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Mourning Star

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  1. I’m still a believer that Jaquen was Syrio, and that he was in the black cells because Ned was supposed to be sent to the Wall with Yoren, not beheaded.
  2. The series begins with the prologue, in a dark wood where the easy way was lost. This is how Dante's Divine Comedy begins, which is also what inspired Frost's poem, Fire and Ice, from which the A Song of Ice and Fire series get's its name. I would be shocked if the series didn't end with some play on, "By the Love that moves the sun and the other stars."
  3. I would suggest that the faith of the seven is a religion that has evolved from the memory of a time worshipping the Old Gods. The Old Gods are the Weirwoods. The faith of the seven comes from Andalos, in Essos, where we see evidence that at least once upon a time (I would suggest before the long night and the breaking of the arm of Dorne). The Ifequevron may have been the children of the forest. The God-Kings of Ib, before their fall, did succeed in conquering and colonizing a huge swathe of northern Essos immediately south of Ib itself, a densely wooded region that had formerly been the home of a small, shy forest folk. Some say that the Ibbenese extinguished this gentle race, whilst others believe they went into hiding in the deeper woods or fled to other lands. The Dothraki still call the great forest along the northern coast the Kingdom of the Ifequevron, the name by which they knew the vanished forest-dwellers. The fabled Sea Snake, Corlys Velaryon, Lord of the Tides, was the first Westerosi to visit these woods. After his return from the Thousand Islands, he wrote of carved trees, haunted grottoes, and strange silences. A later traveler, the merchant-adventurer Bryan of Oldtown, captain of the cog Spearshaker, provided an account of his own journey across the Shivering Sea. He reported that the Dothraki name for the lost people meant "those who walk in the woods." None of the Ibbenese that Bryan of Oldtown met could say they had ever seen a woods walker, but claimed that the little people blessed a household that left offerings of leaf and stone and water overnight. Above are mentioned the sacrificing by the Andals off the Swan Maidens, which sound to me like green seers. I would go so far as to say the trees of the undying are corrupted Weirwoods. I'm not the first to suggest that Naga's ribs are a grove of petrified Weirwoods. We see the skinshifters take on aspects of their animals, and I don't think its a stretch to see a connection between this magic and all legends of half human creatures on Planetos. Targaryens say they have the blood of the dragon, and the story of the nights king has him giving his seed to his corpse queen. In fact wouldn't be surprised to find all the religions and all the magic rooted in the Weirwoods. But back to Westeros. The souls of men go down into the earth and into the trees. This makes the Old Gods not just a form of nature worship, but ancestor worship. And this is where we can really see a reflection in the faith of the seven. She found the High Septon waiting for her in a small seven-sided audience chamber. The room was sparse and plain, with bare stone walls, a rough-hewn table, three chairs, and a prayer bench. The faces of the Seven had been carved into the walls. Cersei thought the carvings crude and ugly, but there was a certain power to them, especially about the eyes, orbs of onyx, malachite, and yellow moonstone that somehow made the faces come alive. Crude carved faces, reminiscent of the faces carved into the Weirwoods. And finally, even the song of the seven tells us... think of the children! The Father's face is stern and strong, he sits and judges right from wrong. He weighs our lives, the short and long, and loves the little children. The Mother gives the gift of life, and watches over every wife. Her gentle smile ends all strife, and she loves her little children. The Warrior stands before the foe, protecting us where e'er we go. With sword and shield and spear and bow, he guards the little children. The Crone is very wise and old, and sees our fates as they unfold. She lifts her lamp of shining gold to lead the little children. The Smith, he labors day and night, to put the world of men to right. With hammer, plow, and fire bright, he builds for little children. The Maiden dances through the sky, she lives in every lover's sigh. Her smiles teach the birds to fly, and gives dreams to little children. The Seven Gods who made us all, are listening if we should call. So close your eyes, you shall not fall, they see you, little children. Just close your eyes, you shall not fall, they see you, little children.
