Roose and Walda announce Walda's pregnancy, upsetting Ramsay, which in turn delights Sansa.
Later, when Theon comes to fetch Sansa for the wedding, she refuses to hold Theon's arm. Theon pleads for her to do so, revealing that Ramsay will punish him if she doesn't. Sansa coldly asks if he thinks she cares what Ramsay does to him, and strides past him. Reek then gives Sansa away to Ramsay, and they wed in front of the Godswood, in a ceremony officiated by Roose and attended by many Northern lords. Sansa hesitantly takes Ramsay as her husband, her eyes down, unable to look him in the eye.
After returning to the bedroom, Ramsay first interrogates Sansa about her virginity and her marriage to Tyrion, then orders her to take her clothes off. Reek turns to leave but Ramsay tells him he must stay, taunting him “you grew up with her as a girl, now watch her become a woman." Annoyed by Sansa's hesitancy, Ramsay angrily rips open the back of her dress and pushes her face-down over the side of the bed. As he unbuckles his clothes, Sansa obediently remains still but begins crying softly. Reek is visibly distraught and begins silently crying himself, as Ramsay proceeds to rape her, and forcibly consummate their marriage.
During a walk on the battlements, Ramsay gloats that one day he will be the Warden of the North, with Sansa as his Wardeness. Sansa counters by telling him his position is still threatened by Roose and Walda's unborn son since this child will be trueborn while Ramsay is not, as Ramsay is bastard-born and was legitimized by King Tommen Baratheon , who Sansa asserts is another bastard.
Sansa remains angry at Theon for his betrayal, as well his role in Bran and Rickon's murder. When Theon enters her chambers again to bring her latest meal, she demands an answer for his latest betrayal and coldly expresses approval when he tells her about the torture Ramsay put him through. Theon shamefully admits he deserved it as he did terrible things, specifically killing " those boys ." Enraged by his reference seemingly to her brothers as "those boys" rather than Bran and Rickon, Sansa vehemently demands to know why they should be dead while he still breathes the air, forcing Theon to finally admit that they were not Bran and Rickon but two farm boys. Stunned by this admission, her anger towards Theon cools. However, when she asks if he knows where they might have gone to, he breaks down and leaves the room, fearful of what Ramsay will do if and when he finds out what he just told her. However, Sansa appears to be left with a sense of renewed hope by the revelation that she has more surviving family left.
Later, Sansa receives a letter from Petyr asking to meet in Mole's Town . Accompanied by Brienne, they meet in a ruined house, and Sansa angrily tells Baelish the details of her wedding night, asking if he knew the truth about Ramsay all along. Instead, Baelish changes the subject, informing Sansa he has rallied the Knights of the Vale to help her, along with news that her great-uncle Brynden has recaptured Riverrun. Sansa takes an alliance with the Blackfish into consideration, but refuses help from Baelish, warning him never to speak to her again. She says she has an army. Petyr responds it's her brother's army and adds, "Half-brother."
Sansa and Jon meet with Ramsay on the day before battle. Ramsay tries to taunt Sansa, but she remains stoic. She asks Ramsay how do they know if he truly has their younger brother Rickon. Smalljon answers her question by throwing the decapitated head of Rickon's direwolf Shaggydog into their view. As Ramsay proceeds to tell the Starks what to do if they want to save Rickon, Sansa cuts him off by telling him that he is going to die the next day and rides off.
After a meeting where Jon discusses battle plans with Tormund and Davos, Sansa admonishes Jon for attacking with too few men, saying that they need a larger force. Jon agrees they don't have enough men but responds this is the largest army they could possibly gather, saying they have pleaded with every house who would have them and the Blackfish can't help. Sansa warns Jon that Ramsay won't fall into Jon's trap, Ramsay is the one who lays traps, and Ramsay has been playing with people all his life. Jon responds he has faced worse than Ramsay Bolton, to which she replies, "You don't know him!" When Jon asks how do they get Rickon back, Sansa tells him will never get him back alive. Jon refuses to give up on their brother and Sansa tells Jon that Ramsay wants him to make a mistake. Jon asks Sansa what he should do differently but Sansa responds she doesn't know about battles and implores her brother not to do what Ramsay wants him to do. When they finish arguing, Sansa tells Jon that if Ramsay wins, she will die before she goes back to him. Jon vows to protect Sansa, to which she cynically replies that no one can keep anyone safe.
Lyanna proclaims House Mormont remembers and says, "The North remembers. We know no king but the King in the North whose name is Stark." She says that she doesn't care if Jon is a bastard son because he has Ned Stark's blood in his veins. With that, she acclaims Jon as the King in the North , as his "brother" Robb had been before him. Lyanna's speech is followed by a similar declaration from both Lord Wyman Manderly of the White Harbor and Lord Glover of Deepwood Motte. The assembled Lords of the North and the Vale acclaim Jon as the King in the North. Jon looks at Sansa, and she smiles back at him, but her smile fades when she glances at Littlefinger (the only other person not cheering), who gives her an unimpressed and knowing look.
The reunited sisters then look sadly on their father's grave statue. Arya says it doesn't really look like him. Sansa acknowledges that everyone who really knew his face is dead. Arya points out they're not. Arya tells Sansa that everyone says Sansa killed Joffrey. Sansa explains she actually didn't, though she wished she had. Arya remarks that he was always at the top of her "list." This confuses Sansa, and Arya explains that she'd been keeping a list of everyone she was going to kill - at which they both laugh. Finally, Sansa asks how Arya got back, but Arya only says her road wasn't a pleasant one. Sansa says her own road wasn't either. They hug again, earnestly and warmly. Sansa then informs Arya that Bran is home too.
Sometime later, Sansa and Littlefinger watch on silently from the walkway above as Arya and Brienne. Brienne goes easy on her at first, but then Arya completely outmaneuvers Brienne using the water dance training she received from Syrio Forel , augmented by her training with the Faceless Men . Ultimately, they reach a stalemate, with each of them holding a blade at the others' throat. Arya takes her leave of Brienne, both mutually impressed, as Sansa looks down baffled at how her sister reached such a deadly skill level.
Sansa demands to know where Arya found the letter and chides her younger sister that Cersei would be pleased to see them fighting, but Arya is still bitter towards Sansa. She realizes that while Jon would understand the difficult circumstances Sansa was under when she wrote the letter, Sansa is afraid the Northern lords will discover it and turn on her, including Lyanna Mormont. Arya adds that Lyanna is younger than Sansa was when she wrote this letter but argues Lyanna wouldn't agree with Sansa's defense that she was a child at the time. While recognizing that Sansa wrote the letter out of fear, a bitter Arya says that she prefers to embrace anger over fear.
However, still unsure of Petyr's intentions, Sansa visits Bran. From this, she learns of the Sight, in which Bran proves Petyr's ultimate guilt in the War of the Five Kings . This proves everything Petyr has done to gain power: his murder of Jon Arryn , his attempt to kill Bran, his betrayal of Ned and his attempt to turn Arya and Sansa against each other.
Petyr denies the charges, but Bran reveals that he has seen Petyr's betrayal in his visions. Sansa is unfazed by Petyr's begging and thanks him for all his lessons, promising she will never forget them. Arya then slits Petyr's throat, and Sansa watches as he dies.
On the battlements, Sansa confides in Arya that she believed Petyr really did love her, and Arya assures her that she did the right thing. Arya concedes that she couldn't have survived what Sansa survived, but Sansa disagrees, claiming that Arya is the strongest person she knows. Arya and Sansa remember their father's words about looking out for one another, and each confides how much they miss him.
Later, in the castle's great hall, Sansa sits at the high table along with Jon, Daenerys, and Tyrion. Tyrion tries to calm those present who are displeased at Jon bending the knee to Daenerys; he says that they have assembled the largest army ever seen. Sansa coolly undercuts Tyrion by asking how she is supposed to feed an army that size, as well as two full-grown dragons. When she sarcastically asks what dragons eat, Daenerys replies, "Whatever they want."
Sansa later converses with Tyrion privately for the first time since they last saw each other at Joffrey's wedding; Tyrion calls the wedding "a miserable affair," though Sansa sardonically remarks, "It had its moments." She also calls Tyrion out for believing that Cersei will honor the pledge to send the Lannister forces north. She is disappointed in Tyrion, saying she used to think Tyrion was the cleverest man she ever met.
Sansa shows Jon the message that Robett Glover will be remaining in Deepwood Mott with his troops, as he never pledged to fight for a Targaryen. She expresses her disapproval of Jon giving up his crown to Daenerys. Jon replies titles don't matter in the face of the Night King and the army of the dead and they don't stand a chance against them without Daenerys's help. Although Sansa assures Jon that her faith in his judgement has not waivered, she bluntly asks him if he truly bent the knee to save the North, or because he loves Daenerys.
The awkward moment is interrupted by Maester Wolkan announcing the arrival of Theon and his men. In the great hall, Theon kneels to Daenerys and asks Sansa's permission to stand with the Starks against the army of the dead, at which Sansa strides forward and embraces him. The two are later seen having a meal in the courtyard while awaiting the call to arms.
The two discuss the many trials they've suffered since their last meeting, and Clegane reminds Sansa that she could have been spared many horrors if she'd left with him when he offered. While not downplaying her own tragedies, Sansa coolly responds that without those horrors, she would still be the "little bird" Cersei thought her to be - ignorant of the cruelty of the world and unable to fend for herself.
Sansa later receives word of the ambush on the Targaryen fleet in which Rhaegal was killed, while Missandei is captured. She tells Jaime that she wanted to see his sister executed, but that it will likely not happen due to this setback.
Sansa's innocent, childhood infatuation with the ideals of princesses and knights made her tragically susceptible to the manipulations of the Lannisters. She held the blind belief that all queens and princes are kind and truthful, as if inherently a result of their titles, when Cersei just happened to be a woman who married a king to secure a marriage alliance, and Joffrey just happened to be her son. Without real cause, she blindly loved Joffrey with all her heart and trusted and admired Cersei, only for them to repay her love and trust with cruel abuse, with Joffrey having her father beheaded before her very eyes.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Sansa enjoys conventional "ladylike" pursuits, with a keen interest in music, poetry, singing, literature, history, dancing and embroidery. She was taught to play the High harp by Lady Leonette. She has a romantic notion of handsome princes and knights fighting honorably for love and loyalty. She is sharply contrasted with her far less idealistic and tomboyish younger sister, Arya. She is described as traditionally beautiful, taking after her mother's family with her high cheekbones, deep blue eyes, and thick soft auburn hair.
In sharp contrast to Arya, Sansa is very timid, passive and submissive, waiting for things to happen rather than take active actions. She steps out of her passivity only on rare occasions, like the time she intervened to save Ser Dontos or her momentary intent to kill Joffrey, but these are exceptions; during the entire time she was held captive at the Red Keep, she did not make even the slightest effort to find a way to escape.
When dealing with cruel or frightening people, Sansa uses her courtesy as an armor, as taught by septa Mordane, but it does not protect her from Joffrey's cruelty. She is often beaten by any of the Kingsguard (except the Hound), whenever Joffrey feels she needs to be taught a lesson. On one occasion, Joffrey decides that beating Sansa is not enough, and orders Meryn Trant and Boros Blount to strip her; only Tyrion's intervention prevents something worse.
Unlike in the show, Sansa does not befriend Shae and does not trust her. Shae does whatever Sansa tells her, but sometimes, she gives Sansa insolent looks. Sansa has no idea why Shae looks at her this way, for Sansa does not know Shae is her husband Tyrion's lover.
As a precaution, Sansa's hair is dyed black (as her auburn hair would reveal her as a Tully) and is given the alias of "Alayne Stone", Littlefinger's bastard daughter who recently decided to seek him out after having been entrusted to the Faith of the Seven . Sansa keeps her true identity hidden whilst in the Vale; starting from her second POV chapter of A Feast for Crows , she is no longer described as "Sansa" in the text but as "Alayne," even in her own thoughts. In the show, she is introduced simply as "Alayne", a niece of Petyr, who makes only a vague attempt to hide her hair; she later dyes it of her own volition.
Sansa has no idea that Littlefinger was involved in her father's downfall, but knows well that he is treacherous and cannot be trusted. She separates "Littlefinger" from "Petyr" in her mind: Petyr is the kind man who saved her from the Lannisters, and who loved her mother, but she knows Littlefinger exists within him, and he was never her friend: she remembers him smiling slyly and whispering in Cersei's ear; she reminds herself that whenever she was in danger, Tyrion and the Hound were the ones who saved her, not him; she knows about his part in Jon Arryn's death (Lysa reveals that in her presence); she saw him killing two people - Ser Dontos and her aunt - the latter by his own hands.
Sansa's near-death experience demonstrates her submissive personality very clearly: when Lysa accuses her of seducing Littlefinger, all the courage Sansa gathered prior to the confrontation instantly vanishes. Lysa orders her to open the Moon Door, and she complies, foolishly thinking that her deranged aunt would let her go, thus nearly getting herself killed (though she puts up some fight). Only Littlefinger's intervention saves her.
In sharp contrast to the show, Sansa does not become full of confidence overnight following her aunt's death. She does not lie to the lords about Lysa's death at her own behest, but under the command of Littlefinger; she shivers in fear when Nestor Royce inquires about Lysa, barely managing to lie that Marillion was the one who pushed Lysa to her death, and nearly faints when Littlefinger says "it was I who killed her" (as if talking metaphorically); during the meeting with the Lords Declarant, she is overcome with fear when Yohn Royce looks at her closely and asks "Do I know you, girl?" (it is unclear if he recognizes her).
Although Littlefinger does not intend to keep Sansa to himself, there are hints he lusts after her, perhaps because she resembles her mother: he occasionally gives her not-so-fatherly kisses, and once touched her left breast, while telling her "You are Alayne, and you must be Alayne all the time. Even here. In your heart."
Sansa finds her cousin Robert Arryn (in the show he is called "Robin") pitiful and repulsive. After the incident with the snow castle, she thinks angrily that even Joffrey had more spine than Robert. Still, after Lysa's death, Sansa feels sorry for him and treats him patiently as she can. At one occasion, he demands "a hundred lemon cakes and five tales", Sansa's patience nearly runs out and she feels like giving him "a hundred spankings and five slaps", but restrains herself (unlike in the show). Robert, who has no idea of "Alayne"'s true identity, initially declares he hates her for ripping his doll, but after Lysa's death he forms a strong attachment to her, even sleeping in her bed at night as he used to do in his mother's. Sansa wouldn't have minded if he only slept, but since he tries to nuzzle at her breasts and wets the bed during his seizures - she asks Lothor Brune to lock his door.
Given that the Starks and Lannisters were both Great Houses of equal social rank and both former royal houses, it isn't automatically assumed that Sansa would switch to being known as "Sansa Lannister." The major factor is that Sansa was forced into a marriage to a similarly unwilling husband by her captors. Theirs also remains an unconsummated marriage. Such unconsummated marriages can be annulled (not automatically as Littlefinger says in the show, though), but since both Sansa and Tyrion are wanted for regicide and far away from each other - it will be very difficult, though not impossible, to annul their marriage. Moreover, the books do not specify the requirements for an annulment (whether both husband and wife must attend, who is authorized to perform the annulment, etc.), thus it is unknown how difficult it will be to annul the marriage.
Sansa believes that her marriage to Tyrion is valid, as she reminds Littlefinger on the fourth novel when he reveals his plans to marry her to Harrold Hardyng. It is unclear whether Sansa knows her marriage can be annulled; Littlefinger never brings up this option. He assures her it is not a problem, her intended marriage must wait until "Cersei is done and Sansa's safely widowed." In addition, she could get married as her disguise, Alayne Stone.
In the third novel A Storm of Swords , the old woods witch known as the Ghost of High Hill speaks about Sansa: " I dreamt of a maid at a feast with purple serpents in her hair, venom dripping from their fangs. And later I dreamt that maid again, slaying a savage giant in a castle built of snow . " The first past of the prophecy is clearly about the Purple Wedding.
It has yet to be seen how and when the second part of the prophecy comes true; it is doubtful the prophecy refers to the scene involving Sansa, Robert Arryn and his doll, and the snow castle (the parallel show scene takes place in " Mockingbird ").
Eddard was the second son of Lord Rickard Stark . Lord Rickard served King Aerys II Targaryen as Warden of the North. Eddard's older brother Brandon was Rickard's heir. Eddard also has a younger sister Lyanna and a younger brother Benjen . Eddard was a stoic, dutiful, and honorable man and was considered to embody the values of the North.
Brandon had been betrothed to Catelyn, and Eddard also inherited his brother's bride. Lyanna died in Eddard's arms during the conflict. Despite his happy family life, Eddard still felt the losses of his family quite keenly, often visiting his sister's tomb to light a candle for her as his daughter, Sansa, remembered. Despite barely knowing each other, Eddard and Catelyn formed a strong and loving marriage, and had five children, Robb , Sansa , Arya , Bran and Rickon .
Joffrey is bitten by Arya's direwolf Nymeria after Joffrey attacks Arya. To save Nymeria's life, Arya forces her direwolf to flee and hides in the woods herself. Arya is found and Eddard is brought before the king and instructed to punish Arya. Joffrey lies about the cause of the incident and Sansa supports him, enraging Arya. Queen Cersei insists that a direwolf must be punished and Robert orders that Sansa's direwolf, Lady , must be killed in Nymeria's place. Eddard attends to the matter himself, to Sansa's anger.
Eddard confronts Cersei and warns her that he knows that her three children are not Robert's children, but her children conceived with her twin brother Jaime. Ned warns Cersei to flee with her children into exile before Robert returns from his hunt, when he will tell Robert the truth. Robert is mortally wounded while on the hunt. Wishing him a peaceful death, Eddard withholds his discovery. Robert has Eddard write his will, naming Eddard Protector of the Realm to rule until Joffrey comes of age. Eddard transcribes the command, but does not name Joffrey specifically and instead refers to Robert's successor as Robert's rightful heir.
Eddard writes to Robert's brother and true heir, Stannis , urging him to take the crown. He dispatches his guardsman Tomard to deliver the letter. Eddard tells Littlefinger the truth of the matter, but rejects Littlefinger's suggestion that they take advantage of the situation to increase their own power. Reluctantly, Littlefinger agrees to recruit the City Watch to Eddard's cause. Renly also offers Eddard the use of soldiers in securing Cersei and her children, but Eddard refuses to dishonor Robert's last few hours by spilling blood and frightening children. Renly flees the castle fearing that the Lannisters will show no such respect.
Bran has a dream at one point where he hears his father's voice, repeating his previous words of encouragement that Bran will become a better archer with practice, and scolding Jon and Robb for laughing at Bran missing the bullseye.
Jojen Reed tells Bran that when he told his father that he saw Ned’s execution in his visions , it was the first time he saw his father cry. Bran realizes Jojen's father is Howland Reed and tells Jojen that Howland saved Ned's life in the Rebellion.
When Jaime reveals to Brienne his true motives behind killing the Mad King , Brienne asks him why he didn't tell Ned Stark of his motives. He angrily rants that the "honorable" Ned Stark would never have believed him. Jaime believes that Ned judged him guilty the moment he laid eyes on him.
Shortly before they are massacred at the wedding of Edmure Tully and Roslin Frey , Robb and his wife Talisa consider naming their unborn child after Ned if it is a boy. Catelyn also reveals to Roose Bolton that at their wedding Ned forbade the traditional bedding ceremony , fearing it would be bad luck if he punched a man on their wedding night.
When Jon turns down Stannis 's offer of legitimacy, Stannis is disappointed and remarks, "You are as stubborn as your father. And as honorable." Jon takes this as praise of his father but Stannis tells him, "I didn't mean it as praise. Honor got your father killed."
Ned appears in one of Bran 's visions while under the tutelage of Brynden Rivers . In the vision, Ned appears in his youth, training with Benjen Stark . Ned teases Benjen about his swordsmanship and hugs him. Benjen tries to invite Wylis, a stable boy who later became Hodor , but Wylis' mother insists that her son will not be fighting with lords. Ned's younger sister Lyanna Stark also appears in the vision.
