vii

Elriel 🌹 Feysand 🌌

[filigreex]

Rhys knew feyre was his mate and he kept quiet.

Cassian knew nesta was his mate and he kept quiet.

Then you have lucien....

"you're my mate." while elain is soaked, shivering and being leered at by her captors. Oh, he lost from the very beginning.

[furtivelywanderingturtle]

“He grinned at me over the giant tiered cake in his arms- over the twenty-one sparkling candles lighting up his face. Cassian clapped me on the shoulder. 'You thought you could sneak it past us, didn't you?' I groaned. 'You're all insufferable.' Elain floated to my side. 'Happy birthday, Feyre.' My friends- my family- echoed the words as Rhys set the cake on the low-lying table before the fire. I glanced toward my sister. 'Did you...?' A nod from Elain. 'Nuala did the decorating, though.' It was then that I realised what the three different tiers had been painted to look like. On the top: flowers. In the middle: flames. And on the bottom, widest layer... stars. The same design of the chest of drawers I'd once painted in that dilapidated cottage. One for each of us- each sister. Those stars and moons sent to me, my mind, by my mate, long before we'd ever met. 'I asked Nuala to do it in that order,' Elain said as the others gathered round. 'Because you're the foundation, the one who lifts us. You always have been.' My throat tightened unbearably, and I squeezed her hand in answer. Mor, Cauldron bless her, shouted, 'Make a wish and let us get to the presents!”

And then some ppl here want Elain de#d? WTH? PROTECT THIS WOMAN AT ALL COSTS!

[flowers-and-shadows]

What they don't seem to grasp

The thing I think GAELs can't seem to understand is that, as "potential" as your fanfic couple may be, in canon? It. Can't. Work.

Yeah, Lucien is a sad boy with a tragic past (he is also an asshole; you seem to ignore it, but whatever), and that he and Elain could work out the bond could be possible... if they were written for that. This is a romance novel. A fantasy romance novel.

Lucien is not written to be the endgame MMC. As I said, he is an asshole. He is canonically one. And he has a lot to redeem, not just being part of Elain's trauma. As a character, he is not the ideal handsome, Regency-era novel male lead that some of you seem to imagine as canon when he is not. He is constantly being downplayed by the narrative, not just because SJM wants to "let's break this male so the other male is perfect," but because, since ACOTAR, he was a manipulative bastard.

You just focused on Tamlin (like Feyre did). But once Tamlin was out of the picture, Feyre had to see him again to realize, "You are a prick" (her actual words).

Feyre is just trying to see if Elain and Lucien are compatible when she suggests the "most-awkward-tea-time-meeting" because she is happily bonded, and so is Nesta, so she hopes for Elain to be happily bonded too and not sadly bonded, like Rhys's parents were. Because she heard from Rhys how horrible it is to be wrongly bonded with someone. He told her. Feyre is not forgetting that. She is just ignoring it for the sake of her own mind.

(And let's not mention the fact that you EL fans, if not all of you, some of you do, that Elain has to redeem herself somehow)

There's a lot to do that you can write in a fanfic, changing canon events, but it's that: a fanfic.

And though Azriel and Gwyn's actual relationship is much better than Elain and Lucien's, they are still in the first stage of "two people who know each other".

We don't have any idea what's on Gwyn's mind, but we know what's on Azriel's, and believe me, it's not a good romance if it starts with a "you are a rebound from the woman I was five minutes ago kissing, ready to get on my knees to suck her pussy".

Are there any romance novels that start like that? Only the ones where the male lead is an asshole. Yep, cool start.

So, yeah. Go write your fanfic. In canon, it's just not happening.

[silverdreamscapes]

If people are hung up on the “he wouldn’t call Gw*n a friend” line, it’s because it’s a pretty accurate description of their relationship before and after Solstice, and why it makes so little sense that two characters who aren’t close are supposedly the couple of the next book.

Based on what we know, Azriel didn’t train Gwyn. Cassian did. Azriel trained the new priestesses where it’s stated several times he was on the other side of the training ring. On his first day there he’s described as quiet and aloof to put them at ease, and three days after solstice he’s more “aloof and stonefaced than usual”. So all this time that he’s been there training, he isn’t talking much to anyone, even Gw*n. The first line of dialogue these two ever share with each other is 82% into the book, and their last interaction is at 84%. A line about a ribbon said by another character, which is more than likely referring to Gw*n’s competitive nature and not a romantic attraction, is not enough to build a relationship on.

