"Lorenzo Rey has been waiting centuries for his day in the sun. The pompous ass engineered this whole thing."

"Why did that jerk have to get the title?" Shu muttered. "Anyone, literally anyone else would've been better than that little shit."

"I hate to see you like this," Raphael said.

"Oh, don't you worry about me, sweet boy," Magnus assured him. "What can I do for you?"

Raphael hesitated, but eventually admitted, "I need Dagget Root."

"The vampire tranquilizer?"

"Yeah. There's a new recruit at the DuMort. Let's just say his transition has been a bit rocky."

"Well…that's only a temporary solution. He's gonna have to face his fears." Magnus turned and grabbed a book he was using as a checkbook of sorts and untied the string, preparing to write something down. "Lucky for you, I am open for consultation…if they want it. For a reasonable price, of course."

"Aw, but this is Raph, Magnus," Shu said. "Can't we give him a discount?"

"No, it's…it's okay," Raphael assured him. "I think we've got it covered."

Magnus tossed the book onto the floor haphazardly and went to the cabinets, grabbing a vial and holding it out to Raphael. The vampire reached to grab it, but Magnus swatted his hand away.

"What aren't you telling me?"

Raphael shifted from foot to foot. "What are you talking about?"

Magnus flipped the vial in his hand before dropping it to his side. "We practically raised you. I can read you like an open book in all capital letters." He held up the vial again. "Who is this tranquilizer really for?"

"Is it for you, Raph?" Shu asked.

He dropped his head, but nodded.

"I thought so."

"For you?" Magnus repeated.

"Rosa's not doing so well," Raphael explained grimly.

"Your younger sister?" Shu remembered.

Raphael nodded. "And the thought of losing her…my last living relative, it's just…I…I can't sleep."

Magnus swallowed. "I'm so sorry, Raphael."

Magnus pulled his friend into a hug and then Shu took her turn afterwards. Then, Magnus handed over the vial, which Raphael took.

Raphael nodded. "Thank you."

With that, Raphael turned to leave.

Charon watched the vampire walk out of the loft, his gut telling him that there was more to this.

Lilith screamed. Very loudly. For an inordinate period of time.

"What?!" Namir shouted, coming down the hall. "What's happened?!"

"He has perished, he has burned!" Lilith snapped.

"That's what you get for letting him wander out in the open. The Shadowhunters know his face after he killed the woman and know it was supernatural. Now will you listen to me about being more subtle?"

Lilith panted with heavy breaths of rage, gripping the altar tightly. "Send out your pet project. This has merely been a delay to the inevitable. My virtuous disciples will be brought one way or another."

Charon and Alec were currently in a competition to see who could make the most legal trick shots in a game of billiards. Magnus and Shu were sort of playing, but mostly watching their dates duke it out.

"Six ball, corner pocket," Alec announced.

"Good luck with that," Magnus said, taking a drink of his martini and then setting it down.

Alec then proceeded to make the shot easily. With a sigh, Alec moved around the table to line up his next shot.

"You're a man of many talents," Magnus complimented.

"You mean that?" Alec asked, as though he thought Magnus would lie about Alec's skills.

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

"Well, cause you told me you were 'elated' that they replaced you as High Warlock. But I found out through the grapevine…" Alec lined up his shot. "…that you're actually pretty devastated."

"Who told you that?"

Alec took his shot but the ball barely bounced off the side of the pocket. "It doesn't matter."

Magnus looked to Shu and she nodded. "I'm on it."

"I'm sorry, Alexander," Magnus said. "I…I guess…I just didn't want you to see me like that."

Alec shook his head gently. "You never have to pretend how you feel. Especially not with me."

Magnus nodded. "You're right. As far as we've come, I…" Magnus took a deep breath. "I suppose the art of…communication is still a work in progress?" Alec nodded and waved since it was Magnus's turn. "So…have you accepted the position on the Council?"

"Not yet. But I told Aline I'd let her know tomorrow."

Magnus had prepared to take his shot, but then stopped, pulling his pool cue back and turning it vertical to rest on the floor. He hesitated for a long time before finally speaking. "I don't want you to move to Idris. I know it's selfish, but…it's the truth."

"Why didn't you tell me that before?"

Magnus rolled his eyes because it was obvious and walked around the table to be beside him. "Because this is your life, Alexander, and I don't want how I felt to affect your decision."

"Magnus, all I care about is how you feel. I don't wanna go to Alicante without you…but when I brought it up, you acted like…you wanted me to go."

Magnus looked to the side. "I guess I'm a better actor than I thought," He chuckled weakly.

Alec simply smiled and kissed him. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Great, now hurry up and take your shot," Charon said. "I'm up after you and this is a serious game."

"Hold your chocobos, you'll win eventually," Shu smirked.

"Yeah, well we'll see about that," Alec challenged.

Kandai walked down the streets filled with humans, even at night. He arrived at the apartment he was supposed to be at, but it appeared to be unoccupied.

This was where his little girl had been living for the past few decades?

He phased through the locked doors, but instantly collapsed against the stairs. He was far from recovered and turning to mist nearly made him lose all form. He waited a few minutes until he'd stabilized before beginning his ascent up the staircase to the apartment he was looking for. The apartment wasn't hard to pick out among the rest - it was filled with magic and energy.

This time, he did the smart thing and simply waved the doors open, using less energy. The warding across the entire building was strong, but the warding in the specific apartment was stronger. Luckily Kandai still had enough energy to break through them without setting off the alarms.

