Page 488: A Little Flash in the Pan

 Big entry today. Probably a decent sized one tomorrow as well. Seems like there isn't really a whole lot happening, but tons of little clues are being dropped about stuff.

Sansa: So yeah, not that it matters, but I absolutely believe that it was Ser Dontos who told Cersei about the Tyrells' plan to spirit Sansa away. And again, I think she continues to show how naive she is by believing that he for some reason doesn't matter. He was the insanely obvious choice for being the weak link in that particular chain. For all her talk of being more judicious in who she trusts and in keeping her mouth shut, she continually tells the wrong people the wrong things all the time. Some people never learn. I just keep telling myself that she's only 13. Yet Arya seems so much more mature at a couple years younger.

Some interesting parallels strike me with regards to Sansa's situation. One, Cersei is an accomplice in a forced marriage while at the same time objecting to being forced into her own marriage at the hand of Tywin. Two, a bit of a cultural point, the women of the novels seem to mostly make peace with arranged marriages. They know from a pretty young age what their role is, and they mostly appear to accept the fact that their fathers or brothers (depending on the situation) have the power to marry them off as business arrangements, and it's really up to the patriarch to make a match that is in some way pleasing to the girl in question. Sansa's situation seems all the more outrageous because she is a prisoner, and not a "ward" of the king, since every wardship we've seen thus far in the novel has been a voluntary agreement. Even when Theon was sent to Winterfell as a virtual hostage to ensure Greyjoy compliance, it was an article of surrender, not an outright kidnapping, even if it was at the point of a sword. Thus he makes this move, illegally, as a power play to wrest control of her family's lands away from them while at the same time trying to kill her family off. It's just disgusting no matter what angle you see it from. And the most disturbing part? It's useless. Bran and Rickon remain alive, which leaves three people in front of Sansa for control of inheriting the seat at Winterfell. And poor Sansa is still pining for her fairy tale wedding and her fairy tale life.

I hope we see some sort of retribution from the Tyrells. It's depressing to see Sansa's dream turned so thoroughly into a nightmare. Joffrey continues to be a monster, perhaps the most cruel we've seen yet in that he has a child's disregard for life, he has no moral compunctions. At least Jaime has a pretty decent sized list of things he won't do. Cersei and Tywin even have limits, or at least, they understand that politics and appearances limit what they can do. Joffrey appreciates none of this. I wouldn't be surprised if he puts either Cersei or Jaime to death at some point for defying him. A bit thumbs' up to Tyrion for deciding to give Sansa a pass. It must have seriously hurt his feelings for Sansa to respond to him that way, but in some ways, I wonder if partnering her with Tyrion in this way isn't perfect. She needs a mentoring figure. This isn't ideal, but Sansa's biggest problem is that she's so damned shallow. Tyrion of all people is a symbol of what you can accomplish in spite of your physical appearance. Sansa is beautiful but a mental dwarf. He'd be the perfect person to teach her how to use her mind, and that'd be the best way to get her to appreciate him beyond his physical attributes.

Arya: I appreciate Arya's apparent...well, sympathy? Mercy? When she enters the village with the dying soldiers in the crow cages. Interesting that she'd say "valar morghullis" as the one guy died. She's using it perfectly correctly but supposedly without knowing what it means. Intuition? Or just a coincidence? Also, I can't decide if Gendry has a big crush on Arya, or is playing the older brother role. Seems to be leaning towards crush. Interesting that Thoros of Myr has spread the new wacky religion to the other people of his gang, and that he seems to have some of the same powers that Melisandre has. Just what is the limit of the powers these guys enjoy? There's a whole new set of rules here, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. It really skews the balance of power in their favor. They might not have armies, but these powers seem to be able to kill leaders out of thin air, and we've already seen what a dramatic affect that can have on the outcome of war and battles. I know that the Starks are having wolf dreams and Bran perhaps more so than anyone, but his powers are still limited. Are all the gods bestowing powers, or just the red one? If magic and long dead powers are reawakening, they should be for everyone for the sake of balance. I hope there is more to come, but not too much. Magic might change the dynamic too much.

