House of the Dragon season 3's best kept secret relationship is 'juicy' and 'surprising'

Now that we’re *checks calendar* 11 days from the premiere of House of the Dragon season 3, the fan theories and predictions are flying across social media. From eagle-eyed fans dissecting every promo video to cast quotes being analyzed, we’re officially in the final stretch of waiting—and fans cannot keep their cool.

Though fans of the book, George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, know the big events that will happen in the third season, we’re still not certain how many of the details will be depicted onscreen. The HBO series has taken creative liberties with the source material, so although the most important moments should be the same, how the characters get there could be vastly different.

We’ve gotten many clues from the teasers, trailer, and other promotional material that has been released so far, but one major relationship we’re expecting season 3 to introduce has been kept completely under wraps. We’re talking about Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) and Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin).

Gayle Rankin and Ewan Mitchell preview the Aemond/Alys relationship

WARNING: Spoilers for Fire & Blood are below.

If the show follows the book, season 3 will see Aemond and Alys strike up a sexual relationship once the former arrives in Harrenhal. Though he has the remaining Strong members killed, he spares Alys’ life, and they form a close bond, one that eventually leads to a pregnancy. House of the Dragon has made no indication that their storylines are headed this way based on the promo so far, but of course, it’s likely they’re just keeping it secret until the episodes air.

Actors Rankin and Mitchell recently did joint interviews during a press junket, where their forthcoming relationship had to be touched on. They held back on major details, but Rankin did have some great quotes, as reported on by CBR:

“I think the most enticing thing about the relationship on paper, knowing it was going to happen and occur, was how it was going to differ from her relationship with Daemon,” Rankin shared of her character’s relationship with Aemond. “It had to, because they're different people. So I was like, ‘Oh, wow, what's this going to be?’ It can't be the same. I think there's a lot of juicy, exciting, surprising stuff that comes about, and she learns a lot about herself.”

Rankin’s choice of words with “juicy,” “exciting,” and “surprising” will definitely perk fans’ ears up, especially the ones shipping Aemond and Alys. Aemond fans especially have been looking forward to seeing this relationship in the show, including myself. Though we don’t anticipate it to be a traditional romance, considering their backgrounds, traits, and intentions, I’m hoping it’s an interesting one.

Mitchell teased what to expect from their dynamic as well, looking back at Alys’ relationship with Daemon in season 2 and how she helped him get through some of his trauma.

“You saw it with Daemon—he has all of his toxins drawn out of him. He has to face his past head-on and, hopefully, in some way, shape, or form, grow from it, accepting some of the things that he's done,” Mitchell stated. “If Aemond is going to check into Harrenhal and spend any amount of time there, I'd love Aemond to go through a similar process as well, with his therapist being Alys Rivers.”

Aemond really does need therapy, let’s be real. Whether the person to “fix” him is Alys or not remains to be seen, but I’m definitely growing more interested in seeing how their dynamic will play out after reading these interview quotes.

Last week, i-D Magazine dropped a feature on Mitchell, in which he teased Aemond’s warped sense of seeing the world and those around him. Noting he has a “very skewered idea of what affection is,” he also admitted he has “a drop of an Oedipus complex.” This quote was only all but proven when, just hours later, an alleged season 3 leak dropped claiming Aemond will kiss his mother Alicent in the premiere.

There are evidently plenty of things for Aemond to work through in Harrenhal, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that his storyline doesn’t turn into a vision-filled snooze-fest like Daemon’s last season. Aemond and Alys, keep things “juicy,” please!

House of the Dragon season 3 premieres on Sunday, June 21 HBO and HBO Max.

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