Why Bryce Quinlan and Azriel are the most Fated of all Mates in the Maas Universe
Alright babes. My Kings and Queens of Maas Universe.
Grab your blankets. Light up those scented candles. Pour yourself a glass of wine & settle in much deeper, into the comforts of your pillows - for «indoor plumbing» - this is gonna be big!
Ahem.
Now that I have your full attention ☺️ And your undenied luxurious comfort - provided. Hold on to your seats & without further ado …
We begin our perilous journey into the lands of the FATED …
Where it all started … at the beginning …
CHAPTER 1
RAMIEL
Ramiel is a mountain. Situated in the territory of the Night Court of Prythian (in the ACOTAR world). And is considered to be sacred by the Illyrian warriors.
Azriel halted, angling his head. «That’s Ramiel.» At Bryce’s questioning look, he explained, «A mountain sacred to the Illyrians.»
(Crescent City : House of Flame and Shadow
Sarah J. Maas)
It appears on the Night Court's insignia, and it is where the Illyrian Blood Rite takes place.
Ramiel is located in the center of the Illyria region in the Night Court, and is regarded as the holy mountain of the court.
The first ruler of the Night Court made Ramiel his court insignia, the mountain depicted with three stars on top, which are only visible for one week a year, when the Blood Rite is performed.
Illyrian warriors who are ready to partake in the rite must reach the top of Ramiel and touch the onyx monolith located there. If they don't, they don't pass the rite and are not considered warriors.
«Ramiel» is also a name that is etched in various religious scripts, but mostly in the Abrahamic religions. He is known both as an angel and a fallen angel, serving different roles in different narratives.
Ramiel (Imperial Aramaic: רַעַמְאֵל, Hebrew: רַעַמְאֵלRaʿamʾēl; Greek: ‘Ραμιήλ) is a fallen Watcher angel. He is mentioned in Chapter 6 of the apocryphal Book of Enoch as one of the 20 Watchers that sinned and rebelled against God by mating with human women (*Bryce is half-human), and creating offspring called Nephilim (*In HOFAS Hunt is constantly talking about having kids with Bryce).
The Nephilim (/ˈnɛfɪˌlɪm/; Hebrew: נְפִילִים Nəfīlīm) are mysterious beings, or humans, in the Bible, traditionally imagined as being of great size and strength, or alternatively beings of great power and authority.
The origins of the Nephilim are disputed. Some, including the author of the Book of Enoch, view them as the offspring of rebellious angels and humans. Others view them as descendants of Seth and Cain.
But! Getting back on track -
The name Raʿamʾēl means «God has thundered» from the Hebrew elements Raʿam «thunder» and El, «God».
In Christian belief, specifically within the Eastern Orthodox and Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, Ramiel is considered one of the seven archangels. His name is said to mean «God’s thunder» (*Hunt. Lightning. Thunder. Helloooo?).
In the non-canonical Book of Enoch, Ramiel is portrayed as one of the leaders of the fallen angels, known as the «Watchers».
In the Book of Enoch, Ramiel, is amongst the Watchers who took human wives, taught forbidden knowledge to mankind, and was subsequently punished by God.
According to Enoch 9:1, Ramiel was the Watcher who was tempted by the beauty of human women, and he taught humanity about thunder.
And what ‘is’ thunder?
What ‘is’ lightning?
It is a force of nature - often times - one to be reckoned with. On most occasions - dangerous.
Celestina held up her gloved hands. «I want no quarrel with you, Athalar.»
«Too bad,» Hunt said, and lightning skittered over his tongue. «I want one with you.»
He didn’t give any further warning before he hurled his power at the Archangel. He gave everything, yet it wasn’t enough. His power choked at its limits, restrained by the halo.
A leash to hold demons in check.
It hadn’t worked on the princes. He’d be damned if he allowed it to keep working on him.
Hunt let his power build and build and build. The snow around him melted away.
Apollion had given his essence, his Helfire, to Hunt. And if that made him a son of Hel, so be it.
But Bryce was staring at him sadly …
He didn’t understand the words. He blinked at her.
