Jon Snow, The two hour plan, Magic and Mystery

[willofDorne]

I'm not saying at all I know happened between those 4 walls during those two hours, or if anything exceptional happened at all, but I'll venture that it's possible. Perhaps greater minds than my own may have a clue or inkling that could fill in the gaps. As for me, I've run my mind in circles over this quite a bit.

Previous chapters, Melisandre's relationship with Jon Snow is such that she only comes now when summoned. And she has revealed to the reader she uses illusion to a greater extent than we realize, as evidenced by an assortment of mysterious powders. Jon Snow is also privy to this, but I'm not so much concerned with these details as I am with the final chapter of the book, something I've come to recognize as a "dance" if you will. Brienne's dance would be asking Jaime, Dany's would be with Khal Jhaqo, etc, right?

So I'm looking specifically at all the measures of 2-4 as well, since that's what music may be based on.

pg 996: ADWD

"I think we best change the plan," Jon Snow said.

They talked for the best part of two hours

pg 986: ADWD

Jon Snow: I would not ask my men to do what I would not do myself.

(Possibly a hint that he is willing to do something insane, such as Glamour into Tormund or Bowen? Be the man who swings the sword and passes judgement, as his father?)

pg 986:

Queen Selyse: ...Afterword some bard will make a stirring song about you and we shall have a more prudent lord commander

(The queen loves Melisandre, and perhaps it's possible her faith has been rewarded with this bizarre prophecy)

pg 988:

Melisandre approaches Jon, "We Must Speak" "Must we? My Lady I have duties"

(A Melisandre on high alert)

pg 988:

Jon: "Your fires have been known to lie"

(A possible double meaning in that she is now proving to be more adept at illusion. Also, the power of the Wall, could also mean the gullible people at the Wall)

pg 990:

More and more he found he knew what they (Bowen and Yarwyck) would say before he asked them

(Could this have something to do with Glamour? Someone controlling them, putting words in their mouths, imitating them?)

pg 991:

Who's to say the skinchanger could not make his own pig army?

(Ok this is weird, Jon has once again surrounded himself with people who are possibly making many jokes. This could mean he just has a natural charisma. Their jokes are stale and infrequent, but it's still a good sign that Jon is more in control than you may believe.)

pg991

"We have Brogg, Gavin the Trader, the Great Walrus, Howd Wanderer walks alone... He has eighteen wives, half of them stolen on raids..." Bowen: "None, I know all these men by their deeds, we should be fitting them for nooses, not giving them castles"

(Jon has possibly come up with a plan right here, he's rounded up a concentrated lot of Wildlings that are impossible to like. He even gives them a loaded sentence, "18 wives, half taken on raids")

pg991

Bowen: The more we lose, the fewer mouths we'll have to feed.

There seems to be an unspoken intelligence here, "Winter is Coming" are Stark's words, and by inheritance, also Jon's. Jon could be masterminding the food rations, and even making Bowen state this aloud.

pg995

"Mully help Cldas back... "The night is dark and the paths will be slippery with snow"

(Ok, so a bit of a stretch, but this could be how Jon summons Melisandre to a task. "The night is dark and the paths will be slippery with snow" could mean that he requires Melisandre to assist him in some kind of deception, so bring Melisandre, but I require great secrecy. IE: The slippery with snow, means he's the slippery one. He's the Snow, get it?

pg995

"He knows about Mance Rayder"

Ok, you'll have to go read the "Pink Letter" theory, but there's a lot of evidence that suggests Tormund knows about Mance. In this case, Jon may already want Tormund dead. Thinking "He knows about Mance Rayder" could be our hint that he's pinned this guy. The only other instance where I remember someone specifically thinking a totally different thing as he said one thing, is Ned Stark to Rob Baratheon. pg 40 GOT, "I was with her when she died, she wanted to come home, to rest beside Brandon and Father" Promise me Ned, Promise me. Ned is saying one thing, but thinking quite a different thing, but theirs enough truth in his voice so as not to be discovered.

pg996

Kill the boy and let the man be born

followed closely by, "I think we best change the plan"

pg996

Horse and Rory replaced Fulk and Mully at the armory

This is the first clue that some kind of dance is in order... pairs, replacement. And from this moment on, Jon and Tormund are extremely close at all times.

pg997

Ghose would have followed, but Jon grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and wrestled him back inside

(This could be a clue that Jon is not Jon at this point, but someone else. I have no idea how that would work, but why would Jon be grabbing Ghost by the scruff of his neck? The Skin Changer has affected Ghost's behavior, but to this degree seems extreme)

pg998

A flash of red in the back of the hall caught Jon's eye. Lady Melisandre had arrived.

(Was he expecting her? If GRRM wants us to think she's still a pain in Jon's neck, he'd say, something to the effect of Jon noticed Melisandre snooping around, etc, but "Arrived" could indicate she was in place for an illusive spell.

pg998

The giantsbane sounded his horn once more, twice as long and twice as loud as the first time

The second time, twice as loud, twice as long... more twos. And there is just two of them up there, and going in two different directions. And Bowen and Yarwyck are also a pair... etc... too many twos. Remember Selyne's words, a wedding of 4 just as easily as a wedding of 3. More hints. This is the music I'm thinking about, the dance, if you will.

pg998

"Harle the Huntsman, Harle the handsome, etc etc, I have my swords, Jon thought. and we are coming for your, Bastard

This is Jon's Master Plan again, getting rid of useless mouths, murderers, expendables. This is the same list he gave to Bowen earlier. Why of the 200 people in the hall would he want these men?

Now, the final dance is a bit murky. But... having Tormund Glamoured as Jon Snow at this point could conceivably happen. He's such a likeable guy... anyone would cry while killing him, even Bowen Marsh. Unless... Jon Snow is glamoured as Bowen Marsh. "I wouldn't ask my men to do anything I wouldn't do myself." And we also know, Jon can predict what Bowen would say. And Bowen has conveniently disappeared already, perhaps part of this master plan in some way.

So Tormund Giantsbane is dead, a rebellion squashed before it even begun, and Jon Snow gets more character agency.

Who's Jon's hero? The Young Dragon, dead at 18. He could be emulating his hero here and posing as the Dragon himself.

I admit, this theory does seem a bit more crackpot than most.

I'm just going to hit post before I accidentally delete this, lol. sorry.

[Black Crow]

Don't have a link, but GRRM has said that the "two hour plan" was simply inserted to move the action forward by a couple of hours and othyerwise has no significance.

As to switching/glamouring of Jon and anybody else, its been a popular theory over the years, but...the chapter where the knives go in is a Jon POV - he feels them going in.

[willofDorne]

Don't have a link, but GRRM has said that the "two hour plan" was simply inserted to move the action forward by a couple of hours and othyerwise has no significance.

As to switching/glamouring of Jon and anybody else, its been a popular theory over the years, but...the chapter where the knives go in is a Jon POV - he feels them going in.

Right, there's no break in perspective.