#truthteller is about to make an appearance

[bookofmirth]

What could happen to the Prison in acotar5?

As a preview, this post is going to be hella long. It focuses on things we learned primarily on acosf and hofas. It also discusses the Illyrians and the Valkyries, Pegasuses, the 8-pointed star, and the fallout from Avallen being restored by Bryce. 

The tl;dr is that I think that the Valkyries (and potentially some Illyrians) could serve as guardians for the Prison, along with being a neutral political force and army in Prythian, not aligned with a specific court but rather being a balance between them all. 

Before you proceed, be aware that I tend towards analysis of the current content of the books, not theorizing about what will happen in the future, so this may not read like theories that other people in the fandom come up with. A majority of this is facts from the books, with me tying things together to think about the implications.

Part one: what we know based on HOFAS

First, it's helpful to get some context for what we know (for sure) about the Prison:

It was the land of dusk (not a Court in the way Prythian currently has courts).

After the events with Fionn, Theia, Helena, Silene, and Pelias, the land was mostly abandoned.

When Silene returned from Midgard, she created the Prison in order to hide the Harp, using the monsters she put there to deter anyone from looking for it. Silene decided if this place was seen as cursed, then let it be cursed.

We also find out that Silene left her portion of Theia's light under the Prison, which Bryce then took.

There is also a large cache of firstlight remaining under the Prison.

When Bryce used Truthteller and Gwydion/the Starsword to heal Avallen, Pegasuses appeared again.

Avallen and the Prison are in "thin" spots in the universe that make it easy to travel from one planet to the other (fwiw, this idea is not unique to sjm. See: Stephen King.) These spots are identifiable by the mists that surround them.

These thin spots are also on the nexus of ley lines, where energy flows.

It stands to reason that when Bryce "unlocked" Avallen, the energy and magic that it now experiences will flow to other places along the ley lines, IE the Prison. It's also implied that the land keeping the power imprisoned is one of the reasons it grew sick.

Bryce's actions in hofas have implications for Prythian. While the above is related to the Prison, we also have:

Nesta now has possession of the Starsword/Gwydion

Azriel's reaction to Truthteller and the Starsword being together

The 8-pointed star (more on that later)

Part two: what we know based on ACOSF

So based on this information, we need to go back to acosf and look at what sjm left for us. 

The main thing to keep in mind is that Nesta found the Harp in the Prison, and that it was laying on an 8-pointed star. 

One of the main dangling threads from acosf - that we know to be canon, that is not a theory or supposition - is that the Illyrians and the Valkyries are going to continue training together. We know that Mor is interested in training with the Valkyries. From hofas, we know that Nesta is every bit as well trained now as she was in the months since acosf.

Now, there are a couple of partially-fulfilled statements from acosf that I think are relevant here, in addition to Valkyries and Illyrians continuing to train.

The first is the wish that Nesta made on the friendship bracelets. 

"I wish for us to have the courage to go out into the world when we are ready, but to always be able to find our way back to each other. No matter what." (chp 59)

We know that in the Blood Rite, the second half of that wish was fulfilled. The first half has not been fulfilled yet. That gives us very good reason to assume that the first half will be fulfilled.

All three of them, Nesta, Emerie, and Gwyn, will go out into the world at some point in the future. 

There is another, much larger implication that was made in acosf:

Nesta smirked. “If we are to be Valkyries born again,” she said, “maybe we should combine the Illyrian and Valkyrie techniques.” She’d meant it in jest, but the words rumbled through the space, as if she’d spoken some great truth, something that made fate sit up. Azriel turned to them fully this time, eyes narrowed. Like those shadows had whispered something to him. A chill breathed down Nesta’s spine. Cassian stared into their faces. Like he beheld something he hadn’t seen there before. (chp 44)

And the later on:

Gwyn whispered, “I am the rock against which the surf crashes.” Nesta straightened at the words, as if they were a prayer and a summons. Gwyn lifted the blade. “Nothing can break me.” Cassian’s throat tightened, and even from across the ring, he could see Nesta’s eyes gleaming with pride and pain. Emerie said, “Nothing can break us.” The world seemed to pause at the words. As if it had been following one path and now branched off in another direction. In a hundred years, a thousand, this moment would still be etched in his mind. That he would tell his children, his grandchildren, Right then and there. That was when it all changed. Azriel went wholly still, as if he, too, had felt the shift. As if he, too, were aware that far larger forces peered into that training ring as Gwyn moved. (chp 60)

SJM used similar phrasing in the same book for which we know the consequences: 

Strike after strike, and Cassian could have sworn the world paused as she unleashed herself with the same intensity she brought to training.

This is when Nesta is Making the weapons, which we find out later is actually a significant moment, not just Cassian being hyperbolic about how great his mate is. Then, when Nesta is using the Mask and Harp to heal Feyre, the world also pauses. This phrasing is used when something important is happening - even if we don't know what the implications are, yet.

Given that we know for sure that the Illyrians and the Valkyries are going to continue training, and there are loose threads because we don't know the implications of fate/the world standing up at Nesta's, Emerie's, and Gwyn's statements and/or actions, there is a very, very good chance that the Valkyries will continue being a big part of acotar. 

My final point about the Valkyries is that in myth, they rode horses through the sky - not Pegasuses because those are from Greek myth, and Valkyries are Norse. But they fly through the sky on horses nonetheless. (This is literally the only piece of evidence I have coming from outside the books.) Pegasuses are connected to Avallen and likely the Prison. We know that Helion keeps some, but they are struggling to breed/thrive. (We also know that sjm loves to take what she wants from myth, so it’s not a stretch to think she’d shrug at the Greek/Norse distinction.)

All of this together tells me that the Valkyries have more story coming, and it is connected to the Illyrians'.

Part three: The 8-pointed star

A common thread between both series is the 8-pointed star. There are a few ways in which it is used:

Nesta and Cassian's bargain tattoo in acosf. They both had this tattoo on them - an Illyrian and a Valkyrie. 

Bryce also has the 8-pointed star on her chest that glows when she is near people who will aid her or who are part of the Starborn line. When she took the piece of Theia's light, it went into her star and powered her up.

The Harp was resting on an 8-pointed star in the Prison, where Silene left it.

In HOFAS, Bryce put Truthteller and Gwydion into the slots of an 8-pointed star in order to revive Avallen.

When training, Cassian teaches the Valkyries the 8-pointed star sequence. This is a series of moves that they make with a sword, and is an Illyrian technique. 

Cassian walked her through eight different cuts and blocks. Each was an individual move, he’d explained, and like the punches, they could be combined. (chp 38) “I’d thought today would be a good day to integrate the eight-pointed star, but if you’re already complaining, we can wait until next week.” (chp 44) Nesta lifted the sword and executed a perfect arcing slash. Her weight shifted to her legs just as she flipped the blade, leading with the hilt, and brought up her arm against an invisible blow. Another shift and the sword swept down, a brutal slash that would have sliced an opponent in half. Each slice was perfect. Like that eight-pointed star was stamped on her very heart. (chp 50)

And finally, at the end of HOFAS, Bryce gives Gwydion to Nesta and tells her to explore the 8-pointed star:

“I think that eight-pointed star was tattooed on you for a reason. Take that sword and go figure out why.”

Note that it’s not just a matter of the star, anymore. Both Cassian and Nesta were tattooed with it; Bryce used Gwydion and Truthteller to activate the star in Avallen. And now, Nesta is in possession of Gwydion with knowledge about the Prison and a connection to the star. There are elements coming together, and those elements are connected to both Illyrians AND Valkyries. 

My thinking is that the 8-pointed star is the symbol of the dusk land, the Starborn Princes in Midgard (Theia) and in Prythian, of the first and only High King. If that land is where the Valkyries will be reborn and where Starborn power is from, and we know it is the source of a huge cache of firstlight, then that star is a symbol of what has been lost - and what is about to be revived.

So now the question is - what part will the Valkyries and Illyrians play?

Part four: What might happen to the Prison?

To sum up the above, and adding on a couple of small points that don’t fit elsewhere:

We know that the Illyrians and Valkyries will continue training

We have very heavy-handed phrasing around the world/fate paying attention to the idea of the Valkyries being reborn and working with Illyrians.

We have the connection between Valkyries, Illyrians, and the 8-pointed star because it is also an Illyrian sword technique that is being taught to the Valkyries.

We know that the Prison is going to go through some changes akin to puberty.

In addition, we have Gwyn being allowed to write the Valkyries into the books she is researching. 

SJM has also said that Nesta’s story is going to continue.

Since we know that the Prison is going to change and there are these characters and groups poised for action - I haven’t even touched on Ramiel and the Illyrians being created by the Dagsteri, Azriel and his connection to Truthteller and Enalius, and his reaction to the TT/Gwydion, and will do that in a separate post - we can make some predictions about how that might look. If it’s going to make sense, sjm has to think beyond the magic system that she has… sort-of established, and past the involvement of individual characters. There are a few things to take into consideration with the Prison.

It is very likely that Pegasuses will return to the island as it is suffused with magic and energy again. 

There are also other, unforeseen magical consequences as the magic flows back into it, thanks to the ley lines being “unblocked” by Bryce. 

It may become easier for people/creatures to travel between worlds, given that it is a thin place that has been "unlocked". 

The Prison is still full of prisoners! They are monsters that Silene gathered to hide the Harp, but... does that mean they just get released? Get slaughtered? Do they now have access to the power of the island? What is going to happen with them? 

The High Lords cannot all be trusted to stay within their own courts, minding their own business. Beron is the most obvious example, as he has his eye on Spring while Tamlin is Suffering. 

If there were another court established, one that sits on a huge reserve of firstlight, that could be a huge point of contention amongst the courts. Even if the High Lords don’t want it for themselves, they wouldn’t want anyone else to have it on the chance that one of them would use it against the others. In acomaf, Rhys explains that the Prison is keyed to his blood and that he has jurisdiction of it; however:

“Do all the High Lords have access?” My words were so soft they were devoured by the dark. Even that thrumming power in my veins had vanished, burrowing somewhere in my bones. “No. The Prison is law unto itself; the island may be even an eighth court. But it falls under my jurisdiction, and my blood is keyed to the gates.” (chp 18)

We don’t know yet what that reserve of firstlight is going to mean for the island.

To me, it makes sense for us to have a more neutral third party come in. One who doesn’t have ties to a specific court, but could act in all of their interests. 

Enter: the newly reformed Valkyries. 

I have had a personal headcanon that the Valkyries, once fully established, could create another political/martial entity in Prythian that can help balance the power between all the courts, and provide support when needed. This is how they worked before, which Cassian talks about in acosf: 

“The Valkyries fought when even the bravest males would not. The Illyrians tried to forget that. I fought against males who were my superiors, arguing to help the Valkyries. They beat me senseless, chained me to a supply wagon, and left me there. When I came to, the battle was over, the Valkyries slain.”

Valkyries and Illyrians don’t have the best history, but given that Cassian tried to help them, and that they are working together now, this could be a way of righting a wrong. It could help to explain why fate/the world is taking note. 

The Valkyrie ethos makes sense for this sort of neutral position, too:

“A clan of female warriors from another territory. They were better fighters than the Illyrians, even. The Valkyrie name was just a title, though—they weren’t a race like the Illyrians. They hailed from every type of Fae, usually recruited from birth or early childhood. They had three stages of training: Novice, Blade, and finally Valkyrie. To become one was the highest honor in their land. Their territory is gone now, subsumed into others.”

An improved Valkyrie force, especially if they continue learning Illyrian techniques and recruiting from women across Prythian, could be a big factor in upcoming conflicts with Kochei or any other villain sjm comes up with. They would ensure that the firstlight would be used fairly, so that no court is advantaged or disadvantaged unfairly. It would continue the threads that sjm has left for us, while also giving us space to explore questions that have yet to be answered (such as Azriel’s connection to Truthteller and Enalius). While I think that Nesta would keep her home in the House of Wind, the Prison island would be a good place from which the Valkyries can work - both guarding the monsters that are there, and keeping the firstlight safe.

