#bronze yohn royce

[alaynasansa]

Sansa Week 2024 : day three - friends & foes

[atopvisenyashill]

“you have your year. best use it wisely. not all of us are fooled.”

BRONZE YOHN GONNA HELP SAVE SANSA AND FOLLOW HER AND BRIENNE NORTH CONFIRMED!!!

[warsofasoiaf]

Going off the recent Davos Seaworth question and which councillors he might have a decent relationship with, do you think Garlan Tyrell (and his wife, Leonette) would form a positive opinion of Davos, in light of his public praise for Tyrion Lannister throughout A Storm of Swords? Likewise, Wyman Manderly and Robett Glover seemed well-disposed towards Davos in Dance?

Additionally, do you think there is any chance Bronze Yohn Royce could have formed a good working relationship with Davos, under different circumstances?

The big thing is that for a lot of people, the idea of the class structure is baked into them from an early age. In our own history in the Middle Ages, the class structure was not only seen as right and proper, but divinely ordained. This isn't to say that everyone is bound by it, as we see numerous examples both in our own history and in Westeros, but the question is, what does Garlan think about the class structure. There's a sort of pragmatic bent to Garlan in the way he trains to fight, but does that translate over to class structure. Tyrion might face a lot of social stigma due to his physical formation, but he is still an aristocrat of the noble order, a true blue-blood. So while Garlan is far more decent to Tyrion, we cannot assume that it carries across the class structure. That's not saying that it won't, Garlan may be open-minded and practical enough to value the honest council and perspective that Davos can bring, but it might not.

Wyman was rather decent to Davos, but let's also remember, Davos can get something that Wyman *wants* in exchange. It's good business for Robett and Wyman to treat with Davos with decency, so he can go to Skagos and get Rickon, and hopefully work with Stannis to secure vengeance against the Boltons and Freys that murdered his son. So that is a huge contextualization of Wyman's actions. If the Frey escorts didn't believe that the criminal head above the gates of White Harbor was Davos, Wyman was fully prepared to murder Davos right then and there.

Bronze Yohn would probably be a big upholder of the class structure, the Vale strikes me as socially conservative. Maybe in the right circumstances Bronze Yohn might treat Davos well, but I think his negative dealings with Littlefinger (who is still a meager noble) might color him well against it.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[themockingpoint]

👀

306AC- 4 Months into the Reign of Jacaerys I Targaryen

Jon looked into the small council chamber and sighed. So this was the price of kin slaying? Every time Jon closed his eyes, he could see Dany’s face on the dark side of his eyelids. The nightmares were worse than ever. Bran should have been King like Tyrion wanted. But after Arya had Grey Worm translate Daenerys’ speech to the lords and ladies of the lands unanimously, minus Yara Greyjoy, to pardon Jon. Since Jon was the only person alive who had any practice in being a King- a king of just two kingdoms and Sansa did most of the hard work- but here he was. King of the Seven Kingdoms. If only Lady Catelyn could see him now...

Jon sighed, and pushed his guilt aside. Daenerys wasn’t the one who destroyed King’s Landing. He did not know who that was in her body, but he knew that they had to be stopped. After all the good she had done for her to do something like that… It was a twist no one could have seen coming. He knew his father, not the man who slept with half a child and got thousands killed for his own ego, his true father Eddard Stark would have done what was right.

Once again he sighed to himself, maybe this was the perfect punishment. To sit on the throne the woman he loved should have been sitting on when she was not able to. Just as he was about to start spiraling into another depressive state the new Hand of the King walked in.

“Good Morning, Your Grace.” He said, looking happier than Jon had ever seen. Although to be fair he barely knew the man.

“Good Morning, Lord Royce.” Bronze Yohn Royce was a recommendation from Sansa. She was his first pick but when Sansa pointed out, rightfully so, that it would not sit well with a lot of the people around the kingdom for Jon to have his female twenty year old cousin as Hand of the King. She almost immediately recommended Lord Royce, as he was one of her closest allies in the Vale and their father never had a bad thing to say about him. He was not regretting his choice so far. “You seem to be in a good mood today.”

“I am! My daughter Ysilla just gave birth. A little girl named Lydiana Redford. Apparently she looks just like her mother.” He said beaming. The man’s joy was infectious.

“Congratulations My Lord. Your first grandchild?” Jon said, allowing himself to smile. Not as wide as Bronze Yohn, not even as wide as he might have before his resurrection but a smile nonetheless. When the man nodded Jon continued, “If you would like I give you my leave to travel to the Vale after this meeting.”

“Your Grace!” He said, surprised. “I am honored, and I thank you, however I do not think it is the best idea so soon.”

“Nonsense.” Jon said, waving him off. “It is alright. We can last a few moons without you.”

“But your own reign has barely made it past a few moons.” Royce said.

“He’s right.” His new Master of Coin waddled in. If being King was Jon’s nightmare and a fitting punishment than the horror of having to fix the 13.8 million that the crown owed to various fractions would be the same to Tyrion Lannister. “You don’t even have a full Small Council yet. Already starting to send them away would look very bad.”

“We have a full Small Council.” Jon argued, technically not lying.

“Even counting Lord Manderly…” Tyrion began.

“Lord Waters will be taking over as soon as his wife recovers from the… He’ll be here to replace Lord Wyman soon enough.” Jon argued. The northern lord agreed to take the role of Master of Ships as a favor for Jon until a full-time replacement could be found. After everything that happened between the War of the Five Kings, War for the Dawn, and War of the Mad Queens the old man just wanted to go home so he could train his granddaughter how to run White Harbor.

“Even counting Lord Manderly… You still have all of the Master of Laws, Grand Maester and both Lord Commander positions to fill. Not to mention all of the smaller positions that keep the kingdom running that most people don’t think about.” Tyrion stressed. “You are going to be alone soon enough. I’ve heard from Lord Davos that Storm’s End is almost ready for Lord Gendry to go too and the Princess Lannister is set to go back to Winterfell within a Fortnight.”

“I told you that joke was not funny and not to repeat it.” Sansa snapped as she rolled Bran, the new Master of Whisperers into the room. One of the only benefits of the Tower of the Hand being destroyed by Drogon was that Bran could arrive with no issue and no need for anyone to carry him. Jon could not lie and say he was disappointed at the fact that he would not be able to work in the same place his father worked before his death.

“Good morning, Your Grace.” Lord Manderly said as he followed his sibling-cousins into the room nodding at Jon before giving Tyrion the stink eye. “Although it may not be since I believe kin slaying would put a damper on things. Even if the kin in question was no longer Princess Sansa’s kin. Not technically.”

“OK, OK.” Tyrion said, holding up his hands in surrender. “I can see with this group being so close to the Starks that that joke is not going to get me nowhere. Speaking of this group being very close to the Starks…”

“Where is Maester Samwell and Lord Baratheon?” Jon said, cutting him off. He knew where that line of thought was going, and he wanted none of it. Tyrion was too smart to make that joke in this room for him to not use it as an opening.

“Gendry was responding to some mail.” Sansa said. “He was able to track a few of Robert’s other bastards who survived Joffrey’s purge and he has been in contact. God knows that Robert had enough- it would have been hard enough to get to them all. Even with an army.”

“His lessons are going well then?” Jon asked. Gendry was by no means lacking intelligence, but he was unlearned in many subjects such as reading. Sam had been aiding him in his education that he would need to utilize as a lord paramount. “Also, I hope he isn’t expecting me to just legitimize any and every one of Robert’s bastards, we have enough problems including a potential secession crisis in Dorne. We do not need one in the Stormlands as well.”

