Ashara, Elia and Varys.

[Lion of Judah]

There is no evidence to support that Barristan had absolute knowledge about Ashara's situation. As far as I recall, it is not said that Ashara left Dorne after the Tourney of Harrenhal, and Barristan probably never even went there, since he stayed Kingsguard after the Battle of the Trident, where Rhaegar was defeated and Barristan pardoned. I don't see how the quote you gave contradicts me. It doesn't actually say Barristan ever saw Ashara's daughter, if there was one. I doubt anyone really looked at her between the birth and her burial.

You're not serious with this are you?

[Brucolac]

While his age wasn't mentioned, I got the impression that Darkstar is way too old for this to be remotely possible. If nothing else, 17 year olds don't usually have a reputation for being one of the deadliest men in Dorne and I don't think Ariane would have been attracted to someone that young either.

If Ashara's child lived, I think the most likely candidate for a swap is Dany since that scenario actually has literary foreshadowing and would be the right age. The most likely scenario in my mind is that the baby actually was stillborn and she was used a nursemaid for Young Griff-either as Elaria's actual child or as a child she was tricked into believing was him.

[Silent_Hero]

Sounds interesting but what is the age of Darkstar?

I'm not too sure but probably 22-17.

Anyway the hair color of Ashara does somewhat ruin the theory as someone pointed out. And I also reversed the hair color of Darkstar accidently but he could still be her child.

Now the age of YG and Darkstar are ambiguous but it should be taken into account that many people can be seen as older/younger that they really are.

[NitzanLeo]

You're not serious with this are you?

I'd love if you would explain to me why you don't think that I'm serious.

[TheCrannogDweller]

The political climate was such that this was the worst thing that could happen. For Ashara, she had a bastard fathered by an already, or soon to be, traitor to the realm. Elia had a husband that was convinced prophecy decreed three offspring, yet she had a stillborn and was unable to carry any more. (This can arguably be Rhagar's motivation, along with love, for seeking Lyana) The solution seems obvious-claim Ashara had the stillborn girl, claim that her healthy, purple-eyed boy was actually the newest addition to the royal family, and both of their asses are saved.

You can't fake a prophecy - which is what Elia would've been doing by claiming the supposed son of Ashara and passing him as her own to Rhaegar. Also, about the political climate - Rhaegar already had an heir (his brother Viserys) - so it's not like there was a dynastic crysis looming.

Perhaps, but just because Barristan has a connection to Arthur doesn't mean Arthur has a connection to Ashara when with Barristan. He was in Dorne, but he was there from the very beginning of the rebellion, from the very moment Rhaegar brought Lyanna to the Tower of Joy.

There is no evidence to pinpoint the time at which Arthur (with or without his two Brothers) showed up at the ToJ. From the tidbits of information that we know about the supposed abduction of Lyanna, Rhaegar took her from Harrenhal a year after the tournament, while in the meantime he was visiting the castle regularly.

We also know that Rhaegar was nowhere to be found when the Rebellion started. He showed up from the south and took command of the royal army shortly before the Battle of the Trident. Now, keeping in mind that the ToJ was a remote location, I think there are two ways that Rhaegar could've gotten the information that made him go back to KL:

1. Via Starfall and House Dayne, who have themselves been contacted by Arthur from KL.

2. Via Arthur himself, who was probably the only one who knew where to find Rhaegar.

The second one sounds most probable to me, because I don't think that Rhaegar would've left the ToJ before his most trusted friend had already arrived to guard Lyanna.

Either way, I think it's highly unlikely that Arthur Dayne was there from the beginning. That theory only works if you assume that they "kidnapped" Lyanna together - and I think that this would've been mentioned and it would also affect Ned's opinion of the Sword of the Morning - and remember that he holds him in high regard through the rest of his life.

On the OP - Aegon was born in 282, Edric - around 287. There's a huge difference between a 12-year old and a 17-year old, so I don't think he could've been a part of the switcheroo you're proposing.

Also, I don't think Varys could've been fooled into that double switch. I think that if he did save a baby during the Sack, it really was Rhaegar's son Aegon.

[WhatsHisFace]

Completely agree with Sixchins. The (supposed) pregnancies of Elia and Ashara line up too well. They locked themselves together during the pregnancy to hide Ashara's situation. Elia was the sickly one and more likely to have a stillborn daughter. Ashara then gave Elia her son so he would have a better life than a bastard and helped Elia get Rhaegar's attention after the whole Harrenhal tournament fiasco. I think the entire existence of Eddard Dayne is to show that Daynes can have Targ-like traits of light hair and violet eyes. What other purpose has he served?

