Did you like 10th Kingdom?

Friend, I have loved 10th Kingdom for twenty years.  A very long time ago my college roommates and I used to do an annual all-nighter rewatch with breakfast bacon to celebrate at dawn.  I have not seen it in approximately a decade and it was very much worth finding again.

I’ve mentioned it in passing once or twice but never really discussed it. The short answer is that I do think Benjen knows about Jon’s real paternity but I don’t think anyone told him as much as he had all the sufficient information to figure it out on his own. Most of my speculation about this is informed by how the text frames Benjen’s relationship with Lyanna; while we have only a few instances of interactions between them, it pointedly appears as a close relationship.

Now two children danced across the godswood, hooting at one another as they dueled with broken branches. The girl was the older and taller of the two. Arya! Bran thought eagerly, as he watched her leap up onto a rock and cut at the boy. But that couldn’t be right. If the girl was Arya, the boy was Bran himself, and he had never worn his hair so long. And Arya never beat me playing swords, the way that girl is beating him. She slashed the boy across his thigh, so hard that his leg went out from under him and he fell into the pool and began to splash and shout. “You be quiet, stupid,” the girl said, tossing her own branch aside. “It’s just water. Do you want Old Nan to hear and run tell Father?” She knelt and pulled her brother from the pool, but before she got him out again, the two of them were gone.    

Benjen and Lyanna grew up with only one another for company, with Brandon being fostered in Barrowton and Ned in the Eyrie when Lyanna was all of four and Benjen even younger. They were probably also really close in age,  considering the parallel set by Bran’s vision to Arya and Bran who are two years apart in age, which makes it more likely that they had a close relationship. Indeed, this vision clearly frames Ben as a close companion and confidant to Lyanna who seems to have been accustomed to keeping her secrets from the adults around them. He was a willing participant in her traditionally unlady-like endeavors as well if he was her regular sparring partner. That lends more credence to the heavy suggestion in Meera Reed’s story about the tourney of Harrenhall that Benjen was a knowing, contributing party to Lyanna’s brief stint as the Knight of the Laughing Tree.

“The wolf maid saw them too, and pointed them out to her brothers. ‘I could find you a horse, and some armor that might fit,’ the pup offered. The little crannogman thanked him, but gave no answer […]”  

It is likely that the armor that Ben offered to procure for Howland Reed was the “ill-fitting armor made up of bits and pieces” that Lyanna used as the Knight of the Laughing Tree since the logistics of the situation don’t work too well without Ben’s involvement. Also, Howland knew that Lyanna was the Knight of the Laughing Tree so I find it hard to believe that Ben, Lyanna’s lifelong companion and sparring partner, did not. That in turn makes it likely that Ben knew that Rhaegar had discovered Lyanna’s identity and that said discovery was what prompted her crowning as queen of love and beauty, in addition to whatever interaction may have happened between his sister and the crown prince at Harrenhal. Keep in mind that Lyanna’s reaction to Rhaegar’s singing had been previously noted by Ben as well since he teased her about it and got wine poured over his head for it. So Ben was in a prime position to know about the obvious entanglement between Rhaegar and Lyanna and the one most likely to know the details of what occurred between them. I can’t imagine that what happened at Harrenhal wasn’t a major subject of discussion between two young siblings sequestered on their own in Winterfell as Ned headed to the Vale and Brandon started preparing for his wedding.

