A Clash of Kings

During the harvest feast, Bran is so bothered by the noise and heat of the hall that he briefly slips into a waking dream of the godswood. Two guests arrive during the feast: Lady Meera Reed and her brother Jojen, of Greywater Watch, a small holding loyal to the Starks. The Frey boys look down on the Reeds, but the Reeds prove eloquent in their greeting to Bran.

Bran welcomes them to Winterfell, and Jojen expresses his interest in seeing the direwolves. When Bran goes to bed that night, he dreams of being Summer again, running around with Shaggydog. They sense intruders and find themselves faced with the Reeds. When Jojen touches Summer’s muzzle, Bran’s dream dissolves into an everlasting fall.

Catelyn is sent by Robb to form a treaty with Renly, even though she is reluctant to travel for fear that her ailing father will die. She and her escort make a safe journey to Renly’s encampment, where nearly all the great houses of the south have gathered.

Catelyn arrives in the middle of a tourney. The favorite of the tourney is Ser Loras Tyrell, though he is upset by a blue knight. Catelyn is surprised to learn that the blue knight is a woman named Brienne “The Beauty” of Tarth. As champion, Brienne is granted a boon by Renly: She requests a place on his Rainbow Guard.

Catelyn is introduced to Renly and his wife, Margaery Tyrell, Loras’s sister. Renly invites Catelyn to stay in his pavilion, and she is stunned by its luxury, size, and décor. During the evening feast, she observes Renly’s inner circle and worries that they will lose their youthful spirit by the end of the war.

In a private conversation, Renly recalls how he offered Eddard military support to take the throne from Joffrey, insinuating that he would not have died had he not refused the offer. He shows Catelyn the vastness of his army, which far outnumbers Robb’s. Renly disregards Stannis’s argument of hereditary succession, citing Robert’s usurpation of the throne as a counterpoint. He offers to let Robb remain King in the North as long as he pledges fealty to Renly. A rider arrives to inform Renly that Stannis has launched a siege on Storm’s End, Renly’s holding.

The Night’s Watch rides to the keep of Craster, an unsavory wildling who is sympathetic to rangers and has worked with them in the past. Craster reports that he has not seen Benjen in several years, even though Benjen was supposed to have passed that way on his last ranging mission. Jeor suggests escorting Craster to the Wall for his safety, but Craster assures them he isn’t afraid of Mance Rayder, the wildling King-beyond-the-Wall. He also warns the rangers against touching any of his wives, and as a sign of goodwill, Jeor gifts Craster his axe.

Jon seeks out Sam, who can work with Craster to draw a map leading to Mance Rayder’s kingdom. One of Craster’s wives, Gilly, approaches Jon and Sam and asks to be freed from Craster’s Keep. She is pregnant and fears that Craster will sacrifice her child if she gives birth to a boy. She says that he believes the sacrifices keep away the “cold gods,” referring to the wights. Jon explains that it is logistically impossible to bring her with them. This leaves Gilly crestfallen.

The next morning, Jon tells Jeor about Craster’s sacrifices, but Jeor already knows and explains them away. Jeor urges Jon to focus on the war the Night’s Watch has set out to fight. He indicates that Mance Rayder is massing his army to launch an invasion south of the Wall.

At the port, Theon seduces a shipwright named Esgred and offers to take her to Pyke. She initially resists but relents when he offers her every convenience on the way to his father’s feast. Theon is infatuated with Esgred, and she similarly shows interest in details of Theon’s life, from the name of his horse to his opinions of his uncles.

When they reach Pyke, the men identify Esgred as Asha, Theon’s sister, leaving him dumbfounded that he failed to recognize her as a grown woman. She explains that she deceived him to understand who he had become. At the feast, Asha sits at Theon’s place. She teases him over their earlier encounter and claims that he is not a worthy leader to fight for.

After the feast, Balon reveals his plans to his family. He orders Asha to conquer the northern castle of Deepwood Motte. Theon will conduct raids on small fishing villages. This will provoke Winterfell into meeting Theon’s uncle, Victarion, at Moat Cailin and weaken their hold on the North.

Tyrion finds Cersei lounging with her cousin Lancel. He sends Lancel away so that he can share the news that Stannis has laid siege to Storm’s End, not King’s Landing. They are both relieved that the Baratheons have chosen to fight each other. Tyrion pours wine to celebrate but drugs Cersei’s cup to incapacitate her.

