#but eris and jurian begrudgingly like each other

[clockwork-ashes]

eris and jurian? they lean against the wall at court events and gossip

[battlestar-royco]

masterpost of fix-it headcanons for AC0TAR

the only day you can add onto this is  e v e r y  day

this blew up into a huge thing and it’s no longer just headcanons but more a reworked outline/embellishment of the first three books. feel free to add or change what you want if you make it through the whole thing :D

n/esta--a gray ace icon!--is the main character. the first book is told in n/esta and l/ucien’s alternating POVs.

some worldbuilding and character background for human lands because sj/m provides fuckity nothing: mama and papa arch raised their children on scary stories about the fae. the first story every human child hears is the one about the human-fae treaty and the ominously growing rip in the wall between human and fae lands. (as a young woman, n/esta remembers a time when a fae attack would happen once every few years, but now she hears of five to ten a year.) because humans are atheist, the arch sisters also learned many stories about secular historical figures and events such as j/urian and his legendary murder of c/lythia during the human-fae war, and f/eyre took an interest in famous painters from a young age.

mama arch died and papa arch’s leg was irreparably damaged while protecting their daughters from a fae creature attack. the girls developed growing resentment toward fae as they got older.

after their family’s fall into poverty, n/esta and e/lain grew up helping f/eyre learn to read. she'll never be at their level, but she knows enough to get by. n/esta always budgets and goes shopping. the harvest from e/lain’s little garden has saved them a few autumns, just like f/eyre’s hunting. their father loves them and wishes he could do more, but they're happy to care for him.

actual ac0tar timeline: (because the humans deserved a plotline and i’ll die mad that they never got one:) the human lands are deeply unsettled by the hole in the wall, and a few attacks have ravaged the northernmost villages. f/eyre is taken to p/rythian. n/esta and e/lain find the mercenary who helped f/eyre. the mercenary is an important mentor for them and she helps n/esta leave tomas. e/lain’s fiance g/raysen who is completely justified in his wariness against fae fiGHT ME sj/m is an advocate for human rights, and all his family’s resources are helping mend the wall, but they just can’t do it without magic. e/lain stays at home to take care of papa arch while n/esta heads north with the mercenary to save f/eyre and possibly find a magical solution to the wall. unsuccessful, n/esta returns home to find that her family has suddenly come upon fortune again, and she funnels some of that money into the human effort.

meanwhile in the sp/ring court, l/ucien watches as tom lane brings home a human girl, f/eyre, who may just be the key to defeating a/marantha’s curse. the curse forbids him from warning her about tom’s true nature, and his feelings toward tom are difficult because tom has provided him shelter from his family but has also been another source of abuse. l/ucien also resents f/eyre for murdering andras. both trapped and opposed to each other for different reasons, f/eyre and l/ucien begrudgingly become friends. they look out for each other and a/lis.

throughout book 1, l/ucien mourns andras and carries out his duties as tom’s emissary. he visits utm multiple times, discreetly conversing with all the imprisoned high lords and their spies (maybe a/zriel and/or n/uala and c/erridwen makes a cameo here) and spreading the news that the curse may soon end. every time he returns, the high lords inform him on their movements/preparations for a/marantha’s death and h/ybern’s rise.

f/eyre completes her third task, but her stab to tom’s heart is fatal. tom dies honorably, for the greater good of all the fae, but l/ucien and f/eyre will never forget the darker parts of him. because a/marantha deserved better as a villain, a/marantha disappears in a diversion created by the king of h/ybern (hereon known as “koh”). rice is a straight-up antagonist and kidnaps f/eyre into the night court. l/ucien is left to rule the s/pring court alone.

ac0maf timeline: the second book continues l/ucien and n/esta’s POVs but also introduces t/arquin, m/or, and a h/ybernian’s POVs.

the h/ybernian pov (perhaps a commoner, soldier, or advisor to the koh) gives us insight on the koh and a/marantha’s plans. both the koh and a/marantha are given thorough backstories that make them sympathetic and/or interesting villains. the latter is one of many lethal commanders in the h/ybern army, alongside d/agdan and b/rannagh. her bitterness against humans has been renewed upon her defeat by f/eyre. the h/ybernian perspective also allows us to see h/ybernian culture, history, and pro/anti-war factions so that h/ybern is no longer a monolith. at some point, we see the cauldron come together. its power is immense.

