The Winterfell Huis Clos

INTERMEZZO



In GRRM's organization of his stories, there is the habit of putting side by side chapters that illuminate each other, even if the events they described are separated by time and space. Here is what the author says on the matter.
What's the writing process like? Do you write the individual chapters in the order they appear in the books?

Oh, no. [Laughs.] I start off trying to do that, and I certainly outline what order I want the chapters in, but both of those things are subject to change. I usually wind up rearranging the chapters two dozen times before the book is done, trying to get the optimal arrangement of intercutting from one character to another to maximize the suspense. Sometimes there's a certain irony, or a certain interesting point-counterpoint effect you can get by properly ordering certain chapters, juxtaposing events with each other. But you also have the chronology to worry about. It's tricky, and I'm always changing my mind on that, trying to optimize it. As for writing the chapters, well, particularly when a work is going well--if I'm writing a Tyrion chapter and I finish it, but it's really rolling, and I know exactly what's going to follow, then instead of whatever chapter comes next, I'll just go on ahead and write the next Tyrion chapter, even though it may not occur until seven chapters later in the book. I may write three or four before I finally hit the point where I'm struggling a little, and then I'll go back and pick up whatever character was supposed to be next, and write about them for a little while.

A fine example appears in ACoK, where three consecutive chapters describe the exploration of a set of dwellings deserted by its inhabitants. Daenerys explores Vaes Tolorro, the Night's Watch enters Whitetree, and Arya, Yoren and co take refuge in the town on the bank of God's Eye. A city, a village, a town respectively.

The final two chapters of the Huis Clos (A Ghost in Winterfell and Theon) are separated by just a few hours: the timelength between the meeting of Theon and the washerwomen in the godswood after the hour of the wolf (that is when the night is the darkest) and the breakfast in the Great Hall. Nevertheless the two chapters are separated by four other chapters: Tyrion X, Jaime, Jon X, Daenerys VIII.

It stands to reason that GRRM might have inserted those chapters to make us reflect, and perhaps even formulate hints. Indeed a few mysterious events happened the night before the escape. The hornblowing, a visit in the crypt, Little Walder's murder, Ramsay's activities, the hooded man in Winterfell. Let's look briefly at each chapter and try to examine their relevance to our Huis Clos.

Contents
  1. Tyrion X
  2. Jaime
  3. Jon X
  4. Daenerys VIII


1. Tyrion X

The chapter decomposes as follows. Tyrion and Penny are sold at a slave auction at Meereen's harbor, along with Jorah Mormont. Their buyer, Yezzan, has them brought to his camp among the besiegers of Meereen. There they get acquainted with the rest of Yezzan's grotesquerie. They amuse the guests at the dinner. Tyrion plays cyvasse with one of them, Brown Ben Plumm.

Given that there are northern forces around Winterfell, the siege part is interesting, since Winterfell is somewhat under siege, at least from Crowfood. The obesity of Yezzan recalls Manderly.


2. Jaime

Jaime comes to Raventree to negoiate the surrender of Tytos Blackwood. The castle is currently besieged by the Blackwoods' old enemies, the Brackens. Jaime enters Jonos Bracken's tent, and becomes acquainted with Jonos' mistress. Then he meets Tytos Blackwood in Raventree Hall and obtain the reddition. He learns from Hoster Blackwood the history of the Bracken-Blackwood enmity before stopping at the village of Pennytree for the night. There Brienne comes to guide him to Sansa Stark.

Again we have a siege. The story of the Brackens illuminate our understanding of their cultural cousins, the Ryswells. The chapter brings up the possibility of poisoning the heart tree.
The tent was brown, like the standard flapping from its center pole, where the red stallion of House Bracken reared upon its gold escutcheon.
(Jaime, ADwD)
Lord Jonos Bracken was waiting for him outside Raventree, just beyond the range of a good crossbow. He was mounted on an armored destrier and had donned his plate and mail, and a grey steel greathelm with a horsehair crest.
(Jaime, ADwD)
Through their thick, diamond-shaped panes of yellow glass Jaime glimpsed the gnarled limbs of the tree from which the castle took its name. It was a weirwood ancient and colossal, ten times the size of the one in the Stone Garden at Casterly Rock. This tree was bare and dead, though.
“The Brackens poisoned it,” said his host.
(Jaime, ADwD)



3. Jon X

The wedding of Alys Karstark takes place at Castle Black, officiated by Melisandre following the rites of the red god. Jon talks to Melisandre, then to his prisoner Cregan Karstark, and join to the feast. The feast is interrupted by two suspenseful horn blasts: Tormund.

Three scenes seem to echo the Winterfell chapter.
Cregan Karstark had turned up a day behind his niece. With him came four mounted men-at-arms, a huntsman, and a pack of dogs, sniffing after Lady Alys as if she were a deer. Jon Snow met them on the kingsroad half a league south of Mole’s Town, before they could turn up at Castle Black, claim guest right, or call for parley. One of Karstark’s men had loosed a crossbow quarrel at Ty and died for it. That left four, and Cregan himself.
(Jon X, ADwD)
The Karstarks are allied with Ramsay. The hunt for Alys evidently reminds us of Ramsay's hunt.
In one corner of the cell a heap of furs was piled up almost to the height of a man. “Karstark,” said Jon Snow. “Wake up.”
The furs stirred. Some had frozen together, and the frost that covered them glittered when they moved. An arm emerged, then a face—brown hair, tangled and matted and streaked with grey, two fierce eyes, a nose, a mouth, a beard. Ice caked the prisoner’s mustache, clumps of frozen snot. “Snow.” His breath steamed in the air, fogging the ice behind his head. “You have no right to hold me. The laws of hospitality—”
(Jon X, ADwD)

Cregan emerging from the furs prefigures the similar scene where "Arya" comes from hiding under the wolfskins in Ramsay's bedchamber.

The ice cells themselves resonate with the cold cage in which Ramsay claims to have put Mance.

The horn blasts of Tormund echoes the horn blown in Winterfell. In both cases, we are spared the fateful third blast.
“Did you hear that?” Queen Selyse asked her knights.
“A warhorn, Your Grace,” said Ser Narbert.
The queen’s hand went fluttering to her throat. “Are we under attack?”
“No, Your Grace,” said Ulmer of the Kingswood. “It’s the watchers on the Wall, is all.” One blast, thought Jon Snow. Rangers returning.
Then it came again. The sound seemed to fill the cellar. “Two blasts,” said Mully.
Black brothers, northmen, free folk, Thenns, queen’s men, all of them fell quiet, listening. Five heartbeats passed. Ten. Twenty. Then Owen the Oaf tittered, and Jon Snow could breathe again. “Two blasts,” he announced. “Wildlings.”
(Jon X, ADwD)



4. Daenerys VIII

A feast celebrates Daenerys' marriage, and the peace between Yunkai and Meereen. Dany observes the armies besieging her city. She talks with Barristan. She brings Quentyn Martell to see her dragons in the pyramids. She joins her husband Hizdhar for the wedding night, which seems like their thousandth night together, and ends the night with Missandei.

I can't help comparing Quentyn's visit to the depths of the pyramids to the descent into the crypts of Winterfell. If Mance visited the crypts that night, perhaps Quentyn's seemingly parallel visit should teach us something. But what?



The Winterfell Huis Clos