#rowan and lorcan brotp | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

seasonofthewicth · 4 years

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hellas in a handbasket

Thanks to Hannah (@cicada-bones) for planting the idea in my mind of what could have been in store for Lorcan and Aelin post-koa, and also for the title.

5 times Rowan finds drunken Aelin and Lorcan causing trouble + 1 time he gets them started. post-koa aelorcan bonding. (4.7k)

prompts used

Lord Lorcan Lochan, she still laughs every time she hears his name, is not her favourite person. He is her favourite person, however, to beat at cards.

Aelin isn’t sure how they ended up here, just the two of them. He and Elide are visiting from Perranth on ‘official business’ which she knows is just code for visiting their friends. Aelin has loved having Elide here; she missed out on so much time with Elide in the years they were apart, and she takes every chance she can to see her now that Terrasen has begun to settle and rebuild.

She’s not sure what time Elide drifted off to bed, and she knows Rowan’s meeting with the Ambassador from Wendlyn is likely to run long, but she hadn’t expected herself to end up here, in a booth in the back corner of a small, dark tavern in Orynth with Lorcan.

Their relationship is… better than it was. Better than when they first met and he had hated her with a burning passion for stealing Rowan away, better even than when he had begrudgingly sworn the blood oath to her on that small boat just over a year ago.

That said, it doesn’t stop him from slurring, “You’re a fucking bitch.”

He swipes a hand over the back of his mouth, wiping away any droplets of the ale left in his thick stubble. She frowns in disgust.

“Speak for yourself,” She says properly, looking back down to where she’s spread her winning hand on the sticky tabletop. “It’s not my fault you’re awful at this game.”

He offers her a sarcastic smile, unamused as always at her sense of humour.

“I could always make you win,” She says, all too sweetly. “Deal another round.”

With a gentle tug on the blood oath between them she cocks her head at him. Lorcan bears his teeth but gathers the cards up to deal again, unable to fight the order, no matter how small.

Aelin leans back in her seat, smiling slightly, as he flips the cards neatly into two piles in front of them.

She revels in the fact that she never normally has to use the pull of the oath, confident in the devotion Rowan, Aedion and Fenrys offer her without question- well, without serious question. None of them are inclined to bite their tongue if they ever disagree with her, but still, she never feels the need to use it.

She wants to with Lorcan sometimes, simply just to wind him up, but Rowan always seems to catch her mid thought and raises a silver eyebrow.

It’s always some version of causing trouble again, Fireheart?

She only ever answers yes.

She picks up her cards, and grins over the top of them at Lorcan, who is already scowling at her and then back down at his cards. It really is just luck how she keeps winning, but he doesn’t need to know that. Let him believe she’s a cheat, Aelin doesn’t care, she will empty his pouch of gold by the end of the night.

She tosses a card down onto the table and takes another swig of her ale as Lorcan frowns at the card she has put down. His knee begins bouncing under the table and she knows she’s won again already.

She bites her lip to try and stop the cunning grin from spreading across her face, but from the dark rumbling sensation she feels stirring it doesn’t work. He picks the card up and throws down one of his own, and as if by magic, it’s the card she needs.

With half a thought she decorates her brow with a glowing circlet of fire and Lorcan throws his cards onto the table with a growl. The rumbling grows louder, and the tavern seems to darken.

She has half a mind to look around and check none of the other patrons have noticed, she knows they will have, but winding Lorcan up is worth the tongue-lashing she’ll get from the Lords of Terrasen about her un-queen-like behaviour.

In a second though the darkness is gone, and the crown of flame atop her head is put out. The scent of pine and snow fills her and she settles into the presence of her mate.

“You two,” Rowan starts, “Are causing a little bit of a commotion.”

He’s smiling at them though as he approaches, his sharp canines shining in the dim light, so she knows they’re not in trouble.

“She started it,” Lorcan mutters and she laughs in his face.

Rowan only sighs, the sound of someone tired of playing mediator, but he signals to the barkeep for another round and takes the seat next to her, picking up the discarded cards to shuffle for another round.

Lorcan knows he has mellowed in the past year or so. The release from the torment that was serving under Maeve, and the torturous longing that came with it, was more than a weight off his shoulders.

But he maintains that he still hates Aelin Galathynius, or whatever the far too long string of words her name is. He hates her.

“You know this is a bad idea,” He says as he strides into the small study he knows she works in in the cold of a winter afternoon.

The fire is burning bright in the fireplace, but the carefully arranged stack of wood doesn’t seem to char, and he scowls even more.

She turns a clearly fake look of innocence onto him, “What is, my darling blood-sworn?”

He hates that too, hates that he is sworn to her and her country, as if she hasn’t already won everything else in her pathetically short life, she’s won him too. Even if a small part of him reluctantly respects her for the way she runs her court.

The oath is to protect and serve Terrasen, not her, and he can feel it in his blood. Without it he would protect Elide until his dying breath, and even then he’d go down fighting, but the openness of this oath, the freedom it allows him, is refreshing. And he’ll never admit it, to anyone, but he’s proud to serve Terrasen.

“This,” He says and holds up the proposal she had drafted for the arrangements for the court to travel to the witch territory. He doesn’t want to see that other bitch-queen either, but Elide is excited, so he’ll put up and shut up.

She stands, the loose cotton of her dress unrolling as she glides over to a drinks tray in the corner of the room.

“Take a seat,” is all she says.

She doesn’t use the oath, and he appreciates how little she does, but he would have expected it at something as small as that. She likes to use it on him just when she knows it will rile him the most, on stupid shit that she knows he’ll do anyway, with or without the tug deep within him.

He almost deliberates over it, but decides ultimately it isn’t worth it. Young she may be, but the queen in front of him can put a male in his place.

She hands the small glass, with an inch of a brown spirit in the bottom, to him as she takes her own seat opposite him.

“So?” She raises an eyebrow as she curls up opposite him, taking a sip of her own drink.

“So you need to redo it all.”

He has trained for centuries for how to navigate these things. This stupid young girl knows nothing. She only smirks at him over the rim of his glass, and he curses himself for what he’s about to say next.

He tosses the piece of parchment across the floor between them and it flutters to the ground. “I added my suggestions for what would work better.”

The way she balances her chin on her fist, with the corners of her lips pulled upwards, tells him he’s fallen right into her trap. She knows the plans were bullshit, she just also knows he would plan it far better than she would.

“Bitch,” He curses but she only smirks.

“You’re centuries old, do you not know any other words? Bitch is so old by now.”

He draws up a tiny reel of his power, Whitethorn would skin him if he touched a pretty hair on the head of his mate, but it still feels good to do it.

“Bitch,” is all he says as he sends the tendril of his power over to her.

“Dog,” She snarks back as he feels the warmth of flame across his brow. She didn’t even have to blink to throw it at him, and he dulls the part of his brain that is impressed at her skill.

His next retort is on the tip of his tongue as he realises he’s actually having fun messing with her. She can give as good as she gets, and she doesn’t roll her eyes and refuse to bite the way Whitethorn would, doesn’t take it too far the way the young wolf would.

“You’re scaring the staff.” Whitethorn’s voice is amused as it drifts in from the doorway where he leans, broad arms crossed over his chest, pulling against the deep green tunic he wears.

He hadn’t realised how dark he had let it get, or how warm the queen had managed to make it.

“It’s all him,” she says, as her mate comes to rest by her side.

Rowan brings a hand up to lightly stroke a path down her back, and Lorcan thinks it’s nice to see Whitethorn so happy. Gods, he’s getting soft in his old age, but maybe Elide has shown him it is more than okay to feel this way.

He’ll pretend that isn’t another thing he owes to the Queen of Terrasen.

Aelin likes messing with Lorcan, loves it even, but honestly, this time was an accident.

She probably didn’t need to invite Elide and Lorcan on their trip to the Southern Continent but she thinks she deserves the trip, and the sunlight. Perranth is known for the rain and she knows that no matter how much Elide loves to be home she doesn’t love the rain.

She doesn’t give a shit how Lorcan feels, but where Elide goes, he goes.

And maybe that’s a lie, maybe she’s glad he’s here too, and not just for Rowan. Maybe she enjoys it when they end up just the two of them, drinking and talking shit. Maybe she knew exactly what would happen when she asked everyone if they fancied a drink and Lorcan was the only one up for it.

She’d rather burn all her favourite gowns than tell him that though.

Aelin hadn’t meant for the fighter to overhear her comment to Lorcan while they watched the street fight from a distance. They were beginning to make their way back to the palace after drinking their fill in one of the taverns nearby.

“Trust me, you could beat him blindfolded,” she had said, slapping the back of her hand against his chest.

“Shut up,” He had all but growled, barely in the mood to play tonight, still grouchy from his inability to sleep during their journey across the sea.

Apparently she had spoken too loudly for them to go undetected and the organiser had called out to them.

“You don’t trust her?” He had asked, his accent twisting around the words.

Aelin doesn’t know how he knew to use the common tongue, maybe something about them stood out in the crowd. Maybe Lorcan’s height or the dark energy that emanates from him at all times.

She’s hoping the hood of her cloak hides her identity, hopes it hides the bright gold of her hair, and keeps it a secret that the Queen of Terrasen is hidden away in the crowd, watching this street fight unfold.

Lorcan had only snorted and replied, “Our friendship is purely built on lies, I second guess everything she says.”

She had smacked him again as the organiser proposed his challenge to Lorcan, but she couldn’t help the warmth that bloomed at his choice of words. Friendship.

She should have put an end to it there, and when Rowan asks, she tried, but she couldn’t resist poking Lorcan when the challenge was made.

Now he stands in the centre of the crowd, knees bent and fists raised in front of himself. She wasn’t serious about the blindfold, but apparently the townspeople were. The man strikes and Lorcan blocks, the smile still not leaving his face. She shouts a taunt and he flips the finger in her general direction. The man uses it as an opportunity to strike, but Lorcan doesn’t miss it.

He uses an arm to block the man’s blow and uses his leg to trip the man’s feet out from under him. The man hits the ground with an oof and Lorcan tugs the blindfold off. Game over.

This street fight isn’t the same level as the ones in the pits that Arobynn challenged her to fight in. She would have never put Lorcan forward if it was. It might be questionable for a queen and one of her blood-sworn to be here, but it’s still technically legal. She’s tipsy, not stupid.

Lorcan sketches a mocking bow to the crowd and she cheers as a strong arm wraps around her waist and the warmth of her mate appears at her back. She leans back into him automatically and he presses a kiss to the crown of her head.

“I take it, this is your doing?” He asks, his tone bright with amusement.

She knows he used to be concerned about her relationship with his former commander, knows it used to worry him how they were at each other's throats, and she’ll never forget the look on his face when Lorcan had a blade to her throat that day in Rifthold. She’s confident he knows they’re settled now.

She turns in his arms to look up to his face in the dark.

How could you assume such a thing? She raises a brow, but beneath the cloak he probably can’t see.

