[ADwD Spoilers] The Hooded Man at Winterfell

[OldNanwasmywetnurse]

I'm pretty sure the hooded man is "Reek". He refers to himself as Theon the entire chapter. In the same chapter he is thinking about the murders before (in ACOK), and how different people were playing the same characters and how Reek was there before, "Reek, Reek, it rhymes with sneak." A few paragraphs before that Theon is walking the walls, looking over and thinks "I have to remember my name." Then it's the next day.

Look at the end of the Prince of Winterfell Chapter. He thinks of himself as Theon until the very end when he does the "Reek, Reek, my name is Reek" litany, and then he refers to himself as Reek again.

Also, no one is just wandering around outside in the middle of that storm except for Theon... it's gotta be him. They both have daggers, Theon later thinks about how he could still use a dagger when that one spearwife is walking in front of him and he thinks how Reek could do it. It's kind of crackpot I guess but makes far more sense than anything else. Also pretty sure Reek killed Little Walder, the whole Big Walder saying he had to pay silver to someone is just the reason LW was outside and also used to throw us off, maybe.

[Ser Bullitin The Board]

I told you people. It was one of the Cave Hodors from the crypt. He was just on his way back down the stairs after beating Bloodraven at Cyvasse.

[Dio Forel]

I told you people. It was one of the Cave Hodors from the crypt. He was just on his way back down the stairs after beating Bloodraven at Cyvasse.

Of course he beat him, Bloodraven is all wrapped up in tree roots Hodor took advantage of him.

[twist of cake]

Hmmm it could be Theon I mean he might be so messed up he never knows if he is dreaming or in the real world that would account for some the the weird shit and the blacking out we wont know is real and whats a dream either.

Besides the brotherhood would have killed him so would any of the northmen I would think.

But I might have to read the passage again.

[Skagosi]

I had a different idea (though I do like the Theon idea).

I think the Umber candidate for the Hooded Man is Hother "Whoresbane" Umber. His nickname comes from the gruesome murder of a male prostitute in Oldtown. The nature of the many murders at Winterfell suit the rumours surrounding Hother's past ...err...indiscretion.

Moreover, since he was training to be a Maester, its reasonable to infer he might be able to pull off the stable sabotage.

[Auska]

The Theon idea seems good (the other thread is Winterfell Murder Mysteries), and fun, but it seems that he's in genuinely bad shape. Some, like the limping, could be psychological but he's got other injuries and he's been fed/been eating poorly so his physical strength is probably nowhere near where it used to be. I don't really see him “striding” around, and certainly not overcoming reasonably powerful men like Yellow Dick with ease.

[L’Age d’or]

Theon is a reconizable character because of his ragged clothes which make him identifiable from a mile. I like this Theon Durden theory a lot but cant say there is much evidence for it.

[Lummel]

The Theon idea seems good (the other thread is Winterfell Murder Mysteries), and fun, but it seems that he's in genuinely bad shape. Some, like the limping, could be psychological but he's got other injuries and he's been fed/been eating poorly so his physical strength is probably nowhere near where it used to be. I don't really see him "striding" around, and certainly not overcoming reasonably powerful men like Yellow Dick with ease.

But who sees the Hooded man 'striding' around? - Reek, and only Reek.

Nobody knows if Yellow Dick was overcome easily or not because they neglected to carry out a CSI style post mortem to check for signs of a struggle. Reek has enough strength to fatally stab him, then smash his teeth with the butt of his dagger, then cut off the genitals and stuff them into the man's throat. He doesn't need to be strong - he just needs a moment when Yellow Dick has turned his back.

Don't forget Reek I is his physical low point, thereafter he's getting at least some exercise and better food and by the time he's in Winterfell he's at his strongest since ACOK.

Theon is a reconizable character because of his ragged clothes which make him identifiable from a mile. I like this Theon Durden theory a lot but cant say there is much evidence for it.

At this stage his clothes are relatively unragged. He had a new suit for the Wedding that hasn't been changed since. We know it's had wine spilled on it and it's starting to smell, but he's not looking as ragged as he did in Reek I or in Reek III.

What direct evidence there is ("I am the ghost in Winterfell") points to Theon. Every other suggestion so far relies either on circumstantial evidence (Everybody wants revenge for the Red Wedding) or relies on assuming that characters are not telling the truth (spearwives or Maester Luwin being spared by Osha).