The next day, while Cersei is indisposed, Tyrion sits on the throne and summons Ser Cleos Frey to discuss Robb Stark’s peace offer. After announcing Dorne’s allegiance with the Lannisters, Tyrion issues a counteroffer that Robb free Jaime and march under his command. He refuses to release the Stark girls until Jaime is released but orders Eddard’s remains to be returned to the Starks. Tyrion orders Cersei’s trusted household captain, Vylarr, to escort Cleos back to Riverrun.

Ser Alliser Thorne arrives with a report of the wights that attacked the Night’s Watch. He meant to show Tyrion the wight’s reanimated hand, but because so much time has passed, the hand has degraded into bones. Tyrion orders Thorne to be sent back with spades, believing that the Night’s Watch has simply failed to bury their dead.

Littlefinger reproaches Tyrion after discovering that the plan to wed Myrcella to Robert Arryn was a ruse. Varys wonders how Tyrion will justify the removal of Vylarr from Cersei’s court. Tyrion explains that he has sent assassins among Vylarr’s men to free Jaime from Riverrun.

Later that night, Tyrion catches Grand Maester Pycelle in bed with a servant girl. He confronts him about being Cersei’s informant, explaining that only the letter contained the detail of Myrcella being sent to Dorne. Pycelle admits to being a traitor but stresses that he acted for the good of the realm. When Tyrion accuses him of poisoning Jon Arryn, Pycelle clarifies that Arryn was murdered by his squire at Cersei’s silent command. Tyrion orders Pycelle’s incarceration.

Gregor and a man called the Tickler systematically interrogate the village folk for information on Beric Dondarrion. The interrogations are conducted in full view of the others to intimidate them.

Arya is forced to reveal that she is a girl to the other caravan members. She is disappointed in herself for failing to fight back against Gregor’s men, which led to her losing Needle, which is now held by a man named Polliver. Gendry is forced into service as a smith.

Gregor marches the prisoners to Harrenhal, where they will serve Tywin Lannister. Every night, Arya starts whispering the names of all the people she hates—from Gregor to Cersei—to pray for their deaths. When they reach Harrenhal, Arya gives “Weasel” as her name to prevent her true identity from being discovered. She is put in the service of a stern understeward named Weese.

Daenerys is toured around Qarth, a city of extraordinary development and culture. Xaro Xhoan Daxos and Pyat Pree both promise her luxuries and wisdom, though Daenerys wants gifts that will help her conquer King’s Landing. Jorah advises her not to trust either of the men.

Quaithe echoes Jorah’s warning, hinting that the men covet the dragons. Daenerys bolsters the security around her dragons but remains convinced that she was led to Qarth for a reason.

A ship captain shares the news that Robert Baratheon is dead and his son Joffrey is on the Iron Throne. Jorah is skeptical about the news, but Daenerys is optimistic, understanding that the Seven Kingdoms will be fractured by war.

The Reeds stay at Winterfell as Bran’s guests. Jojen warns Bran to leave Winterfell soon—he has greensight, an ability to dream of future events. Bran shares his dream of a winged wolf being freed from chains by a three-eyed crow. Jojen interprets that Bran is the winged wolf and that the Reeds have been sent to free Bran by opening his third eye. The third eye will allow Bran to see through time.

To prove his claims, Jojen cites the dream Bran had the night they met. He felt Bran’s presence in Summer and followed him into his dream of falling. Jojen’s claims make Bran anxious and provoke Summer and Shaggydog to anger. This makes Meera anxious, so Bran calls Hodor to chase the wolves away.

Bran consults Maester Luwin about Jojen’s greensight. Luwin, citing his expertise in higher mysteries, believes that magic has lost its power in the world and dismisses Jojen’s ability as false. When Bran shares the maester’s response with Meera, Meera tells him about Jojen’s dream in which the Frey boys were served grey meat at a feast. The Freys were more satisfied by their meal than Bran was by his fresh cut of meat. Later that evening, Bran decides Luwin is right; if magic still existed, it would have allowed him to become a knight in spite of his paraplegia.

Lancel demands Pycelle’s release from prison. When Lancel threatens Tyrion, Tyrion accuses him of being in an incestuous relationship with Cersei. Lancel is shocked, confirming his suspicion. Tyrion extorts Lancel into becoming his informant. To convince Cersei of his goodwill, he promises to release Pycelle.

On his way to Shae’s manse, Tyrion hears a song that reminds him of Tysha, the sex worker Jaime hired when they were younger to “make him a man” (452). When he reaches Shae, he assures himself that this time he has power.