A discussion of the use of the word “oily” throughout the ACOTAR series that suggests it could be associated with the Cauldron, in addition to possible spell-bond hints from a parallel between Lucien’s POV in ACOWAR, and Azriel’s bonus chapter in ACOSF.
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Disclaimer: the following is a theory based on excerpts from the text. It makes no claims of accuracy, and is not anti any character. I am absolutely not suggesting that Lucien is in any way responsible for the existence of a false bond between Elain and himself – if this theory is correct, he is just as much of a victim here as Elain. If you don’t like to read about the possibility of the El*cien bond being false, please keep scrolling. This is not me telling anyone to not ship Elain and Lucien as a couple, just my thoughts on their bond.
TW: brief mention of the potential/hypothetical past genocide of a fantasy faerie species.
Existing theories: this post, by @icedflames, and this post by @elriell, discussing spells, threads and mating bonds.
Credit: all my love and thanks to @wingedblooms, @nikethestatue and @mindpalace05 for your help with this post!
If we look at the ACOTAR text in its entirety, the use of the term “oily” appears to be largely associated with the people and creatures of what is currently known as Hybern, and the events that have taken place there. Perhaps significantly, “oily” also appears to be used in conjunction with the word “spark” in ACOWAR, from which a parallel can be drawn to Azriel’s bonus POV in ACOSF – yet another similarity between Elain’s two most likely endgame love interests, Azriel and Lucien.
Could this be further evidence that the bond between Elain Archeron and Lucien Vanserra did not pre-date Elain’s time in the Cauldron at Hybern? Or that Koschei is involved with the King of Hybern’s use of the Cauldron?
In addition to making the most sense in terms of what we have read so far with regards to the differences in behaviour between Elain and Azriel, and Elain and Lucien – in my opinion, of course – the El*cien bond being a Cauldron Made spell over an actual mating bond would also have the likely benefit of being less messy in terms of rejection, as @nikethestatue has suggested, which would be kinder/less painful on both Elain and Lucien in the long run.
Firstly, let’s read the relevant part of the passage from Lucien’s POV in ACOWAR:
She was the most beautiful female he’d ever seen. Betrayal, queasy and oily, slid through his veins.He’d said the same to Jesminda once. But even as shame washed through him, the words, the sense chanted, Mine. You are mine, and I am yours. Mate. Her eyes were the brown of a fawn’s coat. And he could have sworn something sparked in them as she met his gaze. “Who are you?” He knew without demanding clarification that she was aware of what he was to her. “I am Lucien. Seventh son of the High Lord of the Autumn Court.” – ACOWAR, chapter 24
Lucien felt “oily” betrayal sliding through his veins when his thoughts of Elain’s beauty appeared to eclipse his love and appreciation for Jesminda, his dead fiance. On the surface, the use of “oily” as an adjective to adequately describe the level of betrayal Lucien must feel makes sense, but given the use of oily in other situations throughout the books doesn’t always fit the context of guilt or shame, I suspect that, not only is the use of “oily” here intentionally linking the feeling to Hybern or Koschei, whatever he is, but the fact that Lucien felt the oiliness in his veins – his blood – is also noteworthy, and could be Cauldron specific.
Now, let’s have a look at the remaining examples, in order, before returning to Lucien’s first proper meeting with Elain.
The use of the word “oily” throughout the ACOTAR series
There was beauty in this music—beauty and goodness. The music folded over itself like batter being poured from a bowl, one note atop another, melting together to form a whole, rising, filling me. It wasn’t wild music, but there was a violence of passion in it, a swelling kind of joy and sorrow. I pulled my knees to my chest, needing to feel the sturdiness of my skin, even with the slime of the oily paint upon it. – ACOTAR, chapter 41
In addition to imagery and themes that we’ve come to associate with Elain and Azriel – cake batter and ‘Singing’ etc. – oily paint was used on Feyre at Amarantha of Hybern’s parties Under the Mountain. I also suspect Amarantha made a bargain – or maybe just a deal – with Koschei at some point, but I’ll discuss that in another post.
But my shoulders scraped against the brick, and it reeked in here, like carrion and burned hair, and there was an oily sheen on the stone, like cooked fat— The Weaver’s screaming was cut short as I was halfway up her chimney, sunlight and trees almost visible, every breath a near-sob. – ACOMAF, chapter 21
If Koschei was/is Fionn, and part of the ruling family of the would-have-been Dusk Court – and if the precursor to the Dusk Court was Hybern, before it fell – then the Weaver and the Bone Carver are also related to Dusk/Hybern, and this instance of “oily” still fits the mold.
