Fanfic / There and Back Again

The Stranger: (to Jon Snow) This was never supposed to happen... You were supposed to win.

Landing somewhere between Robb Returns and The Raven's Plan, There and Back Again by NaerysBlackfyre90 is a Game of Thrones Peggy Sue fanfic where Jon Snow is sent back in time along with a few allies to fix his mistakes and become King.

Shortly after going into exile for killing Daenerys after her burning of King's Landing, Jon Targaryen receives an unexpected visitor one day. Turns out the Gods are... displeased with how events played out. The Three-Eyed Raven, formerly known as Brynden "Bloodraven" Rivers, manipulated the prophecy of the Prince That Was Promised and turned it into a means where he would become an eternal king. So, all of the deities of the world (the Seven, the Old Gods, and the Lord of Light) decide to work together to send critical players back to before the Game was solidified and put a hand on the scale this time to ensure this doesn't happen again. As such, Jon and his allies have a new game plan to remake the realm, challenge the old status quo, and get the prophecy right this time. Of course, changing history isn't going to be without consequence and unforeseen factors are everywhere. And all they can do now is hope that they manage to pull through before Winter comes again.

Can also be read here.

This fanfic contains the following tropes:

• Accidental Pervert: Jon accidentally sees Sansa in the bath while warging into Ghost.
• Accusation Fic: Of a sort towards Jon and Bran's actions after Season 5 of the show and the choices they made. Also of what Daenerys was under her posturing.
• Action Girl:
  • Ned intends for Sansa and Arya to be trained to fight.
  • The Manderly daughters have taken up Braavosi water dancing.
• Adaptation Distillation: While the story is primarily based on the show, it also includes many secondary and tertiary characters from the books who were Adapted Out, such as the Estermonts, Maege Mormont's other daughters besides Lyanna, and Harry Hardyng.
• Adaptational Early Appearance:
  • Gilly, who first appeared in the second season, appears in Chapter 22, where events start to correspond with the show's first season. It's explained as the result of her moving to Queenscrown and taking up a job as Jon's assistant after the Night's Watch brought Craster to justice at some point during the five years that went by.
  • Similarly, Ygritte and Tormund, who made their debut in the second and third season, make their introduction in the same chapter by recovering Dark Sister and disposing of Bloodraven with help from R'hllor.
• Adaptational Name Change:
  • Jon names the three dragons he hatches (originally Daenerys' dragons in canon) Algernon, Eärendil, and Illyrion.
  • In the show, Jon was originally named Aegon by Lyanna. Here, Ned states that Jon has always been Jon and that this is a lie Bloodraven told Sam because Lyanna didn't live long enough to name Jon.
  • The eldest of Craster's daughter-wives was named Morag in the show, but her name is changed to Daella here.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul:
  • Robin Arryn is revealed to be Lysa's son by Littlefinger.
  • Gilly's mother was not identified in the books or show. Here it's revealed to be Morag/Daella, the eldest of Craster's wives.
• Adaptational Wimp: Invoked In-Universe with For Want Of A Nail for a number of characters to lessen their influence compared to how they were in the original (canonical) timeline.
  • Thanks to Varys exposing his affair with Lysa Arryn and other shady activities, which takes him out of the game early on, Littlefinger is much less politically powerful than before and is forced to ally himself with the Targaryens.
  • Daenerys Targaryen as well, thanks to the gods preventing Bloodraven from giving her Jon's magic and dragon eggs.
• Agony of the Feet: The first sign that Daenerys doesn't have magic in the rebooted timeline is that she scalds one of her feet in the boiling hot bathwater that she was able to take a dip into without hurting herself in the previous timeline.
• Alliterative Name: Alys Arryn, Jon and Lysa's daughter.
• All Your Base Are Belong to Us: As of Chapter 37, Tywin has launched an invasion of the Reach and captured several castles, setting up headquarters at Old Oak. He then sends Kevan to capture Brightwater Keep, the castle of the Florents.
• Altar Diplomacy:
  • Discussed by Tywin, who figures setting up a marriage between Joffrey and Sansa for an alliance with the North and one between Tommen and Alys Arryn to build one with the Vale could work out in their best interest.
  • Also discussed between Olenna and Margaery Tyrell, as Olenna mentions that she had considered betrothing Margaery to Robb Stark due to his familial connections as the nephew of Jon Arryn and grandson of Hoster Tully.
  • Sansa invokes this in Chapter 25 for getting the North behind Jon given the history regarding Rhaegar and Lyanna, throwing the possibility of herself marrying Jon (which is what she personally wants) and getting Rickon with Alys Arryn.
  • Tywin has been setting up marriage alliances to various houses in the Reach to gain a foothold. Specifically he's promised Kevan's daughter Janei to House Oakheart, Lancel is to marry the daughter of Lord Rowan, and Kevan's son Willem to a Lady Crane.
• Ambiguous Situation: Sansa wonders sometimes if Ghost was sent back, since the Ghost from the new timeline tends to stare north towards Queenscrown which he also stared southward in the old timeline when Jon went to Dragonstone.
• And I'm the Queen of Sheba: When Tyrion says that he's staying in King's Landing to be with his family, King Robert replies "Ha! Sure it is, and I am the Queen of Thorns".
• And Now You Must Marry Me: Daenerys seems obsessed with making Jon her consort if he swears his loyalty and obedience to her. If he does not, he will be Forced to Watch his family be executed before being burned himself.
• Animal Motifs: Kevan compares Robert Baratheon to an angry boar in more than just personality.
• Anything but That!: The prospect of being cast aside by her husband and sent back to face her Jerkass father after humiliating their families for cheating on and lying to said husband about the paternity of her son is enough to invoke Scare 'Em Straight for Lysa, driving her to be a better wife and generally behave herself.
• Arranged Marriage: Discussed.
  • Tywin intends to have Joffrey marry Sansa once he dethrones Robert for attacking the Westerlands and propose Tommen to Alys Arryn.
  • Tywin and Genna believe that Viserys Targaryen would try to take advantage of a Westerosi civil war by betrothing Daenerys to Trystane Martell and building up an army with the Dornish to invade. That's what Tywin would do anyway, but with Viserys' tendency towards Stupid Evil, it is unlikely. It turns out that Viserys is planning an alliance, but it's with the Dothraki, as in canon.
