Jinxed - An Alec Lightwood LS

Chapter 13: Calm Before the Storm

After lunch, Ethel began walking around the Institute, when she bumped into a certain werewolf; Luke. At first, she was happy to see a kind face, but then her mind reminded the half-Seelie girl of her conversation with Aldertree. So, now, she was hesitant. Was she supposed to trust the werewolf, or the Head of the Institute more? Honestly, she felt like maybe neither would be her first choice. "Hey... Detective Garroway. I didn't expect to see you here."

"Yeah. I just came from a crime scene- a demon attack."

"With one dead human. I heard." That's what Alec, and a few others had left earlier to deal with. Although she wanted to be part of the investigation, Ethel understood that she just wasn't quite ready for it. "I didn't know you'd be working it. Anything you can tell me about it? Apparently, I am not allowed on missions just yet."

He chuckled and nodded. "That's probably for the best. Ummm... Basically there's a demon possessing people, and killings others... By creating a hole in their chest." Luke grimaced at her face expression, and tried to reassure her. "You'll get used to this level of crazy, I promise."

"And how can you tell if someone is possessed?"

"Well, its not always the same, but a common reaction is black eyes, and a distorted voice. Also greater strength, and other non-human abilities that are presented on the host."

Ethel furrowed her eyebrows, thinking about what she had just heard, and taking in the information. "Okay."

"You seem to be adjusting well here. How are you doing?" Luke questioned, as he scanned her face for any negative emotions, or a clue to what she was thinking. And he was coming out short. 

Biting her, Ethel wondered it now it would be the right time to confront him about what she had learned. Granted, the information came from Aldertree, whom she had learnt to view in a bad light. Still, that didn't quite mean Luke was to be trusted either. "I still wonder if I'm going to wake up, and find that all of this was a dream. Or nightmare, really. But I had been feeling this way since before Amanda."

"It started when your mother died a few weeks back, didn't it?" He would be quick to receive a nod in response. With a small sigh, he tried to offer some help. "Look, if you ever need to talk, you can call me. I'll come to you, or we meet up somewhere. Alright?"

She could not quite ignore his kindness. Ever since she met him, Luke had seemed genuine, in away that Aldertree never did. In fact, there was just something about the detective that made her feel safe. Yet, there was a matter of his past. So, instead of thanking him for his offer, she went on to finally get some answers. "Can I ask you something?"

He blinked at the sudden change in her tone, but agreed. "Yeah, sure. Ask away."

Taking in a breath, she quickly vomited all her concerns about the werewolf in front of her. "Is it true that you used to be a Shadowhunter? That you were part of the Circle? And Valentine's paraba- parabi-?"

"Parabatai." He quickly interrupted with pursed lips. Well, he could not avoid this conversation now. "That was three questions."

"Right." The sort mumble was nearly imperceptible to the human ear, even worse so due to the large amount of Shadowhunters chatting around them. However, the werewolf heard her. 

Rubbing his chin, Luke pondered over how to explain his life choices to her. If she had already heard rumours, or other people's opinion on him, he'd have to set the record straight. Otherwise, Ethel's own opinion on him would be solidified under a bad impression. "I was a born Shadowhunter. When I was young, Valentine and I became parabatais. This was before the Circle. He founded it, although, at first, it wasn't like it is now. All we wanted was to convince the Clave into making more Shadowhunters, due to our debilitating numbers. Then, it turned into a distaste, or hatred towards the Downworld. I still stayed, yes. But, when Jocelyn and I noticed he was going too far, we planned on betraying him."