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Entry tags:
( application ) life is not a song, sweetling
In Character Information
character name: Lord Petyr Baelish (Littlefinger)
Fandom: A Song Of Ice and Fire
Timeline: A Clash of Kings, right after he's awarded the Lordship of Harrenhal
character's age: About 33 years old, give or take a bit. (Birth was 266 years after Aegon's landing, he gained the lordship 299 years after it.)
powers, skills, pets and equipment: Canonically, Petyr's skills lie in both manipulating situations to ensure that no matter what the end result is, he'll always come out on the winning side and being able to make money in ways that seem to be practically supernatural. That's not the case, however, he just possesses an incredibly good business sense that enables him to do wonders when it comes to turning profits and the like.
He has no actual powers in canon.
The Mist would grant him two particular powers, one would be invulnerability and the other would be belief inducement. Invulnerability is rather straightfoward and is throwback to the long scar Petyr possesses down his torso from his battle with Brandon Stark for Catelyn Tully. He survived that battle, and even though it was due to Catelyn's plea for his life, it's still a wound that, had Brandon thought to kill him, would have done the job.
Petyr's belief inducement would only deal with people believing the lies he tells and not with say, getting them to believe in the Seven Gods in Westeros. With the belief inducement, Petyr would have to say a lie out loud for the person to believe it and he would also have to focus merely on lying to this one person in the context of their conversion. So, for example, if he were to lie through the forge where everyone can see it, he would only be able to theoretically get one person to believe the lie completely. When he first arrives it won't be that effective since it's a brand new power and while he has practice lying he's hardly used to having the ability to force people to believe the lies he's telling. Over time, however, he would gain more control over it with practice and potentially after a set time be able to extend his ability to lie beyond just one person among many different conversations.
And as far as items go, he'd have his clothes and a change purse with gold and that's it.
canon history: right here
personality:
If there's one thing that needs to be understood about Petyr Baelish, it's that trusting him is a really bad idea. Since inevitably it will come back and bite you in the ass. The fact of the matter is that Petyr, at one time, used to be a marginally nice person, albeit one who thought that the songs and stories where a man gallantly wins the heart of the woman he loved were true. Once he tried to live out that story in order to hopefully gain permission to marry Catelyn Tully. After he was defeated by Brandon Stark and actually removed from Riverrun by Hoster Tully's orders after getting Catelyn's sister Lysa pregnant, Petyr realized that life wasn't anything like those songs and stories and that even if you wanted the girl or the lands, you weren't going to have them handed to you because you fancied yourself some bullshit honorable knight. Especially if you suck at fighting physically. Petyr also realized how, if he was going to get where he wanted, he had to embrace the fact that his talents with fighting lied more in the mental arena and not the physical arena. It's just as well, though, because that mind of his is a rather talented thing.
Petyr hasn't been that boy who tried to fight Brandon Stark for a very long time. Instead he's fashioned himself as a man who appears incredibly harmless and cordial until he stabs you right in the back. Not literally, for the most part. People aren't allowed to beat Petyr when it comes to political intrigues. He'll lull a person into thinking that they've won only to have them discover that they didn't because somehow Petyr had a trick up his sleeve. You'll never know what trick he has up his sleeve until he uses it and while the individuals of his own canon who are just as good at playing the game of thrones as he is know that he's as self-serving as can be, the fact is that they still typically can't beat him no matter how hard they try.
The reason he can get away from situations that could otherwise get him killed with his tricks is that no matter what, he predicts the outcomes of everything and will put on a mask or a cloak or wear the metaphorical colors of every single possible winner so that when the time comes, he comes out in a position he wants to be in. Everything he does is by design. People who play the game as well as he does don't know if he can be fully trusted ever, but typically find themselves trusting him regardless because there's no other option that looks as nice as his option.
As I mentioned, Petyr doesn't want to be beaten like he was in his fight with Brandon Stark, but even beyond that, he wants power. He likes having power and his talent for manipulating has allowed him to rise above the station he was born without having to deal with some of the pitfalls that others who do the same thing. His ambition and is own intelligence manage to make it so that he's a force to be reckoned with no matter what he or anyone claims.