Later, Ned appears in another flashback, in which he leads a small force against Lord Commander Gerold Hightower and Ser Arthur Dayne in the Red Mountains . In this battle , Ned Stark is shown to have been a highly skilled swordsman who bested Ser Gerold and held his own against Ser Arthur until Ser Arthur disarms him. Before Ser Arthur can kill Ned, Lord Howland Reed stabs Ser Arthur through the back of his neck. Ned picks up Dawn and finishes off the knight of the Kingsguard with it. After killing Ser Arthur, Ned hears a woman scream and then heads for the Tower of Joy , though he pauses when Bran calls out to him.
In a later vision, Bran witnesses Ned hugging Benjen and bidding his father, Rickard , farewell before his departure to be fostered at the Vale. After Brynden frantically passes all of his knowledge to Bran, he sees several images, some of them of his father, such as Ned's beheading and his fight with Dayne.
During Jon and Sansa 's conversation, Jon remembers Ned telling him and his brothers that, "Everything before the word 'but' is horse-shit." Sansa tells Jon she never heard him say that and Jon recalls that their father didn't say this in front of his daughters, but his sons.
When Jon reveals that he has pledged himself to Daenerys, he talks about his father and explains his reasons for telling the truth, "Talk about my father if you want, tell me that's the attitude that got him killed, but when enough people make false promises, words stop meaning anything. Then there are no more answers, only better and better lies. And lies won't help us in this fight."
Jon and Theon talk about Ned. Jon tells Theon, "Our father was more of a father to you than yours ever was. And you betrayed him." Theon agrees. Jon continues, "But you never lost him. He’s a part of you, just like he's a part of me."
Jon remembers Ned as the most honorable man he ever knew, and doubts that Ned would lie to him about his parentage all his life when Sam tells him the truth about his parentage. Sam explains Ned only lied to save Jon from Robert and that Ned swore to his sister Lyanna he would protect Jon no matter what.
However, he had the fatal weakness of being a poor politician, preferring to take the honorable route than doing what would politically benefit him - Cersei speculated that, in the game of thrones , one had to take what was in arm's reach or be damned, but Ned disagreed because the fight he fought was never to survive, but to preserve the lives of those he loved. Despite being usually straightforward, his honor could oftentimes blind him to reason, leading him to make highly impractical decisions and judgments. While intelligent, he wasn't the most imaginative person, which further exacerbated by his rigid sense of honor, made him unable to compromise or consider alternatives, usually going with the simplest and most straightforward course of action. Perhaps the best example is how he confronted Cersei about her children being fathered by Cersei's twin brother Jaime and not by Robert Baratheon. To save Cersei's children, whom he viewed as innocent and undeserving of punishment, he had proposed exile, even though it was obvious (to anyone with common sense) that Cersei would not accept Ned's offer - which meant giving up her power position and luxurious life and becoming a fugitive vagabond; instead, having already plotted Robert's death before Ned's confrontation, she told him to bend the knee to her son Joffrey and then arrested Ned when he refused.
One of Eddard's main flaws was his blunt, tactless attitude (similarly to Stannis). He failed to understand that "you catch more flies with honey rather than with vinegar." The best example for that is the manner he expressed his opinion about the suggestion to assassinate Daenerys: by acting so bluntly and disrespectfully toward Robert, Eddard only managed to anger him and make him stick to his decision. It never occurred to Eddard that he should have taken a different approach, like the way Davos tried to dissuade his king on similar circumstances (in the novels ): talk with the king in private, calmly and softly, appeal to his conscience. Eventually, Robert did regret his decision, but by then it was too late.
Furthermore, as he "grew up with soldiers", he tended to put a lot of faith in the mindset and capabilities of efficient warriors and commanders in many matters. Ned had told his illegitimate son (revealed to be nephew) Jon that true friendship is made on the battlefield. This sometimes caused him to ignore personality aspects that would have a negative effect in certain situations. He was unable to predict that Robert, despite having been his best friend, did not have the attributes required to make an effective king. Ned's belief in the importance of martial skill is supported when he stated to Renly that he believed Stannis's military accomplishments would help make him an efficient monarch.
Despite his principles, Eddard was not above acting selfishly, with disregard to other people's lives: when he was first told about Tyrion's kidnapping, he did absolutely nothing to defuse the situation - although he knew well that the Lannisters would never dismiss such offense, and innocent lives would be undoubtedly lost as a result. He had two more opportunities to resolve the matter peacefully (when confronting Jaime and Robert), but chose to pour oil on the flames by falsely claiming that Catelyn acted at his command. Eddard's pride cost many lives - among them Jory, Wyl, Heward, and residents of the Riverlands.
Eddard is also an accomplished battlefield commander, leading armies in Robert's Rebellion and the Greyjoy Rebellion . However, the books make no particular mention of his skills with a sword, other than the rumor of him killing Arthur Dayne in single combat. The books do mention his brother's swordsmanship skills, which were most likely condensed into Ned for the TV show.
The Faith of the Seven are outraged that Ned's execution was performed on the steps of the Great Sept of Baelor , believing this act of bloodshed profaned the holy grounds, and marks the beginning of a deterioration in relations between the crown and the Faith.
Catelyn and Ser Rodrik Cassel intercept Robb's army in the Neck as it presses southwards. Robb initially exclaims with excitement upon seeing his mother but stops short of embracing her lest he look weak in front of his bannermen. Catelyn looks at her son with understanding, later embracing once their liege-lords have left their tent. She tells Robb he has no choice but to go to war. However, he cannot lose, for the sake of Ned, Sansa, and Arya, as if he is defeated, Tywin Lannister will show their family no mercy.
Later on, Robb and his lords are debating on the route of their march, and on whether to march directly against Tywin's army or against Jaime 's army besieging Riverrun . To get to Jaime, they need to cross the Green Fork of the Trident , and the only crossing is at the Twins , held by the notoriously prickly and easily-offended Lord Walder Frey . A Lannister scout is captured, and Robb sends him back to warn Lord Tywin that twenty thousand Northern soldiers are marching against him.
Following Robb's arrival at the Twins, his mother instructs Theon to shoot down messenger ravens, so no word of their presence can be relayed, despite only finding a nameday message to his grand-niece Walda . He quickly realizes that negotiation is the only option, which is proven to be true when Walder's envoys arrive. Catelyn goes in Robb's place as she had previous experience with Walder from her childhood and believes she is more likely to come back alive. Upon her return, Robb hears Walder's conditions: he must take on Olyvar Frey as his squire and knight him in due process, Arya must marry Waldron Frey when they both reach an appropriate age (which Robb jokingly remarks on her future unhappiness) and following the end of the conflict, Robb must marry a woman of House Frey. Understanding the situation, Robb asks Catelyn about the beauty of his daughters, to which she can remember only one. He accepts all the conditions, crossing the Green Fork in the process.
He sends a small force of men to distract the main Lannister army under Tywin's command at the battle on the Green Fork . Meanwhile, his main army attacks Jaime's forces near Riverrun , winning the Battle of Whispering Wood and taking Jaime as a captive. Jaime suggests they end the war now with a bout of single combat between himself and Robb, but Robb refuses and has him imprisoned. Robb laments that his diversion sent 2,000 men to their deaths. He gives a speech to his army and tells them that they have won a great victory, but the war is far from over.
Robb is devastated by the news of his father's death . He is found hacking his sword at a tree in anger and grief. Catelyn calls to him and tells him he is ruining his sword. Robb drops the sword and falls into her arms, vowing to kill the Lannisters who murdered his father. Catelyn comforts him and promises him revenge, but only after they rescue Sansa and Arya first, both of them unaware that Arya has evaded capture.
Robb wins a crushing victory against a Lannister reinforcement host, led by Stafford Lannister , at the Battle of Oxcross , tactfully sending Grey Wind in first to deal with the watchmen quickly. This victory is used by the Lannisters in order to make the Northmen seem uncivilized to the south, exaggerating the use of Grey Wind in battle and portraying the Northern army as cannibals.
The following day, Robb surveys the battlefield as Silent Sisters tend to both Stark and Lannister wounded, while his bannerman, Lord Roose Bolton of the Dreadfort , argues that they should kill all of the Lannister soldiers they took prisoner because they're having trouble supplying their own army and prisoners will slow them down. Robb disagrees, saying they will fight honorably and follow the laws of war. Bolton concedes that some of the Lannister officers might have useful information they could be tortured into revealing , but Robb refuses, not wanting to give the Lannisters an excuse to torture his sisters.
Renly is killed just after agreeing to an alliance and Catelyn flees his camp to return to Robb. Renly's men swear fealty to his less agreeable brother Stannis. Robb comes across Talisa again, correctly guessing that she is a noblewoman and further flirting with her. She somewhat reciprocates. Catelyn returns to Robb's camp during their conversation. She asks Talisa about her family, to which Talisa states her family name is Maegyr , which Catelyn does not recognize. Talisa then explains her Volantene origins. Catelyn warns him against pursuing Talisa, reminding of his agreement with Lord Frey.
She explains that a slave saved her brother from drowning in the Rhoyne during a wedding, after which she decided she would no longer live in a slave-city and would dedicate her time to others. This makes Robb emotional, forcing him to admit he does not want to marry into House Frey. Talisa confesses that she feels the same, but remarks on how Robb needed to cross the Twins. They both give in to their mutual feelings and sleep together.
Robb confesses his love for Talisa to Catelyn. Catelyn warns against betraying his oath to marry a daughter of House Frey. She states that she and Ned were not in love as much they were by the end, but also explains that a gradual build-up of care is safer and stronger than what Robb feels for Talisa. Robb rejects her counsel, stating that she has no right to criticize him following her release of Jaime. In a secret ceremony conducted by a Septon of the Faith of the Seven , he and Talisa secretly marry.
Considering that Tywin didn't stop to negotiate when his own eldest son was captured, taking his younger nephews hostage will have no impact on the war. Edmure tries to at least point out that they lost only two hundred men at Stone Mill and multiple Lannister soldiers died for every man they lost, at which Robb cuts him off and shouts that they need men more than the Lannisters do. At this point, the Lannisters are in such a good strategic position that they can afford to be patient, and grind down Robb's forces through simple attrition.
Edmure insists that if word of this leaves Riverrun, Tywin Lannister will exact heavy reprisals for the deaths of his young nephews. Therefore, he suggests that they just quietly bury the boys and simply keep silent about their deaths until the war is over. Robb, however, refuses to be a liar: he says he cannot fight a war in the name of justice if he will not serve justice to murderers within his own ranks. All of Robb's advisors tell him this is a bad idea. Catelyn and Talisa warn him that the Karstark soldiers will abandon his cause and return home if he executes their lord, and they are already badly outnumbered. Catelyn says they should keep Lord Rickard hostage, and Edmure agrees, saying that they can just keep him hostage and tell the other Karstarks that no harm will come to him so long as they remain loyal.
Robb says that their blood relationship did not stop Rickard from betraying him and won't stop Robb from executing him now, but Rickard says it isn't meant to: he wants it to haunt Robb until the day he dies. With his last words, Lord Rickard says that Robb will be cursed (as a kinslayer ) and that Robb is no king of his. Obedient to the laws of his father - that the man who passes the sentence must swing the sword - Robb pronounces the sentence of death and personally beheads Lord Rickard.
In the Riverlands , en route to the Twins , Robb's army is forced to make camp, their progress delayed by heavy rain. Catelyn warns them that the prickly Walder will take the delay as an insult to him, but Edmure points out that Frey is getting the wedding he wanted; his sister counters that he is getting a wedding, but not the one he wanted, glaring at her son and his wife as she says so, pointing out that Frey wanted one of his daughters wed to a king . Robb retorts that Edmure is the best match House Frey has been offered in its history. Later that night as Robb and Talisa prepare for bed, she reveals that she is pregnant with his child. Robb is pleased by the news.
Robb's army arrives at the Twins, the castle seat of House Frey, for his uncle Edmure's wedding. Enduring Lord Frey's insults directed at him and his wife, Robb makes a public apology to Lord Frey's daughters and granddaughters for breaking his promise to marry one of them. Frey accepts the apology and offers the Starks and their men his hospitality .
That night Edmure is introduced to his bride Roslin, discovering much to his relief that she is a beauty. The feast that follows is quite celebratory, with all the participants in high spirits. Lord Walder then calls for the bedding ceremony. Robb agrees and Roslin is carried off by the male guests and followed closely by Edmure, who is collected by the Frey women. Talisa remarks on how strange the custom is, to which Robb says that it is the only proof of consummation. Talisa corrects him, saying that pregnancy is alternate evident. She states that she does not know the gender, but believes they should call it "Eddard" if it is a boy, pleasing Robb.
Lord Walder signals his men to attack. Lothar draws a knife and repeatedly stabs the pregnant Talisa in the stomach, fatally wounding her and killing their unborn child. Before he can react, Robb is shot by the musicians with crossbows several times and falls to the ground. Numerous other Stark men are killed by the assassins or Frey men. Robb crawls towards Talisa despite his injuries and manages to hold her in his arms, but he sees that she is dead.
Catelyn, having been wounded by a crossbow bolt, manages to take Joyeuse Frey hostage, threatening to kill her if Walder doesn't spare Robb, who lingers despondent beside his wife's corpse. Walder refuses, dismissing his wife as replaceable. Robb drags himself back onto his feet and weakly calls out "Mother" to her in a daze. As Catelyn looks into Robb's eyes, Roose Bolton steps in front of Robb and tells him, "The Lannisters send their regards," and stabs Robb through the heart. Catelyn, heartbroken, screams as she cuts Joyeuse's throat before her own throat is slit by Black Walder.
As the massacre of Robb's army rages outside the Twins, Robb's body is paraded atop a horse across the keep, with the head removed and replaced with that of his direwolf, Grey Wind, sewn in its place as a final insult to the King in the North. This sight is witnessed by Arya and the Hound during their escape. Later on, Arya and the Hound come across a group of camping Frey soldiers, one of whom is describing the process of sewing Grey Wind's head onto Robb's body. Arya stabs the man to death while the Hound kills the rest, exacting a small vengeance for Robb.
At the Dreadfort, Ramsay has also learned of Robb's death and joins his father in pledging allegiance to the Lannisters. While being shaved by Theon, now going by the name "Reek", Ramsay tells him of Robb's death at Roose Bolton's hands and mockingly offers his condolences, knowing full well that Theon loved Robb like a brother. Despite his betrayal, Theon is visibly shocked at the news of Robb's death, and for a moment appears to be on the verge of slitting Ramsay's throat with the razor in retaliation, but refrains from doing so since Roose and Locke are also present. Ramsay is also aware of Robb's close relationship with Jon, whom Ramsay claims may be a threat to their hold on the North if he is to seek revenge for Robb's death.
When Jaime and his forces are tasked with assisting House Frey in recapturing Riverrun from Ser Brynden Tully , Jaime discusses the terms of surrender with the Blackfish who asks Jaime if he wishes to resume his captivity, having been Robb's prisoner for many months during the war.
Following the successful second siege of Riverrun , Walder Frey invites Jaime and his forces to the Twins for a celebratory feast. During the party, Walder questions Jaime's ability in combat and mentions that the last battle Jaime fought in, he had been defeated and captured by Robb. Walder then also remarks that it does not matter given that they are both victors and "kingslayers," referring to his betrayal against Robb and Jaime's betrayal of Aerys II Targaryen .
In the Riverlands, Robb's rule also comes to an end and House Tully is stripped of its ancestral title and home by House Frey with the backing of the crown, the Lannisters, and the Boltons. Robb's uncle Edmure is kept prisoner in the years following his wedding. However, Brynden Tully, the "Blackfish", continues a guerrilla war against House Frey for control of Riverrun and eventually manages to take control of it back from the Freys. In response, Jaime under order from King Tommen is sent to lay siege to the castle. Using Edmure as a way to override the Blackfish's control, the remaining Tully forces surrender and the Blackfish is killed. House Tully, whose forces are the only remaining remnants of Robb's army, then becomes subservient to the crown and the new lord of the Riverlands, Walder Frey.
At the Twins, Arya avenges the deaths of Robb, Catelyn, and Talisa when she kills Walder Frey and all of the Frey men who held any importance within the House. At this point, all three men who conspired to murder Robb are each killed in a similar fashion to the way Robb and Catelyn died. Tywin is killed with a crossbow by his son Tyrion (Robb was injured by crossbow bolts), Roose is betrayed and stabbed in the heart by Ramsay (Roose betrayed and killed Robb this way), and Walder Frey's throat is slit by Arya (Catelyn's throat was slit by Walder's son).
Robb had a keen sense of honor and justice, which he received from his father. He was fair, caring, and willing to do anything to keep his family safe. He was close with his siblings, particularly his half-brother Jon, and shared mutually loving relationships with them all. Robb also regarded his father's ward Theon to be like a brother to him. Unlike Roose Bolton , one of his central bannermen, Robb saw no reason for torture, cruelty, or unnecessary executions, and treated his prisoners of war well and justly. He did not wish for violence or war and did his best to limit the deaths and casualties on both sides. He also expended tremendous sympathies to innocent victims of war such as Martyn and Willem Lannister.
Robb was very much his father's son, but this meant that he had not only his father's strengths, but also his father's weaknesses. Like Eddard, Robb lacked proper political skills and had a tendency to put honor before reason. He married a political nobody out of love, needlessly spurning a badly needed political alliance with the Freys. Robb also put honor before pragmatic political needs when he executed Rickard for treason and murder, costing him the Karstark contingent from his army. Like most Northerners, Robb was more proficient as a warrior than as a politician. Much like his own father and the man he was named after, Robert Baratheon, Robb was an excellent warrior and military commander but a poor politician.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Robb is 14 years old when the story begins. He is his father's son, with a keen sense of honor and justice. Robb gets along with all his siblings and of them, he is closest to his half-brother Jon, who is the same age and with whom Robb shares a strong brotherly relationship, being raised together by their father. Robb is also close with his father's ward Theon, who is five years older than himself.
Robb is not a POV character in the novels, thus his actions are witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of POV characters, mainly Catelyn. Stories depicting Robb as a child are told in the POV chapters via the memories of Jon, Theon, Arya, Sansa, Bran, and Catelyn.
Robb is largely a background character in the second and third novels; important events in his life, including his successes at Oxcross , Ashemark , and the Crag , and his marriage, mostly occur off-screen, and are only revealed when POV characters (mostly Catelyn) learn of them or discuss them.
There are some minor differences from the books. He tells Bran that when Grey Wind tore off the Greatjon's fingers, he was very scared about the possible consequences but couldn't show it. Later, he accepts his mother's tactical advice while splitting his army in two, appointing the cautious, experienced Roose Bolton in command of the army tasked with delaying the Lannisters at the Green Fork.
Robb's appearance in the books is also different: he is described in the books as having the thick auburn hair of the Tullys, while on the show Robb has dark brown curly hair and a more lean build. Bran's hair color is also darker in the TV series. In the books, all of Eddard's children except Arya (and of course, Jon) inherited from their mother Catelyn the typical House Tully features of auburn hair and blue eyes. Talisa Maegyr does not exist in the novels.
Soon after the battle in the Whispering Wood, Robb unwisely gives the riverlords leave to depart, each to defend his own lands, at Edmure's request. Later, Brynden explains Catelyn the folly in Robb's decision: scattering the riverlords simply made it easier for the Mountain to pillage their lands, and at the same time weakened Robb's host. In comparison with Robb's next mistakes, however, this has not been a serious one.
The way Robb reacts when he learns that his mother helped Jaime escape is the opposite of the show: rather than punish or at least chide her, he gives a speech about love and forgiveness in presence of his bannermen, including Rickard Karstark. That speech, and the fact that Catelyn was not given even the slightest punishment, increase Rickard's rage about Jaime's escape to the point that he kills Willem Lannister and his cousin Tion Frey (the latter was replaced with Martyn Lannister in the show). Robb decides to execute Rickard, stating that Rickard has tainted Robb's honor by killing the boys, and that he owes their fathers justice; the decision costs Robb the Karstark troops, and worsens his already weak position.
