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hotd bringing up dany at every possible opportunity after GOT destroyed her character and made all of the prophecy buildup nonsensical will never stop being funny to me 😭 at least they know who pays their bills because what is this show even about anymore
Aemond has always been obsessed with you. following you around like a lost puppy in his youth. and when you cast him aside after loosing his eye, he spend years trying to win you back. And you welcome it, as long as he gets on his knees for you.
based of this request * Aegon's version, Jace's version *
Aemond Targaryen x Targ!reader
Word count: 3040
CW: MDI, 18+, smut, oral (f receiving), p in v, unrequited love? slight bullying?, pathetic Aemond, sub aemond , dom reader, brat reader, slow(ish) burn, angst, teasing, self deprecation?, degradation, targcest.
For as long as he could remember, Aemond Targaryen had pined after one person. You.
His entire childhood was filled with you. You, his only friend and only comfort. He worshipped the ground you walked on. And you loved it. Every second of it, of him following you around whenever your family visited Kings Landing, waiting for you to gift him your attention. And you gave it to him, you loved how he worshipped you. How he came to you after every insult his brother gave him, after every silly little prank his nephews pulled.
He saw you as his friend, his saviour, his everything. Until he didn't.
The day of your mother's funeral, everything changed. You had withdrawn from Aemond, stood with your sisters and avoided Aemond's longing gazes. And he, desperate to win your approval, sure that your recent claiming of Silverwing had caused you to move away from him, to not view him as worthy of your time, had decided to claim his own dragon. Vaghar, the very dragon your mother had taken you on countless times, and the dragon you had been trying to get your sister, Rhaena, to claim.
You were awoken in the middle of the night, your sister and cousins shaking you awake, “Someone's trying to steal Vaghar!”
“What?” you asked, rubbing your eyes as you tried to wake. “You can’t steal a dragon,”
“Someone has! Please!” Baela insisted, dragging you from your bed and through the halls of Driftmark. Vaghar landed before you, Aemonds form atop her and a proud smile on his face as he dismounted from her and was met with your face. “It's him!” Jace called out.
“Aemond?” you spoke softly, approaching him slowly. “You claimed my mother's dragon?”
“Your mother's dead”, he replied, the smile he had on his face fading and a frown replacing it. “ Vhagar has a new rider now.” You should be proud of him, happy that he has claimed the biggest dragon, and yet your frown only deepened at his words. He had expected praise, joy even. But instead, he was met with disappointment.
“She was mine to claim!” Rhaena called, her hand reaching for yours. The frown on Aemond's face deepened at the action, “Then you should've claimed her!” his eyes flickering between Rhanea and Jace, “ Maybe your cousins can find you a pig to ride…It would suit you.”
A scowl rose to your face at his words, your hand leaving Rhaenas, as Baela launched herself at him. After that, it was a blur of screams and hits, as your cousins launched themselves at Aemond.
You had stayed out of it, watching from the sidelines, begging for them to stop. It wasnt until a rock was held to Luke's face that you intervened. A knife dropped to the floor amid the chaos, “Aemond,” you called, the knife in your hand, as you approached him, drop the rock…" Please,” His eyes locked on yours, the rock faltering at your voice, but the throw of sand in your and Aemond’s eyes had you drop the knife into Luke’s hand, causing Aemond to lose an eye.
That night tore Aemond away from you, you were blamed, and Aemond decided to hate you. To push you aside and forget whatever friendship had been forged. He tried to hate you, to resent you entirely. But Aemond found it impossible. All he wanted was you, to have you by his side, helping him as his eye healed. To be a comfort and a friend. But no matter how hard he tried to hate you, it never happened.
You, however, had no issue hating him. He grew from a dear friend to a man you pitied. A man you didn't deem worthy of your time or attention. Years spent on Dragonstone, ignoring his letters begging for forgiveness. And the few visits you had throughout the years were spent ignoring him and detesting him entirely.
The words said during the incident hurt you, but the words he spoke after, in anger, hurt you. Blaming you for everything, his eye, the secrets you had told him, hurt you had told him in confidence, twisted against you. Calling you names. After that, you resented the years you spent as his friend, the years you spent fighting your father and his hatred for the hightowers, the years of’ telling him he wasnt the pitiful prince Aegon said he was. But after that day, he became the annoying, pitiful prince you always insisted he wasn’t.
Every visit to Kingslanding, where he couldn’t resist staying away, were he followed you through the halls, begging for the company he insisted he no longer craved, begging for you to acknowledge him. But you ignored his company, and any words from his lips were met with cold disdain, the roll of your eyes and the turn of your head, dismissing him entirely.
You spent years ignoring him, hating him and with him trying to hate you. But you, every time he tried to ignore him, chose to give him attention. A stare, not longing, just a simple stare in his direction, causing him to falter in his faux cold demeanour. You played a game with him, each time he thought he was making efforts toward hating you, to losing the love he held for you, you turned around and sat next to him at dinner. Your hand would brush his at the table. Sometimes you were cruel in your games, coming to his chambers and throwing the endless letters he had written you into the fire. Saying no word say you turned and left him stewing.
You hated him, deemed him unworthy of your time. Your friendship burned to ashes the day he insulted your sisters, cousins and you.