This episode is being played out again with the Gilly baby switching. Gilly was already traumatized by giving up her baby. Think of how she would have reacted if she found out her baby had been brutally murdered. Ashara thought she was giving her son a better life, but he was killed and the grief drove her off a cliff.

[PrinceHenryris]

I came up with this theory chatting up with a cousin of mine, we would Come up with much crackpot theories mostly for the fun of it but this has to be my favorite one.

Now during Roberts rebellion when things looked really bad for the Targs(after Rhaegar death I think) Aerys sent away his Wife and Viserys to Dragonstone. Elia attempted to leave as well but she was refused. Aerys grew paranoid that the dornish had betrayed Rhaegar so he used Elia as a hostage to keep the dornish in check.

Now Elia would know that Robert would come to KL and that her life and her sons life would be in danger. Now Ashara also has a baby as well so Elia has her son Aegon switched with Asharas baby. Ashara is free to leave home safely.

Now during the sack Varys susposedly also switches Elia baby, I am inclined to believe him as he was present when Aerys gave the order to open the gates, so Varys would know what would happen and moved to act against it. Now Varys arrives and switches Aegon(Asharas baby) and leaves.

Later on Ned arrives at Starfall and tells Ashara the news that Elia and her children are dead. Ashara believing her child has died throws her self off the cliff.

Now we are left with a baby switching fiasco.

What became of Asharas son?- I believe when Aerys arrived at Harrenhall he raped Ashara which led to the birth of Young Griff. Aerys had the targaryen features of purple eyes and silver hair, just as Ashara has purple eyes and blonde/silver hair, allowing any potential offspring to also have the Targ features.

Elia baby- I believe Darkstar is Prince Aegon on nothing more than his hair. He has dark hair with a streak of silver. Now Targs would inter-bred mostly to keep the Targ features of Silver and purple in the bloodline so we can assume it's recessive. Elias' daughter Rhaenys had dark hair as well just as Elia had dark hair. Now Baelor Breakspear from the dunk and egg stories had a Targ father and a dornish mother, ^^he came out with dark hair as well.

Just something to chew over.

While I don't necessarily agree with all of your points, you've given me much and more to think about.

Doran's comment that Darkstar is "the most dangerous man in Dorne", in light of your theory, that might mean that he's more than just a skilled knight from a cadet branch of House Dayne.

I can't say what, but I give you credit for giving me something to think about.

[VaramyrSixchins]

You can't fake a prophecy - which is what Elia would've been doing by claiming the supposed son of Ashara and passing him as her own to Rhaegar. Also, about the political climate - Rhaegar already had an heir (his brother Viserys) - so it's not like there was a dynastic crysis looming.

Maybe you can't, fake a prophecy, but you can try and protect yourself against mentally unstable Targaryens. There didn't neccessarily have to be a dynastic crisis as Elia's motivation. Elia finds herself with an increasingly paranoid and unstable father-in-law, and a husband who believes that he's fated to save the world and that he MUST father three children. Is that alone not enough to hide a stillbirth? We see that Rhaegar did not abscond with Lyanna until after his second child's birth, and AFTER the maesters declared Elia infertile. In my mind, there's a question of if love, attraction, or admiration, played as much a role in his actions with Lyanna as much as his ever-consuming drive to have three kids...

[NitzanLeo]

Maybe you can't, fake a prophecy, but you can try and protect yourself against mentally unstable Targaryens. There didn't neccessarily have to be a dynastic crisis as Elia's motivation. Elia finds herself with an increasingly paranoid and unstable father-in-law, and a husband who believes that he's fated to save the world and that he MUST father three children. Is that alone not enough to hide a stillbirth? We see that Rhaegar did not abscond with Lyanna until after his second child's birth, and AFTER the maesters declared Elia infertile. In my mind, there's a question of if love, attraction, or admiration, played as much a role in his actions with Lyanna as much as his ever-consuming drive to have three kids...

I have to believe it was love that drove Rhaegar to kidnap Lyanna. Why do it if not for love? A third child? He could have any woman in the realm. Yes, Lyanna was very beautiful, we are told, but if it is just beauty, then why not Ashara, for one? Not only is she said to be beautiful as well, but her whole house bears Targaryen features. I can't believe that it was a random choice.

[Babeldygob]

I am on board with the idea that Ashara had a healthy boy and Elia's one was a stillborn girl. Since Elia was daughter of Ashara's liege lord and soon to be her queen, Ashara wouldn't have objected to a swap. The switch happened at Harrenhal, long before the war. When Ashara heard the news that Elia and her children were murdered, she threw herself of a cliff, believing that her son was dead. Whether Varys switched Aegon or not doesn't really matter. If Ashara is Lemore, which seems more and more likely and she's led to believe that YG is her son, she would make a very loyal member of the team and fully explain why she's on the boat with him. Otherwise, why would she care?