[allergictononsense]

my elriel banner 🫶🏻👁️🦇

@elriel-month

[allergictononsense]

added some jasmine flower details with pngs because that is her signature scent 🤍

[lovelriel]

“you came” elain said behind her, and nesta started, not having heard her sister approach. she scanned elain from head to toe, wondering if she’d been taking lessons in stealth either from azriel or the two half-wraiths she called friends.”

; acosf chap 58 ♡

114 days until elriel book.

first art by vats9_9, comm by elain_kingslayer and second art by tangerine.eileen

[fanged-beast33]

@elriel-month | Gardens

Azriel smiled faintly. “Would you like me to show you the garden?” She seemed so small before him, so fragile compared to the scales of his fighting leathers, the breadth of his shoulders. The wings peeking over them. But Elain did not balk from him, did not shy away as she nodded—just once.

Azriel, graceful as any courtier, offered her an arm. I couldn’t tell if she was looking at his blue Siphon or at his scarred skin beneath as she breathed, “Beautiful.” Color bloomed high on Azriel’s golden-brown cheeks, but he inclined his head in thanks and led my sister toward the back doors into the garden, sunlight bathing them.

✨Art by aurithemoon

✨Commissioned by me

✨Please do not repost without permission. Likes and shares are appreciated.

[babyrowann]

i’ve gone a bit collage crazy over the last few weeks and made one for each court + our sweet elriel

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter

Dawn

Day

Night

Dusk

and one special one for elriel

elriel art: @ gracerstudios

[thesunlovesthestar]

Nuala and Cerridwen week!!!

art by me;)

[riddlecats]

fandom confession blog simulator

post 1: i hate female character

post 2: i hate this pairing. she isnt good enough for him

post 3: i hate it when people assume im a misogynist based on the media i like

post 4: i hate this other female character

[elrieluniverse]

Especially for what they’d done for my sister. The companionship, the purpose, the small sense of normalcy in that kitchen. She’d bought them those cozy, fuzzy blankets from the weaver, one raspberry pink and the other lilac.

[t4timekeeper]

anyway i think fans of unjustly overhated female characters and fans of unjustly overhated characters of colour should unionize

[protectorofvel]

I really love how hands are a key detail in most of Elriel’s scenes. Azriel’s hand constantly finds Elain’s and holds it tightly, as if he doesn’t want to let go. It’s as if their bodies do this naturally. It’s as if their souls already know each other. 🥹🩷💙

[fawnsgarden]

bc elain is the kind of character u have to pay close attention to in order to fully appreciate, her relationship with the symbolism of hands has always fascinated me. her hobbies (gardening and cooking), her relationship with az (their hidden hand touches, her appreciation of the scars on his hands, the use of TT etc etc), her relationship with lucien (the gloves) and even the way her attitude gradually changes throughout the narrative are all conveyed, in one way or another, through this symbolism. anyway, when the bitter aftertaste of everything surrounding acotar 6's release finally fades, i promise i'll write an essay abt it. the good thing is that there'll be more information to work with

note: even the fact that her mother saw her as a doll is interesting bc it ties into that symbolism as well, since dolls are objects that other ppl manipulate with their hands

[fawnsgarden]

elain and the symbolism of hands as a form of autonomy - moodboard

"it wasn’t meanness that kept her from offering to help; it simply never occurred to her that she might be capable of getting her hands dirty" (acotar)

"i didn’t ask my sister, and she supplied no answer as she took the water bucket dangling from elain’s still-bloody hands, and i followed them both through the trees" (acowar)

"and i wondered if she preferred to have torn and sweaty hands, if the dirt and cuts were proof of her labor. her joy" (acofas)

"don't forget that gardening often results in something pretty, but it involves getting one's hands dirty along the way" (acosf, bc)

[cherrymoonlights]

i always say this, but I love how elriel stans are always Elain stans. always. I have never met an elriel that doesn’t absolutely adore Elain. we are so loyal to our girl fr

[allergictononsense]

𓇢𓆸 Her eyes were the brown of a fawn’s coat.

𓇢𓆸 Her sister’s delicate scent of jasmine and honey lingered in the red-stoned hall like a promise of spring, a sparkling river that she followed to the open doors of the chamber.

