Patchface

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Patchface
Patchface.jpg

Alias Patches
Allegiance House Baratheon of Dragonstone
Books

Patchface is Stannis's court fool and jester at Dragonstone. His face is tattooed in motley, earning his name.

Appearance and Character

See also: Images of Patchface

Patchface takes his name for the tattoos covering his broad face and bald head, marked in a pattern of green and red squares.[1] This is the fashion in the free city of Volantis for slaves and servants. In his youth, he was a clever boy with astonishing wit; after his accident, however, his mind and body are broken. After his survival from the shipwreck he is described as soft and obese, subject to twitches and trembles and has a weird sideways walk.[2]

History

Patchface was a jester slave in Volantis. He was a clever boy with astonishing wit. His freedom was bought by Lord Steffon Baratheon, who was impressed with him and intended to bring him back to Storm's End from his trip to the Free Cities:

The king — the old king, Aerys II Targaryen, who had not been quite so mad in those days, had sent his lordship to seek a bride for Prince Rhaegar, who had no sisters to wed. “We have found the most splendid fool,” he wrote Cressen, a fortnight before he was to return home from his fruitless mission. “Only a boy, yet nimble as a monkey and witty as a dozen courtiers. He juggles and riddles and does magic, and he can sing prettily in four tongues. We have bought his freedom and hope to bring him home with us. Robert will be delighted with him, and perhaps in time he will even teach Stannis how to laugh.[2]

Patchface - by Amok ©

Maester Cressen regrets that Patchface never did teach Stannis to laugh.

Lord Steffon Baratheon's ship Windproud had broken up in Shipbreaker Bay within sight of Storm's End while his sons Stannis Baratheon and Robert Baratheon watched. Everyone aboard ship had been killed including the lord, his lady and over 100 soldiers and sailors. Patchface had washed up three days later, his naked skin white, wrinkled, and, the man that found him, Jornmy, swears to his dying day that the fool's skin was clammy cold. They had taken him for dead, but then he coughed up water, albeit broken in mind and body; the ordeal had taken his memories, and half his wit. Now he is subject to twitches and trembles and mostly incoherent. What happened to him during the two days is unknown, but the fisher folk like to say "a mermaid had taught him to breathe water in return for his seed." It had suggested by Ser Harbert, the castellan of Storm’s End, that it would be kindest for Cressen let the mad boy die, but he had refused, and he now wonders at that decision.

Patchface was employed as court fool and jester at Dragonstone. He spends most of his time with Shireen Baratheon, Stannis' daughter, who calls him Patches. He offers her strange insights and stranger songs, sometimes touching upon what may have really happened to the boy at the bottom of the bay. [2]

Some of his rhymes seem to be of prophetic nature, including one that may have predicted the Red Wedding, though none of his listeners understand them.[2]

Fool's blood, king's blood, blood on the maiden's thigh, but chains for the guests and chains for the bridegroom, aye aye aye.

The shadows come to dance, my lord, dance my lord, dance my lord," he sang, hopping from one foot to the other and back again. "The shadows come to stay, my lord, stay my lord, stay my lord" He jerks his head with each word, the bells in his antlers ringing up a clangor.

Shortly after Alys Karstark's wedding Patchface proclaimed:

Under the sea the mermen feast on starfish soup, and all the serving men are crabs.

Melisandre’s face darkens and she says to Jon Snow:

That creature is dangerous. Many a time I have glimpsed him in my flames. Sometimes there are skulls about him, and his lips are red with blood.

A Clash of Kings

The fool accompanies Princess Shireen Baratheon when she visits Maester Cressen in his chamber to see the White Raven. Later he is at the feast where Cressen attempts to kill Melisandre with poisoned wine, but the poison does not affect her. Cressen drinks the what is left, and dies.

Quotes from the prologue

As Maester Pylos goes up to get the White Raven for Maester Cressen so Princess Shireen can see it, the fool sings:

Under the sea, the birds have scales for feathers. I know. I know…

Shireen states that her mother says that the White Raven means that it is not summer any more, and the Maester Cressen responds with reassurances, the fool sings:

It is always summer under the sea. The merwives wear nennymoans in their hair and weave gowns of silver seaweed. I know. I know…

Right after this quote Shireen states that she would like a gown of silver seaweed, the fool sings:

Under the sea it snows up, and the rain is dry as bone. I know. I know…

When the White Raven speaks to Shireen after the Maester Cressen introduces the raven to her, the princess exclaims that it talks, and the maester responds that white ravens are clever birds, the fool sings:

Clever bird, clever man, clever clever fool…

Immediately after the statement about the clever bird the fool sings the following for the first of many times in the chapter, including at the feast:

The shadows come to dance my lord, dance my lord, dance my lord. The shadows come to stay my lord, stay my lord, stay my lord...

When Maester Cressen enters the feasting hall and is making his way across, Patchface lurches into him while singing the same song from the morning and they both fall to the floor. Face to face with Creseen, the fool sings:

Under the sea, you fall up. I know. I know…

As Maester Cressen had his first run in with Melisandre and then makes his way around the tables in the feasting hall to where Lord Davos had offered him a place next to him, the fool sings:

Here we eat fish, under the sea, the fish eat us. I know. I know…

After Maester Cressen states that R'hllor has no power here, the Red Woman tells him that if he believes that he should put the crown back on, and Queen Selyse commands it, the fool sings:

Under the sea no one wears hats. I know. I know…

Quote from Chapter 10, Davos

As the statues of the seven gods are being burned in sept at Dragonstone at the command of Melisandre and before Stannis Baratheon plunges into the fire to pull out Lightbringer, Patchface sings:

Under the sea, smoke rises in bubbles, and flames burn green and blue and black. “I know, I know, oh, oh, oh.

Quotes from other chapters:

Fool’s blood. King’s blood, blood on the maiden’s thigh, but chains for the guests and chains for the bridegroom, aye, aye, aye.

Under the sea the old fish eat the young fish. Up here the young fish teach the old fish.

In the dark the dead are dancing.

Under the sea the merman feast on starfish soup, and all the serving men are crabs.

Under the sea the crows are white as snow.

Away, away, come with me beneath the sea, away, away, away.

I will lead it. We will march into the sea and out again. Under the waves we will ride seahorses, and mermaids will blow seashells to announce our coming, oh, oh, oh.

Under the sea, men marry fishes.

References and Notes