[Spoilers] Ignored Detail, Last Dany Chapter

[Sevumar]

Don't forget that Mago rode off with Khal Jhaqo and Dany has a score to settle with him, too. We're also told that the Dothraki came riding out of the east for the first time about 400 years ago, right around the time of the Doom. It may be that they have no knowledge or experience with old Valyria, so encountering their first dragon is likely to be a big deal.

[leafs43]

I have a feeling the Dothraki will see her riding a drogon and assume she is the strongest khal.

Dany then takes the Dothraki horde back to meereen, destroys the seige at Meereen, capturing Tyrion in the process as the 2nd sons are still camped out. Just then the Volantis fleet shows up, follow by the Iron fleet. The Iron fleet and Volantis fleet duke it out.

Being outmanned Victorian sends envoy to Dany and presents her with the horn, thinking she could blow it and die then he could take the dragons to defeat the Volantis. But because she is the unburned and not a man, the horn doesn't kill Dany. She then has full power over her dragons.

Dany then uses the dragons as leverage to get both fleets to surrender to her.

Dany now has her fleet to sail to Westeros.

Dany arrives in Westeros by way of Oldtown just as the Others are storming over the wall.

/End of Winds of Winter

[The Mother of The Others]

Daenerys is that freshman girl with the really hot hair model look whom everyone has a crush on until she shows up for sophomore year with a toned down stoner hairstyle and less makeup. As if she was getting too much attention from older men (and not just the senior class) and decided to slow things down a little for her own good even though her fanclub might not like it. That's why people don't like Daenerys as much anymore. They were hoping she'd be getting it on by now.

Meeting the Khalasar again obviously means something huge just fell into place. We just don't know what shape the khalasar events will take. That's why people aren't focussing on that. Because it hasn't come into focus yet.

[Jennavere]

I don't get it why people have started disliking Daenerys so much. Do you forget that we praised Martin for the realism in his characters and the way his world works? ASOIAF is a character story not an event story. Danny is a fourteen year old orphan girl at the head of an army and a city-state, plagued by problems that grown men have historically failed to resolve.

In short, cut her some bloody slack! Today's fourteen year old girls can basically just watch MTV, text from the mobile phone their parrents are paying for and talk about older boys. Danny is doing fine all things considered.

It is known.

I don't "hate" Dany now, but compared to how she behaved in ASOS, its as if her character is devolving, maturity wise. Now it can be argued that no, this is not what is happening, she is just developing in other ways, i.e. socially, sexually, but she has been married, dealt with countless political institutions elsewhere and had a fulfilling sexual relationship before. So I still say it feels like she is devolving with the Dario BS, her treatment of Quentyn, and her choices in Mereen. It made her chapters painful to read, and as others have said, painfully slow.

As to the Dothraki, I think that she will head to Vaes Dothrak with the Khalasaar as her allies, get the go ahead from the crones to band the entire Dothraki nation and kick some ass in Mereen before heading to Westeros without the Khalasaar. I still think they are too superstitious a people as a whole to cross the narrow sea.

Hopefully this will be done within just a few chapters between herself and Selmy.....and she will be off to Westeros to get the party started.

[Sevumar]

As to the Dothraki, I think that she will head to Vaes Dothrak with the Khalasaar as her allies, get the go ahead from the crones to band the entire Dothraki nation and kick some ass in Mereen before heading to Westeros without the Khalasaar. I still think they are too superstitious a people as a whole to cross the narrow sea.

Hopefully this will be done within just a few chapters between herself and Selmy.....and she will be off to Westeros to get the party started.

I think it's not very likely that she'll unite all the khalasars on the Dothraki Sea before departing. She'll probably get the one that she encounters at the end of ADWD, but the Dothraki range pretty widely. Tyrion and Illyrio hear of Khal Pono's group near the Rhoyne and that's an awful long way for news to travel from Vaes Dothrak. I don't think there's enough time to gather all the people, but we might see the beginning of a reconciliation between the Dothraki and the Lhazareen.

I'm not sure that I think the conclusion of Meereen can be handled quickly in TWoW. It reminds me a lot of the Battle of the Blackwater, and that took half a book to setup, fight, and resolve before any of the major players were free to move again.

[The Lost Lord]

I think it's not very likely that she'll unite all the khalasars on the Dothraki Sea before departing. ... Tyrion and Illyrio hear of Khal Pono's group near the Rhoyne and that's an awful long way for news to travel from Vaes Dothrak.

Probably not before Meereen, but it seems pretty clear Dany that will hit Volantis and Pentos on her way to Westeros, so she has plenty of time to encounter Khal Pono on the journey.

[MyDogIsNamedDanerys]

I'm sorry to say, but that's such an ignorant point of view. Would Martin really leave us on that sudden meeting if it meant nothing? Dany still has no direct control over Drogon and the Dothraki are not the type to ignore slights on their culture, as evidenced heavily in AGoT. I personally don't see any other result for the beginning of the next book than Dany being taken (or at least attempted to be taken) to Vaes Dothrak as the Dothraki still would not consider her fit to rule anything. This sort of journey I think Dany would go willingly to prove a point, then finally showing the true power of her heritage and destiny.

