House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1 Ending Explained: What Happens to Jaehaerys?

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1 premiered on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, June 16, and many viewers want to know what happens to Jaehaerys Targaryen, son of Aegon II, by the end. Ryan Condal and George R. R. Martin created House of the Dragon as a prequel to Game of Thrones. It tells the story of Dance of the Dragons, a brutal civil war in which two factions of the ruling Targaryen dynasty.

Here is a spoilers-filled explanation about the ending of House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1 and what happens to Jaehaerys.

What happens at the end of House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1?

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1 ends as the civil war between the Green and Black factions of the House Targaryen becomes unavoidable.

The second season begins in the immediate aftermath of the death of Lucerys “Luke” Velaryon (Elliot Grihault), who was killed in the sky above Storm’s End along with his dragon Arrax during an encounter with Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) and his dragon Vhagar. Since then, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) has set up camp underneath Storm’s End, hoping against hope that her son is still alive. Lucerys’ body will never be found. However, the local fishermen find one of Arrax’s wings, with parts of the young prince’s clothing still attached. It gives Rhaenyra the answer she needs about the fate of her son. She returns to Dragonstone and orders Aemond’s death.

In Rhaenyra’s absence, Daemon (Matt Smith) had become impatient. Her orders prompt him to set things in motion by the end of Season 2 Episode 1. With the help of Mysaria or White Worm (Sonoya Mizuno), Daemon returns to King’s Landing and hires a member of the Gold Cloaks and a Red Keep ratcatcher to assassinate Aemond. The names of neither of these people are given in the dialogue, though closed captions refer to the Ratcatcher as Cheese.

Does Jaehaerys die in House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1?

Yes, Jaehaerys dies in the House of the Dragon Season 2 premiere episode.

In Season 2 Episode 1, titled “A Son for a Son,” Daemon hires Cheese to help the Gold Cloak member assassinate Aemond. George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, which serves as the partial inspiration for the series, doesn’t provide the real names of either of these characters. Cheese is the name the history of Westeros remembers the ratcatcher as, just as it remembers the Gold Cloak as Blood. During their conversation, Cheese asks Daemon what he and Blood are supposed to do if they don’t find Aemond. The scene shifts before Daemon answers. But it is implied that he told them to kill Jaehaerys, the crown prince of the Greens.

At the end of Season 2 Episode 1, Blood and Cheese break into the Red Keep and find their way to the room where Jaehaerys is sleeping along with his sibling. Queen Helaena (Phia Saban) is also there. Blood and Cheese forces her to reveal who Jaehaerys is between the two sleeping children. As they kill the boy and slice off his head to present to Daemon as proof, Helaena rushes to her mother’s room.

The series has significantly toned down the Blood and Cheese scene from how it takes place in the book. However, its impact on the overall narrative remains the same. While there was a small hope for peace before Jaehaerys’ death, it’s completely gone by the end of Season 2 Episode 1.