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I love my people, and my family. Do not think I wouldn’t become a monster to keep them protected.

–Rhysand, A Court of Mist and Fury

Rhysand (pronounced Ree-sand[1]) is the most powerful High Lord in history and the current ruler of the Night Court, alongside Feyre Archeron.

He is incredibly handsome and appears to be arrogant, careless, and cold at first. He meets Feyre when he saves her from three faeries at Calanmai. Not long after, he helps Feyre countless times throughout her trials Under the Mountain and goes as far as to fight for her in the final moments before she dies.

When she is resurrected, their mating bond clicks into place, but he hides it from her in fear that it would scare her away. In the end, she accepts the mating bond and he swears Feyre in as his High Lady.

History

Early Life

Rhysand was born to the then-High Lord of the Night Court and his mate, an Illyrian seamstress. He is half-High Fae, and half-Illyrian, and once had a younger sister.

When Rhysand was eight, his mother took him to an Illyrian war camp to be trained as she did not want him to rely on his Fae powers alone. When he arrived, he met Cassian and they immediately despised each other. Cassian was born a bastard, so he was given nothing and had to find his own shelter and food. Rhysand saw him walking in the cold one night and realized for the first time what it was like to not be warm, safe, and cared for. The fact that Cassian would be forced to stay in the cold didn't sit well with Rhysand, so he went out and tracked Cassian to his tent, woke him up, and invited him to stay at his house.

Even though they lived under the same roof, they still hated each other and only behaved because if one of them got into trouble or provoked the other, then neither of them ate that night. His mother also tutored Cassian, but it wasn't until Azriel arrived a year later that they decided to be allies. Rhysand and Cassian made Azriel's life a living hell, but Rhysand's mother had known Azriel's mother and decided to take him in. As they grew older, they realized that they had better odds of survival sticking together, and stopped tormenting one another.

His Succession as High Lord

During various court functions over the years, Rhysand got to know Tamlin, the youngest son of the High Lord of Spring Court at the time. Being a half-breed Illyrian who had to prove himself and defend his power, Rhys saw what Tamlin was going through and befriended him. He sought Tamlin out whenever he was able to get away from war-camps or court and taught him some Illyrian techniques. His family disapproved and Tamlin's father was threatened by him, and because he thought he was weaker than both Tamlin and Rhysand, he wanted to prove that he wasn't.

One day, Rhysand's mother and sister were traveling to the Illyrian war-camp to see him. He was supposed to meet them halfway, but he was busy training a new unit and decided to stay. Tamlin's father, brothers, and Tamlin himself set out into the Illyrian wilderness. He knew from Rhysand, where his mother and sister would be and that he had plans to see them. Rhysand was supposed to be there, and when they found out that he wasn't, they slaughtered his mother and sister anyway. They put their heads in boxes and sent them down the river, to the nearest camp. Tamlin's father kept their wings as trophies.

When Rhysand and his father heard, they winnowed to the edge of the Spring Court that night, then went the rest of the way on foot to the manor. When they got there, Rhysand slew Tamlin's brothers on sight. He held their minds and rendered them helpless while he cut them into pieces, then melted their brains inside their skulls. However, when he got to the High Lord's bedroom, Rhysand found the High Lord and his wife dead, killed by his father, even after he had promised not to touch Tamlin's mother. Rhysand's father went for Tamlin's room next, and Rhys tried to stop him, but he didn't listen. Rhysand was going to kill Tamlin too, but couldn't let his father do it. He didn't care that Tamlin had been there, had allowed them to kill his mother and sister, that he'd come to kill Rhys because he didn't want to risk standing against them. He was done with death, so he stopped his father before the door. When his father tried to go through him, Tamlin opened the door and saw them both, and smelled the blood spilled from his father's room, and killed Rhys' father in one blow.

Moments later, the powers from the two deceased High Lords shifted to both of them respectively, crowning them both as the new High Lords of their courts. After that, Rhys ran from the Spring Court, and harbored a deep hatred for one another ever since.

When the War between mortals and faeries started Rhysand was 28 years old. He, like the rest of the Night Court, fought on the side of mortals. As the High Lord of the Spring Court was a close ally of the King of Hybern and his commander Amarantha, once she seized power from the seven High Lords of Prythian, she took Rhysand as her personal sex slave as punishment for being the son of the man who killed his greatest ally in the war against humans.

From then on, Rhysand was forced to live with her Under the Mountain and indulge her carnal desires and perform the tasks she gave him. This would give him severe post-traumatic stress.

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Rhysand attends the Calanmai celebration at the Spring Court. There, Rhysand saves Feyre from three faeries who were harassing her. Curious as to why a mortal is attending the Fire Night celebrations, Rhysand asks if she wishes to be escorted away. Feyre denies his offer and hurries away quickly. However, before leaving she briefly pauses to ask if he's part of the Spring Court, to which he replies that he isn't and is proud of that fact.

Later, as a nostalgic gift, Rhysand sends the head of a male High Fae, the Fae's face is fixed in an anguished expression and spiked on top of a fountain statue to the Spring Court. It is branded with the Night Court's sigil of a mountain and three stars.

Rhysand visits the Spring Court to check up on Tamlin. Feyre is glamoured from his view beforehand by Lucien Vanserra. Rhys compliments Lucien's mask, earning a retorted insult. He continues to ask Tamlin about the severed head that he had previously given him, to which Tamlin expresses his displeasure. Rhysand snaps a number of insults to Tamlin about his personality and his pathetic court. Tamlin ignores him, but Lucien becomes angry and calls him "Amarantha's whore" as an insult. Both argue, but it is ended quickly by Rhys warning Tamlin that Amarantha is preparing for them.