All she can make out beneath his own hood is the shine of his fangs through his smile and the etchings of his tattoo across the lower planes of his handsome face.

Because it’s you. He leans down to press the briefest of kisses to her lips. And him.

She only shrugs, she can’t deny the regularity at which she ends up in situations like this with Lorcan. She can’t deny enjoying them either.

“What, you don’t like my majestic beard?”

Lorcan knows he’s over five centuries old, but he has downed enough ale that he doesn’t care as he leans over to the young Queen of Terrasen, close enough to get in her space and risk rubbing his rough beard across her skin.

She isn’t amused, the fire of her temper already prompting beads of sweat down the back of his neck.

“I want to burn that animal off your face.”

Lorcan laughs far too loudly, and he’s vaguely aware of some of the young sentries at the nearest table looking over with concern, before quickly emptying the table at the dark sound erupting from his chest.

“So touchy today, been a while without Whitethorn has it?”

Something flickers in her unusual eyes at the mention of her King-Consort, her mate, and his trip to Adarlan. The striking contrast of the blue and gold is something he has always found intriguing about the Ashryvers of Wendlyn. Meeting the queen and the pain in his arse that is her cousin quickly ended his curiosity.

He’s struck, deep and low in his chest, at the thought of the General, and his father who Lorcan served beside for hundreds of years. Gavriel. He thinks about the male often, misses him every day in ways that he hadn’t thought himself capable of.

The tribute to the Lion of Doranelle that now stands in Orynth is something he takes time to visit everytime he comes to Terrasen. He has to give the Queen that, it’s a beautiful statue, and paints Gavriel in the light he deserves.

He shakes himself, he’s a fucking morose drunk sometimes. Gavriel wouldn’t want him here moping.

Aelin seems to do the same, ready to fight fire with fire. “I know what you and Elide got up to last night, in my castle I might add, so I’m surprised you’re still so tightly wound. Struggles performing, old man?”

“Fuck you,” He says but he’s grinning at the blonde woman staring him down. He finally knows by now that the twist of her mouth isn’t anger, she’s trying to hold back her own laughter.

He brings a hand up to poke her on the nose, but she bats it away before he can get there. Shit, maybe he’s had more to drink than he thought.

“That’s not my job,” She grins at him and he throws his head back to laugh.

“You’re disgusting,” He tells her, barely holding down the urge he has to yank on her braid.

She just grins up at him and takes a very un-royal swig of her ale, before slamming the tankard back down on the table beside them.

“I’m not sure I want to know what this is about,” His wife’s voice sounds behind him and he spins so fast he stumbles to the side.

He hears the queen cackle behind him and he flips her off as he nods his greeting to Whitethorn who scoops her up under an arm.

“You’re back!” He hears the queen cry, the words a shriek that travels over the noise of the tavern.

He throws himself at Elide, wrapping the delicate woman tightly into his embrace and breathing her in. He doesn’t trust his mouth to land on hers if he tries to kiss her, so he settles for pressing his face into her hair and breathing her in deeply.

Elide laughs and he squeezes her in even tighter. He’s less afraid of displaying his feelings now, now that he’s not constantly waiting for the disaster around the corner. He trusts Aelin’s rule, and she has Whitethorn at her side, and what’s left of his Cadre.

She has him too, if she ever needs him.

She’s past the point of pretending she’s not seeking Lorcan out, and she thinks he’s at the same point too. She likes spending time with him, just the two of them, and who could have ever seen that coming?

Rowan has this one small smile when she says she’s off to see Lorcan, one that says he’s elated, but doesn’t want to make too much of a big deal in case she changes her mind. She thinks Elide probably has one of the same.

This tavern is busy and they probably could have gone somewhere quieter, but she likes it. She likes being with her people, in the crowds and the conversations. She basks in it, and she’s unashamed in her belief that it’s where she’s meant to be.

It’s her turn to get their round. They’ve set up camp at a small wooden table in the back of the dark room, and she weaves in and out of the crowds to make her way back, the two large tankards clasped in her hands.

The thing is, Aelin is a trained assassin. She’s been trained by the most powerful Fae male alive, she should be able to keep her footing, but apparently she’s a lightweight. Sober Aelin would have seen the spill on the floor, or at least would have been able to stay upright.

Drunk Aelin is another story altogether, and drunk Aelin slides.

She manages to right herself relatively quickly, but the ale is out of her hands before she can blink, waves of it flying over the wooden floor and sloshing up the boots of the nearest patron.

The young demi-fae turns, and she knows from the expression on his face that this is going south. Quickly.

“Watch it,” He hisses.

She has her hood up, golden hair and striking blue eyes hidden away, but she likes to think that she should still be recognisable, even in the woolen tunic and trousers she wears. It’s a far cry from her usual queenly get-up, but still.

She’s almost offended.

“I’m sorry,” She says all too sweetly, too pissed to pretend to mean it, and the demi-fae narrows his eyes. He hasn’t missed her tone, or her dismissal of his command.

“I said watch it.” He steps closer to her now, and she levels her stare at him. Her power is writhing within her, hot and angry, begging to be let out on this male, and she clenches her fists.

Aelin takes a deep breath. She is his queen, and she is better than allowing her temper to run wild, no matter how much she wants to let her body drop into a fighting stance.

But she doesn’t need to. She blinks and Lorcan is at her side, his teeth bared at the offender.

His voice is low and dark, and quiet in a way that promises violence, as he says “I would suggest that you watch your mouth.”

The demi-fae makes a reckless move and laughs, she’s not sure how he has the confidence to stand against both her and one of her blood-sworn, but they’re both still hidden under the hoods of their capes.

She can feel the restrained violence in Lorcan’s posture next to her, she can feel the waves of darkness beginning to wash over her, and she’s reminded of the fact that it’s a comfort now to feel that. Gone are the days when the touch of Lorcan’s power drew fear up inside of her.

She knows he won’t move until she says, knows that he understands she can handle herself, but she appreciates his swiftness to act in her defense.

Aelin opens her mouth, a fiery retort waiting on the tip of her tongue, but the tavern falls silent. She snaps her mouth shut as she hears the murmurs that build throughout the room, your highness, they say.

“Good evening,” Rowan nods to the group of demi-fae as he slots into his place beside her. She’s flanked now by two of her blood-sworn warriors. “Is there a problem here?”

She knows from his tone of voice that his expression is icy, daring one of the males to raise a challenge. She tugs down her hood and the one to start the commotion pales at the sight of her.

“No-no, your majesty. Ap- apologies,” He stutters.

Aelin offers him a tight nod, says “Sorry about your boots,” and turns to the door, her jovial evening over.

Once outside Rowan turns to them, “What was that?”

She feels as if she’s back at Mistward, looking up at Rowan wearing the expression of a disappointed mentor.

“She started it,” Lorcan mumbles under his breath, and she jerks to glare at him.

“That is such shit-” She starts, readying to defend herself even though it was totally her fault, as she turns back to Rowan. But he’s biting his lip, his green eyes creasing at the corners as he holds in his laugh.

“You two don’t go anywhere without adult supervision,” He says laughing and slinging an arm around her shoulders.

She pokes her head around Rowan to stick her tongue out at Lorcan. His returning middle finger makes her laugh, loud and joyously.

So maybe Lord Lorcan Lochan is one of her favourite people.

Being King-Consort to the Queen of Terrasen is a position Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius enjoys. He loves the people of Terrasen, and the country itself. He loves serving a queen who is noble and brave and strong.

He loves his wife, his mate, and the life they live together. He thanks the gods every day that he gets to spend the rest of his existence by her side.

One thing he does not love is the paperwork.

He runs a hand down his face, scratching the lines of his tattoo, as he squints at one of the pages. He stopped being able to think properly a couple of hours ago. Rowan skims through the words on the paper, holding the sheet up to the one remaining candle on his desk. The only ones of note are Adarlan and Terrasen, and he decides that everything else can be a task for tomorrow.

He shuffles the papers into a somewhat orderly pile and rises from his desk, sending a tendril of his power to blow out the candle as he leaves the room.

A sentry bows before him and hands him a small note as he makes his way to his wife. He nods his thanks as he continues down the dimly lit halls.

The palace at Orynth is a place he is glad to call home, it’s not the oldest castle he has known in all his years, but it has character and history. It’s kept warm by the remnants of power his wife managed to cling on to.

He reaches the royal quarters quickly and finds his mate in bed. Aelin is curled beneath the sheets with a book clutched in her hands.

The smile she gives him when he enters is bright and easy and it makes his chest feel warm.

“This might be Dorian’s best recommendation yet,” She says as he comes over to her side, holding the book high with a finger wedged between the pages to keep her place.

“Is that so?” He says with a smile.

His mate’s relationship with the King of Adarlan is another thing he is thankful for. He knows Aelin loves the correspondence she receives and the gifts he sends. Aelin always has him on the lookout for ones she can send in return.

Aelin nods enthusiastically as he takes a seat by her feet.

“Is this you all tucked up for the night?” He asks. Aelin raises an eyebrow and places the book carefully on the table by the side of the bed.

“I’m not tired,” She says and begins to throw the sheets back, a hungry look in her eyes.

Rowan cups her cheek with his palm and drops a delicate kiss to her lips. He allows himself to place another before gently pulling back. “Not exactly what I had in mind, but I like where your mind is going.”

Aelin kisses him again, rising up to her knees to press into the kiss.

Rowan allows himself a minute before pulling back finally to pass along the message he received. “Our guests have arrived, slightly ahead of schedule.”

Aelin jerks back, enough to smile widely at him, before throwing herself out of the bed and tugging her boots onto her feet.

The stables are always cold, the winters in Terrasen are known for being brutal, but he just presses himself further into his mate as they wait. The smell of her is divine, and he feels settled as he breathes her in.

Finally, their guests appear a short distance away, and his wife throws herself out of the circle of his arms and into those of his former commander.

He smiles at Elide and presses a friendly kiss to her cheek as they watch their lovers embrace.

Aelin is dangling above the floor as she clings to the Lord of Perranth and Rowan smiles as she returns to the ground. They’re already bickering about something Rowan is unaware of, but it’s not unexpected, he knows how they work by now.

He had hoped that their relationship would have the opportunity to develop but he could have never dreamed that they would reach this point. Rowan thinks they could be closer than he and Lorcan ever were themselves, and the thought isn’t unpleasant.

The pair reach where he stands with Elide and their contrast is stark. Lorcan, with his dark hair and sharp features towers over where Aelin stands, glowing bright and gold.

He clasps hands with Lorcan, who nods his head in acknowledgement.

“Good to see you, is it too late for a drink?” He proposes.

Aelin and Lorcan share a look, and something passes between them before she turns back to Rowan. Aelin smiles brightly as she links her fingers through Rowan’s and leads the way back into the castle.

