WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 1 and George R.R. Martin’s book, Fire & Blood!House of the Dragon season 1 has been subtly including teasers and story set-ups for the Targaryen civil war’s most horrifying moment, which is known as “Blood and Cheese.” The disturbing scene gets its name from the incident’s assassins, a butcher known as “Blood” and a ratcatcher called “Cheese.” Sanctioned by Daemon Targaryen and organized by Mysaria as revenge against the Greens, Blood and Cheese will see the two assassins sneak into the Red Keep and murder the six-year-old Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen, the eldest son of Queen Helaena and King Aegon II Targaryen. Not only will Helaena agonizingly be forced to choose which of her children dies, but she must watch as her child is swiftly beheaded.
Considering the moment involves the brutal assassination of a child and the painful aftermath that leaves Queen Helaena utterly broken, Blood and Cheese is apt to be even more shocking and excruciating to watch than Game of Thrones’ infamous Red Wedding. As a direct follow-up to Prince Lucerys Velaryon’s death in House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale, Blood and Cheese is expected to be the next major tragedy in the series. The incident sets the tone for the devastating twists, deaths, crimes, and betrayals to come in the Dance of the Dragons, with House of the Dragon season 1’s teases and set-ups having long-term consequences for the characters.
Rhaenyra & Rhaenys’ Secret Tunnel Escapes Tease Blood & Cheese’s Strategy
In House of the Dragon season 1, episode 4, Daemon sends Rhaenyra a map that leads her through the secret tunnels of the Red Keep into the city. This escape is repeated in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 9 when Ser Erryk Cargyll leads Rhaenys Targaryen through the castle’s secret passageways to the city. This escape route will come back into play with Blood and Cheese, as the assassins use the tunnels to sneak into the chambers of Queen Alicent Hightower and back out after the murder. As a ratcatcher in the castle, the assassin Cheese was familiar with the Red Keep’s tunnels, thus giving them a way to commit their crime undetected by guards.
The Final Shot Of Laenor & Rhaenyra’s Wedding Teases Blood & Cheese
The most symbolic tease for House of the Dragon’s Blood and Cheese moment arrived at Rhaenyra and Laenor’s wedding. In the final shot of House of the Dragon episode 5, the camera pans to a rat going to drink from a pool of blood on the ground, which is meant to subtly represent Blood and Cheese. While weddings were the events that hosted some of the most devastating moments in Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon’s tease of Blood and Cheese at Laenor and Rhaenyra’s ceremony set up the fact that much worse is to come in the Targaryen civil war.
House of the Dragon season 1 included several more shots of rats scurrying around in the Red Keep, which teased that Cheese had been under their noses the entire time. While House of the Dragon‘s frequent shots of rats could also be representing the “gray rats” conspiracy theory, which claims that the maesters secretly spy on noble families and actively work to suppress magic and dragons, the rats more likely symbolize the notion that nobody in the Red Keep can be trusted. This certainly includes Cheese, who has been working in the Red Keep’s tunnels to rid the castle of literal rats all along.
Mysaria’s HOTD Season 1 Ending Sets Up Her Blood & Cheese Role
Although Mysaria was largely absent from the second half of House of the Dragon season 1, she’ll play a major role in Blood and Cheese. The former mistress of Prince Daemon Targaryen, Mysaria returns in House of the Dragon season 1 to reveal that she now runs her own spy network and criminal empire in King’s Landing. This will be incredibly important to House of the Dragon’s future, as Mysaria’s spy network grants Queen Rhaenyra’s Black party access to vital information and discreet criminals. Such influence will be useful when Daemon organizes Blood and Cheese, as he uses Mysaria to subtly hire the assassins for the crime.
Daemon Choking Rhaenyra Sets Up His Big Crime
Despite being morally gray, House of the Dragon season 1 has made Daemon one of the most beloved characters. While the series has slowly built up his horrible acts across the first season, such as seducing teenage Rhaenyra and killing Rhea Royce, the most shocking moment was when Daemon choked his wife Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. This scene established Daemon as someone with no hesitation to commit crimes or turn against his loved ones when he’s angry and vengeful, which is exactly what leads to the character ordering Blood and Cheese.
After choking his wife, who was seemingly the one person that Daemon would never try to harm, the Rogue Prince won’t have any reservations about murdering the six-year-old heir of his enemy Aegon II Targaryen. If House of the Dragon season 1 had hinted at Daemon being a primarily heroic figure, the character choking Rhaenyra and organizing the murder of Helaena Targaryen’s son proves this isn’t the case. From then on, Daemon’s actions in House of the Dragon become increasingly difficult to ignore.
Aemond Killing Lucerys Sets Up The Blacks’ Revenge
Blood and Cheese is the Blacks’ direct response to the murder of Rhaenyra’s son Prince Lucerys Velaryon, so Aemond accidentally killing him in House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale reveals that the next agonizing assassination is near. In George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book, Daemon told Rhaenyra that Lucerys’ death would be avenged by “a son for a son.” While Daemon didn’t say this line when informing Rhaenyra of Lucerys’ murder in House of the Dragon season 1’s ending, he’s apt to utter a similar remark in House of the Dragon season 2. Additionally, although the revenge scheme is “a son for a son,” Aemond Targaryen has no confirmed children, so Daemon’s victim is the son of King Aegon II Targaryen.
Helaena’s Prophecy Could Still Refer To Blood & Cheese
The dragon dreamer Helaena Targaryen has uttered several cryptic prophecies in House of the Dragon season 1, each of which has come true so far. Her biggest prophecy stated that “there is a beast beneath the boards,” which was fulfilled when Rhaenys and her dragon Meleys crashed through the boards beneath the Dragonpit in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 9. However, Helaena’s prophecy could also be predicting Blood and Cheese, which would make the Queen’s eventual fate far more tragic. Cheese has been right under their noses in the Red Keep throughout House of the Dragon, making him another beast beneath the boards of the castle.
Helaena also speaks another prophetic line in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 9 while her children Jaehaerys and Jaehaera are playing in her room. She says, “If one possesses a thing, the other will take it away.” The prediction certainly applies to House Targaryen’s battle over the Iron Throne, but may also be referring to the fact that Rhaenyra and Daemon are taking away Helaena and Aegon’s son as revenge for losing Lucerys. Since Helaena’s prophecies seem to be getting stronger as House of the Dragon’s story progresses, she could soon have a much clearer prediction of Blood and Cheese’s circumstances.
When Will Blood & Cheese Happen In House Of The Dragon?
Blood and Cheese will likely happen in the first or second episode of House of the Dragon season 2. The event is direct payback for Lucerys’ death, so Daemon Targaryen isn’t apt to wait too long to organize the gruesome assassination. While horrifying moments like Blood and Cheese typically would have been saved for a season’s penultimate episode in Game of Thrones, such as the Red Wedding in season 3, House of the Dragon’s pace won’t allow the series to delay the agonizing murder plot. Blood and Cheese is apt to be the most horrifying moment in House of the Dragon, but there will still be plenty of shocking deaths that arrive shortly after.
