There May Be a Good Reason Alicent Feels Guilty in 'House of the Dragon' (SPOILERS)

This article contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 4 of House of the Dragon.

The Dance of the Dragons is on the cusp of kicking off, and it's clear that violence is in the air. Viewers have already seen two distinct assassination attempts, one from team black and one from team green. But threats of violence seem to not be the only thing on some of the royals' minds.

It’s clear that Alicent, for some reason, feels partially responsible for the death of her grandson. Though she did nothing to directly cause the death of Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen, she repeats to her father in their private meetings that she has “sinned,” claiming that her family is being punished for her actions.

Though she offers no explicit explanation for this determined conclusion she's come to, there are some other concerning actions she's taken that insinuate that there may be more on her mind than the impending war. Is Alicent pregnant?

There are numerous instances throughout Episodes 2 and 3 where Alicent insists that she has sinned, attempting to take some semblance of responsibility for the misfortune that has befallen her and her family. But since the season began, the only action she’s taken that even remotely “sinful” is sleeping with Ser Criston Cole, the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard.

Given that there are few other possibilities, it didn’t take long for viewers to begin wondering if Alicent was pregnant. As House of the Dragon has focused primarily on the struggles of the royal women, pregnancy is easily a potential barrier to have to overcome. This is further supported by Alicent's teary moment when discussing Helaena's grief over her son's murder.

It was a brief but sad moment, ending in Helaena telling Alicent "I forgive you." Though she does not specify what it is she forgives Alicent for, it's possible she's referring to the former queen's affair with the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, who was in bed with Alicent when Jaehaeyrs was assassinated.

Unless Alicent has been seeing someone else off-screen who viewers haven't seen yet, it's likely this unborn child's fatgeris none other than Ser Criston Cole.

It’s possible that Alicent’s frequent confessions of sinning are a result of the guilt she feels for her actions that have incited this violence. It’s not who she’s bringing to her bed who has put a target on the backs of her loved ones, though — it’s her decision to put Aegon on the throne, usurping Rhaenyra's claim.

It’s not that extramarital affairs are particularly uncommon among the royals of the Red Keep — most of the influential men are frequent visitors of the nearby brothel, and Rhaenyra herself even had an affair with the Kingsguard before leaving the palace.

It doesn’t seem that she has any interest in raising another child, though, nor does she likely want the subsequent questions that would follow her should the knowledge of her pregnancy leak through the castle. As Larys notes when visiting her chambers, she has taken moon tea, which is used to end an unwanted pregnancy in the world of Westeros.

For now, it seems that she’s managed to get away with this misdeed, though it’s unclear if this will come back to harm her further down the road. See how it all unfolds when new episodes of House of the Dragon air on Sundays at 9 p.m. EST on HBO and Max.