Here are headcanons for Garlande Tyrell and Raymona Mertyns, diving into their dynamics, their marriage, and how their contrasting personalities shaped the court of Highgarden before the Dance.

The Dynamics of Their Marriage

• The "Sun and Soil" Dynamic: Courtiers joked that Garlande was the bright golden rose of Highgarden, while Raymona was the rich, grounding soil. He provided the warmth, charm, and grand ideas, while she quietly ensured the estate actually ran flawlessly.

• Complementary Strengths: Garlande loved to host lavish feasts and hunting trips, but he never made a major political or financial move without whispering it to Raymona in bed first. He openly prided himself on having a wife whose intellect matched—and often exceeded—his own.

• A House of Wit and Knowledge: Raymona brought the intellectual flavor of House Mertyns (whose sigil features the observant owl) to the Reach. Under her influence, Highgarden's library grew, and poetry and riddle-games became just as popular at court as Garlande’s favorite jousting tournaments.

Garlande Tyrell: The Charismatic Host

• The Generous Lord: Garlande genuinely loved his people and his lands. His obsession with gardening wasn't just a hobby; he worked closely with stewards to master crop rotation. This passion is exactly why Highgarden possessed such an enormous, unmatched grain surplus when the war loomed.

• A Doting Father: Though Lyonel was born just before the realm fractured, Garlande was completely enamored by his infant son. He would often hold the baby during small council meetings, confidently declaring to his lords that Lyonel would inherit the most peaceful and prosperous Reach in history.

• The Fatal Blindspot: Garlande’s greatest flaw was his assumption that everyone operated with the same sense of hospitality and honor that he did. His open-door policy for feasts and parties ultimately made it incredibly easy for Daemon Targaryen’s disguised spies to slip poison into his wine cup.

Raymona Mertyns: The Unshakable Regent

• The Silent Observer: Before her marriage, Raymona's time as a handmaid to Odeletta Baratheon in Oldtown taught her exactly how the Hightowers operated. She memorized their speech patterns, their ambitions, and—most importantly—their familial weaknesses.

• The Owl's Network: Raymona maintained a private, highly secretive correspondence network with noblewomen all across the Realm (including Terissa Lannister and Sybille Hightower). While men dismissed these letters as mere "women's gossip," Raymona used them to map out the true vulnerabilities, marital disputes, and hidden anxieties of Westeros's most powerful lords.

• Fierce Maternal Protection: The moment Garlande died, Raymona’s grief instantly hardened into an icy, protective resolve. She knew Lyonel was a target. Her decision to lock down Highgarden wasn't born out of fear, but out of a calculated strategy: she knew a fortress filled with grain could outlast any army, as long as they didn't invite a dragon to burn it down.

The Legacy Left to Baby Lyonel

• The "Ears of Stonework" Lesson: As Lyonel grew up, Raymona raised him on the story of the night she humiliated Aemond, Ormund, and Gwayne. She taught him that true power in Westeros doesn't just come from a castle's physical walls or the sharpest sword, but from the secrets whispered within them.

A Bitter Inheritance: Growing up without a father because of a Black assassin, yet forced to fiercely outwit Green invaders as a toddler, left Lyonel with a deeply ingrained distrust of both Targaryen factions. This childhood spent in the crossfire of the Dance is precisely what molded him into the stern, uncompromising military commander he would become during the Conquest of Dorne

Here are headcanons diving deep into the tense, brilliant psychology of how Raymona Mertyns completely dismantled Aemond, Ormund, and Gwayne on that fateful night at Highgarden.

The Calculated Ambience of the "Playdate"

• A Deliberate Choice of Setting: Raymona knew the Green entourage was coming long before they breached the inner courtyard—her scouts had flagged a massive host flying the Hightower banner hours prior. Instead of meeting them in the intimidating, cold Great Hall, she purposefully staged herself in the cozy solar surrounded by children, toys, and handmaids. It forced the three heavily armed men to look absurdly aggressive and out of place the moment they barged in.