Before going to the Twins, Robb issues a royal decree, by which he legitimizes Jon and names him his successor (despite Catelyn's objection). The decree is not mentioned afterward. It is speculated by fans that Robb has given it to Maege Mormont and Galbart Glover , whom he sent on a mission to the North, and it is unknown what has become of them. So far in the books, Jon has not received the decree and has no idea about it.
During the War of the Five Kings, Robb also begins to wear a bronze and iron crown just like his ancestors, the Kings of Winter. After his death, Ryman Frey gave that crown to a whore who accompanied him during the siege of Riverrun . Jaime notices it, and is filled with rage to see how the Freys continue making fun of Robb long after his death, although Robb was an enemy of his house. Later, Ryman is killed by the Brotherhood Without Banners and the crown is given to their new leader who replaced Beric - the monstrous Lady Stoneheart , formerly Robb's mother.
Robb's last words are slightly different in the novels. In both versions, he has been shot with several arrows already and is struggling to remain conscious, but somehow manages to find the strength to stagger to his feet. Catelyn calls to him to flee, and his last words are "Mother... Grey Wind ..." - because they can hear his direwolf howling outside the castle as the Freys attack him with hunting dogs (resulting in a bloody fight that only ends when they shoot the wolf with crossbows).
During Robert's visit, Bran goes exploring. While climbing a decrepit tower, he catches the king's wife, Queen Cersei , and her twin brother, Jaime , engaged in sexual intercourse. To keep his silence, Jaime pushes him out of the tower window.
He again dreams that he is the wolf. This time Summer enters his bedchamber and he sees himself awakening through the wolf's eyes. He discusses the dream with Maester Luwin who reassures him that magic has been absent from the world for centuries. However, he does mention that he once heard of beings who could implement themselves in the minds of animals .
Later, Bran and his companions are resting near Craster's Keep . They hear the faint sounds of a baby's cries. Bran enters the mind of Summer to investigate where he finds Ghost, Jon's direwolf. However, before he can free Ghost, Summer is caught by a trap. Against Meera's urgings, they go to rescue Summer and Ghost but are taken prisoner by Karl Tanner . While Hodor is being tormented by Rast and the other mutineers for pure amusement, Karl threatens to kill Jojen and Meera before Bran gives up his identity.
In another vision, Bran and Brynden view the events that unfolded at the Tower of Joy towards the end of Robert's Rebellion . Ned Stark rides to the Tower of Joy with five of his bannermen, one of them being Howland Reed , to find Lyanna Stark. The tower is guarded by two Kingsguard: Ser Arthur Dayne and Lord Commander Gerold Hightower . After the two refuse Ned's requests to learn his sister's fate, the eight men duel. While Gerold Hightower is killed early on, Arthur Dayne single-handedly defeats nearly all of Ned's retainers, and is about to kill Ned himself when Howland Reed unexpectedly stabs Dayne through the back of the neck, having been injured early on, but not killed. Bran is shocked that the stories he heard were not as honorable as the events that actually unfolded. Ned finishes off Dayne by partially decapitating him with his own sword, Dawn , and hears a woman scream from the tower. As Ned runs into the tower to find Lyanna, Bran calls out to him. Ned stops to look around, but is confused because he cannot find the source of the voice. Before Bran can discover what is in the tower for himself, Brynden brings both of them out of the past. While he acknowledges that the younger Ned had heard Bran, he also warns Bran not to interfere with the past.
In another vision of the past, thousands of years ago, Bran and Brynden witness several Children of the Forest, including Leaf , create the first White Walker . Once out of the vision and shocked at the revelation, Bran asks Leaf why they did it, and Leaf confesses it was to prevent the First Men from destroying more of their sacred weirwood trees and the extinction of their people during the war which endangered the Children. She then reminds Bran that it was his ancestral culture with inevitably made this a necessary action.
After Daenerys is assassinated , Bran is part of a Great Council in the Dragonpit to decide the fate of Tyrion and Jon. Tyrion convinces Grey Worm to let the new king of the Seven Kingdoms decide Jon's fate and states that it is stories that unite people. He contends that Bran should be king because he is a reluctant ruler and has the best story, being the memory of the world. When Tyrion asks him if he will lead the Seven Kingdoms to the best of his abilities, Bran asks why did he think he came all this way. The council concurs with Tyrion and votes Bran as king of the Six Kingdoms, with Sansa asserting the independence of the North , which he permits.
In real life, "Bran" is the word for "raven/crow" in several Celtic languages (Welsh, Cornish, Breton, etc.). Given that Westeros is loosely analogous to Britain , the First Men and their old gods are loosely analogous to the original Celtic inhabitants of Britain who worshiped druidic nature gods, but were later driven to the fringe of the island by invading peoples (i.e. the Andals are like the Anglo-Saxons ). It is unknown if George R.R. Martin intentionally picked the name "Bran" knowing it is the Celtic word for "Crow", but it does neatly associate with Bran and his visions of the three-eyed crow.
When Jon and his fellow black brothers return from the Raid on Craster's Keep , Sam is one of the first to greet him. He is also present when Jon tries to convince Alliser Thorne that they should seal the tunnel due to the threat of Mance Rayder and his wildling army.
Later, after Jon has left for Hardhome , Sam and Gilly visit Maester Aemon , who has fallen ill and grown delirious. Aemon imagines Little Sam as Egg, his long-dead brother. Aemon's condition steadily deteriorates as the day goes on, and he dies in the night. Sam eulogizes him before lighting his funeral pyre, declaring for all to hear that he was the blood of the dragon. Ser Alliser whispers that Sam's friends are abandoning him one by one. Afterward, Gilly is attacked in the dining hall by two brothers, but Sam and Jon's direwolf, Ghost, come to her rescue. Sam is badly beaten, and Gilly takes care of him before the two have sex for the first time.
A few nights later, Jon tells of what he saw at Hardhome to Sam. Sam asks Jon if he can travel to Oldtown to study and replace Aemon as the new Maester of the Watch. He feels there is no other way he can help them as he cannot fight, he is also afraid for Gilly and her child's safety, and wishes to take them along. Jon reminds him that the Citadel will also not allow Sam to be with women, but is humored to hear that it is already too late for that. Sam promises he will return, they toast to that and Jon sees his only friend off.
On the voyage to Oldtown, Gilly tells a seasick Sam that she'll be happy to see the city, having learned much about it from the ship's captain. Instead, Sam doesn't want Gilly and Little Sam to be alone in the city while he trains as a maester and plans to take them to his family at Horn Hill , as the Citadel also doesn't allow women and there won't be anyone there to make an exception. Gilly protests against this, but Sam assures her that it is for her protection.
After the women have left, Randyll tells Sam that Gilly and Little Sam are welcome to stay. He will find work for Gilly as a servant and promises to raise the " bastard " Little Sam as his grandson. However, he warns Sam that he is no longer welcome at Horn Hill and must leave at first light. Later, Sam apologizes for his father's actions but Gilly tells him that he does not need to. Unwilling to be separated from his family, Sam tells Gilly to pack up and leave together with Little Sam. Before leaving with his "family", Samwell steals Heartsbane.
The maester states that Sam's situation is "irregular" to which Sam responds, "Life is irregular." The maester then says that Sam must speak to the Archmaester in order to discuss these issues. The maester then allows Sam to use the library, but blocks Gilly and Little Sam from entering. In the library, Sam looks on in wonder and awe at the vast size of the library and the knowledge stored in its texts.
He is present when the same patient is deemed unable to treat by Ebrose, and that he has six months before the greyscale takes over his mind. Sam then reminds Ebrose of Shireen Baratheon's treatment of the condition, but Ebrose counters that her maester, Cressen , only managed to stop the spread early, and while she was still at a young age.
Once Ebrose leaves, Sam asks if there is any family he should write to, to which the patient introduces himself as Jorah Mormont, and that his family forgot about him a long time ago. Sympathetic to his Lord Commander's son, Sam later asks if he can try to heal Jorah using a procedure developed by Archmaester Pylos , but Ebrose advises against it; due to the dangerous nature of the operation to both sides, it was declared forbidden, emphasizing that Pylos himself died as a result of contracting Greyscale.
When Ebrose arrives in the morning to see to Jorah, he finds him completely healed. Despite being told by Jorah that no one tended to him, Ebrose realizes immediately what Sam has done and arranges an evening meeting in his office. There, he chastises Sam on the potential danger of infecting the rest of the Citadel through himself, but then congratulates him on saving Jorah's life with a procedure few maesters have ever mastered. He then immediately orders Sam, who had expected a reward, to copy some old scrolls and tells him that his reward is not being banished from the Citadel for ignoring orders.
Samwell was chosen as the new Grand Maester by Bran after his election. After his appointment, he assisted Archmaester Ebrose with the title of his history book recounting the wars in Westeros after the assassination of Robert Baratheon , which he showed to Tyrion, the new Hand of the King , at the first Small Council meeting. When Tyrion asks what the book states about him, he reluctantly replies that he isn't mentioned.
Sam was very good friends with Maester Aemon, so much that Sam gave the man's eulogy at his funeral and didn't condemn him for being a Targaryen. Before Aemon passed away, Sam showed reluctance to believe that he was dying, showing that he deeply cared about the old man.
Sam's father took him once to the Arbor, intending to leave him there as Lord Paxter's page and cupbearer, and had Sam pleased him - he would have been betrothed to his daughter. Things had gone from bad to worse: Lord Redwyne’s twin sons, Hobber and Horas, despised Sam on first sight, bullied him mercilessly, and every day they found some fresh way to shame him in the practice yard: the third day Horas made Sam squeal like a pig when he begged for quarter; on the fifth Hobber clad a kitchen girl in his own armor and let her beat Sam with a wooden sword until he began to cry. When she revealed herself, all the squires and pages and stableboys howled with laughter. Randyll had no choice but to take Sam back home. Needless to say the experience has not improved Randyll's opinion on his elder son.
When Sam suggested his father to send him to the Citadel in Oldtown, Randyll answered furiously " They make you wear a chain about your neck. If it is chains you want, come with me ". He had Sam manacled hand and foot to a wall for three days and three nights. The chain around his throat was so tight it broke the skin, and whenever he rolled the wrong way in his sleep it would cut off his breath. That experience has traumatized poor Sam so much, that long time afterwards he objected (fruitlessly) to Jon's command to travel to the Citadel, although he has always wanted that.
Theon seduces the daughter of the ship's captain and tells her about how he will be welcomed home. He is deflated at the lack of a reception for his return, resorting to bribing, despite his status. His sister, Yara , poses as a stranger and offers to give him a ride to the castle. She wants to see what Theon has grown up to be. He flirts with her relentlessly, even touching her almost intimately and brags about his own importance.
Balon greets Theon coolly, believing that he has forgotten his roots and become loyal to the Starks in his time away. He insults Theon's fine clothes given to him by the Starks, and is furious when Theon tells him that Robb thinks of him as a brother. Yara reveals her deception and Balon compares Theon to his sister unfavorably. Balon rejects the alliance Theon suggests and is insulted that Theon thought he would accept being given a crown. He reminds Theon that they pay the iron price and take what they want.
Theon is seduced by Osha , who Theon grants her freedom to in return for her sexual service. She then frees Bran and Rickon , fleeing with them while Theon sleeps. When Theon wakes the next day, he is told that Bran and Rickon have escaped. He is angry at his men for allowing the children and the simpleminded Hodor to escape. Black Lorren implies that Theon is actually to blame for their escape by allowing himself to be seduced by Osha. Theon, in turn, responds to this insolence by publicly beating Lorren.
After enduring extensive torture, Theon is given some reprieve. Ramsay Snow deceives Theon, claiming he is a servant and approaches him and claims he's been sent by Yara to rescue him, before leaving Theon, placing the cloth bag over his head for the night. Before dawn, Ramsay returns and cuts Theon free and provides him with water and a mount. Ramsay advises Theon to keep heading east where Yara is waiting for him. Theon says he'll make the boy a lord of the Iron Islands for his actions. The boy replies, "We're not in the Iron Islands."
Theon is awakened by the ringing of a trumpet. Ramsay 'begs pardon' for rousing his guest. Theon tries to mumble something but fails. Ramsay understands his prisoner requires water but pours it out all over the dungeon floor to further torment him. Ramsay proposes a game to pass the time and he asks the heir to Pyke which body part he does not need. Hearing this Theon vows to tell his captor all he wishes to know. The cruel boy merely mocks him stating that Theon already told him everything of value. Ramsay goes on saying that he realizes Theon wants to know who he is and why he is being tortured.
Theon is later released from the cross by two beautiful young women, Myranda and Violet . They put Theon to bed and they then proceed to fondle him sensually. Both have heard that the heir to Pyke is well endowed and are hoping to get firsthand experience. Theon is distrustful at first fearing that this is another of his tormentor's tricks. When they disrobe and straddle him, Theon's resolve to resist weakens. Suddenly the familiar horn sounds and Ramsay enters, revealing that Myranda and Violet are two of his bedwarmers. He too has heard how large his prisoner's penis is and surmises it is Theon's favorite body part. When the sadistic Ramsay brandishes a hooked knife Theon realizes Ramsay means to castrate him. Horrified, Theon begs for mercy, but Ramsay quips that this is mercy as he is not killing, but merely altering Theon. Two men restrain Theon as Ramsay proceeds to geld him, knocking him out in the process, after which he is castrated.
Theon later wakes in his strung up position while Ramsay eats a long plump sausage nearby and motions to Theon's blood-stained, badly sewn-up trousers, momentarily tricking Theon into thinking it is his penis he is eating. Ramsay mocks him as he laughs about his severed penis and wonders if Theon will have phantom feelings for his lost body part if he goes near any pretty women. Theon finally begs Ramsay to kill him as an escape from the nightmare, but Ramsay tells him he is much more valuable to him alive.
Theon, now going by the name Reek, has been freed from his restraints, but on the condition that he work for Ramsay as a servant. Because of his torture and emasculation by Ramsay, Theon is now mentally weakened and offers no resistance to his new lord. He accompanies Ramsay and Myranda on their hunt for Tansy , however he struggles to keep up with them due to his injuries. When Myranda brings down Tansy with an arrow to the leg Ramsay asks Reek if it was a good shot. Reek calls it a fine shot while addressing Ramsay as "Master" and Myranda as "My Lady." Reek watches in silent horror when Ramsay orders his pack of hounds to maul Tansy to pieces.
However, Ralf Kenning , the garrison commander of the Ironborn, decries Reek's words as those of a "whipped dog" and that he is no true Ironborn, nearly causing Reek to become unnerved and drop his facade. However, Reek is saved when one of Kenning's own men suddenly buries an axe in his head and accepts Reek's terms of surrender. However, the Ironborn are promptly massacred and flayed by Ramsay and his men after they surrender. Ramsay reveals to Theon that he never intended to let the Ironborn go, and congratulates him by patting him.
Later, while sleeping in the kennels, Reek is accosted by Sansa, who had been led there by Myranda. Reek shakes his head at her and tells her she shouldn't be there. Ramsay later confronts Reek about how Sansa approached him and chastises him for keeping it a secret from him. Though he seems like he will punish Reek, he ultimately forgives him. As the Boltons eat, Ramsay first coerces Reek into apologizing to Sansa for allegedly murdering Bran and Rickon. He then suggests that Reek should walk Sansa down the altar at their coming wedding with the rest of her family allegedly dead, which visibly angers Sansa and discomforts Reek.
Having personally been on the receiving end of Ramsay's brutality, Theon tries to look away, but Ramsay repeats the order, and Theon is forced to watch, which he does. Theon is visibly horrified as he watches Ramsay rape his childhood friend, making her cry, and silently cries himself. Though Theon is still too weak to intervene, a brief flash of anger spreads across his face.
Reek shamefully owes to her that he deserved it as he did terrible things, specifically killing "those boys." Enraged by his reference seemingly to her brothers as "those boys" rather than Bran and Rickon, Sansa vehemently demands to know why they should be dead while he still breathes the air, forcing Reek to finally admit that they were not Bran and Rickon, but two farm boys. In light of this admission, Sansa's anger towards Reek cools, but when she presses him as to where they might have gone, calling him Theon again, he breaks down and runs out the room, crying, "Not Theon! Reek!"
Theon arrives at the Iron Islands and receives a harsh reception from Yara, who is still angry with him for refusing to be rescued from the Dreadfort, saying good men were lost that night. Weeping, he apologizes several times, but she doesn't want to hear it. She accuses him of trying to take advantage of their father's murder to become King of Pyke. Theon vehemently denies this, saying he had no idea Balon was dead until he arrived. She demands to know what he wants, and he says she deserves to be the ruler of Pyke and he will support her claim to the Salt Throne.
During the kingsmoot on Old Wyk , Theon stands before his fellow Ironborn when it is his turn to speak. Though he is visibly nervous, most likely because of his role in the siege of Moat Cailin , he openly declares his support for Yara's claim to the Salt Throne; stating that she is a warrior, a reaver, and most importantly Ironborn. Choking back tears as he swallows what little pride he has left, Theon concludes, "This is our queen." Though his words prompt many men to declare their support for Yara, they are soon challenged by their uncle Euron Greyjoy , who condescendingly pats Theon on the cheek as Ramsay once did before belittling him for his past defeats and emasculation. Yara then accuses Euron of murdering their father. To their surprise, Euron admits to murdering Balon but claims that he did it because he was leading them to defeat and apologizes for not doing it years ago. Theon counters that would have been hard to do as Euron was off gallivanting on the high seas and having a grand old time, prompting his uncle to once again bring up his emasculation.
While Yara and Ellaria began kissing, Yara's ship is struck. On the deck above, they discover that their fleet has been ambushed by Euron Greyjoy 's portion of the Iron Fleet, lead by the imposing Silence , which is significantly larger than the Black Wind , ramming into it and using a levy to board Yara's forces. Despite fighting bravely and cutting down many of Euron's men, Theon watches helplessly as Euron takes Yara hostage, daring him to intervene. After witnessing the defeated soldiers being tortured and mutilated by Euron's men, Theon returns to his despondent state and jumps overboard. Upon surfacing, Theon can only watch as Euron's flagship sails away, having decimated their entire armada, and sees the corpses of Obara and Nymeria Sand impaled and hanging from the ship's bowsprit.
Theon is later rescued from the Narrow Sea by one of the few surviving ships loyal to Yara. When their captain, Harrag , questions him about Yara's fate, Theon claims that he tried to save her. An unimpressed Harrag chides Theon, begrudgingly telling him he would be dead if that were true.
At the beach, Theon attempts to rally Yara's remaining supporters. However, Harrag refuses, chiding Theon as a coward for abandoning Yara. Theon fights Harrag, though the captain gains the upper hand and almost beats Theon to death when he refuses to stop. Unaware of Theon's castration at the hands of Ramsay, Harrag fails to injure Theon by kneeing him in the groin and is beat into submission. Finally earning the respect of the Ironborn, Theon rallies them to rescue Yara, washing his bloodied face in the salt water before leaving.
After escaping Euron with his sister Yara, Theon slides back into his despondent state and is troubled by his role in the death of the orphan boys; believing that he should hang for his crimes. Yara counsels him to rediscover himself so that they can secure an alliance with Daenerys and retake the Iron Islands from their uncle Euron. While negotiating with Daenerys, Theon does not display reluctance for the Ironborn to cease raping, pillaging and reaving, and nods at Yara to tell her to agree with Daenerys, demonstrating that despite his recovery, he is still greatly traumatized by his torture by Ramsay, and apparently wishes to lead a more peaceful life in order to prevent it from happening again.