The box quieted. As if that were answer enough. I snatched the box off the pedestal, the metal biting into my hands, the power an oily smear through my blood. An ancient, cruel voice hissed: Liar. And the door slammed shut. – ACOMAF, chapter 36
The power of the Book of Breathings, which they needed for their mission to Hybern, felt oily in Feyre’s blood. This is potentially remarkable, as the Book of Breathings was created by the Cauldron’s dark maker, in order to control the Cauldron. I also suspect that Koschei was using the King of Hybern for his own ends, but again, that is for another post.
Rhys was unconscious as watery sunlight painted the stone walls, his skin clammy. I checked his wounds and found them barely healed, an oily sheen oozing from them. – ACOMAF, chapter 50
The faebane coated weaponry that Hybern soldiers used to attack Rhys created an oily sheen as the wounds tried to heal, slowing down the process. Feyre needed to use her own Dawn magic, and a herbal remedy, to help him.
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I latched onto the oily smear of its malice, pinpointing my being, my focus onto the core of it. A beacon of corruption and filth. When I emerged from wind and shadow, I was right atop the Attor. – ACOMAF, chapter 59
The Attor worked for both the King of Hybern and Amarantha – and I suspect also Koschei – carrying out some of their cruellest deeds. Could the Attors have originated from the land that is currently Hybern, too?
Saw their plan, clear and simple: rile us, distract us, while the two quiet royals slid into our minds. Mine was shielded. But Lucien’s—Tamlin’s— I reached out with my night-kissed power, casting it like a net. And found two oily tendrils spearing for Lucien’s and Tamlin’s minds, as if they were indeed javelins thrown across the table. – ACOWAR, chapter 2
The twins, Brannagh and Dagdan, were royals from Hybern. Were they also related to Koschei in some way, or had they bargained with him, perhaps for extra power after their king’s planned demise? Given their fate, it’s unlikely that we’ll ever know, but it is fun to wonder.
The guard hanging between the posts had such hope and gratitude in his eyes. In this … in this, my revenge edged toward something oily, something foreign and queasy. He would heal from the pain, but the blow to his honor … It’d take a little piece out of mine as well. Tamlin stared at me, then Ianthe. Then glanced to the smirking Hybern royals—to Jurian, who crossed his arms, his face unreadable. – ACOWAR, chapter 8
The Hybern twins, Ianthe and Jurian were there when Feyre experienced this. All have been associated with Hybern in some way, and Feyre was exacting revenge for Tamlin’s direct involvement with the King of Hybern.
Because where power should have been thrumming from him, obliterating them … It was a muffled rumble. Stifled. He’d tracked it here—that strange damper on his power, on the Siphons’ power. As if some sort of spell had turned his power oily in his grip. Harder to wield. … Trapped within Rhysand’s mind, his powers stifled and body weary, there was nothing I could do but watch as the King of Hybern stepped from belowdecks and smiled at my mate. – ACOWAR, chapter 36
The King of Hybern’s magic, at least part of which I suspect could have been a boon from Koschei (for selfish reasons, of course), had muffled Rhys’ magic – turning it oily, therefore difficult to grasp and wield.
The king rumbled a laugh. “Did you think I’d appear at this battle myself?” He waved a hand toward the soldiers still watching. “A taste—this battle is only a taste for you. To whet your appetite.” Then he was gone. The magic leaking from the boat, the oily sheen it’d laid over Rhys’s power … it vanished, too. – ACOWAR, chapter 37
Once again, the King of Hybern’s magic had laid an oily sheen over Rhys’ power, which vanished as he left.
You said the other day the breathing helped you. It helps me, too. It helped Feyre.” She watched the wall rise in his eyes, word after word. As if he waited for her to rip it down. Rip him down. “Make of that what you will, but it’s true.” Oily shame slithered through her. She’d done that—brought this level of defensiveness to him. Heaviness weighed on her. Started gnawing on her insides. So Nesta said, “Show me another set of movements.” Cassian scanned her face for a heartbeat, his gaze still shuttered, and began his next demonstration. – ACOSF, chapter 15
I suspect that serpent-like imagery, such as “slithered,” is associated with Dusk/Hybern and the Hewn City. This scene also happened at the House of Wind, which could be significant, as Koschei can manipulate the wind for communication.
Were some of Nesta’s feelings, and intrusive thoughts (ie. of gnawing heaviness) – not all, she obviously had genuine trauma from a lot of things, but some – perhaps sent to her by Koschei, in order to keep her weakened? It’s a crazy thought, I know, but the way some of ACOSF is written, I can’t get it out of my mind. Koschei was likely more present than we know.
