#oh but it's not true that they take everything about canon gwyn that they like and give it to fanon elain /s

[pan-withnoplan]

......Are the Elain-Rhys friendly/sibling interactions here in the room with us?

*cricket noises*

[bookofmirth]

ACOTAR 5 Theories: my take

Please share your thoughts! 🙏

The wealthy Inner Circle—Most Powerful High Lord in History Rhysand, his wife and former spy Feyre, and their pampered adult children Cassian, Mor, Azriel, and Amren— lose their fortune after being defrauded by their priestesses (the result of a well-meaning rehabilitation program that culminates in a business degree). They rebuild their lives with their sole remaining asset: a small, remote town in the Middle named Mother’s Titts, which Rhys bought for Cass’s 325th birthday as a joke.

The IC are forced to relocate to Mother’s Titts, moving into two adjacent rooms in a run-down tavern inn. While the found family adjusts to their new lives, their well-to-do attitudes conflict with the town's more provincial residents.

With their pampered lives now abandoned, they must confront their new-found poverty and discover what it means to be a family, all within the rural city limits of their new home.

Quotes off the top of my head:

“I didn’t go missing, Rhysand! The Suriel knew where I was the entire time.”

— Feyre to Rhysand

“I don’t skate through life, Cassian, I walk through life in really nice shoes.”

— Mor to Cass

“You get murdered first for once!”

— Feyre to everyone else

“You’d think there’d be more of a market for oversized portraits of other people’s families.”

— Az trying to comfort Feyre when her paintings don’t resell right away

“Fold /in/ the soup.”

— Feyre when the kids are ready for their Mate bonds

“I’m starting to feel like I’m trapped in an Avril Lavigne lyric here.”

— Elain, who’s murmurs only get weirder as her visions begin to branch out to other realities

“I’m only doing this because you called me rude and I take that as a compliment.”

— Nesta to everyone

“I have never heard someone say so many wrong things, one after the other, consecutively, in a row.”

— Amren when Rhys broke the news

“My business is worth less than your pants.”

— Emerie, who has begun to franchise and open up new locations across Prythian

“Gossip is the devil’s telephone. Best to just hang up.”

— Gwyn, realizing Merrill might have been researching embezzlement and Not multidimensional portals and trying to damage control

“I could not be more at one with nature. I do Calanmai every year.”

“What now? Do I leave everything behind and move to some random island to be with the love of my life? Because Miryam did that with Prince Drakon in Cretea and it was, like, too rainy.”

“I am suffering romantically right now.”

“I have my own holiday tradition. It’s like the Twelve Days of Winter Solstice, but with it’s one day with twelve bottles of wine.”

“We’re drinking to none of us becoming alcoholics.”

“Oh, look at Az. Smart enough to get that joke, but not smart enough to stop wearing sweaters in the middle of the summer.”

“Politics 101, Feyre. When you have limited resources, your best course of action is to create a stir. It’s exciting. It’s fun.”

I thought about this since you sent it, just fyi. I laughed. I cried. I questioned canon.

Since the last few are unattributed, I have taken the liberty to decide for myself who said what. Here we go:

“I could not be more at one with nature. I do Calanmai every year.” - Lucien, insisting that he relaxes on occasion

“What now? Do I leave everything behind and move to some random island to be with the love of my life? Because Miryam did that with Prince Drakon in Cretea and it was, like, too rainy.” - Mor, realizing that she'll need 1,001 new hair products if she moves out of the Night Court to a different climate.

“I am suffering romantically right now.” - Azriel, to the House of Wind because he thinks if no one hears him, it won't be true.

“I have my own holiday tradition. It’s like the Twelve Days of Winter Solstice, but with it’s one day with twelve bottles of wine.” - Amren, because holidays are not for worship or praise, they are for being worshiped or praised.

“We’re drinking to none of us becoming alcoholics.” - Amren and Rhys explaining why every house they own has a fully stocked wine cellar.

“Oh, look at Az. Smart enough to get that joke, but not smart enough to stop wearing sweaters in the middle of the summer.” - Cassian, after badly losing during Cards Against Humanity.

“Politics 101, Feyre. When you have limited resources, your best course of action is to create a stir. It’s exciting. It’s fun.” - Helion, as he and Feyre are strolling through the Day Court between High Lord meetings.

And I will add a couple, for your consideration:

"I thought I was being mature, but in actuality, it was just a classic case of self-sabotage.” - Feyre upon considering that perhaps she should have made a bigger fuss when Rhys decided to use the Night Court treasury to buy an NFT of "art" that featured a cat playing the banjo.

“I’m trying very hard not to connect with people right now.” - Nesta, when Elain asks her if she's met the cute local animal doctor.

"Ew, Elain!" - Nesta, when Elain suggests getting a job as a "Bag Boy" at the local grocery store.

“I don’t want to be taken advantage of because I’m overdressed.” - Mor when she goes to buy a new carriage at the used carriage dealership.

"Tweet us on Facebook!" - Rhys, trying to be a High Lord without a PR team.

“You’d have said ‘Wow, Elain! I’m thinking about shaving my beard.’ And then I would’ve said ‘Mmh…no Lucien, I don’t think that that’s the right journey for you at this point in time.” - Elain, realizing she likes the rugged man look Lucien grows into.