“I do not know if he plans to do so.” Sansa said, shrugging. She held an air of nonchalance, but he could tell she was hiding something. Even if he hadn’t been able to recognize the look on his sister-cousin’s face, he recognized it from Catelyn Tully’s face. He had to deal with it every time he was in the same room as her and his father.

“Alright. I know Gendry and I trust Gendry. Without his skill in forging the Dragon Glass weapons we may not be here right now.” Jon said, “But I would need to meet the other children. Please do not allow me to forget to bring this up to him.”

“Yes, Your Grace.” Lord Royce said, nodding.

“Before we begin and I forget, Lord Royce would you mind writing to your cousin and requesting Lady Myranda for one of my ladies in waiting. My time with her in the Vale we became very close.” Sansa said, not so subtly kicking Tyrion under the table. They exchanged looks and Jon had to stop himself from rolling his eyes from how two of the best players of the "game of thrones" could be so obvious in what they wanted to convey.

“Y—Yes My lady. I shall do it after this meeting.” Bronze Yohn was saying just as Sam burst through the door. The chain's rattling reminded Jon of Maester Luwin and Jon’s Uncle Aemon, whom Jon wanted to take his new official name from but just could not. He’d not sully his name after kin slaying and oath breaking.

“We’re here!” Sam said, slightly yelling out of breath as he jogged into the council chamber. “We… are… here….”

“Thank you, Maester. Now we can finally begin.” Bronze Yohn said, passive aggressively. “We have a few important topics to speak about.”

“The first should be a matter of Kingsguard.” Sansa said, so quick Bronze Yohn might as well have been still speaking. As the Hand started to look through his papers she added, “That should be the number one priority. It is amazing that we have let this go for so long.”

“Out of all the things we should have to deal with that really should not be a priority.” Jon said. “Half of King's Landing is destroyed, the Riverlands is decimated and Dorne is on the brink of civil war and that is just the beginning.”

“Are you telling me that the man who was stabbed to death by his own men doesn’t see the importance in having protection?” Sansa sneered trying not to roll her eyes.

“She does have a point, Your Grace.” Bronze Yohn said clicking his tongue. “Not to mention that a proper Kingsguard will add legitimacy to your rule. Although to be honest at this point there are not many names I can think of that both have the skill and the desire to join such a brotherhood.”

“Yes, you cannot just have Podrick being your only source of protection. No offense Pod!” Tyrion said quickly tacking on the last part.

“None taken My Lord.” The recently knighted man said.

“I was speaking with Maester Glesson.” Sam began, talking about one of the many maesters who flooded the capital when everything was said and done. There were almost as many Maesters in King’s Landing as there were in Oldtown at the moment. “When Sandor Clegane fought his brother many of the current kingsguard were cut down. However we do have two Kingsguard who survived their injuries. Another was escorting the other nobles from the palace and was injured in the falling rubble.”

“Are any of them willing to rejoin.” Jon asked. It seemed like he was getting a Kingsguard whether he liked it or not. It might as well be people he approved of.

“Ser Balon Swann.” Tyrion said, showing that he knew more than he was letting on once again. He noted both Lord Royce and Sansa noticed the same thing.

“Yes.” Sam replied. “He got hit in the arm but is expected to make a recovery within the fortnight. He said he does not wish to be presumptuous, but he is willing to come back so long as he isn’t asked to be Lord Commander.”

“Well that is a little presumptuous.” Tyrion said, “But highly astute. I would have recommended him. He was the only person who refused to speak against me at my trial.”

“He did seem different from the other White Cloaks from my time here.” Sansa said, and Jon’s face darkened at her words. He knew the extent of what happened with Ramsey, and to an extent what happened with Cersei and Joffrey, but it was only after moving to King's Landing did she tell him the full story of the Kingsguard. “He… I don’t think he’s a bad idea.”

“What about the other two?”

“Andrey Serry. Good brother to the man you just appointed Lord Paramount of the Reach.” Samwell said, “And Roland Waters, bastard from House Rosby.”

“Any of them can stay on as Kingsguard or they take the Black.” Jon said. Tyrion convinced him that taking the Black should still be an option. The Night's Watch may not have their original purpose anymore but it would prevent bloodshed to give criminals (and political opponents) an option other than death. “That still leaves a few spots open to fill and no one we can trust yet.

“Your Grace?” Gendry started rather timidly for him. He still hadn’t become accustomed to being part of a group whose decisions affected the realm as a whole despite being legitimized months ago. “When I was little, when King Robert needed to find a member he usually held a tourney.”

“There’s no way we can even think about holding a tourney now!” Jon said, trying not to sound indignant.

“Maybe not at the moment.” Lord Manderly said, “But the idea is not without its merit. While winter is dying down it isn’t completely done. So having one of them right now is out of the question. Maybe in a year’s time?”

“You expect for the city to be redone in a year?” Jon asked, looking out the room's window.

“No but we do not have to host it here.” Sansa said, in a tone that let Jon know she was leading somewhere. “We can have it at Dragonstone.”

“Dragonstone?”

“You forget Brother, you are the last Targaryen. Dragonstone is yours by right.” Sansa said, nodding. “Dragonstone is big enough and it most certainly has done so in the past.”

“In addition, we don’t have to offer such a…. steep reward.” Tyrion said. “Robert was always very generous with his offerings. With us in as much debt as we are it does not seem wise to offer that much.”

Bronze Yohn scoffed, “They will do it for the honor of being a member of the Kingsguard.”

“That seems fair.” Jon said. “I also want archers as part of the guard. We learned from our time at the Night’s Watch that just being good at swordplay is hindering in the long run.”

“That doesn’t solve our problem today.” Sansa said. “We can’t just let you go around without protection.”

“Send out the word. We are looking for knights. They don’t have to swear in the same oaths, but they’ll be needed for the next year.” Jon said, gaining various disapproving looks in return.

“You’ll be attracting many Hedge Knights, Your Grace.” Yohn said, “Not exactly the best at the moment.”

“It is fine.” Jon said, remembering the days before he went to join the Watch. He thought himself a conquering hero and determined to show that his birth did not affect his worth. Maybe he will get a few noble knights in this first group. “Duncan the Tall was also a hedge knight yet one of the greatest knights in the history of the Seven Kingdoms. So long as they’re willing to rise to the occasion.”

“Your Grace, I would also recommend another name.” Tyrion said. “There is a boy, well not a boy but a knight, Edric Storm. He is the son of King Robert?”

“And you think he is a good idea?” Gendry asked incredulously. Jon wasn’t sure whether it was due to him not thinking it to be a good idea or because he did not want to lose another family member. “With our fathers’ history?”

“He is the son of two nobles one of which was the king whom he is almost a spitting image of.” Tyrion countered. “There are many that say Storm’s End and even the Iron Throne, what’s left of it anyway, should belong to him. This gets a political obstacle out of the way for both King Jacaerys and Lord Gendry. With a prestigious position to boot.”

“Your Grace…” Gendry began before being cut off by Tyrion.

“The King has already said he doesn’t plan on legitimizing any of your siblings.” Tyrion said, causing Gendry to give an indignant huff before Jon clarified.

“I don’t plan on legitimizing all of your siblings. We do not need a succession crisis in the Stormlands as well. But yes I do not plan on legitimizing any of your siblings currently. It will only cause problems."

"However," Sansa began. "There were 18 great houses wiped out in the last few years. A few more in the male line but that is 18 keeps that need people in charge of them. We can start a cadet branch with some of them if necessary."

“Now onto the next subject, we have too much to talk about.”

