Where will Arya go after training?

[Wellspring]

Look at a map. Braavos is right at the northernmost point of the eastern continent. If the seas that far north freeze over, the city Arya loves, and the House of Many Faces, might be destroyed. All those ships that they use to defend themselves are useless if the whole lagoon is a big icy plain and when the dead walk south to rampage over it.

With the Faceless Men gone, Arya is unleashed.

[Été]

From where has come this stupid theory that Arya will go to Pentos in the next book ? Anyway Swift is supposed to go to Braavos so a part of what you said may be true except Pentos .

Good question. I've seen it so many times that I assumed Izembaro was in Pentos but on checking I see no mention is made of his whereabouts.

I stick by my theory i.e. that Arya's return to Westeros is bound up with the Iron Bank, Swyft, Dunsen and Raff the Sweetling.

[Sarge]

Look at a map. Braavos is right at the northernmost point of the eastern continent. If the seas that far north freeze over, the city Arya loves, and the House of Many Faces, might be destroyed. All those ships that they use to defend themselves are useless if the whole lagoon is a big icy plain and when the dead walk south to rampage over it.

Braavos is only at the north of that region. That's still very very far from the latitudes of the Heart of Winter or even the Wall. It's even at the south of the latitude of White Harbour. The sea will not freeze there.

[The King of Worms]

I think that Bran being a greenseer is a game-changer. I think he will be able to find all his siblings, including Arya, and actually talk to them in their dreams. Bran's influence and Arya's warging ability will be two things the FM won't be counting on. My guess is that Arya's identity is too strong and the FM will plan on getting rid of her... only she will know beforehand and give them the slip. I don't see her dying in Braavos. I think it is more likely that the Kindly Man will die at the point of Needle. WHat better way to reclaim her name and identity?

Also I think Arya's list seems to take care of itself. It seems like the ones Arya doesn't take care of personally still wind up dying gruesome deaths. I think we will get to see guys like Ilyn Payne and Raff the Sweetling suffer cruel deaths. Like Joffrey, it will have nothing to do with anything Arya does, but it will be a fitting end and an answer to her prayer nonetheless.

[Ice Turtle]

I don't even know why, but I have this crackpot theory that FM know Arya is a warg and they are training her not to become FM but for some special purpose like kill or steal a dragon or maybe even more dragons. That seems to be rather suicidal mission for regular people and maybe even regular FM. Of course, in the end Arya usually does what she wants and not what is expected of her.

[Arya's Revenge]

The FM most likely do know there's more to Arya than meets the eye. For them to accept her into their highly secretive cult and teach her their highly secretive lying and killing techniques they'd have to see some potential talent in her.

Also I doubt Arya is forgetting who she was. I think she's learning a new way of life. She's learning to accept her situation and thriving despite it. Once she's been taught by the FM she'll be Arya in two parts: the old Arya and the new Arya. Merged..she'll bring down a reckoning on everyone responsible for the ruin of her house. But her greatest feat will probably be that she survived at all.

She's definitely going to be headed back to Westeros at some point in the near future.

[Ajunoo]

I don't believe that Arya will receive orders to kill someone she holds dear for the plain and simple fact that it would be SO cheesy and expected. And GRRM seems to like unanticipated turns quite a bit. But I am very certain that she will return to westeros at some point, how could she not. Also I think an Arya/Nymeria reunion is pretty damn likely.

[Tall Tyrion Lannister!]

I think it may well be Dany. Maybe someone ,pissed off that she ended slavery, goes to them and ask her to be killed.

[boojam]

I have always found it interesting that Arya wound up in Braavos.

And Arya did keep Needle.

All this stuff about swords and Braavos , is there is famous fencing school in Braavos?

Did Syrio Forel learn his skills there?

Wishful thinking , but have always wondered if Arya would finally part her ways with the FM and wind up at this fencing school or something equivalent in Braavos, where she would become the First Sword of Braavos.

I think she will always keep needle but will graduate to something more adult.

Where she goes from there.... I don't know... but could play a role in the climax of the plot... by which time i would guess she is about 18.

[Lord Rae]

I really think Arya will get more sword training. Can't kill everyone poison now can you? Also Braavos is the perfect place for that since she has the beginnings of a good water dancer. I think someone will see her potential while she's apprenticing. Whether that someone is the guy who is going to train her in the ways of the faceless men or if it is someone else entirely... I don't know.

