#elain discussions

[intairnwetrust]

Ahhhh I just noticed that Az and Elain make their final appearance in Acosf while both are holding Nyx in their arms 🥺💗

[kopfkino-o]

one of the things i'm most excited about seeing in Elain's story is her visions. like what exactly can she see? and when can she see? does the past reveal itself to her or is it only the future? does she catch glimpses of fate through dreams? or visions that come on suddenly? does she scry? use the old stones and bones, or a map, or another tool like she did when she tracked the Suriel? maybe it's even a little bit of everything.

SJM literally called her a walking spoiler.

i can't wait to see how these visions are written too. magic like this has the potential for such rich imagery and I'm just really excited to see how Sarah handles them both in the narrative and from a technical, stylistic standpoint.

idk there's just something so mysterious and intriguing about a seer character potentially shrouded in prophecy. i need it biblically.

[yennas-stuff]

As a huge Percy Jackson fan, I decided (totally unprompted and unasked) to devide Acotar characters into their cabins.

Acotar characters as demigods:

Cabin 1 - Zeus, the god of the sky, lightning, and thunder

Zeus' children are known to be natural leaders because their father is the king of the gods. They are extremely ambitious, persistent, intelligent, and goal-oriented. They are often labeled as "control-freaks" because they like to be in control of every situation. They are friendly most of the time, but when angered, they erupt like a storm. Children of Zeus are often drawn to storms, finding comfort in the sounds of lightning and thunder, and the intense emotions they evoke.

Demigods: Rhysand, Nesta

Cabin 2 - Hera, the goddess of marriage, family, and birth

As the goddess of marriage, Hera upholds her union with Zeus, which prevents her from having any demigod offspring.

Demigods: none

Cabin 3 - Poseidon, the god of the Sea, Storms, Earthquakes, Droughts, and Horses.

Poseidon’s children are known for having a deep passion for water. They usually love the ocean and anything that involves being close to water. They tend to not like following rules or obeying just because they are told to, just as the ocean does not like to be contained. They are friendly, loyal, and usually have a good sense of humor. Poseidon's children can also experience mood swings and be unpredictable, just like the sea. They also tend to have an outgoing and welcoming personality, but hey, do not try to irritate them: testing their patience is ill-advised, for it is not inexhaustible, and the consequences may be regrettable.

Demigods: Gwyn, Tarquin

Cabin 4 - Demeter, the goddess of harvest and agriculture

Demeter’s children are known for loving nature. They are free-spirited, kind, patient, competent, nurturing, and loving. They usually have a shy personality, but they can be fiercely protective when their loved ones are threatened. Their connection to nature infuses them with a sense of peace and harmony, and they often find solace and joy in the beauty of the natural world. They are usually seen as motherly figures, people usually seek comfort in Demeter’s children. 

While their generosity, patience, and kindness are admirable traits, it is wise to avoid intentionally provoking them. Otherwise, you may wake up to find poison ivy flourishing in your sleeping bag.

Demigods: Elain

Cabin 5 - Ares, the god of war

It is easy to recognize a son or daughter of Ares. They tend to exude bravery, power, and confidence wherever they are. The children of Ares are known for their immense courage and strong temper, and they are typically assertive, energetic, and independent, with a natural inclination towards impulsiveness and courage. They thrive on competition, displaying honesty and passion in their pursuits, but may struggle with patience and impulsivity. Adventurous by nature, they eagerly embrace new experiences and challenges. They tend to think they are naturally better than others. Children of Ares can be hot-headed, arrogant and stubborn. They don't take things lying down, they aren't afraid of practically anything, they hate taking orders and tend to start fights for silly reasons. Still, they are very protective of those they love and would do anything to keep them well. Ironically, since their personality is usually quite the opposite, they tend to get along very well with children of Aphrodite.

If you want advice, try to stay in a good position with these demigods, or you might end up with a spear pointed at your face.

Demigods: Cassian, Feyre

Cabin 6 - Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war

Athena's children are known for their intelligence, strategic skills, creativity and courage. They tend to be trustworthy, like to lead groups, and have good ideas. They are also proud people and do not like to admit to their mistakes. If they do not excel at something right away, they get frustrated and give up on what they are doing. They can be messy at times, but they accept the mess they have created and can function well in it. While they may seem distant from society at times, it is not because they lack social skills. Rather, Athena's children are just selective about their interactions and prefer meaningful companions for their life. In fact, if they are called upon to discuss a subject they like/understand, an endless discourse on the subject will ensue.These people also tend to work well under pressure, they hate being ignored, they always want to show their responsibility (even unconsciously), and some people may have the impression of them being stuck up.

