HBO‘s House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 4 “Tumbleton” sees Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) and Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) traveling to the ruins of Rook’s Rest, a city now reduced to char and rubble after the events of last season’s pivotal battle.

**Spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 4 “Tumbleton,” now streaming on HBO Max**

Aegon has brought them there because he is convinced that his dragon Sunfyre is still alive. Meanwhile, the locals (and Larys) are convinced the golden dragon is hella dead. His body lays completely still in the middle of the woods. There’s even a fee to touch the poor thing that Larys pays up willingly so Aegon can bond with his poor misbegotten dragon.

When DECIDER spoke with House of the Dragon star Tom Glynn-Carney, we asked if there was a reason why Aegon was so intent on going back to Rook’s Rest and if that reason was, in fact, Sunfyre.

“I think any dragon rider has a sort of sixth sense,” Glynn-Carney said. “I compare it to the relationship I have with my dog, who is my best friend, and knows me better than most people, and I can read his mind. I feel like it’s the same with Sunfyre.”

“There’s a sort of like you said, a supernatural bond between them which pairs them in the first place. The reason that they found each other was because there’s a synergy there. Yeah, so there’s definitely a sniff in the air of where he is.”

So Aegon definitely is drawn to Rook’s Rest because he’s still drawn to his dragon, Sunfyre. But does this mean Sunfyre might truly be — as Aegon insists — alive? Or is Sunfyre dead?

House of the Dragon: Is Sunfyre Dead?

As of right now, we don’t know for sure if Sunfyre is alive or dead in HBO’s House of the Dragon. Everyone presumes the glittering dragon is dead, but Aegon is convinced he’s not. So what does the source material for the HBO show — George R.R. Martin‘s Fire & Blood — tell us?

Well, in the George R.R. Martin books, Sunfyre is alive! He survives the Battle of Rook’s Rest, but disappears for a beat and is presumed dead. Like Aegon, he was seriously brutalized by the events of Rook’s Rest and needed time to heal. His wing heals at an awkward angle, but eventually Aegon is able to reunite with him and steadily train him back to flying strength.

We don’t know yet if House of the Dragon is going to faithfully adapt Fire & Blood‘s version of events, but if they do, Aegon will eventually fly Sunfyre again in battle against Baela (Bethany Antonia) and Moondancer. While Rhaenyra is distracted in King’s Landing, Aegon will take over Dragonstone. In the books, one of Aegon’s key allies at this time is a guy named Tom Tangletongue, whom we conveniently meet this week in Rook’s Rest. Tom Tangletongue (Lewis MacDougall) is the guy on latrine duty with the displaced king.

In the books, Sunfyre never fully recovers from his injuries battling Moondancer, but he lives long enough to help Aegon take revenge on Rhaenyra. MAJOR SPOILERS — that Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) dropped in the original Game of Thrones series — but Aegon will eventually feed Rhaenyra to Sunfyre. The dragon will die of his sustained injuries shortly thereafter.

Our best guess is that House of the Dragon‘s Aegon is correct: Sunfyre is alive. And that Aegon and his small band of allies will end the season either plotting to take Dragonstone or taking it outright. (Just a theory, but that’s what happens in the books!) And Sunfyre will be back in the fourth and final season for some, uh, royal barbecue.

House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 4 “Tumbleton” is now streaming on HBO Max.