I’m just thinkin’ ‘bout books

No, he wasn’t there at the time nor was he away she’d been captured. But SJM could have gotten him there.

He could have gone ahead of the army only to show up that night to find his mate in the hands of the enemy. He could have declared that he was getting her back and that she was, indeed, worth fighting for. It would have been a poignant moment that called back to what he’d said earlier in the book.

But SJM didn’t write that. Lucien, Elain’s confirmed mate, wasn’t mentioned once during that whole ordeal.

Why?

Why direct our attention to Azriel and keep it there?

Red herring? Maybe. Until we get an official confirmation we can’t say that isn’t a possibility.

But what’s the alternative to that?

I different romance. One that has been called back to again and again across multiple books that has called into question not only the quality of the bond between Elain and Azriel but the Cauldron itself, the very thing holding the world together.

Elriel is the only current pairing that wants each other. Neither Elain nor Lucien wants the other, they're stuck together because of the bond. Neither Azriel nor Gwyn have showen the slightest romantic interest in the other

Elriel is the only potential pairing credible news and media sites have discussed. Elriel has TIME, GA has ScreenRant at best. That's what happens when you have canon evidence

The pipeline of having a character questioning the Cauldron, then that character being present to find out that the Cauldron was indeed corrupted in the author's following book, then that author saying that they're interested in exploring what happens when the powers that be put you with the wrong person is pretty fucking clear

SJM hasn't talked about EL once since ACOWAR came out. They're a confirmed mated pair. If they're endgame, why the silence?

ACOTAR is the only SJM world where bonds can be poorly chosen. We now know why. What was the point of deepening that part of the lore if it wasn't going to be explored as a main story? What was the point of pairing Elain and Lucien together when it's clear that neither wants the other? What was the point of multiple characters questioning their bond? Find me a single piece of evidence that Lucien's desire for Elain is anything beyond the biological tug of the bond.

It's Elriel.

It's absolutely Elriel.

Gwynriel exists on the internet and the internet alone, certainly not in the books. No one gives a shit about it. Least of all SJM.

She's not even active on socials to see all the GA shippers bitch, moan, and gaslight.

The team at BB doesn't care either. I mean, I'm sure they see it and they love it because of how much engagement it creates but what would they gain by forcing their biggest author to change the trajectory of the story she's so obviously been setting up?

The next book will isolate readers no matter what and making it GA would isolate more (therefore they would lose money in the longrun) because it would make no sense to the majority of readers. Gwynriels are the minority.

This is a super common GA argument I see and I don't think it applies to the majority of Elriels, to be honest. I, for one, don't think they are in love yet. On that path? 100%. But there's work to be done first.

Because think about it, what would have happened off-page between them? Clearly not much since they haven't even kissed yet (and we know they're attracted to each other). They're not off having secret rendezvous...yet. That's what would happen in their book, but it's not happening at this point.

And we know that because we've already been privy to the vast majority of their interactions. The only one we haven't seen was the second time Azriel took her out to the garden, but we can assume it was much the same as the first since, at that point, Elain was still unwell.

And then in ACOSF, we're told that he's living up at the HoW for some reason.

That reason was confirmed for us in the BC, that he's avoiding Elain because of his feelings for her.

But no, besides the "occasional brush of their fingers" we've been privy to all of their interactions thus far. What else would we have missed if they haven't even kissed yet?

And we know they have feelings for each other, but the romance has yet to to begin.

Back for a quick moment after I was inspired by an argument I saw in another acotar group literally as I was leaving it lol

People on the other side of the ship war just looooove to say that Elain not looking good in black is foreshadowing that she'll leave the NC.

(we on the Elriel side tend to diminish this moment as "Cassian's fashion opinion" but in all fairness, Nesta did also say in her POV that the black dress was ill-suited for Elain. Considering that opinion have from from 2 POVs, we should take it seriously)

I want to look as a particular part of Cassian's analysis of her dress:

"Elain in black was ridiculous. Yes, she was beautiful, but the color of her long-sleeved, modest gown leeched the brightness from her face. It wore her, rather than the other way around. [...] He'd never once in the two years he'd known her found Elain to be plain, but wearing black, no matter how much she claimed to be part of this court... It sucked the life from her."

First, this was the point, was it not? If there's one thing we know about Eris, it's that he likes to fuck with people. How much fun for him would it be to dance with his brother's mate? A person he himself called a beauty at one point. Keeping his eye on Nesta was imperative to the whole plan, so they had to downplay Elain's beauty.

But if we want to think about what this could hint at if its purpose was foreshadowing, then I have an alternative to the "Elain leaves the NC" theory:

I think Elain looking bad in black could be another hint at her becoming a spy.

What do spies want to avoid at all times?

Attention.

Elain, as a very beautiful woman, attracts attention. That would be her downfall as a spy. We know she's stealthy, an excellent secret-keeper, and a seer. Those are all great qualities for spying, but how useful are they really if she's devastatingly beautiful and turning heads wherever she goes?

But now we know that there is a way to diminish her presence. To make her plain. To make her fade into the background should the occasion call for it.

If Eris can ignore her in black, anyone can, no?

Like, they have such horrible things to say about him. Calling him an incel, making his lust for Elain a negative, saying he's creepy and entitled.

Why are you shipping him with sweet Gwyn, then? If he's all of those things with Elain, what's to stop him from being any better with Gwyn?

It doesn't make sense.

But not because I think she's going to eventually succumb to the bond.

Elain definitely feels the bond. It's there, it's real. We saw it in that scene where Lucien was trying to figure out what was wrong with her. He tugged on the bond and it freaked Elain out.

So yeah, she definitely feels something. I don't think most Elriels would deny that.

However, I think whatever feelings she has surrounding the bond freak her out because she knows how it feels to be in love, and that's not what she's experiencing with it.

I actually think this is something that Elain and Lucien could bond over. It could also lead to a possible mutual rejection of the bond.

Both of them have been in love with others. They know how it feels to love and be loved in return.

When Lucien first spends time with Elain, he almost immediately compares her to Jesminda. I don't think it was meant to be malicious or ill-intentioned on Lucien's part. I think he was unconsciously comparing what it was like to be in love to whatever magical/instinctual pull he and Elain have with each other.

It just can't. Because BCs are not required reading.

Every time I see people say, "Elriel ended in the BC!" I roll my eyes because by saying that, you admit that Elriel is a confirmed romantic pairing that was set up in the books.

Whether or not you like Elriel is irrelevant. And look, I can acknowledge that there's a possibility they might not be endgame. But even if they're not, that ship has to come to an end in the books.

And no, it didn't end in ACOSF. The last time we see them together "something charged" goes between them. That's where they've left off.