Theon does not have any happy childhood memories of his homeland. On the contrary, he remembers the Iron Islands as stern and stony places, scant of comfort and bleak of prospect; death is never far, and life is mean and meager; men spend their nights drinking ale and arguing over whose lot is worse, the fisherfolk who fight the sea or the farmers who try and scratch a crop from the poor thin soil. Moreover, his late brothers Rodrik and Maron used to bully him. Generally, his living conditions among the Starks were better conditions. Eddard spanked Theon only once after he bumped into Old Nan and knocked her to the floor, and that was almost tender in comparison to the beatings he used to receive from his brothers.
Soon after Theon is out of the Starks' control, he shows his true colors (in sharp contrast with his "sugarcoated" portrayal in the TV show): a ruthless sociopath villain, rapist and mass murderer, who has no qualms about harming innocent people simply because they are weak and defenseless, including small children ; in short, the kind of villain the Mountain is.
When Theon arrives at Lordsport, full of himself, he expects a proper welcome as the heir to Pyke and the Iron Islands. Soon, however, he is deflated and disillusioned: no honor guard is waiting to escort him to Pyke, and nearly everyone around treats him coldly or mockingly, or even ignores his presence. His statement about inheritance rights is scornfully dismissed as "the laws of the green lands" (which do not bind the ironborn) by his uncle Aeron, father and sister. Theon realizes that he is considered not only as a foreigner among the ironborn, but worse - as a soft boy from the green lands. Dagmer is the only one who treats him fondly; he explains to Theon that his father does not know him well, since without his three sons - Asha was his only solace, and he got used to rely on her. He encourages Theon by claiming that there will be other wars, and he shall do great deeds.
Due to his actions, mainly the alleged killing of Bran and Rickon, Theon earned the hatred of the people in the North, and put himself to shame and disgrace in the eyes of the ironborn. Ever since he is referred to as Theon Turncloak.
Theon does not appear at all in the third and fourth novels, and he is only mentioned briefly. In A Storm of Swords , Roose Bolton tells Robb and Catelyn that Theon is held prisoner at the Dreadfort , and is being tortured by Ramsay. Roose shows them a piece of skin, claiming it is from the little finger of Theon's left hand, which Ramsay enclosed to the letter Roose received from him. Robb says sharply that he wants Theon's head, not his skin. Roose suggests to keep Theon alive until the North is liberated from the ironborn in order to demand concessions from them, and Robb reluctantly agrees. Since Roose turns to be a traitor and most of his report is revealed to be false, it is unclear to the readers if he lied about Theon too.
Theon's physical appearance has changed extremely during his imprisonment at the Dreadfort, to the point that even his sister cannot recognize him: he looks like he has aged many years; has lost three stones (42 lbs.) in weight; his hair turned white and brittle; his skin turned pasty; many of his teeth have been broken or loosened, because Ramsay did not like his smiles; he horribly stinks; Ramsay has cut three of his fingers and four of his toes. As a result, Theon cannot chew solid food, cannot use a bow, and hobbles grotesquely. When Asha sees him, she thinks he is some toothless old man, thinner than a scarecrow, his face resembling a skull.
Theon lives in constant fear of his cruel master. He knows that no matter how he acts - defiantly or obediently - Ramsay will torture him, simply because he can. He keeps reminding himself that his name is Reek, and suppresses any memories of his former life. After his unsuccessful attempt to escape with Kyra, whenever there seems to be a chance of getting away - Theon quickly dismisses it, certain that it is one of Ramsay's cruel games.
Theon loses track of time during his imprisonment. It seems to him that years, maybe decades, passed since he was brought to the Dreadfort. Only when Ramsay squires, "Big" Walder and "Little" Walder Frey ( Lord Frey 's grandsons), come to take him to Ramsay - he realizes that only several months passed.
Theon is totally unaware of the events outside the Dreadfort, among them his father's death and the kingsmoot on Old Wyk . Even if he knew, it probably wouldn't matter to him, because he had much more urgent things to worry about - like his body parts.
Theon's life means nothing to him. He wouldn't commit suicide but welcomes any chance for a swift end to his miserable existence (like the time he approaches Moat Cailin, totally exposed to arrows). When he realizes Stannis intends to kill him, he finds the thought queerly comforting; he urges Stannis to do it quickly before Ramsay arrives.
The only victims Theon acknowledges as such are the miller's sons, whom he dismisses nonchalantly as " It was not Bran we killed. It was not Rickon. They were only miller's sons ." About their mother, who begged in vain for mercy before being murdered too at Theon's command, he remembers very clearly the occasional sex they had and how her breasts looked like - but not her death. He similarly disregards his other victims (the people of Stony Shore, Benfred Tallhart, Alebelly, Chayle, Mikken, Farlen, etc.).
Theon has not even abandoned his despicable habit of kicking dead bodies: in the beginning of the series he kicked the severed head of the deserter , laughing as if it was a ball; long afterward, when he came to Moat Cailin, he kicked twice a dead ironborn.
Even if Theon somehow escapes, the chances that he'll die similarly to his analogous show character are extremely low: he is a total wreck, due to Ramsay's torturing, so he cannot fight or shoot arrows; more importantly, he does not feel any remorse about the atrocities he committed, and does not feel that he must make up for them.
When Joffrey turns on Arya and threatens her, her direwolf Nymeria reacts in defense of her mistress and mauls Joffrey's right arm, and Arya throws his sword in the river. Joffrey begs for his life. Sansa offers her aid, but Joffrey refuses her help because she saw him so weak and defeated. Later, he lies about the incident and says he was attacked in an unprovoked manner. King Robert knows Joffrey is lying, and is disgusted that Joffrey let a little girl disarm him, but agrees to forget about the incident in return for the death of Nymeria. When she cannot be found, Sansa's direwolf Lady is executed instead.
Days later, Joffrey holds court. Marillion sings a song he wrote about King Robert and Queen Cersei, which includes lyrics saying that the boar may have disemboweled Robert, but the "lion in his bed" (the Lannister's sigil is a lion) was the one who tore his balls off. Joffrey is displeased by the song as its insults his parents. He forces the minstrel to choose between having his hands or tongue removed, then orders Ser Ilyn to instantly carry out the order, ripping out his tongue in front of the entire horrified court. Joffrey and his guards then escort Sansa out of the courtroom.
He states to her that she will be kept captive there and will still marry him; he also casually mentions that his mother said he should "put a son in you" as soon as Sansa has had her blood . They arrive at the castle's wall, where there are several heads mounted on long spikes - one is revealed to be Ned's. She confronts him about his promise to show mercy to her father, but he says it was mercy, as he gave him a quick death. Joffrey angrily points to another spike carrying the head of Septa Mordane . Then Joffrey forces her to look at the severed heads, and he says that he will give her Robb 's head on a spike as well if he were to be defeated by the Lannisters, prompting her to reply: "Or maybe he'll give me yours."
Talking to Bronn, Tyrion decides that Joffrey is at an age when sexual frustration might be an issue, and this could be one reason for his torment of Sansa. He then sends Joffrey two prostitutes, Ros and Daisy , as a belated nameday present. Joffrey forces one prostitute to brutally beat the other whilst threatening them both with a crossbow, as a message to Tyrion that he will tolerate no further interference.
One onlooker throws some cow dung at him and Joffrey responds petulantly by ordering the several-hundred strong crowd executed, triggering a city wide riot . The guards are quickly overwhelmed by dozens of starving and desperate people and Joffrey barely escapes the riot under the protection of his Kingsguard, City Watch, and Lannister soldiers but then Tyrion publicly berates him for being a "vicious idiot." When they realize Sansa has been lost in the chaos, Joffrey callously commands that she be left to the mob. Tyrion has to point out that if any harm comes to Sansa then his uncle Jaime, a prisoner of the Starks, will be killed in retaliation.
The absence of the Royal Fleet frightens Joffrey. He is unnervingly pleased when Tyrion's wildfire explosion decimates Stannis' fleet. However, his courage wanes when he sees the size of the landing force that comes ashore. A sortie led by the Hound fails to drive the attackers back. The Hound then deserts his place on the Kingsguard rather than go back out. Joffrey is relieved when Ser Lancel Lannister tells him that the Queen has ordered him back to the Red Keep and ignores Tyrion imploring him to stay and lead. His cowardly exit damages the morale of the men but Tyrion is able to rally them into a further sortie, protecting the gates from a battering ram.
While fitting clothes in his chambers, Cersei asks Joffrey what he thinks about Margaery, and he says the alliance with the Tyrells will help them defeat the northern rebellion. Cersei asks what he thinks about her personally, but Joffrey dismisses her questions. Later, Joffrey summons Margaery to his chambers. Joffrey is holding his new crossbow and asks why she failed to give Renly Baratheon a child. Margaery tells Joffrey that she doesn't believe Renly was interested in women. Joffrey says he is considering making homosexuality punishable by death. He then demonstrates to Margaery how to use a crossbow.
Joffrey then announces some entertainment that he has organized: a group of dwarfs crudely re-enacting the War of the Five Kings and fighting each other. Joffrey laughs hysterically during the show, spitting wine all over himself, though virtually no one else finds the spectacle anything other than disgusting. Once the dwarf show is over, Joffrey turns his attention to Tyrion and suggests he borrow a costume and join in. Tyrion politely declines and suggests that the king himself take part, with a veiled reference to Joffrey's cowardice at the Battle of the Blackwater . Outraged by his uncle's mockery, Joffrey responds by pouring his wine over Tyrion's head and appointing Tyrion his new cupbearer .
As the crowd watches in tense silence, Joffrey drops his goblet and orders Tyrion to pick it up. He then kicks it away and tells Tyrion to pick it up again, as Sansa picks it up and hands it to Tyrion instead. Joffrey demands that Tyrion kneel before him, but Tyrion doesn't move as they glare at each other. The standoff is interrupted by Margaery who announces the arrival of the big wedding pie, which is cut by Joffrey with Widow's Wail, revealing doves hidden inside that burst forth and fly away with the exception of a few unwitting casualties. While Joffrey is eating his pie, he commands Tyrion to stay to bring him his wine.
Tyrion does this and asks to leave, which Joffrey refuses. After drinking his wine, Joffrey begins choking. As he gasps for air he staggers down from the high table and starts vomiting on the floor. Jaime runs from the crowd, and Cersei from the high table. Cersei holds her son in her lap. His face has turned purple, and blood is running from his eyes and nose. With a last gesture, Joffrey looks up at Tyrion, who has picked up the goblet to examine it for poison, lifts an accusing finger in his direction, and then dies of asphyxiation. Cersei immediately accuses Tyrion of poisoning her son and demands that he be arrested.
Joffrey's funeral is held at the Great Sept of Baelor , which Cersei, Tommen and Tywin attend to pay their respects. Tywin informs Tommen that with Joffrey's death, the crown will pass to him. Though the realm enters the appropriate period of mourning in the wake of the king's death, virtually nobody even bothers to pretend the late king's death was a tragedy. Over Joffrey's corpse, Tywin lectures Tommen on what it takes to be a good king, despite Cersei's feeble complaints that this is neither the time nor the place for this.
He opines that Joffrey was neither a wise nor a good king, and that had he been, he may still be alive. After Tywin leaves and Jaime arrives, Cersei is adamant that it was Tyrion who killed Joffrey, and asks Jaime to kill him to avenge their son. Jaime scornfully asks why he was forced to love such a hateful woman, and rapes Cersei in front of their son's corpse.
After Joffrey's death his younger brother Tommen succeeds him as king. Other than Cersei, Joffrey was not particularly mourned by anyone. Even his own alleged supporters had come to see him as a hindrance to future Lannister political goals. Lord Tywin himself openly scorns Joffrey in front of his own corpse during his wake, openly admitting that his grandson was an awful king and deserved what he got.
He was convinced that he deserved praise and utter devotion from everyone around him because of his purported royal blood. Even though at the start of the War of the Five Kings most of the realm rose in rebellion against him, to the point that his faction held control of two kingdoms, the Westerlands and the Crownlands , including a narrow strip of the southern Riverlands between them. Despite his minimal standing and limited power, Joffrey's pathological arrogance coupled with his family's backing, made him believe he was and would be the greatest king in the history of the Seven Kingdoms . Combined with his unstable personality, Joffrey possessed a massive sense of entitlement as well as having no impulse control thanks to his mother, Cersei. She spoiled and indulged Joffrey his entire life almost never being able to refuse him and shielding him from consequences, inflating his already enormous ego. Cersei also outright told him that the world could be exactly as he wanted it to be, creating a kind of God complex within him. Moreover, his father-figure King Robert was largely absent from his life and a terrible role-model, with his constant drinking and whoring (though Robert, at least, lamented on his deathbed that he hadn't been a good father).
Described as a vicious idiot king by his uncle Tyrion, Joffrey was not simply a ruthless, cruel tyrant, but so incompetent it beggar's belief. While Robert was also not skilled at ruling (though not as bad as Joffrey), he was at least respected as a great warrior. Joffrey, in contrast, had no redeeming value whatsoever: his only claim to rule was that he was the son of Robert, the previous king. The great irony, of course, was that Joffrey was actually Jaime's bastard son and had no valid claim to the throne, but a large number of Joffrey's followers continued to obey his crazed orders with near blind devotion. After hearing the rumors of his true parentage, Joffrey, out of spite and petulance, ordered that all of Robert's bastards be killed to make sure nobody would challenge his claim as heir. As one would expect, his rashness backfired, and served to heighten suspicions when the people saw the atrocity as Joffrey destroying the evidence of the truth, his legitimacy along with it. This is one of the several occasions where Joffrey overextends himself, the other being when he apparently sends Ser Mandon Moore to kill Tyrion during the Battle of the Blackwater, ignoring two factors: Tyrion was leading Joffrey's men against Stannis when Joffrey abandoned the battle; also the Kingsguard (at least, by reputation) only ever serve major members of the royal family, among whom Joffrey is supreme, and his hatred of Tyrion is far too well known. Thus, Joffrey's actions are never properly calculated, and he never anticipates repercussions from them.
Joffrey possesses all of the classical traits of narcissism, as he possesses an outrageous temper, is delusional about his self importance and superiority, and quick to torment and harm anyone who displeases him. He is known for his unstable mannerisms and affect when insulted, and has a very short fuse. He lacks remorse and empathy towards people, and has no ability or desire to expand it, and he is entirely apathetic and even cold towards his brother Tommen when the latter cries over the departure of his sister Myrcella - he even conceitedly claimed that princes shouldn't cry, despite the fact that he was witnessed crying himself. When confronted with this fact, he brushed it aside when Sansa pointed out that her brother Rickon cried himself, to which Joffrey claimed it was irrelevant because Rickon Stark wasn't a prince and Joffrey was , but he did not stop to speculate that this didn't make the slightest scrap of difference.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Joffrey is twelve years old when the story begins. He is described as a handsome young man, with the gold hair and green eyes of the Lannisters, and is tall and strong for his age.
Throughout the books, Cersei is willfully blind to Joffrey's insane and homicidal behavior, no matter how ridiculous or cruel. Rather than recognize the monster that she has unleashed on the Seven Kingdoms by putting Joffrey on the throne, Cersei embraces the fantasy that he is a great king, or at worst "willful", and chides her younger son Tommen that he should try to be more like Joffrey.
Later books also retroactively reveal that Tommen has lived in terror of Joffrey his entire life. Joffrey killed and skinned at least one of Tommen's childhood pets, yet Cersei continued to dote on him. At one point Tommen even says that he used to "go away inside" mentally when Joffrey did certain things to him, though the exact extent of what he did (killing his pets or something far more sinister) has not been made clear.
The reason for Joffrey's sociopathic, borderline-insane behavior is suspected to be due to his incestuous parentage, much like some of the earlier Targaryen kings. However, Joffrey also had a distant relationship with his "father" Robert, his mother spoiled him, and he lacked any good role models throughout his childhood, which heavily contributed to his mental instability. From a strict technical standpoint, Joffrey is not "insane" in the sense that Aerys was, in that he didn't suffer from hallucinations. Otherwise, Joffrey is a megalomaniacal sociopath by any measure.
In the second book, A Clash of Kings , Joffrey at several points shoots and kills peasants with his crossbow, for largely imagined insults. When crowds of refugees from the war he started come to the castle gates to beg for bread, he picks them off with his crossbow from the battlements, for daring to consider him "a baker." He then brags about doing this in open court, before having Sansa stripped and beaten in front of everyone. When Sansa asks if he killed any of the peasants, Joffrey matter-of-factly states that of course he did, he was trying to kill them. He also expresses fondness for making men fight to the death and giving "justice" to criminals. In the book, however, it is not Joffrey who orders the massacre of Robert's bastards, but Cersei. The books make no mention of Joffrey doubting that Robert was his father, while in the television series, it is Joffrey who gives the order, implying that basically, Joffrey knows (or at least suspects) that Robert wasn't really his father, and he is doing his best to destroy the evidence.
After his death, with the exception of his mother, Joffrey is not particularly mourned by anyone; there are no public displays of grief at his passing, and even his real father openly professes that Joffrey was no more to him that a "squirt of seed" and deserved to die. Stannis is quite content to hear about Joffrey's death, recalling how he once cut a pregnant cat open; he comments " Dwarf or leech, this killer served the kingdom well."
Robert led a rebellion against King Aerys II Targaryen , deposing and replacing him as the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. Stannis fought for Robert during the war. He was besieged at Storm's End for much of the conflict. He was rescued from starvation by the smuggler Davos , who brought a ship full of onions into the castle. Stannis knighted Davos as a reward but also punished him for his smuggling by cutting off four fingertips from his right hand. Davos is fiercely loyal to Stannis and saw his punishment as just. Davos's son Matthos served Stannis as a scribe.
Shireen is tied to the stake, and begins to squirm and plead with her father for her life as she realizes what is happening. As she continues her pleas, the pyre is lit, and Shireen begins pleading for her mother to save her. At first, Selyse is convinced that this is the right thing, but she begins to have a change of heart as Shireen continues pleading. Distraught, Selyse's feelings change drastically, and she runs toward the stake in an attempt to stop the ceremony before she is herself restrained by Baratheon soldiers. Stannis remains unresponsive, but looks on in discomfort. As Shireen's screams die away, Selyse lets out a scream, as Stannis turns away with tears in his eyes.
Ramsay finds Stannis's body and reports to his father that Stannis is dead, but does not know who struck the killing blow, to Roose's disappointment, as his intention had been to reward the man who killed Stannis, unaware that it was Brienne.
Stannis was a cold, hard, serious, stubborn, firm and rarely-forgiving man but also brave and in possession of an immense sense of duty. As is expected of Baratheons, Stannis was proven on the battlefield as both a commander and warrior. He had a keen mind for strategy and warfare that led him to be respected by many high-lords and was also fearless in combat, where he could battle and defeat other soldiers, even when injured or unarmored. While he may not be popular, he is certainly respected as a warrior and commander.
Stannis's status, in comparison to his brothers, fits the middle child syndrome : Robert the elder has the privileges and responsibilities; Renly the youngest receives indulgences; they are both loved and respected, while Stannis is neither, and he feels (and complains nonstop) he is underprivileged and unappreciated.
With regard to his brothers, Stannis was in better control of his emotions in comparison to the temperamental Robert and youthful Renly , whereas he always appeared calculating and stoic, repressing his emotions and desires for most of his life for the sole objections of the greater good. Even when fully prepared to vent his emotions, he is able to retain his composure and dignity, even when he is about to be assassinated. Stannis has very little patience for false politeness that is expected of a lord in court and generally states his opinions of others or what is on his mind aloud. Because of this, he does not surround himself with sycophants as Cersei does but with advisors whom he trusts to be blunt with the truth, whether he may object to it or not.