I believe that Nesta will be the most important character when it comes to reviving the island; while it is heavily implied that the island is already going to have access to its powers thanks to being impacted by Avallen's healing - it is likely already on its way to healing - Nesta with her connection to the 8-pointed star, the Harp, possession of Gwydion, and the Valkyries can help bring stability to the place.

Thank you a million times to the people who helped me fact check and keep things straight, or just listened to me rant about this: @hellacioushag @lily-thesuriel @elains @aionuel @yazthebookish @fracturedarkness and @/michaelanoelreads on TikTok :) @highqueenmorrigan (Mary I forgot you brought up the sword technique thank you for that!)

#hofas #hofas spoilers #acotar/cc #spoilers #Leslie reads hofas #my meta #kinda meta kinda theory #whatever! #the valkyries #acotar5

[azrielsbxtch]

I’ve had more time to sit with HOFAS so here are things I loved and things that bugged me.

THINGS I LOVED

AZRIEL AND NESTA - Where to even begin. Their relationship and friendship is EVERYTHING. I'm so glad SJM chose to highlight both of them for the ACOTAR part because their chemistry is everything. I can't wait for more in ACOTAR 5

AZRIEL - Every new thing we learned about Azriel had me screeching. It's so clear SJM is setting him up for the next book. Every scene he appeared in I was obsessed! Finding out about truthteller, him being protective of his mom, him interacting with music, him being all hot and threatening....this bat has me in a chokehold I swear.

THE LORE - All the new information we got about Prythian and Midgard is so interesting. I wish I was a theories person because there's so much to theorize about!

RUHNLIDIA - They served in this book omg. When Ruhn was like "this is my first mission with my girlfriend I want to impress her" I almost threw my phone I'm not even kidding. They are so cute🥹✨✨

HUNT - I still feel like I need more Hunt. He's such a sweetheart and was truly a highlight for me in this book. I love him so much and I was totally rooting for him to fry Celestina.

THINGS THAT BUGGED ME

Ruhn and Lidia’s mate announcement. I knew Ruhn and Lidia would be mates from HOSAB so I was only waiting for confirmation but the way it was written threw me off. Ruhn just said it out of nowhere and to…of all people…Pollux….like what? Why? Idk it could have been more emotional.

Ariadne- I don’t understand the point of introducing this new character only to do NOTHING with her. I shipped her and Flynn sooo much. The way she was introduced in the beginning of the book had me so hyped only for her to disappear. Like imagine a dragon marching with the armies of Hel when they fought the Asteri…

Sigrid - That entire plotline felt useless to me. She was set up to be this hope for the wolves and it all amounted to nothing. So why did we waste so much time on her. I enjoyed Ithan’s chapters because I really like him. But from an objective point of view…most of what SJM made him do didn’t make sense. If she wanted him to become Prime (which I loved btw) she didn’t need to waste all that time on Sigrid and her resurrection only for her to join Sabine the person she’s supposed to hate and then disappear.

Tharion and Sathia - No…just no…..

Bryce ignoring Hunt’s trauma - She did it in HOSAB but again and on a larger scale in HOFAS. Everytime Hunt brought up his fears (understandable because he has now faced the Asteri twice and suffered insane consequences) Bryce just got angry and put him in such a bad position. She made it look like he didn’t want to support her when he has very valid reasons to be afraid. After what he went through the first time in the Asteri dungeons for years and then again! I’m surprised he didn’t break down even more tbh. His feelings were so valid.

Bryce - SJM tried to do the “Aelin is always two steps ahead” thing with Bryce but honestly it didn’t work. A lot of the times I was side eyeing and was like “that’s convenient” Bryce was guessing a lot of times so that whole thing just didn’t work.

The plot was all over the place. The book really didn’t flow well.

#cc hofas #houseofflameandshadow #cc3 #bryce quinlan #hunt athalar #ruhn x the hind #ruhnlidia #ruhn danaan #lidia cervos #nesta stan #nesta archeron #azriel x gwyn #crescent city #ruhn crescent city

[nightcourtseer]

A little fresh out of my brain, unedited angst post-Solstice. Elriel, of course.

Enjoy :)

Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked

A fire was lit in the hearth, keeping the brisk early spring air at bay.

The Inner Circle was gathering for after dinner drinks at the River House, at Rhys and Feyre’s invitation. After Nyx had been born, the family dinners had slowed, the High Lord and Lady taking more time as a family of three to heal from the traumatic birth. Things were just starting to return to normal.

For most of them, at least.

While Cassian and Nesta had only grown closer to Rhys and Feyre since Nyx’s birth, their third brother had become more and more distant.

And Nesta wasn’t sure what she should do about it.

The bruises underneath Azriel’s eyes had darkened since Solstice, since the Blood Rite. There was no more playful banter, no more smirks at training. Only the distant, all business spymaster. Even Cassian had voiced his concerns for his brother, whispered in Nesta’s ear late at night in the privacy of their room, where Azriel’s shadows stayed far away from.

“I’m worried about Az,” Cassian admitted, smoothing Nesta’s hair as she caught her breath.

She looked up, and brushed away a bead of sweat from his forehead.

Azriel’s secret to tell, never hers.

“He’ll tell you when he’s ready,” Nesta murmured, pressing a kiss to her mate’s jaw.

But Azriel had not said anything. Had barely spoken, to any of them. Nesta wasn’t sure if the spymaster slept at all. Some nights, she would slip out of Cassian’s arms and move from the bed, making her way to their window overlooking the training yard.

Azriel was usually there, chest bare and Illyrian tattoos black as night on his skin. There he would be, wielding Truthteller, running the course, beating a grain bag until his scarred knuckles were black and blue, so gruesome even the next morning that Nesta couldn’t look at them and eat her breakfast at the same time.

It was rare for him to make an appearance at a family gathering, even just for drinks. Nesta entered the family room at the River House, Cassian trailing behind her as he put their coats away. She started in surprise as she saw Azriel moving to sit in a tall chair by the fireplace, a full glass of amber liquid in one hand and the decanter in his other.

He placed the decanter on the side table next to him and sank tiredly in the velvet chair, shadows cloaking him even as the fire’s flames threatened to cast his face in light.

Nesta stood in the entryway of the room as she watched him take a long, slow drink. The full glass was already half empty when he set it down. He didn’t look up to meet her gaze, even though Nesta knew his shadows would be whispering of her stare.

Feyre and Rhys sat curled together on the small couch on the other wall, Rhys lazily letting his hand drift up and down Feyre’s arm as she lifted her own full glass of wine to her lips.

“Hey, you two!” Feyre called, welcoming them in. She sank back down into her mate’s embrace, dressed comfortably in a long sweater and soft gray pants.

Nesta waved a hand in greeting and even Rhys nodded with a smile at her entrance.

“Hello, Nesta,” a soft voice called from the opposite side of the room.

Elain stood on the far wall from the hearth, close to the dining room doorway.

In her arms was the crowned prince of the Night Court.

Elain held Nyx to her chest, the babe resting his head on her shoulder, face cradled into the warmth of her neck. He was fast asleep, small wings rustling slightly every so often as he dreamt.

The room smelled of rich wine, and something else Nesta couldn’t quite place. A spiced cake of some kind, she assumed. The fire cast a golden hue throughout the room, warmer than any faelights could produce.

Azriel didn’t look up to greet them as Nesta stepped into the room, Cassian catching up behind her. He made a beeline for the liquor cabinet while Nesta headed straight for the shadowsinger.

He merely continued to swirl his drink in his hand as she approached.

“I thought your shadows didn’t care for the fire?” Nesta asked, moving her skirts to sit in the matching armchair next to his.

Azriel huffed a laugh and shook his head, but didn’t meet her eyes.

As the night continued, Nesta sat beside her friend in silence, not saying anything as he finished glass after glass of his drink.

The decanter growing dangerously empty.

He barely looked up from his lap, besides the few times that Nesta caught him looking across the room at Elain, who was still gently rocking Nyx as she spoke quietly to Cassian in the corner.

Nesta was about to say something, when they were joined by another.

Lucien stepped into the River House family room, dressed finely in a well-tailored, dark green tunic and black pants. A small braid of auburn hair was tucked behind his right ear, where two small gold earrings pierced the curved edge of the pointed appendage.

His gold eye whirled as he stopped in the doorway, as if waiting for final permission to enter. That he was in fact wanted.

“Lucien!” Feyre called, returning to her perch on Rhy’s lap with a refreshed glass of wine. “Come in.”

Nesta watched as Elain stilled, her back to the doorway. At the cessation of her rocking, Nyx began to stir in her arms, stretching and wiggling so much so that Elain gently moved him into a cradle in order that he could look up at her face.

Lucien held a small package wrapped in brown paper. He lifted it up, as if it was an offering for his entry.

“This is for the babe. Congratulations, Feyre. And Rhysand. To you both.”

It was unusual for the emissary to trip over his words, and Nesta wondered if the source of his nervousness would even turn around.

She noticed the shadows thicken next to her out of the corner of her eye.

“Do you want to hold him?” Feyre asked, a proud, joy-filled smile lighting her face.

Elain turned then, although Nesta noticed an almost imperceptible squaring of her shoulders as she moved to face her mate. Her expression impassive as she moved to greet him with Nyx in her arms, presenting the newest addition.

“I would like that,” Lucien responded, nodding gratefully back to Feyre. She only gestured him closer to her son. To Elain.

Nesta could feel Azriel tense beside her.

Lucien took a step closer to Elain, cautious with each foot forward. He reached out his hands, slowly, as if he would startle her. Nyx turned in her arms, to see who was reaching for him, his face uncertain as he eyed the red headed stranger with the whirring golden eye.

Elain looked up from the babe in her arms to meet Lucien’s stare, a hesitant smile turning her lips up. Feyre watched on, her gray eyes sparkling as she watched her friend take her son from her sister’s arms.

Nesta turned to look at Azriel next to her. His shadows deepened, sweeping around him like a layer of opaque black fog. His hazel eyes were empty. Devoid of any feeling, any light. Any spark that Nesta had seen fill him when he was surrounded by their family.

It frightened her, that emptiness.

His knuckles were white as they gripped his almost empty glass of bourbon.

Elain handed Nyx to Lucien, helping to settle the babe in his arms. Lucien took him in his arms with ease, and once he was settled Elain took a step closer to her mate, reaching out a slim hand to gently tuck in the loose blanket.

Nyx began to squirm and cooed, looking up at his beloved aunt leaning over him. Lucien smiled, and they both looked down at the boy in his arms.

It was the closest Nesta had seen Elain come to her mate. The rest of the room took pause as well, Rhys’ face unreadable as he took in the scene from behind Feyre, resting a hand on her shoulder as they watched the exchange.

Nyx reached his arms up, grasping for a strand of Lucien’s hair dangling dangerously close to his little hands. Lucien laughed quietly, and Elain reached down to gently close the baby’s outreached fist.

They looked like a family.

Azriel’s eyes closed, brow furrowed. Nesta went to lay a reassuring hand on the arm rest of his chair when the sound of breaking glass shattered the quiet night.

Dark bourbon fell to the floor below, coating the hardwood. Glass shards littered the floor, refracting the fire light behind them.

Ruby blood fell, dripping and mixing into the liquor below.

Azriel’s hand clenched around shards of his now empty glass, but he didn’t flinch as Nesta’s breath caught.

Elain whirled, eyes widening as she met Azriel’s.

Her gaze dropped to his hands, glass spearing through his dark skin. Her beautiful face turned horrified.

And then he was gone, disappeared into the darkness of his shadows. All that remained of his presence was the glass and liquor staining the floor like a bad dream.