• Ascended Extra:
  • Varys was never a POV character in the books, but here, he winds up being one of the main characters who was sent back to ensure Jon is able to take the throne and prepare Westeros for the Long Night. This also applies to Tormund.
  • Lord Eldon Estermont, a background character from the books whose main distinctions are being the uncle of the Baratheons and a positively confusing family tree becomes a POV in Chapter 27.
  • Ser Brynden "Blackfish" Tully is mainly a supporting character to Robb and Catelyn in the books and show. Here, he gets his own POV.
  • Margaery Tyrell gets her own POV while she was a supporting character in the books and show.
• Ascended Meme: When Daenerys finds that there are no dragon eggs in one of the chests at her wedding, her response is to yell "Where are my dragons?!" as in the show.
• Asshole Victim: Given that he tried to bring forth a Zombie Apocalypse and had a city burned to the ground out of spite, nobody is sorry to see Bloodraven go.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Tormund kills Rattleshirt and takes control of his band of wildlings.
• Awesomeness by Analysis: Jon uses this to explain to Robb how he developed his swordsmanship skills by watching the guards train.
• The Bad Guy Wins:
  • How the original timeline (the show) went; Bloodraven arranged for his return from exile Beyond the Wall, hijacked the Prince who was Promised prophecy and the Long Night, and caused the destruction of King's Landing, with the end result being the end of the Targaryens one way or another and that he would rule. With the new timeline, the Gods have stepped in so that Jon can fulfill his destiny as the Prince who was Promised.
  • While not acknowledged within the narrative itself, this trope also applies to Littlefinger in a way. In the original timeline, he successfully killed Jon Arryn and passed off his and Lysa's son, Sweet Robin, off as a legitimate Arryn. In the new timeline, thanks to the gods' work, his schemes are exposed, preventing the old victory he had originally.
• Batman Gambit: Jon, Sansa, and Ned formulate a way to play this in a Long Game form to get the lords in the North to declare for Jon when the time comes. This includes exploiting Robert's bad decision-making as king to anger the lords when he rejects a request for a little more funding for the Night's Watch.
• Bedroom Adultery Scene:
  • Following a tip from Varys, Jon Arryn walks in on his wife having sex with Petyr Baelish, exposing not just her affair but also the true paternity of the boy he thought was his son and heir.
  • The Baratheons find out about Cersei and Jaime's affair and the true paternity of Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen in a similar way, busting them in the middle of having sex after following an anonymous tip.
• Best Served Cold: Why Jon was sent to the Wall at the end of Season 8 as Bloodraven's revenge against the Targaryens. As Bloodraven had been exiled to the Wall, so had the last Targaryen.
• Big Bad Ensemble: According to The Stranger, the show was one of these between the Night King and Brynden "Bloodraven" Rivers, with humanity caught in the middle. The Night King was defeated, but Bloodraven won because the Targaryen name was all set to die out.
• Black Speech: The Others' spoken language is described as sounding like something human ears aren't meant to comprehend.
• Blood Magic: According to the Stranger, every person is born with magic in their blood. Most have just enough to stay alive, but Jon, as the Prince who was Promised, has even more power, which had been siphoned from him over the years by Bloodraven; at full strength, he is able to hatch three dragon eggs by merely cutting his hand and spreading blood over the eggs as they sit over a fire. Contrast with Daenerys who had to burn Mirri Maz Duur alive to hatch her eggs. Bloodraven's tampering also altered Jon's physical appearance; with his magic at full strength, Jon is a few inches taller than he was in the show.
• Body Surf: As of the end of Season 8, Bloodraven's consciousness exists inside Bran Stark and will change bodies whenever the old body begins to fail him.
• Bookcase Passage: The bookcase in Varys' office conceals the hub of all the secret passageways throughout the Red Keep, which is why Varys chose the place.
• Break the Haughty: Thanks to For Want Of A Nail, some characters wind up getting knocked off their high horses in a new way.
  • After being caught cheating on him and passing the result of her affair off as her husband's legitimate son and heir, Lysa Arryn is informed that she can either be shipped to the Silent Sisters or sent back home a disgrace. Instead, she pleads with her husband to give her another chance and promises to do anything and everything he asks of her. He keeps her on a tight leash at all times from then on, having her be continuously supervised by two septas when not in his presence. Getting called out and punched by her sister is the cherry on top. Following the five-year Time Skip, she's become much more subdued.
  • Downplayed a bit with Catelyn, who is stubbornly Holier Than Thou but isn't "broken" so much as she's forced to undergo some Character Development by getting called out when it's appropriate.
  • Daenerys Targaryen undergoes this in the rebooted timeline after inexplicably getting her own memories restored (most likely as a wayward soul) to the point of practically qualifying for Butt-Monkey status. First, she finds out to her shock that she no longer has heat resistance as she did in her previous lifetime, then discovers that things have also changed in Westeros which throws another complication into her plans, and the dragon eggs aren't in her possession anymore.
• Brought Down to Normal: Thanks to the gods' intervention to prevent Bloodraven's hijacking of the prophecy, the rebooted timeline Daenerys doesn't have the heat resistance that she had in the old timeline, which she finds out the hard way when she burns her foot in the hot bath.
• The Bus Came Back: Tyrion, Varys, Myrcella, Tommen, and Ser Barristan reappear in Chapter 34 after spending 11 chapters at sea, sailing to White Harbor.
• Call a Rabbit a "Smeerp": It's heavily implied that the drink called dragon-water is whiskey.
• Call-Back: When Robb asks Jon why he would exile himself to the Wall, Jon recalls what Uncle Benjen said to him before he departed Beyond the Wall: A man gets what he earns, when he earns it.
• Call-Forward:
  • Or Call-Back considering this is a Peggy Sue, but Tyrion gets transported in a crate by Varys. Varys had thought about disguising Tyrion as a child since he's not much taller than Myrcella but decided on smuggling him as cargo to get back at him for betraying him.
  • Daenerys remembers Olenna Tyrell's advice to "be a dragon", and intends to be just that... if she even gets dragons.
• Calling the Old Man Out: Robb is furious with his father for keeping Jon's true parentage a secret from everyone and intending for Jon to join the Night's Watch.
