Arya Stark’s plan and the Twins theory

[Nelapsi]

I think she is actually 11/12 now.

[Ser Grimes]

Arya has less aversion to killing than most people in the damn book.

She is learning from the best of the best at killing. Even a fraction of their knowledge coupled with her moral flexibility will be extremely dangerous. She is also a survivor. Of any and all environments, cities, towns, wilderness, castles.

If she goes AWOL and can make it safely to ANYWHERE in Westeros, anyone she deems an enemy had better beware. She is determined. Slowly but surely she will get to them and see that they die.

That COULD happen. But it ultimately depends on how much she grows. Will she learn when/why to kill in addition to HOW to kill? Will she use her skills for the good of the realm rather than for her personal vengeance?

[aryagonnakill]

Arya is so complex, even though she is my favorite character I have nothing to predict for her, because she could snap into reality the whole time or leave the FM. But an you just leave the FM. Ser grimes you suggest she could do so easily, but would she be hunted?

[Vargo Hoat's Teddy Bear]

DO the Faceless Men work in manipulation to kill targets cos it would be awesome for Arya to cause discontent and chaos in one of the largest families in the Seven Kingdoms (the Freys)

[Blue Rose Direwolf]

I'd love for Nymeria's pack to have a free for all at the Twins. The Freys deserve it, the fuckers.

I don't know if Arya will be the one heading it though. It would make sense, since Nymeria is hers, but I don't know if she wouldn't be somewhere else, assassinating someone quietly and efficiently. What she's learning from the FM is that death shouldn't be obvious, it should be subtle and precise and certain.

[Nelapsi]

What she's learning from the FM is that death shouldn't be obvious, it should be subtle and precise and certain.

And for a purpose.

[Blue Rose Direwolf]

And for a purpose.

Yep. She won't kill just for the sake of it. She'll always have a reason. Arya's not a serial killer, she's a warrior.

[Ser Coffee The Bold]

Here's a crackpot idea. I kind of felt like Arya's training with the FM is kind of parallel to Bruce Wayne's training with the League of Shadows. Both kids who have lost their parents and are looking for a way to exact their revenge. But Bruce uses his newly acquired skills for good whereas the league who mentored him is actually on the evil side. I have a feeling Arya will have a confrontation with the FM soon when her skills have increased when she finds out the FM's true evil intentions. I always thought the kindly faced man was too good to be true. Too holy and anti-revenge. I have a feeling he's hiding something that Arya will find out soon in WoW.

This got me thinking... I totally agree with this, in a way, and totally disagree with creating a slaughter of all the Freys... why? It would white wash the series.

The Doom of Valyria is commonly thought to be caused by reckless magical exploits of the Valyrians themselves, but we all know that the slaves of Valyria, the Braavosi forbears, had more than enough motive to cause a catastrophe there. The Doom was something comparable to a full fledged nuclear meltdown of magic. What if the faceless men are vehemently anti-blood/fire-magic, more so than the magic averse Maesters of the Citadel? It would make sense of why "Pate" is after the scroll, in order to defeat the "dragonborn-like" Targaryen bloodline, and end Valyrian "tyranny".

To me, it seems there is a clash of magic going on. The Red Priests give life to the dead with the same ease as the faceless men give death to the living.

GRRM likes making factions that don't directly oppose one another, but that share different interests, and then telling a story about how they run into one another badly.

There are factions like the Citadel, who want no magic, but who have scholars who research it nonetheless.

There are opposing factions... and then there are unfriendly factions.

All of the prophecy and legend may be confusing us... because we don't know about "The Others" and their motive.

If the "Lord of light" is all about no night time ever coming... then the cycle of life is over... the same as with a night that never ends...

I'm pretty sure this "grey" story will not result in a great victory of one over the other.

Arya isn't being groomed to settle all wrongs done to the Starks by GRRM, she is an important POV though, who can show us things about GRRM's world no other character can...

Just because she's alive doesn't mean Arya is a game-changer. Maybe we are meant to see all the things she has seen as a reader and she doesn't change the game in any other way than being a POV that answers questions?

Arya has already changed the balance of power before she had FM powers, true... but she, like most other POVs have done it without seeing how things will unfold clearly. Thats Martin's way of humanizing those with superhuman powers, and it's his way of sort of forcing us to ask ourselves if we could do any better than his imperfect characters.

We all want a hero to sweep up the dead stark pile and kill the Lannisters.

I'm convinced Jaime will kill Cercei, not Tyrion. I'm also convinced Cercei will kill her own two remaining children to save them from something... Justice... no, messed up, yes.

As for the Freys, I fear they will have some tragedies, but if they involve Arya using all the wolves to kill the Freys after killing some guards, then... why not make Arya the Queen of the entire world?

It simply wont happen. I love Arya, love the Starks; but more heart turning moments of regretful loss and other moments of triumph from certain death must happen to keep us readers going for the books, and Martin knows how to do that...

nice supposition though?

