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melanielocke · 3 years ago

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Lost in the Shadows - Chapter 29

AO3

Taglist: @alastaircarstairsdefenselawyer @foxglove-airmid @alastair-esfandiyar-carstairs1 @justanormaldemon @styxdrawings @ipromiseiwillwrite @a-dream-dirty-and-bruised @alastair-appreciation-month

Previous Chapter: Chapter 28

Next Chapter: Chapter 30

The drive to Inverness was long and uncomfortable. Will was driving his car, with Gideon in the passenger seat and Cordelia, Lucie and Tessa pressed in the back. It was a small car, and the three of them in the back only just fit, with Lucie pressed against Cordelia. Not that she minded that exactly, and Lucie didn’t seem to either. Cordelia concluded her hips were too wide for this seat, little to be done about that.

Lucie tried to distract everyone by telling them about one of her stories, but even Lucie couldn’t hide how nervous she was, and got confused halfway through the story several times. Cordelia knew that rarely happened, Lucie could keep track of pretty much everything she wrote. Every once in a while Tessa scolded her husband for going over the speed limit, to which Will replied that they were in a hurry.

When Lucie was done with her stories, they began to discuss strategy instead. Who would approach Tatiana first, how would they fight her, how to make sure she didn’t escape using dark magic?

‘If she escapes into the land in between, I can follow her,’ Lucie said. ‘And the spell needs to be finished in this world, not the land in between. That’s what Jesse said. So if she escapes into the land in between, and we keep her occupied there so she can’t get out in time, then she’ll miss the window of opportunity.’

Time moved differently in the land in between, and almost always returning from there meant more time had passed in this world. If Tatiana fled into the land in between at the last moment, she would not make it back in time and that would win them at least a day.

‘We’ll need to stop her from speaking too,’ Lucie said. ‘Do we have any tape?’

Cordelia at some point fell asleep during the trip, she must have been more tired than she thought. She woke up when the car stopped. They were on a parking lot in what seemed like the middle of a city.

Cordelia got out of the car, and walked around a bit, trying to get the stiffness out of her body. She practiced some of her movements, without the sword for now as she didn’t want to draw unwanted attention. While Lucie’s parents and Gideon were looking around for the best way into the hotel, Lucie joined her, stretching too.

‘My butt hurts,’ Lucie said. ‘I am not taking the middle seat on the way back.’

The middle seat of Will’s car was a bit harder than the rest so Cordelia could imagine why Lucie might prefer not to sit there.

‘I think you’re the only one who fits there,’ Cordelia said.

Lucie was the shortest, both Cordelia and Lucie’s mother were quite tall and had long legs. Lucie was probably also the only with hips narrow enough to fit there.

‘Fair point,’ Lucie said. ‘Before we go in, I’ve been meaning to tell you something.’

Cordelia frowned, she wasn’t sure this sounded good. As if Lucie was about to confess something bad.

‘I know you probably don’t feel the same way, but I guess if something goes wrong today, I would rather you knew. I’m in love with you. I didn’t realize until recently, but I guess I’ve loved your for years.’

It was not what Cordelia had been expecting. Even if Alastair had told her Lucie probably liked her. Even if it was what she’d been longing to hear.

‘I do feel the same way,’ Cordelia said. ‘I only realized about a week ago, but I do like you too. I just never thought you’d feel that way about me. Or well, Alastair did but I think I was scared.’

Lucie’s eyes went wide, he cheeks turned a rosy pink. ‘Alastair knew?’

‘He read some pages from the beautiful Cordelia and he did not know how else to explain it,’ Cordelia admitted. ‘I just didn’t dare believe.’

‘I think for most of the time while writing it, I didn’t realize it myself either. But I always thought you were so beautiful and brave. I just had not yet considered I might love girls. Can I kiss you for good luck before we go in?’

‘Does that work?’ Cordelia asked.

‘I don’t know,’ Lucie said. ‘In stories it happens sometimes. It makes for romantic scenes, but often I’d expect the main characters or at least the main couple to survive. But when it’s real life, it might just all go to hell and this could be our last chance.’

‘It won’t be your last chance,’ Cordelia said. ‘You have too many stories you have to finish.’

Lucie laughed. ‘If I can’t die while I have an unfinished story I’ll probably live forever.’

Cordelia put her arm around Lucie’s waist, pulling her closer, and kissed her on the lips. She’d only kissed one other person before, which had been Lucie’s brother James. While he was not a bad kisser, it was different. Lucie’s lips were softer and tasted off her lipstick, and she was shorter than Cordelia so she had to bend down a little.

‘Oh, you have a little smear,’ Cordelia said when they broke apart. ‘Your lipstick.’

Lucie started laughing. ‘Probably. But I feel like I can face Tatiana with smudged lipstick. I understand now why they do good luck kisses. This worked.’

Cordelia had to agree. She felt better, more confident. At least she’d told Lucie. At least now they both knew how they felt about each other.

‘Let’s try it again,’ Cordelia said.

After several more kisses, Lucie’s parents still weren’t back, and Cordelia decided to call her brother. She wanted to tell him he was right and Lucie was in love with her, and she wanted to tell him she’d arrived in Inverness safely. When he didn’t answer his phone, Cordelia called Jem instead, to let them know they had arrived at least.

‘Is Alastair there?’ Cordelia asked. ‘I’d hoped I could speak to him.’

‘I’m on my way to the cottage right now, but I can give him your phone as soon as I arrive. How are you doing?’

‘I think we’ll be confronting Tatiana as soon as we can,’ Cordelia said. ‘Is everything alright there? How’s Alastair?’

‘Tired and stressed out,’ Jem said. ‘But he’s coping as well as he can. I’m surprised he’s doing so well, to be honest, but I find Alastair can be very hard to read. He always seems to be hiding how he really feels, and contrary to popular belief I cannot read minds.’

Cordelia had to agree, for a long time Alastair had hidden all of his feelings, his relationship, what Father really was like. She’d always sort of suspected he hid things from her, but could never have guessed the extent. Even now, the habit of hiding was difficult to break, and sometimes Cordelia still found herself trying to hammer down his walls.

‘And Thomas?’

‘No improvement, but he’s not getting worse either. Sophie and Alastair helped him go back to bed and he’s sleeping again. I’ve arrived, I can give you Alastair.’

‘Why didn’t you pick up your phone?’ Cordelia asked as soon as she’d confirmed he had the phone.

‘I can’t find it,’ Alastair said. ‘I think I left it in my bedroom, but I don’t want to leave Thomas to look for it. Did you make it to Inverness?’

‘Yes, we’re there now,’ Cordelia said. ‘You were right, by the way, about Lucie.’

‘About what exactly?’ Alastair asked.

‘That she likes me,’ Cordelia clarified. ‘Which was nice to figure out before we potentially die.’

‘You’re not going to die, Layla,’ Alastair said. ‘Have faith in yourself. I know you can do this. Good luck.’

‘To you too, dâdâsh,’ Cordelia said.

Cordelia put away her phone when Will, Tessa and Gideon came back, arguing, Will and Tessa both gesturing wildly. Gideon looked tired most of all, and didn’t participate in the argument as much.

‘Why do I have to be the decoy?’ Will asked. ‘Why can’t I go up there myself?’

Tessa sighed. ‘Because you’re best suited for the job.’

Will smiled. ‘Oh, tell me why then.’

‘Because you’re the best chance we have at charming an old woman receptionist,’ Tessa said. ‘Gideon’s too awkward and I’m not sure she’s interested in women.’

‘Thank you,’ Gideon said drily.

Will grinned. ‘Oh, I will charm her. I will charm her with such force she’ll be lying on the floor trying to remember her own name.’

Lucie looked mortified, Cordelia started laughing, picturing the scenario in her head of Will trying to flirt with the receptionist.

‘I actually did that once,’ Will said. ‘Jem and I needed to break into another hotel where someone had trapped a couple of fairies.’

Fairies, as Cordelia knew it, lived in the woods and tended to be small. They could get up to mischief, but weren’t dangerous. Part of what Will and Jem used to do was also protect creatures like that from humans who intended to harm them, and it was an important part of what Cordelia wanted to be like. She knew some of her ancestors had only focused on protecting humans, and killed indiscriminately, and she was determined to do better.

‘Ah, good old times,’ Will said. ‘The old lady didn’t know what hit her, and Jem had every chance to sneak inside and break out those poor fairies.’

‘So, do that again,’ Tessa said. ‘We can’t all go in at the same time, it’ll draw too much attention. Lucie, you’re with me. We won’t draw too much attention together. Cordelia, you can’t wait for too long after that. You go in alone. If you get caught, pretend you were looking for a bathroom. Otherwise, pretend you belong.’

Cordelia guessed she was bound to attract the most attention either way with how she looked, but there was nothing to be done about that.

She waited outside with Gideon while Will, Tessa and Lucie went inside. Gideon looked weary, and anxious. She understood how difficult it was for him, if it were Alastair who’d gone down such a path she would keep hoping for far longer than she should. She couldn’t imagine what it was like, to watch a sibling lose themselves and become evil and be able to do nothing. Because Tatiana had shut everyone out. So while Cordelia acknowledged her pain, she also believed Tatiana had had a hand in digging her own grave, by allowing revenge and hatred to consume her rather than seeking support from her brothers who would have welcomed her back any time.

‘Go,’ Gideon said, as he looked in through the window, while looking through his phone.

Cordelia suspected he wasn’t actually looking or reading anything as he was holding his phone upside down, it just made him look less out of place. The lobby of the hotel was nice enough. Nothing fancy, it was the kind of hotel most people could afford, but everything looked clean. Of course, the real place the judge the cleanliness of a hotel was the bathroom, but Cordelia had no reason to go there.

Will was chatting up the receptionist, who was a little older than he was, but not an old woman either. From a distance, she overheard him asking questions about the city, exaggerating his Welsh accent to show he was not from around here, but was not an Englishman either.

The receptionist’s attention was on Will, and Cordelia tried her best to act natural as she walked past her and into the corridor. A little farther, Tessa and Lucie were waiting. Both acted casual, as if they were supposed to be there.

‘I’ve texted Will,’ Tessa said. ‘He’s the getaway driver in this plan, and if we’re in trouble, someone should text him or call him or whatever works in the situation and he’ll drive the car front.’

‘He’s probably not too happy about that,’ Cordelia said.

‘But he won’t be able to get himself inside without drawing attention, and he has the car keys,’ Tessa said.

Cordelia suspected Tessa also knew Will was likely to antagonize Tatiana even further, whereas she and Gideon might have a chance to calm her down. She clutched her necklace, ready to take cortana into her hand the moment they stepped into Tatiana’s room. When Gideon joined them, the four went looking for the room number Jesse had given them.

‘Nine hours until midnight,’ Tessa said.

Gideon nodded, shaking on his knees. Had he said goodbye to Thomas, Cordelia wondered? Would he be able to live with himself if Thomas died and he was here and not with him? Thomas would undoubtedly claim it was fine, as he always did. He and Alastair were alike in that manner, although Alastair was a bit more convincing when he pretended to be fine. But perhaps Thomas would want his father to be with him as he died.

‘She should be in here,’ Lucie said, pulling on the door. ‘Locked.’

‘Let me,’ Cordelia said, cortana in hand.

With a single motion she cut her way through the lock, opening the door and revealing Tatiana, who was dressed in old fashioned dark brown clothes, and looked like she hadn’t slept in a couple of days.

She was startled by their presence, but recollected herself quickly, grabbing a dagger and holding it in front of her.

‘How did you find me,’ she hissed.

‘You have to stop, Tatiana,’ Gideon said, putting his hands in front of him. ‘I can’t imagine how hard it was to lose your son, but that does not justify killing others to bring him back.’

‘No, you can’t imagine. I would do anything for my child. You could never understand such a thing, and that’s why Jesse will live and Thomas will die. Turn back, or I’ll kill you too.’

Cordelia took a step forward, cortana in hand and ready to attack if necessary. The sword had one dull edge, a chance for mercy, and an edge so sharp it would cut through anything. She didn’t have to kill Tatiana, but she would stop her.

‘Last chance, surrender,’ Cordelia hissed. ‘You lost your siren, you can’t win.’

Tatiana laughed. ‘Oh, can I? Good luck finding your way home, Carstairs.’

Before Cordelia knew for sure what was happening, she found herself in a forest. Not just in a forest, in the air between the trees and falling fast. Cordelia grabbed onto a branch of a nearby tree before she could fall any faster, pulled herself up and secured her position before scouting where she was. Tessa had gotten lucky, she fell onto a branch a bit lower, but had found a relatively easy route down to the ground.

Gideon wasn’t so lucky, he did crash into the tree before making his way to the ground, yelling in pain. Cordelia couldn’t tell from here if he was alright, but at least the tree had broken his fall somewhat. She was too high up to jump down without hurting herself, and in a difficult position to climb. She didn’t see Lucie anywhere.

She felt the branch creaking under her weight, and she slowly moved closer to the tree’s stem. There was another, thicker branch below her, but making it down would not be an easy exercise. She was trained in climbing, of course, otherwise she would have gotten stuck like a cat in there, or she’d fallen all the way down. But she was also heavy and most trees couldn’t hold her weight. She was a little out of practice, and right now that could be dangerous.

She hung down from the branch she was currently sitting on, hands twisted together above while hanging underneath. She could find the branch underneath her with her feet, and found some stability. From here it would be easier to get down, but she’d have to lower herself onto the branch first. She moved her grip from the branch above to the stem of the tree, carefully balancing herself until she was sitting on the branch. She let out a breath she’d held on to all that time when she was in a secure position. Now to make her way down. The branches were closer together, and she could get a little lower, and then she’d have to jump.

Beneath her, Tessa had fallen as well, but she’d made her way to her feet and seemed unharmed. Gideon, she wasn’t so sure about. Tessa was bent over him. Cordelia returned her focus to the tree, making her way to a lower branch, and putting her foot even lower. From here she could climb down until she was hanging about half a meter above the ground, from which she dropped, bending her knees to absorb the impact.

She ran over to Gideon and Tessa. ‘Are you alright?’ she asked.

‘I am,’ Tessa said. ‘A few scrapes and bruises, that’s all. Gideon has a broken arm. It needs support, but I’m not sure how.’

Cordelia undid the cardigan she’d tied around her waist, thankfully she’d forgotten to take it off. ‘Can you use this?’

Tessa sighed. ‘It’ll do, I guess. Where are we?’

‘The land in between. Where’s Lucie?’

‘I haven’t seen her. Lucie!’ Tessa yelled.

Cordelia also called her name. No response. Where was she? Cordelia suspected the three of them were in the land in between. The only time they’d escaped that place without Lucie’s magic was after killing the werewolf, which would mean walking until they made their way back into the real world. If that were even possible, they might very well be trapped.

‘I don’t think Lucie came here with us,’ Cordelia said.

***

Thomas slept most of the day, and Alastair made sure to be there with him whenever he woke. That became less and less frequent though, and Alastair was growing worried. Just after Thomas had gone back to sleep, a car pulled into the driveway. Who would be coming here?

Sophie opened the door to three young women. Of course, Thomas’ sisters were coming. Two of the girls had the same brown hair Thomas had, one a bit softer and rounder while the other was shorter and had more angular features. The third woman was Indian and Alastair remembered Thomas’ sister Eugenia had returned to India with her friend, and this had to be her.

‘We came as quickly as we could,’ Eugenia said. ‘Babs flew to Edinburgh this morning. Where’s Tommy?’

‘He’s sleeping,’ Sophie said. ‘You can check on him in his bedroom, but I think it’s best to let him rest and wait until he wakes up.’

Thomas’ two sisters left for his bedroom, while the Indian girl sat down on the couch next to Alastair. He’d been trying to read one of the family’s journals, but couldn’t concentrate. Not with the horrible knot in his stomach caused by worry.

‘You are Thomas’ boyfriend, aren’t you?’ the girl asked.

Alastair looked up from his work. He didn’t know who she was. He didn’t even know if she knew anything about what was going on. On the other hand, why would Thomas’ sister have brought her if she did not understand what was going on.

‘My name is Alastair Carstairs,’ he said.

‘Kamala Joshi,’ she said. ‘I’m Eugenia’s girlfriend.’

‘Right. I imagine Eugenia must have been worried,’ Alastair said.

He felt like he eased into the conversation a little. It wasn’t as stiff and forced as conversation usually felt for him.

‘We’d just returned from India when Eugenia received the call. She was very upset no one had told her about her brother being in danger sooner. But as I understand, your communication was cut off, was it not?’

‘What do you know of what’s going on?’ Alastair asked.

‘What Eugenia told me,’ Kamala said. ‘Something about her crazy aunt, a dark realm, and a deal with a creature that could bring back her dead son. I can’t say I understand everything. I’ve mostly tried to stay away from everything supernatural.’

‘But you do know,’ Alastair said.