#aelin ashryver galathynius #lorcan salvaterre #rowan whitethorn #throne of glass #aelorcan is my new brotp #elide lochan #i have decided this is one of my favourite tog dynamics #they're so fun #also does anyone actually understand lorcan's powers?#because I don't #so some creative liberties were taken on that front #i haven't read koa in a hot minute #so if any details are incorrect just ignore #lol #this is why agkol 14 is late sorry

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aelin-queen-of-terrasen · 4 years

Note

"Are you going to be okay?" + "Please stop lying to me" for either Rowaelin or someone from the Cadre (Rowan and Lorcan or Fenrys and Connal)

note: so like, since we need more Lorcan and Aelin brotp fics, I'm gonna do them for this one. hope you don't mind. if you'd like to check out my other fics, here's the masterlist.

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Lorcan hated how much he was used to Terrasen now, hated how it felt like home more than Doranelle ever had. In the five centuries he had been alive, he had never imagined this is where he would end up. Bloodsworn to a queen of fire and ash, as wild as she was reckless. A queen who actually cared for her people and her court. A queen who no doubt hated his guts ever since that cursed day on the beach. He had nightmares about that gods damned day sometimes, of Aelin being bruised and battered. Aelin may have forgiven him but he couldn't forgive himself.

He had tried to avoid her as much as he could, didn't want to get close to the wicked queen and had done a good job at keeping away from her until today.

"You're sure there's no one else who can do this?" he asked, hesitant.

Emrys, the cook, quirked an eyebrow at that. The storykeeper had a bowl of steaming soup in his hand. "Prince Rowan isn't here and she's sick. Do you want to be the one to tell him why I let just some servant into close quarters with her when she was ill disposed?" The man had a point. The Fae part of him wanted to growl at the mere thought of letting anyone near her, not when she was probably passed out.

Lorcan sighed in resignation before he was making his way towards her private chambers, the bowl of soup in his hand. He knocked twice on the door of her private chambers and entered when a muffled voice replied, 'The door's open.' She had likely heard him arrive with her fae senses. He almost wished she hadn't let him in.

He didn't know what he expected but the fire breathing bitch queen hunched over papers, her quarters resembling a trash bin was not it.

She had her head propped up with one hand, another holding a piece of parchment that her eyes skimmed through. She half turned in her seat and gave him a wry smile when she spotted the bowl of soup in his hand. "First my bloodsworn warrior, now my personal servant? I'm impres—" the words were cut off by a sneeze, then another and another in quick succession.

She rose from her seat, then flicked a hand in dismissal. "Thank you. You can leave now." But then she was stumbling, eyes half shut and Lorcan barely caught her in time.

She righted herself soon, pulling away from him. Her cheeks and nose were pink from the cold outside, face uncharacteristically pale and turquoise eyes lacking their usual gleam of wickedness.

He frowned. "Are you going to be fine?" It was a stupid question. The woman was trying to work when she was so sick. She was anything but fine.

"Yeah, just a cold. You'd think after all the shit with Maeve and Erawan, I'd be immune to something as trivial as cold." Her humour failed to hit it's mark when a coughing fit seized her. She said, "You can leave. I'll be fine."

Lorcan didn't know what came over him, only that she was being an idiot and he needed her to rest if she was going to recover. "Stop lying to me! You aren't fine, you should rest." He pushed her back on the chair she had been sitting in, shoved the papers aside and slammed the bowl of soup in front of her. "Finish this."

"I don't—"

"Aelin, finish this now."

Short of using the blood oath to make him leave, there was nothing she could do that would make him leave. Lorcan doubted she'd use the oath and he wasn't leaving until he was sure she was fine, even if she did try to kill him a lot of times. For all he knew, she still did want to kill him.

Aelin grumbled but obeyed. "Damn you overprotective fae bastards."

While she ate, Lorcan drew the curtains shut to keep the cold air out, lit the fireplace when she didn't light it herself and tidied up the bed, making space for her to lay down between all the dresses sprawled on it. He could call in a servant to clean all that up but his fae instincts wouldn't let anyone within a hundred feet of her until he was sure his queen was safe and protected. Whatever reason Lorcan had for taking the blood oath, she was his queen now. It was his duty to protect her.

Aelin was back to working by the time he was done. "You're not working anymore, Aelin. Finish that tomorrow."

"I won't finish in time if I stop now."

"You will," he nudged her to rise. "If it's so important, I'll help you finish. For now, you need to go to bed."

She looked ready to protest and Lorcan was prepared to throw her over his shoulder, then chain her to her bed if that's what it took. Aelin must have known that because she surrendered and moved to lay down in her bed. Lorcan watched her closely should she stumble again. He didn't want to explain to Rowan why and how his wife fell face first onto the floor when the prince returned.

Aelin cocked her head at him when Lorcan moved to pull up the covers. "What, now you're tucking me in? Are you going to kiss my forehead, then sing me to sleep next, father?"

Insufferable, as always. "Can you please stop, Aelin?" he asked.

But of course, she couldn't stop. When had she ever stopped? "You didn't even call me bitch! Look at us bonding together! Elide bribed you into this, didn't she?" A pointed look at that. "You're going soft on me, Salvaterre."

He ignored the jibes, then turned to leave the room once he made sure she was safe and warm. "I'll be right outside, call me if you need something." Then he pulled back, scanning the room for any safety hazards before he left.

Aelin cleared her throat, stopping him with a hand on his wrist. "You don't have to do this. I know you don't like me, it's alright. I understand."

She didn't understand shit. He wished Elide had bribed him into doing this or something so he could claim he was here against his will. He didn't want to care for anyone else, not now, not after all that he had done and seen and lived. Especially not for another queen, one just as powerful—if not more—than Maeve. Sometimes, Lorcan had nightmares about that too—about serving in Maeve's court still, wreaking havoc in her name. He didn't want to end up devoted to this new queen as he'd been to Maeve even if he knew the two of them were nothing alike.

Maybe it was that realisation that made Lorcan want to say it. "I've never said it before, not like this but I'm sorry for what happened with Maeve." His voice wobbled as an image of a blood drenched shirt lying in the sad flashed across his vision. Lorcan steeled himself and went on. Aelin had saved his life and Elide's countless times. He owed her this truth, "...you were a foreign queen, a stranger I didn't care about. Now, Aelin? Now, you're my queen and I promise, oath or no oath, I will always protect you." Then, just to lift the mood, he added with a scowl: "Even if you are a raging pain in the ass most times."

Aelin snorted, nudging him to sit beside her. Hellas damn him, he did. "And here I was, thinking we'd become friends after that speech."

"The only way we'll be friends is if you use the blood oath to do that."

Aelin shot him a glare before she snuggled closer, head resting on his chest as if she was trying to leech off his warmth. "It won't be the worst thing in the world to have you around the palace sometimes, I suppose," she mused, her voice muffled and soft. Lorcan didn't move even when her breathing turned soft and steady, his arm wrapped around her.

He didn't regret a thing until the court returned to find the two of them wrapped in a warm embrace. Needless to say, no one let Lorcan forget about it for the next few weeks.

----------------

note: oof, hope y'all liked reading that. it was fun to write Lorcan and Aelin. Would totally do it again. also, not to self promote but join the 1K celebration if you haven't already!

Tags:

@thesirenwashere // @judexcardanxgreenbriar //@fangirltrash74 // @the-dark-swan // @queenofgreenbriar // @clockworkgraystairs // @julemmaes // @rowaelinforeverworld // @mymultiversee // @queen-of-glass // @strangely-constructed-soul // @mijaldraws // @http-itsrebecca // @aesthetics-11 // @lord-douglas-the-third // @flowersinvegas // @towhateverend17 // @aelinchocolatelover // @justabunchoffandoms // @cool-ish-nerd // @faerie-queen-fireheart // @sad-book-whore // @didsomeonesayviolin // @atozfantazyxx // @hizqueen4life // @the-gods-killer // @booknerdproblems // @annejulianneh111 // @aelinfeyreeleven945tbln // @b00kworm // @mysweetvillain

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live-the-fangirl-life · 3 years

Text

Emergency Contact

Aelin Galathynius / Lorcan Salvaterre - BroTP Oneshot

Aelin is forced to pick a concussed Lorcan up from the hospital.

Masterlist | Read on Ao3

Warnings: Language

2091 words

*******

“Hello, is this Aelin Galathynius?” A calm voice asked through her phone.

Aelin held her glass of water as she answered the unknown number. She’d just gotten home from work and all she wanted to do was curl up with a book and facetime Rowan later. He was out of town for a conference for a few days and they made sure to talk every night.

“Yes, this is she. Who’s asking?” Aelin thought she could hear rhythmic beeping and the sound of people typing in the background.

“Hello Ms. Galathynius, I am calling from Orynth Medical Center to inform you that there’s been an accident and—”

“What?” She choked on a sip of water as her blood froze. “What happened?” Aelin ran a mental list of the people who could be in the hospital that would justify her being called. Did something happen to Rowan? Oh, gods. Aelin couldn’t think straight as she rushed to leave her apartment.

“Rowan?” she demanded breathlessly, “Is it Rowan? Whitethorn? I’m on my way.”

Was Rowan hurt? Or Aedion? Or Elide, or Lysandra, or—

“I’m afraid there’s been a misunderstanding. I am calling about Lorcan Salvaterre.”

Aelin halted her frantic dash to the door, one shoe on while holding her keys and trying to put her jacket on one-handed.

“Lorcan?” Why the hell would she be getting called about Lorcan?

“Yes, Ms. Galathynius, you are Mr. Salvaterre’s emergency contact.”

***

Sitting at a stoplight behind two other cars, Aelin glanced over at the man in her passenger seat.

Lorcan was a large man. Well over six foot and muscular, he was essentially a talking tree—something she referred to him as on multiple occasions because he hated it so much. He was not meant to fit in the front seat of her small car. His shoulders were hunched over and his legs bent tightly to squeeze into the space, and yet, he looked like he was having a wonderful time.

He had the widest, dopiest grin she’d ever seen on the man. It was bizarre. Disturbing.

“And her hair,” he added, “smells like…like…cinnamon.”

Lorcan had spent almost the entire car ride thus far talking about Elide. More specifically: everything he loves about Elide, how much he loves her, and that he’s abs-itively pos-olutely in love with her. It stunned Aelin more than anything because, to her knowledge, he hadn’t actually said those three words to her friend yet.

It was solely because of that—and because he was fully concussed, she supposed—that she didn’t throw him out of the car.

***

When Aelin arrived at the hospital and told the receptionist she was there to pick up Lorcan, she was ushered into a small patient’s room where Lorcan was sitting on the edge of a bed, looking dazed and entirely too big for the small bed.

“Galathynius!” he bellowed when he saw her, but immediately winced and grabbed his head at the loud sound.

Raising her brows, she turned towards the doctor who was standing and checking Lorcan’s charts.

“Ms. Galathynius, I presume?” the woman asked, amused. “My name is Dr. Towers. I’m not sure how much you are aware of, but Mr. Salvaterre was brought in with a moderate concussion.”

“Does that explain why he’s so,” Aelin looked at him, perturbed, “smiley?”

