Asha’s last POV ---> Theon’s gift chapter: A whole lotta questions

[WetHair]

Less than 12 hours have passed between Asha’s abruptly leaving dinner to follow Justin Massey and the beginning of the Theon gift chapter before dawn the next day. A lot seems to have happened.

1. Why is it that Flint and Norrey know that Theon is in camp but Karstark doesn’t? (They already want Theon’s head but Karstark goes pale when he sees him hanging in the tower. I know Stannis doesn't want Karstark to know for obvious reasons but if he had complete control over the situation nobody would have known.)
   
2. Stannis has been snowed in for 19 days yet Karstark got there eight days ago. How? He is supposed to be coming from Karhold which is quite far away. He has over 400 men.
   
3. Asha says that Karstark arrived with a cage FULL of ravens. Even if it was several individual cages rather than one big one, she couldn’t mistake three ravens for a cage full. Were there many more at the beginning?
   
4. Who EXACTLY came with Tycho Nestoris? There is wiggle room for an Unknown Person of Much Importance to have joined his group at any time: Before he left the Wall, at Deepwood Motte, outside of Winterfell (Mance?, Hooded Man? Other??), etc.
   
5. Who is Tycho Nestoris anyway? As has been mentioned, he has extremely suspicious.
   
6. Who taught the ravens to say “tree,” and “Theon”. WHEN were they taught? Could it have been within these less than 12 hours? How well are they guarded? And, of course, WHY?
   
7. What’s gotten into Asha? Even in her weakened state she seems too strong-willed to be warged. But Someone has told her what to say. The same Someone who taught the ravens? The same Someone who came with Tycho?
   

Just some of the questions that come to mind!!!

[Jolene Brown]

Why would Theon tell anyone who he is? Surely, he is unrecognizable at this point. Why not pretend to be a manservant who has helped "Arya" escape? We see that he still has a strong sense of self-preservation, and I think this is a bit of a "because GRRM needs him to" situation. I think it would have been more fun if Asha was the only one who was able to tell who he was and we were wondering whether she would use Theon/work with him and the 6 ironborn men to escape Stannis.

The ravens are obviously Bran/Bloodraven controlled. I think Asha is just saying whatever she thinks will save Theon from being burnt alive.

[DurararaFTW]

Think it's a little too convenient Asha is asking to bring Theon to the weirtree when just before she entered the room the ravens were going "tree" and "Theon", especially since as far as we know, beheadings don't actually happen anywhere near weirtrees, not as far as we've been told. Bran/Bloodraven are probably been planting ideas in Asha's head even if they can't control her.

[kephv]

Asha went to the weirwood again out of curiousity (Theon had told her they spoke to him) and Bran told to her to bring Theon to the tree. I don't think she's been warged herself - that's going too far, I think. The ravens are specifically mentioned as not being very smart, so it's Bran warging the ravens.

[Jolene Brown]

Is Theon's sample chapter the first we've heard about the weirwood near Stannis's camp or was it mentioned in ADWD?

[Arkash]

Who is Tycho Nestoris anyway? As has been mentioned, he has extremely suspicious.

A big question for me !

[WetHair]

What happened to all the other ravens...........a cage full of ravens is not three ravens.

And WHY do FLint and Norrey know about Theon being in camp and Karstark doesn't??

[Ser Lupine]

Tycho Nestoris is is a representative of the Iron Bank of Braavos.

See here:

http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Tycho_Nestoris

[Arkash]

Yes, but the line about him:

You will never get a drop of blood from that one, my lord.

Is damn strange and intriguing: who, or what the heck is Tycho Nestoris ?

[Spaßvogel]

I think that just means he's tight-fisted with loaning money, not that he's anything other than a banker. The bankers are treated so well or with authority because Half of Westeros owes them huge sums of money.

[Baelian]

Yes, but the line about him:

You will never get a drop of blood from that one, my lord.

Is damn strange and intriguing: who, or what the heck is Tycho Nestoris ?

I feel like the "drop of blood" line is in reference to his banker status as opposed to being a fighter of any kind. If the conversation was different the line could have analogously been, "You'd never get that one into a suit of armor." or "You'd never see a sword in that one's hands."

That's how I took it anyway.

[bemused]

I just took Theon's thought about Tycho to refer to Tycho's implacability...business is business and he won't be swayed by emotion, the strength of one claim over another, etc.etc.

