DELICATE , matthew fairchild

I. ODD HAPPENINGS

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{ So much for lady's first. Oh dear angel Gabriel, why are there no longer any chivalrous men in this cruel world of ours? }

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"Ash, duck!" The young Velez boy ducked just in time to dodge the demons 3rd attempt to rip his head off. He looked up towards his older sister to give her a grateful smile for saving his life, only to be met with a glare. If looks could kill he would've been well under 6 feet.

"What in Raziel's name are you doing here Nash? Did I not clearly tell you to stay home with Lucie?" On second thought, maybe he should have just let the demon kill him. He didn't want to think about the lecture he was about to get when he got back home. Nash had decided to sneak out and follow his sister and her friends on patrol. Who could blame him; he was bored. Plus, its not like he actually expected to bump into a demon, quite literally, so he didn't see the danger. When his sister was out on patrols the boy would usually spend his time with Lucie, the youngest Herondale and the girl he saw as another sister, but she was currently busy preparing for the arrival of her future parabatai, leaving him bored.

"It's not- " The boy was cut off by an explosion of ichor that showered Thomas, Christopher, and Matthew in burnt bits of what could only be described as goo. Fewer demon debris fell on James and the Velez children due to having been further away from the kerfuffle, although their clothes were sill in ruins.

"How—wha—?" Christopher stuttered, at a clear loss for words. Slime dripped off his pointed nose and gold-rimmed spectacles. "But how ...?"

"Do you mean how is it possible that we finally tracked down the last demon in London and it was also the most disgusting? Ours is not to question why, Christopher." James only received looks of resent from his friends in return as Thomas rolled his eyes. He was having little luck scrubbing at himself with a half-burnt handkerchief. Nash used the distraction to discreetly bottle a vial of the gooey debris, either to give to Christopher or to use to prank his sister later, he was still unsure, but he knew it would come in handy.

Matthew's seraph blade had begun to sputter. Seraph blades, infused with the energy of angels, were often a Shadowhunter's most trusted weapon and best defense against demons, but it was still possible to drown one in enough ichor. "This is an outrage," Matthew said, tossing the extinguished blade aside. "Do you know how much I spent on this waistcoat?"

"No one told you to go out patrolling for demons dressed like an extra from The Importance of Being Earnest," countered James, tossing his parabatai a clean handkerchief.

"I don't think he's dressed like an extra," said Thomas, who had given up cleaning himself off.

"Thank you," said Matthew with a slight bow, always one for dramatics.

"I think he's dressed like a main character." Despite the anger the Velez girl still held, she grinned at Thomas quip. She ripped off a clean part of her dress, it was beyond repair now anyways, and began getting to work on Thomas despite his cries of protest. Nash then began cleaning Christopher, the only one of them whom did not carry a handkerchief of their own.

Matthew mopped at his dull gold hair with James's handkerchief. "This is the first time in a year that we've patrolled and actually found a demon, so I'd supposed that my waistcoat would probably survive the evening. It's not as if any of you are wearing gear either."