But Aemond, whose crush and love for you had started small, had grown into an obsession as the years passed. He relished every glance you gave him, every brush of your finger against his. Every time you acknowledged his presence through a scowl and a scoff of disapproval, he grew more and more pathetic and entirely obsessed with you.
But then you disappeared to Dragonstone, for three years straight, he didn’t see you not once. Yet his obsession still lingered, just now, he learnt how to hide it. Using the betrothal set with him and Floris Baratheon to hide.
Your family had been summoned back to court after years away, with Luke's legitimacy as the heir of Driftmark being called into question, and you were forced back to Kingslanding.
“Prince Aemond,” you greeted, seeing the man standing in the training yard, swinging his sword with his hand, a cocky smile on his face.
“Princess”, he greeted, his voice and face cocky, his eyes trailed up and down your body, taking in the sea green dress you wore, the neckline that dipped low enough to show the cleavage of your breasts, something that caused Aemond's eyes to snag on.
“How gracious of Ser Cole to allow you to win.” his smile faltered at your words, his back straightening at your words.
He clicked his tongue, prowling towards you, “and how gracious of you to attend my bethrothal feast,” he smirked, waiting for a reaction, some jealousy.
You scoffed, “Who would marry you?” You walked towards him, circling him, “Someone so entirely pathetic?” you spoke, stopping to whisper in his ear, your hand sliding to his shoulder. Aemond's eyes snapped to your hand, words forming on his tongue. Your hand gripped his bicep, nails digging into him, stopping him from speaking. Face to face with him now, you scowled, eyeing him closely, “I pity her,” you drawled, walking away to leave Aemond to stew. Aemond, who had been so ready to face you, to act nonchalant and ignore you, now wanted nothing more than to chase after you.
You found Aemond easily the next day. He sat in the gardens, outside the windows to your chambers, his eyes focused on anyone but his would-be betrothed, waiting to lock eyes with yours the second you noticed him.
“Floris, is it?” you asked, walking towards the table where she and Aemond sat. Aemond's eyes locked on yours, his hand moving to grip the table as you approached.
“Yes, princess,” she nodded, a nervous smile on her lips as she looked between you and Aemond, her lip twitching as she noticed Aemond's gaze, and how it never once left you. “I hadn’t expected to meet you, princess,” she smiled, her voice wavering as you moved to sit.
You laughed, your eyes following Floris, hand as she moved to grip Aemonds, kissing your teeth as a feeling of envy rushed through you. Aemond smirked, his eyes flickering between you and Floris, slowly pulling his hand away from her.
“Why's that?” you asked, ignoring Aemond's gaze.
“Do you not…” she faltered, gazing nervously at Aemond as she spoke, “ hate each other?”
Aemond chuckled, “I could never hate her,” you scoffed at his words, your hand reaching under the table to grab his hand.
“How sweet,” you cocked your head, waiting for Floris to speak.
“My betrothed and I had plans.” She stated, her eyes turning to Aemond, waiting for him to dismiss you, but his eyes were focused entirely on your hand and his.
“Oh,” you gasped, running your over hand up the length of Aemond’s arm. “betrothed? So it's official,”
“Not yet,” Aemond dismissed, his eyes drawn to your hand, “just discussed,”
You nodded, feigning understanding, “so not betrothed,”
“No, but we are-”
“You should leave,” you cut her off, your hand moving from the length of his arm to his thigh.
A sharp breath left him as you did, “leave us,” he snapped, slamming his hand on the table as your hand reached further up his thigh, towards his crotch.
She huffed, standing quickly and leaving, glaring at you and Aemond as she left.
Your hand moved from his crotch and pushed Aemond away from you. “You don’t hate me?”
“Aemond leaned forward, hoping you would touch him again, “no,”
You rolled your eyes, “You're pathetic,” you scoffed, “you do hate me, admit it,”
“I tried, I don't hate you,” he pushed his hair closer to yours, his hands reaching for yours, “I wanted to, but I can’t”
“As I said, pathetic”, you stood from the table, pushing his hands from you, “after everything you did, you have the gall to not hate me? Pathetic!” You turned towards your chambers, ignoring Aemonds as he followed you.
Reaching your doors, you turned to face him, “You're to be betrothed to another woman, and yet you still follow me around like a lost little puppy, as if nothing has changed.” You shook your head, pushing the door open behind you.
“You're jealous?” he asked, smiling in victory.
“Jealous?” you said, turning around quickly. “Oh, you pathetic little thing.” You laughed, “You think I’m jealous of her? That I desire you even after everything?” Aemond swallowed roughly, following you into your chambers.
“I could have anyone, I have men begging for my hand, and you think that I would want someone-eyed prince for a husband?” you scoffed, walking further into your room, settling on your bed. You laughed, your eyes moving down his body as he prowled towards you, “You do? Don’t you?” Your hands reached to play with the neckline of your dress “Why would I marry you? hmm? What could I possibly gain?”
“We were friends, I love you,” he pleaded, his hand going to the growing tent in his crotch.
“Friends?” you scoffed, “you blamed me for loosing you eye, pushed me away,” you stood from the bed, standing face to face with Aemond, your hand reaching you grab his jaw, moving his face down to yours. “You were cruel,”
“I'm sorry,” he breathed, his mouth itching closer to yours.
