‘"Have it your way. You are hereby under house arrest. I will not have you continue to interfere with my plans," Tywin snapped.’

LOL, wut?! Seriously, what the actual fuck? Under what authority does Tywin think he has to arrest anyone in King’s Landing, let alone the Hand of the King?! He is the Lord Paramount of an entirely separate kingdom that is under the authority of the Iron Throne. He has absolutely zero power to make arrests here. Tywin is seriously delusional.

Also, what’s the plan for Alysanne Lefford? She can’t be allowed to stay Doneric’s wife, the future Lady of the Dreadfort...if Lord Stark let’s Domeric keep his title and his lands, then allowing Alysanne to remain too would breed the exact same traitorous behavior the Boltons are known for. Alysanne would remain furious that she was “cheated” out of being Lady of Winterfell and wife of the WRden of the North. She would never forget that imagined insult and this she would teach all of her children to hate the Starks and to act against them, thus perpetuating the cycle of traitorous Boltons. Domeric can only be allowed to remain in his position if he sends Alysanne to become a Silent Sister at BEST and beheaded at worst and if he marries again, this time to someone the Starks are certain is loyal to their family. For them to allow Alysanne to remain in a position where she can continue to plan for years would be the height of stupidity and the Starks have already been stupid enough throughout this story. Time for some intelligence, please! Hopefully Margaery will suggest it.

Wait, we're out of Winterfell - oh, I didn't realise that we'd reached this point (!) otherwise I'd have written this part at the end of the last chapter. Never mind - it's not too late!

Incredibly strong start to this story - I'm in awe of the sheer amount of planning that would have been necessary to establish the best time to send Jon and Jaime back, the events that would need to be changed and where each of the pieces would need to be placed before we left Winterfell (and the opening act of this story). I loved how much you kept us on our toes - there were a few moments where I thought I could see the path after they left Winterfell and it was mere chapters ago where I was still wondering how Jon would fit into Kings Landing as a squire and who he'd butt heads with. I pivoted a little after Jaime's injury and then with Cersei's actions and Robert's response, the dominoes kept falling and suddenly all the guesswork went out the window. Bravo! That is a hard act to pull off so early in a story and I appreciate that each action felt driven by the *characters* not an overarching plot. Of course Jon wouldn't keep the rape a secret, of course Robert would act without thinking, of course Ned would listen to his nephew and try to avoid a war. Each decision made sense for those characters.

Another strong impression from this opening act is how the small changes in a few characters affect the original actions in Winterfell and how we, as the readers, perceive those characters. Obviously Joffrey is a notable example - he's still a spoiled, entitled brat, but that sadistic streak is at least muted and he's almost immediately put in a position which elicits empathy for his character. A notable one for me has been Cersei - of all the characters so far, she's the one that had felt a step out of character (for me at least, and I am admitting my bias here because I quite like Cersei haha). However, as her actions and the plot keeps unfolding, the more I'm agreeing with your interpretation of her and the more it's making sense for this story. This isn't Cersei from the original plotline, the woman who's fathered children with her brother and feels in control because of secrets she holds separate from her husband. This is a woman who on the wedding day saw her brother shift from her twin (and whatever relationship they had) to someone outwardly repulsed by her and has subsequently had years of raising Robert's children, feeling less in control and trapped and wondering what had changed between her and her brother (and undoubtedly longing for everything to go back to how it was). The manipulative personality is still there, but she would be far more desperate and unhinged at this stage. In that view, the build-up to obsession with Jaime as a perverted version of "love" was well done and I'm interested to see what happens with her story now that she's already removed from royalty and will be presumably locked up for some time.

Obviously, Jon and Jaime have been utterly fantastic so far and even if for no other reason, I've been appreciative of the time spent in Winterfell just to spend some time with their bromance before they head out separately into the world. You've balanced their old relationships with their older characterisation and maintained the humour in a way that's felt grounded and real for this world, while nailing the emotional impact of being able to try again after all that death and destruction. Some of the highlights from this opening act came early on (in chapters 2 and 3) where Jon is first seeing all these ghosts for the first time again - it felt emotional to me, I can't even comprehend what that must have felt for him. I liked the choice to reflect on Jaime's with the added impact of the time spent alone simply waiting and hoping that Jon was sent back too.