[yazthebookish]

Hi!! First of all, I really love you theories ❤️

Second, how sure you’re about the MC and LI in SJM’s next book???

I was never an e*riel fan but I was open minded about it until Az’s chapter, their interaction was so strange, so uncomfortable that it killed the couple for me (so different from Az and Gwyn parts, which make me believe they are endgame, but sometimes I look at the e*riel theories and I’m like “oh sh*t it maybe really happen” and it gets me afraid that SJM will make them to “avoid criticism” since that part of the fandom can be really toxic - principally when they are ���afraid”)

Hello!🤍 thank you so much I'm glad you do!

I'm 99% sure if the next book is Azriel's book, then Gwyn will be his love interest.

Too confident huh? well.. for me, everything points out in their favor.

You don't need great critical thinking skills to note the stark difference between Elain's scene and Gwyn's scene in his chapter.

As you said dear anon, something did not sit right with me during Elain's scene. The language used in this scene was meant to plant red flags under the guise of romance which is why instead of feeling butterflies flutter, something just pricks you.

Gwyn's scene on the other hand was heartwarming. I won't go into details about the shadows dancing and her calming him and his shadows and witnessing more reactions from Azriel in one scene because I've talked about it in great detail before.

Not out of spite although I no longer wish to engage with them. I read a few Elr*el theories before and.. let me tell you that they failed to convince me. Very few made good points but I wasn't swayed in the least bit. Many of the theories I've read do not take into account other possibilities or what's canon and rather insert their HCs into it (e.g. Elucien's bond being fake and Azriel is the true mate? Come on)

The fact his POV chapter ended with him thinking of Gwyn's smile. Ending lines of a chapter is where an author drops an important line for the reader to memorize when they turn the last page. SJM wanted us to remember that Azriel called the image of Gwyn's smile "a thing of secret, lovely beauty"

They also have the "SJM endgame couple" traits.

Elain and Azriel had only two direct interactions with barely a word to one another in a 700+ page book. Gwyn and Azriel had more interactions especially in the second half of the book. There were no interactions at all between Az and Elain post-solstice and months had passed by the end of the book. Sarah said she thought it was obvious who the next book is about and to all the arrows are pointing at Azriel. Who his LI is? most likely Gwyn.

Rest assured anon that Sarah never checks social media and is not aware of what happens in the fandom. If she did not plan for an Elr*el book, she won't alter her original plans (since she said she has everything already planned in her head and will write the book right away once her schedule allows it).

No matter how toxic they are, they hold no sway over her work.

[royal-dragonslayer-ornstein]

///Alright, little update about the status of this blog. As I’ve mentioned before, I’d like to be active over here again at some point, though I most likely won’t be able to start writing here until exams are over (they come after the winter break, so that’s gonna take a while). I’m also not completely sure how motivated or inspired I will be to write new threads here, so I can’t promise anything.

Thinking about what’s keeping me from writing here, I think the main issue is that I haven’t known what to do with the actual main verses for a while. Ornstein’s timeline is a bit of a mess, it’s so spread out and it’s missing so many gaps (and I’m talking about the ever cryptic lore of Dark Souls as well as my own ideas for him) that I feel like there’s too much vagueness in his lifespan for me to properly develop him. His origins in the Age of Dragons, his life throughout the Age of Fire, his task to find Gwyn’s firstborn, whatever is going on with the Old Dragonslayer (I made the choice back then to consider it canon, might have been a mistake but I think I’m not giving up on it just yet) and what happened to him before and during DS3. I’m honestly not sure how to approach this. On the one hand figuring out the details seems like the obvious choice and maybe I can come up with better ideas now than in my prior years, but on the other hand I wonder if it might be best to keep certain stuff vague and not bother giving a half-assed explanation for everything. I’ll have to think about it.

Ornstein’s character is also a bit limiting in the sense that he mostly interacts with the gods of Anor Londo for the majority of his life (which admittedly I’ve grown to consider to be the least interesting time for me to write), he can have a couple of interactions with some human in the middle of a mission but unless this character is a big deal he’s unlikely to interact with them for long. Most of the people whose muses were deities of Anor Londo or related to them became inactive long ago or are currently in hiatus (which to be fair is true for a good portion of the RP fandom) and I do think that having so many stories over the years, even with the same character written by a different person, be cut short prematurely has been a bit discouraging. Not that I don’t understand, I’m not bitter (that’d be pretty selfish of me) about it or anything, it’s just an unfortunate part of every hobby.

So yeah, I definitely want to tackle those verses at some point. DS3 is the one I find to be most appealing to me at the moment because Ornstein can interact with all sorts of muses much more easily, and I find that chapter of his story to be pretty interesting, reconnecting with the world after a long life of being detached and fully dedicated to his duties, being forced to go back to his roots. I wasn’t able to start much stuff in that setting, but then again I didn’t look any further than the RPers I knew at the time (something I still try to fix), so maybe now that I’m opening myself up to more writers things will go more smoothly.

