This post contains frank discussion of Season 7, Episode 3 of Game of Thrones: “The Queen’s Justice.” If you’re not caught up or don’t want to be spoiled, now would be the time to leave. Seriously, I won’t warn you again. Skedaddle.

There was an unexpected star in this week’s episode of Game of Thrones. I’m not talking about Cersei’s hot-pink lipstick, a sexually inquisitive Euron, or even a creepy, zonked-out Bran. No, it was the King’s Landing maid, Bernadette, who turned heads the moment she showed up—thanks to her single white female-ing of Queen Cersei. Is that haircut standard issue now?

Bernadette, played by Irish actress Sara Dylan, was cool as a cucumber when faced with Jaime Lannister in nothing but his Name Day suit luxuriating in Queen Cersei’s bed. Game of Thrones watchers were immediately curious. (Her appearance even inspired an involved theory or two.) Who was this pixie-cut-sporting servant? And why did she look so familiar?

Well, the second question has a simple answer: it’s because she’s been around the entire time. Well, almost the entire time. And Bernadette has not only seen a lot, she’s outlasted some of the cleverest players in the game.

We first saw Dylan’s character back in Season 2, when she was assigned to wait on Sansa. When she sees the teenaged Stark has gotten her first period, Bernadette runs off to tell Cersei. Shae stops her the only way a survivor like Shae knows how: with threats of violence.

Bernadette was on hand once again in Season 3 when Tyrion proposed to Sansa. (Who is . . . still his wife? Their marriage was never consummated, so it’s unclear.)

But though she might seem meek and mild, it’s vital that no one in King’s Landing sleep on good old Bernadette. The eager-to-please maid gets her revenge on Shae fully two seasons later, when she tells Cersei she’s discovered the identity of Tyrion’s secret lover. This leads to Shae being a) scooped up by Tywin, b) encouraged to testify at Tyrion’s trial, and, well, c) murdered by Tyrion in the Season 4 finale.

Bernadette also interrupts Cersei and Jaime fighting in that Season 4 scene, which may, perhaps, explain why she was so unsurprised to see them in flagrante delicto this week. Cersei’s loyal little spy is absent from Season 5, but by Season 6, she’s been promoted to the queen’s personal maid. Last year was a little rough on the girl who was mostly seen only as a soft-focus shape dressed in pink. She was nonetheless on hand for some key moments, like delivering the news of Myrcella’s return from Dorne (awkward) and making sure Cersei dressed to impress on the day of the sept explosion.

Qyburn and the Mountain may be Cersei’s most obviously loyal henchmen, but Bernadette has been serving at the queen’s pleasure longer. She could write one hell of a tell-all, or, alternatively, star in a Rosencrantz and Guildenstern–esque re-telling of five seasons of King’s Landing intrigue. Most importantly, though, many of us didn’t notice Bernadette at all until she got a sassy new makeover. The takeaway lesson here? Never underestimate the ability of a new haircut to make a lasting impression.