Jon, (f?)Aegon, and Dany. Who bends the knee to whom?

[Sanset]

I don't think fAegon will bend the knee to anyone. I don't think Dany will bend the knee to Aegon, but I think she will to Jon when R+L=J is revealed.

A stone turned under her foot. She [Dany] stumbled to one knee and cried out in pain

Stones are used for hiding things (Rickon on Skagos meaning "stone" in the Old Tongue, Sansa hiding under the alias "Alayne Stone," Arya hiding Needle under a stone step, stony-faced men hiding their emotions and a coin hidden under a loose stone) a stone turning could point to a secret being revealed. The phrase "under one's foot" means someone is near you in a way that is difficult and prevents you from doing what you want to do. The stone turned causes to Dany to go to one knee, the action one performs to acknowledge fealty to a king. I think this foreshadows the reveal of R+L=J, or Jon's hidden heritage/identity, to Dany. Jon is near her as her nephew by Rhaegar, which prevents her from doing what she wants to do, sit the IT and rule as Queen. Going to one knee could foreshadow her kneeling to Jon in submission, acknowledging him as king. Her crying out in pain is likely a clue to her reaction to the event.

She "stumbled" in one paragraph to fight back next paragraph: «She fumbled in the water, found a stone the size of her fist, pulled it from the mud. It was a poor weapon but better than an empty hand. (...) The grass swayed and bowed low, as if before a king, but no king appeared to her. (...)» And after that, Drogon came and the dothraki scout raced off through the tall grass at a gallop. Then, Dany leapt onto Drogon's back.

It seems Daenerys won't turn into a tamed dragon. She might have been weaker before, when she was very young, but she won't take that any more. That ended up when she woke her (inner) dragon and it doesn't seem to be logic that at the end of the series she will be back to weakness. That "cried out in pain" (one paragraph) is not the same kind that it was in AGoT, this time she will fight back (next paragraph). Actually in AGoT she tried again and again until she overcame the power others had over her. Dany is so like Drogon, first a little baby, a child, but then the dragon grew strong. (I don't mean anything with the Tyrells here, but who knows.) It seems they're both stronger and more dangerous every book. Jon is not going to meet a puppy dragon, and he is not going to be a soft dragon either. I think if someone gets tamed it's going to be both: they will tame each other. If Dany stumbles and cry (like anyone else), then she'll stand up and she'll fight back, like she's been doing throughout the books.

PS: The supposed threat in those paragraphs didn't mean any kind of harm or injury to Dany, and she didn't hurt anybody either.

[In A Coat of Gold]

Why would any of them bend the knee? Not one of them has a shred of a legit claim to the throne anymore, it belongs to the "baratherons".

Robert staked his claim based on his Targ grandmother and the fact that Viserys was still a boy and in exile. Aegon's claim trumps everyone, including Robert's children.

[UnmaskedLurker]

I don't think (f)Aegon and Jon are ever likely to meet. I don't think Dany will believe (f)Aegon is the "real" Aegon, and they will battle in Dance of Dragons 2.0. I think Dany will kill (f)Aegon in that battle--perhaps Drogon eats (f)Aegon (sort of a replay of DoD 1.0).

I think Dany and Jon will work together before the end--they are two of the three heads of the dragon, after all, so prophecy has already seen them working together as a team (with the third head--Tyrion, perhaps?). While Dany might bend the knee to Jon in some sense, I am not sure Jon will really accept her bending the knee to him because at that point, I don't think Jon will try to lay any claim to being king. So it might be an odd situation in which Dany pledges loyalty to Jon as her king, and Jon tell her to get up stating that he is no one's king and they have more important things to do that worry about a title. I have to admit--picturing such a scene between the two of them in my mind almost gives me goosebumps it would be that cool to me (hopefully, I am not letting wishful thinking interfere with my analysis).