Bryce stepped forward, snow crunching under her feet …
Hunt pointed a lightning-wreathed finger at Celestina. «She and all her kind should be blasted off the face of Midgard.»
«Maybe,» Bryce said gently, taking another step. Her starlight faded into nothing. «But not by you.»
Disgust roiled through him. He’d never once hated Bryce, but in that moment, as she doubted him, he did.
(Crescent City : House of Flame and Shadow
Sarah J. Maas)
Disgust?
Disgust?
If you truly are a «fated mate» - how in the whole of Universe are you able to be disgusted by your one & only truly «fated mate»?
Are you theirs, really? Fated? Mate?
(*Kinda makes us all remember Bryce’s mom, Ember, when she dared to raise up her head to question Bryce’s father, the Autumn King’s, decisions, no?)
CHAPTER 2
AZRIEL
Azriel is an Illyrian and member of the Night Court. He is the spymaster and shadowsinger of Rhysand, the High Lord of the Night Court and belongs to his Inner Circle.
He is a childhood friend of Rhysand and Cassian. And considered to be one of the most powerful Illyrians in Prythian history, alongside with Rhysand and Cassian.
Azriel is the bastard son of an Illyrian lord.
For eleven years he lived with his father, stepmother, and two half-brothers.
The two boys and their mother were cruel and spoiled. While living in his father's keep, his stepmother kept Azriel in a cell with no windows or light. He was allowed to come out only for an hour a day, and to see his mother for one hour every week. He was not allowed to train or fly, even when his Illyrian instincts urged him to do so.
When he was eight, his two cruel half-brothers decided it would be fun to see what happened when you mixed an Illyrian's quick healing gifts with oil and fire. They poured oil on his hands and lit them on fire. His father's warriors heard Azriel's screaming, and rescued him but not quick enough to save his hands, leaving them permanently scarred (*Bryce’s half-brother, Ruhn, has also been scarred by their father, the cruel Autumn King. Thus, he had to cover his scars on his arms with tattoos).
At the age of eleven, Azriel was dumped in the Illyrian training camp, Windhaven, where he was well received by the camp lords due to his shadowsinging gifts. He eventually met Rhysand and Cassian, as they were training at the same camp. At this point, like Cassian, Rhysand’s mother took him in, for she was a friend to Azriel’s mother.
When Rhysand’s father saw that his son had started to rival him in power and had allied with the two most powerful Illyrian warriors in history, he separated them in fear that they would eventually turn against him. Rhysand was given command over a legion, Azriel was kept as his personal shadowsinger, and Cassian was appointed as a foot soldier.
Once Rhysand became the High Lord of the Night Court, Azriel was appointed as his spymaster and became part of his Inner Circle.
Azriel is described as classically beautiful, but near-unreadable. He is tall, with dark hair, golden-brown skin, and massive Illyrian wings. His eyes are hazel and the planes of his face are elegant. His Illyrian training is described to have shaped his body to be extremely powerful and muscular. He has brutal scars on both hands. Azriel is constantly surrounded by shadows, as if even the light shied from him. A cocoon of silence seems to pulse around him.
Illyrian warriors typically wear one or two siphons to channel their raw power into magic, but Azriel requires seven cobalt siphons to maintain his power. He keeps his dagger, «Truth-Teller», sheathed at his thigh.
Azriel is an enigmatic and somewhat mysterious figure, due to his shadowy persona and nature as a «shadowsinger». His role requires him to see and hear a lot, while staying in the shadows, thus he tends to be quiet and keeps his thoughts to himself, observing from the shadows. However, beneath his guarded exterior lies a loyal, protective and gentle nature towards those he considers family.
Azriel struggles with self-confidence and self-worth, due to his traumatic past of abuse, which has made him cautious with trust and reticent with his emotions. His dry, somewhat morbid sense of humor helps him cope, making dark jokes to lighten serious situations. Overall, Azriel's combination of skills, abilities and tragic history have shaped him into a quietly observant and withdrawn figure, yet with loyalty and kindness towards those who have earned his trust.
Azriel is a shadowsinger and is physically powerful, due to his Illyrian background. As a shadowsinger, he has the predisposition to hear and feel things others can't. He can merge into shadows and move throughout them.
