a study in: the deconstruction of the lost lenore, the sudden rise to political prominence, a journey in motherhood, the exploration of the role of princess consort.

character portrayal notes below the cut:

HOUSE DONDARRION.

DURING THE REIGN OF KING VISERYS I — KING AERYS I.

lady alynne dondarrion neé morrigen, was the eldest daughter of lord grance morrigen and his lady wife jeyne morrigen neé buckler. born the sixth day of the tenth moon, 130AC at crow's nest keep in the stormlands, she was the elder sister of melessa and leyla morrigen, and the wife of the landed knight leslyn dondarrion, whom she wed in 148AC - ( who's lordship was restored to him upon the sheltering of prince aemon the dragonknight and king baelor in 161AC, after having been stripped as a result of his father's allegiance with the kingmaker, ser criston cole, in the aftermath of the dance of dragons in 131AC ) she is the mother of ser lorent dondarrion, lady rosalei estermont neé dondarrion, and lady jena dondarrion. lady alynne is an entirely kind woman; she is a steadfast, determined individual who while feeling disappointed at first that she was wed to the heir of a disgraced family, she recognized the ambition in leslyn, the desire to advance, and improve his station, and it was something that they could find common ground upon. they worked together to try and seek the betterment of their family both at court and in the eyes of the realm at large. she is intelligent, perceptive, and proud. she is protective, and above all loyal to the ones she loves. she is a mother who wants only the best for her children when it comes to securing their futures. she is loving, and warm to her children.

she was devastated at the death of her son lorent ( who died on the twentieth day of the second moon, 169AC ) while still in the talking stages of securing an engagement with a lannister of casterly rock. his life had just been beginning and now, it was over, and she was inconsolable. she tried again a few months after he passed because she was reminded of the necessity of securing a male heir and having a stable line of succession so recently after her husband's family had regained it's lordship. while she had been disappointed at first, that the baby had been a girl, that disappointment quickly ebbed, and it was nothing compared to the disappointment that her husband felt. alynne was relieved, in a way, that this child born so close to the anniversary of her son's passing hadn't been a boy, so it wouldn't feel as if it was meant to replace him in any sort of way.

she grew to love her second daughter, and the pair grew very close, in time. alynne was very protective, over her and this was the first real strain on her and leslyn's dynamic since they got married. though they're not in love, they are allies, and partners, and co-parents, and this was the first matter that they ever really stood in opposition about. it was a period that lasted until she was about six, in which leslyn learned to smother his disappointment, which manifested after that point in distance and cold clipped words whenever he spoke to his youngest child.

though she wanted for nothing material, they had no relationship until her sister passed - at which point there was a renewed strain in alynne and leslyn's relationship after the death of their daughter rosalei and her husband gunthor and their oldest son and second daughter, lomas and jocelyn ( which left behind lomas' twin, cassandra and a two year old boy and a newborn girl ) in 184AC. at which point, leslyn wanted to look at prospective matches for her, so that she might have a son that could inherit his title so he didn't have to pass blackhaven to his brother and his brother's kids. alynne could see how overwhelmed the prospect made her, so she protested, loudly against it. though it dd not stop him from proceeding with the discussions with lord caron, and cementing it , it did make jena feels less isolated and less alone.

lord leslyn dondarrion, was the eldest son of lord manfred dondarrion and his lady wife annara dondarrion neé bar emmon, of sharp point. born the fifteenth day of the fourth moon, 124AC, he was the older brother of garon dondarrion, ronard dondarrion, and boremund dondarrion. he was raised for the first seven years of his life as his father's heir, and the successor to the title of lord of blackhaven. that was stripped from them in the aftermath of the dance of dragons, and as a result, the proud ancient house became landed knights. he was fixated thereafter upon advancement. he became an exceedingly shrewd, ambitious man who's stubborness was only outweighed by his desire to succeed at any cost. he wanted more then his own personal elevation, he wanted the advancement of his house in its entirety, and his goal from the age of eight was to gain back what had been stolen from them and to leave a legacy that his own children could claim upon his death. he gained his knighthood at nineteen.

