Chapter Summaries

Gary and Arya stopped at a tavern near the Kingsroad to rest, where Gary’s display of strength made the mercenaries suspect he was House Stark’s White Wolf. After arranging their luggage and sharing a room with Bingling, Gary learned that the dragon egg had been kept by the Children of the Forest and that Bingling expected to be able to carry him within a year or two.

• Gary paid for a room and meat, then dented the tavern counter to deter the mercenaries watching him.
• After Gary and Arya went upstairs, the mercenaries speculated that Gary was House Stark’s White Wolf.
• Gary settled Arya into bed, reorganized their luggage, and decided to travel more slowly and enjoy the scenery.
• Bingling flew in through the open window and ate all the roast meat, despite Gary asking it to save some for Arya.
• Bingling told Gary that the Children of the Forest had stored the dragon egg and that it expected to grow enough to carry him in a year or two.
• Gary ate some bread and went to sleep beside Arya, while Bingling curled up near his pillow.

Gary and Arya reached King's Landing and struggled past the city’s poor, stench, and corrupt gate guards. Gary rescued Tyrion Lannister from an armed attacker, and Tyrion recognized him as House Stark’s White Wolf.

• Gary and Arya admired King's Landing from a hill and rode to its northern Old Gate.
• A guard demanded entry papers, but Gary paid him a Silver Stag and invoked House Stark to gain entry.
• Gary and Arya entered the filthy city and searched its streets for an inn.
• Gary heard a fight at an inn, recognized the naked dwarf as Tyrion Lannister, and stopped a sword-wielding man from attacking him.
• Tyrion thanked Gary and recognized his white hair and mismatched eyes as belonging to House Stark’s White Wolf, while Gary denied being Geralt.

Gary asked Tyrion to arrange an audience with King Robert so he could get Arya safely back to the North. Tyrion offered them a place to stay and promised to approach the king, while he and Gary began to form a friendship.

• Gary declined Tyrion's offer of gold and asked him to arrange a meeting with King Robert.
• Tyrion proposed using Jaime's help to secure an unofficial audience, and Gary explained that he wanted the king to send Arya back to the North.
• Arya rode up and bluntly asked whether Tyrion was a dwarf, then apologized after Gary corrected her.
• Tyrion invited Gary and Arya to stay at his house and said he would speak to the king soon.
• Gary paid Tyrion for their room and board, and the two joked together as Tyrion found himself enjoying Gary's company.

Gary took Arya shopping in King's Landing and learned that his reputation as the White Wolf had spread far beyond Winterfell. Tyrion told him King Robert wanted him to enter a tourney and win Princess Myrcella's birthday crown of flowers, but Gary only agreed to attend.

• Gary and Arya spent the day shopping in King's Landing, buying gifts for their friends and family at Winterfell.
• Tyrion told Gary that King Robert knew of his reputation and wanted him to take part in a tourney.
• Arya and Tyrion described the soldiers' admiration for Gary and recounted rumors of his victories against bandits and a wild bull.
• Gary denied that he was Benjen Stark's son and said he did not want to become Duke of Winterfell.
• Tyrion explained that Robert hoped Gary would win the tourney's crown of flowers for Princess Myrcella, and Gary agreed to attend without promising to compete.

Gu Li comforted Arya before her departure, then reconsidered using his dream-shaping ability to gain useful knowledge. Seven days later, he arrived at the Kingswood tourney with Arya and Tyrion, where he learned that he had been entered into the jousting finals and was sent to put on armor.

• Gu Li told Arya she would have to wait until she was sixteen to travel with him, then told her a story until she fell asleep.
• Gu Li carried Arya to bed and decided he could use dream-shaping again now that Bingling was alive, though he could only bring knowledge from dreams into reality.
• Seven days later, Tyrion brought Gu Li and Arya to the Kingswood tourney, where nobles presented birthday gifts to Princess Myrcella before the events began.
• Tyrion explained that King Robert had entered Gu Li in the jousting finals because of his reputation as the White Wolf and the king's recommendation.
• Gu Li said jousting bored him and declined to wear armor he had brought, but Tyrion revealed that he had prepared plate armor for him.

At the tourney grounds, Gary met Jaime Lannister, tried on the plate armor Jaime had arranged, and injured a knight who insulted and grabbed him. Jaime explained the tourney’s rules and urged Gary to compete for the North’s honor, but Gary planned to place second or third and avoid trouble before the contests began.

