[TWoW SPOILERS] March chapter mercy part ii

[Waylin Stark]

I got the same impression as you. I'm surprised that isn't a hotter topic on these threads.

This was hotly discussed on the first thread I think.

The argument made is that Needle is far too long for a girl to hide up their forearm.

And also I doubt she'd carry Needle when she was in disguise.

And GRRM would have explicitly stated it was Needle. After all, the narrative did reveal Arya by name in the end.

[MyaStoned]

Agreed, and this certainly wet my appetite for more WoW content. However, I will say it's pretty unrealistic that a pre-pubescent girl knows how to use her feminine wiles to her advantage. I have no problem that this was her method, but unless more time passed than I realized, this did feel very out of place to me.

Except Arya's presumably seen it done by various women dozens or hundreds of times. Consider where she's been. Seduction is no stranger to her, underage sex is no stranger to her (even if she hasn't had it happen to her). I'm shocked that people are shocked by this chapter, especially since by involving Raff, it directly brings to mind that Arya's chapters in CoK were the most brutal yet in any of the books.

Besides her loss of family and lack of sense of belonging, the traumas she experienced and heard about on the road with Gregor's men and at Harrenhal are a large part of why she was prime pickings for a cult.

[Waylin Stark]

Well that would be one motive.

Example:

In ACoK Gendry figures out that she isn't a boy. She contemplates killing him but then decides that she wouldn't be able to get away with it.

She had motive to kill the Bolton guard. There's no evidence he was doing anything other than his job. But she needed to escape ASAP so he had to go.

It's more of a necessity/in her interest thing and not her doing it because she simply wants to like the people on her list.

True, but I feel that as much as Arya is so familiar and casual with death, she wouldn't go around killing good people without extreme cause. She does retain some of her humanity and sense of morality.

That said, we've seen people be forced to do things they don't want to.

[Lady Fevre Dream]

Did anyone else notice similarities between Arya's assertions throughout that she is Mercy, and Theon's "Reek, Reek, it rhymes with freak! You have to remember your name!" Seems to me she was trying hard to accept her new role as Mercy

Actually, her Mercy, Mercy, Mercy chant reminded me of her own chant of stupid, stupid, stupid. That is what came to my mind first.

[Grail King]

Well after reading Ser WunWun's theory I'm getting some what depressed on the Stark children's outcome sure looks like they will be the bitter part of a bitter sweet ending. :crying:

[Lord Varys]

Tze,

keyholders exist in Westeros as well, in the mid-level management of treasury. The Braavosi keyholders could be employees of the Iron Bank.

Another thing that nobody seems to have mentioned as of yet, at least to my knowledge, is the revelation that there is apparently also a Third Sword of Braavos (and thus likely a Second Sword as well as a First), and the political competition for it seems to indicate the Swords are not so much bodyguards but influential ceremonial offices holding political power.

As to Ser Harys and the Black Pearl:

When I started to read the chapter my first thought was that it was Arya's task to kill Ser Harys Swyft. I'd be very surprised if the Braavosi intended to continue the negotiations with King Tommen after they had dispatched Tycho Nestoris to Stannis. Especially not since this chapter happens some time after the ADwD Epilogue, to say the least. We don't know when Harys left for Braavos, all we know is that he must have left some time after Kevan's death. I can see Mace commanding Harys to leave at once, to get rid of him, but it's just as likely that he left only after the trial(s) of the queen. That's difficult to estimate since the chapter has clearly been written at a time while Cersei was not yet arrested by the Faith.

The Iron Bank may already know that a deal was brokered with Stannis, and thus consider it impossible to grant King Tommen any more loans. If that's the case, then Arya's presence - and the presence of the Black Pearl in Harys' booth - could be a hint that the Faceless Men are keeping an eye on Ser Harys. It would be a stretch, but it's not unlikely that Arya was confronted with a Lannister crony from Westeros to test her reaction (she failed miserably).

