"There is no honor in tricks."

Sansa Stark is first introduced as Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark's thirteen-year-old daughter who dreams of becoming queen one day. A sweet girl with little patience for things that didn't fit her narrow, privileged worldview, she was extremely naive about the world that she lived in; it's a naivete that she would soon shed the moment she joined her father and sister in King's Landing, where King Robert Baratheon has ordered Ned stark to serve as Hand of The King.

Because of her caring nature, she was easily moved around as a chess piece by others. She was convinced to help the Lannisters in demanding her brother Robb surrender as a treasoner after her father was accused of the same. Her compliance is punished in the end, as Prince Joffrey, her intended betrothed, refuses to honour the negotiations Cersei Lannister and Petyr Baelish had arranged for Ned and orders Ned to be executed.

Quickly realizing she's been trapped in the capital with no allies to rescue her, she dutifully tries her best to maintain appearances of loyalty to her betrothed, only to be publicly beaten and humiliated by him. She persists even when her engagement with Joffrey is called off, and marries Tyrion, the dwarf son of the Lannisters, in the hopes that it would give her some sanctuary.

This doesn’t end very well for her, either: she is framed for Joffrey's murder during his wedding to Lady Margaery Tyrell, with whom Sansa has developed a friendship. Sansa is forced to flee King’s Landing and directly into Petyr Baelish’s hands.

"The worst ones always live."

Now dependent on Petyr for her safety, Sansa is once again used and pawned for political power. This time, however, Sansa is learning. She teaches herself to leverage her similarity to her mother to convince Petyr Baelish to change some of his movements for her benefit, finally becoming a player in the game of thrones by helping cover up her aunt’s murder and helping install Petyr as the steward of the Eyrie while her cousin Robin is still a child.

Sansa gains some control over her life during this short period — and then Petyr sends her back to her home, Winterfell, to marry Ramsay Bolton.

"No one can protect me.
No one can protect anyone."

The final blow to her remaining innocence comes in the form of her second marriage. Her new husband is a greater monster than Joffrey; Ramsay brutalizes her in several ways and relishes her suffering in her childhood home. Sansa attempts to escape in her desperation, running into the cold wilderness once the opportunity presents itself, and is resigned to death if it comes; in her mind, it's better to die in the cold winter than return to Ramsay.

Through determination and no small amount of luck, Sansa finds her way to The Wall, where the Night's Watch is led by her bastard brother Jon - and for the first time in a very long time, Sansa allows herself to hope.

Relieved of innocence and learned in the many ways that men can be cruel, Sansa is ready to fight for herself.

"I'm a slow learner. It's true. But I learn."

No longer the meek girl with songs and pretty dreams in her head, the older Sansa is more calculating and observant. While her kindness and sense of righteousness remain, especially when Sansa rallies her brother to fight for their home, she understands that to win means to lose certain people, such as their brother Rickon whom Ramsay holds hostage. She maneuvers several key players into fighting for House Stark, disguising her moves as support for her brother, and eventually avenges the brutality she suffered under the men who had used her, orchestrating Ramsay's death first, then Petyr Baelish’s death not long after.

Then the Targaryen queen shows up at her doorstep.

“The North will remain an independent kingdom as it was for thousands of years."

In the war against the White Walkers, Sansa takes on the role of Lady of Winterfell, left by her brother Jon, now King in The North, to keep their bannermen from revolting over being subordinated by another conqueror. She performs with grace and cunning, keeping Daenerys Targaryen on her toes. In the aftermath of the war, Sansa demands the freedom of the North and succeeds, finally gaining her freedom from the game - by winning it, and becoming Queen in the North after Jon's exile.

Sansa’s arc is that of rising from the ashes of their suffering and finding their power so that they can never be hurt again while remaining good and kind at the core. Throughout the show, she transforms from a naive and gentle girl to a sharp and formidable woman who can strategize with the best of them, playing on people’s perceptions of her as weak to control or manipulate them to where she wants them to be.

She remains dutiful and loyal to her family, but where she once used sweetness to gain favour and to survive, she now uses it to protect herself and her loved ones from further harm.

And she still has her good heart, tempered by the knowledge that people can be so thoroughly cruel for any given reason. Sansa wears pretty words and a soft smile as her suit of armour around her, with the knife she wears as a necklace the only outward admission of her strength.