He looked around for any sign of life, and while the apartment was definitely occupied, he saw no one around. He was afraid to call out and get mistaken for an intruder, but he really didn't know what to do beyond that. He decided to simply wait to be found and collapsed on the couch from exhaustion. While he was waiting, there was no harm in taking a nap, right?

Shu sighed. "Ready for this?"

"Nope," Magnus stated bluntly.

"Nada," Charon agreed.

"I'm not sure if I should be here," Alec admitted.

"Me neither," Shu conceded. "Now let's go."

They walked forward into the large ass mansion that was Lorenzo Rey's house. All around were the warlocks of Brooklyn, party music in the background and drinks passed out to the guests.

"Well…here we are," Magnus sighed.

Alec looked around and noticed that he was getting a couple odd glances. "Are you sure bringing me here was a good idea?"

"Yeah, it's better than coming by myself," Magnus muttered. He looked over and noticed Alec's concerned look and took his hand, lacing their fingers together. "I'm joking. They'll love you."

"Yeah, well I'm gonna make myself scarce," Charon said. "And I'm gonna find something expensive to steal. And some memories to swipe."

Charon disappeared into the crowds and Shu sighed before following. "See you two."

Shu rushed after Charon and grabbed his arm, ordering him to behave.

"I'm still stealing this. Could be useful for a demon deal."

"To the rest of the world, you are simply a warlock, got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, got it."

"Shu! Hey!"

Shu saw a sparkly warlock dressed nearly as eccentrically as Magnus - though slightly more tame by comparison - and instantly moved to hug him. "Veon, it's good to see you're doing well. How's San Francisco treating you?"

Zytaveon was a warlock that Magnus and Shu had found when he was young, hiding away from the world because of his Warlock Mark - bioluminescent green patches of scales all across his skin. He wasn't completely scaled like Lorenzo's Warlock Mark, for example, but in turn he glowed in the dark and only had the scales in random patches. Back when he was a child, he was easily mistaken for a monster and ran away to an abandoned tunnel system, often mistaken for some kind of crocodile when seen (it's where the myth that crocodiles lived in the sewers came from) until Magnus and Shu caught wind of the rumors and found him. They raised him into a civilized man, who sadly took after Magnus in the sparkly, eccentric, quirky department. He dressed as, what he believed was, Magnus done right, but they had loved him as one of their many Downworlder children/friends (Thanks to the aging thing, their children often grew into more brothers, sisters, and friends).

"Ugh, don't remind me. I've got plenty of business, but sometimes people just get so annoying."

"What are you doing in New York?"

"Well, I heard about all the chaos happening and came to visit. I meant to stop by, but…well, I've been caught up in the whirlwind that was the fight against Valentine. Anyway, Cat told me about this warlock party since Mags apparently lost his position."

Shu sighed. "Yes, sadly he made a miscalculation and the Clave is none too lenient about it."

"But Lorenzo? How'd he manage to pull that off?"

"Ugh, you know that some warlocks can be persuasive when power is up for grabs."

"Well, being the High Warlock in Frisco is fun and all, but there are a few drawbacks. Still, Mag must be devastated."

She shrugged. "He's handling it how he's handling it."

"That man saved my life. I wish I could do something."

"We all wish that. Some warlocks didn't like Magnus - especially after an incident that led to a lot of our kind being killed under Magnus's protection - but though we have our immortal qualms, I think a few people at least don't want a change in power. I just hope that Lorenzo doesn't change things too much and make us all regret this. Like it or not, he's not the worst guy in existence."

"Just a serious pain in the neck."

"Cheers to that."

Veon handed her a glass and she sighed but took it. The two of them clinked their drinks together and drank.

"So, who's your date over there?"

Shu looked over to Charon, who was grabbing food to eat at the little buffet table. "He's Charon, longtime friend. Broke up a while back, trying to give it another go."

"Well, he seems nice enough. Look."

Shu saw as Charon kneeled down and talked to the little girl, Madzie, who Caterina was currently raising while Iris was imprisoned in Idris. Shu had tried vouching for Iris's sentence to be reduced for Madzie's sake, and really, what Iris did was forgivable. But Charon smiled and booped Madzie on the nose, making her giggle.

"Huh, well what do you know?"

"Didn't realize he was a kid-lover?" Veon asked.

"Never really had the chance to see. I mean, maybe he's made deals with children in the past - they have the happiest memories in their innocence, but I guess I've never seen him actually interact with a kid."

Shu smiled as she watched Charon play with Madzie…and then proceed to get her to steal some items around Lorenzo's house.

"And there he goes. Charon, stop using the girl! She's been through enough of that!" Shu rushed over with a quick goodbye to Veon. "Hello, Madzie. How've you been doing since I last saw you? Being a good little sorceress for Caterina?"

"Yeah!"

"I'm sure Alec and Magnus want to see you too. Let's go find them, shall we?"

Meanwhile Magnus and Alec were left alone, shrugging together and walking deeper into the house. Alec was looking around at every person like he had a bullseye on his back, the paranoia in his expression evident.

"Oh, just because you're the only Shadowhunter at a party full of warlocks doesn't mean you can't have fun," Magnus assured him.

"Yeah, well, that's easy for you to say," Alec muttered. "You've known these people for centuries."

"And you think that's a good thing? Trust me, I don't wanna be here any longer than I have to. But…it's tradition for the outgoing High Warlock to pass the baton onto his…replacement."

