I think people are wrong about Bran.

[Blueberry Stark]

Well, Ned has been known to be wrong about a thing or two in the past.

Well, if Ned made the diagnosis then maybe, but presumably Maester Luwin decided that Bran couldn't have intercourse from the extent of his paralysis.

[jarl the climber]

Well, if Ned made the diagnosis then maybe, but presumably Maester Luwin decided that Bran couldn't have intercourse from the extent of his paralysis.

Luwin also said that magic and the greenseers were all gone and he was way off on that. Bran never mentions waking up with a stiffy so I do not know if thats a clue or not since he never mentions how he goes to the bathroom either. Not that I really want to know that but there really is not mcuh to go in if we are trying to form and opinion indpendent of what Ned said or was told.

[Florina Laufeyson]

I think Bran will be instrumental in how the invasion of the Others will play out. He may be the one to stop them somehow. Plus he could relay information literally via ravens and junk. I dont think he will stay in the cave. I think he eventually will make it back to Winterfell.

[Pearlthegirl]

http://www.mayoclinic.org/spinal-cord-injury-and-sex/about.html

Let's get him to puberty first tho, or it definitely won't work.

[Blueberry Stark]

Luwin also said that magic and the greenseers were all gone and he was way off on that. Bran never mentions waking up with a stiffy so I do not know if thats a clue or not since he never mentions how he goes to the bathroom either. Not that I really want to know that but there really is not mcuh to go in if we are trying to form and opinion indpendent of what Ned said or was told.

My assumption, from textual evidence, is that Bran can't perform sexually. As I doubt Ned would think this as though it's a certainty unless he was told by someone with medical knowledge, I'm assuming Maester Luwin, who tended to Bran post-fall, told Ned that Bran couldn't have intercourse. I never implied or stated that Ned or Luwin are infallible, always right, etc. As that is the only evidence that I know of one way or the other, I was pointing it out. Maybe Bran will go on to be the next Robert Baratheon and bang every girl he can get his hands on.

If you don't want to know about his bathroom functions and his ability to achieve an erection, I don't know why your bringing it up.

[The Meereenese Knot]

I think Bran's connection to Hodor will be come stronger allowing him to use Hodor's body to become the great knight he always wanted to be.

[The Snowfyre Chorus]

If and when Bran does become a tree, would he have to return to the cave, or could he become a tree anywhere? For example, the godswood at Winterfell?

Good question! I often wonder if Bran - more than any other character - isn't actually the central figure and hero in GRRM's saga. For one thing, after Bloodraven's monologue on the weirwood's unique perspective on the time-space continuum (i.e., time does not restrict awareness as it does to humans), I find myself re-reading chapters that mention godswoods/heart trees and looking for signs that Bran was "there." [For example, when Ghost encounters his three-eyed brother as a weirwood during a dream near the Skirling Pass... I wonder if that was contemporaneous Bran, or a sending through time by Bran-in-the-Cave. Ghost notices the "scent of death"... which certainly could refer to the Winterfell crypt... but would be pretty ominous if it revealed something of the nature the Children's weirwood cave.]

I suspect Bran's got himself into a precarious situation. We still don't know what agency he has through the weirwood - what he can actually DO, as opposed to what he can KNOW - but he was lured there with promises, and it's hard not to think that the Children expect some payment in return for helping Bran learn to "fly." I imagine that eventually, Bran will be forced to decide whether he's willing to "buy in" completely to the Children's program... whatever that actually is. The price may be higher that he wants to pay.

Somehow, I get the feeling Bran has strength enough to make up his own mind. I doubt he leaves the cave, physically. But he's certainly in great position to undermine the Children, should they turn out to be the baddies.

Bran's character comes as loaded with symbolism as any other in the books - Welsh and Old Norse mythologies galore. And if those mythological references mean anything at all, then Bran will play a key role in the pivotal conflict to come.

[grand old duke of stark]

I think that physically Bran will stay in the cave. He has wed that fate. But via weirwood and warging he will get out and participate in the defeat of the Others and the bringing of summer. The idea that he will become a great knight is a pipedream--it is impractical and probably also unfair to Hodor. But Bran will have a rich and fulfilled life beyond that cave. As to his retinule, of course they'll die leaving him alone because he'll live longer even that Bloodraven and will outlive everyone in the story. As posters in other threads have said, most probably a Bran POV will bring the series to a close.