Demigods: Amren, Eris, Jurian

Cabin 7 - Apollo, the god of archery, art, medicine and the Sun and light

Apollo's children are known for their aptitude for art, especially music and poetry. They also tend to be quite sociable and communicative. Furthermore, they love helping and advising their friends, always indirectly bringing insights from their own lives. Apollo children tend to act on emotion rather than reason. They are extremely emotional people. Apollo kids always use sarcasm in all dialogues. They also have a special connection with sunrises and sunsets because they resemble a beautiful painting and obviously, showcases the sun (they take pictures of it whenever they can). They also love quality time with their friends and value nature around them. Children of Apollo tend to get along with children of Hermes, as Hermes was the inventor of Apollo's precious lyre.

Apollo: Tamlin

Cabin 8 - Artemis, the goddess of hunting and wildlife

Artemis has made a vow to eternally remain a maiden, which means she has no children. Generally, her cabin at the camp remains unoccupied. However, the goddess is accompanied by a group of gifted followers with excellent ranged capabilities and hunting skills called the Hunters of Artemis, and occasionally these young women visit Camp Half-Blood. Whenever this visit occurs, there is a traditional, not-so-friendly capture the flag game. The Hunters are currently leading the Campers roughly 47-0 in the capture the flag game (ouch!).

If you're a girl, of course, and you think your destiny is to become a hunter of Artemis, it is important to keep a few things in mind as you seek her out for recruitment. Huntresses must show bravery and a good heart. Furthermore, you have to promise eternal loyalty to Artemis, which means no boys. Ever. Additionally, you gain immortality upon being recruited.

Demigods: Emerie

Cabin 9 - Hephestus, the god of blacksmiths and fire

The children of Hephaestus have a natural gift for building things; they are true mechanics. They have a more reserved personality and prefer to be alone, or in the company of a machine. If they could choose to be alone for all their school work, they would. Despite this, they have a friendly side. They are good listeners and can be very funny, but only the people closest to them tend to know this. They are also friends for life, who can always be counted on. Hephaestus' children are truly passionate about robotics or architecture, and since they were children they liked building toys and more complex things. They also always feel out of place, as if they do not belong. Hesphaestus' children are quite peaceful and do not like violence.

Demigods: Nuan

Cabin 10 - Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty

For the children of the goddess of love, socializing is essential. They usually take a long time to get ready and they value beauty and love more than anything. They often fall in love quickly and enjoy being the center of attention or “the hot topic in other people's conversations.” They are sometimes considered “frivolous” because they care a lot about their appearance and love to gossip about who is dating who, but many have admirable characteristics, such as a good heart that genuinely helps to increase the confidence and self-esteem of those around them. they. Aphrodite's children are often underserved or underestimated, but be careful, Aphrodite started the Trojan war and her children have a strong power of persuasion. They usually get what they want.

Demigods: Mor

Cabin 11 - Hermes, the god of trade, wealth, thieves, and travel

The children of Hermes are known for loving to travel. They are true explorers of the world and are very extroverted. They like to play pranks on others and tell jokes to brighten up the atmosphere. These people are usually more “street-smart” and have a mischievous personality; they see no problem in lying a little, but sometimes they end up abusing this philosophy. The children of Hermes believe that the more friends the better.

Important advice: Hold your belongings tightly around them, after all they are children of the god of thieves. And, if you spend a night with them, do not be surprised if you wake up with a face full of shaving foam.

Demigods: Lucien

Cabin 12 - Dionysius, the god of wine and parties

Dionysus' children are known for being the life of the party and great extroverts. They are extremely communicative and persuasive, due to their father being the God of the Theater. These demigods tend to get along well with the cat family---after all, their father is also the god of big cats. Dionisio's children are also seen as "drama queens and kings”, as they often exaggerate all situations in their daily lives and are often sarcastic. These people appreciate all products made from grapes.

Demigods: Helion

Cabin 13 - Hades, the god of the dead and the king of the underworld

The children of Hades tend to be introverted and some even prefer to completely isolate themselves. They do not know how to deal with their own feelings properly nor are they very communicative, but are exceptional listeners. Furthermore, they are loyal and like animals. They often use dry sarcasm in dialogue, hate being the center of attention and get very nervous about it. The children of Hades also have their greedy and ambitious side, being particularly intelligent and resourceful. It is not always easy to unveil a son of Hades: they are discreet and don't let their deepest emotions show easily. Furthermore, they are overthinkers by nature and usually do not have a regulated sleep schedule. These demigods are also very stubborn and hate admitting they are wrong. Lastly, they do not fear their own death.

Demigods: Azriel

[aho-dapa]

Just like saying this again but

- Papa Archeron was not gambling, he was doing his medieval equivalent of overworking a job that wasn’t paying him enough to pay off his loans

- His loans cough debt, is actually not his fault at all, it was an inherited debt by the previous Prince of Merchants, which ran in his family

- (Okay but can we talk about the expectation of that title and how this debt may have literally controlled his life since the day that he was born???)