Magnus nodded over to a man across the room. "Is that him?" Alec asked.

"The one and only. Lorenzo Rey, the new High Warlock of Brooklyn."

Just at that moment, Lorenzo noticed Magnus and put a hand up to wave. "Magnus! Magnus Bane."

Magnus attempted to turn away and leave, but Alec grabbed his arm and turned him around to face the warlock. Lorenzo handed each of them drinks.

"You made it, though I expected your sister to be accompanying you."

"She's here, just lost in the crowd," Magnus assured him. "You'll no doubt see her soon enough."

"I look forward to it. Of course, I see you brought a friend."

"Yes, hi, I'm-" Alec began.

"Alec Lightwood, Head of the New York Institute," Lorenzo quickly interrupted. "I expect we'll be seeing quite a bit of each other at your…Downworld Cabinet meetings."

Alec instantly had a face that said he was regretting meeting this guy already.

"No hard feelings. Right, Bane?"

"On the contrary," Magnus said. "I'm very…content in my new position. Being the High Warlock is a thankless job. Long hours, little pay…but I'm sure that doesn't matter to someone as…young and civicminded as yourself."

"Oh, don't be so jaded. I may only be 484, but I'm no stranger to service. All those years working for the High Warlock in Madrid have prepared me well…" Alec nodded, pretending to seem interested until Lorenzo turned to him. "…although I may not be as easy on you as he was," He said, nodding to Magnus. "After all, I'm here to serve the warlocks, not portal you around like some glorified shuttle service."

Alec smiled. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"In that case, I look forward to our first Cabinet meeting. Enjoy the party."

He patted them each on the shoulder before walking away.

"Who appointed him?" Alec asked.

"Nobody. There was a vote," Magnus explained. "And Lorenzo can be very charming…as long as you're into phony, no taste, egomaniacal pieces of sh-"

"Language!" Alec snapped, noticing a little girl running his way and passing Magnus his drink.

"Alec~!"

"Madzie! Hey!" He scooped her up into his arms and spun her around. "My favorite little sorceress!"

"She's awesome," Charon said, walking up with a little sandwich in his hand. "The best person at this party for sure."

"Didn't know you had a soft spot for kids," Magnus commented.

"Warlocks are family and kids are clean slates. Much more fun than adults."

"Was that Lorenzo?" Shu asked. "Is he gone?"

"Luckily," Magnus sighed.

"I can't believe you brought him just to piss Lorenzo off," Caterina said, walking up.

"No," Magnus stressed. "I brought him because he's my boyfriend."

"Ah," She nodded, not buying it. She looked over to Alec, who was playing a hand game with Madzie. "Well, he's good with kids, I'll give you that." She noticed Magnus looking at his glass. "Something wrong with your drink? Mine tastes weak as hell."

"Do you feel that?" Charon asked.

Shu looked to see small ripples in her drink despite her holding purposefully very still. "A quake."

The vibrations grew to the point where the building was shaking too and all of the guests began to take notice.

Caterina began to shimmer, her glamour flickering to reveal her normally light blue skin and white hair. "I can't control my magic!"

Lorenzo held his hand up as scales formed. A good deal of the other warlocks' hands began to spark with magic and glamours began to fade.

"I'm outta here, man!" Someone shouted.

The man who'd spoken opened a portal in the center of the room which quickly turned red and began to destroy his arm, the effect creeping up the rest of his body as he screamed out.

"Rufus!" Shu shouted, but the warlock was completely consumed.

Charon held his hand out as his body began to destabilize into black smoke in patches. "Demonic magic from Edom…"

The portal of destruction that Rufus had created began to move, spreading to the nearest person: Alec. The Shadowhunter pulled Madzie behind him as Magnus and Shu waved their hands for their magic to flash to life. Their warlock marks were revealed same as everyone else's and they threw a wave of sparks, blue, red, and purple forward together, although it was difficult to aim the spells with everything that was happening. But this was Alec and Madzie, and they would not fail.

They clasped their hands together between them and summoned the power of their soul bond. With their free hands they each threw their hands forward, their power concentrating forward to their target. Suddenly, Shu's magic transformed into pure white electricity and blasted the red magic with much more force than she'd intended, destroying it with a boom that shook the house.

The warlocks stood in silence as the chaos died down and magic began to stabilize again.

Shu and Magnus took deep breaths. "Are you all right?" Shu asked, breaking the silence.

Alec nodded. "What's going on?"

Magnus's cat eyes returned to normal. "I have no idea."

"Anyone else happy that something happened to interrupt that party?" Shu asked, carrying her heels as she walked barefoot down the streets of Brooklyn with the boys. "Because I am. Parties are boring as hell if something interesting doesn't go down."

"Ugh, I feel like I just got eaten by a demon land worm," Charon muttered. "Whatever happened back there knocked my essence out of whack. I need a recharge. Be back at some point in the future."

Charon vanished in a puff of smoke and Shu sighed. "Wonder what happened there. If even a Greater Demon like Charon can be affected, it means it's gotta be bad."

"What I wanna know is how you pulled off that magic stunt," Alec said. "What you did there wasn't warlock magic, Shu. That was pure angelic energy that blasted the portal. Does it have anything to do with your transformation?"

She shook her head. "Uh…probably. My angelic powers must be off the charts, and whatever demonic thing happened back there didn't help. Let's just get home. We've got a long walk if we're not using portals."