There was one raven sent to Winterfell to inform Roose of Stannis whereabouts . I don't see why 3-4 ravens couldn't be a cage full..depends on the size of the cage(s)

Theon was taken to Stannis almost immediately after arriving. Asha has had the intervening time to try to piece together what Theon said and to talk to Alysanne and perhaps other northerners to try to find some alternative to letting Theon be burned alive.

[scurvy]

Is Theon's sample chapter the first we've heard about the weirwood near Stannis's camp or was it mentioned in ADWD?

It's mentioned in an Asha chapter. She references a tree so huge it dominates an island out in the middle of the ice lake. The tree is so white it's hard to make out with all of the snow, but the red leaves look like blood falling from the sky.

[Arkash]

A beautiful vision, hope we'll have it again !

[Liar]

Maybe this Theon chapter is not the first one after prologue. Perhaps we find out something through Asha or Bran. Would that make sense?

[VaramyrSixchins]

Less than 12 hours have passed between Asha’s abruptly leaving dinner to follow Justin Massey and the beginning of the Theon gift chapter before dawn the next day. A lot seems to have happened.

1. Why is it that Flint and Norrey know that Theon is in camp but Karstark doesn’t? (They already want Theon’s head but Karstark goes pale when he sees him hanging in the tower. I know Stannis doesn't want Karstark to know for obvious reasons but if he had complete control over the situation nobody would have known.)
   
2. Stannis has been snowed in for 19 days yet Karstark got there eight days ago. How? He is supposed to be coming from Karhold which is quite far away. He has over 400 men.
   
3. Asha says that Karstark arrived with a cage FULL of ravens. Even if it was several individual cages rather than one big one, she couldn’t mistake three ravens for a cage full. Were there many more at the beginning?
   
4. Who EXACTLY came with Tycho Nestoris? There is wiggle room for an Unknown Person of Much Importance to have joined his group at any time: Before he left the Wall, at Deepwood Motte, outside of Winterfell (Mance?, Hooded Man? Other??), etc.
   
5. Who is Tycho Nestoris anyway? As has been mentioned, he has extremely suspicious.
   
6. Who taught the ravens to say “tree,” and “Theon”. WHEN were they taught? Could it have been within these less than 12 hours? How well are they guarded? And, of course, WHY?
   
7. What’s gotten into Asha? Even in her weakened state she seems too strong-willed to be warged. But Someone has told her what to say. The same Someone who taught the ravens? The same Someone who came with Tycho?
   

Just some of the questions that come to mind!!!

1. GREAT question, but if I had to guess, I'd say that because Arya was such an important cause to the mountain clans, maybe they were informed of Theon/Jeyne's arrival as a morale booster, whereas Karstarks may still be held at arm's length by the northmen because of the drama with the Young Wolf, subsequently they get left out of the loop with camp gossip and word of mouth news. Just a guess, though.

2. Another great question. Was gonna speculate that the small size of the force allowed for a quicker pace, but then I remembered the Karstarks carried a wagon train full of supplies along, which logic suggests would slow them down, along with the severe conditions. Idk about this one, either.

3. With bemused on this one. Ravens are relatively large birds, fullness would depend on cage size, methinks, but 4 in one cage could look pretty full.

4. IIRC, his guides from the Watch, the ironborn prisoners he ransomed and Theon/Jeyne.

5. Why suspicious? Cersei defaulted on her Iron Bank debt, so they sent a financier to treat with Stannis. Makes sense. The fact that Tycho was willing to enter into a financial agreement with Jon enhances his financier credentials to me. He sees an opportunity to make another buck for the Iron Bank and goes with it. I do have a hard time believing he was willing to send his ships, crew, and everybody he came with on the Hardhome expedition for no apparent gain in return, though. That seems a bit of unrealistic altruism for a banker.

6. Bran/Bloodraven. Enough said.

7. Well, she does spend a large part of her chapters lamenting the insane fundamentalism of the Red lot. Maybe she thinks appealing to religious sensibilities can sway Stannis to behead Theon instead of burning him. She's seen the Red lot do a ritual burning, imagine she'd say/do whatever to try to avoid her brother meeting that fate.

[bemused]

I thought the loan of the ships was a straight-up trade. Jon says he could give Tycho NW guides to take him to Stannis and back, but there would be a price .Tycho replies something about isn't there always a price..

It seemed to me the loan was a whole separate arrangement.

I assumed Karstark was coming from the Dreadfort, not Karhold. Hence the Dreadfort maester.( and could he have trusted a Karhold maester anyway ?) Perhaps he never left the Dreadfort from the time we saw him there. Cregan could have forwarded any messages from Stannis.