Just as Rhysand was about to leave, he notices three plates on the table, becoming curious about who the other guest is. Quickly, Tamlin lies and says he sent the guest off. Unfortunately, Rhysand sees through this trick and expresses his outrage that they glamoured Feyre. He remarks that he remembers Feyre from Fire Night. Lucien lies and says that she is his betrothed to keep her out of trouble. Once again, Rhysand sees through the lie and threatens the Autumn Court and his family. Rhysand appears to enjoy tormenting Lucien and mutters that he should not dabble with mortals. This hits a nerve with Lucien, who begins to shake out of fear. Rhysand then uses his powers to read Feyre's mind which causes her pain. When he reads Feyre's thoughts, he discovers that she is thinking of Tamlin, he realizes that she is actually Tamlin's love and not Lucien's. Rhysand makes both Tamlin and Lucien beg with their foreheads on the floor for Rhysand not to tell Amarantha about Feyre, and asks for her name before he leaves.

Rhysand is present when Feyre first approaches Amarantha and declares her love for Tamlin, Amarantha tells her that in order to free him she must face three trials and perform chores to pay for her keep. It is revealed that Rhysand did, in fact, relay the news of Feyre's existence to Amarantha. When confronted by Rhysand, Feyre gave a fake name, Clare Beddor, to protect her identity. Clare was a girl Feyre knew from her village, and it is discovered that Amarantha hunted this girl down and her house was set on fire with her family inside. She is dragged into the Faerie territory, locked up Under the Mountain, and tortured for days on end before her mortal body finally gave out, and Amarantha ordered her remains be strung up in the throne room to further her humiliation. Strangely enough, Amarantha was under the impression that Feyre had not lied and that she really was Clare Beddor, for Amarantha had received a positive identification from Rhysand.

During the first trial, he is the only one who bets on her. Feyre is victorious but is severely wounded by the Middengard Wyrm and is slowly dying of a nasty infection. With Lucien unable to reach her, Feyre is forced to rely on Rhysand, seeing as how she is in desperate need of healing. Rhysand agrees to heal her shattered arm, but only if she agrees that if she manages to defeat Amarantha and escapes with the Spring Court, she must willingly visit Rhysand in the Night Court for two weeks every month for the rest of her life. Feyre declines at first, horrified at the prospect. Understanding that she will almost certainly die from the infection before Lucien can sneak away to help her, she realizes she has no other choice. She accepts his offer, but only after managing to negotiate down to one week instead of two. Rhysand grabs her injured arm to pressure her into the bargain. A permanent tattoo marks their promise.

In between the trials, Rhysand protects Feyre from receiving extra torture from the errands assigned by the guards. However, he makes her wear transparent slips that barely cover her body that she finds humiliating. He forces her to drink faerie wine that makes her completely lose control of her body and her memories. He makes her do sensual dances and sit on his lap against her will. He has her body painted blue-black paint to know if someone touched her. She spends her days sleeping off the faerie wine, dozing to escape the humiliation she endures.

During the second trial, Rhysand provides much-needed assistance to Feyre, seeing as how it is now in his best interest that she lives. The trial involved reading and comprehension, which Feyre, at the time, could not do. She was almost completely illiterate, and would have certainly failed if not for him. She does it by causing great pain to shoot up the tattoo on her arm when she goes to hit the lever for the wrong answer.

After the second trial, Rhysand found Tamlin and Feyre kissing, and intimidates Tamlin to leave. He then scolds Feyre, saying what could have happened if Amarantha had seen Tamlin and Feyre together. However, while they were arguing, Rhysand's head suddenly snapped toward the door and he kissed Feyre just as Amarantha came in with Tamlin and a crowd of Fae. He did it to hide the evidence that Tamlin made out with Feyre, and also he is the one who prevents Feyre from breaking down emotionally in front of all the Fae who are watching her.

Feyre is taken to Rhysand's room by Amarantha's guards to take out lentils that have fallen into the fireplace, saying that if she doesn't take them all out before the room's owner arrives he will skin her. Rhysand uses his magic to clean it and remove all the lentils for her, and threatens the guards.

One day Rhysand visits Feyre in her cell and tells her why Amarantha keeps him as her personal sex slave. It is because his father had killed Tamlin's father, who was one of Amarantha's main allies during the war with the humans.

After Feyre completed the third trial and is tortured by Amarantha, Rhysand, although he can not wield a considerable amount of power against Amarantha, attempts to defend Feyre. His efforts, of course, are pointless and had no effect on the situation. Later he tells her that he had done it so she would know he was there, and that if she was going to die, at least she wouldn't be alone. After Amarantha's death, at the hands of Tamlin, Rhysand, along with the other five High Lords, regain their power in full and Rhys is able to use his ability to influence and infiltrate the mind to convince the other High Lords to resurrect Feyre and remake her as High Fae.

The two (Feyre and Rhysand) do not part as enemies, but converse amicably, each reveling in their newfound freedom. In the end, Rhysand, in an uncharacteristically awkward motion, stumbles and immediately winnows away mid-conversation with no explanation. Feyre is shocked and left confused by this, not knowing that Rhysand fled because he felt their mating bond-slip into place, the sensation stronger and clearer than ever before. Rhys goes on to hide this fact from her for the majority of A Court of Mist and Fury.

A Court of Mist and Fury

Rhysand plays a huge role in A Court of Mist and Fury. It starts with him being absent from Feyre's life for three months after Amarantha's defeat.

