A Court Of Mist And Fury - Blog Posts

Silly Game Time: Bringing back a crowd favorite! Pick one story you really like (could be a movie, a show, a book, a game, etc.) and summarize it in *one* sentence. The more absurd-sounding the sentence is, the better!

Uh ACOTAR. from book one to three.

A hunter is bound to her thought to be fictional kidnapper, who she gains love for, faces trials against a tyrant for him, gains supper powers after actually dieing, finding her mate (abo style) in the process, who she then leaves her kidnapper for, because he was abusing her, only to face another tyrant on the brink of war with an emo alpha male with his winged and non-winged cult followers serving them as their new king and queen.

This is not one sentence, this is a paragraph but I really can't summarize it that much

No, but Rhys saying "There you are. I've been looking for you" gives so Howl's "Yaah, gomein gomein(which in the subs is "There you are, sorry I'm late" which ik it isn't but still) and the whole scene. Well, except for the fact that Feyre was in a more sour pickle than Sophie bit that's the whole vibes of them. So yeah. That's that

Hello there!! So a few nights ago I was just thinking about how it's kind of ridiculous that we call Tamlin a tampon. Because a tampon is actually kind of useful, ykwim? And then I was like, but we needed Tamlin so that Feyre would go to Prythian. And then I was like, "Yeah, and you gotta throw away a used tampon cuz it gets toxic, just like Tamlin did" and idk if this was it, but that made me realize that this is it

Friendly Reminder

Rhys had a little sister that we'll never see him get over protective over. We'll never see her push his hand off as he ruffled her her(I feel Iike that would have happened a lot). We won't ever see her interaction with Feyre. Or anyone else as a matter of fact. And idk if better or worse that we never saw her, we know nothing of her, but at least we're not attached as much. Unlike the inner Circle, I wonder how much they miss both of them.

(PS: I have read only till ACOWAR so if I'm missing something after that, yeahhhh)

My fav is the guy who’s literal job is to torture people 🥰🦇🥰

we should all stop trying to justify rhys being a good person or cassian being a good person and instead just accept that they all kinda suck as people and we should just choose our fav criminal to stan

If you see this you’re legally obligated to reblog and tag with the book you’re currently reading

acotar, a summary: horny faeries, everyone hates each other or wants each other, stabby, the word “mate” x500 more times than you want to see it, socio-political struggles?, vin diesel level “family” dedication, giant bat babies with tickle spots, himbos and bad bitches, smut

And I love it

This whole Elriel and Gwynriel debate has turned into a very messy, toxic, and violent capture-the-flag event with every single word SJM has ever written, and it's both very upsetting and exhausting. The complete lack of respect for other people in the fandom just because they believe different theories or ship a different couple or whatever is ridiculous. Please just chill. If you find yourself mad enough to send unwarranted hate to a random artist because they made fun fanart of a couple you don't ship, maybe you need a glass of water and some food. Redirect that energy into taking care of yourself instead of tearing down others for no reason.

✨ Night Court Haute Couture 🌙

Inner Circle

Soooooo if I were to say the inner circle (Rhysand, Cassian, Az, Mor) are weird asf would I get jumped for that bc.......

Sarah J. Maas Book Cover Redesigns

If people want them, I can make these into mobile/desktop wallpapers for patrons. See below for Patreon link.

Recently, it was revealed that Maas’ ACOTAR book covers got a redesign. 

No offense to the designer - because I try not to go out of my way to publicly bash someone’s design work that they spent time on - but I’m not alone in saying that those covers aren’t the greatest. 

From a design standpoint, the colors clash too heavily with the tone of the stories. While bright colors can be fun, they don’t match the books they represent. (Not to mention the color combo on the grey hardback covers is almost hard to read because they appear less bright and look washed out.) 

Maas seems to lean more on Eastern-esque art influences for reprints lately, and it’s honestly very confusing. Given the settings and characters, these do not work for the stories inside. If these covers had an updated color palette and were used for an Asian-inspired story, I think they’d be better because the illustrations are beautiful. But they’re just not ACOTAR. 

I’ve made my own minimalist book covers for A Court of Thorns and Roses and A Court of Mist and Fury. 

Yes I have my watermark on them. No I won’t remove them. 

The original designer attempted to do a minimal look, but they didn’t take advantage of the iconography and setting these books offered for a truly illustrative and still minimal set of covers. 

Stay tuned for when I do ACOWAR and ACOFAS next!

