Clary reached out to caress Jace's neck. His eyes closed, and he sighed, and then pulled away.
"I'm-I'm sorry.", she murmured. Jace reached out and squeezed her hand gently.
"No, it's - it's not you. I just...you remind me of someone I used to know...a long time ago."
Clary peered into Jace's eyes. One of them was so startlingly blue, she felt like she was swimming in an endless ocean of blue paradise. The other, while also blue, had a touch of gold in it as well. She thought he was the most beautiful man she'd ever seen.
A car honked and it broke Clary out of her reverie.
"Oh, ah...that's my father. Um...I hope you enjoyed the show!", she said. She ran off toward the car, and Jace turned to watch her go. His eyes darkened in anger as she got into the passenger seat of the car, and the driver was none other than Luke. They sped off, and Jace watched until he could no longer see the red lights in the background.
Luke drove with Clary in silence for a while. She kept glancing over at him, but he kept his eyes fixated on the road in front of him. She sighed.
"Whatever you need to say, Luke, just say it.", she said. Luke sighed and glanced over at her.
"That man you were talking to after your show...how do you know him?", he asked.
"I don't. At least, I don't think I do. He seems so familiar to me, and when he came near me, I felt the deepest sense of both loss and safety all at the same time. Does that even make any sense?", she asked. Luke nodded. Just as Magnus suspected, the magic of Raziel could only go so far. Jace and Clary had a connection deeper than any other Shadowhunters alive, due to the fact they were the only pureblooded Shadowhunters existing, sharing the same blood from the angel Ithuriel, who Valentine, Clary's biological father, had held captive for years. He sighed, and as they pulled into the lot of the bookstore, he whipped out his phone.
"Why don't you head in? Maryse has dinner ready, I think."
Maryse was Luke's girlfriend. After Clary's mother died in a freak accident, it took a while for Luke to move on, but when he did, Clary was so happy for him. Her mother's death had nearly destroyed him. He went on a bender for a week and disappeared. Clary smiled as she crossed the store to the back, the smell of chicken already emanating from the kitchen.
Luke whipped out his phone and texted Jace.
We need to talk. Meet at Cleophas' place in Idris. I need to see my sister, and I need to talk to Magnus. I have a theory, and if I'm right, we're going to need Cleo.
Luke quickly texted Maryse to tell her what was going on, and then headed out into the New York night. It was pretty chilly still for April. He walked through a dark alleyway until he reached his destination. Magnus Bane's apartment was now owned by a different warlock - Lorenzo Rey - and while his affiliation with Magnus, and the Shadowhunters in general, had been shaky in the past, much of that was mended fences now. Magnus was now the only Downworlder allowed to reside in Idris, due in large part to his role in saving it after Jonathan attacked it. As the High Warlock of Idris, he had a very important role both in creating portals for the Shadowhunters, making it easier for them to get to where they needed to go, and also to help half-bloods in the Academy. Due to Alec's mandate allowing half-Downworld Shadowhunters to train at the Academy, Magnus was busier than ever.
"Lorenzo!", Luke said, shaking his hand. Lorenzo smiled.
"Lucian! You're looking fabulous. Back from Idris so soon, I see. Tell me, how's your handsome stepson and his handsome husband? Tell me everything."
"Oh, of course, I will...but unfortunately, it will have to wait. I need to get back to Idris immediately. A pressing matter has come up, and I need to see my sister...and my stepson...as soon as possible." Lorenzo smiled.
"Say no more!" Lorenzo threw up his hands and created a portal.
"Of course, I will demand payment. You know, that cretin Magnus has some vampire teeth and I'm in desperate need. Do bring some back for me, yes?" Luke sighed and nodded. Mended fences was perhaps too light of a phrase. There was still a lot of animosity between Magnus and his New York replacement. Luke stepped into the portal, and within a moment stood blinking in the sun on the shore of Lake Lyn. He walked up to Cleo's place and knocked on the door. To his shock, Jace sat at the table inside. When Luke entered, he stood.
"Luke.", he said. Jace's blue eyes blazed, and behind the anger Luke could also see hurt and betrayal.
"Jace, look, man-", he said, but Jace stopped him when he looked up with tears in his eyes.
"You told me yourself that us trying to reach Clary was too dangerous. That any connection to the Shadow World could result in vengeance from Raziel. You said we all have to stay away. So imagine my surprise when she gets into your car after her art show, driving off with you. How long have you been in contact with her?", Jace demanded.
"That's not the point. Jace, what were you even doing there?", he asked.
Jace whirled away, and Luke saw his hand flick across his face, scrubbing away tears.
"I couldn't stay away. I was glamored. She shouldn't have been able to see me.", he said softly. His shoulders fell, and he turned to look at Luke.
"I'm dying without her, Luke.", he said. Luke sighed and helped Jace to the table to sit.
"Look, Jace, that's why I called you here. I have a theory." Cleo reached out and gently patted Jace's hand.
"Just listen.", she urged. Jace sighed and listened.
"When Ithuriel died, it was always strange to me. There was no way that Clary's powers should have been able to work after he died, but something stuck with me that I haven't been able to forget. When Magnus went to Edom to save us, he said he spoke with Lillith...but as far as we knew, Lillith died when Simon blasted her with the Mark of Cain."
"Yeah, she died on a mortal plane, though, so that meant she just fell back to Edom, where she'd be trapped until someone summoned her again.", Jace said. Luke smiled, and Jace looked confused.