• Tyrion introduced Gary to his elder brother, Jaime Lannister, and left with Arya for the stands.
• Jaime showed Gary the silver-gray plate armor he had prepared for him.
• When a burly knight mocked Gary and grabbed his shoulder, Gary seized his hand, broke it, and threatened to kill him; Jaime warned him to settle matters in the tourney instead.
• Jaime explained that the Kingsguard were competing to defend Princess Myrcella’s honor and advised Gary to win and choose a noblewoman as Queen of Love and Beauty.
• Gary finished putting on the armor and said he would aim for second or third place; Jaime told him which warhorse was his and left to prepare.

Gary prepared for the joust as Tyrion warned him that Cersei had summoned Gregor Clegane to kill him. The horn sounded, and Gary joined the knights entering the lists.

• Jaime told Tyrion he planned to kill Gary in the joust and thwart the king’s hopes of drawing House Stark into the Red Keep.
• Ser Kesso reunited with Gary, explained that jousting losers forfeited their armor, swords, and horses, and urged him to carry Ice and win for the North.
• Tyrion warned Gary that his Valyrian steel sword had attracted enemies and that Gregor Clegane, the Mountain, would be a dangerous opponent.
• Gary asked Tyrion about Sandor, and Tyrion explained that the Hound had left House Clegane to serve House Lannister.
• The horn sounded, and Gary put on his helmet and joined the knights preparing to joust.

Gary watched the joust begin and learned that its champion would receive no prize money, while Jaime named three formidable opponents. The first matches got underway, and Jaime entered the lists for his bout.

• Gary received a bye in the first round and watched the royal family and the tournament grounds as the joust prepared to begin.
• Jaime spoke with Gary, who distrusted him because Cersei wanted to harm him, and explained that the morning's archery and swordsmanship champions each received five thousand Gold Dragons.
• Gary learned that the jousting champion would receive no prize money, but a more valuable reward, and decided to compete regardless.
• King Robert declared the joust underway, and the first match ended when one knight fell from his horse.
• Jaime told Gary that Loras Tyrell, Barristan Selmy, and Jaime himself were the opponents worth watching, then rode into the lists for his match.

Gary rested between jousts while Tyrion defended his decision to stop Ser Gregor from entering the tournament improperly. Gary won his next bout by sweeping his opponent from the saddle with his lance, earning King Robert's approval and the crowd's cheers.

• Jaime defeated his opponent in two passes, and Gary left the crowded grounds to rest beneath a tree.
• Tyrion's attendant offered Gary a wooden shield, but Gary refused it and sent the servant away.
• Cersei confronted Tyrion about informing Robert that Ser Gregor had tried to enter the joust without signing up, and Tyrion explained that he was trying to avoid provoking the king and the Baratheons.
• More than two hours later, Gary told Robert that he was not a Stark before riding to face his next opponent.
• Gary knocked his opponent's lance aside and swept him from his horse, then argued that he had broken no rules.
• Robert laughed and declared Gary the winner, prompting the crowd to cheer as the defeated knight stormed away.

Gary advanced through the jousting tournament and defeated Loras Tyrell in the quarterfinals with a surprising turning strike. The crowd condemned his tactic, but Gary remained unruffled as the tournament continued.

• Gary used his strength and familiar tactics to eliminate several knights as the tournament narrowed toward its final rounds.
• Jaime told Gary that Barristan the Bold had defeated him and revealed that Tyrion had apparently bribed the draw to keep Gary and Jaime apart.
• Gary learned that his quarterfinal opponent was Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers, and returned to the lists.
• Loras evaded Gary's sweeping lance attack on their first pass and planned to outlast him.
• Gary broke Loras's shield with a direct thrust, blocked Loras's lance with his vambrace, then turned his horse and knocked Loras from his saddle with a strike to the back.
• The spectators accused Gary of dishonorable tactics, but he dismissed their complaints as ignorance of strategy.

Luke Snow won the tournament after defeating Barristan Selmy in the final, and King Robert rewarded him by making him the stepson of Eddard Stark and changing his surname to Stark. The announcement left Cersei furious and wondering why Robert was elevating Luke.