Now that we’ve discussed every other mention of “oily” throughout the ACOTAR series, and demonstrated that they could plausibly appear to be related to what is currently known as Hybern, and maybe even Koschei himself, with the bonus that the events which are related to the Book of Breathings and/or the Cauldron specifically have the oily feeling in the POV character’s “blood” or “veins,” I believe we can take this a step further. If we draw parallels between the latter portion of Lucien’s ACOWAR passage with Azriel’s ACOSF bonus chapter – the only times at which we’ve seen either of their points of view – which demonstrate the importance of SJM’s careful wording, we may be able to provide evidence that supports the existence of a spelled bond between Lucien and Elain.
Read on…
Lucien’s POV (ACOWAR)
She was the most beautiful female he’d ever seen. Betrayal, queasy and oily, slid through his veins.He’d said the same to Jesminda once. But even as shame washed through him, the words, the sense chanted, Mine. You are mine, and I am yours. Mate. Her eyes were the brown of a fawn’s coat. And he could have sworn something sparked in them as she met his gaze. “Who are you?” He knew without demanding clarification that she was aware of what he was to her. “I am Lucien. Seventh son of the High Lord of the Autumn Court.” – ACOWAR, chapter 24
Oily – power or magic related to either Dusk, Hybern and/or Koschei.
Blood/veins – specific to the Cauldron or Book of Breathings; is Koschei the dark maker of both the Cauldron and the Book of Breathings? The Book of Breathings said that it was going home when it was being taken back to the Cauldron, when it was located at Hybern.
Chanted – chanting is often used to describe words when specifically used to cast spells, or sing. We know, per Helion, that spells are threads, and from both Feyre and Rhys, and Nesta and Cassian, that mating bonds are made up of multiple golden threads and a bridge.
Are all mating bonds just innate spells?
As I mentioned earlier, @icedflames and @elriell have both discussed this in depth, here and here, so I won’t rehash (though I do highly recommend their brilliant posts), but I still strongly stand behind my opinion that, whether the Elucien bond is a mating bond, or another sort of spelled bond – though I lean towards the latter – it didn’t predate Elain’s time in the Cauldron. For reference, here is my discussion of Lucien’s behaviour when Elain was threatened, when compared to Cassian’s actions as Nesta faced a similar threat, and even Azriel’s unconscious cry at Hybern’s castle; Lucien appeared to take his lead from Tamlin’s actions before Elain was put under, and then, afterwards, called for Tamlin to “get her (Elain) back.” Azriel, on the other hand, said that he was “getting her (Elain) back” himself, and Cassian aimed to do the same for Nesta in the Blood Right. Lucien’s actions appeared to mimic a bond, but they weren’t truly the same (and no shame to him, he’d never met Elain before).
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We know that Lucien felt “a real thread” between Elain and himself, but it was only the one/singular, as well as being “tied to a rib,” as Elain said, not her, or their, chests or souls (ACOWAR, chapter 29). This could be important, given the mating bonds between Feyre and Rhys, and Nesta and Cassian, all appear to contain multiple golden threads.
Sparked – in addition to “glow” (post by @sciencebaetch), the word “spark” is often used to describe magic, such as when Feyre was training her powers and attempting to light a candle. Rhys sent her a note along with her lunch:
I’m bored. Any sparks yet? – ACOMAF, chapter 25
Perhaps significantly, Lucien saw something spark in Elain’s “fawn” coloured eye when they first met in Velaris (and he knew that she knew what he was to her) right after his senses chanted “mine” and, as we later found out, Azriel felt something spark in his chest when he was walking away from Clotho, followed by him seeing the image of Gwyn’s teal eyes, in his own bonus chapter. Both events occurred at the House of Wind – once again, wind is associated with Koschei.
Could the spark that Lucien saw indicate a spell activating due to his proximity to Elain, or his/their being at the House of Wind? Once again, I do not think that any of this is intentional on Lucien’s behalf, and he is likely just as clueless about this hypothetical situation as Elain.
Azriel’s POV (ACOSF)
Azriel couldn’t stop it. The envy in his chest. Of Cassian, and Rhys.
Elain shuddered, drifting closer. So close one deep breath would brush her breasts against his chest.
Something sparked in Azriel’s chest, but he only nodded his thanks and left. He could picture it, though, as he ascended the stairs back to the House proper. How Gwyn’s teal eyes might light upon seeing the necklace. For whatever reason… he could see it. – ACOSF, Azriel’s bonus chapter
Chest – we come across Azriel feeling envy in his chest, where we know mating bonds are felt – and thanks to Cassian, we know that Azriel knows this, too – while thinking of both Feyre and Rhys, and Nesta and Cassian.
