In terms of prognosticating Maggy’s Prophecy, I’ve always been more invested in the Valonqar clause*, but to the extent that we talk about the YMB(Q), I’ve long been a fan of the idea of multiple women filling the YMBQ role. Sansa, Brienne, Margaery, Dany, Arianne Martell. They all cast her down and take her dearest in different ways.

But right now? My first choice for Younger More Beautiful is Brienne. JUST Brienne. And the reason why I like her for the YMB is precisely because it would give us one more chance to point and laugh at Cersei for getting so invested in her unchecked assumptions about Maggy’s choice of words. Cersei is So! Very! Sure! she’s up against a younger and more beautiful QUEEN fucking her shit up.

All Maggy said was “until there comes ANOTHER, young and more beautiful, to cast you down and” blah blah you know the tune. She didn’t say anything about another QUEEN. She just said…someone else, who’s younger and more beautiful, and we all know “beautiful” can mean a lot of things. Cersei thinks it refers to recognized Westerosi standards of physical beauty, so she’s all focused on Margaery but of course she hasn’t yet met Dany.

She remembered the maid of Tarth, a huge ugly shambling thing who dressed in man’s mail. Jaime would never abandon me for such a creature.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Beauty means different things to different people. And wouldn’t it be funny if the girl who is mockingly called Brienne the Beauty ends up being the “younger and more beautiful” one who eats Cersei’s lunch? She doesn’t need to be a queen.

(I reserve the right to predict her being a provincial queen later, in the endgame. Cersei won’t be around to see that, though.)

*Euron Greyjoy’s still the best candidate for Valonqar! Cersei’s been so focused on her BROTHER being the killer, she’s never considered Maggy never actually told her what “valonqar” means.