• Arys Oakheart forfeited his semifinal against Gary, drawing the crowd's anger toward Gary.
• Barristan Selmy urged Gary to follow the knightly code, and Gary warned that taking the bout seriously could kill him.
• Gary seized Barristan's lance and struck him from his horse with a blow to the helmet, leaving him unconscious but alive.
• King Robert declared Luke Snow the tournament champion and presented him with a wreath of white roses.
• King Robert announced that Luke would become Eddard Stark's stepson and take the surname Stark, angering Cersei.

Gary rejected King Robert’s apparent attempt to honor Myrcella with the Laurel Crown and instead crowned a confident noble girl. When Robert challenged Gary over Eddard’s claim that he was a wizard, Gary publicly demonstrated his ice magic and gave Myrcella an Ice Rose as an apology.

• Robert urged Gary to give the Laurel Crown to Myrcella, but Gary offered it to a beautiful girl in a green dress instead.
• The girl accepted the crown, and Gary placed it on her head while Robert returned to his seat in anger and Myrcella cried.
• Robert stopped Gary and questioned his rejection of Myrcella, then told him Eddard had called him the last Wizard in Westeros.
• Arya declared that Gary could use ice magic, and Gary froze Robert’s Golden Goblet and shaped its wine into an Ice Rose.
• Gary gave the Ice Rose to Myrcella as an apology, while Cersei silently asked Tyrion whether he had known about Gary’s magic.

Gary proved his magic to King Robert by creating a huge, lifelike ice statue of the king, earning a promise of a letter of recommendation to enter and leave the Citadel. Robert ordered the statue taken to King's Landing, while Gary left with Arya and planned to collect his letter the next day.

• King Robert challenged Gary to make a large display of magic and promised him a letter of recommendation if he proved he was a wizard.
• Gary used water from five barrels to shape a giant ice statue, while Tyrion warned Margaery not to use the wizard as her shield.
• Gary finished the statue after the servants brought more water, and Robert ordered the City Watch to take it to Cobbler's Square.
• Gary asked Robert for the promised letter, declined to stay at the Red Keep, and left hand in hand with Arya.
• Robert told Gary to come to the Red Keep the next day, while the royal children regretted missing their chance to speak with him.

Gary said goodbye to Arya as Ser Kesso took her and the northern soldiers back to Winterfell, then reunited with Tyrion in King's Landing. Meanwhile, Renly confronted Margaery about her plans, and Gary prepared to seek the king's recommendation at the Red Keep.

• Gary refused Ser Kesso's offer to return to Winterfell and gave him Ice, asking him to explain to Eddard and Robb that he had no desire to become lord.
• Ser Kesso told Gary that the northern party would leave the next morning, and Gary arranged for him to carry gifts back to Winterfell.
• Gary and Arya parted at the city gates, with Arya reluctantly riding north after Gary promised to visit within four years.
• Renly confronted Margaery about returning to Highgarden and warned her to stay away from the Wizard, while Margaery challenged his claim over him.
• Gary returned to Tyrion's residence, where Tyrion joked about brothels, and Gary said he needed to visit the Red Keep to ask the king for a letter of recommendation.

Gary secured King Robert’s recommendation to travel to the Citadel and set out for Oldtown, hoping to investigate the green stone and the curse he claimed it caused. Margaery Tyrell intercepted his carriage and insisted on riding with him to Highgarden.

• Gary told Tyrion that he sought a god connected to a green stone, and Tyrion revealed that presenting a wreath to Margaery had been taken as a marriage agreement.
• Gary refused to marry Margaery and told Tyrion he would leave King's Landing as soon as he received his recommendation.
• King Robert gave Gary the letter and assigned two knights to accompany him, ostensibly for protection.
• Tyrion provided Gary with a carriage and Gold Dragons, then explained that he hoped their friendship might help him in the future.
• As Gary's carriage left King's Landing, Margaery stopped it and demanded a ride to Highgarden.

Gary and Margaery traveled south toward the Citadel, where he planned to ask about a mysterious green stone. Their conversation revealed their opposing views on marriage and love, leaving Margaery unsettled by Gary’s intention to leave Westeros and search for the stone himself.