It’s worth mentioning that both of my Villain AUs, Eraser of Mankind and Usurper King, are something I have enjoyed writing a lot more than the main verses in the past years, but I also feel like I’m out of ideas for them. There’s not a lot of people I really got to explore them in depth with, so I’m always willing to do more stuff with it, but at the same time I can’t help but feel like it’s a bit formulaic. I need to think of new ideas to do with those AUs.

Bloodborne Verse is the one I feel most inspired to write lately, though anyone who’s seen the OC I made a new blog for this year could probably have guessed that. I feel a little conflicted that this AU is much better developed and is more coherent than the actual main verses of this blog, and I won’t lie I’ve struggled a bit with that. I’m actually writing this one in a few threads (not in Tumblr) with some friends that aren’t on this website anymore. Now that I’ve approached a whole bunch of other soulsborne and eldritch roleplayers maybe I could start new threads for this verse with Ornstein, though I need to come up with a few ideas.

Weirdly enough, I’m feeling pretty inspired to write his full beast form (oh, and for anyone who isn’t familiar, Ornstein’s beasthood is a very peculiar version of the darkbeast, that follows a cycle of transformation more similar to the traditional stories of lycanthropy, in which it builds up gradually until he transforms and goes berserk, then later when he’s exhausted he turns back human and the cycle begins again). In fact if people are interested I’m considering writing a variety of threads in which he goes on a rampage through Yharnam and having that be his first meeting with any new muses he interacts with. So by all means feel free to message me if the idea interests you.

[mrslittletall]

Title: Keeping it together (Chapter 16) Fandom: Dark Souls Characters: Dragon Slayer Ornstein, Hawkeye Gough Word Count: 1.926 AO3-Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16328084/chapters/41892992 Previous chapter: https://mrslittletall.tumblr.com/post/182556779114/title-keeping-it-together-chapter-15

Summary: Ornstein returns to Anor Londo.

(Author's note: Hm, now that Artorias is buried and everything why continue, you may ask? I still have some plans for Ornstein in this scenario, but I am pretty sure there aren't too many chapters left. I hope you stay with me on this ride to the very end. This story is very dear to me and I hope other can enjoy my headcanon and interpretation of this canon lore too.)

“Ciaran is not coming back.” Ornstein sat leaning against the wall, a hand propped against his chin, his golden lion helmet tossed on the ground next to him, his gaze staring right through the giant.

Gough didn't answer. Instead, the giant focused solely on his work.

“...You knew it, right?”

“Hmm, I was expecting it.”, Gough answered. “The way she acted, I had the feeling that could be the case.”

Ornstein sighed, shifting his weight a bit, sitting on the stone ground in his armour wasn't comfortable at all, how could Gough stay like this for so many years now? He inspected the giant, still wearing his armour after all these years, the helmet with the filled up eyeholes which had turned him blind eventually and his great bow still at his side... wait...

“Your greatbow, where is it?”, Ornstein asked.

“I gave it away. There isn't a need anymore for me to use it.”

“You mean, because the last dragon to threat Anor Londo has been slain?” Ornstein shifted his weight again, exhaling a deep sigh. “It feels like the end of an era.”

Gough stopped his carving and looked at Ornstein, slightly next to him, like always.

“In just a few days, the once so famous knights of Gwyn have practically been disbanded.”, Ornstein said, voice gloomy. “One retired, one dead, one has quit and...”, he took a deep breath, trying to hide a shiver that went through his body.

“...and I am on the verge of just abandoning it all and go on a journey. I feel there isn't the need for a dragon slayer anymore.”, Ornstein finished.

“You still aren't over him.” Gough stated. Ornstein simply nodded.

“But you have come to me first, because you are unsure.”

Another nod. Ornstein hated how easy it was for Gough to see right through him, even without eyesight, but he also was glad for it. He needed that voice of reason for helping him to not do something stupid.

“Anor Londo needs me.”, he said. “I still have my duties there, especially now, that Ciaran and Artorias won't come back. And...”, another deep breath, “I can't leave Gwyndolin alone.”

“Whatever would happen to us, I was always certain of one thing, Ornstein, that you would stay loyal to your very end.”, Gough said. “But remember, sometimes you have to thrust your sense of duty aside in order to find true happiness. Don't let it get you down, Ornstein. May the flames guide your way.”

“...I will come back to visit you all...”, Ornstein murmured, standing up, fixing his helmet on. “But for now, I have to return to Anor Londo. I have been away long enough. Farewell, Gough.”

Ornstein didn't turn around when he walked to the ladder leading down the tower, but he was sure that the giant had raised his big hand to wave at him. Like he always did.

Only when Ornstein's feet reached the ground at the bottom ladder, did he try to think about the words of the giant. Words that would come back to him, much much later, but for now, his feet would only carry him forward. Back to Anor Londo. Where he belonged. Now that he kept it together for so long, he would be able to make it a tiny bit longer. Even though this tiny bit could be as long as it needed to be.

