Though it had never quite come to her like this before, Aeriel realized that she had never known Erin with her own heart in her breast. I had never thought of canon that way, but you're right; Aeriel did have Irrylath's heart all the time she knew Erin, until the very end of the trilogy. That is a really nifty conceit to weave a story around.
The metaphysics of heart-switching aside, I love how you describe Aeriel's weary despair and heartsickness at the start, and how Erin's embrace comforts her. I also really like that while Erin supports Aeriel implicitly in her task, she also never stops seeing her as a human woman, with all the needs of humanity, and so she makes Aeriel linger at the pool for a while. And finally, I love the brief descriptions of the world after the torrential rain, cleansed and greening even before Aeriel sets to work on her long task of restoration.
I honestly believe that Pierce was intending an ending sort of like this--switching their hearts back, sending Irrylath off with Sabr and Aeriel off with Erin . . . it seems the natural conclusion that they'd both realize they loved other people more. (And they should; their romance was never very healthy.)
This comment is so wonderful, thank you so much. I really appreciate it. It was a joy to get to go back and write in this universe, but I was always a little sad knowing how tiny (non-existant) the fandom was. Seeing people who know these books and enjoy them enough to comment on fic for them makes my day. :)
Comment on Tears of the World
Elizabeth Culmer (edenfalling)
Posted Sun 27 Dec 2009 07:21PM EST
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Van
Posted Fri 01 Jan 2010 02:41PM EST
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