Alys Rivers/Aemond Targaryen
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Alys Rivers x Aemond Targaryen |
| Alternative name(s): | Alysmond |
| Gender category: | Het |
| Fandom: | House of the Dragon |
| Canonical?: | Yes |
| Prevalence: | |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Alysmond is the pairing of Aemond Targaryen and Alys Rivers in the House of the Dragon fandom.
Canon
Book
Alys was a bastard daughter of House Strong. She had served as a wet nurse at Harrenhal, and her own babies were all stillborn. She was a wood witch or sorcerer. She was at least 40 by the time she was introduced, but "all agree that she looked younger than her years, but whether this was simple happenstance, or achieved through her practice of the dark arts, men continue to dispute."
When Aemond captured Harrenhal during the Dance of the Dragons, he put all the Strong kin to death, with the exception of Alys, for Aemond "had taken her into his bed as a prize of war". Aemond was very attached to Alys, which unreliable narrator Mushroom attributes to her having used magic to bewitch him. Alys became pregnant.
...it was Aemond alone who had become besotted with the Rivers woman, to such an extent that he could not bear the thought of leaving her.Fire & Blood
When Aemond was gone, Sabitha Frey took Harrenhal and took Alys captive. Aemond returned, burnt every wooden structure in a fit of rage, and got Alys back.
Much beloved of shippers is a direct quote where Aemond calls her "my lady" and "my Alys".
"My lady. She saw you in a storm cloud, in a mountain pool at dusk, in the fire we lit to cook our suppers. She sees much and more, my Alys."Fire & Blood
Aemond died in a fight of mutual destruction with Daemon above the God's Eye. Alys watched from the towers of Harrenhal.
[terrorofthetrident[1]]
aemond referring to alys as “MY alys” and the last thing he does before going off to battle above the god’s eye is kiss her???
After Aemond's death, Alys briefly reigned over Harrenhal as their "witch queen". She claimed she and Aemond were married, she was his widow, and her baby (born not long after Aemond's death) was Aemond's "trueborn son and heir".
Controversies
- Age difference: In the book Alys is roughly twice Aemond's age, with them being about 20 and 40. Actors Ewan Mitchell and Gayle Rankin share an age gap of only 8 years.
- Power dynamics:
- Aemond had the rest of the Strong family killed. Considering she was a bastard who served her legitimate kin as a wet nurse, part of a larger Westerosi tradition where bastards are kept around as servants, she may or may not be perturbed by this.
[anonymous[2]]
Please Alysmond is not a ~romantic~ story. It's about the rape of a woman whose entire family was murdered by a rapist prince.
[anonymous[3]]
idk why people think alys had any love for strongs, her father was a hand, second most powerful man in the realm after king, meanwhile after her own babies were born dead, which already hella traumatising, she had to nursing legitimate ones of her relatives, but this is humiliating; not including attitude towards bastard and servant in general
- Alys is Aemond's "prize of war".
- Alys may hold Aemond under a magical enchantment.
Fanworks
Fanart
by @ItsmePear_
season of the witch by irlplasticlamb
The One-Eyed Prince and his Witch Lady by cyrranka
Aemond Targaryen, Alys Rivers and their son by yaerenart
Resources
Referances
- ^ terrorofthetrident (Sep 8, 2023). "untitled". Tumblr. Archived from the original on Sep 24, 2023.
- ^ anonymous (Sep 27, 2023). "Please Alysmond is not a ~romantic~ story". Tumblr.
- ^ anonymous (Aug 25, 2023). "idk why people think alys had any love for strongs". Tumblr.