I like your ideas overall, though I think it's most likely true that Dany will become Khaleesi over all the Dothraki, and use this army to invade Meereen. At least that's what I hope happens.

But as to the bolded there is a sentence that is almost always overlooked and I think you may have missed it too:

Dany leapt onto his back. She stank of blood and sweat and fear, but none of that mattered. “To go forward I must go back,” she said. Her bare legs tightened around the dragon’s neck. She kicked him, and Drogon threw himself into the sky. Her whip was gone, so she used her hands and feet and turned him north by east, the way the scout had gone. Drogon went willingly enough.

I believe Dany has mastered Drogon in this passage. She turned Drogon and without the whip. He went where she willed by subtle hand and foot pressure. Dany has Drogon well in hand now, I think.

her treatment of Quentyn,

You mean the treatment where she very kindly explained why she unfortunately couldn't marry him and that she wished he had come earlier, and then she showed him her dragons whom she had shown to no one else including her husband and her lover?

[Sevumar]

Probably not before Meereen, but it seems pretty clear Dany that will hit Volantis and Pentos on her way to Westeros, so she has plenty of time to encounter Khal Pono on the journey.

Yeah, there's certainly something going on with Pentos and Volantis, but I'm not sure that I'm very excited about it. They're a bit like characters who aren't introduced until later in the story and while they're cool settings in and of themselves, it's hard for me to care about them as much as the places we already know so well.

I'm also at a bit of a loss as to whether the Dothraki will want to accompany her to Westeros and what everyone will think when she shows up with a foreign army proclaiming that she's the queen. She's already been told that there's nothing like the invasion of a foreign army from an alien culture to unite the realm in a time of conflict. Right now, it just feels like there's a lot of stuff that doesn't fit, and I'm curious to see where Martin's taking all of it.

[leafs43]

Probably not before Meereen, but it seems pretty clear Dany that will hit Volantis and Pentos on her way to Westeros, so she has plenty of time to encounter Khal Pono on the journey.

Dany has to go West to go East.

Therefore she sails to the west, the way Victorian came from. Pentos and Volantis are in her east. The only person that wants Pentos is the Windblown, and that story arc probably died with Quentin.

[Daenerys Faithful Servant]

You mean the treatment where she very kindly explained why she unfortunately couldn't marry him and that she wished he had come earlier, and then she showed him her dragons whom she had shown to no one else including her husband and her lover?

Dany also told him that the dragon must have three heads so that her being married to one man did not mean she could not marry Quentyn. This despite Quentyn wanting her dragons rather than wanting her, which I thought was rather nice of her but apparently "nice" to some people means Dany would have had to give him all three dragons so he could impress his father.

[Jennavere]

You mean the treatment where she very kindly explained why she unfortunately couldn't marry him and that she wished he had come earlier, and then she showed him her dragons whom she had shown to no one else including her husband and her lover?

I do not deny that she was kind to Quentyn. But she brushed him off without treating with him at all. He was representative of Dorne and Dorne's wish to make an alliance with her. She could have discussed this with him, maybe say something like "Im so sorry that you arrived when you did. Im engaged and unable to marry you, however, the loyalty of Dorne and the alliance that you and your father represent is very important to me. We need to sit down and discuss this further. My refusal to your proposal is in no way a slight to your people....etc. etc. etc."

I just do not think that she was diplomatic. Kind yes, but not diplomatic. He was a prince who travelled 1/2 the world to offer her an alliance, and she brushed him off like some random Mereenese banker or hedge knight. Showing him the dragons was great, but it did not constitute a meaningful diplomatic meeting.

[leafs43]

Dany also told him that the dragon must have three heads so that her being married to one man did not mean she could not marry Quentyn. This despite Quentyn wanting her dragons rather than wanting her, which I thought was rather nice of her but apparently "nice" to some people means Dany would have had to give him all three dragons so he could impress his father.

Her heads are going to be Arya and Arianne.

Bank it.

[Sevumar]

Dany has to go West to go East.

Therefore she sails to the west, the way Victorian came from. Pentos and Volantis are in her east. The only person that wants Pentos is the Windblown, and that story arc probably died with Quentin.

I thought it was the other way around in Quaithe's line. Now that's going to bother me until I check.

The Windblown have agreed to try to free the hostages in the Yunkish camp in return for Pentos, so I don't think that's quite resolved. I'm just not enchanted by her spending the next book wandering around fighting a war on other parts of Essos.

[MyDogIsNamedDanerys]

I do not deny that she was kind to Quentyn. But she brushed him off without treating with him at all. He was representative of Dorne and Dorne's wish to make an alliance with her. She could have discussed this with him, maybe say something like "Im so sorry that you arrived when you did. Im engaged and unable to marry you, however, the loyalty of Dorne and the alliance that you and your father represent is very important to me. We need to sit down and discuss this further. My refusal to your proposal is in no way a slight to your people....etc. etc. etc."