- He did that voyage to Bharat because it was the last chance his family had before the medieval mafia came in and literally busted his kneecaps

- Said injury literally leaves him disabled, which is obviously not a conversation this fandom understands but, anyway his injuries mean he can’t work in the way able bodied people can, say, like his daughters

- Not only is he now a disabled single parent with no programs to help his children, he cannot hunt or teach them things he may or may not know because sjm’s world building is a trash fire

- Nesta and Elain not doing shit when it came to their very lives being at stake with starvation is literally??? sjm herself even says they weren’t even more than one dimensional characters at this point so (edit, saw a post about executive dysfunction and depression, and frankly, YEAH THAT TOO)

- Please stop calling him useless ya’ll, I’m begging

(Edit, useless is also just not good phrasing for anyone at all in general. Useless implies that people should inherently have a use, which is just dehumanizing)

There’s also something about how he could have done work in other ways, but he was never written to play that role by sjm

And neither was Nesta or Elain at this point, Feyre’s whole family was written around Feyre, because of her, to make her life more of a hellhole, and not as people that exist outside of her

Which is just frustrating since sjm later bases this half assed dynamic for the future of their dynamic and like??? Weak.

[unordinary-diary]

So I have a question about Arlo’s powers that you might have the answer to

Do you know what the bleeding is all about? Like when he starts coughing up blood after his barrier breaks. Does he just like straight up start bleeding internally or something?

Anyway I love this blog sm you are giving me the unO content I crave

Ah, thank you! Yes, I absolutely have the answer. In fact, I’m going to take this opportunity to make a post that was already floating in my head.

Arlo and Recoil Damage

First, to answer your question in a literal sense, yes. It’s definitely internal bleeding. Specifically, damage to his lungs.

It’s also not at all unprecedented for a person to be wounded like this. Every person with a conjuring type ability takes damage when their conjures are damaged.

(Rein in ch. 16)

(Cecile attacking Arlo, ch. 109)

The difference with Arlo, is that his damage happens below the skin. Here’s where it gets juicy.

Symbolism

Arlo’s ability is very symbolic, possibly the most so of anyone in the series. His nigh unbreakable barrier he puts around himself represents his metaphorical walls, and how he keeps everyone at a distance. His passive makes him invulnerable— he gets punched in the face, clawed at, stabbed at, etc, and doesn’t even blink. The only way to hurt Arlo is to break through his barrier. And when his walls are broken down, there’s a wound in his chest. It’s not literal enough to be his heart that bleeds, but it’s very close.

There’s also something that’s been kicking around in my head for awhile—

“You’re the strongest one out of all of us here right now. You can try to brush this whole thing off... but to the rest of us, it’s still scary. If even you can’t protect yourself, what can the rest of us do?” — Remi, Ep. 61.

I remembered the line being “When people as strong as you show fear, it scares the rest of us.” However, that must have come from a different scene and I won’t track it down.

It’s plain and simple: High tiers have been taught their whole lives to bottle things up.

This is also seen reflected in Seraphina—

(ep. 20) Granted, the circumstances here are very different, but it’s a similar idea. High tiers showing emotions scares people.

So they bottle them up...

… until they explode.

(Ep. 106)

The judgment Arlo and Seraphina face is very similar. Seraphina rejects these expectations before the story starts, but Arlo has yet to do so. He is very much like the Seraphina we see in flashbacks.

All of this is to say: it is significant that his barrier wounds are internal. The little bit of blood we can see is mainly there so the audience knows he’s injured— but otherwise? Barrier cracks aren’t an injury that people can really see. Recoil damage is typically reflected as scratches, so his internal wounds are both unique, and symbolic of the way he hides his feelings.

[nesta-attorney]

[ofbreathandflame-archive]

(okay so this is actually a couple months ago but i was writing something and i was oh - this kind of sounds familiar to something ive written somewhere. its a draft so forgive me for jumping around hehe

ive seen the resurgence of this topic and it really hints at the differences between the way the pro/anti sides read this books.

this argument is a much older one - and the orginal argument was that sjm undervalues feminine work, not 'feyre undervalues feminine work.' the framing is very important toward the argument being made; if we say that 'feyre undervalues female work/femininity' then we're looking at a very narrow focus. we are making a statement about her character, not the characterization and writing decisions that go into making the character. when we say that 'sjm undervalues feminine/house work' then we are making a much broader statement. because then we are making a criticism toward the writing decisions, not character decisions. the reason this is important, in particular, is because often the story struggles with distinguishing sjm's voice from feyre - hence why we are often told things, and shown another.

