𝐂 𝐎 𝐒 𝐌 𝐈 𝐂   𝐋 𝐎 𝐕 𝐄   !

𝙲 𝙷 𝙰 𝙿 𝚃 𝙴 𝚁   𝙵 𝙸 𝚅 𝙴   !

( 𝔞 𝔯𝔦𝔡𝔢 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔞 𝔡𝔢𝔪𝔬𝔫 ! )

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

          𝐀𝐍𝐀 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐋𝐈𝐍 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄.

Why?

The dining room was silent aside from Lucien's conversation with Tamlin, both Feyre and Ana keeping to themselves as they ate. Ana noticed how Feyre slipped one of the dining knives from the table into the sleeve of her tunic, but she didn't dare say anything. After all, she had dual kindjals on her. It was only right that Feyre had something to defend herself with, even if there wasn't much of a likelihood of it working. 

Apparently, Lucien's magical eye was failing him. No surprise there, since it must've been hundreds of years old. Or, maybe, it was just plain shit to begin with. Either was a strong possibility. 

Another reason Ana remained quiet was because she was listening for any hints as to what the two High Fae were keeping hidden from her and Feyre. She knew they were hiding something⎯especially after the conversation they'd had on the day of Feyre's arrival⎯but she didn't know what and it irked her. Yeah, she was new and didn't know them all that well, but if it affected her and they didn't tell her, she was going to be extremely pissed. 

"Were you admiring my sword, or just contemplating killing me, Feyre?" Lucien's voice caused Ana to look up from her food, spotting said sword sheathed at his waist. The hilt was embedded with jewels and could have passed as decorative, if not for the length of the blade. Ana had seen Seraph blades just as long as that one, and they were definitely not decorative. 

"Of course not," Feyre said softly, her eyes glancing to Tamlin. 

Ana hummed with a soft smile. "I was."

Lucien perked a brow. "Was what?"

"I guess you'll never know." Ana shrugged and stuffed another piece of steak into her mouth. Not as good as her enchiladas, but still pretty tasty. 

A silence fell over the table, only to be broken by Tamlin moments later. "Feyre likes to hunt."

"I don't like to hunt." The look in Feyre's eyes was sharp, like daggers of ice. "I hunted out of necessity. And how did you know that?"

Tamlin's stare was assessing. "Why else were you in the woods that day? You had a bow and arrows in your . . . house." Ana knew he was trying to be polite, but he was about as good at being nice as Alec was at flirting. "When I saw your father's hands, I knew he wasn't the one using them." He gestured to Feyre's hands. "You told him about the rations and money from pelts. Faeries might be many things, but we're not stupid. Unless your ridiculous legends claim that about us, too."

Ana's grip on her fork tightened, knuckles turning white. There was a big difference between hunting for survival and hunting for sport. Hunting for sport meant one could simply go out in the woods, have fun, maybe shoot an animal or two, and then return home without a care in the world. But hunting for survival was stressful, agonizing, and coming home without a kill meant no eating that day.

She knew this difference well, having been forced to hunt for survival herself once upon a time, and hearing Tamlin disregard it made her really want to stab him again. And maybe use some of her strength to actually break through whatever barrier stopped her from before so he'd actually feel pain.

Lucien took notice of how Ana's eyes were slowly burning gold and cleared his throat. "How old are you, anyway? Either of you."

"Nineteen," Feyre said politely.

Ana nodded. "I'm nineteen as well."

Lucien tsked. "So young, and so grave." His attention turned to Feyre. "And a skilled killer already."

The blonde noticed how Feyre's hands turned into shaking fists. Gently, Ana placed her hand over Feyre's, a silent way of telling her to calm down. Punching Lucien would do them no good (even if it would make both of them feel better.) Feyre had already killed his friend. It would only cause her harm if she tried to do the same to Lucien.

Sucking in a breath, Feyre calmed herself. "So is this what you do with your lives? Spare humans from the Treaty and have fine meals?"

