~Shadows & Silver~

-So. This is my first ever fanfiction for this series. It's a modern au because it's been too long since I read the books and I didn't want to screw up their time period. I hope you like it; reviews are more than welcome. Enjoy!-

Deep in the heart of the countryside, past rolling hills and wide meadows, was the towering Institute for the Gifted. And it was towering, indeed. It had been built years ago, out of stone kissed to gold by sunlight. Its spires and turrets reminded anyone who passed of a medieval castle, rather than a high school. The doors were monstrous things of dark wood and ebony handles; the windows shone and were taller than most men; and the whole building simply oozed elegance and luxury. And secrets. Secrets of the darkest kind.

The teachers knew it by its true name, the School of Advancement for Young Exorcists (or SAYE).

The students nicknamed it the Institute, after its fake name meant to reassure parents that their children were not really in any danger during their "studies." But there were plenty of dangers. Each day, they were taught different ways to summon, command, and exterminate demons. Religious beliefs of all kinds were taught there; hand-to-hand combat, sword-fighting, knife-throwing, and other fighting techniques were included. Every ancient myth, story, and song about demons was read and studied. The students there were all gifted with the ability to see the darkest side of this world, an ability to see demons roaming the earth. There were very few humans who possessed this. It was what earned its name, the Gift.

Well, a gift to some, a curse to others. Despite being well-known for the exorcists the school created, there were many dropouts every year. The burden of the Gift wasn't always manageable to mere teenagers. Once they witnessed just what kinds of things went on inside the Institute's looming walls, they were more than happy to leave.

But there were some who stayed. Some who knew that their true place had never been with ordinary people; it had been here. Some who were special.

And there were, of course, in rare occasions, some who were more special than others.

-o-o-o-

For all his time spent bragging to the new students about how he summoned demons, Professor Stone certainly was taking a long time in finding one. He was pacing back and forth over the sun-pale stones of the floor of the Summoning classroom, long, black cane swinging frustratedly. His shoes tap-tapped over the circle he'd just drawn in the floor with said cane, a circle that looked like a harmless line of black chalk. He sighed, and huffed in disappointment, and pushed his glasses up on his nose. The poor guy just wanted to teach his class by showing them a low-level demon, for crying out loud. The students, however, were greatly entertained by their teacher's troubles. They chatted, and gossiped, some of them pointing at him in glee.

This, Will thought drily, isn't worth missing breakfast this morning.

William Herondale was near the far left of the circle of students gathered around Professor Stone's circle. He stood with his weight mostly on one leg, arms crossed, and a perpetual look of boredom on his face. It was clear that his teacher's screw-up was a complete waste of his time. A few of the girls in class shot him glances and giggled behind their hands. Some of them dared their friends to talk to him. All of which was expected. Will was one of the older students, a boy with rakish black hair and eyes the color of ocean waters. He feared nothing and no one. And he was unfairly, strikingly good-looking. The girls absolutely loved him. Too bad he didn't love any of them back. But it didn't matter; they still whispered about him, still dreamed of being his.

Will's mouth curled at the corner into a half-smile. Oh, if only they knew...

"I just don't understand!" Professor Stone complained in despair, snapping Will out of his thoughts. The man was scratching at his thinning, ashen hair. "This is exactly how I've been doing it for the past thirty years! Low-level demons should be attracted to a Circle when summoned!"

A redhead named Todd called out, "maybe he just doesn't wanna see YOUR ugly face!"

Laugher and jeers erupted at his words, and a few guys gave him playful shoves. Professor Stone shot the kid a glare that could burn small villages to the ground. Todd was a notorious troublemaker at the Institute, but thanks to his rich parents, he rarely ever got detentions for his actions. The world was certainly gonna be in good hands once HE became a full-fledged exorcist.

Will's hand had gone to crisp, white collar of his shirt again, an old habit. He hated these school uniforms, though everyone had to wear them. He fiddled with the buttons until three came undone. "Somebody kill me now," he muttered under his breath, after Professor Stone launched into a shouting match with Todd. This entire class was going nowhere.

His thoughts were once again halted by the boy slipping in through the door across the room. Will straightened up, peering between teenagers at the newcomer. He heard a quiet voice apologizing to the professor for being late, a few other words in explanation, and then the boy was making his way over to Will. Will forced his gaze to the floor in boredom again. He ignored the way his mood had lightened considerably thanks to this new arrival.

"So did I miss anything?" The boy took the place at Will's side, looking flustered and curious. His skin was like moonlight, hair like spilled, silver tinsel; his bright, intelligent eyes shone the way light flashed on water.