the important takeaway from this argument is that sjm often chooses not to show or elaborate on the 'feminine' coded things; that in the books thereafter - there are two black-coded women in the background doing alll of the housework, and another older black-coded woman doing all of the medical work. and another black-coded woman in the spring court doing alllll household of the work. its that even though the 'laziness' of the sisters was a focal point in their relationship fracture, the story never actually acknowledges these things - or that even feyre did them. the focus is always on the hunting. its that the book assigns these task to black women and never talks about it again. that feyre was able to assume this fatherly role (hunting) is what the story argues is the sacrifice. bc the story is adamant about the women not falling into the 'party-planner' 'lady' 'baby-making' role. why be 'just a mother' when you can be a highlady fire wielding, death-beating, seer, goddess warrior. being 'just a mother' isn't enough. being 'just a party planner' isn't enough women who occupy that 'just a mother role' are often women who are violently killed off and unnamed, victims of hyperviolence, or characterized as vapid (rhys and tamlin mother, lyria, sorsha, marion, loa, cassian's mom, az's mom, mother archeron, dorian's mother, ember - who occupies both roles imo). there is an unwritten, negative consequence associated with being 'just a mother' -- and its not until sjm herself becomes a mother that we even see semi-positive representations of motherhood (yrene, embe, feyre; and even in this case - feyre still falls into the catergory above). in short - the narrative works against sjm newfound appreciation of motherhood and it's also demonized as femine-coded work that isn't considered valid.

instead of actually holding the sisters accountable for ‘not doing enough’ the narrative just assigns the task to invisible women and moves on from the discussion. and this segues into a wider discussion of representation and white feminism; how it’s okay to always place black/brown-coded women in invisible positions of servitude and service (madja, alis, nuala and cerridwen, nehemia, sorscha). think about this - the story essentially praises that feyre does all of this work and that she deserves to rest by....giving the work to these black handmaidens to do; ofc this argument is analytical and subjective (i.e. its my opinion), but i think there's always something so weird about framing the discussion around the fact that 'feyre deserves to rest,' instead of actually getting at the problem of having servants to begin with.

we get a moment where feyre sees her boots falling apart and instead of just taking nesta's boots (bc she was asking for another pair) or mending her own (feyre is just assumed to only have one pair). she kind of just throws herself a pity party. there’s like feyre doesn’t think like a survivalist, nor do her sisters even act realistically impoverished. even if nesta and elain where stereotypical mean girls they still would not act like that given how long they’ve been in that position. im sure nesta and elain know how to sew, so at the very least, they could’ve been mending clothes, making their own clothes and shoes. that is a ‘feminine’ coded task that could have easily been incorporated into the story to make their circumstance more believable. instead the emphasis is always put on the masculine coded activity: the hunting.

the reason the statement even comes up is because the story often disparages 'femininity' in the name of progression (i.e. this is why elain's character exists in a vacuum; she is praised for the same qualities she was vilified for). the 'progression' in this case is an approximation to masculinity. its why the sisters must go on a journey before settling into femininity and why the book essentially believes training is the answer for the illyrian women oppression. its what the book distinguished feyre away from her sister with. it’s that the story doesn’t acknowledge a decade, of at the very least, regular household tasks.

[rosenecklaces]

i don't think Azriel haters even get his "behavior" clearly, they love to throw words at him like abuser (cofaintlulufriendswithone?cof) stalker obsessive freak y'all are doing too much and for what? the dude didn't even strangled eris when he had the change or killed graysen and it would be deserved considering what type of series this is!

"he have so many complexes ohhh ughh"

No shit. Everyone could get it when you fucking suffered from child abuse, get locked, mutilated and basically be trained as a killing machine of course the guy is traumatized and will have certain behaviors! Doesn't mean he's going to go around saving women to receive sex or whatever are you insane? Have you seen him?

[princessofmerchants]

A Post-HOFAS reading of Nesta Scrying for the Mask in ACOSF

One of my favorite scenes in ACOSF is when Nesta scrys for the Mask.

(HOFAS spoilers after the break)

From the first time I read this amazing scene, I immediately recognized all the callbacks to the scene in ACOWAR when she scryed for the Cauldron during the war against Hybern.

She made no move to close her eyes. “I—am I to … touch it?” “No,” Amren warned. “Just come close. Find it, but do not interact.” Nesta still didn’t move. She could not use the bathtub, she’d told me. Because the memories it dragged up— Cassian said to her, “Nothing can harm you here.” He sucked in a breath, groaning softly, and rose to his feet. Azriel tried to stop him, but Cassian brushed him off and strode for my sister’s side. He braced a hand on the desk when he at last stopped. “Nothing can harm you,” he repeated. Nesta was still looking at him when she finally shut her eyes.

—ACOWAR, ch. 62

Cassian’s warmth seeped into her side, his wings rustling near her back. She let that warmth, the rustle anchor her. He had come to save her from her nightmare, had stayed with her while she slept. Had guarded and fought for her. He would let no harm come to her now. No harm No harm No harm

—ACOSF, ch. 31

Cassian, her mate, is her anchor and way back when she descends into her power and its connection to the Cauldron-Made Mask, just like he was the reason she found the courage to scry for the Cauldron in ACOWAR.

