Few characters on Game of Thrones are as beloved as Arya Stark. From the very beginning, she is an easy person to root for as she sticks up for herself against bullies and doesn't let the fact that she's a girl stop her from doing what she wants.
As likable as Arya is, she's not perfect. All Game of Thrones characters have made mistakes and Arya is no different. Her headstrong ways sometimes lead her down the wrong path though she always seems to turn herself around. Here are some of Arya Stark's biggest mistakes on Game of Thrones.
Running From The Brotherhood Without Banners
For several seasons, it felt like Arya was just being ed around as a prisoner. Certainly, her most comfortable position as a captive was with the Brotherhood without Banners. This motley crew of outlaws, led by Beric Dondarrion, help keep the smallfolk safe during the war and they planned to ransom Arya to fund their noble work.
Arya didn't appreciate being a hostage and ran away. Unfortunately, she ran right into the arms of the Hound who is a much less noble captor. She must have felt pretty guilty when Beric later gave his life to save her.
Not Going With Brienne
Arya has some serious trust issues and given everything she has been through, it's hard to blame her. However, this has led to her treating some friends like enemies when all they want to do is help her. Beric Dondarrion is a good example of this, as is Brienne of Tarth.
Brienne searched all of Westeros looking for Arya in order to fulfill her promise to Catelyn Stark. When Brienne finally finds her, Arya doesn't trust her and refuses to her much to Brienne's disappointment.
Disobeying The Faceless Men
Arya's adventures in Braavos might have been a little tedious to watch as a viewer but this journey did help make her one of the deadliest people in Westeros. Arya learned many skills from the Faceless Men, but she was pretty careless about following their rules.
When tasked with killing a crooked moneylender, Arya instead decides to kill Meryn Trant. For disobeying the Faceless Men's orders, Arya is blinded. That's a high price to pay for killing one bad guy over another.
U Her Three Names
Another valuable friend Arya makes along her journey is Jaqen H'ghar. Jaqen is a mysterious member of the Faceless Men who Arya meets when traveling to Castle Black. After saving Jaqen and his comrades, Arya is told she can name three people who Jaqen will kill.
Arya uses up the names quite quickly and it's hard not to feel like they are a big waste. There are so many people she could have named that would have helped to end the war and give the Starks their victory, but she was careless with her choosing.
Leaving Westeros
As the final episodes got more and more dangerous for Arya, many fans were worried if she would make it out of the series alive. Fortunately, she remained a survivor and outlived many other characters. The last we see of Arya, she has chosen to explore the unknown world west of Westeros.
While this seems like a pretty suitable end for Arya, it is a bit disappointing she would make such a decision. After everything she has been through to reunite with her family, she is leaving just as they can settle down together,
Not Keeping A Low Profile
Though Arya's first transgression against the Faceless Men leaves her blind, her second act of disobedience has more dire consequences. The Waif, deadly assassin is sent to kill Arya for failing to kill a target she was given.
Knowing the Faceless Men will be coming for her and that they can be disguised as anyone, Arya inexplicably walks around town without trying to conceal herself at all. She even lets an old lady walk up to her and, of course, it turns out to be the Waif who stabs Arya and almost kills her.
Fighting With Sansa
Since they were young, Arya and Sansa had a very combative relationship. They didn't see eye-to-eye very often and would constantly bicker as most siblings do. After being separated for several seasons and going through so much, you would think they would put those petty feuds behind them.
Sadly, not long after Arya and Sansa reunite at Winterfell, Littlefinger easily manipulates them into becoming enemies. They eventually figure out Littlefinger's plan, but they turned against each other far too easily.
Going To King's Landing
Arya managed to strike a lot of names off of her kill list throughout the series, but there was still one big one she was determined to get. Even with Daenerys preparing to attack King's Landing, Arya decided to go there to finally kill Cersei.
It was pretty obvious that Cersei was doomed even if Arya stayed at home so the whole trip seemed rather pointless. Once the attack started, Arya finally realized that getting revenge wasn't worth dying over.
Leaving The Hound To Die
One of the most unusual and interesting relationships in the show was between Arya and the Hound. It started off with both of them hating each other and Arya even adding him to her kill list. However, they gradually started to warm to each other over time.
However, after Brienne beat the Hound in a brawl, Arya wasn't willing to give him a mercy kill. Even as he painfully begged for help, she left him there to die in agony. It is likely the cruelest thing she did on the show.
Not Killing Tywin
When held captive at Harrenhal, Arya unexpectedly becomes a serving girl for Tywin Lannister. Though he doesn't know she is one of the Stark children, Tywin keeps Arya close and seems to take a liking to her in his own way.
Arya spends a lot of time with this man who is not only the most powerful person in Westeros, he also her brother's enemy in the war. She might have only been a young girl but if she could have killed Tywin, the Starks likely would have won the war.