Dr. Towers’ lips quirked as she said, “Yes, I take it by your reaction that he isn't normally so cheerful?”

Aelin snorted, “Never.”

The doctor wrote another note down on the chart she held and glanced between Aelin and Lorcan. “He’s free to leave now, but he’ll need to be watched for any worsening symptoms. There’s a chance he’ll feel dizzy, nauseous, sensitive to sounds or light, or perhaps he’ll just continue like this,” she gestured to Lorcan who was now humming a Fleetwood Mac song under his breath.

“Right. Okay, Thank you Dr. Towers. I need to make a phone call and then I’ll get him out of here.”

The doctor nodded and sent one last amused glance back at Lorcan before leaving the room.

Aelin huffed a laugh and shook her head as she pulled her phone out and dialed a familiar number.

Aelin, somehow, managed to get Lorcan from the hospital room to her car after she’d called Elide to tell her what happened. Elide said she would go to Lorcan’s apartment to be there when Aelin and he arrived and would stay with Lorcan afterward.

***

“She so tiny.” He said dreamily, still staring out the window.

Aelin snorted. “Everyone is tiny compared to you, Salvaterre.”

His scoff was muffled by the hair that had fallen into his face. “But she’s tiny. Sometimes, I use her instead of my weights to work out, and its, its, super easy.”

Aelin tried to picture Lorcan lifting Elide above his head over and over and had to stifle a laugh.

“And it’s a good thing she’s so easy to lift because I can haul her up and get into some fucking great positions when we—”

“Okay, stop! I don’t need to hear about your apparently gymnastic sex life.” Aelin grumbled, trying desperately to get the image out of her head.

His grin grew into a wide smirk. “Oh yeah, the sex is amaz—”

“Shut up! No.”

Lorcan chuckled but mercifully stopped talking.

The quiet only lasted few seconds before he began explaining about the way Elide’s nose scrunches up when she gets frustrated.

Aelin’s phone ringing thankfully cut through the sound of Lorcan’s voice. She saw Elide’s name flash across the screen and quickly connected to it the car’s speakers and answered.

“El! Please tell me you’re ready to take your insane boyfriend off my hands.”

Elide’s sigh rang clearly through the speakers. “Yeah, I’m at his place. Thank you so much Aelin for picking him up. I have no idea why he put you as his Emergency Contact, I’m shocked you made it this far without killing each other.” She chuckled.

Glancing sidelong at Lorcan, Aelin was surprised he hadn’t reacted to Elide voice given the way he was describing it as delectable honey a few minutes ago, to Aelin’s great discomfort.

“The explanation I got—from a nurse that Lorcan, totally unprompted, told her because he’s majorly concussed—was that he didn’t put your name because he didn’t want to worry you,” Aelin heard Elide mutter something that sounded like I swear to god you big oaf —“And when he had to fill out the paperwork he and Rowan were in some kind of argument, so he decided to put my name down because he thought it would annoy the bitch-shit out of me.”

“For fucks sake, Lorcan.” Elide grumbled, and Aelin could picture Elide pinching the bridge of her nose.

It seemed that the sound of his name from Elide’s mouth was the siren call needed to gain Lorcan’s attention. His head whipped up and he grimaced at the sharp movement before a wide smile took over his face as he tried to find where her voice was coming from.

“’Lide, Ellie, baby, I was just talking about you.”

Aelin tried to keep the car straight as she used one arm to push Lorcan back into his seat. He’d tried climbing onto the console and gear shift to get closer to the center speaker.

“Lorcan Salvaterre how could you get admitted to the hospital and not tell me! I had to get a call from Aelin. Aelin! After I make sure you’re gonna live through your stupid concussion, you’re going to have to explain to me why Aelin is your emergency contact.”

“Elide, hang on a second,” Aelin watched as Lorcan shrunk back into the edge of his seat which was impressive given his size. “Maybe tone it down a notch. Your hulking brute of a boyfriend is tearing up and I’m trying to decide if I should take a picture just to prove that Salvaterre has feelings after all.”

It was quiet a moment before Elide said, this time much gentler, “Oh, Lor, I’ll see you in a few minutes. Aelin? Just get him back to me in one piece, okay?”

“No promises.”

“Aelin.”

Aelin sighed and rolled her eyes.

“Yes, El, we’ll see you in a few minutes.” Aelin looked over at Lorcan who’d once again resumed staring out the windshield, “Hey, El? I haven’t had a chance to text Ro, can you fill him in?”

Elide snorted, “I already am. See you soon.” The call ended with a steady beep.

***

The car ride was blissfully silent for three full blocks before Lorcan said, without preamble, “I’m going to ask Elide to marry me.”

Aelin almost swerved the car into the opposite lane. She whipped her head towards him in shock, but he was staring straight ahead with a determination she hadn’t thought he’d have the coherency to possess. A million thoughts raced through Aelin’s mind but all she sputtered was, “Wha—? Marry you?”

Lorcan nodded sagely and when he turned towards her his eyes seemed less foggy than they had minutes ago, almost as if the change in subject was helping him clear his head. Which, given what he’d just stated, shocked Aelin.

He kept nodding and Aelin forced herself to focus on the road. She knew Elide and Lorcan were serious; Elide told her a few times that she saw a future with the stoic man—something Aelin still couldn’t understand—but despite that, Aelin was positive they hadn’t even said ‘I love you’ to each other yet. That alone made what Lorcan told her at the start of their ride surprising, but this...Lorcan—Lorcan—blatantly saying he was going to ask Elide to marry him…

Aelin looked at the man sitting next to her. He was a pain in the ass, rude, and brutal. To everyone but Elide, that is. And he made her happy—again, Aelin didn’t know how—but he did, and that was all that mattered.

And by the sound of it, Lorcan wasn’t going anywhere. Reluctantly, she could admit that he wasn’t so bad. He pissed her off no end, but he was a good guy, and deep down, really deep down, he was a softy. Not that he would ever admit that.

Aelin took a deep breath and looked again at Lorcan who was nodding along to the song playing on the radio.

“You’re asking Elide to marry you?”

Lorcan’s head swiveled towards hers and a wide grin spread across his face, making his normally harsh features look younger.

“Someday. One day. Not yet, but, yeah, she’s it.”

His dopey grin sobered for a moment and he held her gaze as he said as seriously as he could, “I know Ellie is like a sister to you, and even though I think you’re kind of a bitch,” he snorted, “you’re a bitch who loves her.”

Aelin rolled her eyes because despite it being an insult it almost sounded like a compliment. She leveled a look at him. “You’re a bitch who loves her.”

“Also, true.”

Aelin snorted and focused on the road. “Salvaterre, I don’t know how much of this you’re going to remember, but I’m going to say it anyway.”

As she pulled up to a stoplight, Aelin turned her full attention on Lorcan and made sure he was listening as she said, “Elide is the best person I know. She is sweet, and kind, and has a heart of gold. She also won’t hesitate to cut a bitch,” she looked pointedly at Lorcan, “Elide can handle herself, and if you ever hurt her, she will make you wish you were never born. And once she’s done with you, I will find you and I will burn your body to ashes before I scatter your remains in the desert. Understood?”

Lorcan was smart enough to have a hint of fear in his eyes, but told her vehemently, “I have no intention of ever hurting her or being the cause of any pain,” then he flashed her a purely male smirk and leaned back in his seat, “Unless she asks me to.”

“Gross.” Aelin’s gag wasn’t entirely fake. Serious talk over, then. Fine. As Lorcan went back to describing the way Elide’s perfume smelled, Aelin resigned herself to the fact that she was going to have Lorcan in her life for a very long time.

She couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped as she watched him sing along to some top-forties pop song. Fine, she could handle Lorcan. She was almost looking forward to it. Almost.

*****

Taglist:

@acourtofsnakes @allthebooksunderthemoon @astra-ad-mare @becarefuloflove @bisexual-genderfluid-loki @booklover41802 @charlizeed @cookiemonsterwholovesbooks @danibutterr @doubt-less @emily-gsh @enormousbooklover @foughtconquered @fromthelibraryofemilyj @hakunamatatazz @i-have-but-one-brain-cell @in-love-with-caramel-macchiato @jorjy-jo @lemonade-coolattas @mariamuses @mayhemories @midsizewitch @miserablesmusings @morganofthewildfire @nehemikkele @rowaelinismyotp @rowansfirebringer @sayosdreams @sheharahu @sleeping-and-books @stardelia @story-scribbler @superspiritfestival @surielandiareendgame @swankii-art-teacher @tomtenadia @westofmoon @whimsicallyreading @ladygabrielli1997 @moodymelanist @realbookloverproblems @gracie-rosee @julemmaes @yesdreamblog @the-regal-warrior @rowanaelinn @thestoriesyoutell @autumnbabylon

#elorcan #aelin #lorcan #aelin and Lorcan Bromance #bromance #lorcan salvaterre #aelin galathynius #rowaelin #elorcan fluff #elorcan fic #aelin and lorcan #lorcan and aelin #elide x lorcan #lorcan x elide #elide lochan #throne of glass #tog #concussion

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charincharge · 4 years

Note

Who needs Rowan when you have LORCAN. You really threw us a bone with Lorcan repeating senior year 😂 Aelin and Lorcan ultimate brotp?

Lorcan coming back to repeat his senior year to be Aelin’s wingman like

#ask

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shyvioletcat · 3 years

Note

I think the only way that chapter could have hurt more is if you had Aelin actually beg Rowan to stay. Since that is soo out of character for her.

But I agree with that anonymous saying she accidentally recorded the fight since she wanted to record his reaction.

Also I agree that she tried to contact him after the fact. But I think in true Aelin fashion she only tried to contact him once.

I’m excited for the future chapters! Because I am curious about the other incidents that won everyone over to her side. Especially Lorcan!

^ me and my spoilers

She almost did. There’s moment when she… gets as close to pleading as she’ll get. Because you’re right, begging is not Aelin’s style:

Aelin’s face gave away her anger, the way her mouth twisted into something cruel, but there was an edge of something to her voice as she said, “Don’t take it Ro, please. Say you won't take it.”

The Lorcan/Aelin incident coming up may go on my list of favourite Lorcan/Aelin brotp moments I’ve written 🤭 that’s as much as I’ll say before I lose all restraint and spill all my secrets

#the question is what is that ‘something else’

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highqueenofelfhame · 3 years

Note

you just said "tbh he doesn't care lol"

and in iihahts lorcan though aelin did it to herself

MA'AM I SEE a pattern here 🤡🤡🤡

i think it’s fun to explore their brotp in fics (which i have before) but in canon.... he does not like aelin even a little bit lol. he takes the blood oath solely to be with elide. i think aelin and lorcan’s fanon brotp is so fun but like it is not canon and we consume so much fanfic where they are bros that i think it’s easy to forget that in canon they’re not tight. and i don’t want aelin to be a mary sue in my fics, not everybody likes her for good reason most of the time.

i don’t think lorcan thinks she did it to herself in fafs i just think he wouldn’t have given a single shit about it if they’d found her and she was dead somewhere. but he did think she had killed the guards to escape initially until they found her at rowan’s.

