-Here's chapter two, lovely readers! Thanks for leaving review, if you did, and I hope to hear more from you after this one. This will be a three-part story, by the way. I'm really enjoying it so far and I can't wait to try writing more for Will and Jem soon. Anyway, enjoy the story :)-

The demon stood for a long moment, taking rattling, harsh breaths. Tessa huddled next to Will in the shadow of the table, clinging desperately to his arm. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Will thought that he should comfort her somehow. But all he could do was stare at the thing's feet. And then it spoke.

"Where are you, my little exorcists?" it singsonged, in a voice like blood gurgling in an open wound. "Where are you hiding, little morsels? Come to see a demon, hmm? You wanted to learn about our kind? Well, come and learn then, little ones..."

Tessa buried her face in Will's shoulder to muffle her crying.

The creature's legs moved. One by one, they slid over the floor, inching forward in deliberate slowness. Its arms were so abnormally long that his claws scraped the floor with every step. "Are you hiding from me? Oh, how rude... I only want one. Yes, just one will do. If I let the rest go, perhaps I can visit again."

The footsteps grew louder, closer. Will held his breath as the thing came within a foot of their hiding places. Up close, it reeked of rot and filth, of flies dancing over graves. He sent up a silent prayer that it wouldn't search under the tables.

"Oh, please. little exorcists, won't you come out? I've been waiting for-" Abruptly, it stopped. The feet halted in front of Will and Tessa. Will went stock-still. A sound like sniffing came then. "What is that I smell?" the thing asked, a strange note of hunger in its voice. "It is absolutely...delicious. Have you left a treat for me, little humans?" The feet turned, as the creature moved to face Will and Tessa's table. Tessa's breath caught, her fingers digging into Will's arm. Will couldn't move.

Then the table shook as the thing beat its hand on it. Tessa gave a tiny squeak. A clatter sounded as a vile tipped over the side of the table and landed on the floor. Its top had been broken off, and the contents spilled out onto the floor. It was a fine powder, finer than snow, and it shone silver in the light. A sharp scent hit Will's senses. Will stared down at the spilled vile and then up at Jem. Jem was frozen as though that vile was a living thing that wanted to kill him.

"Ahhh..." the demon exhaled in bliss. It bent down on the floor and Will saw its head. Ugly and slavering, the beast smelled the vile again and closed its eyes. "Where did you get this?" it asked in a silky purr, licking its lips. "I've only ever seen this once before, humans, and its oh so hard to come across. How lovely of you to save some for me." With that, a long, grotesque tongue slid out from between its teeth. It began to lap the silver powder up from the floor, dipping its tongue into the vile to catch the last of it. As it ate, it hummed low in its throat, "yin fen..."

Will sent Jem a sharp glance. Jem just gazed at that creature licking up the yin fen, his round eyes the same the moonlit color as the drug itself. Will could've sworn he was shivering.

When the last of the drug was gone, the demon growled in frustration. "Oh, how unfair," it rumbled, lifting back up onto two legs again. "To give me only this pitiful amount...when I know there is more nearby."

Jem's gaze locked onto Will's.

"Yesss..." the beast hissed, taking slow, searching steps down the hall now. "I can still smell it...somewhere...so much, it makes my stomach burn..."

For the first time, Will felt a spike of dread bury itself in his chest. Please, please, please, he thought, let it be in a classroom, anywhere else. Please, God, please.

The demon's murmurings were fading. It continued down the hallway, passing the three's hiding places. It still said the most eerie things, craving more of the drug known as yin fen to all demons. Intent on its search, it kept going, until the sound of its footsteps slithered into nothingness. Tessa lifted her head from Will's shoulder, her face ghostly and her hair mussed. Will didn't dare move for a few minutes. Across the hall, Jem was waiting too. Silence. Will's pulse, thudding loudly in his ears. Tessa's small, hoarse voice, asking, "is it...is it safe?"

Will exhaled, long and hard. "I think so."

Suddenly, as if on cue, the demon's arms came from nowhere. They shot out as he galloped into view, smashing through a table with a mighty bang. Tessa screamed, shrill and full of horror. The thing's malicious laughter boomed in the hallway as it knotted its claws in the front of Jem's shirt. "Thought I'd miss this, now, didn't you?" it asked gleefully, bending down to leer in Jem's face. "Though I did think it'd be a great bottle of yin fen, and not THIS. THIS is a treat, indeed!"