• The Handmaids' Unspoken Language: Raymona and her women operated like a hive mind. When the heavy oak doors swung open, Raymona didn’t flinch; she simply caught the eye of her chief nanny. With a subtle nod, the children were whisked away through a side tapestry door so seamlessly that Aemond’s heavy boots hadn't even finished crossing the threshold before the room was entirely clear of infants.

• The Stonewall Form: The handmaids did not flee. They stepped into the empty space left by the children, forming a physical, silent barrier of silk and velvet between the three imposing warriors and the Lady Regent. It forced the men to realize they would have to physically shove past innocent noblewomen just to intimidate a grieving widow

Dissecting the Men's Failed Strategy

• Ormund’s Misplaced Performance: Ormund Hightower expected a weeping, fragile widow he could easily manipulate by invoking Garlande's ghost. When he preached about "loyalty to your late husband's legacy," Raymona let him finish entirely, staring at him with unblinking, heavy-lidded eyes. Her silence made his grand, theatrical speech echo awkwardly in the quiet solar, deflating his momentum instantly.

• Gwayne’s False Familiarity: Gwayne tried to use Raymona’s past as a handmaid to Odeletta Baratheon as a weapon, hoping to remind her of her "place" and her historical ties to Oldtown. Raymona used this against him. Because she had been a handmaid in those halls, she knew exactly how much Gwayne feared his own wife, Sybille, and exactly how much Ormund relied on the Lannister coin brought in by Terissa

• .Aemond’s Psychological Warfare Fails: Aemond Targaryen stepped forward, letting his cloak swirl, and tried to use the sheer terror of his presence to break her, bringing up the "dangerous stakes of your babe being surrounded by Rhaenyra's bastards." Raymona didn't even look at his eyepatch. She looked directly into his remaining eye and coolly replied, “My son is surrounded by stone walls and full granaries, Prince Aemond. The only danger to him is the dragon currently parked on my white roses outside.”

The Deployment of the Letters

• The Smooth Execution: When Raymona laid out her terms—grain, and absolutely nothing more—the men grew visibly angry, their hands instinctively drifting toward their sword hilts. That was when Raymona smiled. It wasn't a smirk; it was the sweet, hospitable smile of a perfect hostess. She reached into a small cedar lockbox on her tea table and pulled out two delicately scented parchment scrolls tied with silk ribbons

• .Terissa’s Sharp Tongue: Raymona opened the first letter and read aloud a specific, scathing paragraph from Terissa Lannister. Terissa had written to Raymona mocking Ormund's terrible budgeting and explicitly stating that if Ormund dragged Highgarden’s men into a bloodbath, Casterly Rock would rethink its financial backing. Ormund went entirely pale, realizing his wife had completely compromised his leverage.

• Sybille’s Domestic Ultimatum: The second letter, from Sybille Hightower to Raymona, was even more devastating for Gwayne. Sybille had explicitly complained about her husband’s impulsive nature and jokingly—but truthfully—promised Raymona that if Gwayne ruined the Reach’s grain supply before winter, she would lock him out of their bedchamber until the spring thaws.

The Humiliating Defeat

• The "Ears of Stonework" Kill-Shot: As the three men stood frozen, utterly horrified that their domestic vulnerabilities and political fault lines had been neatly filed away in a Highgarden lockbox, Raymona delivered her iconic line: “Men may have their swords, but the women have ears of stonework.” She delivered it with such calm, devastating grace that it felt heavier than a warhammer blow.

• Aemond’s Silent Respect: While Ormund and Gwayne were sputtering and looking at the floor like chastised boys, Aemond Targaryen actually let out a low, dangerous laugh. He realized in that exact moment that Raymona Mertyns could not be bullied. He recognized her as a fellow apex predator—one who used ink and secrets instead of fire and blood. He was the first to pivot on his heel and march out, realizing that pressing her any further would result in Highgarden cutting off the Green army's food entirely.

