He respected Jace more than almost anyone else, but this time he really had to wonder if the Shadowhunter was right about this one. His older brother, in name only, had supposedly gone through something similar before, but that didn't matter much in this case because Jace wasn't Nexus. Jace was arrogant, sure of himself, confident, and Nexus was more fragile than she let on. He knew that it couldn't have been easy to be adopted, let alone to a gay couple, and for one of them to be a Shadowhunter (no matter how prominent in Downworld the other one was)... Well, he was a bit surprised that she had managed as well as she had. He knew that she wasn't weak by any means, but having parents who used to be Shadowhunters (before his father became a werewolf and his mother just retiring), he understood what she had gone through in her personal life outside of their family circle.

But she never let that get her down, somehow, and that was one of the things he loved most about her - She had always had a sense of who she was, what she wanted, and what was important. She knew exactly what it was that had to be done, but more often than not, she had had been too soft-hearted to get it by herself and had to lean on her friends for support. Nexus was surrounded by a great group of people, all of whom loved her and would do anything for her, and she would lean on them not to do everything for her in most cases, but would look to them emotionally, and for years, she had been unable to look to him in the way that he had wanted her to, and now that she finally could, she had to do this on her own...

Things changed, but Ben knew two things that he could count on - His love for Nexus, and that whatever happened next, it would upheave everything that they had all known to be true...

XxX You Think You Love Me XxX

Nexus had made a promise, and by the powers of heaven and hell, it was one she meant to keep! Dae-Jung easily could have been lying about his innocence, but what if he wasn't? Her fathers, nay, her entire family had learned better than to judge anyone and to jump straight to one side or the other, so when she came forth with her intentions, surely they had to recognize that! But...

How would this effect her parents? They would be devastated when they learned that she had gone to visit the man that had had a hand in creating her, and they would almost certainly be hurt to hear that she was going to pursue the truth... They will probably view her actions not as a scholarary-type of endeavor but a selfish quest... And why shouldn't they? They had given her the perfect life, or as close to perfect as they could, but if it were true about Dae-Jung's standing, wouldn't anyone assume that her intentions were purely driven by the most impure of motivations?

But that wasn't why she had to do this...

Sensing the mental withdrawal as she contemplated her actions and their consequences - something that the child of himself and Devon Grey was certain to do - Dae-Jung spoke softly, if not with some urgency, "No matter what you decide to do my beautiful daughter, I wish you to know that I will understand. To help me will be no small task, and any young woman will no doubt have her own life to live without something like this to hamper her... Just know that I love you, my child."

While she recalled virtually nothing about the woman that had given birth to her, there must have been something in her father to make her mother marry him, something good, and he really did seem to care about her, "I promise you, I will find out what happened, and if you're telling the truth, I will find a way to help you out of here... I promise!"

She had to know who her father was, because she wanted to learn exactly where she had come from... Her nightmares of her mother had be coming from somewhere, and if not some latent desire to learn her true origins, than what? There had be something more to her life, and she was going to find out what it was...

No matter what...

XxX You Think You Love Me XxX

Jace knew better than anyone else what was undoubtedly running through her mind, the confusion about what she had to do versus what actually had to be done, the fear coursing through her veins, devouring her whole as she struggled with the risk of disappointing everyone she loved most in the world. He had been in her shoes, and he knew how frightening it was to be a teenager in that kind of position, but that was exactly why she had to go out on her own like this, to face her demons by herself. Nexus was more than just his student, she was his family, so he hated having to be the one with the target on his back, the asshole that forced her into the open without a safety net, but he knew that experience was the best teacher, that if she didn't do this, she would never grow...

And it was wasn't like she would be left alone - he never knew anyone so lucky to have such a supportive group. In truth, he was a tad bit envious of his niece...


A/N:

Thanks to the prodding of JessalynBane, I have finally gotten around to finishing this chapter! I want to finish this story, because I do like the idea, but right now I have no idea how long that can take! I wish that I could be a tad more reassuring, but I just don't know. Anyways, I hope that you (those of you who stuck around this long) enjoy this chapter! Even though it is the shortest one yet, and not a lot happens in it... At least you now know that it will continue, slowly but surely...