He intercepts Feyre and Tamlin's wedding as soon as he hears Feyre's pleas for help through their bond. He takes Feyre to the Night Court on behalf of their bargain made Under the Mountain. He notices Feyre's weight loss and explains that he can see everything Feyre has been through—her vomiting each night and her lack of desire to paint—because of their bond. She meets Rhys's distant cousin there, Morrigan. Rhys proceeds to teach her how to read and how to shield her mind from being trespassed, and she reluctantly goes along with it. Before he sends her back to the Spring Court, he asks her for help after revealing that war is coming.

The second time Rhys comes to collect Feyre, he remarks on the amount of food in the Spring Court after noticing her loss of weight once more. When Tamlin requests to end her bargain in exchange for anything at all, Rhys claims that he already has everything he wants and whisks Feyre away. He again asks her about his offer for her role in the upcoming war and she denies him, much to his dismay. He sees her falling apart silently from her trauma of Amarantha, and wants to help her. When she refuses, he riles her to the point where she finally feels something rather than just emptiness and sorrow, and her rage leads to her using her newfound abilities from the High Lords of the other Courts.

Rhys orders Mor to take Feyre from the Spring Court after she is unwillingly locked in by Tamlin. He gives Feyre permission to stay at the Night Court for however long she wants whilst she figures things out. When Feyre asks to follow Rhys out to wherever he's going, he warns her that she will not be able to share what she will see with anyone, including her friends in the Spring Court. Feyre promises not to, and he brings her to Velaris, the City of Starlight, where his people live in peace and harmony—and had withstood Amarantha's reign.

Rhys introduces Feyre to his Inner Circle, his cousin and Third in Command, Mor; his army commander, Cassian; his spymaster, Azriel; and his Second in Command, Amren. After dining with them and hearing of Cassian's past with Rhys in a war-camp, Mor convincing her that she is no longer part of the Spring Court, and Cassian offering to help teach her to fight, Feyre accepts Rhys's offer to work with him. They continue discussing the upcoming war and Jurian, and when their only chance in knowing how to defeat the King of Hybern was to talk to the Bone Carver in the Prison, Rhys gives Feyre the choice in accompanying him. She does.

The Bone Carver tells Rhys and Feyre that the only way that Jurian could possibly be freed from his eternal prison and returned to his body is by the magic of the ancient the Cauldron, from which the world was born. The Cauldron, however, has been lost for centuries but has been apparently recovered by the King of Hybern. The only known way to counteract the effects of the Cauldron is preserved in the Book of Breathings. The Book was divided into two parts. One half is possessed by the High Lord of the Summer Court, Tarquin, and the other half is in the care of the Mortal Queens from across the sea.

The Bone Carver also reveals something that Rhysand has known all along: when Feyre was resurrected by the seven High Lords and remade as Fae, she unknowingly and unwittingly siphoned their powers, and now carries within her the chief abilities of all seven Prythian High Lords, including Rhysand and Tamlin. In order to test her abilities and the extent of her powers, Rhysand has her face the Weaver, an ancient, wicked creature who fiercely guards over her vast treasure hoard, and also happens to be blind. Feyre is tasked by Rhys to steal one of his family heirlooms, a ring that had belonged to his mother, from the Weaver and escaped unnoticed, if possible. Events do not permit this, and, although Feyre manages to successfully lift the ring, she barely escapes with her life. She curses Rhysand for not intervening, but he simply states that she must learn how to do things on her own. Because she was able to find the precious artifact belonging to Rhysand, it is determined that she can track the possessions of High Lords and is ready to search for the half of the Book of Breathings belonging to Tarquin.

Rhys, Feyre, and Amren travel to the Summer Court, and Feyre pretends to befriend Tarquin in an attempt to discern from him the location of the Book of Breathings, but somewhere along the way she begins to grow fond of him and starts to regret deceiving him so. She also feels sparks of jealousy, for Rhysand engaging in a very flirtatious and possibly sexual relationship with Cresseida. The two tease each other regarding their separate prospective romances, but neither go beyond words. Whilst stealing the Book of Breathings, Rhysand fails to wipe the minds of the Summer guards, leading to Tarquin's discovery of the Night Court's betrayal and his public denouncement of the said court. He even goes as far as to demand their deaths. Amren finds this quite amusing.

Rhysand, however, does not. He regards this as a personal failure and is extremely ashamed. Feyre attempts to cheer him up, or at least, spur him into action. For a moment, they go beyond flirting, which makes Feyre uncomfortable. They are interrupted by Azriel, to whom Feyre is grateful. Later, Feyre finds herself fantasizing about Rhysand, only to find out that he had been playing with her mind and influencing her thoughts the entire time. She curses him.

That night, Rhysand has a horrific nightmare that causes the entire town house to tremble and shake. Feyre rushes to his side in an attempt to soothe him but finds herself unable to wake him. Overcome with fear and something else, Feyre lashes out with her own power to defend herself, using the abilities she inherited from Rhys. After waking, Rhys reveals that he too suffers from nightmares from his time Under the Mountain and the trauma Amarantha inflicted on him. Feyre is happy to be in his confidence and feels a certain closeness between them. It is then that she is inspired to paint again, an activity she had lost interest in after the events Under the Mountain.

After a night of literally sharing a bed, Rhysand is shot out of the sky with ash arrows by Hybern's soldiers. Feyre rescues him, and in an attempt to heal him, goes to find the Suriel. The Suriel reveals not only the antidote for Rhys's wounds but also that Feyre is Rhysand's mate. After winnowing Rhysand to safety, a confused and angry Feyre leaves to spend time in solitude for a while.

Rhys eventually finds her and explains his actions, prompting Feyre to accept the mating bond. The two sleep together.