“Get on your knees and beg for forgiveness.”
He swallowed, stepping back and dropping to his knees.
“Please,” he begged, “forgive me, please…please, I'm sorry, please forgive me. I've only ever wanted to be worthy of you, to please you.”
“Good,” you whispered, moving behind him and pulling his head back, “now tell me how pathetic you are” Your hand moved to caress his neck, pulling his hair to the side as you joined him on the floor.
“I am so pathetic,” he near moan, “I am nothing without you,” he groaned, your mouth coming to his neck, placing a teasing kiss along the column of his neck.
“Keep going,”
“Without you, I am pathetic, nothing more than a one-eyed disgrace,” you nodded, sucking on his neck softly. “Kiss me,” you muttered, moving around to kneel in front of him.
The kiss was messy, desperate. Groans fell from him as your mouth met his. His hands reached to grip your face, only to fall away as your hands reached for his hair, yanking him back. “So eager”, you muttered, placing a gentle kiss on his lips.
“Please, he begged.
“Do you love me?” you asked, smirking as he looked at you, eye wide.
“More than anything, I want you to be my wife. ” His hands reached for you again, begging to touch you.
“Why would I want to marry you?”
“Because you love me,” Aemond stated, his breath heavy as he gaved up at you, desperate for you to admit it.
You faltered, your back straightening. Your hands came to grip his face, forcing his face closer to you,” You're not worthy of my love.”
“I am, please,” he breathed.
“Show me,” you placed a kiss on his lips, “show me your worthy of my love,”
“Yes, please, please,” he begged, his lips hovering over yours, begging for you to kiss him again. You huffed a laugh, your mouth taking his in a heated kiss. Your lips took his, your mouth dominating his in your heated kiss. Your tongue entered his mouth, your tongue dominating his, as your hands gripped his tunic, pulling him up with you and towards the bed.
You pulled back, breaking the kiss and pulling your dress and small clothes off with it, leaving you entirely bare before him as you crawled back onto your bed.
Aemond groaned at the sight, crawling towards you, placing desperate kisses from your ankles up to your thigh, waiting for your permission to place kisses on your inner thigh and towards your heat. His licks were slow at first, testing and tasting you and to see your reaction. A groan fell from him as moans began to spill from your lips. His mouth moved to your clit, his hands gripping your waist for leverage as he began to feast on your heat, his fingers teased at your entrance, his mouth focused on your clit as he began to finger you. A loud moan escaped you as he entered, your hand reaching to grip his hair, your legs wrapped around his head and pushing him further into you. His fingers began to fuck you, thrusting in and out of you at a testing pace, desperate to find a pace you liked.
Your back arching off the bed as his fingers began to curl into you, your hips bucking into his face, riding it as his fingers fucked you, his mouth sucking on your clit as you felt your high begin to wash over you. a loud moan escaping your mouth once again as you came. Your hand in his hair, tugging him away from you as you rode out your peak.
“Get on your back,” you commanded, pushing him onto the bed. Your hands reached for his breeches, practically ripping them from his body as his hands worked on his tunic.
Your eyes traced his body as you threw his clothes to the floor, your eyes gleaming with lust as you took in his naked form and his pulsing, hard cock.
Crawling over him, you took his mouth into a slow, deep kiss, your legs falling on either side of his head, one hand reaching for his cock and your other reaching behind you to steady yourself, as you slid it between your wet folds, before slowly easing down onto him, pushing his cock slowly into your heat. “Fuck,” you moaned, your head falling back as you eased down onto him.
His hands flew to your hips, steadying you as you took a deep breath, a moan falling from your lips as his cock stretched your walls, your hips rocking forward. Your head fell back as you began to bounce on his cock, setting a hard pace. Your peak was fast approaching, as you focused entirely on your pleasure, your moans filling the room as your peak began to wash over you.
You fell back breathless against the bed, your hands reaching for Aemond, pulling him over you and down for a bruising kiss. “Fuck me,” you commanded, your hand reaching to tug his hair.
His cock pushed into you slowly, his hips stuttering, pathetic moans falling from his lips as he thrusted in you, his eyes boring into yours as his own peak washed over you. He collapsed onto you, breathless and limp, his hands desperately clinging to you.
“Tell me you love me, please,” he pleaded, pressing desperate kisses to your face.
You sighed, playing with his hair, “No,”
A whimper fell from his lips, his arms wrapping around you and pulling you closer to him, whispering pleas into your skin.
You turned to face him, studying him closely, “I-” The door swung open, your father's loud steps echoing, and he brisked into the room.
“The fuck is this?” Daemon mumled, scowling at the sight of you and Aemond. A chuckle fell from him, his hands reaching for the pile of clothes on the floor and tossing them at you both, as he turned around “Fetch Rhaneyra,” he called, his eyes flickering to Aemond, his scowl deepening, “and the fucking queen,”
“Do you think they'll marry us?” Aemond whispered, a smile on his face as he pulled you back into him as you tried to move away, kissing every inch of you he could reach.