The interesting thing about Petyr is that while he appears to have no actual weakness in the form of people he cares about, the fact of the matter is that there is one person in the form of Catelyn Stark (though as the series goes on this person instead becomes her daughter Sansa) who he actually would prefer not to push out of his way on his ascent to any form of power. This doesn't extend to their family members, however, since Petyr turned on Ned near the end of the first book, Game of Thrones. He wants power and to prove those who assumed that the little boy from the Finger fostered by Hoster Tully wouldn't be a force to be reckoned with. And if he has to do some particularly unsavory things to ensure that, well, as Cersei Lannister once said to Eddard Stark, "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground." Petyr will win if he has any say in it. Damn the consequences.
The simple fact is that Petyr Baelish hasn't truly been himself since Brandon Stark bested him in combat. The man everyone gets to see, no matter what side of him they see, is Littlefinger. That is the man who doesn't care who suffers the consequences his actions may bring, who doesn't care about who loses or who wins, just as long as somehow he's on that winning side. The only person who knows the true man beneath any veneers he has is Petyr himself, and that's exactly the way he likes it.
why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting? Honestly, the canon Petyr comes from has actual dragons (though Petyr still thinks they're all dead) and magic. While it would be a bit of an adjustment, the things in canon make it so he's a bit less unaware of potentially weird things. Even beyond that, the fact that Petyr is enough of a manipulator ensures that he'd somehow find a way to make this setting appropriate to him.
Fandom: A Song Of Ice and Fire
Timeline: A Clash of Kings, right after he's awarded the Lordship of Harrenhal
character's age: About 33 years old, give or take a bit. (Birth was 266 years after Aegon's landing, he gained the lordship 299 years after it.)
powers, skills, pets and equipment: Canonically, Petyr's skills lie in both manipulating situations to ensure that no matter what the end result is, he'll always come out on the winning side and being able to make money in ways that seem to be practically supernatural. That's not the case, however, he just possesses an incredibly good business sense that enables him to do wonders when it comes to turning profits and the like.
He has no actual powers in canon.
The Mist would grant him two particular powers, one would be invulnerability and the other would be belief inducement. Invulnerability is rather straightfoward and is throwback to the long scar Petyr possesses down his torso from his battle with Brandon Stark for Catelyn Tully. He survived that battle, and even though it was due to Catelyn's plea for his life, it's still a wound that, had Brandon thought to kill him, would have done the job.
Petyr's belief inducement would only deal with people believing the lies he tells and not with say, getting them to believe in the Seven Gods in Westeros. With the belief inducement, Petyr would have to say a lie out loud for the person to believe it and he would also have to focus merely on lying to this one person in the context of their conversion. So, for example, if he were to lie through the forge where everyone can see it, he would only be able to theoretically get one person to believe the lie completely. When he first arrives it won't be that effective since it's a brand new power and while he has practice lying he's hardly used to having the ability to force people to believe the lies he's telling. Over time, however, he would gain more control over it with practice and potentially after a set time be able to extend his ability to lie beyond just one person among many different conversations.
And as far as items go, he'd have his clothes and a change purse with gold and that's it.
canon history: right here
personality:
If there's one thing that needs to be understood about Petyr Baelish, it's that trusting him is a really bad idea. Since inevitably it will come back and bite you in the ass. The fact of the matter is that Petyr, at one time, used to be a marginally nice person, albeit one who thought that the songs and stories where a man gallantly wins the heart of the woman he loved were true. Once he tried to live out that story in order to hopefully gain permission to marry Catelyn Tully. After he was defeated by Brandon Stark and actually removed from Riverrun by Hoster Tully's orders after getting Catelyn's sister Lysa pregnant, Petyr realized that life wasn't anything like those songs and stories and that even if you wanted the girl or the lands, you weren't going to have them handed to you because you fancied yourself some bullshit honorable knight. Especially if you suck at fighting physically. Petyr also realized how, if he was going to get where he wanted, he had to embrace the fact that his talents with fighting lied more in the mental arena and not the physical arena. It's just as well, though, because that mind of his is a rather talented thing.
