#keeping up with the archerons

[ladyelain]

Honestly, Nesta and Elain’s relationship is so underrated. It’s alway: Nesta is mothering Elain and Elain’s so ungrateful…

Though nobody ever talks about how they’re comforting and supporting each other both in their own ways. As the eldest sibling myself, I 100 percent guarantee you Elain hasn’t been and will never be a burden or social project to Nesta lol. She’s literally her younger sister and Nesta can’t help but do everything in her power for her. That doesn’t mean Elain isn’t giving anything back.

Don’t take this the wrong way, but Elain really is the only "thing" giving Nesta purpose throughout their years in poverty. It’s Nesta’s role as bigger sister to Elain that’s giving her life meaning because she knows she’s not that person to Feyre and it kills her inside.

Anyway, they might be having difficulties right now because of how codependent they’ve always been, however, that’s the whole point and what it takes for them to grow. After all, Nesta will always be the elder sister and behave like it and that’s absolutely normal.

[nestastits]

I’m gonna go ahead and put this bullshit to rest🫶🏻. Nesta is not leaving Cassian, they love each other and it would kill them if they ever had to be apart(both of them canonically say this in their thoughts). Cassian absolutely would not cheat on Nesta nor leave her nor hate her. He never has hated her. This man couldn’t and wouldn’t have a relationship romantically, physically, or emotionally after the first time meeting Nesta (he says this in acosf). Lastly, he has been in love with her from the first time he met her and ain’t falling out of love anytime soon or ever. He literally faught the compulsion of the crown, a Dead Trove that makes people do whatever is said by the holder, through his love for Nesta and stabbed himself not being able to stomach hurting her even if he was magically made to do it.

Does he have issues regarding his treatment of Nesta? Yes. But guess who else does? Nesta. She didn’t always treat him kindly. Did he fix what he said and did to her? Yes. As well as Nesta fixed what she said and did to him. Are they allowed to have arguments from time to time? Absolutely, if they didn’t they would never work out and the relationship would be blindly toxic. Furthermore, THEY ARE NOT FEYSAND AND THAT IS PERFECTLY FINE. NOT EVERY COUPLE HAS TO BE LIKE FEYSAND TO BE A GOOD MATCH.

Overall, Nessian are in love. They are Mated. At the end of acosf they talk about a future regarding a family of their own, a life of their own. They have been willing to die together multiple times and when faced with danger, both of them have been known to do unimaginable things (cassian fighting the crown, Nesta literally unmaking someone) they wouldn’t be able to do this if they weren’t in love and a true fated mated pair.

Thank you for reading! If you disagree don’t get your panties all in a wad and leave hate comments, I don’t feel like losing any more brain cells over nonsense that comes from people who both have no reading comprehension and have to literally change a characters entire arc/personallity to make a theory work.

[romanticatheartt]

I hate it when people say Feyre, mated a high lord but Nesta was mated to a gym bro...

You mean Feyre Archeron? The savior of Prythian, the Cursebreaker, Defender of the Rainbow, Cauldron-blessed and the first high lady in the history?

And Cassain? Lord of Bloodshed, Warrior-heart, Lord in Good Deeds and the general of the biggest army and court in Prythian?

Put some respect in the name of High Lady of Night Court and her general!!!

[darkest-fantasy]

The fact that we’re probably going to have a ‘Chapter 54’ for Gwynriel and Elucien…

[sad-scarred-sassy]

Can we please also talk about maybe one of the reasons Lucien isn’t more forward with Elain yet is literally because his life is so unstable, he doesn’t REALLY have a home, his family is super dangerous and STILL out to get him, his previous court hates him, he thinks hes a nobody…

He probably doesn’t think he has anything to offer to her, and it makes me so soft, because all she needs is his warmth 😭

[feyres-divorce-lawyer]

A gift for what I was enduring — ACOMAF 54

A way to get back at Tamlin […] for having you. — ACOMAF 54

she’s not a fucking object, rhysand.