[Lissa Nymeros Martell]

To those that prefer the theory: Why/how would Bran bonding to the weirwood in Winterfell be preferable to the cave weirwood?

[jentario]

To those that prefer the theory: Why/how would Bran bonding to the weirwood in Winterfell be preferable to the cave weirwood?

Because he'd have to get there first, which means he won't sit on his ass for the duration of the series. He can do some big things before he becomes a tree.

[Northernmonkey]

To those that prefer the theory: Why/how would Bran bonding to the weirwood in Winterfell be preferable to the cave weirwood?

Because he might get to see his family again. I think Bran might prefer that.

[Daphnaerys Seaworth]

I can't really accept that Bran's story is almost over, that he'll stay in there forever.

I think if he is to stay there forever he will probably do something before that.

Plus, there's also the tV show, if Bran' s to end up in the cave in Season 4 ,what he will be doing in the further seasons.I think George holds some surprises for us.

[jentario]

Because he might get to see his family again. I think Bran might prefer that.

This too.

[mindchap]

The CotF may not have Bran's best interest at heart, but they have the fate of mankind's interest at heart. Sometimes the bigger picture comes first, would it be cool if Bran and all the living Starks could have a reunion in Winterfell, yes, but a broken boy in Winterfell that has to be waited on by others is not much help when he could be in a cave with literally a bird's eye view of everything that's going on. I think the cave itself is important because it's on the Other's side of the Wall. We know there is magic in the Wall that hinders things so to me it would seem that being on the north side is putting him on the very front of the front lines and possibly eventually behind enemy lines. That makes Bran and Bloodraven the most valuable pieces in the coming game with the Others. Whose pink cheeks are on the Iron Throne or who's sitting in Winterfell are important but I see Bran and Bloodraven and even the CotF as being far more important in the future. And even though he will be sitting in a little cave, when you consider the power they have the Bran chapters are going to be far from boring. Happy endings are fairly infrequent so I tend to think of the "not so happy" but "not too sad" type endings, just call me an old softie.:)

[Blueberry Stark]

I can't understand the argument that Bran has to leave the cave because his story isn't complete. It seems to me that in the cave Bran will be able to see through the weirwoods and use his warg powers. Since he is paralyzed wherever he goes, it doesn't seem like the plot would need him to be some place else.

[GlennSnow]

:( I think he does in a way to put the bitter in the bittersweet

[GlennSnow]

*dies - sorry can't edit with tapatalk atm

[aceluby]

Hasn't Jojen had a dream of Bran dying? I distinctly remember that and see that as pretty heavy foreshadowing that Bran isn't going to make it out alive. He always wanted to be a knight. What are knights supposed to do? Give their life in order to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Jojen says Bran is the key to defeating the Others as well, so I think there is a lot of evidence pointing to Bran sacrificing himself in a knightly way in order to save the realm.

[WhiteWalder]

I believe that someone will come and take Bran from the cave. Bran's character seems to be based on "Bran the Blessed" from old Welsh mythology.

In the myth, Bran the Blessed's head was buried where the White Tower stands in Britain, and Britain would be safe from invasion as long as it stayed buried there.

You can see the parallels in each story. It is eerily similar to Bran Stark needing to stay buried beneath a White Tree (instead of White Tower) in order to keep Westeros from being invaded from the Others.

In the myth, King Arthur digs up Bran the Blessed's head. If we follow the parallels of each story, I think that someone will help Bran out of the cave.

Here is a thread that better explains the theory:

http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/87472-bran-stark-is-bran-the-blessed/

[The-Paul-Arron00]

They don't have Viagra in westeros as far as I know. Bran is paralyzed from the waist down which mean he CAN'T use anything from the waist down. People in our place and time can because of the medical advances we've been able to make. Also in AgOt Ned says explicitly; Bran will never be able to have children, "bran will never be able to hold his own son in his hands." I don't think grrm would add something like this if it wasn't the case. Plus the other reasons I stated this makes bran unfit to be a northern king. Even if he could have children( which he can't) he can' lead men into war which is what a king HAS to be able to do.