All of his advisors looked around at everyone else to bring something up. “That’s it? Why did we bother even having a meeting!”

“They didn’t want to put too much on the docket due to the Dornish ambassador coming” Bran said, in his new normal deadpanned tone. “But they expected you to fight having guardsmen much harder.”

When the rest of the council had somewhat guilty looks on their faces, he knew that Bran told the truth. He didn’t want to say it, but he did appreciate the fact that Bran was much more straightforward than he used to be. It was better than most others he dealt with in King’s Landing. Even Sansa had begun to sew and weave her words when they were around other people instead of being blunt like they were in private.

Jon sighed, “When does Lord Dayne get here?”

“Lord Dayne?” Sansa asked in a tight voice. Jon looked at his sister curiously to see that she was blushing like when they were children. Jon knew that they met during the Battle of the Dawn but he was surprised that the Dornish Knight would have left such an impression on Sansa.

“In two hours,” Bran said, causing their sister to let out an almost inaudible squeak. “Maybe two and a half. This will allow us to help catch him up on things this evening”

“Good, this realm has seen enough war. If Lord Dayne can help us peacefully then we need to work with him however possible. If no one else has anything…” Jon began almost breaking the meeting before he heard two fake coughs. He looked at the open door and realized that the sell sword that was always following Tyrion around was the one coughing.

“Ah, yes. Speaking of all of those holdings that need new lords...” Tyrion began and for the first time since Jon knew him, the Lannister looked bashful. “Highgarden…”

“Yes, we found the closest Tyrell relative, Lord Theodore. They should be taking over any day.” Bronze Yohn said, eyeing the mercenary distainfully.

“Bullocks.” Tyrion said as Bronn glared at him. “There is a… personal matter I would like to speak to you about, Your Grace.”

“The Dwarf promised me a castle. Highgarden, actually.” Bronn said, curtly.

“Well I’m not going to give it to someone else while they still have heirs.” Jon snapped, although he did appreciate the bluntness.

“Well I am still owed a castle.” Bronn said, although he did have the grace to glare at Tyrion instead of Jon.

“In due time friend.” Tyrion said, holding up his hand.

“I’m sick of you Lannister’s jerking me off!” Bronn snapped.

“If I may…” Lord Manderly started, “Princess Sansa you have been looking for someone to take over the Dreadfort?”

“Yes, between the War of the Five Kings and Dawn we have had six great families wiped out in the North alone. The Bolton’s of the Dreadfort, the Umber’s of Last Hearth, the Mormont’s of Bear Island, the Fisher’s of Stoney Shore, the Hornwood’s of Hornwood and the Flint’s of the Fingers, all these bannerman and their keeps need these positions to be filled. The houses that did survive are in no position to help and start cadet branches. I can used someone I can depend on.” Sansa said, with a wry grin she added. "Any of them that tickles your fancy you can have."

“You’d be a fool to trust me.” Bronn scoffed.

“I never said someone I trust. Someone I can depend on to get the job done however, is exactly what I need.” Sansa said, calmly “You seemed to be kept on Lord Tyrion’s retainer pretty well.”

“And you expect me to freeze my bullocks off in that frozen wasteland you call home?” Bronn said, incredulously

“Beggars cannot be choosers my friend.” Tyrion said, “You have been offered six different keeps and you are turning them down.”

“I was promised Highgarden!” He snapped.

“Well I can’t give it to you! I do not know what else…” Tyrion started

“There is another choice.” Bran said, in the mystical cryptic tone he normally used. “Give him Casterly Rock.”

Tyrion choked on air. “My family seat?”

“It’s not as if you will be using it while you are working on the Small Council.” Bran said, “And it is not as if you have any family to run it in your stead.”

“Brandon!” Sansa snapped.

“What?” Bran deadpanned and Jon was horrified to see that his younger brother-cousin did not realize what he said was wrong. “He knew what would happen as soon as he fired that bolt.”

“Much of the conflict that has happened over the past two decades have been due to the schemes of House Lannister. Both Tywin and Cersei. Mayhaps it is best we let the name die out. Both the Frey and Bolton names have been wiped out. I see it fitting that the same happens to the last name that helped break guests right at the Red Wedding shares their fate.” Lord Manderly shrugged, but no one forgot that he too lost a son due to the betrayals of those houses.

“Just so we’re clear, you’d be raising me to Paramount of the Westerlands?” Bronn asked, eyebrow cocked with an amused smirk.

“I doubt it.” Bronze Yohn scoffed. “You? You are a sell sword. You don’t even have a family name.”

“You bet your bottom and tit I do!” Bronn said, causing Yohn to scowl at the man. “House… House Blackwater! House Blackwater of Casterly Rock.”

“Lord Tyrion?” Jon asked, and he could see that his friend’s face had darkened. This was his birthright. Something that had been denied to him by his father for a long time. It was something that he could empathize with.

Tyrion sighed before saying, “My family has brought nothing but rot to the seven kingdoms this last decade.” He pinched his nose before continuing. “However, the Westerlands, my family’s own bannermen, will never follow you. Unless…”

“Unless what.” Bronn snapped.

“My cousin Joy.” Tyrion said. “The bastard daughter of my Uncle Gerion. My only family left. Still unmarried. About the same age as your youngest sister, Your Grace. If we can arrange a betrothal between her and Ser Bronn.”

“Probably a legitimization as well.” Sansa added, “Although not completely necessary.”

“And you will probably need to fill one of the empty Council spots with a Westerlenian.” Tyrion said, “I recommend Ser Addam Marbrand, my brother trusted him. He would make a good Master at Laws.”

“You are alright with this My Lord?” Jon said, “Tis your birthright.”

“Well it is like Prince Brandon and Wyman said, Your Grace. My family wrecked this country. Joy and I are the last of the Lannisters. As long as he agrees to the betrothal then maybe… if our name could fade out peacefully…”

Jon sighed with a headache. It was not even midday and he already had a headache. “Very well, Ser Bronn of House… Blackwater” Jon said pausing at the ridiculous house name. The man was going to be Lord Paramount of the Westerlands, and he was naming himself after something in the Crownlands. Whatever... “I name you Lord of Casterly Rock. However, I am not naming you Lord Paramount. We shall have another Westerlands house take that role. It will be decided at a later date. Warden of the West, that shall go to the Lord Tyrell of the Reach, With Warden of the South going to whoever holds the Dornish seat.”

“Good enough for me.” Bronn said with a side smirk. He left the council room whistling the tune to the Dornishman’s wife.

“Please tell me that was not a mistake.” Jon said, looking at Tyrion.

“He knows those mines are mostly dry. Can’t be a worse choice than my sister.” The Master of Coin said, shrugging. “At least the heirs of the Casterly Rock will have Lannister blood in their veins. Speaking of heirs…” he finished leading.

“Meeting adjourned.” Jon said, trying not to grind his teeth. “I shall see you all on the docks in two hours.”

“Gendry!” Sansa said, in a predetermined signal. The former blacksmith stood in front of the door, his bulk completely blocking the door for Jon to leave. “We need to speak of this Jon! It has been over four moons! Honestly I am surprised that there haven’t been more lords already throwing their daughters at you!”

“Sansa…”

“The Princess is correct, Your Grace.” Lord Royce said. “You must have an heir to stabilize your reign.”

There was a pregnant pause before Jon turned to her sister-cousin. “Who do you recommend?” At her faux confused look he added, “Don’t start, you always look at your feet before you lie. I know you have a list.”

“While my unmarried daughters are too young, one of my cousins, Myranda, is unattached, Your Grace.” Lord Royce said, “She is only a few years older than you.”