When they arrived that night, they saw Charon lying on the couch, passed out, probably from having teleported there to rest.

"Why couldn't he have brought us along with him?" Magnus sighed.

"Just go to bed you dolt," Shu ordered. "No more magic for tonight. We'll test things out in the morning. And don't bother Charon. Waking a demon when he's in a bad mood isn't recommended for your health."

Magnus stared at his bed in the morning before snapping, the covers flipping and moving into place to look as though the bed had never been disturbed. Magnus flexed his fingers and summoned small wisps of his magic.

Alec pulled his shirt on in the bathroom after having taken a shower. "Hey, Magnus?" He came out with a towel on his shoulder and a bottle shampoo. "Your magic working okay?"

Magnus shrugged. "Totally back to normal. And since I'm not the High Warlock, whatever doesn't affect me is no longer my problem." He noticed Alec smelling the bottle in his hand and stood. "Is something…wrong with my shampoo?"

"Uh, no. It's actually…way better than what I have back at the Institute. Where do you buy it?"

"I don't buy it. I brew it. It's a special blend of Indian sandalwood that I started mixing back in the…18th century."

Alec sniffed the bottle. "You make this?"

"Alexander, mixing potions is the cornerstone of the warlock arts."

"Well, I know, I just…I mean if you can…wash your hair magically, why do you go through the trouble?"

Magnus held his hands out casually. "Because I enjoy taking showers."

Alec chuckled. "Yeah, well if you're not too busy can you, ya know, brew me a bottle?"

Magnus chuckled before they both heard the sound of a knocking at the door.

"I got it!" Shu called from across the apartment.

She ran in from the kitchen where she was making breakfast and opened the door. "Lorenzo?"

"Lady Asushunamir. I don't believe we had the pleasure of speaking at my party. May I come in?"

Without waiting for a response, the warlock shoved his way past into the apartment.

"Magnus!" Shu called. "Might wanna get out here!"

Her brother came in to be just as pleased with the new High Warlock's arrival.

"What are you doing here?" Magnus demanded.

"I didn't want to give you the chance to avoid me."

"Why would we do that?" Shu asked crossing her arms. "Not that we don't love you, obviously, but is a house call really necessary?"

"Because you thought you could get away with sabotaging my party. The ley line under my home was intentionally corrupted." He glared at Magnus. "I knew you were petty. I just didn't realize you'd go this far to make me look bad."

"You saw my eyes," Magnus argued. "You saw Shu's brand and power flare. Our magic was as messed up as anyone's."

"An exposed mark proves nothing. You think I don't recognize Asmodeus' handiwork when I see it?"

Magnus's face grew concerned. "We haven't seen Asmodeus in centuries."

"Yet you do know him. Far better than anyone else in this dimension."

"I know what he's capable of."

"More importantly, you know how to use his demonic magic."

"If Asmodeus truly escaped from Edom, all of New York is in danger. Asmodeus would sooner kill us than help us, and if we were to be so bold as to use his magic, we'd warrant his personal attention. Even an idiot knows not to poke that bear. Now, as High Warlock, it's your-"

Lorenzo reeled on Magnus. "My job, is to keep my people safe, Bane. And if I have to banish problematic warlocks to the lower reaches of the Spiral Labyrinth for their crimes them so be it."

"Step away, Lorenzo," Shu snapped. "You can't accuse anyone of anything without proof. All you've done is threaten me and my brother with nothing but your own personal vendetta against us to go on."

Lorenzo glared at Magnus. "I know you're behind this. And it's only a matter of time until I prove it."

"Get out," Shu demanded calmly. "Go and find your proof. But don't say we didn't warn you that you're chasing the wrong culprits. Even if you find some farce to use against us, you'll find that even when we're gone, things won't change and you'll realize you didn't get rid of the problem - you just went around chasing your own tail while we tried to warn you of your mistake."

Lorenzo bowed his head. "We shall see. I hope to speak to you again, Lady Asushunamir, perhaps on better terms."

He departed and Shu let out a deep sigh when the door closed, collapsing on the couch (considering she'd hauled Charon into her room the previous night to sleep in her bed rather than the couch). "Wonderful."

"Why would Lorenzo accuse you of working with a Greater Demon?" Alec asked. "I mean Charon's here, obviously, but he was just as affected as the rest of you. But Lorenzo was talking about Asmodeus."

Magnus sighed, staring out the window. "Asmodeus has a history with our family. He's one of the few demons capable of doing something like this."

"Yeah, well we've fought Greater Demons before, but I've never seen anything like what happened at that party."

"It has to do with the ley lines," Shu speculated.

"Couldn't that mean the Seelie Queen is involved? What do demons have to do with ley lines?"

"Healthy ley lines are the energy source for all magic, Seelie and warlock alike, but they can become corrupted."

Alec nodded in understanding, but still didn't see the connection.

Magnus sighed. "Asmodeus isn't just a Greater Demon. He's the most powerful Prince of Hell. And if Lorenzo's right, what happened at the party is just the beginning."

"And…and you knew him personally?"

Magnus swallowed, hesitating. He looked at Shu and they shared a worried look together. Alec gave a shake of his head to urge them on and Shu nodded lightly before dropping her gaze.

Magnus swallowed again with a long moment of hesitation. "Asmodeus is our father."

"Nothing that we like to consider a father, but a father in some capacity," Shu continued.

Alec said nothing, his face showing his surprise as he processed that information.

