She doesn't want to be a noble lady like society expects of her – she wants adventure and freedom.

Arya loves her brother Jon – he understands what it's like to not fit in.

Jon gives Arya a sword called Needle.

Arya sees that the world is unfair – because of Cersei's cruelty and Joffrey's lies,

Arya loses her wolf Nymeria, and her friend Mycah is killed.

So Arya starts to hate her enemies . Syrio Forel teaches Arya to fight – and says the

only god is death . When war begins with the Lannisters, Arya has to leave Syrio for dead.

And when a stableboy grabs Arya, she stabs him – Arya's first kill is this poor dumb kid.

In Season 2, Arya makes friends with Gendry, and Lommy and Hot Pie, but she struggles with

is attacked by Lannisters – a soldier called Polliver kills Lommy and takes Needle.

Arya's imprisoned at Harrenhal – where she suffers, and sees innocent people tortured and killed.

So Arya has to hide her identity, and use her wits to survive.

A Faceless Man called Jaqen H'ghar kills people for Arya , giving her a taste of power and vengeance.

With Jaqen's help, Arya Gendry and Hot Pie escape Harrenhal.

Jaqen offers to train Arya in Braavos , but she wants to stay and find her family . Jaqen

leaves Arya with a coin, and the words “Valar Morghulis” – all men must die.

In Season 3, Arya Gendry and Hot Pie are captured by the Brotherhood Without Banners.

The Brotherhood also captures the Hound, and Arya wants him dead, because the Hound killed Mycah.

But the Hound wins his trial and goes free – so again Arya finds no justice in the world.

Arya learns to use a bow better, which might come in handy.

And Melisandre visits, saying that she'll meet Arya again . But then the Brotherhood

So Arya gets sick of their bullshit and runs away – but then she's captured by the Hound.

see her family again – but they arrive in time for the Red Wedding, where Arya's mother and brother are murdered.

– she uses Jaqen's coin and says “Valar Morghulis” . So in Season 3, Arya learns

that she can't rely on anyone – friends will just leave her, family will die, and

In Season 4, Arya journeys through the war-torn riverlands with the Hound, who leads her deeper into violence and cynicism.

This is like the first good thing that happens to Arya in three seasons, and she achieves it by killing.

the weak die, and the strong survive . He says hate is a good motivation to keep someone

going . On one level, Arya hates the Hound for being so brutal and callous . But the

Hound is also the only person who understands Arya.

The Hound feels betrayed by his family, abandoned and alone , with only hate and violence to

But the Hound gets suspicious, and they end up fighting – leaving the Hound near death.

The Hound asks Arya to mercy kill him , but Arya refuses.

dead, and with nowhere to go , Arya uses Jaqen's coin to sail to Braavos.

Maybe here she can find peace, happiness and family.

But nope, she joins a death cult.

In Season 5, Arya joins the Faceless Men – a cult of assassins who worship death . To truly

join them, Arya must become “No one” – to give up her identity, all her hopes, loves and hates.

Arya works in the House of Black and White – she sweeps, cleans corpses, and gives the gift of death to a suffering child.

She contends with the waif, a rival Faceless Man who doesn't believe that Arya is no

one . Arya takes on the identity of Lanna , and spies around Braavos.

after Meryn Trant, the Kingsguard who killed Syrio.

She follows Meryn to a brothel, uses a Faceless disguise, and brutally kills him – another name off her list.

But the Faceless are mad, because Arya not only killed the wrong person, but she did it for her personal revenge.

When the Faceless Men are meant to be no one, giving death anonymously as a religious gift.

So the man who Arya thinks is Jaqen kills himself, but then another Man wears Jaqen's face.

Because there is no Jaqen, he's just a false identity worn by the Faceless Men.

wore a face before she was allowed, Arya is made blind . Season 5 plunges Arya into darkness.

The waif beats her with a stick, teaching her to fight blind – and trying to break

She gets a training montage, and fights with sticks, until she can finally hold off the waif, and Jaqen gives her sight back.