‘A monster killed my parents,’ Kamala said. ‘I never found out what it was, but ever since, my eyes have been opened. At least somewhat, I can’t see the way Thomas or Barbara can. But when I first came to England, I rescued a fairy in the park from group of older boys who’d somehow seen her. It’s easier for children, I think, even without the sight. The fairy blessed me with a healing power. It’s minor, mostly I can heal injuries. I can’t cure complex diseases or anything like that. But it’s helpful, and Genie hoped I could help with healing Thomas.’

Alastair gazed down. ‘I don’t think so. His life is tied to someone else’s. If his cousin is brought to life, he’ll die, no amount of healing can save him then. On the bright side though, my sister is fighting Thomas’ crazy aunt right now. I am sorry about your parents.’

‘It was a long time ago,’ Kamala said. ‘I was six when it happened, seven when I was given my powers.’

Thomas’ sisters joined the two of them. They both greatly resembled Thomas, Alastair thought, and each other. He wasn’t sure which was which until the shorter, angular girl put her arm around Kamala. That had to be Eugenia.

‘Thomas is still asleep, I take?’ Alastair asked.

‘Yes,’ Barbara said. ‘He has a high fever, and I think he needs lots of rest. Much like when he was a child.’

Barbara soon turned her attention to Jem discussing something Alastair did not have the medical knowledge to follow. Barbara was a nurse, he remembered. She seemed knowledgeable at least.

‘So,’ Eugenia said, turning her attention to Alastair, ‘what do you want with my brother?’

Alastair was taken back, and it took a few moments to be able to formulate an answer, to push the words across his lips. Thomas had told him Eugenia could be fierce and both his sisters were very protective.

‘Genie, don’t be rude!’ Sophie called.

‘Right now, I want to save him,’ Alastair said.

***

Thomas woke up to find both his sisters sitting on chairs next to his bed. No. Oh no, what were they doing here?

‘Go home,’ Thomas said as he tried to sit up. He couldn’t. ‘Please.’

‘No,’ Eugenia said and Thomas cursed the stubbornness that plagued their family. ‘You’re in trouble, and we’re here to help. Kamala is here too, and she could use her magic on you, maybe that’ll heal you.’

‘Probably not,’ Thomas said. ‘It’s Tatiana.’

‘That’s where everyone else went, isn’t it?’ Barbara asked. ‘Dad went with uncle Will and aunt Tessa to confront her.’

‘And Lucie and Cordelia,’ Thomas confirmed. ‘Who are probably the most essential part of the plan. Lucie can command the dead and open gateways and Cordelia has a magic sword. They’re going to save me. Hopefully.’

Thomas hated that he couldn’t be of more help, that he was lying here in bed unable to do so much as get up. He’d slept most of the day, only waking up every once in a while and sometimes he feared he wouldn’t wake up at all.

‘Don’t lose faith, Tommy,’ Barbara said, stroking her thumb over his cheek. ‘You’re going to be alright. How are you feeling?’

‘Tired. Cold. Everything hurts. I shiver a lot. Like, actual, uncontrollable shaking.’

Barbara frowned. ‘Are you sure we don’t need to take you to a hospital? It sounds like you might have sepsis.’

‘It’s not that,’ Thomas said. ‘It’s the thief, Tatiana’s ritual. No amount of antibiotics can save me. Tatiana must be stopped.’

Thomas tried to stay awake for as long as he could, talking to his sisters, and later Alastair who came to join them. He was glad Alastair seemed to be getting along with both his sisters, even if Eugenia had been a little rude to him at first. Of course, he’d expected nothing less from her.

In the end he had no choice but to go back to sleep though. His eyes were falling shut, and Alastair, Barbara and Eugenia all noticed he couldn’t stay awake anymore.

‘Sweet dreams, nooré chesm-am,’ Alastair whispered in his ear before kissing him on the cheek. ‘Please wake up again.’

***

Eight in the evening. Sophie had tried to get Thomas to eat and drink a bit more, but he had not woken again. Alastair finally decided to try and wake him up. Nothing. Calling his name didn’t do a thing, nor did pulling on his shoulders. Perhaps he was in a deep sleep. Alastair could not quite convince himself. They quietly ate some of Sophie’s soup, but Alastair couldn’t take more than a few spoons. He felt tense and sick in his stomach. He needed to know Thomas was going to be alright, if Cordelia was doing well, if she was even alive.

Nine. Still no word from Cordelia, from any of them. Alastair had tried calling all of them. The only one who consistently picked up was Will as he’d been made the getaway driver. He’d been waiting outside for hours. He’d gone in and found everyone gone, confirming Alastair’s suspicions they’d gone into the land in between. He’d asked Will to call him as soon as he heard anything.

‘I’m going to check on him,’ Alastair said.

Thomas was still breathing when Alastair entered his bedroom. He was in a deep sleep, and Alastair couldn’t wake him up. He even threw the glass of water standing on his nightstand over his face. Nothing. Alastair grabbed a towel to dry him off, unable to leave him like this. No response.

Alastair blinked away some tears. ‘Don’t you dare die on me, Tom.’

A pause. Determination. ‘You’re not going to die tonight.’

Alastair returned to the living room. ‘He’s still sleeping. I don’t think he’s going to wake up. I need some air.’

Alastair went outside, but it wasn’t because he needed air. It had been too long. Cordelia was missing, something had gone wrong. If they’d stopped Tatiana, she would have let him now and they’d gone in hours ago. There was no way the fight could have taken this long, even if they’d gone into the land in between. Not to mention Tatiana could easily escape from there and finish the ritual.

Alastair felt as if he wasn’t inside his body anymore, as if he weren’t really alive. A terrible numbness at the thought that his sister was gone, that she’d failed. Perhaps she wasn’t dead, he told himself. Perhaps she was simply trapped in the land in between and time was passing much faster here for him. If that were the case, only Lucie could bring them back and he had no clue how long they had, if Tatiana was stopped, if Thomas was going to live.

He knew what ritual Gideon and his brother had interrupted all these years ago. With the knowledge from the Carstairs’ journals and the memory, Alastair had been able to piece it together and figure out how to summon the thief of souls.

He drew the circle and symbols in the sand. It wasn’t difficult. Just an incantation. He might have messed up the pronunciation of the words here and there, but he repeated the words Benedict Lightwood had said so long ago.

The thief appeared in the middle of the circle like demons often did.

‘Welcome to my circle, thief of souls,’ Alastair said. ‘I want to make a deal.’

#Alastair Carstairs #Cordelia Carstairs #Thomas Lightwood #Lucie Herondale #Lucelia #Thomastair #fanfiction #tlh #the last hours

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shadowhuntertrash · 4 years ago

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TW(CW): character death

he’s the boy who knows ‘everything’. the one everyone counts on to be the voice reason and logic. that’s what he is. a logical person.

logic by definition is conducted by strict rules of validity. it should make sense. because he is logical he is not scared of most things, the logical side of him realizes that these things that others fear are, when thought about reasonably, are easy to accept.

the only thing he has ever truly feared was death. it logically made no sense. sure, death itself is inevitable and will always happen but what happens after that?

where do we go when we die? is there a god to welcome us? lost family? an eternity of darkness? nothing at all?

there were too many variables and it wasn’t like people could come back from the dead and tell everyone else what happened.

which was why his blood ran cold when he heard Will and Tessa tell him his cousin was dead.

everything seemed to freeze or maybe it was just him. he saw james and matthew move to comfort thomas. he heard the glass shatter from where it had fallen to the floor as thomas dropped it.

it didn’t make sense to him because barbara had been perfectly fine the night before. she wasn’t doing great but they had said she would most likely pull through and most likely simply meant most likely.

she was supposed to survive.

he immediately went to try to think of it logically because he was nothing if not logical but his brain hit a wall when he realized with a pang that she was dead.

he needed to help. he couldn’t comfort thomas because matthew and james were doing that and he had never been good at comfort. he couldn’t help aunt sophie and uncle gideon either because they were with eugenia who was just another person he couldn’t help.

he felt useless.

he slipped out of the room, numb but determined.

he was going to figure out death, he was going to think about it logically and he was going to accept it but not before he did everything he could to give his aunt and uncle all the facts he could about death because facts always helped him calm down. they always comforted him.

(if he went to his lab to research and stayed there for the next five days alternating between crying through his studies and sleeping a total of 7 hours those five days no one needed to know but him. he just needed to finish. just needed to help.)

#christopher lightwood #angst #drabbles #tw: character death #cw: character death

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livia-dovehallow · 4 years ago

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kiss you each morning - Gabrily

based on the song “Blueberry Eyes” by MAX (feat. SUGA of BTS) [English Translation Lyrics] || @tsccreatorsnet || also read on AO3

Well, damn, you look so good / Laying there wearing nothing but my t-shirt / Your body's a neighborhood / Wanna drive my lips all around it

Gabriel Lightwood had never given marriage much thought. He supposed, growing up, that he would marry some day of course, in order to please his father and continue the Lightwood bloodline. It was not until he met Cecily Herondale, however, that Gabriel ever considered the possibility that he wanted to marry purely for love. And love did not even begin to describe the way Gabriel felt about Cecily Herondale. “Are you cold?” he asked her that night, shrugging off his coat before she’d even had a chance to respond. Snow fell in a gentle swirl of wind around them, slowly blanketing the London ground. Snowflakes dotted Cecily’s dark hair, dampening it as they melted, and more snowflakes took their place. She turned her head to face him and smiled. Her smile rivaled the beauty of the snow around them, Gabriel thought to himself, losing his train of thought for a moment.

“I have my own coat, you know,” said Cecily with amusement. Gabriel ignored this and draped his coat around her shoulders, admiring the way she nearly disappeared into it. He was left only with his suit jacket, but as long as Cecily was happy and warm, he’d endure the Arctic tundra. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she asked, her head tilted back to face the gray skies. “It is so peaceful when it snows, as if all the sounds in the world just fade away in it. I can’t ever get enough.”

Gabriel did not answer immediately. Instead, he watched the way her eyelashes fluttered with the weight of the snowflakes landing across her face, and the gentle curve of her pink lips into a content smile. His heart pounded against his chest, both in adoration and anticipation. His body felt alight with electricity with her near him, a feeling that brought both peace and excitement into his life and he had yet to figure out how someone could feel both at once. A smile broke out across his own face. “It is,” he answered finally, his voice soft. Cecily closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, unbothered by the winter chill going into her lungs. If only he had a camera; he wanted to remember her like this; engulfed in his winter coat, her raven hair standing out against the white snow, moments before he would do perhaps the most fearsome thing he’d ever do. Gabriel lowered himself onto one knee. “Cecy,” he whispered. She turned and quickly flickered her eyes in surprise, expecting to look up at him instead of down. Her lovely blue eyes went wide. “Will you marry me?”

'Cause I'm holding my breath / Wondering when / You're gonna wake up in my arms / Head on my chest / My heart's beating / I can't wait to

There had never been so many meetings and parties in the London Institute in all of Gabriel Lightwood’s nearly twenty years on earth. This night was just like the others; full of important people wearing important clothes discussing important things and refusing to hear his or any other of the Institute inhabitants’ opinions on any matter while only begrudgingly heeded Will’s solely on the fact that he was now the head of the London Enclave.

Gabriel sat along the wall of the library, slumped against an old wooden bench that made him distantly consider the possibility of splinters in his backside. He listened to the conversations happening around him, waiting for his chance to put in his opinion on a matter and hope his brother would support him. Gideon sat at the important table, beside Will, with Tessa and Sophie on either side of him. Perhaps when he was married, like his brother was, he would have a place at the table. Taken seriously, welcomed, and heeded, as marriage was for men; not boys. The bench shifted beside him and Gabriel tore his gaze away to look. Cecily sat straight, brushing her hands along her skirt until it bellowed out like a lady before her. She wore no gloves tonight, as the Institute was her home, and it allowed for Gabriel’s eyes to follow the gentle curve of her fingers until they landed on the silver band she wore, engraved with a flame, and worn with pride. “Why haven’t you said anything yet?” she asked in a hushed tone. Gabriel looked up at her and immediately found himself lost in her eyes. “Said what?” he heard himself ask distantly. Cecily clicked her tongue in mock annoyance, but her eyes sparkled. “You are a member of the Enclave. You have a voice here. Why don’t you use it?” “They don’t seem to like the sound of my voice, I’m afraid.” She smiled, mischief slyly hidden in the gentle curve of the corners of her mouth. “Pity. I rather like the sound of your voice.” Cecily Herondale was not an adult member of the Enclave, yet. But, after several incidents involving one fearless girl and several broken floorboards, Will declared that his sister was to be an honorary attendee at Enclave meetings, if not for anything else, because she was his ward and he couldn’t possibly keep an eye on her if he was stuck in meetings all day. Gabriel wondered if anyone else had figured out that Cecily’s incidents were deliberate. He smiled back at her. “It’s late. Aren’t you tired?” She shrugged. “A bit, I suppose. But it is just so riveting in here. All this talk of weaponry reports and building remodels really makes a girl feel alive.” Gabriel glanced at the meeting continuing before them, then back at Cecily, who had been in the middle of a yawn and seemed quite determined to pretend she hadn’t been. Thirty minutes later, while considering declaring this meeting nonsense and demanding that everyone be sent to bed instead, Gabriel felt a weight against his shoulder. He turned his chin toward Cecily, whose head was slumped with her cheek pressed against the top of his shoulder, her eyes closed and lips parted slightly. His heart jumped as he flicked his eyes back and forth from the Enclave at the table and his fiancé beside him. No one paid them any attention at their spot along the wall. He watched Cecily instead, now, as her chest rose and fell with soft breaths. She was beautiful, Gabriel thought, and incredible. To go from stubbornly refusing to go to bed to asleep on his shoulder; that was his fiancé. He wouldn’t trade her for the world. Gently, and ever so quietly, Gabriel sank lower and adjusted her head so that it fit within the dip of his neck and shoulder rather than pressed along the sharp, bony end of his shoulder blade. Any business thoughts that had been in his mind were gone now, replaced with the wishful images of him and Cecily, married, in which he would one day soon be able to fall asleep with her curled up in his arms, her head on his chest. He would tell himself it was for her, to make her feel safe, but he knew deep down that it was mostly for him; to remind himself that he can be loved, and that by some divine intervention, he’d finally married the perfect girl for him. Then, as if life couldn’t get any better, he would wake up every morning and look into beautiful blue eyes.

Kiss you each morning / With strawberry skies / 'Cause I get so lost in / Your blueberry eyes / I'm running through my dreams to / See you in the light / 'Cause I get so lost in / Your blueberry eyes

Sunlight streamed into Gabriel’s eyes from the windows, waking him from a deep sleep. He blinked, momentarily unaware of where he was or what he was doing. He prepared himself to sit up and orient himself but stopped short when he realized there was a weight on his chest. Still blinking through his sleepiness, he recognized the pool of black hair and pale skin curled against his body. Memories of the day before flooded Gabriel’s mind; of wedding vows and dancing, gold skirts and wedding runes. Wedding runes. Gabriel turned his head and looked at his left forearm. A new, glistening black rune stared back at him, one he’d never thought he’d wear and had yet to get used to. His eyes trailed up toward his chest beside Cecily’s head, where the other wedded union rune had been carefully placed the night before. Blankets were tangled around them, soft golden curtains strewn closed around the bed in a secluded paradise. Finally, aware of his surroundings, Gabriel turned back to his wife in his arms. He slowly trailed his fingers along her bare back, admiring her in sleep. Her body fit so perfectly against his that he had begun to believe the stories of soulmates, and of missing puzzle pieces. Her soft pink lips were parted in content sleep; her hair spilled around her face like a painting. Scars from faded Marks dotted her skin, but Gabriel’s eyes were drawn to the edges of the matching rune to his against her collarbone. “How long do you plan to stare?” Cecily mumbled against his skin, stirring awake. Gabriel only smiled fondly at her. “For the rest of my life, I think.” A soft smile grew on her face. Her eyelashes fluttered before she opened her eyes. She looked up at him, blinking sleepy blue eyes, her chin planted in the dip of his shoulder. Gabriel’s fingers froze against her back, losing himself in her eyes, before she laughed and pressed her lips against his shoulder. “Earth to Gabriel,” she said. “What are you thinking?” “That I must still be dreaming,” he whispered. Cecily paused for a moment before she slowly lifted her arm and trailed her fingers against the rune over his heart. “You’re not dreaming.” She pressed another kiss against his shoulder, beginning a trail of kisses up his neck and against his jaw. Gabriel’s eyes fluttered shut, wanting to remember the feeling. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten last night already,” she added with a tease. His eyes flew open again, scanning over their tangled sheets and bodies. “Absolutely not,” he replied, meeting her eyes once more. Gabriel was unsure what happened then, but the moment he met her eyes again, he could see the rest of his life before him. Patrolling and adventuring together, without a chaperone, making the perfect team. Seeing Cecily’s face supporting him in Clave meetings, and the pride in his chest watching her prove her superiority to every other Shadowhunter in Idris and London. Even the sound of the patter of little feet across Lightwood Manor belonging not only to their nieces but their own children and grandchildren.