#pro elriel #elriel

[freepandahugs]

i was thinking and i would like to add my grain of salt onto the mor/elain thingy regarding azriel's feelings towards the both of them, because apparently some people love to keep bringing this up. i will go book by book:

ACOTAR: we literally don't know of the existence of these characters

ACOMAF: we are introduced to them, az's crush on mor is set up, mor states that no matter how much of a crush he has on her he has never and probably will never do anything about it. we get some glimpces of azriel being infatuated with mor but that's about it. mor states she has no interest in him but doesn't know how to reject him.

regarding elain, he barely knows her. they meet halfway through the book and get along well. elain is at ease with azriel around and azriel waxes poetics about flying because she asks. we can assume there were some off-page meetings because of the letters they were sending the queens but that's assumptions. elain gets turned into fae.

ACOWAR: azriel starts being attentive of elain, he pays enough attention to her to be able to figure out she's a seer. spends time with her in the gardens and seems relaxed around her (aka him sprawled on the garden chairs sunning his wings). we have the moment where she calls his hands beautiful and he BLUSHES. azriel starts initiating physical contact with elain. azriel goes on a literal suicidal mission to save elain. elain does what she can to help azriel in order to escape the hybern camp. the truthteller scene and then elain appearing out of thin air to kill the king of hybern.

we get feyre, the mc of the book, questioning elucien's bond.

azriel is shown to be exasperated with mor sleeping around, not reacting outwardly but instead WALKING AWAY from her. mor is hurt by rhys and azriel making deals with keir. we learn that mor is bisexual but leans more towards women.

ACOFAS: mor gives azriel a solstice present that he barely reacts to. we don't have much in page interaction, if any. mor is going to the continent.

azriel helps elain carry the potatoes to the table, elain becomes self conscious about her appearence and goes to clean up a little. azriel makes everyone wait for her before eating. azriel looking out windows into the garden (a place elain usually frequents). elain gifts azriel the headache powder and he laughs so much that everyone seems surprised. "this will be invaluable"

unrelated to azriel but we also get elain show the first signs of not wanting lucien. not talking to him, getting annoyed with feyre for trying to make her interact with him. "i don't want a male", elain is probably still getting over graysen

ACOSF: mor is off to the continent for the vast majority of the book. cassian notices azriel doesn't react as much when mor is around and wonders why he would give up now.

azriel being protective of elain, reacting outwardly to mentions of her being upset (his shadows look like serpents ready to strike). we are reminded three times about azriel rescuing elain. we get a charged glance pass between them, witnessed by nesta. azriel can't be near lucien and elain because of the smell of the bond. bonus chapter happens around here and azriel stays away from elain for the rest of the book.

BONUS CHAPTER: (i will tackle this one separatedly because it's not part of the main book and a lot of people don't have access to it so i don't want to mix it up with the main story)

elain and azriel seek each other out to exchange gifts. azriel buys elain a necklace that reminds him of her. we learn he has been thinking and pleasuring himself to the thought of elain for the past year, he can hardly sleep nowadays. sexual tension, both elain and azriel are aroused. azriel wants to have sex with elain and also wants to eat her out. they almost kiss. azriel says that the encounter was a mistake and elain is hurt. rhysand orders azriel to stay away. azriel is questioning the cauldron. elain gives the necklace back, and azriel gives it away because he can't stand keeping it. azriel keeps away from this point on.

rhysand asks azriel "what about mor?" and azriel doesn't answer.

-----

i would like to point out, out of the 5 books, there's only 3 in which mor and azriel are physically in the same territory, and only 2 in which they interact more than just one or two lines. out of those 2 books, azriel doesn't know elain for the most part of the first one and then pays a lot of attention to her in the other one.

obviously azriel did like mor, but it doesn't seem like that anymore. and more importantly, we never get azriel talking about his crush on her nor does he acknowledge it, it's always everyone else (a bunch of busybodies) so personally i take their words with a pinch of salt.

mor is not a point of comparison in whatever petty fights people want to start.

(if i have to be honest, my personal theory is that azriel never told anyone he moved on from mor a long time ago to keep the status quo until mor is ready to come out to her family. everyone already knows mor is not interested in azriel and that's why she rejects him, if he were to give up and some other guy came along, everyone would question why she doesn't want him. he's the spymaster and he knows how to keep secrets, i would be surprised if he honestly didn't know about mor liking women. but that's me)

#elriel #elain #azriel #moriel #mor #pro elriel #stop messing with mor #and stop putting elain as second best because that is not what we see

[horizon-verizon]

It's so funny when people say that the book is not the source material or the original storyline but the series exist thanks to that book bc none of those writer could come up with names like Rhaenyra or Viserys be fr.

I think people say that the book is full of unreliable sources and is written by an unreliable narrator.

Which is true, but they make as if the narrator is totally incorrect or everything they say is false and so it relies on the HotD writers to “reveal” the truth. As if these writers are the unequivocal experts and truthtellers. However there are multiple instances where they have proven they do have not thought deeply enough about this fictional universe to make the situations that they do.

But this idea that the book is totally unreliable/false and we need to just trust the is self contradictory. 

Because not only are most appearances, most dates, & characterizations are meant to be taken at face value (otherwise who can you make any sense of this book!), you can only “reveal” some the truths by either reading carefully & thoughfully or by scouring and analyzing the text that is given--which is Fire and Blood. And look to other sources for the Dance, weight its historical impact on the current ASoIaF characters, etc.

They take "unreliable" as "liar" or "100% incorrect" so that they can validate the choices of the HotD showrunners and writers choices and continue to feel that whatever they wrote for the characters supports a good feminist premise: women inherently just want peace but the men around them use them towards their own political purposes and violently try to enforce themselves on these helpless female victims.

Why this premise is bad in of itself (what it’s saying):

women are told to be incapable of political critique or wanting power just for power sake --> as if they are a different breed of human

because women are always pacifists, they are only given sympathy if they work to be pacifist

men are made to be inherent/inborn/”natural” aggressors --> it removes ideology, societal, and cultural conditioning for men

Rhaenys’ words to Corlys in episode 1: 

These knights are as green as summer grass. None have known real war. Their lords sent them to the tourney field with fists full of steel and balls full of seed, and we expect them to act with honor and grace. It's a marvel that war didn't break out at first blood. 

As if the idea that man must show their military and athletic prowess to be recognized as man has nothing to do with it.

Most of the ingenuity this shows gives is in its costumes more than its plot. And even then the costumes almost never makes sense.

#asoiaf asks to me #hotd critical #hotd comment #asoiaf #HotD misogyny #maester gyldayn #gyldayn #unreliable narrator #frame narrative

[wikia22]

🕷🕷🕷

My thoughts and feelings about Spider-Man: No Way Home. Beware of the long post (and I could have made it even longer - so many thoughts and aspects that I wanna discuss)

Spoilers

Spoilers

Spoilers

Proceed with caution ⚠️

Well, it finally happened. The movie we've been waiting for. The one that had so many theories, speculations, ideas, news and fake news (i don't even remember that much hype around the Endgame). Therefore I avoided news and posts like hell for the last 2-3 weeks. I gotta say - totally worth it! Because it was...amazing!

So Peter's life's gone to shit. Everybody knows his secret identity, half of the people think he's a killer, other half follows him with smartphones. Thank God all charges are lifted (hello Matt - so glad to see you in MCU officially), but the reputation’s gone to hell. Plus, he, Ned and MJ receive rejects from MIT due to all this mess. Well, I was worried about too many people knowing Spider-Man secret identity since Homecomming (cause there were too many indications in previous films/cartoons/tv series that there is no way Peter’s gonna reveal his secret identity to anyone (even his most beloved ones - like MJ or Aunt May). But now - best friend knows, his girlfriend, aunt May, her boyfriend, and pretty much all of the Avengers know.  I knew it’s not gonna end well, and the ending of Far from Home confirms it. And No from Home makes it a really serious issue.

Next - main theme. I realized what was missing in MCU Spider-Man. He is shown in the universe with the Avengers, so at first Peter is trying to be like them, be part of that team, resemble his hero, Tony Stark. So it was obvious that MCU Spidey had a guide, superheroic mentor. Which is not bad, it’s quite interesting seeing this development, Spider-Man as a part of the team, but here for the first time we see Peter acting on his own, without guidance (actually against senior superhero’s command), that’s transforms him into the Spider-Man that we know and love since 2002.

Music - Michael Giacchino was great with his Arrachnoverture, but when I heard Electro-music by Hans Zimmer and them listened to track 19 - I teared up. Litteraly.

I absolutely adore how the heroes were portrayed. Tom Holland acts more serious and mature, more consumed by the guilt that he is failing everybody. Which causes him to go in the dark places of himself... The trials, challenges and the tragedy could change our sweet boy into a vengeful antihero. My heart as truly breaking for him...

MJ here is the best than before - no longer bitter sarcastic and obsessive truthteller, she is here for Peter, supporting him and caring for him. I could literally see little hearts in their eyes. Plus, MJ is wearing a piece of that broken necklace! 

The villains are awesome - great ungrading of Max who looks cool in new costume. Doc Oc - was my favorite (confirmed) comeback guy. But Norman Osborn was the best of them all. His inner struggle with the Green Goblin - even more serious and scariest than before (because he’s talking without the helmet). Also new costume - so like the one in the comics!

And now - what we exicted the most! You know, I decided not to trust unconfirmed news untill I see it with my own eyes. And when Ned opened the first portal - my first thought: Oh my God! That’s Andrew’s suit! That’s Andrew’s suit!!! And when he got the mask off - I screamed, with everybody else! My God, he is so awesome, smart and hillarious! Cannot believe that they made him clean the webs on the celling! And it was the matter of minutes before the very first Spider-Man’s gonna appear... And here is Tobey! Still the same sweet, kind and polite guy that we last saw 14 years ago! Web-shooting with Andrew and backflips - way cooler than pointing fingers!

That shot with two Spider-Men on the full moon coming to help Peter... And this talk when they could totally understand whan Peter is going through, remembering their lost loved ones and saying this words once again: With great power comes great responsibility. What our young hero needed to hear in that moment.

Lab scene - both dramatic and hilarious. I’m happy that Tobey’s Peter really worked things out with his MJ, but still sad that Andrew’s Peter is still grieving and alone... But that the funny parts - Ned’s fear that the others best friend (btw the SAME best friend) tried to kill them and vows infront of everybody that he's not gonna do it (and that shoulder pat from Andrew). And WEB SHOOTERS - finally, the secret is revealed of Tobey’s own web and the other Spideys are totally fascinated by it! 

When I dreamed about it, I imagined the trio sitting somewhere in top of a skyscrapper, eating pizza and sharing stories of their lifes as Spider-Man. Well, there was no pizza or a skyscrapper, but there is a Statue of Liberty with Cap’s shield (!) and Spideys are sharing stories! Helping with the back, continuing questions with organic web’s origins, taking about their coolest villains, and remain a certain someone, who is the Amazing Spider-Man... 

Final showdown - too awesome. Swinging together with the full moon on the backgroung, curing villains one by one, meeting with old friends (like Doc Oc with Tobey’ Spidey, or Max with Andrew's and pondering of the existance of a black Spider-Man). And MJ’s fall - I held my breath when Tom went to her, only to be intercepted by the Goblin. And when I saw Andrew. I knew he’s gonna make it and finally have the closure (7 years since Gwen). Final duel with the Goblin - I was really worried for Tom’s Peter, seeing him for the first time in a violent rampage. I love it that his comrades were there to stop him and finally cure Norman. Way to go, Spideys! And that final hug - my only wish that Stan Lee could have seen it. That is really a defining moment for all generations of fans of Spider-Man in films. And both Tobey and Andrew look at Tom with such pride and joy...