The Black Pearl could be a pawn in a game to assassinate Ser Harys. If the Faceless Men want him gone they will arrange something looking like an accident, say, heart attack during sex, or something like that. Swyft should be rather old by now. And if there is courtesan with connections to the Faceless Men it would be the Black Pearl. There were hints that she may play a role (or was supposed to play a role before Arya's AFfC chapters were abridged/condensed), and the Kindly Man indicated that they could place Arya on any level of Braavosi society she wants, including the top-class courtesans.

[Lord Martin]

This was hotly discussed on the first thread I think.

The argument made is that Needle is far too long for a girl to hide up their forearm.

And also I doubt she'd carry Needle when she was in disguise.

And GRRM would have explicitly stated it was Needle. After all, the narrative did reveal Arya by name in the end.

I agree about the logistical problem of keeping Needle up her sleeve. Admittedly, we don't know exactly how long the blade is.

But the name part doesn't bother me. The fact that its not named, IMO, is actually evidence that it IS Needle, as GRRm used that plot before when Needle was returned to her:

"If you're looking for Ser, you come too late," Polliver said. "He was at Harrenhal, but now he's not. The queen sent for him." He wore three blades on his belt, Arya saw; a longsword on his left hip, and on his right a dagger and a slimmer blade, too long to be a dirk and too short to be a sword. "King Joffrey's dead, you know," he added. "Poisoned at his own wedding feast."

and

The squire had pulled the knife out of his belly and was trying to stop the blood with his hands. When the Hound yanked him upright, he screamed and started to blubber like a baby. "Mercy," he wept, "please. Don't kill me. Mother have mercy."

"Do I look like your bloody mother?" The Hound looked like nothing human. "You killed this one too," he told Arya. "Pricked him in his bowels, that's the end of him. He'll be a long time dying, though."

The boy didn't seemed to hear him. "I came for the girls," he whimpered. " . . . make me a man, Polly said . . . oh, gods, please, take me to a castle . . . a maester, take me to a maester, my father's got gold . . . it was only for the girls . . . mercy, ser."

The Hound gave him a crack across the face that made him scream again. "Don't call me ser." He turned back to Arya. "This one is yours, she-wolf. You do it."

She knew what he meant. Arya went to Polliver and knelt in his blood long enough to undo his swordbelt. Hanging beside his dagger was a slimmer blade, too long to be a dirk, too short to be a man's sword . . . but it felt just right in her hand.

"You remember where the heart is?" the Hound asked.

She nodded. The squire rolled his eyes. "Mercy."

I like the use of Mercy, pretty cool, huh?

Admittedly after that quote she does call the blade Needle, but twice it was just a slim blade... like the one that wasn't Mercy's.

[Frey family reunion]

With all the talk of being flat chested and rape, along with Arya's mummer skills, is this a bit of foreshadowing that Arya may disguise herself as a boy to infiltrate the Night's Watch, a la "Danny Flint"? Perhaps to seek a little retribution on the ones that "killed" Jon?

[Mrs_Darcy]

He's on an official mission, so he probably has some razzle-dazzle money to throw around and ingratiate himself with the Braavosi elite.

Sure, he has some money for food, lodgings, entertainment etc. , but there is a difference between this kind of money and royal ransoms.

Brienne's father pays 300 golden dragons to ransom her and she is just a knight. Jaime's recapture was worth 1000 golden dragons and II somewhere read, that Tywin Lannister paid 10000 dragons to Roose Bolton for delivering his son to him.

Based on what ransoms are paid for other people a king's ransom should be at least 10 000 dragons. Honestly, if I were in charge of the Iron Throne and I heard, that an envoy of a debtor, who had defaulted on his debt, spent that kind of money for entertainment, it would not bode well for future negotiations.

[Lady Fevre Dream]

I think there is a big chance that they'll discover a frozen corpse with Arya's face and Needle alongside it. But in fact Arya isn't dead, she just took of into the sunset.