A ray of light cutting through my shadow / You flipped my life that had been dark / Maybe I'm nothing / Before I met you, I was nobody / I used to mean so little / My life before you was / Only hurrying through the day, yeah / Our days, our nights, okay, our lives / U-A-R-E-M-Y light, friends who support each other, each other’s anchor

“Listen, this is a great idea,” Cecily declared as she dangled from the side of Westminster Abbey from only a thin rope tied loosely around her waist. Gabriel looked up at her hesitantly from the ground, holding with a tight grip the other end of the rope after it wrapped a turret to do whatever he could to prevent her from hurtling to the ground. “I only have great ideas.” “You have dangerous ideas,” Gabriel said under his breath. “I am in a perpetual state of heart attacks.” “I heard that,” she called back, smirking, with a gesture to her enhanced hearing rune. “You always said life with me was exciting. I aim to deliver.” He shook his head, half in resignation and half in fondness for the fearless girl he married. This was not to say he did not enjoy patrolling with Cecily; quite the contrary. Hours alone together meant they could steal kisses without hearing the loud complaints of his now brother-in-law. But patrol was patrol, they were Nephilim, and when Cecily’s pendant lit up as they approached the heart of Parliament Square, it was now purely business. “I’m up,” Cecily called, breaking through Gabriel’s thoughts. “It’s clear, for now. Hurry!” Gabriel did just that, climbing swiftly up after her until his feet were once again planted firmly on even flooring on the roof of the church. The soft red glow of Cecily’s pendant provided just enough light to see her face; determined and fearless as always. Hunting demons with Cecily was starkly different than any other hunting mission or patrol he’d ever done. Will was all jokes and insults; Gideon a man on a mission and someone Gabriel had always trusted without thinking about it. But with Cecily, she was more than a partner. She was his wife and his best friend. There was so much at stake for him now on these patrols, something he’d never considered before. Before her, there was only Shadowhunting. To give his life to the Nephilim young was something he’d always expected. But now, following a demon through the narrow corridors of Westminster Abbey in the dead of night, unseen to any mundane, Gabriel had found a light in his life: someone who made the day worth living, too. Cecily had always been a natural Shadowhunter, but her thrill for the hunt reminded him of why he loved being a Shadowhunter in the first place. They spilled outside, covered in dirt and scratches, but alive with the thrill of another successful hunt. “Do you think they’ll notice that we knocked a plaque off the wall?” Cecily asked, laughing, as she drew her stele from her belt. Gabriel shook his head, chuckling quietly. “With the thousands of other plaques plastered across this building? I think it may be a while.” They were both perfectly capable of drawing iratzes on themselves, but it was their silent expression of love and duty to one another to draw the other’s healing runes. The Wedded Union rune was purely symbolic, but they both liked to believe that their runes were stronger when the other drew it. Cecily drew his first, against his neck. He drew his stele next, lifting his hand to cup her face in his palm to tilt her head and place an iratze on her own neck. He stopped as his skin touched hers. “Are you feeling all right?” he asked, concern flooding his voice as he applied the rune. “You feel warm. Are you flush?” Gabriel looked back into her eyes after finishing the rune, looking closely at her appearance to find any signs of sickness. She only smiled at him and nodded. “I feel fine, bach,” she replied. “You needn’t worry.” He furrowed his eyebrows and brushed his thumb across her cheek. “Are you sure?” “Perfectly,” she breathed. Then: “I’m pregnant.” Gabriel blinked. “You’re pregnant?” he whispered, failing to restrain the hope in his tone. Cecily smiled brightly, her blue eyes shining in the moonlight. “Yes”—she bunched the fabric of his gear jacket in her fist and brought her face close to his— “I’m pregnant, Gabriel. With a baby. Our baby.” He pressed his lips against hers and held her body close to his, pouring every ounce of gratefulness and love into the gesture that he could. They smiled against each other before he finally pulled back and leaned his forehead against hers, staring deep into those blue eyes. There was a time when Gabriel Lightwood had once thought he was incapable of love, receiving or giving. Then came along Cecily Herondale, now Cecily Lightwood, with her name written all over his heart in permanent ink until there was no space left. But there was always more room for love. And Gabriel Lightwood’s heart made room that night for another name.

Kiss you each morning / With strawberry skies / I get so lost in / Your blueberry eyes / I'm running through my dreams to / See you in the light / 'Cause I get so lost in / Your blueberry eyes

Gabriel Lightwood knew before ever opening his eyes what was about to greet him. Soft giggles grew closer to the bed he shared with Cecily accompanied by bursts of little feet pattering across the floor. A quiet “shh” sounded from Gabriel’s side of the bed. He forced himself to withhold his smile, not wanting to spoil his children’s fun. Against him, he felt Cecily shaking gently with concealed laughter. This was not the first time they were to be woken this way, but they’d never complained. In fact, Gabriel hoped he would be woken like this for as long as possible. The next moment, small bodies landed on top of them, giggling and squirming. “Mama! Papa! Time to wake up!” came a loud, small voice. “Wake up!” echoed another voice, followed by more laughter. Little bodies continued to crawl and squirm across the bed and his body. It was growing harder and harder for Gabriel to hide his joy. “Papa!” came the first voice again, right above his face. Gabriel’s eyes flew open and he shot forward, grabbing his daughter and hugging her close, peppering her face with kisses. “Anna!” he shouted back as he did so, fighting playfully against her squirming as she laughed and laughed.

Cecily shot up beside him and caught their son in her arms. He shouted in surprise but did not fight against his mother’s embrace. Instead, he melted into her arms and grinned happily. “Mornin’ Mama,” he said. “Good morning, Christopher, my love,” Cecily answered, pressing a kiss to the top of his head full of brown curls.

Anna continued to squirm against Gabriel’s grip, being more energetic at five years old than her brother. “Mama, Papa, may we play in the park today? Please?” Gabriel smiled at his daughter and son, who pleaded with him with wide eyes and chubby cheeks. He looked up at Cecily, who wore the same face as their children. “I have a meeting with your uncles this morning, but how about a picnic for lunch? You may play after you eat. Does that sound like fun?” Anna and Christopher immediately nodded and flashed toothy smiles. Cecily reached across Gabriel to pull Anna into her arms so that she held both their children in her grasp. “And that, my loves, gives us plenty of time to get into trouble, doesn’t it?” she schemed, squishing her face against theirs. It was then, in the midst of their scheming, that Gabriel caught all three of their mischievous eyes, crinkled up in amusement and excitement as they cuddled together beside him.

He could only smile, and smile, and smile at them; his wife, his daughter, and his son. His family. And Gabriel Lightwood would always get lost in their blueberry eyes.

#gabrily #gabriel lightwood #cecily herondale #gabriel lightwood x cecily herondale #gabriel x cecily #tid #tsc #tlh #anna lightwood #christopher lightwood #the infernal devices #the last hours #the shadowhunter chronicles #cecily lightwood #tsccreatersnet

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incorrectatotcquotes · 4 years ago

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Hello everyone! I haven’t been very active lately, so I thought it was time to make a really long post to make up for it. And when I say long, I mean really long.

There are lots of references to A Tale of Two Cities in Cassandra Clare’s The Infernal Devices, and I wanted to post this theory I have that some of Clare’s characters in TID might actually be supposed to mirror characters from ATOTC. I have already talked a little bit about it in a previous post, but I wanted to make a whole long theory, so here it comes. Major spoilers for both The Infernal Devices (and maybe all of Shadowhunters) and for A Tale of Two Cities ahead. And of course, I’m no expert, so there might be some factual wrongs, and these ideas are just theories. If you find any wrongs, please tell me about it :-)

Will = Sydney?

This one is almost already confirmed. It is mentioned several times in TID how similar Will Herondale is to Sydney Carton, even Will himself knows it. Will seems to be quite upset about it (understandable, if all the stories are true, it might not be very nice to read about your own decapitation), but accepts it as the truth. Will and Sydney have similar personalities, they both seem cold and selfish at first glance, but later on proves to be good people. They both save the main character from their imprisonment in the start, Will helps Tessa escape The Dark Sisters and Sydney manages to get Charles acquitted from the false accusation. Later on they both also sacrifices their lives to save said main characters, Will covers Tessa’s body to shield her from the exploding automaton in Clockwork Prince (he survives, but he is totally prepared to die) and of course Sydney took Charles’ place at the guillotine. Will and Sydney both die at the final chapter of book three (ensuring heart break for us all). As mentioned earlier, they are both quite unpleasant characters from the start, both being rude and mean to the main character, and as readers we are annoyed with them at first, but later on learn to feel sorry for them instead. In Will’s case, he acts the way he does because he believes that he has a magical curse placed on him, making everyone who loves him die, so therefore he must make everyone hate him. Will’s only friend is Jem Carstairs, who Will dares to show his real self to, and who is sick and dying. His solitude and belief that he is unlovable (plus his belief that he unintentionally killed his sister) has made Will depressed and self-loathing. Now, we recognise that, don’t we, ATOTC-fans? Sydney’s problem and the reason for his bad behaviour is his alcoholism and depression, which is not a magical curse, but it might be a metaphorical curse. He also hates himself, and believes that he cannot be loved. Then there is the unhappy love they both have. Will is in love with Tessa, and he does not know that she loves him back, mainly because she is engaged to Jem (whom she also loves, and I’m not going to explain the very complicated romance in TID, it would take too long, if you haven’t read it, I’m sorry for the confusion). Sydney is in love with Lucie, who does not love him back, because she is happily in love with Charles. Will also quotes and almost quotes Sydney at various points in TID, like “you kindled me, heap of ashes that I am into fire”, and calls ATOTC and especially Sydney ridiculous, which honestly sounds like something Sydney would agree with. But Will gets to survive and sort out his life, which Sydney never had the time to do, so I think Will might have that life that Sydeny thought he might have led if he had been a better person. There are other examples of how similar they are, but I realise that this is becoming less of a tumblr-post and more of an essay, so I’ll leave Will and Sydney at this. But my conclusion is that I think Will Herondale was indeed meant to mirror Sydney Carton.

Gideon = Charles?

I’ll try to make this part shorter. So, if we assume that the theory that Will is supposed to mirror Sydney is true, is it not a little bit strange that he appears in TID and Charles does not? After all, Charles is one of the main characters, and Sydney is a side character. But maybe Charles does appear in TID, just a little more subtly. I read some theory (though I can’t remember where) that maybe Jem was supposed to be Charles, and I can see where that is coming from, Jem being a loveable gentleman and everything, but some things just don’t add up. Such as Jem being proud of his family, and his loyalty never being questioned, and not least the fact that it has been confirmed that Jem is based on the poet John Keats. But if we see it from the other end, maybe a TID-Charles will appear. Charles Darnay was born into a very rich family and after his mother’s death he was thought to not show any sympathy to the poorer people his uncle (and his father) were taking advantage of. However, as a young man he realised that the family’s actions were wrong and fled the country, deciding to become a teacher and lead a normal life from there on. He married “beneath his status” and lived very happily with his wife, even though they faced hardships, such as losing a child. Charles is later accused of being an enemy of England, and later also of France, so whatever he does it seems none of the two countries fully trust him. This sounds a lot less like Jem, and a lot more like Gideon Lightwood. Gideon was raised by his father and not his uncle, and he came back to England after living in Spain, but pretty much all of the rest fits perfectly into his story too. He is born into the rich but cruel Lightwood family, and is the first of its children to leave it, after spending time abroad and understanding that what his father is doing is wrong, He is later on mistrusted both by the residents of the Institute (because he is a Lightwood) and by the Clave (because he openly disagrees with his horrible father). Gideon’s appearance does not match Charles’, however. Charles is described to be dark haired and dark eyed, whereas Gideon is described to have sandy-blond hair and green eyes. I would not think the characters’ physical descriptions were very important, if it weren’t for the fact that Will perfectly fits the description from ATOTC. However, Gideon’s physical appearance does match that of Charles Darnay in the ATOTC TV-series from 1989.

(Sorry about the terrible quality of the image). I think Gideon Lightwood might be meant to mirror Charles Darnay.

Sophie = Lucie?

So Sophie Collins is a loving and accepting person, who still manages to not be naive, and to be brave when she has to. This is not really evidence enough to say that she is supposed to mirror Lucie Manette, because they are common traits in characters. I really do not have a lot of evidence for this part of the theory, it is more a feeling than anything else. But if we assume that the theories about Gideon and Will are correct, there are at least a few similarities between Sophie and Lucie. Sophie is happily married to Gideon, despite all they have had to go through together, such as the loss of one of their children. Both Sophie and Lucie are described as very pretty, and they both become the comfort of the people around them. I’d also like to mention that Will does proclaim his love for Sophie (like Sydney proclaims his for Lucie), when she has knocked Jessamine unconscious with a hairbrush, although maybe Sydney put his in a nicer way than Will did. Sophie also manages to stay strong through all of her problems, something that Lucie also does. So there is not a lot of evidence, but I would still like to say that I think Sophie Lightwood is supposed to mirror Lucie Manette, perhaps the Lucie we would have seen if nobody had been there to protect her when she was still small.

Tessa = The Seamstress?

Yes, I know what you’re thinking, but I’m not only going to base this part of the theory on her relationship with Will. If anything, it’s actually a pretty weak argument considering The Seamstress and Sydney only had a few hours together, while Tessa and Will were married for almost sixty years. However, I think there is some evidence that points to Tessa being quite similar to The Seamstress. I think that Tessa might mirror different characters and historical people, depending on who she is with, for example being the Fanny Brawne to Jem’s John Keats. But with the characters mirroring ATOTC characters, I think she is supposed to be The Seamstress. For this one I again have very little evidence, but bear with me. We know very little about The Seamstress, pretty much only that she is born a peasant in the French countryside but manages to make herself a seamstress in Paris, something I imagine would have taken an immense load of work and determination. She is an orphan, and the only family she has left is her cousin, whom she loves very much. She is only twenty years old when she is denounced to the revolutionaries and guillotined, although she is innocent, and we never find out who denounced her. Tessa is born a poor girl in New York, her parents died when she was very young, leaving her with an aunt and a cousin (Nate) whom she thought was her brother. When her aunt dies, Tessa moves to London where Nate is already living. She is stubborn and determined, and she loves her cousin, making her risk her life several times in the first book in the attempt of saving him. We never learn what Tessa did for a living, but I think (and this might be wrong) that she always seems to have an interest in clothes and fabrics that none of the other characters has. Again, that is only what I think, and it might very well be wrong, but it is not impossible that she might have been a seamstress before coming to London. Tessa repeatedly gets captured over the course of the story, and is deemed insignificant by some Clave members, and suspected to be working for the wrong side by other Clave members. Tessa’s cousin is the one who betrays her, and although we don’t know who betrayed The Seamstress, her cousin is the only person we know that she knows, so I would say that that cousin is a good candidate to have done it. She also describes Will (okay, so I did bring up their relationship again) as looking angelic quite a lot, and Will calls her “Angel Tessa”, which I think might be a paralell to how The Seamstress and Sydney ask each other if the other was sent to them by God. So, there isn’t a lot of evidence, but I think Tessa might be meant to mirror The Seamstress, at least a little bit.

Sorry that this became such a long rant. Again, this is the theory of an amature, so it is far from perfect, and please tell me if you agree, disagree, or find any faults in my reasoning!

#ATOTC #a tale of two cities #TID #the infernal devices #charles dickens #dickensian #cassandra clare #the shadowhunters #classic literature #lit #literature #not an incorrect quote #fan theory

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kevin-day-is-bi · 4 years ago

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Well, I did it. I wrote fanfiction for the second time in my life, and I loved doing it!

It's TID, Jem/Will/Tessa, set pre-Clockwork Princess since I wrote it for my lovely friend @lavenderlemonrose who hasn't read CP yet.

Also I know November isn't even over yet but I got the urge to write Christmas things

And I'm sorry, I have NO CLUE how to do the read more break thing so no one has a gaint block of text on their dash

Tessa smiled at Jem gently, squeezing his arm where it was looped through hers. The gentle buzz of London life surrounded them. At first Tessa had only been able to note how different it was from New York, but now the sounds feel like home.

“How decorated do you think the Institute is?” She asked, looking at the great stone building at the end of the street.

“Going by the maniacal gleam in Gideon and Gabriel’s eyes and Will’s natural penchant for mischief, I imagine it is unrecognizable.” Jem grinned down at her, light eyes twinkling with a rare burst of energy.

Tessa felt her cheeks warm and glanced away, appraising a dress in a shop window to avoid Jem seeing her embarrassment. Seeing him like this, alive and strong, made him outrageously beautiful, and she was worried that if she didn’t distract herself she would launch herself at him and make a spectacle in the middle of Fleet Street.

“I suspect there will be copious amounts of mistletoe in every room.” Jem sounded amused, whether from the mistletoe or Tessa’s avoidance, she couldn’t tell. She dared to glance back at him, blushing deeper as she caught his eyes. Oh, he certainly knew the direction of her thoughts, at least.

“Put up by whom, do you think?”

Jem tipped his head back to study the sky, cane swinging uselessly at his side. The brisk weather seemed to do him good.

“Everyone. I expect many people will put it up to catch others and wind up getting caught in it themselves.”