  4. Depends what you mean by added later. It would have to be confirmed later since mystery is the point, but I think it was the plan from the very start, and the clues are there. I don't claim to be the first to suggest this, at first I scoffed, but the more you think about it the more it makes sense. Old Nan is the three eyed crow. Hair and eye color? Her voice and her needles fell silent, and she glanced up at Bran with pale, filmy eyes and asked, "So, child. This is the sort of story you like?" She was a very ugly old woman, Bran thought spitefully; shrunken and wrinkled, almost blind, too weak to climb stairs, with only a few wisps of white hair left to cover a mottled pink scalp. This nice bit: "Dragons," she said, lifting her head and sniffing. She was near blind and could not see the comet, yet she claimed she could smell it. "It be dragons, boy," she insisted. Bran got no princes from Nan, no more than he ever had. Nan doesn't call Bran a prince. And she smells dragons in the red comet. Which is even better next to this: "I see them in my dreams, Sam. I see a red star bleeding in the sky. I still remember red. I see their shadows on the snow, hear the crack of leathern wings, feel their hot breath. My brothers dreamed of dragons too, and the dreams killed them, every one. Sam, we tremble on the cusp of half-remembered prophecies, of wonders and terrors that no man now living could hope to comprehend . . . or . . ." Aemon sees dragons (and the red comet), he hears them, he feels them, so it's fitting that a Targaryen could smell them too. Aemon mentions his brothers, and how they all dreamed of dragons, but what about his sisters? Tears ran from his blind white eyes at that admission. "Death should hold no fear for a man as old as me, but it does. Isn't that silly? It is always dark where I am, so why should I fear the darkness? Yet I cannot help but wonder what will follow, when the last warmth leaves my body. Will I feast forever in the Father's golden hall as the septons say? Will I talk with Egg again, find Dareon whole and happy, hear my sisters singing to their children? Fear is for the long night! I would bet that Old Nan is non other than Egg and Aemon's sister, making her a Targaryen by birth. Her voice and her needles fell silent, and she glanced up at Bran with pale, filmy eyes and asked, "So, child. This is the sort of story you like?" "Well," Bran said reluctantly, "yes, only …" Old Nan nodded. "In that darkness, the Others came for the first time," she said as her needles went click click click. Nan clicks her needles as she speaks, and we see "needle" used as a euphemism for a sword, by Arya in particular. It was looking at him with its deep red eyes, calling to him with its twisted wooden mouth, and from its pale branches the three-eyed crow came flapping, pecking at his face and crying his name in a voice as sharp as swords. Click click click! And of course, a needle has an eye. It's actually pretty straight forward, unlike trying to explain away Bloodraven not understanding a simple question. "Are you really a crow?" Bran asked. Are you really falling? the crow asked back. "It's just a dream," Bran said. Is it? asked the crow. "I'll wake up when I hit the ground," Bran told the bird. You'll die when you hit the ground, the crow said. It went back to eating corn. Bran looked down. He could see mountains now, their peaks white with snow, and the silver thread of rivers in dark woods. He closed his eyes and began to cry. That won't do any good, the crow said. I told you, the answer is flying, not crying. How hard can it be. I'm doing it. The crow took to the air and flapped around Bran's hand. "You have wings," Bran pointed out. Maybe you do too. Bran felt along his shoulders, groping for feathers. There are different kinds of wings, the crow said. The crow in the dream is not confused about what kind of crow Bran means. Bran asks about wings and the crow responds in a way which shows comprehension about what Bran means. "Are you the three-eyed crow?" Bran heard himself say. A three-eyed crow should have three eyes. He has only one, and that one red. Bran could feel the eye staring at him, shining like a pool of blood in the torchlight. Where