About Arya as Persephone, Hades wasn't only the god of the underworld and harvest, he was also a god of wealth. In Latin he's Pluto, plutocracy means the rule of the wealthy. So at first Arya collects flowers (for her dad) which is what Kore did when she was abducted, then she's covered in mud which is connected to harvest, then she goes in search of rubies. She's drawn to the "treasure" chambers in the HoBaW, and didn't want to part with her treasures and Needle in AFfC Arya II. So, Persephone.

These are a lot of great points, Anon!

In the books Arya collects flowers, plants trees and is often associated with nature and new life. Especially ones that come out of the earth (acorn dress anybody?).

Also remember that these were not just any rubies, they were Rhaegar’s rubies. Jon’s father. Not to mention that the only treasure that she decided to keep was Jon’s treasure and gift to her. Which makes my Jonrya trash self extra happy tbh.

Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle. Who knows.

Jonrya Week: Day 4 (Soulmates)

“And Arya.. he missed her even more than Robb, skinny little thing that she was, all scraped knees and tangled hair and torn clothes, so fierce and willful. Arya never seemed to fit, no more than he had.. yet she could always make Jon smile. He would give anything to be with her now, to muss up her hair once more and watch her make a face, to hear her finish a sentence with him.”

 There was snarl in her lips and bite with every word. She had the heart of a wolf and the grace of a dancer. Every bit a queen of wolves, she is as vicious and as regal as the north itself. And he, even darker and more intense than she, a prince that was long since promised, a song of ice and fire.

First lesson - stick ‘em with the pointy end.

 Just keep following      The heartlines on your hand

Unleash the wolves

Castle Black had no godswood, only a small sept and a drunken septon, but Jon could not find it in him to pray to any gods, old or new. If they were real, he thought, they were as cruel and implacable as winter. (AGOT) 

Back in Winterfell, Arya had prayed with her mother in the sept and with her father in the godswood, but there were no gods on the road to Harrenhal, and her names were the only prayer she cared to remember. (ACOK)

there are few things i enjoy more than a crisis of faith. its a natural human reaction to question the gods existence, especially in moments of turmoil and its something arya and jon both experience. but ultimately they’re devoted to the old gods:

The gods of the sept had nothing to do with him; the blood of the First Men flowed in the veins of the Starks. (Jon AGOT)

They are not my Seven. They were my mother’s gods, and they let the Freys murder her at the Twins. She wondered whether she would find a godswood in Braavos, with a weirwood at its heart. (Arya AFFC)

jon never followed the seven to begin with because that was a something catelyn brought to winterfell. jon prays only to the old gods, notably for arya’s safety in adwd. ghost’s unique coloring reflects the heart tree giving jon a strong symbolic connection to them in the form of his wolf too. this influences jons decision to not take winterfell which was a hugely significant moment for him. he was not willing to sacrifice the heart tree because both wolf and castle belong to the old gods and it was not his right. 

many believe all the direwolf pups to be divine gifts. so arya’s bond with nymeria is just as important. in harrenhal when arya prays for guidance to the heart tree her wolf howls just before the gods speak. this shows a link between the wolves and the old gods. they also seem to have an active interest in seeing arya brought home. for they remind her that she is “arya of winterfell, daughter of the north.” in twow it appears they have begun to call her back once again. arya believes that the old gods returned needle (“jon snow’s smile”) to her too. the wolf dreams, the old gods, and needle are all important aspects that work together to keep arya connected to her roots. unlike jon, arya was raised in both faiths. despite that arya shows no interest in the seven and she officially rejects it after the red wedding. 

their shared faith is an important parallel between them. the old gods play an active role in their actions and are fundamental to arya and jons sense of identity. 

Gods of my fathers, protect these men. And Arya too, my little sister, wherever she might be. I pray you, let Mance find her and bring her safe to me.

He wanted to see her face again, to smile at her and muss her hair, to tell her she was safe.

Bring her home, Mance. I saved your son from Melisandre, and now I am about to save four thousand of your free folk. You owe me this one little girl.

Friendly reminder that Jon considers Arya’s home to be with him.

the borgias 1x03 “the moor” by neil jordan / a dance with dragons by george r.r. martin / the borgias 2x06 “day of ashes” by neil jordan / emily dickinson, from a letter to william austin dickinson (late march 1851) / ghismonda with the heart of guiscardo, bernardino mei 1650-1659 / embroidery by ana teresa barboza / i carry your heart with me (i carry it in) by e.e. cummings / the borgias 2x06 “day of ashes” by neil jordan / art by senkkei / margaret atwood “two-headed poems”

Arya & Jon + vows of celibacy

Jon Snow and Arya Stark + parallels

"First lesson," Jon said. "Stick them with the pointy end."