Tessa huffed a little laugh, watching his profile. The winter breeze played with his hair, making little strands of quicksilver whip around his eyes. His eyes drifted shut, and she led him by his arm.

“You are going to run into someone,” She said, maneuvering him around a group of giggling schoolchildren.

“Not when I have you guiding me, Tess.”

Tessa smiled. She loved the way he said her name.

…

Inside the Institute was deliciously warm, the fireplace in the entranceway dispelling the chill from outside. Jem watched Tessa push back her hood and unbutton her coat. There were little snowflakes stuck in her eyelashes, and more snow clinging to her hair. She handed Sophie her coat, who moved to hang it on the rack. Tessa turned to Jem, noticing his gaze. She quirked a brow, and Jem smiled.

“Your hair is coming down.”

Tessa raised a hand to her elaborate knot, sighing when she found a large section of it hanging down her neck.

“It’s all that wind.” She tried to tuck it up, but Jem reached out a hand.

“I like your hair down.”

It was true. Tessa almost always had her hair up, either in a braid to sleep in or up in some form of bun during the day. So when it was down, soft and straight, it was all he could do to not bury his hands in it. There was no one around now, so he curled some of it around his fingers. Tessa blushed deeply, ducking her head in that way she always did when he flirted with her.

She pointed a finger at him when he laughed softly. “Your hair is wrecked, too.”

“My hair is perfect, as always.” Tessa gave a little yelp, jerking away and turning to see who had spoken, but Jem knew who it was. Knew that voice better than his own.

“Modest as ever, I see.” Jem turned to see Will Herondale leaning against the wall, looking smug.

“I speak only the truth.”

“Oh. Will.” Tessa relaxed slightly upon seeing who it was and smoothed a hand over her skirt. Jem stepped casually back, but Will held up a hand.

“Please, don’t stop on my account. That looked rather fun.”

“It was, thank you.” Tessa reached up and managed to tuck her hair back into some semblance of a bun. “And while I suspect it would be just as enjoyable with an audience, the others will be missing us.” She marched past Will, head high.

Jem met Will’s eyes. Will smiled widely, running a hand through his hair.

“I never thought I would meet a match for your wit,” Jem said, walking up to Will and grinning at him.

“And I never thought I would meet a match for my looks, yet here the both of you stand.” Will flushed slightly, as though he hadn’t intended to say that. “In any case, Charlotte sent me to find you two.”

“Congratulations on a job well done, then. Shall we?” Jem proffered his elbow, and with a laugh Will looped his arm through it.

…

Dinner was loud, several fights broke out, and Jem had never been happier. Gideon and Gabriel were uncomfortably sitting next to each other, as far as they could get from Will. Charlotte looked delighted, and Henry had cleaned up at her insistence, wearing a dark blue waistcoat with no burns or chemical stains.

Jem and Will had Tessa between them, and had been trading acerbic comments and food throughout the whole meal.

With a great deal of wheedling, Charlotte had managed to convince Sophie, Bridget, and Thomas to sit with them, and Tessa, Cecily, and to everyone’s surprise, Gideon volunteered to bring up the food, to much protestations.

The food itself was perfect. Ham, chicken, many different types of soups and meat pies, and most every other food Jem could think of had been spread out over their large dinner table, and Jem had thought himself full until Tessa and Gideon brought up the desserts. Will hadn’t stopped eating so far, filling his plate with something of everything and finishing it all, only pausing to trade yelled insults with Gabriel or compliment Tessa.

If Jem loved Tessa’s hair (and everything else about her), he was obsessed with Will’s voice. For so many years, Will had only said cruel things, used sass and insults to keep people away. Now he knew his curse wasn’t real, Jem had become infatuated with Will saying kind things. Every time Will complimented someone, him or Tessa or anyone else, Jem fell a little more in love with him.

Someone began tapping their glass, trying to be heard over the talking and laughing.

“Excuse me! Hey!” It quieted, and everyone turned to look at Will, who was now standing. “I have a toast.” A groan went around the table, but Will kept talking. “Oh, hush. My toast is as follows.” He cleared his throat, looking slightly nervous. “A toast to old friends,” he raised his glass to Jem, who smiled softly. “To family,” He raised the glass to Cecily, then to Henry, who was distracted by something in his hands, and Charlotte, who put her hands over her heart and looked deeply honoured.

“To those who were brave enough to tell me to watch my tongue,” He bowed his head to Sophie, who gave him a wry little grin. “To those who-” He voice caught, and he cleared his throat. “To those who believed in me.” He gestured to Tessa, who exhaled softly and looked very fond. “To the very welcome newcomers, and the ones who are getting there.” To Bridget, Thomas, Gideon, and then Gabriel, who looked slightly put out. Charlotte tsked. “And to those who are not able to admire my great wit and beauteous looks anymore.” He raised his cup viciously enough that a few drops spilled out, this time to the mantle of the fireplace where a delicate lace parasol sat. Everyone stopped smiling at that. Bridget, Thomas, Gideon, and Gabriel didn’t know the whole story, but they were evidently able to surmise.

Will cleared his throat again and sat down, ignoring everyone and taking another bite of food. Jem could see Tessa put a hand on Will’s knee and murmur something, and Jem stretched out and placed an arm over Will’s chair, hand stroking Will’s back.

“That was lovely, Will,” Charlotte said, smiling brightly. “On that note, I do believe I’m stuffed!”

…

Night had long since fallen. Jem was standing by the window, playing his violin. Tessa was watching him with a soft smile on her face. Will, stretched out on Jem’s bed, wondered how he had managed to have two of the most amazing people in the world fall in love with him. Tessa was wearing her nightgown, though she had a dressing gown wrapped tightly around herself so some of the shock was missing.

“I have determined,�� Will announced. “That American women are more modest than English ones.”

He could see the corner of Jem’s smile as Tessa turned to look at him.

“And how, pray tell, did you come to this conclusion?” I am very certain you are not going around contemplating the modesty of other American women, for that would be very stupid.” Jem’s little laugh was mostly hidden under the music, but Will knew Jem had laughed. “I am capable of great immodesty, Will Herondale.”

“Oh?” Will sat up, heart racing far more than was reasonable. He gave a lazy smirk. “Prove it.”

Jem hit the wrong note very abruptly, then resumed playing. Now, however, he was turned towards them.

“I shall.” Tessa reached to the hem of her nightgown, and for a brief moment Will thought he was going to pass out. Jem looked much the same, and the notes were noticeably more sharp now. But all Tessa did was pull up her skirt enough to show off her bare ankles. “There. Do I belong in a den of iniquity?”

Will’s eyes darted to meet hers, and then she was laughing so hard she fell over backwards. Will loved her laugh, loved watching her laugh.

“You two!” She gasped out, clutching her sides. “Your faces!”

The music faltered, and Will glanced over to see Jem staring at Tessa, a look of fond exasperation on his face.

Someone knocked on the door, and Tessa sat up fast enough she almost catapulted off the bed. Jem set down his violin and went to go see who it was. Will heard Sophie’s voice, checking to make sure Jem didn’t require anything before bed. If Sophie was alarmed by Will and Tessa’s presence, she didn’t say anything, simply bid them goodnight.

As Jem said his goodnights, Will nudged Tessa.

“Jem is under the mistletoe,” he whispered.

“Goodness, you put that stuff everywhere.” The three had already exchanged dozens of kisses throughout the night, thanks to the liberal use of it with the decorations, and there had been more than a few occasions where Cecily and Gabriel or Gideon and Sophie had been caught under it and conveniently found somewhere they had to be instantly.

“I think it is a necessary part of holiday decorations.”

Jem shut the door, and then Tessa had shoved herself up and crossed the room in a few short steps. As Jem turned around, Tessa caught his chin in her hand and kissed him.

Jem looked rather startled, then put his arms around Tessa and closed his eyes. Will watched them, watched Tessa reach a hand up into Jem’s hair. He felt a sudden urge to have Jem’s hair in his hands, to have Tessa pressed up against him. He stood up and sauntered over to them, placing a hand on Tessa’s shoulder. She turned her head, smiling up at him.

Will moved closer, wrapping his arms around Tessa. She laughed, and he moved his hand up to wrap around hers tangled in Jem’s hair.

“Don’t pull my hair, you too.” Will laughed. “It’s easy to be amused when you are not in danger of having a bald spot.”

Will’s other hand drifted up to cup Jem’s cheek, and Jem leaned into it a bit. He glanced at Tessa. Her eyes were closed, and a mix of fervent kissing and laughter had made her hair come down around her face. It was impossibly soft where it was pressed against his collarbone.

“I thank the Angel every day that my curse wasn’t real, and that I was given a chance with the both of you,” Will whispered into the top of Tessa’s hair. “My Tess, my Jem.”

#tessa gray #will herondale #jem carstairs #theresa gray #william herondale #james Carstairs #tid #the infernal devices #Christmas fic #Shadowhunters #the shadowhunter chronicles #cassandra clare #jessa #wessa #whatever jem/will is #jell?

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nabrizoya · 5 years ago

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Thanks for the prompt, mate, @jb-lh. Sincerely hoping you enjoy this!

Prompt: 46 + “Please don’t say that about yourself. Don’t believe that. You’re so much more than that. You’re so...”

Ship: Thomas x Alastair (Thomastair)

White Tulips and Purple Hyacinths

Ambling through Hyde park with Alastair Carstairs was not what Thomas had expected on a nimble December evening. As such, he was equal parts wary and interested. The London skyline was a melancholy orange blurring against the snow atop trees and buildings. It reminded Thomas of pumpkins covered with cream.

He thrust his fisted hands into his pockets. Silence ensued. “I like blueberries,” Alastair started.

He glanced at the boy next to him. “What?”

Alastair waved his outstretched hand towards a distant tree with budding flowers. There were scars that were beginning to fade on his knuckles, looking elegant on his caramel skin. “Those flowers you see there, they grow into blueberries. I know.”

Thomas looked away, not sure how to respond. Were there blueberry plants in Hyde Park? He decided to say, “I once had a blueberry pastry. It was nice.”

They walked along mutedly, each lost one another’s silence. Thomas felt dreadfully awkward; he should have turned back when he had first noticed Alastair instead of reckoning a conversation. It hadn’t even been him; Alastair had started talking after he’d returned Thomas’s curious yet accidental gaze. Alastair had been by the lake, looking at the ducks forlornly. Did he like ducks?

“You seem to know a lot about flowers,” Thomas ventured finally. He relaxed his fingers in his pocket before adjusting his mittens. Oddly, it struck him only then that Alastair was not donning his gloves. He wasn’t sure what to make of it either. In truth, he had no idea what to make of Alastair at all.

“I do,” Alastair replied, but did not continue. Many moments of silence later, he carried on, “I- when Cordelia and I were children, we grew up in Iran at the Institute.” Thomas looked at him, only to find stagnant brown eyes looking up at him hesitantly. “You would like it there, I think.”

Thomas paused. “I think I would,” he agreed. His interest in history and the slowly growing curiosity towards ancient architecture did lead him to the structural marvels of Persia. He had looked up the books on buildings and the history they contained. London had its fair share of history, but two places were never the same.

“You would,” Alastair confirmed assuredly, his posture and tone changing at the mention of his home. “The lands; every grain of sand in the deserts around, every leaf and flower, each trace of a design and creation has a story. It is life personified. You like history,” he pointed and continued, “you would like Persia.”

“I like history,” he agreed absently. He was more focused on how Alastair’s shoulders had released some tension. “I like languages too. I speak Persian.”

“I know,” he nodded and then froze.

Breeze swayed the trees, gently shaking the leaves that shed their little share of snow. A flew leaves blew into their faces. When they dusted away, there was snow still harbouring the side of Alastair's shining hair.

“Have you read the Rubaiyat?” Thomas asked instead, a little more determined to not let the conversation go astray. Alastair was trying; it wouldn’t harm to see how this discussion could take a different turn. James, surprisingly, was the one to suggest to give Alastair a chance. To tell him that Alastair was indeed trying to mend things. Thomas had then spoken to Cordelia who had only assured to make the choice his.

“Have you forgiven him?”

“I did,” she’d said. “I truly believe my brother is trying to make amends. He has...” Cordelia hesitated. “Thomas, if I tell you something, would you give your word to keep it to yourself?”

When he had promised his assent, Cordelia began to explain the days of desolation that Alastair had spent after returning from the academy. She elaborated on Alastair’s moodiness and withdrawal from reality. How he often resorted to spending his time by himself, making himself unworthy of love and respect and conversation. She mentioned the bruises she had seen along his face and arms as though he had been in battles all day along. Instead, he had been climbing trees, sometimes wielding his spears from the topmost ones as a part of his practice. His aim was very poor, Cordelia had said, much to Thomas’s shock.

“I wish I knew better,” she’d sighed. “He always held darkness in him, and I have come to realise that myself only a few months ago.” With some doubt then, she had further explained the origins of a letter that contained some details that were not Cordelia’s to speak about, a letter about which Alastair had extracted a promise from her.

“I understand,” Thomas sympathized.

“I have not,” Alastair said now, gazing at the flowers around them, “However, I plan to. Cord- Layla gifted a copy of it to me this birthday.” In a soft tone he added, “She wanted- She told me to embrace where I am from and not conceal who I am.”

“Cordelia is wise,” Thomas agreed. “There were moments where a few of my Persian words were smudged by my accent. She offered to correct me. I was glad that she did.”

His companion merely nodded, albeit deftly. Thomas felt his own nerves ease. “Like I mentioned earlier, when we were children growing up in the Institute, we had regal gardens. They are still there and when we frequent it as a vacationing destination, we spend time in the gardens.”

Thomas followed his narrative closely. “Our mother ensured us the knowledge of flowers and their meanings, plants, herbs and the medicinal uses that they can be put to. Cordelia knows them all but I’m afraid I might have forgotten them. We learnt perfumery too.

“I’m ashamed,” he endured. Thomas glanced at him sharply. “Years of my life, I wasted away in hiding- hiding behind insecurity and, uh, and bearing through childhood- and in the process, I have hurt people beyond repair.” Thomas continued to gaze at him, though Alastair did not meet his eyes. Instead, he kept looking ahead, staring off into the distance.

How was he to offer comfort to him here? Thomas looked at the lake and momentarily thought of James. He thought of the kind things he could tell Alastair. However, he was unsure of the meaning and value that Alastair might hold of his words, if Alastair held any.

They trudged in eerie quietude. Songbirds chirped high in the trees, weaving an evening melody. “Cousin Jem told me,” Alastair resumed, “that life offers a second chance to those who ardently seek for it. I do not know why I am telling you this; perhaps I want you to know that my heart weighs down everyday with the guilt I carry for being an arse.” He must have presumed Thomas would laugh at that, but Thomas gave no reply.

He wondered if he could assure him, to tell him to not think or say that about himself, that he was more than that, more than the guilt he carried. Those were the words he would commit to any of his friends with certainty when their esteem fell below their knees. Thomas curled his fingers and relaxed his fists. The words to assure the fellow felt hollow to him; he was desperate to say something, but the wound was still raw. Why hadn’t he turned away? Why did he continue the conversation with him? He wasn’t prepared.

For a briefest moment, Thomas wondered if Alastair really meant his apology, if that even was one. Rage had tore through him for the many months after the confession during Cordelia’s engagement. Now he only felt numb and empty.

Despite the assurances he had about Alastair from his friends, he was uncertain about what to think of him. The tears that his parents had shed when the rumour began to devour their family was vivid in his memory. It was the first time he had seen his father, an excellent, kind and virtuous man, cry. His sisters were pale with anger at the audacity of the Enclave to even partake in such nonsense and his mother had wept, her dignity compromised by mere words. Just a rumour to question years worth of loyalty.

Thomas himself had felt invalidated, but Aunt Tessa’s words were always there for affirmation. He had brushed the rumours off and so had the rest of London eventually. It struck him only then how odd Matthew must have felt when he heard the senseless claims about his father. How Charlotte and Henry had faced their woes. Had there been anybody with whom Matthew had shared his grief? James might know, he thought solemnly, yet his gut nagged no. He didn’t think it was possible that Matthew had shared his pain with someone. The guilt of not being there for his friend began to wreak his heart.

“I- Thomas, I don’t expect you to excuse me. I don’t excuse myself- nor do I expect you to. James did tell me to give you time and I only-” Alastair rambled, stopping to look up and face him. Thomas wondered what his expression conveyed, for Alastair’s face shut up, his form taking on the edge of formality. “It is growing dark,” he declared. “I must leave. It was pleasant seeing you, Lightwood.”

Thomas wasn’t sure what had prompted him thought his hands moved on their own. He held his hand out forth, as if meaning to shake. “Farewell,” he said stonily. Alastair nodded curtly and they parted ways.

Later that evening as night fell over London, Sophie called Thomas to the parlour. He had been looking for more information about Belial, jotting his observations in a notebook he liked to maintain once a moon. Watching Christopher record his observations had encouraged him to write his own thoughts and discoveries down. “These came for you, mi hijo,” his mother said, ruffling his hair with her tired hands when he entered.