• Came Back Wrong:
  • According to The Stranger, this is what happened to Jon in Season 6 because Jon's soul/psyche was damaged while he was being resurrected due to being stripped of a large part of his natural magic. Really, everyone brought back by the Lord of Light has this problem, but Jon had it worse than most because he has a lot more innate Blood Magic and Bloodraven tampered with it.
  • Played with regarding Daenerys. Technically she came back right (without the magic Bloodraven siphoned to her), but that means she is much weaker than she was in the old timeline. How she is mentally is an entirely different story.
• Canon Character All Along: The show wasn't clear about the Three-Eyed Raven's identity, but here, he's explicitly identified as Bloodraven as in the books.
• Canon Immigrant: A number of characters who'd appeared in the books but Adapted Out of the show show up here.
  • Genna Frey, Tywin and Kevan Lannister's sister, shows up in Chapter 26 where she was absent from the show, as does her husband Emmon.
  • Eldon Estermont, the uncle of the current Baratheons, was a character in the books and a POV character here.
  • Harry Hardyng, Sansa's intended from the later books, shows up here while he had been combined with Ramsay Bolton in the show.
  • Dacey, Alysane, Lyra, and Jorelle Mormont, Maege Mormont's other daughters besides Lyanna, were cut out from the show, but are mentioned here, with Jorelle striking up a friendship with Arya and being fostered in Winterfell.
• Cat Fight: No pun intended, but Catelyn and Lysa get into a fight over each other's children in Chapter 16.
• The Chessmaster: Bloodraven, who manipulated everything occurring in the show (and even some points before that) such as the prophecy of The Prince That Was Promised so that he could become King.
• The Chosen One: Jon, as the Prince who was Promised, was the one who was supposed to receive the dragon eggs laid by Jacaerys Velaryon's dragon.
• Civil War: As of Chapter 34, two are brewing and both are due to a Succession Crisis:
  • Robert declares war on the Lannisters after he learns of the incest between Cersei and Jaime Lannister.
  • Believing Jon Arryn has gone soft, Harry Hardyng declares that he should be Lord of the Vale and with the help of supporters like Lyn Corbray, attacks a summit of lords debating following Robert Baratheon to war.
• Coitus Interruptus:
  • Chapter 8 opens with Jon Arryn finding his wife Lysa cheating on him by busting her in the middle of having sex with Littlefinger.
  • Offscreen example in Chapter 22 - Jon Arryn is woken up in the middle of the night and informed by the Baratheons that they and some guards busted Cersei and Jaime in the middle of having sex after following an anonymous letter informing them of the queen's infidelity and that Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen are not Robert's children.
• Combination Attack: Robert Baratheon's strategy to take out the Lannisters. He will lead the Stormlanders down the Gold Road to Casterly Rock while Mace Tyrell will lead the Reachmen down the Ocean Road and cut off any retreat. Stannis meanwhile will take the Crownlanders and the Royal Fleet to blockade/capture Lannisport.
• Composite Character: In Chapter 23, Sansa takes Jon's place as the one telling Bran not to look away as their father executes the Night's Watch deserter.
• Cool Sword: One of the Seven put the Targaryen Valyrian Steel sword Blackfyre in Jon's chambers. Tormund takes the other, Dark Sister, from Bloodraven's cave.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Thanks to retaining his swordsmanship skills from the previous timeline, the younger Jon knocks Robb flat with a single blow in their sparring match. And he wasn't even trying.
• Dead All Along: Bran Stark in the old timeline due to his personality/soul being assimilated/expunged by Bloodraven.
• Death by Adaptation:
  • Roose Bolton is beaten to death by his bastard son Ramsay in full view of the Northern lords.
  • Ramsay Snow is executed by Ned for attacking Jon, Robb, and Sansa and killing his own father.
  • Craster is caught and killed by Lord Commander Mormont in the five years between Jon taking up the lordship of Queenscrown and finding the direwolf mother. Some of the wives take over his keep after he is dead and use it as a Night's Watch waystation without sacrificing to the White Walkers, while others (most notably Gilly) go to Jon's lands at Queenscrown.
  • Rattleshirt is killed by Tormund, who takes command of his band of wildlings.
  • Bloodraven is killed by Tormund's band of wildlings.
  • Preston Greenfield is killed by Baratheon soldiers while trying to sneak Cersei, Jaime, and Joffrey out of King's Landing.
• Demoted to Extra: Theon plays almost no role in the story.
• Disease Bleach: Jaime, Cersei, and Joffrey are all described as having grey skin after spending some time in the Black Cells.
• Domestic Abuse: Discussed. Robb is resentful that Sansa is being trained to fight because he sees it as his duty to protect his sisters, and their husbands' duty after they marry. Jon responds by asking, "And who will protect them from their husbands?"
• Doomed by Canon: Waymar Royce, Gared, and Will, as Will's execution is the opening scene of Chapter 23.
• Dude, Where's My Respect?:
  • Bloodraven's scheme revolved around this. Embittered by being sent to the Wall after his years of service, he manipulated events so he could return to Westeros in another's body and exile the last Targaryen.
  "Brynden Rivers sacrificed everything he had for the Targaryens and was awarded for his troubles with banishment to the wall. Does that sound familiar?"
  • Eldon mentions that many of the Stormlords were displeased by King Robert's decision to foster Renly with the Tyrells, feeling that Robert was letting Mace Tyrell off too easily for supporting the Targaryens and for his siege on Storm's End.
  • Invoked among the Northern lords towards King Robert. Not only are they frustrated and disappointed that the crown won't help provide even a little extra funding for the Night's Watch at the Wall (which is already underfunded and barely getting by as it is) but one of their own got passed over for a job as Master of Coin to replace Littlefinger in favor of Mace Tyrell. When the North via Ned decline Robert's call to go to war with the Lannisters, it's pointed out to a dismayed Robert that he disrespected the North first and never properly honored their contributions to his rebellion against the Mad King.
• Empty Shell: According to The Stranger, Bran's body from Season 6 onward became nothing more than a mere vessel for Bloodraven's consciousness. And more will follow down the line.
• Enemy Mine:
  • The various Gods, from the Seven, the Old Gods, and the Lord of Light are teaming up by sending various characters back into the past to undo Bloodraven's damage.
