Her gaze shifts onto the spymaster himself as Ned Stark falls into his seat. The brown eyes of her intentional advisor meet hers, and she nods at him to continue as he stands. Varys imparts, "Lord Baelish was an evil man who was driven by the sole whim to rule the Seven Kingdoms. I do not have any first-person evidence of his crimes. He was careful not to reveal much to me. But I know many to them to have existed. I believe Sansa Stark would be the best person to ask, given she was his protégé for many years."
Another strike. Daenerys wants to seethe at this man for placing Sansa Stark on a pedestal above herself and those under the wheel. Do they not see that Sansa is as malicious as Petyr Baelish. Eying the girl as she stands without approval, Daenerys is not fooled by the firm look in Sansa's eye or the air of nobility she breathes. This is a woman as wicked as the executed himself—a woman trained by both Baelishes and possessing the worst attributes of both.
But Sansa is not waived by the look in the Dragon Queen's eye, responding to the silent gesture to speak her own truths: "Petyr Baelish killed Jon Arryn, the first Hand of the Robert Baratheon, with poison. Lysa Arryn told me this under no pretenses to lie, for I was posing as the bastard child of Lord Baelish at the time. Petyr Baelish murdered Lysa Arryn by pushing her through the moon door. I was there, and I can testify to this action. Petyr Baelish conspired to kill Joffrey Baratheon by poisoning. Petyr Baelsih forced himself upon me many times over the years of our 'friendship.' Petyr Baelish kidnapped me from King's Landing to the Vale and later sold me to the Boltons. I was married without choice to Ramsey who tortured and raped me every day for six moons. Petyr Baelish did this to me, and I can certainly testify to that."
Her voice becomes louder and stronger as she lists the crimes of the already-dead man, looking Daenerys straight in the eye and daring her to rebuke such truths. And while Daenerys is slightly taken aback by the sexual assaults this woman has overcome—if true—the man who loves Sansa Stark stands so as to draw the attention back from the woman. And as such, Daenerys looks to Stannis Baratheon, the man who once contested her throne but supposedly has given it up. Her eyebrows waver as the man adds, "Petyr Baelish meant to steal the Northern throne from Jon Snow on his trip to parlay with you, Your Grace. He had plots in the works which I can accurately testify to, seeing as I was spying on him. His death prevented such plans as these from going into action."
The notably stiff man returns to his chair as the room lingers about in the sound of creaking hinges in the chilly wind against the thick walls, running warm with the natural spring below. And as the Dragon Queen breathes in a deep breath that this position affords her, she looks to the crowd about her, awaiting the words of another—that other. Yet, the woman says nothing in her unwavering façade—like the buffer to the Northern winds, never yielding under the mighty blows to her past and her present—and Daenerys has to wonder how this woman manages it. She supposedly hated this man—saw him as her sole antagonist until the rise of the Night King. Yet, there she sits...silent.
Maybe it's because she is kind, or maybe it's that Daenerys wants to hear her testimony—but either way, she addresses the room with their last chance, "Anyone else?"
And as if cued, Gabrielle rises from the bench next to Sansa, the blue of her dress brushing against the black of Sansa's as she steps out into the center of the arena—the colosseum to her youth and her suffering. And in that moment, it's like she is just a young girl, forced into front of her father's men in a beautiful dress that's meant to be ripped off. No longer do they stare at her as if she is a feast—but a monster—and she supposes that is something better given she's meant to be the true hero of these people. Sansa meets her eye as Gabrielle's expression wavers, seeing the strength in this woman whom she'd taught to be strong. I was her refuge, as she is now mine. And despite the quaking at the memories—at the present battle of wills and at the penchant of these people to see her as a broken monster—her face shifts into a look of confidence, that while unlike her past self, is still stronger than her present.
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The Provenance || Jon Snow | Game of Thrones
ספרות חובביםTo epitomize the world in which we live, we must first step back and remember that we are flawed. But to understand the world in which we live, we must recognize that man realizes just this: the good exploit the flaws and the wicked jeopardize their...