The sun already started to set, glistening on his armour, when Ornstein could see the silhouette of the cathedral. He braced himself, even though there still was a bit of way to go. This wouldn't be easy at all... He wondered how much the silver knights already knew? Questioning anything didn't help though, the silver knights were overdue to getting their training and some clear orders, that should be all that counted. Ornstein travelled the remaining distance to the cathedral while the sun was setting completely and the stillness of the night laid itself over Anor Londo, the moon rising, a full moon like it always was. Ever since Gwyndolin had took up the mantle of ruling in lieu of Lord's Gwyn and Princess Gwynevere, the moon had always been full. Ornstein had the feeling that it was because of Gwyndolin's association with moonlight magic. Now, that the sun had set, a chilling breeze had set in. Ornstein could feel it, even through his armour. Had it always been that cold at the nights in Anor Londo? He didn't remember. It didn't matter anyway, he was at the front of the cathedral and the silver knights on duty there audibly gasped when they saw him approaching.

“Captain, you're back.”, the first of them said. Ornstein recognized the voice, Herman, a seasoned veteran. Of course not from the dragon war, no silver knight from the dragon war around anymore. They didn't live that long.

“Is it true? The news about Sir Artorias...?”, the second one added, a freshman named Jervis, but he quickly got hushed by his companion.

“We have agreed to not ask about this.”, he whispered, but loud enough for Ornstein to hear. Ah, so they didn't knew yet. Great, meant that he had to tell them next roll call.

Herman turned his attention back to Ornstein. “Excuse this, Captain.”, he said. “It is good to see you back though, there has been a lot brought to our attention lately. It has been brought to our attention that people have hidden undead and they are wrecking havoc when hollowing, demon's from Lost Izalith have been wandered into the burg, we need a new schedule for our duties and there seem to be some execution's scheduled which couldn't get conducted without your presence, cause, you know, our young lord normally doesn't attend to them and...”

“Stop, STOP!”, Ornstein interrupted the volley of words of the silver knight. “I have just returned and need some rest first. Can we talk about this the next day, please?”

“Of course, captain.”, Herman said and him and Jervis of them returned to their guard duties, whispering to each other. Ornstein passed them and sighed in relief once he was out of earshot. What he first and foremost needed now was a bath. He hadn't bathed several days now and felt very dirty. He first needed to get his belongings to his room though and on the way to it...

“Oh, Captain, you're back. Any news?”

“Do you have any new orders for us?”

“Didn't Lady Ciaran come with you?”

“Are the rumours true...? Is Sir Artorias...?”

Ornstein had to tell each and every single one of them to not bother him now,he would tell them everything the next day, until he got so annoyed by the questions that he just started to growl whenever a silver knight opened their mouth. After what felt like an eternity, he finally arrived at his room, opened the door, closed it behind him and crashed face down on his bed in physical and mental exhaustion.

After around five minutes of laying there, the weight of his armour became far too uncomfortable, so he rolled around and stood up, getting rid of his armour. He eyed his travel bag but decided to unpack it later, it was too late for the servants to do the laundry anyway. He opened a chest at the end of his bed and searched for a bathing robe, then got some soap and a washing cloth from his cupboard. Equipped with this, Ornstein made his way to the bathroom.

The Anor Londo bathroom was some kind of big thermal bath, probably kept warm by pyromancies, Ornstein never had fathomed how it worked, as long as it would fulfil its purpose. At certain days the bath was open for the public, but mostly it was meant for the knights and servants, separated into one for man and one for woman. At this time of day, he could expect it to be practically empty and he strode into the bathroom with a satisfied smile when he saw that it indeed was the case.

Ornstein sat down in the hot water, feeling how it embraced his sore muscles and pretty much broke down there and then, all flooding into him at once. All the stuff he had experience in Oolacile, that Artorias was dead and he would never see him again, that Ciaran hadn't come back with him, that he had been on the verge of abandoning his post for good. That he was now back, at Anor Londo, and everyone was expecting him to solve all the problems, him alone, without any help, as if he was their kind of hero or saviour.

But that was who he was. He was the man who had managed to single-handedly slain over 80 dragons, who had proven himself worthy to be the silver knight captain at a young age, who had been given enough trust of his lord to get assigned one of the four knights of Gwyn, who had been trained personally by the master, who would set things right. What else should they expect from him? Surely not him having a mental breakdown while taking a bath.

“Keep it together.”, he murmured to himself. “They count on you. That was why you returned to them. Because you are needed here.” Ornstein slowly grabbed for a washing cloth and began to clean his body, while reciting his mantra again and again, starting to not believe it himself anymore.

Ornstein spent a lot of time cleaning himself, felt like the filth of that beast he had seen in the abyss was still crawling on his skin, only stopping to scrub when it started to hurt. His thoughts wandered to Artorias. He often had come here to bath late at night, but often enough Artorias would have dragged him into the bath when it was fairly occupied and he could still hear the hearty laugh of his friend when he joked with the silver knights or when Ornstein scolded them for trying to peak into the woman's bath. Often enough Artorias had taken it upon him to try and wash Ornstein's long hair, until the lion knight had become mad at him because he would tangle it even more.

When he left the bath, Ornstein felt a certain moisture on his face. Unsure if it was just the water or tears, he wiped it away with his towel anyway and got dressed into the bathing robes, wadding his dirty clothes into a ball, making a beeline for his room, hoping that no other silver knight would distract him anymore.

Back in his room, Ornstein just tossed the dirty clothes on the floor, looking at his travel bag, deciding it was too late to unpack and he could do this the next day right after getting up. He had just laid down into the bed, when his stomach growled.