  • Discussed. Genna suggests that Viserys Targaryen would try to arrange an alliance with House Martell by betrothing Daenerys to Trystane, due to the Martells' hatred of the Baratheons and Lannisters. Tywin is dismissive of this, believing that Viserys is Stupid Evil enough to not even try.
  • Tywin mentions that he has sent envoys to the Golden Company to harass the Stormlands to distract Robert and Renly.
  • Chapter 27 indicates that Robert has persuaded the Ironborn to join in on his campaign to take out the Lannisters.
• Every Man Has His Price: According to Desmond Redwyne, the easiest way to control the Shield Islands is to promise them protection from the Ironborn.
• Everyone Has Standards:
  • Jon Arryn is appalled to see the state Jaime Lannister is in from Robert unleashing a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown on him after busting him and Cersei in flagrante delicto, and not just because he knows Tywin Lannister will not be happy about his favorite son being beaten within an inch of his life.
  • Hoster Tully callously refusing to take in little Robin for being a bastard born out of Lysa's secret affair with Littlefinger, disregarding his innocent grandson who never did anything wrong in the process, induces this from Jon Arryn, Ned, Sansa, Edmure, and Blackfish.
  • Robert betrothing himself to Sansa brings this out from multiple people due to Old Man Marrying a Child. Kevan and Genna Lannister both express a degree of disgust over the fact that Sansa's too young to marry and give birth to children and while Catelyn is excited over the political advantages it would grant them, she is more than a bit apprehensive about accepting it due to Sansa's age.
• Exact Words:
  • Catelyn receives the truth about Jon rather piecemeal. First Ned confirms that Jon's mother is dead, then when things spiral out of control due to Robert's suit for Sansa's hand, Ned reveals everything.
  • When discussing Prince Rhaegar with Varys, Barristan says that "Rhaegar would have been a good king." Varys thinks the same thing but with a different meaning: with his obsession with prophecies, Rhaegar would have merely been good; better than Aerys II or Robert but paling in comparison to the great kings of the past like Jaehaerys I or Daeron II.
• Eye Scream: Jon kills one of Ramsay Snow's men by throwing a knife into his eye.
• Fights Like a Normal: Jon has powerful Blood Magic, but prefers to stick with his sword.
• Follow the White Rabbit: Sansa was sent back in time when she followed a specter of her direwolf Lady to one of the Old Gods.
• Forbidden Chekhov's Gun: In the five years between Chapters 21 and 22, Jon found deposits of gold but it cannot be mined because he's hiding the dragons there (which counts as another example of this trope).
• Freak Out: Daenerys has an epic one when she sees that there are no dragon eggs in the gifts at her wedding in Chapter 32.
• Generation Xerox: Ned tells Sansa that her personality is similar to his mother's; she was very intelligent and kept her husband Lord Rickard on his toes.
• God of the Dead: The Stranger of the Faith of the Seven is the entity that appears to Jon offering his help and guidance in repairing the prophecy. He is a man of Vague Age (the text describes him as looking neither young nor old), wearing black and white clothes that look too rich for the cold environment Beyond the Wall, but appears unbothered by it.
• Grand Theft Me: Bran's fate in the old timeline, with Bloodraven taking possession of his body and leaving Bran's soul to die while Bloodraven returned to Westeros.
• Groin Attack: Discussed; after giving Jaime Lannister a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown, Robert says that Tywin should be glad he didn't castrate Jaime.
• Henpecked Husband: Rickard Stark to Lyarra, according to Ned.
• Hidden Agenda Villain: Littlefinger, outside of his need to sow chaos. In Chapter 28, it's revealed that he blew the whistle on Cersei and Jaime and allied with the Targaryens, but for what purpose?
• Immortal Ruler: What Bloodraven became in the aftermath of the original timeline.
• Important Haircut: Varys disguises Myrcella by cutting her hair short and dyeing it brown. He also dyes Tommen's hair.
• Impromptu Tracheotomy: Ser Preston Greenfield is speared through the back of the throat by a Baratheon soldier.
• I Need a Freaking Drink: Tyrion's first thought after arriving in White Harbor is that he'd give one of his arms for a jug of wine or dragonwater.
• In Spite of a Nail:
  • Waymar Royce, Gared, and Will are attacked while ranging beyond the Wall by the White Walkers; the former two are killed while Will is executed for desertion by Ned.
  • Syrio Forel is hired by Ned Stark to train Arya.
  • Renly marries Margaery Tyrell; this time it's Robert's idea so he can get Renly and the Tyrells off his back about marrying Margaery after the Lannister incest is revealed.
  • Jaime loses the use of his sword hand; it isn't cut off, but instead badly broken to the point that one of his fingers needs to be amputated.
  • Viserys is still marrying Daenerys to Khal Drogo.
  • Rattleshirt winds up getting killed by Tormund.
  • Jon receives a slash to his face near one of his eyes, this time from a White Walker.
  • Cersei gets a lot of her hair cut off.
  • It's not at the level of the War of the Five Kings in the original timeline, but Petyr Baelish still effectively kicks off a Succession Crisis and Civil War between the Baratheons and the Lannisters over the Iron Throne.
  • Jorah Mormont joins Daenerys' retinue at her wedding since everyone was sent back to after he fled Westeros for Essos.
• Internal Reveal:
  • Robert Baratheon learns of Cersei's infidelity in Chapter 22.
  • Ned reveals Jon's parentage to Catelyn in Chapter 24. This is expanded to the rest of the Northern lords in Chapters 30 and 31.
  • In Chapter 28, Daenerys learns of the various changes in Westeros from the upcoming war with the Lannisters to the Starks looking for funds for the Wall, realizing that at least one other person is aware of the events of the old timeline.
  • In Chapter 31, Cersei and Jaime learn that Tyrion, Myrcella, and Tommen are missing.
• Irony:
  • Sansa notes the irony of naming a big dragon after a small mouse.
  • When Jon and Benjen have to warn the Night's Watch of the White Walkers, the southern-born Othell Yarwyck takes less convincing than the Northern Bowen Marsh.