• The Aftermath: The moment the heavy doors slammed shut behind the retreating, thoroughly humbled Green lords, Raymona didn’t celebrate. She simply exhaled, smoothed down her skirts, and called the nanny to bring baby Lyonel back into the room. She picked up her son, kissed his forehead, and whispered, “That, my love, is how you win a war without losing a single man.”

POST CONFRONTATION

The Silent Journey Home

• The Suffocating Ride: The ride back from Highgarden was entirely devoid of the grand, martial pride the three men had carried on the way there. Gwayne kept his eyes glued strictly to his horse's ears, Ormund looked as though he had swallowed a live toad, and Aemond rode at the front in absolute, terrifying silence, his jaw clenched so tightly it looked like marble

• .The Fractured Alliance: At the crossroads where their paths split, they didn’t even exchange a formal farewell. Ormund and Gwayne merely gave Aemond a stiff, tight nod before veering toward Oldtown, while Aemond whipped his horse toward King's Landing without a single backward glance. The silence between them had spoken volumes: none of them would ever speak of the "Highgarden Incident" to another living soul.

Gwayne's Return to Oldtown: The Smug Wife

• The "Welcoming" Committee: When Gwayne walked into his solar, exhausted and still smelling of travel dust, he found Sybille Hightower sitting gracefully by the hearth, casually sipping a cup of spiced wine. She didn’t even look up from her embroidery at first, merely letting out a low, musical chuckle that made Gwayne’s stomach drop.

• The Mockery: "Back so soon, my brave knight?" Sybille asked, her eyes dancing with wicked amusement. "I trust you didn't tracking mud into Lady Raymona’s beautiful solar? Or did you find that her carpet was far too sturdy for your heavy boots?" Gwayne tried to bluster, claiming he was acting in the interest of the crown, but Sybille just laughed harder, reminding him that she had explicitly told him he’d look like an impulsive fool.

• The Domestic Penalty: True to the implications of her letter to Raymona, Sybille didn't just mock him—she handed him a pillow and a heavy wool blanket. For the next three weeks, the brave Ser Gwayne Hightower, formidable Green commander, slept soundly on the uncomfortable settee in his own study, thoroughly punished for his domestic arrogance.

Ormund's Return: The Lannister Pride

• The Ambush in the Great Hall: Ormund expected to slip into his chambers unnoticed to nurse his bruised ego. Instead, the moment he stepped into the hall, he was met with the booming, synchronized laughter of his wife, Terissa Lannister, and her two brothers, Jason and Tyland, who had conveniently traveled to Oldtown for "diplomatic reasons" (which actually meant laughing at Ormund).

• The Lannister Chorus: Jason Lannister was practically falling off his chair, slapping his knee so hard his heavy rings clattered. "By the Seven, Ormund!" Jason bellowed. "You marched an entire host to Highgarden just to be scolded by a widow with a piece of parchment? I've seen squires handle a parley with more grace!

• "Tyland’s Cold Calculations: While Jason roared with laughter, Tyland Lannister offered a much drier, more devastating smirk. Tyland casually held up a ledger, noting, "Terissa told us about your budgeting issues, brother. If you're going to let a Lady Mertyns completely dismantle your military leverage, perhaps Casterly Rock should handle your treasury from now on." Terissa simply smirked from behind her wine goblet, completely vindicated.

Aemond's Return to King's Landing: The Brotherly Bond

• The Gauntlet of Laughter: Aemond strode through the Red Keep like a storm cloud, his boots slamming against the stone floors. He passed Helaena first, who was sitting with her insects, letting out a soft, knowing laugh as she murmured something about "roses having thorns that draw blood from dragons." Even his mother, Alicent, couldn't hide a rare, amused snicker from behind her silk handkerchief as her terrifying son stormed past her, utterly defeated by a mortal woman's wit

• .Dragging Aegon: Unable to bear the mocking atmosphere of the court, Aemond marched straight into the small council chamber, grabbed his brother Aegon II by the collar of his doublet, and dragged him into a private, secure chamber. Aegon was ready to fight back until he saw the utterly bewildered, exhausted look in Aemond’s single eye.

