 Varys ( Conleth Hill ) visits Ned ( Sean Bean ) in the dungeons and tells Ned that if he makes a false confession and swears loyalty to King Joffrey ( Jack Gleeson ) , Cersei ( Lena Headey ) will spare Ned and let him serve the Night 's Watch as his exile . Ned initially refuses but relents after Varys tells him that his daughter Sansa 's ( Sophie Turner ) life is also at stake . 