Stannis is also not as popular with the smallfolk as his two brothers are. Robert, although a poor ruler was at least respected as a warrior and Renly was the most well-liked of the Baratheons. Stannis, meanwhile, is lacking both the charisma and handsomeness that is found within his family. Due to his cold and blunt nature, he inspires little loyalty or love from his peers and he does not seem to care about his unpopularity nor does he seek the respect or admiration of the people. Loras Tyrell described him as having the personality of a lobster. He has faith that his men will follow him and die for him anyway because of his birthright. Stannis is also reliant on fear to keep his men in check and considers public displays of kindness a weakness leaders should not possess. On the other hand, Stannis's advisor, Davos Seaworth has complete loyalty, admiration and respect for Stannis and encourages his claim completely despite being drastically punished by him in the past, implying some degree of bravado on his part.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Stannis is very different from his two brothers. While they are handsome, jovial, hedonist, charismatic, and bold, Stannis is colder, more logical, and reserved. He acts only after much forethought and planning. Stannis lacks passion and, while not engaging in wanton cruelty, is merciless to those he considers his enemies.
In the second novel, Stannis explains to Catelyn and Renly that that had he gone to Robert and made such an accusation, Robert would have dismissed it as Stannis trying to get Joffrey and Tommen disinherited to make himself Robert's heir; he believed Robert would be more inclined to believe the accusations if they came from a man he trusted as much as Jon Arryn. Following Arryn's death, Stannis's most logical step was to contact Ned Stark, tell him what he and Arryn discovered, and ask Ned to support his accusation about Cersei's children. Robert would have probably believed Ned, since they were close friends. The reason Stannis has not acted that way is probably the grudge he bears against Ned.
Writer Bryan Cogman explained in a Season 3 interview the TV series' approach to adapting Stannis as a character. Some critics were upset that Stannis seemed like a fairly negative character in Season 2, but the writers were making a conscious choice to reveal the layers to his personality gradually. In part due to time constraints, Season 2 focused primarily upon showing how stern Stannis was. By Season 3, however, the writers would then surprise the audience by showing different facets of Stannis, how he feels bound by his duty, and his odd family relationships: his wife is a religious zealot who blames herself for her many stillbirths even though Stannis does not, that he has a sickly daughter who he actually tries to treat well (despite his limited interpersonal skills), etc. as Cogman explained at length:
Stannis's campaign to liberate the North from its enemies, namely the ironborn and the Boltons, is also much longer. His initial idea (prompted by the treacherous Arnolf Karstark) is to attack the Dreadfort, but Jon convinces him that the castle is too heavily fortified; instead, he advises Stannis to seek the support of the Northern mountain clans, who are loyal to the Starks, and to liberate other parts of the North from the ironborn.
As time passes, Stannis's rigid personality has somewhat softened: he realizes that people will not accept him as the king just because he is Robert's legal heir. He also learns the lesson that Ned Stark failed to understand (until it was too late): in order to achieve his goals, he must sometimes compromise his principles. For example: Jon explains to Stannis that if he commands the Northern mountain clans to fight for him, they will look at one another and say "Who is this man? He is no king of mine"; instead, Stannis must adopt a friendly attitude, to feast with the clans and praise them. Stannis says grudgingly, "Why should I beg for what is owed me?", but does as Jon advised him, and that way he manages to rally the clans.
At the end of A Dance with Dragons , Ramsay (or someone posing as Ramsay) sends Jon a letter claiming to have killed Stannis and smashed his army, but the battle is not shown and Stannis's fate is left unrevealed. There are several anomalies about the letter, which imply that its contents are false and its writer is not Ramsay.
Author George R.R. Martin has since stated that in the books, Stannis is currently alive and well. Thus, by the point the books reached, Stannis is the sole survivor of the five kings, after whom the War of the Five Kings is titled.
Brienne has not seen Stannis ever since his hostile parley with Renly and Catelyn. She and Podrick search for Sansa in the Riverlands, and recently have been taken captive by the Brotherhood Without Banners and its vengeful new leader, the monstrous Lady Stoneheart (the reanimated Catelyn ); thus they are not involved in the events at the North.
One of the visions Daenerys sees in the House of the Undying is of a red sword glowing like sunset , raised in the hand of a blue-eyed king who casts no shadow . It is speculated by fans that the vision is about Stannis, because he has blue eyes, carrying a glowing sword, and metaphorically has no shadow since it was used to kill Renly.
Petyr's father fought in the War of the Ninepenny Kings , the preemptive assault on the forces of Maelys Blackfyre , the last of the Blackfyre Pretenders , before they could attempt an invasion of Westeros. During the conflict, Petyr's father served well under Lord Hoster Tully . Through their good relationship, Hoster agreed to foster his son Petyr at Riverrun , a great honor for a lesser house.
Petyr went to Riverrun when he was eight years old, carrying all he owned in a bundle. At Riverrun, he befriended Hoster's daughters Catelyn and Lysa . Their brother Edmure mockingly nicknamed Petyr "Littlefinger", in reference to his small height at the time and the location of his minor landholdings. The nickname would stick with him throughout his life. Eventually, even Petyr sarcastically embraced the nickname, because it showed how far he had risen, from an impoverished noble-born boy from an insignificant minor house in the "little Finger" peninsula of the Vale, to one of the most powerful officials at the royal court.
Littlefinger fetches Eddard to meet his wife, but when Eddard realizes he was being brought to a brothel, he thinks Littlefinger is insulting him by saying his wife is a whore. Eddard throws Littlefinger up against a wall before Catelyn appears and Eddard becomes pacified. After hearing her news, he vows to find the truth and expose the Lannisters to Robert and Littlefinger agrees to be his ally in this, for the affection he once bore Catelyn as a youngster. Eddard correctly believes that Littlefinger is still in love with his wife.
Littlefinger instructs the newly-arrived Ros and another prostitute, Armeca , on how to please their customers and make them happy. When they ask him to join them, he refuses, saying that he only ever had eyes for one woman . He tells them about his past, how he loved and fought a duel for a woman. He lost and subsequently realized that he could never beat those in power by honorable means, as they would never let him compete on equal terms and will defeat them with his intellect. When Ros asks him what he wants, he says, "Oh, everything." before excusing the two prostitutes .
Later, Eddard tells him the truth of Joffrey 's parentage and his plan to install Stannis on the throne when Robert dies. Littlefinger suggests instead that they let Joffrey rule but act as the powers behind the throne. If he does not mature into the king they want, they can expose his dirty secret and install Lord Renly instead. Eddard rejects the plan as treason and instead asks Littlefinger to win over the City Watch to their cause. Littlefinger agrees, but later the City Watch turns on Eddard's men and kills them, while Littlefinger holds a dagger to Eddard's throat, pointing out, "I did warn you not to trust me."
He is reluctant at first and wants to inform the Lords of the Vale about the ceremony, but Lysa says that they already had their wedding night long ago. She then asks him what wife would do for him the things she had done for him, including poisoning her husband's wine, thus killing him, and then writing a letter to her sister Catelyn claiming it had been the Lannisters who did it, all of this at Littlefinger's behest. He starts to kiss her before anyone can overhear her. Although Littlefinger states he will inform a septon the following day, Lysa then brings one into the hall to wed them immediately and says that she will scream loudly as her husband, Lord Baelish, is making love to her that night, even being able to her across the Narrow Sea . She keeps her promise, much to Sansa's annoyance.
He answers that he did it out of love for Sansa's mother. He adds that in a different world she might have been his child. He dismisses the notion and states she's more beautiful that Catelyn ever was. He kisses Sansa afterward. Later, Petyr prevents Lysa from throwing Sansa out of the Moon Door after she saw the kiss. After, Lysa is more subdued, Petyr tells her he has always loved only one woman, her sister. He then pushes Lysa out of the Moon Door.
Later, Baelish visits Sansa and asks why she lied on his behalf. Without looking up from the dress she is mending, Sansa explains that she has no idea what Royce, Corbray, and Waynwood would want from her if he were eliminated, but that she does know what it is he wants. Littlefinger seems impressed that she made such a calculating decision, but attempts to cast doubt on her certainty. Sansa doesn't take the bait.
Littlefinger attends a sword jousting session for Lord Robin at Runestone , along with Alayne and Yohn Royce . Royce remarks on Robin's weak skills at swordsmanship, but Petyr insists his name is all that matters, not his skill. A maester delivers him a raven message, which he reads discreetly. Littlefinger leaves Robin in the care of Lord Royce, for further training. On the carriage ride, he is questioned by Sansa as to why they are heading west when Lord Royce was told they would be traveling to the Fingers, unsure of his source of distrust. Petyr promises her that they are going somewhere far away, where Sansa will be safe from Queen Cersei .
After Arya confronts Sansa over the letter, Sansa becomes worried that Arya could turn the Northerners against her or even worse, harm her in some way and voices her concerns to Petyr. Petyr reminds her that Brienne swore an oath to Catelyn that she would watch over both Stark sisters and should protect her from Arya if the latter was to try and murder Sansa.
However, still unsure of Petyr's intentions, Sansa visits Bran. From this, she learns of the Sight , in which Bran proves Petyr's ultimate guilt in the War of the Five Kings . This proves everything Petyr has done to gain power: his murder of Jon Arryn , his attempt to kill Bran, his betrayal of Ned and his attempt to turn Arya and Sansa against each other.
When Arya is seemingly brought to face trial for murder and treason, Sansa catches Petyr off guard when she asks how he wishes to answer for his crimes. She then reveals to all the Northern and Vale lords gathered there, including Yohn Royce (whom she previously lied to), that Petyr did, in fact, kill her aunt Lysa. He also planned the assassination of Jon Arryn and conspired with the Lannisters to imprison Ned so they could frame him for treason.
Petyr insists he loves Sansa, but she replies he betrayed her too. After Sansa thanks him for the many lessons he gave her and that she will never forget, sharing an affirmative look as Arya proceed to kill him. As he pleads for his life Arya slits his throat with the dagger on behalf of the Stark siblings. Petyr collapses to the floor and dies in a pool of his own blood watched by everyone present. Later on, Sansa and Arya discuss the execution, Sansa tells Arya, "In his own horrible way, I believe he [Petyr] loved me."
In truth, underneath Littlefinger's people-mask, he is a cold sociopath who hungers for power over others basically for its own sake. Curiously, even seemingly plausible goals such as "revenge against the Starks and Tullys" - which at times is what he tells himself he is doing - are really only excuses and rationalizations for his utter ambition to control everything around him - he has stated more than once that he wants "everything."
Littlefinger enjoys exerting power over other people. He is willing to use other people, often vulnerable and weak people (i.e., prostitutes), purely for his own gain, while at the same time using the weaknesses of his enemies as leverage; sometimes he doesn't even use people for any actual purpose, but simply because he enjoys destroying them like a man swatting a fly.
According to Catelyn, Petyr sent her a letter after Brandon's murder by the Mad King (the contents of the letter are not revealed - perhaps he hoped she would agree to marry him), but she burned it unopened, because she knew Ned would marry her in his brother's place.
Petyr was later appointed as a customs official in Gulltown , the main city of the Vale . His extreme success in raising funds, bringing in three times as much as any of the king’s other collectors, led Lord Jon Arryn , the Hand of the King , to appoint him to the Small Council as Master of Coin , a task at which Petyr has excelled: he has made the crown's revenues ten times what they have been under his beleaguered predecessor (though the crown's debts have grown vast as well).
Littlefinger did not simply collect gold and keep it; instead, he paid the king’s debts in promises, and put the king’s gold to work. He bought wagons, shops, ships, houses; he bought grain when it was plentiful and sold bread when it was scarce. In the process, he moved his own men into key positions: harbormasters, tax farmers, customs sergeants, wool factors, toll collectors, pursers, wine factors, etc. No one has ever questioned those appointments, since Littlefinger was no threat to anyone: a clever, friendly person, always able to find whatever gold the king or his Hand required, and yet of such undistinguished birth, he was not a man to fear. He had no banners to call, no army of retainers, no great stronghold, no holdings to speak of, no prospects of a great marriage.
Unlike in the TV series, Tyrion learns from Catelyn that it was Littlefinger who told her the dagger found on the catspaw sent to kill Bran belonged to Tyrion. Littlefinger explained that it had previously belonged to him until he lost it in a wager with Tyrion when Jaime was unhorsed by Loras Tyrell . Tyrion states that this cannot be true because he never bets against Jaime. Catelyn asks why Petyr would lie to her, to which Tyrion retorts: "why does a bear shit in the woods? Because it is in his nature." Catelyn realizes too late that Littlefinger lied to her, when Jaime independently verifies Tyrion's account and had no reason to lie having just confessed to pushing Bran from the window. Catelyn does not have a chance to confront Littlefinger about his lie; Tyrion does, but he does not settle his score with Littlefinger, even though he suffered a lot and almost got killed three times due to that lie (Tyrion pragmatically recognizes Littlefinger is too valuable for his talents as Master of Coin and has too many of his own agents in positions of power at court to eliminate him for the sake of vengeance at the outbreak of the War of the Five Kings , though Tyrion's inner monologue does note that once Littlefinger's usefulness has passed and Tyrion can replace Littlefinger's agents with people loyal to him, he'll gladly revenge himself on Littlefinger).
It is implied in the novels that Littlefinger lusts after Sansa, perhaps because she looks so much like her mother, who is lost to him forever. In the fourth novel he kisses Sansa passionately several times, and once touches her breasts; in the fifth novel, Cersei recalls that he offered to wed Sansa, but was denied because he was much too lowborn. Nevertheless, Littlefinger does not let his personal desires interfere with his plans.
It is unknown whether Littlefinger has planned in advance to dispose of Lysa and seized the opportunity to do that, or it was a spontaneous decision. Either way, the timing of the murder (not the murder itself) has posed him a problem: he has not been married to Lysa long enough to establish his position as the Lord Protector of the Vale in the eyes of the local lords.
Soon afterward, Lord Nestor Royce comes to inquire about Lysa's death and is satisfied by Littlefinger's smooth lies that it was Marillion . At that occasion, Sansa shivers with fear, especially when Littlefinger says brazenly "it was I who killed her" (as if talking metaphorically), but Littlefinger gets away with the murder.
Lord Yohn Royce and other lords of the Vale (known as "Lords Declarant"), who scornfully consider Littlefinger an outsider upstart, intend to oust him from the Vale and assume the rearing and training of Robert ( Robin Arryn 's name in the novels). They inform Cersei about their intentions. Littlefinger can request military assistance from Cersei but does not: he sends her a letter, asking for some old tapestries and barely mentions the lords who oppose him. Cersei thinks it over and answers the lords of the Vale that the crown is content with whatever dispositions they may make for the governance of the Vale during Robert Arryn's minority, providing that no harm happens to Littlefinger.
Littlefinger does not leave the Vale. Instead, he spends his time making contacts and attempting to win over lords of the Vale, the neutral ones and those who oppose him. So far, he has managed to draw three of the six Lords Declarant to his side: Symond Templeton, Benedar Belmore and Anya Waynwood.
Littlefinger explains his plan to Sansa: after Robert dies (his health is so poor that he will probably die within a few years), she will wed his heir Ser Harrold Hardyng. Sansa reminds Littlefinger she is married and he answers " The dwarf wed Ned Stark's daughter, not mine. Be that as it may. This is only a betrothal. The marriage must needs wait until Cersei is done and Sansa's safely widowed." At the wedding, Sansa will reveal her true identity; every knight in the Vale will pledge his sword to win back her birthright and that way she will take over both the Vale and the North.
As a member of the King's Small Council, he serves as the Master of Whisperers , the King's foremost spymaster and intelligence agent. He holds no inherited title, castle, or lands in Westeros , but is called "Lord" as a courtesy due to his position on the council, which traditionally is made up of high lords.
She claims to have seen the path to victory in the flames. He reminds her that he has said her words and burnt the idols of the Seven already. She circles behind him and undoes her robe. She tells him that he must give all of himself. He reminds her of his marriage vow. She says that Selyse is sickly, weak and shut away in a tower and that she disgusts Stannis. She says that Selyse has given Stannis no sons, only stillborns and death. She promises him a son. He repeats the promise as she kisses his ear. He returns her kisses and lifts her onto the table, scattering the models onto the floor as he begins to have sex with her.
While she was never seen practicing alchemy, it is implied that she was proficient in this branch of magic, as once she showed Selyse Baratheon her large repertoire of elixirs and potions while bathing, all of which she had presumably brewed herself. She was also able to explain the wide variety of magical effects these potions possessed.
Catelyn's refusal to leave Bran's side starts to cause problems for the smooth running of the castle. Robb offers to work with Maester Luwin to fill vacancies left by the departure of Eddard's retinue. Robb is drawn away from Bran's room by a fire. This proves to be a distraction to allow an assassin to reach Bran. Catelyn holds the assassin off long enough for Summer to enter the chamber and tear out his throat.
Tyrion defends his innocence and demands a trial by combat . The sellsword Bronn , who accompanied the party from the Crossroads Inn, agrees to stand for Tyrion. Bronn defeats Ser Vardis Egen , who takes Lady Lysa's part. Tyrion's victory signifies his innocence in the eyes of the gods and he is released.
Word reaches the camp that Lord Eddard has been executed. Catelyn walks stoically through the camp, while the men bow to her out of respect. Once in the woods, she falls against a tree and weeps. Hearing noise coming from ahead, she goes on to find Robb striking a tree with his sword. Catelyn calls him, then tells him that he is ruining his sword. Robb drops the sword and collapses in her arms. Robb wants to kill them all, and his mother says they will, but after they secure the release of Arya and Sansa.
Jaime escapes but is soon recaptured. Robb is away negotiating the surrender of the Crag . Lord Rickard Karstark demands Jaime's head because he murdered his son Torrhen Karstark in the escape attempt. Catelyn convinces Rickard to await Robb's return but fears that his patience will not last the night.
Robb visits Catelyn in her tent to discuss his plan to break his betrothal to House Frey to marry Talisa. She reveals that Eddard did not love her when they first married and explains that they built a strong, enduring love over time. She warns against recklessly breaking his oath for passion but he says that she has no right to call anyone reckless. Going against his mother's advice, Robb marries Talisa in a secret ceremony.
When Lord Rickard Karstark murders the prisoners Willem and Martyn Lannister in their cells, Robb is disgusted and insists that Rickard be executed. Edmure Tully , Catelyn's brother, insists that if word of this leaves Riverrun, Tywin Lannister will exact heavy reprisals for the deaths of his young nephews. Therefore, he suggests that they just quietly bury the boys, and simply keep silent about their deaths until the war is over. Robb, however, refuses to be a liar, saying he cannot fight a war in the name of justice if he will not serve justice to murderers within his own ranks. All of Robb's advisors tell him this is a bad idea. Catelyn and Talisa warn him that the Karstark soldiers will abandon his cause and return home if he executes their lord, and they are already badly outnumbered. Catelyn says they should keep Lord Rickard hostage , and Edmure agrees, adding to tell the other Karstarks that no harm will come to him so long as they remain loyal.
Catelyn is later asked to confirm that his plan to attack Casterly Rock is fool-proof, which can only be achieved if Walder cooperates. Initially expresses the danger of failure, stating the possibility that Tywin Lannister's army will cut them off due to Lannisport's adjacency to the Sunset Sea , Catelyn later states that Robb should attack.
Robb's army arrives at the Twins for Edmure's wedding. Enduring Lord Walder Frey's insults directed at him and his wife, Robb makes a public apology to Lord Frey's daughters and granddaughters for breaking his promise to marry one of them. Frey accepts the apology and offers the Starks and their men his hospitality .
Catelyn, having been wounded by a crossbow bolt, crawls across the floor and seizes out from under Walder's table his cowering young wife, Joyeuse . Catelyn holds a knife to the girl's throat and threatens to kill her if Walder does not negotiate an end to the attack. She demands that Robb, who merely lingers despondent and heartbroken beside his wife's corpse, be allowed to leave. Walder refuses her, dismissing his wife with the comment "I'll find another" and Roose Bolton, who had fled the hall when the massacre began, seizes Robb, saying "The Lannisters send their regards," before stabbing him in the heart. Robb's last word is "Mother" and he maintains contact with her as he collapses to the floor. Mad with grief at the death of her firstborn son, Catelyn kills Walder's wife in retaliation before Black Walder cuts Catelyn's throat.