And now, after reading HOFAS, I noticed new details in the ACOSF scrying scene that take on new meaning.

The magic when Nesta scrys resembles that of the Mystics in Midgard. The room gets cold (though in ACOSF Azriel does note with alarm that didn't happen when Nesta scryed for the Cauldron in the war against Hybern—so we are left to wonder what is different this time?). And the person using their power is focusing their magic into a question they need an answer to. Scrying in Prythian seems limited to locational questions, while I think the Mystics are sometimes asked questions that aren't framed as "Where is X?" And yet, the way they find answers seems to be locational too—their minds travel to someplace to seek an answer to the question asked. I have encountered predictions that Elain's Seer power may turn out to work similarly to the Mystics, but from the little we saw of it in action in ACOWAR, I'm no longer convinced the descriptions of how these kinds of magic operate seem to align—Nesta's scrying magic is way more similar, to me anyway.

Cassian's kiss given to Nesta to pull her out of the scrying, because she's used "the essence of the Cauldron" (‼️) to create an impenetrable wall around her mind to protect her loved ones...his kiss reminds me of Bryce and Hunt sharing their powers with each other in HOFAS when they have sex as mates. These scenarios aren't identical per say, but Cassian uses the power in his Siphons to send bites of power into her palm to draw her silver fired attention to him. Then he kisses her, and besides being so 👏🏻 sexy 👏🏻, after the kiss this exchange happens in mindspeak with Rhys:

(Kindle isn't letting me copy/paste anymore text from ACOSF 😏)

Something about Cassian warming the entire room while kissing Nesta to bring her out of the scrying has me thinking "Mate Magic Meld" a la Quinlar (but on a much smaller scale perhaps because they haven't both accepted the bond at this point), which is so freaking cool.

Whether it turns out to be simply a literary parallel or actually pointing to the same magical phenomenon on different scales, either way it's still cool to me, especially given how in both mate relationships, one of them is the anchor for the other to always "come back home" when descending into powerful magic that runs the risk of consuming the wielder. (This is again similar to the Feysand mating bond being Feyre's way back to life—and Rhys—at the end of ACOTAR when she dies.)

I'm sure there are even more amazing details from this Mask scrying scene that will blow our minds someday after we get to read the next ACOTAR book, which is when I expect Nesta's powers that she stole from the Cauldron, then was gifted to keep by the Mother, to be explained to us even more.

But for now I wanted to record what I noticed this time around rereading my favorite book—the mate trope as a romantic trope is cool, but mating bond magic sharing is the coolest. 🥰

[romanticatheartt]

I’m pretty new to the fandom but am I the only one who doesn’t think Feyre’s been sidelined? We had 4 books of her as the only or main POV where the series very obviously resolved around her then one spinoff book where she’s not the main character but feysand are clearly the next most prominent characters in the book after nessian and even though the pregnancy plot isn’t well liked, it doesn’t change the fact that so much of nesta’s healing arc and the kickoff of her journey, the rock bottom, and climax of it in book revolve around her relationship with feyre. We even see feyre having so high lady moments even though nesta is avoiding her for parts.

And then I thought given the story that sjm ended up writing for CC3, it’s obvious why feyre isn’t there- she wanted Bryce to use the mask and needed nesta to give it to her and for Bryce to be skeptical of prythian. Feyre is not born fae, ruler of NC, and less prickly then both Az and Nesta (and Amren and Rhys even), she’d hurt the distrusting conflict and wouldn’t give the mask like nesta without getting more involved (at least involving Rhys). I suspect sjm wanted a different plot at first but decided to change it and maybe it’s because she didn’t want the acotar side to take over (Bryce even considers asking Rhys for help because he’s so strong but decides against it because she can’t trust him not to become a conqueror). I thought it was purposeful that the friendliest members of the IC were basically absent. She may even be saving aspects of that original plot for a larger team up later, maybe in an acotar book since prythian’s (and Feyre/Rhys/the high lord’s) power is given such focus. It’s not even an acotar book, like should Az’s greater presence in it be seen as a sign that he’s more important than Rhys in acotar?

If the next book comes out and feyre is just not a factor, I’d get it more. But I just don’t see what’s got everyone convinced sjm isn’t interested in feyre or whatever.

People talking about Feyre being sidelined in acosf are just looking for something to hate lol because even I knew Feyre wasn't going to be the main character when sjm made pretty clear this is Nesta's/Nessian's book. Feyre doesn't even have a pov in acosf ffs (except that bonus chapter) and still, she has an important role in Nesta's book because she's the biggest part of Nesta's guilt and self-hatred. And yes in my recent semi-reread of acosf there are so many times that we see Feyre as High Lady (and I absolutely love those!!)