Jaqen orders Arya to kill an actress called Lady Crane, and warns this is Arya's last chance to join the Faceless.

Arya watches Crane act in a play about Westeros – and relives the execution of her father.

But she's also moved by Cersei's grief, as played by Lady Crane.

Arya likes Crane, so she refuses to kill her.

gets a haircut, and books a ship home.

She's saved by Lady Crane – Arya's mercy saves her own life.

For the first time in a long time, Arya rests and feels safe with a friend who cares for her, but then the waif kills Crane – another dead friend.

She confronts Jaqen, and says she's not no one – she's Arya Stark of Winterfell,

disguise, but she also returns to her identity as Arya, and she goes back to Westeros.

Arya kills Walder Frey, and bakes his sons into a pie.

And in Season 7, Arya disguises herself with Walder's face, and poisons a room full of

and learns that not all of her enemies are evil – some of them are Ed Sheeran.

Arya's unable to describe what she's been through . Her experiences have changed her.

. Cause Nymeria has changed, become wild and independent – she isn't the pet she was

before, just like Arya isn't the girl she was before.

Arya returns to Winterfell, and it's changed too.

Arya gets a Valyrian steel dagger, and makes friends with Brienne.

All the sisters' childhood resentments return, and Littlefinger works to divide them further

– it gets to the point where Arya threatens to kill Sansa . But in the finale, the sisters

So in Season 7, we see how the experiences that made Arya a powerful killer have also alienated her from her friends and family.

If she continues her path of vengeance, will Arya lose her humanity?

What'll happen to Arya in the final season of Thrones?

There'll be more reunions – Arya will finally see Jon again . She'll likely reunite

with Gendry, and there could be a romance there – Gendry likes to call Arya “my

lady” . Arya will meet Daenerys, and she'll probably like her – Arya has said that she

admires dragon queens , maybe she'll get a dragon ride.

all on Arya's death list for a while . Will Arya still hold these grudges?

Cause in the Season 8 trailer, the dead attack Winterfell, and Arya fights for the living.

With her Valyrian dagger, and obsidian weapons, she might kill a white walker or two.

Maybe her ultimate test as an assassin could be trying to kill the Night King.

Bran gave her that dagger for a reason.

Queen Cersei . The Hound once said that he and Arya could kill the Mountain together.

Maybe the Hound will be wounded in this fight, and Arya will finally have to mercy-kill her friend. But will Arya kill Cersei?

Arya relates to Cersei's feelings of grief and anger . So maybe Arya will show Cersei

mercy, just like she spared Crane . Arya's actress, Maisie Williams, said she hopes Arya

get the family she's always wanted.

Like, she wouldn't marry a lord and have fifteen kids – that's not her.

Or maybe she'll go off on her own as an adventurer, and see what's west of Westeros.

She could sail into the sunset like Frodo in Lord of the Rings – a sad farewell to

a hero who was never quite whole after what they'd been through.

Or maybe Arya will only find peace in death.

Her whole story is soaked in blood and loss and trauma.

Maybe when winter comes, the lone wolf will die alone.

In the Game of Thrones books, Arya is warg like Bran – she can enter the mind of Nymeria.

So there are cool theories about Arya dying but living on in her wolf, running with her pack.

The books have a lot more magic and prophecy than the show.

Everything's darker and deeper and more complex.

If you wanna check out the books, you can get one on audiobook for free today by signing up for a trial at audible.com/asx.

Audible has the whole Game of Thrones series, including the worldbook, short stories, and the new history book, Fire and Blood.

Members can choose a free book each month, and if you cancel, you keep the books.

Thanks for watching.

Please like and subscribe, and comment below which character we should recap next.

Mistyspecs, Will Geffen, Hung Nguyen, Kristy Rasmussen-Vincent, Wright Cheung, Colin Pocsik, and Nope.

Cheers.