Denial
No one in the seven kingdoms is quite adept at fooling themselves as Lysa Arryn, Sansa's aunt, last seen re-enacting this famous TIME cover. In her reappearance, we learn she’s spent decades pining for her Petyr, all while coming close to realizing – but never quite processing – that he’s been using her. She even went so far as to poison her own husband at Littlefinger’s bidding, which as you may recall, was the event that kicked this whole series off in the first place. If only she’d had a Miranda around, all of this trouble could have been avoided. At least she got a ring out of the deal.
Anger
Arya subscribes to the Rotten Theory of emotions: Anger is an energy. Before she lays her head to sleep, the lost Stark repeats the names of all the people she’s sworn to kill, which happens to end with her current traveling companion: The Hound. As the angriest man in Westeros, he sees this as an opportunity, interrupting Arya’s "dancing" practice to taunt her about Syrio Forel’s death, until she tries to run him through with Needle. It doesn’t work, of course, and he accompanies this metaphorical slap in the face with a literal one. The Hound then gives her a lesson of his own: All the practice in the world can’t beat "armor, and a big f—ing sword." If she wants to kill him, she’s going to have to do it his way.
Bargaining
What would you do if your only daughter was in the hands of a family who hated your family’s guts? If you’re Cersei, that means swallowing your pride and admitting to King’s Landing’s incorrigible poet-in-resident Oberyn Martell that you worry about her. She gives him a ship to take back to Myrcella,and it seems to cool the tensions that arose between them at Joffrey’s wedding. "We don’t hurt little girls in Dorne," he says. She begs to differ: "Everywhere in the world, they hurt little girls."
Depression
No Dragonstone or the Dreadfort this week, which means there’s comparatively little depression on offer.
Acceptance
The rest of the story lines see our characters coming to terms with the consequences of their actions, and choosing to move forward. Sometimes it’s a small thing, as when Brienne warms to Podrick after learning the lengths he’d gone to protect Tyrion. Elsewhere, it’s a split-second decision, like Bran’s realization that fulfilling his purpose in life means giving up on his long-awaited reunion with Jon.
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