Title: The New York City Angels
Summary: They'd always thought Idris was home. Every Shadowhunter did. Only as they watched their home destroyed in front of them did they realize that they'd been home all along. T for language mostly.
Notes: So, once again, here it is! I was really nervous about writing this one, because I wanted it to have that weight that I wanted it to have. There was a lot of sadness that went into this chapter, so please review! It means a lot, especially for this one.
Disclaimer: As much as I'd love to, I haven't written the Mortal Instruments series. Cassie Clare owns that sexy warlock and that adorable Shadowhunter with the clear blue eyes. *sigh*
Alec had gone out with one of the search parties that were looking for Luke. While they ducked into alleys and checked out empty buildings and places they might be, Alec's mind was elsewhere, dwelling on the irony of the phrase 'search party.' Party implied something fun – to people that found parties fun, that is. But having a search party – it was just plain depressing.
He was sent out with Adele Hightower and Sam Midwinter. He knew who they were, and they knew who he was, but they weren't any closer than that, so the majority of the search was spent in silence. It wasn't uncomfortable, exactly, but it was a bit awkward at times, especially when one of them felt the need to break it.
Sam was more familiar to Alec than Adele was; the Lightwoods and the Midwinters were the closest they got to friends in the Conclave, so they were the Shadowhunters that went to the Institute the most – other than those living there. He looked just like everyone else in his family: short, with shaggy brown hair that was cut to just above his ears. He was only a few years older than Alec was, though he didn't know exactly how many.
Adele on the other hand, Alec had only seen in passing, and their meetings had never been pleasant. She was a cold person, with gray eyes like ice and hair of pale gold falling straight down past her shoulders. Her tone was often condescending or apathetic, despite the polite façade she put forth. She didn't seem to be happy during the search; on the contrary, she seemed rather upset by something, acting downright nasty. Alec was sure it was either the fact that they were searching for a Downworlder or the fact that she had to work with him. Disgust and disdain laced the few words she'd sent his way, never mind that Alec was doing his best to be cordial in his tone and manner towards her.
They searched for hours, far past nightfall until Adele complained about how late it was – nearly midnight. Sam sent a look Alec's way, as if asking him about it, but Alec just shrugged, so they went back to Luke's house, where most of the others were convened.
A few minutes after arriving, Adele excused herself, explaining that she had an early morning the next day – or, rather, later that day. No one paid her any mind except for Alec, who watched her as she left and noticed a glance in his direction, one that held a murderous glare.
Alec shivered. He was glad she was gone; her presence unnerved him.
Jace had managed to get hurt. It was just a broken arm, he explained when Alec asked about the fading iratze on his arm, but that didn't ease Alec's worries.
He was relieved, however, when Jace explained that he'd just fallen through a second floor that was rotted through and landed on his arm wrong.
No one else got hurt, though; no demons were found, no hints of Jonathan, Luke, or Magnus. Alec swallowed as he thought of the warlock again, his emotions pushing at the wall he'd pushed them behind. He'd deal with them later, when he could, but right then he couldn't afford to be dealing with how he felt.
Soon, there was nothing more to say. All the search parties returned with no luck, no injuries, and no news. The mood was dark as everyone said goodbye because they knew that this meant that Jonathan had won another round.
Alec took the subway home, not bothering to glamour himself. He was exhausted and to a point where he could break at any minute. Of course, his gear, his Marks, and his overall appearance got him a lot of unwanted attention. A group of guys nodded in greeting to him – they too sported tattoos up and down their arms – and both sexes were shooting glances his way, trying to get a proper look at him. He was glad when his stop came up, rushing off the train and back to the apartment.
He climbed the stairs up to the loft and opened the door to find –
"Magnus," he breathed. And it was true: the warlock was right there, sleeping on the hot pink couch while the TV droned on in the background. The fine glitter caught the light from the television and his hair was down, falling into his face like a sheet of black silk. He stirred at the sound of the door opening, and rubbed his eyes, murmuring, "Alec? Is that you?"
Alec still stood in the doorway, shock holding him in place as Magnus stood up and smiled at the sight of him, walking towards him and wrapping him in a hug. Tears began to pour from Alec's eyes as he whispered, "I missed you so much. Are you okay?"
"It's fine, sweetheart, everything's okay," Magnus whispered back. Something in the tone of his voice caught Alec's attention, and he pulled back, noticing for the first time that the air around the warlock was hazy, like it was when there was an exceptionally powerful glamour, usually one from a demon.
Before he could process the thought, though, he felt a sharp pain in his stomach as he was stabbed. He fell down, looking up at Magnus. But it wasn't Magnus. Tendrils of what looked like smoke replaced the fingers, arms, up until the figure was just a black silhouette, holding a knife dripping with blood. That's my blood, Alec realized weakly.
Of course. It was an Eidolon demon.
A voice whispered in his ear, taken straight from his nightmares. "How does it feel, Lightwood? You're going to bleed out, dying slowly and painfully. Tell me how it feels, because I'm not lucky enough to get to watch." Jonathan Morgenstern laughed as Alec flinched away. "Did you like the Eidolon? Very real, wasn't it? We had help from your warlock, of course. Just some blood and the demon makes an exceptional disguise, don't you think?"
Alec paled even more, all the blood draining from his face. His voice was small as he asked, "What did you do to him?"
"Nothing you won't soon find out," Jonathan mocked, grinning like a kid at Christmas. "Goodbye, Alexander."
Alec couldn't form words, couldn't move, couldn't breathe; the pain he barely registered as his body went into shock. And he felt so tired anyway, so why didn't he just go to sleep? It was right there, at the edge of his consciousness, enticing him, and he followed it into the darkness.