Interested in seeing more of my design work? Join my Patreon where I create mobile and desktop wallpaper sets throughout the month for all $3 patrons. Right now, it’s Animal Crossing inspired. :)

Rereading 'A court of thorns and roses' after a year for research related purposes🤪- part 1

Feyre was in her flop era babes

WAIT WHY DO I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO RECOLLECTION OF THIS CHARACTER HE'S NEVER MENTIONED AGAIN😭

Feyre so humble and selfless you guys she's not like other girls frrr

Omg it's almost like- like the wolf and the doe are a METAPHOR for the power dynamic between Feyre and Tamlin🤔

GROWL??? RHYSAND IS THAT YOU??🤨🤨

Elain's literally so annoying like honeybear why don't you grow some vegetables or something🥰

okay *Tamlin shows up*

This bargain makes no sense to me like i know there's some bigger stuff going on but this is the equivalent of "you killed my bestie? well now you have to suffer living with me☺"

PROTECT NESTA AAAHHHH

Lucien was actually my favorite character in the first book he's the only one with a personality 💀

How to get the girl 101 with Tamlin😎

Ayyo how are we all forgetting the women's rights movement of 2021 when our feminist icon rhysand chose not to tell his very pregnant wife that the birth would 100% kill her🤨🤨

He pretty much went around battling misogyny with his mountain shaking roars y'all could never-

"Enemies to lovers this!!" "friends to lovers that!!" "no rivals to lovers is superior!!" "It goes strangers to rivals to forced friendship to fake lovers to real lovers to enemies to-" Sweetie please call your therapist back they're worried about you🥰

Book quotes that made me believe in love again<3

•His lips come too close. “But I love you.”

“No you don’t.”

His eyes close. He leans his forehead against mine. “You have no idea what you do to me.”

“I hate you.”

He shakes his head very slowly. Dips down. His nose brushes the nape of my neck and I stifle a horrified shiver that he misunderstands. “God I’d love to just take a bite out of you.”

~Aaron Warner to Juliette in shatter me. He then proceeded to kiss her because love<3

•“You're my sister," he said finally. "My sister, my blood, my family. I should want to protect you"—he laughed soundlessly without any humor—"to protect you from the sort of boys who want to do with you exactly what I want to do."

~Jace Herondale to Clary Fray,, love between siblings is so rare these days :')

•“I do so prefer hand-to-hand combat with you,” he said, catching my other wrist when I swung my fist down. “I like how close it brings us, Princess.”

I shrieked my frustration—my irritation—at him. At myself. “There is something so wrong with you!”

“Probably, but you know what?” He lifted his head off the ground. “That’s the part you like the most.”

~Casteel telling Poppy that he's getting turned on while she's trying to kill him. Who said romance is dead?

•“When you lick me,” he said roughly, “I want to be alone—far away from everyone. Because when you lick me, Feyre,” he said, pressing nipping kisses to my jaw, my neck, “I’m going to let myself roar loud enough to bring down a mountain.”

“And when I lick you,” he said, sliding his arms around me and tucking me in tight to him, “I want you splayed out on a table like my own personal feast.”

~my personal fav. Rhysand comparing his wife to food,, the same food that he gives her a choice in eating<33 100/10 love it. Mates 4 life.

•"There is nothing that I can give you. Nothing I want to give you. You are not owed an explanation for what I do outside of training. I don’t care what you have been through or what you want to do with your life. The sooner you can sort out your whining and self-pity, the sooner I can be rid of you. You are nothing to me, and I do not care.”

~Rowan to Aelin while she's desperately looking for a friend. Awwww do birds say different stuff to the people they like? Love to see the representation<3

•James," she said. "You don't love me."

He rose to his feet. He was no longer kneeling, and she was glad for it, but he was still close to her-- so close to her she could have reached out and set her palm against his chest.

"No," he said. "I don't."

She knew that. Hearing him say it still felt like a blow, unexpected and shocking, like the moment when you were stabbed. The surprise was how much it hurt.”

~James to cordelia,, such a beautiful scene. 1000/10 love it<333

•“There will be nothing left,” I whispered.

“No,” he said gently as he folded me in his arms. He pressed a kiss to the top of my hair. “I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no shelter but me.”

~Aleks tryna get the girl by murdering everyone she knows :')) play lover by Taylor swift<3

•"Did you . . ." Luke coughed and his lips glistened red. "Did you love me?"

Annabeth wiped her tears away. "There was a time I thought . . . well, I thought . . ."

"You were like a brother to me, Luke," she said softly. "But I didn't love you."

He nodded, as if he'd expected it. He winced in pain.

~My boy Luke flirting with a 16 year old while bleeding to death :)) he's the definition of dedication. Spoiler- he doesn't get the girl.

•“You came back for me.”

“I protect my investments.” Investments.

“I’m glad I’m bleeding all over your shirt.”

~Kazzle Dazzle calling the girl he likes an investment. Guys take notes<3

Things I wanna see less in fantasy~

Female protagonists having the best character arcs and personal growth only to lose their powers for the "greater good". Like? Let them be happy WITH POWERS?? ALINA'S LIGHT??? AELIN'S FIRE???? NESTA'S DEATH MAGIC??? TESSA'S SHAPE-SHIFTING??

What's the best trope and why's it Character A waking up from a nightmare, screaming and character B telling them to look at them and that it's just a bad dream?

okay but remember when Nikolai Lantsov said~"There had been a time when words had been the only place he could find solace. No book ever lost patience with him or told him to sit still."

