I hate how everything is so Night Court centric but at this point the only thing I want to read about is Eris Vanserra and his scheming.
Do you guys remember when he hinted to Cassian that there might be tunnels underneath Ramiel? What does he think is there? Is it supposed to help him overthrow his father? Is that why he allied himself with NC?
What does he think about Rhysand insulting High Lord least like to join his cause at the start of the meeting? And most importantly what does he think about Helion? Does he know about Lucien’s parentage? WHAT DID AZRIEL WHISPER TO HIM?! I NEED TO KNOW.
How does he feel about his allies killing his soldiers? And torturing them BEFORE letting Eris know they were found? Did he ever thought if they were conscious or not while the crown controlled their bodies? How did he feel when he found out (through being under crowns control himself) that they were very much aware of what was happening around them?
And do we remember how Tamlin dragged Beron to war and basically lead Autumn Court’s army? He would make far better ally than Rhysand. Night Court currently doesn’t really offer Eris anything and keeps important information from him while getting information from Autumn Court. Is that why he insisted that Rhys should be more worried about Tamlin’s wellbeing?
What sort of alliances was he able to secure within Autumn Court? Does he have his own “inner circle”? How much raw power does he posses and how much sway does he have in court matters?
I want him to see Hewn City and Illyria and decide that it’s not the type of High Lord he wants to be.
I want to see how other characters view Eris without the weight of this Mor story (where is still don’t get why anything is his fault). What did he give Keir?
I want the all the politics to finally make sense!
The worst thing is that to read it I will probably have to write it myself. And I’m not a writer.
We explicitly learn in the next chapter (Chapter 31) that High Fae pregnancies of Illyrian children are nearly always fatal. (Cassian refers to this pregnancy as a death sentence.) Rhys knows this. Cassian knows this. Madja knows this. What pisses me off in this scene is that the emphasis is on the health of the baby. Feyre is forbidden from shape-shifting because of the risk to the baby… but what of the risk to Feyre??? Feyre won’t have the chance to change the colour of her hair ‘cos she’ll be dead!
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Feyre’s chances of success in bearing this baby naturally without complications are slim to none. In just a few short paragraphs, Rhys makes it clear that he is prioritising the baby, and his mate won’t have a voice in her own pregnancy. She won’t be given all the information, just enough information to keep her compliant (i.e., she won’t be tempted to try magic).
Look, I know he came to the vision of his own child in the Christmas Special, but I have a tough time believing that the Rhysand of the original triology—who emphasised that they would be equals, that he’d no longer keep secrets from her, that she’d always have a choice—would not treat her as an equal, keep something pretty fucking important from her, and rob her of a voice and a choice. Either SJM assassinated her own character, or THIS is Rhysand. This is who he is at his core. He will tell Feyre up and down he won’t keep secrets (like their mating bond, like the true risk of her pregnancy) from her, but he will. He always will. And every time she finds out, she’ll be pissed off, but nothing will materially change. She’ll come back. Give it a week. She’ll forgive and forget. And what a sad fucking picture that paints.
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