Game Of Thrones: 10 Darkest Moments The Show Left Out
3. The Fate Of The Innkeeper's Daughter
George R.R. Martin seems to enjoy traumatising his characters, and as result, scarring his readers with all the horrific scenes he conjures up.
Arya's character development is directly linked to the trauma inflicted by everything she witnesses. The hatred she develops for the sadistic characters she encounters ultimately leads her to create her 'kill list'.
In the show her list is made up of the likes of Cersei, Joffrey, and the Hound, as well as number of the Mountain's henchmen - largely due to witnessing their torture of the refugees at Harrenhal. It's a lot to put one of your youngest character through.
In the books it's even worse. Arya is tormented by an atrocity she hears about during her time at Harrenhal. She overhears one of the Mountain's men bragging about the gang rape of a 13-year-old girl. Shortly after the Hand's Tourney, the Mountain stayed at an Inn; he became enraged by the Innkeepers constant chatter, and as punishment, assaulted his daughter, and then allowed all his men to do the same.
It's this incident that encourages Arya to ask Jaqen H'ghar to kill a member of the Mountain's entourage.