[Veltigar]

Arya will find the Twins heavily guarded, as it has always been throughout the ages. However, Arya will be a faceless man and she will change her face into someone that will enter the Twins. After entering the Twins, Arya will wait till Dark before she exacts her plan. When everyone in the castle is sleeping she will summon the wolves closer to the castle gates of the Twins. At that moment Arya will use her assassin skills and kill the standing guards, so that she can open the gates and let her wolves enter the castle.

From this point, Old Walder Frey and all the big and small Freys will be slaughtered alive by all the wolves that are entering the castle and keep on entering till no man or woman is left alive. With one stroke, Stark and Tully enemies, the Freys will be vanquished in the most horrible way possible. This will be satisfactory for Arya, and also to the cause of North.

I think that letting the wolves into the castle wouldn't be a great idea. I mean after all, they are just wolves, and most castle have something like doors, to keep the wolves outside the rooms. Furthermore I think that this is more of a wheel of Time kinda gig. + don't forget that the Northern prisoners, Roslyn Frey and her child + the few decent Freys are also there. How could a wolf distinguish the difference? (she can't warg them all).

I've recently written a very large thread full off predictions about the (first half) of tWoW (http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/80773-my-personal-predictions-for-the-first-part-of-the-wow/). I'll quote a bit from a subsection of that thread.

From: 12) A Blackfish in the Neck: “Family, duty, honor”

D) Attack the Twins and save Roslyn:

I think that this scenario will take place. Edmure told his uncle off Roslyns pregnancy. Edmure also told the BF that Roslyn sincerely loves him and that she didn’t want to take part in the RW. The BF also knows that Edmure’s child will never be save while the Lannisters occupy Riverrun. Especially when it’s a boy. And there are other bonuses he gets by attacking the Twins as well like for example liberating the nobles from the North and the Riverlands who are still held hostage, revenge on the Freys and a signal to the Realm. He will also have the advantage of surprise on his side.

Now how will this attack take place? Where will he find the troops to pull off such a daring attack? The answer is simple: Greywater Watch.

At Greywater watch he’ll find the soldiers of House Glover and Mormont who were sent there by Robb (+ survivors of the RW) and of course the Crannogmen.

The Crannogmen and the Freys off the crossing have had a feud for several centuries. And the Northerners hate the Frey for their betrayal. I think that the BF will propose this plan to attack the Twins and that Howland Reed will support it, even if the others are against it (He’s a pretty brave guy if you ask me). There might also be some sort of representative off the BwB there who pledges the brotherhood down for attack (In that case Hot Pie as their man on the inside could open the gates after the Crannogmen killed the watchers on the wall).

The actual attack itself will happen in the midst of the night. Crannogmen armed with poisoned arrows will kill off the guards, the BF and his outfit of crannogmen and Northerners are going to bust the Greatjon and the others out of jail and then they’ll rescue Roslyn. In the battle that follows inside the Twin most of Old Walder Freys descendants will be butchered and the Twins itself lit on fire (or at least half of it).

A POV in the neck would also give us information about the Crannogmen, Howland Reed, Jon Snows parentage and of course Robbs will.

[People will have noticed that I left Jeyne Westerling out. That’s because I don’t think she’s going to be relevant in the future. She sure as hell isn’t carrying Robbs child]

[WiDMNDBAMMD]

[People will have noticed that I left Jeyne Westerling out. That’s because I don’t think she’s going to be relevant in the future. She sure as hell isn’t carrying Robbs child]

She seemed pretty frightened when Jamie asked her. She tried to run away. That seemed kinda strange to me.

[Veltigar]

She seemed pretty frightened when Jamie asked her. She tried to run away. That seemed kinda strange to me.

If the son of the guy who was the inspiration of "the Rains of Castamere" and whose own nickname (Kingslayer) is almost as infamous asked you this question when you were here age wouldn't you try to run away + that's pretty much the only thing she can do to protest agains her bitch of a mother and the son of her boss

[Brother Seamus]

i've long thought that: (a) arya will be the main instrument of Stark vengeance; (B) the freys and boltons are on the top of the list, even above Cersei; © Arya will reunite with Nymeria and Nymeria as well will be a fearsome instrument of vengence, with (maybe somewhat under the control of) Arya.

i like the idea of Arya using her FM skills to get into the Frey castle and let the whole wolf pack in, resulting in the mass genocidal bloody slaughter of virtually the entire frey clan. preferably on an occasion when Roose and Ramsay Bolton and Roose's Frey wife and whatever else there is of their family are there too. maybe some kind of wedding between Ramsay and another Frey girl (assuming his marriage to Jeyne/fake Arya is no longer an issue, whcih could happen a dozen different ways; e.g. the girl's death, Ramsay pretending or belioeving she's dead even if not, her being revealed as Jeyne not Arya, etc etc).

that's totally made up at this stage, but it sure works for me.

