Chapter Twenty Two – Bonfire Heart.

Magnus turned away from the boy and stared down at his glass. 'Waste not, want not.' He thought downing his drink in a single motion. "I'm Caleb." The not-Alec said, seeming to be completely oblivious to the fact that Magnus was ignoring him. Magnus nodded trying to seem like he was paying attention. "Do you want to know how I can see you?" Caleb asked, Magnus shrugged. Truthfully he really didn't care how the boy could see him, the fact that he could be seen meant the boy was either a Downworlder or a Shadowhunter. The boy held out a hand allowing his Voyance rune to be visible. "Cool." Magnus sighed, his fingers tapping onto the empty glass letting out a low ringing noise.

"Excuse me," Magnus said, "I have no mean to be rude but I'm not the highlight of the party and I think it would be best if I went home. I am not in the best of moods tonight. My apologies." Magnus stood pushing himself away from the barstool.

"No! Please! Don't leave." Caleb called after him, running to catch up. "Stay? Just for a little bit? The party is only just getting started!" He asked, his tone hopefully and his blue eyes wide. 'If he leaves I'm done for!' He ranted internally; he plastered the hopeful look back on his face as Magnus turned around to face him. Caleb stretched his blue eyes as wide as possible without making himself seem like he was shell shocked. He'd learnt from Sebastian that the Warlock before him had a certain weakness for blue eyes and black hair and upon orders Caleb had dyed his hair black. Magnus sighed, "Okay. A little while longer." He turned over to a sofa in the corner and sat down, Caleb following behind him.

Alec was stretched out on the bed in the Infirmary, he's skin was burning and his pulse was racing. His breaths were rasping in his chest and his eyelids seemed too heavy and all he wanted to do was close them. He couldn't remember what had happened - he'd been fighting and he couldn't remember what had happened between then and waking up with his skin burning, slung over Jace's shoulder to now. On the bed beside him a young girl with tawny hair was lying deathly still but from the rise and fall of her chest, Alec knew she was alive. People were surrounding her but they resembled blurred outlines, he couldn't see hardly anything. His arm still continued to bleed heavily and his muscles cramped as the Demon venom attacked his internal system. He cried out as a huge shock went through his nerves. "Shush Alec, it's okay. You're okay." Jace whispered, brushing Alec's fringe back from his face. "Help is coming." Isabelle was pacing up and down on the left side of his bed, chewing on her bottom lip in worry. "It burns!" Alec ground out from his clenched jaw, his eyes watering from pain. "I know, Alec, I know. But it'll all go away soon." Jace murmured, clutching onto Alec's hand.

"Another drink?" Caleb asked after a while of Magnus just staring around the room while Caleb had been talking about the view - which he had hated - from the roof. Magnus turned his attention to him for the first time in the past twenty minutes and nodded, "Please." Caleb nodded and headed over to the bar and ordered another two alcoholic drinks. He hurriedly glanced around the bar to make sure he wasn't being watched as he pulled a small vial full of a lilac liquid, he pulled the stopper out with his teeth and poured the contents into the glass on his left. 'Enjoy this drink, Bane!' He thought venomously as he slipped the empty vial away and carried the drinks over to Magnus who hadn't moved from the sofa. "Here you go!" He smiled, offering Magnus the tainted drink, "Bottoms up!" They clinked their glasses and downed their drinks.

Jace watched over Alec, Clary was attempting to console Isabelle on the other side of Alec's bed but Isabelle wasn't listening. He stared down at his Parabatai, Alec's blue eyes were flecked with black as the venom attacked, sweat poured off his forehead… and his arm, Jace could barely stand to look at it. He knew it was bad just from the purple colour it had turned, the holes piercing through either side were the worst. Jace glanced around the room the other girl still hadn't moved - besides from breathing - and her legs were swollen and purple with the red sucker marks of a Raum demon. Everyone else had relatively been unharmed, nothing an Iratze couldn't heal in moments. The corners of a Parabatai rune on a boy's collarbone, visible beneath his torn shirt, caught his attention. The pained look on his face was enough to tell Jace that the boy was that girl's Parabatai. Alec twitched drawing Jace's attention back to his own Parabatai. "It's okay Alec. You'll be okay." He whispered, his hand still tightly clasping Alec's as though it would hold him tied to the earth. He was pale, deathly pale and his eyes were growing darker every second. Through their bond Jace could feel a small amount of the pain Alec was feeling, he'd never felt so helpless.

"Jace." Alec whispered, "I'm tired."