Or she's superdeath at the end of the books ;)

Awwwwwwww, but I even have an attachment to that face, LOL It speaks of Ned and Jon and Lyanna. But still, I will take your good vibes with me. :cool4:

[ARYa_Nym]

He even specifically mentions the Black Pearl:

Or would you sooner be a courtesan, and have songs sung of your beauty? Speak the word, and we will send you to the Black Pearl or the Daughter of the Dusk. You will sleep on rose petals and wear silken skirts that rustle when you walk, and great lords will beggar themselves for your maiden’s blood.

[butterbumps!]

And that anxious king would send his Hand, whom he doesn't wholly trust, to bring him the most talented spymaster in the world? It doesn't sound right.

Well, this might be a stupid question, but, why not? Would it necessarily be much more egregious than a lot of other tasks Aerys would have kept him on for despite not trusting him?

I think the "wife for Rhaegar" hypothesis is a good one, to be sure. It would have had to happen before Cersei and Jaime were 8 I think, because that's the point at which Tywin is convinced Rhaegar will marry Cersei.

[Veltigar]

Sure, he has some money for food, lodgings, entertainment etc. , but there is a difference between this kind of money and royal ransoms.

Brienne's father pays 300 golden dragons to ransom her and she is just a knight. Jaime's recapture was worth 1000 golden dragons and II somewhere read, that Tywin Lannister paid 10000 dragons to Roose Bolton for delivering his son to him.

Based on what ransoms are paid for other people a king's ransom should be at least 10 000 dragons. Honestly, if I were in charge of the Iron Throne and I heard, that an envoy of a debtor, who had defaulted on his debt, spent that kind of money for entertainment, it would not bode well for future negotiations.

Perhaps, she works on a commission basis? :p

[Lady Fevre Dream]

Except Arya's presumably seen it done by various women dozens or hundreds of times. Consider where she's been. Seduction is no stranger to her, underage sex is no stranger to her (even if she hasn't had it happen to her). I'm shocked that people are shocked by this chapter, especially since by involving Raff, it directly brings to mind that Arya's chapters in CoK were the most brutal yet in any of the books.

Besides her loss of family and lack of sense of belonging, the traumas she experienced and heard about on the road with Gregor's men and at Harrenhal are a large part of why she was prime pickings for a cult.

I must be a bit twisted myself, but on rereading the chapter a little while ago, I couldn't help but smile at Raff going gleefully, hand and hand with her, to his doom. She has witnessed so much of sex being used as a weapon and sex also as a casual thing that whores use to pay the bills and put food on the table. Not to mention, I think alot is made about her size and lack of breasts. Some of us, hem hem, don't have the biggest breasts in the world and can pass for teenagers in our thirties.......from a distance, LOL

[Waylin Stark]

I agree about the logistical problem of keeping Needle up her sleeve. Admittedly, we don't know exactly how long the blade is.

But the name part doesn't bother me. The fact that its not named, IMO, is actually evidence that it IS Needle, as GRRm used that plot before when Needle was returned to her:

"If you're looking for Ser, you come too late," Polliver said. "He was at Harrenhal, but now he's not. The queen sent for him." He wore three blades on his belt, Arya saw; a longsword on his left hip, and on his right a dagger and a slimmer blade, too long to be a dirk and too short to be a sword. "King Joffrey's dead, you know," he added. "Poisoned at his own wedding feast."

and

The squire had pulled the knife out of his belly and was trying to stop the blood with his hands. When the Hound yanked him upright, he screamed and started to blubber like a baby. "Mercy," he wept, "please. Don't kill me. Mother have mercy."

"Do I look like your bloody mother?" The Hound looked like nothing human. "You killed this one too," he told Arya. "Pricked him in his bowels, that's the end of him. He'll be a long time dying, though."

The boy didn't seemed to hear him. "I came for the girls," he whimpered. " . . . make me a man, Polly said . . . oh, gods, please, take me to a castle . . . a maester, take me to a maester, my father's got gold . . . it was only for the girls . . . mercy, ser."

