A Storm of Swords

Jaime wonders if he can marry his twin sister Cersei now that the truth is out, citing incest among the Targaryen ruling family as a precedent.

Their party is ambushed by archers, who wound Brienne and kill Cleos. Jaime tries to take Cleos’s arms so that he can help fight back future attackers. Brienne refuses to let him have weapons, provoking a swordfight between them. Jaime realizes that Brienne is now a better fighter than him. She wins their duel.

The duel is witnessed by mercenaries called the Brave Companions, who capture them. Jaime appeals to the group commander, Urswyck, claiming that Brienne’s home has stores of sapphires. Urswyck believes this lie and informs his superior, Vargo Hoat, that Brienne can be ransomed for sapphires. Hoat has Jaime’s sword hand cut off, shattering his identity as one of the best swordsmen in the realm.

Arya learns that the outlaws want to ransom her to Riverrun, so that they can fund their winter supplies. At a refuge called High Heart, the outlaws consult an old woman, whose strange dreams point them to Beric’s camp.

The outlaws seek refuge in the home of Lady Smallwood. The lady is upset with the state of Arya’s dress and gives her a gown. She gives the outlaws another lead to find Beric.

Daenerys arrives in the city of Astapor to seek an audience with the enslaver Kraznys mo Nakloz. Kraznys speaks in High Valyrian, which Daenerys pretends not to know. While Kraznys openly insults Daenerys, the interpreter who speaks on his behalf treats Daenerys graciously.

Kraznys is the enslaver of the Unsullied, who begin their brutal training when they are children. The Unsullied are obedient, highly resistant to pain, and have no sense of individuality. Kraznys offers a portion of his 8,000 soldiers for sale. Arstan advises against the transaction, arguing that Westeros has a moral opposition to slavery. Daenerys does not agree with his advice, fearing that the loyalty of sympathetic lords in Westeros to her as a Targaryen is uncertain. On the way back to her ship, Daenerys sees how the enslaved people live at the mercy of the enslavers.

Daenerys later laments to Jorah over the cruelty of the city. She knows she ought to leave, but also feels she cannot do so without buying the Unsullied. Jorah encourage the purchase. Daenerys recalls her eldest brother, the heroic Rhaegar, speculating that he would have never employed the Unsullied into his service. Jorah implies that this is why Rhaegar died.

While crossing mountains to reach the Wall, Meera encourages Bran to remember Old Nan and her stories, so that they may live on. Bran asks Meera to tell him a story, so Meera recalls the tale of the Knight of Laughing Tree. The story concerns a crannogman (a resident of the marshlands that Meera and Jojen call home) who found himself at a royal tourney in Harrenhal. Three squires bullied the crannogman for his small size. The crannogman was soon saved by a Stark lady.

The Starks offered to give the crannogman armor to take vengeance on the squires, but the crannogman was too ashamed to accept it. The next day, a mystery warrior called the Knight of the Laughing Tree (implied to be the crannogman) defeated all three of his bully squires’ knights and chastened them to teach their squires honor. Afterward, he vanished.

Bran critiques the story. Jojen wonders if Ned ever told him that story before.

The witch Melisandre visits Davos in his cell. Davos criticizes her for letting Stannis sail into Blackwater Bay when she knew from her fire visions that he was doomed to fail. Melisandre justifies that the loss was necessary to purge the unbelievers from Stannis’s army. She asserts that Stannis has been chosen by her fire god, R’hllor, to battle the Lord of Darkness.

Stannis’s Hand, Lord Alester Florent, is incarcerated after attempting to surrender Stannis’s claim to Joffrey. He asserts that Stannis’s refusal to surrender is a result of Melisandre’s unshakeable influence over him. Davos corrects Alester, believing that Stannis would rather die for his convictions than surrender his life to Joffrey.

Upon reaching the Wall, Jon directs his dire wolf, Ghost, to return to Castle Black. Having had sex with Ygritte, Jon knows he cannot return without facing the consequences of his broken vows.

After providing Styr and Jarl with intelligence, Jon goes looking for Ygritte and finds her in a private cavern with a pool. Ygritte strips naked, prompting Jon to declares his love for her. He performs oral sex on her. Afterward, Ygritte admits she was afraid Jon would take her back to the Wall after he captured her.

Jon suggests that they should go up, but not before he and Ygritte stumble into the pool and have sex one more time. Ygritte expresses her wish to stay there forever.

Daenerys returns to Kraznys with an offer to buy all Unsullied units, including those still in training. Kraznys and his colleagues argue over whether they should accept the offer, so Daenerys doubles down by offering in exchange her ships and one of her dragons. The Astaporian masters ask for Drogon, the oldest and largest dragon. Daenerys agrees. The enslavers offer her their enslaved interpreter.

Daenerys reveals her fluency in High Valyrian to the interpreter, who introduces herself as Missandei. Daenerys emancipates Missandei and gives her the option to continue serving her. Missandei accepts, having nowhere else to go. Missandei, who has brothers among the Unsullied, suggests keeping the soldiers on as Daenerys’s personal guard after the war is won.

On the eve of the sale, Daenerys muses to Jorah that rulers should protect those who have no protections. As queen, she wants to seek justice.

Daenerys gives Kraznys possession of Drogon in exchange for the whip that gives her command over the Unsullied. Kraznys struggles to rein Drogon in. Daenerys explains that dragons are not slaves and orders Drogon to incinerate Kraznys. Daenerys then orders the Unsullied to kill their former masters and emancipate the other enslaved Astaporians.

Cersei informs Sansa that Sansa is to be married to Tyrion. Sansa is horrified and tries to resist, but Cersei has her escorted to the sept—a place of worship.

Before the wedding starts, Tyrion apologizes to Sansa for the suddenness of their marriage. He offers to let her marry Lancel—a handsome Lannister cousin—instead. Sansa holds back her true feelings and accepts the marriage.

During the wedding feast, Sansa dreads the bedding, a ritual in which the guests urge the wedding couple to consummate their marriage. Sansa is encouraged by her guests to think well of her new husband. Joffrey sexually threatens and taunts her.

When Joffrey calls for the bedding to commence, Tyrion threatens him in protest. Tywin tries to placate both sides, eliciting an apology from Tyrion. Out of spite, Tyrion takes Sansa away from the feast. When they are alone, Tyrion opens up about his first wedding, which surprises Sansa. They undress themselves, but it is clear to Tyrion that Sansa fears him. He acknowledges his ugliness and assures her of his better qualities, including his kindness. Sansa understands that he is frightened as well. Just before they have sex, Tyrion chooses not to proceed. He wants Sansa to get to know and trust him first. He swears that he will never touch her without her consent. Sansa indicates that she may never want sex with him. Tyrion spitefully concedes to this.

Arya, Gendry, and the outlaws stop at the town of Stoney Sept. The townspeople are publicly torturing Stark soldiers for committing war crimes during their search for Jaime Lannister. Though Arya is horrified, she extends them mercy by giving them water. The townspeople threaten to report her to the Mad Huntsman, their local hero. Anguy kills the soldiers to end their torture.

The group stops at an inn called the Peach, which Arya suspects is actually a brothel. That night, an old man mistakes Arya for a sex worker, so Gendry steps in to defend her. Arya scolds Gendry for claiming to be her brother, which upsets Gendry.

The next morning, a large group of hunters arrive with a Lannister prisoner in tow. Arya is delighted when she recognizes the prisoner.