The Inner Circle meets with the Mortal Queens, and to their dismay, learn that the Queens are not at all interested in an alliance and have no intention of bequeathing their half of the Book of Breathings to the Night Court. Indeed, they have already written off the small portion of Prythian that is occupied by mortals as indefensible and a waste of resources when it comes to protection. The queens, who are untrusting of the Fae, and who have heard of Rhysand and supposedly abhorrent court, demand proof that Rhys and the Night Court mean well, and Rhysand, with no other option, agrees to show them Velaris. Not to give them a guiding tour of the city, of course, but show proof of its existence, and prove that he is indeed a "male of peace"[8] as he claims.

Hybern soon attacks Velaris and knew its whereabouts because of the mortal queens.

Towards the end, it is said that Feyre is sworn as the High Lady of the Night Court before they go to Hybern to try to nullify the Cauldron. They then witness the transformation of Elain and Nesta Archeron from mortal to High Fae. Feyre makes an act of freeing from Rhysand's power and then asks the King of Hybern to break the bond. She then goes with Tamlin and Lucien back to the Spring Court but now as a spy.

A Court of Wings and Ruin

During the duration of Feyre's stay at the Spring Court, her and Rhysand communication takes place only through their mating bond. Feyre feeds Rhysand tidbits of information regarding the Spring Court, and he assures her of the safety and well-being of their friends, Cassian and Azriel, and her sisters, Elain and Nesta. Due to the catastrophic effects of the faebane, Feyre is unable to contact Rhysand after leaving the Spring Court. After a while, the effects begin to wear off, and Rhysand sends Cassian, and Azriel to rescue her from the sons of Beron Vanserra, unable to do it himself due to the fact that he was currently collecting intelligence and looking for possible allies in this new war on the continent. He sends Azriel to Cretea to look for Drakon and Miryam but he couldn't see them since the island had a glamour to make it look like a ruin to anyone who doesn't belong to it.

Rhys races back to Velaris to greet Feyre, and the two immediately make passionate love to one another. Afterward, Rhysand agrees to offer sanctuary to Lucien, who had fled the Spring Court with Feyre, despite their mutual animosity towards each other. Feyre soon visits her sisters who stay in the House of Wind in the Night Court. She finds Nesta in the library who later is revealed to have daily fights with Cassian. She visits Elain's room later in and finds her in a bad condition and wants to go back to Graysen, a human, as they are supposed to be married in a week.

Afterward, the Inner Circle begins to weigh their various possible allies, and decide to host a meeting with the High Lords of all courts to seek help for the looming war, letters are sent to all the High Lords to schedule a meeting. They have also decided to seek help with one of the mortal queen who was cursed and sold to a death-lord who adores beautiful young women. Lucien volunteers and he is sent off to fetch, Vassa, the cursed queen.

As the King of Hybern wants back the power that Nesta took from the Cauldron, he sends two of his Ravens to kidnap her, which they could not do and died trying at the hands of Rhys and Bryaxis.

Days before the original date of the meeting with the High Lords, Amren receives information from Varian, Prince of Adriata, that the Summer Court is being attacked by Hybern as Feyres destruction of the Spring court left Summer defensless. Mor, Azriel, Cassian, Rhysand, Feyre, and some Illyrian soldiers help Tarquin. Tarquin sees Mor, Rhys, and Feyre after the battle and he is quite angry as he was once betrayed by who he thought were his friends.

The meeting then happens in the Dawn Court Palace, the residence of the High Lord of the Dawn Court, Thesan as it is the closest place to the Middle. Here we meet the other High Lords and their delegations. (In order of appearance) Thesan, High Lord of Dawn, with his lover and his captain. Helion, High Lord of the Day Court, later seen as a close ally, came in with a few of his men. Kallias, High Lord of the Winter Court, and his wife and mate, Viviane. Tarquin, High Lord of the Summer Court, comes with Varian and Cresseida, who then later frees Rhys, Feyre, and Amren from the blood rubies he gave them. Beron, High Lord of Autumn, comes in late with his wife and all his sons including Eris Vanserra. Right before they start, Tamlin comes in alone, and during the meeting, because of his foul words, Rhysand takes away his ability to speak. During the meeting, Feyre's powers are also revealed when she tries to attack Beron despite the rules forbidding it.

During the second day of the meeting, the wall breaks and the High Lords prepare for war. The first of the courts to fight were Night (made up of Illyrians and the Darkbringers of the Hewn City) and Summer Courts, Day, Dawn, and Winter Courts join later. In the final battle, the Autumn Court joins in because of Tamlin's threatening. They come in with a few members of the Spring Court and Tamlin and also the human army brought by Jurian. Drakon, Miryam, Vassa, and Feyre's father also help. Because of the low chances of winning, Feyre previously had a bargain with Bryaxis, the monster in the Night Court library, and the Bone Carver to help. Rhys reveals that he, too, made a bargain with the Weaver for her services.

They win the war, thanks to Amren's help in transforming to her true form. Her transformation causes the Cauldron to break, Feyre and Rhysand join their powers to reforge it. So much power is required that Rhysand dies in the process. Feyre begs the other High Lords to bring him back and they do as they had done with her Under the Mountain. When Rhys was dead, he saw Amren and offered his hand to see if she wanted to come back with him. Amren is fished out of the Cauldron by Mor and she is now a High Fae.

A short time later he attends a meeting called by Feyre in the ruins of the Archeron's Estate to renegotiate a new treaty between faeries and mortals.

He is seen drinking on Velaris with his friends and later flying over the city with Feyre.

At the end of the book, Rhys and Feyre swear an oath to one another that when either one of them dies, the other will as well, so that they will be together until the end of time.