"You need to stay awake Alec. Promise me you'll stay awake!" Jace said sternly, trying to hide the tears from his voice. Alec nodded once but his blinks became longer and longer each time. "Just stay awake. Please." Jace whispered, tapping the side of Alec's face lightly to keep him from shutting his eyes. "I should have had your back, Alec. I always promise to have your back and I didn't this time. I should of promised." Jace muttered, the tears falling fast down his cheeks and he was unable to hold them back. Alec's hand tightened its grip on Jace's slightly. "Not… your… fault…" Alec murmured through his pain, tears tracking down the sides of his face disappearing into his hair. His eyelids began to droop shut again and Jace continued tapping his cheek lightly with anguished cries, "Alec! Alec! No! Look at me! Look. At. Me. Stay with me. Just look at me!" Somewhere in the distance Isabelle began to sob but the world seemed muffled to Jace as Alec's eyelids flickered open slightly again to stare at Jace, his eyes were mostly black now and a thin trail of blood dribbled out of the corner of his mouth and down his chin. "Do not leave me!" Jace cried, "You cannot leave me! I won't allow it! I don't want to find out what happens when the Parabatai bond breaks! I. Don't. Want. To. Know!"

"I… here… Jace… I'm here…" Alec muttered, his back arching slightly as a huge wave of pain hit his system stronger then last one.

The room seemed bright, too bright to Magnus. The colourful flashing lights blindingly bright, the room seemed both hot and cold at the same time he giggled, the sound bubbling out of his mouth and he was unable to stop it. He glanced over Caleb who was grinning as much as Magnus felt he was, "I told you the party was only just getting started!" Caleb yelled over the pounding of the music, "Do you want another drink?" Magnus shook his head, glitter falling everywhere. "What do you want to do then?" Caleb asked with a laugh, his bright eyes which had once held no light in Magnus's opinion were now a luminous blue in the darkness, his dark hair merging with the shadows becoming almost invisible, he looked more like Alec than ever. 'Alec.' The name rang through Magnus's head like a bell and he laughed, he had no idea why but he just felt happy and light. "Let's dance!" He yelled, dragging Caleb out into the crowd that covered the dance floor.

The doors to the Infirmary opened and Tessa walked into the room followed by a Silent Brother. All heads turned in their direction as the door swung shut behind them. The head of the Institute with his blonde head of hair - Jace had learnt his name was Michael Ashwell - went over to greet them silently filling them in on the details of what had happened. Jace listened intently trying to overhear what they were saying, "Brother Zachariah, Theresa Gray I'm so please you could come at such short notice." So the Silent Brother was called Brother Zachariah, Jace turned his attention back to Alec whose twitching had become a lot worse recently while they had waited for help. Besides they were only going to discuss the Demon attack and ask if their loved ones could be saved. Jace would ask too but he needed to be beside Alec. He was barely of anyone joining him beside Alec's bed until he looked up into the face of Theresa Gray. She opened her mouth and said something but it sounded muffled, like Jace was stood underwater while she stood above him. Alec squeezed Jace's hand lightly and Jace looked at him, Alec nodded weakly. That one action seemed to clear Jace's mind and he could hear more clearly now. "My name is Theresa Gray, but you can call me Tessa. I will be helping Brother Zachariah, over there, to heal your comrades and your Parabatai, Jace Lightwood." She spoke in a calm voice as though she understood and shared the pain Jace was going through.

"How is it you know my name?" Jace asked, glancing at Alec once before moving round the other side of the bed beside Isabelle and Clary, so that Tessa could start working. "I've met many of your family over the years." She answered simply.

"So you're a Warlock?" Jace questioned, watching as she replaced the cloth on Alec's forehead with a freshly dampened one. "Yes." Tessa answered, placing herbs around Alec's unmoving figure, his eyes were shut and his breathing seemed to grow shallower. Jace's pulse began to quicken in fear for his Parabatai, surely that wasn't good right? Shallow, irregular breaths? He bid the thought from his mind. Hardly watching as Tessa began to heal Alec, it seemed to take hours but eventually she stepped back, looking exhausted but with a small smile. "Is that it?" Isabelle asked, staring down at her brother.

"That's it," Tessa replied, "I've drawn the venom out and the wounds should start healing fairly quickly. That one," She indicated Alec's arm, "will take a while longer than the rest but it will heal. I will stay until he is back to full strength and when he is awake I shall like to have a word with him." Jace nodded once, watching as Tessa began to walk away from them over to Brother Zachariah who was still tending to the girl. Jace ran after her, "Thank you." He said, "For saving Alec. He means, well… he means a lot… to all of us."

"I know he does." Tessa smiled, "Take care of him."

Elijah stared down at his Parabatai, she was in pain and he could do nothing to save her. She hadn't moved, she hadn't spoken, she hadn't even screamed since they'd found her in the library and brought her here. Her legs were severely swollen and were the shade of a plum, there was a possibility she might not even make it. But Elijah wouldn't believe it, she was strong; she would make it. He felt hands rest on his shoulders and he leaned back into Jahoel's embrace taking comfort that his brothers were there with him and he wasn't alone. "You fought bravely," Jahoel whispered, "despite going against out orders. I'm proud of all three of you." Elijah smiled slightly but let it fall, his heart wasn't in the mood for smiling when Cortana was possibly dying. 'I shouldn't have left her. I should have dragged her kicking and screaming out of the library with me.' He thought as tears tracked silently down his cheeks.