• The Shared Misery: For the first time in their lives, the two brothers actually bonded over something. Aemond poured two massive cups of strong wine, slammed one into Aegon's hand, and muttered, "We have the largest dragon in the world, and yet a woman with a handful of letters from our own vassals' wives just brought the entire Green army to its knees."

• Aegon's Epiphany: Aegon, who spent half his life being managed, outsmarted, and chastised by Alicent, Helaena, and the handmaids of the Red Keep, just threw his head back and laughed. He clapped Aemond on the shoulder, sliding into a seat next to his brother. "Welcome to the club, Aemond," Aegon chuckled, taking a deep swig. "Men might rule the kingdoms, but the women run the castle. Drink your wine. You never stood a chance."

ON GARLANDE AND RAYMONA'S COURTSHIP

The Meeting of Sun and Shadow in Oldtown

• The Owl in the Beacon: Mistwood is famous for its dedication to knowledge in the Stormlands, and Raymona grew up surrounded by books. When she was sent to Oldtown to serve Odeletta Baratheon, she stood out instantly. Amidst the loud, sprawling court of Oldtown, Raymona was a quiet fixture with the unmistakable Mertyns features: striking dark hair and large, incredibly observant grey eyes that seemed to take in every room's secrets.

• The Golden Knight’s Arrival: Ser Garlande Tyrell was everything the Reach praised—handsome, charismatic, with rich dark brown hair, bright green eyes, and an effortless charm. He frequently visited Oldtown on Highgarden’s behalf. While most ladies flitted around him trying to catch his eye, Raymona simply sat beside Odeletta, quietly reading or embroidering, her sharp grey eyes tracking his every move with mild, detached amusement.

• The First Spark: Garlande first noticed her during a dull diplomatic banquet. He made a grand, sweeping joke that had the entire table roaring, but when he looked around, he caught Raymona’s eye. She wasn’t laughing; she just gave him a tiny, knowing smirk and a subtle raise of an eyebrow, as if she knew exactly how much he had exaggerated the story. Garlande was completely hooked from that exact moment.

The Not-So-Secret Courtship

• The Quiet Game: Garlande began courting her with a rare level of restraint, deeply respecting that Raymona was a private person. Instead of loud serandades, he would leave rare botany books on her reading table or seek her out in the gardens to ask her genuine questions about crop management or history.

• The Wildfire Gossip: Despite Garlande’s carefulness, a handsome Tyrell heir spending hours talking to a sharp-witted Stormlands handmaid could not stay hidden. Word of their "secret" romance spread through the Reach and the Stormlands like wildfire. Raymona knew exactly what people were saying, but she deliberately chose not to stop the rumors. She wanted to see how long the normally unflappable, charismatic Garlande could last before he cracked under the pressure of the court's teasing.

• The Hightower Intervention: The boiling point came when Lord Myles Hightower and his wife, Ossifer Lefford, decided to play matchmakers. Tired of the tiptoeing, they gathered written letters of proof—recounting every single time Garlande and Raymona had been seen "coincidentally" sharing a quiet corner—and dispatched them directly to Highgarden and Mistwood.

The Great Diplomatic Roast

• The Surprise Delegation: Rather than being angry, both families found the situation hilarious. Highgarden and Mistwood suddenly sent a massive group of close relatives on a surprise "diplomatic visit" to Oldtown. They gathered in the grand solar, acting entirely serious until they caught Garlande and Raymona in the same room.

• The Roasting Session: Garlande’s Tyrell cousins and Raymona’s Mertyns uncles spent hours completely roasting him. They teased him about his sudden, intense interest in the history of the Stormlands, laughed at how he suddenly became an expert on owls, and asked if he needed Highgarden's entire army just to walk a lady through a courtyard

• .The Flustered Confession: For all his battlefield bravery and political charm, Garlande went completely red. Sweating under the collective smirk of two great houses and the gentle, teasing smile of Odeletta, Garlande finally cracked. He threw his hands up, looked directly at Raymona, and loudly declared to the entire room that he was utterly powerless against her wit and intended to marry her.

