Chapter Sixteen

A/N: Thanks so much to Veridissima for reviewing the last chapter.

The library of the Alicante Academy had been off limits for years, ever since the Uprising had forced the closure of the once-noble institution, but for a few well-trained Shadowhunters- and Clary- it was easy to gain access.

Once Jocelyn had calmed, the first thing Luke had done was insist she tell Clary. Her and her friends had fought against Lilith far more often than she had, after all; their experience would be invaluable if it all came to blows. The girl had sat in silence for a few seconds, more shocked than anything else, before she agreed to help.

As the group walked along the threadbare carpet, clouds of dust erupted beneath their boots, a testament to how long the once-bustling building had lain empty. Intricate cobwebs hung from the ceilings, shimmering silver in the witchlight. They had meant to refurbish the place at some point, to set up for the reopening of the Academy, but it was just another in a long list of things that had not been done yet.

"So, what exactly are we looking for again?" asked a familiar voice, and Jocelyn could not help but smile at the sound. Over the latter months of her pregnancy, Simon had grown to recover a huge amount of who he used to be. His cheeky wit, his unconditional loyalty, even a few of the more important moments he had shared with the people of the Shadow World. He was not completely as he was, may never be, but it was a marked improvement on the shell he had become when Asmodeus had stolen his memories.

"We're trying to stop Lilith, she's one of the Greater Demons." Luke explained, his wording simple without being too patronising. Luke had always had a gift for speaking to people, however shy he might be; it was a wonder he had managed to avoid it in his work life for so long.

"Lilith as in 'married to Adam, girl he chucked when God created Eve' Lilith?" asked Simon, a hint of pride beneath the playfulness. It did not matter how long had gone by since Simon had studied the Hebrew Bible, he could not help but show off a little when he knew something about it; and in all fairness, he had never thought the knowledge would come in handy as much as it had done over the last few months. "Not sure I like the sound of 'Greater Demons', though."

"Not sure anyone does, Simon." Clary pointed out. Simon tilted his head in acknowledgement. Clary chuckled. It was almost as if nothing had happened to their friendship at all.

Jocelyn, who was having to force herself not to become lost in the past and to concentrate on what was happening now, pointed to a sign above a door to the left of the corridor that read 'Advanced Demonology'. It was a fairly tame title, given what the books inside contained, but there was a reason those volumes had been kept in a separate room. Only the elite Shadowhunters of the Academy had been allowed to venture inside; even Luke had never seen the room before.

"It must be somewhere in here." Jocelyn whispered. It was force of habit, in many cases, that the woman behaved in much the same way as a Shadowhunter as she had when she was a teenager fresh out of the Academy. After all, in many cases, she had no other frame of reference since. "I remember reading it when I was in my last year. I didn't think it was important then; now I wish I'd paid attention."

"In your defence, if you had to pay attention to everything you get taught as a Shadowhunter, your head would explode." Jace reasoned, moving a little closer to Clary. They had all had bad experiences of what lurked in the darkness, and he would not take any chances with making sure she was safe. It was one of the only reasons Jocelyn was slowly growing to like the boy.

The door was not locked anymore- there had been no need when the whole of the library had been boarded up- and so the group walked straight in and set to work, searching the titles of hundreds of near identical leather-bound volumes. Predictably, it was Jocelyn, the only one who knew exactly what they were looking for, that found it.

"Luke." she called, although it was pointless singling him out when the entire group followed him. By the time he reached her, she was reading through the page with a look of horror slowly spreading across her face.

"What is it?" the man prompted, pushing his glasses nervously up his nose. The gesture was just ordinary enough to be comforting.

Jocelyn took a deep breath to steel herself and began to read. "Lilith has long been known as the Mother of Edom, not simply because she is the lone female amongst the Ancients, but because of her particular fondness for children. A Greater Demon's interest is never a welcome sign, and this holds true for Lilith's fixation on children, especially babies, which is thought to originate from her own failure to produce a child. According to legend, if given access to the mother, Lilith would be able to manipulate the blood of the child while still in the womb, creating a monster instead of a Shadowhunter. It is thought almost impossible that any unborn child would survive this process."

Her voice trailed away as her eyes scanned further downwards, and so Jace pulled the book from her hands, continuing to read in a far less emotional voice than that of his girlfriend's mother. "Such changes made to a child are not certain to be irreversible, but just as a Greater Demon can weave the tapestry of a Shadowhunter's life, only they can unpick the threads; it would likely be only Lilith herself who could undo the powerful magic. Of course, this is only speculation, as a case of such interference in a Shadowhunter bloodline has never been seen, but if these events should arise, it would be extremely dangerous for an untrained or unstable Shadowhunter, in particular the mother herself, to confront Lilith, who is known by legend to be extremely volatile. Unfortunate as it may be, the best course of action would be for… for the baby to be lost."

The group were silent, the air too heavy around them to consider speaking. Luke reached over to take Jocelyn's hand, clutching it for dear life, but she did not squeeze back. Instead, she stared at the page below her, the ink blurring into one huge squiggle. She did not know what she had wanted to learn from that volume, she did not even know if it was true. But it was all they had.

"I'm going to find her." Jocelyn stated, her voice seeming to echo, like ripples through water. Luke, Clary, Simon, even Jace and the Lightwood siblings looked up at her as if she was mad, but she would not allow their arguments. "It says the changes may not be irreversible. Whatever she's done to the baby, I might be able to undo it. I have to try."

"Jocelyn, I want the baby safe just as much as you," Luke protested. "I can go instead, I can try to reason with her. You read it, the mother of the child shouldn't be anywhere near Lilith."

"Luke, this isn't the first child she's tried to take from me." Jocelyn murmured, her voice laced with tears that did not fall from her eyes. "I have to do this, for Jonathan."

No more arguments were raised, the gathered group of Shadowhunters and Downworlders, all so very different, unable to deny her this one simple, instinctive request. After all, the book had been clear, this was the only way. If Lilith wanted to see Jocelyn, then, however dangerous, that was the way it would have to be.

A/N: Sorry for the random Lilith essay in the middle, but I felt like it needed explaining. So now Jocelyn's determined to tackle her enemy head on, but what about the baby? Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please review!