Thomas crossed the room towards the contents on the table. On it was a small bouquet of white tulips and purple hyacinths. Inscribed on the small card that came with the flowers were Persian words. They were easy for Thomas to read: the dedication of the Rubaiyat.

White tulips and purple hyacinths denote seeking forgiveness.

Thank you so much for reading!

#thomas lightwood #alastair carstairs #thomastair #thomas x alastair #i absolutely loved writing this #such raw such discomfort such distress #*chef's kiss*#the last hours #tlh #and you cannot tell me alastair would not give flowers to thomas #mine*

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imherongraystairstrash · 5 years ago

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Christopher and Gabriel Lightwood

Hey guys! Someone requested I do Christopher and Gabriel, so here it is. I apologize in advance for this length, I didn’t set out for it to be this long... I guess that’s all. Also, I haven’t finished gotten my copy of Chog yet, so it might not be so accurate. Up next: Anna and Christopher (I’m glad you guys love the Lightwood Herondales and much as I do) -Ana

Benedict Lightwood was staring at Gabriel. His eyebrows were furrowed and although Gabriel was taller than he was, Benedict seemed to loom over him. His figure was frightening.

“You have disappointed me, Gabriel.”

Gabriel felt himself shrink into nothingness, meanwhile his father grew and grew and morphed into a worm. Cecily came with her seraph blade. She exchanged blow after blow with Benedict until she lost her footing, and Benedict ripped her into shreds before Gabriel’s eyes. He cried out in pain, for he had lost his strong and beautiful wife. Anna had stepped up, trying to save Cecily, only to have Benedict swat his tail and throw her against a tree, where her lifeless body slumped in the grass. Alex called out to his father, his screaming drowned out by Benedict’s attack. Gabriel was powerless to stop any of it.

“Father, are you alright?” His son’s lavender eyes looked down on him.

“Kit.” He breathed.

Before Kit could answer, a blade pierced his chest, and he fell down to his knees, gasping for air.

Gabriel woke in a cold sweat. He blinked his eyes over and over, trying to stop the gruesome images from replaying in his mind. He looked at Cecily, who had edged closer to him. Cecily was a light sleeper, and he must have woken her up during his nightmare. He planted a kiss on her head and sat up.

“Where are you off to?” Cecily said, her words slurred from sleep.

Gabriel leaned down and planted little kisses on her face.

“I will be right back.” He whispered

“You better.”

Gabriel chuckled and softly kissed Cecy one more time before getting up.

The cold floor sent a shock through him. He walked down the hallways of the London house. Although he knew it was superstitious on his part, he felt an obligation to check on his children, and make sure nothing had happened to them. The first room was Alexander’s. They had made sure to keep him in close proximity, so if he had a nightmare, the trip to their room would not be so far. However, Alex rarely suffered from nightmares. Ironically, it was Gabriel and occasionally Cecily who had the most trouble when it came to sleep. Gabriel had assumed that over the years, the pain and horrors of the past would subside, but that never happened.

He looked into Anna’s room and found his daughter sound asleep. He smiled to himself. How could he have been blessed with such wonderful children? Anna was everything Gabriel had not been in the past. Anna would not have stayed with Benedict as Gabriel had, even after Gideon had begged him to come to the London institute. Anna would not have been afraid as he was.

Gabriel walked down the hall to Kit’s room. The door was closed, but light danced under it. He opened the door to find Kit wide awake, writing something down with crazed determination. Cecily had always said that that expression always reminded her of Gabriel.

The thought of Cecily reminded him of a conversation he had had with her a fortnight ago:

“I love Christopher to death.”

“But?”

“But I wish I could understand him better. I want to understand how he sees the world, how he picks apart and analyzes situations.”

“That seems quite difficult.”

“It is. Especially considering how intelligent he is.”

“That’s our Kit.” Said Cecily with immense pride, “I fear he is more intelligent than I could ever hope to be.”

Gabriel smiled. There was a time when Christopher’s habits of experimenting had frustrated them both. More than anything, they scared them. Very time Gabriel would catch his son with an open flame, or strong chemicals, he couldn’t seem to breathe properly. It took him a while to accept that his little boy, who would throw his arms up to be picked up and rest his small head on Gabriel’s shoulder, was grown. He still remembers when Kit was newly born, and his Uncle Will offered his finger for him to hold. Kit just stared at it in wonder, as though not sure what to do with it.

“He’s going to change the world, this one.” Charlotte had said.

“What makes you say that.” Cecily laughed

“Instead of simply grabbing it, he’s thinking of the best way to approach the situation. That differs him from most children, but definitely not in a bad way.”

...

“You do know, Mr. Lightwood,” the Inquisitor had told Gabriel once, “Basilias is a fine institution for, erm, special Shadowhunters.”

“I am aware.” said Gabriel, not knowing what the Inquisitor was implying he do with this information.

“An you do know, of course, that taking your son there does not make you or Mrs. Lightwood bad parents. The opposite really, you would be doing your son a favor.”

Gabriel widened his eyes in disbelief.

“It will provide you and your wife some much deserved peace.”

Cecily stopped the conversation she was having with the inquisitor’s wife. Gabriel gave the inquisitor a hard stare before saying, loud enough for the entire room to hear:

“My son is not a burden to myself or my family, nor do Mrs. Lightwood and I need “a break” from him. I am horrified you would think my wife and I would be so quick to rid ourselves of him.”

There were many more things he would like to tell the Inquisitor, but he had to stop himself for the sake of his family. To have an enemy with that much power could ruin their lives, despite being close to the Consul herself. Instead, Gabriel turned away from him, grabbed his coat and let him out. He had only walked three step into the snowy pathway before the door opened again and Cecily came rushing out to catch up with him. Every two steps Cecily took was equivalent to one of Gabriel’s, and she tripped on her feet. Gabriel caught her before she could fall on the ground. She looked up at him, smiling.

“The inquisitor’s expression when you left was priceless. He turned as red as a tomato!”

Gabriel looked at her.

Cecy’s smile faded. “What’s wrong, love?”

“I just cannot believe the nerve of him.”

Cecily sighed and held her gloved hand to his face. Her impossibly dark blue eyes looked into his own.

“The world is going to be cruel to our Kit and it will be our job as his parents to support and protect him until he is able to protect himself.”

“I just cannot comprehend why they think him crazed.”

“Because Shadowhunters are afraid of anyone that is different. That is why they shun Tessa and why the academy tried to get rid of Jamie. That’s why they though Henry foolish.”

That was the day that Gabriel realized that it was not open flames he had to protect his son from, but his own kind.

Gabriel opened Kit’s door just a crack and found his son bent over, writing something with intensity. Gabriel crossed the room and stood beside Kit. Then, he thought about how terrifying it must be to be writing something and not know your father is beside you. Benedict had done that so many times, it started to feel like he would do it in purpose, just to make sure Gabriel was still afraid of him. Gabriel quietly took some steps back, and walked back to his side, this time with more noise.

“Kit?”

Christopher looked up at Gabriel, half of his right eye was the color of lavender in the candlelight while left eye a very dark shade of blue.

Christopher was born with his eyes open, observing the world for the day he was born. Gabriel and Cecily were sure the magnificent color would change over time; lighten to match the color of Cecily and Will’s. Sophie had argued otherwise, but everybody else seemed to agree that the color would fade overtime. Gabriel remembered holding Kit and looking down at his son and feeling a rush of emotion, similar to when he held Anna for the first time. He thought about his father.

“I will protect you with my all heart,” he’d said “and I will never abandon you the way my father hurt me.”

Kit looked at his father with fascination as Gabriel began to cry. Gabriel supported his newly born son’s head, his fingers tangling in his small, brown curls, and kissed his forehead.

“Kit, why are you awake?”

“I am writing down an idea I had.”

“Can it not wait for tomorrow?”

Kit looked at him, completely baffled. Then he whispered:

“You can tell your thoughts to come back tomorrow?” His eyes danced. “Could you teach me how?”

“Oh, no Kit, I just meant writing this down tomorrow rather then at three in the morning.”

Christopher ran a hand through his hair.

“Blimey, is it already three in the morning?”

Gabriel smiled. “Yes, and that means it is time to go to bed.”

“Okay.”

“And sleep.”

Kit was silent.

“Father?”

“Yes?”

“It might take a while for me to fall asleep. I am not very good at it.”

“Neither am I, Kit.”

Christopher looked at him. “Do you suppose I inherited an allele for insomnia from you?”

Gabriel blinked, not knowing what his son just asked him.

“I don’t know.”

Christopher looked a little disappointed.

“Do not worry, Papa, I shall find out.” He set off to work.

“Tomorrow, Kit.” Gabriel said as he led his son to his bed. “Promise me you will wait until tomorrow.”

“I promise.”

Gabriel smiled. “Alright then.”

“Papa?”

Gabriel turned around.

“I wish you fast sleep.”

“And I to you Kit.” Gabriel blew out the candle, and when back to bed.

“Took you long enough.” Cecily whispered.

Gabriel planted a kiss on her head and drew her into his arms and then slept sweet dreams of his family, together and happy.

#gabriel lightwood #cecily lightwood #christopher lightwood #cecily herondale #anna lightwood #lightwood #gabriel and christopher #tsc #the last hours fanfic #tlhfanfic #christopher and gabriel #lightwood family #tsc fanfiction

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ladyherenya · 5 years ago

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Books read in July

After I read How to Find Love in a Bookshop, I searched the library’s catalogue for other titles containing “bookshop” or “bookstore”. I was curled up in bed with a bad cold at the time, which meant I ended up choosing a bunch of books whose covers or synopses would have, on a different day, put me off. And that worked out rather well!

But afterwards I felt like I didn’t get the right balance between contemporary fiction and fantasy this month.

Favourite cover: Minor Mage by T. Kingfisher.

Still reading: The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert.

Next up: Mort by Terry Pratchett. Maybe The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton.

(Longer reviews and ratings are on LibraryThing. And also Dreamwidth.)

– (they’ve taken away page breaks) –

Things a Map Won’t Show You: stories from Australia & Beyond, edited by Susan La Marca and Pam Macintyre: I borrowed this because I recognised some of the names involved. I liked bits and pieces of it but nothing really stood out. Maybe Peta Freestone’s “Milford Sound”, for the setting. According to the introduction, the stories and poems were chosen “with the curriculum in mind and for their appeal to Year Seven and Eight readers”. That’s a valid reason but I suspect that approach is unlikely to result in a collection that would really appeal to me, not me now and not even when I was a young teenager.

A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World War II by Elizabeth Wein: This is AMAZING. It is aimed at young people, and I wondered if I’d find the writing style too simplistic, but it was just remarkably accessible. I knew bits about Russia’s history but this gave me a much more comprehensive understanding of the culture and politics these women grew up with, and how Russia came to have three regiments of airwomen at a point in time when other countries wouldn’t let women fly into war. The rest of the book is just as fascinating and surprising. Wein knows how to tell a story.

How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry: This is about Emilia, who inherits her father’s bookshop in a picturesque Cotswold village, and the bookshop’s customers. It doesn’t shy away from Emilia’s grief but otherwise is very much a cosy, optimistic story in which friends are made, relationships are mended, mistakes are overcome and everything turns out all right. Which definitely has its appeal. I wanted just a few more sharp edges -- or else slightly more uncertainty -- so that everyone’s happy endings felt more realistic. (I keep brainstorming ways that could have been managed.) Although I didn’t love this book, there was a lot I liked about it.

The Masquaraders by Georgette Heyer (narrated by Ruth Sillers): This is ridiculous but still quite entertaining. Either I missed something or Heyer doesn’t really do a great job of explaining why Prudence and her brother Robin need to be in disguise, nor why they’ve decided the best way to do this is by crossdressing. The key to enjoying this book was to just roll with it. Also Prue’s romantic interest is a type Heyer writes so well: perceptive, unflappable, competent, with a sense of humour and an appreciation for level-headedness in others. Sensible people pushed into madcap adventures is something Heyer has a flair for.

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle: It’s much more dreamlike than I was expecting, in a similar vein to Patricia A. McKillip’s fantasy. I was emotionally invested only in flickers and bursts, but I appreciated the way it plays with, and comments on, fairytales. Quests may not simply be abandoned; prophecies may not be left to rot like unpicked fruit; unicorns may go unrescued for a very long time, but not forever. The happy ending cannot come in the middle of the story.

The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler: Esme, a British scholarship student studying art history at Columbia, discovers she’s pregnant and gets a job at a quirky secondhand bookshop. I would have found some of her choices -- and the book itself -- terribly frustrating, except I really liked the bookshop and Esme’s narration. I liked her quotes and references and her enthusiasm and her observations, especially those about living in New York and about the shop -- this is a story with a vivid sense of place. Esme’s naivety and optimism is both understandable and believable, and I wanted to see her finally, properly, free of her awful boyfriend.

The “Happy Ever After Bookshop” books by Annie Darling:

The Little Bookshop of Lonely Hearts: If I hadn’t already read the second book about the Happy Ever After bookshop and liked it a lot, I probably wouldn’t have bothered reading this. The romantic interest annoyed me -- he’s not a bad match for Posy, but I’d find him infuriating in person and I didn’t want to read about him. Fortunately the book is just from Posy’s POV. I enjoyed the Britishness, and the bits about running a bookshop. I particularly liked Posy’s relationship with her younger teenaged brother, whom she has responsibility for. And I was pleased the romance bookshop stocks appropriate YA and mystery titles.

True Love at the Lonely Hearts Bookshop: I was expecting it to turn into the sort of romance which annoys me. To my delight, it did not! Verity loves her noisy family, her nosy friends, her job in a bookshop and reading romances but she believes she isn’t suited to being in a romantic relationship. She reluctantly agrees to a fake-dating situation to avoid friends trying to set her up. I loved the way this story shows Verity being an introvert, and her obvious love for Pride and Prejudice. And this has all the things I like about fake-dating without too much cringe-worthy deception.

Crazy in Love at the Lonely Hearts Bookshop: I have less in common with Nina than I do with her colleagues: she’s into make-up, tattoos and Wuthering Heights. But it was interesting seeing why she’s embraced both Wuthering Heights and her own particular style so fiercely -- she’s finding her own path, one that differs from what her conservative working class family expected. Some of the resolutions came about a bit too easily. However, I liked getting a different perspective on the bookshop, I enjoyed bits of her romance with Noah, and I share some of Nina’s fascination with the Bronte sisters.

A Winter Kiss on Rochester Mews: Mattie runs the tearooms attached to the Happy Ever After bookshop. She is delighted about living above the bookshop, but not so impressed about her new flatmate. I’m not a fan of the crazy commercialism of Christmas, but really enjoyed reading about it here -- probably because the story recognises that not everybody loves it. And, given the weather, I was in the mood for something wintry. Other things I liked: the vivid portrayal of the challenges of working “in a customer-facing environment over Christmas”; the details about Mattie’s baking; and the intelligent commentary about romance novels and romantic relationships.

Allegra in Three Parts by Suzanne Daniel: Eleven year old Allegra lives with one grandmother, next door to the other, while her father lives in above the garage. Allegra knows her grandmothers love her, but they are very different. “Sometimes I wish they could just love me less and take what's left over and put it into liking each other a little bit more.” The initial mystery and conflict were slightly stronger than the answers and aftermath. But it’s an interesting portrayal of growing up in Sydney in the 70s, the women’s liberation movement, and of a family dealing with grief. I read it in practically one sitting.

We Rule the Night by Claire Eliza Bartlett (narrated by Chloe Cannon): Revna’s father is a traitor. Linné’s father is a general. Revna is discovered protecting herself with illegal magic during an air-raid. Linné is discovered after three years fighting at the front disguised as a boy. They’re both sent to a new women’s Night Raiders regiment, where, if they are to survive this war, they have to learn to fly together. This is tense and captivating -- and nuanced. Magic is wondrous but also confronting, the Union is unjust but contains things worth defending, loyalties are not always predictable, difficult people can become valued friends, and not everything is neatly resolved.

The Way Past Winter by Kiran Millwood Hargrave: In the fifth year of winter, Mila and her sisters wake to find their brother has left. Sanna believes Oskar left them willingly, like their father once did, but Mila is convinced that Oskar was taken by last night’s unsettling visitors -- and is determined to rescue him. I didn’t find this as emotional and compelling as Hargrave’s previous books. I don’t know if that’s because this is a simpler narrative or because I didn’t listen to the audio book -- a good narrator adds liveliness and emotion. But Hargrave’s prose is lovely and I liked the fairytale quality this story has.

Grace After Henry by Eithne Shortall: I really enjoyed Love in Row 27, so I borrowed Shortall’s other novel. After her boyfriend dies, Grace keeps seeing him everywhere. Then she meets a man who looks unnervingly like Henry -- a long-lost relative of Henry’s she did not know about. This story is funny and touching. I didn’t expect it to be so compelling, nor make me so invested in Grace’s relationship with Henry. There’s a strong sense of history and of place -- it was interesting to read about contemporary Dublin. There are unexpected and hopeful developments in Grace’s life. But mostly, it’s just very sad.