I'm sure I'll talk about everyone more later on - because, you know, words and rambling are kinda my forte - but at this stage, I just want to give a quick mention to the other characters that have jumped out so far. First of all, Ned. I'm so so happy we get (hopefully) to spend a bit more time with Ned in this story and I've enjoyed how you've approached his character, especially his response to Jon being sent back and knowing his heritage. Your characterisations of Robert (his dialogue *chefs kiss*), Tormund, Barristan and Robb have been other highlights for me so far and I'm thoroughly looking forward to seeing all the separate groups spend time together.

Long story short - hell of an opening act and I can't wait to see where you head next, because honestly I have no idea!

Right - Wall. We're at the Wall. So we have Aemon, Ned and Tyrion in the same group - exciting - big group too! Poor Robert being put on a diet and detox and sending Cersei to Bear Island is hilarious (Maege's smirk just made the whole decision even better).

Wait - is there no Ramsay in this timeline? Say it isn't so! Or is it simply that Domeric hasn't died (yet), and therefore Ramsay has no place of note in House Bolton at this stage. So many interesting changes! Oh wait, read the next paragraph... *sigh* I was so concerned that I just stopped reading. So Ramsay's alive...but not for much longer if Aemon gets his way. I know Aemon disagrees, but I agree with Ned and Barristan - he can't just go around killing other people's kids on what he knows/presumes they will do. That Targaryen reputation will just be reinforced.

Really enjoyed Robb's reactions to the Wall and Aemon trying to stop glaring at Thorne (and yearning for Longclaw).

[It took some time for the old maester to appear and when he did, Aemon felt his heart throb in his chest. His last living relative on his father’s side, that was still in Westeros at least. His namesake. He wished for nothing more than to envelope the old maester in a hug, but he had plans to talk to the maester later. Even so, he knelt in front of the maester first and said, “Maester Aemon, I am so pleased to meet you. I am also Aemon Targaryen.”]

Absolutely beautiful, especially that line of dialogue. Favourite moment of the chapter - the maester's reaction to seeing a family member after so long had a few tears welling up. Lovely piece of writing, I love how you give all these little moments their space in the story.

[“The blind have no need of lights,” the maester replied with a crooked grin.] - Great line and expression.

You did Jeor Mormont justice - this was a good scene and I felt for the guy when he realised the creatures from his nightmares were on the move. Priorities though - Is Jon going to see Sam? Is he going to see Sam? Is he going to see Sam?

[Winning the Kingdoms to his side as opposed to taking it by brute force like his ancestors had long ago was another matter entirely. The goal was to keep as many people alive as possible in preparation for the Long Night, but sparing lives was too often seen as a weakness. He had to prove he was tough without everyone trying to spot signs of the Targaryen Madness. It was a fine line to walk.]

Fantastic - I loved this whole section. It shows that Jon knows his weaknesses, knows what's coming and knows the struggles that were faced the "first time around". Add into this the opinion of the general public to the Targaryens and not "killing your army" and yup, you've got a very tight line to walk without ruining the whole plan. Nice touch with Umber calling him a "pup" and the Boltons are here!

"Aemon could feel his anger building and there was a warmth in his cheeks. Ghost, who was settled next to him, seemed to sense the change in his mood and let out a low growl that somehow seemed to reverberate through Aemon." - Ooo, nice detail here and gives a far more dangerous atmosphere (and interesting parallel with Dany and her dragons). It also felt like the flames surrounding the Fire Lord flaring when he's angry.

Great discussion of the possible repercussions for Jaime's execution, some interesting political plays here. OH! And he's come clean about the Long Night. Upfront. I like it. Nice touch with the laughter stopping - these aren't the Southern lot who would scoff about the stories, most of these guys will have been raised on the stories of the White Walkers. Umber adding in that he'd killed some wildings who'd spoken of dead things wandering the woods and Maege mentioning the request for bodies to be burned were well done. The shift in atmosphere was pulled off very nicely.