[bloomingdarkgarden]

A Breakfast Snippet Ft. Elain, Lucien, Azriel, and Eris.

In Fading Hush of Eden Lost // An Elucien Courtship on AO3

“I can still hardly believe she’s giving me a chance.” Lucien murmured over his coffee to Eris.

Elain entered the dining room a moment later, a plate of bacon in hand.

“Is it really so impossible?” she said softly, resting the plate on the table. “Feyre told me that you were good long before I considered giving you a chance, Lucien.”

Lucien raised an auburn eyebrow, caution lingering in his gaze as he reached for the bacon. “What else has Feyre told you?”

Elain was quiet for a long moment. She angled her head at Lucien curiously.

“That Autumn males have fire in their veins and they fuck like it too.”

Eris spit out his coffee all over the table as Lucien choked on a mouthful of food.

Elain merely looked between them, shrugging as she glanced to Azriel.

The shadowsinger sipped his mug, cool and collected as ever. His hazel eyes flickered to Eris for a brief moment. A trace of simmering affection lingered in his gaze as he slapped the male heartily on the back once before looking to Elain. “Not inaccurate,” he noted quietly over his coffee.

The Vanserra brothers began choking on their breakfast all over again.

[positivewitch]

Elain x Lucien

@lucienweekofficial Day 6 - Romance

@positivewitch

[ladydeath-vanserra]

tamlin 🤝🏻 nesta: lives rent free in people's minds and has shit made up about them to prop up Rhysand

[ladyelain]

You know, if media existed in the human lands, Vassa as a royal would be an a-list celebrity lol. The Archerons meeting her under those circumstances would’ve been so iconic tbh.

[arson-09]

no one asked but if i had to give elucien a government assigned hozier song i think a classic wasteland, baby! would be theirs. it’s literally a song comparing falling in love to a apocalyptic event and how it can be terrifying but so rewarding and delightful in the end. And i think that fits them very well :)

[romanticatheartt]

What do you think Rhys is referring to when he said Nesta is an Illyrian at heart in acofas? He says it’s a compliment but then he says that because of that, there is no excuse for her behavior. Is the behavior he is referring to how she treated Feyre? What would being an Illyrian at heart have to do with that?? It’s just something I was confused on while rereading acofas.

Note: I read these books more than 1.5 years ago and only reread the first book in February so I don't have enough evidence and what I'm saying is from what I remember. If anyone has a better answer to this I would love to hear it. My opinion is based on my own understanding so you don't have to agree<3

This is a very interesting question, one that I've never paid attention to before and it's the first time I noticed, because all this time I thought Rhysand meant she has a warrior soul, and later on, she got an Illyrian mate and now is warrior/Valkyrie. And it still can be interpreted as such but like I said I forgot in what context he said it, so I read that scene again:

And it reminded me of this scene:

People obviously got mad at this and told Mor to "get off her high horse" but they never bothered to stop and think why would she say it in the first place and what impression Nesta gave, for her to reach this conclusion.

The first time Mor and Nesta talk in acowar, Mor tries to be hospitable toward her and make friends with her. That's her personality, she did the same with Feyre as well.

But Nesta, instead of not saying anything at all if she's not in the mood for friendship, decides to question Mor's choice of dress. (in my vocabulary this is called sl*t shaming. Nesta was shaming Mor for her choice of dress) Now who also shamed Mor for her choice of lifestyle? Her father, Keir, who lives in the Court of Nightmare. She lived the first few years of her life there as well and she knows how those people are.

I also want to point to this scene at how CoN treat the women:

I know a while back people were "criticizing" Rhys for dressing Feyre like a "wh*re" (???) and asking why he got mad when Keir called her that... I'm not even gonna bother to prove how wrong and far from canon is but... I, personally, don't go around, looking people up and down and shaming them for the choice of their dress. A woman can be naked and I wouldn't call her *names* but ig that's just me... continuing:

Mor sees Nesta's behavior and the first thing she probably thinks of, is how her family treated her and still does. And from that stage of the book we don't see her being nice to Nesta at all. Nesta triggered something in her and that changed her opinion of her for the rest of the series.