Like you said I'm not too fond of Feyre's pregnancy plot either and I think it shouldn't have been in Nesta's book and it definitely shouldn't have been used as a redemption arc for Nesta. In other words, both Nesta and Feyre deserved better than this. Feyre deserved a beautiful pregnancy after all she's been through and Nesta deserved a better journey where other characters weren't used for her, the focus should've been on her and her relationship with others.

Now about CC I was one of those people who wanted to see more Feyre and were disappointed. Not because I think she was sidelined, no. But because I expected to see her at least in one scene? I mean it could be totally because of my love Feyre that I wanted to see her again, that's my only disappointment and not because I think she should've had a big role or something.

I expected Nesta to have some major role in CC (not this much tho) and for Azriel, I fully anticipated him to be an important character because of Truthteller and Bryce bringing Starsword with her. I still think sjm focused on these two a lot because even after CC people are more focused on acotar characters than the CC characters. And if Feyre had joined the focus of readers would've completely been on acotar so now after 7 months I think sjm did the right thing. Feyre being a mother is a nasty way for the fandom to talk about their displeasure and bring down Feyre for being a mother which isn't surprising at all since everyone thinks she's now "less cool" because of it.

Now about Azriel, I don't think he's more important than Rhys (call me biased idc lmao😭 and my beef with him) I think the reason why he's so focused on, is because he's going to have the next book. We're going to see his back story and how he's possessing TT and who is going to possess Starsword (and as I said before I think it's going to be Gwyn and she's going to be a Starborn because we have no idea who her father is so sjm can put anyone as her father) and I know some think Azriel is the Starborn and I THINK NOT!!! Idk how to explain it, I just know he's not hehe :D

I think Feyre is still going to be in the next books because she's the main character of the series and she's still a high lady after all, but it will be something like acosf. And I think she's going to have a same amount of page time (lol) in Elucien book like she had in acosf.

[starsreminisce]

So, these are mainly my thoughts on why it's just as plausible that Elucien's book might be next. I just really want to get these thoughts out so that I can finally let them go. This is just me noticing patterns and wanting to speak up for Elain.

If we go by the number of bonus chapters based on perspectives, Azriel has two of them. However, if we focus on both the bonus chapters in ACOSF only, Elain was the main focus.

What many people misunderstand about Elain is that she is a fawner, and because she fawns, it's easy to miss how much she's been through, given how well she internalizes things.

We know where Azriel is mentally right now, but Elain's perspective has consistently been narrated by other people. This aligns with SJM's strategy to keep Elain and Lucien as muted as possible, surprising readers with the baggage they carry when we get to their perspective.

Because that's what fawners do, and that's how fawners break.

Feyre's bonus chapter gives us an idea of where Elain is and how she's being coddled by the Inner Circle, something Rhys does not agree with.

Azriel's bonus chapter gives us an idea of where Elain and Lucien stand and, more importantly, where Lucien is – something of great importance to Rhys. Lucien is not only brought up in both bonus chapters but is directly tied to Elain. Feyre comments that she wouldn't have to pull thorns from Elain's hands if she wore Lucien's present, and Rhys points out that if Lucien finds out Az is pursuing her, he'll defend the bond as he sees fit.

Maasverse under the cut

If Elain and Azriel are considered equal in terms of how each side of the fandom perceives their suffering, we can analyze their respective partners. Lucien's whereabouts are known, and he holds a crucial position in the Night Court. The strength of his bond scent is evident, and he can now tolerate being in the same room with Elain.

Notably, Lucien seems comfortable around the Inner Circle, evidenced by his reactions to Cassian's threat and engaging in arguments with Rhys over sports. Meanwhile, Elain is making efforts to reintegrate into society and has moved on from Graysen.

We only see that something about Gwyn is interesting to Azriel, and we see that Gwyn treats Azriel differently.

This, to me, reads that it's about time for Elucien to face their bond.

We won't get any of their outbursts in a bonus chapter or in someone else's book because Nesta was at a low point in ACOSAF, and she sank even lower in her own book.

Personally, Azriel's feelings of loneliness and bitterness due to two of his brothers being mated are nothing compared to Elain becoming estranged from her closest sister, expressing a desire to reacquaint herself with her powers only to be set up as a backup.

This tells me that she does not have her powers because she did not see Azriel rejecting her, if confusion, alongside hurt, marred her eyes when he did. She was sobbing, squeezing Feyre’s hand, pleading with her to hold on, not knowing that Nesta will end up saving her.

Elain has the gift of seeing the future, and she didn't see these things coming.

Elain has experienced four losses and was on the brink of facing another: the loss of her engagement, the loss of her humanity, the loss of her father, the loss of her relationship with Nesta, and almost losing Feyre during her labor.

Elain no longer has the same support system she used to, now that Nesta has the Valkyries and her own found family, and Feyre has a baby. Both of them are happily mated, while she is still stuck on whatever hesitation she has for accepting her bond, especially now that Azriel has effectively removed himself from that equation.