[A Wolf in the Woods]

To me the title The Death of Dragons sounds more like an account of how the dragons died not ways to kill them. I would think that book would explain what might have made them die and what might cause them to come back.

My thoughts on the Frey's downfall are that Lady Stoneheart should take revenge. It's more her fight. She's already been trying and hanging Freys they come across. I think the Lord of Light might help UnCat and Thoros burn the twins down. Arya's wolf pack would swarm the castle and pick off any Frey that runs out.

As for Arya herself, she has a list. And I think she will try to find the truth about what happened to all her siblings.

[papirico52]

Walder could die before Arya gts to him, or he could be the last Frey to die.

[Bob the Fiddler]

I posted on this a while ago, but it got thrown in the "General ASOIAF" section, and nobody read it. Here's my theory:

I wanted to see what folks are thinking about the fate of Walder Frey and his ilk. I’ve done a bit of research about what curses are released when guests’ rights are violated. Based on the text and the wiki of ice and fire, the violator is doomed to the fate of the Rat Cook. Allegedly the Rat Cook, a cook for the Night’s Watch, broke the rules of guest rights and hospitality by killing a guest’s son and serving the son to the guest in a pie for some past transgression. For his crimes he was turned into a giant rat and forced to eat his own children as a punishment. See SoS Chpt. 56. You will also recall that it is strongly suggested that some “Frey pies” were served up by Manderly at Winterfell because of House Frey’s breach of guest rights. See ADwD Chpt. 37.

Based on the Rat Cook legend and other non-text GRRM stories (see Dante’s Inferno regarding Ugolino and the story of Ugolino and his children), Walder Frey may suffer a similar fate as the Rat Cook or Ugolino. This portends a scenario where Walder Frey is holed up at the Twins and forced to consume his children/family member, which he has in abundance. I foresee winter settling over the Twins and the Trident freezing over. This will cause one of two things 1) House Frey will not be able to collect taxes for river crossing and they will grow poor/less powerful or 2) on the military front, a frozen Trident will allow a force to more easily lay siege to both ends of the Twins just like any other castle. Regardless, the freezing of the Trident will negate the Twins strategic importance, both economically and militarily. As House Frey weakens, a force, perhaps Arya’s wolves or another anti-Frey force, will lay siege to the Twins and the Freys will begin to starve. Of course, Walder Frey, being the individual he is, will resort to cannibalism of his own family to prolong his life. But, this will only delay the inevitable. This twist would be in keeping with Walder Frey’s overarching character and it already has some textual support. Further, it would be a perfect end to Frey, a man who is so consumed with creating a large family that in the end he must consume it himself.

What do you all think? How do you think House Frey will pay for its breach of the laws of hospitality and guests’ rights? After all, the Winds of Winter are rising . . .

[Steve Moss II]

As wicked as he is Walder Frey is loyal to family. In the long term, House Frey was doomed when Stevron died.

I see Walder dying soon and then the Frey children turning on each other, slaughtering each other for the lordship of the Twins. So in that way the rats (the Freys) will consume each other, symbolically fulfilling the story of the Rat Cook.

[aryagonnakill]

As wicked as he is Walder Frey is loyal to family. In the long term, House Frey was doomed when Stevron died.

I see Walder dying soon and then the Frey children turning on each other, slaughtering each other for the lordship of the Twins. So in that way the rats (the Freys) will consume each other, symbolically fulfilling the story of the Rat Cook.

like! As I already believe little walder killed big walder, or vise versa I can't remember.

[KingHodorTargaryen]

As wicked as he is Walder Frey is loyal to family. In the long term, House Frey was doomed when Stevron died.

I see Walder dying soon and then the Frey children turning on each other, slaughtering each other for the lordship of the Twins. So in that way the rats (the Freys) will consume each other, symbolically fulfilling the story of the Rat Cook.

It will either be this or Walder Frey lives to see all his children die or marry into new names before he himself dies.

[A Wolf in the Woods]

I love the story about the Rat King. That chapter in the Nightfort was the best.

We already had the Manderly's serving a small revenge to the Freys and Boltons Rat King style. So I don't know if GRRM will keep using Rat King on them. But most of Westeros believes they are cursed now. Guest Slaughter is a pretty big deal.

[Bruno Gerasso]

I think Arya will get back to Westeros through the Iron Bank of Braavos. There's a real chance of Harys Swift (same ship) bringing her back (if she decides to leave the FM) and she would be probably back to King's Landing.

Another view is Arya coming back to the Wall hired by the Iron Bank to kill someone (I don't know exactly who). Once Jon and Stannis have new debts with the Iron Bank (and Jon is probably dead) there's a reason for the bank to interefere.

Could someone maybe complete these theories?

I don't know...just know that suddenly the bank role had a focus in ADWD, and money speaks a lot.