Myranda… Myranda… where did he hear that name before Myranda. My.. Randa, Randa… “Is she the one that…” Jon asked trailing off looking at Sansa to check on her story from the Vale. Her solemn expression breaking into a grimace told it all.

“He was… very old, Your Grace.” Yohn said, regretfully.

“If I may, Your Grace?” Lord Manderly added, “I have two granddaughters.”

“Wylla and Wynafryd If I am not mistaken?” Jon said. Honestly, he would take the first woman offered to him. Dany was barely dead and in the ground. He did not feel like courting, nor did he care who he ended up with.

“Yes, although currently I am training Wynafryd to be my heir.” Wyman said happy with himself to show that he was training and making a woman his heir as if Dorne and the Mormont’s had not been doing the same for centuries.

“I do not think that is a good idea, Your Grace.” Tyrion said, holding up his hand to the other two men at the perceived insult. “You are already connected to House Stark through your Cousins, who in turn are connected to the Vale and Riverlands through their mother’s kin. We need to think in terms of strengthening your ties to other regions.”

“I would not cut out all Northerners, Lord Tyrion.” Sansa said. “There is still Lady Meera Reed. Our family owes her quite a debt. Making her queen seems just enough to repay that debt.”

The entire council looked at her. She was speaking quite strangely and not at all how she usually speaks. “In fact, I do not think there is anyone else out there who is worthy of her. Only a king is good enough for our banner…”

“Enough!” Bran snapped, more emotion in his voice than Jon had heard in nearly a decade. It seems the Three-eyed Raven could still get jealous. “We decided no citizens of the Northerners, Vale or Riverlanders. Move along.”

The eyebrows of the council shot up in surprise but a look from Jon prevented anyone from saying something. Sansa met his eyes though- she had been more and more worried about her little brother and came to Jon frequently about it. Jon could not even be annoyed that she used the Small Council meeting for her little experiment seeing how it worked.

“Who else is on that list Sansa?” Jon asked, trying to change the subject so that Bran would stop fuming.

“Well if we are keeping in mind that we need to do this for an Alliance then not as many. Because we also want to pair you with someone we can trust, not someone who will slit your throat as soon as get a child on them. May the gods forbid another Cersei Lannister on as the Queen.”

“Here, here!” Tyrion said, holding up his goblet as if his actions were not the ones that directly led to her sitting on the throne.

“So really there are only three names that we should consider.” Sansa said, “Someone from Dorne or the Reach. Dorne is likely to still be angry about the actions of your parents so maybe a Dornish wife may relive tensions with that region. Jynessa Blackmont and Allyria Dayne from Dorne. Lady Jynessa is going to be with the Dornish ambassador’s party and Lady Allyria is…”

“Not an opinion.” Bran said, causing Sansa to look at him strangly.

“Lady Jynessa was in the Dornish Party when Prince Oberyn came for Joffery’s wedding. She seemed kind enough when I met her, but we should be wary.” Sansa said, rolling with Bran’s statements. He does not speak very often anymore so when he does they all make sure to listen. “Now for the Reach really the only choice is Desmera Redwyne.”

“I uh also Your Grace.” Sam stuttered, “My sister Talla is also of marriageable age.”

Jon looked at his best friend in anguish. It was clear he truly did not want to offer her name but was doing so because he felt honor bound to do so. Honestly, Jon could not blame him. The last two women he loved were brutally stabbed in the heart.

“You are already on the Council, Sam.” Jon said. “It would not be a good idea to marry her lest I get accused of putting friends in powerful positions.”

Everyone knew that was a weak argument, it was almost expected to put those closest to you in powerful positions, but no one contradicted him.

“There is always the new Lord of the Reach, Theodore’s daughter… Elia?” Tyrion said, “They could be a great al…”

“Elinor?” Sansa said, a mix of incredulous and furious. “Absolutely not!”

“You know her?” Jon asked. After Daenerys, Jon was not going to ignore his sister-cousin’s judgment. Not again. Especially after his interact with this specific Tyrell the night before.

“Yes.” Sansa replied curtly. Everyone looked at her expectantly, but she did not elaborate.

“Mayhaps we shouldn’t jump…”

“I will NOT have her as part of my family.” She snapped to Jon’s surprise. While she was not emotionless like Bran, she did hide her emotions much more. Outbursts like this one she hadn’t shown in years.

“Your Grace.” Bronze Yohn started and just by his look Jon could tell he would not like what was about to be said. But interestingly enough it was Gendry that he was looking at apprehensively. “There is another Young Lady in the Vale… I believe the Princess Sansa was made her acquaintance while she was in the Vale…”

“Please just say what you wish to say Lord Royce.” Jon said, he was only in the Capital a few moons and already he was sick of the word games.

“She is the bastard daughter of Robert Baratheon.” Royce said finally. “It may be a way to put to bed any lingering doubts about you sitting on the throne. With both regimes united and on the Throne.”

“She… is a good person.” Sansa said, but the look on Gendry’s face he was not sure what he should do.

“No.” Bran said, before looked confused. “There is someone at the door.”

Gendry narrowed his eyebrows and opened the door to find a woman in dark red. “Hello my king. I am…”

“A red priestess.” Jon completed.

“Yes, Your Grace.” The woman said with a slight bow. “I heard what you were speaking of. My order has done more research into… the events surrounding your death.”

“You mean his death and resurrection?” Tyrion asked.

“Yes.” The Priestess confirmed. “Thoros of our order was the first to preform… such a ceremony. We are still unsure of the long term effects.”

“Is there a point, My Lady?”

“You need an heir.” The priestess said. “Unfortunately from what we have discovered, you will be unable to.”

There was pause as his council started murmuring. Jon not being able to have children was bad omen. The realm had just come off a war due to a succession crisis, and now their elected king could not have children? This would cause a lot of turmoil. Although it did help explain how Daenerys never got pregnant despite their coupling.

“I sense a ‘However’ coming.” Sansa said, grounding the conversation.

“We have found that those who have also undergone the same procedure, are more susceptible to receive the gift of life.” The Priestess said.

“As far as I am aware, there are no other Westerosi has undergone this procedure.” Tyrion said, “We do need them to be Wester…osi.”

His new master of coin trailed off as two more women in Red Robes walked into the room. The younger blonde looked surprisingly skittish, as Tyrion and Sansa looked at her in shock. “Myrcella?” Tyrion whispered in horrified shock.

Jon and Sansa exchanged a look as the room broke up Myrcella causing the unofficial ending of the meeting. She grabbed the back of his hand and said, “Don’t worry Jon. You only have this job forever.”

“Arya is a bad influence on you.” Jon grumbled. “I don’t think I like it…”

Sansa laughed as she led Bran from the room. “It’s only for forever…”

[nogoodsheepstealing-greatgrandma]

[jedimaesteryoda]

You often miss how similar Jorah Mormont and Petyr Baelish are in some respects.

When it was announced that I was to wed Brandon Stark, Petyr challenged for the right to my hand. It was madness. Brandon was twenty, Petyr scarcely fifteen. I had to beg Brandon to spare Petyr's life. He let him off with a scar. Afterward my father sent him away. I have not seen him since." -AGOT, Catelyn IV Yet with Lynesse's favor knotted round my arm, I was a different man. I won joust after joust. Lord Jason Mallister fell before me, and Bronze Yohn Royce. Ser Ryman Frey, his brother Ser Hosteen, Lord Whent, Strongboar, even Ser Boros Blount of the Kingsguard, I unhorsed them all. In the last match, I broke nine lances against Jaime Lannister to no result, and King Robert gave me the champion's laurel. I crowned Lynesse queen of love and beauty, and that very night went to her father and asked for her hand. I was drunk, as much on glory as on wine. By rights I should have gotten a contemptuous refusal, but Lord Leyton accepted my offer. We were married there in Lannisport, and for a fortnight I was the happiest man in the wide world." -ACOK, Daenerys I

They pursued beautiful highborn women far above their station who, and both being southron women who married northern lords. Petyr pined for Catelyn Tully, and fought a duel for her hand against her betrothed, Brandon Stark. Jorah won a tourney with the favor of Lynesse Hightower, he crowned her queen of love and beauty and managed to marry her when he asked for her hand.