"Nothing at all," Will replied flippantly. He offered a smile. "Don't worry, Jem, at this rate, we'll all be exorcists by the time we're thirty. Because that's how long it'll take Stone to get a demon to crawl up from Hell."

The silver boy, Jem, returned the smile. "That's a shame. Now I'm gonna be stuck here with YOU til I'm thirty."

"Consider yourself lucky."

"Lucky? Here with you? Hardly."

"Ouch, my ego."

"Your ego deserves to be hurt. It's bigger than the whole building."

Will chuckled good-humoredly. James Carstairs was the only person in the entire Institute that made coming here worth his time. Without him, Will would've thrown himself off a cliff years ago. He didn't like taking classes for things he could figure out on his own. Hunting demons was in his blood. But his parents had insisted that he go to the same school they'd attended and so, here he was. So thank GOD he'd been joined by his best friend.

Jem suddenly huffed pointedly. "Really, Will?" he asked.

Will blinked. "What?"

Jem gestured at Will's shirt, where he'd unbuttoned it to show a gaping V of skin. "You're going to get in trouble, you know, always messing with your shirts like that," he told him. "Some teachers actually care about dress codes."

Will snorted. "Name three."

"...I can only name one."

"Because old Ms. Black is the only rotten teacher in this place who cares."

"Oh, shut up. Just c-mere-" Jem broke off, taking a step closer to Will and lifting his hands to his collar. Will made a point of rolling his eyes, but stood still while Jem fixed his shirt. There were five inches between them. Every once in a while, Jem's knuckles would brush Will's skin and send tiny shivers down his spine. Will found he was holding his breath. Then Jem stepped back again and the moment was gone.

Suddenly, Professor Stone's voice cut through the buzz of the students' conversation. "AH HA! Got one!" The old man had retreated to the edge of the circle now, a wild look of triumph in his milky blue eyes. It was the intense look of fear and fascination that came from summoning a creature of another world. Will turned his attention to the center of the room.

The circle was now glowing like white-hot flame. At the very center, a pool of seething, inky liquid bubbled and spat. It hissed as though it would be hot to the touch and the reek of dead things filled the air. As the gang of awed students watched, a long, black arm reached is way up out of the floor. Its long, bony fingers ended in sharp talons. A few people edged backwards with mutters of uneasiness.

Professor Stone, however, was ecstatic. "Now, now, students, there's no need to worry," he called. He gestured with bravado at the clawed hand now digging rents into the floor. "This is merely a low-level demon. Nothing to be scared of. I just wanted something small to start you off with..."

A girl standing at Will's other side, (who actually happened to be the only girl WITHOUT a huge crush on him), muttered, "it sure doesn't seem that small, does it?" She glanced at Will through cascading locks of wine-colored hair, fingers fiddling nervously with the hem of her skirt.

"Well, we can only see its arm so far, Tessa," Will pointed out flatly.

"Yes," Tessa replied, "but it's a very BIG arm."

"Not really. I could hack that thing in half, no problem."

"Oh, I'd like to see you try."

Jem leaned over to peer at Tessa around Will. "Are you two arguing again?" he asked witheringly. The three were good friends at the Institute. Tessa had joined Will and Jem shortly after they arrived here, and they immediately clicked as friends.

Tessa and Will frowned at Jem and both answered, "no." Jem was, of course, unconvinced.

All talk stopped completely, however, when the arm of the demon began to bend at the elbow, as though the thing was going to hoist itself up. Professor Stone watched in eagerness, ready for the creature to appear. But before it did, a sudden, piercing wail tore the air. Gasps filled the room as teenagers clapped hands over their ears. Jem did the same, Tessa yelped, and Will couldn't hold back a flinch. Low-level demons weren't supposed to sound like that, he thought. They should sound like small beings, not something so huge, it filled the entire school with its ghastly voice. Professor Stone's brow furrowed in confusion. Then his eyes grew wide and his face paled. "Wh-what? This isn't supposed to... This was supposed to be different!"

Several students exchanged horrified looks. A few backed away from the circle and left the room altogether. At first, Will wanted to scoff at their foolish behavior. But then he looked down at that arm reaching upward from Hell itself, and knew in his heart that Professor Stone had made a grave mistake.

This was no low-level demon. This was something else entirely.