Your only response was a sigh and a smile; you tried desperately to fight the idea of wedding Aemond.
first off, I fully agree with this take. house targaryen signed their own death warrant by seeking power over the seven kingdoms. they doomed their culture, their freedoms, their magic, and their very dragons to an ignominous fate, all because of a prophecy that may or may not have come true without said annexation regardless.
the targaryens were the literal last dragonriders left alive after the doom - they were alone in their culture, their customs, their manner of dress, their religion, even their language. and when a community gets displaced like that, assimilation almost always carries the risk of losing all of the above.
and it started small.
visenya had to share the crown with her brother, even though valyrians practiced absolute primogeniture, where birth order carried weight, not sex. but she had to do it, because the andals and westerosis wouldn't agree to their rule otherwise.
they had to hide their religious practices behind closed doors, and visenya was later condemned for practicing blood magic - something that was very standard practice in their culture, and was actually key to them being bonded to dragons.
aegon, visenya and rhaenys had to essentially eschew their faith, upbringing and culture in public for appeasement, and even aegon's bigamy was frowned upon, even though it was, once again, very much standard in his culture.
the downward spiral continued with the succession crisis, with maegor being demonised not for his harsh ruling practices, but for his cultural and religious ones. he was called "mad" for his blood magic and his polygamy, which once again is just... their heritage.
but jaeherys was the one who truly sentenced them to death.
he sidelined alyssane and reduced her to consort, not an equal, and leaned further into the patriarchal practices of westeros, shaming - and even punishing - his daughters for sexual freedoms that were otherwise allowed in their culture. he made his sons heirs over their elder sisters, continuing to break their own familial tradition and valyrian laws.
their weddings were not conducted in valyrian religious customs and practices, and one could almost argue that it weakened the magic in their blood and their bonds with their dragons.
it is no surprise that daemon and rhaenyra, who practiced valyrian customs, married in a valyrian religious ceremony, spoke high valyrian as their mother tongue, had the strongest bonds with their dragons.
and that rhaenyra's death marked the end of the dragons.
i have more thoughts, but they are not coherent at the moment, so there may be another thinkpiece.
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Repressed Love. Or: Derrick Eckhart and deconstructing the "Duke of the North."
Apologies if you're used to Apothecary Diaries content from me, but I'm currently reading "Villains Are Destined To Die" and Derrick Eckhart has me in a bit of a chokehold.
Because he's such a trainwreck. And he's allowed to self-destruct in a perfectly logical way that follows from his character archetype - an archetype that is usually portrayed as someone to be Healed By Love. Instead, Derrick Eckhart's story is a classic tragedy. He is doomed by the qualities that define him.
(image credit; Ep. 38)
Here's a 30 second recap of the setup for Villains Are Destined To Die. The main premise is that our heroine is suddenly thrust into the world of the romance dating game she was playing on hard mode as the villainess, Penelope Eckhart, who is the adopted daughter of Duke Eckhart after his biological daughter tragically disappeared. The goal? Get one of the five male leads to 100% affection score and achieve an ending before the true daughter reappears at Penelope's coming of age ceremony and the regular game begins with the Duke's True Daughter as the heroine. Because the villainess always dies in the end.
Our five male leads are as follows:
Derrick Eckhart - the eldest son and heir of Duke Eckhart.
Reynold Eckhart - the younger son of Duke Eckhart and a knight.
Callisto Regulus - the Crown Prince and a war hero.
Winter Verdandi - a mysterious nobleman and sorcerer.
Eckles - a fallen noble of a conquered nation, now enslaved, but secretly a swordmaster.
If this looks like a list of tropes, congratulations! That's the point. Each romance-able character fits into a neatly defined trope, but since we're focusing on Derrick Eckhart, we're looking specifically at the following archetype:
"The Duke Of The North."
(image credit: Ep. 37)
Derrick Eckhart hits almost every single bullet point on a list of this trope. Colored in cold tones; black hair and blue eyes, with an angular, cutting beauty that is indicative of his matching aloof and logical demeanor? Check!
While their duchy is not physically in the north, it is isolated in that the Eckhart duchy is neutral, not throwing their support to either candidate in the succession struggle between the Crown Prince and his younger brother. Check!
He's the captain of the Eckhart duchy's knights (20,000 strong), so his military prowess and power is acknowledged. Check!
He is the heir of the duchy and is very aware of it's responsibilities, fettering many of his actions through the lens of those duties. Check!
Traumatic past? Check, check and check!
If Derrick were the male lead of this story, his story would likely follow the typical tsundere path of learning that there is strength in the trust that accompanies vulnerability and intimacy - that the balance between the duties of his position and the desires of his heart is not only possible, but desirable. The female lead's love would either be a redemptive object or, in better written stories, an example that propels him to better himself in order to be worthy of her.
But the author did something interesting. They broke the trope down and deconstructed it. What might actually happen when that traumatized, emotionally stunted man falls in love for the first time? Is this something he is able to handle with grace and maturity or is he motivated by his underdeveloped emotional ego? (I'll let you guess...)
Let's look at the two primary emotions that represent Derrick's two "sisters" and drive his actions: guilt and shame.
