With so much going on in episode five of the last season of GoT, we think that we can be forgiven for not acknowledging a seemingly unimportant scene.
But, luckily for us, a few eagle-eyed fans spotted an exchange between Varys and a young girl from the kitchens which proved to be vitally important.
It would appear that, prior to his demise, Varys had been plotting to poison Daenerys. Unsuccessfully, of course, but this may be crucial to understanding why Daenerys did what she did later in the episode.
Could she have known that Varys was planning to betray her? Was this just one betrayal too many for the young Targaryen? Or was she always destined to destroy King's Landing?
And maybe it wasn't poison that Varys put in her food, but something else entirely as one fan has suggested...
This is Varys aka The Spider.
He was a skilled manipulator and was known for having a whole network of informants, whom he called his "little birds", spanning across two continents.But his life did not start off very well.
After hearing how Lord Varys became a Eunuch, my entire dick and balls started aching #GameOfThrones— 🇯🇵Cooking Momma Jet™ [お母-ちゃんの料理] 🏳️🌈 (@🇯🇵Cooking Momma Jet™ [お母-ちゃんの料理] 🏳️🌈)1395561119.0
The sorcerer then left him on the streets to die.
But Varys was strong and did everything he could to stay alive. He eventually became an accomplished thief, before realizing that information was more valuable than any other goods he could steal.His notoriety as an information trafficker grew and he became a member of the Small Council in the Seven Kingdoms.
@MichaelMidnight 😥 the first time I watched Game of Thrones, I didn't know if we could trust anyone on the Small Co… https://t.co/tvjKGUFDQq— COrey VIDal 🦠 (@COrey VIDal 🦠)1557720996.0
In Season One we saw him being a bit of a sneaky f*cker.
Although he made it clear that his intentions were always to serve the realm. And he did show empathy with Sansa when her father was beheaded... But he was still an arrogant tw*t.In Season Two, Varys made friends with Tyrion and Daenerys prophesized the burning of King's Landing.
Varys and Tyrion bonded over their own cunningness. Varys even complimented Tyrion after he plotted a scheme to test the Small Council's loyalty, saying: "a very small man can cast a large shadow." We also saw Daenerys prophesize walking through a destroyed throne room with ash falling down around her. How could we have forgotten about this?!In Season Three we saw Varys continue to do what he thought was best for the realm.
@_bela_virino exactly. man's only legend when it comes to saving his dwarf ass. the one's that truly knew how to pl… https://t.co/GPiQWf6a5f— his dudeness (@his dudeness)1557725790.0
In Season Four, Varys again tried to do the right thing but, as always, without exposing himself to those in power.
I guess Varys testifying against Tyrion was part of his plan to spirit Tyrion out of the capital and over into Daen… https://t.co/4AAebqrHmJ— Alexis Daria 🇵🇷💕 hiatus (@Alexis Daria 🇵🇷💕 hiatus)1554261788.0
As the next season kicked off, we saw Varys reveal his allegiance to House Targaryen.
Everything Varys does is calculated. The other reason why I say he is not loyal to any king, but to the throne, is… https://t.co/ciQbb1CaI2— Child of Thanos (@Child of Thanos)1547573313.0
As Meereen began to prosper in Season Six, Varys set out to source further allies for Daenerys.
@zara2000 @Can_Atheist @HBO @GRRMspeaking @GameOfThrones Varys has been one of my favourites, considering how he ha… https://t.co/PtRjTqxfH5— रatul (@रatul)1557145196.0
In Season Seven, Varys continued to help Daenerys to plan their attack against Cersei.
Tyrion and Varys: *muttering* Daenerys: #GameOfThrones https://t.co/jgSzae4zJ1— Charlie Schneider (@Charlie Schneider)1557709764.0
And it seems that Varys was growing increasingly concerned about some of Daenerys' actions.
Again, I ask: what has she done except the incident with the Tarlys (this is terrible and I don't agree with her on… https://t.co/8Ww1cOCTsU— Eadon (@Eadon)1557165895.0
Varys has always made it crystal clear that his priority is to put someone on the throne who will serve the needs of the common people.
Lord Varys TOLD Daenerys he would support WHOEVER he thought would be the best ruler... he’s about to shake everyth… https://t.co/YmmzGfAn1L— So Hollywood (@So Hollywood)1557108445.0
But he also said that he would never conspire against her.