"So, even though Lillith is one of the most powerful demons to ever live, she still killed Ithuriel where?", Luke asked, beaming.
"She killed him here, outside, on the - oh!", Jace said, his eyes lighting up.
"Jace, what if the same rules apply for angels? Look, I've been doing some research, and although you and Clary are the only Shadowhunters alive that have had pure angel blood since Jonathan Shadowhunter, there have been several powerful warlocks in history who lost their powers when the demons who fathered them died. Every single one was not able to access the demon side of their powers. And at first, I didn't think anything of it, until the other day when we were training and I hit you a little too hard with my sword." Jace smiled and rolled his eyes.
"Luke, I told you - I'm fine."
"Jace, I know that. My point is, we left our steles behind. And yet..."
"And yet, I still activated my iratze, using my link to Ithuriel.", Jace finished for him. He smiled, and as the realization of what Luke was saying became embedded in his thought, the smile widened.
"Exactly. So, Clary was able to use her powers, and now you, too? What does that tell you?" Jace's eyes lit up.
"Luke, Ithuriel's still alive.", he said excitedly.
"Yes, I think he is. And although Cleo no longer has a connection to the angels, Jace...you do."
Jace looked to Cleo, and she frowned, but then slowly she nodded.
"I can show you how to speak to him, as I did with Clary...but there are risks. Ithuriel may smite you just for trying to summon him...or worse, Raziel may make him pay the consequences." Jace nodded.
"Look, I don't care if he kills me on the spot, it's Clary. I'd rather die than live without her.", Jace said. Luke and Cleo shared a look, and then she nodded.
"Follow me. I'll show you how to summon him.", she said.
Jace stood in the rune he had drawn with Cleo's help. Her and Luke were already safely back inside. Jace sighed. He wondered how long this would take. Looking up, he saw a bright flash of light, and he shielded his eyes as there was a shudder. As the ground settled, Jace looked up to see Ithuriel.
"It worked.", he whispered softly.
"My son, why have you summoned me?", Ithuriel demanded. Jace knew that angels could not particularly show emotion, save that of disdain for anyone not an angel, but Ithuriel almost looked...sad.
"Please, Ithuriel...I need your help. It's Clary.', Jace pleaded.
"I know what Clary has done, my son. I tried to warn her. Did she not inform you of this?", he asked.
"What? No! Clary didn't tell me anything. I only found out what she'd done after she'd already done it, and Raziel had taken her away from me."
Ithuriel stepped closer and reached out to touch Jace's shoulders.
"You must see, my son." He reached up and touched a finger to Jace's forehead.
Jace stepped into the Institute, and a quick look around showed him that it was Clary's room. He gasped as he saw her sitting on her bed, covered in her runes. God, she was beautiful. Sitting next to Clary was her mother. They were speaking in low tones. Jace inched forward to hear what they were saying.
"Clary, your compassion is one of the many great traits about you. But the angels, they see it differently. They perceive you as disrupting the natural order."
Clary scoffed and stood up.
"So...so they sent you here just to...to scold me?"
"No! No.", Jocelyn said, standing and gripping Clary's hands in her own.
"They sent me to tell you not to draw another rune of your own ever again."
Clary's eyes widened.
"What?", she asked.
"If you do, as quick as they gave you your gifts, they will take them away."
Jace shuddered as Clary's room span away.
He opened his eyes to see Ithuriel standing before him.
"I begged Raziel to send Jocelyn to Clary. He wanted to just take her powers away. I asked for him to at least send Jocelyn. She deserved at least that...but she would not concede with his request. Clary showed, for the first time, her similarities to Valentine; her stubbornness. Her foolishness. There was nothing I could do. Jace, my son, there's nothing I can do.", he said. Jace fell to his knees.
"Your Shadowhunters have a credo. One that was given to them straight from Raziel himself. You know of it."
Jace looked up at Ithuriel.
"The Law is hard...", he began, and his voice broke.
"But it is the Law." Ithuriel finished.
"Then maybe I don't want to be a Shadowhunter anymore!", Jace yelled. Then, his eyes widened.
"Nothing in my life ever made sense. I woke up every day to do the same thing I did the day before. Kill demons, protect the mundanes from the Shadow World. And then I met Clary Fairchild. The Law is hard, but the way they took her from me...that's torture."
Suddenly, Jace's eyes widened.
"Wait, Raziel took Clary's powers away. Could he do the same for me?" Ithuriel's eyes widened.
"You wish to throw away your gift? For nothing?"
"Not for nothing. For Clary."
Ithuriel sighed.
"I lived as a prisoner amongst humans for forty years. I have witnessed first-hand this thing humans call love...but to see it in a Shadowhunter, one so strong as you..."
"Shadowhunters are part mundane, Ithuriel. We feel emotions just the same as them.", Jace spat out bitterly.
"This I see." Ithuriel stood for a moment studying Jace.
"You share my blood, as does Clarissa. Even now, without her powers, my blood still flows through her veins."
"Ithuriel...she remembered me.", Jace stated. Ithuriel's eyes widened.
"You neglected to share this information with me until now; why?", he asked.
"I didn't even think on it until now, honestly.", Jace stated.
Ithuriel studied Jace again. Then, he smiled.
"This may change everything. Return to me in two days' time. Bring Clarissa. I may have a solution to everything." Ithuriel smiled again at Jace and leapt into the sky. Jace watched him go, hopeful.