[Forseti]

At this stage his clothes are relatively unragged. He had a new suit for the Wedding that hasn't been changed since.

Actually, his single set of clothes that he never changes out of is a major clue that he hasn't been spilling much blood in Winterfell. Not on his clothes anyway.

[Casso King of Seals]

Wait. Why isn't the hooded figure just Mance?

[Lummel]

Actually, his single set of clothes that he never changes out of is a major clue that he hasn't been spilling much blood in Winterfell. Not on his clothes anyway.

Possibly, but then if you've got roast horse in your trencher that is 'black on the outside, bloody on the inside' you would have blood stains on your clothing too. You're cutting the horse up with your dagger, sticking bits in your mouth to suck the juice and then throwing bits to the dogs - so you're going to have all kinds of blood splatter stains alongside your wine stain.

Who would notice some extra strains? They wouldn't have the means to tell that it wasn't horse, but human.

Wait. Why isn't the hooded figure just Mance?

Mance is in the Great Hall playing the music that Theon hears in the background.

[Envie]

A lot of interesting ideas for who it could be. I don't have any new characters to add, nor do I strongly agree with any of those suggested. I do strongly disagree that its Theon in some alternate personality disorder. That doesn't really seem to fit with the writing style Martin uses to describe him. Typically, when someone's either dreaming, warging, imagining, thinking to themself, or otherwise not in 'reality' the style is different and written almost disjointed and loosely vague. Like when Theon's back in his "Reek" role, the way his voice is written is much different than when he's "Theon" - and even switching back and forth between the two, with a decidedly disturbed dual personality style seems fairly obvious. The writing about the hooded man seemed very straightforward and matter-of-fact to me. Like saying "A guard walked down the steps and into the yard" - an observation he makes, albeit mysterious, but still it didn't seem alter-ego-split personality style to me.

[Marcus Cicero]

The hooded man isn't anyone we know. He's a sorcerer of some sort, working for the Others, doing an important job in the crypts of Winterfell. Specifically, he's going down into its depths and resurrecting the long dead Kings of Winter. Little Walder saw him entering the crypt, so he killed the kid. In TWOW, expect an army of undead kings, lead by Bran the Builder, to emerge and wreak havoc. So why does this agent of the night want to bring back to life some long dead kings, you ask. Well, what better way to bring destruction on the North than to utilize an army of undead Starks? But Bran the Builder is the key. He built the wall, so the Others can use an undead version of him to bring it down. All of this is known.

/end crackpot theory

[The King's Foot]

I don't know who it is, but it almost definitely isn't the Blackfish (though that would be Chuck Norris-level awesome). He doesn't escape Riverrun until near the end of AFfC, which in terms of timline is parallel to ADwD until the very end of Dance. At this moment in time, though I haven't seen an updated timeline, I believe the Blackfish is still in Riverrun, probably farting in general direction of the Freys' camp.

[Casso King of Seals]

A lot of interesting ideas for who it could be. I don't have any new characters to add, nor do I strongly agree with any of those suggested. I do strongly disagree that its Theon in some alternate personality disorder. That doesn't really seem to fit with the writing style Martin uses to describe him. Typically, when someone's either dreaming, warging, imagining, thinking to themself, or otherwise not in 'reality' the style is different and written almost disjointed and loosely vague. Like when Theon's back in his "Reek" role, the way his voice is written is much different than when he's "Theon" - and even switching back and forth between the two, with a decidedly disturbed dual personality style seems fairly obvious. The writing about the hooded man seemed very straightforward and matter-of-fact to me. Like saying "A guard walked down the steps and into the yard" - an observation he makes, albeit mysterious, but still it didn't seem alter-ego-split personality style to me.

This is entirely correct.

Also, George is pretty cunning when writing about "modern" psychological disorders with his characters (like Bran having PTSD regarding his fall), and disassociative identity disorder is formed by severe trauma during childhood, not later in life. So it just doesn't fit.

[jslern]

I wonder if it could be Olyvar Frey. Robb's former squire, who didn't participate in the Red Wedding and wanted to stay with Robb, despite the marriage to Jeyne Westerling. We haven't heard anything from him.

[Theo1]

didn't WB Umber do something similar in OldTown to what happened to Yellow Dick? I think the rumor was that the whore was a tranny.