When Peter came to Dr Strange with a request to make the world forget that he's Spider-Man, I've got the feeling that it's gonna be like the story in comics (with Mefisto and the same problem), but still, that was very hard and dramatic... Him saying goodbyes to his very best friends, doing final high five with Ned, kissing MJ. I still hope, that (maybe after some time) Peter will make friends with them (I hate the idea of him being alone).

The epilogue - Peter, making his new suit (sewing, like it should be) that resembles his comrades ones (and to me - the original suit from comic books and 1994 TV series as well), making the fresh start as Spider-Man. Good luck, Peter. Wish you the best in you new superhero life! Everything's gonna be alright.

#spiderman no way home #spider man #long post #spoilers #mcu #the best spiderman movie

[spoiledsandi-blog]

My 2 cents on Elriel/Gwynriel

I always wanted to know why people always try to doubt the Elriel ship because people will claim that the stuff that's happened over the span of the three books with them doesn't matter. When they've also had there own charged looks, funny moments, and time alone and this was before Nessian were getting together. Why let elain use his Truth teller something that not even Cassian has used. Why have Azriel put his life down to save Elain? Why allow them to even brush up against one another at solstice or even give us an almost kiss between the two of them. Why have Azriel still upset about what Rhys said after the bonus chapter. Why even give the necklace he bought for Elain to someone else unless it was gonna be some kind of plot point later on in the story? I see people claiming that 3 bros and 3 sisters is cliche but we were just thrown that Lucien and Elain are mates and from what we’ve see. Elain wants to be the person who chooses her own destiny. Her being would Lucien would be cliche as well since we would know they were made for one another there’s no wow factor like there was for Nesta and Feyre. With Elriel there would be Angst, forbidden love, something new. Rather than “this is my mate let me learn to love him.” We’ve gotten that twice already.  With Gwynriel I also feel like something will also happen with them. Although I don't think it's gonna work in Gwyn's favor. We know that Nesta has been watching Elain/ Az so far but Gwyn is also a sister to her what will happen when she see's the two of them getting closer or even Gwyn telling her, her feelings towards Az. I've always felt within there scenes that Gwyn likes Az more than Az likes her because of him saving her. He's the only male she can trust right now besides Rhys and Cassian who are all taken already. I honestly feel like she doesn't know Azriel like she thinks she knows him. Gwyn is part Nymph and could be a light-singer as most people seem to comment. I also feel like when people talk about light-singers they only ever mention this part. “There are light-singers: lovely, ethereal beings who will lure you, appearing as friendly faces when you are lost.” and so they’ll think right now Azriel is lost, but people tend to forget the second part of that " Only when you’re in their arms will you see their true faces, and they aren’t fair at all.” I always feel like people exempt Gwyn from doing anything bad because of her horrible backstory and her being a SA survivor. This does not exempt people from being wronged and doing wrong to those who have harmed/hurt them.  I see a lot of Evil Elain theories to make her “Interesting” Although wouldn’t Gwyn fit that category better? Not saying her being Evil but feeling that she’s been wronged. She was tortured by men the last thing we saw her doing was fighting men who nearly almost killed her. She has yet to leave the library yet and she has low self esteem feeling as though she’s still not worthy of her gem. Now imagine if she saw Elain and Azriel together and how hurt and upset she would be after putting all that effort into liking Azriel and having her heart broken? At this moment she seems to have put Azriel on a pedestal. She doesn’t know what he does on the side, how hurt he’s been, and the demons that he seems to be fighting himself. 

I also see gwynriels talking about the Little mermaid theory and wouldn’t that make the “Gwyn being wronged” theory even more apparent? Especially since Sarah pulls from OLD folklore. Now if you haven’t read the Hans Anderson version of the little mermaid then you need to because everything in that story applies to this situation. Where the little mermaid attempts to KILL the prince with a DAGGER because he hurt her by marrying another woman. Which could be the truthteller or one of Nesta’s made items. Now also Eris got Nesta’s dagger and if Gwyn ends up being Eris’s daughter I feel like he would give that to her. Now I don't think it will completely be like the Original little mermaid because obviously Sarah would finagle it to where Gwyn doesn’t end up dying since I still think the whole Valkyrie thing will pay off in the final battle with Koschei. I also want Gwyn to be able to flourish not because of some guy but because of her own self awareness. I also feel like the story being told of Valkyries and Illyrians fighting together will happen and whose the leader of the Valkyries? Gwyn and I also feel like because Balthazar is the way he is and we were told he likes court politics I think he’ll become gwyns lover so they can essentially help one another causes.  But anyways come on being a SA survivor doesn’t exclude people from making stupid decisions that they feel could benefit them in the long run. I wish people would stop acting like Gwyn is just some saint who cant do anything wrong therefore negate theories of her doing bad stuff when all of Sarahs characters are FLAWED.

#elriel #anti gwynr*el #acotar

[acourtofbookishdreams]

Azriel ~ Different

Azriel x Reader

Summary: You have been having nightmares frequently and Azriel always is there to help you. This time, though, you finally open up about your nightmares and the things you experienced Under the Mountain.

Warning: Mentions of r*pe and sex*al assault. Please be wary.

Word Count: 1785

Azriel POV

Her screams had woken me again.

"Azriel! Azriel, no!"

This was becoming a recurrent, nightly tradition. A tradition I wished would would just simply not be anymore.

I did what I always did, bursting into her room, Truthteller at the ready to fend off whatever ailed her but we both knew it was mostly for show. Still, I would never not rush to her side, never leave Truthteller behind for the sake of the fact that the one time I didn't would inevitably be the one time something was truly, physically wrong with her and I would kick myself for treating it as any other night - especially since the fear was certainly not all that unfounded.

But it was just a nightmare. Another nightmare.

'YOUR' POV

My screams had woken him again.

He had done the chivalrous thing of course, bursting into my room with Truthteller, prepared to fight the evil lurking in the shadows he couldn't predict or trust but we both knew nothing was there to fight, it was all in my head.

Another nightmare.

One like all the rest but this time...it was worse.

"Y/N" Azriel breathes, lowering the blade

"I'm okay" I shake my head, offering a weak smile, "Routine procedure at this point, right?"

I bite my lip, trying to hold the tears back and averting my gaze. It was usually at this point that Azriel would ask if I wanted him to stay but for some reason tonight was different. He closed the door, left Truthteller on the bedside table and climbed into bed with me immediately after, no questions, no waiting for an invitation.

Of course, I knew if I told him to leave he would do so. It was always my choice. But tonight it appeared maybe he needed this contact as much as I.

"You're safe" Azriel murmurs, gathering me into his arms.

I choke on a sob, curling into his side and resting my head on his bare chest. Usually, when he was shirtless it was an effort to keep focused but at the moment it was just further proof he was here, alive and free. It was proof he was safe.

"It's not my safety that scares me" I breathe. Once again, we were breaking from normal pattern. Previous nights, it had always been my screaming waking him, he would run in, ask if I wanted him to stay, I would agree and then he'd hold me until I fell asleep.

I never talked about the nightmares I had, never. Not even the first time...

"No!" she screamed, thrashing violently in the bedsheets, almost tearing them apart, "No, don't take-NO!"

"Y/N!" Azriel yells, bursting in through the door at the same time she awakens, clutching the sheets to her chest, sweat slick hair plastered to her forehead, tears streaming down in uncontrolled rivers of fear and pain, "Y/N, what is it?!"

"Nothing, Az, I'm sorry for waking you" she sighed, running a hand through her hair, "It was just a nightmare, I've had them for a while."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Azriel frowned, Truthteller lowering to his side.

"It wasn't necessary. I've been dealing with these since-before I got back."

"Would you..." Azriel trailed off, "Do you want me to stay?"

"No, I..." she began to reject the proposal but suddenly changed her mind, "Actually, yes, please."

Azriel nods, placing Truthteller on the bedside table before moving to open up the covers, having since nervously been put in some semblance of order as they had spoken but he stops mid-way noting that her resolve had shaken - that she was now shaking, violent sobs wracking her body.

"Y/N" Azriel said and the one word was enough to break her.

"Azriel" she sobbed, tears flowing freely again, face screwed up into an expression of unfiltered pain.

"Y/N" Azriel whispers, sitting on the bed and pulling her onto his lap. She wrapped her legs and arms around him, securing herself to him as she sobbed into his neck until the sun rose.

She had fallen asleep that way, her legs and arms secured around him in a tight embrace, tears dried and leaving her skin slightly sticky with the moisture.

He had placed her down in the bed after he had fixed the sheets with one hand, the other supporting her body, becoming limp each second sleep overtook her.

He had intended to leave but she had subconsciously clung to him with a grip so strong it had surprised him and rather than risk waking you or, worse, upsetting you, he had climbed into bed beside her, tucking her into his chest so her face rested right where his heart was.

He had found it a very fitting place for her to rest.

Azriel had done it every night since, every time a nightmare came around unless you wished otherwise, which had never happened as of yet. Even if you didn't scream out, his shadows were so attuned to you, he would sense it and come in anyhow - where you would be sitting cross legged on the bed, hugging yourself or crying or just staring at the ceiling with a dead expression on your face.

Having him with you, holding you in his arms, stroking your hair, legs intertwined and breathing synchronised. It was the best remedy for your fear.

A cure.

"Then what does scare you?" Azriel asks, his voice hesitant to bring up a memory that causes you pain.

"You do" I breathe, "My nightmares are always about you."

Azriel breathes in deeply, "I scare you?"

"No, no!" I rebuke, "No, not you personally! My nightmares always involve you...they..."

"You don't have to tell me" Azriel whispers

"I think I need to" I admit, "These dreams, they're obviously not getting better. Maybe telling someone...maybe telling someone will help."

Azriel waits patiently. Content to listen or to completely disregard everything you said if that was what you wished, the way he'd always been.

"Most nights, A-Amarantha comes back" I explain, stumbling over the name, "And this time she takes you instead of Rhys and other nights...other nights it had always been you that was taken."

"And she took you because she knew he was hiding something" Azriel confirmed, it was the little knowledge he did have of Amarantha and her motives, "So to punish him further, she took you, his only living relative, and..."

"And that's all you know" I nod, "But what you don't know is that...she didn't just punish Rhys. She punished me too."

Azriel stiffens in my arms, his hand momentarily freezing in it's soothing stroking up and down my spine.

"If any of it gets to be too much, I can stop" I say

"No" Azriel shakes his head, "You lived it. I can at least stand to hear about it, especially if it helps you."

"She used to...make me watch." I spat in disgust, "While she...basically raped Rhys I had to watch. Everything she did to him, the malice in her eyes while she did what she did, the enjoyment in knowing he was doing this not for her but to protect what he loved...Worse, we both had to pretend it was normal. That we enjoyed it. If we didn't, our facade as the Court of Nightmares would fall apart and we couldn't let that happen."

Peering up at Azriel, I stopped for a moment to assess his reaction. His eyes were hard as flint, like chips of hazel ice. He nodded softly, encouraging me to continue.

"On the odd occasion she would also...bring me into the scene. It wasn't often, she didn't like it all that much herself it was mainly just to put us on edge. Thankfully, she never made us do anything...to each other. I never touched Rhys once nor he me and I'll always thank the Mother for that but she would still...it was still..."

"You don't need to say what it was" Azriel cuts in, "I know."

Traumatising.

It was traumatising.

"So, when the nightmares come about. It's not Rhys under Am-under her. It's you. I see her with you. Some nights you're faking it like we had to, others you're genuinely enjoying it, and sometimes you're...screaming and-and begging her to stop-" My tears choke off the words and I sob loudly.

He pulls me ever closer in response, hushing me as his hands stroke my hair, "That's not me. It was never me."

