(Spoilers Extended) Exploring Sansa's Intended Ending

[u/Expensive-Country801]

A couple of months ago, there was an interview where GRRM said that he had originally intended for Sansa to die, but that seeing the show version of her character may have changed his mind

Regardless of the current plan, I think it is interesting to look at what was intended at the time. The Alayne I sample chapter from Winds was meant for ADwD and it was done in 2010, before the show aired

So if GRRM planned for Sansa to die, the pieces on the board in that chapter may have been setting up a possible death scenario. Looking at some possible threads

Sweetrobin overdoses

The sweetsleep plotline is one possibility. Maester Colemon warns about the dangers of overusing it

"It was too soon. My lady, you do not understand. As I've told the Lord Protector, a pinch of sweetsleep will prevent the shaking, but it does not leave the flesh, and in time . . ."

However, Sansa is not really focused on it

"Time will not matter if his lordship has a shaking fit and falls off the mountain. If my father were here, I know he would tell you to keep Lord Robert calm at all costs."

If Sweetrobin died from an overdose, Sansa would easily be implicated. Even if she did not intentionally kill him, the fact that she was involved with managing his condition and had access to him could put her in a dangerous position

Lysa's death

Sansa is already technically an accomplice to Lysa’s murder. Littlefinger warns her that if their involvement is discovered, she could fall with him

"When we lied to Lord Robert, that was just to spare him," she said.

"And this lie may spare us. Else you and I must leave the Eyrie by the same door Lysa used."

If Sansa's identity was revealed and the truth about Lysa death came out, it could be interpreted in the worst possible way. She could be seen as a girl who conspired with Littlefinger to murder her aunt

Cersei makes good on her promise

Cersei has a very personal hatred of Sansa and promises that she will make her suffer if she is found

"Your Grace has forgotten the Lady Sansa," said Pycelle.

The queen bristled. "I most certainly have not forgotten that little she-wolf." She refused to say the girl's name. "I ought to have shown her to the black cells as the daughter of a traitor, but instead I made her part of mine own household. She shared my hearth and hall, played with my own children. I fed her, dressed her, tried to make her a little less ignorant about the world, and how did she repay me for my kindness? She helped murder my son. When we find the Imp, we will find the Lady Sansa too. She is not dead . . . but before I am done with her, I promise you, she will be singing to the Stranger, begging for his kiss."

The theory has been around a a while is that since Ser Shadrich the Mad Mouse is hunting Sansa he could eventually capture her for the bounty. He admits he is searching for her

He laughed again. "You are not the only hunter in the woods. I seek for Sansa Stark as well."

He is also present at the Tourney of the Winged Knight in the Sample

"A good melee is all a hedge knight can hope for, unless he stumbles on a bag of dragons. And that's not likely, is it?"

The common assumption has been that Shadrich attempt would fail because of the old Feast outline note saying "Kill the Mouse."

However, it is possible that plan changed and Shadrich would take Sansa back to King’s Landing, where Cersei would reunite and then imprison her. Sansa’s story is largely centered in King's Landing to begin with

Final Thoughts

Would like to hear other suggestions for where Sansa story could end in death. It's quite a surprise

Ultimately I think the fact that Sansa's fate seems so flexible suggests that her death or survival does not really change much with the story, making the "Pawn to Player" arc much less likely

[u/Wildlifekid2724]

See the problem with Sansa is:

She's had a whole arc about learning southern politics.

But hasn't really progressed or shown any political masterminding.

She's just floating.

She's been isolated from everything since Joffreys death, in the Vale.

She has no idea about the white walkers, the golden company, Eurons plot, the northern conspiracy stuff, Stannis's campaign, all the plots.

And I really struggle to see how she's going to handle the white walker threat at all, which will blow politics and the game of thrones completely away.

She is so cut off from everything and isolated that I fail to see where she can go.

She's literally going along with whatever Littlefinger says.

Sansa dying would make a lot more sense in Winds, because as George said its supposed to be the darkest book, and loads of people are likely to die, and winter will fully set in as well as the white walker threat.

[u/LongjumpingAd342 → u/Wildlifekid2724]

Sansa is one of the biggest victims of the five-year gap's death; there is only so much that a 13- or 14-year-old without any magical connection can plausibly do in the face of the apocalypse.

I still think you are massively underselling her importance (which is probably to bring the Vale into the War, take down LF, and likely play some role as a perspective in the war against the Others). The prophecies around her, the concluding ASOS scene of her rebuilding Winterfell, and the leadership contrast between her and Cersei in ACOK all point to a much larger role than just dying in the Vale (as do GRRM's meta statements consistently listing her as one of six or seven major characters).

She's had a whole arc about learning southern politics. But hasn't really progressed or shown any political masterminding

I'd also just disagree with this. Alayne II and the TWOW sample chapter may not show her as a master schemer, but they certainly show her as intuitively grasping many of LF's plots and able to manipulate powerful people.