The Prophecy - ACOTAR

Chapter 47 *

"You can build it right there." The Suriel stated, pointing to a pink weed that grew by the river, an excited grin spreading over its bony and grey face.

"If this works, I'll bring you a brand-new cloak and a fat juicy chicken." Astrid said, with Cass in tow.

"How do we know she'll come by here?" Cass called from behind.

"I see things others don't." The Suriel said cryptically.

Cass groaned and before he could complain Astrid cut in, "Don't question my friend Cass or I'll demote you."

"Demote me from what?! Since when are you and the Suriel friends?!" Cass asked loudly.

"Basically since I crossed the wall, don't question it. Right now, you're my number two best friend, but you can always go down to close friend and I'll promote Amren." Astrid said, already getting her sticks where she wants them.

"I can tell she's serious, I wouldn't press it if I were you." The Suriel said nonchalantly as it made its way back towards the forest.

+

Feyre was fuming at the information that damned faerie had given her. Rhysand is her mate. The fucking High Lord of the Night Court is her mate. Astrid's mother fucking brother is her mate. Did the others know? Well, that was a stupid question, she knew at least one of them knew. Astrid knew. She had to know. She always knows.

Feyre had been so wrapped up in Astrid's nefarious plans that she'd missed the most glaring oddity. She put up no fight to Feyre spending time with Rhys or when they would get close. Astrid was a territorial person, especially with her family, and if someone she wasn't on good terms with came near her family, it wouldn't typically end well for them. But if she knew Feyre was Rhys's mate, she wouldn't step in between that, especially not when Rhys didn't step in between Astrid and Azriel.

But she would deal with Astrid later, maybe. She may just leave it be, she had enough on her plate without Astrid creating more chaos.

She shook the thoughts from her head as she spotted the pink weed, Feyre stalked towards the weed. Before she could grab it, the ground fell out from under her. She landed with a thud on the obnoxiously wet bottom of the hole she had just come upon.

Feyre looked up from where she fell, grimacing at the remains of the trap she had missed. Before, she would have noticed that within seconds, but she was so distracted with thoughts related to Rhysand being her mate, she missed all the clear warning signs. At least, that's what she wanted to think, until she noticed what the trap had been constructed out of.

Sticks. Fucking sticks.

"Astrid!" Feyre screamed as she kicked the side of the hole.

Instead of kicking a wall of dirt, mud covered sticks came crashing over her. Feyre cursed loudly and repeatedly as she pushed the sticks off, pulling a handful from her hair. As she stood up, she came face to face with what the muddy stick wall had been hiding, a stick rendition of the Middengard Wyrm. She stepped back with another scream, her hand rising in a flash to cover her racing heart.

"Astrid!" Feyre screamed, less than the first time.

A chuckle sounded above her as a figure blocked out the sunlight that had been trickling down. "You called?"

"What in the cauldron is this!?" Feyre demanded.

Astrid tsked at her, "I thought you were smarter than this Feyre."

"I am plenty smart Astrid, but I'm not some psychopathic mastermind." Feyre growled.

"Fine, fine. When I developed all of this, I had to think of something that I could craft into anything. Then Wren presented me with sticks, and Bam! The ideas hit me. I found different ways to integrate these things into as many parts of your life as possible. Sticks have so many uses. Another word for uses could be masks. Just like these sticks, Feyre, I'll be whatever you make me be, whatever you see me as. I know I did some things that may have hurt Under the Mountain, but you never gave me a chance. You didn't even give me a chance before all of that happened." Astrid took a long breath, "I will never be the girl you knew, so much has happened in my past and so much has happened since we crossed that wall. You'll never be who you were either, and I'm ok with that. We all grow and change, but you have to choose whether you want to grow with those you include in your life. You can't expect people to grow with you if you won't grow with them."