Ahem, Where Exactly Is Melisandre During Game Of Thrones Season 8?

Game of Thrones Season 8 has so far been filled with character reunions, but fans are still holding out hope that another familiar face will make herself known this season. Don't worry, Melisandre is confirmed to be in Game of Thrones season 8, but she's got a lot of catching up to do. But in case you also can't remember where Melisandre is the Game of Thrones world, she's been gone since season 7, episode 3, in which she began a journey to Volantis.

Fans have been waiting for her return ever since, because Melisandre promised on her way out that she would be back. After Melisandre convinced Daenerys to meet Jon Snow at Dragonstone, she told Dany's advisor Varys that her job was done. "I've done my part. I've brought ice and fire together," she said when asked why she was avoiding seeing Jon. (That, and Jon banished her and swore to kill her if he ever saw her again after he learned that she killed Shireen.)

When Varys learned she was journeying to Volantis, known for its Red Priestesses and Lord of Light believers, he agreed it was the best decision. "If you don't mind my saying, I don't think you should return to Westeros. I'm not sure you'd be safe here," he said. However, Melisandre promised she would be back. "Oh, I will return, dear Spider. One last time … I have to die in this strange country. Just like you."

Of all the predicted season 8 deaths, Melisandre's seems like a shoo-in. But since she's still yet to appear, fans can speculate away about where and how she will come back to die. According to Inverse, some fans believe Melisandre is already back in Winterfell and using magic to conceal her identity. After bringing Jon Snow back from the dead she pledged herself to him and his cause of fighting the White Walkers. Perhaps she will literally fight them as a Winterfell soldier in disguise.

It does seem like Winterfell was one of the places Melisandre filmed in for season 8. According to Winter Is Coming, Carice Van Houten, who plays Melisandre, posted an (now-deleted) Instagram of her driving down a road that fans soon placed near Belfast. The show films many scenes there, including those at Winterfell.

But even if she does have scenes at Winterfell, don't expect them to necessarily take place with Arya. Fans have long speculated that the two would reunite after Melisandre met Arya in Season 3 and the Red Woman told her that they'd meet again. In an interview with Huffington Post Van Houten seemingly steered fans away from that Melisandre-Arya theory. "I also predicted that the wrong guy was going to be on the throne, so you shouldn’t take her too seriously," Van Houten said.

The actor understandably couldn't say much about her season 8 storyline, although she did confirm that she'd be back and that her character did actually go Volantis before leaving for whatever Season 8 has in store for her. She also said that her character's ending "surprised" her "in a good way," whatever that means. "I was very happy to be back again," she said of the filming process in general.

Since Melisandre already said she'd only return once to Westeros and it would be to die, her fate might not exactly be a mystery in season 8. But it will be interesting to see how it all comes together and what aspects of her ending surprised Van Houten. And, well, if she's already in Winterfell, where the White Walkers are about to slash and burn, fans could see her demise sooner, rather than later.