Oh right, lately he had barely been able to keep any food in him. Because of this he also had barely ate anything this day, wanting to keep the food in him and now it showed. It was far too late for the kitchen to be open now and Ornstein was a horrible cook, so he had to wait for breakfast.

At least that meant that his food would stay down this time. He nestled himself in his blanket, grabbed his comfort pillow and closed his eyes. Next chapter: https://mrslittletall.tumblr.com/post/182847826289/title-keeping-it-together-chapter-17

[not-poignant]

I had a question I wanted to ask you, but every time I came to your tumblr, I kept getting distracted by all the wonderful asks/answers/worldbuilding and I would forget my question. But I have finally remembered! What exactly did Augus do for people as a dominant that helped them so much? I mean, the only thing we've seen him do in canon is break Gwyn's heartsong/s, but that's apparently an unusual request? What was so unique about his services? And that he could only offer on a one-time basis?

Oh! Awesome question.

Okay, firstly, Augus chooses to only offer his services on a one-time basis. That’s his personal choice, because he doesn’t like relationships, and he gets bored easily; it actually has nothing to do with the type of service he offers, and he acknowledges himself that some people would be benefitted from seeing him more often. He even says this to Gwyn, directly, in Deeper into the Woods I’m pretty sure.

So Augus’ ‘one-time service’ isn’t anything to do with his clients, it’s to do with him. In that sense, if a client wants to do something similar again, he has other fae he can refer them to, or he’ll refer them on from the outset. Augus actually was really well networked before the Nightingale came along, in that sense. And in The Wildness Within we actually see him refer a potential client along to another Dom, because he’s too busy to attend to her properly.

In that sense, Augus’ services are not unique. He’s not like...someone who will solve everything in a single weekend so that you never need that again. He knows that. He’s pretty clear with his clients about that. And if he thinks he can’t help a client, he’ll be honest from the outset (it’s why he has the interview period before he commits to anything - and also where he secures the fae version of consent, lol).

Augus’ reputation is that he’s a miracle worker, because that’s how some of his clients talk about it (it’s certainly how Gwyn thought of him after seeing him), but it’s not because Augus only sees them once or whatever. That’s just...’I have commitment issues also I like being alone go away’ - Augus’ particular charm.

Okay, so, now that that’s out of the way, let’s look at how he helped people. He was generally well-suited to people who were in some kind of crisis in their life, who didn’t know how to fix it, but who had already searched or tried to fix it. He wasn’t the only one who could provide a solution to that and his methods aren’t the only ones that could be used for it. But his reputation preceded him, he didn’t have a fixed rate, and he worked fast - i.e. over a weekend (which for fae would be more the equivalent of a long weekend, but still).

Fae are also generally more okay with sex and have less taboos about it, so the idea of ‘processing through physical intimacy’ or ‘processing through pain’ is - for many of them - not really as horrifying a concept as it is in human society. Augus also doesn’t inflict pain on every client he has/sees, nor does he have sex with all of them.

Augus’ primary role is mostly coercing people into an environment where they have to confront the thing that they’re avoiding/denying, and pushing them to a breakthrough where they then accept that thing (or repudiate it, depending on what the situation requires) so that they can figure out what they need to do next. He’s also adept at stabilising fae who feel like they’re flying apart or unable to contain themselves, and grounding fae back down into themselves - their true selves in particular.

Augus has an innate ability that is mentioned throughout the series, but isn’t really made a big deal of (though it kind of is...a big deal) in that he can sense heartsongs and he can tell what they are to a high degree of accuracy. It’s generally not a common trait. Most fae couldn’t put their hand on your back and go ‘your heartsong is affection’ etc. But Augus can. (So can Fenwrel).

So while Augus isn’t in the practice of breaking heartsongs, he’s definitely in the practice of divining them and grounding someone back into them healthily, getting someone away from corruption of a heartsong, helping them find a new one, or stabilising them back into themselves. It’s how he can actually check that what he’s done has worked, because he trusts that (meridians / heartsongs) more than he trusts what someone says or how they’re behaving. He also uses that to guide his actions.

But yeah, he turns away clients, he redirects clients, I don’t think he believes for one second that he can help all clients and sometimes he doesn’t want to. He’s  aware that what he does is on the more extreme end of ‘healing services,’ especially since he doesn’t have much time to build trust and sometimes doesn’t bother (fear is useful for him, so are compulsions).

As for his methods, I mean we’ve seen elements of them throughout. We’ve seen that he can be gentler and cause no pain re: The Raven Prince in those canon interludes, we’ve seen that he will be more brutal with Gwyn (in part because he likes to be, these days, but because Gwyn needed it back in the day), we’ve seen that he can also be very gentle to Gwyn in The Wildness Within etc.

He caters his methods to the fae he’s working with. He tends to think that anyone who fronts up on the doorstep of the world’s most powerful Each Uisge, who has a notorious reputation for ferocity in both the human realm and in the fae realm, is probably someone who needs a more intense experience in the first place.