his son lorent was his pride and joy, and his daughter rosalei was a girl that he doted on. he was perfectly content with two children, and he could manage two children without needing to worry about balancing his time a little more. he never wanted another, a third was a necessity, a last attempt to secure his title in his own bloodline, a thing in which he clung to due to a staunch pride at having gotten it back in the first place - he didn't want to leave it in the hands of his brothers. he wanted it to go to his sons, and their sons, after. jena, in his eyes, was not useful for that. the only use she would have is him being able to forge alliances through her hand in marriage - which he would have said as much, which was crueler, to her, because it was the truth as he knew it, and as the realm knew it and not something he said just to insult her.

lady rosalei estermont, neé dondarrion, was the eldest daughter of the then ser leslyn dondarrion and his lady wife alynne dondarrion neé morrigen. she was born the thirteenth day of the seventh moon, 153AC, and had only one elder brother, lorent ( born 149AC, for the first seventeen years of her life ) she was thrilled when jena was born, though she married a year later, she made the attempt to visit at least every few months. she wed the then ser gunthor estermont in january of 171AC, and they had the twins : cassandra and lomas, in december of that year. jocelyn estermont was born in 176AC, gyles estermont was born in 181AC, and tyana estermont was born in 184AC. she is ? kind, gentle, and warm. she is engaging, someone always willing to have a long conversation. she is a sensitive, emotionally perceptive soul who did have a temper, though she was very good at setting and maintaing boundaries so it never really got to that point. she is as steadfast and determined as her mother.

rosalei believed fretting over securing an advantageous match to provide a stable path ahead was not enough to secure the stability of your family. she worried for it, yes, but there was a point where one needed to focus on the now. she thought that building emotional bonds with one's entire family mattered more then worrying about the political. that one's family could not be secure unless they were close and were united as one in the present. her son, gyles became the heir to his grandsire after the death of his father with her, and jocelyn in 184AC - succeeding to the seat in 203AC after the man passed from natural causes

lady cassandra caron neé estermont, was the eldest daughter of ser gunthor estermont and his lady wife, lady rosalei estermont, neé dondarrion. the younger twin to lomas, she was born the twenty second day of the twelfth moon, 171AC, the eldest sister of jocelyn, gyles and tyana. she had been a talkative child, one quick to attempt to smooth the gaps in conversation with a joke, or a smile. she was amiable, and easily delighted about all that went on around her - the tourneys, the parties, it all was exciting for the girl. everything changed the day that the majority of her immediate family were killed. she became increasingly withdrawn and said only what she needed to, and nothing more. she sought solace in the gardens as the dusk turned to night, and when dawn turned morning, whenever she could be sure she would be alone out there, she would go, and sit, and think about them.

she had began to recover when she was fourteen, though the weight of the loss would never leave her, she began to spend more and more time with her siblings again. she would take them with her when she went to the gardens, even if it was simply to sit in silence, she took them, and she watched as they played. she was quiet, and often contemplative, she chose her words carefully and kept many to herself, and did not ? speak to anyone who did not speak to her unless she absolutely needed to. she was long in marrying, longer then what was expected of a lady of the era, but it was cassandra who married the then lord pearse caron, at the age of two and twenty, in 193AC.

ser ( the future lord ) garon dondarrion, was the second son of lord manfred dondarrion and his lady wife annara dondarrion neé bar emmon, of sharp point. he was born the eleventh day of the eighth moon, 125AC, and was the younger brother of lord leslyn dondarrion, and the elder brother of ser ronard dondarrion, and ser boremund dondarrion. he was the husband of the lady patrice dondarrion neé redwyne, and the father of ser manfred dondarrion, ser selwyn dondarrion, and lady myranda dondarrion. though he had been content to remain unmarried, he was prompted to take a wife whenever it became clear that his elder brother was not likely going to have an heir of his own body. as his heir presumptive, he wanted to be certain that he had his own line of succession well cemented. he is shrewd, perceptive, and determined. while he did not delight in his brother's ' misfortunes' ( as he referred to the birth of his niece for the first few years of her life ) he was quick to make sure that he was prepared for how he might benefit from them.

he succeeded to the title of lord of blackhaven after the death of his brother leslyn in 193AC. he was the lord that along with lord pearse caron, handled the reemergence of the vulture king in 206AC, a campaign in which ser arlan of pennytree joined with his squire, the future ser duncan the tall, and took a wound in his service. it was said by his son that he told everyone the story of how his house was founded, and the meaning behind the dondarrion house sigil.