The demon lifted Jem up like he weighed nothing at all and slammed him back against the wall. Jem couldn't hold back a cry of pain as the thing's talons gripped his shoulders. Will started to rush forward, but Tessa held him back. "You'll get yourself killed!" she hissed.

Will was panicking. "But, Jem-!"

The demon pinned Jem to the wall, grinning at him and showing off its fangs. Saliva dripped from them in long strands. "My, my, they must've had you living off the drug if you've turned out like this," it jeered. "Delicious, isn't it? Almost don't mind being addicted once it's inside you." It thrust its face close to Jem's and to his credit, he didn't flinch. "You are not something to be wasted, little exorcist. I plan to enjoy you for a long, long time." It peeled its lips back in a ghastly smile. "Maybe if you behave, I'll even let you live as my pet. How does that sound, little human?" It laughed at its own words, all too aware of how awful a deal like that was.

Will couldn't just sit there and watch his closest friend be tortured by a demon. He remembered the blade he had, the blade that all exorcists had at the school for weapons when fighting demons in practice. It was shoved in a sheath at the inside of his boot, concealed. Very carefully, he slipped his hand down and around the hilt.

The demon cocked its head to one side, contemplating the trembling human boy in front of him. "Now, how do you think I should enjoy you, little morsel, hmm? Peel the skin off your bones, perhaps, and take that first? Or maybe slice you open and drink from your veins?" It chuckled, low in its throat. Jem refused to answer, but lifted his chin in brave, foolish defiance. The thing arched a brow. "Oh, come now. There's no need to be rude. Won't you answer me?" Grinning, it slid out that awful tongue again and ran it sickeningly from Jem's collarbone, up his neck to his cheek. Jem turned his face away, and whimpered. The sound went straight to Will's heart.

He didn't know how he got out from under the table so fast, but he did.

He didn't know how he could've crossed the hallway in two strides, but he did.

He never expected himself to have the strength to bury a six-inch blade deep into a demon's back. But he did.

The demon howled, rearing back and instinctively releasing Jem. He slid down the wall to the ground, and stared up at Will through round, scared eyes. "Will!"

Will yanked his knife from the demon's back just as it whirled, lashing out with one arm. He ducked, feeling the rush of wind lift his hair. Then he was facing down a demon, blue eyes fixed on scarlet ones. The demon peeled back its lips and snarled furiously. "You stupid, stupid boy!" it roared, losing all of its earlier mischief. It was enraged at the knowledge that a human boy would attack it. "You will suffer alongside your friend, with me, in Hell!" It lunged for Will with a shriek, great claws spread wide.

Gritting his teeth, Will ducked and rolled; the beast sailed right over him and barreled into the far wall. Cracks spiderwebbed up the stone at the impact. Will straightened up, standing beside a now-upright Jem. He and his friend exchanged a glance. "You okay?" Will asked.

Jem nodded. "Yeah," he answered dazedly, "thanks to you."

"Don't thank me yet." Will dipped his head toward where the demon was rising up again on all fours. "We still have to beat this thing."

The sound of sliding steel startled him and he watched in surprise as Jem lifted his own blade. It was thin and elegantly deadly, the same as Will's. Jem took a deep breath. "All right. Then let's do it."

Will could hear the demon breathing as it glowered at them in hatred, hear its claws scraping the floor, but all he did was look at Jem. There was something about the way Jem stood beside him, so ready to lose his life beside Will, that made his chest fill with warmth. Swallowing, he focused back on the demon. Its crimson gaze burned. With a grating shriek, it charged forward, feet pounding the ground with terrifying strength.

Time seemed to slow down for just a second. Will and Jem didn't move as the creature came for them. Softly, under his breath, Jem asked, "will you fight beside me?"

Will didn't hesitate. "Always."

They sidestepped at the same time and the demon careened past them. It drove its talons hard into the floor, screeching to a halt. Will wasted no time in sinking his blade into its ribs. "YOU DAMN EXORCIST!" the thing yowled in rage, and shot out an arm. Swearing, Will struggled to pull out his knife and managed to, but then claws are closing in his shirt. He gasped as he was hoisted up off the ground and swung around to the creature's head. A gaping maw of fangs faced him, rushing forward. But then the demon fell back, hissing as Jem practically sliced its hand off. Will dropped to the floor, landing on his feet. His mind reeled; he tried to remember everything he'd been taught in combat training against demons. Go for the heart. Always the heart.