Guilt
So, the backstory behind Derrick's trauma is both very simple and heartrendingly realistic. The three original siblings, Derrick, Reynold and Ivonne sneak out to a large festival one night. Derrick, being the oldest, has Ivonne's hand in his, but the parade begins and as the crowd swells, his little sister is swept away.
Ivonne is never seen again.
His little sister's disappearance proceeds to tear the already grieving family apart (the mother has succumbed to Dead Mom Syndrome). It's now only the male members left - and while Reynold is allowed to act out and grieve openly to a degree, Derrick is not. He is the heir and he is already expected to control his emotions and conduct himself appropriately. Because his actions reflect on his name.
It doesn't matter that his little sister is just gone, with no leads or even the closure of finding her body.
It doesn't matter that it's his fault; for taking them to the festival without asking permission or guards, for letting Ivonne's hand slip out of his, for failing to find her.
In that crucible of pain, sorrow and guilt, Derrick learns that there is no possible justification for losing control. Because to do so is to make everything even worse. Ivonne and his mother are both gone. If he shames their name and proves himself to be an unworthy successor, Derrick will lose his father too. Everything in his life must now revolve around being the perfect heir - because it's all he has left.
(image credit, Ep. 152)
Callisto makes a similar observation about the weight of being an heir. "The Emperor must be flawless." (Ch 73). We'll actually circle back around to this, because Derrick and Callisto are narrative foils for each other.
Neither Callisto nor Derrick are allowed to show emotions such as fear or grief - because those are potential weaknesses that people could use to try to take advantage of their family's power to advance agendas that likely do not have the best interest of either the imperial family or the Eckharts in mind. Indeed, Callisto's position is weakened because of his brutal reputation, which he encourages in order to express his anger.
Derrick doesn't have that outlet. Anger isn't something he's allowed to feel; rage will only compromise his judgment and threaten the only identity he has left. The most he is allowed to express is irritation and contempt.
Penelope vs Ivonne
And then the Duke does the most insane thing possible - he adopts a street beggar that has a passing resemblance to Ivonne and makes her the new daughter of the house.
**cough** Does anybody see a problem here?!
Oh, here's one. Penelope is so much more vibrant a character than Ivonne. You can see the surface similarities, but that's where they end. Ivonne, is described as "angelic" and painted in the same pastel tones as Reynold (pale pink hair and light blue eyes that link her to Derrick, Reynold and the Duke). Gentle, kind, quiet. An "easy" child.
Penelope is not easy. She's tempestuous and emotional before abruptly going silent after hitting a certain point. She's painted in jewel tones, her eyes "turquoise" or "emerald", her hair a deeper magenta with wild curls. She demands attention (and justice) through bad behavior and no matter how many times she's knocked down, she keeps fighting back. In short, she is uncontrollable.
(image credit, Ep. 134)
Because Derrick cannot allow himself the luxury of anger or disgust at his father for bringing this strange girl into their home, he deals with her presence by simply ignoring her and shutting away his emotions per the status quo. Or, at least, he attempts to.
But Penelope forces her her way into Derrick's life because she is NOT like Ivonne.
She does everything that Derrick is never allowed, while his father seemingly indulges Penelope with material goods that she demands because it's the only way anyone in the house will actually acknowledge her existence. Except for one person- Derrick. Derrick, as the heir, has to clean up the aftermath of Penelope's tantrums. Messes that, in his mind, there is absolutely no justification for. If he can deal with Ivonne's disappearance with dignity befitting the Eckhart name, then by god this girl can stand to control her own behavior!
And it's good to remember that, until the story starts with our version of Penelope, Derrick's perception of her behavior is spot on. Penelope herself comments on it multiple times - how OG Penelope had turned everyone against her. Reynold may have started the household's ostracism by framing Penelope for theft of Ivonne's necklace, and Derrick and the Duke exacerbated it with their willful ignorance, but OG Penelope was her own worst enemy.
(As an aside, I can tell that some readers have never dealt with a 'problem child' in their own family. As someone who did have a sibling who acted out, sometimes in seemingly unforgivable ways at the time, I can say that both Derrick's resentment and the perpetual cycles of blame are rooted in emotional realism).
This is the static pattern until hard mode starts and OG Penelope is replaced with the current Penelope, who already escaped a eerily similar toxic family dynamic. She has no attachment to these men, therefore she is able to do what OG Penelope could never do - she lets go of them. Which is exactly what is needed to smash the current dynamic to smithereens and force Derrick to contend with Penelope's presence in his life.
Because here's the thing. Penelope's behavior forces Derrick to feel. Penelope evokes a response from Derrick - annoyance, resentment...
...and desire.
(image credit, Ep. 19)
Shame
Penelope is not Derrick's sister. He utterly rejects that role, even as the Duke forces him to play it in public. He repeats this rejection multiple times; "I have only one sister and her name is Ivonne," (ch. 75)
But when Derrick expressed cold contempt, Penelope responded with hot rage. Where Derrick is aloof, Penelope is passionate. Derrick must always be in control, whereas Penelope lets control go freely. It's very much an attraction of opposites. Penelope represents everything Derrick is not allowed to have or be - but desperately wants.