And when Tessa Grey said~"One must always be careful of books, and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us."

And when Feyre Archeron said~"I was burning through books every day - stories about people and places I'd never heard of. They were perhaps the only thing that kept me from teetering into utter despair."

And when Will Herondale said~"We live and breathe words. It was books that kept me from taking my own life after I thought I could never love anyone, never be loved again. It was books that made me feel that perhaps I was not completely alone."

And when Celaena Sardothien said~"I can survive well enough on my own- if given proper reading material."

Shopping Books Bienal São Paulo (2024)🇧🇷

I didn't take many photos or record many videos. I visited the stands of Galera Record, Arqueiro & Sextante, Flyve and many others. It was a magical experience that will live in my memory rent-free for a long time😹💖🦋

Have you read any of these books?📚

I love Trolls and had no idea there were books about them!

And I finally have the complete collection of A.G. Howard's books (I love a good Alice in Wonderland fanfic).

I also bought A Court of Mist and Fury (Acomaf). Honestly, I don't care about having the others. This is simply the best of the saga and the most well-structured.

An Insider’s Guide to Velaris: the Winter Solstice Market, 1/?

An Insider’s Guide to the Court of Dreams: Feyre and Rhysand, 1/?

GUYS I FOUND FEYSAND'S ACOMAF THEME SONG

no bc i swear Walked Through Hell by Anson Seabra is literally Feysand's theme song in ACOMAF:

I guess all the mountains that I moved just weren't enough And all those nights I walked you home From crowded bars when you were drunk Well they meant nothing 'cause you up and walked away And I just wonder what it'd take to make you stay

ALL THAT TIME RHYS SPENT TRYING TO GET FEYRE TO EAT AND SMILE ALL WHILE FEYRE STILL LOVED TAMLIN SO "IT MEANT NOTHING CAUSE SHE'LL UP AND WALK AWAY"

'Cause when you said jump I said how high But when I jumped you said goodbye

RHYS WOULD DO ANYTHING FOR FEYRE, BUT FEYRE IS STILL MAD AT HIM FOR TRYING TO SAVE HER FROM HERSELF BY TAKING HER AWAY FROM TAMLIN

I would've walked through hell To find another way I would've laid me down If I knew that you would stay

HIM CRAWLING TO SAVE HER FROM AMARANTHA!! AND THEN LATER NOT CARING ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES AND SAVING HER FROM TAMLIN AS LONG AS SHE'S HAPPY.

I would've crossed the stars To keep you in my life But now I'm falling hard Without you here tonight Without you here tonight

STARS- NIGHT COURT HE WOULD'VE DONE ANYTHING FOR HER AND THERE WAS ALSO THE BARGAIN BETWEEN THEM

AND EVEN THOUGH SHE'S IN THE SPRING COURT HE'S STILL FALLING FOR HER EVERYDAY

What did you do with all that love you couldn't give And do you need someone to help you tell you what to do with it It must be nice to love someone who puts you first Then walk away when they expect it in return

SHE LOVES TAMLIN BUT IT WAS A TOXIC LOVE BUT RHYS CAN "HELP TELL [HER] WHAT TO DO" WITH HER TRAUMA. BUT RHYS IS ALSO BITTER THAN TAMLIN GOT THE GIRL AND HE DIDN'T HENCE "IT MUST BE NICE TO LOVE SOMEONE WHO PUTS YOU FIRST" AND THEN "WALK AWAY WHEN THEY EXPECT IT IN RETURN" SARCASM AIMS TOWARDS FEYRE!!!!

Remember how I said SJM was to blame for me failing Algebra bc of the acotar tv adaption?

Well guess what, I failed Mandarin :>

ACOTAR TV adaption

I’m seeing a few comments abt how we need to stop freaking out about acotar’s tv adaption. Tbh, I'm actually fine without the tv adaption, I mean I’m happy for SJM, but I really don’t want how I pictured the story and characters to be changed. (obviously, no one could be as perfect as Rhysie and I really don’t want certain scenes to change) 

But yes, I am still VERY excited for it, even if i do have conflicted feelings too. ​

Dear Sarah J Maas

I WAS FINE UNTIL YOU TOLD ME THAT ACOTAR IS BEING MADE INTO A FREAKING TV SHOW, NOW I CAN’T DO MY HOMEWORK, IF I FAIL ALGEBRA, IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT. 

Where are my ACOTAR friends?!

ig: Cozy.Creative.Lifestyle

stay with me pt 5

<azriel x ofc>

warnings: angst. lots of it. SH kinda, mentions of suîćîdë

part one, part two, part three, part four

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Azriel couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t fucking breathe. The overwhelming tightness was strangling his lungs, crushing his already broken heart. And someone was screaming, he couldn’t hear anything over the screaming.

Where was he, anyway?