I just do not think that she was diplomatic. Kind yes, but not diplomatic. He was a prince who travelled 1/2 the world to offer her an alliance,

That's fair enough, though I disagree again that she brushed him off. She gave him as much attention as was possible given the circumstances (remember that Hizdar was threatened by Quentyn and might have had him killed if Dany showed too much interest).

Anyway so IA generally it would have been neato of her to sit down and clearly say "I would like to keep you happy so we can ally later, once I go to Westeros." But... Dany has a lot on her plate in Meereen demanding her immediate attention. And I think she is quite despondent at this point. She feels completely trapped. She's begun to believe that she may never achieve her dreams, but will be stuck in this slaver city she hates, married to this man she hates, as a figurehead, for the rest of her life, because Duty demands it. It's difficult to think about alliances half the world away, and years in the future in these circumstances.

That she manages to say and do quite a bit that is diplomatic, even so, is I think a testament to her character.

[GoodGuyA]

I just do not think that she was diplomatic. Kind yes, but not diplomatic.

She's never had to engage in this stuff before. How was she supposed to know about the political nuances in this respect? She did what she felt was best and right, and considering she had little to an inkling of a thought to be headed to Westeros any time soon, she had no reason to parley with him beyond the treatment. I actually (perhaps foolishly) do believe Quentyn's thought that Dany showed her the dragons to see if he could take the reigns (either literally or metaphorically). Whether that was because of Dany's immaturity or her belief in mystical ideas of prophecy, I cannot tell.

As for people pointing out Dany's syncing with Drogon, I do not at all deny that they shared a moment and it's a major part of their development together. However, there's been no evidence that Drogon would fight for her or really do anything besides allowing her to lead. There hasn't been time to establish that, and I still stand by my theory. She will go along with Jhaqo to Vaes Dothrak (maybe Drogon following her) and she will prove herself more worthy than a mere crone. Whether that is through magic, through her communication with Drogon, or simply because of whatever prophetic visions appear doesn't matter all too much. The point is, Martin would not introduce Jhaqo again to have him incinerated in the first Dany chapter.

[VivaVictarion2]

Daeny moving back to Vaes Dothrak doesn't seem to be addressing this problem, instead, it if anything it is exacerbating it.

I think that Khal Jhoqo is significant regardless of whether he takes her back to the Vaes Dothrak or not.

Well...to go WEST, she apparently has to go EAST, as Quaithe said. MAYBE this is what that particular prophecy refers to...sorry if this has been said before.

[Daenerys Faithful Servant]

Her heads are going to be Arya and Arianne.

Bank it.

Interesting theory, I have no idea what it has to do with my post, but still interesting.

[Peasant Rebel Leader]

I do like the idea of a story arc of Dany going to Vaes Dothrak once again. It would bring a return to book 1, otherwise the whole "Dothraki culture 101" is just a distraction. It'd make literary sense if she indeed would land in Westeros with Dothraki warriors.

So, she is "captured" (?) and brought to Vaes Dothrak. Words of that get to Meeren, what can they do now? they need to ransom her or rescue her by force. There are two dragons left in Meeren and maybe two people can tame/ride them. Maybe it's Tyrion with his knowledge, Victarion with his horn or - I would so love that because it's unexpected and would have to lead Dany to reconsider her thoughts - Brown Ben Plumm who claims to have some Targaryen/Blackfyre blood.They fly to Vaes Dothrak where Dany in the meantime managed to convince whoever needs to be convinced, and off it goes to Volantis, Pentos and Westeros then.

[Été]

Dany has to go West to go East.

Therefore she sails to the west, the way Victorian came from. Pentos and Volantis are in her east. The only person that wants Pentos is the Windblown, and that story arc probably died with Quentin.

Pentos and Volantis are both west of Slaver's Bay.

"To go north, you must journey south. To reach the west, you must go east. To go forward you must go back, and to touch the light you must pass beneath the shadow."

Dany's immediate thought is of Asshai. It could simply refer to her adventures in Quarth and Slaver's Bay before she begins the journey to Westeros, but it could mean that she sails the Iron Fleet past Asshai to land in the Westerlands or the Reach. I think the Ironborn allude to a sea-route west of Westeros but it's certainly risky and experimental.

[brashcandy]

Jennavere,

There wasn't really a need for diplomacy per se. The case was clearcut. Quentyn was there to marry her and then offer her Dorne's assistance. Dany rightly realised, that 1. she couldn't marry him, and 2. he was useless in solving her problems in Meereen. There was no need for diplomacy as Dorne's intentions were very clear, Quentyn was there for marriage, and her dragons. They could not offer each other anything, and so Dany was actually very kind in going out of her way to show him the dragons. Had Quentyn been smart and not so desperate, he could have waited his time, and tried to be a real friend to her, and this might have ensured a successful Dorne/Targaryen alliance in the future.