#because of the mating bond

[lainalit]

Azriel in his bonus chapter💀

artists: lucien: mftfernandez | azriel: dominiquewesson

#azriel out here punching air #what is this man so pressed about #maybe he is jealous of elain because she got the mating bond with lucien and not him #I wouldn't blame him who doesn't want lucien #lucien vanserra #pro lucien vanserra #azriel #anti elriel #acotar #anti ic #anti inner circle #acotar critical #acotar memes

[foxcort]

sometimes i think about how the acotar books could've been a great way to show that "love doesn't heal trauma" rather than whatever points sjm was trying to make about abusive relationships and sa. instead of tamlin being abusive, she could've written that feylin's individual traumas kept them from reaching out to each other. or that feyre felt suffocated by the perfect, idyllic and alive spring court when she felt the opposite on the inside. or that tamlin felt overwhelmed by the sudden influx of responsibilities as he's trying to rid himself of the nightmares from utm. they try to make it work. they try to replicate some of the dates and dances from book #1 but there's an almost tangible shadow over their relationship now. and maybe one day feyre sees a memorial for andras or a likeness to one of the high fae living in the spring court to one of the high fae she killed utm, and has a panic attack. and this serves as the catalyst that severs feylin's relationship and reveals that yes, their love broke a curse, their love saved prythian but it couldn't (and shouldn't) heal them.

#im not an analysis girlie i'd much rather rb the smart people in this fandom #but i couldn't stop thinking of this despite sarah's tendency to resolve all of her characters' traumas with dick #no need to retcon or character assassinate my bbgs #feyre could've had a whole plot to herself where she lived outside the bounds of a romantic relationship and discovered her abilities #there could've been reconciliation between her and her sisters (perhaps something that could start her healing) #hell you could even put the feysand mating bond in there and show once again that a magical love bond does not heal trauma #give them a fling that rhysand stops because he knows she's trying to force it so she can feel healed #and its bare minimum but rhys actually sacrificing his desires on page and putting feyre's mental health above them gives him likable #qualities and shows that he truly cares about feyre and this could maybe start his redemption arc #this definitely spiraled but i think it would've been cool #anti sjm #anti acomaf

[gwyns]

sjm is literally known as the fated mates author of today's fantasy space. she loves the trope, nearly every single one of her endgame ships are mates, and if they're not confirmed it's highly speculated they are (manorian). hell, even her human ships can have magical bonds that tie them to another person, for better or worse (chaorene). she likes her characters to have this connection, for them to find their own, special person that was meant for them and to help them grow and flourish. even if she has elain reject the bond, i can totally see her making her fall in love with lucien anyway, because that would be playing with it, right? and giving readers something unexpected, something e/riels claim they want

but at the end of the day, it's not about the bond, that's just a device to get characters closer to each other. sjm has always been about choice and like it or not, lucien is a choice for elain. she's been making choices, no one has stripped that from her since hybern kidnapped her. stop acting like shippers are taking away a fictional woman's rights for wanting her with her mate

#im just so tired. its annoying as hell that with EVERY OTHER COUPLE people want them to be mates because it confirms an endgame #like fuck im waiting for ariadne and flynn to somehow be mates so i can bask in my ariflynn endgame #but nooooope. when its elucien suddenly sjm needs to switch it up and do a mate bond rejection. so frustrating #antielriel #anti e/riel #tp

[sporksaber]

I love packbonding headcanons in humans are space orcs works, it hits just the right spot in the soft, squishy clump of muscle beneath my ribs.

I especially love the idea of other species on board the ship with the humans being very confused at the human's incessant need to do things for them or be around them. Like, theyve gone through everything they can and are unable to figure out anything more than their need for packbonding. So they bring it up to the human to the human to find out what exactly it entails and how important it is.

The human replies, "your continued health and comfort is now directly connected to my mental well being," and the other species is decently terrified of what they've gotten into.

#humans are space orcs #pack bonding #one particular crew mate is just like #are we... married now? #because that's the only time such a thing would happen amongst their species

[astrababyy]

i don’t mean to be that person, but if mating bonds are based in who will have the most powerful offspring then how would thesan and his general be mates? like, how would that even work?? do fae have male pregnancies? also, why are mating bonds only about offspring some of the time, rather than all of the time? what’s the difference? is it just for plot’s sake? if a mating bond is clearly prioritizing the resulting offspring over true love, does that mean those babies will be incredibly powerful if it’s that important that two faeries who clearly don’t go well together are in a bond?