  • In Chapter 15, Catelyn is unhappy that Sansa is allowed by Ned to receive training in fighting and using weapons, worried it will make her look unappealing to a future prospective husband, such as the heir to the throne and future king of Westeros. Little does she know that the true heir to the throne is a bit of an Amazon Chaser and likes that Sansa Took a Level in Badass.
  • While she did have some resourcefulness and smarts to her, it's clear that Daenerys only got as far as she did in the original timeline due to Bloodraven using her as an Unwitting Pawn.
• It's All About Me: Bloodraven engineered the events of the show's last three seasons, up to and including the destruction of King's Landing, so that he could take revenge on the Targaryens and rule Westeros as an Immortal Ruler.
• I Warned You: Eldon Estermont had advocated for executing Varys after Robert's Rebellion and feels vindicated after Varys leaves in the wake of the reveal about Jaime and Cersei.
• Jumped at the Call: When offered the chance to go back in time, Tormund leaped at the opportunity to save the world again with the hope of saving more of his people and helping out Jon.
• Karma Houdini: Double-subverted. Littlefinger is first arrested for treason against the Hand of the King when it's discovered he's having an affair with Lysa Arryn, but he quickly escapes to Essos, and even five years later, no one has been able to find him or his financial books.
• Kill It with Fire: Tormund burns down Bloodraven's cave, presumably killing him.
• Kissing Cousins: Jon and Sansa are the endgame pairing, building up from the close and trusting relationship they developed after their reunion.
• Knighting: The ten-year-old Jon is knighted after saving Sansa and Robb from Ramsay Snow.
• Late to the Tragedy: Jon Arryn is awoken in the middle of the night by one of his guards and winds up stepping through hallways strewn with numerous dead soldiers, the result of a melee after Cersei and Jaime's incest was discovered.
• Locked Out of the Loop: So far, only Sansa and Jon are entirely in the loop for what their grand plan and experiences will be. Others, like Ned, Varys, Aemon, Robb, and Benjen know parts of what's in motion, but everyone else is locked out and a bit confused by the changes in everyone's moves in the Game of Thrones and in their overall personalities.
• Magic Knight: The new version of Jon, who retains his old life's fighting skills and is capable of Blood Magic and controlling dragons.
• Mass "Oh, Crap!": Everyone, from Jon Arryn to the Lannisters, is shocked when they hear that Robert wants to marry Sansa.
• The Mole:
  • Tywin mentions that Grand Maester Pycelle is passing information from King's Landing to Casterly Rock. Robert eventually gets wind of it and has Pycelle thrown in the Black Cells, leaving his work to be carried out by various assistants.
  • Preston Greenfield still holds allegiance to the Westerlands and attempts to sneak Jaime, Cersei, and Joffrey out of the Black Cells. He gets Cersei and Joffrey out, but Jaime isn't so lucky.
• Morton's Fork: Lysa is faced with one after getting busted for cheating on her husband and lying to him about the paternity of her son, whom she was passing off as his legitimate heir. She's offered the choice of either joining the Silent Sisters or getting sent back to her childhood home and letting her father decide what to do with her, where it's likely he's going to send her to the Silent Sisters anyway. She instead takes a third option in which she pleads with her husband to give her another chance and promises to be a better wife to him.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Tywin suggests that this problem will crop up for Jon Arryn; despite the familial obligation he has with the Starks and the Tullys, he's still Robert's Hand and would be inclined to follow him.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Kevan mistakes Sansa's age for 11 or 12 while Genna says Sansa is 13. The former was Sansa's age in the books; she was aged up to 13 for the show and the fanfic is using the show ages.
  • Jorah tells Dany of the horrifying fate of Aerea Targaryen as detailed in Fire & Blood, which he lists as one of the biggest reasons why people fear exploring the ruins of Old Valyria (aside from the Stone Men and the lingering toxic volcanic fumes).
• Never My Fault: Daenerys' inner thoughts blame Varys, Tyrion, and especially Sansa (in that order) for manipulating Jon into killing her, never stopping to consider for even a second that maybe burning down King's Landing and killing thousands of innocent people might have had something to do with it.
• Not Actually His Child:
  • Jon Arryn finds out from Varys that Lysa has been having an affair with Petyr Baelish behind his back and passed off the product of their affair, Robin, as Jon's son. He doesn't bear any ill will towards the boy though, wanting to still make sure that he'll at least be taken care of well, especially when his biological father dips out of the picture. They later do have a legitimate daughter together and are expecting another child following the five-year Time Skip, though that comes with its own problems.
  • Thanks to an anonymous report from Littlefinger, Robert finds out that Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen are not his children when Cersei and Jaime's affair is exposed.
• Not Me This Time: When Queen Cersei's affair with Jaime is revealed, Jon Arryn starts looking around for Varys because Varys had previously blown the whistle on Lysa and Littlefinger's affair. In the next chapter, it's revealed that Varys did not send the letter revealing the affair, and has no idea himself; he believes that Littlefinger, who has been on the lam for five years, revealed the affair in order to create chaos... and maybe a clean slate with the King. It turns out that Littlefinger did indeed reveal the incestuous relationship between Cersei and Jaime, but he's now supporting Viserys and Daenerys and his overall motivations are still unclear at this time.
• Not So Above It All: Kevan admits to taking pleasure in intimidating Emmon Frey and has his own family ambitions like marrying one of his sons to Jon Arryn's daughter.
• Obnoxious In-Laws: Tywin and Kevan Lannister make it clear they dislike their brother-in-law Emmon and the former mainly views him (and House Frey by extension) as a useful stopgap against the North.
• Old Man Marrying a Child: Downplayed since Robert is only in his mid-thirties, but he intends to marry the thirteen-year-old Sansa to replace Cersei after the latter's affair is discovered. Everyone who learns of it is shocked for a couple of reasons:
  • Jon Arryn points out that his own marriage to Lysa, which was also an example of this trope, is not a happy one, even if they've been making a somewhat more honest go of it lately.
  • Robert needs to sire a legitimate heir right now and Sansa hasn't flowered yet; childbirth could likely be very dangerous.
• Old Soldier: Lord Eldon Estermont is seventy years old and led his own troops in the last two wars. He would be leading them again against the Lannisters if he wasn't serving on the Small Council.