If Penelope had chosen Derrick's romance path, then there's an old trope at play here; Kissing Cousins. Depending on your perspective, the incest angle is eliminated due to the fact that Penelope is adopted and Derrick never once thinks of her as his sister. Penelope's primary game conflict is that she's not truly accepted as a daughter of the house. A way to resolve that is to step out of Ivonne's shadow, tempering her extreme emotional reactions with adult self-control that allows Derrick to see and accept her in a new light - not as a living embodiment of his guilt, but as her own person. That, in turn, could give him the opportunity to process his guilt and grief, while also allowing him a safe space to allow himself the emotions he was denied by his trauma. With this conflict resolved, it clears a path for Penelope's true acceptance by the Eckharts, not as a ghost of Ivonne, but as their daughter-in-law, becoming Duchess Eckhart.
(Look, you don't have to like it, but consanguinity is a romance trope that's alive and well. I'm looking at you, Cyrano de Bergerac, Eight Cousins, Game of Thrones/House of the Dragon...shall I go on? Honestly, Derrick and Penelope is pretty tame. Diet Consanguinity, shall we say?)
But Penelope rejects this path immediately, therefore opening up the chance to explore Derrick's first love in a much more realistic sense - this is not a relationship that brings him joy, but instead fills him with shame. I didn't need to read spoilers of the light novels to realize that he was attracted to her from the beginning- it's right there in his affection score; he doesn't want to be addressed as 'Brother.' Her earliest death event with Derrick is when she implies that he's sleeping with her maid.
It's baked in.
And that shame will propel Derrick to stay stuck in his old pattern with Penelope because he cannot reconcile duty and desire. He cannot even recognize what he is feeling consciously. The easiest thing for Derrick to do is live in denial, blaming Penelope for everything, to continue being the put-upon heir of the family who constantly bails her out of trouble. Because the alternative is to acknowledge the unthinkable.
Is it admirable? No.
Is it likely to get him what he wants? Absolutely not.
Is it realistic psychology? Yes.
He is so caught up in the old dynamic with Penelope that he's too slow to realize that it's gone - the new Penelope reflects his own coldness back at him. The more she retreats, the more he chases her, looking for that source of warmth, her unyielding, continuing affection that he thought he couldn't bear. But without it, his world has become utterly cold and full of nothing but his guilt, shame and duty.
And then Derrick destroys what little attachment Penelope had to him with the trial, when he repeats this pattern for the last time by refusing to hear her defense privately and trying to simply get her to plead guilty to an attempted assassination with the assumption that Derrick will simply be able to use the Eckhart name to help her escape the consequences. Season 2 ends with, 'I had no expectations."
That's a death blow to their relationship. Derrick is defined by the expectations of others, which is why he, in turn, defines Penelope by her reputation. For Penelope to tell him that she has no expectations of him is to tell Derrick the agonizing truth - that he is nothing to her.
Not her brother.
Not the future duke.
He's not even a man that she respects.
(image credit, Ep. 85)
This confrontation is different than the Season 1 conclusion, when Penelope's finally willing to risk Reynold's affection score dropping in order to confront him with the truth and consequences of his own actions. In the aftermath of that fight, Reynold realizes that he is the one who needs to reflect on his behavior, not Penelope.
But where Reynold is able to eventually confess the truth about Ivonne's necklace to his father, Derrick is so ashamed of himself that he spirals. The old relationship is gone, leaving him with only her ringing condemnation of his behavior and her justified indifference toward him.
And he does offer an apology - but it's an apology so steeped in the only identity he has left - the Heir - that even though Penelope recognizes it as a genuine attempt at apologizing, it fails to move her. He is not capable of simply saying "I was wrong - at least, not without a bunch of modifiers about why being wrong wasn't his fault.
The Prodigal Daughter Returns
And then, of course, Ivonne makes her inevitable return - not brought in by an outsider (Winter Verdandi) as in the original game, but by Eckles, Penelope's personal guard. A man whom Derrick is already jealous and suspicious of. And, when Penelope understandably starts to lose her shit, Derrick treats it as a return to the status quo - the absolute worst thing he could do.
Especially because he now appears to have a way to expunge his guilt. He can help restore Ivonne to the family.
Derrick is the easiest target for Ivonne to subvert away from the respect Penelope has been painstakingly building from the beginning of the story, because she yokes his conscious guilt and his unconscious shame into a team that drives his actions all the way to Penelope's critical coming-of-age ceremony and the start of the original game, where Penelope's role of villainess is to be cemented.
Derrick desperately wants his little sister back. He also wants to do right by Penelope in the wake of the hunting arc. This is his tragedy, because the two goals are at odds. There is no way to restore Ivonne and win Penelope's affection.
Especially not playing against this magnificent son of a bitch.
(image credit, Ep. 58)
Like all the best character foils, while Derrick has been wrestling with shame and guilt, Callisto Regulus has been busy actually listening to Penelope, thinking critically and making judgments about her based on facts, both old and current. Unlike Derrick, he learns about Penelope and isn't shackled by what people think of either him or her. Indeed, Callisto understands the power of a bad reputation and how it can be harnessed just as easily as a sterling one.
Winter and Callisto are the ones to spring to Penelope's aid at the ruined coming-of-age ceremony, while Derrick is frozen in brainwashed confusion. Even Reynold manages to be the voice of reason in the chaos of her poisoning, pointing out that if they don't let Winter treat Penelope, she's going to die before the doctor can get to her.