The extent of Benjen’s knowledge is speculative at best since we’re still missing a lot of details about this plot, but he was probably fully aware of how Lyanna felt about both Robert and Rhaegar, however her feelings about the latter could be described. In fact, I suspect that Ben might have been the only one who actually cared to listen to what Lyanna thought about what happened at Harrenhal since I don’t think that Rickard, Brandon or Ned were at all considering of Lyanna’s thoughts and feelings on this matter. Which makes it all the more likely that Lyanna trusted Ben with her feelings. In light of that, I feel confident saying that there is no way that Ben did not know that Lyanna went “willingly” with Rhaegar, something that might have even played a part in his later decision to join the Night’s Watch at such a young age and so soon after Ned returned with Lyanna’s son. Because if Ben had all this information, it’s difficult for me to buy that he didn’t figure out the truth of Jon’s paternity. Ned’s lie was very easy to accept within a society indoctrinated to think that it’s normal for men to father bastards, especially in wartime - but that story does have holes for someone who had the background information Ben did and who knew Lyanna and Ned as well as he did. Note that Ben’s potential knowledge of the circumstances of Lyanna’s disappears means that his thoughts on the matter might have lacked the violence that characterizes the official story of Lyanna’s kidnap and rape, so the question of the manner of her death would be very present on his mind. What did Lyanna die of exactly? Perfectly healthy 16-year-olds don’t just drop dead of their own accord. But Ned was scarce with the details. Ned didn’t talk about Lyanna, about Harrenhal and especially not the Knight of the Laughing Tree. In fact, it looks like he banned talk of it, just as he banned talk of Jon’s mother who he also refused to talk about. This is very telling if one knew where to look, and Ben certainly did.

Every Stormtrooper is duly alarmed when R2 drags Vader off by the cape. Palpatine is ESPECIALLY alarmed. That’s HIS apprentice! 

Staying in King’s Landing was not an option. As Kevan spelled it out for Tyrion, he was in danger whatever the outcome of the trial was.

“You have no witnesses,” his uncle reminded him. “Tyrion, if you are guilty of this enormity, the Wall is a kinder fate than you deserve. And if you are blameless… there is fighting in the north, I know, but even so it will be a safer place for you than King’s Landing, whatever the outcome of this trial. The mob is convinced of your guilt. Were you so foolish as to venture out into the streets, they would tear you limb from limb.” 

But forget about the mob, Cersei would have Tyrion torn limb from limb, guilty verdict or not. The outcome of the trial did not matter in the slightest; Cersei was convinced that Tyrion was the one who killed Joffrey and would have had him murdered even if he’d won the trial by combat. Tyrion is too smart not to realize that. A Kingsguard already tried to kill him during the Blackwater while he was acting Hand, what’s stopping another attempt to happen, now that any power he had had been effectively stripped away from him? Who would care if the publicly disgraced so-called “Imp” was discreetly murdered when a witness after witness relayed stories of his “monstrous” and “deviant” behavior and played right on the onlookers’ already existing ableism? King’s Landing did not care about Tyrion when he was the one defending it, it certainly was not about to start now when everyone was ganging up on him.

No, Tyrion had to leave King’s Landing. Westeros, though, is another matter. As we’ve seen in canon, Tyrion was utterly vulnerable in Essos, alienated by the difference in culture and language, weakened by lack of funds, allies or power through family name, and subject to the whims of Illyrio, JonCon and Jorah, among others. Moreover, with Tyrion’s innocence proven through Oberyn, Varys would lose his position as his only way out of a certain death, which effectively gave the Spider power to determine Tyrion’s course (which was to Illyrio and from there to Aegon. Daenerys was never in the cards as a destination for Tyrion. Jorah’s intervention was what readjusted Tyrion’s course to point straight to Meereen and Dany.)

Luckily, Tyrion had another option: Dorne.

[Oberyn] set the spear aside. “It is said that a Lannister always pays his debts. Perhaps you will return to Sunspear with me when the day’s bloodletting is done. My brother Doran would be most pleased to meet the rightful heir to Casterly Rock… especially if he brought his lovely wife, the Lady of Winterfell.”

Does the snake think I have Sansa squirreled away somewhere, like a nut I’m hoarding for winter? If so, Tyrion was not about to disabuse him. “A trip to Dorne might be very pleasant, now that I reflect on it.”

