A Song of Ice and Fire/Heartwarming

• The one that stands out in my mind is Robb Stark reminding Catelyn Stark in A Storm Of Swords that Eddard Stark had four sons, not three. Thus reminding her that Jon Snow even existed. Shows how close the two brothers are. And throughout the book, Arya and Bran both remember their big brother, while in the previous two they forgot he existed.
• Willful, somewhat simpleminded, and lecherous Edmure Tully when his sister angrily demands to know why he let a bunch of useless people into a castle just about to be besieged: "Because they were my people, and they were afraid."
• When Lord Mormont gives Jon his family's sword.
• Jon getting elected Lord-Commander of Night's Watch. For reference, Jon is the bastard son of Lord Eddard Stark, and was often derisively addressed by his comrades-at-arms as Lord Snow (Snow being a surname assigned to illegitimate children in the north). Only now, he really is Lord Snow.
• Ned's conversation with Arya on her behaviour. "She had never loved him so much as she did in that instant."
• Sansa Stark basically melts the heart of a drunken, scared, merciless and desperate (at that point) killer by singing a song to him.
  • The scene in which she remembers a snowfight with her siblings and builds a replica of her home with snow applies too. And then it is reversed when the only family she has left tries to kill her in the very same chapter.
• Sansa hearing that her brother Jon has been elected Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, and wistfully thinking how good it would be to see him again; in previous books, when she thought of or referred to him at all, she was very cool and distant.
• Jon turning down Stannis' offer of Winterfell and legitimacy out of loyalty to his father's Gods, his half-sister's claim of inheritance and his oath to the Night's Watch.
• Jon giving his little sister Arya the sword Needle as a parting gift early in the first book, as they are the closest siblings to each other (though Jon and Robb seem as close sometimes) and know that they probably won't see each other again for years. Plus, of course, "Stick them with the pointy end" and "Don't Tell Sansa!"
• Arya throwing everything into the canals of Braavos except for Needle, because even if the Many-Faced God decreed that she could have no worldly possessions, the Old Gods are the ones in her heart.
• Bronn names his bastard stepson "Tyrion," in a political climate where it would be impolitic to the point of suicide to do so. And gets away with it.
  • And remember when Cersei tried to have him killed because of it?
  • Thereby managing to combine Crowning moments of Heartwarming, Awesome and Funny in a single action. There's a reason he's an Ensemble Darkhorse.
• Another Bronn moment is that after he refuses to be Tyrion's champion when he's on trial for murdering Joffrey, (because his opponent would be Gregor Clegane and Tyrion can't offer him enough to make it worth risking his life against such an opponent), Bronn still shows some concern for what will happen next. Bronn may be too much of a Combat Pragmatist to fight for Tyrion this time, but he still cares about him to some extent.
  • Bronn seems to have made Lollys Stokeworth his Morality Pet, being kind to her beyond the demands of necessity. Maybe the battle-hardened killer is willing to be nice to people who are no threat to him?
    • Well Lollys is a victim of a riot gang-rape and a bit daft but decent person, formerly single mother to his adopted bastard son, one of the last few living members of her family, not to mention his claim as head of the rich House Stokeworth. Perhaps despite what Bronn professes he has a soft spot for fundamentally decent/innocent people who suffer from some manner of social/physical handicap, are discriminated against by those around them and are caught up in bad situations not of their own design? Bonus points for those in some position of power who might help elevate his fortunes. Explains a lot, really.
• Jaime: *THWACK* "You are speaking of a high-born lady, Ser. Call her by her name. Call her Brienne."
• A subtle one, but Jaime's joke about only rescuing maidens after freeing Brienne from the Bloody Mummers is an understated way of making sure that she really was unharmed during her captivity. Considering that just a few chapters ago he was an amoral bastard who cared only about himself and his twin sister...
• Ser Duncan the Tall, a lowborn Hedge Knight is to stand trial by combat for having attacked a member of the Targaryen royal family in order to protect a lowborn puppeteer woman who was being assaulted by the aforementioned Royal Brat. A large crowd gathers to watch the trial and Duncan wonders about why so many people would like to see his death. Then the smallfolk start issuing words of support, cheering for him, and some women even kiss his sword to wish him luck. He is in disbelief. "They are for me? Why? What am I to them?" His companions reply, "A knight who did not forget his vows."
• The North remembers and Ned's little girl... full stop... The love that the North still has for Ned Stark is touching and powerful indeed.
• All the scenes with Penny, the cute little dwarf who pulls Tyrion back from the brink of Knight Templardom.
• The scene where Pod rescues Tyrion from Ser Mandon Moore. First because of Tyrion automatically assuming that it was Jaime, thus reminding us that only Jaime, Jaime, has ever treated him with kindness, and then for the subsequent revelation that it was plucky young Pod, the previously useless, timid squire, rescuing his liege.
• Tyrion showing a newly disabled Bran how he can still learn to ride a horse.
• After Jaime gives Oathkeeper to Brienne and sends her off to find and protect Sansa on his behalf (itself a minor moment), he turns to the White Book where the deeds of the Kingsguard are recorded (and he had been disappointed before to find his own list depressingly short because of the disdain Ser Barristan Selmy held for him--Selmy didn't even include most of his tournament victories). Struggling to write with his left hand, he records his defeats, imprisonments, disgraces and maiming. But he ends with "Returned safely to King's Landing by Brienne, the Maid of Tarth."
• Jaime and Tyrion Lannister are neither of them sweet fuzzy bunnies. It's clear, however, that there is a great deal of genuine affection and trust between them. It's especially heartwarming because it tends to turn up the most at moments when each is at his lowest. When Jaime is trying to get back to King's Landing from Riverrun, for example, he keeps himself going by remembering that he's going home to Cercei AND Tyrion, and the first thing that the usually proud Tyrion says when Jaime sees his scar is, "well, they sent me into a battle without my big brother to protect me."
• Throughout A Storm of Swords, Jaime seems to find Loras Tyrell arrogant and rather annoying. When he asks Loras about Renly, however, all of Loras's arrogance fades, and Jaime realizes that he was basically the same person when he was younger.

---

Back to A Song of Ice and Fire