Arya gave him a whap on the arm with the flat of her blade. The blow stung, but Jon found himself grinning like an idiot.

"I know which end to use," Arya said.

"The memory of her laughter warmed him on the long ride north. "

And Arya… he missed her even more than Robb, skinny little thing that she was, all scraped knees and tangled hair and torn clothes, so fierce and willful. Arya never seemed to fit, no more than he had… yet she could always make Jon smile. He would give anything to be with her now, to muss up her hair once more and watch her make a face, to hear her finish a sentence with him.

That might mean Lord Eddard would return to Winterfell, and his sisters as well. He might even be allowed to visit them, with Lord Mormont’s permission. It would be good to see Arya’s grin again and to talk with his father.

"It’s just a sword,” she said, aloud this time . . . 

. . . but it wasn’t.

Needle was Robb and Bran and Rickon, her mother and her father, even Sansa. Needle was Winterfell’s grey walls, and the laughter of its people. Needle was the summer snows, Old Nan’s stories, the heart tree with its red leaves and scary face, the warm earthy smell of the glass gardens, the sound of the north wind rattling the shutters of her room. Needle was Jon Snow’s smile. 

He wanted to believe it would be Arya. He wanted to see her face again, to smile at her and muss her hair, to tell her she was safe. She won’t be safe, though. Winterfell is burned and broken and there are no more safe places. ― Jon IX, A Dance with Dragons.

It had been so long since he had last seen Arya. What would she look like now? Would he even know her? Arya Underfoot. Her face was always dirty. Would she still have that little sword he’d had Mikken forge for her? Stick them with the pointy end, he’d told her. Wisdom for her wedding night if half of what he heard of Ramsay Snow was true. Bring her home, Mance. I saved your son from Melisandre, and now I am about to save four thousand of your free folk. You owe me this one little girl.

Tumblr dot com eXpErts: oh imagine how guilty Jon would feel when he finds out the truth about his birth parents

Us: imagining feral!jon sigh with absolute relief and elation that he ain’t sinning with all those “l want my bride back” thoughts mhmm very guilty, yes.

Okay, it’s funny you sent this to me because I was just thinking about how most of the popular headcanons on Jon’s reaction to R+L=J are unbelievably boring. Honestly, the lack of imagination in this fandom is astounding. At best, all they can come up with is “JOn wiLL FEeL sO guILtY/ANgsTY”, and its like, okay… then what? Is that the only emotional blowback you can imagine? Lol, the fact this fandom can’t even conceive of any real impact to Jon’s personal life shows how little they understand the writing of this series. GRRM isn’t the type to randomly throw in a secret parentage storyline if it didn’t affect Jon’s personal life, especially his relationship with the Starks. So far, the only speculation in the fandom I’ve seen is Jon might betray them or vice versa, which feels like something D&D would write (AKA lame as fuck). Wouldn’t it be more satisfying if the reveal acted as some sort of resolution to another part of Jon’s story, rather than pointlessly cause drama? But what could it be? It would have to intersect with something (maybe a relationship?) that has had substantial hints for Jon’s parentage in the past? Hmm… if only we had some book foreshadowing on this subject…

Jon had never met anyone so stubborn, except maybe for his little sister Arya. Is she still my sister? he wondered. Was she ever? - Jon III, A Storm of Swords

By now she’d be eleven, Jon thought. Still a child. “I have no sister. Only brothers. Only you.” - Jon VI, A Dance with Dragons

“I have no sister.” The words were knives. - Jon VI, A Dance with Dragons

She wondered if he would still call her “little sister.” I’m not so little anymore. He’d have to call me something else. - Arya VIII, A Storm of Swords

Jon grinned, reached over, and messed up her hair. Arya flushed. They had always been close. Jon had their father’s face, as she did. They were the only ones. - Arya I, A Game of Thrones

Oh wait, what’s this? A lot of R+L=J hints center on his relationship with Arya? Could it be, IDK, important to their relationship? No, of course not. We’re all just crazy for reading into it. I’m sure the ASOIAF master council has already decided all of this is foreshadowing Jon will forget Arya and kill her or something 🙄

Your sister is not lost to you.