Their stories have a romantic element to them with Petyr dueling for Cat's hand and Jorah winning a tourney with Lynesse's favor, but they end up being subverted with neither getting a happy ending. Petyr loses the duel and is nearly killed, and then SAed by Lysa and sent from Riverrun. Jorah's marriage didn't work out, exhausting his family's coffers to provide her the luxuries she was used to and after selling poachers to slavers, which forced him into exile. Catelyn ended up marrying Ned Stark and Lynesse ended up leaving Jorah to be a merchant-prince's concubine.

After that, they found themselves in service to women with Lysa Arryn having Jon Arryn raisie up Petyr and him later serving Queen Cersei while Jorah ending up serving Daenerys in exile. They also end up betraying the people they serve with Littlefinger having a hand in the War of Five Kings and being behind Joffrey's murder, killing Lysa and Jorah spying on Daenerys.

"I've told the khal he ought to make for Meereen," Ser Jorah said. "They'll pay a better price than he'd get from a slaving caravan. Illyrio writes that they had a plague last year, so the brothels are paying double for healthy young girls, and triple for boys under ten. If enough children survive the journey, the gold will buy us all the ships we need, and hire men to sail them." -AGOT, Daenerys VII "I'm a good girl," Jeyne whimpered. "They trained me." -ADWD, Theon

Another thing they have in common is their attitude towards children and sex slavery. Petyr took the orphaned Jeyne Poole, forced her into sexual slavery at one of his brothels as shown by the whippings she endured for refusing and mentioning "she was trained." He then sent her to Ramsay Bolton of all people, likely not being ignorant of the things he had heard about him. Jorah had no qualms selling kids into sex slavery en masse, and when Dany tells him to stop Eroeh from being raped, he initially pushes back saying the Dothraki are claiming "their reward."

"You shouldn't kiss me. I might have been your own daughter . . ." "Might have been," he admitted, with a rueful smile. "But you're not, are you? You are Eddard Stark's daughter, and Cat's. But I think you might be even more beautiful than your mother was, when she was your age." -ASOS, Sansa VII "What did she look like, your Lady Lynesse?" Ser Jorah smiled sadly. "Why, she looked a bit like you, Daenerys." -ACOK, Daenerys I

It fits their creepy attitude towards the opposite gender with their fixation on young girls after the loss of their previous interests of affection. Petyr fixates on Cat's daughter Sansa Stark who does bear a noted resemblance to her mother while Jorah fixates on Daenerys who he admits looks like his ex-wife.

For half a heartbeat she yielded to his kiss . . . before she turned her face away and wrenched free. "What are you doing?" Petyr straightened his cloak. "Kissing a snow maid." . . . "You shouldn't kiss me. I might have been your own daughter . . ." -ASOS, Sansa VII It was a long kiss, though how long Dany could not have said. When it ended, Ser Jorah let go of her, and she took a quick step backward. "You . . . you should not have . . ." "I should not have waited so long," he finished for her. "I should have kissed you in Qarth, in Vaes Tolorru. I should have kissed you in the red waste, every night and every day. You were made to be kissed, often and well." His eyes were on her breasts. Dany covered them with her hands, before her nipples could betray her. "I . . . that was not fitting. I am your queen." -ASOS, Daenerys I

Their treatment towards these girls can be described as possessive and abusive. While posing to their girls as their protectors, they basically use it to enforce control over them. They force kisses on the girls, and when the girls make it clear they don't want them, simply dismiss them and continue to push. Petyr keeps Sansa in his custody under a false identity, effectively making him her guardian and keeping her completely dependent on him. Jorah tries to isolate Dany from other men in her life from Xaro to Barristan and Daario.

The main difference in Petyr is very vindictive, and works on the downfall of houses Stark and Tully over Cat's rejection and marriage while Jorah stays loyal to Daenerys and tries to seek her favor again. Neither man really takes accountability for the consequences of their actions.

Their fixations will ultimately prove to be their downfalls. Petyr underestimates the danger Sansa potentially poses to him as she is learning from him. Jorah in a desperate act, kidnaps Tyrion, and tries to go to Meereen to regain favor with Daenerys. He likely won't like the Ironborn suitor Victarion, and his actions will likely get himself killed.

[lemonhemlock]

strange that people had the thought that sansa was gonna stay in the vale and not go back to winterfell for so long when geographically other than bran(beyond the wall having trippy visions)/jon("dead")/rickon (cannibal island skagos) sansa is way closer to winterfell than a lot of characters and the knights of the vale is pretty much a chekhov's gun especially since like you said they havent joined the war yet and somehow sansa marching to winter fell with them was unbelievable since like 2009-2018 (her story might not follow the show especially because of the diverged storylines and she has the alternative to escape the vale but who knows)

It's no secret that Sansa was a very hated character throughout GoT's run. People ~manifesting she would stay in the Vale was a way of wishful-thinking her out of the narrative. Their dislike made them ignore reason and come up with many silly theories.

Much has been said about Sansa's pawn-to-queen narrative, but the main argument for her surviving the series is that, if GRRM wanted to kill her, he had many, many opportunities to do so in five books and didn't. Sansa is physically and socially vulnerable & her POV focuses on her rich internal world, strength and endurance, yet she remains unscathed and is instead learning court politics. Why is that? It's basic bildungsroman storytelling. Denying that is just being petty at this point.

Sansa also cannot remain in the Vale as Alayne, since that is Littlefinger's plot. Only the most delulu stans will not accept that a shady person such as Littlefinger will face authorial punishment for his sins. And, when he does die, what's stopping Sansa from claiming her identity? Especially as she finds out the feared and detested Ramsay Bolton has married "Arya Stark". She will naturally want to help her sister.

Now, I need to re-read for this, but I believe it is hinted in AFFC that Myranda Royce slyly figured out who Sansa is. If you remember the prologue of AGOT, the fancy, pretentious Night's Watch ranger from the group of three that first encounter the white walkers, is Waymar Royce. He is the third son of Bronze Yohn, head of House Royce. I did a quick search to refresh my memory:

"Bronze Yohn knows me," she reminded him. "He was a guest at Winterfell when his son rode north to take the black." She had fallen wildly in love with Ser Waymar, she remembered dimly, but that was a lifetime ago, when she was a stupid little girl. "And that was not the only time. Lord Royce saw . . . he saw Sansa Stark again at King's Landing, during the Hand's tourney." Petyr put a finger under her chin. "That Royce glimpsed this pretty face I do not doubt, but it was one face in a thousand. A man fighting in a tourney has more to concern him than some child in the crowd. And at Winterfell, Sansa was a little girl with auburn hair. My daughter is a maiden tall and fair, and her hair is chestnut. Men see what they expect to see, Alayne." He kissed her nose. "Have Maddy lay a fire in the solar. I shall receive our Lords Declarant there."

(AFFC, Alayne I)

I mean... you can't be more explicit than that. The Royces know who Sansa is, but they'll just keep quiet and play out this charade?