You can argue that yes, Azriel is in a similar position since her sisters are mated to his brothers, but Elain has always depended on both of her sisters taking care of her, while Azriel has been described as going off and doing his own thing. Elain’s world has been turned upside down, while Azriel’s merely got bigger.

Elain's world is a bubble and that bubble is fixing to burst.

Azriel can afford to have another bond acceptance to bring him lower. Do I think that Azriel is obsessed with Lucien and Elain's bond? No. But I do believe that he ties his worth to a mating bond. Among his brothers, he is the one who wants it the most and has been actively waiting for it the longest.

If Azriel had the preconceived notion that Elain and Lucien would not end up together because Elain showed no interest in him for them to be happily mated, wouldn't that be one more instance that he believes he isn't worthy of a mating bond?

Lucien, the male Azriel said is undeserving of his mate, has that mate accept the bond despite two years of little contact, proving to Az that it never mattered how Mor feels about him. No matter what he did and didn't do, it would have snapped regardless.

We will hopefully see big Gwynriel crumbs in CC3 of them getting closer, and then we will see something significant happen to Gwynriel that shifts their dynamic in Elucien's book.

Because it will follow the same pattern of the other mating bonds.

Nessian had its dynamics established in ACOMAF bonus chapter, we see big crumbs in ACOWAR, we see a shift in ACOSAF for them to have a book with ACOSF.

Elucien had its dynamics established in ACOWAR, crumbs in ACOSAF with Mor's statement of both of them not being ready, a shift in ACOSF with Lucien and Elain avoiding-not-avoiding each other, for them to now be ready to deal with their bond next.

The same can somewhat be applied to Feysand and Elriel:

Feysand had its dynamics established in ACOTAR, we see crumbs for the majority in ACOMAF, we see a shift in dynamics in ACOWAR to see them living their best domesticated life in ACOSAF.

Elriel had its dynamics established in ACOMAF, crumbs in ACOWAR, shift in ACOSAF but ultimately, to see that they are not going to work in ACOSF.

And there have been multiverse ideas that followed a similar pattern.

Feyre realizing the bone carver is her child in ACOWAR, Feyre decided she wanted to get pregnant in ACOSAF to have Aelin see Rhys with a pregnant Feyre in KoA, HoEaB release to see Feyre pregnant in ACOSF.

Aelin falling through different worlds in KoA, HoEaB confirmation of gates as seen in KoA, crumbs of a multiverse in ACOSF for its confirmation in HoSaB.

With that said, being at rock bottom isn't necessarily a good indicator. Chaol was paralyzed at the end of QoS, yet EoS was released with Aelin excited to see Terrasen again, and Dorian taking over the throne. EoS ended with a cliffhanger that people are still asking if they can skip ToD.

I'm not arguing that I believe Elain's book is next. Like I said, it all goes back to what happens now that ACOTAR has been introduced to CC and how those events will impact ACOTAR moving forward.

SJM could very well decide to use Gwynriel's book next to bridge ACOTAR to the overarching Maasverse plot now that it's been established in HoFaS or she could decide to go with Elucien's book because they would need to tie up the more local plotlines before Gwynriel deals with whatever tied ACOTAR to CC.

I mean, I still believe that Vassa will move from being Lucien's problem to Azriel's problem. Koschei is going to be the big bad at the end of the series no matter which couple is tackling him.

Plus, I ship both, so no matter what, I'm still winning.

[imaginejolls]

thinking deeply about Azriel's bonus chapter in ACOSF and Rhysand's brutal behaviour in it:

it honestly feels out of character for Rhys. ever since the beginning he's always been about choice. and in that moment in the hallway with Azriel, Elain is making a choice. why would Rhys deny her the right of that choice? it really seems uncharacteristically cruel to take that choice away from her and force Lucien upon her. to be clear, i really like Lucien and would love to watch a dynamic unfold between them, other than "he wants her - she ignores him." it doesn't sit right with me

why does Rhys think he knows better than Elain about what she wants. can't wrap my mind around it

[exinewine]

All I'm saying, is that Sarah J. Maas is such a phenomenal writer that she created a world where it's riskier to publicly announce who you ship Elain with, than it is to declare your political affiliations 😂😅

[chrelareads]

🌺 Gwynriel + Elucien 🩵

A non toxic Facebook group for us to discuss!

[jemdeserveslove]

I read the ACOTAR trilogy years ago and liked it, but I was never interested in reading any of the next books. I remember that Lucien and Elain were supposed to be mates but she didn't want to talk to him(?) and it was left unresolved at the end of ACOWAR. After that I only know bits and pieces I came across online, and I often saw people saying Elain should end up with Azriel instead. So I'm here to ask: what's going on, what happened since then? What is her relationship with both men at this point? Is there a love triangle? Who is she more likely gonna end up with? Can you please tell me the tea? 👀

Omg this is like a big question that requires a big answer, so bare with me ✨

First things first, I wanna start by saying that I’m completely biased at this point, since I want Elain and Lucien to be together. I will present the facts and how I see them. I did this post ages ago discussing every ship! There are more details

So, since the end of Wings and Ruin, Elain and Lucien’s relationship hasn’t really improved. She still avoids him whenever he’s around and, as far as we know, he only shows up in Velaris when he needs to report something to Rhys and Feyre (since he works for them as emissary) or on Winter’s Solstice. He always gets her a gift and she ignores him, as usual.

