The Dragon in The Vale Suggests House of the Dragon Is Omitting a Major Character

This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 2 episode 6 and details from Fire & Blood that could spoil future episodes.

The eight-episode House of the Dragon season 2 is heading into its endgame, and as Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) tries to bolster the ranks of the Blacks, some major players are waiting in the (dragon) wings. Despite all of season 2’s newcomers, fans are worried a beloved character has been booted through the Moon Door. 

Much like fans were worried that House of the Dragon had cut the character of Daeron Targaryen, another key player in the Dance of the Dragons might’ve been jettisoned. While we know Daeron is on the way, there’s still no word on where the character of Nettles is. More concerningly, House of the Dragon season 2 episode 6 “Smallfolk” gave us our biggest indication yet that a different character will take Nettles’ arc.

George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood history of the Targaryens refers to Nettles as “foul-mouthed, filthy, and fearless.” Nettles is also described as a “brown-skinned girl”, which makes her stand out against the typical Targaryens and Velaryons of the source material. Obviously, House of the Dragon went down a different route by portraying the Velaryon bloodline as Black instead of their Caucasian book counterparts. With that change, fans now think Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Cambpell) is replacing Nettles. 

In “Smallfolk,” Rhaena comes across the charred bones of some sheep while in the Vale. A disgruntled Rhaena confronts Lady Jeyne Arryn (Amanda Collin) about why she wasn’t aware there was already an adult dragon in the Vale, but the latter confirms it’s an untamable dragon that no one can subdue. With Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia) having claimed Moondancer, Sunfyre out of action at Rook’s Rest, and the dragon called Cannibal known for feasting on the remains of dead  dragons, this creature’s penchant for sheep makes us confident it’s the dragon known as “Sheepstealer.” Nettles ends up bonding with Sheepstealer by feeding him his favorite snack in the books. Remembering how Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell) told her daughter how “there are more ways than one to claim a dragon” in season 1, her intrigue in Sheepstealer could take her down this path. 

Fire & Blood recounts Rhaena riding a pinkish dragon called Morning. We assumed that Morning would hatch from one of the four eggs Rhaenyra tasked Rhaena with guarding, leaving the other three as the ones which eventually hatch into Daenerys Targaryen’s brood in Game of Thrones. Rhaena and Morning are largely absent from the Dance of the Dragons’ action, meaning there’s room for her to have a more important role here. Even though having Rhaena take Sheepstealer as her mount would streamline things without having to introduce Nettles, it leaves the fourth egg as a mystery. Morning’s birth is supposed to be a major boost in morale for the Blacks, although there’s a chance she could still hatch and have Rhaena ride her if something happens to Sheepstealer. 

There are other problems with Rhaena being an amalgamation of her book counterpart and Nettles. Notably, Nettles plays heavily into Daemon Targaryen’s (Matt Smith) story. Nettles joins with Daemon and the pair try to hunt Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) across the Trident. The two become close, with rumors that they share a bathtub and sometimes even a bed. After betrayals from the other dragonseeds, and jealous about Nettles’ potential relationship with her husband, Rhaenyra tries to have her beheaded. When Daemon warns Nettles, she flees on Sheepstealer and is only rumored to have been seen many years later in the Mountains of the Moon.

Accounts vary on whether there was more to Daemon and Nettles’ relationship, with some claiming she was his bastard daughter. Despite season 2’s divisive incest dream with Daemon and his mother, we can safely rule out any romance between him and Rhaena if she takes on the role of Nettles. As she’s his legitimate daughter with Laena, having Daemon team up with Rhaena to chase Aemond and her taking on Nettles’ expanded role in the Battle of the Gullet could work. 

Despite Nettles largely serving as a plot device for Daemon, her fan-favorite status means fans are already split about these potential changes. It’s perhaps notable that showrunner Ryan Condal refused to address Nettles in a Variety interview, simply turning the conversation toward Daeron. Nettles’ story is a heartwarming one about how you don’t have to be of noble birth to ride a dragon, and although that’s somewhat undone if she’s Daemon’s daughter, remember it was just a theory. 

Others think we could bring Nettles into House of the Dragon in a different way, suggesting she could ride the currently MIA dragon known as Cannibal. While Nettles could be a surprise addition to season 3, there’s been no word on her potential casting. The fact that Sheepstealer is now out there in the wild suggests Nettles will be left out of the story just like our beloved Mushroom.

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 2 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.