Lucien smirked. "We also dance with the spirits under the full moon and snatch human babes from their cradles to replace them with changelings⎯"

Ana choked on her water, eyes going wide. "Holy shit, you guys do that, too?"

The redhead frowned. "The faeries in your world do that?"

The blonde nodded. "Not the dancing with the spirits shit, no one in my world does that. Seelies have a natural connection to the earth, they don't need to dance with spirits. But that changeling stuff is no joke. The amount of times I've had to stop nixies and pixies from taking human children is⎯"

"Didn't . . ." Tamlin interrupted Ana's discussion with Lucien, causing the blonde to stiffen. A big pet peeve of hers? Interruptions. It made her skin crawl and her blood boil. 

Don't stab him. Don't stab him. Don't stab him.

"Didn't your mother tell you anything about us?" Tamlin continued, his question aimed toward Feyre.

Ana winced. That day, their topic had gone back to family. The blonde knew that Feyre's mother was a sensitive subject.

Feyre poked the table. "My mother didn't have the time to tell me stories."

For once, Lucien didn't laugh. "How did she die?" Tamlin asked. "I didn't see signs of an older woman in your house."

Feyre squared her shoulders at the unmistakable sound of pity. "Typhus. When I was eight."

The honey brunette then rose, preparing to leave. However, Tamlin stopped her as she reached the doorway. "Feyre, I'm sorry for your loss."

She gave no signs of hearing him, only hesitating for a moment before continuing out of the room. Ana watched her go with soft eyes. The blonde knew how she felt in some way. While Ana had never really known her parents (her dad was never in the picture and her mother . . .) she knew what it was like to lose people close to her. People who meant the world to her. 

Ana lifted her cup up and muttered a prayer to herself. One that she, Nadia, and Dmitri had come up with while trapped together long ago. One they often spoke when seeing the death of a child like themselves. One that reached out to those who had lost someone, or those who were soon to lose themselves. "Тем, кто после. К нам сейчас. И тем, кто дальше. Видно или не видно. Здесь, но не здесь."

To those after. To us now. And to those beyond. Seen but unseen. Here but not here. 

⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯

"And you're sure I won't fall off?"

Ana stood in the stables beside Lucien, the two looking at the horse that the blonde would be using for that day. After dinner the previous night, Lucien had asked Ana if she wanted to accompany him on his ride of the border. See more of the property and be near other humans like herself. (And maybe act as an apology for offending her earlier in the week.) She had agreed, of course, in hopes that maybe she'd spot something that could help her return home. Or somehow manage to squeeze the secret from Lucien without Tamlin there to yell at him.

All she had managed to gather in the week and a half she'd been at the court was that there was some blight taking over Prythian, draining magic and killing faeries from all courts. And that there was nothing  anyone could do to stop the blight. It had drained all the High Lords of their magic, and they were really the only ones with the power to stop it in the first place. 

Ana had tried to think of something from her world that could help with the blight, but nothing came to mind. No rune, no mortal instrument, no nothing. Just the faint idea that maybe Magnus could come up with a cure (but that was only if she could reach Izzy and contact him.)

Lucien chuckled at the hesitance in Ana's eyes. "My, my. You aren't afraid to stab a High Lord in the chest, but you are afraid of a horse?"

Ana shot him a look. "Sorry. I didn't grow up around many horses. My life was filled with fast cars, ships, and the occasional motorcycle trip. Sometimes where was also flying, but no one talks about that. It wasn't the most . . . enjoyable experience."

She shivered at the thought.

"Cars? Motor . . . cycle?" Lucien tilted his head like a puppy. "Strange names."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Think of a carriage that can pull itself without horses and is steered by a wheel." That russet eye bore into the side of her face. "That's a car. And no, it's not magical." She then reached for the horse's muzzle, allowing it to sniff her hand first. She remembered someone saying to do this with dogs, so she guessed horses were somewhat similar. "Easy."