Petyr hasn't been that boy who tried to fight Brandon Stark for a very long time. Instead he's fashioned himself as a man who appears incredibly harmless and cordial until he stabs you right in the back. Not literally, for the most part. People aren't allowed to beat Petyr when it comes to political intrigues. He'll lull a person into thinking that they've won only to have them discover that they didn't because somehow Petyr had a trick up his sleeve. You'll never know what trick he has up his sleeve until he uses it and while the individuals of his own canon who are just as good at playing the game of thrones as he is know that he's as self-serving as can be, the fact is that they still typically can't beat him no matter how hard they try.
The reason he can get away from situations that could otherwise get him killed with his tricks is that no matter what, he predicts the outcomes of everything and will put on a mask or a cloak or wear the metaphorical colors of every single possible winner so that when the time comes, he comes out in a position he wants to be in. Everything he does is by design. People who play the game as well as he does don't know if he can be fully trusted ever, but typically find themselves trusting him regardless because there's no other option that looks as nice as his option.
As I mentioned, Petyr doesn't want to be beaten like he was in his fight with Brandon Stark, but even beyond that, he wants power. He likes having power and his talent for manipulating has allowed him to rise above the station he was born without having to deal with some of the pitfalls that others who do the same thing. His ambition and is own intelligence manage to make it so that he's a force to be reckoned with no matter what he or anyone claims.
The interesting thing about Petyr is that while he appears to have no actual weakness in the form of people he cares about, the fact of the matter is that there is one person in the form of Catelyn Stark (though as the series goes on this person instead becomes her daughter Sansa) who he actually would prefer not to push out of his way on his ascent to any form of power. This doesn't extend to their family members, however, since Petyr turned on Ned near the end of the first book, Game of Thrones. He wants power and to prove those who assumed that the little boy from the Finger fostered by Hoster Tully wouldn't be a force to be reckoned with. And if he has to do some particularly unsavory things to ensure that, well, as Cersei Lannister once said to Eddard Stark, "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground." Petyr will win if he has any say in it. Damn the consequences.
The simple fact is that Petyr Baelish hasn't truly been himself since Brandon Stark bested him in combat. The man everyone gets to see, no matter what side of him they see, is Littlefinger. That is the man who doesn't care who suffers the consequences his actions may bring, who doesn't care about who loses or who wins, just as long as somehow he's on that winning side. The only person who knows the true man beneath any veneers he has is Petyr himself, and that's exactly the way he likes it.
why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting? Honestly, the canon Petyr comes from has actual dragons (though Petyr still thinks they're all dead) and magic. While it would be a bit of an adjustment, the things in canon make it so he's a bit less unaware of potentially weird things. Even beyond that, the fact that Petyr is enough of a manipulator ensures that he'd somehow find a way to make this setting appropriate to him.
Writing Samples
Network Post Sample:
[ to say that petyr is comfortable right now would be a lie. a horrendous lie that no one should ever tell, but one that petyr will tell willingly. while allowing someone to think they have the upper hand is useful, this time it's a bit redundant to give off that impression. ]
I've barely found myself a high lord for long and yet already I find myself being held for ransom. [ a beat. ] You might have picked the wrong one to spirit away, unfortunately. I have no doubts that someone would pay a ransom, and I might as well, but I fear I don't fetch a very large price despite my talents.
I know, not what you wanted to hear, but the news I must deliver to you regardless. [ he looks thoughtful for a moment and shrugs. ] Then again, it hardly appears to be Westeros in any incarnation outside. Which, forgive me, begs the important question of where I am. The reasoning behind it can be guessed to a point, but the other is a complete mystery, I'm afraid.
Of course, no one need answer if they do not know or would prefer to keep it a secret. I suppose, I would do the same, I would appreciate the knowledge, however.