his other eye should have been, a thin white root grew from an empty socket, down his cheek, and into his neck. "A … crow?" The pale lord's voice was dry. His lips moved slowly, as if they had forgotten how to form words. I think it's also telling how similar this is to Bran asking Sam the same question, and counting his eyes. Bran was suddenly uncertain. "Are you the three-eyed crow?" He can't be the three-eyed crow. "I don't think so." The fat man rolled his eyes, but there were only two of them. But, Bloodraven is a great fit for the Weirwood in Bran's dreams. I dream of a tree sometimes. A weirwood, like the one in the godswood. It calls to me. "There's different kinds," he said slowly. "There's the wolf dreams, those aren't so bad as the others. I run and hunt and kill squirrels. And there's dreams where the crow comes and tells me to fly. Sometimes the tree is in those dreams too, calling my name. That frightens me. But the worst dreams are when I fall." The eyes are wrong for a three eyed crow, but a two eyed tree is right for a one eyed man with a "third eye". "Most of him has gone into the tree," explained the singer Meera called Leaf. "He has lived beyond his mortal span, and yet he lingers. For us, for you, for the realms of men. Only a little strength remains in his flesh. He has a thousand eyes and one, but there is much to watch. One day you will know." ... At the heart of the godswood, the great white weirwood brooded over its reflection in the black pool, its leaves rustling in a chill wind. When it felt Bran watching, it lifted its eyes from the still waters and stared back at him knowingly. Finally, I think Ned's words from chapter one, are worth recalling: "Old Nan has been telling you stories again. In truth, the man was an oathbreaker, a deserter from the Night's Watch. No man is more dangerous.
  5. Fix his legs, as in fix them in place? like roots of a tree? irony? I don’t understand the question. The 3EC in Bran’s dream talks about having wings (this alone proves it knows how it appears, and if one appearing in another’s dreams couldn’t remember anything, what would be the point?) The tree and the crow are sometimes in dreams together and sometimes separate, this means they are distinct entities. Again, this does not fit with what we know. Why? People are oblivious of and believe silly things all the time… and repeat nonsense, like the idea that Bloodraven doesn’t know he’s the 3EC, when the text of the original falling dream makes clear this isn’t the case. People ignore the text where Bran says he’s pretending Bloodraven is the three eyed crow. I posted here because I hate that people still push the terrible theory that Bloodraven is the three eyed crow. Except I’m literally quoting the story and pointing out hard evidence that Bloodraven isn’t the three eyed crow. He literally says he’s pretending. Does he know deep down, or suspect, or refuse to believe, or is confused… doesn’t really matter, call it what you want, just don’t call a raven a crow. I agree that the 3EC will be of Targaryen blood, just not that this means it’s Bloodraven. But Bloodraven/Bittersteel weren’t thought of until way after the first book. The real hint in this quote, imo, is that the 3EC was a character in the story from the start. I don’t really like the idea of time traveling Bran taking to himself either.
  6. I think it’s ambiguous who the three eyed crow is still (although I have my opinions), but it’s pretty clearly not Bloodraven, and that’s why I’m always surprised and hate the theories about him being the three eyed crow. Fun fact, GRRM invented the phrase, the crow calls the raven black, and uses it in some form in every book (as well as dunk and egg). Raven’s and crows also don’t get along. When the ravens came the crows would scatter, only to return the moment the larger birds were gone. And I love this conversation between Aemon and Jon so much but this is the part to highlight here: "The crow is the raven's poor cousin. They are both beggars in black, hated and misunderstood." Jon wished he understood what they were talking about, and why. What did he care about ravens and doves? If the old man had something to say to him, why couldn't he just say it?
