Hi guys, here I am again. And yep, another story about Alec and Jace, though this time I wanted to write something about them being parabatai. This is going to be a series of little snippets, just scenes that came to my mind when I thought what it might be like to be parabatai. Something I think is completely neglected in the books. Sooo, I'm not sure if it's any good, cause I wrote it late at night (couldn't sleep with that unfinished). Well, here it is.
Ah, and yes I'm Cassandra Clare. Well, maybe. Or maybe not. but still. It could be?
The evening Alec had turned twelve Robert Lightwood ordered him and Jace into the library. It was a strange request, because they all were sitting in the kitchen, content and filled with Maryse's special birthday dish. Although Robert hadn't sounded angry, Alec felt alarmed. To be called to the library usually wasn't a good thing. It was not only the room, where Hodge lectured on Shadowhunter history, the different types of demons or adequate behaviour, more notably it was used when one of them needed punishment for their wrongdoings. The rare times other Shadowhunters stepped by to see how things went in New York, to bring news of Idris and the Clave or to exchange rumours Robert and Maryse sent the children away and forbade them to come near the library while they had to talk about adult things. Unnecessary to mention that it didn't prevent them from eavesdropping.
Alec liked the peaceful atmosphere among the books and comfortable armchairs, but today the formal strength of the massive desk seemed to dominate the room. He glanced at Jace. The blonde boy looked mildly curious, but not too interested, as always. He would probably look the same when a demon tried to kill him. But under the surface he was excited, too. The way he stood more upright than he did normally and the tension of his shoulders gave him away.
His father mentioned for them to sit down, his expression serious but friendly.
"Alexander, this is your twelfth birthday and you're no longer a child now." Alec rubbed his arm, where he could still feel the burning sensation of the stele giving him his first mark. A proud smile spread across his face. He wasn't a child anymore.
"Jonathan, you probably wonder why you're here, too. You, both of you, know that Michael Wayland and I were parabatai, right?" Alec nodded. Then Robert shifted his attention to Jace. "And you know what parabatai means, right?"
Jace answered, sounding as if he was reciting a passage from a dictionary. He probably was. "Parabatai: A pair of warriors fighting together. Brothers in arms."
His father had a distant look in his eyes when he began to speak again. "Brothers in arms, that's right, but that's not all." He smiled to himself. "A parabatai is also the closest friend you can have; I remember that Michael knew me better than I knew myself sometimes. Parabatai are brothers at heart. Two inseparable parts of a whole. But I got carried away, sorry boys. What I wanted to say is that you should be parabatai."
After his father's little speech his request was hardly surprising, but Alec still felt taken aback. Not every Shadowhunter had a parabatai, it made you special and it was definitely an adult thing. The books said it was all about trust and honour and duty, but to Alec it sounded like a lot of fun. He was only twelve after all.
For Alec and Jace the next months seemed to stretch endlessly, as time always does when you have to wait for something. Whenever Robert Lightwood caught sight of his two boys and parabatai-to-be they were either training feverishly or counting the hours that still had to pass. The event that caused their excitement would take place a week after Jace's birthday. Inwardly Robert thought that it was unnecessary to wait as Jace already wasn't a child anymore, in fact Robert couldn't remember a time where he had been. But it was tradition and, even more important, a rule that no child could be made parabatai. Not that turning twelve made a child an adult overnight, but rules must be obeyed. Robert wanted the bond between the boys to be stable, nothing that could be questioned, because separating parabatai would probably cause severe damage. He had seen it once and everyone with his past had felt the consequences. No, nobody should be able to question the arrangement. Normally the fathers of both children had to agree to the bond, but as the situation was... He shook his head and ignored the worries. Jace and Alec would be great parabatai, they already were inseparable, not that they had any other Shadowhunters their age they could play with except Isabelle.
Thinking of the three little rascals he decided it was time to talk to Hodge to hear his complaints and see what progress the children made. He found Hodge in the library reading some thick old book. Robert paused to look at the man. The dark brown of his hair was already fading to grey as his countless scars had faded to small white lines. The only thing that wouldn't fade was the ban that kept him locked up inside the Institute as a prisoner of his past. Sometimes the Clave was very hard in its decisions, but fair, he had to remind himself, hard but fair.
The huge bird on the back of Hodge's chair stirred and made his owner look up. He smiled.
"Ah, Robert, I knew you would drop by soon and I'm very curious to hear what you've done to your boys. They've always been an exceptional good team, but now it's getting frightening. They fight as if they could read each other's mind. Jace fights with astonishing skill and outstanding technique. Alec is fast with both blades and bow. And I must mention Isabelle, I think she's going to need a new whip soon, hers is getting too short. When she has learned to control herself better she will be a deathly fighter. You can be proud of them all."
Robert smiled, it had to be the first time Hodge hadn't found something to complain about and he was a strict teacher. He felt sorry that he couldn't train his children himself, maybe he should at least watch them fight more often. Yes, he liked the idea and decided to realize it this same evening.
When Hodge entered the gym, his students had already finished stretching and were now occupied with some basic movements to warm up. They didn't need his guidance here, so he turned to Robert Lightwood to explain their schedule.
Then he excused himself and called his students. "Boys - and Isabelle- your father wishes to see your progress. Jace, Alec would you like to start?" Of course they wanted to show their abilities and impress their father. Speaking of which... he spontaneously decided to show his visitor some advanced fighting in form of a little game he had invented for the two boys. They had already put on their heavy training gear that would prevent most injuries, at least anything worse than bruises. Before they could grab their usual, rather harmless training weapons, Hodge threw them a pair of real seraph blades. They were caught with grace, but the boys' faces showed their surprise. He had to oppress a grin when he took two pieces of dark garment out of a nearby shelf.
The boys' bodies were tense with anticipation when they entered the mat-covered space, positioning themselves. Irritation was clearly written across Robert's face and his expression morphed into pure shock as he realized that they would fight blindfolded.
Hodge turned his back towards Robert, he had to concentrate now, too. He was in charge and had to intervene if anything went wrong, something the archangel may prevent.
"Get ready." They took a firm grip on their blades, inhaling deeply to calm down.
"Ok now, aaand ONE!" The blades collided as both boys attacked. Behind his back Hodge heard Robert gasp, but did not interrupt his counting. "... two, three. One, two, three. One..." He continued in a steady rhythm and every word was underlined by the sound of metal crashing on metal.
Jace had his eyes closed, there was no point in trying to see anything, it would only disturb him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard Hodge count, but he didn't listen, it wasn't necessary. His body knew how to move, they had trained this often enough, though they had never used real blades before. It didn't matter. Failure was nothing Jace ever thought about, nor did he consider the consequences of his actions.
And then, way too soon, Hodge told them to stop. It was like surfacing from under water, suddenly his concentration, that had shielded him from any irrelevant information, broke away. He felt adrenaline rush through his veins, felt his heart beat and the sweat on his neck, his nose noticed the faint smell of leather and metal, that always lingered in the gym. At first it was a shock, it always was and he thought Will it ever change? but then he just felt alive and indescribably happy. A huge smile spread over his face. I hope it won't. Then he took off his blindfold.
Okay, now the usual request: Please review. And tell me what you think about it, be honest. If you have an idea for a scene tell me, I don't promise anything, but I'm going to think about it.