a bit about Elain's trauma and why it correlates with her rejecting her mating bond with Lucien in the future, a thread:
(WARNING: this post isn’t about ships, except Elucien because Lucien is a key factor in Elain’s trauma. )
Everyone deals with trauma in their own way and that’s totally okay. Some are destructive, some shut people up and others want to not feel anything. Elain, just as Nesta, went into the Cauldron and those moments were horrific for her.
She is literally dragged and shoved into the Cauldron while she cries, struggles and kicks to escape the guards’ grasps. The guards and the King keep laughing at her during the whole time.
Elain is used as an experiment for the Queens.
She is used as if she was a mere object.
Her body has been changed forever and she is practically naked, completely terrified and in shock from whatever she has gone through inside the Cauldron. (We know how terrifying and horrible it can be because of Nesta’s experience.) Everyone is looking at her, some are even laughing.
Do you know how violating this could feel? To be left naked and vulnerable in front of people who have just terrorized you? How would you feel?
We don’t know what she goes through inside the Cauldron, but it was probably very painful and terrifying. Then, she is thrown off it and she experiences this horrific scene, and her mating bond with Lucien snaps.
Another thing has been decided for her.
Not only has her body and life been changed forever without her consent, now her romantic relationship has been decided for her as well. And it’s with a man who participated in the plan that made this horrific moment happen.
Lucien is an accomplice of that. He isn’t a bad person, but he is CLEARLY an accomplice. (GO NESTA!!)
Elain is dealing with her trauma and she doesn’t own Lucien anything. She suffered so much, she was broken and traumatized by what happened to her.
And Lucien and their mate bond are a BIG reminder of the day her body and life were changed against her own will.
We don’t know much about her, but we have seen enough of her suffering and how traumatized she is in the books. Feyre always admired Elain’s strength, because being kind and gentle in a world so dark takes balls, you know? Later on in the books, Elain is still kind and gentle but more reserved and quiet because she is dealing with her own shit.
Strength doesn’t equal to physical force. A big example? Queen Elizabeth I of England was strong and she never fought in a battlefield, but she was intelligent, cunning and brought a Golden Age to her country. She made a place for herself in a patriarcal society and that’s how strong she was.
Elain’s strength differs from Nesta’s, Mor’s and Feyre’s. She isn’t an active fighter like them, but yet she had the guts to fight in the war and stabbed the King on the neck to protect Nesta because she loves her sister and would die for her. Look at this.
No one wanted her to fight, but she chose to. SHE CHOSE TO! This is important. She is scared in the battle camp and doesn’t know how to fight or wield a sword, yet she trusts her friends and wants to fight alongside them.
She might die in the battlefield, but at least she will fight fighting and not be a pawn.
She will enact revenge for what the King did to Nesta, to Feyre and to herself.
MOREOVER –– Another big trauma (aside from happened inside the Cauldron and the dramatic changes in her life), it will probably be center around her body.
Her clothes, body and beauty are mentioned all the time. ALL THE TIME. Elain, who was a very proper and modest lady (and didn’t want to talk about periods even with her sisters), was seen naked against her will by everyone and she probably felt violated.
Feyre mentions Elain’s reaction when she sees her and Nesta wearing Illyrian fighting leathers. She mentions how Elain was offered something less scandalous and more proper.
Imagine how someone so proper would feel after being used and seen all vulnerable and naked by so many people? To have been ogled against your will? To be seen as an “object” to see whether the Cauldron worked?
Nesta is a sexual assault survivor and she also suffered because of their youth, Feyre’s sacrifice to provide for them and Elain suffering from the Cauldron incident. She dealt with her trauma in her own way, just as Elain deals with it in her own way. And that’s okay!
In Elain’s book, her choosing who she wants to be with and how she wants to live from now on will be important. She will turn down Lucien, as it is obvious from what I explained above and because of the following: Feyre and Rhys comment on how being mates doesn’t equal to being right for each other.