[iamthedave]

I really think Arya will get more sword training. Can't kill everyone poison now can you? Also Braavos is the perfect place for that since she has the beginnings of a good water dancer. I think someone will see her potential while she's apprenticing. Whether that someone is the guy who is going to train her in the ways of the faceless men or if it is someone else entirely... I don't know.

The Faceless Men are not first grade sword masters, so that's unlikely.

And the chances of her leaving the Faceless Men and bumming around Braavos picking up sword skills is precisely zero. If she leaves the cult and doesn't leave Bravos post-haste she should be dead inside a day.

All these theories about Arya leaving the Faceless Men have that central flaw: how do we know they'll let her go? She's been given every chance to leave up to now, and has never taken it. Where's the cut off point? They can't have people learning their innermost secrets and all their magic tricks and then just up and leaving. There has to be a point where you're in or you're dead, else all of their secrets would have gotten out long ago when someone else got sick of it and left.

I see it as quite possible that Arya won't leave the Faceless Men at all, and may be sent on a mission that gets her wrapped up in the plot. Maybe assisting Jaqen H'Ghar in the maester's citadel? Perhaps infiltrating Dany's group to spy? There's been hints that the Faceless Men are either keeping tabs on recent events or have some plan in mind, so Arya could fit into either of those.

Either way, the chances of Arya making the end of the series seem shaky to me. She's shacked up with some of the most dangerous people in the entire setting. It rattles credibility that she's even still alive. If she makes it out of this unscathed it'll be beyond stupid.

[Été]

The FM have been giving Arya the option to quit every step of the way. Whether that option will still be open to her when she begins her apprenticeship remains to be seen.

I want to see Arya take the face of a bravo and hone her combat skills that way. But from what I remember of the timelines, she's a few months ahead of everyone else even by the end of ADWD, so if she's to return to Westeros, that's got to be fairly soon in her story.

[The Mother of The Others]

I really think Arya will get more sword training.

Well to combine that into the Pentos plan, she could be trained by the fat man. Didn't Illyrio have some sort of bad experience with swordplay which made him start overeating?

[MtnLion]

He was a Waterdancer, and enforcer for Varys. As they made their way in the world, he indulged himself, as he no longer needed to engage others in swordplay. ;)

[violet storm]

For some reason many people see Arya-Dany connection. I really do not see where it is coming from. Much more likely the Iron Bank hiring her to give the gifts and it will send her either in the direction of Cersei (she is definitely the main violator), or to the North and Boltons if something happened to the Bravoosi banker there (I was not fully clear there). I do not see her going to poor Illyrio (seemed a bit randome) or to Vale (Petyr always seemed to pay...)

[Été]

For some reason many people see Arya-Dany connection. I really do not see where it is coming from. Much more likely the Iron Bank hiring her to give the gifts and it will send her either in the direction of Cersei (she is definitely the main violator), or to the North and Boltons if something happened to the Bravoosi banker there (I was not fully clear there). I do not see her going to poor Illyrio (seemed a bit randome) or to Vale (Petyr always seemed to pay...)

Arya has met Cersei and Petyr though; FM aren't allowed to assassinate people they know. I guess the Dany connection is simply that she's in Essos.

[Gonzagylot00]

Wow, so happy that I found this board. I just love the thoughtfulness of the replies. Sadly, I am but an intellectual peon, and don't have much to offer, but I will spread my meager ideas.

I think Arya kills Zombie Catelyn, and is thus joined fully into the Faceless Men. At the same time, Arya will continue to hold onto her secrets, in this case being that she commands a fleet of 10000 wolves, with Nymeria at the head.

[Arataniello]

I don't really have an opinion on this one except in so far as GRRM's introduction concludes with the line:

"Next up, The Winds of Winter. Wherein, I hope, everybody will be shivering together once again..."

From which it may be concluded that Arya and the other exiles are intended to return to Westeros sooner rather than later - "I hope"

This quote probably just means that all of the PoVs will appear in the next volume, rather than all the PoVs being in Westeros.

[Glyn Tarvoke]

He was a Waterdancer, and enforcer for Varys. As they made their way in the world, he indulged himself, as he no longer needed to engage others in swordplay. ;)

I had a guess that maybe the blond silver haired statue in the fat man's garden is actually a statue of varys, who is a targeryon by blow. varys always shaves his head so its possible I think.

[MtnLion]

As I recall, Illyrio explains to Tyrion, in that chapter, how they became friends. Illyrio was the Waterdancer, the statue was of him, in his youth. ;)

Varys was the thief that Illyrio protected, with his swordsmanship.