In the end I suspect that Dany will die "heroically" in battle. I think she has done too many questionable things in Essos for her redemption to require anything short of self-sacrifice. I also think that by the end, the other claimants to the throne (Stannis, Shireen, Cersei, Tommen, Myrcella and, of course, (f)Aegon) will all be dead. So if there will be anyone as king in the end, it will be Jon. Otherwise there simply won't be a kingdom in the end. If Jon becomes king, I agree with BQ87 that he will accept the role as his duty after being chosen (presumably by a GC), not because he wants the job or because he views the job as a prize (it is not).

[sj4iy]

I think fAegon will die before bending the knee. Dany will eventually bend the knee to Jon. But Jon...Jon will bend the knee to the realm and take up the crown when he is chosen, not because he wants it but because it's his duty.

I more or less believe this scenario over any others right now.

[JonSnow4President]

fAegon will bend the knee to Dany with his death. I think Jon and Dany are probably on the same side going forward, but one (to me, more likely Dany, but who knows) dies in the War for the Dawn.

[TheHouseHB]

Jon Targaryen 1st of his name, protector of the realm, the King of Winter with his hand Stannis Baratheon bow to no one. It is known.

[Stannis's birthright]

Dany bends the knee to Jon only after she realizes she will have to fly into the Heart of Winter to stop the Others . She does knowing she won't return

[Irish]

Am I the only one who wants Aegon to be real?

[aryagonnakill#2]

Dany kneeling to Aegon is laughable. It doesn't even matter if he is real, she will never believe it and Aegon could never prove it, literally the only thing Aegons team can say is take our word for it. Aegon kneeling to Dany seems equally unlikely, so I think a little Dracarys is the only answer.

[WhiteOwl18]

None bends the knee.

[Rhaegal Targaryen]

They all should kneel and have a trio.

This must happen.

[Robb_Warged]

Am I the only one who wants Aegon to be real?

I want him to be real. I think years of meticulous planning for a fake is just silly

[Fire Eater]

She "stumbled" in one paragraph to fight back next paragraph: «She fumbled in the water, found a stone the size of her fist, pulled it from the mud. It was a poor weapon but better than an empty hand. (...) The grass swayed and bowed low, as if before a king, but no king appeared to her. (...)» And after that, Drogon came and the dothraki scout raced off through the tall grass at a gallop. Then, Dany leapt onto Drogon's back.

It seems Daenerys won't turn into a tamed dragon. She might have been weaker before, when she was very young, but she won't take that any more. That ended up when she woke her (inner) dragon and it doesn't seem to be logic that at the end of the series she will be back to weakness. That "cried out in pain" (one paragraph) is not the same kind that it was in AGoT, this time she will fight back (next paragraph). Actually in AGoT she tried again and again until she overcame the power others had over her. Dany is so like Drogon, first a little baby, a child, but then the dragon grew strong. (I don't mean anything with the Tyrells here, but who knows.) It seems they're both stronger and more dangerous every book. Jon is not going to meet a puppy dragon, and he is not going to be a soft dragon either. I think if someone gets tamed it's going to be both: they will tame each other. If Dany stumbles and cry (like anyone else), then she'll stand up and she'll fight back, like she's been doing throughout the books.

PS: The supposed threat in those paragraphs didn't mean any kind of harm or injury to Dany, and she didn't hurt anybody either.

How would that be weakness? Was Ned showing weakness in kneeling to Robert? If Jon is the rightful Targaryen heir then she would be bound to follow him, or she is no better than Robert when he took her father's throne, she knows that. Dany doesn't do anything to the stone.

Why does Jon need taming? He hasn't made any rash decisions as LC out of intense emotion like ordering a massacre or having children tortured. If you bring up the Pink Letter, Jon had little other choice, fighting Ramsay was the only option.

[Queen‍‍‍‍‍‍ Alysanne‍‍™]

I don't think fAegon will bend the knee to anyone. I don't think Dany will bend the knee to Aegon, but I think she will to Jon when R+L=J is revealed.

A stone turned under her foot. She [Dany] stumbled to one knee and cried out in pain

I'm confused as to how this symbolizes bending the knee, symbols only work if they have been used the same way in other parts of the story.

ETA: If Jon ever becomes King I don't think it will be under the Targaryen name.