Sarah J. Maas said this as well.
She also said that a mating bond is something rare but that some people might be lucky and end up having two. But the main thing is:
Elain will reject Lucien because they aren’t right for each other and she will chose whomever she wants to because she loves that person. That’s big and it will be key to the plot.
Elain might end up being lucky and while falling for another person, a new mating bond might develop. But at the end of the day, it will be her choice.
Not the Cauldron’s choice, not society’s choice or anyone else.
You think she is boring? Well, we will learn more about her and we will see her heal from her trauma. Her body and her choices have been violated, but she will heal and grow for that and gain ownership over herself once again.
Rhys, Amren and Feyre believe there is more to her than just the kindness she shows.
“Maybe she was never given the chance to be that way.” “You think I stifle her?” “Not you alone. […] But I wonder if everyone has spent so long assuming Elain is sweet and innocent that she felt she had to be that way or else she’d dissapoint you all. […] With time and safety, perhaps we’ll see a different side of her emerge”
“You think Elain is boring?” “I think she’s kind, and I’ll take that kindness over nastiness every day. But I also think we haven’t yet seen all she has to offer.”
“Don’t forget that gardening often results in something pretty, but it involves getting one’s hands dirty along the way.”
“You can’t have it both ways. You cannot resent my decision to lead a small, quiet life while also refusing to let me do anything greater.”
“I went into the Cauldron, too, you know. And it captured me. And yet somehow all you think of is what my trauma did to you.”
“Including Elain, who is more than capable of defending herself against the darkness of the Trove, if she chooses to. Don’t underestimate her.”
Being a seer gives you many powers, but it would take me too much time so I recommend you to read this LONG AND AMAZING list of powers a seer might have posted by @miru5llec and you will be shocked and hyped.
If you like mythology and fantasy literature, you know seers are feared and respected. Kings have killed for having a seer in their ranks. They can reach levels of divine status and their ability as a seer gives them many more powers than those I have mentioned before.
Elain might not be physically powerful like Nesta or Feyre, but being a seer makes her more powerful than both of them but IN ANOTHER WAY. Look at the list above (linked) if you don’t believe me.
Her being on the Night Court makes Feysand’s court the most powerful in Prythian.
That’s why Elain is not boring and her trauma is valid. There is much more to her than what little we have seen. SJM has said so. Rhys, Feyre, Amren, everyone has said so in the books. We will learn about her, see her heal and chose who to love in her book.
“Why?” Elain demanded. “Shall I tend to my little garden forever?” When Nesta flinched, Elain said, “You can’t have it both ways. You cannot resent my decision to lead a small, quiet life while also refusing to let me do anything greater.”
“But Elain said, “I went into the Cauldron, too, you know. And it captured me. And yet somehow all you think of is what my trauma did to you.”
We will see her develop her powers and learn how to use them. She is possibly the key to killing Koschei (the big bad villain) because she might have visions of where his heart is hidden in that fucking box and guide the IC to find it.
Furthermore, stop saying “I want Elucien to happen so Lucien can be happy.” or “Azriel deserves better than Elain because she likes to garden and is mated to Lucien.”
Elain doesn’t belong to Lucien.
Elain can garden, bake and walk around on her hands while singing La Macarena and that doesn’t make her any less strong than Feyre, Mor, Nesta or any other female character.
(Also, in this stupid ship war I have seen people pointing out how she wouldn’t be able to give Azriel children because her body isn’t Illyrian. This is disgusting. You are basically saying that all her worth lies in whether she can give someone children or not.
Do I remind you adoption exists? Rhys, Cassian and Azriel are brothers by choice, not by blood and they are BROTHERS. You can adopt and be a mother. And you can chose to not have children and that would be okay too. A woman’s worth isn’t in her uterus.
(I posted this thread on Twitter as well, so if you liked it you can go there and RT it or hit a like.)
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