(As an aside, when Reynold Eckhart is your voice of reason, you know things have gone sideways!)
Finally, only after Derrick has temporarily broken free of Ivonne's manipulation, having thoroughly soiled his own reputation and the Eckhart name by bringing Ivonne to the ceremony against the orders of their head of house and causing a public spectacle (everything he's accused Penelope of doing), he is left wandering the halls of the estate, desperate to make sense of what's happened and his own feelings.
He can't even go into Penelope's room to check on her - because that spot by her side has already been claimed. He's too late.
(image credit: Ep. 159)
This panel encapsulates Derrick's character in one shot.
The cool tones and shadows, echoing Derrick's symbolism as he's shut away from the warm light representing Penelope. The longing, the jealousy, the self-hatred as he can only peer through the crack in the door. The eerie green light of Ivonne's control has faded from his pupils, leaving him clearheaded for the first time in days as he slowly pieces his fragmented memory together to view the consequences of what he has done.
Meanwhile, a rival Derrick cannot challenge - Callisto - has the right to ask about her condition from the doctor and sit by Penelope's beside, begging her to wake up, not to leave him alone in hell. A hell that Derrick has helped create.
Derrick has had every opportunity through the end of Season 4 to change course - and each time, he is tripped up by those archetypal qualities that define his trope.
The tragic past and hidden vulnerability? These are the qualities Ivonne uses to manipulate and brainwash Derrick into betraying not only Penelope, but himself.
The emotional coldness? It means that Derrick is unable to even understand what he feels, let alone express it coherently, whether to be accepted or rejected. Instead, he's trapped in a self-destructive cycle, alienating the very person he yearns for, unable to ease his loneliness and self-hatred.
The devotion to duty shackles Derrick to a role that is his only identity that outside forces shatter for him - and Ivonne cares nothing for Derrick's well being in the process.
Rather than either the male lead or even a positive force in the narrative, Derrick's traits destroy everything he cherishes, leaving him utterly alone.
The fate of the Duke of the North is to be on the outside looking in.
1) it was Arya Stark who sat at her father's table to listen to him talk and discuss matters with his people, it was her whom the smallfolk affectionally knew as Arya Underfoot
2) it was Arya Stark who was canonically better at her sums and running a household
3) it was Arya Stark who went with Ned Stark to White Harbor
4) it was Arya Stark who fred the Northern prisoners from Harrenhal, who lead this tiny group of orphans into fighting and surviving
5) it was Arya Stark who suffered with the riverlands smallfolk the true hardships of war the North was fighting
6) it was Arya Stark who was betrothed to a Frey and who witnessed their crimes at the Red Wedding first hand
7) it is Arya Stark who is our link to the BWB, who are activately avenging the Red Wedding and keeping the reanimated Catelyn Stark as their leader
8) it is Arya Stark who has a direwolf army waiting for her to use (cause she's a goddamn warg)
9) it is Arya Stark whom Ramsay falsely married to lay claim to Winterfell and the North
10) it is Arya Stark who the North is secretly plotting to get back, to rescue valiant Ned precious little girl
11) it is Arya Stark for whom Jon Snow is willing to bend the rules to rescue, letting a known Night's Watch deserter and wildling chief go to Winterfell as well as giving sound political advice to Stannis
12) it is Arya Stark that Stannis is planning on rescueing and finding a good match for
13) it is Arya Stark who is a polyglot, who is learning to spy and detect lies
Arya Stark has always had political weight in ASOIAF, always. She was never an isolationist who avoided celebrations or lurked in shadows and never shared a word with her people or the bannermen. She was and is a leader of a pack, with a strong and powerful name; strong and powerful connections; strong and powerful abilities. Never forget that, the show did not adapt it because they were unable to adapt her sister correctly so they had to give her this weird mashed up plot, but it was always ARYA STARK , who belonged in the North leading the wolves.
TWOW will prove me right, next year or in 7 more, I don't c a r e.
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It's amusing how the relationship between Jonrya is treated as the most absurd and impossible hypothesis when it's a plot line written by George himself and explicitly characterized as romantic initially. Whether it remains in the story or not is the question. The point is that these characters were created to complement each other emotionally and have this absurd and intense connection from the beginning. The love they feel for each other is a big part of the characterization of these characters. They speak in union and have spent so much time together that they are able to guess what the other is thinking. Their souls are so intertwined that even their respective wolves (extensions of their souls) are in tune with each other (Wolves and women wed for life). And within the main characters, no other relationship is established as this indestructible force, being overly emphasized so many times, despite the time and vows or any forces that can separate them.
The first 13 chapters of AGOT were sent with the 1993 outline. Fans who have looked through the manuscripts have noticed few differences compared to the published version. All these iconic quotes and the relationship between Jon and Arya settling in between major narrative plots have always been here.
Girls get the arms, but not the swords. Bastards get the swords, but not the arms. Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle. The memory of her laughter warmed him on the long ride north. Stick them with the pointy end. These passages were thought with them in a romantic relationship in mind :) Got a problem with that? Go take it up with George.