  7. There are many hints/reasons to believe this, yes. I disagree. Not only are they not equivalent, but right here Bran’s expectation is: “He had thought the three-eyed crow would be a sorcerer, a wise old wizard who could fix his legs, but that was some stupid child's dream, he realized now.” And, Bloodraven is a wise old wizard! And the three eyed crow was from a child’s dream… this line screams irony! It doesn’t explain Bran asking Bloodraven point blank and BR not even understanding the question. This hand waving away all the little details and ignoring the complete story is exactly what I mean when I say I’m shocked that it isn’t accepted by the fandom that BR is not the 3EC. Fair enough. Hard disagree, in fact Bloodraven never claims to have spoken to Bran in his dreams, and the crow is not the only being who appears in Bran’s dreams. Now I am as you see me, and now you will understand why I could not come to you … except in dreams. I have watched you for a long time, watched you with a thousand eyes and one. I saw your birth, and that of your lord father before you. I saw your first step, heard your first word, was part of your first dream. I was watching when you fell. And now you are come to me at last, Brandon Stark, though the hour is late." BR watches, he saw, was part of, was watching… never claims that he spoke to Bran. BR was probably the brooding Weirwood, who appeared in Bran’s falling dream and again later in his dreams, and was clearly distinct from the crow. Melisandre’s vision of Bran and BR also aligns with this image of him. From the first falling dream: At the heart of the godswood, the great white weirwood brooded over its reflection in the black pool, its leaves rustling in a chill wind. When it felt Bran watching, it lifted its eyes from the still waters and stared back at him knowingly. And, from Bran later: And there's dreams where the crow comes and tells me to fly. Sometimes the tree is in those dreams too, calling my name. That frightens me. But the worst dreams are when I fall." And from Melisandre: A wooden face, corpse white. Was this the enemy? A thousand red eyes floated in the rising flames. He sees me. Beside him, a boy with a wolf's face threw back his head and howled.
  8. I tend to think this is exactly the sort of story where the hero can become the villain, or where one man's hero can be another man's villain. The Last Hero killing Nissa Nissa to forge Lightbringer and then becoming the Night's King (Nissa Nissa being his corpse bride), makes a lot of sense to me. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and all that...
  9. A three-eyed crow should have three eyes. He has only one, and that one red. I think Bran gives the reader repeated hints that BR isn't the Three Eyed Crow. But, again this isn't crazy deep or new, plenty of people have been saying this since Dance released. I'm just always surprised that the BR=3EC theory persists. Largely I think it can be attributed to the depiction of the three eyed raven in the tv show.
  10. Pretty disingenuous quoting if I'm honest... even if it wasn't intended. Sort of left out the important leading line where Bran is pretty clear BR isn't the 3EC.
  11. The crow and Bran discuss it having wings in the falling dream, this explanation has never made sense. It's a big reason why Bloodraven thinking Bran means a man of the Night's Watch is such proof he isn't the three eyed crow. Bran is in error that Bloodraven is the three eyed crow and readers have clues to pick up on this. Like that it's only ever when the lights are put out and Bran is "in the dark" that he calls Bloodraven the three eyed crow. Neither Coldhands nor Leaf call Bloodraven the three eyed crow. That Bloodraven is still somehow passing as the three eyed crow for so many this long after the last book came out is shocking to me, hell they even changed it to the three eyed raven for the show.
  12. I hate the theory that Bloodraven is the three eyed crow, despite having been asked point blank in the books and him not even understanding the question
  13. Counterpoint, I would suggest that both Bloodraven and Bittersteel are "villains", but Daemon Blackfyre was not. My father says that it was Fireball as much as Bittersteel who convinced Daemon Blackfyre to claim the crown, and rescued him when Daeron sent the Kingsguard to arrest him. Yet it was a decision he made rashly, for word soon reached King Daeron that Blackfyre meant to declare himself king within the turn of the moon. (We do not know how word came to Daeron, though Merion's unfinished The Red Dragon and the Black suggests that another of the Great Bastards, Brynden Rivers, was involved.) The king sent the Kingsguard to arrest Daemon before he could take his plans for treason any further. Daemon was forewarned, and with the help of the famously hot-tempered knight Ser Quentyn Ball, called Fireball, he was able to escape the Red Keep safely. Daemon Blackfyre's allies used this attempted arrest as a cause for war, claiming that Daeron had acted against Daemon out of no more than baseless fear. And that Daemon Blackfyre was the brother Bloodraven loved. "He heard a whisper on the wind, a rustling amongst the leaves. You cannot speak to him, try as you might. I know. I have my own ghosts, Bran. A brother that I loved, a brother that I hated, a woman I desired. Through the trees, I see them still, but no word of mine has ever reached them. The past remains the past. We can learn from it, but we cannot change it."
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