Tessa joined Brother Zachariah by the girl's bed instantly she could feel something was wrong and not just from the Demon venom. "What is that?" She asked in hushed tones.

"It is these." Zachariah replied telepathically, turning Cortana's arm over to show Tessa the runes. Tessa winced glancing around to make sure no one else could see them. "Where did she learn them?" She asked, covering over the runes, "How did she even know they would be of use to her?"

"There's a certain book. You weren't brought up in the London Institute then, but for those who were - meaning myself and Will - there was a certain book we had been told about. The Clave were out searching for it even then, we were just boys at the time and thought that perhaps if we found the book and handed it to the Clave they would be pleased. We'd be heroes. But the book, theCantus et in Custodiis held a dark power that came in the form of runes. Runes like these. The book was eventually found - not by us - and handed into the Clave. But was lost again sometime before the Accords were signed. My guess is that it's been passed down from relative to relative until it reached her." Zachariah answered.

"And what do the runes mean?" Tessa asked.

"I don't know but they can't be anything good. I'll have to get rid of them and quickly if we want any chance of saving her." Zachariah said, with a grimace. Tessa nodded and left Zachariah to his work.

Waking from unconsciousness was like being submerged in a tub full of murky water, his eyes stung and he choked and spluttered as he threw himself upright. He was drenched from head to toe with sweat and his heart was racing. "Alec!" A voice yelled as arms wrapped around his shoulders in a bone crushing hug. Blonde hair stuck to the side of his face and Alec knew instantly it was Jace. "You're okay! Thank the Angel, you're okay!"

"Well, I promised I'd never leave you." Alec gasped, his throat was raw and dry, he could feel a glass of water being pressed into his numb hands and looked up to see Isabelle crying with a smile on her face. "I'm giving you a makeover as payback for all the worry you've put me through!" She threatened, pressing her lips to his forehead, "Don't you dare do that to me again! I don't know what you were thinking when you threw yourself over that banister but if you do it again I will murder you myself!"

"I don't doubt it!" Alec laughed, "Jace. Jace! You can let go now!" Jace instantly stepped back away from Alec, a grin spread widely across his face.

"How are you feeling Alexander?" Tessa asked as she stepped into view from where she'd been stood by the other bed where the girl was now awake and slowly healing, or so Alec guessed from what he could see. "Okay, I guess." He answered. In truth he had a killer headache and his arm was throbbing painfully but he wasn't about to start complaining, knowing that he was lucky to be alive. Tessa nodded with a knowing smile, "The Iratze which I'm sure your Parabatai will apply will clear any pain, your dislocated shoulder will also have to be reset back into place but apart from that the venom is out of your system. These holes in your arm however may take a bit longer to close up." She said indicating the holes piercing through Alec's arm. He winced, as the sting of a Stele was set to his left shoulder and Jace grinned, admiring the elaborate Iratze he'd just scrawled on Alec's shoulder. "I wonder if I may also have a word with you." Tessa asked, "About private matters?" Alec nodded and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. "No. Lie down." Jace ordered, lightly guiding Alec back down onto the pillows. "We'll go." He beckoned for Clary and Isabelle to follow him.

Tessa sat down in Jace's recently vacated chair, wondering about how Alec was going to take the news. "What is it?" Alec asked, a slight concerned frown on his face.

Tessa sighed, "It's about Magnus." Alec's gaze dropped to his lap where he clasped his hands together tightly to hide the fact that they were trembling as he fought to keep his tone even, "Yes? What about him?"

"I've been talking with him recently. He's been staying with me in my house and considering you were here in London I thought it best that I told you." Tessa said, Alec nodded, "He was going home to Brooklyn after he went out to a party tonight. He was going to go home, to find you." She paused, Alec's blue eyes were fixed unblinkingly on her, "What?" He gasped.

"Considering the fact that you are here I thought it would be sufficient to tell you where he went so that you may find him yourself and hear what he had to say, if you are feeling up to it. If not, I could inform him of your whereabouts and he could visit you himself."

"No, no, I'm fine! Where is he?!" Alec demanded, letting the tears fall down his cheeks, he couldn't believe it. Magnus wanted to see him, to talk to him.

"He's at a party in a hotel called Luau Hotel on Fleet Street. He should still be there even as we speak." Tessa answered a smile curving her lips as Alec grinned. "Thank you!" Alec exclaimed, "Jace! Jace! Come here a minute!"

Jace ran towards the sound of Alec's yells, skidding to a halt in front of his bed, "What is it?!" He asked, taking in the tears and the grin on Alec's face. "Alec? What is it?!"

"I know where to find Magnus!"