WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Fire & Blood and House of the Dragon season 1, episode 7!The twist-filled ending of House of the Dragon season 1, episode 7, “Driftmark” involves Rhaenyra and Alicent making big plays before the Dance of the Dragons. Picking up shortly after House of the Dragon episode 6’s ending, “Driftmark” sees Houses Targaryen, Velaryon, and Hightower gather in one location for the funeral of Laena Velaryon. The tension that has built up over the past decade comes to a head as accusations about Rhaenyra’s sons are thrown, dangerous dragon-stealing moves are made, and the Valyrian steel knives come out.
After Aemond loses an eye in a fight with Lucerys and Alicent slashes Rhaenyra with the catspaw dagger, House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending confirms the Targaryen civil war has already begun. In the episode’s final moments, Daemon and Rhaenyra conspire to marry one another by cleverly getting rid of her husband Laenor, Otto commends Alicent for her cut-throat actions, Viserys naively avoids any conversation about the events that have transpired, and the murderous Larys Strong unsubtly lets his devotion to Alicent be known. Following the twists in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 7’s ending, the solidified greens and blacks only need to await King Viserys’ death before war can officially be declared.
Laenor Is Alive: Shocking House Of The Dragon Reveal
The last scene in House of the Dragon episode 7 sees Qarl Correy escaping on a boat after the supposed murder of Laenor Velaryon, only for the man riding in the boat with him to be the living and breathing Laenor Velaryon! This twist wasn’t featured in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book, which changes the perception of the characters’ motivations and conclusions. After Qarl and Laenor were shown battling in the hall, House of the Dragon cut to Corlys and Rhaenys coming down and seeing a body burned to a crisp in the fireplace. Moments after Rhaenys is screaming over the body of her deceased “son,” a bald Laenor is seen rowing away on a boat with Qarl. While the conversation between Daemon and Rhaenyra playing over Laenor’s duel suggested they were conspiring to murder the heir to Driftmark, it turns out that Laenor was in on the plan all along.
The world of Game of Thrones doesn’t always have such clever fake-outs like this, so Rhaenyra and Daemon’s hoax around Laenor’s death was particularly genius. Daemon was quickly shown murdering a servant of House Velaryon's family in the halls of Driftmark before Laenor and Qarl’s sword fight, with this man being the body used as a decoy for Laenor in the fireplace. Since the man’s face and most of his body were burned beyond recognition, Rhaenys and Corlys had no reason to doubt that this was their son. Laenor was able to escape Driftmark with Qarl by shaving off his hair and wearing a disguise, thus leading a happier life by openly loving one another in Essos. While the rest of Westeros will continue believing Laenor is dead, he’ll actually have the only happy ending in House of the Dragon.
Why Daemon & Rhaenyra Faked Laenor's Death
Having finally reunited after a decade, Rhaenyra and Daemon are no longer children or immature royals controversially lusting after one another. With Daemon’s wife Laena now dead and Rhaenyra’s marriage being a farce, House of the Dragon episode 7 offers them the chance to finally be together. Not only do they still love and lust after one another, but a marriage between the two is actually a strong political move. The only way for Rhaenyra and Daemon to get married would have been to kill Laenor, as the Princess wouldn’t have been able to take two husbands. However, proving Rhaenyra and Daemon aren’t as cruel as they want the greens to think, the Targaryens spared Laenor and let him genuinely live a happy life in Essos. Killing two birds with one stone, faking Laenor’s death meant he could live and love as he pleases with Qarl while Rhaenyra and Daemon could finally marry in Westeros. Rhaenyra genuinely loves Laenor in a platonic manner, so the plan to fake his death ultimately benefited both of them.
The hoax of Rhaenyra and Daemon killing Laenor also plays well for the couple politically. While Rhaenyra and Daemon know that their cruelty to Laenor is false, their enemies only think that they’re cut-throat tyrants who will continue doing as they please at the cost of others. Daemon reminded Rhaenyra that in order to be a strong queen, she’ll need to instill both love and fear in the people she rules. Killing her husband in order to marry her uncle will certainly make both the citizens of Westeros and her enemies fear what else she’s capable of, especially since the Rogue Prince is already known for his “depravity.” House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending sees the manipulative Alicent Hightower accuse her step-daughter and brother-in-law of disparaging the values of duty, honor, kingdom, and righteousness, so Rhaenyra and Daemon are cleverly using this perception to their advantage.