The horse, to Ana's surprise, leaned into her touch. It almost reminded Ana of the scene from How To Train Your Dragon, when Hiccup and Toothless had their first bonding moment. The horse pressed its warm muzzle to Ana's palm, the coat soft beneath her fingers. Slowly, Ana ran her hand over the horse's face, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"Meet Astrella," Lucien said, hiding his soft smile from Ana by turning to his own steed. "She'll never lead you wrong."

Ana giggled as she felt Astrella's tongue slightly poke her fingers. "I would hope not. Between me and you, I have a sucky sense of direction." Lucien's eyes widened. "Kidding."

The red haired High Fae helped Ana ready Astrella for a ride. He adjusted the saddle and made sure nothing would come apart while out by the wall. He then helped Ana mount the horse, laughing quietly when she nearly stumbled off the other side when he gave her a bit too much of a push. Once Ana was ready, he mounted his own steed and flicked the reins, preparing to leave only for Feyre to stop them.

The girl entered the stables, her eyes scanning every moving being with curiosity. Ana perked a brow. She didn't remember Feyre mentioning anything about going for a ride prior to this moment. 

"Morning, Feyre," Lucien greeted. "Going for a ride, or merely reconsidering Tam's offer to live with us?" Feyre opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Lucien laughed. "Come now. I'm to patrol the southern woods today, and I'm curious about the . . . abilities you used to bring down my friend, whether accidental or not. It's been a while since I encountered a human, let alone two with one being a Fae-killer. Indulge me in a hunt."

Ana watched as Lucien extended a hand toward one of the stableboys. Said faerie handed him two quivers and two bows, one set of which he gave to Ana with a look that said, Indulge me as well, Ana. The blonde merely shrugged and accepted the bow and quiver. Alec had taught her many ways to kill with a single arrow. She was excited to begin shooting again.

"No ash arrows today, unfortunately." Of course he had to ruin the moment.

Feyre clenched her jaw, then relaxed, forcing a look of boredom upon her face. She shrugged. "Well . . . I suppose I'm already dressed for a hunt."

"Perfect," Lucien said, his metal eye gleaming in the sunlight. 

"Let's go, then," Ana said, anxious to begin riding and, more importantly, hunting. 

Lucien motioned for the stable workers to prepare another horse. They brought out the same white mare that Feyre had arrived on, the girl mounting the horse with ease and the group setting off for the wall. Ana easily learned how to steer Astrella and guide her, following Lucien through the gardens and towards the woods, where they would spend most of their day patrolling. Nothing Ana wasn't used to.

"Can your eye see through the back of your head?" Ana asked suddenly, breaking the silence. "I mean, it kind of reminds me of this character from my world. He was this super awesome wizard named Mad-Eye Moody, but then You Know Who's Death Eaters killed him, which pissed me off but⎯" She took a deep breath. "I'm getting off topic. Anyway, he had a magical eye that could see through his head."

Lucien blinked, confused. "What are you talking about?"

The blonde sighed dramatically and leaned onto Astrella's neck, patting it with a hand. "These people are so unlucky. I mean, they don't have the ability to read the amazingness that is Harry Potter or Percy Jackson or even The Hunger Games. It's so sad."

The two others just ignored her ranting, unsure of what she was talking about since it was about her world and not theirs. 

They continued on in silence, Ana stroking a finger across Astrella's neck to fuel her boredom. Her eyes scanned every inch of the forest, marking anything even remotely dangerous as a potential faerie in disguise or a demon that could have followed her to this world. The last thing she needed was a demon to have followed her and put these people in danger. 

"Well, you two certainly have the quiet part of hunting down," Lucien said as he fell back to ride with Feyre and Ana, who had subconsciously moved to walk alongside one another. "Well? No game good enough for you to slaughter? We've passed plenty of squirrels and birds."

Ana shot a look to the fox-masked Fae. "Keep talking and the first thing I shoot will be a fox."

Lucien rolled his eyes, not taking her comment to heart. Feyre just shrugged. "You seem to have enough food on your table and I don't need to add to it, especially when there's plenty left over."