A Court of Frost and Starlight

After the end of the War with Hybern, Feyre fully assumes her role as High Lady, helping to rebuild Velaris and maintaining old alliances and forging new ones between the Fae and mortal realms with Rhysand to try to keep the peace. While she is helping out in the city, Rhys goes with Cassian to the Windhaven Camp, which is led by Devlon, to try and stem the tide of animosity between the Illyrians after the war, since a good part of them believe that the deaths of their people in the war were due to revenge by Rhysand and his Inner Circle.

Meanwhile, Winter Solstice is approaching, a big celebration in the Night Court, and also Feyre's 21st birthday, and Rhys is debating what to get her. He is unsure what to get to her since she is so much younger than he is.

In an attempt to preserve the peace he goes to the Spring Court to talk to Tamlin and finds him a mess, dead in life, not caring about himself or his lands having lost everything. Rhys mocks Tamlin and when Tamlin asks if Feyre would forgive him, Rhys tells him that he is not the one to give that answer and tells him that they would not let him die while peace was still not assured.

He eventually ends up buying a estate for Feyre to build the biggest house in town so they can live in comfort together with their friends and family, as well as the rest of the family they intend to build together.

A Court of Silver Flames

Feyre becomes pregnant, but due to her being in Illyrian form at the time of conception, the baby has wings. Feyre has gone back to her normal High Fae form and doesn't have the anatomy to birth an Illyrian baby and will die giving birth. Rhysand learns of this fact from Madja, his personal and favorite healer, who is seeing Feyre through her pregnancy, he decides to conceal this fact from her to spare her the stress of knowing while he desperately searches for a solution to the situation. After searching and asking everywhere he possibly can, he finds there is no solution.

Feyre learns about the truth of her pregnancy from her sister Nesta, and is very hurt that her mate and the Inner Circle decided to lie to her. But they seemingly move on from the situation. When Nesta revealed the truth to Feyre, Rhysand became enraged and wanted to kill Nesta.

One night as Spring dawns in Velaris and Feyre was two months away from giving birth, Rhysand sees a rare red star blasting across the sky while with Feyre.[9] Sarah J. Mass confirmed this red star is Aelin Galathynius as she falls through darkness and passes through worlds, one of which is Prythian after using the wyrdkeys to open the wyrdgates in Kingdom of Ash. Rhysand actually sees her falling but he's "weirded out by it" so he claims he saw a red star. Rhys senses she's in trouble and reaches with his magic to slow down her fall.[10]

Later when Feyre goes into early labor Madja delivers the baby. The baby becomes wedged in the birth canal and Feyre is losing too much blood. Through her magic Madja can feel the baby's heartbeat and says he is in distress. After Mor asks her what do they do, she tells her that there is nothing they can do as cutting the baby out of Feyre will kill her, and the baby as well as he is too small yet. Feyre tells her to do it anyway. Madja tells Rhysand to use his daemati abilities to take Feyre's pain away and she grabs her set of knives to make the incision. When she cuts out the winged baby, he doesn't make a sound and she hands him to Mor. Then Feyre starts to die, and Rhysand is being hauled away from her by Cassian and Azriel so Madja can continue trying to save Feyre.

Nesta is present at the birth and feels Death hoovering nearby. She decides to wear the Mask, the Crown and cradle the Harp in her arms and plucks the twenty-sixth string, the string of Time itself. She stops time as Feyre takes her last breath. She makes a bargain with the Cauldron and gives back the power she had stolen from it in exchange for saving Feyre, the baby and by extension Rhys, since he would die as well due to his bargain to die with Feyre.

Madja examines Feyre's healing noticing she now has an Illyrian's anatomy, and tells her to feed the now healthy baby. Rhysand is overcome with gratitude over Nesta saving his family and kneels down before her kissing her hands, something he has only ever done before for Feyre. The pair share a moment and hug each other.

Rhysand showers Nesta with gifts and riches of all types, even gifting her one of his residences, the House of Wind. Nesta as a way to make him stop giving her so many things, tells him that a very ornate mating ceremony will make them even. Rhys is happy to oblige to her wishes and prepares everything for her mating ceremony with his brother Cassian in the small temple of the grounds of the River House.

House of Sky and Breath

The following section contains details and spoilers for the Crescent City series
SPOILERS AHEAD!

After Bryce Quinlan manages to escape the Asteri by opening a gate to travel through the worlds to reach Hel in order to request aid from the Princes, she accidentally lands somewhere in Velaris near the Sidra River instead, carrying with her the Starsword. Azriel finds her, blindfolds her, and flies her to a residence, carrying her to the living room. Bryce is there for a few moments with Azriel, Amren, Cassian and Nesta, until Feyre and Rhysand arrive. Feyre enters the room first, Rhysand entering after her. When Bryce sees Rhysand she gasps and calls out her brother's name, Ruhn, remarking on their similarities, eyes the same shade of violet blue, hair of the same gleaming black and the same face and posture as her brother although Rhysand's skin was browner. Rhysand only stares at her, also noticing the sword. Bryce pleads her case to Amren and she translates to the others. Feyre then asks Bryce for her name, and Amren translates the question. Bryce addresses Rhysand and Feyre noticing they possess an air of authority, and tells them her name. Rhysand steps forward, smiling slightly and introduces himself in the Old Language saying: "Hello, Bryce Quinlan. My name is Rhysand".

Appearance

Rhysand is described to be tall, heartbreakingly handsome and has short blue-black hair, like a raven's feathers, and violet eyes with flecks of silver like starlight. He has tan skin, however, he was also once pale because he was forced Under the Mountain for so long, and gained back his coloring after spending time in Velaris. He also has tattoos decorating his arms and muscular chest. He has tattoos on both of his knees of mountains with 3 stars on top of the mountains, representing that he will bow for nothing and no one but his crown. He has a small, curling tattoo behind his ear, for his deal with the Weaver. He also has a tattoo on his left forearm, wrist to elbow, for his promise to move on to the next life at the same time as Feyre.

