Mysaria's Return Properly Sets Up The HOTD Scene You'll Hate Most

This article contains potentially distressing discussions of murder, including violence against children.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon episode 8 and George R. R. Martin's Fire & Blood. House of the Dragon episode 8 saw the return of Lady Mysaria The White Worm, effectively positioning her as a key player in the series' most brutal scene to come. Mysraia was last seen in House of The Dragon episode 4, and her return foreshadowed a key event from the Fire & Blood book that involved two assassins named Blood and Cheese. Since her last appearance, Mysaria has dwelled in King's Landing and amassed a network of spies over the course of the 16-year time gap between the four episodes. Mysaria has assumed an unofficial title as the realm's Mistress of Whisperers, a role that the conniving Lord Varys donned in Game of Thrones. Although Mysaria has worked for Otto Hightower in the past, her allegiances will shift from the greens to the blacks in the episodes to come. Mysaria's new role and allegiance spell a tragic future for one of House of the Dragon's most innocent characters, Helaena Targaryen.

Helaena's beast beneath the boards prophecy in House of the Dragon episode 8 revealed an ominous future for her children. While they are yet to be featured in the series, Helaena has three children with her brother Aegon in the source material: Jaehaerys, Jaehaera, and Maelor. Their relevancy is set in motion following a vengeful plot from Daemon, as he sought retribution following the murder of his stepson Lucerys. Daemon collaborated with his former mistress Mysaria and hired two assassins, Blood the butcher and Cheese the ratcatcher. In a twisted ploy, the assassins forced Helaena to choose one of her sons to be killed. Helaena reluctantly picked Maelor, given that he was not the firstborn heir and was young enough to lack a conscious understanding of the situation. In a scene that was as horrifying as Game of Thrones' Red Wedding, Blood and Cheese made the decision to kill Helaena's eldest son Jaehaerys instead.

Mysaria's Role In Blood & Cheese Explained

Mysaria has been absent from much of House of the Dragon season one, but the series has assembled all the pieces for her involvement in the horrific Blood and Cheese scene. In House of the Dragon episode 4, Mysaria used a spy to inform Otto Hightower of Rhaenyra's infidelity with Daemon. Her prowess as a spymaster has only improved since then, as her network has grown to include Talya, the handmaiden of Alicent Hightower.

The White Worm's altered allegiance from the Green Targaryen family faction to the Blacks plausibly suggests that Mysaria's return in House of the Dragon signaled her opposition to another master of espionage, Larys Strong. This relationship could be similar to that of Varys and Littlefinger in Game of Thrones, with each new House of the Dragon spymaster dubiously competing to serve the best interest of the realm while garnering power for their own machinations. Mysaria's first major action as Mistress of Whisperers to Rhaenyra Targaryen was to hire the assassins Blood and Cheese at the request of Daemon, but similar to Varys, her role could increase as the show progresses.

Why Blood & Cheese Will Be So Horrifying

Mysaria's hired assassins Blood and Cheese committed arguably the most monstrous crime in the Dance of Dragons. As stated in George R. R. Martin's Fire & Blood book, Blood and Cheese were able to maneuver their way into Alicent Hightower's chambers. They then bound and gagged Alicent in anticipation of Helaena's arrival with her three children. Blood and Cheese were not after Helaena's daughter Jaehaera, but when Helaena resisted picking which of her children would meet their end, the assassins threatened to brutally assault Jaehaera. This effectively meant all Helaena's children were brutally effected by the deed; Jaehaerys was killed, Jaehaera and Maelor were traumatized, and Maelor also learned his mother would choose the life of his dead brother over him.

The event itself was wicked enough, but what made Blood and Cheese's actions even more horrifying were the resulting consequences. Helaena was never able to recover after she witnessed the atrocities, which rendered her misunderstood and sympathetic character even further ostracized. A glimpse into what could have been a happy ending for Helaena during her cheerful dragon dance with Jacaerys Velaryon was undone, as she never recovered from the events that took place - likely because of the guilt from being forced to choose between her children.

When Will Blood & Cheese Happen In House Of The Dragon?

Blood and Cheese threatening the young Targaryen princes

Although Blood and Cheese happened fairly early in the Dance of the Dragons conflict, it's unlikely for them to appear in House of the Dragon season 1. While the showrunners have embellished some events from Fire & Blood, they have maintained relative faithfulness to the source material. Season 1 looks set to conclude with important events before Blood and Cheese, including The Green Council, the ensuing coronation of King Aegon II, and the fatal clash between Aemond and Lucerys at Storm's End. If these narratives are chronicled, that would leave little room for such a momentous event in the House of the Dragon season 1 story. However, since Daemon's response to Aemond's murder of Lucerys happened quickly in Fire & Blood, and season 1 has slowly escalated things between Aemond and Lucerys, the season could well end with Lucerys' death. This implies that House of the Dragon season 2 could begin in a horrifying fashion, through Mysaria's diabolical plot with Blood and Cheese.

New episodes on House of the Dragon release Sundays on HBO & HBO Max.

Want more House of the Dragon articles? Check out our essential content below...