#also #does it just not matter that thesan isn't going to have a child to be his heir #like is that stuff not relevant in their magic system where it might not even be the high lord's kid who will become the next high lord #acotar #acotar meta #this bothers me severely #i feel like the whole offspring thing with mating bonds #only makes sense if it was so relevant that those two people be together #because their children will literally change the world #and that's why only some mating bonds are like that instead of all #astrababyy

[spacemancharisma]

this thing

will not stop trying to steal my wife

#my spouse works from home so he’s with the bunny all day when I’m out #and because of this the rabbit Bonded with him and not me #like he knows I’m part of the colony and we’re family but he considers my husband his mate #and he knows that I Also consider my husband my mate #and because of this he has this fucking beef with me #like I’m just trying to love my beautiful tiny rabbit son and he thinks I’m stealing his man #personal #oliver 🐰

[givemaycoffee]

I am curious about the ST fic but I'm gonna slap my face into attention and focus instead on what catches my eye the most (and in no way is my guess of your super top secret smutty fic): Please tell me about Pre-Bond and how your Howl's Moving Castle AU is going!

WIP Game

Pre-Bond

The idea here was a play on the idea of mating bonds, but combine omegaverse bonds with some ideas stolen from Vulcan mating bonds - namely, the titular pre-bond. Omegaverse bonds typically happen on the neck, but I was thinking a pre-bond could happen via the scent glands on the wrist.

You know the scene at the end of The Taste of You where Percy does not bite Vex? This fic was What if he did bite her but wisely created a pre-bond (which can be dissolved) rather than a full bond? So they can both reevaluate when they aren't in heat/rut. But then shit goes sideways a bit because of essentially soulmate stuff (true mates are a whole omegaverse thing also and it’s literally just soulmates). Here’s a tiiiny snippet:

She found the skin of his wrist and bit down. It was exquisite. It was all of him, his scent on her tongue and his very being rushing into her own.

Howl’s Moving Castle AU

As for HMC AU… 🥲 it’s completely still stalled. But I don’t think I’ve ever shared a snippet with you??? Apologies if I’m just forgetting, but here’s their first meeting:

She was reaching for the knife when a finely gloved hand landed on her shoulder from behind. “There you are darling, I was looking for you.” She startled at the smooth voice, looking up at the stranger who had somehow managed to sneak up on all of them. Clear blue eyes behind gold rimmed glasses met her gaze, and he smiled fondly at her. She felt a warm rush of familiarity. Except - no. She had never met this man in her life. And she would remember him if she had. 

He was far too richly dressed for anyone in her circles - ornately patterned silk waistcoat and carefully knotted cravat and shining gold buttons. His nose was handsomely hooked under dark eyebrows, and he had the pale skin of a northerner. Most striking though were his shock of white hair and his midnight colored coat that seemed to glimmer with starlight as he shifted his arm around her shoulders, pulling her against his side. He was oddly hot to the touch and looked much too young for that hair. He leaned in as he pulled her closer, and quickly murmured in her ear, “My lady, please play along. I admit, I have been itching to ruin these men’s days for ages, and catching them in such a compromising situation gives me the perfect excuse.” She had been about to shove him off, nobility as he surely must be or not, but stopped short at that. She did not need to be rescued, but also could understand the scope of the situation well enough  - no one would believe her story were she to report this herself. “Mr. Dassur and Mr. Shede, I believe?” the white haired man turned back to the two guards, who were suddenly standing straight-backed and looking rather pale. “I believe Captain Howarth will want to hear what transpired here.” With a wave of his hand, a curl of black smoke seemed to swirl around the two guards for a moment, and then they relaxed slightly, eyes glassy.  “You will tell him, in detail, what happened, won’t you?” “Yes,” they said in unison.  Vex’s heart rate picked up. Out of the frying pot and into the fire. Gods damnit. This man was far more dangerous than the guards. “Excellent. Please, be on your way. Tell him I send my regards.” They nodded, turned, and marched off, still in unsettling unison. Vex was trying to determine her best avenue of escape when she felt him pull away quickly. She looked up to find him blushing, of all things, and he executed a rather flustered bow. “Excuse my forwardness, my lady. It was completely inappropriate,” he straightened to his full, rather tall height, fixing his cloak - and it must be magical with the way she swore she just saw a little shooting star near the bottom, “but I could not let them continue getting away with such harassment. There had been prior reports, but nothing concrete enough to actually land them in trouble.”  He wrung his hands for a moment, staring off, then jerked his head back toward her.  “Are you alright?” “Ah - uhm.” She paused. Took in the concerned look in his wide, blue eyes and the polite amount of space he had created between them. “As well as I can be, I suppose.”