“Plan on a lengthy visit.” Prince Oberyn sipped his wine. “You and Doran have many matters of mutual interest to discuss. Music, trade, history, wine, the dwarf’s penny… the laws of inheritance and succession. No doubt an uncle’s counsel would be of benefit to Queen Myrcella in the trying times ahead.” 

One thing to keep in mind is that the change in the outcome of the trial alters the political theater in the capital. Tyrion would be exonerated by the gods themselves which disappoints Tyrin’s plans of formally disinheriting him as he wished for years. Oberyn would have Gregor’s confession of the murder of Elia and Aegon and Tyrion’s innocence proven which amounts to a public condemnation of the Lannister regime twice over, one for Elia and Aegon, and another for Tyrion. The Lannister regime would be publicly branded as one that employs and champions monstrous murderers and condemns innocents. That puts Tywin in a politically tight spot with Dorne, prevents him from using the criminal charges against Tyrion to kick him off the line of succession, and stays his hand from any attempt of retaliation against Oberyn in the meantime. Essentially, Tywin would be forced to play nice for a time to mitigate the consequences of the trial and appease Dorne, all while Oberyn sat on his small council and worked to undermine the Lannister-Tyrell government from within (though Oberyn planned to return to Sunspear with Tyrion but this could be to discuss their plan with Doran in light of the new developments or to present Gregor’s skull to his princely brother as promised rather than a sign of him abandoning his small council seat.) Oberyn’s actions in King’s Landing were no impulsive move on his part but a sign of keen political thinking that could have served the Dornish plan really well if it worked (besides the obvious attempt to get justice for Elia in the only way that was afforded to him). If Tywin was forced to keep face and play nice with his purported Dornish allies, he would not halt his newly exonerated son from accepting a friendly visit to Dorne to keep the pretense of amiable relationship with the royals’ future kin, so Tyrion would go to Dorne and Oberyn would take his seat on the small council and revel in rubbing it in the face of the Lannisters, while Doran received the heir to Casterly Rock who was itching to get back at his family and presumably the Lady of Winterfell who had enough reasons to want the Lannisters gone, as Oberyn believed Tyrion knew Sansa’s location. Those are great cards to have when you’re planning a coup.

Hey T! Been a while since we talked.

Well, as Theon says in ACoK, the younger Starklings were no more than babes for most of his time in Winterfell and only Robb and Jon were old enough to be worth his notice, so the one relationship that could see significant change in this AU is the one with girl!Robb. In what way…. well, as Robin most definitely would not been trained at arms, that removes one important area of interaction between the two, and consequentially would lose them the camaraderie and friendship often forged on the training yard between young warriors. Similarly, the five-year age gap between them would mean that their lessons with Maester Luwin would not be taken at the same time, also minimizing their interaction. That does not mean that there’s no possibility for them to still have a friendship; indeed the example of Petyr Baelish and the Tully girls exists - but it could be precisely that which makes Catelyn discourage a close friendship between the two as she is no stranger to how the bond between two foster siblings could grow into something more (whether requited or not), and neither she nor Ned would be keen on repeating the Brandon\Petyr debacle. That caution might only grow as the years pass and it becomes apparent that Robin would inherit Winterfell, and grow some more as Theon reaches his majority and starts chasing skirts.

Ahh, so sorry, T. I stuck this in my drafts and totally forgot about it.

I don’t know about who would survive longest; it depends on where they are and if their personality type would serve them in that situation. I feel like Quinn would be capable at court since she posses a mix of Margaery’s ability to perform innocence and Sansa’s courtesy armor, with some of Cersei’s “I will kill you and your mother” attitude. Santana… well she is shrewd and cunning and a good schemer so she would be also fine at court, but I also just want her to meet Lady Nym, they’d get together like a house on fire with their razors and knives. Sam has a shot if he is in Stannis’ camp since he is a Davos type of character. Those three are the ones who immediately sprang to my mind for some reason, along with a weird confidence that Rachel and Jake would get themselves killed in under 10 minutes.