Famous in a Small Town by Emma Mills: Sophie loves her friends, her high school’s marching band and her small town. She has an idea for how the band could raise money -- enlisting the help of a famous country singer. I liked Sophie’s deep sense of belonging and how much she cares about things. She’s very kind in a way that is realistic and realistically complicated. Her friends are very supportive, but believably so. They all have flaws and make mistakes and have their secrets. I really enjoyed this story about friendship and summer (and it was a good choice after reading something sad).

Can’t Escape Love by Alyssa Cole: I’ve tried a couple of Cole’s novels and they didn’t appeal to me -- I wouldn’t have considered this novella if I hadn't seen a positive review. It’s fun and fandom-y and diverse. Reggie contacts an old internet acquaintance after she discovers his puzzle livestreams are no longer online. I liked how it’s very clear that Reggie’s disability has a significant impact on her daily life, but has nothing to do with her current problems. And, for Gus, being autistic isn’t ever an obstacle to a relationship with Reggie. I would have liked to read more but this still satisfying.

The Orphans of Raspay, a novella in the World of the Five Gods by Lois McMaster Bujold: Penric’s ship is captured by pirates and he is thrown in a hold with a couple of young girls from Raspay. As always, I enjoyed Pen’s interactions with Desdemona. I would have enjoyed the story even more had there been more significant character interactions -- the girls aren’t quite old enough to play a very active role in escape plans but are old enough that, in terms of emotional support, they’re not very demanding. I’d like to see Pen challenged more. But this is still a solid adventure. I’m very glad that Bujold hasn’t finished telling stories about Pen and Des.

Minor Mage by T. Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon): Oliver, a twelve year old minor mage with an armadillo familiar, is sent by his village on a perilous journey to the mountains to bring back rain. There’s some dispute over whether this is a children’s book -- Vernon thought it was, her editor was adamant it wasn’t. It feelslike a children’s book to me, even when Oliver has to deal with ghuls, bandits and murderers. (There have always been children’s books which have been too dark and scary for some kids.) The tone is dryly humorous, the armadillo is a delight and I never doubted that Oliver would succeed.

#Herenya reviews books #Lois McMaster Bujold #T. Kingfisher #Claire Eliza Bartlett #Elizabeth Wein #Georgette Heyer #Veronica Henry #Annie Darling #Peter S. Beagle #Emma Mills #Kiran Millwood Hargrave

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tinytessadder-blog · 6 years ago

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Hello everybody! The name’s Speedy. I’m 25, from the EST timezone, and I use she/her pronouns. I’m honestly super excited to be a part of this group. I only just got into Riverdale a few months ago and binged the entirety of the series so far on Netflix. And all the while, I kept thinking how I could revamp an old OC of mine from a previous roleplay and work her into the world of the show. So let me introduce you to my baby Tessa “Tess” Adder. Below the cut, you can find a brief introduction. I hope y’all like her; and I look forward to plotting with everyone. Feel free to hit up my messenger on here or on Discord. I promise I don’t bite (though I can’t say the same for Tess).

[ WILLA HOLLAND ] ( ✶:･ﾟ♦ — ▓ hey, guess what - i just saw TESSA “TESS” ADDER by sweet water river, you know they’re SEVENTEEN and a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT who identifies themselves as CISFEMALE. i sometimes hear people describe them as STUBBORN and CYNICAL but others say that they’re LOYAL and DETERMINED. me personally? i’m wondering what they were doing at the scene of jason blossoms murder, alone.

BACKGROUND

TW: Terminal Illness, Domestic Violence, Drug Use, Death, Overdose, Child Abuse, Self Harm, Cutting

Tessa Rosemary, more commonly known as “Tess”, is the second child born to a young couple (Warren & Sophie Adder) from Bristol, England. She has a brother named Thomas “Tommy” who is five years older.

Growing up, her family was fairly well off. Her father owned a pharmacy that he’d inherited from his father; and they lived in the flat above the shop. Her mother worked as a primary school teacher.

At the age of five, Tess was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF). The diagnosis explained the poor weight gain and frequent infections she faced her first few years of life; and while it was nice to have an answer, the news was hard to face.

She started doing treatments multiple times a day in an attempt to better manage her symptoms; but she still spent a good portion of her childhood in the hospital as doctors worked to get her symptoms under control.

But the days in the hospital were much preferred to days at home, especially when both her parents were around. If one was out, it was quiet; but if they were both there, it was nothing but a screaming match, led by her father. And that screaming quickly turned violent.

She was eight the first time her father laid a hand on her mother; and she was nine the first time her father put her mother in the hospital due to injuries he caused.

All the time this was going on, her older brother tried to do everything in his power to shield her from the darkness that began unfolding in the Adder flat. Tommy did everything in his power to take care of his little sister, trying to allow her to continue having as much of a normal life as possible.

At the age of eleven, Tess and her family moved to Riverdale’s Northside. They moved to be closer to family that had relocated to the area several years back.

The abuse lasted until Tess was thirteen. That was when her mother overdosed on jingle jangle. She hadn’t even known her mother was an addict thanks to her brother working to hide that information. Apparently her mother had turned to drugs as a means to cope with the abuse from her husband shortly after the family moved.

After the funeral, her father grew distant for a few months. He spent most of his time working to set up a new pharmacy in the Southside and even ended up moving his family to the apartment above the shop (just like back in England); and when he was home, he hardly acknowledged his children.

Honestly, Tess wished it stayed that way.

Just before her fourteenth birthday, her father’s aggression resurfaced, this time directed at his children. He began not only screaming at both children; but he also began to beat them, sometimes worse than he’d ever hit his late wife.

The abuse was hardest on Tess as her small size and the fact she was sick made it hard to stand up for herself. She was constantly in pain and covered in bruises, hiding them by wearing long sleeves and pants year round.

Then once her brother finished his classes at community college and left to attend a real university, things got even worse. With no one else around, her father focused all his abuse on her; and she prayed for any excuse not to be home.

Shortly after her brother left, she found her way to the Southside Serpents. She’d struggled with feelings of self-hatred and worthlessness caused by her father; but with the Serpents, she found a family. She found hope.

Unfortunately, she found them too late. She’d already started cutting as a means to cope with her father’s abuse; and while she’s been trying to stop, her homelife makes it hard to do so. She wants to open up about the abuse and the cutting to her friends in the Serpents; but she’s scared.

And on top of keeping the secrets of her homelife, her health has rapidly declined over the past several years. Her body is weaker; and she’s scared it’s going to official begin to fail her sooner than later.

Her brother has promised that he’s going to get a job in his field of study (engineering) after he graduates and do everything in his power to ensure Tess is safe and far away from their abusive father.

MISC.

She still speaks with a slight Bristolian accent; though it’s become slightly Americanized over the years. There are certain words where her accent is thicker; and it gets very thick if she’s angry, upset, or excited.

Her Serpents tattoo is located on the outside of her right forearm; though it’s often hidden by the fact she wears long sleeves all the time (to hide the bruises and her self harm scars).

Due to her petite size, a handful of individuals (mainly the Serpents) have taken to sometimes calling her ‘Tiny’ as a sort of nickname.

She’s a video game junkie; and she will absolutely destroy anyone who challenges her to a battle in Smash Bros. or a race in Mario Kart.

The way to her heart is with grape soda. She tried one during her first trip to Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe; and she instantly fell in love.

She is absolutely 100% against drug use due to her mother’s overdose and death. She especially hates jingle jangle and those who are knowingly dealing it throughout Riverdale.

Even though she lives on the Southside, she goes to school in the Northside; though she’s not ashamed of technically being from the Southside now. She thinks the feud between the two sides of town is kinda ridiculous.

Due to all the school she missed being sick as a child, she was held back a year. It would’ve been two; but she was able to play catch up with half the work missed over the years.

Her health has gotten to the point where she needs to sleep with a nightly flow of oxygen; but she’s trying to keep this secret as she doesn’t want to admit things are getting worse.

more to come…

CONNECTIONS

Extended Family/Cousins

Fellow Southside Serpents

Ride or Die Bestie(s)

Good Influence Friend(s)

Bad Influence Friend(s)

General Friends

Frienemies

Enemies/Rivals

Future Love Interest

Confidant

Lab/Project Partners

Neighbors

I’ve put just the very basic connections for now; but I am open to all sorts of connections and will add more/elaborate when I think them up!

#bghq.intro #intro #headcanon

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niki-writes-stuff · 5 years ago

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Liist of my wip's! (August 2019)

Hello there! I'm Nicola! I mainly write contemporary YA stuff (mostly read that, too!), that feature all of the lgbt rep I'd like to see but don't :)

The following is a list of my current wip's, along with a quick summary of what they're about! If anything here interests you please don't hesitate to ask about it! I love talking about anything from characters to plot and it helps me build ideas when I'm talking to someone else :)

The History of Great Thing That Have Happened to Great People: Taylor, convinced of his extremely bad luck, isn't expecting to catch the eye of Patrick, who's extremely out of Taylor's league in every way that counts. Taylor is convinced their whirlwind summer romance will be regulated to just that: the summer, because with their insanely different lifestyles, coupled with living on opposite ends of the country, and Patrick's slightly obsessed ex, theirs no way they could make it work long term, right? Right?

One More Minute: Kat signs up for a competition that wins her an hour long skype date with her celebrity crush, Harley. Kat can hardly believe it- clearly this is a sign they were meant to be together. Battling demons of her own while being forced to maintain her public image all at the age of 19, Harley is infatuated with Kat from the first minute they spend talking, but she's reluctant to drag the starry eyed, optimistic girl into her world.

For The Throne: The unprecedented assassination of her brother, Jude, just days before his wedding, leaves Genevieve in the position she never envied him: Atop the most powerful and coveted throne in the world. As her relationship with American journalist Eva Letman comes to light, Genevieve faces opposition from both outside and within the palace, forcing her to question her place as a Monarch and her ability to rule. Jude's widowed wife, Sarah, carrying his alleged unborn son, is the power hungry daughter of the Prime Minister, and she's determined to regain her position in the palace, whatever it takes. As the investigation into Jude's death goes underway, and England is sent into a disarray over Genevieve's reign, old and new secrets begin to reveal themselves, threatening to bring down the entire Monarcy down with them.

Title TBD: Hedley knows vampires exist: they have to. She's spent her entire life learning everything she can about them, and in the depths of her research she found solace from her life in a children's home. As she turns 18 and the system prepares to spit her out onto the streets, Hedley goes to the only place she's ever felt at peace: Hartman's Hallow, rumored to be home to the last existing vampire coven in North America.

Title TBD: Skye Nolan has a plan. He's counting down the days until he can start HRT, while trying to survive living with his father and soon to be step-mom after his mother's career takes her to New Zealand. It probably wouldn't have been so difficult, except he also has to handle having a crush on his long time friend, Caden Montgomery, who Skye isn't willing to risk losing over anything. Skye is convinced that a relationship with Caden is completely out of the question- until suddenly, it's not. Caden returns from music camp with the news that he's broken up with his boyfriend, and his sudden availability pushes him and Skye to testing the boundaries of their frriendship.

Who We Were: Noah Hapstall's plans to enjoy his freshman year of university take a sharp turn for the worst when his ex girlfriend reappears in his life after being gone for over a year. Melanie had previously been nothing more than the embodiment of everything Noah despised, the wounds she left cut deep and not even his current seemingly iddylic relationship could heal them. He swore he would never let her back in, but his parents' divorce and the increasing distance between him and his boyfriend, who's currently studying in another state, leaves him vulnerable to Melanie and her typical manipulation. As Noah unwittingly becomes more involved in her life, he is forced to remove his rose tinted glasses and examine the world as it really is, for all the lies, secrets, and pain it holds.

Who We Want To Be: Sylvie Montgomery has had enough of living in the shadow of her celebrity father, her perfect twin brother, her genius best friend and even prodigy violinist younger sister. She doesn't know who she is without the people around her always overshadowing her, and so she jumps at the opportunity to find out when she's offered an internship far away from home: in the city of love, Paris.

Where We Began: Tessa had her heart broken when her girlfriend of two years broke things off out of the blue. But now Hanna's back, begging for a second chance, and Tessa is unbelievably close to giving in. She never really got over Hanna, and maybe they can make things work again, if only they could get over all the baggage their history brings with it.

Rules of The Road: Five best friends go on a cross country road trip the summer before departing for college. They must navigate the rules of road while discovering things about themselves, and each other, that will either tear them apart for good or make them stronger than ever.

Rules of The Game: High strung student body president Sophie ends up tutoring Oren Black, the school's laid back, fun loving quarterback.

Rules of the Heart: After coming out as gay, Alexa goes to live with her father in Oregon and ends up falling for Harley, who recently got out of an abusive relationship.

Title TBD: Broadway actress Olivia (Liz) Chandler meets Tomi Reign, the socialite daughter of Liz's new director. Sparks fly immediately, and supposed-to-be straight Liz can't deny that she has feelings for Tomi. Tomi herself is intrigued by Liz, who's cheeky and flirty personality is far from Tomi's usual type. But her usual type.... usually leaves her heartbroken and alone. She's more than happy to play along and be Liz's pet project as she explores her sexuality. It's not like she has anything better to do. Except things take a turn when real feelings begin to get involved, and neither of them really knows how to react to it.

All We Have (8 part series): Follows the life of childhood best friends, Aaliyah, Nicky, and Ryan, as they navigate their tumultuous familial, platonic and romantic relationships. Spans over the course of several years, from their early teens to their late 20's.

The Other Life: Penelope Carmichael has lived in the shadow of her best friend Kris Johnson for as long as she can remember. Kris is popular, beautiful, and perfect, and while Penn tries to be happy for Kris' success', she finds it difficult to shake her jealousy. On the eve of their 17th birthday, Penn and Kris get into a car accident, and Penn wakes up several weeks later to find herself in Kris' body, and her own nowhere to be found. As months go by and Penn remains trapped, with the real Kris seemingly gone forever, she slowly allows herself to adapt the life of the girl she always envied. However, Penn quickly begins to realize that Kris' reality may have been far off from the one everyone believed her to have, and that underneath her facade of perfection lies the haunting and tragic truth of a girl Penn realizes she never really knew.

UnSavior (stand-in title): 5 years after saving her world from imminent doom at the age of 16, Lina packs up and transports herself to another dimension: Earth, with the sole purpose of having a normal life where she isn't regarded as a Hero. However, her arrival to Earth has consequences. Lina doesn't realize that her absence from Ethera sparks an uprising amongst the warring nation of Xaida, who lost the Battle 5 years ago. Furious at the way they've been treated since and determined to avenge their fallen, those left of Xaida want to secure a better future for themselves, and they see Lina's absence as their opportunity. As Lina becomes more and more infatuated with her new life on Earth, caught up in the new experiences and friends it brings, a full out war is on the brink of breaking out in Ethera, and her old mentor Azi attempts to seek her out to draw her home to stop it before it has a chance to begin. But Lina has other plans; she still hasn't fully recovered from the scars the Battle left her with, and she doesn't want to leave Earth and the sanctuary she found there. As a revolution stirs up in Ethera, Lina must question everything: her identity, her loyalty to her nation, and the very people who made her who she is.

Title TBD: 4 college students recieve a series of mysterious emails from an anonymous sender, instructing them to commit several atrocious acts over the course of one night (12 hours) or risk having their secrets, each more damning than the last, revealed to the world.

#my wip #writerblr #writers on tumblr #teen writers #writers #writebrl #writing #ya writing #contemporary fiction #romance

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cristinablackthornkingson · 7 years ago

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Shadowhunters Short Story #25

CW: Bleeding in pregnancy, Premature birth, early labor.

“What do you think of the name George?” Sophie softly asks her husband, both hands resting on her swollen belly, as she watches Gideon paint the nursery wall, from her position in the rocking chair they have had since Barbara was born 6 years ago.

They had used the chair when Eugenia was born 2 years later and planned to use it now, three years after Eugenia was born, when their son arrived in two months time.

Sophie was currently 7 months pregnant with her and Gideon’s third child and first son, and they were both extremely eager to meet their baby, as they were when Sophie was pregnant with their girls. Though no one was more excited for the pregnancy to be over as Sophie was, she had such smooth pregnancies with her girls, it came as a huge shock to her when things did not go as smoothly this time around.

She knew instantly that she was pregnant when one morning, 7 months earlier, she had woken up in the middle of the night feeling violently ill, and was sick on and off again throughout the rest of the night and much of the morning, she had never felt this sick with her girls, but she and Gideon had been trying for a few months so it seemed the only reasonable explanation.

Brother Zachariah confirmed Sophie’s pregnancy with a sweet baby boy, and she and Gideon were over the moon, however they would have a long and difficult road ahead of them. Sophie’s sickness continued throughout the entire first trimester, she was so ill she could hardly leave the bed. The Silent Brothers had tried to help her with herbal potions and such but nothing seemed to work, and the sickness seemed to randomly stop early in the second trimester. But that was not the end of it, Sophie was very fatigued throughout her whole pregnancy and often in a lot of pain from the weight of the baby putting a strain on her back, though again, she had never felt like that with her daughters. Perhaps pregnancy with a boy was different, she would have to ask Charlotte, who still only had one child, little Charles, who was now 7.