[agentrouka-blog]

Saw an old ask you answered about Mya and had to ask your thoughts on Myranda Royce. Like, she’s the character I’m the most curious about re: the winds of winter. We know from Dumb and Dumber that the Vale plotting for Sansa won’t actually be very long (I’m assuming she gets out of there right after the tourney and leaves for the wall /possibly with the help of Brienne and or Brynden/maybe after some shenanigans from the mountain clans) but from what we can assume Bronze Yohn will be on Sansa‘s side and help her out (like in the show). Now, Myranda's Nestor dad is indebted to LF (and friends with him!) and I find it unlikely that she would pick her father’s cousins side over her dads? With her being lady of the gates too. And at this point everyone is in agreement that Myranda knows that Alayne is Sansa (very obviously highborn, educated, not interested in the new high septon despite allegedly training to be a septa, knows Ned starks bastards name, LOOKS like Catelyn Tully whom she has met not even 2 years before). IMO what’s pointing towards Myranda actually being on our girls side is 1) LF warning Alayne about her, 2) Myranda herself introducing herself as wanting to be wicked, 3) the fact that Myranda being just another Margaery would be lazy and boring, 4) The failed Myranda/Harry betrothal being revealed almost immediately by her, so it can’t actually be a major point of contention for her, right? I don’t want to put too much stock in what the show did but them naming their annoying evil fucked up Ramsay–simp Myranda Royce does sometimes make me hesitate in putting my faith behind Myranda. Ultimately I think she will look out for herself most of all but I feel like her interests aline with Sansa and it will be a net positive. I mainly just want Sansa to have actual allies! Do you think the two branches of the Royce family could end up in agreement/be scheming against LF? After all, besides Bronze Yohn's friendship with NedCat, the Royces share blood with the Starks and their house motto is "We Remember“!

I think you hit the nail on the head with the concept of aligning interests.

Nestor, I don't think he's that good of an actor to be actively fooling Littlefinger himself while appearing to be flattered into complicity, but Myranda is sharp as a knife and clearly not quite satisfied with her lot in life of marrying old men her father picks out for her. But she seems too invested in Sweetrobin to really care that much about marrying Harry for his potential title, as opposed to simply a handsome dolt her own age. So whatever she cares about, it's not in opposition to either Sansa or Sweetrobin. She's capable of subtly interrogating Sansa without her even realizing it, and she has sat on this information for months now without making a move yet. Littlefinger considers her a threat, which is the greatest compliment imaginable, and he wouldn't do that if he thought she was easily manipulated or had goals he could easily assist her with.

If the show paid lip-service to Sansa's Vale plot by naming Ramsay's invented lover after her, I don't imagine it's because Myranda herself is secretly evil, but because she's one of the key figures in the Vale arc.

I imagine she is part of a larger conspiracy connecting her to Bronze Yohn and Anya Waynwood. She would be ideally placed to be a spy for them, and they have the resources she lacks to act on her own behalf and without her father's knowledge. A Myranda who assists the Lords Declarant in removing Littlefinger from power (the mark of a true patriot, honestly) is a Myranda who may yet be rewarded with a better marital match than Harry The Obsolete Heir. (Roland, the Waynwood heir? Andar, the Royce heir?)

[esther-dot]

Does Sansa realize that the men she's attracted to look like her father?

At the moment, I think no? So far her crushes seem to be at least partially motivated by how she romanticizes the guys:

Prince Joffrey might be there. Her betrothed. Just thinking it made her feel a strange fluttering inside, even though they were not to marry for years and years. Sansa did not really know Joffrey yet, but she was already in love with him. He was all she ever dreamt her prince should be, tall and handsome and strong, with hair like gold. She treasured every chance to spend time with him, few as they were. (AGOT, Sansa I) Her father's decision still bewildered her. When the Knight of Flowers had spoken up, she'd been sure she was about to see one of Old Nan's stories come to life. Ser Gregor was the monster and Ser Loras the true hero who would slay him. He even looked a true hero, so slim and beautiful, with golden roses around his slender waist and his rich brown hair tumbling down into his eyes. And then Father had refused him! It had upset her more than she could tell. She had said as much to Septa Mordane as they descended the stairs from the gallery, but the septa had only told her it was not her place to question her lord father's decisions. (AGOT, Sansa III)

The pattern of "just like a prince should be! just like a true hero should look!" is an important part of her infatuation. Although Joffrey is considered handsome, it sounds like she is far more genuinely attracted to Loras:

She could not hate Joffrey tonight. He was too beautiful to hate. He wore a deep blue doublet studded with a double row of golden lion's heads, and around his brow a slim coronet made of gold and sapphires. His hair was as bright as the metal.(AGOT, Sansa II) Wed to Ser Loras, oh . . . Sansa's breath caught in her throat. She remembered Ser Loras in his sparkling sapphire armor, tossing her a rose. Ser Loras in white silk, so pure, innocent, beautiful. The dimples at the corner of his mouth when he smiled. The sweetness of his laugh, the warmth of his hand. She could only imagine what it would be like to pull up his tunic and caress the smooth skin underneath, to stand on her toes and kiss him, to run her fingers through those thick brown curls and drown in his deep brown eyes. A flush crept up her neck. (ASOS, Sansa I)

The rose is still there, but the rest of the paragraph, especially her physical reaction to the idea of touching Loras, that seems more real. Still, appearance (universally recognized as very attractive) and personality-wise, I don't think either really gives Ned. They each occupy a fantasy role for her too, so I’d imagine they’re very distant from her father in her mind.

But then we have this:

She had always imagined the Night's Watch to be men like Uncle Benjen. In the songs, they were called the black knights of the Wall. (AGOT, Sansa III) "Bronze Yohn knows me," she reminded him. "He was a guest at Winterfell when his son rode north to take the black." She had fallen wildly in love with Ser Waymar, she remembered dimly, but that was a lifetime ago, when she was a stupid little girl. "And that was not the only time. Lord Royce saw . . . he saw Sansa Stark again at King's Landing, during the Hand's tourney." (AFFC, Alayne I) Ser Waymar Royce was the youngest son of an ancient house with too many heirs. He was a handsome youth, eighteen, grey-eyed, and graceful and slender as a knife. (AGOT, Prologue)

Jon's eyes were a grey so dark they seemed almost black, but there was little they did not see. He was of an age with Robb, but they did not look alike. Jon was slender where Robb was muscular, dark where Robb was fair, graceful and quick where his half brother was strong and fast. (AGOT, Bran I) Ned saw Jon Snow's face in front of him, so like a younger version of his own (AGOT, Eddard IX)

(I think the first person I saw place those Waymar and Jon quotes together was @julibf in this post.)

Waymar is described the same way as Jon, and Jon looks like a young Ned, but a) Sansa didn't know Ned when he was a teenager so I’m not sure that the slender/graceful thing would hit, and b) Waymar's personality sounds nothing like Ned. SO, I'm still not sure anything would click there for her. Especially as, we also have the romantic aura of black knight around him, and again, Ned was probably terribly far from that in baby Sansa's eyes!

Jon however is not only described elsewhere as having the Stark look (in addition to Ned's own opinion on the matter), he also has the same...presentation. He has an unreadable face/hides his emotions, we're told it's the Tully looking kids who smile easily with the inference that Jon and Arya do not. I think knowing Jon gives a foundation for him as a real person that as much as well, everything about him post rez / upon their reunion will call out to Sansa’s romantic notions, will keep their dynamic in reality rather than the song realm. They will bond so their relationship won’t be primarily taking place in Sansa’s head, but personally, yeah, I do think at some point she will look into his Stark eyes and something will click. 👀

It's not gonna be super ick because again, Sansa only knows her dad as an adult and your face can change quite a bit as you age, and Jon has more of the wolf blood than Ned did, so he isn’t actually a redux of Ned. Ultimately, the idea may be more familiarity, family, safety than realizing how much Jon looks like Ned, but I definitely think that resemblance will register for her in some way.

