Crazy theory: Jon Snow really is Ned Stark's bastard

[Ulthosian Stark]

Just wondering peoples hate on Jon being a Targ? I think it would be cool, I also think that he wouldn't go after the IT but would go after the North as an independent kingdom and he be KitN. He could use his dragonblood as a reason for the right to make the North independent. Hed be full-king blood.

That would make him a TARGet for Mel though

[cealicu_ca]

I want to believe this theory too, because I want Jon to have a major influence in the war/politics in the North as a legitimized (per Robb's will?) Stark. I mean, the fact that the Karstark daughter (Alys?) comes to Jon of all people leads me to believe that the North see Jon as Ned's son, not just a bastard, and can trust him (then again, bastards are regarded differently in the North than the South in general). If he were to be legitimized, I think a lot of Northmen would rally to him and unite under the Stark banner.

But the evidence for R+L=J is approaching mountainous levels, and I find it hard to think it's anything else. Maybe, just maybe, Lyanna made Ned promise to raise Jon as a legitimate Stark - ie claim as a bastard but then legitimize him. That would explain Ned's thoughts of 'blood and broken promises...' - he kept only half the promise. Although reaching a bit, I think that would explain Ned's feeling of shame when thinking of Jon in the black cells - he couldn't fulfill his promise, let Jon go to the wall, etc.

GRRM has a strange way of exacting revenge on certain characters. Slynt betrayed Ned, but no one in King's Landing sought to kill Janos. Jon ends up beheading him, at the Wall of all places, and we the readers cheer seeing that justice is served. But Jon had no idea what Slynt did to Ned, it was just Slynt's being a jackass that cost him his head. This is a random point, but I'll link it to Lyanna's promise. Ned wasn't able to fulfill it, but it will be eventually - I believe by Robb's letter. I will look for more incidences of this 'indirect fulfillment' that GRRM seems to use; so far I can only think of Slynt's situation, and possibly Lyanna's promise, but there may be more.

Very elegant! I would truly love to see this happen. It would give more weight to the fact that Jon is a (half)Stark rather than the fact that Jon is (half)Targaryen.

[Ulthosian Stark]

Even if Jon finds out he is (if true) half targ I still think he'd put more stock into the Stark side, hell he may not even like being a targ if he finds out haha

[The Wolves]

Just wondering peoples hate on Jon being a Targ? I think it would be cool, I also think that he wouldn't go after the IT but would go after the North as an independent kingdom and he be KitN. He could use his dragonblood as a reason for the right to make the North independent. Hed be full-king blood.

That would make him a TARGet for Mel though

Some people don't like the Targs and think Jon should hate the Targs for no valid reason, he already heard the story about RR and have never said or thought a bad word about the Targaryens his hero is a Targaryen.

I hope he is Rhaegar and Lyanna's son(it takes away nothing of him being Ned's son)he also needs to embrace that "Fire and Blood" motto.

[Hos the Hostage]

Even if Jon finds out he is (if true) half targ I still think he'd put more stock into the Stark side, hell he may not even like being a targ if he finds out haha

I believe R+L=J, but I agree with you that Jon would not be very happy about being a Targ. In the first book, we see him very much conlficted due to his heritage or lack of it. The one constant of his known family was his father, and now he hears his father was not really his father. Jon loves being Ned's son, albeit a bastard, and the revelation that he is not, and Ned lied to him all the time is gonna affect him seriously.

[sj4iy]

I think Jon would be more shocked to find out that his parents' actions started a war more than finding out that he was half-Targ, tbh.

[The Wolves]

I think Jon would be more shocked to find out that his parents' actions started a war more than finding out that he was half-Targ, tbh.

But why would he think that?

Who blames the war on Rhaegar or Lyanna?

And Jon will probably be with thoughts on if Rhaegar raped Lyanna and why Ned didn't tell him and what it means to him as the son of Rhaegar/Lyanna(if R+L=J is true)and how he will view Ned. He will have lots of questions and things to think about I doubt he will have time to blame them for starting a war.

[sj4iy]

But why would he think that?

Who blames the war on Rhaegar or Lyanna?

And Jon will probably be with thoughts on if Rhaegar raped Lyanna and why Ned didn't tell him and what it means to him as the son of Rhaegar/Lyanna(if R+L=J is true)and how he will view Ned. He will have lots of questions and things to think about I doubt he will have time to blame them for starting a war.

Uh, a lot of people blame his father for "kidnapping" her and starting the war. If they just ran off together, that's even more tragic. I also never said he would blame them, I simply said that it would be pretty hard to realize that the actions of your parents started a war...even more so if he were to find out that it was all done to conceive him to make the third head of the dragon.

[tormund's beard]

i would love for jon to be just ned's and the firsherman's daughter son

50% because i like the idea that ned slipped at least one time (i love ned i just think its cool to show that even full on paragon ned stark had a bastard)

25% because it would be a kick in the pants that r+l=j is false

25% because i want jon to be ned's son and a bastard because i think jon will do great and terrible things and it will be more to MY liking if the one doing those things is just a man, the bastard son a of a fisherman's daughter and a lord and not some prophetic badass half dragon - half direwolf

[Debra Morgan]

I think that Jon Snow really is Ned Stark's bastard with Ashara Dayne.

My theory is that when Ned was at King's Landing after the death of Aerys he wanted to find out what happened to Lyanna. Ashara Dayne was also there, as she was one of Princess Elia's handmaiden. As the brother of Arthur Dayne, she knew Lyanna was at the Tower of Joy. Because she loved Ned Stark, she told him where he could find his sister and she accompanied him and the other Northmen to the Tower of Joy. Having his first love so close was too much for Ned to handle, so he slept with Ashara, who became pregnant.

When Ned found Lyanna at the Tower of Joy, he discovered that Rhaegar did not kidnap her but instead she went along willingly. Lyanna then told Ned about her son with Rhaegar and made Ned promise that he would protect him.

The parties then proceed to Starfall so that Ned could return Dawn to the Dayne family. Ned passes off Lyanna's son as his "bastard" and Wylla is his wet nurse. It is while Ned is at Starfall that Ashara gives birth to Jon Snow. Now Ned truly has a dilemma; he cannot return to Winterfell with 2 "bastard" children that are different ages. So he asks Ashara to watch over Lyanna's son while he takes Jon with him to Winterfell. Ashara, still in love with Ned but knowing that she cannot go with him, agrees and disappears with Lyanna's son under the fake stillborn/suicide story.

Remember, Ned feels extremely guilty about Jon AND the promise he made to Lyanna. I think it's more than just the fact that passing off her son as his own bastard would cause pain to Catelyn. I think his guilt stems from the fact that he didn't truly keep his promise and that he gave into temptation and fathered a bastard.

What made he think this is the case was some lines in G of T where Ned is riding in the rain. I can't remember the exact quote, but it is something like "As he rode Ned saw Jon Snow's face in front of him, so much like a younger version of his own. He wondered if the gods frowned on bastards so much, why did they fill men with such lusts?"

I know he could be thinking about Rhaegar lusting after Lyanna, but it just seemed like Ned was talking about his own "lust" for Ashara Dayne and how Jon had to pay the price for it.

Varys didn't say that Aegon is Elia's child. Maybe he is Lyanna's