(Also, randomly, I’d say that breaking Gwyn’s heartsongs aren’t the only thing we’ve seen him do in the canon. His encounters with The Raven Prince were also canon. And in addition, quite outside of heartsong breakage, he’s had a lot of transformative or healing-based scenes with Gwyn. One could argue that one of the most transformative outside of Gwyn’s formal requests for Augus services, was the one that’s the most-quoted - the very first: ‘it’s not a sin to be yourself’ scene.

It was Augus’ first major foray into pushing Gwyn into becoming more anchored in himself (outside of Deeper into the Woods), even before he knew Gwyn was Unseelie, he was still instinctively aiming in a direction that was far healthier for Gwyn - and a lot of the scenes that followed; from Augus talking about Gwyn being as brutish as his soldiers and taking him dry, to mimicking a sex scene with Mafydd, etc. All of those were, for Augus, very much about aiming for something deeper and all held elements of what he might offer or do for clients

It’s one of the reasons Augus says he appreciates like, spontaneity a bit more, in COFT, because he’s always in that other mindset otherwise, and until Gwyn he’d never had sex just for the sake of having sex --- Augus is often ‘on’ and is still learning how to be selfish during sex scenes. While it seems he’s being selfish a lot of the time, he usually has strong emotional aims re: his client’s welfare and health - though he can be hit and miss with Gwyn, especially before he knew Gwyn was Unseelie).

[carstairsdaily]

Lord of Shadows Review & Analysis! SPOILERS AHEAD, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