Lucien snorted but kept his mouth shut as they passed beneath a flowering lilac, its purple petals brushing across Ana's cheeks like a velvety kiss. However, her moment of happiness was ruined as she sneezed, some of the pollen flying up her nose and activating her allergies.

"I fucking hate spring," she grumbled, lowering her head once more to rest on Astrella's neck.

"You said you were an emissary for Tamlin?" Feyre suddenly asked. "Do emissaries usually patrol the grounds?"

Lucien clicked his tongue. "I'm Tamlin's emissary for formal uses, but this was Andras's shift. So someone needed to fill in. It's an honor to do it."

Ana turned her head to study their faces. One could learn a lot from facial expressions. Currently, Lucien was looking at Feyre in amusement while Feyre frowned. But, there was a cool calculation burning in her eyes that told Ana she had planned to come along with Lucien. For what? Probably to convince Lucien to get her out of the Treaty so she could go home. 

"I'm . . . sorry," Feyre said. "I didn't know what⎯what he meant to you all."

Lucien shrugged. "Tamlin said as much, which was no doubt why he brought you here. Or maybe you looked so pathetic in those rags that he took pity on you."

"I wouldn't have joined you if I'd known you would use this ride as an excuse to insult me." Ana had to hide her face in Astrella's mane to keep her laughter soft. The look in Lucien's eyes . . . oh, it was priceless.

Ana was rubbing off on Feyre. 

Lucien smirked. "Apologies, Feyre." Was he even sorry? Probably not. "So, when are you going to start trying to persuade me to beseech Tamlin to find a way to free you from the Treaty's rules?"

Feyre's back stiffened. "What?"

"That's why you agreed to come out here, isn't it? Why you wound up at the stables exactly as Ana and I were leaving?" Just as the blonde had suspected. "Honestly, I'm impressed⎯and flattered you think I have that kind of sway with Tamlin."

Feyre still kept up the charade. "What are you talking⎯?"

Lucien cut her off with a chuckle. "Before you waste one of your precious few human breaths, let me explain two things to you. One: if I had my way, you'd be gone, so it wouldn't take much convincing on your part." True. "Two: I can't have my way, because there is no alternative to what the Treaty demands. There's no extra loophole."

Ana tilted her head from side-to-side. "There's always a loophole, but only for those who take the time to really look for it."

Ignored. "I admire your balls, Feyre⎯I really do. Or maybe it's stupidity. But since Tam won't gut you, which was my first choice, you're stuck here. Unless you want to rough it on your own in Prythian, which"⎯he looked Feyre up and down⎯"I'd advise against."

Feyre looked panicked as she shook her head, unwilling to accept the truth. Ana felt bad for her, she really did. While the blonde had the option to find a way home, Feyre was stuck in Prythian.

"A valiant effort," Lucien said with a smirk. 

The ride continued in silence. Ana listened to the singing of the birds, so different but so similar to her own. She didn't hear anything else from the woods⎯no demonic growls or dangerous hisses from the trees. It put Ana slightly at ease. Not enough for her to relax⎯a Shadowhunter never truly relaxed⎯but enough to allow her to enjoy the ride. 

"Where is the rest of Tamlin's court?" Feyre asked. "They all fled this blight on magic?"

Lucien's head whipped around so fast, Ana questioned whether it would fall off or not. The look in his russet eye told her everything⎯he thought she meant something else. Which meant the "blight" might not be a blight, but something else entirely. And if it was . . . Ana was going to get to the bottom of it.

"How'd you know about the court?" Lucien asked tightly.

Feyre kept her face blank. "Do normal estates have emissaries? And servants chatter. Isn't that why you made them wear bird masks to that party?"

Ana remained still, leaning against Astrella's head, but she kept her ears perked. This was getting interesting. She knew that the Spring Court had attended some masquerade ball when the blight had struck, and that's why they all wore masks. But Ana had never understood the animal aspect of it all.