[assjfjgjsgjljljglgjfjsduar]

I'm confused as to how this symbolizes bending the knee, symbols only work if they have been used the same way in other parts of the story.

ETA: If Jon ever becomes King I don't think it will be under the Targaryen name.

I'm not saying I buy this particular symbolism because I don't, I think it's a reach, but here's the logic:

Stones have been used in the story to link the Stark kids. Alayne Stone, Rickon on Skagos, Arya in the city of stone, Bran in the stone cave, Jon possibly being the stone dragon. I think FE's logic is, a stone causes Dany to stumble painfully into a kneeling position, i.e. a Stark/the Starks will cause her to involuntarily kneel. Again, I think it's a stretch, but that's the reasoning. ETA: I actually looked again and saw that FE explained this in his first post so I'm not sure why you're confused; the logic seems easy enough to follow even if you disagree with the conclusion.

And I say none of the three will bow to either of the other two. And from their perspectives, nor should they.

[BearQueen87]

ETA: If Jon ever becomes King I don't think it will be under the Targaryen name.

I kinda like the idea of him being King Jon Snow, First of His Name. He acknowledges that he's Lyanna and Rhaegar's son, but he keeps who he has been all these years.

ETA: Or Stark-Targaryen would be fine. Like you I don't think it'll be just "Targaryen"

[chrisdaw]

Dany will kill Aegon and bend the knee to Jon.

She will kill Aegon despite him being an accepted and loved king that could bring peace and prosperity to the realm. She will do this because he is a pretender.

She will bend the knee to Jon because having killed Aegon to not bend to her rightful king and the rightful ruler of her house would be hypocritical. It would mean she deposed a beloved king and plunged the realm into a bloody civil war to satisfy a lust for power rather than enforce the law of succession. It would be madness befitting Aerys, and the culmination of Dany's arc will be her determining she is not mad like her father.

[JonSnow4President]

They will all agree that more war is pointless for the kingdom, and agree to the only possible solution they can come up with. An all out sex- competition.

Aegon, being the cocy teenager, will of course overestimate his own prowess, not knowing what he's dealing with. He will quickly lose.

Dany, titles, titles, freak between the sheets, titles, titles and Jon "Lords kiss" Snow will both compete in an all out brawl to determine who gets to sit the acupuncture chair.

[Liz Stark-Targaryen]

But she was in that position before, when she had already demonstrated that she was in a position of superior power relative to Viserys. She was the Khal's favorite, he was the much-despised "Cart King" who Jorah had said was "lower than a snake," so he really had no friends or supporters at all except for her. Yet she told Jorah that Viserys could have her dragon eggs if he wanted them because he was her King.

That seems directly applicable here. It's certainly possible that Dany will do a 180 and be different the next time, but that would be a character inconsistency so it's probably not that likely. Martin probably wouldn't have written that scene if he had meant to contradict it later.

Totally agree. I know that anti-Dany folks are determined to make her out to be Aerys 2.0 with teats, but if Dany has proof of any other Targ with a better claim than hers, you will see her acknowledge that Targ as her king so fast it would make your head spin.

Why don't people understand that Dany feels her loneliness? Her barrenness? Her lack of family?

Dany was born a princess royal. When she was little, I'm sure Viserys regaled her with stories about her being his queen post-restoration. But then she flowered and V needed his army, so enter Khal Drogo. We know the rest of the story. I don't need to recap it.

The point is this. Slaver's Bay taught Dany that conquering is easy for the Mother of Dragons, but ruling is very difficult. If she had a way to share that burden, I believe that she'd readily agree to it.

I don't think fAegon will bend the knee to anyone. I don't think Dany will bend the knee to Aegon, but I think she will to Jon when R+L=J is revealed.