Emotionally crushed by the deaths of Catelyn and Robb, Sansa refuses to eat despite pleas from Shae . When Tyrion attempts to comfort her, she reveals to him that she lies awake all night thinking about how her mother and brother died, having learned that the Freys had sewn Grey Wind 's head onto Robb's decapitated corpse. Her mother’s corpse was also desecrated by being flung like trash from the battlements of the Twins into the Trident to rot, an apparent mockery of traditional House Tully funeral customs. Despite the fact that Catelyn tried to have him executed, even after he saved her life, Tyrion tells Sansa that he admired her mother, saying she was a strong woman who was fierce when it came to protecting her children. He tells Sansa that Catelyn would want her to carry on. Sansa excuses herself to go to godswood where she is later watched by Jaime and Brienne, who reminds the former of the promise he made to Catelyn. Jaime acknowledges this but counters that the situation has become quite complicated due to multiple factors: Catelyn is now dead, Arya hasn’t been seen since Ned’s execution, and Sansa is now married to Tyrion.
When Sansa and Theon escape from the clutches of Ramsay Bolton , they are immediately set upon and nearly recaptured by half a dozen Bolton soldiers, but Brienne and Podrick intervene. Once the soldiers are dead, Brienne once again offers her service to Sansa, who readily accepts this time. Brienne fulfills part of her pledge to Catelyn.
Catelyn was a woman who was both dutiful and complex: in many ways, she fitted the expectations of her house, and their words 'Family, Duty, Honor', but she often found herself at odds with these words. She was a loving mother, and her maternal disposition influenced much of what she did; all of her children loved her and they would come to mourn her as they did their father when she was killed.
She was, to a great extent, a peaceful woman. This is shown when she pleaded with Renly to make peace with Stannis instead of fighting his own brother to the death in open battle, even though she had seen the man Stannis had become and both of them knew that Stannis would never be agreeable with them.
Towards the end of her life, Catelyn became melancholic at the loss of so many family members - her father, her husband, two of her sons and the captivity of her daughters. She laments that she could have done things differently, and that she was incapable of saving her youngest sons. Later, she tearfully remembers her father when she was a child.
During the war, Catelyn stays most of the time in Riverrun (except her visit at Renly's camp and the two rides to the Twins), not in Robb's camp. Since Robb is not a POV character, the information about his battles is revealed mostly from the reports Catelyn receives after they take place.
When Catelyn is at Renly's camp, she sees her reflection in an armor suit, gazing back at her as if from the bottom of a deep green pond. The image makes Catelyn think " The face of a drowned woman. Can you drown in grief? ". This is perhaps a foreshadowing of her death.
Catelyn's death is different than in the show: during the massacre, she finds a knife and grabs Aegon "Jinglebell" Frey, Lord Frey's lackwit grandson (in the show he was replaced with Lord Frey's eighth wife), in attempt to trade his life for her son. Lord Frey says indifferently that Jinglebell was never useful. After Robb is killed, Catelyn slits Jinglebell's throat. Driven mad by grief, Catelyn scratches her face, her tears mingled with the blood, till Raymund Frey cuts her throat. Her corpse has been dumped naked into the Green Fork, in a savage mockery of House Tully's funeral customs, after she has been dead for a day and a night.
Lady Stoneheart is totally monstrous, physically and characteristically: her flesh has turned soft and the color of curdled milk due to being submerged in river water for days; half of her hair is gone and the rest is white and brittle as a crone's; her wounds have not healed, and her face is covered in scratch marks and black blood where she raked herself; her throat still slit open; the most terrible thing about her is her eyes, expressing deep hatred. In order to speak, she must cover the wound on her throat, and even then she is difficult to understand. She wears a crown of a bronze circlet ringed by iron swords - the crown which her son used to wear.
In A Feast for Crows , Brienne and Jaime hear various rumors (partly or wholly true) about Lady Stoneheart: some say she belongs to Beric's band, perhaps his lover; that she was hanged by the Freys, but Beric kissed her and brought her back to life, and now both cannot die; some say she is a leader of a different band. According to the rumors, she is cloaked and hooded, her face is torn and scarred, and her eyes are terrible to look.
Randyll Tarly , who has been recently chasing and hanging dozens of outlaws, is determined to capture Lady Stoneheart, but so far she and the other local band leaders (among them Rorge , impersonating as the Hound ) still elude him.
Brienne insists that she and Pod are looking for Sansa, and that Jaime armed her with the sword for that purpose, and that he is not what he used to be; her words fall on deaf ears. Lady Stoneheart demands that she kills Jaime, otherwise she and her companions will be hanged. Brienne refuses to make a choice, but watching Pod dying, she gives up to the unjust demand.
The topic of Lady Stoneheart's absence in the show has become almost infamous in the frequency in which it is brought up by fans - as well as the show creators' continued insistence that Stoneheart was omitted from the TV series. With Beric's return in the sixth season of Game of Thrones - as well as the deaths of Walder Frey and his sons at the hands of Arya - it has become clear that Stoneheart was indeed written out of the TV series - and it can be assumed that her storyline in the forthcoming novels was condensed with Arya's.
Lady Stoneheart might have been inspired by Thérèse Defarge , the main antagonist of A Tale of Two Cities (one of Martin's favorite book ): her hatred toward the Marquis St. Evrémonde and his brother was justified, in view of the atrocities they did to her family and many other people (among them the killing of Gaspard's child). However, she was totally consumed by hatred and desire for vengeance that she lost any sense of justice, to the point that she and her associates condemned many people to death, without caring if they were guilty or innocent - exactly like Lady Stoneheart. Among her intended victims was the Marquis's nephew Charles Darnay, who was innocent, but his kinship to the Evrémondes was enough for Madame Defarge to sentence him to death; since her bloodlust was insatiable, she sought to kill also Darnay's wife and daughter for the same reason (eventually the three were saved).
Catelyn's death and her subsequent reanimation have been prophesied by the old woods witch , known as the Ghost of High Heart : " I dreamt of a roaring river and a woman that was a fish. Dead she drifted, with red tears on her cheeks, but when her eyes did open, oh, I woke from terror ."
When he was a teenager, Oberyn accompanied his sister Elia on a visit to Casterly Rock . While there, Oberyn and Elia were eager to see the "monster" that had just been born. Cersei finally showed them Tyrion, but the Martell siblings were disappointed to see that he was merely a baby, and somewhat disturbed by Cersei's already strong hatred of him.
In the days following Joffrey's death, Oberyn and Ellaria visit the brothel again. Oberyn grows angry with Olyvar when the prostitute rejects Ellaria's advances (as he doesn't have the taste with women), but Ellaria calms him down. Oberyn then discusses his approach to sexuality (not restricting himself to intimacy with one gender and having as much sex as possible before old age) with Olyvar. The small orgy is broken up by the sudden arrival of Tywin.
Oberyn later takes up his seat on the Small Council . In typical fashion, he complains loudly about the early meeting, pretends to be more concerned about the fancy title he will receive than matters of state, and refuses to rise when Lord Tywin enters the room. In spite of this, Tywin seems more interested in his opinion than that of Mace Tyrell , the new Master of Ships. Oberyn also warns the Small Council not to discount the danger that the Unsullied pose on the battlefield.
Later on, Tyrion's trial begins. King Tommen recuses himself from the trial, appointing his grandfather Lord Tywin, along with Lord Mace and Prince Oberyn, as judges. Several witnesses are called for the prosecution, all of whom give testimony backing the accusations against Tyrion. Oberyn occasionally questions the witnesses, sometimes insightfully and sometimes (as with Shae ) for his own amusement. Oberyn's face suggests interest when Tyrion demands trial by combat. Some days after his demands for a trial by combat, Oberyn visits Tyrion in the dungeons and relates the story of his disappointment in their first encounter. As children, Oberyn and Elia were told stories of the "Lannister Monster" and his extreme deformities.
Oberyn enters the trial wearing simple light armor and wielding a light spear with a heavy blade. Upon seeing his opponent, Ellaria grows concerned for his chances at besting the mountainous beast, but Oberyn remains confident. Tyrion is additionally worried by Oberyn's lack of a helmet and his light armor, and witnessing Oberyn drinking before the match does nothing to assuage his fears, but Oberyn claims that he drinks before every battle and that armor hinders his preferred fighting style. Before he faces Clegane, he promises Ellaria that he will survive."
As the battle commences, the Red Viper manages to impress the crowd with a dazzling display of spear twirling before engaging Clegane, whom he taunts. Clegane ignores his words and launches a furious attack. Although the latter wears heavier armor and wields a massive broadsword, Oberyn is able to swiftly avoid his swings, poking at him with his spear, demanding him to admit to the rape and murder of Elia and her children, vengefully chanting in an ever-louder voice: "You raped her! You murdered her! You killed her children!." Clegane knocks Oberyn off his feet twice and manages to cut his spear in half, but fails to wound him. Oberyn simply evades his swings again and walks over to his squire , who tosses him a replacement spear.
Meanwhile, he wears Clegane down, knocking off his helmet and inflicting minor wounds through gaps in the huge knights' armor. Oberyn eventually stabs ​Clegane in the stomach and severs his hamstring. The knight falls to his knees, outmaneuvered by the Dornish prince's quick movement and skill with a spear. The Red Viper then lunges and stabs him through his breastplate, causing Clegane to cough blood and fall on his back. With Clegane incapacitated, Oberyn once again demands that he admit to Elia's death and reveal who orchestrated it, pointing accusingly at Tywin.
While the Mountain is being treated for his injuries, Pycelle and Qyburn discover that before the duel Oberyn had his spearblade coated with Manticore venom, which has caused Clegane's already severe wounds to putrefy horribly, leaving him in a catatonic, decaying, and agonized state.
Ellaria notes that her greatest regret was that Oberyn died for Tyrion at his trial. Later, Tyene tells her sisters Obara and Nymeria that her mother Ellaria told her that Oberyn died because of his carelessness. They are then both killed soon after by Euron Greyjoy .
In the black cells of the Red Keep, Cersei enrages Ellaria by reminding her that Oberyn's carelessness caused his death, and that his killer, Ser Gregor, is stronger than ever. Even though the murder of Myrcella Baratheon by Ellaria was meant to avenge Oberyn, it only proved to be one of her worst decisions, as Tyene is poisoned by Cersei with the long farewell as Ellaria did to Myrcella. Ellaria is left to helplessly watch her daughter slowly die and eventually decompose before her eyes.
Above all, Oberyn was a deeply passionate man, with a hot temper that often led him into duels and grudges; but in equal measure this also made him deeply loyal to those he cared about. Although he was a very serious man, he had a very laid-back, easygoing attitude, taking anything that came his way in his stride, but he wasn't incapable of being deadly serious when the situation insisted upon it.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Prince Oberyn is the hot-headed younger brother of Prince Doran Martell . He has eight bastard daughters, called the Sand Snakes , the four youngest of them by his current paramour, Ellaria Sand .
Oberyn is one of the three potential husbands that Tywin has in mind for Cersei, alongside Willas Tyrell and Balon Greyjoy (of those three, Oberyn is Tywin's last choice, since he does not wish to anger the Tyrells). Cersei is unimpressed, to say the least, of the idea to wed either the "old squid" or the "crippled dog boy", but she is more willing to wed Oberyn; she tells him that implicitly, asking in return that he convicts Tyrion. Ellaria is in favor of the match, too. Oberyn, however, has a very negative opinion about Cersei, and states he'd prefer that a hundred red scorpions would fall upon him than sleeping with the "golden-haired whore." Jaime strongly objects to the match, in view of Oberyn's negative reputation.
Brienne is the sole surviving child and heir of Lord Selwyn Tarth of Evenfall Hall , on the island of Tarth , located in the Narrow Sea off the coast of the Stormlands . Though few men in Westeros would find her attractive, she is unusually tall and muscular for a woman by Westerosi standards and developed a taste for martial activity as a child. Brienne has grown up to become skilled at arms and dreams of becoming a knight , an unusual aspiration for a Westerosi woman.
Jaime escapes captivity, killing Torrhen Karstark in the attempt. He is soon recaptured, but Torrhen's father Lord Rickard Karstark demands his head in vengeance. Brienne guards Catelyn as she convinces Rickard to await Robb's return. As the hours until daylight stretch before them, the Karstarks are getting more violent and agitated, calling for Jaime's death. As it would be death to try to defend him, Brienne tells Catelyn that at this rate Jaime will not live long enough for Robb to return.
When they come upon a tree with the hanging corpses of three tavern girls who have been killed by Stark forces for having relations with Lannister men, Jaime confronts her with the atrocity committed by "her side." Brienne reminds him that she is sworn to Lady Catelyn, not the Starks. Despite their need to continue, Brienne determines to give the women a decent burial and is going to cut them down, when three of the Northern soldiers who killed the women return. Jaime tries to get her to remove his chains so he can defend them, but Brienne ignores him. She tells the men that she is escorting a prisoner back to Riverrun for justice. Jaime improvises that he is in chains for stealing a pig. Realizing that Brienne is a woman, the Stark soldiers laugh uncontrollably. Brienne suffers it in silence, and at this even Jaime seems sympathetic towards her over this rude treatment. She deflects the men's amusement by asking if the hanging women were given a quick death, and is told two of them were. When one of the men recognizes Jaime from the Battle of Whispering Wood , Brienne is forced to fight them. She kills two quickly, but deliberately gives the third a slower death. Her skill impresses Ser Jaime, who points out that the men she killed were Stark soldiers. Brienne reaffirms that she is loyal not to the Starks but to Catelyn herself, then returns to the task of cutting down and burying the tavern girls.
Brienne takes the safer route of the bridge. Jaime distracts Brienne and grabs her spare sword. He cut his bonds and they engage in an extended sword fight on the bridge Jaime, one of the most skilled swordsmen in all of Westeros, nearly overcomes Brienne several times. However, Jaime's mobility is reduced because his hands are still manacled, and he is malnourished after having spent the past full year chained up in a cell.
As they ride along, the Bolton men sing a rousing chorus of " The Bear and the Maiden Fair ." Tied up back to back on one of the horses, Jaime warns Brienne that when they make camp for the night, they will rape her, more than once, and that his honest advice is to give no resistance, and just think of Renly. They were only sent to capture Jaime, therefore Brienne means nothing to them, so at the slightest provocation they will kill her without hesitation. Brienne says she will fight even if they kill her, and Jaime agrees that if he were a woman, he would fight to the death before being raped, too.
Later that night, Locke's men make camp, and do indeed drag Brienne kicking and screaming into the bushes to gang-rape her. Jaime is disgusted by this pointless brutality, so he tells Locke that Brienne is actually a noblewoman and the sole heir of Lord Selwyn Tarth, who rules the "Sapphire Isle" which, Jaime says, mines all the sapphires in Westeros, and her father will pay them her weight in sapphires as a ransom, provided she is unharmed. Locke agrees and calls his men back before they are able to rape Brienne, and they tie her up to a tree again.
Emboldened by his success, Jaime attempts to barter for his release by reminding Locke of the wealth and power of his own father . This has an adverse effect, however, and Locke, angered by Jaime's arrogance and complacency, mutilates him by cutting off his sword hand. Later, while sitting with Brienne near the fire, Jaime has lost the will to live and will not eat because of his lost hand. At first, Brienne chastises him that he cannot take it when life gets tough, comparing him to the stereotypical interpretation of a woman that she clearly is not. However, when she asks him why he helped her escape being raped, he does not reply, but begins to eat, puzzling Brienne.
Later on, Brienne and Pod stop at an inn where they are served kidney pie made by Hot Pie , who tells them at length the process in finding the right ingredients. Brienne tells him that she is in Catelyn's service and is sworn to find and protect Sansa. Hot Pie backs off, declaring the Starks traitors.
The fight descends rapidly into violent fisticuffs, in which Brienne shatters Sandor's teeth, which he returns with a heavy punched to gut. Brienne ultimately wins by pushing him down a cliff, collapsing exhausted on the ground following the fight. When she returns to Podrick (who was supposed to be keeping an eye on Arya, but was watching the fight instead), Arya is gone. Exhausted and infuriated by her fight with the Hound, Brienne screams Arya's name repeatedly, while Arya sneaks away from them.
While dining at an inn, Podrick identifies Sansa sitting with Littlefinger. Although they are surrounded by guards, Brienne approaches them and reveals to Sansa that she swore an oath to her mother to keep her safe, but does not mention her run-in with Arya in Baelish's presence. Baelish counters by telling Sansa that Brienne, a complete stranger, swore oaths to protect both Catelyn and Renly and failed at both. Sansa rejects Brienne's offer of protection while Petyr insists that Brienne stay with their group, as the roads are not safe.
Sensing the trap, Brienne escapes with Podrick on stolen horses and are pursued by the guards. Brienne is forced to let Sansa and Petyr escape, since she was separated from Podrick during the chase. Brienne rescues him by slaying two of the pursuing guards, and the duo prepare to pursue Sansa and Petyr. Podrick argues that Sansa has dismissed her therefore released from her oath, but Brienne insists that she is not safe with Littlefinger.
Brienne and Podrick witness Petyr and Sansa approach Moat Cailin . Realizing that following them through the castle would be futile, she decides to bypass Moat Cailin by going around. Although Podrick is worried about losing sight of them, Brienne tells him that they do not need to follow them so closely because she knows where they are going.
Making camp, Brienne learns how Podrick became Tyrion's squire. Podrick praises Brienne's martial prowess and is quite proud to be her squire, despite her behavior towards him. Brienne apologizes for her rude behavior towards Podrick and offers to teach him how to wield a sword and ride a horse properly. Podrick then questions Brienne about her past with Renly. She reveals that as a young girl, her father held a ball and invited dozens of young lords in order to find a good match for her. Brienne was captivated by all the attention she was getting, but her happiness turned to embarrassment when Brienne realized they were all just toying with her. Before she could run away, Renly took Brienne into his arms and told her that those "nasty little shits aren't worth crying over" and danced with her.
Brienne and Podrick continue to wait for Sansa's signal, watching the window of the tower at every opportunity. Still awaiting Sansa's signal, Brienne is alerted by Podrick of the arrival of Stannis and what is left of his army. She reluctantly abandons her mission of saving Sansa, with the candle in the tower being lit by Sansa just a few seconds after Brienne leaves. After the battle, which results in the complete annihilation of the remainder of Stannis's army.
Brienne finds Stannis wounded in the Wolfswood . Stannis takes her for a woman fighting for the Boltons, but Brienne tells him her name and real allegiance. Stannis confesses his involvement in the assassination of his younger brother Renly, whom Brienne had sworn to protect as member of his kingsguard. Brienne draws her sword and sentences Stannis to death. When asked for any last words, Stannis urges Brienne to do her duty, after which she beheads him with a single stroke.
With Stannis dead, Brienne and Podrick continue their search for Sansa. Eventually, they manage to find Sansa and Theon being apprehended by a Bolton hunting party. Brienne kills most of the soldiers on horseback, then knocks one off his horse before slitting his throat. Once all the soldiers are dead, Brienne once again offers her services to Sansa, who readily agrees this time.
Jaime tells her to keep the sword in order to continue to fulfill the oath it was named after. Brienne fails to convince the Blackfish, but in the end, the castle is taken with him as the only casualty. Just before he goes off to meet his death, the Blackfish puts Brienne and Podrick into a rowboat in a secret escape tunnel. As Brienne and Podrick row quietly away in the dawn, Jaime sees her from the castle. She meets his gaze as they both wave a quiet farewell.
When tensions start to arise between Sansa and Arya after the latter discovers the letter that Sansa wrote to Robb, asking him to swear fealty to Joffrey in exchange for sparing their father (which Littlefinger arranged for her to find), Sansa confides to Littlefinger, who insinuates that since Brienne swore an oath to Catelyn to protect both of her daughters, it could also mean having to protect one from the other.