now, let’s add some semblance of conflict and flaws to the inner circle. (i tried to stick as close to the canon as possible here, but again, mess provided FUCKITY NOTHING.) they each have differing motives, but at the end of the day they all just want prythian to be safe. they’re actually morally ambiguous anti-heroes/villains as heroes instead of this “it was all an act” nonsense. i/llyrians are explicitly poc. rice kidnapped f/eyre not because they’re mates, but because he wants to use her newfound powers as an asset against h/ybern. a/zriel’s torture victims never recover, but he only ever resorts to such measures when he believes necessary. a/mren (agender; ace) hunts for their blood, and they have an insurmountable body count. m/or (power lesbian) is incredibly kind, but everyone in court knows not to get on her bad side or they’ll face her justice. c/assian is the most ruthless commander i/llyria has ever seen.

additionally, the inner circle is complicated. m0riel was never a thing. c/assian and m/or also never hooked up, but they are besties. a/zriel is the intuitive, emotional core of the group; everyone goes to him for advice on friends, relationships, and hard decisions. a/zriel (pan) and c/assian (bi) have been steadily falling in love since their time in the camps as boys but neither of the idiots will admit it to themselves or anyone else. a/mren is still known as “tiny ancient one” because they’re like millennia older than everyone else. they impart cryptic wisdom and brutally honest advice on their edgy^TM kids. the night court also know their time with a/mren is limited because they are searching for a way out of their fae form, so their company is cherished. the four of them have stood beside rice over the centuries, and they love him, but they’ve also watched him steadily become more corrupt and merciless. can he be saved or is it time for a change in leadership? this is a conversation everyone wants to have, but no one is brave enough to begin. everyone skirts around it throughout the book, tension slowly building to an inevitable confrontation.

moving on to the plot: in the night court, we follow m/or ruling v/elaris (she fucking  f i n e s s e s  k/eir in the process). she’s in a simmering, slow burn romance with an i/llyrian woman: an activist against wing-cutting and a mutual friend of a/zriel’s (he set them up). m/or’s strength in court is her kind nature. she has many loyalists in the court of ni/ghtmares who know of her past with e/ris and k/eir. meanwhile, a/mren and f/eyre's subplot takes them to the human lands to get in touch with the arch sisters.

after his time utm, t/arquin returns to the summer court to play his part in preparing for the war against h/ybern: translating his half of the book of breathings and gathering powerful allies (br/yaxis, the b/one carver, and the w/eaver) for the war. his emotional arc is all about his recovery from the trauma he underwent utm. meanwhile, c/resseida hears word that some night court members are headed to the human lands, so she initiates an alliance with them and tags along in hopes that she can retrieve the mortal queens’ half of the book.

in the spring court, i/anthe is introduced. l/ucien soon realizes she is a double agent for h/ybern. she feeds him info on recruitment and battle strategies. koh and a/marantha are depending on i/anthe’s priestess order to spread pro-war rhetoric across h/ybern (??? this is the best i could do with what sj/m gave). the human lands are the most at risk because koh plans on cutting his army directly through spring court to crush the laughably weak human resistance before taking over the south. (sources report the effort is headed by the cursebreaker’s older sisters....)

in the human lands, n/esta and el/ain are pleasantly surprised by a visit from their sister, and more than a little alarmed by the two fae who accompany her. f/eyre just missed papa arch, who recently set sail with some of g/raysen’s soldiers to recruit southern soldiers. human efforts to seal the wall have been mostly fruitless, and every victory pyrrhic. although neither sister is a fighter, n/esta and e/lain have both seen enough horrors to last a lifetime. n/esta has worked her way to the position of treasurer of g/raysen’s army, and it seems that the proximity of the wall has activated some magic in elain so she is now a seer (this is some bs but so is sj/m’s magic system smh i tried). therefore, both of them (plus the mercenary) always sit in on war councils, and they receive a formal invitation from the mortal queens to discuss their next movements. a/mren and c/resseida come along, and the queens agree to give their half of the book in exchange for some fae magic to mend the wall. only m/or is powerful enough to do such a thing (also bs but sj/m never explained her power!!), so they must go back to the night court. amidst all the suffering, one good thing boosts human morale: e/lain and g/raysen's marriage.

