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Felurian

character · importance 70 · 20 theories

“The deathless Fae who takes mortal lovers and is named, not slain, by Kvothe”

also known as Felurian

Appearance§

Felurian is a Fae woman of overwhelming, otherworldly beauty, alluring to the point of being lethal to mortal men. Kvothe describes her twilight eyes as 'like four lines of music, clearly penned,' and renders her repeatedly in butterfly imagery, including butterfly-patterned eyelids; her glade is filled with twilight butterflies. She reclines among cushions in her glade and is associated throughout with twilight. She leads Kvothe barefoot through ancient trees and over a high arched bridge, with moths trailing them through the dim Faen light, and she can command moths and other insects in the dark.

Description§

Felurian is one of the oldest and most powerful beings of the Fae, a creature of overwhelming beauty who lures mortal men into her glade to ease her loneliness and desire. The men who lie with her do not return whole; they die or are driven mad, the deaths attributed to exhaustion, heart failure, or madness rather than disease. She bears the titles Lady of Twilight and Lady of First Quiet. Kvothe, drawn to her by his music on a moonless night, wanders into her domain in the Fae and remains for what he estimates is close to a Faen year, learning the love arts from her, while only about three days pass in the mortal world. He escapes in a way no other man has: rather than overpowering her, he perceives her true name and sings it aloud in four hard notes, shattering her power and stripping her of the ability to harm him. At the moment he names her, he glimpses himself reflected in her twilight eyes with a silver star of light upon his brow. Felurian predates the Creation War and survives it. She speaks of a figure who stole the moon and was sealed away behind the Doors of Stone at the war's end, but refuses to name him, allowing no calling of names in the Fae. She teaches that there is only one moon, which moves between the mortal and Fae skies, and that the moon lies at the heart of the Creation War; she holds that the Fae realm was made by the Shapers, the greatest of whom sewed it from whole cloth. She distinguishes the old knowers, who possessed deep knowing without mastery, from the shapers, who made wonders. She refuses to speak of the Chandrian, calls them 'the seven,' and fears that naming them draws their attention. She weaves Kvothe a shaed, a cloak of shadow, from starlight, moonlight, and shadow gathered in the lightless heart of the Fae, practicing grammarie, 'the art of making things be,' as distinct from glamourie, 'the art of making things seem.' After Kvothe's encounter with the Cthaeh, she examines him, pronounces him free of its bite and influence, and affirms that the Cthaeh speaks only the truth. Kvothe later composes a song about her, and the story of naming and surviving Felurian helps convince Elodin that he is a true namer.

Relationships§

  • Lover Kvothe — Lures Kvothe to her glade and teaches him the love arts; he names rather than overpowers her
  • Fears The Chandrian — Refuses to speak of the Chandrian, calls them 'the seven,' fears naming draws their attention
  • Named By Naming — Kvothe perceives her true name and sings it in four hard notes, shattering her power
  • Convinces Elodin — The story of naming and surviving her helps convince Elodin he is a true namer
  • Member Of The Fae — One of the oldest and most powerful beings of the Fae
  • Confirms The Cthaeh — Examines Kvothe after the Cthaeh, finds him unbitten, and affirms the Cthaeh speaks only truth
  • Teaches About The Moon — Teaches there is one moon moving between mortal and Fae skies, at the heart of the Creation War
  • Names Obliquely Iax — Names the moon-thief obliquely as Iax, sealed behind the Doors of Stone
  • Weaver Of The Shaed — Weaves Kvothe his shaed from starlight, moonlight, and shadow using grammarie
  • Practitioner Grammarie — Practices grammarie, the art of making things be, to weave the shaed

Established facts§

  • Felurian is one of the oldest and most powerful beings of the Fae, predating and surviving the Creation War.
  • She lures mortal men into her glade and lies with them until they die or are driven mad; the deaths are attributed to exhaustion, heart failure, or madness rather than disease.
  • Kvothe is drawn to her by his music and stays in her glade for what he estimates is close to a Faen year, while only about three days pass in the mortal world.
  • She teaches Kvothe the love arts during his time with her, telling him she will not have him embarrass her as an incompetent lover.
  • Kvothe escapes by perceiving her true name and singing it aloud in four hard notes, shattering her power and robbing her of the ability to harm him.
  • At the moment he names her, Kvothe sees himself reflected in her twilight eyes with a silver star of light upon his brow.
  • She bears the titles Lady of Twilight and Lady of First Quiet.
  • She weaves Kvothe his shaed, a cloak of shadow, from starlight, moonlight, and shadow using grammarie, 'the art of making things be,' distinct from glamourie, 'the art of making things seem.'
  • She speaks of a figure who stole the moon, sealed behind the Doors of Stone at the end of the Creation War, but refuses to name him and allows no calling of names in the Fae.
  • She names this figure obliquely as Iax, the enemy who stole the moon.
  • She teaches that there is only one moon, which moves between the mortal and Fae skies, and that the moon lies at the heart of the Creation War.
  • She holds that the Fae realm was made by the Shapers, the greatest of whom sewed it from whole cloth.
  • She distinguishes the old knowers, who had deep knowing but not mastery, from the shapers, who made wonders.
  • She refuses to speak of the Chandrian, calls them 'the seven,' and fears that naming them draws their attention.
  • After Kvothe's encounter with the Cthaeh, she examines him, finds him unbitten and free of its influence, and affirms the Cthaeh speaks only the truth.
  • She speaks a word sharp as shattered glass meant to kill Kvothe, but it fails even to render him unconscious.
  • At one point she kisses Kvothe and draws the breath from him so that his heart stops for a moment before resuming.
  • She recites a rhyme invoking glass, copper, and iron, the same triad Kvothe uses to guard his name.
  • She holds that the original Amyr were Fae and never human, refusing to recognize the later human Amyr.
  • She tells Kvothe that those with the will and the way may cross between the Fae and mortal worlds through a thousand half-cracked doors.
  • When the moon brings the realms close, some Fae cross into the mortal world glamored as humble travelers.
  • Her realm is reached through a doorway of standing stones, two monoliths with a third laid across the top.
  • She has heard of Illien but never of Taborlin the Great, indicating his legends arose after the Creation War.
  • The story of Kvothe naming and surviving Felurian helps convince Elodin that he is a true namer.
  • Kvothe later composes a song about Felurian and leaves her in the Fae with a promise to return.

Theories§

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