[King_In_The_North]

didn't WB Umber do something similar in OldTown to what happened to Yellow Dick? I think the rumor was that the whore was a tranny.

The Whoresbane gutted that whore, he didn't put his cock in his mouth.

[Nukelavee]

Personally - I'm not in agreement that Theon has gone all fight club on us. He's not nearly disassociated enough from being "Theon" to have a multiple personality that includes a murderer like that. That kind of disorder is so rare it would be a cop-out to go there.

I'd overlooked Hollis, good eye, folks.

Possibly, the Blackfish, depending on the actual timeline shared by the two books.

Possibly Syrio (yup, I still have hopes Syrio is around somewhere). He's had the time to go to Winterfell, we never saw a body, we know that, realistically, he could have simply fled the fight after Arya was out of sight. We know Syrio HAD decided to take up service to the Starks, and was planning on returning to Winterfell with the girls. Syrio does have the kind of ethics that would lead to picking off traitors, and, except for his accent, he's pretty non-descript. The biggest issues with Syrio are, well, it's Syrio (and nobody can agree as to his being dead or alive), and he isn't the type, it seemed, to skulk and kill.

Benjen? I doubt it- even if Ben is alive, he'd go to the Wall to report before any other actions...

My personal favourite crackpot dark horse? Stannis. He has no problem getting his hands dirty, he's bad-ass and smart, and... We know Mel uses glamours. But wait! Stannis got bogged down with his army, we know where he was! Nope. Asha says Stannis is barely seen at that camp, he stays in the watchtower, where nobody see's him enough to see thru the trick. I think it's safe to say that Stannis was with the army when they beat Asha's force, but I was bothered by some "inconsistancy" in that march to Winterfell.

Stannis' plan seemed to be based upon beating the Bolton's to Winterfell, he even makes mention of how Robert would somehow manage it, but then, storm or not, they don't even seem to be really trying for that. So, what if earlyin the march, a switch was made, and Stannis plus a small picked force of Uber-Northmen (the hardcore mountainmen ofthe Liddles, say) powered thru, unburdened by footmen and wagons, and actually got there in time to either beat Roose there, or to slip in amongst Roose's people?

Sure, longshot...but I really like it.

[Lummel]

A lot of interesting ideas for who it could be. I don't have any new characters to add, nor do I strongly agree with any of those suggested. I do strongly disagree that its Theon in some alternate personality disorder. That doesn't really seem to fit with the writing style Martin uses to describe him. Typically, when someone's either dreaming, warging, imagining, thinking to themself, or otherwise not in 'reality' the style is different and written almost disjointed and loosely vague. Like when Theon's back in his "Reek" role, the way his voice is written is much different than when he's "Theon" - and even switching back and forth between the two, with a decidedly disturbed dual personality style seems fairly obvious. The writing about the hooded man seemed very straightforward and matter-of-fact to me. Like saying "A guard walked down the steps and into the yard" - an observation he makes, albeit mysterious, but still it didn't seem alter-ego-split personality style to me.

But the whole situation is weird. No one is wondering about anyway, Theon's behaviour in being seen to be wandering Winterfell is so odd that Roose questions him about it. Then there's a snowstorm - so even fewer people are going to be about - and Theon sees a man who nobody else sees and who Theon never sees again. The man however knows Theon and knows what he's done.

Not to mention the other weirdness in the chapter - the strange period of missing time after which a body is discovered.

George is pretty cunning when writing about "modern" psychological disorders with his characters (like Bran having PTSD regarding his fall), and disassociative identity disorder is formed by severe trauma during childhood, not later in life. So it just doesn't fit.

How severe does severe trauma have to be? Unloving Father, abusive uncle Euron, insane Mother, unclear but apparently unpleasant relationship with two older brothers. Then the home in which he lives is besieged and sacked, two brothers killed and he is dragged away from family and culture and held as a hostage in a foreign land. As he grows up he seems aloof, behaves inappropriately and it later becomes clear that he's very conflicted over his upbringing as a hostage and divided between his Stark and Greyjoy heritages.

didn't WB Umber do something similar in OldTown to what happened to Yellow Dick? I think the rumor was that the whore was a tranny.

The whore was a boy or a young man. And the murder was for theft.