in the n/ight court, a/mren, c/resseida, and f/eyre return to merge the book and tell m/or of the deal with the queens. tensions have risen between m/or and rice’s ruling styles. the court of nig/htmares is also split between m/or and k/eir. too much is mounting for mor to even think of going to the human lands. she and a/zriel also recently received a request for help from l/ucien: one of the spring sentries reported that amarantha’s legion is on the move. meanwhile, the h/ybernian pov chronicles the legion traveling to spring. the best the n/ight court can do is send c/assian. l/ucien and c/assian do all they can, but a/marantha’s too powerful and she rips right through the hole in the wall. c/assian’s wings get fuCKING SHREDDED in the process.

acowar: we’re gonna pretend v/assa, m/iryam, and d/rakon don’t exist bc they did very little for the plot. pr/ythian is in all out fucking bloody-ass war. when war crimes are committed, characters are held accountable. spring fae are scattering, seeking refuge in other courts. we see true horrors and battles and loss throughout the book. it’s high time that the lords all convened to lay out a plan of action, but everyone’s had pretty big fish to fry in the post-curse era. the n/ight court is fracturing, t/arquin and l/ucien are adjusting to being high lords, the a/utumn court has always been infighting, etc. so now an effort is being made to call everyone to a council in dawn.

first, m/or can no longer ignore the call to the human lands. l/ucien joins her because of his lands’ proximity to the wall, leaving i/anthe in charge (they’ve become quite good companions and she’s cut off her ties to hybern). c/assian also comes because l/ucien has been harboring him in spring and providing the best possible (but insufficient) healers for his wings. finally, our human and fae plots come together. m/or and c/assian’s reunion is touching. c/assian’s banter with abrasive n/esta takes his mind off his damaged wings. they both enjoy each other’s pragmatism, sarcasm, and emotional empathy. (in another life, they might’ve made a good match ;).) m/or patches the wall because even though a/marantha is already through, it’ll stop reinforcements from joining her. in a historic event, humans (the queens, the arch sisters, and g/raysen) are invited to the council of high lords.

all our big players are at the council: all h/igh lords + partners and courts, plus terrified but dignified human squad. m/or is reunited with her old friend v/iviane, (they were DEFINITELY a thing once). k/eir, e/ris, and b/eron were invited by none other than rice, who also plans to use feyre’s powers to win multiple battles. the n/ight court can no longer deny that it’s time to talk about rice. all the rising tensions come to the surface here. rice wants to employ the [insert better name for keir’s soldiers than fucking d/arkbringers], but m/or’s i/llyrian gf has been raising an army and she thinks that’s the safer bet. in the end, all the high lords decide they need both, and no one is quite happy. no one knows wtf is in the future for n/ight court leadership.

human squad and fae recap each other. humans hope papa arch can come through with some southern support. amarantha is razing her way through human lands while a/driata and v/elaris have suffered attacks from koh. n/esta, e/lain, and f/eyre all share stolen conversations between meetings over the days. f/eyre misses her home and family, but she knows she’ll never belong there again. humans are given the d/arkbringers (yikes) and b/ryaxis.

as human squad + lucien make their way home, their caravan is attacked by a h/ybern commander--maybe d/agdan or b/rannagh. e/lain is kidnapped to the koh’s camp; she’ll be a good hostage to draw in the pr/ythian asset f/eyre and crush human spirit. the h/ybernian notes that the cauldron has amassed much more power than we last saw. however, koh’s power over the cauldron and his soldiers has been spiraling out of control ever since a/marantha left to attack humans. though she’s been successful against them so far, her obsessive desire to slaughter humans wastes a lot of soldiers & resources on lands that are of little use to h/ybern. the h/ybernian gradually becomes acquainted with e/lain and frees her from the camp. humans return home shaken, but without further incident. the diversion has given a/marantha enough time to secure g/raysen’s lands before they arrive.

