In season 7, episode 2, ‘Game of Thrones’ hints at a potential romance between two unexpected characters. What could this mean for the future of those Houses?

Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen, Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Gemma Whelan as Yara Greyjoy, and Indira Varma as Ellaria Sand – Photo: Helen Sloan/HBO via HBO Media Relations.

Game of Thrones doesn’t offer much in the way of spoilers for each episode. Not that I would want to seek any out if that were the case. But between the pre-episode recaps and the trailers for the next episode, it’s pretty telling where things are headed.

In the premiere episode “Dragonstone,” we saw several plots from seasons’ past start to take greater shape in the larger narrative. Things from the first season were drawn upon to show just how far certain characters like Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) have come from her humble beginnings. Other characters like The Hound (Rory McCann) returned to a places he had been when he was a different person. The entire situation made Sandor Clegane so uncomfortable with guilt that he felt compelled to bury the father and daughter he had once met. In fact, the original scene included his now iconic regards of then king Joffrey.

And with Game of Thrones only just beginning, there is so much more to come as we learned in the promo featured at SDCC this weekend. Interestingly enough, there were several scenes featured in this week’s promo for “Stormborn” that were equally prominent in the longer trailer. But there is one particular moment in the flashes at the end of both trailers that caught my eye.

You have to be paying close attention to catch any of it, but fans of the show tend to be fairly eagle-eyed, constantly attempting to catch little book references or looking for all the times Jon (Kit Harington) was unknowingly acknowledged as a Targaryen. Still, if you were paying attention, you definitely saw Arya reunited with her Direwolf Nymeria.

Though the more important scene is the blink and you’ll miss it moment between Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma) and Yara Greyjoy (Gemma Whelan). So quick is the scene that if you’re not watching closely you could think it’s Jon and Sansa (Sophie Turner), which was quite possibly the intent and reason enough to include it in both trailers.

That being said, it’s not Jon and Sansa. Sorry to disappoint (it’s worth noting that Kit Harington has shared his opinion on the matter as well). And frankly, I sincerely doubt a trailer would give away something so important in the wars to come.

In any case, this dalliance/potential romance between Ellaria and Yara is interesting for a number of reasons. Both are currently queens or will-be-queens to Dorne and the Iron Islands, respectively. The two being apart of the same alliance (along with the Tyrells) has the potential to go very wrong. Ellaria, more so than Yara, is an opportunist. The last time we saw her kiss anyone it was to poison poor Mrycella Baratheon on the boat ride home. It’s unlikely Ellaria is doing the same here as there’s nothing to gain quite yet from Yara.

Killing Mrycella was a tactical move to start a war with the Lannisters. Dorne was always likely to swear fealty to Dany, and with their Queen finally in Westeros, the games have only just begun. That’s not to say that there aren’t potentially real feelings going on, but where Ellaria is an opportunist the Ironborn are reavers. They like to invade and steal things and Sunspear is nice all year round. With no legitimate family in Dorne to run things, it is for all intents and purposes up for grabs. Sure Ellaria has her daughters, but the Ironborn don’t care.

Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) painted a pretty airtight picture of exactly the kind of people the Ironborn are, and up until recently the same could be said about both Yara and Theon (Alfie Allen). The latter for the most part has been redeemed so it’s curious where Theon fits in all of this.

There is also a chance that it could lead to major betrayal of Dany, which would be unwise (villainous as she is you don’t want to mess with her or her dragons). Perhaps, Ellaria will take the place of her nephew Quentyn Martell and convince herself that if she can tame a kraken she is surely worthy of a dragon.

The takeaway is, it’s unlikely this “thing” between Yara and Ellaria will end well for either of them because there is no doubt that this is all part of the constantly moving board and who is in the greatest position of power. Nonetheless, it should be pretty fascinating to watch it play out and try to figure out who is really playing who – and you know what they say about playing the game…You win or you die.

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And be sure to check out all the great GoT content we’ll be rolling out weekly! What do you think about Ellaria/Yara? Share your thoughts and theories in the comments!