Character from House of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin
Rhaenyra's first husband and dragonrider of Seasmoke — a brave warrior who preferred the company of men, trapped in a political marriage that satisfied neither spouse, supposedly killed but rumored to have escaped across the Narrow Sea.
Laenor is a good man miscast in a role that demands duplicity he cannot perform. His marriage to Rhaenyra is political from the start — he is gay, she knows it, and they arrive at an understanding that satisfies neither of them emotionally but serves the alliance between Targaryen and Velaryon. He takes male companions, she takes Harwin Strong, and their sons bear a suspicious resemblance to the latter rather than the former. He fought in the War for the Stepstones on Seasmoke and acquitted himself well — he is genuinely brave and capable in battle. But court life suffocates him, and he retreats into his private pleasures while the political world he should be navigating grows increasingly dangerous around his wife and children. His death — or disappearance — is one of the Dance's enduring mysteries. He was found dead, burned beyond recognition, but some accounts suggest the body was a substitute and Laenor escaped to Essos. If so, it explains how Seasmoke later accepted another rider: the bond was broken by distance, not death.
Silver-haired and handsome in the Velaryon fashion, lean and athletic with pale violet eyes. He carries himself with the easy confidence of a dragonrider and a man comfortable in armor. His face is open and expressive — he is not good at hiding his feelings, which is part of his problem in the snake pit of court politics.
Also known as: Laenor, Ser Laenor, Laenor Velaryon