"What if it could be?" I cry, "What if another one of her comes around one day and they take you. I couldn't bear it-"

"You could. I had to" Azriel admits. Both comforting and upfront. He would never lie to you and to say it would never happen again could be a lie, "When you were taken, I...Cauldron, I would always try to leave Velaris, damn the consequences. It was always Amren and sometimes Mor and Cass who would pull me off the ledge. I couldn't stand it, thinking about what she could be doing to Rhys but, to you...it was worse. Infinitely worse."

"If it ever does happen, I need you to be strong" Azriel continues, "I will do everything in my power to keep it from happening but if the Mother decides that's how things play out...I will need you to be strong, to protect yourself because the idea of you ever being hurt for the sake of me...it's not right."

"It would be" I sniffle, "To keep you safe, I would do anything. I did. Rhys did."

"You'll never have to again" Azriel resolves, kissing the top of my head, "Never again."

I exhale loudly, making a sudden decision that could change everything.

"Azriel?"

"Mmm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too" His response was automatic. I mean, we had said it a dozen times but this...was different.

"I don't mean it like that" I admit, peering up at him sheepishly, "I'm in love with you. I have been for a...a very long time."

Azriel's silence spurs me on to speak more, explain myself.

"I understand if you don't feel the same and I'm sorry I never told you earlier but at first it was a crush and then...then I got taken and I was stuck without you for so long. After that, I knew it was love and not a crush on my part but I couldn't say anything. I just...I couldn't. But then you came in every night to help with my nightmares and that was-"

My words are cut off as Azriel takes my chin in his hand, dipping his head and kisses me. Soft, tentative, comforting. It wasn't the kind of kiss that made your toes curl or butterflies erupt, it was the kind of kiss that admitted everything words could never express.

He pulls back only slightly, leaving you nose to nose.

"I have always loved you" Azriel breathes, "From the moment I saw you barrelling into the Illyrian camps, bright smile and unruly attitude."

"I love you" I smile, tears sliding down my face, - happy tears, "So much"

"And I you."

After that, neither of you slept alone ever again.

Masterlist

#azriel #azriel acotar #azriel imagine #azriel imagines #azriel one shots #azriel one shot #azriel blurb #azriel preference #azriel blurbs #azriel preferences #azriel x reader imagine #azriel x reader imagines #azriel x reader fanfic #azriel x reader fanfiction #azriel x reader fanfictions #acotar imagines #acotar imagine #sjmaas #sarah j maas #sjm #inner circle #inner circle imagine #inner circle imagines #inner circle x reader #acotar #acowar #acomaf #acosf #matthew daddario #matthew daddario azriel

[katarinahime]

My Elriel Theories/Head-cannons

Just the mere fact that Rhys told Feyre that mating bonds can be broken is like the biggest Chekov’s gun, and antis and going to be blown in the face with it. Why the hell else even mention that is can he broken if it’s never going to be in the series?

The fact that Lucien, who is a good person, witnessed his mother’s life first hand, and her misery in her mated marriage also makes me believe that he would never force Elain into a relationship with him. Especially because she still doesn’t have in interest in exploring any kind of romantic relationship with him.

I also don’t think Azriel can go from pinning for Mor for 500 years, then being obviously interested in Elain so just dropping her like a box of rocks for someone else. There is so much foreshadowing for Elriel there is literally no other logical paring unless Mor suddenly after 500 years decides that she isn’t more attracted to women and just decides to love Az back, which is just ??????

It’s my own personal head cannon that Az is mated to Mor, but nobody knows.

It’s also my personal head cannon that Eris actually helped Mor, and allowed her to tell lies about him for hundreds of years because he’s actually a good person but must keep up appearances if he has any hope to inheriting the Autumn Court.

Since Azriel named his dagger Truthteller it probably is a safe assumption that he values the truth. I think (in my personal HC) that once he finds out Mor has been lying about a number of different things for centuries, he will decide for permanently sever his mating bond to her, leaving him to fully love Elain.

I also think that there is something special and beautiful and romantic about two people that were fated to others, fought their destiny to love each other. Like, who the fuck is cutting onions? Damn

How many times does it have to mention Az looking at Elain, or being interested in the garden or him risking his life to save her. Life come on!

#elriel #acotar #azriel #elain archeron #pro elain #elain acotar #elain acosf

[hellacioushag]

you think it's possible hosab's timeline takes place after acotar, just like how tog's timeline takes place before acotar? we know these worlds are intertwined, but separated by time.

I doubt acotar will deal much with the ic trying to help bryce because even though these worlds are connected, they have separate stories. it actually makes more sense if cc3 continues with bryce trying to find her way back to hunt and ruhn.

Idk, just a lot of thoughts lately.

idk if you are trying to say they're the same universe, but on different timelines, but i don't think so? i think the timelines are running parallel to each other, but because of differences like the crossing/war some worlds are more advanced than others. idk if that makes sense, but basically i don't see it as acotar is the past while hosab is the future - if that is what you were trying to say.

i did kind of go more into the parallel timeline idea on this ask when i was talking about when bryce appears in reference to acosf. i do not know how this will affect acotar5. some are saying we will get a novella next to deal with the bryce situation while others are saying acotar5 will end with the same bryce scene from azriel’s pov to bridge both moments.

however if you were just asking about the timeline of how they connect @elains had done a guide on this in our discord (under the cut cause it’s a LOT):

**THE AGE OF THE DAGLAN**

*Circa 15 thousand years and more before Fionn*

• The Daglan, ruthless and petty, monstrous and godlike being ruled the world of Prythian, unchallenged.

• At some unspecified point, they created the Fae (or the Fae were unlucky to arrive in their world), and enslaved them.

• Also at an unspecified point, they created the Dread Trove, as well as likely the Death-sword Narben. It's unclear whether or not they also forged Gwydion and Truthteller.

• They created powerful warriors to aid them in their conquests, the prototype for the angels in the CCity world.

• The priestess Oleanna dips Gwydion into the cauldron and gives it to Fionn, and with it Fionn wages war against their masters.

• Enalius' last stand happened around this time. He fought to hold off the their ancient Oppressors to reaching the top of Ramiel.

• Amren arrived around this time.

• The Daglan Fall. A milennia of peace follows.

OBS: The Old Gods likely arrived somewhere around here. It's currently unknown when.

**THE AGE OF LEGENDS**

*The Milennia of Peace after the Fall*

• The land gets divided up in territories, the precursors to the current courts.

• The Fae hunted down what remained of the Daglan.

• Amren went into the Prison around this time. She was confused with the Daglan.

• A thousand years later, the peace was at the brink of collapse. Fionn united the warring territories and became the High King.

• An unspecified point later, he was betrayed by his Queen, who was also the leader of her own territory, and his General and best friend. They took his bloodline's most precious objects and weapons.

• Around this time, Gwydion and the last of the trove went missing.

**THE CRESCENT CITY CONNECTION**

• If Theia was Fionn's Queen, this was around the time she and her people Crossed into another world.

• It was a trap. Unbeknownst to them, the ones issuing the call were their old master — the remnants of the Daglan.

• Pelias betrayed Theia, murdering her and forcing her daughter, Helena, to bear her children.

• Her youngest daughter, defiant to the end, returned to Prythian and used the Harp to close all doors, trapping her people in Midgard.

• Chaos followed. From it, the High Lords and Courts rose.

@elains and @yazthebookish have been the ones who really have helped explain the lore and timelines for me so if you have any questions I would check in with them.

#asks #anon #hosab spoilers

[bookofmirth]

just wanted to remind you that elriel have the truth-teller scene in the acotar coloring book and elucien have absolutely nothing. oh, and acowar cover also has the truth-teller with shadow roses on it. it's pretty telling which ship sarah likes more. ❤

Oh honey... I'm sorry to whoever told you this, but two characters appearing in a scene together doesn't make them a ship. :( Especially when sjm says that dagger was the only link between them and then Elain handed that dagger back without another thought. :( Just like she gave him the necklace back without another thought. :(

And I'm sorry, but are you saying that a sword, on the cover of a book that has a war, is secretly about those two?? A quick look at the cover and the coloring book shows that it's clearly not the same weapon. The hilt is completely different. It's... a book that has a war. I didn't realize that Truthteller was the only weapon on that battlefield. 💀

And there are no roses on that cover? Ever if there were, the series is called A Court of Thorns and Roses. There are roses in the Spring Court and elsewhere. Elain didn’t breed roses herself from thin air. She isn’t the only person in Prythian who can grow roses. She isn’t the only character mentioned in conjunction with roses, and roses aren’t the only flower related to her. She doesn’t have roses growing out of her asshole. Stop trying to copyright basic shit for a ship that isn't even canon. 

And y’all, while you’re at it, stop harassing fan artists for daring to use flowers - literally any type of flower - in their art for different ships. It’s pathetic. 

Please fact check yourself before you try to come into my inbox. And in the meantime:

Elucien are still mates. 💕✨

#antielriel #lol #I didn't even tag my post #about the anti elucien tag #people really are pressed #and checking my blog #thank you for looking like a fool

[emilia3546]

Shadowsinger Part 7 -Gwynriel

ACOSF Spoilers! Do Not read this unless you have finished ACOSF and the Azriel bonus chapter

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Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

*****

Azriel fought the urge to fidget, waiting, hidden in the shadows at the back of the room, not all the camp lords were even here yet, but they were still complaining. A clock in the corner struck nine and, almost as one, heads turned to the doorway, to Rhys' form appearing there, right on time. Azriel dispelled the shadows, and almost grinned at the clear surprise of some camp lords, and the outright fear of others, those who'd been toeing the line of outright treason. The moment Rhys stepped into the room, the camp lords stood, some smiled at him, others remained neutral, but there were a few who were glaring at him as if he were the greatest evil they'd ever seen. Rhys waved it all off, taking his seat at the head of the table,

"Sit down, and let's get on with it." Silence still reigned over the table as Azriel stalked across the room to stand behind Rhys, a hand casually resting on Truthteller's hilt at his side. "I believe there are some issues that you wish to discuss," Rhys started, but silenced an overeager lord with a look, "And I will listen, but my decision on matters will be final, is that understood?" He was met by begrudging nods and allowed the first lord to speak, 

"Thank you, High Lord." Good, at least this one hadn't forgotten his manners. Azriel fought the instinct to glare at Ironcrest's camp lord, the arrogant shit that he was, "I do have some concerns about some of your new rules,"

"Laws." Azriel corrected him, "You don't get to belittle laws you don't like."

"My apologies, about your new laws. My daughter, she now has to train with the boys, and wear leathers, I can see them looking at her, and it disgusts me. I have to protect her, but I cannot if you insist that she is trained with the boys." Rhys nodded slowly,

"I understand your concern, but, that is exactly why she should be trained, so that you don't need to protect her all the time. Can she hold her own in a fight?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then you don't need to worry, but I will consider allowing all-female training sessions for those who prefer, and," he added seeing the uproar that was about to kick off, "I will ensure a plan is made to avoid limiting training time for males and the females who are happy to train with them." The camp lord narrowed his eyes for a moment, considering, but sat down, Azriel knew better than to believe he was actually happy, but there was no other way for him to push back. It seemed that, for now at least, he would be content. The moment he sat down another stood to take his place,

"You might be content to see your girls fighting, but I am not. I do not care that your mate fights, High Lord, it is not in females' nature to fight, they will get hurt, and will be unable to do the jobs that they are supposed to do."

"What? Get married and breed?" Rhys raised an eyebrow as he spoke, "I'd consider your answer very carefully,"

"No, but someone has to maintain the camps, do the cooking, make clothes, look after children. Males train and fight full-time, there is no time for that, females fighting is ridiculous, when that isn't what they are designed to do."

"Again, I do understand that you worry about the integrity of your camp, but, I assure you, with both males and females helping with household chores, there is ample time to train and maintain a home."

"I don't think you understand the time it takes, High Lord, it can't be done."

