Inspired By @ae-neon, The Queen Of Collages, This Is How I See The Spring Court.

TW: SA

Disclaimer: this is about fiction and narrative, which are based on rhyme and reason, every action a character makes is a deliberate choice by the author so unlike with real life, it's possible to question the motive of these actions

I'm legit asking btw, please tell me if you know

Besides switching the narrative from Tamlin to Rhysand (going from Amarantha's dark obsession with Tam to her habitual abuse of Rhys) what did sjm gain from making Amarantha a rapist?

Character wise, she was already evil, with an actually interesting backstory so why?

In the "original" storyline, inspired by the Ballad of Tamlin, it makes sense for Amarantha to want Tamlin, ultimately the story boils down to a heroine saving the hero from the fairy queen. Therefore the idea of her assaulting him once she finally has him is in character and in alignment with the story

But in the context of final product, what was the point of Amarantha's sexual abuse of Rhysand? It only ever matters once, and that's so Rhysand can skirt the responsibility of his own actions against Feyre.

So why not just have Rhys not assault Feyre? Have him be cruel but specifically forgo the sexual element

Ianthe, at least, seeks power in every possible way. It makes sense that she would go to such lengths, especially with how bloodlines hold magic etc

But Amarantha? What's the point? She could just as easily enslaved Rhysand or held someone hostage or made a bargain.

My personal opinion is that sjm has a twisted, but unfortunately common, notion of sexual interest - whether reciprocated or not - being a badge of honour, for women but especially for men.

She thinks she's showing us how desirable and literally irresistible the character is by making them a victim

The ending of Francesca mirroring the feeling of a storm to play on the motif of punishment for the lustful being an endless hurricane that sweeps them off their feet only for the vocals to defiantly assert that he would not change a thing and that heaven could not fit such a love anyway, is exactly the kind of deconstructive intertextual brilliance I’m expecting from this album and this is exactly why I want to marry Mr. Hozier for his brain not his body

Nope, my theory is that Rhys doesn’t actually like Feyre. He likes the power that comes with her. If he actually liked her, ACOSF would not have been the same. He would have told her about the pregnancy. He would have taught her how to rule the court (rather than having half his court see her as his plaything and other half see her appropriate their culture in a way that just wrong). He would have given her more agency, more opportunities, traveled with her, have an actual relationship.

SJM girlies can scream feminism all they want at these comments, but the truth is that getting pregnant at 21 with no house and no freedom is just another trap that lord Rhysie set up for her. This isn’t the debate of ‘girls can choose war or they can choose motherhood. You aren’t a feminist if you think motherhood isn’t for Feyre’. The problem isn’t motherhood, but the fact that Feyre’s abusive husband trapped her in a marriage through manupilation and she is stuck there now with a child who might face similar abuse, and there’s no way out since she has no friends or family or support for her so called loyal court.

This is the horror story of all the girls who were groomed at a young age by some sick older man, and a common story in every country where patriarchy is still strong (take it from someone who was born and raised in such a country).

If Rhysie wasn’t a bad boy with dark hair, the same fans would tell this girl to ✨run✨

if eris vanserra has a hundred fans, i am one of them. if eris vanserra has ten fans, i am one of them. if eris vanserra has one fan, i am that fan. if eris vanserra has no fans, i am dead. if the world is against eris vanserra, i am against the world.

Seriously though, why make Lucien Elain's Mate at all if she's going to reject it?

One argument I've seen is that he needed a reason to go to the NC so he would be in position to hear of Elain's vision and go after Vassa.

Again, that warning look from Tamlin. But Lucien ignored him.

His body was taut, near-trembling. “What happened between you?” “It’s not worth repeating.”. / “No,” he said hoarsely. “No. When Calanmai came along, he refused. He flat-out refused to participate. I replaced him in the Rite, but …” “You took Ianthe into that cave on Calanmai?” He wouldn’t meet my gaze. “She insisted. Tamlin was … Things were bad, Feyre. I went in his stead, and I did my duty to the court. I went of my own free will. And we completed the Rite.” He might have completed the Great Rite with Ianthe of his own free will, but he certainly hadn’t enjoyed it. Some line had been blurred—badly.

Tamlin and Lucien, it seemed, had spoken before the meal, but the latter made a point to keep a healthy distance from me. To not look at or speak to me, as if still needing to convince Tamlin of our innocence.

Tamlin merely fixed Lucien with a look, any trace of that guilt gone. His claws slid free, embedding in the scar-flecked wood of his chair’s arm.

“They are our allies,” he growled at me, at Lucien, both of us seated in armchairs flanking the mantel. He threw a glare in Lucien’s direction. “I expected better from you.”

Tamlin stopped short. And snarled at Lucien, “Get out. I’ll deal with you later.”

Tamlin didn’t take his eyes off me as he said to Lucien, “Get. Out.” There was enough violence in the words that neither Lucien nor I objected this time as he slipped from the room and shut the double doors behind him.

I heard Lucien first. “Back off.” A low female laugh. “I was obligated to perform the Rite,” Lucien snapped. “That night wasn’t the product of desire, believe me.”

“Do not touch me,” he growled.

Where Lucien stood, back against a tree—twin bands of blue stone shackled around his wrists. She slid a hand over the broad panes of his chest, his stomach. And Lucien’s eyes shot to me as I stepped between the trees, fear and humiliation reddening his golden skin. Lucien’s shirt was askew, the top button on his pants already undone.

I was running out of borrowed time. I could winnow, but then I’d abandon Lucien to them if he somehow couldn’t manage to himself with the faebane in his system from the food at the camp— Leave him. I should and could leave him. But to a fate perhaps worse than death—

“You’re going back. To the Night Court.”I shouldered my heavy pack and finally looked at him. “Yes.” His tan face had paled. But he surveyed Ianthe, the two dead royals. “I’m going with you.” “No,” was all I said, heading for the trees. “You won’t make it without magic,” he warned me.