A stone turned under her foot. She [Dany] stumbled to one knee and cried out in pain

Stones are used for hiding things (Rickon on Skagos meaning "stone" in the Old Tongue, Sansa hiding under the alias "Alayne Stone," Arya hiding Needle under a stone step, stony-faced men hiding their emotions and a coin hidden under a loose stone) a stone turning could point to a secret being revealed. The phrase "under one's foot" means someone is near you in a way that is difficult and prevents you from doing what you want to do. The stone turned causes to Dany to go to one knee, the action one performs to acknowledge fealty to a king. I think this foreshadows the reveal of R+L=J, or Jon's hidden heritage/identity, to Dany. Jon is near her as her nephew by Rhaegar, which prevents her from doing what she wants to do, sit the IT and rule as Queen. Going to one knee could foreshadow her kneeling to Jon in submission, acknowledging him as king. Her crying out in pain is likely a clue to her reaction to the event.

Agreed, and nice text find.

Why would any of them bend the knee? Not one of them has a shred of a legit claim to the throne anymore, it belongs to the "baratherons".

Robert agreed to take the throne because of his Targaryen descent (Ned to Robert: "you had the better claim").

Am I the only one who wants Aegon to be real?

Nope, fandom's made me want it just because everyone's so sure he's a Blackfyre. (He is, though.)

Dany will kill Aegon and bend the knee to Jon.

She will kill Aegon despite him being an accepted and loved king that could bring peace and prosperity to the realm. She will do this because he is a pretender.

She will bend the knee to Jon because having killed Aegon to not bend to her rightful king and the rightful ruler of her house would be hypocritical. It would mean she deposed a beloved king and plunged the realm into a bloody civil war to satisfy a lust for power rather than enforce the law of succession. It would be madness befitting Aerys, and the culmination of Dany's arc will be her determining she is not mad like her father.

Aegon is not going to be an accepted and loved king. The WOt5K has decimated Westeros, especially the Riverlands. The largest stores in the Reach are in danger from the !@(#(@! Greyjoys, and not everyone in the South will welcome Aegon with open arms, which means more warfare.

And winter isn't just coming... winter is here.

[IceFire125]

She "stumbled" in one paragraph to fight back next paragraph: «She fumbled in the water, found a stone the size of her fist, pulled it from the mud. It was a poor weapon but better than an empty hand. (...) The grass swayed and bowed low, as if before a king, but no king appeared to her. (...)» And after that, Drogon came and the dothraki scout raced off through the tall grass at a gallop. Then, Dany leapt onto Drogon's back.

It seems Daenerys won't turn into a tamed dragon. She might have been weaker before, when she was very young, but she won't take that any more. That ended up when she woke her (inner) dragon and it doesn't seem to be logic that at the end of the series she will be back to weakness. That "cried out in pain" (one paragraph) is not the same kind that it was in AGoT, this time she will fight back (next paragraph). Actually in AGoT she tried again and again until she overcame the power others had over her. Dany is so like Drogon, first a little baby, a child, but then the dragon grew strong. (I don't mean anything with the Tyrells here, but who knows.) It seems they're both stronger and more dangerous every book. Jon is not going to meet a puppy dragon, and he is not going to be a soft dragon either. I think if someone gets tamed it's going to be both: they will tame each other. If Dany stumbles and cry (like anyone else), then she'll stand up and she'll fight back, like she's been doing throughout the books.

Khal Drogo rose, spat out a dozen words in Dothraki, faster than Dany could understand, and pointed (to Viserys) . “Khal Drogo says your place is not on the high bench,” Ser Jorah translated for her brother. “Khal Drogo says your place is there.”

Viserys glanced where the khal was pointing. At the back of the long hall, in a corner by the wall, deep in shadow so better men would not need to look on them, sat the lowest of the low; raw unblooded boys, old men with clouded eyes and stiff joints, the dim-witted and the maimed. Far from the meat, and farther from honor. “That is no place for a king,” her brother declared. - AGOT Daenerys V

there were more curs than Jon could count at this end of the hall...

Benjen Stark gave Jon a long look. “Don’t you usually eat at table with your brothers?”

“Most times,” Jon answered in a flat voice. “But tonight Lady Stark thought it might give insult to the royal family to seat a bastard among them.”

“I see.” His uncle glanced over his shoulder at the raised table at the far end of the hall. - AGOT Jon I

I believe GRRM want us to know who Jon really is and who he will become, thus many of these subtle clues, hints and foreshadowing, but not in an open way... not yet. ^_^