On another note about spoilers, I get that seeking out spoilers as well as snippets, are a product of waiting so long for the next book… but I don’t know that I will treat them the same way going into QOAAD because I almost felt, while reading, that I had read 35% of the book already! I can’t promise that I won’t seek out spoilers or snippets, but I do hope that less are released over the next two years (I know that sounds ridiculous, but I would prefer a surprise!) With Regards to Individual Characters: • Emma: a feminist badass, growing into being the best shadowhunter of her time but not there yet. Her sarcasm and skill has improved since LM, and I literally laughed out loud during her POV’s and while reading her quotes. The scene with her and Diego and the fire ants= pure gold. Her scene with Manuel and calling out the cohort for being fascists= pure gold. • Julian: a sweetheart and I want to cry thinking about how much he has been through. I know “Dark Julian” has been referenced several times throughout the fandom but I really didn’t see too much of a change until- actually- the steamy scene with Emma where he demands that she calls him only Julian. Very sexy, very dark too. • Cristina: deserves better and I am dying for more of her POV’s. I am always amazed by her class and maturity. • Diego: not perfect. I am mad at him. • Kit: surprisingly likeable. I am so glad they included POV’s with him and Jace!! • Livia: underrated as hell, so sweet, so caring, so selfless, her charm and sarcasm= gold. • Ty: I AM SO GLAD WE ARE FINALLY STARTING TO SEE T Y B L A C K T H O R N AND HIS TRUE SELF-A M E N. • Dru- her crush on Jaime is fitting for a first crush and I’m glad he gave her the confidence to speak up. I want to hug her literally all the time. • Tavvy- irrelevant but cute. SHIPS: • I surprisingly loved Mark and Emma’s dynamic. Their relationship reminded me of a mundane high school sweetheart kind of relationship, because you can tell they absolutely care about each other, I just don’t see them as anything more than a bromance. I will however agree with the sentiment, "maybe in another life" because maybe, in another series, in another world, they would have been perfect for each other. • Kieran/Mark/Cristina: I find it significant that no choices were made in terms of canon relationships, which I interpret as a canon friendship because if any of them were going to be romantically involved, a decision would be made by now. I enjoy the friendship they have, I surprisingly forgave Kieran, but I do not expect any of the Blackthorns or Emma to forgive him also. His actions in QOAAD will definitely define how I feel about him going forward. • JEMMA: You all know I am 100% a Jemma shipper, but this time around I was glad that their relationship did not overshadow the rest of the book. I liked how private their relationship was, which is a funny word to use because people become more privy to it in LOS and because it was extremely private in LM, but the fact that they were literally in a different part of their country on their own made me all happy. • I am also glad that I got the B&N copy with the extra scene, which I waited to read because it is right after the ending of the book and I did not want to read anything after finishing LOS, lol. • Kitty: No canon romantic relationship yet, still very cute scenes… Ill talk about this in theories. • Kit/Livia: I am glad that Livvy’s first kiss was Kit, and not some random boy who won’t treasure the memory or look back and think “oh she was sweet, it’s a shame what happened to her”. Kit will always treasure the fact that he was Livia’s first kiss, and will cherish the friendship he had with her. It was platonic, but still special. I know people on tumblr were upset with this but I hope by the end of the book they understood. PROFOUND THINGS IN LOS • Lets talk about the fact that Emma Carstairs literally doesn’t cry….. but she cried over Julian literally 400 times in Lord of Shadows. If that doesn’t show you how much she literally loves that boy idk what will. • CLARY SHIPS JEMMA. During their conversation Clary literally says “who I pictured you with [not Mark or Cameron] doesn’t make sense….” This goes back to my question to CC about whether or not Simon knows about Jules and Emma, since he noticed something off during the parabatai ceremony. She responded “he knows something, he just doesn’t know what he knows”. I think the same applies to Clary, maybe she has even had premonitions about it, and that is so so significant. #jemmaisendgame • Kit and Livia and Ty’s friendship: so sweet and pure and is literally the reason why Kit decides to stay. How will Ty and Kit function without their third musketeer? • DRU & JAIME: Thank you Jaime for giving Dru the confidence to confront her family over her role as a Shadowhunter… but the witchlight you left behind that literally portals to another dimension: WTF? WHO IS ASH????? That scene is messed up because it is so short and therefore, subconsciously everyone looks over it because of how chaotic everything else is. I can’t help but feel like this is going to play a MASSIVE role in QOAAD. • Diana & Gwyn: Thank you CC for trans representation and a beautiful story. The fact that Gwyn accepts her wholeheartedly made my chest ache, and I hope that no one will use it against her please please please. • Jules & Emma’s Decision to tell the Inquisitor: Not sure why they did this tbh, but now that Robert is dead, what are their options??? Did he mark it down somewhere? Will they become so irrational that they consider the Seelie Queen’s offer? Livia’s Death • Months ago I received an anon message from someone about Livvy, which literally said that they felt something was going to happen to her and I completely dismissed it…. Thinking we haven’t seen enough of her storyline yet and it was too soon. I AM SO SORRY, and it’s literally all I have been thinking about for days. • Livia was so so selfless, down to her core, the last moments of her life were spent trying to save the people she loves. • I discussed with a mutual that the fact that Annabel did it was both cruel and also extremely fitting. • When you think about it, Livvy was the 21st century version of Annabel. From their appearance, which was remarkably similar, to the way that they treated outsiders taking refuge in their family (Livvy with Kit, Annabel with Malcolm) down to their deaths, both innocents killed trying to protect the ones they love. • The fact that the Mortal Sword shattered to me symbolized the end of the truth and trust within the Clave. • The amount of guilt that each character will carry following these deaths is heartbreaking… • i sincerely hope her death is not tossed to the side, discussed for 150 pages then only mentioned 4-5 times after that because she deserved better, the entire Blackthorn family did, and peace was completely ripped away from them Which brings me to my first theory: I believe there was a reason that Jessamine was introduced to TDA, not only to highlight Kit’s Herondale-ness, but also as a foreshadowing of another character who is not at peace, feels that there is unfinished business, and a group of people needing to be protected: Livia. Because it was made clear in the book that necromancy and raising the dead is forbidden, and because QOAAD takes place a week later, Livvy’s chances of being raised are very very very slim. I sincerely believe that she will come back, but not to life. It would be fitting of her to come back as a ghost (not at first but definitely later in the story) and for her to protect her family, and give Kit and Ty the OK to do whatever they want to do (whether its be a couple or become parabatai, or go to the Scholomance) More theories: • Though I predict a dark Julian, I do not predict a dark/irredeemable Julian, who digs himself into such a big hole that he can’t climb out of it. Remember he has two anchors: his family, and Emma… • The Rosales brothers, especially with their plans to overthrow the Cohort and fool Zara are going to play a massive role in QOAAD. • I think that Jemma are going to have to confide in Jem and Tessa, and they will end up helping Jules and Emma with the parabatai curse. I am also sure they will play a big role in the next book. • Unpopular Opinion: I do not think Clary will die. I know she thinks she will, but CC did say QOAAD is lighter (in regards to themes) than LOS, and I just do not think it would be a lighter book if Clary, a significant character, dies. I think she will become close to death, and people will become concerned, then she will tell Jace of her fears and say yes to his proposal. However, I could very well be wrong!! •i do predict the Cohort being in power for a short amount of time….. because they represent members of our society, I do not think they will be shut down so easily because that’s not realistic. Despite this, hope and love always win. I trust that this will remain true in the next book. • I do predict the end of the Cold Peace, it was never ever a good idea and no one likes it. • I predict that Drusilla will be a hero, now that her older sister has passed away and she has finally decided to step up as a Shadowhunter, I do not doubt that the role she plays will be significant, it just seems to be a reasonable underdog story. • Kitty: parabatai or lovers? An important decision, because Kit does reference his thoughts about being parabatai with Ty, and Ty finally says yes to being parabatai with Livvy. I think it’s a possible “that’s what Livvy would have wanted” trope, but I could also be wrong and think its about as equal of a chance of them becoming lovers. • Who will the new head of the LA Institute be? I sincerely doubt it will go to someone the Blackthorns do not know or trust. They have had so much taken from them, the Institute does not deserve to go next. Possibly Cristina? Will Jules or Emma be of age? Jem or Tessa following the end of the Cold Peace? We have to see! • ASH… I am just frustrated that we do not know more about him… I don’t even have a theory I just needed an excuse to talk about him again. Questions and Theories from my mutuals!!!!! • Anonymous: Its 3 am and I am literally just crying on my bed because of the book. ​ >> Relatable!! I cried hours after I finished because I was so sad. The ending really got me! • Anonymous: Do you think Jaime and Dru are endgame? She is 13 and hes like 17 but he thinks she’s 16. Idk, they seem to have a nice friendship but not a romantic relationship in my opinion.. ​ >> Agreed! I honestly think CC included this first crush idea as a way of introducing Dru’s further character development, not necessarily to introduce them as a couple… But also think about Cecily and Gabriel!!! They were about the same ages at the time, even though that was a different time period… anything is possible, but I do not ship them romantically! • VirginaNewman: I loved LOS, however I was indeed disappointed that Helen + Aline make a debut in the LAST chapter! ​ >> I definitely thought Helen and Aline would play a larger role in LOS, they were barely mentioned, barely had any scenes… I was disappointed by their small role too, but I am interested to see how hard they fight to stay in the next book. Ps- the scene where Aline basically tells Zara to shut her fucking mouth is GOLD. • Betweenshadesoftessagray- Since Robert’s dead, its going to be a race to get that spot, with probably Zara’s father trying to become Inquisior. And since Robert was the one who could help Emma and Julian with the exile thing, they really don’t know what to do with it. I think the powers will continue to grow, and since I think the main battle of QOAAd is going to be a battle where the warlocks and nephilim cannot use their runes/warlock magic, maybe their parabatai magic will still work and that’s how they win. I have already stated that I think there is going to be a battle in QOAAD without being able to use rune magic and the warlocks not being able to use their magic, but this didn’t fit in my other ask I just realized something that made my theory more solid: in the beginning, Zara says she went to Hungary because they were claiming their weapons were not working and she said it was incompetence, so the blight is already spreading not only in Idris but everywhere else. ​ >> This is such a well thought out theory and I wish I could give a formal response but I definitely need to go back, reread, and analyze this… I didn’t even realize the significance of Shadowhunters and warlocks including Magnus losing their powers!! Wow! Is this because of the Black Volume? I definitely think Emma and Julian’s parabatai/love powers will play a huge role in QOAAD and maybe even save the day during this second Dark War. Maybe that’s how they will become heros, their bond will be broken as a reward or something and everyone can live happier ever after? AHH! • Share your theories and thoughts in the comments below or inbox me (not on Anon so I can respond privately!!!)