Plus, “You,” Ned said, kissing her lightly on the brow, “will marry a king and rule his castle, and your sons will be knights and princes and lords and, yes, perhaps even a High Septon.” > Arya kissing the cat in the brow, who is the real king of the castle and the black bastard > Jon being called the black bastard in the wall in ADWD. Grrm subtly returning to old foreshadowing? Oh interesting I guess!
Textually, Jon and Arya are platonic soulmates. They are each other's heart, home and priority. Their bond defies death, is unique within asoiaf and is magnificently written as something no one else has. Trying to level down their relationship only reveals an inability to read the text and the narrative arc of these characters, who have been deeply connected since book 1. They yearn so much to be reunited, regardless of any factors, that it is painful. These are feral loves that simply shake the readers and imply visceral emotions and actions. Like Jon breaking his vows to rescue "Arya" and suffering the consequences for it. It is insane, but this is the true representation of love. An unstoppable force that can drag anyone down. The things we love destroy us every time. He, along with Nymeria, are the reasons that allow Arya's identity to be preserved and that's why she never loses herself. Her desire to reunite with him, even before all the tragedy, is the factor that motivates her to continue living. And she has such overwhelming faith in him (Jon will want me, even if no one else will.) that she knows she will be safe in his arms. Arya's physical home as it was... simply doesn't exist anymore, but JON is her home. And most of all, her pack. In Braaavos she never thinks of any other alternatives besides him. And she would never abandon him.
The abundance of love between them not only brings significant transformations to their internal and external worlds, but also resonates in the narrative. The forbidden love between them would defy logic, social and moral conventions. This is the kind of conflict that George loves to explore and enhance. George is not a conventional writer. His more vanilla romances are not overly explored by the text. He likes drama, complex and contradictory feelings, relationships that involve some degree of moral complexity and that torment his characters. That's why it's so funny to see fans so shocked by his initial ideas because his text itself reveals where he takes things, to the utmost of the heart in conflict with itself. He seeks to address these issues because he likes it. Asoiaf would be much less fun if he only cared about the readers' feelings.
In a scenario where the zombie apocalypse has wiped out everything and everyone, why wouldn't they be together? If, even when they're apart, they still yearn for each other? Why wouldn't they choose to live their lives together, if that's already a desire expressed by both of them? And share their pains and joys with each other. And grow old together? I'm not even talking in a ship sense. It's just that these two characters explicitly inform readers that they love each other above all else and unconditionally. If they have no hope because they've changed so much and nothing will ever be the same, what relationship does asoiaf have a chance of thriving? No one else? If 90% of the relationships established in the books don't have even half of this devotion, loyalty, and affection. How would they be in a better position to thrive?
I'm not saying it will happen exactly as he initially planned. There are obstacles, of course. However, I think those obstacles are magnified to the extreme even in hypothetical scenarios. If the lack of time skip is a hindrance (in a saga that is still ongoing and can last for years), then it is a problem for other relationships as well, in Arya's case perhaps except with Ned Dayne. "But, he can write off-page around the end or in an epilogue". In other words, this narrative device can also be used for Jonrya? Right? "Oh, it's so controversial". Since when did this stop George from writing anything? I find it funny when people say they can't see her reciprocating the feelings. When GRRM totally can and wrote it that way initially 😁 He is a writer fully aware of the universe he created, you don't need to tell him. Platonic soulmates falling in love after a reunion and being horrified by it is exactly the kind of emotional mess that GRRM likes to explore. Regardless of whether they end up together or not.
I am of the radical opinion that, if George wants to write something, he will simply find a way and do it. If Jon and Arya somehow end up together in the end, it's part of the endings he's been dreaming up since 1991 and he won't change them, so it's going to happen. We can only wait for the end of the saga to know for sure. I'm not very creative, but maybe Arya looking for Jon north of the wall, spending some time with him, an open ending with the two of them together or maybe implying that the Stark bloodline continued with them and that they had several Stark looking children. Maybe she could be like the Mormont women, claiming that the fathers of her children are bears, in Arya's case, a wolf. Or, for magical reasons, Jon making a pact with The Heart of Winter and being able to meet her only in the spring. If he wants, there are so many narrative paths that can be presented.
It's very obvious to me how much George loves and values their relationship. His favorite quote is something between them. And he constantly elevates and builds on. He revisits old ideas, makes these characters think about each other all the time. He puts extra emphasis on their bond. Like Jon was supposed to die at Hardhome, but he went there and wrote the Pink Letter, just to put more focus on the relationship between him and Arya once again. Idk, but it doesn't seem like he's written off Jon Arya the way ppl think and I think their fates are more intertwined than fans believe. The guy has tripled down on their relationship. So it's going to be very impactful and relevant.
Arya is the most important and beloved person to Jon. While he is the most important and beloved person to her. And that is why it is difficult to visualize them voluntarily separating. Regardless of the direction their relationship takes, they are undeniably made for each other and are the true soulmates of asoiaf.
Granny: Are you trying to say something to the reader by drilling into us how much Arya and Jon love each other?
George RR Martin: “Say something to the reader?” No, I’m just reporting how the characters feel. Of course, everything in the book says something to the reader. -GRRM
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