And while we're at it, Sansa looks like Cat. 😐 We don't joke about the Freudian aspect for nothing!

[goodqueenaly]

I would like to think that the reason Waymar Royce avoided sleeping under Craster’s roof was more noble than selfish. After all, we have in the examples of Waymar’s (male) family members men who, while certainly not immune to the sort of personal and political ambitions common to Westerosi blue bloods, uphold a certain moral standard at the same time. If Ser Robar Royce sought out a place in Renly’s Rainbow Guard to win the sort of personal glory denied to nobly born second sons, and approached war with a lightness that disturbed Catelyn, he still prioritized honor enough to sacrifice himself so that two innocent women could escape the site of (and blame for) Renly’s murder. If Lord Yohn Royce sought and cultivated the favor and control of both the young Lord Arryn and his somewhat older heir presumptive, Bronze Yohn nevertheless exploded with fury at Lyn Corbray’s (staged) attempt to breach the ancient tradition of guest right during their conference at the Eyrie. Nor was Waymar himself personally bereft of a sense of honor, as demonstrated in his fatal determination to defend the Night’s Watch even against a supernatural enemy he could not have hoped to defeat.

So perhaps Ser Waymar, coming across Craster’s Keep on his very first command ranging, decided that he was not going to condone the same blind-eye allowance of Craster’s rape and slavery of his daughters and “wives” which other Night’s Watch officers allowed when they stopped over with Craster. How, perhaps Waymar might have thought, could he respect the chivalric charge to protect women and the innocent (as Robar Royce would do for Catelyn and Brienne) while sitting by as Craster verbally and physically abused the women and girls in his household? (To say nothing of Craster’s sacrifice of his sons, which admittedly Waymar does not seem to have known about.) Did Waymar, as Jon would in ACOK, decide that Craster was akin to an unjust bannerman, more fit to be hanged than to be trusted as even an uncertain ally? Consequently, did Waymar make the choice Jon would - to reject the obligations of guest right, that socio-political tradition which would in the future be so vigorously defended by his own father?

Of course it’s possible that this refusal was simply a reflection of Waymar’s aristocratic arrogance - that Ser Waymar found the midden heap of Craster’s Keep too humble and impoverished to house him, the knightly son of a great lord of the Vale and an officer of the Night’s Watch. Yet I feel like the more interesting reading is to view Waymar as a sort of proto or imperfect Jon Snow. Just as Ser Waymar was another privileged but extraneous aristocratic scion whose socio-political position virtually required that he pursue a career in the Night’s Watch - and as Waymar and Jon both hold to the fundamental mission of the Night’s Watch against the Others, with Jon perhaps eventually succeeding where Waymar (not for lack of trying) failed - so perhaps Waymar and Jon shared a feudal/chivalric disgust in the unjust actions of Craster.

[stheresya]

One fun thing I think people overlook about Myranda Royce is that she's the daughter of the High Steward, which means she's the daughter of the guy running the economy of one of the biggest and farthest-north food-producing regions in Westetos. Since Petyr is also a money guy and has been manipulating Vale debt as well as the capitol's finances, and Nestor Royce the High Steward has shown himself ambitious but open to Littlefinger's bribes, who's the best person in the Vale to help bring down Littlefinger? Nestor who's been bought, Bronze Yohn with an army but no food or money source, or another clever inside player who's been running a gigantic household and likely its books successfully in her teens and early twenties?

indeed i had completely overlooked that. thanks for pointing out. it just shows how the potential for myranda to be an ally against petyr has solid basis in the text.

myranda is pretty much a "chekhov's gunman" character to me. petyr was so confident in sansa's disguise that he seemed unconcerned with the possibility of her being unmasked even by people who had previously met her (like bronze). but with randa, who had never laid eyes on sansa before, he was wary. it's because he knows she's the only one with enough knowledge and enough wit to pose a threat to his plans.

[alaynasansa]

‘ She is beginning to at least try to understand how she can play the Game of Thrones and be not a piece but a player. With her own goals, and moving other pieces around ’

George R. R. Martin

“Father asked if there were any knights in the hall who would do honor to their houses by taking the black, but no one came forward, so he gave this Yoren his pick of the king's dungeons and sent him on his way. And later these two brothers came before him, freeriders from the Dornish Marches, and pledged their swords to the service of the king. Father accepted their oaths...”

Ser Loras is a Tyrell, Sansa reminded herself. That other knight was only a Toyne. His brothers had no armies, no way to avenge him but with swords. Yet the more she thought about it all, the more she wondered. Joff might restrain himself for a few turns, perhaps as long as a year, but soon or late he will show his claws, and when he does... The realm might have a second Kingslayer, and there would be war inside the city, as the men of the lion and the men of the rose made the gutters run red

He saved Alayne, his daughter, a voice within her whispered. But she was Sansa too... and sometimes it seemed to her that the Lord Protector was two people as well. He was Petyr, her protector, warm and funny and gentle... but he was also Littlefinger, the lord she'd known at King's Landing, smiling slyly and stroking his beard as he whispered in Queen Cersei's ear. And Littlefinger was no friend of hers. When Joff had her beaten, the Imp defended her, not Littlefinger. When the mob sought to rape her, the Hound carried her to safety, not Littlefinger. When the Lannisters wed her to Tyrion against her will, Ser Garlan the Gallant gave her comfort, not Littlefinger. Littlefinger never lifted so much as his little finger for her.

Except to get me out. He did that for me. I thought it was Ser Dontos, my poor old drunken Florian, but it was Petyr all the while. Littlefinger was only a mask he had to wear. Only sometimes Sansa found it hard to tell where the man ended and the mask began. Littlefinger and Lord Petyr looked so very much alike. She would have fled them both, perhaps, but there was nowhere for her to go

Though his hair was grey and his face lined, Lord Yohn still looked as though he could break most younger men like twigs in those huge gnarled hands. His seamed and solemn face brought back all of Sansa's memories of his time at Winterfell. She remembered him at table, speaking quietly with her mother. She heard his voice booming off the walls when he rode back from a hunt with a buck behind his saddle. She could see him in the yard, a practice sword in hand, hammering her father to the ground and turning to defeat Ser Rodrik as well. He will know me. How could he not ? She considered throwing herself at his feet to beg for his protection. He never fought for Robb, why should he fight for me ? The war is finished and Winterfell is fallen. “Lord Royce,” she asked timidly, “will you have a cup of wine, to take the chill off ?”

Bronze Yohn had slate-grey eyes, half-hidden beneath the bushiest eyebrows she had ever seen. They crinkled when he looked down at her. “Do I know you, girl ?”

Sansa Month 2023 : day sixteen - politics

[atopvisenyashill]

listening to a podcast about house royce and ONCE AGAIN NED. you had half the first men descended houses in the realm trying to be your right hand man bronze yohn was IN THE CAPITAL why would you not ask him to stay and help you 😭

[warsofasoiaf]

In aCoK, the younger son of the Royces, Ser Robar, comes to fight for Renly in hopes of glory (and probably lands or such for himself). Even though Lysa has commanded the knights of the Vale to remain. Is this legal? Could he be punished for that?

