Warning: This post contains spoilers for season seven of Game of Thrones.
Littlefinger definitely got more than he bargained for by giving Bran Stark the Valyrian steel dagger used by the cutthroat who tried to assassinate him in Sunday’s episode of Game of Thrones. Instead of thanking him, Bran responded with a statement that seemed to momentarily break through Littlefinger’s careful mask of control.
“Chaos is a ladder,” Bran interjected into Littlefinger’s musings, echoing a statement the master manipulator made to Varys during a conversation in the Red Keep throne room in season three.
Although it’s still unclear exactly how much Bran — or should we say, the Three-Eyed Raven — knows about Littlefinger’s past, Isaac Hempstead Wright — who plays Bran — told HBO that the callback was meant to be disconcerting.
MORE: To stay up to date on everything Game of Thrones, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.
“That was my favorite scene to film this season. It was so neat to say something that cool,” he explained. “The fact that Bran heard that line means that he’s gone back and looked through Mr. Baelish’s timeline. His intention is to slightly rattle Littlefinger, to say, in just a subtle, really creepy way, ‘I know what you’re up to.'”
Hopefully this means that Bran re-gifting the dagger to Arya was intended to set Littlefinger’s downfall in motion.
“Eastwatch,” the fifth episode of Game of Thrones‘ seventh season, airs Aug. 13 at 9 p.m. on HBO.
- Extreme Heat Makes It Hard for Kids to Be Active. But Exercise Is Crucial In a Warming World
- Pelosi's Visit to Taiwan Has Badly Damaged U.S.-China Relations, But Not Irreversibly
- Reality TV Has Reshaped Our World, Whether We Like It or Not
- Progress Is Not A Given. It is Won: The Connection Between James Baldwin and Toni Morrison
- The Inflation Reduction Act's Name Says A Lot About The Climate Fight
- How Reservation Dogs Became More than Just Must-See Television in Its Second Season
- The U.S Will Soon Have Space Force Ambassadors Around the World