Another day, another GoT theory. This new Jon Snow theory circling the interwebs is courtesy of Reddit user ghostchief — and you're gonna wanna brace yourselves, guys, because this one is a doozy. Taking a page out of the Star Wars handbook of secret siblings, the theory points to evidence that Jon Snow and Meera Reed are twins. I know what you're thinking... because I'm thinking it too. What?
Meera Reed, sister of greenseer Jojen Reed, has been traveling with Bran and Hodor since Season 3 of Game of Thrones, and has been a minor player in the books since A Clash of Kings — beyond being good with a spear and cheerful despite traversing the coldest parts of Westeros and beyond, Meera hasn't had much to do. Would George R.R. Martin really hide such an important character in plain sight? Well, sure, he loves hiding offspring (especially Targaryen offspring), but I know I need more evidence than that to go on.
Basically, the basis of the theory assumes that R + L = J is true. Per the theory, Lyanna Stark was being held in The Tower of Joy where she used her dying breath to ask Ned to keep a promise. The leading theory is that her request was for Ned to keep her Targaryen born son Jon safe. The only two people who survived the battle at The Tower of Joy were Ned Stark and Howland Reed (Meera and Jojen's father), and after the battle, the former friends did not see each other again. In fact, now that Ned is dead, Howland would be the only person who knows what truly happened in The Tower of Joy. This new theory adds an extra twist by suggesting Lyanna gave birth to twins that day — and Howland took the girl twin, Meera to raise as his own. Learn more about the R + L = J theory here:
This could explain why Howland never visited Ned after The Tower of Joy, and why he only sent his children to pledge themselves to House Stark after Ned's death.
Still, I need a little more to go on before I start subscribing to the Meera is the Leia to Jon's Luke theory. For instance, are Meera and Jon even the same age? Well — yes, yes they are. Each one of the books ends with a handy dandy appendix featuring some of the character's ages, and Jon and Meera are both 15 in A Clash of Kings.
I will admit is kind of weird, but not a smoking gun.
There is also a physical resemblance between the two, at least on the show. This is where things get murky if you are a book reader, because Jon is said to look more like a Stark than any of his other siblings thanks to his dark brown hair and grey eyes. There is no specific commentary about Meera looking anything like a Stark, though: Her hair is brown and her eyes green, which hints at neither Stark nor Targaryen blood.
But, let's take the theory a little bit further anyway. I mean, you are already down the rabbit hole now.
Keeping the twins apart could have been a tactical move on the part of Ned and Howland. Throughout the story, all the living Targaryen — and alleged Targaryen — children are kept apart, aside from Dany and Viserys, for strategic purposes. In the case of Jon, Ned just wanted to keep him safe for his sister's sake, and I'm sure he would want Meera to be kept safe too. Maybe he thought rolling into Winterfell with two babies would be too much for Catelyn to handle?
One more piece of "evidence" — and my personal favorite since I know how much Martin likes to turn swords into harbingers of things to come (see also Needle and Oathkeeper) — in A Clash of Kings, Meera takes Rickard Stark's sword from his crypt to use as a weapon to help Osha protect Bran, Rickon, Hodor, and Jojen. That would mean Meera was using her grandfather's sword to protect her cousin, which would be pretty epic in retrospect. It's no sword in the stone, but hey, that would have been a nifty clue to drop.
As much as I would love to see the awesome Meera turn out to be important to the plot, I fear this theory has a few holes to be really considered solid. It's a fun idea, but I'm afraid Jon is destined to be the lone wolf. There can be only one chosen one, after all, and the lovable know-nothing Jon Snow is the one destined for great things...
Even if he is, technically, not alive at the moment.
Images: Helen Sloan/HBO; Giphy (5)