He has giant, smooth membranous wings that are flecked with a hint of iridescence and are clawed like a bat's that he can summon and hide at will. He wears rich clothing, cloaked in tendrils of night: an ebony tunic brocaded with gold and silver, dark pants, and black boots that reached his knees.

His beauty and handsomeness are said to be legendary, greater so far than anyone else's in Prythian. He radiates sensual grace and ease and keeps his composure most of the time.

In his beast form, Rhys has dark feathers or scales, wings, elongated canines, talons, and the face of a terrifying creature[11]

Personality

He is very arrogant, as he knows exactly how handsome he is, occasionally throwing jokes and comments about his heartbreaking beauty. He is extremely dark in terms of his behavior and has an air of mystery, swagger, and sensuality surrounding him. He handles things with a certain level of casualness, courteousness, and grace that is as savage and dangerous as it is beautiful and remarkable. But most of this is just a mask. Under it, he's a kind, generous and humble person. He is a "shameless flirt", and an expert at manipulation, deception, trickery, and lies. He is also able to hide his emotions flawlessly most of the time.

However, even though he acts careless and cruel, he does really care about things and will do anything, and sacrifice anything, to keep them safe and unharmed. He loves his wings and flying, he adores the Court of Dreams and above all else, cherishes Feyre. He chose to defend and fight alongside Feyre against Amarantha, even though it would have probably cost him his life, had she not solved the riddle. As Amarantha targeted him to be her whore, he suffered from a lot of emotional trauma that he hides with deadly grace and ease. However, beneath the shadows and coldness he seems to always portray, he loves very fiercely and passionately for the people he really cares about. However he tends to think that he knows what is best for them, such as when he hid the information about Feyre's pregnancy from her.

Powers and Abilities

Rhysand has an extreme amount of power, that exceeds the amount of any of the seven high lords. He is the most powerful Fae in the history of Prythian, this is because he had natural magic before he was crowned, he's a hybrid of a High Fae father and a demi-fae mother. His mother's sub-race of fae, the Ilyrians are known for being extremely powerful. A scene where it is demonstrated is in the meeting of the High Lords, where they remember the extent of his power and what he can do with it.

  • Darkness manipulation: Rhys can manipulate and control shadows and darkness.
  • Daemati powers: Rhys is a Daemati, meaning he has powers relating to mind control and invasion.
    • Memory manipulation: He can change people's memories at will, as well as manipulating them to ignore the memory, such as in the instances of Varian and Cresseida.
    • Mind reading: He is adept at reading someone's mind and memories. This was a skill that Amarantha greatly benefited from.
  • Flight: Through his Illyrian wings which he was not born with but conjures through magic, Rhysand is able to fly. He is also capable of holding people in his arms, while he flies.
  • Winnowing: Through training, Rhysand has developed the ability to transport himself to a different location, including short distances and long.
  • Illyrian combat: He's been training in Illyrian war-camps since he was eight. He has the ability to fight with weaponry and in hand-to-hand combat. Rhysand is far better than other warriors, but Cassian is the only other that can beat him.
  • Misting: Rhysand is capable of turning the bodies of enemies into a misted version of themselves, effectively killing them in less than a second, with little more than a thought.

Relationships

Feyre Archeron

Main article: Feyre and Rhysand

Rhysand had dreams about a human while he was Under the Mountain. The dreams are foggy, until one day he realizes that the fog was the wall. He tries to find out where she is until he sees the celebration called Fire Night in the Spring Court. Rhysand's mere presence scares away the Fae harassing Feyre. He is curious about why a human is at the Fire Night. Rhysand asks who she is with and Feyre lies to him. It is hinted that Rhysand knows she is lying but he does not seem to care much and leaves her be.

Afterward, they do not encounter each other until Rhysand shows up in the Spring Court, and is surprised when he finds out that Feyre is living with Tamlin and Lucien. He uses his powers to violate her mind, she feels the mental torture and wishes to throw up. He forces her friends to beg to keep her a secret. He asks Feyre what her name is, and Feyre tells him she is Clare Beddor, who is, in fact, someone else in Feyre's village.

During the trials under the mountain, both Feyre and Rhysand see each other in a new light of sorts. Amarantha ordered Rhysand to capture Feyre and kill her family. Instead, he captures Claire knowing perfectly well it isn't Feyre, thus raising her curiosity about his motives. Rhysand protects Feyre from the torture of Amaratha's guards. Rhysand bets against everyone that Feyre will win her battle against the beast she had to fight against her will for sport. Rhysand acts very cold towards Feyre, treating her as if she is beneath him and nothing more than a mere toy. Yet, he secretly aids her the best he can to help her complete her trials.

Amarantha kills Feyre. Feyre is able to see herself dying from Rhysand's eyes. Rhysand, along with the other six High Lords revive Feyre. In the second book, it is revealed that he used his powers to individually ask the other High Lords to save her.

The two are last together saying goodbye after the ordeal of what happened Under the Mountain. In the midst of bidding Feyre farewell, Rhysand senses something on her and appears abruptly shocked and then vanishes. It is revealed in the second book that he could sense that they were mates and it had become more clear now that she was High Fae.

In A Court of Mist and Fury, Feyre is in the Spring Court while Rhys is in the Night Court. Feyre is treated badly by Tamlin and through their bond, Rhys can tell she is sick and broken which Rhys eventually tells her. He notices things that Tamlin doesn't seem to. He sees the colors that make Feyre uncomfortable and how stifled she feels. Through the bond he senses that Feyre wanted out of her own wedding and he swoops in but plays it out as though it was merely as part of the bargain. We later find out Rhys was going to let her be happy with Tamlin if she hadn't called through the bond for help. Rhys takes her back to the mountains and teaches her to read. He does this once a month. In the meanwhile, Tamlin grows extremely overprotective of Feyre and locks her in his manor. Rhys sends his cousin, Mor, to save Feyre from breaking down completely.