Look at the above and tell me that's not plenty to support Lucien leaving Spring? I left out anything to do with Elain yet we still have abuse from Tamlin, SA from Ianthe, the desire to go with Feyre who he feels won't make it through the Courts without her magic.

He had PLENTY of reasons to leave and join her in the NC. Which would have placed him in proximity of Elain to hear her vision and at that point, volunteer to go after Vassa.

So again, why would SJM make Elain and Lucien Mates if she's going to reject the bond? It serves no purpose to the story and only hurts two main characters (because having a bond with someone and losing a bond with someone evoke major feelings, not to mention the loss for the Male can be extreme).

Lucien who lost nearly all support from his family.

Lucien who's best friend abused him.

Lucien who was a victim of Ianthe’s.

Lucien who was forced to watch a female he truly loved, murdered.

Lucien who was chased out of his home.

Lucien who was disabled by Amarantha.

Lucien who was beaten because of Amarantha.

Azriel’s 11 years of suffering at the hands of his father and brothers was awful but I honestly I don't think any character has suffered as much loss and is still experiencing loss to the extent Lucien has / is. What exactly makes Azriel deserving of Lucien's Mate at the expense of Lucien's happiness?

Why would SJM take away Lucien's one chance at a a sacred bond, forcing him to forever feel the echos of that loss? She could have made anyone else, anyone at all, Elain's Mate if she wanted her to reject it.

I love Elain but she is not better or more deserving of happiness than Lucien, being the one to essentially break his heart when he has shown nothing but respect towards the gift they were granted.

his own status as a mated male made him uninterested in any sort of female company these days.

“I’m a mated male now.”

Lucien breathed, “Where is he keeping her?”. I shook my head. “I don’t know. Rhysand has a hundred places where they could be, but I doubt he’d use any of them to hide Elain, knowing that I’m aware of them.” “Tell me anyway. List all of them.” “You’ll die the moment you set foot in his territory.” “I survived well enough when I found you.” “You couldn’t see that he had me in thrall. You let him take me back.” “I need to find her.”

“I’m getting my mate back.”

She was the most beautiful female he’d ever seen.

Cassian’s heart strained at the pain etching deep into Lucien’s face as he tried to hide his disappointment and longing.

I'm not saying either Lucien or Elain have been ready to truly get to know one another but I find it nearly impossible to believe they won't be someday soon and when they do, I find it impossible to believe that Lucien will be left heartbroken or forced to live a life without his Mate.

Reblog if you’re bisexual, support bisexual people or are actually a bunch of tiny velociraptors in a human suit

I genuinely haven't laughed so hard in months, but because people found out that the CEO of meta gave bribes to the government both in cash and stocks to ban TikTok, people are fleeing in droves to Rednote which is the actual Chinese version of TikTok AND leaving meta! He didn't lose users to TikTok but now that he's playing ringmaster to be funny, he's finding out the clowns can be fucking hilarious! Anyways, I'm now learning Mandarin, and I can't figure out why I can't change my profile pic but it's a rubber ducky so I'm cool with it.

Nothing makes me more uncomfortable and disgusted than the whole Cassian/Mor/Azriel situation...

Mor using Cassian for her own selfish wants:

"I'd picked him not just for his kindness, but also because I wanted my first time to be with one of the legendary Illyrian warriors. I wanted to lie with the greatest of Illyrian warriors, actually."

"After I got what I wanted, after... everything, I didn't like that it caused a rift with him and Rhys, or even him and Az, so... never again."

Some sort of leftover desire for Mor on Cassian's behalf:

"He just wants what he can't have, and it's irritated him for centuries that I walked away and never looked back."

"Oh, it drives him insane," Rhys said from behind me, and I jumped.

Mor using Cassian as a buffer and him indulging her:

Found Azriel still by the window, Cassian now rubbing Mor's feet. Nesta had retired to her own room without a word—and remained there.

"Good," Cassian said, rubbing at the arch of Mor's foot.

Cassian ran a hand down the back of her hair. Azriel didn't so much as turn from his vigil at the window, though I could have sworn his wings tucked in a bit tighter.

Mor is perfectly aware of Azriel's self-deprecation but is a coward and does nothing to make him see otherwise:

"Azriel thought I deemed him unsuitable. He started to confess what he felt, and I panicked, and... and to get him to stop, to keep him from saying he loved me, I just turned and left."

"I could peel off my clothes right in front of him and he wouldn't move an inch. He'll see himself as a bastard-born nobody, and not good enough for anyone. Especially me."

Mor basically then admits that she likes using Cassian to keep Azriel, who hasn't made any moves on her ever since he tried confessing, away from her as long as she doesn't need to face the situation head on:

"I'm petrified to face him—to tell him he's spent five hundred years pining for someone and something that won't ever exist. The potential fallout... I like things the way they are."

Cassian's descriptions here just irk me:

Mor grinned, so beautiful it took his breath away.

He again let himself admire her perfect face.

But he could still admire her sheer beauty—as he’d admire any work of art. Even though he knew well that what lay inside Mor was far more lovely and perfect than her exterior.

To me, Mor is nothing but selfish. It's been said that Azriel thinks very low of himself due to the rejection and hasn't attempted anymore romantic advances yet she continues to drive the knife deeper.

She sleeps with Helion, with Azriel near, just to "make a point".

She uses Cassian, Azriel's best friend, just to "make a point." (Although Cassian's involvement in this also boils my blood and I hate his actions)

Don't even get me started on how she treats Nesta...

Personally? I just want her gone from the series🤷‍♀️

female rage in literature is very personal to me