Who is Alys Rivers and why did she make Daemon dream about incest in House of the Dragon?

Alrighty, I think we can all safely say at this point that Alys Rivers was absolutely wild for making Daemon dream about incest sex during House of the Dragon. I mean what even was the purpose of that scene other than to completely disturb all of us? Uncles and nieces getting married is one thing but this seemed like a step too far, even for a Targaryen.

At this point, Alys Rivers is tormenting Daemon every second of the day at Harrenhal, and aside from weird incest dreams she actually has a huge role to play in House of the Dragon. So, let’s find out who she actually is and why she made Daemon have *that* freaky dream in House of the Dragon.

Via HBO

Alys is generally thought of to be a witch or sorceress, in part due to her supernatural powers and ability to somehow not age. Maybe they just hadn’t heard of retinol back then. In the book, Aemond eventually retakes Harrenhal and kills everyone apart from Alys, who he claims as his mistress. When he goes to burn the Riverlands she is left alone in Harrenhal, which is then invaded by Lady Frey.

Lady Frey finds out that Alys is pregnant with Aemond’s baby, yes really, and she manages to space Harrenhal. When Daemon and Aemond eventually decide to fight each other, Alys is the one who leads Aemond to him and she watches both men die. Following the death of Aemond, Alys is accused of being a witch queen and she claims her son is the true heir to the Iron Throne.

Via HBO

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Even spookier in the weird incest vision Alys made Daemon experience was how it echoed something said back in season one. Viserys told Daemon: “You were always Mother’s favourite. Our mother, she had no regard for custom or tradition, rules. And I, sadly, was no great warrior.” This echoes what Alyssa says to her son during the strange dream, perhaps highlighting how he wished his relationship with Viserys had been different.

At this point, we can’t be sure exactly why Alys made Daemon dream about having sex with his mother, but it all seems to be part of her plan to drive him insane.

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Featured image via HBO.