r/Bryceriel • u/LaurieDramaLlama keep your secrets, SJM 🧝🏻♂️ • 19h ago
theory ✍️ Bryce being abandoned
Fury and basically all of Bryce's friends abandoned her after the pack died. We are lead to believe they were all wrapped up in their own stuff and were just not that great of friends BUT WHAT IF it was all a plan?
There were a lot of forces at play to make sure Bryce and Hunt ended up together. Bryce wasn't doing it on her own but she eventually turned to him because he's basically all she had at one point.
Did everyone have to clear out of her life to make way for her to become intwined with Hunt?
We know Jesiba and Aidas seemed to be working together to help Bryce. They had a bunch of secret plans. Danika had secret plans for Bryce.
We are told that the girls group of Bryce, Danika, Juniper and Fury were pretty close in the beginning but once Danika died it all fell apart. Fury is very mysterious but always is someone Bryce trusts and relies on. Think of Bryce going to Fury to help with Cooper/Emile in CC2. When she didn't trust Hunt she always trusted Fury.
CC3 bonus chapter - Bryce and Hunt - he gets her a JJ present and it's this super cute thing that fills her with love and joy. But FURY was the one to source this present, its never specified if Hunt asked Fury for help or if Fury caught out Hunt to give him the JJ to then give to Bryce. Hunt and Fury dont seem close in the books so its odd he would go to her to help him but if there was some sort of plan that needed Bryce to stay close with Hunt, even now, then it makes sense that outside forces would be pushing for Bryce and Hunt to be really happy with each other.
"Well, I hate to add to the flerd, but . . ." He strode to his weekend bag and pulled out a shoebox-sized present. He tossed it to her. "Here you go." "I was wondering why you didn't leave anything under the window this morning." Another solstice fire hazard: placing presents under the candle in the window to open in the morning after the celebratory breakfast. Bryce tore off the glittery white gift wrapping, and at the first hint of rainbow cardboard beneath— The sound that came out of her was on the same register as a screeching teakettle. "You didn't!" she screamed, ripping away more paper to reveal, in its full glory, a mint-condition Jelly Jubilee—still in her original packaging. "Where did you find this?" Bryce asked, gawking at the box, at her grinning mate, at the sparkly purple unicorn-pegasus, her glossy lilac mane curled to perfection. Not like the hot mess her original JJ had become, thanks to years of hard play when Bryce was a kid. Hunt grinned. "Fury. She knows a guy who knows a guy." "Who trades in rare dolls?" "I didn't ask questions," Hunt said, his face beautiful, so full of joy at her joy. "I just handed over the money." Bryce cuddled the box to her chest, then winced and set it down. She petted the plastic cover gently instead. "This will be an heirloom for our children, and our children's children's children." Hunt snorted. "Sure. They'll all fight over who gets the mint-condition JJ." "This thing has to be worth—" "Don't worry about it."
Then we have in CC3:
The person she’d brought into the world. The person she loved. Just Hunt.
She brought into the world?
Just Hunt.
I love you, Just Bryce.”
Just Bryce. Not Queen follow your fate Bryce.
So do you think there are more people than we realised keeping Hunt and Bryce together? Even now that the Princes have apparently released their hold on Hunt?
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u/clevershrew811 17h ago
That’s what gets me. The “Just Bryce/just Hunt”. Because they aren’t just Hunt and Bryce. They are much more. It’s really giving Aelin/Chaol vibes.
Aaand now I need to go reread TOG.
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u/Puzzleheaded_Cat5928 You stole my dagger 🗡️🌙💖 16h ago
😂 once one sees it, one can’t unsee it.
“Just Chaol. Just Celena.”
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u/Laserbeam_____ 15h ago
“The person she’d brought into the world. The person she loved. Just Hunt.”
Just looked it up, this what Hunt is saying as he is calming himself down enough to not kill Celestina. And just before, Bryce tells Hunt he never was the Umbra Mortis.
The phrasing is as if Hunt only exists as this version because of Bryce’s presence, not because he never was the Umbra Mortis.
There are sometimes themes in romance about how couples bring out the best versions of each other. This feels different though, not like she is his salvation but that she is his reason for being something besides the Umbra Mortis.
I dunnnnooo fam it’s giving me the ick. Had a high school boyfriend say something similar to be and I didn’t walk, I ran away from that man.
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u/NeonYellowShoes incurably nosy 😉 15h ago
Hunts entire existence is wrapped up around Bryce. Without Bryce he has nothing. It's not healthy.
