Where did Arya get these scars?

Question

In S08E02 of Game of Thrones we see that Arya has two vertical scars on the side of her abdomen.

Was there an event portrayed in the series that shows how she got these scars?

An out of universe explanation: This exact pose was all that the actress was comfortable with, and the writers wanted to include some scars to convey to the viewer that her body has been through a lot during her journey. I don't think that these injuries were sustained during any on screen battle, and so this also implies that she has been in a lot of fights which we have not seen (which makes sense). — Steven Gubkin, Apr 25 '19 at 02:13

score 27 · Answer 1 · answered Apr 24 '19 at 01:25

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Unclear.

There are many wild fan-theories circulating, but there has been no definitive answer provided. It's most probable that she received them sometime in her fight with the Waif.

On the following episode, "No One," Arya sustained multiple injuries while running away through the streets of Braavos. She fell down a massive flight of stairs (and probably broke a few ribs) before managing to find her sword.

Arya managed to kill The Waif in the following fight scene — but it isn't shown onscreen, so it's possible that that's when Arya received the scars on the side of her torso.

_{Arya's gruesome scars on Sunday's 'Game of Thrones' surprised fans — here's how she got them - The Insider}

Although this seems likely no canon answer exists (yet).

answered Apr 24 '19 at 01:25

Daeron

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This is the only place she could have got these scars. She was on the receiving end of the stick (literally) in Braavos only. Waif beat her up earlier in her training with a stick. That would leave bruises but not scars. She could have got them in the stabbing only – KharoBangdo Apr 24 '19 at 05:57
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_THzkANNPU – Marc Apr 24 '19 at 06:52
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@KharoBangdo Not true. Arya was in Braavos for a long time. We only saw a small glimpse into her time there and her training. She could have gotten those scars in any number of ways. I don't see how this is any sort of mystery. She was training for years. Of course she's going to have some scars. We don't need a specific explanation. – user91988 Apr 24 '19 at 14:40
Those scars were far too neat to be from broken bones or beatings, it'd have to have been done with a blade. IIRC they were also pretty much perpendicular, have we seen any weapons with two (or more) blade next to each other? – adickinson Apr 24 '19 at 15:06
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@KharoBangdo If it was more of a cane than a stick, scarring is definitely possible when hit repeatedly (as would be the case with Arya). – Anthony Grist Apr 24 '19 at 15:26
Arya managed to kill The Waif in the following fight scene - well, either that or the waif killed Arya, then swapped faces with her, and hung her own face in the hall of faces. Gives a new picance to the exchange "A girl is finally no-one", "A girl is Arya Stark, and she's going home". – Grimm The Opiner Apr 25 '19 at 10:07
@GrimmTheOpiner - when they take the faces from the dead, the faces taken off are not magically disguised or transformed. Arya clearly is putting the Waif's face on the wall. It it was the Waif using Arya's face, she couldn't put her own dead face on the wall. IMO, that particular fan speculation doesn't seem to carry much weight. – PoloHoleSet Apr 25 '19 at 17:04

score 3 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 25 '19 at 17:18

I believe the scars are meant to be the ones shown when she was ambushed by the Waif when she first booked a ship to leave Bravos, in Season 6, Episode 7.

You can see in the photo include in the article referenced in Niffler's answer that the stab "to the stomach" captured there is pretty much coming almost straight in from the side.

Also, in this video, you see the first stab comes in from the side, the second one seems more central to the belly, and the Waif keeps the knife in to twist it in the wound, but when they cut back to it, the location of that stab was moved to the side, as well, so a bit of discontinuity on their part. Potentially, both wounds are being delivered more laterally than centrally. In both cases, the wounds match the Waif using her right hand, from behind.

YouTube: Arya Stark is Stabbed

A rear wound might be from an exit wound, but, more likely, I think they took some license/liberty and moved the scars to be more from the side to make the love scene an easier scene to shoot. Showing the scars and being able to see Gendry's noticing the scars in one shot, or to show them without requiring frontal exposure for the actress. If the scars are shown more frontally, you'd have to do more to show just part of the actress, to avoid showing body stockings or whatever else they were able to use from the angles they incorporated, and there would be no way to show the scars and Gendry's face in the same shot.

That's a nice combination of an in-universe and out-of-universe explanation. Seems conclusive. — Ian, Apr 26 '19 at 06:49

Where did Arya get these scars?

2 Answers2

Unclear.