Third Person Sample:
To be fair, Petyr knows that once upon a time he had fallen asleep much like this, but it had been so many years since than that he scarcely remembers what it truly felt like. Though this is a rather interesting reminder, rather comfortable as well, though he has slept on far better beds.
Upon waking he figure out one glaring detail that stop him from feeling even remotely comfortable when it comes to being here. This is not his room, nor is it any room he believes that he could have found himself in.
How curious. If it had been a room he knew, he could easily write this off as just him seeking the solace of a bed that isn't his own, but it's not. Which then begs the question of just how he managed to find himself in an unfamiliar room. His intake of alcohol hadn't been nearly enough to warrant a blackout on the scale of the late Robert Baratheon. Nor was there any particular additions to his drinks that he could tell.
Why couldn't he remember how he arrived? Unless- the Imp, had he underestimated the lengths he would go to remove him from the picture? He had just been awarded the lordship of Harrenhal and it would hardly be considered odd for him to have some misfortune befall him.
Had he truly managed to find himself bested? No, he couldn't have, and even if he had there were enough ways he could theoretically be rescued. Any worrying would be useless and do him more harm then good. Instead of worrying, he decides that perhaps investigating just where where he found himself would serve him best. Surely it wouldn't be too hard and if it wassomehow he'd find an answer in the form of just asking someone. After all, why trust him alone; if someone captured him, they need him to stay where they are or he'll be useless to them.
And to think, he had hoped to remain free from potentially becoming a hostage to anyone.
Anything else? I actually may end up canon updating him to A Storm of Swords or A Feast of Crows at some point. Just so you all are aware.
[ to say that petyr is comfortable right now would be a lie. a horrendous lie that no one should ever tell, but one that petyr will tell willingly. while allowing someone to think they have the upper hand is useful, this time it's a bit redundant to give off that impression. ]
I've barely found myself a high lord for long and yet already I find myself being held for ransom. [ a beat. ] You might have picked the wrong one to spirit away, unfortunately. I have no doubts that someone would pay a ransom, and I might as well, but I fear I don't fetch a very large price despite my talents.
I know, not what you wanted to hear, but the news I must deliver to you regardless. [ he looks thoughtful for a moment and shrugs. ] Then again, it hardly appears to be Westeros in any incarnation outside. Which, forgive me, begs the important question of where I am. The reasoning behind it can be guessed to a point, but the other is a complete mystery, I'm afraid.
Of course, no one need answer if they do not know or would prefer to keep it a secret. I suppose, I would do the same, I would appreciate the knowledge, however.
Third Person Sample:
To be fair, Petyr knows that once upon a time he had fallen asleep much like this, but it had been so many years since than that he scarcely remembers what it truly felt like. Though this is a rather interesting reminder, rather comfortable as well, though he has slept on far better beds.
Upon waking he figure out one glaring detail that stop him from feeling even remotely comfortable when it comes to being here. This is not his room, nor is it any room he believes that he could have found himself in.
How curious. If it had been a room he knew, he could easily write this off as just him seeking the solace of a bed that isn't his own, but it's not. Which then begs the question of just how he managed to find himself in an unfamiliar room. His intake of alcohol hadn't been nearly enough to warrant a blackout on the scale of the late Robert Baratheon. Nor was there any particular additions to his drinks that he could tell.
Why couldn't he remember how he arrived? Unless- the Imp, had he underestimated the lengths he would go to remove him from the picture? He had just been awarded the lordship of Harrenhal and it would hardly be considered odd for him to have some misfortune befall him.
Had he truly managed to find himself bested? No, he couldn't have, and even if he had there were enough ways he could theoretically be rescued. Any worrying would be useless and do him more harm then good. Instead of worrying, he decides that perhaps investigating just where where he found himself would serve him best. Surely it wouldn't be too hard and if it wassomehow he'd find an answer in the form of just asking someone. After all, why trust him alone; if someone captured him, they need him to stay where they are or he'll be useless to them.
And to think, he had hoped to remain free from potentially becoming a hostage to anyone.
Anything else? I actually may end up canon updating him to A Storm of Swords or A Feast of Crows at some point. Just so you all are aware.