Nicola L'Envers y Aragon is a cousin of Barquiel L'Envers who is married to the brother of the King of Aragonia, Ramiro Zornín de Aragon.
Appearance[]
Nicola is petite, with bronze curls and the purple eyes of House L'Envers. She is very beautiful.
Biography[]
Nicola appears in every book except Kushiel's Dart and Kushiel's Justice. Prior to the series, Barquiel arranged her marriage to Ramiro and she left Terre d'Ange for Aragonia.
In Kushiel's Chosen[]
Nicola came to Terre d'Ange at Barquiel's invitation to help him discover who freed Melisande Shahrizai. She became one of Phèdre nó Delaunay de Montrève's patrons at his urging. Nicola realized that Phèdre and Barquiel were on the same side and tried to get them to trust each other. When she failed as this, she shared with Phèdre House L'Envers's password—burning river—the phrase which House Members are bound to honor should one speak it seeking aid. Phèdre used the password to convince Barquiel to defend the City of Elua against Percy de Somerville and again to get aid from Valère L'Envers in Kushiel's Avatar.
In Kushiel's Avatar[]
In the ten year gap between Kushiel's Chosen and Kushiel's Avatar, Phèdre gave Nicola the only gift she ever gave a patron—a garnet bracelet with the symbol of Kushiel's Dart. They became close friends.
During their search for Imriel de la Courcel, Phèdre and Joscelin Verreuil journeyed to Amilcar. There they enlisted the aid of Nicola and her husband. With their help they captured the Carthaginians responsible for kidnapping Imriel, but they learned he had already been sold.
In Kushiel's Scion[]
Nicola and Phèdre resumed their closeness when Nicola returned to Terre d'Ange. Phèdre shared with Nicola the horrors of what occurred in Daršanga. Their close relationship made Imriel jealous and resentful. Nicola gave Imriel his spotted horse named the Bastard.
In Kushiel's Mercy[]
During Carthage's invasion of Aragonia, the king surrendered to Carthage and Nicola's son Serafin took over as Aragonia's ruler. She did not hear from her other son Raul during this time, as he was in the City of Elua when Carthage's spell took hold.
Imriel and Sidonie de la Courcel received aid from Nicola and the Aragonian side of her family in their escape from Carthage. Nicola helped Imriel and Sidonie convince the Aragonian council to make peace with Euskerria. When the conflict ended, the King named Serafin his heir.
Personality[]
Family[]
| Barquiel L'Envers | Isabel L'Envers de la Courcel | Rolande de la Courcel | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nicola L'Envers y Aragon | Ramiro Zornín y Aragon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sinaddan- Shamabarsin | Valère L'Envers | Ysandre de la Courcel | Drustan mab Necthana | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Serafin L'Envers y Aragon | Raul L'Envers y Aragon | Colette Trente | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| son | son | son | Sidonie de la Courcel | Alais de la Courcel | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Relationships[]
Nicola truly loves her husband, though she and Barquiel put it about that she was considering divorcing him when she returned to Terre d'Ange. He enjoys being tied, though Nicola mentions he's not nearly as attractive tied up as Phèdre is.
Like all of House L'Envers, Nicola is extremely loyal to her family. She is very loyal to Barquiel and defends him against Phèdre's suspicions, trying to convince her to trust him. She also worked to secure Ysandre's throne when she assisted him in his search for Melisande.
Nicola took a liking to Phèdre and was willing to trust her, despite Barquiel's suspicions of her. She trusted Phèdre with the sacred password of her house. Phèdre was extremely grateful for this and gave Nicola the only gift she ever gave a patron. Phèdre also told her the details of what happened in Daršanga, something she did not even share with Joscelin. They maintain a close relationship as friends and occasional lovers.
Imriel disliked Nicola quite a bit at first, associating her with Daršanga, but eventually came around.