We have two episodes remaining before Game of Thrones wraps up for good, and there's only one question on every fan's mind: How is it all going to end? What will be the fate of every main character on the show, and more important, what will be the fate of Westeros?
Despite how you might feel about this final season's storytelling—I can sympathize with all the fan complaints, but I'm trying my best to enjoy the rest of the ride anyway—we're all secretly hoping for a satisfying, although not necessarily happy, ending to this sprawling tale we've invested in.
Here are my predictions for where things will end up. Note that I'm aware some plot points from episode 5 have leaked, but I haven't seen any of them so these predictions are entirely my own.
The Fate of Daenerys Targaryen
It's clear that D&D (the showrunners) want to push the "Dany is a Mad Queen" narrative, but I'm split between whether they'll follow it through to the end or they're just setting us up for a subversion. In my heart, I don't believe Daenerys is going to survive the Last War, nor do I want her to. She's been a tyrant since the beginning for anyone who's been paying attention, and there'd be a sense of poetic justice if Jaime Lannister, the Kingslayer, arrived at King's Landing and put an end to the Mad Queen.
The Fate of Jon Snow
There is no way Jon Snow ends up on the Iron Throne. He's already proven to be a terrible leader for most of the show's running, but especially during the Battle of the Bastards and the Battle of Winterfell, and even though he accepted the role of King of the North when it was thrust upon him, he only did so to rally an alliance in the fight against the Night King. He has no reason to sit on the Iron Throne even if goaded, and most likely he will serve his oath to Daenerys in overtaking King's Landing, then reunite with Ghost north of the Wall where he'll live out the rest of his days as a wildling.
The Fate of Bran Stark
Part of me wants to believe that Bran Stark—actually, Bran Stark is dead and the Three-Eyed Raven has overtaken him—is actually the Lord of Light manifest. Why else was the Night King so dead-set on killing him? But introducing that in the last two episodes would be overstuffed, so most likely Bran Stark will migrate down to the Citadel where he can be the Wikipedia for what remains of Westeros.
The Fates of Arya and Sansa Stark
It feels like D&D want us to believe that Sansa Stark will be the one who takes the Iron Throne, given how she's proved herself as leader of Winterfell, and her history in King's Landing would lend credibility to that outcome. But that wouldn't really make sense to her character, and I don't think that's the ultimate ending that D&D are aiming for. See "The Fate of Westeros" at the end of this article for more. Most likely, Sansa will reign as Lady of Winterfell.
As for Arya Stark, she only has one purpose left in life: crossing off Cersei's name from her list. Given how easily she dispatched of the Night King, there's no way she fails here, right? Especially since she can switch faces and disguise herself, right? But she may not be the one to land the final blow. Either way, with no true purpose left in her life, she may finally accept her identity as "no one" (which she couldn't do before because she had vengeance in her heart) and either return to the House of Black and White or roam the world as a vigilante.
The Fates of Cersei and Jaime Lannister
There's no way either of these two survive the Last War. Cersei has shown herself to be beyond redemption, and D&D don't have the stones to redeem her after writing her to kill off Missandei. The final prophecy claims that Cersei will be strangled by "the little brother," which could be Jaime Lannister, Tyrion Lannister, or even Jon Snow, who isn't her little brother but is a little brother to the Targaryens. I'm expecting both Tyrion and Jaime to be there as she dies.
As for Jaime Lannister, this will be the final point in his redemption arc. He crushed Brienne's heart to keep her from following him south, and he'll be the one to end either Daenerys (the Mad Queen) or Cersei (the Mad Queen)—or ideally, both!—giving up his life in the process. There is zero chance he's actually heading south to team up with Cersei, because that would betray every story beat that has led him to this moment.
The Fates of Tyrion Lannister and Varys
Honestly, who knows at this point? D&D have written these two characters as flip-flopping sides whenever there's drama to incite, so it's pretty much a toss-up. But I believe Tyrion will meet up with Jaime (per the show's MO, he teleports down from Winterfell) and they will both bring an end to Cersei, suffering a metaphorical strangling as she realizes that she has no one left in the world. Varys will be Varys, scuttling along to serve as advisor to whatever lord or lady is left standing after the Last War.
The Fate of Brienne
Something tells me that Brienne will ride south to King's Landing despite how badly Jaime crushed her heart, which wouldn't really make sense as there's really nothing left to mine from her relationship with Jaime or King's Landing. We've probably seen seen the end of her story, and she'll likely just stay in Winterfell to serve as knight to Lady Sansa.
The Fate of Sandor Clegane
Obviously Sandor Clegane is going to come head-to-head with The Mountain when he reaches King's Landing. The question is, will he succeed, and more importantly, will he survive? Probably not, and that's OK. If I put myself into the minds of D&D, most likely The Mountain will stand in the way of Arya as she attempts to slay Cersei, and Sandor will kill The Mountain (sacrificing himself in the process) to give Arya her chance.
The Fate of Grey Worm
With Missandei out of the picture, it's all but certain that Grey Worm will die in the Battle of King's Landing. He and the Unsullied will likely perish as they breach the walls of the city, and possibly destroy all of the ballistae in the process, granting the opening needed for Daenerys's final dragon to enter the city and fulfill Missandei's dying wish.
The Fate of Bronn
He'll be instated as Lord of Highgarden, then die to a sellsword.
The Fate of Gendry Baratheon
He'll live happily ever after as the Lord of Storm's End.
The Fate of Westeros
The entire series has been pushing the narrative that Daenerys will be the one to "break the wheel" as far as how the Seven Kingdoms are ruled, and I think she will usher in a new era, but not as Queen. Daenerys (as predicted above) will die, but she'll raze King's Landing to the ground in the process. Everything thus far has been about overtaking King's Landing while keeping it in tact, so it only makes sense that King's Landing will be destroyed in the end. The same dragonfire that forged the Iron Throne will be the one to melt it, and without an Iron Throne, the Seven Kingdoms will no longer have a King or Queen to serve. Westeros will splinter into independent kingdoms, and each will rule their lands as they see fit. A bit anticlimactic, but it seems to be the most senseworthy way to abolish the system of singular monarchy that rules Westeros.
Or, if D&D really want to butcher the story to its limits, Winterfell will be the new capital (it was the location of humanity's last stand against the Night King after all, so it has enough historical importance) and Sansa will rule over the Seven Kingdoms from there.
How far off base do you think I am? Have any Game of Thrones predictions of your own? Let me know in the comments!