ser manfred dondarrion, was the eldest son of ser garon dondarrion and his lady wife, patrice dondarrion neé redwyne, he was born on the eighteenth day of the fourth moon, 172AC, and he was the elder brother of ser selwyn dondarrion, and lady myranda dondarrion. he was present for both the campaign to get rid of the vulture king, and for the tourney of ashford meadow in 209AC - at which he claimed that he did not know the hedge knight, ser duncan the tall, when he asked him to vouch for him so that he could enter the tourney lists. jena in her survival verse does go to visit him when the royal family arrives for the tourney, as it is what is expected of her and considered societally proper and it is leaving his tent that she does cross paths with dunk. he gained his own knighthood at near nineteen.

ser selwyn dondarrion, was the second son of ser garon dondarrion and his lady wife, patrice dondarrion neé redwyne. he was born the first day of the fifth moon, 174AC. he was the younger brother of ser manfred dondarrion, and the elder brother of lady myranda dondarrion. he also joined the campaign to vanquish the vulture king in 206AC. he does not aspire to political greatness, selwyn does not at all want to advance politically, he cares nothing for any of that. he has a very pragmatic, warrior focused mindset, and he is far more at ease managing himself on a battlefield then he is in a court setting. he is dutiful, and can be quite charming, but he's also not a fan of pointless pleasantries. he doesn't believe in lying about his compliments. he will say what he believes, and will attempt to say the positives that he sees that he believes in, so there can be genuine feeling behind them. he had a love match, with a woman he met at four and twenty in 198AC, descended from a smaller noble northern house, it was three and twenty year old meliana stout.

he has an older daughter, and a set of twin boys, by the time of the tourney of ashford meadow in 209AC. his daughter, born in 201AC, is named wylla, and the twin boys are named alaric and osric, and were born in 205AC. it took him time to grow used to the quiet of the modest keep, but he has found that it too brings a sense of peace as long as he has something to do. whether it be any physical labour tasks around the keep, or if it is him actively going out to the villages to speak with the tenants - there is a simple security in it that he finds very comforting that after the conflict in 206AC is finished, he feels as though he can settle into .

lady myranda dondarrion, was the youngest child and only daughter of ser garon dondarrion and his lady wife, patrice dondarrion neé redwyne. myranda was born on the twelfth day of the twelfth moon, 176AC. a polite, clever, courtly girl. it was her secret wish to travel, though she had always known it was nothing more then a fantasy. she is intelligent, perceptive, and stubborn, and she has ? always gave priority to loyalty to the family above absolutely everything. her and jena were not quite close enough in age to grow up as companions but there was a level of friendliness there that lingered until 193AC, after an argument had by her cousin and her father that led to the man cutting off all contact with her. her and her siblings followed suit, and she hasn't spoken to her since.

myranda married the new lord harlon costayne in the year 194AC, and gave him seven children: four boys, and three girls. their names were barris costayne ( 195AC ), edgerran costayne ( 198AC ), rycherd costayne ( 200AC ), rosamund costayne ( 202AC ), glendon costayne ( 204AC ), alysanne costayne ( 206AC ) and falia costayne ( 209AC ) her husband supported the blackfyres in the first blackfyre rebellion, and was said to have fought on the left of daemon blackfyre.

ser ronard dondarrion, was the third born son of lord manfred dondarrion and his lady wife annara dondarrion neé bar emmon, of sharp point. he was born the tenth day of the first moon, 128AC, and was the younger brother of lord leslyn dondarrion, and lord garon dondarrion, and the elder brother of ser boremund dondarrion. he married lady marsella redfort in 144AC, and he had a bastard in the vale at the end of that same year with the owner of an inn that he stayed in when he traveled to go to redfort for the wedding, with a woman named deana - a boy by the name of ronnet stone. he and his wife marsella had five children together: ser steffon dondarrion ( born 145AC ), lady cyrenna dondarrion ( born 146AC ), lady brienne dondarrion ( born 148AC ), ser durran dondarrion ( born 150AC ), and lady jessamyn dondarrion ( born in 151AC )