So they don’t train together, he doesn’t spend time with her, and he isn’t talking to anyone when he is there training the priestesses. The one time we get a reference to them spending any sort of time together it’s a comment about a single 1 hour dagger lesson that’s never talked about or referenced again. And it couldn’t have been that important, because this comes before solstice, and afterwards Azriel still wouldn’t consider her a friend.

And if the “image of her smile” sparking in his chest is supposed to be so important, and signify a shift in Azriel’s romantic love interest, it’s certainly never alluded to in the actual book. The dynamics of their relationship are still pretty much unchanged, it’s still primarily focused on training. There’s no mention of a smile, a glance, a touch, a blush. No mention of them spending any time together, or getting closer. Hell maybe even a mention of them spending more 1 on 1 time together for training lessons.

Months go by from Solstice to the end of the book, and there is no indication that they are any closer than they were before when Azriel said he wouldn’t classify their relationship as a friendship, much less an actual romantic attraction. And it’s not like SJM couldn’t have hinted at something. She felt the need to include Gw*n blushing at Rhys, and the 2 priestesses sighing when Azriel walked by but nothing for Gw*nriel? And it’s not like SJM doesn’t know how to leave hints. She does it frequently with characters noticing something, or being puzzled by something. Case in point:

Like you two,” she said, nodding to Cassian, and then, a bit more shyly, to Azriel. Azriel offered her a small smile that Elain quickly looked away from. Cassian tucked away his puzzlement. Lucien was certainly not here to snarl at any male who looked at her for too long.

And it’s not as if she couldn’t have included a scene of Gw*n and Azriel actually spending alone time together in the months after Solstice where it’s indicated there’s a shift in their relationship. In ACOFAS, she specifically wrote Elain and Azriel staying up till 3 am talking about garden plans and then they’re left alone. Amren, Varian, and Nesta leave at 2 AM, Cassian, Mor, Rhys and Feyre go upstairs at 3 AM. And Elain and Azriel “remained” in the sitting room alone, where who knows what happened. But based on the fact that we got all of those hints in ACOSF that Azriel’s romantic feelings deepened and it was after this night when he started staring at her gift every night on his nightstand, it’s obvious something happened that caused a shift in their relationship.

And yet we get nothing like this for Gw*nriel. They aren’t friends before, there’s no indication of a friendship or intimacy or closeness or an attraction between them after solstice. There’s no mention of them spending any time together after solstice, or that they even talk to one another, even though months have passed. So what is there to indicate that these two characters who aren’t all that close, are suddenly going to be a couple when Azriel spent most of the whole book romantically attracted to and pining for another woman?

[elrieluniverse]

Reminder that Lucien sent Feyre out into the woods knowing she could have been killed.

Reminder that Lucien tried to kidnap Feyre and bring her back to her abuser.

Reminder that Lucien is a bystander to abuse.

Reminder that Lucien had a big part in Elain’s trauma.

Reminder that Lucien makes Elain uncomfortable.

Reminder that Lucien is said to not be trusted.

[azrielsbreedingkink]

The AUTHOR confirmed Lucien was a part of Elain’s trauma, yet y’all think she’s toxic for not liking him?

[luvselen]

I just read a comment saying that Gwyn is way smarter than Feyre because she spends so much time in the library reading books, so she should be High Lady. I won't even comment on that. I just want to point out that you are massively overstating Gwyn's role and importance.

[elriellover]

Friendly reminder: azriel doesn’t even view gwyn as a friend meanwhile he goes on death missions for elain

[acourtofquietdreamers]

[mortalfae7]

[lunaduskxo]

I want to apologize in advance of how petty I’ll be when Elain and Azriel’s book is out…

[lady-surieldown]

Oh I'm not apologizing AT ALL

[vvitchqueenofharrenhall]

I will be doing the pettiest victory lap ever.

[cottonpinkbat]

And my last joke for tonight..how GA expect Gwyn to carry 3 books when she couldn’t carry her own ass through Blood Rite?

[cottonpinkbat]

And my last joke for tonight..how GA expect Gwyn to carry 3 books when she couldn’t carry her own ass through Blood Rite?

[luvselen]

​"The Harp is for Gwyn"

Pls I am actually crying, are you guys okay?? 😭 The way some of you will bend the entire lore backward just to avoid admitting that Elain is the main focus of the next book

[mortalfae7]

Since when is Gwyn made?

[elainsgarden]

sjm calling elain, “the quiet dreamer” and the night court is known as, “the court of dreams” AND WHO SAID ELAIN DIDN’T BELONG THERE AGAIN? 

[elainsgarden]

two of the most powerful men in prythian and elain archeron had them TRAILING yep that’s my girl 

[mortalfae7]

sarahjmaas: That love would trump even a mating bond