Lucien scowled. "We each chose what to wear that night to honor Tamlin's shape-shifting gifts. The servants, too. But now, if we had the choice, we'd peel them off with our bare hands." Just for emphasis, he tugged at his own mask with his fingers. It didn't move.

The "blight" had glued the masks to their faces. Ana had nearly stopped breathing when she'd first learned of this. Whoever or whatever caused this "blight" had to be extremely powerful in order to cast a spell like that. About as powerful as Magnus, she believed.

"What happened to the magic to make it act that way?" Feyre asked curiously.

Lucien let out a harsh laugh. "Something was sent from the shit-holes of Hell." He then glanced around and swore. "I shouldn't have said that. If word got back to her⎯"

Ana shot up. "Who?"

The color drained from his skin. "Never mind." Dammit, Lucien. "The less you both know, the better. Tam might not find it troublesome to tell you about the blight, but I wouldn't put it past a human to sell the information to the highest bidder."

Okay, I understand that Lucien has a mistrust of humans, probably stemming from some childhood trauma or something, but damn. This was getting a bit excessive, even for me. Yeah, I have trust issues after the amount of betrayal I faced growing up, but this? 

Ana rubbed Astrella's neck softly as she thought over everything Lucien had said. If there was someone⎯a her⎯that was so powerful that they managed to scare High Fae, Ana knew she should logically be nervous. Not scared. No, she would never be scared. After everything she'd been through, fear was numb to her at this point. 

How powerful was this her?  As powerful as Valentine when he got his hands on the Mortal Cup? As powerful as the Seelie Queen? As powerful as the Clave, or the Herondales, or the greater demons from her world? 

Ana had learned from talking with the servants and reading the books in the library that Prythian was ruled by seven High Lords. Was it possible for this her to be a High Lady? Did those exist? Or was this world just as sexist as the Clave could sometimes be?

"How old are you?" Feyre asked.

"Old," Lucien said. His eyes scanned the brush, but Ana had a feeling he wasn't looking for game. His shoulders were too tense. 

Feyre's shoulders slumped. "What sort of powers do you have? Can you shape-shift like Tamlin?"

He sighed, looking skyward. Ana had asked Lucien if he had powers before, but he hadn't really given her much of an answer. "Trying to figure out my weaknesses so you can⎯" Feyre glowered at him. "Fine. No, I can't shape-shift. Only Tam can."

"But your friend⎯he appeared as a wolf. Unless that was his⎯"

"No, no. Andras was High Fae, too. Tam can shift us into other shapes if need be. He saves it for his sentries only, though. When Andras went across the wall, Tam changed him into a wolf so he wouldn't be spotted as a faerie. Though his size was probably indication enough."

Ana scoffed into Astrella's neck. "If your description was right, Feyre, Andras's wolf form was as big as an Alpha werewolf from my world. Not suspicious at all."

Lucien rolled his eyes at her sarcasm. "Anyway, the High Fae don't have specific powers the way the lesser faeries do. I don't have a natural-born affinity, if that's what you're asking. I don't clean everything in sight or lure mortals to a watery death or grant you answers to whatever questions you might have if you trap me. We just exist⎯to rule."

Ana stiffened. There were Fae that would answer her questions if she caught them? 

"I suppose if I were one of you, I'd be one of the faeries, not High Fae? A lesser faerie like Alis, waiting on you hand and foot?" Lucien didn't answer Feyre's question, which meant yes. "How'd you get that scar?"

Lucien's jaw tensed. "I didn't keep my mouth shut when I should have, and was punished for it."

"Tamlin did that to you?"

"Cauldron, no. He wasn't there. But he got me the replacement afterward."

Ana mulled over her thoughts before finally speaking after a beat of silence between the three of them. "There are faeries who will actually answer any questions if you trap them?" 

She needed him to be honest with her, because if these faeries did exist, she had a chance to find out answers. To understand what had happened to her and how to return home. Yes, Rhysand had told her that if she managed to visit him again he'd answer her questions, but she hadn't managed to do so yet. And she was growing impatient.