Now Mor's reaction to Nesta is quite similar to Rhys'.

When Feyre asks why he's ok with Elain and not Nesta, he answers "Elain is Elain." Because she doesn't trigger anything for him. She just exists in his house and doesn't bother him or more importantly, his mate. On the other hand, he has witnessed how Nesta treats Feyre and his brother. How she's verbally abusing them.

And if you noticed Rhys was just like Mor when he met Nesta, He was polite. Because he had no reason not to be. But that changed the moment Nesta showed how she act towards Feyre.

I don't have any text evidence of this because I couldn't find it but I remember how Rhys said he was never respected among Illyrians. They're afraid of him and cowards, yes but he has heard the names they call him. They couldn't physically hurt him but they never stopped verbally expressing their feeling toward him. He was bullied by them. They called him "bastard" and "half-breed".

See, Nesta behaved toward both Rhys and Mor, the same way the people they hate so much and have bad memories of, did. Nesta reminds them of the people who gave them these traumas. Rhys hates Illyrians and Mor hates CoN citizens. I just realized both Rhys and Feyre have the same childhood trauma... God, they really are the same person lmao

So when Rhys says Nesta is an Illyrian and there's no excuse for her actions, it's because he sees Illyrians as hateful and full of rage creatures and there's no reason behind why they behave the way they do. And let's be honest that's how Nesta showed herself. I know some people will say he didn't understand and YES he didn't!! It's not his job to know what's wrong with her. The opposite can be said about her sisters and mate that they should've guessed but that's debatable. It's why later on we see how Nesta is full of anger and hatred and why she's the way she is because she explained it herself, we were in her pov and got to understand her.

And him saying "it's a compliment" can means that he can see some good in them, like his brothers. His mother and sister. He just hates their culture, their mindset that he's been trying to change for centuries and I think Nesta reminded him so much of them. That's why what he said is contrary of each other.

Anyway I think this is the only explanation because I don't see any other conclusion as to why he said that. But like I said if you have other things to add or disagree I would love to hear your thoughts. Sorry if I got carried away with Mor, I wanted to show the similarity in these two situations and have an example to explain better :D

Thank you anon for trusting me to answer your question lol I tried to answer as best as I could, I hope it helped with the confusion<33

[sharkwithfeelings]

ik there’s a lot of sarah j maas discourse rn, in general a lot of ya/na fantasy authors are getting looked at with a more critical eye, but i haven’t seen much abt the illyrians of the night court, who are undoubtedly indigenous-coded, and for the most part seem to be a mix of a lot of different indigenous cultures.

like, they live in mountain villages, they’re an old race of faeries, they have warrior cultures, and they’re generally described as being dark-haired and darker skinned than a lot of the other faeries in the series. and, i will admit, i haven’t read the books since middle/beginning of high school, but it’s kind of hard to forget that illyrians were at once portrayed as uncivilized but also extremely practiced in the art of war to a degree that they were a resource to the main characters in their times of need.

all the og members of the Valeris Squad (or whatever they call themselves i can’t remember) describe illyrians as “backwards” and “savage.” the illyrians are also known to beat kids, make them compete in blood sport, and they clip the wings of female illyrians so that they can’t fly and are reduced to only being housewives. they have a rich culture of tattooing, which most indigenous societies have. it’s an insanely patriarchal society that rhys and cassian and azriel are single-handedly fixing. their rites of passage into warrior status are centuries old and their communities have existed in the mountains for like forever. they’re undoubtedly supposed to be native, 100%.

and while there is plenty to be said abt how some cultures operate with regards so how they treat children and women (cultural relativism gets messy), i don’t think this is how you go about doing that. not to mention, the book doesn’t position “reeducating the illyrians” as a discussion on how one incorporates equality into a culture, it’s just like another thing that the Bat Boys do to seem like they’re more moral. the maybe only saving grace is that they grew up in the culture, so it’s not like they’re outsiders coming in and being like “your traditions are evil and bad, change them,” but i don’t know why they had to be constructed that way in the first place.

