Do you think it is likely that Maegor was presented a young dragon at some point, almost to the point of full-bonding, only to scorn it for Balerion in the end? If so, which one could it have been?
07.06.2025 21:56
“Born in 7 AC, the boy was small at birth, and sickly. He cried all the time, and it was said that his limbs were spindly and his eyes small and watery, so that the king’s maesters feared for his survival. He would spit out the nipples of his wet nurse, and give suck only at his mother’s breasts, and rumors claimed that he screamed for a fortnight when he was weaned. So unlike King Aegon was he that a few even dared suggest that, his Grace was not the boy’s true sire, that Aenys was some bastard born of one of Queen Rhaenys’s many handsome favorites, the son of a singer or a mummer or a mime. However once given a hatching dragon the boy began to grew up and rumors died.”
The other theory regarding birth of Cannibal is that it was older to Sheepstealer and Grey ghost (the other two wild dragons). But historians doubt this claim that he was older to Balerion, since his size is small. But again by all accounts he was nowhere close to timeline of Maegor’s birth which was 12 AC. While, it was in 48 AC, when Jaeherys ascended throne and even if Cannibal was born before then it will be in reign of Aenys or Maegor himself, but not at Maegor’s childhood still.
Maegor was not yet a dragonrider, however. Though a dozen hatchlings had been born amidst the fires of Dragonstone in the later years of Aegon’s reign, and were offered to the prince, he refused them all. When his young niece Rhaena, in only her twelfth year, took to the sky astride Dreamfyre, Maegor’s failure became the talk of King’s Landing. Lady Alyssa teased him about it one day in court, wondering aloud whether “my good-brother is afraid of dragons.” Prince Maegor darkened in rage at the jape, then replied coolly that there was only one dragon worthy of him.
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No, Maegor was never known to have bonded with any young dragon during time of his childhood or even teenage.
The books records that, Maegor only wanted to have just one dragon, a black dragon, that was his father’s mount, Balerion the black dread.
However, in time of Prince Maegor’s birth, there was no hatchling produced, so there is now way that he ever have bonded to any hatchling at time of his childhood. It must be noted that Maegor was born in 12 AC, and it was very later years after Princess Rhaena’s time that dragons are reported to have hatched in hatchlings of Dragonstone.
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Additionally, if there had been a grown up dragon in Dragonstone, then why couldn’t Prince Aegon the uncrowned claimed or at least tried to claim any one of them? It doesn’t make any sense for him to remain dragon less despite being heir to throne and his elder sister Rhaena having Dreamfyre, also his little siblings Jaeherys & Alyssane having dragons who got hatched.
And at this time books let us know that Alyssa Valereyon teased Maegor for not bonding with any dragon, but Maegor replied that there is only one worthy of him. It must be noted that, Maegor can’t start with any hatchling dragon now so it was in insult for him, so he wanted a big dragon like Balerion.
It must be noted that in books, Rhaena was very different and mysterious, she was shy and dreamy child, she named her dragon also as “Dreamfyre”. And later, Draemfyre is known to have lay several clutches of eggs, GRRM clearly hints some linkage between Rhaena & hatching dragons. Also, according to some theories, its Dreamfyre’s eggs only which later hatched and become Dany’s three dragons.
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Before that we only get to read in books that kids were presented with young hatchlings and they bonded with it, but keeping cradle eggs was not mentioned, which clearly indicated that it was started by princess Rhaena for first time. So, there is no way that Maegor will have any cradle egg, also those who had cradle egg were clearly mentioned in books but Maegor wasn’t.
It must be noted that not having dragon took toll on Prince Aegon, even after wedding when he was sent for Royal Progress with his elder sister wife Rhaena, then King Aenys didn’t allowed Rhaena to take her dragon due to this fact only that his heir Aegon don’t have dragon and this will make him look unmanly that his wife Rhaena had dragon but he doesn’t.
Why Aegon the uncrowned didn’t claimed Cannibal?
Now, there is a ongoing fan created theory that wild dragon Cannibal was actually Maegor’s dragon but since Maegor rejected it and that’s why it become wild and not bonded with anyone.
Like you can clearly read that, it was in later reign of King Aegon when dragon hatchlings were born, but Maegor who was born in between time of Dornish wars at year 12 AC, so now a grown up man like him can’t have any other young hatchling dragon, so he rejected them all.
Also, unlike Prince Aenys who bonded with a hatchling at time of his infancy only, there was no hatchling ever recorded to be produced for prince Maegor ever.
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However, like books tell us that Cannibal was born at what time is uncertain and while some small folks of Dragonstone have in fact stated that it could be even older than Balerion and was living at Dragonstone before Targaryens fled to there.
Meanwhile, Rhaena was herself born in 23 AC, so Maegor was already 11 years old at that time. When she was 12 years old in 35 AC, then she took her dragon “Dreamfyre” to sky for first time. Till this time, Maegor was already a grown up man of 22 years old, so there is now way he could ever bond with young dragon, its obvious he was looking for Balerion now.
Excerpt from books regarding Prince Aenys and his bonding with hatchling dragon:-
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After Maegor took throne in 42 AC, then they couldn’t do anything and in next year 43 AC, when Aegon & Rhaena secretly came to Kingslanding then they took dragons - Dreamfyre (Rhaena reunited with her dragon) and it was Quicksilver which Aegon claimed it (his father Aenys’s dragon). This thing alone indicated that there very few dragons who were able to be bonded and ridden at that time, rest were very small.
Could it be possible that Cannibal is actually Maegor’s dragon?
The concept of keeping cradle eggs with kids was started by princess Rhaena for first time when she first placed a cradle eggs in Jaeherys & Alyssane birth at years 34 AC and 36 AC respectively.
Concept of Cradle Eggs started by Princess Rhaena
The wild dragon Sheepstealer is said to have hatched "when the Old King was still young", which could be in the early years of reign of Jaehaerys I Targaryen or, more generally, during his youth, and Cannibal is said to have been the eldest and largest of the wild dragons having taken part in the Sowing, being therefore even older than Sheepstealer.
Some among the smallfolk of Dragonstone claimed that the Cannibal lived on the island even before the Targaryens arrived in 114 BC, a possibility that would make him, despite his size not being considered bigger than that of Vhagar and Vermithor, the oldest living dragon in Westeros at the time of the Dance of the Dragons, even older than Vhagar. If the Cannibal was from a different lineage of dragons altogether, that might also have explained why it was so antagonistic to the other Targaryen dragons. However, Grand Maester Munkun and Septon Eustace doubt these claims.