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scribomaniac · 7 years

Text

The Woes of Having Neighbors Part 5

Rowan sighed, utterly content with his life. He’d just gotten a raise at work, his apartment was finally clean after what felt like weeks of procrastination, and his date with Aelin was going fabulously. It was late, and they’d gone out for dinner earlier to celebrate Rowan’s raise, and now sat on his couch watching a movie. Aelin was tucked beneath his arm, she snugged up against his side and warmed him in the most pleasant of ways. Her head was within easy kissing distance of his lips, which he took advantage of every few minutes. He’d sneak a kiss to the crown of her head after she laughed, or commented on the movie and would take in a deep breath, relishing in her aroma of jasmine and lavender. He could’ve stayed that way forever, with Aelin huddled up close, a blanket covering the both of them, and a fan favorite movie playing on the screen before them. Rowan felt like he’d found paradise.

And then the knocking began.

At first, it was just a single knock on his door, and the two love birds ignored it easily enough, thinking it was just a passing neighbor bumping into the door. Then, after just a brief thirty seconds--just long enough for Rowan to assume he was safe from the outside world--the knocking began again. It came harder this time, more purposeful. Three hard, loud knocks, then a slight pause before another round of three knocks were heard against his door. “Rowan!” A familiar, if not slightly muffled voice called from the hallway. “Rowan, we know you’re in there your anti-social fuck--let us in!”

Rowan winced and Aelin snorted, tilting her head back to look at him, “Friends of yours?”

“You could say that,” he replied evasively. Pulling his arm back from around Aelin’s shoulder’s Rowan mentally prepared himself to shoo away his friends so he could continue his date. Before he could even stand up, though, he heard the soft click of his lock turning over and with a sinking dread, Rowan remembered he’d given Gavriel a spare key. “Shit,” he hissed, but it was too late. The door had opened.

The first through the threshold was Fenrys, the owner of the voice that spoke through the door earlier. His long, golden hair was pulled back in a bun and his brown skin seemed to shimmer in the dull apartment lighting, telling Rowan he’d been out at some club earlier that night. Right behind him was his twin brother, Connall, who was his mirror in looks, but his opposite in personality. Where Fenrys was all boisterous snark and charisma, Connall was soft spoken cleverness and intelligence. Vaughan was right behind them, all height and gangly limbs, with short dark hair and the nose of a blood hound--he made his way straight to the kitchen to find Rowan and Aelin’s leftovers. Last through the door was Gavriel, his golden blond hair catching the light just enough to make it look as if his hair was gilded. He was Rowan’s oldest and closest friend, and the first to realize they’d just interrupted something intimate.

“Ooh, dessert!” Vaughan’s voice cheered from the kitchen as well as the sound of tin foil being torn. Rowan sighed and rolled his eyes. Aelin hadn’t said anything yet, but sat propped up on her knees watching the men strut about the apartment with amusement. She bit down on her bottom lip to keep the giggles from leaking out.

“Whatchya watching?” Fenrys slid onto the couch’s arm and grabbed the remote from the coffee table before him. He didn’t even cast a glance towards Rowan as he did so, which was why he still hadn’t realized Rowan had company. Connall, on the other hand, had. But he merely observed from the other side of the couch, his head tilted in a way that was all too lupine. “Why’re you watching a RomCom?” Fenrys grimaced and immediately changed the channel.

“Ah, Rowan,” Gavriel spoke slowly, carefully. As one would to a wild animal. “Are we . . . interrupting something?”

Fenrys snorted, “What could we be--”

“Fenrys,” Connall easily grabbed his twin’s attention and nodded his head towards Aelin.

“Hey, what’s up with all the good foo--holy shit are you on a date?” Vaughan stopped dead in his tracks as he returned from the kitchen and caught sight of Aelin next to Rowan on the couch.

“A what?” Fenrys yipped, abruptly standing from his seat on the couch’s arm and staring down at Aelin as if she’d just materialized. Brow furrowing, Fenrys hummed and stepped in front of the only woman in the room and poked her shoulder. “Well I’ll be damned, she’s real!”

“No shit,” Aelin rolled her eyes, but the corners of her mouth twitched in barely contained amusement. She didn’t hate them, which Rowan supposed was a good thing.

Breathing through his nose, Rowan asked through a clenched jaw, “Was there a reason you all came here? Uninvited?”

“There was, actually,” Gavriel said, attempting to diffuse the situation. “Lorcan’s coming into town tonight.” Rowan’s head snapped to attention, his green eyes seeking out Gavriel’s tawny ones. Aelin’s eyes flickered to him, noticing the change but not saying anything. “His flight lands in a few hours. We thought we’d go and pick him up. Obviously we had no idea that you were on a date.”

“K-I-S-S-I-N-G,” Fenrys sang, his voice off key but he didn’t care. Connall rolled his eyes at his brother, but didn’t even try to reprimand him for his childish behavior. So long as Rowan didn’t rise to his bait, Connall found no need to get involved.

Aelin’s brows raised, but a puff of laughter escaped her lips. “That was the idea.” Then, turning to Rowan, she asked, “Who’s Lorcan?”

“Just another one of my friends,” he answered simply. Aelin hummed and quirked a brow, not quite believing him. They stared at each other for a few moments, quietly having a conversation with only their eyebrows.

“More like our fearless leader,” Vaughan elaborated from his place behind them, pulling Aelin’s attention away from Rowan. “We haven’t seen him in years,” under his breath, he added, “thanks to Maeve.”

Thankfully Aelin didn’t ask who Maeve was as Rowan really didn’t want to open that can of worms so early in their relationship. “That’ll be fun,” she said, turning to face Rowan. Her eyes were so bright and blue and earnest and dammit he wanted to kiss her senseless just then. “How long will you all be in town together?”

“About a week, maybe more,” Gavriel answered easily. Looking at his watch, he added, “We should get going if we want to make it to the airport on time. Rowan, I’ll call you later--we’ll get together tomorrow?”

“What?” Fenrys and Aelin asked simultaneously, though Fenrys’s tone was a tad whinier. “You’re not going?” They asked, staring at Rowan. Their synchronized questioning was rather disturbing and caught the white haired male so off guard he couldn’t answer quickly enough.

Gavriel blinked, then his gaze darted between Aelin and Rowan several times before he swooped in to the rescue. “I, well, I assumed Rowan would want to finish his date with you, ah--” Gavriel caught himself and blushed, realized he hadn’t introduced himself and hadn’t gotten Aelin’s name. “I’m sorry,” he reached out his hand for her to take. “I’m Gavriel.”

“Aelin,” She nodded and shook his hand.

“Fenrys,” the blond male on Aelin’s other side waved, “And that’s Connall.” Connall nodded his head in greeting. “And the glutton eating your food is Vaughan,” Fenrys added dryly, watching the dark haired male continue eating food straight from the tin foil packaging. Vaughan merely shrugged and grunted. Rowan sighed and leaned his head back against the couch.

“It’s nice to meet you, Aelin,” Gavriel said, bringing the attention back to the matter at hand and away from the distraction that was Fenrys. “But, as I was saying, we didn’t realize Rowan was on a date, so we’ll just meet up with him tomorrow and--”

“What? No! We were almost finished with the movie, anyway. Right Rowan?” She looked at him and he slowly nodded. “Don’t reschedule on my account.” Softly, just for Rowan--although the others could probably hear her good and well--she added, “Go see your friend.” You miss him, I can tell, her eyes said. I’ll be here when you get back.

He nodded. Thank you, his eyes responded. I owe you one for this, he smirked.

Quirking a brow, she grinned in return, I know, her skin around her eyes crinkled with mirth, and I intend to collect. “You’re here a week, right?” She asked Gaviel. He nodded slowly, his expression one of confusion after having just watched their silent conversation. “Have any plans on Saturday?”

Rowan knew where this was going. He knew where it was going and he had to stop it. To nip it in the bud before--” No,” Gavriel answered honestly, not aware of the danger.

“Great!” Aelin clapped her hands once, “I’m having a few friends over to my apartment that way. You should all come!”

“Party?” Fenrys asked, and Aelin nodded. “Hell yeah, we’re coming!”

“Thank you, Aelin, that’s very kind of you,” Gavriel officially accepted the invitation, not noticing or just ignoring Rowan’s twitching eye and faint grimace. Attending Aelin’s parties were one thing, but attending her party with his cadre? The white haired male barely suppressed a groan. He didn’t know it he’d survive the experience. Add Lorcan into the mix? Rowan shuddered.

He was in for a long week.

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rayonfrozenwings · 5 years

Text

Hey mutuals, followers and p0rn bots,

Its my blogs 3rd birthday!

I’ve been lurking, posting, ranting in the SJM fandom on tumblr for three years and that’s kinda Crazy to me.

So here are some fun Facts that kinda evolve into an appreciation post… and then an anecdotal history of this fandom I’ve been a part of. So thanks for hanging round and talking shit with me. :D

if ur tagged it’s just like a thanks or when I met you - lol you don’t have to read the whole thing...

and the rest is under the cut....

I only liked posts for the First month, I never reblogged. It was my first time on tumblr.

I’ve had the same URL since the start

The first post I reblogged and commented on was @miladyaelin ‘s post about a Volcano in the Frozen Wastes - such a wasted opportunity for World destruction that was not used to full potential at all in KoA hahaha - maybe a spin off series? joke.

The first person to reply to one of my asks was abookandacoffee or @bookofmirth 3 months after I joined tumblr and that’s kinda scary because that means we have been speaking longer than we realised.

@propshophannah thanks for letting me go nuts about theory with you!

The Big blogs in the SJM fandom change, and it's cool that being in the fandom for so long means that I get to talk with all these people and make some real friends.

I made read friends from reading books and talking about them - How Cool Is That!

I had fun making shit posts about Dorian’s couch, Rowan’s relationship status after EoS and seeing my friends come up with some pretty clever memes too.

The Art is amazing, and actually getting to talk to artists about their art is something I didn't think would happen ever. So I’m so grateful to tumblr for that.

I want to tag a lot of people but - having been here so long means that urls change and I lose touch - plus I think I would go over the “50 tag limit” easily.

The first kiwi blog who I talked to was @verifiefangirl and we bonded over the Old El Paso advert of “why not both”.

I want to thank those who encouraged me to write my theories, and I did that for the first year on here.

I want to say thank you to the people who told me “You know, you can write your theories as fic and people don't get as angry.” Because you were right! And so that started my writing of fan fic, and thank you to those people who wanted to be tagged and let me know what was up - sorry I haven’t written in a while.

Thank You to @faenet and my Faenet Fam. I joined to share theories, switched it up to write fic, and then evolved into Edits. I was able to learn how discord works and be a part of a team and learn new photo editing skills - I knew nothing before I joined and it's so cool to have become a part of that community.