• The One Thing I Don't Hate About You: Inverted. Kevan looks up to Tywin and respects him, but the thing he doesn't like about him is his treatment of Tyrion.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
  • Any time when Robert actually looks serious or deep in thought is noted to be weird to see.
  • Tywin very rarely paces, considering the practice a waste of movement. So when he starts pacing while reading Robert's declaration of war on the Lannisters, Kevan knows something is up.
  • In Chapter 32, Eldon Estermont notes that the charming and jolly Renly looks more troubled and weary due to the stresses of recent events.
• Opportunistic Bastard:
  • According to Ser Brynden "Blackfish" Tully, his brother Hoster has always been one of these, as shown when he married both of his daughters off to two Lords Paramount in Robert's Rebellion as a trade-off for the Riverlands' support. Jon Arryn, one of the lords who is married to a daughter of Hoster's, also believes Hoster would readily overlook the age difference between Sansa and Robert just to have his granddaughter as Queen Consort.
  • Lord Estermont's opinion of the Tyrells, which in his view makes them worse than the Targaryen loyalists because they could turn sides at a moment's notice. He's pretty correct, as Mace immediately pushes Margaery as a second wife for Robert after Cersei and Jaime's affair is revealed and Olenna advises Margaery to take advantage of the brewing civil war between the crown and Westerlands to sire an heir with Renly and count on Robert meeting his end on the battlefield since he's way past his physical prime.
• Original Character: Alys Arryn, Jon Arryn's daughter with Lysa.
• Past Experience Nightmare: Chapter 4 opens with Jon having a nightmare about the burning of King's Landing. Chapter 33 features another one in a similar context.
• The Patriarch: The Father of the Faith of the Seven, while not seen, is the entity that sent Ned back in time.
• Peggy Sue: Jon Snow is sent back by the Stranger five years before the series begins so he can become King before the Long Night comes again. It soon transpires that other characters have been sent back and these are revealed one by one: Ned Stark, Sansa Stark, Maester Aemon, Tormund Giantsbane, Varys, and, unbeknownst to anyone else, Daenerys.
• Pre Crime Arrest: Par for the course for a Peggy Sue fic.
  • After Jon and Sansa inform Ned of what happened in the original timeline after he died, he agrees they have to reinforce and strengthen their house's position by getting rid of a few dangerous players beforehand. This includes House Bolton. It's averted for Smalljon Umber, though Sansa still inwardly admits to feeling weirded out seeing him after he sold out Rickon in the previous timeline.
  • A Played for Laughs version with Varys and Tyrion for the latter's betrayal of the former. While hatching their escape from King's Landing in Chapter 22, Varys had thought about disguising Tyrion as a child since he's not much taller than Myrcella but ultimately decided on stuffing Tyrion into a box and smuggling him as cargo to get back at Tyrion for betraying him in "The Bells". Tyrion, other than a few lines implying he might be sensing something, does not remember the original timeline.
• Pragmatic Villainy: Tywin refrains from going on the offensive in the coming war because the Westerlands can't fight five kingdoms on one. This winds up being subverted when it's mentioned that he's set The Mountain loose in the Reach, meaning that he's about to take the offensive.
• Psycho Party Member: Emmon Frey of all people temporarily steps into this role for the Lannisters when he greedily eyes up a map of Westeros and tries to push for Tywin to declare war on the Riverlands so he can get a castle.
• Put on a Bus:
  • Sweetrobin is sent to the Dreadfort (now under the Cassels' supervision) by Chapter 21, along with the Blackfish.
  • In Chapter 22, Varys, Ser Barristan, Tyrion, Myrcella, and Tommen go on a boat to White Harbor to seek safety with the Starks. They return in Chapter 34.
  • In Chapter 27, Stannis declares he is setting off for Dragonstone to marshal the Royal Fleet.
  • Cersei and Joffrey escape from the Red Keep in Chapter 31 and are now on the run.
  • Renly is sent to chase down Cersei and Joffrey in Chapter 32 after their escape.
• Rank Up: Meryn Trant is promoted to Lord Commander of the Kingsguard when Ser Barristan disappears in the aftermath of Cersei and Jaime's incest being revealed.
• Rape, Pillage, and Burn: Gregor Clegane has been sent to the lands directly under the Tyrells' control to raid every town and hovel in his path.
• Reassigned to Antarctica: Discussed.
  • Tywin intends to send Mace and Loras Tyrell to the Wall should he succeed in dethroning Robert.
  • Robert threatens to send Ser Meryn to the Wall if he fails to keep a hold on the Kingsguard's loyalties.
• Red Baron: Tormund receives the moniker "Firespeak" after he starts receiving visions from the Lord of Light. He still prefers Giantsbane.
• Ret-Gone:
  • Little Sam, Gilly's son, is absent because the Night's Watch caught Craster and executed him before he impregnated Gilly.
  • Inverted with Alys Arryn, who exists because of the changes in the timeline.
• The Reveal: In Chapter 28, the readers learn that Littlefinger escaped to Pentos, was responsible for revealing the truth about the Lannincest, and has thrown his lot in with the Targaryens.
• Revenge: Daenerys wants revenge on everyone, Sansa especially, for allegedly tricking Jon into killing her in the old timeline. Unfortunately for her, divine interference prevents her from getting the dragon eggs this time, and thus, no way to build an army to return to Westeros like she did before.
• Riddle for the Ages:
  • Who brought back Daenerys? The implication is that she is one of the wayward souls that crossed over to the other side when the Gods sent someone else back.
  • Who killed the thief who stole (or tried to steal) the dragon eggs?
• Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: By Chapter 25, the events of the fanfic have begun to catch up with the events of the show, yet everyone whose minds were sent back in time still remembers what happened, such as Jon retaining his swordsmanship or Varys stuffing Tyrion in a box as payback for getting him killed in Season 8.
• Room Full of Crazy: The Boltons have a room at the Dreadfort which they exclusively use for torture.
• Sacred Hospitality: Harry Hardyng and his supporters work around it by leaving some of their men at the Gates of the Moon and making a big show of leaving while their men open the doors when enough time has elapsed.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
  • Littlefinger books it after escaping from the Black Cells and heads to Essos. Five years later, nobody has been able to find him.