Magnus looked down. "Look, I'm sorry…I never told you." He stepped towards Alec. "I was ashamed. We both were. He's nothing we like to brag about, not unless we need to use his name to help our reputation and get others off our back."

Alec shrugged. "I knew every warlock had a demon parent, it's just…Asmodeus?"

Magnus looked down.

"Well, we have to stop him."

Magnus looked up, trying to come up with words. "First…we need to track him down." Alec nodded. "And my father, he…his magic is unique."

"But if we can study the corrupted ley lines, we might be able to find the source of the corruption at the very least," Shu jumped in. "Best case scenario, we're led right to him."

Alec shifted on his feet and stood at attention like he was about to go on a mission. "What are we waiting for?"

"We need to get into Lorenzo's mansion," Magnus explained. "And I'm afraid we'll never be able to portal through his wards without him knowing."

Alec stepped forward. "We don't always have to use magic. Like taking a shower, right?"

Magnus realized what Alec was saying and gave a skeptical look. "Breaking and entering isn't exactly like taking a shower."

Alec smiled. "Who said anything about breaking in?"

Shu smirked. "Loving you more and more by the day, Alexander."

"Are you sure about this?" Alec asked.

"Lorenzo hasn't exactly been subtle when it comes to his advances on me. It's well known that he at least wants a date or two. Warlocks don't exactly mate for life, but all these years of…being acquainted with each other, have shown his intentions quite clearly. At the very least, I can buy time before you switch in. This should give Magnus a good head start. Now."

She pulled out a small device from her pocket.

"Electronic communicator that'll go unnoticed by Lorenzo's magical wards. When you feel three small consecutive vibrations, knock on the door and we'll switch out. Feel one long buzz and it means abort - either Magnus has gotten what he needs or we all need to flee. The button right there will send signals to my communicator too if you need to send the abort signal. Put it in your pocket next to your phone. If Lorenzo sees or hears the buzzing, play it off like you thought you got a message but it was really nothing. Got it?"

"Why couldn't we have just used our phones?"

"Because those are much more traceable. These are wireless burners, meaning no way for Lorenzo to pick up the electronic signals and trace them, at least not until it's too late. Then, we smash them once we're done to dispose of the evidence."

"I think you're overthinking this."

"Better to overthink than to underthink. If Lorenzo becomes suspicious, play the whole heartless Shadowhunter card. If he's still not convinced, pretend that you're just latching on to the nearest High Warlock and now that Magnus isn't one, you don't care for him like some kind of egotistical jerk. It'll make him trust you a little, sadly enough. Now, take cover over there. My magic will hide you from Lorenzo's wards as long as you're not in the house itself, so don't go poking your hand into any windows."

Alec did as she said as she stuck the small communicator into the pocket of her dress (gods, she was even wearing a dress for this). She knocked on the door and it opened of its own accord with magic.

"Lady Asushunamir," Lorenzo greeted. "To what do I owe this visit?"

"Look, barring the fact that you threatened my brother, I don't want us to go out on bad terms. Believe me or don't, but Asmodeus did a lot of bad things to me as a child. I wouldn't summon his power even if it meant I could save the world because that man would mess it up in a horrid way so that it'd be better of destroyed. I'm not sure about Magnus, but I would hardly summon such a beast for some petty grudge. Please, if Magnus is indeed responsible, can I do anything to persuade you to lessen his sentence? I don't wish to lose the only family I have, no matter what he's done."

Lorenzo seemed slightly distracted by Shu's outfit, which she wanted to slap him for but she managed to hold back. It might've been weird considering their age difference, but she was thousands of years older than him, and warlock ages kinda made things a little less awkward. But only just a little.

"Please, come in. I'm sure we can come to some agreement."

Shu smiled gratefully and nodded to do as he said, frowning and making a face the moment she'd walked past him and he couldn't see her doing so. She walked into the living room and sat on the couch with Lorenzo joining her.

Shu pursed her lips and mentally prepared for the sheer stupidity she was willing to go through for her brother. "Lorenzo…look I know that Magnus can be a little sensitive when it comes to this whole thing about losing his title of High Warlock, but I don't want to believe he sabotaged you."

"He's the only one capable of such magic. Please, tell me the truth, do you know if he did use such demonic powers?"

"I don't want to know, honestly," She said lightly.

He scooted closer and took her hand. "Please, my lady, if there is anything you know, I must request you tell me. It is for the safety of the warlocks of Brooklyn. Though the leadership has changed, they are still the same people you have protected all these years at Magnus's side. But if Magnus has truly allowed his jealousy to get the best of him, we must stop him before he goes too far. He might end up hurting himself and all of New York should he continue."

He wanted her to give him the proof he needed to convict Magnus, Shu knew. Both wanting to sell her act and to get away from Lorenzo's close proximity, Shu stood in a burst of rage and threw Lorenzo's hand away.

"I don't want to believe it!" She snapped, forcing tears to run down her face. "Never in a million years would he try to use that monster's power! Not after all that demon did to me! Magnus would never summon that kind of demonic presence!"

Lorenzo stood and gently placed his hands on her shoulders from behind. "I know this is a hard situation to cope with. Perhaps you can share with me your pain over a drink. I promise, it'll make you feel better."

She sniffled, seeing an opportunity. "Yes, that…that might be nice. Something strong, please."

"By your command, my lady. I know just the thing."

He patted her on the shoulder gently and then walked over to his liquor supply, sitting out in the open to be used just like how Magnus had his martinis always ready to make at a moment's notice. As Lorenzo explained stuff about drinks that she didn't care about even when Magnus was giving her a rundown, let alone this other dude, Shu carefully backed up to the window and turned the lock. Magnus, who was waiting outside, saw his cue and got into position.

Shu took her drink, the glass barely filled with her drink, and downed it in one go. She never understood why people used such oversized glasses for so little amounts of liquor.

"Well, someone's eager. Try and pace yourself. Don't want you to overdo it."

"Right, right, I'm sorry."

Lorenzo moved to refill her glass. "So, how do you know Asmodeus?"

She took her newly filled drink. "Well…it's a long story." She walked around Lorenzo so that he wasn't facing the window. "Many centuries ago, I lived on a farm with my birth mother. Needless to say, she wasn't very happy with having the child of a demon."

"Ah, the classic story of us warlocks."

'Don't interrupt!' Shu wanted to snap, but kept a straight face. "Yes, well…she tried to kill me a couple times, but I was always saved by what I thought was a guardian angel. Seeing that I couldn't die, she put me to work on the farm. I did everything, the farmwork, the chores around the house, hunting for meat, and gathering all the necessary water from the well. If I hadn't learned the small amount of magic that I had, she probably would've simply worked me to death. Anyway, I did learn a bit about magic in the little free time that I had. There were many points in time during the day where my mother wanted me out of her sight, didn't care if I ran away and never came back - she'd probably just shrug and say 'good riddance.' So I took that time to learn about my magic, without a guide of course, improvisation. There were times that I could've ran away, there were many points where I'd heavily considered it, but in the end, my mother was the only person that I could somewhat trust not to kill me, the only link I had to knowledge of the world as I grew up."

Shu found herself spilling the truth about her past and her feelings - she very rarely got to admit such things about her past and hoped she wasn't saying too much. But here came the part where she had to flat out lie.

"So as I learned and grew stronger, I got my hands on a book by accident, just trying to summon something that would help me learn more advanced magic. In that book, I found a ton of new techniques - including how to summon."

"You summoned Asmodeus," Lorenzo guessed.

Shu nodded. "You may think that sounds impossible, but it turns out that guardian angel was actually a demon who wanted me alive. I don't know what made me so special, but Asmodeus chose me, was probably the one who sent me that book so that I could learn to summon, all to play the part. I summoned him and he offered to take me away, to kill my mother so that I'd be rid of her forever. He did as he said, slaying my mother without a second thought, and then took me to his palace - or what I thought to be his palace, I mean. There, he turned on me. Did experiments, made me fight monsters, made me stronger and stronger whether I liked it or not. He said he was gonna make me as strong as he could before then taking my powers to fuel his realm."

Magnus attempted to open the doors of the window slowly as to not be heard, but Lorenzo caught the small clicking of the doors opening and turned, Magnus jumping out of sight and hoping he hadn't been seen. "Did you hear that?"

Panicking, Shu quickly moved to leave. "I'm sorry, I should go. It's clear you're not paying attention."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no," Lorenzo quickly said. "Please, stay. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound like I wasn't listening. Please, go on. I won't interrupt again."

She reluctantly turned back and allowed him to guide her back into the living room as she finished off her drink once more. "Uh, do you mind opening those doors? It's a bit stuffy in here."

"Of course."

He opened the doors, luckily not seeing Magnus, while Shu went to refill her glass, filling the thing half way and taking a large sip before turning back, making sure Lorenzo was looking at her as they stood beside each other.

"So, where was I? Yes, he told me that I was to be a battery of some kind, I tried to resist him, of course, but as the days went by, the months, the years, I began to lose hope."

Magnus slipped inside as Shu struggled to come up with interesting things that would keep Lorenzo's attention.

"Then, wouldn't you believe it, of all the people to save me Shadowhunters were the ones that were indirectly responsible for my rescue. They busted into the place while Asmodeus had left me to his henchmen and stormed the place, killing all the demons. Of course, they tried to kill me too, despite being a prisoner. It was Magnus who saved me. He freed me from my bonds in the chaos, grabbed my hand, and told me to run. We managed to make it out with the Shadowhunters distracted with the demons."

Magnus hid behind the couch and popped up, waving his hands for her to go on.

She wanted to give him a middle finger for taking so long, but now that he was in the same room as Lorenzo, not ten feet away where any little sound might draw his attention, she knew she had to scramble to continue her story.

"So, you see, I can't believe that Magnus would be so horrible, even for a grudge against you."

"Well, perhaps he was pushed by more than the simple loss of his title," Lorenzo suggested, putting an arm on her shoulder.

Though Shu wanted to gag, she put her hand to her chest dramatically. "You think…he'd be so jealous? I mean, I suppose losing so much to one man would be devastating, but…"

There was a small noise from behind the couch where Magnus was, trying to sneak across the room and into the next, out of sight, and Shu wanted to elbow him so hard.

"What was that?" Lorenzo asked.

"Perhaps you have an infestation," Shu suggested.

"No, I'd never allow such a thing."

Lorenzo moved to the couch and Shu quickly slipped her hand on her pocket and clicked her communicator's button three times. Thank the angel, Alec knocked on the door not a moment too soon, just as Lorenzo was about to discover Magnus.

Lorenzo frowned and waved his hand, bringing up an image of Alec standing at the front door waiting. Lorenzo frowned and swatted the image away, heading to the door.

"Please, sit and relax. I shall deal with this."

Shu nodded innocently, downing her drink and sitting on the couch. "Idiot," She snapped quietly to Magnus.

"What was that?!" Lorenzo called.

"Nothing! Just please be quick!"

Magnus took the opportunity to sneak into the next room and then get out of range, waving his magic free to start searching the ley lines. A moment later, he waved to Shu that the source was in the room she was in. She cursed under her breath. They needed to inform Alec so that they could get Lorenzo out of this room.

Lorenzo crossed his arms as the front door opened itself.

"Señor Lightwood," Lorenzo scowled. "I suppose you're here to defend Magnus Bane?"

Alec confidently spoke. "No. Actually, I'm here to defend you." That caught Lorenzo off guard. "As Head of the New York Institute it's my job to keep you safe."

"What if I can prove that Magnus is involved? Seems like you have a conflict of interest, no?"

"My interest is in stopping the person who corrupted your ley lines." Lorenzo still looked skeptical, so Alec sighed. "You have my word."

"Not a very loyal boyfriend, are you?"

"I believe in justice, Mr. Rey. Now if you don't mind, I would like to come in and take an official statement."

Lorenzo begrudgingly stepped out of the way. "But of course."

Alec walked in and Lorenzo waved the door closed.

"Oh, hello Alexander," Shu said from the couch, feigning surprise. "Should I go, Renzo?"

"No, no, stay," He said. "This shouldn't take long. You can wait in the dining room while I handle this.

Shu internally died inside but smiled. "Of course."

As Shu walked away, she gave a face and mimicked his stupid talking face. Well, at least she could steal some food without him looking, not to mention explore the house.

"You really believe that Magnus did this out of spite?" Alec began.

"Magnus Bane is the only warlock I know capable of conjuring that type of demonic magic," Lorenzo said firmly.

"Well, I assure you, if Magnus is behind this, I will turn him over to the Clave myself."

Lorenzo chuckled. "Spoken like a true Shadowhunter. The law is hard, but it is the law."

"Yes, well…" Alec looked around to see Lorenzo's set up alcoholic drinks. "…how bout a toast? To our new partnership?"

Lorenzo nodded. "An excellent idea. Scotch? Whisky?"

Alec, who had very little experience with drinks despite living and dating Magnus, simply said, "I'll have whatever you're having."

Lorenzo smiled and turned to get to work. "An old fashioned then…and I do mean old fashioned. I've been drinking this recipe for over 200 years. You're absolutely going to love it. I could conjure it but…I find mixing my hand to be the only way to achieve…" He finished off the drinks and turned back to Alec. "…perfection."

Alec took his drink with a smile and looked around the house in awe, circling around Lorenzo so that he wasn't looking towards the window. "These ceilings are spectacular. Magnus has only ever had a small apartment, but this is…magnificent."

"Thank you."

"Cheers. To our…our new…partnership."

Lorenzo nodded and held up his glass. "Cheers."

The two of them clinked glasses as peeked into the room where Alec could see him and tried to mime the message to get Lorenzo out. They both drank and Alec managed to not look disgusted by the taste of alcohol. Being with Magnus was teaching him something, for better or worse.

Lorenzo was about to turn in the direction of Magnus, but Alec jumped in again. "Perfection! Truly."

"Oh, I'm glad you like it. It's my favorite."

The two of them continued to drink, Alec looking over to Magnus carefully as he tried to express that he didn't understand what Magnus was getting at.

Meanwhile Shu opened the fridge and grabbed a pan of brownies and found a drawer with a bunch of forks. She took the opportunity to eat the fancy chocolate brownies while waiting it out for Alec to somehow get Lorenzo to move. Maybe she should try going in and helping Alec. Or she could indulge in brownies and steal another souvenir for Charon.

She shrugged and went back to her brownies. They'd figure something out.

"Such exquisite taste in fabric. You have a beautiful home," Alec continued, running out of things to say, while Lorenzo nodded agreement, liking be complimented and distracted at least. "I seem to remember that you…have an amazing…antique pot upstairs?"

"It's a 16th century Ming Vase," Lorenzo corrected. "I procured it from a Castilian trader when it was still new."

"Should've said 'Painting,'" Shu muttered from the other room. "Every rich person has paintings that they're proud of. So lucky that warlocks have vases they're proud of too. Like Magnus. What does he even have that thing?"

"Incredible craftsmanship," Alec said.

"You have an interest in ceramics?"

"I dabble." Lorenzo nodded and Shu sighed in relief that he was so gullible. "Would it be too forward of me to ask for a tour? I mean, if you're busy with Shu, I could come back another time, but-"

"Not in the least!" Lorenzo exclaimed, genuinely excited. "I can invite her to come as well. Lady Asushunamir!"

Shu sighed and threw the evidence of her snack away. "Yes, Renzo?" She asked innocently.

"Come, please join us for a tour."

"Oh, I'd love to. I wished to ask for one but didn't know how to."

"Well, you shouldn't be afraid to ask such a thing. Now Alexander can join us. Please, this way. I must show you my Faberge egg. It was a gift from the Tsar himself in the spring of 1887. Or was it 1888? Oh, I know! It was late 19th century."

"Ooo, I love those," Shu exclaimed. "I've always loved such antiques."

"I'm glad to have met a woman wish such good taste. Anyway, I was at the Romanov Easter party and Nicholas comes up to me - Nicholas! I can barely remember the color of his eyes…"

As Lorenzo led the two of them up the stairs, Magnus came out of his hiding spot and started waving his hands as his magic sparked to life, searching the room for the energy he was looking for.

Lorenzo motioned them to look at a large picture with a few people - the most notable being a woman holding a young child in the center. The artwork and style of the painting was definitely meant to mimic Christian paintings, like with Mary and Jesus.

"Does this baby look familiar?"

Alec looked completely confused and lost at the reference Lorenzo was getting at, but Shu nodded subtly in the direction of Lorenzo and tried to convey her point through her eyes: egomaniac!

"Yes," Alec said, though it didn't seem he'd gotten the point and was tricked by the design mimicking something related to Christianity.

Shu mentally sighed, but kept on her smile and dug through her memories to pretend to be fooled as well. "It's Madonna and Child with Saint Martina and Saint Agnes," Shu said. "El Greco. Very nice."

"Correct you are, my lady," Lorenzo smirked. "But the baby there? It's actually me." Lorenzo looked back up at the painting. "El Greco was a friend of my mother's and he used me as his inspiration."

Shu nodded. She was right - El Greco was known for a few images relating to Christ. She mentally congratulated herself on her memory, but nudged Alec and gave him a glance. She waved a finger near her temple and mouthed 'Egomaniac,' hoping he'd get the hint.

"Oh, of course," Alec exclaimed.

Lorenzo simply laughed it off. Shu almost felt sorry for how oblivious he was. "Needless to say, growing up in Toledo during the Siglo de Oro was quite the experience."

Alec smiled and shrugged. "Needless to say."

"I'll tell you what's an experience," Shu said, drawing the attention away from the nervous and quickly fatiguing Alec. "The Gold Rush in California. It was chaos."

"Oh, I'm sure," Lorenzo chuckled.

Meanwhile Magnus had found the corrupted magic seeping through the floor of Lorenzo's living room. Magnus's magic began to flicker before he was suddenly sent flying into the wall.

Up on the second floor, there was a small thud that Alec and Shu assumed was Magnus fooling around.

"Did you hear something?" Lorenzo asked.

"No," Alec shrugged.

"It must be the aftermath of that crazy thing that happened at the party," Shu jumped. "I'm so sorry that happened to you, Renzo. You must be jumping at shadows living on corrupted lay lines."

Lorenzo chuckled. "It will take more than that to scare me, my lady."

Magnus stood, seeing the damage of the ley lines in the room and waving his magic to attempt to fix it. He turned and realized the indent that he'd left in the wall after being thrown into it, waving so that it was fixed before hearing Lorenzo come down.

"I'm sure I heard something," Lorenzo declared, moving to the staircase. "You should probably stay back, Lady Asushunamir. I wouldn't wish a repeat of what happened at the party to occur."

"I will do no such thing," Shu declared. "If you're going, I'm going to. You're not exactly safe yourself, mister. Maybe just Alexander should go search for it."

While Lorenzo seemed tempted by the prospect of being alone with Shu again, he insisted on going downstairs and the two of them followed quickly. They were both preparing excuses while Shu was thinking up a way to get them all out of there, but when they reached the bottom of the staircase and the living room, they found - to Alec and Shu's relief - that it was empty of the former High Warlock and any trace that he'd been there.

Lorenzo frowned. "Strange."

Alec smiled weakly and Shu took over. "I think that we've had enough for today. We're all very stressed and need a break. You were probably just hearing the wind, Renzo. Alexander, would you do me the honor of taking me back to my loft? I believe I've had a little too much to drink. I don't hold my alcohol very well, you see…"

She stumbled slightly and grabbed Alec's arm for support.

"Are you sure I can't be of assistance?" Lorenzo asked.

"No, no, it's fine," Alec assured him, setting their glasses down on the table. "Thank you for having us."

"Perhaps we can come another time!" Shu suggested, acting as though it was a brilliant idea and she'd just had an epiphany.

"Perhaps I can make a portal for you," Lorenzo pressed.

"After Rufus went bye-bye?" Shu asked, knowing that she was proving a point while also acting drunk as all get out. "No thanks! I don't wanna go bye-bye! Bye-bye!"

She pulled Alec to the front door and he got the hint, opening it for her and waving a final farewell to Lorenzo. Once the door had closed, Shu sighed and stood straight again, releasing Alec and wiping her dress.

"Well, that was embarrassing as hell. Where's Mags?"

They circled around the house and met up with him.

"What was going on down there?" Alec demanded.

Magnus shook his head. "Whoever did this is definitely from Edom, but…judging by the energy signature…it's not our father."

"Well, that's a good thing, right?"

"I'm afraid not. This magic is very old and very evil. The demon responsible is as powerful as they come…unlike anything I've seen before."

"So worse than Asmodeus?"

Magnus nodded grimly. "Much worse."

Shu wiped her nose. "I smelled something, back while you were doing your thing. It was something familiar. Look, a long time ago, I lived in Edom, I know of everything and everyone that's more powerful than Asmodeus. Whatever I was sensing back there, I know that it's familiar. We can figure out which one we're looking at, I might know how to stop them. Asmodeus usually only cares about Edom and maintaining it. He doesn't care much for us or getting to this world. He likes a good bargain that makes other suffer, but beyond that, he's harmless to us. Whatever we're dealing with, what makes it dangerous is what it wants with this world, what it wants with all of us."