While Jem kept the demon preoccupied with slashes and jabs at its face, Will darted forward. He dodged a blow to the shoulder, and somersaulted between the demon's forelegs. Crouching low under the demon's belly, he squinted up at the massive chest above him. He only had one chance under here, before the demon found him. Scrambling around to avoid the crushing legs, he tried to find a way to aim for the heart. There was too much chaos, too much sound. When he finally did strike, the blade missed entirely and stabbed the thing in the stomach. This, predictably, made it very angry. Snarling, it seized Will by the arm and wrenched him out from under it. He was thrown back into a wall, hissing in pain. "Dammit!"

"Will!" Jem raised his blade and sliced through the demon's face. A line of black, bubbling blood appeared between its eyes and down its nose. It reeled back, screaming. This gave Jem time to hurry to Will's side. "This isn't working," he panted. "We can't beat it. It's too strong, Will."

Will pushed himself up, wincing at the soreness in his muscles. "If we don't kill that thing, it'll slaughter me and torture you," he replied gravely. "It'll kill Tessa next. Then the whole school, until advanced exorcists show up to exterminate it." The knowledge was almost too much, even for him. "We have to kill it, Jem."

"How?" Jem asked disbelievingly.

"This whole time we've been fighting our own way." Will forced a smirk onto his face. "So let's work together. Okay?"

Jem blinked. Then a smile quirked his lips. "Okay. Try to keep up, though."

They both turned as the demon screeched. It wiped the last of the blood from its face and opened its jaws wide to show them its shard-like teeth. "COME HERE, YOU LITTLE HUMANS!" it roared ferociously. "I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR EVER ATTENDING THIS WRETCHED SCHOOL!" Its voice of malice filled the air as it began the last thunderous charge at the two students.

Will closed his eyes briefly, felt his heartbeat thudding against his ribs, imagined he could feel Jem's alongside his. They would fight, together.

And oh, how they fought.

Fighting separately, they were exceptional. But fighting together, they were brilliant. Will was aware of every movement Jem made, and Jem was aware of his. It was like an invisible cord connected them and they'd never known it until now. When the demon's talons raked down toward Will's face, Jem slashed cleanly through its wrist. When sharpened fangs rushed for Jem's neck, Will's blade pierced the demon's shoulder. They moved and acted as one. There was no Will Herondale and there was no Jem Carstairs. There was only this, this wonderful, incredible experience they were together. The demon was weakening, gashes and wounds marking its body. It panted raggedly, lashing out at every opportunity. But Will and Jem danced away from every blow. Will glanced up, and saw the creature fall to its knees. Its arms braced on the floor and an idea sparked in his mind. "Jem!" he called, racing for the thing's right arm.

Jem did the same, rushing toward the left arm. Together they climbed nimbly up onto the demon's shoulder blades. With hardly a glanced at each other, they swung their blades high. Then they plunged them down, burying them to the hilt in the demon's neck. The demon screamed. It was a scream that ripped worlds apart, that shattered windows. Its body trembled violently. Suddenly, in a bloom of inky smoke, it vanished into nothingness. Will and Jem fell to the floor, landing a bit undignified on their backs.

It was over. It was really, truly over.

Will just lay there for an impossible minute, staring up at the ornately carved ceiling. He'd killed a demon. With Jem. They'd actually done it.

He and Jem sat up at the same time. They stared first at the surrounding wreckage, then at each other. Then they both broke into awed, giddy smiles. They burst into conversation, talking over each other in their boyish excitement.

"Did you SEE that thing?!"

"We just killed a freaking demon!"

"That was awesome-!"

"You should've seen-!"

"Man, it was huge, and-!"

"I can't believe the way-!"

They burst out laughing, realizing that their talk was going nowhere. Will had never felt so alive, so high on adrenaline before. He grinned at Jem and, caught in the moment, said, "you were incredible."

To his surprise, Jem blushed. "I don't know..." he trailed off sheepishly.

"Don't be stupid, I saw you." Will's smile grew warm. "You looked like you could've fought forever."

Jem studied Will through those gleaming eyes of his. A sudden, unknown emotion filled his expression. "I felt like I could've," he admitted quietly, "with you."

Will sobered instantly. What did that mean, if it meant anything at all? He was about to ask, but the words died on his lips. Because Jem was inches away, and leaning closer still. Their noses just barely brushed and Will stammered, "J-Jem..."

"OH MY GOD, DID YOU REALLY JUST KILL A DEMON?!" Tessa's loud voice snapped the stillness. Will and Jem hastily jerked away from each other. Will's heart raced. Had Jem really been about to...? And had Will really been about to let him? He shook his head to clear it as Tessa continued her gleeful rambling and the dust settled around them.

Slowly, the doors of classrooms began to open.