"It can be done, with both males and females helping. Cassian probably works and trains more than all of you, and his mate matches him minute for minute, but they still find time to cook, clean the House, and spend time with their family." The camp lord struggled for words for a moment, "I will have plans written up to help with this if needed, but give yourselves some time to adjust, and teach your sons how to help their sisters and mothers." The camp lord nodded, not quite satisfied, but contented again. Azriel almost winced, if only he knew exactly what they wanted, what exactly Rhys could do to prevent them from rebelling, neither of the two lords who had spoken were really happy, they were just going to wait until Rhys made a wrong move, and strike.

Azriel watched silently, glaring at anyone who liked like he might start violence, and stepped closer to Rhys, ready to step in front of him if needed, but the room stilled when Ironcrest's camp lord stepped up,

"High Lord," he slightly inclined his head to Rhys, in a mockery of a bow, "Hello, Shadowsinger," he chuckled, "Our ability to protect our people comes from our ability to maintain order," each word was carefully chosen but Azriel knew what he really meant, he wanted to be able to control his people, "For protecting our females, that means keeping them in the camp, where they are safe, now they will be tempted to fly somewhere they cannot be protected, where no male knows where they are. We must keep them in the camp for their own safety, and not tempt them with flight elsewhere, into danger." Azriel almost snarled,

"Safety? Is that what you call it?" Rhys chuckled, "I call it control, and it makes you no better than those fae who kept humans as slaves, but you at least convince your enslaved people into thinking that you want to protect them. You don't fool me, but, since the threat of a female not being to defend herself outside of the camps is genuine, you have brought up the exact reason for my insistence that they also train." The lord's face fell for a moment,

"If they fight, they might start to think that they can lead,"

"They can lead, unless you're worried that you might become dispensable." The lord chuckled, 

"Of course not, but I will not have my females thinking that they are more than what they are."

"And what is that?" Rhys' voice was a low warning,

"Wives and mothers, homekeepers, not warriors, that is and has always been, a male role, I will not allow you to destroy our culture." With that he stood and left, leaving silence in his wake,

"Anyone who tries to ignore any laws will be punished as such, if help is needed to adjust it can be provided, or if there are genuine concerns outside of 'females' place' do send me a letter, and I will address them as best I can." Rhys then stood, and rested a hand on Azriel's shoulder, winnowing them both back to Velaris.

Azriel almost stumbled on hitting the ground outside the River House,

"I'm sorry," he muttered, and Rhys blinked,

"What?"

"That was awful, you should have known exactly what they wanted and how to truly avoid a war, that just delayed it."

"I know enough to know that truly avoiding a war is near impossible,"

"But not impossible, not with the right intel."

"Az, you did everything right, anything more drastic would have been noticed," he placed a hand on Azriel's shoulder, "You didn't think you'd find much, don't worry," Azriel turned away,

"I didn't expect much, but I expected something, you shouldn't have had to go in there blind." 

"Az, really, it's fine, your spies not being able to find anything tells us something else, we know at least that they're all being very careful with what they say, that they don't trust their own, and can't be unified." That was true, and Azriel nodded, "C'mon, we've got to make a plan, Feyre's waiting, and Cass will be here soon."

"No Nesta?"

"No, she'd already planned to go with Gwyn to visit Emerie." What? Rhys didn't miss the flash of worry in his eyes, "It's okay, Emerie says there's no hint of rebellion there, Mor dropped them off right at her house, and saw them go inside, no-one will attack them inside." Ariel nodded again and pushed the door open,

"Hold him," Feyre immediately brushed past him, dumping Nyx into his arms as she ran for the nearest bathroom. Azriel wrinkled his nose at the unmistakable scent of vomit, he held Nyx at arms length as the baby gurgled and hiccuped, still smelling, and Rhys chuckled behind him,

"He's not going to explode you know,"

"I know, he smells,"

"He's a baby, they smell." Azriel still held Nyx slightly away from his chest, but smiled when he narrowed his eyes, going still and then trying to leap for a shadow on Azriel's shoulder. With Nyx's tiny wings flapping, Azriel only just managed to catch him before he fell. 

"Well he definitely takes after you, Mr Reckless." Rhys grinned again, and Azriel followed him through to the nursery, putting Nyx down and sending shadows racing around him, Nyx's shouts of joy as he chased them almost taking his mind off Illyria, almost, but not quite,

"Thanks, Az." Feyre grinned when she reappeared, armed with Velaris' best cleaning supplies as she made a beeline for her son, tickling him as she tried to clean him up, making faces at him to make him laugh and let her finish cleaning him. "Good boy," she muttered before releasing him to crawl after the shadows again. She flopped onto a couch next to Rhys, and he automatically threw an arm around her shoulders, "Meeting go well?"

"As well as we could have expected, they're all content for now, still grumbling, but they haven't got a decent excuse yet," Rhys explained, "We just need to brainstorm a few ideas about next steps now, so we can be prepared."

*****

Gwyn stifled a laugh as Nesta almost snorted out her mouthful of hot cocoa at Emerie's comment about one of their most recent books,

"He's not evil," she protested, "He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, that's all."

"Wrong place at the wrong time?" Emerie snorted, "He's literally a war criminal!"

"Well, I think he's got potential, he just needs to see an alternative." Nesta insisted, and looked over to Gwyn, "C'mon, back me up,"

"I think," Gwyn narrowed her eyes, "That we don't really know him well enough to make a proper judgement, he could literally be evil, or he could be hiding his motives, perhaps it'll be clearer in the next book." Nesta cheered, and finished her mug of cocoa, staring triumphantly at Emerie,

"She didn't agree with you, either, Nes!" She shouted after her as she ran off to the kitchen to refill her mug, and grinned when she returned,

"Anyway," Gwyn started, "Enough about fictional males, how's mated life treating you? We haven't had a proper discussion yet." Nesta snorted,

"I've only been back for a few days,"

"Still," Gwyn raised an eyebrow, and Nesta laughed,

"It's like, well you know what we were like before, it's like that, but somehow more, with the bond there, really there, everything is so much more intense, y'know."

"Not really," Emerie smiled, "Care to enlighten us?"

"You know when you love someone so much that when they're not there, you constantly want to check that they're okay?" Both Emerie and Gwyn nodded, Catrin, Gwyn had loved her that much, differently to how Nesta loved Cassian, but she had loved her so much. "It's more than that, it's like looking in a mirror, like seeing my soul reflected in his eyes."

"And the sex is good, yes?" Emerie chuckled, and Nesta blushed, trying to dodge the question,

"You have no idea," she finally muttered, earning a howl of laughter from Emerie, "Right after you mate, there's like a pull, and well,"

"Don't tell me you spent your whole honeymoon having sex?" Emerie giggled gleefully, enjoying this conversation far too much,

"Not all of it!" Nesta insisted, "We went to a little house in the mountains, Cass built it himself a while ago, right after Rhysand became high lord, it was the first time he'd ever been able to buy anything himself, so he bought the materials for that house." Gwyn smiled, "It's right by a lake, and when the sky's clear, and there's no wind, it looks like a mirror, like the stars and moon are shining up rather than down."

"It sounds beautiful," Gwyn mused, 

"It is, and, I don't think he noticed, but when we went down to the lake one evening, some of the stars, they crested just over his wings, and almost looked like a set of armor, but then it disappeared, right as he pointed out some of the constellations, Enalius, he's the one I remember best, but there was a lion one, and a pegasus, and," Nesta paused, and pursed her lips, trying to remember, "And, oh a wolf. And then, he picked me up, and flew above the trees, and the stars were shining over the mountains in the distance. We picked a star. It's our star, whenever I look at it, I have to think of him, and when he looks at it he has to think of me. I know it's a bit lovey-dovey, but I like having that, even when he's not right here."

"I think it's cute," Gwyn squeezed Nesta's hand, "I'm gonna get some more marshmallows," she gestured to the dismally boring mugs of cocoa, and slipped off to the kitchen, and swore when she saw that they'd run out, "Em!" She shouted up the stairs, "You got any more marshmallows?"

"Yeah, there's some in the parlor at the side of the house, I think," Emerie shouted back, before howling with laughter, presumably at Nesta's expense, and Gwyn chuckled to herself as she stepped outside, the cold air nipping at her face as she quickly skirted round the house, keeping an eye out before rummaging through to find the marshmallows.

A hand clamped over her mouth, and muffled Gwyn's scream as she was dragged backwards, no, no, no, she couldn't, not again, tears pricked her eyes as she fought desperately to regain her balance, her panic clouding her mind. She forced herself to stop, to take a deep breath in. It was dark, no-one else was around, Nesta and Emerie were too far away to help her. She glanced around as much as she could, there, Emerie had a wood-chopping block set up, and the axe was still there. She relaxed, and stopped struggling, waiting for her attacker to grow complacent. He didn't, just tugged her tighter against him,

"You're one of the bitches who thought that females can fight," a voice hissed in her ear, "We'll see what our 'oh so powerful' High Lord thinks when he finds out we have you." Gwyn shivered in fear, slowly trying to loosen his grip on her, but the moment he slightly let go, he spun her around and threw her to the floor, she was several hundred meters from the house now, even if she screamed nobody would hear her. Right as she tried to get up, he kicked her hands out from underneath her, pinning her wrists to the floor. She couldn't breathe. This was it. She was going to die, right here, right now, she was going to die. "Pathetic," the male hissed, "Girls like you should know better than to go outside in the dark on your own, even if the camp is loyal, some of us don't agree with the new laws." Gwyn ignored him, focusing on keeping her breathing slow, but each time he adjusted his grip on her, it sped back up. She had to distract herself, something happy. Nesta smiling, Emerie laughing, male in the dark. It wasn't working, miniature pegasus, male in the dark. Baby Nyx, male in the dark. Azriel. Azriel smiling, Azriel laughing, Azriel singing, Azriel holding her, flying over Velaris, Azriel teaching her silent fighting, Azriel, Azriel, Azriel.

Gwyn surged upwards, flipping the male off, and sprinted for the axe, wrenching it out of the wood, and hurled it at her assailant, only turning back in her mad sprint for the safety of the house at his grunt of pain. He stumbled, blood seeping out through his leathers as he inspected the gash in his thigh,

"Bitch," he hissed, and Gwyn flew for the door, latching it behind her,

"Nesta! Emerie!" Gwyn screamed, backing away from the door, Nesta was the first down the stairs, "We have a problem, call Cassian now, get someone here to fetch us early, he'll break down the door soon." True to her words, a banging started on the doors, and stopped, but then intensified, oh shit, he had the axe, she'd practically given it to him, and he was going to kill them. "You have any weapons, Em?" Emerie silently shook her head, 

"Only kitchen knives,"

"That'll do," Nesta muttered, "C'mon, we should be ready for when he gets in." Gwyn followed Nesta into the kitchen, quite happy to let her plan, and position them all. The banging stopped, he was in, but then there was a thump, and the door squeaked open, so it was still on its hinges,

"Nesta? Gwyn? Emerie?" Mor. Gwyn stood out of her hiding place, and Emerie ran for Mor, her wings almost knocking them both off their feet as she crashed into Mor's arms,

"Thank the gods," she muttered, "We thought we were going to have to fight him off with cutlery." Mor snorted,

"Not on my watch, let's get out of here." Emerie wrapped her arms around Mor's waist, and Nesta and Gwyn each held an arm, only letting go once they reached the House of Wind, "There's not a spare room here, there's already one in the townhouse though, I'll stay with you if you prefer, Em." Emerie smiled and nodded,

"Yeah, okay, thanks." And held on to Mor as she winnowed them away again. Gwyn had barely registered arriving before Cassian hurtled through the door, and cupped Nesta's face in his hands,

"Are you hurt? Who tried to hurt you? I'll kill him, I'll kill him." Nesta reached up to cup his face,

"I'm fine, I'm fine Cass, no-one touched me, Mor was there quickly enough." Cassian gathered her into his chest,

"I'm never leaving your side again," he muttered, kissing the top of her head, and Gwyn almost wanted to leave, but that felt more awkward,

"That's a bit dramatic," Nesta giggled,

"I mean it, sweetheart, I'm going nowhere, from now on, I get to tag along on girls night." Nesta snorted again,

"Only if you let us braid your hair."