He tried to take in his surroundings, to see where and what was going on. But his vision was so fucking blurry he couldn’t make out anything other than the outline of people. They were standing over him, trying to haul him up. Apparently he was laying on the ground, clutching something wet and warm to his chest. But the pain, which radiated over his entire body, wouldn’t let him move, even if he wanted to. It hurt too much.

“Azriel!” Someone screamed.

He felt the sting of a slap land across his face, and suddenly the whole world came back into focus.

It was Azriel that was screaming, voice raw. His vision cleared, of what he realized were tears, and the grief stricken faces of his family appeared. And he also realized he was speaking, repeating the same words over and over again.

“No, no, no!”

“Stay with me!”

All consuming anguish slammed into him. Ophelia was dead. Ophelia, his mate. His fucking mate, was dead. Azriel couldn’t feel her on the other side of the bond anymore. Couldn’t feel her chest rise with life-saving air, he just couldn’t feel her. Her beautiful eyes would never open, her mouth would never tip to the side with a cheeky smile, and he wouldn’t ever get to hear his name on his lips again.

Dead.

He held onto her tighter, how he should have all those nights ago. He should have told her everything when he had the chance, should have beared his fucking soul to her. Even if she had rejected him, he still should have told her.

“Madja is on her way.” Azriel heard someone say. He was so lost in his agony he had no idea who was speaking. “Azriel, we need you to let her go”

A primal snarl tore from his lips, and they backed away, hands up in a placating gesture.

“You’re going to have to knock him out.” Another said.

“I know. I’m just afraid of what he’ll do when he wakes.”

Cool hands grabbed onto his temple and Azriel thrashed, trying to throw whoever that was off of him. He was like a raging wild animal, like something out of the Middle. He was no longer the calm and collected male like everyone knew. It was pure carnal rage.

Long, razor sharp claws tore their way through his minds shield, destroying them to get inside. Azriel screamed louder, blood trickling from his nose. The sounds of his family faded away, so all that was left was the sound of soft spoken voices, cooing and hushing him. Lulling him to sleep. He fought, pushing back against those claws. But they only held on tighter.

Slowly, he slumped to the ground, arms falling away from Ophelia’s bleeding body.

And sleep consumed him.

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Azriel woke with a start, like something had scared him out of his deep slumber. That hadn’t been a normal sleep, it was only darkness with him floating forever in the nothingness. But he still felt pain raging all over his body. The pain of the mating bond breaking, slowly fading away into nothing.

Would that be all that’s left? Nothing?

He sat up sluggishly, the joints in his body popping and cracking. He was no longer out in that cursed field, but tucked into his room in the House of Wind. His bloody leathers had been stripped from his body, replaced with leisure clothes. Someone had changed and bathed him, as he saw no signs of her blood anywhere on his body. How long had he been out?

Getting to his feet, he walked towards the door. But he stopped as he passed the mirror, seeing his ghastly reflection. Azriel studied himself, hating what stared back. His wings now dragged behind him, the talons scraping the floor. There were deep purple marks under his bloodshot eyes, like he had been crying while he slept. And he looked incredibly pale, skin taking on a sickly pallor.

The look of someone with an utterly shattered heart. That’s what he looked like now.

A messy knot of emotions rose up his throat and Azriel stumbled, grasping the wood of the dressing table. His shoulders shook with each deep inhale he took, but it just seemed like he couldn’t catch his breath. His fingers gripped the wood so tightly that they turned white. He just couldn’t get his head clear, couldn’t stop hearing her broken cries.

Whimpering with frustration, he lashed out, his closed fist connecting with the mirror. It exploded into a thousand tiny pieces, small shards embedding themselves in his knuckles. Thick red blood seeped out of his wounds, but already his Illyrian healing was trying to take control. He watched numbly as his cuts turned pink with new skin, but was instantly shredded back open by the glass.

Suddenly, the door flew open and Cassian rushed in. He halted in his tracks, taking in the scene of his brother standing there with a shattered mirror and blood running down his hand.

“You’re awake.” He croaked, eyes misty with unshed tears.

Azriel didn’t respond. Instead, he picked up a scrap of linen and wrapped it around his knuckles to staunch the bleeding.

“You’ll need that cleaned out, there’s glass-”

“No.” Azriel snarled.

“Az…” Cassian tried, taking small steps in his direction.

“I said no!” His teeth flashed. “Fuck the glass, fuck everything! There is nothing left for me here, my mate is fucking dead. DEAD. And I might as well join her!”

They both stood there in deafening silence, just staring at each other. The realization of what Azriel had just admitted struck Cassian like a slap. His breath hitched in his chest, and Cassians mouth opened and closed, as if he were a fish out of water, trying to think of something to say. But there was nothing he could say that would take away this hurt.

“But she lives.”

Except that.

Azriels head snapped towards his brother, eyes going so wide that they almost popped straight out of his head.

“What?” He asked, voice barely above a whisper.