He is a lonely soul. With a kind heart.
CHAPTER 3
ROSE HALL
Rose Hall is the name of an unknown location in Prythian.
Azriel mentions to Rhysand that he is headed to «Rose Hall» the morning after Solstice, but he needs to do some shopping first.
Rhysand then tells him to buy «her» something nice on his behalf, and put it on his account, but he knew Azriel wouldn't, but he still nodded.
Since Rhysand tells Azriel to buy «her» something nice on his behalf, «her» could be referred to Azriel’s mother. That is possibly living in an estate, named «Rose Hall», somewhere in the territory of the Night Court (*Which would only be logical, since her son would want her to be close to him).
CHAPTER 4
SAILOR MOON
«Sailor Moon» is a Japanese manga series (美少女戦士セーラームーン) written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi from 1991 to 1997; the 60 individual chapters (later reorganized into 52), along with several side stories, were compiled in 18 volumes.
The series follows the adventures of a schoolgirl named Usagi Tsukino as she transforms into the eponymous character to search for a magical artifact, the «Legendary Silver Crystal».
She leads a group of comrades, the Sailor Soldiers, called «Sailor Guardians» in later editions, as they battle against villains to prevent the theft of the Silver Crystal and the destruction of the Solar System.
SJM herself confirmed that she was a huge fan of the show.
In the show, the main love interest of our heroine, Sailor Moon, is - «Tuxedo Mask».
Tuxedo Mask is the alter ego of Darien Chiba (English name), Mamoru Chiba (Japanese name), and the romantic love interest of Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon), and later sweetheart, lover, and boyfriend of the main character.
1000 years before the series began, Darien was Endymion, the Prince of Earth, who fell in love with the Princess of the Moon, Princess Serenity.
This love drove Queen Beryl into sadness, because she herself was romantically in love with Darien as well.
This lead to her to release Queen Metallia and all of the Dark Kingdom and the entire Moon Kingdom was destroyed.
Queen Serenity, Princess Serenity's mother, used her powers to seal Queen Metallia away, along with the Dark Kingdom and sacrificed her own life to send the people of the Moon to the future on Earth, including Darien (*Ahem. HOFAS anyone? … )
At the start of the series, Usagi and Mamoru hate each other and know nothing of their past. Every time they met, Mamoru would insult Serena (Sailor Moon), who would throw a tantrum and storm off.
Azriel asked her with terrifying calm, «What happened to the Horn?»
Bryce held his stare, seething, beyond trying to spin any bullshit.
But Nesta said, «She ‘is’ the Horn, Azriel. It’s inked into her flesh.» She lowered her hand from Bryce’s shoulder and peered at her. «Isn’t that right? It’s the only thing that would have made your tattoo react that way earlier.»
Azriel’s hazel eyes flickered with predatory intent. He’d carve it out of her fucking back.
(Crescent City : House of Flame and Shadow
Sarah J. Maas)
As Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask they have a flirtatious relationship, but never get close enough to learn each other's identities.
Once they regain their memories, they become a romantic couple, though they temporarily broke up, after Mamoru keeps getting nightmares of a horrible fate befalling Usagi, if they stayed together.
Mamoru is 4-6 years older than his love interest. By the end of the series the two are happily married and will eventually have a child, a daughter, that would become Rini/Chibiusa.
Even in civilian form, Mamoru demonstrates a variety of psychic powers throughout each series.
In both the anime and manga he uses psychometry to read past, present, and future events through touch, and heals others' wounds through psychokinesis.
Inconsistently, he is shown teleporting.
Mamoru also demonstrates a spiritual connection with Usagi : he can detect when she has transformed into Sailor Moon.
Early on in the anime series, before they become friends, this connection forcibly transforms Mamoru into Tuxedo Mask, so that he can protect her. In later episodes, he seems to have control over his transformations, although he still shows up shortly after the start of most of the battles, no matter how far away from the developing situation.
The anime gives Tuxedo Mask a stylized transformation sequence, with his tuxedo and accessories forming around him, as he flings - a rose.
His iconic mainstay in the anime involves the use of roses, thrown like darts to injure or distract enemies.
