Leah Ravenscar | Shadowhunter Fanfiction

The Wrecked Side of Jace Morgenstern: Part II

Magnus Bane was kind enough to take Jace in as his 'prisoner', even though he knew that Jace would only insult Magnus's fashion ideas, ooze about how hot he was and make sarcastic comments on every single thing - somewhat similar to how Raphael Santiago had behaved when he had been forced to lodge with Magnus.

Jace knew that he ought to be glad because living with Magnus was better than being imprisoned in the utterly dark cells of the Silent City again. But to be honest, lodging with the High Warlock of Brooklyn was not as fun as it sounded. Chairman Meow was not very hospitable either, and Magnus himself was rather disappointed to see that his dear cat did not have a very nice relationship with his guest.

Leah visited once, but Jace had appeared too . . . .depressed, which was unusual of him, since he usually put up a very strong, independent and humorous display in front of everybody.

He wouldn't talk much, responded vaguely to her questions and numbly lay on the living room couch with his eyes constantly fixed on the ceiling. So Leah had to give up rather disappointedly, and taking pity, Magnus engaged his niece in some conversation about Edmund Herondale - a strange topic indeed, but Leah had always enjoyed historic shadowhunter love stories.

Tessa came to visit Leah once in the Institute later, and the mother and daughter had a hearty conversation.

The Seelie Queen meanwhile sent Jace an invite to her court, and welcomed his friends too - specifically mentioning Leah, for an evening in faerieland.

However Leah rejected the Queen's invite, and simply sent an elegant formal letter through Isabelle that questioned the Queen's health, apologised for Leah's absence and gave all her wellwishes to the Seelie, Unseelie and the Hunt.

"Are you sure you do not want to go?" Isabelle said, examining the letter. "The Queen specifically asked for you to come."

"Which is why I consider it safer that I do not go." Leah replied. "Try to mention me the least in your conversational topics as possible. Let Jace do all the speaking part; faeries love pretty blonde boys who sugarcoat you with pleasant words. And you" Leah looked accusingly at Clary "Try to not touch, speak and see anything. Only give into listening. Because, let me give you a shadowhunting lesson: faeries cannot be trusted. I can already see you getting yourself - and everyone else - into trouble in the Seelie Court, and so I vainly warn you to NOT indulge into too much of faerie; it's only going to affect the ones you love."

Clary rolled her eyes, Isabelle bid farewell to her sister and then guided the three of them (including Simon) down the moonlit lake to the Seelie Court. Little did they know just how true Leah's words would turn out.

***

Some days later, everyone had dragged themselves up to Luke's house and had huddled around the dining table, with the motive of experimenting new runes with Clary.

Leah had chosen to remain distant though; despite the fact that she wasn't very fond of Luke or his house, she had to admit that his 'bookstore' was pretty diverse. Leah had immediately gone for a book of poems and ballads by Edgar Allen Poe, and without even checking at the index, had immediately opened it to the page of Annabel Lee.

There, with the text before her, Leah kept reciting the poem in a mix between interest and intuition. More of interest, really; the only intuition the Oskino demon gave her were the words: four years later.

After the experimenting club had been dismissed - at the arrival of Robert and Maryse Lightwood, everyone went off to sleep. Not Jace, though.

He sneaked out of Luke's house and out in the bare meadows that came next, Raphael Santiago stood waiting with his stylish demonic motorcycle.

"I didn't think you'd turn up." Jace greeted.

"There you go, Chico." He said, smirking. "I will expect it returned to Hotel Dumort by the morning."

Jace boarded the motorcycle and stroked it elegantly. "Oh, I'm not going into that sickly hotel of yours."

"Cunning, I must say. You almost sound like Camille." Raphael mused, a scowl on his face.

"Well, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm sure we can meet midway, and now if you don't mind, I'm in a hurry."

Raphael muttered something, and then spun back and ran off in the speed of a vampire. Jace took a deep breath, kicked the motorcycle start and was about to ascend, when Leah shouted out at him to stop from behind.

"Jace, wait!" She called.

Jace tossed his heavy motorcycle on the grass and then growled at Leah "You're not my mom to tell me what to do and what not to do!"

"It's dangerous." She said softly, approaching him. "Not Valentine, he might spare you; but the Clave is watching each and every step we take - each and every second of our lives. And the Inquisitor is especially after you. With their eyes all over us, it is undeniably dangerous to go on such a mission right now."

"How did you know where I was going?"

"I know you, Jace. You know, I think you might've got a little preoccupied with Clary, ever since she has come into our lives. You've . . . .you've started neglecting us - your initial mates. Your siblings."Leah gulped.

"You guys are my friends, and Clary is my sister!"

"Is it?" Leah asked softly. "I'd say Clary is your heart - your weakness. And we three are your siblings."

"Heart is equivalent to weakness; you talk so much like Valentine."

"Coming back to Valentine, are you going to tell him that you are with him?"

"What if I do tell him so?" Jace challenged.

Leah shrugged "All I know is that I'd still be by your side, brother."

Jace ascended then on his motorcycle, swallowing the lump in his throat. Indeed, Leah's words had made him realise something important: that he might've been so obsessed with himself, his father, his sister (the one he was in love with) that he had forgotten those permanent members of his family - the ones who Leah had said would never ever ditch him.

The next morning though, just as Leah had predicted, Imogen Herondale had knocked their doors to accuse Jace of going to Valentine last night.

As the old hag dragged him almost effortlessly and all his friends stared skeptically, Leah gave him a sad smile of her unending support.

"Jace!" She called and everyone momentarily turned back to hear what Leah had to say at such a critical moment. "Just remember that your veins are more angelic than anybody else's! You can be so much better than other Shadowhunters, because you are one of your father's biggest experiments come to life!"

And as Jace got locked inside the torturous configuration, all he could think of were Leah's last words and her happy, hopeful, supportive smile. Perhaps those had been his biggest motivation before he jumped right up at the ceiling, freeing himself from the Malachi configuration.