Thanks to my BookClub brotp - It’s been the best getting to know you all over the last year, discuss books and life. And just have fun. I honestly wouldn't have connected with you guys if we just relied on tumblr because it often requires me to say something first, and i'm not good at that. @theyretheirthere sorry I had to tag you twinnie. :P

Some Fandom History for those who have been here a while ... (well for as long as I have been in the fandom, I know there was a time before this).

Phase One - POST EOS Theory and Beach Scene Debate, Elorcan exists now even tho People still HATE Lorcan (not me but lots of people did). ACOMAF love, nickname of Tam the tampon takes off.

Phase Two - PRE ACOWAR, Moreil Hype, Fandom super excited, Acomaf love, Rhysand love.

Phase Three - ACOWAR IS AWFUL - Dumpsters on Fire, lots of fandom people left. The ones who stayed had discourse about Moriel, Mor’s sexuality, Nessian, the ending and how it was rushed, Azriel is a smol cinnamon roll who deserved better - lots of Az fics and the birth of Elriel started here.

Phase Four - TOG FANDOM ARE MAD because Chaol’s novella turned into a Novel. Cyber bullying of Chaol lovers in fandom led to a lot of blogs leaving - just be kind to one another, you can talk about stuff without personal attacks.

Phase Five - WE ARE ALL GOING STIR CRAZY, Someone released a TOD mock cover and there was a lot of ableist stuff going on. Bad time in fandom.

Phase six - TOD Came out - Lots of people refused to read, other people felt vindicated about theories, other people were shocked about Maeve. Praise and Hate towards the book and for how SJM handled race and disability. Was she being sensitive or appropriating? Mixed Reviews, again fandom got a little smaller. Acotar Fandom was taking off in terms of fics.

Phase Seven - Acotar Fandom PRE ACOFAS Fan Fic Mania. Most of us re-read acotar, acomaf, acowar and Fix-it fics, Nessian Fics, Feysand Fics, Lots of Fics. Lots of Art. I noticed the ACOTAR fandom kinda took off while the TOG one floundered.

Phase Eight - A New Novella for ACOTAR, ACOFAS - lots of hype. Lots of mixed reviews - “it had no plot” or “I love it” or “I don't like how the first pov changed depending on the character” or “Yay christmas!!!” or “boo wall scene” or “yay Wall scene!!” Again - more fics and art came from it. Snowball fight was a highlight, art was gorgeous, Amren as a snowball was also good. Fandom was flourishing again, yes we lost some people but we also had a resurgence in creative content.

Weird non-phase - Catwoman: Soul Stealer, was released but wasn't a “must read” for many people.

Phase Nine - Pre KoA, Fandom was Hyped! We were all doing our re-reads, theories came out again, discussions about favourite quotes of things we had forgotten were shared. Again - Some good ToG fic came out because people had it fresh in their minds again - we were preparing. Edits were great, lots of Edits, Lots of Art.

Phase Ten - KoA Came out and destroyed us. Fandom was relatively quiet while people abandoned tumblr to read it. Anti’s came out in force, they had more to say about it that the fans did. Fans didn't see this immediately because they weren't on tumblr. About a month after release, We got Meta and discourse on KoA and what it means and what Aelin’s story has meant to us personally. Edits started taking off again. This Phase is still ongoing even a year later. Personally I am in Awe of that book and what it managed to achieve, I wanted to re-read it straight away but it still has so many parts that HURT to read.

New people slowly trickle into fandom, or pick up the books, its sweet, but as a veteran sometimes seeing the same arguments gets tiring and so I dont comment as much as I used to. I’m still here reading, but I don't really want to write another essay like the ones I've previously written to defend a point so i’m quiet.

Where I think it will go next?

Most of the people who remain in the fandom are good at looking at things with a critical eye but saying “I can still enjoy a book”, which I like.

We will get hyped as a fandom for Crescent City which was pushed back to March 2020, even if we are unsure it’s what we want, I don't think we can help ourselves.

ACOTAR 4 is in the works with no confirmed release date, just vague mention that it was being pushed back - twas supposed to be 2020 but I'm doubtful, especially if other titles are pushed back first like CC:HOEAB - it was by three months from Jan to March.

WOTOG was also pushed back, first from release with EoS, then from release with ToD and now from release with KoA (those are all goodreads dates as I was waiting for it and keeping an eye out, but we also had novels added and other books like acofas - goodreads also isn't the best at staying on top of release dates)…. we have had mention of it that it will include art and is co-authored by Lynette Noni, so It is still being made at least - I mean I don't have to cry about it being cancelled just yet. And So I have to stay around for those. I became invested in the World building of TOG to not wait for WOTOG.

So yeah, it’s been a wild 3 years. <3

#you dont need to read all this i just started writing and couldnt stop #obviously its my own experience as we all take highlights from things differently #renee rambles #renee rambles about her three years on tumblr #i might do another post for how im gonna celebrate but i need to organise it and i havent yet so something is kinda in the works #i only realised two days ago that i had been here so long #perks of not deleting my 52000 unread emails #so yea #i really want to tag everyone but wont #because if i miss someone ill be so sad #nice fandom is nice #sjm fandom #to scared to tag it with other fandom tags

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live-the-fangirl-life · 3 years

Text

Throne of Glass Masterlist

Main Masterlist | Ao3

I Dig You - Archaeologist AU - Rowaelin

When Dr. Rowan Whitethorn, archaeologist, invites Dr. Aelin Galathynius to consult on his excavation he’ll learn that there is a lot one can learn from a few bones. Upd. 6.10.21

A World Away - World Travelers AU - Rowaelin

Florence, Marrakesh, Reykjavik, Athens…city after city, country after country, Aelin Galathynius and Rowan Whitethorn continue to have chance encounters. Complete

Misplaced Mail - Mini-Series - Rowaelin - NSFW

Aelin accidentally opens a package addressed for Rowan. Not a big issue. Except that he opened a package addressed to her. Issue. Complete.

Parlors and Petals - Tattoo Parlor/Flowershop Mini-Series - Rowaelin & Elorcan

Isn’t it convenient that Elide’s Tattoo Parlor is just down the block from Lorcan’s Botanical Shop? Add in their assistants, Aelin and Rowan, and you’ve got a lively street. Upd. 12.30.22

What Happens in Vegas... - Answered Prompts Mini-series - Elorcan

What happens when you combine alcohol, Elvis, and two idiots in love? A beautiful elopement. Complete

The Court - FRIENDS Fic Series

Follow the lives of Aelin, Rowan, Elide, Lorcan, Lysandra, Aedion, and Fenrys as they navigate life, love, and daily shenanigans. Upd. 3.16.23

Snow One Else But You - Mini-Series - Rowaelin

As disasters outside of Aelin and Rowan’s control threaten to ruin their beautifully elaborate Winter Solstice wedding, they and their friends try to find a way to save the day. Complete

Frosty Flying - Holiday Series - Rowaelin

Rowan Whitethorn, an elf, reluctantly finds himself in league with Aelin Galathynius, a human, when she appears at the North Pole. Because nothing ever goes to plan.

*Organized by date written

Blood and Boos - Elorcan

Lorcan gets roped into doing a Haunted House. Elide tries her best to be supportive but she isn’t a fan of jump-scares. What could go wrong?

It’s the Thought that Counts - Rowaelin

All Rowan wants to do is throw a surprise party for his girlfriend, but that becomes increasingly difficult as every possible thing that could go wrong—goes wrong.

Flirting with Fire - Rowaelin

Purposely setting a fire to meet the hot fireman isn’t crazy, right? Even the second time?

Is This Seat Taken? - Rowaelin

“Is this seat taken?” / “…That’s my lap” / “That doesn’t answer my question.”

Stolen Stamps - Rowaelin

“You took me on a trip just to break up with me so I stole your passport”

Scared Shitless - Rowaelin

“You scared the shit out of me” / “Literally”

Sunshine - Elorcan

Super fluffy domestic Elorcan because I needed some fluffy cuteness

Train Trouble - Rowaelin

“I waited for you at the train station but you never came.” / “I know, I am two years too late, but I am here to stay if you let me.” But make it fun

For the Aesthetic - Rowaelin

“I would love to kiss you right now but my lips are on fire.”

Emergency Contact - Aelin/Lorcan BroTP

Aelin picks up a concussed Lorcan from the hospital.

Drug-Induced Declarations - Rowaelin

After getting her wisdom teeth out, Aelin makes a profound realization.

Computer Screens and Love Scenes - Rowaelin

“You caught me reading hardcore smut during class and you’re wondering how I can read this with a straight face.”

My Library, My Love - Rowaelin

After moving into their new home, Rowan helps Aelin organize her new library and gifts her a very special present.

Objects in Mirror are Closer than they Appear - Rowaelin

Aelin will be the first to admit that parallel parking is not her forte. Rowan tries to help.

An Unintentional Encounter - Rowaelin

A blind date gone wrong…or very right?

The Taste of Your Lips - Rowaelin

Who enjoys kissing Rowan more? Aelin, or Fleetfoot?

A Starlit Swim - Rowaelin

Aelin shows Rowan to a lovely, secluded spot perfect for skinny dipping.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Rowaelin

When Rowan is injured, Aelin steps up to be his faithful protector. (Laser Tag)

Monstrous Morning Brews - Rowaelin

Rowan keeps asking himself why he orders the same, overly-sweet, coffee every day when he prefers it black and bitter. Oh, the golden-haired barista—that’s why. (Halloween Lattes)

When a Book Beckons - Rowaelin

When Aelin finds a flyer advertising a strange bookshop, she can’t help but follow its cryptic directions. Why does she feel called to it? And why does the mysterious, silver-haired bookkeeper feel so familiar?

At Leaf You're Cute - Rowaelin

“I was trying to rake leaves in the front yard but your dog just ran through all my piles and I want to be mad but you’re both really cute.”

By the Light of the Moon - Rowaelin

Walking through a graveyard on Halloween, what a cliché. (Ghostly Stroll)

You Better Beleaf It - Elorcan

Elide drags Lorcan out to look at the changing leaves. He’ll deny it if you ask, but he enjoyed himself.

Lost in the Maize - Rowaelin

Getting lost in a corn maze isn’t Aelin’s idea of a good time. Maybe the helpful, silver-haired worker can help her find her way out.

Trick or No Treat - Rowaelin

“We’re out of candy.” / “What do you mean we're all out of candy?!”

Scaredy-Pup - Rowaelin

“Accidentally scared a kid and their adult is angry.” but make it Fleetfoot and Aelin.

Do You Wanna Build a Snowman? - Rowaelin

Building a snowman, winter fluff.

Happy Friendsgiving - Elorcan & Rowaelin

What’s one thing you can count on for Friendsgiving? That no one will bring the appropriate amount of food.

Shivers and Ciders - Rowaelin

“Caramel apples, leaves falling down - what could be better than November?” / “I don’t know, maybe fucking June?”