When Sophie was 6 months pregnant she awoke one morning to sharp pains in her stomach and the sheets around her damp, when she pulled back the duvet, she couldn’t help but scream and scream at the sight of blood pooling between her legs. She was certain then that she was loosing her baby, she could not be consoled until Brother Enoch and Brother Zachariah arrived, and after almost an hour of examinations and tests, told Sophie that both she and her baby were fine, that she had a tear in her placenta but they caught it soon enough to be able to fix it and save the baby.

Now, a month later, Sophie was still very shook up from that scare and was extremely eager to have the baby so she could hold him in her arms and cuddle him and kiss his little face and know he was alright.

“George Lightwood? George Henry Lightwood? Hm, no I don’t think that is his name.” Gideon determines, setting his paintbrush down and making his way to his wife’s side. Though they had not come up with a first name for their son, when they found out they were having a boy, Sophie immediately asked Gideon if he would be alright with the baby’s middle name being Henry. Gideon instantly agreed, Henry had been extremely good to both he and Sophie and was a wonderful, brilliant man who deserved far more recognition than he got. They may not have been able to convince The Clave that Henry is a genius and not a bumbling fool, but they could honor him by naming their son after him.

“How about Issac?” Gideon asks, kneeling beside his wife and placing one hand on her swollen belly, where he could feel their son kicking and squirming inside Sophie. Feeling his baby move inside Sophie was something Gideon would forever be amazed by, it was amazing to him that out of their love for one another, he and Sophie had made another life, and now Sophie was carrying their child, growing them and sharing her body with them, for 9 months. Gideon had no idea how people thought women were the weaker sex, he admired any woman who carried a child, greatly, it could not be an easy task and it certainly had not been easy for his Sophie this time around.

“Maybe we should ask him.” Sophie softly says, softly tracing patterns on her belly. “What do you think little one, do you like the name Issac? Would you like to be called Issac?” Sophie coos to her bump. Suddenly, as if he could really hear them and understand them, the baby stops kicking. Looking up at his wife with eyes full of amazement, Gideon says in a joking tone

“I don’t think he likes Issac.”

“What about Benedict?” Sophie softly asks, meeting her husband’s gaze.

“Certainly not! That man was a selfish coward and I will not burden my son with his name.” Gideon firmly says. Pressing his cheek to Sophie’s swollen belly, he softly adds “Our little boy will only have the best, most honorable name.”

“Thomas, then.” Sophie softly says, thinking back to her old friend, who had cared so deeply for her as both a friend and in other ways, and she cared for him too, but only as a friend. He had sacrificed his life for The Institute, he was a brave, honorable man and Sophie could not think of two finer men than Thomas and Henry, for her son to be named after.

“Thomas Henry Lightwood.” Gideon softly says. “What do you think my boy?” he softly asks, both hands on the sides of Sophie’s bump, his face only inches from her swollen belly. Once again, as if he could hear and understand his parents, the baby begins to kick rapidly and hard.

“I think he likes it.” Sophie quietly says.

“Then it is settled, Thomas Henry Lightwood.” Gideon announces his son’s name in a proud tone, before leaning in to kiss Sophie’s bump. “We love you very much Thomas, and we simply cannot wait to meet you.” Gideon softly says.

As Gideon continues to kiss Sophie’s belly and talk to their son, Sophie closes her eyes and allows herself to relax to the sound of her husband talking to their unborn son. 8 years ago she would never have imagined herself in this position, discussing baby names with her wonderful husband while heavily pregnant, while her two beautiful daughters played together just next door. Though of course Sophie was very happy at The Institute and could not ask for better employers than the Branwells, she had always hoped and dreamed of having a family of her own, but after that wretched Teddy boy had cut her cheek open, she never thought any man would want her.

As Gideon begins telling their son the story of how they met, a story which their daughters adored, Sophie feels a mild cramp in her stomach, sending a pang of anxiety through her, though it was probably nothing, she couldn’t help but worry. These pains continue on all evening for Sophie, and by the time it was time for dinner, the pains were getting stronger and Sophie was becoming increasingly worried.

The next day Gabriel arrives to help Gideon with the nursery, and to see his nieces. He had hold them Cecily had chosen to stay at home with Anna, who was a bit run down with a cold.

Now, as Sophie sits in the rocking chair in the nursery, watching Gabriel and Gideon assemble the crib with ease, she is hit by a strong, sharp pain in her stomach, causing her to cry out and clutch at her stomach.

“Sophie!” Gideon immediately drops the piece of furniture he was holding and scrambles to his wife’s side. “Sophie, my love, what is it?” Gideon gently asks, placing one hand on Sophie’s back and taking on of hers in his other.

“Oh God Gideon, you must summon The Silent Brothers, something is not right!” Sophie exclaims, groaning as another pain tears through her.

“Gabriel go_ Gabriel what ever is the matter?” Gideon asks, turning to look at his brother, who has gone white as a sheet, with a look of absolute horror on his face.

“Look, look at Sophie’s skirt.” He quietly says. Both Gideon and Sophie look down to see blood blooming over her blue skirt. With a cry of fear, Sophie quickly stands from the rocking chair, only to find it covered in blood too. Before anyone can speak, there is a gush of water from between Sophie’s legs.

“Gabriel, listen to me, I need you to summon The Silent Brothers, tell them Sophie has gone into labor two months early, once you have done that I need you to send a message to Charlotte, Tessa and Cecily, telling them what has happened and asking them to come here, alright?” Gideon slowly and firmly tells his younger brother, who nods his head and races out of the room.

“Gideon I can’t loose him.” Sophie says in a tight tone of voice, laying one hand on her bump, the other clutching at her husband to keep her up right.

“Neither can I but we will not loose him, The Silent Brothers are going to be able to help him, we will not loose our son, I swear to you.”

Sophie’s labor was long and painful, and terrifying. She was beyond grateful to have Charlotte at her side the whole time, as ever she was a calm and reassuring presence.

After 5 hours of labor, Sophie was finally able to push, though she desperately wanted not to, she knew as well as anyone else, that this baby was coming one way or another.

“Keep pushing Mrs. Lightwood, I can see the head.” The Clave Midwife tells Sophie, as she grips Charlotte’s hand and pushes as hard as she can, screaming and sobbing in pain and fear.

“That’s it Sophie, you are doing so well.” Charlotte softly says, smoothing Sophie’s damp, tangled curls back from her face. It broke her heart to see her dear friend in so much pain and fear, she wished there was more she could do for Sophie.

“I can’t.” Sophie weakly says, collapsing back into the pillows pilled behind her. “He will not budge, I cannot do it anymore.” Sophie says through tears and groans of pain.

“Mrs. Lightwood you are doing much better than you seem to think, baby’s head is almost out, he will be here in no time.” The midwife says in a encouraging tone.

“You hear that? Your little boy is going to be here very soon Sophie, but he needs your help to get here, so I want you to grip my hand as hard as you like and push with all your energy, as hard you possibly can, alright?” Charlotte softly says, squeezing Sophie’s hand gently.

Sophie weakly nods and grips Charlotte’s hand tightly, and starts pushing again as hard as she can, sobbing at the pain.

“Well done, baby’s head is out, you are very close Mrs. Lightwood.” The midwife calls up to Sophie. The sooner Thomas is born, the sooner The Silent Brothers can help him. This thought encourages Sophie to push down again, gripping Charlotte’s hand tightly with one hand, her other hand knotted into the white sheets of the bed.

“One more push Mrs. Lightwood!” The midwife says. Sophie bears down again, tears spilling down her cheeks from the pain. With a final scream and a lurch forward, Sophie feels a weight lift from her and she relaxes back into the pillows behind her, panting heavily. Seconds later a low cry rings through the room, and Sophie pushes herself up, struggling to see her son at the bottom of the bed, where The Silent Brothers are now attending to him.

“Is he alright? My baby is he okay?” Sophie asks in a panicked tone.

“Let me go see what The Silent Brothers say, I shall be right back.” Tessa gently says, quickly gathering her skirts up and making her way toward the bottom of the bed. Sophie watches as she and Brother Zachariah converse in low tones, Tessa’s facial expression never changes, not giving Sophie any idea of her son’s condition.

Tessa soon returns to Sophie’s side, sitting by her friend again, Tessa takes one of Sophie’s hands in hers and begins to speak in a gentle tone.

“Sophie, Brother Zachariah tells me that your little boy has some health issues, his lungs are slightly underdeveloped and his immune system is very weak, the slightest infection or illness could be deadly to him, he needs to stay in The Silent City for a while so The Brothers can treat him and help him get well again, you and Gideon will be able to visit him whenever you like, as will Barbara and Eugenia. He is quiet sick, but Brother Zachariah is very confident that he will make a full recovery in just a few months.”

“I want to hold him.” Sophie says in a choked tone.

I am afraid that is not possible right now Mrs. Lightwood, we need to take your son to The Silent City as soon as possible to start his treatment quickly so that he may make a speedy recovery and come back here where he belongs. You and Mr. Lightwood are more than welcome to be with him whenever you like, as are your daughters. Brother Zachariah’s voice echos in Sophie’s mind. Sophie thought she would surely die of heartache, she could not even hold her son, cuddle him and kiss his little face, as she longed to for 7 long months.

Thomas is kept in The Silent City for almost 2 months, during which Sophie and Gideon hardly ever leave his side. He made wonderful progress each and every day and got stronger with every passing day. His breathing improved first and foremost, which was a huge relief to everyone. Though his immune system did not respond to the treatment as well as everyone had hoped, though Thomas was stronger now, he still had a weakened immune system and could still greatly be affected by even the smallest illness, but he was a lot better than he was, and after two long months, Sophie and Gideon were able to bring him home.

As Sophie sits in the same rocking chair in the nursery, that she had gone into labor in, with her sweet baby boy cradled in her arms, his wide eyes focused on her, full of joy and love, his little arms waving around and his little legs kicking about, she could not help but think of the contrast between now and this time two months ago, when she was not sure if she would ever get to hold her son like she is now.

“How’s our boy?” Gideon softly asks, walking into the nursery and kneeling by his wife’s side, tracing Thomas’s fine, dark curls.

“Perfect as usual.” Sophie softly says, smiling at her sweet little boy.

“Like his mother then.” Gideon softly says, leaning in and kissing Sophie.

“I love you.” Sophie quietly says, when he pulls back from the kiss.

“I love you too.” Gideon says.

Once again, Sophie finds it almost hard to believe that this is her life now, married with three beautiful children and many close friends, she could never have imagined her life like this when was at The Institute, but she was beyond grateful and would not change one bit of her life for anything.

#sophie lightwood #gideon lightwood #gabriel lightwood #Brother Zachariah #charlotte fairchild #tessa gray #thomas lightwood #barbara lightwood #eugenia lightwood #shadowhunters #the infernal devices #cassandra clare #the last hours

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melanielocke · 3 years ago

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Lost in the Shadows - Chapter 15

AO3

Taglist: @nott-the-best @foxglove-airmid @alastair-esfandiyar-carstairs1 @justanormaldemon @styxdrawings @ipromiseiwillwrite

Previous Chapter: Chapter 14

Next Chapter: Chapter 16

Will covered his face with his hand. ‘I do not understand why after yesterday you’d want to return to the woods,’ he said. ‘Well, I understand the recklessness of some of you, but I was expecting a little more sense from Alastair.’

Lucie had to agree that if any of them had the common sense not to run towards danger, it was Alastair.

‘If we do nothing, we stand little chance of saving Thomas,’ Alastair said, his voice betraying no emotion but he did seem a bit stiff.

‘Excellent point. I’ve heard I am to congratulate you, by the way, Alastair. And Thomas too, of course. Here I was hoping that after James and Cordelia broke up, I’d have another chance for a Carstairs in the family with you and Lucie.’

Lucie wished she could disappear. She deeply regretted telling her father about her crush on Alastair, almost two years ago. Nowadays, she realized she’d probably just looked up to him, she had been grateful for the way he’d defended her. She had liked him better than most boys in school, and had mistaken that for a crush. However, when it came to boys in school, the bar was on the floor.

Alastair, for his part, looked horrified. ‘That will never happen. I’m gay.’

‘So am I!’ declared Lucie. She figured this was as good a time as any to bring it up, and she’d been meaning to tell everyone anyway.

Everyone stared at her. Alastair looked amused. ‘Well, that is one way to come out. Congratulations, Lucie.’

Her father looked surprised. ‘Really? You always told me about boys you liked.’

Lucie shrugged. ‘Yeah, that’s weird,’ she said. ‘I think at some point I started looking at girls and realized what I felt for boys didn’t really compare.’

Lucie wasn’t sure that made sense, but on the internet she’d discovered plenty of lesbians had had crushes on boys before realizing. Feelings were confusing for sure, and the longer Lucie thought about it, the more she began to understand those oblivious book characters who were obviously in love but had no clue.

‘I didn’t realize,’ Will said. ‘But I’m glad you told me. Can’t wait until you tell us about any girls you like.’

Considering her father’s fondness for the Carstairs family and how determined he was to bring one into the family, Lucie wasn’t sure telling him how she felt about Cordelia was a good idea. She didn’t doubt her father would think it a good idea to help, which would end in disaster.

Lucie felt that was enough said about the topic for now. ‘Back to our plan,’ she continued. ‘We need to find the selkie skin, which according to our source is located in the woods, in the land in between. The same place Alastair and Thomas ended up finding yesterday. There was a trap door they couldn’t open, but cortana could cut through the lock, so that’s our way in.’

Lucie didn’t mention the minor risk of getting trapped all the way in the realm of the thief of souls. Nor were they completely sure the trap door hid the selkie skin, but it had to hide something interesting, right?

‘Hold on, whose selkie skin, and why?’ Will asked.

Cordelia summarized last night’s visit. ‘Grace needs that skin, or she will be forced to use her power on us. Even if our plan has its risks, the risk of doing nothing is falling under the spell of a siren.’

‘I thought you said she was a selkie,’ Will said.

‘Something in between, I think,’ Cordelia said. ‘She is a selkie, but she has the voice of a siren. Something about myths being muddled. I don’t know, I can’t say I have much experience with the lovely ladies of the sea. That’s what she called herself, by the way.’

Lucie had to admit Grace was indeed quite lovely.

Will sighed. ‘I guess you’re right that someone has to go. I’d do it myself, but there must be a reason she asked for Cordelia specifically and I don’t have any weapons. But I do want you to be back by dinner. Now hurry before Tessa, Gideon or Sophie learns of your plans.’ A playful smile appeared on her father’s lips. ‘And if anyone asks, this conversation never happened.’

Lucie quickly put on some walking shoes, heart beating fast until the four of them were out of sight and she was sure her mother couldn’t stop them anymore. Her father might be lenient when it came to recklessness, but her mother was not.

‘If anyone gets mad at us, I’m definitely blaming your father,’ Alastair announced.

‘That’s not fair,’ Lucie protested. ‘He covered for us.’

‘Let’s just focus on our mission,’ Thomas offered. ‘Yesterday, we took this path and it took us to the ruins.’

She followed Thomas and Alastair, who remembered how they’d come upon the ruins yesterday. It was a nice route, Lucie had to admit that, with a small pond on the side. In the end, after a long walk by Lucie’s standards, they exited the woods back where Lucie had entered to follow Tatiana, at the side of the village.

Lucie frowned. ‘Are you sure that was the right route?’ she asked. ‘I didn’t see any ruins.’

‘Perhaps the entrance is somewhere different today,’ Thomas suggested. ‘Maybe we should go back and try another path.’

After trying several paths and walking for hours, Lucie was getting tired. She wasn’t used to taking walks this long like Thomas and Alastair were and she was pretty sure she had blisters on both feet. Determined not to complain, she trailed behind the two boys, who kept exchanging longing stares. They really were adorable together. Thomas at some point took Alastair’s hand in his, which caused Alastair to stop in his tracks. Lucie nearly bumped into him.

‘Why isn’t this working?’ Cordelia asked.

‘Well, yesterday was the first time we found the ruins,’ Thomas said. ‘Before that, the forest was normal. Apart from some gnomes, things like that. Nothing unusual, at least. Perhaps today, the gateway isn’t there. Or perhaps there’s another trick to reaching it.’

‘Is there anything we did different yesterday?’ Alastair wondered.

‘We didn’t intend to find the land in between,’ Thomas said. ‘What if we cannot find it now that we’re actively looking?’

‘Then how would Tatiana find it?’ Alastair asked. ‘If that’s where she hid Grace’ skin, she can’t have stumbled on the ruins by accident like we did.’

‘Could be part of the deal she made, her learning how to come there,’ Lucie said. ‘Is there anything else you did differently?’

‘We were there earlier,’ Alastair added. ‘Thomas decided to sleep in today, whereas yesterday he and I went into the woods early in the morning.’

‘I think I was on my way there when I followed Tatiana,’ Lucie added. ‘When I returned, Cordelia said I was gone for an hour when it didn’t feel that way, just like you were gone for a whole day.’