SJM then brought Azriel and Elain chest to chest (“breast”), almost touching, which could potentially be further imagery of the existence of a mating – or other – bond between the two of them, ie. chests, two halves of a hypothetical whole/true bond, that need to be reunified (of course, hopefully with the consent of both parties). This wasn’t the first time that SJM has used imagery or symbolism to suggest the existence of some sort of bond between Elain and Azriel, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.
We then saw Azriel experiencing a spark in his chest, followed by him picturing Gwyn’s teal eyes lighting as she saw the necklace. Now, I’m not saying it was Gwyn who was responsible for this – I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that the library could be one of a few havens of sorts for lightsingers, who are, in reality, not monsters at all, but drastically misunderstood (and perhaps even vilified) beings* – but this occurred during a dusk service, when multiple priestesses were singing – what if one was Singing (ie. with power) at the same time? I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that the spark Azriel felt in his chest, much like the one Lucien saw in Elain’s eye, back in ACOWAR, was likely a spell, courtesy of someone in the library who has immense power. Merrill is the obvious choice, but who knows?
* Consider me part of the Lightsinger PR Department. I could be wrong, of course, and completely overthinking things, but I do not think that lightsingers are inherently evil; rather that they have agency over their actions like any other being and, therefore, they contain the same capacity to be either good or bad (or morally grey!) as individuals. This would fit with SJM’s treatment of many other ‘monsters,’ that were, in fact, good or helpful to the protagonist, such as the Suriel, the water wraiths from Spring, and the Bone Carver, to name just a few (she loves to subvert our expectations).
Additionally, I suspect that the lightsinger luring power is NOT sexual in nature, unless and until they choose it to be so (the Cauldron’s “siren song” in ACOWAR, for instance, lured Elain with an image of Graysen having come to take her home – so, not sexual, but rather something for which she desperately longed at the time). I believe that their spells are cast with music/song – simple as that – and the intended effect is different for each person.
I aim to go into this further in a dedicated post, but I would not be surprised to learn that lightsingers have been vilified because they were a group of women (females) who assisted in some sort of historical war or political event, perhaps millennia ago, when Fionn/Koschei was hypothetically overthrown? If this is the case, the stories that Cassian relayed to us in ACOSF were likely designed to intentionally mislead people about lightsingers, in order to punish them for their involvement in said historical event, and lead to their eventual annihilation as a species of faerie, as people would, and have, hunted them down to the point they need to go into hiding.
I also posit that lightsingers were always associated with the priestesses of the Mother outside of the library sanctuary, and that factions arose within the ranks of the priestesses, with some being good/loyal to Prythian – and others not – but that this is separate to their species, same as any race of faerie. However, due to the theoretical aim to punish lightsingers for some past event, they are more likely to be attacked if found out, hence the potential cluster of lightsingers as priestesses, especially those who have experienced trauma.
But I digress, and I’ll try to write that post asap.
So, is the El*cien bond a spell?
This builds on my thoughts that shadowsingers and lightsingers could be related to daemati (post is in the works), as well as my extended, very crackish theory that they could both be associated with sorcerers and witches, but I do wonder whether they have the ability to read someone’s greatest desire and use that to lure them into whatever situation/activity etc. they require. If a lightsinger wanted to lure Aelin Galathynius, for example, they could plant the image of a chocolate cake in her mind.
What if the events were as follows:
Elain and Lucien – Lucien saw something spark in Elain’s eye, when they had their first proper meeting at the House of Wind. Was it a spell activating to approximate a mating bond, so she saw ‘what’ Lucien was to her, but not whom?
Azriel and Gwyn – Koschei himself, or one of the (hypothetical) lightsinger-priestesses, maybe one who was singing in their dusk service when Azriel found himself ‘at the library beneath the House of Wind’ – and again, not necessarily Gwyn! – used Azriel’s desire for a bond with Elain to craft a spell, but mimicked it with the image of Gwyn’s eyes, for whatever reason (most likely one that furthers the plot).
Therefore, assuming some sort of existing bond, mating or otherwise, between Azriel and Elain – and over multiple books they have both consistently demonstrated, or been written with imagery that suggests, that something like this may be the case – I still think it likely that the Cauldron, thanks to either Hybern or Koschei, and the faebane coated arrow that pierced Azriel’s chest – where mating bonds are felt – somehow muffled the bond between Elain and Az, allowing a new spell, perhaps one that mimicked or approximated a mating bond – to thread its way between Elain and Lucien.
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