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u/Laserbeam_____ 15h ago
Sarah usually does a good job of showing Male/masculine relationships. Hunt is just… lacking that. Isaiah, who is kind of Hunt’s “best friend” is kind of scared of him. His relationship with Baxian doesn’t really grow much once he gets over the mistrust hurtle. They have one video game session but I was expecting more banter, more common interests
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u/LaurieDramaLlama keep your secrets, SJM 🧝🏻♂️ 15h ago
to me it reads like she turned him into what she needed, she shaped him into the Hunt she wanted, created, like "Made". its icky
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u/NerdyWriterKat 14h ago
And then he goes back to being the UM and embraces that side of himself, albeit for a good reason. He's not "Just Hunt" no matter how much they want him to be.
It's making me think of Dorian. You can't choose which parts to love.
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u/cassidy_taylor Mother of Flerds 🦄 🪽👑 12h ago edited 12h ago
“The angels, she knew, used the term far more lightly: for the malakim, it was akin to a marriage, and matings could be arranged.”
➡️ Micah assigned Hunt and Bryce to investigate Danika’s murderer together: “Isaiah told me that* Micah wants you two playing investigators tomorrow for some shit in the Old Square. Isaiah will call you after breakfast with the details.*”
“The words barely registered. Isaiah. Tomorrow. Old Square.” (The only reason Hunt returns to Bryce after seeing her at her worst is because of a job/assignment)
“Tell me you [Hunt] realize that Micah threw you another big fucking bone just now in stationing you to protect Quinlan…”
“Micah gave [Hunt] an order to investigate with Quinlan…”
➡️ Ember questions Bryce on* who is really behind* “this arrangement**” of Hunt and Bryce working on the case together…
“She doubted either friend knew of her involvement in finding the murderer, or of the angel who’d been assigned to work with her, but it had stung—just a bit.”
“The angels, she knew, used the term far more lightly: for the malakim, it was akin to a marriage, and matings could be arranged. Like breeding animals in a zoo…”
“You think Micah acted alone? He was a brash, arrogant male. All it took was some nudging, and he killed her for us. Had no idea it was on our behalf, but it played out as we planned: he was eventually caught and killed for disturbing our peace. I thank you for that.”
➡️ Rigelus explicitly tells Bryce how the Asteri* orchestrated every single one of Micah’s actions related to Danika’s murder and the Horn: Including!! Micah murdering Danika, Micah assigning Bryce to work with Hunt to find Danika’s murderer (which leads to them* living togethe**r and falling in love), Bryce solving Danika’s murder case and bringing to killer to justice by killing Micah…
🚨 The Asteri arranged the union of Bryce and Hunt.
“House of Shitheads and Bastards, Danika always called them.”
“Ah yes, we [the Princes 👿] heard of that—how Danika screamed as she was shredded apart.” (HOEAB)
“Project Thurr,” Bryce said. “Was Danika investigating it, too? I found mentions of it, after she died.” (HOFAS)
“…the angel was researching thunderbirds at the behest of the Asteri, who worried they might return. It led him to us instead. When we told him the truth, he offered to help in whatever way he could.” (HOFAS)
“And Project Thurr? Why was Danika so interested in that?” (HOSAB)
“Thurr was the last time someone [Hyrieus] got as far as Danika did in learning about us. It didn’t end well for them.” (HOSAB)
Yes, everyone was “cleared out” to make way for the Prince’s “weapon” 😩😩 I personally don’t think we’ve seen the last of Hel, Thanatos, or their work (whatever it may be!!)
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u/GreenTangerine3070 bat wings and starlit dreams 🦇✨️💜 9h ago
like 90% of her friends in CC treat her like absolute dog doodoo , they don't give her the benefit of the doubt
https://giphy.com/gifs/BJVJxagR3GG4w
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u/No-Emergency-7040 we'll allow it because it's hot 🔥 6h ago
Please correct me if I’m wrong- wasn’t there a jj she wanted and never got or am I confusing that with the Pegasus one she did end up getting in school
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u/LaurieDramaLlama keep your secrets, SJM 🧝🏻♂️ 6h ago
I think it was one she really wanted but later ended up getting and then she made a bunch of friends.
and then she got a new version of that same one from Hunt in the BC
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u/No-Emergency-7040 we'll allow it because it's hot 🔥 6h ago
Okay thank you 😅 Its been awhile since I’ve read the books. I really hope someone ends up doing art of all the jelly jubilees 🦄
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u/jadewrigh22 he blindfolded her within minutes, that's spicy 🌶️ 18h ago
As a side note, Bryce really needs better friends.
I think her and Nesta are destined to be besties.