Lucien nodded. "Yes. The Suriel. But they're old and wicked, and not worth the danger of going out to find them." He shot a look at the two girls. "And if you're stupid enough to keep looking so intrigued, I'm going to become rather suspicious and tell Tam to put you both under house arrest. Though I suppose you both would deserve it if you were indeed stupid enough to seek one out."

Ana felt a smirk surface. Immediately, she began planning. Plotting. That night, she'd ask Alis how to properly catch a Suriel. She needed answers, and she needed them now. So that way, if she did contact Izzy, she'd have some information to give them other than "I don't know."

The blonde snapped out of her thoughts as an icy chill ran down her spine, her eyes latching onto the woods. She could hear Lucien's eye whirring softly through the pumping of her heart, feel the tensing of Astrella's muscles beneath her legs. Something was going on.

In an instant, Ana's hands were wrapped around the hilts of her kindjals, the blades glowing in response to her angel blood. Feyre's bow was drawn as well, arrow pointed in the direction that Lucien was staring.

"Put your weapons down," he whispered, his voice low and rough. "Put your damn weapons down, humans, and look straight ahead."

Ana hesitantly did as he said, sheathing the kindjals before plucking her stele from her belt pouch and running it over some of her runes. Something bad was near, and she wanted to be at full strength to take it down.

"Don't react," Lucien said, forcing his gaze ahead, too, the metal eye still and silent. "No matter what you feel or see, don't react. Don't look. Just stare ahead."

The Fallon girl nodded stiffly and gripped her reins. Astrella's ears flattened against her head, but she continued to walk, as if she also understood Lucien's demand.

And then, deep within her mind, she felt it.

Just like when she was facing off against the memory demon, Valak, Ana felt cold fingers brushing against her mind. They were icy and chilling and made Ana's grip on the reins tighten. 

I will grind your bones between my claws; I will drink your marrow; I will feast on your flesh. I am what you fear; I am what you dread . . . look at me. Look at me.

Ana just clenched her jaw, feeling something powerful slither through her veins, brushing against her skin as it begged to burst free. It seemed to pulse like a living, breathing thing beneath her skin, brushing against her insides warmly and reminding her of the feeling she got when drinking hot cocoa in the cold months. 

Look at me.

. . .

Look at me, Shadowhunter! Look at me!

. . .

There was a deep chuckle. So strong willed. I will fill my belly with you. I will devour you. Look at me.

Suddenly, an image appeared in Ana's mind, shoving away the voice. It was an image of a starry night sky, the moon shining full above her. A town of glittering lights extended before her, with snow-capped mountains surrounding it and music coming from the deepest parts of the town. A river ran freely through the mountains. It all seemed so . . . peaceful. Beautiful.

Part of her believed it to be the town she grew up in, but she barely remembered that town. This was some place different. Some place she'd never been before, but wanted to see in person.

The chill vanished, along with the image. Only after Lucien let out a breath and the horses shook their heads did Ana truly allow herself to settle. 

"What was that?" Ana asked tensely. 

Lucien's face was pale. "You don't want to know."

Feyre's cheeks were stained with tears and she looked on the verge of passing out. "Please. Was it that . . . Suriel you mentioned?"

Lucien's russet eye was dark as he answered hoarsely. "No. It was a creature that should not be in these lands. We call it a Bogge. You cannot hunt it, and you cannot kill it. Even with your beloved ash arrows."

"Why can't we look at it?" Ana asked.

"Because when you look at it⎯when you acknowledge it⎯that's when it becomes real. That's when it can kill you."

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

𝐀 𝐔 𝐓 𝐇 𝐎 𝐑 𝐒   𝐍 𝐎 𝐓 𝐄   !

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Take a wild guess as to which chapter is next and who will be showing up in said chapter. Trust me, the tea will be piping hot within the next chapter as secrets are spilled and truths are revealed!

Also, anyone know the town that Ana thought of during the attack of the Bogge? I thought I'd add this little detail in because of how cute it is in theory.

Please comment and vote!

Love you all!

~ a.h.