“Madja brought her back. She’ still unconscious but-”

Azriel didn’t stick around to hear the rest of what he said, because he burst past Cassian, sprinting towards her room. Alive? She was alive? He couldn’t wrap his destroyed thoughts around it. He had felt the bond break, and watched her take her last breath, how could she be alive? This had to be some type of cruel joke his brothers were playing on him, there was no way-

He opened Ophelia’s bedroom door so hard that it bounced off the wall, hinges rattling with the force. He took a step, and then another, before his knees gave out. But Rhys was there, catching him under his arm, and kept him upright.

“Easy, brother.” His voice was soft, softer than he had ever heard it.

What Azriel saw confused him. Ophelia was there, laying on her bed as if she was sleeping. She had been washed and changed just as Azriel had, no traces of blood remaining on her. Feyre and Madja stood on the other side of the bed, and the two stared at him, unsure of what his next move would be.

“How?” Azriel’s voice broke, and for the millionth time that day, tears rushed to his eyes.

“We got to her just in time.” Madja was there, putting various medical supplies back into a bag. The old female turned to Feyre and said something under her breath. But his shadows heard her.

Watch him. The bond hasn’t returned, and I’m afraid he’ll do something…something I can’t heal.

Feyre nodded and thanked the healer before dismissing her.

“How are you feeling, Az?” Feyre asked, and just then Rhys released the grip he had on Azriels arm.

But he didn’t hear her. Instead, he slowly crept towards the edge of Ophelia’s bed. She looked so incredibly peaceful, like the events of the past week hadn't happened at all.

He took her slender hand in his, and it was so cold. He supposed that was normal considering how much blood she had lost. They had been laying in a puddle of it. And still, it just didn’t seem possible that she was alive.

“Why hasn’t the bond returned?” Azriel whispered, scared that if spoke too loud it would wake her.

“Madja said it would take time.” Rhys said, coming to his side.

Time. If there was anything Azriel knew how to do was wait. He had waited his entire life for Ophelia, he could wait just a little bit longer. So, he grabbed a reclining chair and dragged it to the side of her bed, and plopped down in it.

“What are you doing?” Feyre asked softly.

“Waiting.”

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Three things were clear to Ophelia as she laid in the eternal darkness.

One, her mother was Lady of the Autumn Court and her father was Lord of the Day Court, and Lucien was her brother.

Two, her entire body was screaming in pain. It was a never ending barrage, it felt she was being set on fire over and over again. It felt like she was being stripped of her flesh, and someone was sticking needles in the exposed skin.

Three, Azriel was her mate.

Mate.

The cauldron had blessed and cursed her with a mate. And out of everyone, in the entirety of Prythian, it was him. Azriel.

His name on her tongue felt like taking a cold, refreshing gulp of water. It felt like life, death, and everything in between. Something as big as ruling the world seemed possible with him by her side, or even just getting out of bed for the day. Knowing that he was there, waiting for her. She could do it all.

But where was he?

He wasn’t here with her, in this endless pit of dark nothingness. But she could sense him, his scent lingering on the tip of her nose. It was smokey and sweet, the boldness of each taste coming together each time, it was intoxicating. Like she could drown in him, but he would be there to keep her afloat.

Ophelia could feel him now. He was so close but yet so far away. It felt like she could reach out and touch him, but when she tried, her body screamed in protest. Everything hurt. Every miniscule movement that was made had her already exhausted mind slip farther and farther into the darkness.

So she laid there, feeling nothing and everything. Waiting for her mate.

Azriel.

hey y’all. i had to have emergency surgery a few days ago and as of rn i’m too dr00ged out to post. i promise i’ll update as soon as i can!

stay with me pt 4

<azriel shadowsinger x OFC>

part one, part two, part three, part five

warnings: ANGST, graphic description injuries

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Something was wrong. Azriel didn’t know what, but he could no longer feel Ophelia as strongly on the other side of the bond. Her presence was just a flicker of energy, like a spark that refused to light.

“We’re moving in. Now.” He quietly growled.

Mor, Cassian, and Nesta had all deliberately disobeyed Rhysands instructions to not enter the Autumn Court territory without his permission. They would all surely pay for it.

But at this moment, he didn’t care what Rhysands punishment would be. He could cut off Azriels wings, set his hands alight, and throw him into the Sidra and he would take it. As long as he got Ophelia back. He was beyond grateful that his friends were risking their own lives and Rhysands wrath to find her too.

His shadows cast the corridor in front of them into darkness, snuffing out the fae lights lining the walls. They moved silently, as a unit. Quickly and quietly taking out any guards that they came across. What was more blood on Azriels hands? As far as he was concerned they were all complicit in this crime.

Gaining access to the Forest Palace wasn’t easy. It had taken them entirely too long. They had to wait for changing of the guard and had to slaughter their way through just to get in. It was messy and harsh, but they did it all without raising alarm.

Azriel led them through twisting and turning hallways, going farther and farther down into the lower levels. He didn’t know where he was going, it was just a feeling. He could feel that tug at the bond growing tighter and further down they went.

