After this episode you may find yourself reflecting on the prophecy of Azor Ahai, the Prince who was Promised, and asking yourself:
Is Arya Azor Ahai? She killed the Night King, so she must be, right? So that would make the Catspaw dagger Lightbringer, right?
I have another interpretation you might find interesting: What if Arya is Lightbringer? What does that mean for the prophecy, and how does this relate to the events that led up to her defeat of the Army of the Dead?
The Legend of Lightbringer:
Darkness lay over the world and a hero, Azor Ahai, was chosen to fight against it. To fight the darkness, Azor Ahai needed to forge a hero’s sword. He labored for thirty days and thirty nights until it was done. However, when he went to temper it in water, the sword broke. He was not one to give up easily, so he started over. The second time he took fifty days and fifty nights to make the sword, even better than the first. To temper it this time, he captured a lion and drove the sword into its heart, but once more the steel shattered. The third time, with a heavy heart, for he knew before hand what he must do to finish the blade, he worked for a hundred days and nights until it was finished. This time, he called for his wife, Nissa Nissa, and asked her to bare her breast. He drove his sword into her breast, her soul combining with the steel of the sword, creating Lightbringer, while her cry of anguish and ecstasy left a crack across the face of the moon.
~A Clash of Kings, Chapter 10, Davos I
Taking this as a metaphor for the events of Arya’s life that led to her defeat of the Night King, each of these attempts to create Lightbringer could possibly represent the three phases of Arya’s life that made her the only person alive at Winterfell with the means, motive, and opportunity to deliver the fatal blow and prevent the Long Night.
The catch is: They’re in reverse chronological order.
The Heart of a Devoted Wife:
First, the heart of Azor Ahai’s loving wife Nissa Nissa could represent Catelyn Stark, who gave birth to Arya, raised her in Winterfell, and taught her to love her family and defend it with her life. Her brother Bran is the one who gave her the Catspaw dagger, the Valerian steel blade which was once meant to pierce his and his mother’s heart. Winterfell is where her father watched her work hard to learn how to shoot a bow, and encouraged her, even though it was not an activity befitting a lady. It’s where her brother Jon gave her her first weapon and taught her which end to stick’em with. Arya was first tempered by her mother’s heart.
The Heart of a Lion:
The heart of the Lion could represent the time she spent in King’s Landing. This is where Syrio Forel, the first sword of Bravos, taught her to face death without fear, and to never accept defeat. “What do we say to the God of Death?”
He also made her chase down and catch every cat in the Red Keep. Chasing cats taught her to move swiftly and quietly, and was the reason she found herself deep in the Dungeon of the Red Keep one fateful afternoon. Here, she heard Varys and Illyrio discussing the coming outbreak of hostilities between the Starks and the Lannisters after their attempt on Bran’s life.
“Soon the wolf and the lion will be at eachother’s throats.”
~Varys, Game of Thrones, Season 1 episode 5
Soon after, Syrio and her father were both murdered by the Lannisters, and she was forced to flee King’s Landing.
Water:
Finally, water could represent the time she spent in the Riverlands with the Hound, her trip across the Narrow sea to the free city of Bravos, and her rediscovery of her identity after training with Jaqen H’Ghar.
The Hound taught Arya to find the gaps in a suit of armor. He taught her how to stab a guy in the heart. And he taught her only dead men fight fair. He saved her life, and he’s the one who introduced her to Beric Dondarrion, who later did the same. He also taught her to forgive the people she once wanted dead. He reminded her how much she loved her family, and how lucky she was to have a good one. He saved her sister from an unspeakable fate in King’s Landing. He taught her that dead rats don’t squeak, and that being too kind would get her killed.
The Riverlands is where she met Breinne of Tarth, who showed her what a girl could become if she ignored the world’s expectations, and how to defeat an opponent that’s not only bigger and stronger than you, but also quick enough to pose a real threat despite your training. She defeated the Hound in single combat while Arya watched, she taught Arya how to improvise when an opponent immobilizes your weapon in a fight, and how to fight with the utmost intensity until your enemy is defeated.
Jaqen H’Ghar taught Arya to be no one. He’s the reason she made it out of Heron Hall alive. He’s the reason most of Westeros thinks she is dead. He’s the reason she knows how to fight in complete darkness. Her time in Bravos becoming a faceless assassin helped her rediscover who she was.
“A girl is Arya Stark of Winterfell. And I am going home.”