"Deal." Gwyn's attention was drawn away by a little noise behind her, and she turned to find Azriel waiting,

"How long have you been there?" She asked, and he shrugged,

"I didn't want to startle you," Gwyn just wrapped her arms around his neck, raising herself on her tiptoes just to reach, "Are you okay?" He muttered, noting the mud all over her clothes,

"Yeah, just a bit shaken, he didn't get a chance to actually hurt me, just scared me a bit." Azriel nodded, and squeezed around her waist a little, "I panicked,” she admitted, "All the training we've been doing, and the first time I got ambushed, I panicked."

"That's okay, it's normal, you still got away, that's still great." Gwyn sighed,

"I suppose, but what if it happens again, I mean it was a male in the dark, and I just froze," tears formed in her eyes when Azriel gently tipped her chin up to look at him, 

"That is normal, Gwyn. You did so, so well by realizing that you were panicking and working through it to escape, you did, I am so proud of you for that." Gwyn smiled, just a little, but it made Azriel grin at her, "Do that again."

"What?"

"Smile." She did,

"Thank you, Az." She mumbled, letting him lead her back to her rooms and draw up a bath. He stayed sat on the bed while she washed, talking gently, almost nonsense, but his voice, just his voice chased away the remaining fear, and Gwyn found that she was exhausted, and was almost asleep when she flopped into bed, barely registering when Azriel brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her brow gently before leaving her to sleep. Gwyn tried to call out his name, to ask him to stay, but he was gone, and sleep claimed her quickly.

Tired as she was, dreams plagued her sleep, dreams of faceless males, in the dark, dreams that she hadn't had in years, dreams of Catrin's face, smiling and laughing, then crying silently in fear, dreams of the younglings she had to protect before they shared her sister's fate. Her eyes flew open right as that Hybern commander's face appeared in her dreams. She stumbled to the bathroom, staring straight into the mirror.

I'm safe.

It's over.

I'm in Velaris.

I'm safe.

It's over.

I'm in Velaris.

It wasn't working, her usual calming ritual wasn't working, she couldn't calm herself down, she splashed her face with water, deep breaths, deep breaths. The bed was drenched in sweat when she returned, sweat that felt like blood, Catrin's blood, just like the nightgown clinging to her skin now. Gwyn stepped back into the bathroom, and cleaned herself up before changing into a new nightgown. When she returned to the bed, it was clean, new sheets in place,

"Thank you," she whispered, just about managing to fall asleep until a voice filled her dreams

That one's mine.

Gwyn hurled herself out of bed, she had to get out, she had to just get away, she threw the door open, a sob rising in her chest as he eyes fell on the door across from hers, as the scent from that room reached her. Male, but safe, male, but safe, male, but she didn't fear it, no, she didn't fear it, she loved it. She threw the door open, the sobs finally forcing their way out of her as she ran fro Azriel. She sobbed as she crawled onto the bed, into his arms, and buried her face in his chest,

"Az," she sobbed, and he mumbled gently to her, she couldn't quite make out the words, but his voice was calm, soothing, and she snuggled into him, "I had a nightmare," she muttered by way of an explanation, and Azriel gently stroked her hair, "About Sangravah, I was scared."

"You're safe here," he mumbled, "I'm right here, no-one can touch you, not while I'm here." She nodded and sniffed again, fear dissipating with every word he spoke, and giggling when a shadow wrapped around her, 

"They're protecting me," she giggled, and gradually drifted back to sleep, nightmares held at bay as she slept this time. She was safe here, with him. Gwyn slept the whole night snuggled against Azriel's chest, safe in his arms.

#fanfiction #fanfic #acotar #acosf #a court of thorns and roses #a court of silver flames #azriel #azriel x gwyn #gwyn #gwyn acosf #gwynriel #gwyneth berdara

[mcheang]

Accusatory commentary

The day Alya posts about Ladybug’s new BFF is also the day some Ladyblog followers witness Ladybug blowing up at Lila for claiming such an association.

Why were they present? Hello? A so-called Best Friend of the city’s hero and top model? That was just inviting busybodies to eavesdrop.

One of them even recorded the whole thing when she thought she could get some juicy gossip.

But Ladybug’s outburst caused them to feel both excited and angry. They scored a juicy scoop, but were angry at the lies they had been fed.

The fan posted this video at the Ladyblog comments, accusing Alya of not fact checking. Is anyone else reminded of how she thought Chloe was Ladybug? As if!

Alya is upset by this news and apologised to her followers (and Ladybug). She promises to do better.

The next day, Alya is ready to tear into Lila. Then again, so is Chloe. How dare that wannabe lie to her!

But Lila is absent. Ms Bustier says Lila has suddenly been called away to join her Mother on a trip to help Prince Ali at Achu.

Everyone so knows that is a lie and say just as much to Ms Bustier.

Ms Bustier sees the evidence and admits they are probably right. But Lila is embarrassed. She needs some space.

Marinette: so, you’re going to let her commit truancy without even informing her Mother?

Pause.

Ms Bustier: well, given the recent evidence, it appears I will have to make some calls.

But either Mrs Rossi is busy or Lila faked her phone number because Ms Bustier can’t reach her.

Chloe and Alya are impatient for news and ask about the Lila situation.

Ms Bustier tells them Mrs Rossi is currently busy. She’ll try again later.

Chloe: that’s it! I’m calling my Father and having him call the embassy.

Ms Bustier: I’m sure that’s not necessary.

Chloe: oh but letting a Mother think her daughter is at school is ok? I wonder how she will react to hear you gave up on contacting her so easily?

Ms Bustier surrenders.

Long story short, Mrs Rossi is humiliated at work and furious with her Daughter. And yes she is akumatized into Truthteller.

Ladybug and Chat Noir defeat her, but not before Alya records Lila babbling about all her lies.

Since Mrs Rossi was humiliated at work, followed by an akumatization that showed how badly Lila turned out under her care, Mrs Rossi has been recalled back to Italy. She and Lila are to leave immediately, in disgrace

#miraculous ladybug fanfic #miraculous ladybug fic #ml fanfic #ml fanfiction #ml fic #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #bustier salt #lila salt #ml salt fic #post volpina #lila is exposed #lila gets exposed

[transhawks]

I would love to hear your thoughts about the recent chapter!! All day I’ve been wondering how much of what Hawks said to Twice was the truth, why he was thinking about Endeavor during their conversation and where his mission will go from here. I’m really curious about your take on it all if you don’t mind!

I. What Just Happened?

Hawks betrayed the League using Twice. Not will betray. Betrayed. Now, he was already listening out for a hospital; remember that text? But Twice, admitting it was very poor judgment of him, told him Shigaraki is in Kyoto. He admitted it with the bugs on so Skeptic absolutely knows Hawks knows where Shigaraki is. In a sense, this could very well be a trap; Twice could have been told to test Hawks.Either way, Hawks won’t know for certain - he spilled, clearly. The students are evacuating the mountain where Shigaraki’s current hospital is located because the Heroes are making the first move. This is a preemptive strike, and Hawks even acknowledges that unless they make it, they’re doomed when the League acts.

This also means Hawks is pretty much exposed, if I’m reading correctly. This was his betrayal, his ultimate reveal, I hope. He has lived up to the prophecy in his name.

II. The Truthteller

I love, for someone whose first name can be translated “truthteller”, since his first appearance Hawks has made us doubt the verity of his words. Not only us, but basically everyone in the story. It’s a permanent part of him; the double-meanings, the questions of ‘is he serious’ or ‘is he being truthful’. How much is a mask? How much is real?

The thing is, I don’t think Hawks has lied at all. His truths are just complicated things. He can think Twice is a good person and yet betray his trust because Hawks doesn’t think of himself as a good person. Or a kind-hearted person. He isn’t allowed to be and why be kind-hearted.

Hawks himself recognizes one truth; you don’t have to be good to do good, and just because he is a hero doesn’t mean he is a good person. In fact, being a good person is a liability to him. A good person would have refused to kill Jeanist for the mission. A good person would have put up a fight about such an infiltration in the first place. 

Twice is a good person, let’s ignore that he has killed people for a moment. The narrative makes him a very clear victim of society, traumatized and marginalized for it. He is a victim of his circumstances but is hopeful, uncynical, and full of love and acceptance. He might not understand things but want to do well; he wanted to inspire his unit even if Twice didn’t really get what would inspire.

To people like Hawks, Twice’s goodness makes him weak. I know that sounds monstrous, damning even, but it’s one of Hawks’s flaws. People are there to be used. He feels guilt over it, and that’s a good sign. He felt guilt over using Enji, clearly over Jeanist, and now Twice. However that’s not enough - he was raised to ignore these things. Twice’s openness was a weakness to be exploited and Hawks is natural exploiter. In some ways this is a conscious decision and on the other, I don’t think he can function otherwise.

The commission raised him to be like this. 

III. What is ‘Free’?

And yet… the guilt remains. And other things, no matter what, Hawks’s life-defining moment had been the rescue as a child. He is, by all of our narrative, the hero that wants to save. Heroism is saving to him. People like Twice are ‘weak’, but when Hawks isn’t using weakness, he feels obligated to protect and save the weak. 

What this means is he doesn’t feel good about it. He feels trapped by this pull to respond humanely to this person who trusts him, who is so loving against all reason, and giving his heart on his sleeve, and knowing he’s expected to rip that heart to shreds. He does it all in favor of the hero system BUT! BUT! Look at how much he’s learning about the resentment. The PLF has dozens of thousands of people; these aren’t just a few disgruntled people. There’s a huge fatal flaw here.

Now, even before this Hawks felt trapped by his duties, by his life as a hero. He feels beholden to his rank, to his organization, to his abilities, to help others and yet now runs into this idea that maybe he might be hurting more than helping.

What this means is that the pieces are there for Hawks to change his thinking. He’s notice the resentment, he knows he wants to fly free but doesn’t think he can (yet) because there’s so much more he wants to do, and is currently on a path of doing terrible things (by his own admission) because he’s been told that it is right thing to do. 

So what happens when he starts thinking that the right thing to do in the wrong way…isn’t right? What happens when his main reason for not flying free dissipates? 

IV. Tipping Point | False Idols

As much as in trouble Hawks is right now, with the League, I highly doubt this is the end of him. I think he’s about to get his foundations shattered. 

Endeavor is Hawks’s driving force for heroism. There are many reasons as to why he is - one is admiration of the kind of masculine power fantasy of strength and safety that Endeavor projects, one is the fact the man doesn’t quit striving to be better and is determined with a sort of feeling that Hawks doesn’t have. 

Another guess would be that Endeavor, more than anything, always projected a picture of having it all. He was intensely private about his life but the top searches for him in manga do involve his children. He was so close to the top, but where All Might remained a symbol, Endeavor’s fatal flaw was that he seems human and flawed to Japan.And yet Hawks desires that most of all. The freedom to have a life, the freedom to be human and not a hero, or maybe be both, like Endeavor. Knowing nothing about what happened in the Todoroki household, it’s probably goals to Hawks. “This man is tireless, has the most completed cases, and yet still has a family. A wife, kids.”

Hawks doesn’t have a family from what we can guess. As of 258, the reason we have a thief named Takami arrested by Endeavor is unclear. It’s likely this is a relative. Personally, I’ve always maintained Hawks seeing Endeavor as father figure in his youth, mostly due not having one or being failed by his own. Maybe to a young Hawks, Endeavor looked like the perfect father. 