Isabelle noticed the look on her brother's face when he was leaving. Alec was having a hard time dealing with everything, and it showed; he'd always been a terrible liar, and that applied to poker faces, his attempts at masks of indifference. He was like an open book sometimes, giving away everything on his mind with a single look.
She knew how he felt, or she supposed he did: ousted, hopeless, and lonely most of all. No one had been able to really find solace in anyone else with everything going on lately. Everyone was overwhelmed, and none of the Shadowhunters were really showing any signs of normalcy – although, she'd noticed that the people less connected with the kidnappings, with Magnus, with Luke, were handling it better, but not perfectly. There was still Jonathan to factor into the equation. Everyone knew about him; everyone was connected to him, especially now that he'd come back, supposedly from the dead, and was showing signs of power beyond that of any normal human being or Shadowhunter – hell, he'd even overcome a warlock without any weapons, using the same skills that Magnus had, but simply at a higher level. Isabelle didn't see how it made any sense, because Jonathan had been around for seventeen, eighteen years, while Magnus had been around for almost nine hundred. Jonathan had become far more powerful than anyone had any right to be.
Isabelle shook hear head to clear her head. She'd tried staying at Clary's and watching TV to distract herself from these thoughts, but they just kept coming back. She left then, figuring that she'd go spend the night with Alec. Simon wasn't answering her texts – homework, she figured – so she thought that if she went to spend some time that she could've spent being moody with her moody brother, together they might not be as moody as they were when they were apart.
She arrived at the apartment in Brooklyn and buzzed to be let up, shivering in a cold fall breeze. It was starting to feel colder and colder every day, and she couldn't help but think how appropriate it was compared to the situation at hand.
After waiting a few minutes, she buzzed again. And again. And again, with no response. Isabelle dug out her stele and made a simple unlocking rune on the door, going in without any more fuss. She did the same at the door to the flat, knocking first. With no response, she entered to a darkened front room.
Huh. Maybe he didn't come home. Or he's asleep already.
She reconsidered, however, when she turned on the lights and saw the blood. It was everywhere: on the floor, on the walls, thickening the further she walked from the door. She opened the door to the bedroom, whip at the ready and her hand reaching for a seraph blade when she gasped. Her brother was just a dark form on the ground, lying in a pool of blood, most of it still wet.
Isabelle dropped to the floor beside her brother, whipping out her stele and ripping his shirt where it was stained the darkest. She winced at the sight of his wound. It was deep, and when she'd taken off the cloth on top of it, blood started gushing out of it again. She applied a few quick iratzes at the stab wound and by his heart. Her hands were covered in blood, streaks of it covering her clothes, and some of it rubbing off on her cell phone as she called her mother. She started crying when she heard the raspy breathing coming from Alec's throat, and did everything she could. She applied pressure to it, putting down strips of fabric from his and her clothes, but it bled profusely, refusing to stop simply because of her attempts at preventing it from bleeding.
When there was nothing else to do but wait, Isabelle did something she hadn't done since she was little: she prayed. She asked God for her brother back, or that he take her instead, but God didn't seem to be listening as blood escaped from her brother's body, leaving him progressively weaker and weaker.
Fly Away Dreams - Yes, I'm sorry to say that it is still torture our beloved boys time. I'm sorry you got so upset on a snow day, and no, the next book is DEFINITELY not going to be rainbows and unicorns and sunshine for them - especially with Camille and Will coming up in conversation. Although I like that they're on a romantic vacation, lol! I hope you're not too mad at me for this one! *ducks, hiding face from possible harm*
Bookworm24601 - I'm pretty sure I don't have it in me to end it like Body and Soul... though I do like writing Jonathan for some reason. I... (like is not the word I'm going for here, but it's as close as I can get) like writing my Jonathan, how twisted he is and all, you know? And an Eidolon demon was introduced to us a couple times in Cassie's two series. The shapechanger demon is known as an Eidolon, examples being the first demon at Pandemonium in City of Bones and Brother Jeremiah talking to Tessa in Clockwork Angel.
absolutelywonderful - Yeah, we bash on him, but it all works out in the end... sometimes. I'm glad you like my screen name, lol - I like yours too :D
AverageDreamer - I giggled when I read your review. I'm sorry, my mind is in the gutter. Shame on me. You're so sweet, being all helpful and stuff! You're like, my FFN best friend! I really hope you like this chapter - we can talk more about it later *wink wink*
DisturbingEmily - We won't know much about his status for a little bit... *evil grin* Thanks for the review!
Kitty Bane - Jonathan is a terrible person, yes... I was thinking about that while I was working with the plot, like if the demon blood is burning out his humanity, at one point won't he be half demon, half human? (like a warlock) and then won't he become even more demon-y? BTW! I love your screen name, it made my day lol :D
LevithanLover - I'm glad you like it! Thank you for reviewing both chapters - you are such a sweetheart! - and I'm sorry it depressed you. I can't promise anything right now. You'll just have to trust that our boys and their friends know what they're doing.
A for Angel - FINALLY! SOMEONE CUSSING ME OUT! I LOVE GETTING REVIEWS LIKE THIS! :D Sorry, it's just, I love getting strong emotions out of my readers with my writing, no matter what emotions they are. Anger, hate, bloodlust towards me for being so mean... Heh heh heh. I hope you like the update!
Once again, thanks so much to everyone who read/reviewed! Care to do it again? Reviews are especially loved this chapter - I entered into a writing contest and am super anxious. I haven't heard back from them but my friend did... I'm very sad as to what that might mean, and my ego certainly took a hit. I put everything I had into this chapter, so I really hope it's up to your guys' standards!