[fawnsgarden]

u guys are taking the br publisher (galera record) way too seriously. not long ago they even made a form asking fans to choose bonus fanart for a BL book and one of the options was the MMC kissing a female friend (???) and there was NO option of him kissing his actual romantic partner 🤡 it was a whole mess

here’s what happened, in case u want to see it. the publisher knew the couple was gay and yet the romantic interaction was given to a female character instead: https://x.com/i/status/2045135158748016803

[fawnsgarden]

did anyone do a post abt the symbolism of hands in elain’s journey?? i’d rlly love to read it 😭😭😭

[adifferentsortofstrength]

Nuala x Cerridwen: the Handmaidens, the Spies, the Sisters, the Friends

The way we are introduced to these two is through Feyre’s eyes UTM. She assumes they are Rhysand’s handmaidens, and it isn’t until they hide with her from the Attor that she realizes they’re so much more:

“My escorts pressed in tighter to me, so tense that I realized they were holding their breath. Handmaidens—and spies.” ACOTAR CH 41

We as the readers are shown that while they do act as handmaidens, their true job is spywork. Their more domestic tasks are a ruse to explain their presence UTM. While it is not stated overtly, we can assume that they have been aiding Rhys during his time there, potentially gathering information to help him subvert Amarantha and her cronies.

Throughout the next book we see them unfurling through their interactions with Feyre, learning that they are half wraith-half High Fae and answer equally to Rhy and Azriel:

“ “They make good spies.”

“Why do you think they’re now whispering in Azriel’s ear that I’m in here?”

“I thought they answered to Rhys.”

“They answer to both, but they were trained by Azriel first.” “ ACOMAF CH 28

Azriel was the one to train them, and it seems that their loyalty to him may supersede their loyalty to Rhysand in some ways.

They continue to act as handmaidens and spies, accompanying them to Adriata:

“Nuala, it seemed, was a spectacularly good spy. Tarquin’s pewter tunic was accented with the same shade of seafoam green as my clothes. We might as well have been a matching set.” ACOMAF CH 34

“Rhys snorted, and shadows gathered around him as he loosened his grip on his power. “Nuala and Cerridwen are already on the move inside the castle.” ACOMAF CH 35

So even when Azriel is not there as the Spymaster, they are gathering intel, using it to shape the way others perceive Feyre, and supporting their mission to retrieve the Book of Breathings.

When we see them in the end of ACOWAR, spending time with Elain in the kitchen, something has shifted:

“Elain stood between Nuala and Cerridwen at the long worktable. All three of them covered in flour. Some sort of doughy mess on the surface before them.

The two handmaiden-spies instantly bowed to Rhys, and Elain—

There was a slight sparkle in her brown eyes.

As if she’d been enjoying herself with them.

Nuala swallowed hard. “The lady said she was hungry, so we went to make her something. But—she said she wanted to learn how, so …” Hands wreathed in shadows lifted in a helpless gesture, flour drifting off them like veils of snow. “We’re making bread.”

Elain was glancing between all of us, and as her eyes began to shutter-“ ACOWAR CH 40

Elain, who had been closed off and grieving, was comfortable enough with the twins to let down her guard and ask them to help her in learning to bake. When Rhys and Feyre arrive, it appears that Nuala is aware of the coming shift in Elain’s mood, and we see her discomfort in explaining what they were doing. Immediately after, we see Elain begin to shut down again.

There is an implied familiarity between Elain, Nuala, and Cerridwen, so we can safely assume that they had spent time together prior to this in some capacity. At least enough for Elain to relax around them in a way we have yet to see her do otherwise.

In ACOFAS, the final time we see them, it is clear that their friendship has grown significantly:

“Elain was in the kitchen, helping Nuala and Cerridwen prepare the evening meal.”

“Elain’s voice was colder than usual. I glanced at Nuala and Cerridwen, the latter giving me a shake of her head as if to say, Not a good day for her.” ACOFAS CH 12

Feyre sees that they know her sister well enough to trust their appraisal of Elain’s demeanor. It is likely, then, that as their friendship grew, they have discussed the full scope of their role in the Night Court, that Elain knows they are spies first and foremost.

Nuala and Cerridwen are compelling, interesting, multifaceted characters. They can’t simply be put into one box, as it would discount the complicated role that they play within the Night Court.

They seem to be Azriel’s right hands, his most trusted spies, as they are constantly present within the narrative. Rhysand trusted them enough to have them with him when he attended the doomed party that trapped them all UTM. He trusted them to attend to Feyre, during and after. They are entwined with the Inner Circle, and I can’t wait to learn more about them in the coming books.