Hawks is an adult now, and can look at Endeavor critically, but it doesn’t mean those feelings faded. That old admiration and yearning to be like him, even if he knows he isn’t meant to, is still there (just like Hawks can’t fully discard the part of him that *uses* Enji and thinks less of him for allowing himself to be used).

What this means is that so much of Hawks’s desires tie in with a lot of childhood dreams of what Endeavor might have meant to him. And we, as readers, know how much of that built is on a lie. Endeavor gave up immediately, he did horrible inhumane things to a woman and his children for decades, all in the name of being ‘better than’, not even a better hero.

Hawks doesn’t know. Maybe he has guesses but I don’t think Hawks knows about his family life.

I think the reveal will be deeply shocking, enough to put those pieces into place. The resentment to his own circumstances, the resentment of the public to heroism, the commission wanting to keep the status quo and Hawks having to choose if the status quo is worth defending at all.

We’re in a crossroads with him. Hawks’s time as a victim with no autonomy is up - he has to start making decisions about where he’s going to go. I can’t say anything is for certain, but I do think he’s headed for moral revelations. I just hope it’s not too late to right his current wrongs.

#hawks #takami keigo #bnha 258 #meta #bnha #my meta

[higuchimon]

[fanfic] Ways To The Soul

“So what kind of a soulmate mark do you have?” The question came from one of her classmates; she couldn’t remember their name anymore. It had been a good many years since then. But it was innocent – almost everyone asked that kind of question sooner or later, especially if the answer wasn’t obvious.

Not all of the ways were. Not everyone had a clearly marked countdown on them or a mark waiting to glow at the right time or a name written on themselves. There were less obvious ways, of course, such as sharing dreams or healing via touch or when one couldn’t see colors until meeting one’s soulmate. There were even a few rarer ones – such as those who sprouted wings upon meeting their soulmate.

And in all of her years, Asuka hadn’t experienced any of that. No signs or clocks or names upon her, and she’d never shared a dream or felt anyone else’s thoughts and she could see colors as well as anyone else.

But they asked. It was just a thing. Sometimes marks didn't show up right away, after all.

“You really don’t need to worry about it,” Fubuki told her one afternoon, not long before he was to start his first year at Duel Academia. “I mean, there are so many ways that you could find a soulmate!” He strummed a little at his ukulele. He still wasn’t very good at that.

“I didn’t say I was worried about it,” Asuka replied, going through her deck. She still had two years before she could start at the Academy, but she did have a very important duel against one of her friends that weekend and she wanted to do her very best.

Fubuki blinked at her. “I know you are. You don’t have to lie to me. You’re worried because you’re one of the rare ones.” He tapped his fingers on his instrument for a few seconds. “You know, I bet you’re a Name-speaker. So there’s no way you’ll know your soulmate until they say your name.”

Asuka debated the ethics of grabbing the nearest magazine and whacking him upside the head. It was a very tempting thought. She kept her focus on her deck instead. The magazine hadn’t been invented yet that could get through his thick skull.

Why won’t he believe me? As far back as she could remember, she’d never been interested in having a soulmate. Once she’d checked out a book from the library about all the different ways that one could find one’s soulmate, and spent a very informative weekend checking herself to be sure that she didn’t possess any of them. She’d contorted herself into many unusual configurations making sure that there weren’t any marks on her back before giving up and asking Junko to check for her.

She’d never had a mark. She decided at a very young age that she didn’t want a mark. There were a couple of people that as she got older, she found mildly interesting but that was it – a mild interest than happily settled itself into warm friendships over and over.

Time ticked by, as it had a habit of doing. Fubuki went on to Duel Academia and vanished before the ending of his first year. Asuka held fast to the hope that he would return – Fubuki carried a song in his heart, a beautiful melody that his soulmate would know the other half of when they heard him singing. Because of that, he would return. She held faith in that.

Being able to spend time with Ryou helped ease the loss of her brother. She never asked about the odd mark on his right hand – the one grayed out, as if his soulmate perished. He never talked about it either.

She met others who had marks or signs of some kind. Juudai proudly showed off the name on his left arm, written in yellow and green – Yubel. A name she’d never heard of before – nor had Juudai. He held out hope that he would meet them one day, though.

Momoe’s timer wouldn’t run down until she was close to twenty-five. Junko already shared dreams with someone who she wouldn’t name. A few casual conversations she overheard indicated other options – rumor had it that Ayanokouji Mitsuru and Kouchou Ran ended up as soulmates, having brushed against each other at a duel tournament and knowing in that moment.

Quite honestly, Asuka could hardly go anywhere without talk of soulmates. They were almost as hot a topic as dueling was. At least Ryou never spoke of his mark, and once Juudai determined that no one in school knew who Yubel was, he was far more interested in talking dueling anyway. Misawa looked forward to late May of the following year, when his mark decreed he would meet his soulmate. Manjoume didn’t have a mark either, but he told a few tales about how his family tended to have the rarer signs, such as being a HealTouch or a TruthTeller. He had hopes of turning out to be a Name-speaker himself.

Shou’s mark was different from Ryou’s. Not all family members who had marks shared them, after all. His mark wasn’t one o the visible ones – he couldn’t see color at all, and wouldn’t until he met his soulmate.

Hayato had a name on his wrist as well, not one that anyone recognized. He said nothing about it, but Asuka suspected that he hoped he’d meet this “Sugiyama Takara” when he went to Industrial Illusions.

With every year that passed, there were more people who had marks. Some of them didn’t ask about hers – she would forever be grateful that Jim Cook wanted to talk more about geology than the mark on his own hand – but there were always those who could not help but press to know about hers and so many of them offered the same platitudes when they found out that she didn’t have one.

Most of those were the same ones that Fubuki offered before, promising that there were so many different ways that just because she didn’t have one now didn’t mean she’d never have one. It could happen any time. Maybe she was just a late bloomer. There would be someone for her.

“Maybe I don’t want someone!” Asuka snapped finally, on a day close to the end of her third year, when Fubuki checked in again to make sure she hadn’t had any shared dreams or unusual emotions overnight.

Fubuki stared at her, mouth open slightly, but no words coming out. He blinked a few times before he did manage to say anything.

“Are you sure?”

At least he didn’t deny the possibility. She gave him that much credit.

“Not yet. But it’s the best option I see so far.” She’d never really been more than superficially interested in anyone anyway, and never romantically. Potential dueling opponents only interested her. Not to mention she hadn’t yet decided what it was she wanted to do with her life. She waffled between teaching – which did have an appeal – and trying to enter the Pro Leagues or entering research related to dueling. Ayukawa-sensei had also suggested that she study medicine for duel purposes. With more injuries turning up related to the game, those who knew how to deal with that kind of ailment remained in high demand.

There was just always so much to do that wasn’t romantic and she wanted to do it.

Fubuki drew in a long breath and, of all things, smiled at her. “All right. I’ll stop asking. If that’s what you want, then I just ask one thing.”

Asuka crossed her arms over her chest. “What?”

“If you ever do decide to date someone – with or without a soulmate mark – let me know, please?” He tried to look a little like a puppy dog but she’d seen all of his looks growing up. That meant nothing to her.

But what he asked, she could do. “I will. Just don’t wait for it.”

Fubuki nodded. Asuka suspected it would be abut a week before he asked again.

At least more people were finding their soulmates and thus had less to talk about with their marks. Juudai knew who Yubel was – had fused their souls together, in fact. Asuka had to say she’d never heard about that before. Hayato wrote them all a mass e-mail gleeing over having finally met Sugiyama Takara. They hadn’t started dating yet but Hayato hoped to ask his fellow card designer out for tea sometime in the near future.

Misawa had settled happily into the Amazon Village with Taniya. It hadn’t taken long before he’d built a device that could transmit between the worlds – sort of a souped up mobile phone, as he’d described it, and started to make arrangements for long-distance lessons. He would be graduating with them, even if he couldn’t physically be there.

She’d learned that Professor Chronos also didn’t have a soulmate identifier of any kind, and she’d spent some time with him just talking about how sometimes their lives were far less complicated than those of their friends. She would miss being here for him.

As soon as Juudai defeated Darkness, Ryou’s mark flared into full life again – as did the matching one of Fujiwara Yuusuke. They hadn’t spent much time apart since then, learning about one another all over again. A great deal had changed between the last time they’d seen one another and now.

Maybe she would develop a soulmate attachment or fall in love in a different way. Non soulmate relationships existed, after all. She could see it when O’Brien visited Sea God’s Priestess. But right now, that wasn’t what she wanted to do with her life, and she couldn’t imagine being any other way.

The End

Notes: Asuka is asexual/aromantic in this. She doesn’t have a romantic soulmate at all. If she were going to have a platonic one, it would probably be Jim and/or Mizuchi. I might go into further detail on some of the ships mentioned here, and ones I didn’t mention (such as Edo and Saiou, who share an emotional link once the Light isn’t an issue anymore). But not right now. I’m getting ready to start finishing WIPs and write stuff that’s not GX.

#fanfic #higuchimon writes #ygo gx #gxmonth2020 #tenjoin asuka #tenjoin fubuki #au: soulmates

[coolfoxy4]

My OCs

Fennec

Eye color: Red

Gender: Female

Inspiration: Fennec Fox

Fennec is the main antagonist of my plan to work on series "Misanthropy: Curse of Fennec". She hates human life, she thinks humans are nothing more than disgusting, hate-filled, mean creatures that takes pleasure in chaos, she needs 100 human souls to have enough power to kill all humans and give them a "fresh restart", so the human race can be made better. In life, she was a nice girl named Penny with her pet fennec fox, Hope, but everyone hated her for some unknown reason... She was always nice to everyone, but they would yell at her about how she doesn't belong here and tell her to f**k off, she saw violence, hate, and bad people on TV, she always has hope for humanity to get better, but one day she couldn't handle the evil around her any longer and ended her life and her pet... Their souls mixed together creating Fennec... She now spend their lives killing anyone who enters her old home and takes their souls for her goal to restart the human race...

Truthteller

Eye color: Dark Brown

Gender: Female

Inspiration: Me in a white mask and black hoodie (yeah I'm lazy)

Truthteller tells the truth about things, either it be dark, interesting, or unbelievable to some, she's Asexual, she hates it when nobody believes her, when someone rants about her telling the truth, or thinks it doesn't mean anything. Her face has some scars when a guy didn't like telling the truth about someone who did awful things yet people praised them like a god, the man slashed at her face with his pocket knife, she now wears the mask to hide her scars, but she still remembers that encounter...

Raymond

Eye color(s): Red (right), Green (left)

Gender: Male

Inspiration: Rabbids from Rabbids Invasion

Raymond is an inventor, he made his backpack that has 2 robotic arms that helps him carry heavy things and help him build his inventions and his helmet can be used to cover his eyes while welding, or protect them from sand from sandstorms and help him see through water and helps him breath while swimming, the helmet can also protect him from dangerous gases. The light on his helmet can help him see through the dark. He's quiet intelligent and nicer than other Rabbids, he'll get mad when his inventions don't work or gets destroyed, he's making inventions to protect himself and his species from the Hawkers, a species smarter and stronger than the Rabbids, their mission is to wipeout the Rabbids from existence, they're based on the Red-Tailed Hawks.

???

Color: Fortegreen

Gender: Unknown

Inspiration: a glitch in Among Us

??? is one of the crewmates that ended being sucked into the glitch dimension, they used to be Orange, but after being sucked in, they turned into Fortegreen. Whenever they'll appear, they'll glitch out and act like a normal crewmate, but they're silent. Yellow #12 (my avatar in Among Us) sees this mysterious crewmate a few times, they even saved her life from the imposter one time. They're clearly on the crewmates' side.

(These backstories might sound like crap but I tried at least)

Rabbids Invasion belongs to Ubisoft

Among Us belongs to Inner Sloth

#ocs #art #among us #Rabbids Invasion #Fennec #Truthteller #??? #Raymond (Rabbids Invasion)