in the night court, they realize that without b/ryaxis they’ll need to free a/mren from their body for once and for all to defeat koh. they all share one last night of drinking, games, and being silly and sad. a/zriel and c/assian ruminate on the possibility of losing other inner circle members, and realize their feelings for each other. when h/ybernian and p/rythian forces assemble for the final battle, rice dies an anti-hero’s death on the battlefield. c/assian commands i/llyrian infantry nobly and courageously while m/or’s gf commands from the skies. f/eyre uses her powers to the best of her ability, and with significant help from a/mren in their true form, wins the day for p/rythian. a/mren disappears into their original desired dimension, and f/eyre dies knowing that she neither belongs with humans nor fae. c/resseida, t/arquin, and some p/rythian court members survive, but not without suffering scars, limb loss, and casualties etc.

in the human lands, papa arch has returned from the south with a few thousand men, but not enough to face a/marantha. the d/arkbringers and b/ryaxis hold their own against her soldiers, but she herself still lives. echoing how f/eyre outsmarted a/marantha in book 1, the humans must utilize a/marantha’s own hubris to defeat her. a major human character dies: perhaps g/raysen, the mercenary, or a queen.

finally, the enemies are defeated. arch family and high lords are invited to a funeral for f/eyre cursebreaker in the night court. n/esta and e/lain mourn their sister, but the funeral as a whole serves as a commemoration of all the losses of the war. additionally, m/or and i/llyrian gf have a beautiful private wedding. in rice’s absence, the courtiers of dreams and nightmares flock to m/or. now that their power is secure, she and l/ucien hold long overdue but fair trials against e/ris, b/eron, and k/eir for what they did to m/or and j/esminda (l/ucien’s lover who was killed before his eyes). they are found guilty, and a/zriel uses his sword truthteller in the execution. after, everyone settles terms and plans for war reparations. all the courts vow to donate what they can to the human lands because they all bear the responsibility. the humans go home one last time. human and fae alike are deeply traumatized by the war, but there is hope of happiness and recovery in the future.

[allthebooksbefore]

a court of wings and ruin / sarah j. maas

book #21 of 2021 started: sometime in may (i forget lol) finished: june 30th

what it's about: "feyre has returned to the spring court, determined to gather information on tamlin's actions and learn what she can about the invading king threatening to bring her land to its knees. but to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit. one slip could bring doom not only for feyre, but for everything - and everyone - she holds dear. as war bears down upon them all, feyre endeavors to take her place amongst the high fae of the land, balancing her struggle to master her powers - both magical and political - and her love for her court and family. amidst these struggles, feyre and rhysand must decide whom to trust amongst the cunning and lethal high lords, and hunt for allies in unexpected places... the fate of feyre's world is at stake as armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy it."

what i liked: the way it took two and a half books to actually get to the war lol... but all of that build up was so necessary to make the stakes higher and make it all hit home more. i loved feyre and rhys' last few moments at the townhouse, the chapter where feyre and her sisters reunited after feyre and azriel saved elain (and they slept next to each other like they begrudgingly used to when they were humans) (really all of the sisterly moments between feyre and nesta), rhys' speech before the last battle - it was all so bittersweet. feyre's ruse with lucien at the beginning of the novel - i.e. her coming onto him to piss off tamlin - was interesting. i know he felt guilty for not being there for feyre in the past, and maybe he just got caught up in the moment, but he fell right into her traps (they almost k i s s e d). it was kind of surprising because 1) he had very clear suspicions of her when she came back to the spring court, 2) he knew he was mated to elain, and 3) his unyielding loyalty - though perhaps faltering - to tamlin. also, i mentioned this back in book one, but i like how feyre often needs help, makes mistakes, or straight up doesn't know what to do... turning the spring court against tamlin (which was kind of savage at the time but ended up having negative consequences); when she left one of the battles against hybern without telling anyone (and people were pissed at her); when she couldn't fly (and tamlin helped her); when she felt utterly useless at times during the war. she has a lot of confidence, but also has her own faults and insecurities - it makes her seem more real than a heroine who constantly kicks ass. i also liked how she made her peace with tamlin, giving him that note. i hope we can see him redeem himself in the future, watch him learn how to be a stronger leader, learn how to calm the rage inside of him. switching gears… jurian. i LOVED that he pulled a rhys and ended up working for the greater good. i had a feeling he would... while in the spring court, he would insinuate to feyre that he knew she was putting on an act, winking at her like they were in on something together. interested to see how his storyline plays out, especially with myriam and drakon. also, mor. i didn’t expect that she was going to come out (at earlier points i thought maybe amren, nesta or both), but i wasn’t necessarily surprised. there had to be a solid reason why she was stringing cassian and azriel along for so long. what was kind of annoying in retrospect, though, was how she kept inserting herself into these moments between cassian and nesta. i get she has a sense of protectiveness over her friends, but i feel like she was being more protective over that love triangle to save face, and it makes me sad for her and the two men. they deserve to find love, not be stuck in this 500-year-old game. i also loved when, during the final battle, feyre removed the glamour around the bone carver and byraxis, only for rhys to remove his own glamour around the weaver - we stan a couple on the same wave length. omg and when we got to see nesta and elain team up to take down the king of hybern - how the author used the grip the cauldron had on feyre to bring us there and witness it versus randomly giving us nesta/elain’s point of view… i’m glad nesta and elain got to each have their moment.