it’s weird, idk, i just think fiction is such a great place for exploration and education about how to deal with the real world but with much lower stakes, and i hate to see popular fantasy neglecting the fact that it should take real-world issues seriously, and that you can do that while also being a popular series. indigenous people across the world are systematically stolen from, colonized, and erased from the annals of history because other people step in and say, “hey we don’t like the way you do things, this is much better,” and again, yeah, some of the practices of the illyrians are pretty harmful, but how is their only good contribution to the world that they know how to do war good??? they don’t have anything else of value, they just fight and kill??? like that’s not accurate indigenous writing, that’s just harmful stereotypes.

there’s plenty more to say abt a lot of authors in the fantasy space, especially right now when so many ppl are getting book deals just for blowing up on tiktok, which i’m slightly conflicted by because more books getting published is good but also like, what books are we allowing to go to press? anywayyyy, just some thoughts

[famouscyclenerd]

some of you seem to forget that it wasn't just Cassian who thought Elain looked poopie in black, but also Nesta... and Elain too .... probably :D

[shadowqueenjude]

FINALLY

I finally saw somebody post this and this just proves my point that Lucien is my fav character. It shocks me how so much of this fandom glosses over what rice cake did. I can't believe SJM actually made Feyre end up with this sex offender. Tbh pre-ACOMAF Feyre and Lucien would've made a great pair. Post-ACOWAR Elain and Lucien make a great pair. Eris Vanserra and Nesta make a great pair. But SJM really made the Archeron sisters all attracted to the freaking bat boys like GIRL WHAT???!!! Who would you choose? The big, grumpy-ass warriors with no personality and can't hold their own in a courtroom or the smooth-talking, sassy, sarcastic, guys who YOU KNOW will treat their women like queens and can balance a thousand roles and still dress immaculately??? And who also btw have fire in their veins and fuck like it too. Just saying.

[julemmaes]

"Babe."

She'd just sat down on the bench to rest her eyes a bit when a warm, calloused palm cupped her cheek. Cassian chuckled as he said, more urgently, "Nes?"

He took a step closer, brushing his thumb right under her eye.

She tried to pry them open, look at him, but exhaustion was weighting heavy on her and when his touch disappeared, her head went down fast, as if her body reacted differently to gravity compared to everyone else's.

"Woah," he was there immediately, gripping her shoulders tightly, stepping closer to her until she was leaning completely on him.

The sudden movement had forced her brain to react and now she was tiredly glaring at him.

He grinned down at her as his fingers started massaging her scalp and she hummed appreciatively, but his nose scrunched up in that funny way it always did when he was worried about something.

"Are you okay?"

Nesta nodded. Or at least she thought she did.

Her eyelids fell close again and her chin repeatedly hit the metal of his belt when he laughed, making her grimace.

His fingers gently stroked the hurt away.

"You wanna go home? I'm sure Emerie won't mind if we leave the party earlier," he was whispering now, talking quietly in the corner of the backyard where their friends were hosting a party.

"No," she managed to force out, her words melting together. "It's herbirthday we can'teave."

Cassian's hand was wrapped on the back of her neck and he was tenderly stroking his finger on her skin. His touch was the only thing keeping her awake right then. A tether to reality.

"Babe, I honestly don't think it'll make any difference in your state," he stopped when she glared at him, but gave her a sardonic smile, fully knowing he was right.

Nesta took a deep breath and even that costed her a lot. She tried to talk, but the only thing that came out was a slurred, "'mnot that tired."

Cassian awed and Nesta was ready to fight if he didn't stop coddling her.

"You can't even speak."

She huffed a very weak fine and then she was being pulled up. An arm wrapped around her waist and a yawn forced itself out of her, just as Cassian's lips pressed to her temple and he whispered, "I love you so much."

She turned to him and smiled awkwardly, hiding her face in his chest.

"I love you, too."