At Jaime's trial in the Great Hall, she speaks on his behalf, convincing Sansa, Daenerys, and Jon to spare him after telling them the story of how he saved her from Locke's men, along with assigning her mission to find and protect the Stark girls. Later, Brienne is overseeing Podrick's progress as he trains someone, when Jaime arrives to thank her for supporting him. Thinking he plans to insult her once again, she is surprised when he asks to serve under her command in the upcoming battle . Though hesitant at first, she accepts.
Brienne is present when Jon and the others discuss their plan of defense, refusing another of Tormund's advances in the process. Later, she joins the Lannister brothers for wine, but orders a half cup for Podrick, since the battle could start at any moment; Tyrion serves Podrick a full cup anyway. After hearing Tormund's story of how he earned his nickname "Giantsbane", he questions her status among the nobility. Brienne confesses that she was never made a knight, due to tradition.
Brienne has spent most of her life as the object of scorn, rejection and – at best – pity. When she tried to dress and act like a proper lady, she was met with mockery and disdain for her unattractive appearance and lack of feminine social graces; when she turned to a career more suited to her talents as a warrior, she received only contempt and resentment for her gender despite her considerable skill. These aspects of her life have resulted in her being penalized by Westerosi society due to unconventionality.
In A Song of Ice and Fire , Brienne is considered ugly and ungainly, but is immensely skilled at combat. She is taller and stronger than many men, and her father and his head of household guards have trained her for many years in the arts of combat. Some people consider her a freak, while other men hope to marry her to inherit her father's wealthy lands. For her part, Brienne yearns for respect, acceptance and a chance to prove her valor in a worthy cause.
Brienne is described as homely: her hair is a squirrel's nest of dirty straw; her features are broad and coarse; her teeth are prominent and crooked; her mouth is too wide; her lips are so plump they seemed swollen; a thousand freckles speckle her cheeks and brow; and her nose had been broken more than once. Her only lovely feature is her eyes, large and very blue, trusting and guileless. A very few people (Renly, Cortnay Penrose, Catelyn, Jaime, and Podrick) see beyond her ugliness and realize that she is honest, decent and honorable, if also naive and stubborn.
Brienne is the oldest daughter of Lord Selwyn of Tarth. She had two younger sisters but they both died in the cradle. She had an older brother named Galladon, but he drowned when she was eight years old, leaving her as Selwyn's only surviving child and heir. The TV series vaguely acknowledged this in Season 5's episode " High Sparrow " when she described herself as her father's only "living child." She has been engaged to marry three times (contracts made by her father, none of which ended well):
When Brienne was young, Septa Roelle was her tutor. Instead of helping Brienne to gain confidence despite her ugliness, Roelle did the opposite: she kept telling Brienne that she was freakishly big, mannish and a slow learner, and that men talked to her kindly only because they wanted to win her father's favor.
The books do not make specific mention of her mother: in the TV series she says that she never knew her, implying that she died when Brienne was very young. Brienne has a good relationship with her father and describes him as a good man. She notes that (since her mother died) he is in a relationship with a new female romantic interest every year or so.
She first met Renly when he came to Tarth to see her father who was his bannerman. He treated her with courtesy and respect. He danced with her, and she has been in love with him ever since. Catelyn realizes this the first time she sees Brienne looking at Renly (down at him, as she stands a half-hand taller than him). Brienne always tries to be at Renly's side. She offers to guard him the night before the battle, but Renly says no as he and Loras are going to "pray together privately." He accepts her offer to come before dawn to arm him for the battle, others who hear this snicker, and Catelyn thinks it sad that she is thought of as a joke, because she acts the part of a squire and dresses him just to have the opportunity to touch him.
When Brienne joined Renly's army, he greeted her courteously and welcomed her to his service. She expected the other knights to treat her with coldness and mockery, but to her surprise many of them were exceedingly kind to her, going above and beyond the others to win her favor, except Randyll Tarly who was openly hostile toward her. Brienne was confused and suspicious to be treated so warmly. The mystery was solved when Dickon Tarly overheard by chance four knights talking about a wager that three of the soldiers put on the first who could claim Brienne's maidenhead, and many others joined the contest. Dickon told his father, and Randyll put an end to the wager, knowing that some of the challengers were less honorable than others, and it was only a matter of time before one of them decided to claim the prize by force. He told Brienne about the wager, bluntly claiming it was her fault. Brienne was deeply offended, and said that she came to fight and never did anything to encourage those knights. Randyll was not appeased, and told her that her presence alone encouraged them because a war host is no place for a maiden.
After she is dispatched by Jaime to find and protect Sansa , Brienne spends most of her time in the Riverlands, fruitlessly seeking information on Sansa's whereabouts; unbeknownst to her, she is on the wrong track right from the beginning, since Sansa is in the Vale. During an encounter with the Brave Companions, Brienne learns to know that the Hound was seen with a Stark girl; Brienne incorrectly assumes that was Sansa. At the Quiet Isle, the Elder Brother tells Brienne the girl who accompanied the Hound was not Sansa but Arya . These pieces of information do not help Brienne find Arya either.
She and Pod never encounter Arya or the Hound, though they do meet Rorge (who is posing as the Hound) and Biter near the Inn at the Crossroads . Brienne kills Rorge, but is badly wounded in a savage fight with Biter, before he is killed by Gendry.
In A Dance with Dragons , after resolving the siege of Raventree Hall , Jaime meets Brienne at Pennytree . Jaime is stunned to see her injuries. Brienne tells him that she found Sansa, and "I can take you to her, ser... but you will need to come alone. Elsewise, the Hound will kill her." It is obvious (to the readers) that Brienne is lying, since Sansa is in the Vale, and the Hound's fate is unknown. It appears Brienne intends to lead Jaime into a trap; the chapter ends with a cliffhanger.
Although not as large as his older brother, Sandor is very large and a formidable fighter in his own right, considered one of the most skilled and dangerous men in Westeros. Sandor gutted his first man in combat when he was twelve years old (given the date, this was probably as a young soldier during Robert's Rebellion ). Sandor finds killing to be the best thing in the world, and although he isn't a crazed killer who will murder anyone regardless of the law. Like his brother, he cynically pursues occupations as a bodyguard and soldier which allow him to kill legally—though he scoffs at the hypocrisy of people who think there's really much of a difference. After seeing his brother knighted by Prince Rhaegar Targaryen despite being an infamously dishonorable man, Sandor became jaded with knighthood and developed an extreme contempt for romances and songs which present knights and wars as chivalrous and glorious, knowing all too well that supposedly honorable knights frequently butcher the innocent while claiming glory. Thus, Sandor has steadfastly refused to be knighted or take holy vows. Sandor wears a dark set of heavy armor when in battle, and is known to wear a custom helmet shaped like a snarling hound's head, after his family's sigil. He rides a personal warhorse called Stranger , whose namesake is the seventh and final god in the Faith of the Seven who represents death and the unknown.
On the Kingsroad back to the capital the royal party reaches the Inn at the Crossroads . Sandor introduces Sansa to Ser Ilyn Payne , the king's headsman, a fearsome man who had his tongue torn out on the orders of the Mad King many years ago. Joffrey "saves" Sansa from this unpleasantness and takes her for a walk along the riverbank. Joffrey provokes an argument with the butcher's son Mycah and Arya , and is bitten by Nymeria when he attacks them. Joffrey lies about the incident and Sansa supports his version of events. Sandor chases down and kills Mycah. When he returns with Mycah's corpse, Ned confronts him, saying accusingly "You rode him down." Without bothering to face Ned, the Hound remorselessly says "He ran. Not very fast."
Sandor is amused when Gregor is unhorsed in a joust with Ser Loras Tyrell . Gregor attacks Loras and Sandor intervenes, saving Loras from a would-be-fatal blow. They exchange blows until King Robert orders a halt to the madness. Whilst Sandor bows to his king, Gregor begrudging storms off. Loras thanks Sandor "for his life, Ser", to which Sandor states that he is no "Ser." Loras then declares Sandor a champion and the smallfolk in the crowd cheer him, to Sandor's surprise and embarrassment.
King Robert subsequently dies following a hunting accident. Sandor stands guard over King Joffrey as his advisers and vassals swear fealty to him. When Eddard attempts to have Joffrey and Cersei arrested, Sandor joins the Lannister soldiers and men of the City Watch in cutting down Eddard's bodyguards, allowing him to be taken prisoner. Sandor leads a party of Lannister guardsmen to the Red Keep where they slaughter Eddard's entourage and capture Sansa. He is later present in the throne room when Ser Barristan Selmy is dismissed from the Kingsguard , a grave affront since members serve for life, and Selmy is offended enough to draw his sword and claim he could cut through all the remaining Kingsguard with ease. Sandor looks wary for the first time, since Selmy is actually that skilled, but the old knight then throws the sword down and storms out. Sandor is made a member of the sworn brotherhood, though he refuses to take the vows of knighthood .
Joffrey's rule sees increasing public dissent. While in public he is hit by thrown excrement and triggers a citywide riot by demanding the deaths of all the smallfolk present. Sandor fights through the crowd to get him to safety but has no patience for the whingeing king's complaints that he wants the crowd executed, snarking back that "they want the same for [Joffrey]" and then goes back for Sansa, rescuing her from a gang of would be rapists, after which he is thanked by Tyrion . Sandor dismisses his praise.
Arya speaks up, and accuses him of killing her friend Mycah . Sandor does not deny this murder, but says he was in no place to question then-Prince Joffrey's orders. The Brotherhood charge him with the crime of following orders to kill Mycah, but will give him a fair trial by combat . He asks who will be his opponent, expecting to win easily against those who deems cowardly or dismissive of the real world, and is shocked when Beric announces he himself will face him.
Using magic, Beric ignites his blade with fire, initially giving him an advantage during the fight due to Sandor's fear of fire. However, Sandor briefly manages to overcome his phobia and his superior strength eventually is enough to overpower Beric, and with a powerful downward swipe Sandor cuts deep into Beric's shoulder, nearly cutting off his entire arm and cutting right through Beric's flaming sword.
Arya attempts to kill Sandor while he tries to extinguish his shield, which had been set ablaze during the fight, but she is stopped by Gendry . He taunts Arya over how the gods prefer him over her friend, but he is interrupted and shocked by Beric, who has been revived and healed by Thoros using the Lord of Light 's power. Beric honors their agreement, and Sandor is released.
On the way there, Sandor spots a man with a wagon full of pork products. He gets down from his horse and feigns friendliness before incapacitating him. He moves to kill him when Arya intervenes, knocking the man out, but not killing him. Sandor remarks on the fact that Arya's kindness will one day get her killed. When they reach the surrounding fields of the Twins, Sandor realizes that Arya is afraid of not reaching her mother and brother, since she is now the closest to family she has been in years. The two have a frank discussion and Arya tells Sandor that she knows the one thing that he is afraid of: fire. She had noticed his reaction to Beric's flaming sword. Hurting, he then reminds Arya of her father's death, to which Arya states that, one day, she will kill Sandor, shocking him.
While riding, Sandor and Arya come across a group of Frey soldiers at a campfire. Arya dismounts from Sandor's horse, approaches them, and kills one of them. When the rest of the group are about to attack Arya, Sandor protects her and kills them. Sandor takes his knife back from Arya, then sits and eats what the deceased soldiers have left. He asks if this was Arya's first murder. She states it was her first "man."
With Robb dead, Sandor now intends to ransom Arya, who is growing increasingly annoyed of her close proximity to him, to her aunt Lysa Arryn in the Vale . Eventually, they arrive at a tavern. Arya suggests attacking the men there, but as there are five men, Sandor is reluctant to do so. When Arya recognizes one of the men as Polliver , the Lannister man-at-arms who took her sword Needle , she tries to get it back. Sandor stops her at the tavern door, but they are noticed by the men inside. Wishing to avoid suspicion, the two calmly enter.
Inside the tavern, Polliver recognizes Sandor. He moves to the table Sandor and Arya are occupying and tries to make small talk. Polliver eventually invites Sandor to join him in raiding and pillaging anyone they wish, as he and his men wear king's colors. Sandor leans forward and growls, "Fuck the King", and the whole tavern goes silent. Sandor then tells Polliver to get him some chickens. Finally, Polliver questions the Hound that he would not die for the king but would for a couple of chickens, and Sandor responds that someone will die for them.
The tension finally snaps and Sandor throws a table over Polliver. Sandor proceeds to single-handedly kill all but one of Polliver's men and Polliver himself, even repeatedly stabbing one in the head with his own knife. When Polliver attempts to kill the distracted Sandor, he is attacked from behind by Arya, who cripples his legs, takes back her stolen sword Needle , and uses it to kill him. The pair then leave the tavern, Arya now with a stolen horse and Needle; Sandor with his chicken.
The two are interrupted by a farmer and his daughter Sally . Arya covers for Sandor's rude behavior by telling them that Sandor is her father that was wounded in the war and she lost her mother. The farmer asks which house did he fight for and Arya replies that he fought for House Tully. The farmer offers them refuge from the coming rain as well as food. The farmer reveals that they are having a hard time due to raiders doing as they please around, as well as needing a hand with farm work. He then proceed to offer what little silver he has left for Sandor's service, which Sandor agrees to.
Arya is awakened next morning and is surprised that Sandor has broken his promise and robbed the farmer of the silver instead. When furiously questioned by Arya, Sandor replies that both the farmer and daughter will die by winter due to lack of resources and protection, and dead people don't need money. Arya proceeds to berate Sandor furiously, but Sandor retorts that there are more terrible things happening all over the place and that she needs to learn to be practical and make ugly decisions.
Later, he shares with Arya his desire to kill his brother Gregor, and is surprised to hear that Arya wants to kill him as well. The next morning, he finds Arya gone when he awakes, but finds her practicing her Water Dancing on the riverbank below the hill, and proceeds to mock her for it. He also mocks Syrio Forel for being killed by Ser Meryn Trant , who is supposedly worthless as a swordsman. He then shows Arya that Needle is unable to penetrate armor.
Arya and Sandor arrive at a ransacked village in which they find a mortally wounded man . After putting him out of his misery, Sandor is attacked by Biter who sinks his teeth into the Hound's neck. Sandor manages to overpower him, and kills him by snapping his neck. The other man, Rorge , is recognized by Arya as one of the men in the prisoner wagon in Yoren's group. The Hound asks if Rorge is on Arya's list, but she denies it as she doesn't know his name. Sandor asks Rorge his name and after giving it, Rorge is promptly stabbed in the heart with Needle by Arya. Sandor cynically comments she learns.
Later, Sandor clumsily tries to stitch the bite wound, which has begun to fester. Arya offers to cauterize the wound with a burning torch, but Sandor brusquely refuses due to his fear of fire. After hearing that Arya received her sword Needle from her brother, Sandor remarks that instead of a sword, his brother Gregor give him his horrible facial scarring simply because Sandor was playing with a wooden toy knight without his brother's permission. He tells her that although the pain was bad and the smell worse, the worst part of it all was that it was his own brother who did it to him, and that his father covered up the incident to protect Gregor. Arya offers to clean the wound by washing it, which Sandor silently accepts.
Sandor and Arya finally arrive in the Vale. They argue over about what brings Arya happiness, the Hound declaring that nothing makes her happy and Arya retorting that killing men like Polliver and Rorge make her happy. She laments over not being able to witness Joffrey's death or kill him herself. Sandor concurs that he deserved his death, but dismisses Joffrey's cause of death, poison, as a woman's weapon, and proclaiming that men kill with steel, which Arya regards as stupid pride talking and why he will never be a great killer, claiming she would have killed Joffrey with a chicken bone if necessary, which the Hound finds heartily amusing.
The argument grows heated and breaks out into a fight between the two warriors. Even with Sandor being severely fatigued, underfed and wounded with an infectious bite, he attacks Brienne after she draws her sword. Initially clashing swords, the fight grows more intense when the two are forced to rely on their bare fists. Beating each other down, Brienne bites off a part of Sandor's ear and strikes him numerous times with a large stone before throwing him down the clifftop. After successfully hiding from Brienne and Podrick, Arya finds Sandor beaten and with his leg broken, suffering from his infected neck and the fall from the cliff.
He tells her that it's the end of the line for him and demands wine but she has none. He then demands that she kill him putting him out of his misery and cross his name off her list, unaware she has already removed his name from her list. Trying to goad Arya into killing him, he joyfully laughs about killing her friend, Mycah , and also says that he should've forced himself upon Sansa when he had the chance. Arya doesn't give in, despite his desperate pleas for death. Arya instead takes his coins from him before walking away, leaving him for dead.
A few days after his duel with Brienne, Sandor is found and nursed back to health by former soldier and Septon Ray , who takes him to live with his band of villagers. While building a sept, Ray recounts saving Sandor after mistaking him for a corpse. When Ray mentions justice, Sandor responds that if there was justice in the world, he should have been punished for his past crimes. Ray responds that perhaps he has been punished already but been given a second chance. Sandor is present when Ray gives a talk to the villagers recounting how his violent experiences as a soldier had led him to undergo a conversion experience.
Later, the villagers are visited by three horsemen from the Brotherhood Without Banners , led by Lem Lemoncloak , who attempt to extort the group. Brother Ray tells the riders that they have no gold or weapons and the horsemen leave. Following the encounter with the Brotherhood, Sandor tells Ray that they should have shared their food and steel with them. While Ray thinks that they have seen the last of the Brotherhood, Sandor thinks they will return. After chopping wood in the forest, Sandor returns to the village only to discover that the Brotherhood have massacred the villagers. He finds the Septon hanging from a beam in the wooden sept. Angered by the cold-blooded murder of innocents, Sandor grabs his axe and heads off.
He tracks down two of the suspected perpetrators and two innocent young men sitting around a campfire. Suspecting them all to be the perpetrators, Sandor brutally kills the two innocent young men, decapitating one of them, then burying his axe into the second before slitting the first outlaw's throat and finally swinging his axe into the second outlaw's crotch. He demands Lem's whereabouts, but the man only answers with "Fuck you." Sandor then mocks the bandit, saying "Those are you last words? 'Fuck You'?", and says he could do better. The bandit then calls him a c***, prompting Sandor to say he is "shit at dying", before finishing him off with an axe to the head.
The Brotherhood Without Banners and Sandor are traveling through the Riverlands and remark upon the colder weather as they reach further North. They come across a seemingly abandoned farmhouse, which Sandor recognizes as the farmhouse he and Arya stayed at a few years earlier after being invited in by a farmer and his young daughter, Sally . As the group moves inside to see if anyone is staying at the farmhouse, Sandor and Beric discover the long dead bodies of both the farmer and Sally inside. Beric and he remark that they most likely committed suicide to avoid starvation.
Later that night while everyone is sleeping, Sandor goes outside and starts digging graves for the father and daughter. Thoros hears this and goes out to help. After placing the bodies in the grave, Sandor tries to say a prayer for them, but forgets the wording of the Seven . He then apologizes, saying that they both deserved better, before going back inside the farmhouse.
He later recognizes the mountain from his vision, and Jon decides to lead the group there. With Sandor's help, the group manages to capture a lone wight , although they later are forced onto a frozen lake by the army of the dead, who wait for the lake to refreeze. During the night, Thoros succumbs to his wounds and the freezing temperature; when the group discover it, Sandor gruffly tries to console a despondent Beric, remarking that freezing to death is reputedly a relatively painless way to die. Sandor, despite his regret, starts drinking Thoros's wine before Jon snatches it from him to use it to burn Thoros's body. Sandor glares at Jon, but relents.
Back at Eastwatch, Sandor parts ways from Tormund and Beric, the latter of which assures Sandor that they will meet again. Sandor hopes otherwise. Sandor travels with Jon to the Dragonpit Summit , marking his first return to the city since he abandoned it during the Battle of the Blackwater. At one point, he ventures below decks to check the crate carrying the wight. However, he backs away in fear when the crate shakes violently. He reunites with Brienne, and recalls how she nearly killed him. Brienne informs him of Arya's safety, and how she can defend herself, and Sandor is pleased by the news.