#insomnikat-mused #asks #WIP game #perc'ahlia #percy de rolo #vex'ahlia #vox machina #the pre-bond WIP is still very very early stages and I actually realized after you picked it that it never made it into my word doc - its #mostly living in a notebook at the moment. but i don't know if I want to take an angst route or just a fluffy route or what which is why #that snippet is so small - the original angle was angst because percy immediately freaks out because it feels like they just created a full #mating bond rather than a pre-bond and he is GUILTY. but idk. I don't like my angst to be that heavy handed i think #also I love HMC AU Percy - he's deeply angry and distrustful but also very sweet and shy and he just doesn't interact with people much #he mostly keeps himself hidden/disguised (much like Howl) and he lives with Orthax (calcifer) and Keyleth (Merkle)

[marc--chilton]

(mgv) what if like. cuddy susses out that when house is on his cycle he's both more erratic AND more controllable?? he's more of a pest (small scale tyranny in the clinic) but if she pulls her voice on him he tones down against his will -- which opens her up for more retaliation pranks later because house HATES the fact he's susceptible to biology like that. BUT if she sends wilson to tame him, house isn't nearly as frustrating afterwards. she gets less complaints about him for a few days, too. cuddy jokes that wilson is her secret weapon against house antics but soon realizes that she can only pull it as a last resort because once it happens, it stirs wilson's hormones and since they're both alphas, they have to have some distance or he'll start growling. everything's back to normal when the cycles pass at least and by that point cuddy is too relieved to question anything (like why their heat/rut absence notices were on her desk the same day)

#house md #hilson #they both have power over him but he only relinquishes the control himself over to wilson #a fact house doesn't like to admit because that means vulnerability and yeah #cuddy doesnt even ponder if they're bonded or mates or whatever #no matter what universe theyre in hilson is a mutated relationship all its own #omegaverse is haunting me now someone help me

[cats-of-eden-valley]

maybe a marriage ceremony for the prides could be like the “change your clan for love” thing in the newer warriors books? a ceremony about Cat A (probably almost always a tom) leaving their birth pride behind to join their mate’s pride.

I definitely see this happening in the future, as the prides make an effort to evaluate their culture and change for the better, but rn they're not quite there yet :P Esp cus they don't currently think a tom joining his mate's pride is a cause for celebration

#its about why does one choose a mate. what is the cultural significance of this. why is this bond celebrated #because a pairing is usually between two mollies in the pride but on a cultural level #they dont merge families! even kittens whose mother has a mate isnt generally seen a second parent #because the whole of the pride is a family #so what does it mean when two cats decide to get married. what changes. what are the practices and beliefs #what's so important about two cats within a family group deciding to marry that there needs to be a whole ceremony about it #know what i mean

[pinkrasberryfish]

So, my Elriel babies… which one are you?

- it’s a false bond disguising the real one

- there are two mating bonds

- it’s a real bond but she’ll reject it

#because we know it’s one of these 3 #I’m team false bond #I think Elriel are true mates #elriel #elain archeron #elriel supremacy #pro elriel #elriel forever

[sheepdog-and-fakegoldenretriever]

Last time I'll see him tomorrow as I move jobs next week

Also saw my rue girl for the last time Monday broke my heart I'll actually miss these dogs so much. I hope they find their perfect home soon

#like #this is why i need to leave #because i love them so much #and they really form a beautiful bond with you #and i can't trust people to find the right homes before the dog gets returned #it's better i don't know about them #because my heart has taken too much being in this job #now give me the needles and blood back because at least there's a higher chance of predicting that will go to plan ok #ok #fuck this job has wrecked me #its honestly not the dogs its the fucking politics of the job #a dog got hit by a car from an experienced behaviour staff yesterday that's been in the job 3 years #honeslty #the dog is fine but cmon mate seriously #you're meant to be a senior in your role and you can't be street smart #fucking hell it's dog training it's not hard to predict hazards #what the actual fuck thank ful I'm leaving

[duskcowboy]

I think SJM had always intended to have a rejected mating bond. Even when Nesta was supposed to be mates with Lucien I think they were gonna reject the bond. I think originally, SJM thought Nesta was the kind of character who would never accept being told who she must end up with and is too stubborn, so she was going to reject her bond with Lucien, but then I think SJM realized it would be a much more compelling story for Nesta to finally let go of control and let someone love her unconditionally like Cassian, and that it would be greater character development for someone like Elain, who constantly does what she is told or expected of, someone who never speaks up for herself, to put her foot down and reject a mating bond for who she truly loves. That way, both Nesta and Elain have much more compelling growth as individual characters.

#which means I think Lucien was always planned to have a rejected mating bond #and that SJM’s comments about him having a HEA down the road is because she KNOWS it doesn’t seem happy that he’ll have #a rejected bond but that he’s going to find his happiness elsewhere and she’s always been planning it that way #acotar thoughts

[deathsweetblossoms]

But do Lorcan and Elide ever have a conversation about being mates outside of that Maeve induced nightmare?!? What kind of 😭😭

SJM if we ever meet in person it’s on sight for robbing me of what Lorcan did and for no follow through with the mates convo between these two. (EDIT; AND NO WEDDING SCENE. SJM. WHAT IS YOUR DAMAGE?!) I mean wtf.