  • Believing that Robert will execute him for failing to find Littlefinger's financial books and possibly withholding information about Cersei and Jaime's incestuous affair, Varys flees to White Harbor with Barristan, Myrcella, Tommen, and Tyrion.
  • Jon Arryn intends to retire as Hand of the King once Robert's war against the Lannisters is finished.
• Secret-Keeper: Benjen Stark was one of those aware of Jon's parentage. Robb joins him in Chapter 19, while Catelyn learns after Ned has no other choice but to reveal the secret, his hand forced by Robert seeking to marry Sansa.
• Selective Obliviousness: Tywin refuses to believe the reports of Jaime and Cersei's relationship, dismissing the reveal of it as slander so that Robert can find a new wife.
• Set Right What Once Went Wrong: The gods, unhappy with how events played out, send Jon and a few others back in time to prevent not just the War of the Five Kings and other conflicts, but to also stop Bloodraven from taking over Bran's body and others down the road to be Westeros' forever king.
• Shoot the Messenger: When King Robert learns from one of Pycelle's assistants that Ned will not be joining the rest of the kingdoms against the Lannisters and is declining Robert's suit for Sansa's hand, he picks up his chair and throws it at the man, who barely manages to duck. A later chapter reveals that he trashed the Small Council chambers after that point.
• Shout-Out: Two of the dragons are renamed by Jon referencing other sources.
  • Drogon is renamed Algernon.
  • Rhaegal is renamed Eärendil.
• Sibling Yin-Yang: Stannis and Renly Baratheon, as in canon. When their great-uncle Eldon arrives at King's Landing to take up the post of Master of Whisperers, Renly offers his condolences for the death of Eldon's wife while Stannis is much more business-like by asking who will be leading the Estermont forces. The scene is enough to give Eldon a case of in-universe Mood Whiplash. In Chapter 32 however, Renly starts taking on aspects of Stannis, most notably his tooth grinding.
• Sixth Ranger: Tormund Giantsbane is the sixth person sent back by the Gods to help fix things; he is also the last, having been sent back much later than the rest as well as the only one sent by the Lord of Light. There's also Daenerys, but no Gods seem to have been involved in sending her back, possibly making her a wayward soul.
• Skewed Priorities:
  • Subverted. Eldon is tempted to criticize Renly for his choice of décor (mixing the Baratheon deer carvings with the Tyrell banners) but thinks better of it.
  • Although she remembers her past life, Daenerys has no concern for the looming apocalyptic threat of the Others on the other side of the Wall, being more concerned with getting back to Westeros, taking the Iron Throne for herself and taking revenge on everyone she blames for her death.
• Small Role, Big Impact:
  • Jacaerys Velaryon's dragon left three eggs at Winterfell during his visit to raise support for his mother Rhaenyra Targaryen when the Dance of the Dragons commenced. In the original timeline, these eggs were stolen from Cregan Stark's tomb by an agent of Bloodraven and brought to Pentos for Daenerys, but here Jon Snow finds them first and hatches them.
  • Littlefinger only physically appears a few times, but he is directly responsible for causing a Succession Crisis in the Vale (albeit, this was a slight accident, as Jon Arryn only finds out about Robin's true paternity because of an anonymous tip from Varys) and engineering a looming Civil War by revealing the incestuous relationship between Cersei and Jaime. Because of the latter, King Robert betroths himself to Sansa, forcing Ned's hand and making him reveal Jon Snow's parentage. He also causes trouble for Varys because nobody can find his financial books, complicating Varys' efforts to put Jon on the throne.
• Spared by the Adaptation:
  • Since Littlefinger gets taken out of the picture early on and thus, is in no position to orchestrate his death, Jon Arryn lives well past his canonical death date.
  • The Starks find the direwolf mother alive (albeit with an injured leg) and take her in along with her pups, with Ned naming her Frost.
  • Varys invokes this for Tommen and Myrcella to prevent them from suffering the horrible fates they met in the original timeline by smuggling them out along with Barristan and Tyrion while escaping from King's Landing.
  • Also invoked by Tormund, who Jumped at the Call to go back in time to ensure more of his people survive the White Walkers' assault this time around, particularly Ygritte.
• The Spymaster: After Varys disappears, the Baratheons' great-uncle Lord Estermont is appointed Master of Whisperers. His effectiveness and reach on the other hand leave something to be desired.
• The Starscream:
  • Viserys and Daenerys are technically after the same goal (retaking the Iron Throne and getting revenge on the "Usurper's dogs"), but Daenerys intends to get rid of Viserys at the first opportunity and take the title of the ruler of Westeros from him.
  • Harry Hardyng has been riling up the Vale Lords to take power for himself because he believes Jon Arryn has grown soft in his old age.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Deconstructed as the fact that most of Ned and Catelyn's children look like Catelyn comes back to bite her. When Lysa's infidelity comes to light and Robin Arryn is revealed to be her son with Littlefinger, Catelyn begins to fear that other lords will think that she's been cheating on Ned.
• Stunned Silence: The entire Small Council is struck dumb twice in Chapter 27. First when Robert upbraids Renly, and then with a silence described as terrifying when Ned writes that he's rejecting Robert's suit for Sansa's hand.
• Succession Crisis:
  • Jon Arryn discovers that Sweet Robin is actually Petyr Baelish's son, as Lysa had been cheating on him, putting the Lord of the Vale and Warden of the East positions' futures in question. He and Lysa eventually try things again and they have a daughter named Alys by 298 AC, with another on the way after the five-year Time Skip. However, this doesn't solve the crisis either as Harry Hardyng is stirring up talk that he should be Lord of the Vale, believing that Jon has gone soft in his old age.
  • Robert Baratheon gets wind of Joffrey's parentage and realizes that he has no successor. He starts trying to fix this problem... by arranging a betrothal between himself and Sansa.
• Technician vs. Performer: When Ned has Sansa and Arya take up fighting lessons, Sansa is the Technician and Arya is the Performer; Sansa has to work very hard to fight at an average level while Arya has a natural skill.
• That Man Is Dead: Daenerys considers the person she was when she married Khal Drogo as having died with her husband in the previous timeline.