Loved the image of Greatjon leaping to his feet with his sword, Jon saying “Not here. Outside. I’d hate to leave a mess" and just turning around to walk out. That level of confidence would make someone hesitate. Fantastic sword fight, chilling ending. "You said the Gods gave you a vision and now they believe you." - what a line.

As soon as I saw there was a chapter from Catelyn's POV, I was looking forward to this confrontation. Catelyn and Jons’ relationship has always been an interesting one to me. There is something undeniably tragic that Catelyn never knew the truth about her husband but also frustrating about the way she treated a boy who had done nothing wrong simply because of what he represented. I love how you delved into her head before they finally spoke, giving us her insight into how this reveal had affected her world view, how she saw the Lannisters and to give another perspective of the events leading up to the planned execution from someone who could see the possible flow-on effects from Robert’s rage and ego.

[Robb was a perfectly healthy boy who did not lack against Jon in anyway except quite suddenly in fighting skills.] - Liked this line, Jon’s newfound fighting skills have really thrown everyone for a loop! The note about promising the gods she’d treat him better if he recovered from the pox was a nice touch, even if she never followed through - it showed that the hatred didn’t run as deeply as wishing him dead - and reinforced how seriously they treat agreements with the gods. This was a great line - “She knew it was self-absorbed to think the Gods making Jon into a king was a punishment against her, but she could not escape the feeling that she was about to undergo a reckoning” - LOVE the use of reckoning.

Seeing her opinions on Jaime was also wonderful, especially the detail of the noble ladies sighing at the “thought that the beautiful golden lion would never have children”. It makes the histories between all of these characters stand out all the more when you see the younger versions of them and the “school girl” crushes from characters that are now revered for their sensible (if not always logical) natures. [The peace that had been won with Robert’s rebellion - always so fragile - was gone.] - Ah, I appreciate lines like this one, giving a sweeping view of the history and the future in one go with a sense of underlying dread from the character.

I enjoyed how you treated their run-in with Catelyn outright apologising while Jon (Aemon, I need to transition into the right name!) regards her cooly and calls her out on her behaviour. This was my favourite part, especially that first sentence - “You made me an outcast in my own home. Did I ever truly have a family when almost everyone always regarded me by my status first? Even Robb, whom I love like a brother, called me bastard.”

Oooo, I’m glad you showed the internal anger at Catelyn’s children being married off. Great line - “How dare you use my children as pawns in your war”. Side note: Robb and Margaery would make one hell of a couple, intrigued to see if that goes ahead and how they play off each other if it does because that could be a lot of fun!

[“I’d still prefer you over the harp. Remember that, please,” Aemon had replied, his voice colored with amusement.] - Finally, I still adore the bromance between these two, interested to see when they next see each other.

I would say its good but after you let baliesh live it just got stupid and full of shit they already had a confession in front of multiple lords he should have been executed as soon as he showed back up and the last 20 or so chapters were boring and full of plot holes I wont be reading anymore if this is how it is gong to continue

Stop switching from past to present tense.

It's "When he WAS" not(!) "When he IS".

I love

jfc, how long until Aegon returns? seriously, I'd almost root for tywin at this point just to have someone competent in charge.

Robb you must now understand that in King's Landing you either play the game of thrones or lose, now if you want to protect your family and Aemon you will have to listen to Margaery on how to play the game of thrones. Jaime you must stop your father, you will not let the legacy of the Lannister family be destroyed only by their ambitions; you need to talk to Aemon about what's going on.

Good

Here it comes ! Next chapter Tywin and Baelish fall flat on their face !

Damn Robb reacted exactly like I was expecting

Unfortunately for Arya, she’s right about Robb and Sansa, therefore her lack of trust is immovable... i hope we reach the coup soon, I can’t take all that buildup anymore !

Ooohh old man lion bouta get bit!

Incoming:
What are you doing, my son Succeeding you, father

I hate the cliffhanger and hope it's worth it to see the look on Tywin's face when he's coup is stopped. I just hope it is without too many good people dying. I am also looking forward to seeing Aemon's return and to see Winterfell again.