The Betrothal and Raymona's Victory

• The Betrothal Feast: The laughter instantly turned into a joyous celebration, and their betrothal was made official that very night. While Garlande wiped the sweat from his brow and poured himself a heavy goblet of wine to recover, Raymona walked over to him, her large grey eyes dancing with absolute triumph.

• The Final Wit: Garlande looked up at his new betrothed, still amazed by how calm she had remained through the entire ordeal. "You knew they were coming, didn't you?" he asked. Raymona simply smiled, took a sip of her own wine, and replied, "A Tyrell should know that if you spend months watering a seed in secret, eventually the whole garden is going to notice." Garlande fell in love with her all over again on the spot.

When Rhaenyra took the Iron Throne, for 6 months, Westeros fell into utter disarray

Alicent and Helaena are kept as hostages, Otto I Hightower was executed by Rhaenyra, and then the kiss up nobles got served roasted sewer rats on spear point by Rhaenyra herself in her coronation feast. On top of that, Aemond broke off his former bethrothal to Floris Baratheon ( youngest daughter of Borros Baratheon and Elenda Caron ) and ran off with Alys Rivers in Harrenhal, with Aegon II being on the run with a couple knights

Not only that, sometime after the Battle of the Gullet, Terissa died giving birth to her youngest child Bethany.

And Rhaenyra's increasing madness and entitlement over the Iron Throne had even most of her former handmaids slowly defect to serve Helaena, who was kind and gracious with them.

Raymona watched it all from a distance with dread and horror, but she and her handmaids kept the logistics of running Highgarden running

For most part, young Lyonel was shielded from the more brutal aspects of the war.

Jason Lannister died during the Battle of the Gullet, and so his wife and widow, Johanna Westerling, took over as Lady Regent of Casterly Rock, watching over her 5 daughters ( Tyshara, Cerelle, Mircelle, Jemima, and Caecilia ) and her young only son Loreon until he is of age.

During that time, Johanna and Raymona frequently exchange letters, bonding over the grief of losing their more boisterous husbands and looking after young children and the protection of their castles during the war

Then, a mere couple weeks before the Storming of the Dragon Pit, Rhaenyra burned down the Library of Mistwood.

Now the Mertyns only supplied Storm's End with grain and nothing more. But Rhaenyra was so threatened by the sheer intellect of the Mertyns that she made a mistake in burning down the Grand Library of the intellectual cradle of Stormlands

All heck breaks loose. Stormlands houses from across Stormlands poured in resources to rebuild the library, as the people of Stormlands completely rejected Rhaenyra as queen. Floris Baratheon, who already returned back to Storm's End at that time, famously whispered to her handmaids, ' A ' queen ' who burns down libraries is no queen at all '

During Storming of the Dragon, Mistwood and Highgarden sent in underground fleets to smuggle refugees away from the crossfire

Eventually, sometime after the Dance of the Dragons, Aegon III Targaryen became King, and Thaddeus Rowan ( who fled from Daemon after the Battle Above Gods Eye back to Goldengrove ) eventually marries an older Floris.

Some years later, Royce Baratheon, younger brother of Floris, eventually becomes Lord of Storm's End and marries Minerva Martyn, one of Raymona's nieces from Rafael Mertyns ( Raymona's older brother )

Here are headcanons on how Raymona reacted and took swift action when the intellectual cradle of her childhood home was turned to ash.

The Ice-Cold Rage of the Owl

• The Silent Shattering: When the raven arrived at Highgarden with the news that Rhaenyra had incinerated Mistwood's library, Raymona did not weep or scream. She sat at her solar desk, her large Mertyns grey eyes turning completely into chips of ice. She dropped her quill, picked up a heavy iron paperweight, and squeezed it until her knuckles went entirely white.