The Hound gave him a crack across the face that made him scream again. "Don't call me ser." He turned back to Arya. "This one is yours, she-wolf. You do it."

She knew what he meant. Arya went to Polliver and knelt in his blood long enough to undo his swordbelt. Hanging beside his dagger was a slimmer blade, too long to be a dirk, too short to be a man's sword . . . but it felt just right in her hand.

"You remember where the heart is?" the Hound asked.

She nodded. The squire rolled his eyes. "Mercy."

I like the use of Mercy, pretty cool, huh?

Admittedly after that quote she does call the blade Needle, but twice it was just a slim blade... like the one that wasn't Mercy's.

Yes, but in that case, Needle was finally mentioned. The reason it wasn't named in the first two instances is so that it can be a surprising reveal when she holds Needle and stabs the boy.

[HannibalStark]

Very interesting chapter. So the next phase of Arya's Faceless Man training was actually to apprentice for a mummer and learn the ways of acting? Or is this bumbling, self-proclaimed "King of Mummers" actually a powerful Faceless Man?

And what mission is the envoy on from the Iron Throne? I think it was already explained in F/D but I don't remember the specifics. Was Cersei foolish enough to ask for more money from the Iron Bank without paying back what she already owed? If somebody would be so kind as to clue me in it would be greatly appreciated. They said The Queen needs her gold so it has to be Cersei, or perhaps Queen Madge, except that begs the question why would she be sending Lannister soldiers.

pretty sure that Swyft (the Coq) was sent to secure additional funding....thats what I thought. The only thing the Iron Throne would want in ESSOS is money...plus it seemed Raff and buddy confirmed it.

[Cas Stark]

I must be a bit twisted myself, but on rereading the chapter a little while ago, I couldn't help but smile at Raff going gleefully, hand and hand with her, to his doom. She has witnessed so much of sex being used as a weapon and sex also as a casual thing that whores use to pay the bills and put food on the table. Not to mention, I think alot is made about her size and lack of breasts. Some of us, hem hem, don't have the biggest breasts in the world and can pass for teenagers in our thirties.......from a distance, LOL

I can't get it to come back up, but I thought some of the sex stuff was a little gratuitous, no? Did we need her nipples getting pinched 2 times in one chapter? She's 11 or 12! Is that necessary, along with the casual attitude to sex, the cock talk, and the seduction and the tongue kiss?

[Veltigar]

He even specifically mentions the Black Pearl:

So, the FM have pull with the Black Pearl... And she is seen in the company of a man who represents a regime that's N°1 on the IBB shitlist?

More clues that point to a more antagonistic relationship between the IBB and the FM.

[ARYa_Nym]

I must be a bit twisted myself, but on rereading the chapter a little while ago, I couldn't help but smile at Raff going gleefully, hand and hand with her, to his doom. She has witnessed so much of sex being used as a weapon and sex also as a casual thing that whores use to pay the bills and put food on the table. Not to mention, I think alot is made about her size and lack of breasts. Some of us, hem hem, don't have the biggest breasts in the world and can pass for teenagers in our thirties.......from a distance, LOL

That's true but in her case it's because she's a child.

How can I rape a girl with no titties?”

She caught his nose between her thumb and forefinger and twisted. “You’ll have no nose until you get your hands off me.”

“Owwwww,” the dwarf squealed, releasing her.

“I’ll grow titties in a year or two.” Mercy rose, to tower over the little man. “But you’ll never grow another nose. You think of that, before you touch me there.”

[alguien]

Earlier i said she is like Beatrix Kiddo now, but after thinking about it she is more like O-Ren Ishii. Cuz she killed her father's murderer in bed cuz he was a pedophile and she was only 12. Man I loved this chapter :)

I've always thought the best fictional counterpart to Arya was Alia from Dune. ("St. Alia-of-the-Knife")