None of them questioned him, and thank the Mother for that. He wasn’t sure how he would respond. They all were calm and quiet around him since departing from Velaris, as if a single word would set him off.

He supposed it would. After departing the River House, he had flown out into the forest and taken out several acres of trees with his siphons before collapsing. He had been trembling, barely containing the anguish and rage that was crawling under his skin. It was nightfall before Cassian found him, telling him that they were leaving to find her.

Suddenly, the feeling in his chest exploded into a frenzying warmth, spreading across his body. Azriel halted in front of a small, dingy cell, and his friends stopped at his heals.

“What is it?” Mor whispered.

The metallic scent of blood was so overpowering that it almost masked hers. Almost.

He would know that combination of scent anywhere. Jasmine, lavender, and chamomile. With just a hint of lemon. Before it had calmed his wildest nerves. Now, it ramped them up, dreading what he would find in there.

In two strides, he was at the door. He grasped the lock on the cell and the faint blue light of his siphons illuminated the space. He barely heard the metal hit the ground as he flung the door open and rushed in.

What he saw would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Ophelia was slumped against the wall, hands chained above her head. Small, precise cuts littered her mostly naked body. Deep burn scars around her neck, wrists and ankles. The only thing that covered her was a red see-through chemise. No. The chemise was white. It was stained red. With her blood.

And Azriels heart stopped beating at the sight of the dagger embedded to the hilt in Ophelia’s side.

“Cauldron-” Cassian gasped, coming to stand beside him.

“Help me.” His voice was tight, despair laced in every word. Azriels eyes stung with unshed tears. No, he couldn’t do that. Not here, not now.

If she didn’t make it-

Cassian braced Ophelia up, mindful of her wounds, as Azriel broke the chains around her wrists. He stooped down and took her small broken form from Cassians arms, careful of the dagger. A soft, broken whimper came from the bloody mass that was Ophelia. It shattered his heart even further.

But she was alive, she was still alive.

“We have to get her back to Velaris.” His voice was raw, full of the promise of death and bone deep despair.

“Winnowing could move the dagger around.” Cassian responded quietly, looking down at her.

“We could take her to the Winter Court-” Mor started.

“No.” Azriel snarled. “She needs to be home, not in some frozen waste land.”

“But the risk-”

“I know the fucking risk!” He was starting to panic now. It was rising to the surface, the pressure building and building against his too tight skin.

“Whatever the decision, it needs to be made now. We have company.” Nesta hissed from the front of the cell.

“Go to them. I’ll meet you back at the River House.”

His shadows swirled around them, Cassian disappeared from sight, his brothers eyes full of sadness and quiet rage. He knew he would make them pay for what they did.

In the cold emptiness, he brought Ophelia closer to him. Praying to the Mother that she would make this, she had to make this. If Azriel needed anything in his life to go right, it was now.

Azriel swore to the Mother and to the Cauldron that when she had recovered, he would tell her everything. About his messy emotions, the feeling of how unworthy he was to her, and that they were mates. He was hers.

But oh, the Mother was cruel.

His feet hit the solid ground just outside the River House, the world swimming back into focus. Panting, he looked down at Ophelia.

His mate.

She almost looked like she was sleeping, if it wasn’t for the agonizing pain he felt on the other side of the bond. It was so intense that he momentarily swayed before reality gripped him by the throat. The dagger was no longer there. It laid several feet away in the grass.

The panic he had been barely keeping at bay finally bubbled over.

Blood was pouring from the wound, fast. Too fast. Gasping, he went to his knees, laying her in the damp morning grass. His scarred hands pressed into her side attempting to staunch the bleed, but it was no use. Blood seeped past his fingers, coating his hands.

Rhys. Rhys I need you.

“Phia? Phia, I need you to open your eyes.” He whispered.

“It hurts.” She whimpered. The pain he heard from her snapped something deep and vital in his head.

“I know, I know sweetheart.” Azriels cheeks were wet with the tears he had been holding back for weeks. No- years.

“Azriel?” Her eyes fluttered open, squinting up at him. “You’re here.” She sounded so relieved, he wondered if she thought this was a dream.

“Yes, Phia. I’m here with you. Now stay with me, help is coming,” He sobbed.

Rhysand!

She muttered incoherently, and it wasn’t til later til Azriel would realize what she was saying.

Stay with me.

The familiar scent of Cassian, Mor, and Nesta invaded his senses, momentarily taking over the smell of blood. He heard one of them cry out, felt their grief slam into him. But he couldn’t look away.

He whispered small encouragements to her, begging and pleading with Rhys in his head to fucking hurry.

Almost there.

“He’s almost here Phia. Just hang on.” His eyes swept down her body, examining the wound. It was ghastly, deep and jagged with infection just starting to set in. Mother, how long had that been in there?

He looked back up to her face and his gut twisted. Her eyes were shut, her lips unmoving. “Hey, hey! Do not shut your eyes. Please,” A painful sobbed ripped from the depths of Azriels chest. “Please open your eyes!”