~Arya Stark, Game of Thrones, Season 6 episode 8
A Hero’s Sword:
Her time in the Riverlands was when she lost her mother and brother at the Red Wedding. King’s Landing is where she lost her Father and her dancing master. These two events destroyed who she was, but also made her what she needed to be to survive and defeat the Night King. The love her mother gave her for her family and her friends brought her home, armed her, and prepared her to meet that destiny.
According to prophecy, our champion will be reborn to wake dragons from stone and reforge the great sword Lightbringer that defeated the darkness those thousands of years ago. If the old tales are true, a terrible weapon forged with the lifeblood of a loving wife’s heart. Part of me thinks man was well rid of it, but great power requires great sacrifice. That much, at least, the Lord of Light is clear on.
~Thoros of Myr, Game of Thrones: Season 3, Histories & Lore — “The Lord of Light”
In this context it becomes clear who Azor Ahai represents. Aegon and Daenerys Targaryen. One raised dragons from stone, the other forged the greatest weapon the world has ever seen.
The Battle for the Dawn:
Jon Snow and the first attempt:
Jon Snow was the first to face the Night King in the battle. He attempted to approach the Night King from the rear, but his footsteps gave him away. Jon never learned to fight dirty, never learned to sneak up on an enemy, and he never once chased a cat. He is a warrior. The greatest swordsman in the Seven Kingdoms. The only man to ever stand toe to toe with a Wight Walker and defeat him in a fair fight. The Night King would be a fool to allow Jon to come anywhere near him with a Valyrian steel sword, and the moment Jon tried, he was swarmed by the dead.
Daenerys Targaryen and the Second attempt:
After Jon was overrun, Dany had to swoop in and save him atop Drogon. At which point, it was discovered that Dragonfire is not an effective weapon against the Night King. Dany had no effective weapons, and if she did, she had neither the courage nor the skill to wield them effectively. Luckily she did have the wisdom not to try.
Theon Greyjoy and the Third Attempt:
Theon Greyjoy pledged to defend Bran’s life with his own, and he fulfilled that pledge. He knew he stood no chance against the Night King. He had no element of surprise, and insufficient skill to defeat such a powerful enemy in a fair fight. He had only the courage to try, which bought Arya the time she needed to succeed where he failed. He faced death with the courage he’d lacked his entire life.
Destiny:
Arya saved the Hound’s life in the opening salvo of the battle with a well placed arrow, which she taught herself to shoot in the courtyards of Winterfell, as her loving father watched with pride. The Hound and Beric Dondarrion later returned the favor, the latter falling for the seventh and final time, giving his life to save hers, and fulfilling his destiny. If not for her tour of the Riverlands, she’d never have met him, she’d never have met Melisandre, and she wouldn’t have known what her destiny was.
She was given the weapon she needed by Bran on the very spot she would later use it. She had to sneak her way past 8 wights in a library the size of a walk in freezer, and the only sound she made was the sound of bleeding. Only one of them spotted her, and it didn’t even have time to make a sound to alert the others. If she’d never studied with Syrio Forel, she would never have made it out of that library alive.
She’d never have made it past the ice dragon that guarded the Godswood so Jon Snow couldn’t get to through to save Bran. Jon distracted the beast while screaming “GO!” to Arya as she slipped past it and into the Godswood. Jon was willing to sacrifice himself to get her where she needed to be to save her brother and end the battle.
Without her stealth skills, she’d never have successfully made it past the Wight Walkers and close enough to the Night King to slide that blade between the plates of his armor and pierce his heart. She knew to kill the wight who spotted her as quickly as possible, because the Hound taught her that dead rats don’t squeak, and she knew where to stick the Catspaw blade because he taught her to go for gaps in enemy armor, and aim for the heart.
The Night King was defeated because he didn’t know Arya. He had no idea she was there, he had no idea what she could do, he didn’t even know she existed. She succeeded where others failed, not only because she was quick as a snake and quiet as a shadow, but also because, as far as the Night King was concerned, she was no one. Very few people in the world even know Arya is alive, let alone what she’s capable of. Even Gendry was gobsmacked to find out and he “knew” her in the biblical sense. Bran knows, that’s why he gave her the dagger. Jon knows, that’s why he distracted the dragon. Baelish knew, but she took care of him. The Hound and Dondarrion knew, that’s why they defended her at great cost. And most importantly, Mallisandre knew, and she told Arya what she needed to hear to finish the job.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Lightbringer
