"Aloysius Starkweather is the most stubborn, hypocritical, abstain, degenerate-" Charoltte stated as she slammed a letter down on to her desk, her pale skin colouring with red spots as her blood boiled. Zelie couldn't help but feel amused at Charoltte's word choice.
"Would you like a thesaurus?" Will inquired from his spot where he was sprawled across a big armchair, his muddy boot on top of the ottoman.
"Looks like someone's getting a word of the day calendar for Christmas." Zelie commented at the same time as Will. Finally, looking up from the book she was reading.
"And is he really degenerate?" Jem asked amusedly from his seat. Tessa found it adorable like siblings teasing an older sister. She looked between the trio blissfully almost forgetting the matter at hand as she saw the childish smirks on their faces, all three differnt pairs of unusual eyes gleaming with amusement, they looked completely at ease with one another. There was no hostility in either Zelie's or Will's eyes, perhaps it was because of Jem, Tessa thought. They could certainly put off their bickering if Jem felt well enough to joke around too. Tessa wasn't sure how long Zelie had known the two older shadowhunters, but they never seemed surprised with each other's antics. "I mean the old codger's almost ninety- surely past deviancy."
"I don't kown." Will answered thoughtfully. "You'd be surprised what the old fellows at Devil's Tavern get up to."
"An old wack once tried to bribe me into doing some very compromising jobs." Zelie commented as her eyes scanned the room innocently without missing a beat.
This time it was Jessamine's turn to bicker with Will. It seemed that when Will wasn't arguing with Zelie he was bickering with Jessamine, perhaps that was why the two beautiful girls were such good friends. "Nothing that anyone you know might get up to would surprise us, Will."
"Darling," Hernry came along anxiously, in hopes of preventing anymore chaos. Which was unlike him since he always seemed to be the one creating it, but he would do anything for Charolttle. "Are you alright? You seem a bit... splotchy." See Zelie hadn't been the only one to notice.
Will smiled amusedly from his place in the grand armchair. "I think it's charming. I herd polka dots were the last word in fashion this season."
Henry patted his wife's shoulder wearily, knowing that he wasn't being much help. "Would you like a cool cloth? What can I do to help?"
Charoltte's eyes were still blazing Zelie was half expecting for smoke to come out of her nose. "You could ride up to Yorkshire and chop that old goat's head off."
"Wouldn't that make things rather akward with Clave? They're generally not that receptive about, you know, beheadings and things."
"I don't know, they might even give you an award for getting Strakweather out of their hair." Zelie shrugged half giggling at Henry's previous statement.
Charoltte's eyes sparkled with something like pride when she smiled at the younger shadowhunter. She clapped her hands together, but before she could encourage the young Archfeild any further Jem stepped in. "I love the enthusiasm, but could we focus it on a more stratigical approach?"
"What did he say exactly? In the letter, I mean." Will asked in aid of his parabati's idea. Zelie found the bond shared between the two older shadowhunters quite adorable.
"He refuses to see me or Henry. He says he will never forgive my family for what my father did." A spark of curiosity awoke in Zelie, but she said nothing once Charoltte sighed. "My father, he was a difficult man, faithful to the letter of the law. The Starkweathers have always interpreted the law more loosely. My father thought they ran wild up North, like savages, and he wasn't afraid to say so." Charlotte's father seemed like an absolute stick in the mud, but if he raised Charolttle he had to be doing something right, Zelie thought as she stole a biscuit from Jessamine's plate. Jessamine slapped her hand lightly, that didn't stop Zelie from throwing the lemon iced biscuit in her mouth and giving a tight lipped smile to her pretty friend. "I don't know what else he did, but old Aloysius seems personally insulted still. Not to mention he said that if I actually cared about what he thought of anything, I would have invited him to the council meeting. As if I was encharge of that sort of thing!"
"Why wasn't he invited?" Jen asked from his spot neck to Will.
"The crank gets on everyone's nerves. You should hear the things the ladies at other institutes say about him, I didn't know it was possible to insult someone that much without cursing." Tessa's eyes widened and she saw Will smile amusedly from the corner of her eyes. It was soft and pleasant, but surely she had to be mistaken Will didn't genuinely smile unless it was because of Jem. Certainly not because of Zelie Archfeild his infamous rival. Will turned and saw Tessa watching him before switching his smile for a two dimensional smirk the one he always wore, the one that ment less than a thief's word. "Not to mention he's much too old to be running an institute. Wyland hasn't made him step down, but he doesn't invite him to any council meetings." Zelie finished looking around indifferntly until she noticed everyone's surprised stares, she shrugged a little. "I get bored sometimes and listen in on other people's conversations."
"As... interesting as is that is to know." Jessamine drawled out in a bored time that contradicted her previous statement. "If he won't see you or Henry, why not send someone else? You run the Enclave. People are supposed to do what you say."
"If we're sending someone it ought to be Jem. It's impossible to not like him." Will stated from his seat, and no one seemed to disagree.
"Are you well enough, Jem?" Charlotte asked softly. To which Jem only nodded.
Finally, Zelie clapped her small hands on her skirt clad lap. "I don't think that's a good idea. That man, he's a horrible excuse for a shadowhunter. I don't think he would tell anyone anything useful." When in reality she was thinking that Jem was the kindest person to walk this earth and should be protected at all costs.
"That's why he wouldn't go alone. I would acompany him of course."
At this everyone was hesitant. "Will as admirable as that is, you're not exactly..."
"Likable, pleasant to be around, tolerable?" Jessamine offered and Charlotte sent her a look.
"In other words you're a bigger pain than a corset." Zelie summarized.
Will glared menacingly at the bright eyed girl. "Perhaps you're just not worth being charming with."
"Perhaps I don't care," Zelie smirked and Will already knew what was coming next, they all did. "Whorendale."
"Why not just send me, Charlotte? Do you not trust me?" Jessamine gasped in mock offense that was surprisingly believable.
"It's not that I don't trust you, Jessie. It's just you're in no condition to be traveling at the moment." Jessamine nodded relunclantly, her tight little golden curls bouncing up and down. "With your headaches and all. Which is a shame, Starkweathers were always vulnarable to a pretty face."
"Even more the reason I should go!" Will exclaimed, but everyone's eyes were on the young and painfully beautiful Miss. Archfeild.
She looked up at them and smiled. "I wouldn't mind going, see what all the fuss is about." However, her voice held a more prominante tone of arrogance. Everyone knew she was actually going to piss off Will.
"You're all lunatics if you think I'm not going then." Will stated glaring at Zelie's perfect side profile.
YOU ARE READING
Ugly Duckling ¤ Will Herondale
Fanfiction"Last I saw you, you were an ugly duckling. Actually, not even a duck should be insulted like that." A horribly infiltrating smirk played on his full lips as he eyed me amusedly, making me want to kick his shins.