  The last time when she had made this walk, she had felt like she was going to meet the executioner and it had taken all the strength she had not to vomit from fear. But that was not who she was now. Dany had been reborn in the Red waste along with her dragons, and again she had been reborn in this life, with all her memories to give her even more advantage over her enemies and she would not be cowed into being the simpering little girl she had been. That girl was dead. She had died in the Red Waste along with Khal Drogo, and in her place was now Daenerys Stormborn of house Targaryen, the rightful Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.
• Time Skip:
  • The story begins four months after the series finale.
  • Five years pass between Chapters 21 and 22, during which Jon establishes himself at Queenscrown, Craster is hunted down and executed by Lord Commander Mormont, and Jon and Lysa Arryn have a daughter.
• Token Evil Teammate: Lady Dustin appears to have taken this spot for the Northern lords after the deaths of Roose and Ramsay Bolton. At best, she functions as a Commander Contrarian.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Daenerys is even more bloodthirsty and vengeful after having her memories from the original timeline restored. The question is whether or not she'll have the means to take revenge.
• Took a Level in Kindness: The Greatjon's attitude towards the Wildlings (mainly some of Craster's wives) is a bit warmer than in canon, as he appears to be content to have them in the North as long as they don't cause trouble.
• Treachery Is a Special Kind of Evil: Jon feels more uncomfortable around Bowen Marsh than Alliser Thorne because Marsh's betrayal stung him more while Thorne was easier to read due to his general unpleasantness.
• Undying Loyalty: The Velaryons, Celtigars, and Bar Emmons still hold allegiance to the Targaryens, so when Stannis leaves for Dragonstone to marshal the royal fleet, Robert instructs him to keep tabs on them so they don't declare for Viserys.
• Unreliable Narrator: The show's version of Bran (really Bloodraven) in the last two seasons is revealed to be this, as the flashback to Jon's birth in "The Dragon and the Wolf" is embellished in certain ways (such as Jon having an "original" Targaryen name).
• Unstoppable Rage: Robert Baratheon is a true terror when angry. His response to finding out about the Lannisters' betrayal is to beat Jaime into a bloody pulp and toss him, Cersei, and Joffrey into the Black Cells. When he's informed the North won't join him in his war, he angrily rants that they're obligated to follow him since he suspended their taxes for the last five years (conveniently forgetting he only did so to allow the North to fund the Wall restoration project themselves after rejecting their request for a little extra funding for the Night's Watch). The news that Ned is rejecting his proposal for Sansa's hand, a match that several of his closest advisors had warned him was a terrible idea, drives him to trash the entire Small Council chambers.
• Victory by Endurance: Tywin's strategy is to shore up defenses from the Riverlands so no riverlords can claim glory, and put the Freys as a stopgap to keep the North at bay. This winds up being subverted: The Mountain has instead been sent into the Reach, meaning that Tywin Lannister would soon be taking the offensive.
• Villain Team-Up: Littlefinger throws his lot in with the Targaryens (and by extension Illyrio Mopatis). This appears to have been inverted with Illyrio and Varys working independently as Varys has thrown his support behind Jon.
• Weapon Twirling: Jon unconsciously twirls his practice sword when preparing to spar with Robb in Chapter 3.
• We Used to Be Friends: While Ned already suffered a Broken Pedestal with how Robert degraded into a Jaded Washout whose reign as King was so terrible and fragile that his death immediately sent the continent into a brutal war that killed several of his own family members, this feeling further solidifies for Ned after Robert refuses to help fund the Wall or hire a Northern lord as Master of Coin. When Robert arranges a betrothal between himself and Sansa, Ned starts openly plotting to put Jon on the throne.
• Wham Line: Used at the end of Chapter 17 to reveal another person who was sent back to help Jon.
  Jon: Honestly, I knew that the watch needed help, so I just did it.
  Maester Aemon: Humm, are you sure that it has nothing to do with the Others and the dead returning, nephew?
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Nobody has seen hide nor hair of Sandor Clegane since Cersei and Jaime's affair was discovered.
• Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: Eldon Estermont had called for Varys' execution after Robert's Rebellion and feels validated after Varys skipped town in the wake of Queen Cersei's incest being discovered.
• Wise Beyond Their Years: Being young adults in the bodies of small children makes Jon and Sansa come across like this to the other adults around them.
• Would Hurt a Child:
  • Varys bitterly notes that while he might not do the deed itself, the fact that Robert is fine with innocent children being killed if they're related to someone he's enemies with (as was made clear by his dismissive reaction to the gruesome murders of Rhaegar and Elia's children) is yet another mark against the man. When hatching his escape, he also smuggles Tommen and Myrcella out of King's Landing after Cersei's affair with Jaime is exposed to save them from Robert's wrath.
  • Jon Arryn regards Tywin Lannister in a similar light, privately expressing disgust over how Tywin's campaign against the Reynes and Tarbecks for ripping off his father Lord Tytos included killing the children for the actions of their parents.
• Wrong Line of Work: It's pretty clear that Lord Estermont isn't exactly cut out to be Master of Whisperers, given that he has to be brought up to speed regarding goings-on outside of the Stormlands, and was mainly chosen because he was Robert's great-uncle. This crops up again when Cersei and Joffrey escape thanks to Ser Preston Greenfield being an inside man for the Lannisters.
• You Are in Command Now: Rodrik and Jory Cassel are placed as castellans of the Dreadfort after both Roose and Ramsay Bolton are killed and are to hold it until Bran is old enough to rule it.
• You Don't Look Like You: Downplayed Trope as he mostly looks the same, but one of the effects of Jon still having his proper amount of Blood Magic is that he's a bit taller than he was in the show.
• You Have Failed Me: Implied; when Robert orders Renly and Eldon to find Cersei and Joffrey, the tone implies that there will be severe punishment should they fail to capture them.
• You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: When Ned has to break it to the other Northern lords that King Robert won't be sending them the requested additional funds for the Night's Watch, they all groan in frustration and disappointment, especially the Umbers and others who live closer to the Wall and thus suffer the most from wildling raids.
• You Remind Me of X:
  • Jon Arryn recalls meeting his great-nephew Harry Hardyng and the young man reminds him a lot of Robert Baratheon... and not in a good way either, since Jon's opinion on Robert has soured considerably.
  • Tyrion notes that Myrcella may look exactly like Cersei but has more of Jaime's sensible attitude and generally good nature.