Now, as for Elain and Azriel, we know due to Azriel’s bonus chapter that they spent a little time together, usually in the garden, with Elain going over her garden plans and stuff.

Idk if you read his chapter or not, I guess you must have seen it around, but if you want to get more context to this, I recommend reading it even if didn’t read the book. You can still understand lots of it.

But basically what happened is this:

It’s after the Winter Solstice party and Azriel and Elain meet after everyone left to their own rooms. In the chapter, we get Azriel’s pov so we get to learn a bit more about his state of mind and how unwell he is (and has been for a while). When they meet, Azriel intercepts Elain as she’s going downstairs to put a gift in his gift pile, so she hands him his gift. He then also gives her a gift, that he didn’t give earlier as well, a rose shaped necklace

They have a bit of a moment, with Azriel thinking about how they always had slight touch of hands and shared glances (not really conversations), but nothing else happened beyond that. Azriel thinks about how he has the hots for her and also how bothered he is about Elain and Lucien’s mating bond

Then, they almost kiss, BUT they are interrupted by Rhys, when he has a mental conversation with Azriel, who then tells Elain this was a mistake and she apologizes, and as far as we know, they haven’t talk since

NOW, Rhys basically tells Az to stay away from Elain, because she has a mate and if he saw them kissing (Lucien was just upstairs) he would have, like, the right to be really pissed off and call on Azriel the blood duel (traditional of the Autumn Court) and then fight to the death for Elain. Like, Lucien would never do that, but anyway

Azriel tries to reason with Rhys by saying that Elain is not interested in Lucien and that maybe the cauldron was wrong and that they were not supposed to be mates, which leaves Rhys all “what the actual fuck????”. To which Azriel responds by saying that there are 3 sisters and 3 brothers, so how come were 2 sisters given to 2 of those brothers (Rhys and Cassian) but the third one wasn’t???? Rhys gets all 😡 and tell Azriel that he should go to a pleasure house and leave Elain alone, to not jeopardize their relationship with Lucien, cause he’s a really important ally for them, as he has ties with many courts + the human realm

Az gets really mad about the whole thing, we know he always wanted a mate, so this whole thing is a sensitive topic for him. He then meets Gwyn, a new character to the series, he trains her on combat with Cassian, and she was overall a really important character in ACOSF. They have a moment, filled with playful banter and even a couple of revelations (we learned from their conversation that Az sings) and when he leaves her he was much more cool minded

As the chapter goes, we learn that Elain returned the rose shaped necklace, putting it back in his gift pile, without even talking to him. He then gets the necklace and anonymously gives it to Gwyn, thinking about how her eyes will shine upon seeing it, calling it “a thing of secret, lovely beauty”

NOW, everyone is entitled to their opinions, and even if I don’t agree, I see why people would ship Elain and Azriel considering some other moments they had during the other books. I for one think that the bonus chapter was a way of Sarah to put an end to them. I think his interaction with Gwyn was much more interesting and had that sjm couple banter thing, that she always writes, and honestly it just seemed healthier (considering how Az’s pov goes)

But even if we forget about Gwyn for a moment, during Silver Flames there were a couple of moments when Az just pretty much dismissed Elain, when she wanted to do finally do something and help everyone. Saying how Elain should not be exposed to such darkness and all. Which could be cute, like, “awnn he wants to protect her”, but he did it behind her back and she was really just trying to help and do more. And that didn’t sit right with me

As for Elain and Lucien, I’m not gonna lie, it’s looking very good for them lol. But, I think they will overcome their issues, cause they don’t have anything against each other. They don’t even know each other. Their issue is not personal, And I think that eventually they will know each other and things will work out just fine

So, answering your question, Idk who’s gonna end up with who. I have my personal beliefs and some people have completely different ideas. Not really sure who to blame for this, maybe we should blame Sarah for being a little ambiguous or ourselves for being maybe a bit too emotional about it 🤡

But I’ll tell you this: acotar 5 is next, so we’re gonna find out soon enough ✨

[gxldencity]

maybe James Somerton constantly mispronouncing zevran in his gayming video essay should've been the first red flag for me

that was like...the first time ive ever heard of him bc someone recc'd me the video. I took one look at it and it felt very much video essay for ppl who don't know that queer narratives have existed in video games for decades and I thought it would be too surface level for me. So I never watched it (rip sorry to whoever recc'd it)