The thing's head was beginning to rise out of the muck on the floor, large and studded with twisted horns. It seemed to be made of ink and shadows, roiling and oozing onto the stones. A growl grated in its throat. Professor Stone shook his head as though denying what he'd done. "I have to- Oh God..." He stammered in fear, then hurried to his desk. Scrambling right past it, he reached the wall, where a gray metal box had been nailed into the stone. It was plain, except for a single, red button on its surface. He slammed a fist into it and instantly, the fire alarm began to ring like a banshee in the hallways. "Everybody out!" he shouted over the noise. "Now!"

Tessa was shivering. "Will?" She stared at the door across the classroom. On the other side of the demon's circle.

Will gave her a harsh glance, as if to say, keep it together. "You heard him. We're getting out of here, now."

"Then let's go!" Jem put in, one hand on Will's arm. "We need to get around it before it's out the whole way!"

Will didn't answer, just led the way. He trailed after the tide of panicked students as they scrambled for the door. His boots made a careful line around the circle as he jogged around it as fast as he could. He didn't dare glance at the thing inside, the thing that now raised its head up to a terrifying height. The slap of Jem's and Tessa's footsteps behind him was the only comfort in the now-crumbling world around him. The demon was halfway out of its prison when the trio reached the door. Will grabbed the doorframe with one hand, but paused there. Predictably, all three were drawn to look back just once.

The creature planted both hands on the floor and hauled the bottom half of its body out of the circle. Its chest heaved with its rattling, foul breaths. It was gigantic, head nearly grazing the ceiling. A gaping mouth held rows and rows of wicked, jagged fangs. When it opened its eyes, they were nothing but crimson orbs with no pupils. Rearing up onto its back legs, it threw its head back and released an earsplitting screech. Professor Stone had crouched behind his desk now, hidden from the beast. He was no match for a demon like this and he knew it. Other, more advanced exorcists would have to take care of it.

"Please, let's just go!" Tessa cried, eyes shut tight as the being roared. Tears welled there, slipping down her face.

Will didn't wait another moment. He dashed out into the wide hallway, two friends right behind him. He ran down it for only a few yards before skidding to a stop uncertainly. The hall, with its scarlet-and-gold carpet, arching, stone ceiling, and scattered furniture, was empty. Will blinked in confusion. Wasn't everybody evacuating? Where was everyone? He glanced back at Tessa and Jem. "Something's not-" He broke off at an insistent tapping. Spinning around, he glimpsed a classroom door held open ajar. Behind it, a teacher was trying to get his attention, her green eyes wide with terror. The faces of shaking students peered out from behind her. Understanding dawned on Will. This demon couldn't be treated like a fire drill. It was being treated like a lockdown. Their only hope was to hide.

The teacher gestured wildly for him to join them. Will nodded at her, then began to turn, to tell Jem and Tessa-

And the door to Professor Stone's abandoned classroom flew off its hinges. It crashed into the opposite wall, throwing splinters of wood up like snow. Tessa cried out, stumbling backward into Jem. He caught her by the shoulders and said something to her in a low voice, gaze fixed on the wreckage.

"Dammit," Will hissed. They didn't have any more time. Glancing around, he spotted two narrow tables, placed at either side of the hallway. It would have to do. He grabbed Tessa and Jem by the arms. "We have to hide. Right now. Or it'll kill us."

Tessa gaped at him. "H-hide?" she stuttered.

"Yes, hide. Under the tables." Will pointed at each in turn, grim and dead-serious.

"Will, it'll find us eventually," Jem told him gravely.

Will glared at him. "You gotta better plan?"

Jem looked like he wanted to say something, but he stayed quiet. "All right, now go," Will ordered. He had to fight down the way his heart threatened to pound out of his chest. "We don't have any time." He started toward one table with Tessa, and Jem had to take the other. There wasn't enough room for all three under just one. Tessa crouched and darted underneath immediately, but Will was stopped by a hand gripping his sleeve. He lifted his gaze to meet Jem's silver eyes. "What?" he asked. He could hear the demon's lumbering footsteps now. Jem just gazed at him, something like pain in his face. "Jem, what is it?"

Jem seemed to fight with himself. Then he took a quick step forward and spoke, his whisper sending warm breath along Will's ear. "Be safe. Please. ...wo ai ni."

Will felt like his breath had been knocked out of his lungs. "What does that mean?" he demanded shakily, but Jem was retreating, across the hall. "Jem! What does that- Oh hell." He practically threw himself down, scrabbling under the table beside Tessa. It was a good thing he did because at that moment, the demon emerged into the hallway. Tessa trembled. Will looked at Jem from across the hall. Jem looked at Will.

A silence like Death itself fell over the Institute.