House of the Dragon fans were left scratching their heads last week when the children of a Targaryen and Velaryon union had dark hair.

Viewers saw how the children of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) and Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan) were fair skinned, brunette ladsthe complete antithesis of their platinum haired parents.

Laenor also happens to be black, adding further mystery to the children's appearance.

House of the Dragon quickly explains the anomaly, revealing the boys were the result of Rhaenyra's affair with Ser Harwin Strong.

In George R. R. Martin's book upon which House of the Dragon and its predecessor Game of Thrones are based, the Targaryens are described as having silver-gold hair with purple eyes that was so distinct it almost looked white thanks to their Valyrian heritage.

Even knowing the boys' true lineage, their brunette coloring still does not entirely explain why their mother's half-siblingsAegon II (Ty Tennant), Helaena (Evie Allen) and Aemond (Leo Ashton)sport the trademark Targaryen blondeness.

They are also the products of a mixed-race union, that of King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine) and Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), a very brunette queen.

In fact, another famous Targaryen from the original Game of Thrones series, Jon Snow (Kit Harrington), was well known for his luscious locks of dark curly hair.

Born as Aegon Targaryen, Snow was the son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen, a fact only revealed towards the final episodes of the HBO series.

Plenty of fans have theorized over the years as to why some of the most important Targaryens are not blonde at all.

Using 'real world' genetics they analyzed how it would be possible for some mixed race Targaryens are born fair-haired while others do not.

The fans used genome knowledge of dominant and recessive genes to make their conclusions. A dominant gene "refers to the relationship between two versions of a gene," according to the National Genome Research Institute.

Individuals receive two versions of each gene from each of their parents and if the genes differ, the dominant gene will present in their offspring, whether it be in hair color, susceptibility to disease, or other markers.

Fans concluded the Targaryen genes were recessive, but when it came to children of a Targaryen male and non-Valyrian mother their first would be born with darker features, while subsequent offspring were blonde.

"Targaryen males somehow transfer Targaryen traits to their wives and lovers, so second child of the couple inherits Targaryen traits from both mother and father and has Valyrian look. Targaryen genes are somehow "infectious," wrote one fan on a Game of Thornes forum.

This theory works well to explain Snow's dark hair, but is not conclusive because the law of recessive and dominant genes do not seem to be applied consistently across Westeros.

Game of Thrones blogger, Lady Knits A Lot, pointed out that in the original books, three of the five children of Ned and Catelyn Stark were born with the "'Tully look' of red hair and blue eyes, and both of these traits are recessive traits."

"[But] Ned's parents, grandparents and damn near the entire North are described as dark haired and grey eyed," they added.

"So maybe recessive traits are a furphy that we should ignore in Westeros?"

This point was reinforced by Robert Oliver, co-host of The Longest Night podcast dedicated to talking all things Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon.

Oliver told Newsweek the inconsistencies across the shows come down to the fact that how these characters look is key to a plot point.

Rhaenyra's children prove she had an affair, and Jon's very dark hair helped hide the fact he was a Targaryen until the final season.

"It's just storytelling, it needs to be done to move a plot forward," he told Newsweek.

In the case of the House of the Dragon, Rhaenyra's children portrayed as brunette are critical to the conflict which is about to ensue within the dynasty.

"For the purposes of the show, I think what it's doing is it's helpful for Alicent who is trying to implore and impress upon everybody that surrounds her that Rhynaera is not worthy and her children aren't worthy," she said.

"And that it's her children [Alicent's] who should rule after Viserys."

Oliver's assertion comes after Martin himself admitted things don't always add up in the books or series, because it's a fictional world.

"What the fans have to keep in mind... but we're making this s**t up," he told the History of Westeros YouTube channel.

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Why Not All 'House of the Dragon' Mixed Race Targaryens Are Blonde - Newsweek

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