Daenerys season 7 : “Swear this to me, Varys. If you ever think I’m failing the people, you won’t conspire behind m… https://t.co/Q6cDFbl567— z⚡️BLM (@z⚡️BLM)1557113795.0
Like after The Battle of Winterfell when she refused to let her soldiers recover, even though Sansa advised her to do so.
#GameofThrones Sansa : "everyone should rest" Daenerys : "nah" #Raeghal dies #Missandei dies Varys is gonna betray… https://t.co/dHjbm7fdk5— Nerd Meister 96 (@Nerd Meister 96)1557130621.0
He thought that she resembled the Mad King...
And he decides that Jon Snow would be a better ruler for the kingdom. Especially when he heard him advise Daenerys against burning King's Landing to the ground.Even more so given the fact that that he now knows that Jon is actually Aegon Targaryen.
Dany told Jon not to tell anyone he’s a Targaryen, he tells Sansa, Sansa tells Tyrion, Tyrion tells Varys and now t… https://t.co/9dlqxUnxWg— ray j (@ray j)1557110440.0
We then saw him writing down the truth about Jon and his parentage.
A close up of Varys' letter about Dany. #MadQueen #GameofThrones https://t.co/ATpUYTUJj9— Emily (@Emily)1557782466.0
We then saw the final moment between Tyrion and Varys.
Wherein Tyrion admitted that it was he that betrayed his friend and Varys says that he hopes he is wrong about Daenerys. But, sadly, he was right...And with one quick word - "Dracarys"...
The Mountain looks like Varys after Dracarys. #GameofThrones https://t.co/oChe0Sb5k2— 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗺 ~ (@𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗺 ~)1557809444.0
Fans are even speculating that the letter is the reason that Daenerys torched King's Landing.
oh wait sht im probably reaching but I just realized what triggered daenerys to burn king's landing to the ground.… https://t.co/QyIVyNeRL5— 𝐊𝐢𝐞𝐫 ☀️ (@𝐊𝐢𝐞𝐫 ☀️)1557819504.0
And now all that is left to find out is whether he managed to get word to anyone before his untimely demise.
Perhaps he reached Sansa? Would she be brave enough to take on Daenerys having heard what happened to King's Landing? We only wish that someone had stopped Daenerys before she fully went mental on us...And it seemed that someone did try to.
@BearingMoon When Varys was talking to the lil girl about the kitchen. She said Dany hasn't been eating, and he sai… https://t.co/EjjvFcLoBf— tiger millionaire🐯 (@tiger millionaire🐯)1557746577.0
But in retrospect, it seems that the exchange wasn't quite so innocent.
Did Varys almost Tried to POISON Daenerys in Episode 5?? THOUGHTS? #GameofThrones #Varys https://t.co/sw4DDtz3zN— α ૨αحmاɳ Kخαɳ (@α ૨αحmاɳ Kخαɳ)1557777781.0
Fans who hadn't noticed were truly shocked when they found out.
Varys tried to kill Daenerys by using the little girl to poison her food. Bald boi is cutthroat af https://t.co/SS38IOeSlF— Abi (@Abi)1557721869.0
But maybe Danerys already suspected Varys?
dany is such a smart bitch she immediately knew that jon betrayed her and that varys has been trying to poison her… https://t.co/vNDif1NbOn— nads (@nads)1557756880.0
If this was the case, it would be a fitting method for Varys.
ICYMI, Varys totally tried to poison Dany at the beginning of the episode. The callbacks to season 1 are amazing:… https://t.co/FnWLKi2DPQ— iTrevor (@iTrevor)1557727483.0
And that could be the reason that he left his rings on the table when he got arrested.
WAIT. WAIT. Was Varys trying to poison Daenerys in the beginning of the episode? Is that why he kept asking the lit… https://t.co/bvulExIVV5— Alejandro Melendez (@Alejandro Melendez)1557792351.0
Although perhaps it wasn't poison.
@iARahmanKhan I assumed he was trying to poison her, but I also assumed he was punished for talking too much. Maybe… https://t.co/Wcmu666Mj3— 🌟Poppyfield 🌊🌊🌊Vote Blue for sanity & humanity (@🌟Poppyfield 🌊🌊🌊Vote Blue for sanity & humanity)1557784372.0
And, ultimately, he was proved right in his theory about the Mad Queen.
Varys was right. #GameofThrones https://t.co/LwfYuubpnU— RunBaboRun (@RunBaboRun)1557712335.0