[bookofmirth]

When are people going to realize that it isn't about Gwynriel nor Elucien when we point out Azriel's problematic behaviour.

It's canon that Azriel has anger issues and makes a women really uncomfortable for years. It has nothing to do with us shipping Gwynriel or Elucien. We simply try to tell people to not just excuse his problematic behaviour and blame it all on the victims.

gwynriel didn't exist when I saw the way that Az was acting was off.

acofas and acosf didn't exist when I saw it. I just had a hunch, and I needed more evidence. Now I have it, and a shit ton more people also see it.

(That post is forthcoming, btw, I have today off while I wait for students to turn in finals. 😌)

We simply try to tell people to not just excuse his problematic behaviour and blame it all on the victims.

HOLY HELL WHY IS THIS SO HARD. Why are people bending over backwards to kiss Az's asshole so goddamn hard that they can't see the light of day!!!! I have seen the most ridiculous, harmful, rude, victim-blaming shit, all in the name of making Az a perfect little broody prince. Fuck that. I don't hate him - my criticism of his behavior doesn't make me hate him, I'm just fine noticing less-than-perfect behavior and moving on with my life - but this fandom? This fandom is going to make me hate him. I'm like two horrible takes away from truly disliking his character.

But just to add on to your point, it's not that any of us think he isn't able to be in a healthy relationship!!! "WeLL if yOu doN'T LiKe HiM with ElAiN then HoW CaN YoU LiKe HiM WiTh GwYn" because Elain and Gwyn are different people, he treats them differently, and it's about AZRIEL, not about a specific ship?

All of this is an Azriel problem. It's his fault that he's seen and treated Mor this way. It's his fault that he's starting to treat Elain this way. Mor and Elain are in no way at fault for HIS choices and HIS behavior. Mor and Elain have their own faults and problems, but making Az feel a certain way is not fucking it. He's a big boy with big boy feelings and big boy abilities to take control of his own damn life.

If people could separate a character from their ships, look at that character's behavior as distinct from what it implies about the future books, I would just 😌I would die. And the thing is, I know that a lot of people can, like you anon, and the only people I fuck with in this fandom are people who can do the same. There are just some really stubborn people like "I don't not see it".

Then again, I know exactly why all of this falls on deaf ears. They don't want to see it because they read feylin, they know how this goes. So even entertaining the idea that Azriel could treat women in a similar way in the slightest is terrifying for their beloved fanon idea of who he is.

Sorry I went off, I just got out of bed and apparently the stars are aligned just right for this sort of thing atm.

OH and ONE more thing - people still insist on confusing analysis and theorizing, and I'm gonna 🤪 When I post my thing about Azriel's behavior, that is analysis. I am not theorizing. Theories in fandom deal with what could happen in the future. I am not interested in that so much. I have ideas, but I'm not personally into speculating about random things that could be totally wrong. Instead, I will analyze what we currently have, using close reading strategies. Everything I say will be based on what we actually know. The implications be damned. And I think - back to the point of your ask - that is one of the reasons people refuse to see it. The implications of analyzing Az's behavior are actually quite damning for certain ships.

They're never going to realize until it happens. And even then, they will excuse it, keep blaming Mor, probably start blaming Elain, and we'll continue seeing their true colors.