Villain Origin Story - Rowaelin

Based on a true story by the wonderful @writtenonreceipts, thank you for sharing this with me. (Monocle)

It’s All Relative - Rowaelin

“I really hate you and talk shit about you all the time but now I just found out your dad/mom is my shrink”

How Tree-mendous - Rowaelin

“We live in an apartment.” / “So?” / “Babe, that's a ten-foot tree.” / “...Oh.” (Christmas Tree Shopping)

Keep Me Warm - Rowaelin

“My lips are cold.” / “Is this your way of saying you want a kiss?” Post-skating fluff.

Stuck on You - Rowaelin & Elorcan

Rowan helps Aelin out of a sticky situation. Elide and Lorcan offer moral support in the form of teasing and matchmaking

I'll Ski You Around - Rowaelin

Aelin quickly remembers why she doesn't go skiing—but not quick enough. Rowan is there beside her as she battles her fear of heights.

Lighten Up - Rowaelin

Combine Aelin’s determination and affinity for grand plans with her desire to have the best, most elaborate holiday lights display—what could go wrong?

Spark in the Night - Rowaelin

With only hours left until midnight, Aelin decides to help Rowan complete all his New Year's resolutions before the year is done. Can they do it?

Sweaters, Spite, and Incentives Done Right - Rowaelin

An ugly sweater competition turns spiteful

A Matching Set - Rowaelin

Aelin and Rowan have different approaches to Valentine's Day gift-giving.

Sending My Love - Rowaelin

“I’m not drunk. Could a drunk person do this?” / “You’re not doing anything.” / “But…I sent you my love. Did you…did you not get it?”

Candy Hearts - Elorcan

“A spells out something sexy/lewd in rose petals/candy hearts for B, but B comes home with unexpected guests.”

Fake Fiancé - Rowaelin

Fake proposals at restaurants to get free food.

Booking a Break - Rowaelin

Seeing how tired Rowan is from work, Aelin takes it upon herself to plan a relaxing getaway.

Twist of Fate - Rowaelin

Aelin and Rowan find second chances at love in each other. SongFic based on “Twist of Fate” by Olivia Newton-John.

Incriminating Questions - Rowaelin

Malicious closet doors and broken bones.

Study Specs - Rowaelin

Aelin may have finally found her weakness, not that she would admit to having one in the first place. She was not prepared for what seeing Rowan Whitethorn in a pair of glasses would do to her.

Drive, Just Drive - Rowaelin

When someone runs towards you screaming “Run”, you run. When someone throws themselves in your car and screams “Drive”, you drive.

Divine Intervention - Rowaelin

“The Ouija board says you’re a little shit.” / “Oh, my gods, I think the crystal ball is working. The spirits are telling me you’re a dumbass.”

Costume Count - Rowaelin

“You can’t withhold candy from the little kids just because you think their costume is ugly.”

Tell Me S’more - Elorcan

“The legend said it only goes after virgins…so sucks for you I guess.”

A Haunting Halloween - Rowaelin

“If I die because of your dumb idea, I will haunt you so hard!”

The Best Way to Spread Christmas Cheer… - Rowaelin

“The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” / “do not go quoting Elf on me.”

Timeless [Immortals] - Rowaelin

Inspired in part by Timeless by Taylor Swift, Immortals by Fall Out Boy, and by my own historical research fixations. Also a tiny bit of Istanbul by They Might be Giants.

Trust Me, it’ll be Fun - Rowaelin

“It’s just a spooky clock chiming at the incorrect time while all the lights are off and strange footsteps are creeping up the stairs, in a house that won’t let us leave.”

#masterlist #tog #throne of glass #rowaelin #elorcan #aelin #rowan #aelin galathynius x rowan whitethorn #aelin x rowan #rowan x aelin #elide #lorcan #lorcan x elide #elide x lorcan

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bookofmirth · 5 years

Note

Rowan for the character ask!

Thanks Alex!!!

favorite thing about them Emotional availability 😩💦

least favorite thing about them brooding, omg, I realize he blames himself for Lyria’s death but come on. I suppose immortals feel like they can just brood for a few decades and it’s no big loss.

favorite line “I missed you,” he said quietly, his gaze darting between her mouth. and eyes. “When I was in Wendlyn. I lied when I said I didn’t. From the moment you left, I missed you so much I went out of my mind. I was glad for the excuse to track Lorcan here, just to see you again. And tonight, when he had that knife at your throat …” The warmth of his callused finger bloomed through her as he traced a path over the cut on her neck. “I kept thinking about how you might never know that I missed you with only an ocean between us. But if it was death separating us … I would find you. I don’t care how many rules it would break. Even if I had to get all three keys myself and open a gate, I would find you again. Always.”

brOTP Him and Dorian

OTP Him and Aelin, obviously

nOTP Him and Chaol

random headcanon Rowan has always wanted a big family. Warrior lifestyle be damned, he just got wrapped up in the whole idea of glory and fame but that’s not really what he wanted.

unpopular opinion He really was an asshole in HoF - it doesn’t matter how bad of a place he was in, or how much Aelin pushed him to act the way he did. Reasons are great but don’t make shitty choices into good ones.

song i associate with them Slow Show by The National, or Thousand Miles by Tove Lo

Send me a character!

#rowaelin #rowan #tog #throne of glass #ask #the alex tag #ask meme

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aelinbitch-archive · 5 years

Note

You've probably said this before but what's your favorite aspect of the TOG series? I've only read like ten pages of the first book lol

aaaaa thank u for asking!! this sort of leads into something i’ve been meaning to talk about for a while so i hope you’re prepared for An Essay No One Wanted By Me. anyway this is a two-part answer, read below:

1. Aelin. Celaena. The main bitch, whatever you wanna call her lol. Without her I probably wouldn’t have cared about the series at all and wouldn’t currently be trapped in ToG tumblr hell reluctantly stanning a racist and homophobic series, but unfortunately when I was like twelve years old or whatever and read the first book I literally imprinted on Celaena like a baby duckling. To the extent that she became, like, the default avatar for all my maladaptive daydreaming and If I Don’t Project On Her At All Times I Will Die. It’s not like she’s the only thing I like about the series (I loooove a lot of the other characters, especially the gals, and the writing can be really great and engaging and cinematic) but Aelin has always been the supermassive black hole at the center of it all for me. I wouldn’t know how to even begin untangling her character from my psyche at this point. It’s honestly a little disturbing. Anyway.

2. Part two is a quality of the series that I feel was unprecedented in its strength in the first five books of the series (ToG-QoS plus the prequel novellas) and really really disappointingly weak in the last two books (EoS-KoA). Like I said above, Aelin has always been my main interest in tog so I read and enjoyed the last two anyway, but I definitely felt the loss of this - “this” being the detail and attention paid to all different types of relationships between characters, and how rich and unpredictable those relationships were as a result.

That sounds like kind of a broad, vague thing, but what I mean is that (in my opinion) rarely are romances and friendships and rivalries explored with such nuance, complexity, drama, and realism in most YA as they are in ToG. I remember reading Cassandra Clare’s books (lmao.) as a pre teen and loving those as well, but totally being able to predict who was going to end up with who, and finding the character dynamics to be pretty cut and dry.

In ToG that’s not the case at all. Like, you’ve got Celaena and Sam, a really complex example of enemies to lovers to….. Tragically Dead Boyfriend Whose Demise Fuels My Guilt and Self-Hatred For Seven More Books, Lysandra and Aelin, two girls pitted against each other by their abuser who team up a year later to unlearn their internalized misogyny and kill him, and Aelin and Chaol, who… how do I even describe the ups and downs (and downs. and more downs) of their relationship.

And that’s just three pairs! Pull the names of two characters out of a hat and I can almost guarantee essays worth of material could be written about them. Arobynn and Aelin? Aelin and Nehemia? Chaol and Dorian, as much as I hate both of them and feel that their relationship as been widely mischaracterized? All fascinating!!! No two people in those first few books are just friends, or just lovers, or just enemies. It’s always more complex, there’s always a history or tension or competing agendas or viewpoints that Fuck Shit Up.

And benefit of that is twofold: one, everything that happens between the characters just…. lands so well. The betrayals and triumphs and losses and victories of The Assassin’s Blade and Crown of Midnight and Queen of Shadows (especially TAB) are fucking heart-stopping. It’s great character-driven entertainment!! Gripping and engaging and vivid to the point of being painful.

And two, there’s no way to predict where a relationship is going to go. Aelin and Lysandra teaming up in QoS instead of returning to their rivalry? Who would have thought! Ansel and Celaena’s summer fling (they were in love. fight me.) ending like That? Holy fuck. Nesryn and Chaol breaking up in ToD? Oh shit! I fell for it again! Rowan and Aelin ending up together after everyone swore they were brotp in HoF? Hell yeah! Chaolaena seeming like endgame and then ending forever, with Chaol and Aelin realizing that the rift between them that began in CoM was something that would never sufficiently heal? Unprecedented. Fucking badass for a YA book to curve everyone like that. Tween me was shook out of her mind.

(Important to note, though, that the downside of this style was that SJM couldn’t tell where ~unpredictable relationships and characters~ ended and fridging began, and as a result, not one but two woc were killed off to make white characters sad and it sucked beyond belief).

Aaaaaand then QoS, the peak of literature, turned into EoS, and SJM just… gave up on all of that. I remember the first time Dorian and Manon met, and I was like oh, okay. So they’re going to end up together. And I was right. I remember that on this site, before EoS came out, before Lorcan and Elide ever fucking MET, people predicted the existence of Elorcan!! And they were right!! Like how fucking boring? Everyone is just paired off into completely predictable heterosexual ships and those are now the only relationships we get to read about (with a few exceptions, like Aelin/Aedion, Aelin/Fenrys, etc.).

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: my least favorite thing about Manorian is not that I find the relationship to be shitty (although I do, I really do). It’s that Dorian is suddenly the only character Manon gets to interact with in any meaningful way.

Like, are you kidding?! I want to read about Manon and Elide, Manon and Asterin, Rowan and Lorcan, Aelin and Lysandra, Aelin and Nesyrn, even if it’s not romantically (although some of them, like Manon and Elide, absolutely should have been, and the fact that not only was that ship very thoroughly sunk, but also they didn’t even get to TALK after QoS, felt like a real slap in the face to gay fans, but I digress), because those pairings previously had hella complexity and drama. But we don’t get to.

And this trend that’s so painfully present in the last two books Sucks for two reasons: one, every relationship that isn’t romantic (which were previously some of the most interesting ones) is abandoned so that more time can be made for The Hets™ and two, the relationships that are romantic, now the only ones left, are totally fucking boring and predictable!! If two characters are interacting at any point (if one is male and the other is female, of course) then you know for a fact that they’re not only love interests, but endgame.

And that makes me not care even when there is drama between them. Elide giving Lorcan the cold-shoulder for three hundred pages, and Manon and Dorian arguing, and Aedion being cruel to Lysandra weren’t compelling narratives to me like they should have been, because the whole time I was just thinking “but it doesn’t matter. I know it’s still endgame. There are no stakes here whatsoever; it’s a done deal.” Whereas Chaol and Celaena’s devestating breakup in CoM felt like (and was) suuuuper Real. An all-in bet on the wrong person. Crazy shit.