#elorcan #sjm is my enemy and my friend #literally if I was ever at a fan event and we got to Q&A her I would just rip into her about elide and Lorcan #‘when did you decide you wanted them to be together I need to know’ #‘was it when you were designing their characters and respective gods?!? because that’s some GOOD SHIT Sarah I swear tfg’ #‘CAN a human and a Demi fae be mates? how does that work? how do they know???’ #‘is the experience similar to or different than fae/fae bonds?’ #‘also would you argue then that it was kind of like a feysand situation where Lorcan was unknowingly waiting for her???’ #even without knowing he was waiting for her since he was so AVERSE to love?!?! I mean omg #ship wars? I care not - I want information on the writing process of these two #I know she has a ton of bg info she isn’t sharing #don’t try to act like she doesn’t #you can’t just have him SAY something like this and then not give me MORE?? #yeah ok he gives up his immortality for her #can they sense each other? is there an energetic bond?! ARE they mates?!?

[vidalinav]

She worked at a bookshop. 

In a tiny human town, where residence could hear the steady crash of a shore onto rocky cliffs, Cassian found Nesta here. In a bookshop, tucked away as if the books wanted to hide something precious within its tomes. 

“Are you looking for something sir?” a shop attendant called, not at all bothered by the wings that raised to let someone behind him pass. This town didn’t seem to hate fae which made his lurking easier. 

The city seemed to house them, in fact. A few, if the streets said anything about it. They were positively bare despite the snow and Cassian knew that no human contraption could have ever stopped the winter from coming when it called. 

She was dressed for winter. Nesta shifted from shelf to shelf with a scarf wrapped around her neck. It was warm in this little shop, but her cheeks and nose were red. Cassian clenched his fists together, keeping them firmly at his side. He wasn’t in any position to offer his coat, but the Mother knew, he might have lit the little shop on fire if it meant keeping her warm.

#a reincarnation fic #nessian #but just a snippet #because I ain't writing this whole thing #nesta archeron #The Next Life #basically nesta dies at some point after acosf probably doing something noble and sacrifing herself as she'd done like every book #and then she gets reincarnated because obvi the Mother loves her #and Cassian finds her because of the mate bond #it still exists now that she exists again #it only took about 1000 years #but Nesta lives a very good life and he doesn't want to taint that #But he also wants her so so bad #So he accidentally courts her #in the sense that she notices him more and she courts him #and he doesn't tell anyone that she's alive #even though he almost immediately wants to go find that cauldron again to throw her in it #but Nesta eventually tells him that she'd never want to live forever that it seemed cruel #and so he keeps his thoughts to himself

[gar-a-ash]

Dinosaur ask reminded me I made a hatzegopteryx character ages ago and I'm still fond of this giant fucker.

#gar draws #hatzegopteryx #digital art #character design #in my own universe hatzegs are war mounts and form a lifelong bond with their rider #and they bond as children to hatchlings #but the hatzeg will view them as mates so they're willing to do anything their rider asks #but it means that riders are cursed to not have actual romantic partners because the hatzegs will kill them <3 #still want to develop this universe at some point

[ladyelain]

I’m not a big fan any longer of apologising for Elain by saying she’s been robbed of all choices in her life. And I know I’ve said similar things myself.

Today however, I can’t fully stand behind statements like these. Elain went through traumatic experiences, of course. She’s been robbed of her self-determination, been forced into a life she never asked for. Still, Elain having no choice goes for a limited period in her life. It’s been a few years now. These present days in Velaris Elain also happens to be extremely privileged. (Not saying she’s not entitled to struggle.) She’s got a bright future ahead of herself if she wants to pursue it. Technically, she’s got all the choices in the world.

I think the problem is more about Elain not quite knowing what she wants and who she wants to be because the world has never been more open to her. Having too many options is a different kind of struggle. And I’m obviously not talking about her love life lol. I feel like Elain strongly underestimates herself and forgets what she’s capable of. She probably fears that everyone around her has these secret expectations, forgetting that after all it’s her life.

I don’t like how Elain (in this fandom) happens to be pushed into the role of this helpless, unlucky girl trapped within her mating bond. Because that’s not her at all. She doesn’t need these excuses. She can always say no. She just has to start figuring herself out.

#elains choice #little reminder: nobody ever specifically asked to be mated to a stranger but that’s just how it works i guess #you can question the concept in general but not eluciens situation in particular because they don’t work any different than other bonds #elucien #elain archeron #thoughts on elain