what i liked, continued: FATHER ARCHERON. i had a strong feeling he was going to appear at that heart of the war - the fact that he was mentioned here and there as being away on business, without a second thought, made that one a bit obvious, but i thought he was going to either have joined hybern in a deal to get his daughters back, or would have been captured by hybern as bait. but he was strong and good and RALLIED TROOPS to fight, in ships named after his daughters (lead by the NESTA). UGHHH. it was a bit cheesy but SO CUTE. what was a little muddy, though, was the fact that he just left nesta and elain behind? did he try returning for them but they weren’t there, or learned of their fate from vassa before he could? or did he know in his heart that feyre would come back for them? ANYWAY. it was nice to see him redeem himself. now let’s talk about miss amren. part of me was thinking that someone in the group would be revealed to be working for hybern's cause, but i left that theory behind. but then, at the cauldron, amren revealed that she lied to feyre, and i was so taken aback, thinking she had ulterior motives, hybern or no. but then i thought, wait... she probably lied that they needed more “made-fae” power to nullify the cauldron, that it had to be only feyre. kind of like the "protective" necklace she gave feyre when she was going to visit the bone carver for the first time - a placebo to give her inner strength (which was sort of true). but then once amren said she needed feyre to kill her... queue the hermione granger "hE's gOiNg tO sAcRiFicE hImSeLf" moment. BRO. after the suriel and feyre were talking about needing to die to nullify the cauldron, part of me thought tamlin would sacrifice himself. but AMREN not just unleashing her beast form but accepting a certain death... BEAUTIFUL. lastly, changing course to the ending... RHYS' DEATH. i had a feeling back in book two that he would end up dying because he's just too GOOD. something bad had to happen. what i didn't expect, though, was the entire series coming full circle and all the high lords bringing him back to life, and then rhys bringing AMREN BACK WITH HIM. UGHHHHH. we STAN.

what i didn't like: i get there's a lot of content to get through, but the author just completely cuts out storylines only to bring them back when it's convenient and it could be a little distracting. lucien is a perfect example - he left to go find vassa, and then was never mentioned again until he reappeared during the last battle. feyre couldn't have had a passing thought about him once or twice? wonder if he's okay out there?

things i'm thinking about: i'm worried about nesta, but she always pulls through. i think she'll start taking her training more seriously, too. i'm also worried about rhys - will he suffer any major effects of being revived? it almost felt a little too easy. plus, although the war is over, there is still so much to consider - bryaxis on the loose. vassa, and the death-lord she is cursed to. the mortal queens. the ramifications of the cauldron’s whereabouts. jurian. the people remaining people of hybern (and who takes over the throne). the new treaty. amren’s abilities now that she’s solely high fae. eris, and his fight for beron's crown. alis - is she ok? what role will the human girl they saved from hybern's camp play going forward? and then, of course, all of the relationships - mor and viviane's sister were hinted at. and then azriel + mor + cassian of course. nesta and cassian (CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS TO PLAY OUT MORE). azriel getting over mor (and his soft spot for elain?). elain and lucien. lucien and helion. lucien and his family. lucien and tamlin. amren and varian. UGH so much left to resolve.