What Daemon & Rhaenyra's Marriage Really Means
Rhaenyra’s marriage to Daemon undoubtedly makes her claim to the Iron Throne stronger, as the union between Targaryens in order to keep their Valyrian bloodline pure is valued in their house. Rhaenyra and Daemon’s children are half-Strong and half-Velaryon, so their dynasty will become even more powerful should they produce full-blooded, trueborn Targaryen heirs. House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending indicates that Rhaenyra and Daemon hold incredible power and influence when working together, and will no longer have to hide their romances from the realm. With Daemon’s battle experience, scheming actions, and utter devotion to Rhaenyra’s cause, the Princess’s new husband also becomes her strongest ally alongside Corlys Velaryon.
Daemon and Rhaenyra’s marriage will, however, exacerbate the tensions within House Targaryen after House of the Dragon episode 7. The pair married not 24 hours after the “death” of Laenor Velaryon and funeral of Laena Velaryon, which means they’ll have to do some work to relieve the anger of the grieving Rhaenys and Corlys. Rhaenyra and Daemon also married without the consent of King Viserys I Targaryen, who had rejected the possibility of their marriage back in House of the Dragon episode 4. As such, Rhaenyra and Daemon are apt to primarily be kept on Dragonstone and away from the King, who will inevitably be furious with his brother once again. Since Daemon shares no love for Alicent Hightower’s children, the newly-reinstated Hand of the King Otto Hightower, and the Queen herself, the Prince’s marriage to Rhaenyra will also further divide the families and increase animosity before the Dance of the Dragons.
What Happens With Larys Strong & Alicent: His "Eye" Offer Explained
After Aemond’s eye is taken out during a fight with Rhaenyra’s sons and Daemon’s daughters, Alicent Hightower demands that one of Lucerys Velaryon’s eyes be removed as well. When Viserys forbids such actions, Alicent attacks Rhaenyra with the Valyrian steel dagger, but the matter is put to rest once Aemond explains his eye was a fair trade for his dragon. However, Larys Strong – who is now the Lord of Harrenhal after murdering his father and brother – explains that if it is an eye Alicent wants in order to balance the scales, he can get it for her. Lord Larys Clubfoot is very unsubtly telling Alicent that he will do the dirty work for her as long as his position and power in King’s Landing are raised, as he commands a network of messengers and assassins who will do what he commands with discretion. Alicent recognizes this, but House of the Dragon episode 7 suggests that the Queen also fears Larys to a certain point after he murdered his family, as she knows his loyalties ultimately lie nowhere and his motivations are ambiguous.
Larys Strong offering an eye to Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending also turns out to be inauthentic in the Targaryen civil war. Larys will initially serve as the eye for Alicent Hightower and the greens by being the Master of Whisperers, but will end up switching sides to the blacks shortly before the civil war concludes. The master of deception in House of the Dragon, Larys Strong’s role as the devious eye for Alicent will end up leading to the greens’ downfall, proving his devotion was ultimately feigned.
Viserys & Alicent's Conversation Explains Who Is Really To Blame For Civil War
As Viserys and Alicent depart Driftmark for King’s Landing in House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending, the Queen apologizes for her actions the night before. Instead of addressing how to fix the problems dividing House Targaryen, King Viserys simply says that they’ll “speak no more of it.” Ignoring the issues at hand and letting them fester without any solution is exactly how the Targaryen civil war begins, as the two factions of the family are divided without any true effort to make amends.
As the King of Westeros, Viserys should have the power to keep his family united by punishing or reprimanding the wrongdoings of Alicent, Rhaenyra, and all of their children. Instead, King Viserys lets everything slide because he hopes the rifts will simply heal with time and doesn’t want to anger those on either side. Even after firing Otto Hightower for driving tensions within House Targaryen and seeking to ruin Rhaenyra, Viserys still hires him back as Hand of the King. Leaving such animosities unaddressed and enabled over the years is what caused the Dance of the Dragons, making Viserys ultimately responsible for the war.
Otto's Plan: The Dance Of The Dragons Is Properly Beginning
Ever since he instructed Alicent to seduce the King in House of the Dragon episode 1 and continually brought up Aegon’s legitimacy as heir back in episode 3, Otto Hightower has been cultivating the usurpation of the Iron Throne. When catching Aegon drunk on the steps of High Tide, he kicks him and reprimands him for looking so foolish in public, as Otto knows that one day he'll be the King. Otto then finally shows a sense of pride in Alicent when seeing that she slashed a knife at Rhaenyra, proving she would go as far as possible to uplift her own children against the Princess. Otto had been waiting for the time when Alicent would choose to kill or harm Rhaenyra in order to protect her own children, and House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending finally demonstrated this to him.
When Viserys’ death arrives, Otto Hightower knows that Alicent will support his plan to crown Aegon instead of Rhaenyra. War is coming, and Otto knows that the window-defacing Aegon must be crowned first. With the greens now possessing Vhagar and blood having already been spilled on both sides, House of the Dragon’s civil war that he manipulated is finally coming to fruition.
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