Even though House of the Dragon is a somewhat unique adaptation thanks to the deliberately unreliable nature of its inspiration (Fire & Blood, a novel George R. R. Martin styled like an in-universe recounting of the Targaryen dynasty), certain creative changes have distinguished the HBO series and Martin’s book as separate entities. Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) and Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) become childhood friends of the same age; Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan) fakes his death; and Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) fails to commit fratricide during the Battle of Rook’s Rest, to name some key differences. As the House of the Dragon team preps for Season 3, a detail from Fire & Blood that the series continues to omit is Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) and Helaena’s Targaryen’s (Phia Saban) third and youngest child, Prince Maelor.

Cutting Maelor from House of the Dragon has already altered the Blood and Cheese tragedy without hampering the core narrative. Moving forward, however, his absence makes things trickier. The window of opportunity for Maelor to organically join the series is closing, especially since the Season 2 finale establishes that one of Aegon’s, well, parts is a casualty of his injuries. He can’t father more children. There’s one possible solution, as disturbing or melodramatic (or both) as it might be: Aemond. But how plausible is that option?

The reign of House Targaryen begins with this prequel to the popular HBO series Game of Thrones. Based on George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, House of the Dragon is set nearly 200 years before Game of Thrones, telling the story of the Targaryen civil war with King Viserys.

Who Is Maelor Targaryen, Halaena’s Third Child?

According to Fire & Blood, Maelor is two years old when the Dance of the Dragons begins, making him four years younger than his twin siblings, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera. Unfortunately, Blood and Cheese marks his first significant appearance. Unlike House of the Dragon, where hired assassins Blood (Sam C. Wilson) and Cheese (Mark Stobbart) demand that Helaena indicate which of the sleeping twins is her only son, in Fire & Blood, the pair force Helaena into a different Sophie’s Choice: condemning one son to death over the other. Distraught, Helaena selects Maelor. Blood and Cheese then taunt Maelor – “You hear that, little boy? Your mama wants you dead.” — and gleefully behead Jaehaerys instead.

Maelor automatically becomes Aegon’s next and only heir. When Aegon and Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) flee King’s Landing, Larys also enables Maelor and Jaehaera’s respective escapes. While on the run from Team Black, however, poor Maelor and his sworn guardian, Ser Rickard Thorne (Vincent Regan), meet their brutal deaths in Bitterbridge, a town under Rhaenyra’s control. Furious over his nephew’s murder, Daeron Targaryen, Alicent’s fourth child with Viserys (Paddy Considine), burns Bitterbridge to ash with his dragon, Tessarion.

Going into House of the Dragon‘s third season, Maelor’s existence is crucial for two intersecting plotlines: Daeron and Tessarion officially joining the war, and Aegon and Larys scurrying away to parts unknown. Burning Bitterbridge would be quite the character-establishing (or building) moment for Daeron, a player the series has kept unseen beyond a teaser shot of Tessarion in the Season 2 finale. House of the Dragon‘s easiest solution to the “no Maelor” problem — besides inventing a new plot — is substituting Maelor’s death with Jaehaera. But if Jaehaera doesn’t survive the Dance of the Dragons, that opens a new can of worms. If showrunner Ryan Condal plans to introduce Maelor, then unless Helaena is currently pregnant with Aegon’s last child, one question remains (cue the daytime talk show host voice): who’s the daddy?

How Could Aemond Become Maelor’s Father in ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3?

That question circles back to Season 1. Fans quickly zeroed in on Helaena and Aemond as a relationship with romantic potential. A conspiracy theory citing Aemond as the real father of Helaena’s twins gained enough traction for Ewan Mitchell and Phia Saban to discuss the response. In the pair’s exclusive conversation with Collider, Saban said that a Helaemond relationship “[isn’t] completely out of the question,” and both actors agreed the siblings are “closer” to one another than their other siblings. With Aemond taking on his prince regent role like a duck to water, Season 2 has prompted murmurings about whether Aemond will solve the Maelor dilemma.

Given Helaena and Aemond’s fraught interactions this season, however, it’s unlikely they’ve had a forbidden affair — at least, nothing of enough emotional consequence to address or imply. Considering how their dynamic shifts after the finale’s climatic balcony exchange, Helaena won’t be interested in a future rendezvous without some intense story adjustment. The demure queen displays a newfound resolve about her prophetic insights, and that clarity grants her a power Aemond’s uncertain frustrations and festering rage can’t hope to match. The only thing he can do is threaten her life. But other House of the Dragon relationships have emerged from less substance, and House Targaryen is the original home for unhealthy relationships.

There is, of course, the non-consensual alternative: Aemond assaulting his sister because he’s driven by anger, lust, a need for control, some ludicrous bid to secure his claim to the throne, or all of the above. It’s safe to declare that this scenario isn’t one audiences long to see. For all of Aemond’s increasingly volatile rage, sexual violence doesn’t align with how he’s purged that anger so far (or with how House of the Dragon has addressed assault). Aegon is the documented rapist, and the brothers are diametrically opposed in almost every way. That said, the more Aemond embraces his worst qualities, the more nothing is off the table, even if it’s unlikely.

SPOILER ALERT! The section below contains major spoilers for the end of the Dance of the Dragons, according to the book Fire & Blood.

Could Alys Rivers Affect Aemond and Helaena’s Stories?

Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin) throws an extra complication into the ring. Despite not having Helaena and her dragon Dreamfyre by his side, Aemond reclaims Harrenhal from Team Black in Fire & Blood. Upon meeting Alys, the two embark on an intense sexual/romantic relationship. After Aemond meets his untimely end at the Gods Eye, Alys makes a play for the throne by asserting that she’s pregnant with his trueborn child and naming their offspring as the Iron Throne’s rightful heir. Eventually, she gathers a ragtag army under her claim and her power as the “witch queen of Harrenhal.”

Unless House of the Dragon‘s Alys chooses to seduce and manipulate Aemond because it’s her best choice out of terrible options, she isn’t likely to sleep with or be the puppet of a would-be conqueror. As characterized, Alys is the type to toss Aemond headfirst into hallucination therapy, poison him in his sleep, or verbally demolish him until he cowers in the corner. Fire & Blood never confirms Alys’ motivations for the relationship or reveals the dynamic’s ins and outs (beyond Aemond being smitten), which leaves the writers considerable flexibility.

With that in mind, House of the Dragon could fold story components together for convenience’s sake, much like they seemingly have with Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) and Nettles, a book-only dragonseed who tames Sheepstealer, the same wild dragon Rhaena discovers in the Vale. One way or another, Helaena could take Alys’ place as Aemond’s prized “lady,” especially since Fire & Blood‘s Aemond uses Alys’ visions to his advantage. Maelor emerging from their union only to die as an infant would be a gut punch, so would Helaena giving birth to the last child she and Aegon can have, especially if her visions have already shown her son’s inescapable destiny.

House of the Dragon Seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on Max.