“So tired.” She whispered, struggling to open her eye lids. “Az, I’m so tired.”

Hands suddenly replaced where Azriels were. Someone was talking, shouting at the others but he wasn’t sure who it was, and he didn’t care. Maybe it was Rhysand, or was it Feyre?

Moving carefully, he cradled her head in his lap. The back of her scalp was sticky with blood, the entire ground around them was drenched in it.

“Stay. Stay here with me.” He whispered to her, smoothing her hair away from her sweaty and sallow forehead.

“You’re my mate.” Azriel choked out in broken sobs. “Ophelia you’re my mate.”

She inhaled to speak, but her chest stilled

The bond went silent.

And Azriel screamed.

stay with me pt 3

azriel shadowsinger x OFC

part one, part two, part four, part five

warnings: torture, violence, gore, angst

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It had been a week since Ophelia left. A week since he heard her laughter, saw her smiling at him or swooning at her dizzying scent. It was already starting to slowly fade from the House of Wind. Without it, Azriel thought he might go crazy.

Even more than usual.

His shadows had told him that the day after…the day after Rita’s, Rhys had picked her up from the balcony outside her room. So, he figured she was out running a mission. But a week was unusual. She was normally gone for a couple days before she came back. Yet something just wasn’t sitting right with him. She had always checked in if she was going to be gone longer than what she said. And as far as he knew, she hadn’t.

And if he asked about her, he would seem desperate.

Okay, he was desperate. Desperate for her. For them to finally happen. Azriel was finally ready to tell her everything that he had been holding back all these months.

When she finally let him kiss her, he thought everything would fall into place. Things would work out, just as they worked out for his brothers. But of course not, nothing was that simple when it came to Azriel. The cauldron had cursed him, it was more than obvious now.

Had he done something wrong? Maybe he had misread the entire situation and took it too far. But she had wanted him, she was just as greedy to touch him as he was her. Everything had felt right, perfect, up until the moment Cassian had interrupted them.

Azriel was still pissed at him for it.

“You alright?” Feyre asked as Azriel stormed through the doors of the River House.

“Fine.” He spat back. As soon as the words left his mouth, he winced.

He didn’t mean to come off hateful towards his High Lady. He stopped walking and sighed up towards the ceiling, before turning around. “I’m sorry, it’s just-” What the fuck could he tell her? “Been a rough week.”

“I understand.” She smiled softly at him, her blue-grey eyes full of knowing. “Come, Rhys said he had something important for everyone.”

It was true, Rhys had summoned everyone to the River House. Maybe it was something Ophelia had relayed back to him and something was finally happening between the Human Queens and the Autumn Court. But as he and Feyre entered one of the sitting rooms, he could tell it was something much worse than that.

Eris was here.

“Now that Az is finally here, we can get started.” Rhys shot Azriel a accusatory glare from across the room.

“As you all know, Az and Phia had been gaining intelligence from the Autumn Court. It has been hard but every piece of information counts.” He began.

Rhys took a steadying breath, place a hand in his mates lower back. “Last week, I sent Ophelia out on a solo mission.”

A knot took form in Azriels chest. His knees felt weak and unsteady.

“She told me she would only be there for a couple of days, but obviously hadn’t returned yet.”

The knot tightened, it was getting hard to breathe.

“Feyre and I thought she may have found out something important and was still running reconnaissance, but when we traveled to the mountains in the Winter Court to see if the mental link would work if we were closer. Yet…nothing.”

The wood of the door frame shattered in Azriel’s hand, splinters embedding themselves into his palm. Many turned to look at him, but Rhys pressed on, ignoring his outburst.

“That’s when Eris returned, and told us.” There was a harsh moment of silence, and Azriels anxiety grew to a tipping point.

“She’s being held captive by my father and brothers.” Eris finished for him.

The room exploded into darkness.

Azriel couldn’t breathe, it felt like his breath was being sucked out of his chest. His ears were ringing, and he could have sworn there was blood on his hands. Whose blood was that? Was it his? When had he ended up on the ground?

Azriel!

His shadows receded back into him, only a little. He shook his head clear of that voice. He could only hear Ophelias. Could only hear her laugh, see her smile, see her.

Azriel!

Another voice. Female this time, he knew that voice. It had shown him kindness and compassion. Tried to look beneath all the scars. Just like Ophelia tried.

Black and red was all he saw.

Suddenly, someone was behind him, gripping him so hard from behind he could have sworn one of his ribs cracked.

His shadows finally dissipated and he was staring down at the wreckage that was Eris. The males face was beaten so badly he was hardly recognizable. Had he done that? He looked down at his hands, knuckles busted open. Hands coated in blood, a mix between his own and Eris’s.

He had definitely done that.

People were shouting at him, shouting at each other. But he couldn’t hear them, couldn’t see them. All he saw was Ophelia sitting on the counter, smiling at him. He had lost her before he even had her. Now, she was a captive. In the cauldron cursed Autumn Court.