He can also twirl them or throw a wide array to block attacks, or can throw many at a time to pin an enemy down. He seems to have an unlimited supply of these roses, which are supernaturally strong and embed themselves in most any material, including concrete.
In addition, when Mamoru takes on different forms or aspects, his roses change color accordingly.
Tuxedo Mask's roses are red, the evil Prince Endymion's are black and electrified (*Umm.. «lightning», anyone?), and the Moonlight Knight's are white.
Tuxedo Mask's secondary weapon, his cane, often serves as a sword, and he can extend its length, either to attack or to rescue people.
As both Prince Endymion and Moonlight Knight, he uses real swords of different styles.
Mamoru's most important magical possession in the manga, the Golden Crystal, serves as both his star seed and as the Sailor Crystal of the Earth. He uses it in combination with Sailor Moon's Silver Crystal to defend the Solar System. In the anime, although Mamoru has the «golden star seed» of Earth, it differs from the Golden Crystal, which instead is possessed by Pegasus and can be used by people with good intentions.
Who has a star embellished on her chest, burning brightly as the sun?
Bryce.
Who wields the power of the land and can move mountains?
Bryce.
Where does Azriel’s mother, supposedly, resides?
Rose Hall.
Where is Bryce’s father, the Autumn King’s Villa situated?
In the quarter of Five Roses. Near The Rose Gate.
Where is Bryce from?
Lunathion. Luna. The Moon.
Where is Azriel from?
Prythian. To where Silene went. To where Bryce fell, «tumbled between worlds», as a shooting star.
CHAPTER 5
STONE MOTHER
And with each mile onward, Bryce could hear Azriel humming softly to himself … the rolling, wild melody of «Stone Mother» (*Bryce’s favorite song that she chose hours earlier - with her gut - to show him and Nesta) flowed off his lips, and she could have sworn even the shadows danced at the sound.
(Crescent City : House of Flame and Shadow; Bonus Chapter
Sarah J. Maas)
The inspiration behind the foreshadowing of «Stone Mother» takes root in the Native American Legend of Stone Mother, as told by the Elders.
«One day, the father of all Indians, Man, came to an area to live on a mountain near Stillwater.
He was a very great and good man. But he was very lonesome. And wished he had someone to keep him company.
One day, much later, Woman heard about Man. But she was married to Bear.
She wished that someday she might see Man, and this made Bear very jealous.
One day Woman and Bear had a fight.
They fought for a long time, and finally she knocked him down and killed him with a club.
She decided to leave the country and go north in search of Man. She had many interesting experiences on her trip.
She arrived at Stillwater Mountain at last.
There she saw Man, and he was so handsome.
She hid from him, in fear he might leave. But the Man saw her tracks. And started to look for her - calling her out - saying, he knew she was around.
At last she came out of her hiding. She was nervous. And very tired from her trip.
Man noticed this and spoke to her kindly. He asked her to go with him to his camp, where he would give her food. She meekly followed him.
After they finished eating, Man asked Woman to stay with him. That night she stayed near the fire. The next night - she slept by the door. Each night she moved a little bit closer.
On the fifth night they were married.
They had many children.»
So what do we have.
A Man. That is good and very lonely. Azriel.
A Woman. That finds Man very handsome. Bryce. She referred of Azriel being «beautiful» on numerous occasions.
Bear. A force of nature to be reckoned with. Hunt.
And if Hunt’s words of «I would never hurt Bryce» is anything but a foreshadow (*Never say never), he might end up hurting Bryce the way Bryce’s father, the Autumn King, hurt her mother, Ember. That is, «physically».
And ‘that’ would be the most biggest dealbreaker for Bryce, to cut off ties with Hunt, and go out seeking her one and only true - fated - mate - Azriel. The lonesome Man, that lives on a mountain in the north.
And ‘where’ is Velaris and Ramiel mountain situated on the map of Prythian?
That’s right.
In the Night Court.
In the North.
In the land of Starlight and Shadows.
So tell me, my dear friends, that Bryce and Azriel aren’t destined for each other on the biblical scale of FATE 😏✨🦇🖤