‘I’m not sure stalking Tatiana until we can follow her there is such a good idea,’ Alastair said. ‘Perhaps we should try it again tomorrow morning.’

They tried again the next morning, and then in the evening for a short walk, but no result. She had patched up her feet with blister band aids from her mother’s first aid kit and kept going, even if her feet were still hurting and it was getting worse. It wasn’t the time, it turned out, and Lucie started to get frustrated. Grace hadn’t come back, and how were they supposed to get her skin if they couldn’t get back into the land in between?

The third morning, after another fruitless attempt to find the land in between, her mother was waiting for them in the hallway when they returned to the house.

‘Where have you been all morning?’ she scolded.

Lucie realized none of them had a good excuse for this morning. Most of the time, no one had noticed them return, and they had been ‘reading’ the whole time in their bedrooms. At least for Thomas and Alastair, it was believable that they’d want to spend time together in a bedroom “reading” any time of the day. She looked around to see if anyone would come up with something. At least Cordelia was a decent liar. But no one offered a believable excuse and Lucie had no inspiration.

‘We were looking for a way back into the land in between,’ Lucie said, deciding not to reveal her father’s role in their adventures. ‘But we couldn’t find it. So no harm done, we weren’t in danger and the only injuries sustained are my blisters.’

Her mother sighed. ‘You’re just like your father, Lucie. But I’d hoped some of you had more sense.’

Her mother looked at Alastair, her expression stern. ‘I thought you could be a voice of reason among them, Alastair. I don’t understand why you’d do something so reckless. Promise me you won’t go into the woods again.’

Lucie agreed that out of the four of them, Alastair probably had the most common sense, but it was almost painful to see Alastair respond. Lucie knew her mother often came across as harsher than she meant, but Alastair probably didn’t. His face went blank, he retreated back into his shell. Lucie might not have noticed anything was wrong if Cordelia had not looked so concerned.

‘I’m sorry to have disappointed you, dr. Gray,’ he said and before anyone else could say anything, Alastair disappeared inside, presumably to his bedroom.

Her mother had a PhD and did all sorts of medical research, Lucie knew she liked it when people called her by her title, but at the same time she’d hoped Alastair was close enough to her parents to call them by their first names.

Thomas and Cordelia also made their way inside before her mother could get angry with them too, Lucie remaining behind.

‘It was for Thomas,’ Lucie said. ‘We needed to find the place in between again. We needed to find Grace’ selkie skin or else Tatiana will force Grace to enchant us with her voice.’

Tessa sighed, putting her hand on Lucie’s shoulder. ‘Why didn’t you tell me, Lucie? We could have gone in your place.’

Lucie figured she shouldn’t tell her mother her father had encouraged her to go.

‘I didn’t want you to put yourself in danger,’ Lucie said. ‘Cordelia has cortana, Alastair has his memory, so they had to go. I think you’ve upset Alastair, I better go check if he’s alright.’

Tessa sighed. ‘No, I will check on him. You’re right, I was too harsh on him. I didn’t consider… Never mind, I’ll go. But don’t think you’re out of trouble, young lady. You’re not leaving the house until otherwise specified.’

Lucie groaned and went inside, taking off her shoes and replacing the patches on her blisters. She had a pair of fit flops she could still wear, and Lucie decided that even if those shoes weren’t the most suitable for the forest, she would wear them for their next walk. If she was ever allowed to leave the house again, that was.

She wasn’t sure where Cordelia or Thomas had gone, upstairs to find Alastair? Perhaps she should join them, but her father found her first.

‘Tessa caught you,’ he concluded, sitting down next to her.

Lucie made a face. ‘Now I’m not allowed to leave the house.’

‘I’ll talk to her,’ her father promised. ‘Have you found anything yet?’

‘No,’ Lucie said. ‘I don’t understand why. Thomas and Alastair one day walked into the land in between on accident, but now we can’t find it and it’s frustrating and my feet hurt and these blisters are bursting open.’ She paused. ‘Did you see where Thomas and Cordelia went?’

‘Upstairs,’ Will said. ‘I’m thinking they’re talking to Alastair. He seemed rather upset. Is everything alright with him?’

Lucie sighed. ‘I think it’s something mom said. She didn’t mean to hurt him, but because he’s the oldest out of the four of us and definitely the one with the most common sense, she said that she’d expected more from him.’

She couldn’t explain it exactly, she didn’t always understand what upset Alastair. But she suspected Alastair felt like he didn’t deserve to be here, or that her parents liking him was very conditional. Perhaps in Alastair’s mind, all love was conditional, and any mistake he made meant he’d lose someone’s love. Lucie was trying to understand what was going on in his head. As a writer, she should be able to understand how people thought and why they did what they did. As a friend, she should be able to offer support. She wasn’t sure she was doing a good job with either.

‘I imagine that’s difficult for him to hear,’ Will said. He sighed. ‘This is all my fault. I’ll talk to your mother, and tell her I encouraged you to go.’

‘Mom will be very mad with you,’ Lucie said.

‘Now she’s angry with you, and I deserve it more,’ Will said. A playful smile lit up his face. ‘Besides, you’re not little princess Lucinda who needs to be locked in a tower, that’s for sure. What’s life without a little risk?’

Lucie wondered if he’d feel the same way after facing her mother.

She went outside into the garden on her fit flops to feel the sun on her skin after reapplying sun screen. The weather was nice today, not too hot, a soft breeze against her cheek, and only a few clouds in the air. That could change any moment though, Scotland was known for is changeable weather. A good atmosphere for a nice romantic scene, or bonding between friends or family. Or just fun scenes that might not need to be in the book but balanced out the dark ones. Lucie felt a book should be balanced in that sense. While she loved drama and darkness, she did not like gritty stories where everything was dark and terrible. She liked to balance out the darkness with a sweet romance or gentle characters still remaining kind and hopeful in the worst circumstances. Or characters who might have turned bitter, but were trying to be better. Thomas had a bit of a weakness for those, which totally wasn’t because that archetype resembled Alastair.

The garden still counted as the house, right? She suspected Thomas and Cordelia were both still with Alastair and she didn’t think it would be a good idea to join them. She didn’t know Alastair as well as Cordelia did, she feared she’d only say the wrong thing. Besides, Alastair didn’t seem to like people taking care of him or fussing over him, Cordelia had told her she sometimes had to force him to let her protect him for once. Lucie feared her mother’s comment had reinforced some deeply held belief of his that he was worthless, even if she had never intended to make him feel that way.

She wondered how she’d never seen something was not right at the Carstairs home. Cordelia hadn’t either, but she remembered how when she was young, Cordelia would sometimes come to her for sleepovers, whereas Cordelia’s parents had rarely invited her over at their house. Of course, when she was little Lucie would get homesick and preferred having sleep overs at her own house anyway, so it had never bothered her.

And when Lucie was little, her father would always come sing her a Welsh lullaby. He was Welsh through his father, whereas the house here in Scotland had been in her grandmother’s family for some time. He was a horrible singer, and it was hilarious how he kept trying and did not care what people thought. It was sweet and Lucie had always felt safe and protected when her father came to tuck her in and sing his horrible songs. Cordelia had told her it was usually Alastair who sang her good night songs and tucked her in. That had made sense too. Alastair had a beautiful voice after all, and who wouldn’t want to listen to him sing? Back then, Alastair had seemed much older and wiser than the two of them, but really, he’d been a child too.

And Cordelia had regularly had to cancel plans because her father was sick and she couldn’t leave him. Lucie had understood, although the disappointment never quite faded. But when Lucie’s father was sick, he might whine and moan like a typical man flu patient and complain that he needed uncle Jem’s care and support, but he would never have asked Lucie to choose taking care of him over spending time with the few friends she had.

None of those things had struck her as odd in childhood, but now she was thinking maybe they should have. Maybe someone should have seen something was not right at the Carstairs house. Perhaps then Alastair wouldn’t be in so much pain now.

‘Lucie!’

Lucie looked up, but didn’t see anyone calling out her name. Nor did she recognize the voice. It was a smooth, feminine voice.

‘Over here!’ the voice hissed and Lucie followed the sound to the trees and recognized Grace.

‘What are you doing here?’ Lucie asked.

‘Tatiana left me alone. She didn’t realize I had enough free will left to come here.’

‘I’m sorry, we don’t have your skin yet,’ Lucie said.

Grace rolled her eyes. ‘I know. I’ve seen you walk in the woods once or twice. Honestly, that was embarrassing.’

Lucie frowned. ‘How so?’

‘You never even opened the gateway,’ Grace said.

‘How are we supposed to do that? We’re not Tatiana!’ Lucie exclaimed. ‘And Alastair and Thomas entered the land in between by accident.’

‘It sucks people in sometimes,’ Grace said. ‘But rarely by accident. Alastair was targeted when he and Thomas came there, Tatiana found out he has a memory ability and she thinks he’s a threat to her plans. I think she’s scared her brother will remember something. That’s why the werewolf was after him.’

Lucie frowned. ‘They know about that?’

‘Yes. But they do not yet know about you,’ Grace said. ‘I figured it out when I realized you could see Jesse. You better get my skin back before she realizes what you are. She’ll want you dead for sure.’

‘What I am?’ Lucie asked.

‘You have power, Lucie,’ Grace said. ‘You’re a witch.’

‘No, I’m not,’ Lucie said. ‘I just see ghosts. That’s all.’

‘I know you see ghosts. You talked to Jesse. Do you have any idea how rare that ability is?’

‘I’ve never met anyone else who could do it.’

‘Exactly!’ Grace exclaimed. ‘You have no idea what you’re capable of. You can open a gateway into the land in between. And even more important, if you find yourself trapped you can open the way back.’

‘How do you know?’ Lucie asked.

‘Because I have heard legends of one other person like you. A witch who was born centuries ago. She wasn’t like other humans who used magic, she used dark magic, but hadn’t acquired it through a deal and there was no price to pay to something powerful. As a little girl, all she knew was she saw ghosts. And when ghosts stayed around her, they became stronger. But she learnt there was much more she could do and grew stronger. She learnt to open those gateways and use them as a weapon, she learnt to control the dead.’

Lucie was horrified. She could do such things? ‘What happened to her?’

‘As a woman of her time, and an odd one at that, she was treated badly of course. At some point she snapped and became a dangerous, evil witch. Who can blame her, honestly. She was defeated by the ancestor of the Carstairs, the one who carries cortana. Before he could deliver the killing blow, she jumped into the sea and drowned herself. She lost her dark magic, but came back to life as a daughter of the sea, a mermaid. She repented, changed, and lived her life peacefully in the sea. That is how we know her story.’

Lucie frowned. ‘I don’t want to be an evil witch,’ she said.

Grace’s grey eyes were cold and void of emotion. ‘Then don’t be. Just because magic is dark doesn’t mean it’s evil. Be a good witch or a neutral one or whatever you want to be. But you can’t change that you are a witch, and I need you to find my skin. You, the bearer of cortana, and the one with the memory. Without you it can’t be done. But you need to know what you can do, you need to open a gateway.’

‘How?’ Lucie asked.

‘It’s your power, not mine,’ Grace said. ‘Go figure it out. I need to get back before Tatiana realizes I am missing. They say when the witch wanted something, all she had to do was ask. So be careful what you wish for. You just might get it.’

#Lucie Herondale #Alastair Carstairs #Cordelia Carstairs #Thomas Lightwood #Lucelia #Thomastair #fanfiction #tlh #the last hours

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priioritys · 7 years ago

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saga’s massive app intros pt. 1 aka 8 intros in one post and 9 more are coming soon because i’m a wreck of a human being and i’m trying not to spam the dash !! ya’ll know the drill !! hmu for plots or give this a like and i’ll bother you !!

TESSA TELLER looks an awful lot like GAL GADOT. SHE is TWENTY EIGHT and while they're BRAVE, they have a tendency to get pretty NAIVE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to WE MUST BE KILLERS by MIKKY EKKO.

exists only in the super & future verses because of Reasons you’ll see soon

grew up with a good family and a good life until she was about 14 when she ( super verse ) developed healing powers and was kidnapped by a malicious organization or ( future verse ) was kidnapped by a malicious organization

for years, she was experimented on and turned into, more or less, a bionic woman

large amounts of her body were replaced with technology, including large parts of her brain that led to her being brainwashed and controlled by the organization

she was used as a weapon for years, but eventually managed to break free and now she’s trying to figure out how to live a normal life

CASSIOPEIA LIU looks an awful lot like CHLOE BENNET. SHE is TWENTY THREE and while they're INQUISITIVE, they have a tendency to get pretty STUBBORN. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to SERA WAS NEVER by RANEY SHOCKNE.

3000 feet of Angery in a 5′4″ body

raised by a single dad that was the best and she loved him more than anything

her town was tormented by a serial killer for a long time but the killings eventually stopped around the same time her dad disappeared

everyone decided that meant her dad was the killer but cas was having none of that

so she packed up everything she owned in to her VW van and decided to go on a road trip to find her dad and prove his innocence

CORIANDER WHITTLE looks an awful lot like THOMAS MCDONELL. HE is TWENTY FOUR and while they're GENTLE, they have a tendency to get pretty SELFLESS. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to HELLO MY OLD HEART by THE OH HELLOS.

had a really good childhood and grew up really happy and things should have been fine but then his little sister joined a cult

he ended up joining the cult in an attempt to save her, but she was too brainwashed and refused to leave

he tried to escape, but he was caught and punished several times, leaving him physically disabled and mentally traumatized

EVENTUALLY, he managed to escape fully but he still lives every day in fear of being found by the cult and forced to go back

FINNICK PORTER looks an awful lot like DYLAN SPRAYBERRY. HE is EIGHTEEN and while they're DETERMINED, they have a tendency to get pretty FRAGILE. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to AFTER THE STORM by MUMFORD AND SONS.

was a total jock and douche-y rich kid tbh

thought he was the best thing that ever happened to anybody and everyone should consider themselves lucky to even speak to him

then he went on a trip with his family to a remote cabin up in the mountains and tragedy struck

there was an avalanche and they were trapped - he was the only one to make it out alive and he had to do horrible things to survive

now he’s rightfully traumatized and attempting college but doing really badly at being alive

HADRIEL ALEXANDER looks an awful lot like SAM CLAFLIN. HE is THIRTY and while they're FORGIVING, they have a tendency to get pretty SOFT SPOKEN. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to GRAVEYARD WHISTLING by NOTHING BUT THIEVES.

raised by super religious parents with horrible senses of morality that were driven more by greed than any holiness

they forced him to be part of their travelling ministry as part of a con act where he would pretend to heal people

he hated everything about it, but he was abused when he tried to speak up or tell anyone the truth

that went on for years until he was finally rescued

after readjusting to life away from his parents, he decided to rediscover his faith outside of them

he became a preacher, establishing himself in a church in kola and hoping to help people who had suffered like him

RONAN FISHER looks an awful lot like BOB MORLEY. HE is TWENTY NINE and while they're INTUITIVE, they have a tendency to get pretty RESENTFUL. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to SHADOW PREACHERS by ZELLA DAY.

only exists in the super verse because he has visions of the future

his parents loved him, but after he predicted his mother’s death in a car wreck and it came true, things were never the same

he even saw when and how his future wife would die on the first day they met, but decided to marry her anyway because he wanted to ignore his visions

tried to save her, but ended up just shifting fate so that his sister died instead and his wife died only a year later from cancer

now he’s bitter and angry and doesn’t care about anyone in the world because he doesn’t want to be hurt by what he sees anymore

ASTORIA WHITMAN looks an awful lot like LILY JAMES. SHE is TWENTY SIX and while they're OPTIMISTIC, they have a tendency to get pretty SELF-HATING. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to HURRICANE by FLEURIE.

was raised in a pretty conservative family, but loved it because she didn’t know anything better

she was treated like an object more than anything, home schooled and constantly lectured about how nothing was more important than staying pristine and holy

so when she started realizing that girls were just as pretty as boys, well, it wasn’t good news

after she went to college and finally got away from her parents, she got herself a girlfriend but someone saw them together and sent a picture back to her parents

they had a falling out and disowned her completely, leaving her to fend for herself

now, six years later, she’s happily working as a waitress in kola, glad to be free of their oppressive weight

SOPHIE DETTWILER looks an awful lot like SAOIRSE RONAN. SHE is TWENTY and while they're RESOURCEFUL, they have a tendency to get pretty STANDOFFISH. You’ve probably seen them around Kola listening to RAISE THE DEAD by RACHEL RABIN.

had a good family growing up, but lost her father and older brother in a car accident when she was ten

the same accident left her scarred, but more noticeably damaged her vocal chords to the point where she can no longer talk without a severe stutter, so she usually chooses not to

despite this, she’s still a punk ass bitch, will probably try to fight you while signing that ur a lame ass bitch

#fckit:intro #kidnapping tw #torture tw #experimentation tw #murder tw #cannibalism tw #hey saga you write about fucked up shit #hey yeah ur not wrong #child abuse tw #homophobia tw

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