Jon: Not a great deal to take from Jon's chapters recently except he's really, really enjoying sex, and they're getting closer and closer to the Wall. But this chapter, Ygritte was pretty upset about not finding some sort of mythical horn. And, there was a horn in the grave that Jon found with the Night's Watch cloak in it. Is that the horn in question? Seems a little obvious, but maybe too coincidental. I don't remember what happened to the horn. Did Sam take it? Why would it be in so shallow a grave? Perhaps because Benjen found it, knew all about the power of dragonglass, and left his cloak behind in the grave so the others would find it and be better off for it!? Ah but we can dream can't we? Also, I wonder if there will be real repercussions from releasing all those shades (ghosts from graves?) into the world, or if that was superstition. 

Jaime: Amazing how fast Jaime enters an identity crisis upon losing his sword hand. My initial reaction is: Well, that sucks, because now you'll have to learn how to fight with your left hand (Beren did it). There's so much more complication in him than I would have guessed. He talks about turning his emotions off when he saw Aerys roast and strangle the elder Starks. He also talks about Tyrion with such affection and respect. He respects his intelligence, and names him as a reason to go on (without naming his father). Cersei and Tywin have such disdain for Tyrion, but not Jaime. I fear what retribution the Lannisters will try to enact in response to Jaime losing his hand, but I also hope that by the time Jaime gets there, his spirits will be tempered somewhat from his time with Brienne, and his humbling from losing his hand. What soul searching, if any, lies in store for the Kingslayer?

Tyrion: Please, please, please tell me that Tywin didn't cannibalize Ice to get the Valyrian steel to make Joffrey and Jaime's new swords! Tyion's chapter goes on at length about how hard it is to fine, and how strange that Tywin came upon such a large supply. And the only new sword in his midst was Ice! Curse those thrice damned Lannisters! Unless I'm wrong, in which case I'll apologize. I love seeing Tywin's reaction to the rumbling at the Wall. It's going to be a blast to see how everyone reacts when the Wall is breached or scaled (or both). The Wildings are such mythic boogeymen that no one really believes they'll ever come at the Wall again. It's too bad that the south is so far away. They won't feel the brunt of the attack when it comes.

Samwell: Love his new nickname. Samwise the Other Slayer. You'd think that would go a ways towards helping Sam find his courage, but alas! He chalks it up to chance and luck. Perhaps it wise, but it was also clever, and he didn't curl up to die (as he did on the long march). When push came to shove, he shoved a dagger in its heart. It's too bad about Mormont. I really, really liked him, and I was hoping he'd stay around longer to mentor Sam, but I also sort of doubted that he'd ever really make it out of those woods alive. They were so close too! Without the Old Bear, I think the defense of the Wall will really fall apart. It could have been a lot different if he had been alive to see it. I wonder if Sam will ever actually see Ser Jorah. It seems somewhat unlikely, but Jorah has to come back at some point.

Catelyn: So the Boltons burned Winterfell, blamed Theon, and then took credit for the rescue? The truth will have to come out of that one. I hope when the Starks find out, they flay the Boltons alive. Roose and his bastard. While I want Robb to march north and make everything right...the odds are so incredibly stacked against him. Further, taking on the Boltons weakens his already weak alliance even more since the Karstarks left and Bolton's army was rocked. And when he heads north, he has iron men in highly fortified spots as well as woads and visigoths ready to charge over the Wall (the allusion of course is to Hadrian's Wall and the Romans in general. I feel like Martin must have had Hadrian's Wall in mind when he wrote this given the similarities). He has so much stacked against him, I don't see how he can possibly win without a major game changer. I am preparing for a disaster.

Up next: A couple we haven't heard from much: Davos, Bran and more!