Daemon shows his genuine care and attention to Rhaenyra several times before the two marry. This doesn't take away from the many destructive and inappropriate parts of their relationship, but the books imply that Daemon does love Rhaenyra.
They have a lot of love for each other and Daemon does still support Rhaenyra despite his temper in this episode. He still bends the knee to Rhaenyra and calls her his queen, and he's the one who delivers the news to her at the end that Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) is dead.
Turns out, Rhaenyra and Daemon are endgame, meaning they have a sexually tense relationship, eventually hook up, and get married—which is pretty significant from a power play perspective considering (1) they both want the throne and (2) their Targaryen union is almost sure to guarantee that happens—even though Alicent ...
Later, in episode seven, Daemon tells Rhaenyra that he and Laena were "happy enough" in their marriage. In that regard, there was far more love between Daemon and Laena than there ever was between him and Rhea, even if it wasn't entirely romantic.
While Daemon and Rhaenyra never actually slept together (though she did secretly lose her virginity to Ser Criston Cole that night), the now banished Daemon Targaryen refuses to disprove the accusation.
According to the accounts of Septon Eustace, prior to her turning sixteen, Rhaenyra lost her virginity to her uncle, Prince Daemon, after he seduced her.
By House of the Dragon's fourth episode, Rhaenyra is around 18 years old and Daemon is 34. "The idea that a teenage girl is in any way able to consent to that sexual interaction is a mess.
It was abundantly clear in the season finale that Daemon truly values Rhaenyra as the queen, and it doesn't appear to be for his own gain. All of his actions indicate that he looks to her as his leader even before she's taken power and has every intention to get her to her rightful throne.
We know that while the two came close, they never actually did the deed. Daemon, thrown off by his lack of ability to shock Rhaenyra, left her to get drunk and pass out. While Rhaenyra did go on to sleep with Criston Cole — the big problem of the episode — Viserys (Paddy Considine) was made more cautious of Daemon.
Daemon is really angry because Rhaenyra is being passive. In his mind she wants to make peace with the greens when they possibly killed or poisoned Viserys (we see him checking for poison in ep 8 and he accuses Alicent of killing Viserys in ep 10) and they usurped the throne. Something that he very much wants.
Laena and Daemon marry soon after. Laena and Daemon were a power couple, and their marriage was celebrated by nearly all of Westeros and Essos — except for King Viserys and his court, who considered it another sign of Daemon's disrespect.
While House Of The Dragon episode 4 showed Daemon was able to seduce Rhaenyra by kissing and undressing her, he couldn't fulfill the act due to impotence.
Daemon was a much more despicable character in George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood book, so a desperate, rage-filled situation leading him to choke someone wouldn't be surprising. However, Daemon was only violent to others in the books, not to Rhaenyra or their children.
A confused Daemon chokes Rhaenyra and says, “Dreams didn't make us kings. Dragons did,” with Rhaenyra now realizing that Viserys never told Daemon about the Targaryen prophecy. Not only does this prove Rhaenyra's legitimacy to herself, but it also reveals more about the nature of Daemon and Viserys' relationship.
Rhaenyra had to marry Daemon for two reasons. The first is that she genuinely seems to love him, as weird as that is to write. The second more pressing reason is the growing threat of Alicent Hightower and her Greens. The Greens have been in the ascendancy recently.
Aegon III, aka Aegon the Younger: Rhaenyra and Daemon's first child together. Aegon Targaryen, aka Jon Snow: Yes, he comes much later, when a song of ice and fire plays out. But he could be the prince that was promised, though that's still up for debate.
Or, at least, his little dragon knows something his brain doesn't. According to co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik, in a featurette that aired after the episode: “Ultimately, his impotence in the scene is a reflection of the fact that he knows, deep down, that what he's doing isn't right.”
After berating Daemon for “abandoning” her to marry the now-deceased Laena Velaryon, Rhaenyra makes it clear that she has feelings for her uncle and wishes to strengthen her position in Westeros by marrying him. The pair then have sex.
It was clear that Leana and Laenor had a close relationship, and she likely would not appreciate her uncle choosing this moment to make a statement while her brother grieves. Daemon laughs at this moment because Vaemond is choosing this moment to guilt Rhaenyra for having children with Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr).
In the seventh episode of the blockbuster HBO series, Prince Daemon marries his own niece, Princess Rhaenyra. The incestuous romance had been building for some time. Before a 10-year time jump occurred in the show's sixth epsode, Daemon took a young Rhaenyra to a brothel in King's Land where the two got intimate.
Rhea Royce marries Prince Daemon Targaryen in 97 AC, more than a decade before the main events of the HOTD premiere, which are set in 112 AC. The marriage is politically advantageous for House Targaryen, as Rhea is the heir to Runestone.
Paramour. While a dancing girl in King's Landing, Mysaria became the favored lover of Prince Daemon Targaryen. Around 105 AC, Mysaria became pregnant with Daemon's child while living at Dragonstone. Daemon gave his paramour a dragon egg for the child, which angered King Viserys I Targaryen.
At the end of the day, Daemon chose Laena and Laena chose Daemon. 'He's trying his best,' Laena told their daughter Rhaena, and that was how she knew Daemon loved them. Daemon did not try, he just did.
Daemon challenged Aemond, waiting for 13 days at Harrenhal until Aemond stopped burning the Riverlands to come face him. The duel that became known as the Dance over Harrenhal ended in the deaths of both riders and both dragons over the God's Eye. Daemon was 49 when he died.
Rhaenyra and Daemon's sons Aegon, Viserys, and Visenya Targaryen. Sorry for the spoiler, but we did watch Daemon and Rhaenyra get married in last week's episode, so you probably knew this was coming! We haven't seen them yet in the show, but Daemon and Rhaenyra have three sons together.