• The Mother's Vow: Garlande’s assassination had made her cautious, but the burning of her childhood books—the very knowledge that gave her the wit to outsmart Aemond and the Hightowers—felt like a personal violation. Looking over at toddler Lyonel playing with wooden blocks on the rug, she whispered, "She burns the past because she is terrified of the future. We will show her what happens when you anger the keepers of history."

Activating the Underground Network

• The Wartime Pact with Johanna Westerling: Raymona immediately penned a high-priority, encrypted letter to her fellow widow, Johanna Westerling at Casterly Rock. Bonding over their shared grief of losing boisterous husbands (Garlande and Jason), Raymona laid out a grim truth: Rhaenyra was no longer fighting a war for a throne; she was destroying the foundational knowledge of Westeros. Johanna, furious at the chaos and fiercely protective of young Loreon and her five daughters, instantly agreed to back Raymona’s secret logistics network with Lannister coin.

• The Secret Grain Embargo: Outwardly, Highgarden claimed that "bad harvests" and the chaotic movements of Team Black vassals (like the Rowans) were slowing down grain shipments. In reality, Raymona deliberately throttled the food supply to King’s Landing. She ensured that Rhaenyra’s sycophant court—already eating roasted sewer rats on spears—starved even faster, accelerating the city's descent into madness.

• The Stormlands Grain Divert: Simultaneously, Raymona ordered that the vast surplus of grain Garlande had cultivated be rerouted through hidden mountain passes straight to Storm's End. The Mertyns and Baratheons were starving out the Crown while keeping the Stormlands entirely fed and fueled for a counter-offensive.

The Smuggling Fleets of the Mander

• The Underground Fleet Execution: Anticipating that King's Landing was a powder keg waiting to explode, Raymona didn't wait for the Storming of the Dragonpit. She quietly mobilized the Tyrell merchant fleets along the Mander and partnered with hidden Stormlands vessels.

• Rescuing the Innocent: When the capital finally erupted into flames and madness, Raymona’s underground fleets were already anchored in secret coves along the Blackwater Rush. They didn't rescue soldiers or lords; they smuggled out fleeing handmaids (who had abandoned Rhaenyra to protect Helaena), scribes, scholars, orphans, and common refugees, bringing them to safety within the thick stone walls of Highgarden and Oldtown.

The Rebirth of Knowledge and the Next Generation

• Rebuilding the Cradle: Raymona knew that stone could be replaced, but lost text was a tragedy. She opened Highgarden’s private vaults, which she and Garlande had filled with rare botany and history books, and ordered scribes to begin copying every single page. These copies were secretly sent to Mistwood as the entire Stormlands rallied to rebuild the library.

• The Baratheon-Mertyns Alliance: Decades later, when the ash settled and Aegon III sat on a broken throne, the bonds forged in the dark by Raymona bore powerful fruit. Floris Baratheon, having survived the war and found peace marrying Thaddeus Rowan at Goldengrove, always remained a close ally to Highgarden.

• The Ultimate Match: When Floris's younger brother, Royce Baratheon, eventually inherited Storm's End, the choice for his Lady wife was obvious. He married Minerva Mertyns—Raymona’s brilliant niece via her older brother Rafael. It was a union that forever cemented the alliance between the stag and the owl, ensuring that the wit of House Mertyns and the power of the Stormlands would protect the realm's knowledge for generations to come.

The ballsy, unyielding defiance of House Mertyns during Rhaenyra’s six-month reign of terror became the psychological spark that lit the Stormlands ablaze. While other houses cowered, the lords of Mistwood played a high-stakes game of absolute non-compliance that ultimately broke the Black queen’s grip on the realm.

