A Game of Thrones, Bran I
Let me first say that after I finished, I thought that GRRM purposefully ends each chapter with a mini cliffhanger. Now we all know this, and it makes for a page turning fun read. But it struck me that it may be an intentional device to prevent readers from stopping and contemplating the details of what they've just read. I am trying to stop and think over each chapter, but the story calls to me to race ahead with reading. GRRM doesn't need to bait and switch if he induces us to rush headlong through the story.
Again GRRM tells the story from a third person perspective, commonly called a POV. We get our first introductions of Bran, Eddard, Robb, Jon, Jory, Theon, Hullen, and Harwin. Rickon, Old Nan, King Robert, and Mance Rayder are mentioned by name. The Children of the Forest are first mentioned.
Bran's feelings are... Eddard is a loving and patient father while being a just and concerned lord. Robb is fun, passionate and strong. Jon is observant and quick of mind and body. Jory, Hullen, and Harwin are superstitious.
We are supposed to identify the deserter as Gared from the prologue. Two ears and a finger missing from frostbite, just like he claimed to Waymar. All of his comments go over Bran's head and so are not passed along to us. Gared is chained to the inner wall of a small holdfast. Previously, Gared was bound to The Wall for forty years. He is executed on an ironwood stump in the holdfast square. Eddard's entourage seemingly does this trip in an hour or two... they don't have supplies (food or tents)... so they must be very close to Winterfell.
The season is late summer. The ninth year of summer. A nine year summer implies a nine year spring, preceeded by a nine year winter, preceeded by a nine year autumn.... Bran is seven years old. This could mean Bran will be in his mid-thirties by the time the next summer begins.
The time of day is morning. Weather is chilly.
Old Nan says wildling men are slavers, slayers, and thieves; they consort with giants and ghouls; they steal girl children and drink blood. She also says wildling women mate with the Others.
Descriptions: Robb is big and broad, fair skinned, red-brown hair, blue eyes, fourteen years old
Jon is slender and dark, grey eyes that are almost black, of an age with Robb
Eddard has brown hair and grey eyes
Ice is taller than Robb, as wide as a hand, dark as smoke, spell forged Valyrian steel
Theon is nineteen and always amused.
Robb challenges Jon to a race. Robb laughs while Jon is intent.
Jon is observant, but claims Robb found the direwolf.
Eddard explains the ways of the First Men. The man pronouncing judgement should be the executioner. This is almost immediately applied to the direwolves. If Eddard needed them dead, he'd do it. But he finds the newborn pups innocent.... foreshadowing his protestation of Robert's bounty upon Dany... and foreshadowing his offer of mercy to Cersei because of her children.
Theon claims the dead wolf a freak. Robb claims it is a wolf. Jon is the first to say direwolf.
The first south of the Wall in two hundred years. Does this mean they've been hunted to extinction south of the Wall or is GRRM implying the Starks originated from north of the Wall?
None of Eddard's men like direwolves, Hullen (the master of horses) especially.
Jory says it's a sign. Bran is too young (and we are too ignorant of the Seven KIngdoms) to know why Eddard's men take this as an evil omen.
Robb uses a different voice, Eddard's voice, to command Theon to back off.
Jon agrees that it is a sign but in the opposite way. He also speaks in a different voice, a formal voice to claim it is the Starks' fate to have these beasts. The five are selected to be given to Eddard's true children.
I am going to attempt to connect some people and actions in the story... these are new thoughts to me, bear with me. If I go completely off the rails, please tell me.
Only Jon hears the white pup. Bran hears the clatter of hooves. Bran hears the wind. But somehow Jon hears the pup and wonders why others cannot hear it. Why didn't Jon hear the pup earlier? Why didn't Jon (who Bran thinks is so keen eyed) not see it before?
So I recently reread ADWD, and Eddard and Theon both hear Bran through the Winterfell heart tree. The three-eyed crow tells Bran that is impossible, that they just hear the wind, but the text makes me think they actually heard a voice. Is this how Robb first found the direwolf? It seems she was not quite visible from the road.
Jon says the white pup crawled away. Eddard supposes it might have been driven away. Albino direwolf.
So how did the direwolf get there? Is is strange that two beings from north of the Wall were found in the same neighborhood around Winterfell within a day of each other? Gared and the direwolf. The prologue is not in Gared's POV so we don't know much. But a wolf did howl when Gared's frustration was growing. And Gared did mention that a fire would keep a direwolf away. Did Gared flee with his direwolf? How do we explain how a direwolf got to Winterfell? It did not fly, it did not climb over the Wall, it did not walk around Eastwatch. It might have braved the sheer gorge beyond the Shadow Tower or it might have floated over on ice. It might have come through the secret door in the Nightfort that Coldhands showed Sam.... if it had a Black Brother to speak the words.
Lord Brynden, the three-eyed crow, teaches Bran to skinchange a raven in ADWD. Bran notices that there is another person inside the raven. Brynden says it is a long dead child of the forest. He explains that once an animal has been bonded with a person, it is much easier for another person to do the same. Bran enjoys flying as a raven and does this with many ravens.
Now the implications are immense. I've posted before that of all the religions, I only see the priests of R'hllor doing anything resembling the supernatural. So if Jon (and Jory) claim the direwolf is a sign... who sent it? If the Stark kids are meant to have the direwolves, who sent the mother direwolf? The old gods? I don't see any power there. R'hllor? No. But Varamyr, Orell, Brynden, Bran, Jojen, the children of the forest, Arya, Jon, Coldhands, and perhaps Robb and Sansa as well display mental/emotional links with animals. (On a side note, mayhaps the Maesters do with ravens, but that's another discussion.)
I'm going to go waaaaay out on a limb here... If gods did not send the wolf, then did Brynden or the children of the forest? The children don't seem too concerned with the Seven Kingdoms, but Brynden does. Did Brynden send the direwolf or skinchange into the direwolf to accompany Gared? And if Brynden warged the pregnant direwolf, then he'd have the power to warg the albino pup (coincidentally Brynden is an albino) to crawl away and then call specifically to Jon.
In
Skinchangers, dragon riders and blood, I shared some thoughts on humans links with animals.
I know I really moved from observations towards conjecture here. My fear is that I'll develop some theories quickly and find that they are all dead ends by ASOS.