• A Baratheon knight asked whether he should remove Margaery from the carriage, but Gary told him to let her stay and the party continued south along the Roseroad.
• Margaery asked why Gary was going to the Citadel, and he said he wanted to ask the maesters about a powerful green stone that might not exist in Westeros.
• Margaery leaned close to Gary, who accidentally saw down her neckline; she teased him about being a virgin and explained that she had no idea what a bra was.
• Gary rejected the idea that he was worthy of Margaery and asked whether she liked him, while she said she needed him and might fall in love with him later.
• Gary told Margaery he hoped to spend his life with someone he loved and planned to travel the world after settling matters in Winterfell, but she would not abandon her family and power to join him.
• Margaery argued that power could help him search for the stone, and Gary admitted that having power and her might make him give up the search.

Gary and Margaery discussed his pursuit of the Godstone and traveled toward Highgarden, where they camped for the night. After two knights were attacked, Gary recognized the approaching Shadowcat, and a white figure landed on his shoulder.

• Gary told Margaery that finding the Godstone was his life's pursuit, while privately hoping to learn its powers and return to Earth.
• At their camp beside the Roseroad, Margaery asked about Dark Sister, and Gary said the nobles who recognized it were either his friends or dead.
• Gary teased Margaery about the hardships of traveling with him, and she said she could not give up her house and loved ones for freedom.
• Two knights of House Baratheon plotted to kill Gary and Margaery if he joined another house, but an unseen animal attacked them.
• Gary drew Dark Sister and protected Margaery as she lit and threw a makeshift torch toward the darkness.
• Gary recognized the bloodied, injured Shadowcat, which sat without attacking, just before a white figure landed on his shoulder.

Bingling revealed that it had ordered the shadowcat to kill the knights who threatened Gary, and Margaery mistook Bingling for a dragon and Gary for a Targaryen heir. Margaery imagined helping him claim the Iron Throne, while Gary discouraged her plans and left her believing she might marry him someday; the group then settled down to rest.

• Bingling told Gary that it had ordered the shadowcat to kill the two knights because they intended to kill him.
• Margaery saw Bingling, concluded Gary was a Targaryen descendant, and excitedly proposed gathering allies to put him on the Iron Throne.
• Gary challenged Margaery's assumptions about rebellion and House Tyrell's support, prompting her to recognize the obstacles to her plan.
• Gary told Margaery to keep his secret and claimed he might be ready to negotiate with House Tyrell after his dragon grew, and she agreed to wait for him.
• Bingling assured Gary that it had tamed the shadowcat and taught it to recognize his scent.
• Gary stroked the shadowcat, and he, Margaery, Bingling, and the animal settled by the campfire to sleep.

Gary and Margaery traveled by ship from Tumbleton to Highgarden, where Margaery revealed that she had brought him there to pursue their betrothal and her ambitions. The chapter ended with Gary learning that Margaery had treated his crown at the king’s tournament as a marriage proposal and planned to use their connection to advance House Tyrell.

• After the coachman fled, Gary drove Margaery toward Tumbleton while she recovered from a cold and the Shadowcat ran alongside the carriage.
• Margaery showed House Bulwer’s soldiers a token of House Tyrell, and they offered her and Gary a ship to Highgarden; she refused to delay and insisted they depart.
• On the voyage, Margaery’s cold cleared, but Gary and the Shadowcat became seasick, and Margaery personally cared for them.
• Seven days later, Gary and Margaery arrived at Highgarden, where Margaery told him she had no urgent business beyond bringing him there quickly.
• Margaery explained that accepting Gary’s crown and asking him to place it on her had signified acceptance of his proposal, and she hoped marriage to him would help her become queen.

Luke Stark and Margaery reached Highgarden, where Lord Mace accused Luke of being a fraud and ordered him arrested. Luke fought back with Dark Sister and blood-forged weapons, leaving the surviving riders terrified as the clash continued.

• The dockside crowd fled from the Shadowcat, while House Bulwer's boatmen offered to carry Luke Stark's luggage and he refused.
• Margaery and Luke were met by Highgarden riders, who lowered their bows when they recognized her and escorted them toward the castle.
• Lord Mace surrounded the pair at Highgarden's gate, accused Luke of stealing a servant of House Baratheon, and declared him a fraud.
• Lord Mace ordered the riders to seize Luke, and Luke hurled Dark Sister through one rider and into the stone gate.
• The Shadowcat dragged down a horse and rider while Luke killed another rider with an ice blade and escaped the encirclement.
• Luke shaped blood into a bow and arrows, killed three more riders, and formed blood blades as the remaining riders recoiled in terror.