In the Night Court, Feyre says she will never return to the Spring Court, leading to Rhys taking her to Velaris and introducing her to his Inner Circle. At the Court of Dreams, more backstory of Rhysand is revealed as the two come closer via training sessions. At that point, both begin to fall in love but Feyre thinks it is too soon after Tamlin. Feyre and Rhys were flying and Rhysand got shot down by arrows which led him and Feyre being split up. Feyre used her hunting skills to track him and the Hybern soldiers down. But he is badly injured so she finds the Suriel. The Suriel tells her what to heal him with and also that he is her mate. She becomes angry that he has not told her. She runs away and he comes days later (after he is healed at the Illyrian war-camp). He tells her everything and she accepts the mate bond. They go back to Velaris where Feyre gets sworn in as the official High Lady of the Night Court for Rhys respects and loves Feyre, treating her as an equal. He tells her that everything she does is her choice, and he will not stop her, always willing to stand for her, no matter what,

After the events of the war, Rhysand and Feyre decide to start trying for a family together. Rhysand buys a new estate, and months later Feyre becomes pregnant, but due to her being in Illyrian form at the time of conception, the babe has wings and she will die giving birth. He hides this fact from Feyre not wishing her to carry this burden while he searches for a solution but finds none. Later Feyre learns the truth from her sister Nesta and is hurt that Rhys hid this from her despite promising to not keep secrets from her. They seemingly move on. Later on, Feyre goes into labor but she and the baby almost die in the process, they are only saved by Nesta's intervention. They name their baby Nyx.

Amren

Amren is Rhysand's second in command. He once invited Amren to go to bed with him, but was met with harsh opposition as she laughed herself hoarse. She helped teach Rhysand how to control his powers.

Morrigan

Mor is Rhysand's cousin and third in command. They spent much of their childhood together, and are the only blood family either has left that they love. However Rhysand doesn't inform her when he summons her abusive father to Velaris, causing her to break down.

Amarantha

Amarantha forced Rhysand to be her sex slave as revenge following the revolt by the Night Court against her and killing Tamlin's father, who was her friend. Rhysand hates Amarantha for sexually and emotionally abusing him. Yet, he pretends to crave for her so she will believe he is on her side. It is presumed that Amarantha did not have feelings for Rhysand and merely enjoyed causing him pain. It is unknown whether Amarantha knew Rhysand was plotting to overthrow her. It is hinted she questioned his loyalty at times and would test him.

Tamlin

Tamlin and Rhysand were previously friends until Tamlin helped his father slaughter Rhysand's mother and sister, both of whom were dear to Rhys. In revenge, Rhysand and his own father attack Tamlin's family. Rhysand killed Tamlin's brothers while his father brutally killed Tamlin's father, who was a barbaric and cruel High Lord, and mother, whom he'd told Rhys he would spare. Tamlin proceeded to slaughter Rhysand's father in front of him, in self-defense. Ever since the two have suffered a tense and even hateful relationship. This hatred only grew after his poor treatment of Feyre. During the events of A Court of Frost and Starlight and A Court of Silver Flames it is mentioned that Rhys has tried to help Tamlin return to his fae form. At one point, Rhysand visits a depressed Tamlin and mocks him.

Lucien Vanserra

Lucien and Rhysand do not interact much with one another. After some particularly nasty comments were passed between the two in A Court of Thorns and Roses, their relationship with each other remains bumpy but on the enemy side due to Lucien's friendship and partnership with Tamlin.

However, during and after the war, he shows that whatever they both have been through, Rhys trusts him.

Nyx

Nyx is Rhysand's newborn son. Rhys is shown to love his son very much. In a bonus chapter of A Court of Silver Flames, Feyre says that she knows how good of father Rhys would be. She said that he would go to the ends of the earth to protect him, and that Nyx would never doubt that he was loved and cherished for one moment.

