Jeyne Poole

**Jeyne Poole** is a character in the fifth and sixth seasons of Game of Thrones, appearing very briefly in the first seasons. She is the daughter of Vayon Poole, the former Steward of Winterfell. She is the best friend of Sansa Stark. After Ned Stark's execution, Jeyne is

## In the books

In the *A Song of Ice and Fire* novels, Jeyne's background is the same as in the show, but she plays a considerably more prominent role. She is the best friend of Sansa, and shares Sansa's love for lemon cakes.

There is no mentioning in the books that Jeyne has any siblings (according to the TV series, she has four sisters); it is never explicitly said in the books, though, that she is an only child. She is described as very pretty, with brown eyes and dark hair.

She attends the Tourney of the Hand with Sansa, and while Sansa mentions her attraction to Ser Loras Tyrell, Jeyne has a crush on Ser Beric Dondarrion.

Following the arrest of Eddard Stark and the purge of the Stark household, Jeyne is temporarily detained alongside Sansa, but is later taken away by Littlefinger to an undisclosed location. Later it is revealed she was taken against her will to one of his brothels, where she was viciously molested and beaten.

In *A Storm of Swords*, after the Red Wedding Littlefinger comes up with the idea to introduce Jeyne as Arya (who is believed to be dead) and marry her to Ramsay; Tywin accepts it. Jeyne hears terrible stories about Ramsay's cruelty, but has no choice but to comply.

Jaime sees Jeyne shortly before she is sent to the Boltons, and recognizes she is not Arya. Fearing that Briennewill risk her life in vain to save the girl due to her vow to Catelyn, Jaime reveals to her the girl is an impostor. Thus, unlike in the TV show, Brienne is not involved at all in Jeyne's plotline (she does not meet the real Arya or Sansa either). Brienne is surprised Jaime would admit this, but he states Roose Bolton knows and does not care, as the girl suits his purpose; who is going to say that she isn't Arya Stark? Everyone the girl was close to is dead except for her sister, who has disappeared (Jaime does not mention Jon, who surely can identify the impostor).

At the Inn at the Crossroads, the Hound and Arya encounter Polliver and the Tickler. Polliver, unaware of Arya's identity, tells them that Sansa's sister was found, and she will soon be wed to Ramsay. Arya does not understand what Polliver is talking about, since Sansa has no other sister except her.

In *A Dance with Dragons*, Jeyne is sent to Winterfell to marry Ramsay, though Theon Greyjoy, who is now Ramsay's prisoner "Reek", immediately recognizes her as Sansa's friend, having known her since childhood. Though the Boltons are aware of the deception, Jeyne manages to convince the other Northern Lords she is Arya, and Theon advises her not to break character, since if the Northern Lords realize she is an impostor, she will likely be killed by the Boltons, as she will no longer be of any use to them.

Jeyne is repeatedly abused and tortured by Ramsay, who forces her to perform sexual acts with Theon and possibly even his dogs as a form of humiliation; Ramsay's lack of discretion – and Jeyne's screams – draws the ire of the other Northern Lords. Jeyne begs Theon to help her escape, but he refuses, knowing full well of the consequences should they fail and be caught.

Meanwhile, at Castle Black, Jon hears of the wedding; unaware of the true identity of Ramsay's bride, he strongly suppresses his wish to rescue her, reminding himself that he has no sister due to his vows. Later, however, Melisandre persuades him to send Mance Rayder (whose death was faked by Melisandre) to infiltrate Winterfell and rescue "Arya" from Ramsay, unaware that the real Arya is in Braavos. Mance enters Winterfell as a bard, "Abel", along with six spearwives. He somehow makes Theon join the rescue mission. Theon cooperates very reluctantly; he does his best to dissuade "Abel" of the whole idea, telling in details what Ramsay does to his victims, but in vain.

A bloody brawl erupts between the Freys and the White Harbor men, as a result of the murder of "Little" Walder Frey (who was presumably killed by Mance and the spearwives). Taking advantage of the distraction, the spearwives and Theon get Jeyne out of her room. Just as they reach the wall, Jeyne screams and gives away their position. Mance and the spearwives are forced to stay behind. Theon grabs Jeyne and they jump off the wall, landing in the deep snow below. Jeyne breaks several ribs, as Theon lands on top of her, and the tip of her nose becomes black due to frostbite.

Theon and Jeyne run from Winterfell and are found by Mors "Crowfood" Umber, Greatjon's uncle, who brings them to the camp of Stannis. On Theon's advice, Jeyne maintains her façade as Arya. Mors, failing to notice that "Arya"'s eyes are of the wrong color, asks her several questions about Winterfell, and she barely passes (such as identifying Mikken as the castle's blacksmith). Stannis orders Ser Justin Massey, who is assigned to travel with Tycho Nestoris to Braavos and hire sellswords, to deliver her to Castle Black on his way to Eastwatch. Stannis decides that since "Lady Arya" should have a female companion, Alysane Mormont (Maege's second daughter) should go with her, too. Theon is well aware that the ruse will be up the second Jon lays eyes on Jeyne.

Ramsay apparently discovers the escape and sends a letter to Jon, furiously demanding his wife's return, which leads to Jon, still believing it is Arya, deciding to head out to reach Jeyne first and kill Ramsay himself to stop him pursuing her, though he is stabbed by his own men before he can leave Castle Black.

In the television series, following the feast at Winterfell, Jeyne has not been seen, and so her fate is unknown. Her role in *A Dance with Dragons* is filled by Sansa. David Benioff and Bryan Cogman claimed in an interview that this decision had been made as far back as the second season, as they believed such as powerful storyline in the North would have been entirely wasted on a character they had all-but excluded from the television series, and better suited for Sophie Turner, whose acting as Sansa was widely praised by the producers and well-received by critics and audiences. They also saw the dramatic potential in allowing an actual Stark to return to Winterfell and be reunited with Theon.