The world suddenly snapped back into focus is a dizzying rush. He spun towards Rhys, teeth bared, pushing who he now realized as Cassian, off of him.

“You sent my mate to die!”

Silence.

Utter silence.

Feyre was the first one to speak. “Your mate is alive, Azriel.” Her tone was calm and steady, how he figured she would have talked to a wild animal who was cornered and scared. “You would have felt…” She trailed off, glancing at Rhysand. “You would have felt it.”

Azriel snarled again, turning on his heel.

“Where do you think you are going?” This voice was not Rhysand, his brother. This was the voice of his High Lord.

“Getting her back.”

“I cannot let you do that, shadowsinger.” Power rumbled throughout the room, the entire house.

A dark, humorless laugh came from Azriel. “You tore half of Prythian apart for your mate.” His voice was as cold as the steel of a blade. “I will do worse for mine.”

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A cold splash of water woke Ophelia up. Gasping, she looked around wildly and found the sneering face of Beron staring down at her, eyes alight with barely leashed rage. She now knew why he was called Lord of Fire. It was evident in those deep-set brown eyes.

Great, she was already starting to go insane.

“Sleep well?” He chuckled, taking a few steps back from her. She didn’t know why, it wasn’t like she could reach him with her arms chained above her head.

“Go fuck yourself.” She spat, spittle flying from her chapped lips.

“So much fire in you, even after we’ve put most of it out.” Beron hummed. “Be good and listen, and maybe my sons won’t visit you tonight.”

Ophelia shut her mouth, biting down on her tongue so hard it drew blood. She didn’t think she could stand another visit from his twisted sons. That would be her final breaking point.

Her fae healing could only do so much to the burn scars around her wrists and ankles.

“Very good. Now,” He cleared his throat. “There once was a little flame princess, who stole the heart of her entire kingdom. She was the youngest of the king's children, having several elder brothers. And when her powers started developing, there was something different about them. They were too bright, burned too hot. So the king went to the queen, asking how this could happen? How could his daughter have the power of light when they were fire?” He took a deep breath, his eyes scanning her face.

“That’s when the king learned that the little flame princess was instead, a little sun princess. That his queen had tricked him into raising not one but two bastard children, right under his nose.”

“So your wife fucked another male, what does this have to do with me?” Ophelia muttered.

Beron inched towards her, a sick and twisted smile spread across his face, unnerving her. “Everything.”

She laughed. Yeah, Ophelia was definitely going crazy.

“The king was torn on what to do. See, he had come to love his little sun princess. But her blood was not his. So, he locked her in a tower, high away from everyone. Determined to keep her safe and secure. He would send his true children in to keep her company from time to time, but soon the king learned that they had scared his beautiful sun princess. She was ugly, littered with hideous scars that no magic would heal or hide.”

Ophelia felt like she was going to be sick. She tried to squeeze her eyes shut to stop the room from spinning but images flashed behind her eyelids. Images that were too bright and vivid to just be her imagination.

“To end her suffering, the king finally set the little princess free. He let her roam his kingdom for a bit before setting his hounds out. But alas, she has been spirited away to the kingdom of his enemies, a dark and nightmarish kingdom.”

“Stop.” Ophelia wheezed.

“And just when the king was almost done healing from his pain, he found her on the outskirts of his kingdom. A spy.”

The hot hands of the Autumn Court Lord wrapped around her throat, cutting off her airway. Heat danced at his finger tips, searing her skin, charring her pale flesh.

“A spying whore for the Court of Nightmares.”

His hand curled tighter around her throat, and she was sure he was going to break her neck.

“You’re insane.” Ophelia gasped, eyes meeting his. They burned with such hatred that she was sure this was it. He would bring her death.

“Little princess, you haven’t seen anything yet.”

With his free hand, he reached toward his jewel encrusted belt. He pulled on the hilt of a dagger, which had the pattern and swirls of the Autumn Court sigil on the gleaming blade. A blade made of ashwood.

Without even blinking, he plunged the dagger into her side, to the hilt. Pain exploded from the area, her vision going out momentarily. Her instincts kicked in, trying to overwrite the pain by blocking it out. But it was too much, too overwhelming.

Ophelia screamed, her voice going hoarse as she thrashed against the pain, and against his hold on her throat. Her body went into survival mode, bucking and kicking the best she could to get away, to get away from the pain.

“You will die here, just as you were born here.” Beron snarled, finally releasing her throat.

Gasping and sputtering, she tried to reach for the dagger with her bound hands. But she couldn’t reach it. Blood poured freely from her wound, coating the floor. A sliver of thought returned to her and she glared up at Beron, her entire body twitching.

“I…” Blood bubbled out of her mouth and dribbled down her chin. “Will fucking kill you.”

The last thing Ophelia heard was the sound of laughter as Beron left her cell, the sound echoing in the darkness.