And not that I think two characters should never have a happy ending together (I really like rowaelin and nestaq and I would have loved malide!) but imagine how much cooler and subversive and entertaining it would have been if Elorcan, which seemed soooo totally cute and endgamey and borderline like fanfiction throughout all of EoS just ended forever right there and then on the beach, with Elide turning to Lorcan and saying “I hope you spend the rest of your miserable, immortal life suffering. I hope you spend it alone. I hope you live with regret and guilt in your heart and never find a way to endure it” - and BAM. She never speaks to him again. He’s dead to her.

I mean, talk about shock value! (See, Sarah, you can have shock value without killing of a person of color to make a white character sad 🙃). And I totally get that relational twists like that alienate fans more than just going the expected route and having them kiss and make-up does (I mean, the ending of Chaolaena in QoS certainly did, Jesus Christ) but I, Bella aelinbitch, personally live for that shit, and isn’t it only fair that all media cater directly and specifically to me? Lmao. But seriously, I do think it’s objectively more interesting, and that it keeps readers on their toes (I was on my ASS in EoS and KoA. Like. I was flat on my back sinking into the Earth).

And there are still sort of… glimmers of the old way she wrote in the first few books, but it just feels like a tease rather than something that’s really explored and indulged in the way it was before, and it just ends up being more frustrating (like what was the point of Manon and Dorian not getting married at the end of KoA if I would bet my life savings that in World of Tog it’ll be confirmed that they’re either married or still together) and sometimes downright problematic? Like to return to a previous example, I think all the drama between Aedion + Lysandra was a result of Sarah’s previous (good) instincts to shake stuff up and complicate the character dynamics, but it backfires because when they end up together, it’s not ever… worked out? Or addressed? If you create really intense drama between two people, then that needs to show up in their relationship, no matter how happy they end up together. It doesn’t just disappear.

And despite the fact that her understanding of that concept (that shit between two people doesn’t just disappear like magic) is one of my absolute favorite things about the first few books, Sarah even went as far as to use the last two books to retcon some of the original complexity away, which makes me want to rip out my hair!! Like Aelin at the end of KoA just going “Love you Chaol and Love you Dorian xoxoxoxoxox best friends forever!!!” instead of having, like, any type of mixed feelings about the way these boys treated her? I mean, come on! 100 pages earlier Chaol was openly saying she should die instead of Dorian! Why is everything just peachy-keen instead of fraught with tension!! (I know why. I know. It’s because she introduced way too many characters/POVs/storylines as the series went on and didn’t know what to do with them all besides sideline the nonromantic ones and pair off everyone else boy-girl boy-girl down the line). Or if it has to be peachy-keen, why is the peachy-keeness never critically examined as, perhaps, a repressive mechanism for Aelin to avoid dealing with painful truths from her past? Now that would be interesting.

(My ideal World of ToG would be just a transcript of the characters’ therapy sessions where Aelin realizes that her insistence that “Chaol and Dorian Are Her Friends!” is actually a way to keep herself safe emotionally and that she has plenty of reasons to hate them, and Lysandra realizes she should divorce Aedion lmao).

Anyway tldr: The variety, complexity, depth, and unpredictability of the relationships in Throne of Glass was simultaneously the most realistic (sometimes relationships of all kinds fall apart or veer off in unexpected directions and love is temporary and the boy you met in the first chapter isn’t actually your soulmate and it doesn’t mean he’s a villain) and the most gripping and dramatic (I would have been totally chill if maeve and erawan weren’t a thing and tog was just like a medieval soap opera, that’s how entertaining the character dynamics were) thing about the series, and to lose that in the last two books because of Heterosexuality (and introducing too many POVs and not knowing what to do with them all)…. kinda devastating.

This ended up being waaaaaay more complaining than it was talking about what I loved, but the only reason it bothers me so much is because it used to be so good!!! So just imagine the inverse of all the frustration I just vomited into this ask and you’ll have a good idea of how much I loved the series when things weren’t this way.

#im SO sorry for how shittily worded/ranty/emotional/long this is but *antoni from queer eye voice* a shitty YA series is actually something #that can be so personal...#greatest hits: hot takes

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charincharge · 3 years

Note

rhoe + lorcan brotp for life (rhoecan? it sounds very similar to the rowan x lorcan “rocan” ship LOL)

Listen, I love them. There’s going to be a lot more of Rhoecan for everyone to enjoy.

#idwtw ask

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shyvioletcat · 5 years

Text

I give you the drabble no one asked for but you get anyway because I brotp Aelin and Dorian so hard.

~~~~~

It was supposed to be time. Yrene had been sent for and she had arrived, family in tow. Even Dorian had come along for the journey. The palace was practically bursting with guests. But the arrival they had all been impatiently waiting for was late.

Very late. And Aelin was pissed.

The Queen of Terrasen reclined on a long couch in the library trying desperately to focus on her book. But every time she relaxed enough to pay attention to what was happening the tiny person inside her would jam some appendage uncomfortably against Aelin’s insides.

For instance, the two characters were about to confess their love for each other as a thunderstorm raged about them. But just as Aelin was about to read those anticipated words something, she assumed a foot, jabbed violently into her ribs. It was enough shock and pain that she cried out, the sound echoing through the library.

The next sound that echoed was the book hitting the floor as Aelin hurled it across the room. She’d had enough. She needed this baby out.

Aelin felt like she hadn’t slept in a week. Which was half true as she was up half the night, every night, because she was either in pain, uncomfortable, restless or needed to pee.

Rowan had tried to help. But his helping was a lot like fussing and Aelin had had just enough of that too. Hell, the pregnancy had set all the Fae males on edge and they were starting to suffocate her. Even Lorcan was being helpful enough for Aelin to threaten to send him back to Perranth.

Hence why she had sequestered herself in the empty library, to get some peace and quiet and be by herself. But at that moment the baby stretched and reminded Aelin she not alone.

An exasperated groan escaped as Aelin pushed herself up. Great. Now she didn’t have her book. Even once she got up, how was meant to pick it up off the floor?

Footsteps sounded, confidently making their way towards Aelin. They were coming from the direction she had thrown her book, and by the momentary pause in the steps she assumed the owner had stopped to pick it up. Aelin watched the space in which the personage would appear, eager to know who had disobeyed her orders and entered the library.

It was Dorian who sauntered into view. A perfect smirk plastered on his perfect face.

“You drop this?” He asked still making his way towards Aelin.

“In a manner of speaking,” Aelin said as she struggled to sit up a bit further. A rather undignified sound escaped her mouth but she was more grateful than she could express when Dorian pulled up a chair instead of rushing to assist her.

“You look exhausted,” Dorian said as he placed the book on the small table next to Aelin and sat down. “But as beautiful as ever.”

“Why thank you, your Highness,” Aelin replied. “I see your time as King hasn’t improved your ability to lie.”

Dorian raised a hand to his chest in mock pain. “You wound me, Majesty. When have I ever been dishonest when it comes to your beauty. You’re practically glowing.”

“Don’t mistake that glow for the sheen of sweat I have all day,” Aelin said then gestured to her protruding stomach. “This thing is a furnace.”

In response a cooling breezed drifted by Aelin and she stifled the moan that rose to her throat. Gods knew what Rowan would do if he heard a sound like that come from here while in the presence of Dorian. Adarlan might need a new king.

Dorian had missed nothing and let out a chuckle. “I recall I once praised your beauty in a circumstance not too dissimilar to this. Even then you denied the truth.”

Aelin furrowed her brow in confusion but then she remembered. She had been curled under the blankets of her bed in the castle in Rifthold, the pain of her monthly cycles paralysing her.

Aelin scoffed. “Dissimilar? It was the complete opposite of this situation. And I didn’t deny my beauty. I was calling you out for your stupidity of flirting with an assassin.” Aelin looked to Dorian and saw him smiling and she couldn’t help but smile too. “Do you remember how Chaol bolted from the room?”

Dorian laughed. “Yes. He was the colour of a tomato when I met him outside the hall. It took him a good five minutes to actually explain what your ailment was.”

Aelin tilted her head back and laughed then said, “What did he do when Yrene went into labour?”

Aelin looked at Dorian and he had a tight lipped smile on his face, as if he was trying desperately not to laugh. He took a moment to clear his throat and then said, “He fainted.”

Aelin exploded with laughter.

“I was waiting outside then Yrene started screaming my name, so I went in and there was Chaol on the floor. I managed to wake him up before Myra arrived. Don’t tell him I told you, I swore I’d never tell a soul who was outside that room.”

Aelin was still laughing when Dorian finished and after a few moments she was able to calm herself enough to ask, “To what do I owe the honour of your company, Dorian?”

His initial smirk had returned, “There’s three fae and one demifae pacing the length of the hallway. I’d thought I’d see what the fuss was about.”

“Oh just me. And this thing.” Aelin ran her hands and over her stomach. “You hear all the stories about women who love being pregnant and it’s so blissful. I’m calling it for what it is. A dirty bunch of lies.”

Now it was Dorian’s turn to laugh.

“But really, I’m bloated and sore, I can hardly move and when I do I waddle. Sometimes even being still is agony. And I don’t fit into any of my nice clothes.”

“You have my pity, Aelin. You really do.”

“I’ll take it,” she said then winced as another appendage poked her from the inside. When she glanced at Dorian he was looking at her stomach. “Would you like to feel it?”

Aelin could tell Dorian was hesitant. “If you’re sure you wouldn’t mind.”

Aelin just waved him forward and Dorian slid from his chair to kneel beside her. Still his hand hovered over her stomach, hesitant to make contact. Aelin just took his hand in hers and placed it against the soft fabric of her gown. A few moments passed then the baby kicked right against Dorian’s hand. He gave a surprised laugh and Aelin smiled at him and his reaction.

“It’s a little odd,” Dorian said as he moved back to his chair.

“Yes, it is,” Aelin said. “I am very ready for the whole experience to be over. But Yrene says the baby will come when it’s good and ready.”

“What about all those old wives tales? Have you tried...”

Aelin cut him off before he could utter another word.

“Everything,” she said in a tone that left no room for argument. “We’ve tried everything.”

Again Dorian laughed and picked up the book Aelin had thrown across the room.

“Well, speaking of tales, shall I read to you?”

Aelin smiled and nodded and took the book Dorian offered to her and flicked through until she found where she was up to. Then she settled herself as comfortably as she could on the couch, head tipped back and eyes closed as she listened to Dorian’s lovely voice.

She didn’t even notice when she drifted off to sleep.

~~~~~

@fucking-winchester-trash I’m tagging because I recall you saying “all” my fics. If you didn’t literally mean all let me know. I’m just assuming here 😬

#throne of glass #sarah j maas #rowaelin #aelin and dorian brotp #my writing

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