Ice, I see, and daggers in the dark. Blood frozen red and hard, and naked steel…

After last night’s Game of Thrones Season 5 Finale, fans of the show (who haven’t read the books) are in shock. They did it again, they killed another Stark! And not just another Stark but one of the most beloved characters- Jon Snow. Him, Daenerys, Tyrion and Arya are the characters most people bravely believed immortal. I’ll tell them they should have learnt their lesson after Ned Stark’s death, though. Absolutely no one is safe in Game of Thrones. However, there are cases in which death does not last for long. Remember Catelyn Stark who returns at the end of book 3 as Lady Stoneheart, resurrected by Thoros of Myr. Remember Beric Dondarrion…

“Daggers in the dark”

George Martin published his fifth instalment in the A Song of Ice and Fire book series in 2011. Which means fans of the books already knew Jon Snow’s fate 4 years ago. However, I don’t remember any revolts regarding his death. Moreover, when I read book 5, I didn’t get the feeling Jon really died in his last chapter. Of course, one can never be sure what George Martin has in mind, but my humble opinion is he’s going to spare Jon’s life. He’s too important and too embedded in the entire story to be completely shoved off of the scene like Ned and Robb before him.

Jon Snow and Ghost

There are many theories surrounding Jon Snow and many secrets regarding his birth and parentage. Most of you would know the most popular one already- Rhaegar Targaryen + Lyanna Stark= Jon Snow. Rhaegar and Lyanna fell in love and ran away together although Lyanna was betrothed to Robert Baratheon and Rhaegar was married to Elia Martell. But according to an ancient tradition, a Targaryen man is allowed to have two wives because the dragon has three heads (the Targaryen banner represents a three-headed dragon which symbolizes Agon The Conqueror and his two sisters/wives Visenya and Rhaenys). Unfortunately, Rhaegar and Lyanna’s love affair was the reason for the war, known as ‘Robert’s Rebellion’ which almost put an end to House Targaryen. And here comes the theory- Jon who officially is presented to the world as Ned Stark’s bastard, his mother being unknown, is actually the son of Rhaegar and Lyanna. Because as you remember from Ned’s chapters in book 1, he found Lyanna dying and begging him to promise her something. And from here we assume she asked him to save her son. So in order to keep him alive, Ned sacrificed his honour and told the world he cheated on his wife and Jon was the product of his betrayal. Moreover, Jon is also involved in the prophecy about the ‘prince who was promised’. Originally, Prince Agon, Rhaegar’s firstborn son was believed to be the promised one. But as we all know, he was killed together with his mother and sister (I don’t believe the story of Griff and Young Griff and think GRRM included them just to confuse us; their lack in the show prove that), which means not him but Jon might have been the prince who was promised…

Another very popular theory is that Jon Snow is Azor Ahai reborn. Originally, Melisandre believed Stannis was Azor Ahai, but after meeting Jon Snow she started changing her opinion- ”I pray for a glimpse of Azor Ahai, and R’hllor shows me only Snow.” According to the legend, Azor Ahai died to be resurrected and gain his powers. Many believe Daenerys is Azor Ahai reborn, but my opinion is both she and Jon are. Both of them were forced to kill their loves (Danny killed Khal Drogo after the blood magic could nor bring his soul back, only his body and Jon, although not physically, killed Ygritte during the wildling attack on The Wall in book 3). After Khal Drogo’s death, Daenerys had her symbolic death too in the fire just to be born again as Mother of Dragons. But going through her storyline, you have the feeling she’s just the half of something bigger, that she lacks something (or someone) to fulfil her destiny. On the other hand, Jon just suffered a betrayal from his sworn brothers who stabbed him in the dark and most probably killed him (they certainly did in the show). However, Ghost is still there somewhere and so is Melisandre…

As you can see, Jon is way too important and without him, the story remains incomplete. So to all Jon Snow fans and fans of the TV show, relax, we might see the likes of him very soon.

L. V. K.