Trivia

  • The name Rhysand is of Welsh origin and means "enthusiasm".[12]
  • In A Court of Mist and Fury Feyre says that Rhysand smells like rain, salt, and citrus.
  • His right knee was injured in the war five hundred years ago.
  • He wears a simple silver ring bought in Velaris, representing his bond with Feyre.
  • When he was a boy Rhys loved to sneak out of the House of Wind by leaping out of his window to fly all night over Velaris. When his mother discovered this, after scolding him, she occasionally joined.
  • The only thing we know about his surname is, that Rhysand has one, but probably does not like it. Feyre knows it.
  • It is a tradition between Rhys, Cassian and Azriel since they were children to go on the morning of Winter Solstice to the Cabin and build forts out of snow. Then they would have a snowball fight all morning.
  • Rhysand is loosely based on Hades from Greek myth Hades and Persephone. Rhys and Hades are both the ruler of a dark realm. Hades takes a young 'goddess' Persephone against her will to the underworld. Likewise, Rhysand takes Feyre to the Night Court.
  • Rhysand is Sarah J. Maas's favorite character to write about in A Court of Thorns and Roses.[13]
  • Sarah J. Maas stated that Rhys would be a Ravenclaw if he attended Hogwarts.[14]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 World of Sarah J. Maas' Tumblr: Pronunciation Guide
  2. Date confirmed by Sarah J. Maas. She chose it because it's the birthdate of her husband, Josh. It has also been confirmed by Bloomsbury Publishing on a Twitter post
  3. In A Court of Thorns and Roses it is said that the War occurred 500 years before the events of the book and in A Court of Mist and Fury Rhysand says that he began his training at the age of 8, which lasted 20 years and then the War broke out. He was 28 years old when the War started and it lasted 7 years so if we add the 500 years from the end of the war to the beginning of the series, plus the additional year since the beginning of A Court of Thorns and Roses until A Court of Mist and Fury we can say that he was 536 years old in A Court of Mist and Fury
  4. Feyre is 20 at the beginning of A Court of Frost and Starlight, then she turns 21 on Chapter 17. Rhysand's birthday is one month before Feyre's.
  5. Feyre is 21 at the beginning of A Court of Silver Flames, then she turns 22 on Chapter 58. Rhysand's birthday is one month before Feyre's
  6. "Mor is my cousin in the loosest definition. But we were raised together. She's my only surviving family". A Court of Mist and Fury: Chapter 6.
  7. "Remember a time when it was Mor's family, not mine that ruled the North." A Court of Mist and Fury: Chapter 17. It is understood Rhysand and Mor are distant relatives. Rhysand calls her cousin but the degree of family relationship is unknown.
  8. A Court of Mist and Fury: Chapter 40
  9. A Court of Silver Flames: Chapter 62
  10. Reddit: Maastagram Live
  11. A Court of Wings and Ruin: p. 645
  12. https://www.thebump.com/b/rhysand-baby-name
  13. Tumblr: #ACOTARparty
  14. A Court of Wings and Ruin Q&A session


Characters
Main Characters Feyre Archeron · Rhysand · Nesta Archeron · Cassian · Azriel · Elain Archeron · Tamlin · Lucien Vanserra · Morrigan · Amren · Amarantha · King of Hybern
Supporting Characters Alis · Andras · Beron · Bogge · Bone Carver · Bron · Cerridwen · Clare Beddor · Cresseida · Drakon · Devlon · Emerie · Eris · Graysen · Gwyneth Berdara · Feyre's Father · Hart · Helion · Ianthe · Isaac Hale · Isaac Hale's Wife · Jurian · Kallias · Keir · Koschei · Mercenary · Miryam · Mortal Queens · Mrs. Laurent · Naga · Nuala · Unnamed Summer Court Faerie · Tarquin · Suriel · Thesan · Tomas Mandray · Varian · Vassa · Weaver
Mentioned Characters Aunt Ripleigh · Dark Mother · Feyre's Mother · Mother · Rhysand's Father · Rhysand's Mother · Rhysand's Sister · Nostrus · Queen of the Black Land · See more...
High Lords and Ladies of Prythian
Current Tamlin · Tarquin · Beron · Kallias · Thesan · Helion · Rhysand · Feyre
Former Tamlin's Grandfather · Tamlin's Father · Nostrus · Silene's Father-in-Law · Silene's Husband · Silene's Son · Rhysand's Grandfather · Rhysand's Father
Night Court
Velaris Feyre Archeron · Rhysand · Nesta Archeron · Cassian · Elain Archeron · Azriel · Amren · Morrigan · Nyx · Lucien · Gwyneth Berdara · Nuala · Cerridwen · Ananke · Aranea · Aranea's Husband † · Bryaxis · Clotho · Deirdre · Ilana · Lorelei · Madja · Merrill · Neve · Polina † · Polina's Sister · Ressina · Rhysand's Father † · Rhysand's Grandfather † · Rhysand's Mother † · Rhysand's Sister † · Rita · Riven · Roslin · Sevenda · Unnamed Healer · Young Faerie Boy · Young Faerie Girl · Polina's Nieces · Polina's Nephews
Hewn City Darkbringers · Keir · Morrigan's Mother · Thanatos · Thanatos's Daughter
Illyria Azriel's Father · Azriel's Half-brothers · Azriel's Stepmother · Balthazar · Bellius † · Camp-mother · Cassian's Mother † · Cassian's Father · Devlon · Emerie · Emerie's Brother † · Emerie's Mother † · Enalius · Kallon † · Kallon's Father · Proteus
Locations Amphitheater · Amren's Apartment · Aranea's Gallery · Athelwood · Cesere · Dunmere · Emerie's Shop · Feyre's Studio · Hewn City · House of Wind · Illyria · Illyrian Mountains · Illyrian Steppes · Ironcrest Camp · Lucien's Apartment · Moonstone Palace · Mr. Archeron's Gravesite · Myrmidons · Nesta's Apartment · Neve's Shop · Night Court Inn · Night Court Lake · Palace of Bone and Salt · Palace of Hoof and Leaf · Palace of Thread and Jewels · Rainbow of Velaris · Ramiel · Ressina's Studio · Restaurant · Rhysand's Mother's House · Rhysand's Treasure Chamber · Rita's · River House · Sidra River · The Cabin · The Four Market Squares · The Library · The Prison · The Town House · Velaris · Velaris Lingerie Shop · War-Camps · Western Isles · Windhaven Camp · Wolf's Den
Under the Mountain
Characters Tamlin (former) · Feyre Archeron (former) · Lucien Vanserra (former) · Amarantha † · Jurian (former) · Rhysand (former) · Beron Vanserra (former) · Lady of the Autumn Court (former) · Eris Vanserra (former) · Lucien's Brothers (former) · Tarquin (former) · Cresseida (former) · Varian (former) · Attor(former) · Middengard Wyrm † · Helion (former) · Kallias (former) · Thesan (former) · Nuan (former) · Amarantha's Daemati · Brutius † · High Fae of the Third Trial † · Female High Fae of the Third Trial † · Bron (former) · Hart (former) · Unnamed guards
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