Not really. When Lysa commands the knights of the Vale to remain, that's for the lords of the Vale, their retainers, and explicit levies. Ser Robar is making his own way and so while he might feel pressured by familial ties, he's not bound the way Bronze Yohn would be.

Thanks for the question, Sippy Cup.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[jackoshadows]

I really did not want to write about Waymar Royce, but here goes 😂

As @thelustybraavosimaid points out here, Sansa more than likely had a crush on the young, handsome, well dressed high born lord Waymar Royce based on his appearance and personality which is explicitly described as being different to Jon Snow’s in the text of the books, rather than based on headcanons of there being any resemblance between them.

 “Bronze Yohn knows me,” she reminded him. “He was a guest at Winterfell when his son rode north to take the black.” She had fallen wildly in love with Ser Waymar, she remembered dimly, but that was a lifetime ago, when she was a stupid little girl. - Alayne, AFfC

The comparison here is between the likes of Waymar and Joffrey - the boys she used to love based on superficial aspects like their looks and high born status. Jon Snow describes Joffrey as ‘proud’ and notices his attitude towards Winterfell and it’s denizens.

Sansa looked radiant as she walked beside him, but Jon did not like Joffrey's pouty lips or the bored, disdainful way he looked at Winterfell's Great Hall. - Jon, AGoT

Waymar gave importance to being dressed well, just like Sansa. No doubt, one of the aspects in her childish crush on him involved his sense of fashion. In our very first prologue, this is what his men think about him:

He was a handsome youth of eighteen, grey-eyed and graceful and slender as a knife. Mounted on his huge black destrier, the knight towered above Will and Gared on their smaller garrons. He wore black leather boots, black woolen pants, black moleskin gloves, and a fine supple coat of gleaming black ringmail over layers of black wool and boiled leather. Ser Waymar had been a Sworn Brother of the Night’s Watch for less than half a year, but no one could say he had not prepared for his vocation. At least insofar as his wardrobe was concerned.

His cloak was his crowning glory; sable, thick and black and soft as sin. “Bet he killed them all himself, he did,” Gared told the barracks over wine, “twisted their little heads off, our mighty warrior.” They had all shared the laugh. - prologue, AGoT

The Wall is a harsh place, where survival is foremost and the crows at the Night’s Watch mock Waymar Royce for his clothes, with their dislike also probably stemming from his arrogance owing to his noble stature and high birth. 

We also see Craster being critical of Royce’s pride and leadership.

Lord Mormont said, “Ben was searching for Ser Waymar Royce, who’d vanished with Gared and young Will.”

“Aye, those three I recall. The lordling no older than one of these pups. Too proud to sleep under my roof, him in his sable cloak and black steel. My wives give him big cow eyes all the same.” He turned his squint on the nearest of the women. “Gared says they were chasing raiders. I told him, with a commander that green, best not catch ’em. Gared wasn’t half-bad, for a crow. Had less ears than me, that one. The ’bite took ’em, same as mine.” Craster laughed. “Now I hear he got no head neither. The ’bite do that too?” - Jon, ACoK

Note another passing comment on how good looking/handsome Waymar Royce is, with Craster mentioning his wives/daughters’ reactions to the man.

Nothing similar has been said about Jon Snow, he’s never referred to as handsome, his men don’t mock him over his sense of fashion and dressing and they trusted in his capabilities enough to elect him as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch.

Note also that we don’t need the mental gymnastics and convoluted logic of comparing a character that Sansa had a crush on with Jon Snow to infer what Sansa thinks of Jon’s looks and appearance. It’s directly in the text.

Sansa could never understand how two sisters, born only two years apart, could be so different. It would have been easier if Arya had been a bastard, like their half brother Jon. She even looked like Jon, with the long face and brown hair of the Starks, and nothing of their lady mother in her face or her coloring. And Jon's mother had been common, or so people whispered. Once, when she was littler, Sansa had even asked Mother if perhaps there hadn't been some mistake. - Sansa, AGoT

We know Sansa considers Arya to be horse faced and ugly and wished that Arya was a bastard like Jon, since they are so similar in looks and attributed those looks to Jon’s ‘common mother’ instead of the superior looking Tully stock.

Arya took after their lord father. Her hair was a lusterless brown, and her face was long and solemn. Jeyne used to call her Arya Horseface, and neigh whenever she came near. - Arya, AGOT

"Hodor!" Sansa yelled. "You ought to marry Hodor, you're just like him, stupid and hairy and ugly!" She wrenched away from her sister's hand - Ned, AGoT

Her name, she had to know her name. "Arya Underfoot. Your sister used to call you Arya Horseface." "It was me made up that name. Her face was long and horsey. Mine isn't. I was pretty." Tears spilled from her eyes at last. The Prince of Winterfell, ADWD

And here is Sansa describing the Waynwoods in the TWoW sample chapter as horse-faced and homely and Myranda Royce mocking them for being horse-faced:

Ser Roland was the oldest of the three, though no more than five-and-twenty. He was taller and more muscular than Ser Wallace, but both were long-faced and lantern-jawed, with stringy brown hair and pinched noses. Horsefaced and homely, Alayne thought.

Alayne did not dignify that question with an answer. "Lady Waynwood will be here soon, with her sons."

"Is that a promise or a threat?" Myranda said. "The first Lady Waynwood must have been a mare, I think. How else to explain why all the Waynwood men are horse-faced? If I were ever to wed a Waynwood, he would have to swear a vow to don his helm whenever he wished to fuck me, and keep the visor closed." She gave Alayne a pinch on the arm. "My Harry will be with them, though. I notice that you left him out. I shall never forgive you for stealing him away from me. He's the boy I want to marry."  -  Alayne, TWOW

So no, there are no similarities between Waymar Royce and Jon Snow and they actually are a study in contrasts. Waymar Royce was handsome, proud and arrogant, not paying heed to the warnings of his men. He loved to dress well and was viewed as a green commander.

Jon Snow is a bastard, made friends with the likes of Pyp, Grenn, Toad and Samwell, has no interest in fashion, is a competent commander and has the brown hair and long faced Stark look, which Sansa attributes to his bastardy and common mother.

Kindly stop paralleling Jon Snow with Waymar Royce 🙏🏽

[a-song-of-art-and-fire]

Ser Robar Royce, the Red Knight of the Rainbow Guard

"A second son must find glory where he can. A man grows weary of tourneys."

Now that May has finally arrived, let's have some knights of summer! My second take on Robar, and to be honest a big improvement on my kitbashed one.

As I've said, I adore House Royce for embodying the reconstructive element of ASOIAF. Robar feels like the southern version of Waymar, a bit of a pompous ass off to find glory in their martial culture, but when the shit hits the fan and the supernatural forces of fire and ice, respectively, rear their heads - House Royce stands firm in the face of danger. And then gets killed horribly, but hey... I'm hoping for a bit of a rule of 3 subversion to happen and there to be some moment where presumably Bronze Yohn gets to kick ass, and I love the idea that bronze runic armour so derided by the maesters will have some actual function as magic returns.

The mini is a very nice one, I'm extremely grateful they sculpted the runes so I didnt have to freehand them all, although being a glutton for punishment I added a few on his tabard. I really like how the red armour has come out, for all the rainbow guard (spoiler for my next 6 posts I guess) I painted them in metallics then used inks to dye the metal, this is one where it's worked out well! You can see some spiderweb cracks in the colour from applying the ink over non adhesive metallic paints, but I think it kind of enhances the cool runic armour look. I'm also extremely grateful he looks quite a lot like the beautiful FFG Robar artwork, one of my all time favourite ASOIAF illustrations: