Please see the full AN in the next chapter. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything associated with The Mortal Instruments, I simply can't let go of Cassie's wonderful characters. :)

Chapter 4:

Magnus couldn't believe the level of destruction evident in the apartment, he'd known that there had been a battle and that there were demons involved, but he wasn't expecting this much violence. He'd always harbored the belief that Valentine still loved Jocelyn, so seeing the evidence of an overwhelming assault made him second guess himself. It was obvious that no one was meant to survive this attack, there simply must have been too many demons. Magnus had known of Jocelyn her whole life through friends, Ragnor Fell and Tessa Gray, so he'd known her to be an exceptional shadowhunter when she was active. She'd been an even more fierce mother; there was no way she'd have gone down easily when Clary was in danger.

It was so sad that love had brought her this end, the love of a dubious man that morphed into evil incarnate, and the love of a daughter that she hid the truth from so completely, she ended up leaving her defenseless. He shook his head in an effort to leave the ghosts in the past and deal with the present, he needed to get back and help Luke break the news to Clary. There were after all, certain parts that Luke was even unaware of due to the deal he made with Jocelyn all those years ago.

As he walked from room to room, he used his magic to erase all traces that either Jocelyn or Clary had ever existed at all. It was a depressing process and draining for both his magic and his mental state. To strip away the identities of both, sacrifice their foot print on this earth was a necessary step in protecting Clary in the future; but the melancholy of it all was not lost on him. Mortals lives were so fleeting anyway, especially shadowhunters lives, who so frequently died young; and here he was erasing anything that could attest that they had lived at all. He had to keep reminding himself that it was the right thing to do for everyone's safety.

Finally finished with the dreary task, Magnus decided to take a cab home rather than portaling; he'd used so much magic and didn't know what lie in store for him at home. As he descended the stairs he noticed that the hedge with Madame Dorthea had opened her door to peek out. When he narrowed his eyes in her direction he could see the fear and apprehension plainly on her face, so he decided it would be best to have a chat with the elderly woman about her neighbors. When he descended the final step she opened her door more widely and stepped back, inviting him inside silently. Magnus stepped forward and introduced himself even thought they had seen each other many times over the years.

"Good evening Madame, I am Magnus Bane the High Warlock of Brooklyn. And you are?"

She hesitated a moment before extending her hand, "Madame Dorthea, pleasure to make your acquaintance. Were you visiting with the lady upstairs?"

Magnus couldn't help the bitter smile that spread on his face, "I think you know very well, that there is no one upstairs left to visit. I think you also know when and possibly whom is responsible for why there is no longer anyone alive upstairs."

She recoiled slightly from the accusation, but there was a shameful light in her eyes telling Magnus that he had hit the mark. So he decided to push his advance, "What can you tell me about your neighbors, specifically anything that pertains to the demon attack tonight?"

Shuddering and breathing heavily she met his eyes and uttered the one word that would explain exactly how much she knew about her neighbors and the attack, "Valentine found them."

Closing the door behind him, Magnus followed the older woman as she turned to retreat into her salon for client readings. She hesitantly indicated he should take a seat and disappeared deeper into her home, before returning briefly with two cup of tea. Settling into the chair opposite Magnus she slid a cup of tea over to him and began explaining exactly how involved she was with her neighbors. "Well I suppose there's no point in holding back now. I might as well tell you everything." She exhaled heavily and took a moment to gather her thoughts before launching into the details of her brief experiences with the mother and daughter who'd lived above her for years.

"It began years ago, Jocelyn showed up with a young toddler and inquired about the apartment upstairs. At first glance I dismissed her, as you know this is a shelter intended for downworlders primarily. Jocelyn wouldn't take no for answer though, and she showed me her marks to convince me that we should at least discuss the possibility. When we sat down to talk terms she informed of who she really was, albeit reluctantly. That was enough for me to tell her that nothing could convince me to take her own as a tenant. Once again though, she refused to leave it at that. She convinced me that she had made her way here completely undetected and that Valentine was dead, she only needed to shield herself from his zealot followers and the clave. As you well know, this place was designed for shielding people from the vicious 'justice' of the clave."

Magnus nodded along at the appropriate points, but he really wanted her to hurry up and get to the parts he didn't know or couldn't discern on his own. You don't become the High Warlock without having a keen mind and powerful magic, both of which allow you to know things hidden from most. He just hoped that his inclination to humor this woman would pay off in the end.

She continued to prattle on about the injustice of the clave and how that was ultimately what made her offer the apartment to a former shadowhunter then finally she came to the details Magnus had been impatiently waiting for, he did have somewhere to be after all.

"For years everything was quiet, and I didn't have cause to regret our arraignment, then suddenly one day a few years back Jocelyn showed up at my door with a gift. Well you know I'm smart enough to be wary of those baring gifts so I got her to tell me what was really afoot. Apparently she'd heard news that led her to believe that Valentine had faked his death and was searching for her and the mortal instruments actively. The gift she bore was more of a loan, something she wanted me to have until such time she might have to leave in a hurry."

Now, this was more like it. He perched on the edge of his chair waiting for the lady to produce the 'loan' so that he could determine why Jocelyn would want to keep it separate for herself, but close enough to access in a hurry. It could be a clue why Valentine sent a mob of demons to kill her, something she had taken from him that was truly invaluable.

"It wasn't much, but they were pretty so I didn't mind holding on to them."

Them? What on earth could Jocelyn have taken from Valentine? His curiosity was running rampant now.

"Here they are, quite lovely don't you think? It's a shame someone with that kind of talent was raised only to kill and maim. Shadowhunter, tsk."

She handed Magnus a stack of tarot cards that appeared to be hand painted, and he definitely recognized the style. He'd bought quite a few of Jocelyn's paintings over the years, whenever she seemed to be struggling. They were quite pretty, so it wasn't completely without benefit for him. He flipped through the stack gingerly hoping to see some hidden message, something to indicate why a stack of cards needed such protection, but there didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary about them.

Hesitantly, he offered to pay the hedge witch for the cards, he couldn't tell her that Clary survived or he might have been able to claim the loan transferred to her and was now being claimed. "How much to take those off your hands? Bear in mind that Valentine slaughtered your neighbors, and if those were created by Jocelyn he'll likely want to collect them." He didn't like having to imply a threat, the lady had been quite polite up to this point, but he refused to be extorted for the cards.

"How about you take them for free, but I'd like to know, did the girl suffer? I won't be able to forgive myself if the little girl was made to suffer."

"Lady, as you know Jocelyn would die long before she let anything happen to her daughter. So I imagine that by the time she was overwhelmed, her untrained and unaware daughter posed no threat and was dealt with quickly." He couldn't suppress the shudder that raced through his body at the implied death of Clary. However, it was absolutely necessary that everyone who knew her believe she died with Jocelyn. Magnus couldn't be positive, but he felt confident that at least one demon fled if only to tell Valentine that there were two women in the apartment and that they shared more than a passing similarity. Valentine would be intent on discovering the true identity of the girl and then he would know the truth. He had a daughter, and she wouldn't be any normal shadowhunter because of his last months spent with his wife.

Satisfied with the gloomy response, the older woman passed the cards and binding ribbon across the table and into Magnus' hands. He nodded his thanks, and asked if there was any more the woman could share. She frowned and said that was all she knew of the quiet neighbors upstairs, other than the fact that she would miss them. So Magnus took his leave with the cards safely tucked in this inner jacket pocket, and headed outside into the cold evening.

He hailed a cab faster than he expected and headed home, home to a broken girl, he'd need his rest for the discussions to come in the morning. He had a feeling that he might not be able to rest for days once the truth was revealed. Hell, it might take days to actually tell all of the truth and get the facts straight. Jocelyn had left a real mess behind, but she'd also left a daughter with enough love in her heart that she had made an old warlock with a battered soul feel like he had found family once again. He supposed that was enough to be balance the scales in the end.