The Ghosting of the Iron Throne

• The Empty Chairs at the Rat Feast: When Rhaenyra sent out her grand invitations for her "celebratory feast," House Mertyns didn't even bother sending a polite rejection. They simply ghosted the Crown. Knowing the Black queen's volatile and entitled nature, they quietly dispatched secret riders to warn Houses Beesbury, Tarly, and Manderly that a trap was brewing. Though those houses foolishly went anyway and were served roasted sewer rats on spears, the Mertyns' foresight proved to the entire realm that the owls of Mistwood saw through Rhaenyra’s madness long before anyone else.

• The Silent Evacuation: The exact day Rhaenyra marched into King’s Landing, every single Mertyns-aligned courtier, scribe, merchant, and servant vanished from the capital overnight. They packed their belongings in total silence, leaving their quarters completely bare. When Rhaenyra’s city watch came to demand their fealty, they found nothing but empty rooms.

• Ignoring the Dragon’s Ultimatum: Furious at being ignored, Rhaenyra sent a flock of ravens to Mistwood with a brutal ultimatum: Bend the knee, or your house burns. The Maester of Mistwood, under strict orders, didn't even break the wax seals. They used the royal scrolls as kindling for the castle hearths. This absolute lack of fear deeply unnerved the Black council and became a legendary tale whispered in every tavern across the Stormlands.

The Martyrdom of the Mistwood Library and Queen Helaena

• The Last Straw for the Realm: The Stormlands houses were already furious that Rhaenyra had broken the betrothal between Aemond and Floris Baratheon, but the burning of the Grand Library of Mistwood changed the nature of the war. It was no longer a political dispute; it was a war on culture and knowledge. When Floris Baratheon famously muttered, "A queen who burns down libraries is no queen at all," it became the official rallying cry of the entire region.

• Helaena's Secret Alliance: Inside her prison in the Red Keep, Queen Helaena—beloved by the smallfolk, Hightowers, and Florents alike—used her own subtle network to try and help Mistwood after the fire. When Rhaenyra discovered this, she cruelly separated Helaena from her remaining child, young Jaehaera (who was thankfully smuggled to Oldtown just in time), and locked Helaena in a desolate high tower.

• The Catalyst for the Pit: Helaena had spent her captivity being kind to everyone and avoiding the Blacks, who mocked her as "insipid," completely blind to her inner steel. Her tragic death, combined with the ashes of Mistwood’s library, was the exact powder keg that drove the smallfolk of King’s Landing into a frenzy. The Mertyns' defiance had proven Rhaenyra could be resisted, and Helaena’s murder gave the people the fury they needed to storm the Dragonpit and tear the Targaryen beasts apart.

Inspiring the Stormlands Mutiny

• The Grain Weapon: Following Raymona’s swift logistics mapping from Highgarden, Mistwood officially closed the borders of the Stormlands to any crown investigators. They diverted 100% of their immense resources away from the capital and poured them directly into Storm’s End and local garrisons.

• The Unified Front: Seeing a minor house like Mertyns stand so tall against dragon-riders shamed the more hesitant Stormlands houses into action. Houses like Caron, Dondarrion, and Connington looked at Mistwood’s defiance and realized that if they all rose together, Rhaenyra could not burn them all before her own capital starved. The entire region completely withdrew its recognition of her authority.

The Erasing of the Dragon Queen

• The True Queens of History: Decades after the war, when the Citadel and the Maesters sat down to write the definitive history of the Dance, the influence of House Mertyns and Oldtown was absolute. Alicent Hightower was recorded with nuanced, Machiavellian complexity—a victim and a perpetrator who held the realm together for 20 years through sheer political willpower. Helaena was canonized as a tragic, saintly figure whose quiet charity and grace outshone the cruelty of her captors.

• Damnatio Memoriae: As for Rhaenyra? The Grand Library of Mistwood (proudly rebuilt with resources from across the Stormlands) and the Citadel of Oldtown enacted a total erasure of her name. In their official records, she was never a queen—only a usurper and a tyrant who spent six months ruining the realm. Every chronicle penned in those walls skipped directly from Viserys I to Aegon II, ensuring that the queen who burned books was ultimately erased from the very pages of history she tried to destroy.