When Cersei arrives for the meeting in the Dragonpit with Gregor at her side, Sandor steps out to confront his brother, remarking that Gregor is now even uglier than himself. Sandor threatens Gregor before leaving to collect the captured wight. Sandor ultimately muses, however, that what happened to Gregor is irrelevant, and promises what's left of his brother that he still intends to end Gregor.
Staring up at his monstrous figure, Sandor draws his sword and attacks Gregor head-on. He manages to remove Gregor's helmet, revealing a grotesque appearance. He eventually impales Gregor through his stomach, but it proves useless, due to his state of apparent undeath. Despite stabbing him repeatedly in the neck and chest, Gregor shows no signs of pain, as he picks Sandor up and slams him against a column. Gregor proceeds to gouge Sandor's eyes, much the same as he did with Oberyn , but fails to destroy them completely, as Sandor stabs him through his left eye with his dagger. Sandor, with what vision he has left, screams angrily and throws himself and Gregor through a crumbling wall and off the falling tower to their fiery deaths below.
The Hound is seen as a violent, aggressive and brutal man, with a fatalistic view of the world. He is a formidable warrior and he doesn't hide his love of killing people, believing all men love it, and he generally hates soldiers who try to convince themselves otherwise. However, he also displays small hints at being a reasonably affectionate and compassionate man underneath, particularly in respect to the Stark girls. This is largely a result of his disgust at the brutality of his older brother Gregor: the respect and knighthood given to Gregor for his extreme brutality left Sandor thoroughly disillusioned that honorable men succeed in the real world the way they do in romantic songs. His growing disgust at Joffrey's sadism and concern for both of the Stark girls, however, show that he is not yet so cynical that there are no moral boundaries he wouldn't cross.
Although Sandor sometimes showed chivalry when a highborn person (Loras, Sansa, Arya) was in danger, he was capable of great cruelty toward commoners: he killed in cold blood a harmless, unarmed kid , claiming that he was obliged to follow Joffrey's commands (not so differently than what his brother did to an infant at Tywin's orders), and never expressed any regret; on the contrary, he even joked about the foul deed.
In the books, it is the opposite side of Sandor's face that is burned. His burns are also more severe than prosthetics can easily show on the TV series: his jawbone is exposed, as the skin above it was completely burned away, and his ear on the burned side is completely gone, leaving only a hole.
In "A Game of Thrones" Sandor shuns the traditional white plate armor of the Kingsguard, instead opting to wear his white cloak over his original gray armor. This is not the case in the first season. By the second season, Sandor dons the style described in the books, of just wearing the white cloak over his own gray armor.
Sandor's fate is similarly ambiguous in the novels: Arya simply leaves him to die, but it has never been confirmed that he actually did die. In A Feast for Crows (chapter 31, Brienne VI), during their search for Sansa and Arya, Brienne and Podrick Payne visit a monastery at the Quiet Isle, where they spot a limping hooded man fitting Sandor's general description who works as a gravedigger; Sandor's horse, Stranger, is also there. The Elder Brother tells Brienne that the Hound is dead and that he buried him himself, covered him with stones, and set his helm atop the cairn to mark his final resting place. The Elder Brother tells further: "I came upon him by the Trident, drawn by his cries of pain. He begged me for the gift of mercy, but I am sworn not to kill again. Instead, I bathed his fevered brow with river water, and gave him wine to drink and a poultice for his wound, but my efforts were too little and too late. The Hound died there, in my arms."
There is a fan speculation that the Elder Brother was speaking metaphorically : "the Hound" was dead, as his violent and angry past, and "Sandor" had found his peace helping the refugees at the monastery. Though it has not been confirmed yet if Sandor is indeed the limping hooded gravedigger, his return in the television series implies he will return in a later novel.
Meanwhile, Rorge , who forms a band with Biter and five more of the Brave Companions, finds the Hound's helm and wears it when his gang raids Saltpans and other villages, committing terrible atrocities. This leads to false rumors that the Hound is the leader of these brigands.
Jaime is puzzled to hear the rumors about the Hound, since the aforementioned atrocities sound more like the Mountain's handiwork; the Hound has always been hard and brutal, but his big brother was the real monster of House Clegane. When Jaime is asked by Ser Bonifer Hasty what to do in case he encounters the Hound, he thinks " Pray hard and run ", but says aloud "Send him to join his beloved brother and be glad the gods made seven hells. One would never be enough to hold both of the Cleganes."
Numerous servants have gone missing at the Clegane keep over the years, apparently killed by Gregor for minor slights in one of his infamous fits of rage, and their deaths then covered up. Gregor's own father and sister died under dubious circumstances as well, and Sandor thinks that Gregor may have killed them too. Their sister died when Sandor was too young to remember her well, and their father died years later in what was said to be a "hunting accident." At Tywin's request, Rhaegar anointed Gregor as a knight, a great honor, even though Gregor was an infamously dishonorable man.
Ser Gregor takes part in the tournament to celebrate Eddard's appointment as Hand of the King . He kills Ser Hugh of the Vale in a joust, horrifying the crowd. Littlefinger tells Sansa that Gregor burned his brother 's face over a naked flame when they were boys, because Sandor took one of his toys without asking. He tells her that a few people know the story and not to let Sandor know that she does.
When Gregor faces Loras , he loses the joust; Loras chose to ride a mare in heat to distract Gregor's stallion. Flying into a rage, Gregor demands his sword, then ruthlessly decapitates his erstwhile mount before the entire horrified crowd. Ignoring his surroundings, he proceeds to knock the surprised Loras off his horse and is on the verge of dishonorably killing him, when the Hound intervenes, fighting him off to protect Loras. The two brothers violently trade swings with their swords, and Gregor only stops when Robert himself shouts to stop the fight, at which time the enraged Gregor reluctantly relents, throws his sword down in disgust, and leaves.
Tywin asks if they are so well manned that they can afford to discard able and skilled prisoners. He asks a prisoner if he has a trade and learns that he is a smith. Tywin orders the prisoners put to work, sparing the young man.
Gregor is later expelled from Stone Mill by a force led by Robb's uncle, Edmure Tully , forcing him to flee south to Casterly Rock . However, Robb chides his uncle for his actions, explaining that he wanted to draw the Mountain into the west where they could kill him.
Gregor fights Oberyn at Tyrion's trial by combat, clad in a heavy plated armor and wielding a large broad sword in one hand. Despite his immense size and strength, Gregor is no match for Oberyn's swift and agile fighting style. Oberyn manages to knock Gregor's helmet off early into the duel and proceeds ​to slowly cut him down, all the while taunting him and demanding he admit to the rape and murder of Elia Martell and her children, chanting ever more loudly "you raped her; you murdered her; you killed her children."
Oberyn eventually severs ​Clegane's hamstring, bringing the giant to his knees. Oberyn presses his advantage by jumping and thrusting his spear into Gregor's chest, severely injuring the gigantic man and seemingly sealing his defeat. Thinking his opponent is fully incapacitated, Oberyn removes his spear from Gregor's chest and circles him, refusing to land a killing blow until Gregor admits that he killed Elia and reveals who orchestrated it, directing his gaze accusingly at Tywin. However, in his hubris, Oberyn is unexpectedly caught off guard while standing too close to his opponent. Gregor trips Oberyn, spilling him to the ground, seizes him by the neck and slams his fist squarely into his face, instantly knocking out several of his teeth.
Berserk with fury at nearly being killed by his opponent, Gregor pins Oberyn to the ground and proceeds to gouge out his eyeballs, making him scream in agony, as he roars for all to hear: "Elia Martell! I killed her children! Then I raped her! Then I smashed her head... in like this!." He then crushes Oberyn's skull, making his paramour Ellaria Sand scream in horror. Gregor collapses beside his fallen opponent from the wounds he sustained as Tywin announces that, according to the rules of trial by combat, Oberyn's death has officially sealed the fate of Tyrion and sentences him to death.
Despite his exceedingly gruesome death, Oberyn nonetheless extracts a measure of posthumous revenge. Before the duel, Oberyn had his spearheads coated with manticore venom, one of the deadliest poisons in the known world. Gregor's wounds rapidly start putrefying, emitting an overpowering stench. As a final torture, the venom forces him to remain conscious through the whole ordeal, even as his flesh dies and peels off his body. Pycelle regretfully tells Cersei that Gregor is beyond any hope of healing.
Qyburn , however, an expelled former maester with extensive medical knowledge gained from "repugnant" and "unnatural" experimentation on living people, suggests that he may be able to save him. Pycelle objects, citing Qyburn's disreputable dismissal from the Order of Maesters. Cersei dismisses Pycelle and gives Qyburn permission to do anything he can to save Ser Gregor (likely out of gratitude for sealing her brother's fate 'revenge' for the death of Joffrey), though Qyburn says that his unorthodox methods may "change" him. She nervously asks if he means the process will weaken Gregor, but Qyburn knowingly assures her it will not.
After Cersei's walk of atonement , she returns to the Keep where Qyburn covers her up and is pleased to introduce the "newest member" of the Kingsguard. The Mountain stands as tall as ever, fully covered in Kingsguard plate armor. Only his reddened eyes, surrounded by pale bluish flesh, are visible through his helmet. With Cersei's feet injured and bleeding, he is instructed to carry her. As he does so, Qyburn informs Cersei that Clegane has taken a holy vow of silence to last until all of Tommen's enemies are dead and the evil has been driven from the realm.
Back at the Red Keep, he accompanies Cersei when she attempts to attend Myrcella's funeral, only to be stopped by a group of Lannister soldiers, who have arrived to prevent her from leaving on King Tommen 's orders. Although Gregor intimidates the captain with his size, Cersei acquiesces, and he escorts her back to her room.
At the Small Council, Pycelle expresses his disgusts about Qyburn's treatment of Ser Gregor, calling him an abomination. He attempts to suggest that it would be in everyone's best interest to have the "beast" destroyed, but he was cut short when he becomes aware of the presence of Cersei, Jaime and Gregor himself. Frightened by the huge man, Pycelle cannot keep himself from passing gas. Cersei suggests the Small Council gets on with urgent matters, as they cannot make them leave. Kevan replies that Cersei and Jaime cannot make them stay either, unless they set Gregor to kill them. As everyone except Cersei and Jaime leave, Pycelle cowers past Ser Gregor, who coldly looks back.
He remains unmoved when Lancel orders him to stand down. One of the Sparrows attacked Gregor, and although his weapon's spikes pierce Gregor's plate, Gregor does not say a word or appear to even acknowledge any injury. When the Sparrow tries to attack again, Gregor grabs him by the throat, lifting him into the air and throwing him to the ground. While Lancel and the other Sparrows look on in horror, the towering knight kneels beside him and tears his head off. Lancel and the others thereby stand down.
Ser Gregor accompanies Cersei and Qyburn to the throne room , where Tommen is about to make a royal announcement. As Cersei attempts to stand besides her son, she is barred by Kevan Lannister, who tells her place is on the gallery with the other ladies of the court. Cersei reluctantly takes her place there with Gregor following her, causing the women to hastily make place. Tommen announces that Cersei and Loras will stand trial before seven septons and that trial by combat is forbidden in the Seven Kingdoms, thereby nullifying Cersei's plans on having the Mountain fight as her champion again.
Gregor is also present when Cersei hosts a grand reception with Lord Euron and his prisoners Yara Greyjoy , Ellaria, and Tyene Sand . He was later present in the dungeons with Qyburn when Cersei confronts her prisoners Ellaria and Tyene over the murder of her daughter. While Cersei had toyed with ordering Gregor to smash their heads like he did with Oberyn, she instead settles for poisoning Tyene with the long farewell and forcing Ellaria to watch her daughter's final death throes.
Once Gregor has taken his place behind Cersei, Sandor approaches him. Sandor hatefully states that Gregor was now uglier than Sandor and that this was not how it would end for Gregor. Sandor continues, claiming Gregor knew that Sandor will be coming for him, before returning to his group. Accordingly, Gregor steps back behind Cersei, only to emerge once more when Daenerys arrives on the dragon Drogon .
He is ready to execute Tyrion when the dwarf demands he do so, but Cersei never gives the order. Instead, Tyrion actually manages to convince Cersei to come to the Dragonpit again and, accompanied by Clegane and the others, Cersei turns up once more to announce that she will send her armies north to assist in fighting the dead. This, however, is a lie and Cersei has no intention of doing so.
The group returns to the Red Keep. When Jaime made it clear to Cersei that he would join the fight against the army of the dead with or without her, Clegane suddenly prevents him from leaving the room. Cersei calls Jaime a traitor for disobeying her commands and stating that no one walks away from her. When Cersei nods, Clegane draws his sword, waiting for Cersei to give the order to execute Jaime. However, Jaime called Cersei out on her bluff and walks right past Clegane, who does not intervene, and out of the room.
In the ensuing duel, Sandor proves himself better at sword fighting than Gregor and stabs him, but fails to kill the creature. Gregor brutally thrashes and chokes Sandor who stabs him many times in vain. While trying to crush Sandor’s skull, Gregor is stabbed through his left eye, though even this fails to kill him and Gregor begins to pull the blade out. Seeing an opportunity, Sandor tackles Gregor into a crumbling wall, sending them both falling from the Red Keep tower to their deaths in the burning city below.
Gregor is notorious for his brutal and savage nature, remorselessly killing unarmed opponents half his size or leading the torture of helpless villagers. Often referred to as "Tywin Lannister's mad dog", Gregor has an insatiable bloodlust that he releases through acts of extreme violence. He is quick to anger and never shows any fear of acting on it, since there are not many who would dare try to stop him. One of the few people he has ever shown any loyalty or respect toward are Lord Tywin Lannister and King Robert Baratheon.
Gregor's short fuse and utter lack of a conscience often showed his lack of honor. In addition, he does not appear to be very bright, relying on brute force to get the job done without thinking of the long-term consequences.
As a warrior, Gregor is widely feared for his terrifying and gigantic size and superhuman strength. He is a giant of a man, standing well over seven feet in height (eight feet in the novels) and weighing over 500 pounds. In combat, his immense strength and beastly size gives him a huge advantage over almost any opponent, allowing him to defeat men who have far more skill. His weapon of choice is an enormous greatsword that most men would never be able to swing with even two hands, but which Gregor is strong enough to wield one-handed. Gregor also wears thick armor too heavy for most knights to move in, let alone fight in, providing him almost impenetrable defense against blades.
Following his treatment by Qyburn, the Mountain is no longer capable of speech, but the process has made him even stronger than he once was. His grotesque, deathly appearance is usually hidden beneath his armor. He is now totally obedient to his mistress, the queen and heeds her every whim without question.
Sandor also tells Sansa that the death of Hugh of the Vale was not a tournament accident. Ser Hugh had obviously put on the armor himself and had not set the neck protector correctly. He says Gregor saw that, and thus could have sent the blow elsewhere, and that the lance didn't just accidentally deflect upward, as Gregor puts his lance exactly where he intends it to go every time. He meant to kill Ser Hugh, though it isn't clear if this was an assassination to silence Hugh, or just Gregor enjoying the carnage (the revelation about Jon Arryn's death supports the latter option).
Gregor encounters and kills Beric Dondarrion twice (these are the first and the fourth of Beric's seven deaths): he impales Beric on a lance during the Battle at the Mummer's Ford , and on later encounter (whose details are not specified) he stabs Beric in the eye with a dirk. Beric is resurrected on both occasions.
As a gesture of good will, Cersei assigns Ser Balon Swann to deliver the supposed skull of Ser Gregor to the Martells, and most of them accept that the Mountain has finally been punished for his crimes (though it is a little consolation to Ellaria, who deeply mourns Oberyn). Only Obara is skeptical, suspecting a deception. Nymeria tells her half-sister to lighten up, as Gregor was the only 8-foot tall man in all of Westeros, and Cersei would be exposed as a liar before the entire continent if it turned out he was somehow still alive. What Nymeria says makes perfect sense, except that Cersei is far from being rational and clever. Obara has no idea how much she is close to the truth.
Following Cersei's downfall, Qyburn visits her in prison and informs her new champion stands ready. Cersei laughs bitterly, since she can be defended only by a sworn brother of the Kingsguard, but Loras somehow clings to life despite his mortal wounds, thus she cannot make a use of her invincible champion. However, when she hears from Kevan about Ser Arys Oakheart 's death, she sees a chance of survival: there is an empty place on the Kingsguard that must be filled. She begs her uncle to have Tommen appoint a man whom Qyburn knows his name.
While in the novels the murder of Rhaenys Targaryen is assigned to Ser Amory Lorch , another knight in the service of Tywin Lannister, the TV-series omitted this and Gregor is blamed for the death of Elia, Aegon and Rhaenys.
Margaery marries King Renly , Loras 's lover, though she is aware of their relationship. Two weeks afterward they have not yet consummated their marriage. Renly camps his army in the Stormlands , near his seat of Storm's End , and holds a tournament for his followers. Margaery is disappointed when Loras is defeated in the final bout by Brienne . Catelyn arrives to treat with Renly on behalf of Robb , and Margaery greets her warmly. Margaery encourages Renly to produce an heir with her, but he is unable to become aroused by her. She is pragmatic about his desires and shocks him by offering to bring Loras into their bed.
In a ceremony to celebrate victory, Joffrey tells Loras he may ask anything of him in return for his aid. He asks Joffrey to wed Margaery to cement the new alliance between their Houses through matrimony. Margaery states she has heard of Joffrey's courage and come to love him from afar. Joffrey states that he has heard of Margaery's beauty and reciprocates her feelings but balks at setting aside his betrothal to Sansa . He is convinced by his courtiers that Sansa's family's status as attainted traitors is reason enough.
Margaery, accompanied by Joffrey, returns from the Great Sept of Baelor in a heavily guarded palanquin. Against official protocol, she stops the procession in Flea Bottom unexpectedly. To the shock of her guards and the bewilderment of Joffrey, Margaery steps out of her carriage and began exploring the streets, despite the warnings of danger and lack of hygiene from her handmaiden .
She eventually arrives at an orphanage and begins interacting with the children. Meanwhile, her servants distribute bread and toys, earning her the love of Flea Bottom's smallfolk . That evening, Margaery and Loras dine with Joffrey and Cersei . Cersei is unhappy with Margaery's earlier actions and admonished her boldness; reminding her that her impromptu charity work took place on the same streets where the royal party was assaulted weeks earlier. During this argument, Joffrey defends Margaery and criticizes his mother. As a result, Cersei realizes that Margaery is adept at winning the hearts and minds of her people, a skill which Cersei lacks.
During the meeting, Olenna insists that Sansa tell them the truth about what Joffrey was like since Margaery is to marry him. While Sansa is initially reluctant to share her feelings, she admits that Joffrey is a "monster" since he had reneged on his earlier promise to spare her father's life. While Olenna is disappointed at these revelations, she is not surprised given the rumors that have been circulating about Joffrey's public outbursts. While Sansa is worried that this would mean that the Tyrells would cancel their proposed marriage alliance (meaning Sansa will be stuck with Joffrey again), Olenna assures her that her son Mace is too intent on Margaery entering into a royal marriage to cancel it for anything.
Later, Margaery is summoned to Joffrey's chambers to see if she needs anything before he leaves on a hunting trip. While Joffrey has previously been easy for Margaery to manipulate, Cersei was apparently able to plant one seed of doubt in his mind; the fact that Margaery was married to his uncle Renly (and thus, already had sex with another man), whom Cersei described as a "traitor and known degenerate."
When questioned, Margaery says that she was ordered to marry a traitor as her family duty, but Joffrey implies that this still means he must have had sex with her. Joffrey angrily questions Margaery about the relationship and she delicately placates him by feigning demure shyness and painting herself as a dutiful, but frustrated, bride. She uses the rumors about Renly's homosexuality to redirect Joffrey's anger, stating that Renly always found excuses to avoid sex, but, in one instance, drunkenly suggested "something that sounded very painful and could not possibly result in children", which draws her new fiance's sympathy.