Chain of Iron

Chapter Seventeen

It was a cold night in London and James regretted not putting on a warmer coat before he had gone out. It was nearing midnight and there were only a few people here and there out on the streets. Mostly drunks and ladies of the night; he was not accustomed to being out so late at night but he liked it. It felt freeing to be walking the streets London, late at night, invisible to all of the mundanes. James now understood why Matthew and Anna always insisted on going out in the late hours of the night.

Speaking of Anna, he glanced down at the piece of paper which he held. There was an address scrawled on it, written in his cousin's own handwriting. James had known right away that Anna would know where to find the person that he was looking for; she was very acquainted to those in the Downworld. James allowed his thoughts to wander as he walked. He had gotten word from Uncle Jem that Grace was almost fully recovered and that she would be returning to the Bridgestocks soon. He would admit, that had not thought of Grace in a few days and felt guilty.

James shook it off at he reached the small townhouse which was hopefully his destination. He knocked on the door and felt relieved when it was opened. Magnus Bane stood on the threshold, wearing nothing but a flower patterned robe. His cat eyes widened at the sight of James in surprise.

"James Herondale." Magnus began. "What are you doing at my door so late at night?"

"I need your help." James told him. "There is absolutely no one else I can ask."

Something glimmered in Magnus' eyes at his words and he opened the door wider so James could step inside. The inside of his house was decorated colourfully and James awkwardly took a seat on one of the large sofas; Magnus took one across from him. A part of a James wished that he would put on some more clothing; it him feel incredibly awkward.

"Since you are the offspring of Will and Tessa, whom of which I greatly admire, I will at least hear you out." Magnus started. "What is it that you require assistance with?"

James took in a breath. "My grandfather, I have discovered, is Belial. A Prince of Hell."

"How interesting." Magnus' eyes twinkled in curiosity.

"Today, my friends and I were attacked by a pack of Khora demons and one of them spoke to me." James shivered a little. "It said that my grandfather would not stop these attacks until I joined him in his realm, and if I did not, he would kill my family."

James recalled the way demon had spoken to him during the battle. He had thought Cordelia had heard it speak to him and was glad when he realized that she had not. He did not wish to worry any of his friends or his sister before he really had to.

"I need you to raise Belial for me so that I may speak to him before he hurts my family." James finished, looking back up at Magnus.

"Absolutely not." Magnus spoke and when he saw James' look of distress, he went on. "Raising a Prince of Hell is not like raising any old demon. They are much more likely to break out of the pentagram and are much more dangerous. Will and Tessa would have my head if anything happened to you in my care."

"But -- but." James stuttered. "What about my family?"

Magnus stood up. "If Belial wants you to join him, he himself will seek you out. As for your family, I assure you, James, that they are perfectly safe. Demons often to lie to gain what they want and killing your family would not achieve him anything."

James stood up as well. "So you will not help me then?"

"My father is a Prince of Hell and raising him was one of the worst mistakes of my life." Magnus looked at him sincerely. "I only wish to protect you, James. Not only for your sake but for your parents' as well."

James did not reply, feeling angry. No one could help him - not even Magnus who his father had always spoken so highly of. But deep down, James did understand why the warlock refused to help him; summoning a Prince of Hell was not an easy task and could result in grave consequences.

"I should be going then." Was all James said as he moved towards the door.

"I am sorry, James. I wish I could have helped you as I helped your father but the risk is too great." Magnus looked apologetic.

"I understand." James told him.

And then he left Magnus' house, feeling a whirlwind of emotions. He was scared, angry, lonely - as if no one in this whole entire world could help him or even understand what he was going through. He wished he could speak to his Uncle Jem but he knew that he could not go back to the Silent City unannounced. James wandered through the streets of London aimlessly, until he found himself at Kensington Gardens. Cordelia. Something stirred within him at the thought of her name and James felt himself moving towards the doors of the large house.

But he could not simply just knock, could he? It was almost one o'clock in the morning. On a whim, James began to climb up the vines on the side of the house until he reached the flat part of the roof. There were a few windows, but James had no idea which one could be Cordelia's. He knocked on the very first one, praying to the Angel that it was Cordelia's. James did not know what he would say if it turned out to be Alastair's bedroom. His turn heart lurched as he saw Cordelia appear in the window, her eyes widening in shock.

"James?" She whispered, opening the window. "What are you doing here?"

"I--Can I come in?" James stuttered.

Cordelia nodded and opened the window wide enough so that James could slide through. he was then standing in her room; it was decorated much like Lucie's and he spotted Cortana leaning against the wall by her and remembered how she had used it when they had gone into the Shadow Realm. Cordelia was only in her night gown and he swallowed hard at the thin fabric that covered her body. She sat down on her bed and looked at him.

"Are you alright, James?" Cordelia asked softly.

He felt lost and the whispered: "I do not know what to do about Belial, Daisy. I have no idea how to stop him and the demon attacks. I feel as if I am failing all of you."

She stood up and walked towards him so they were standing face to face. "Stopping these attacks does not fall solely on you, James. It is all of our responsibilities."

"I cannot help but feel guilt; I am the one who started this whole mess." James felt pained.

"This is not your burden, James." Cordelia spoke forcefully. "We will all fix this together, I promise. You do not have to feel alone in this. Ever."

Her light brown skin looked unearthly in the moonlight that streamed through the window and it made James' heart flutter. Cordelia was so beautiful, he realized, he had not known how he had not seen it before. Something pulsed at his wrist where Grace's silver bracelet lay and James tore his eyes away from Cordelia.

"Will -- will you lay down with me, Daisy?" James heard himself ask.

Her eyes widened in surprise but she nodded and took his hand and lead him to her bed. Cordelia laid down and James followed in suit, although much slower. They were then laying beside each other, Cordelia's back facing him; James realized that when they got married this would be how they would sleep together every night. He turned on his side to face her, and without thinking, put his arm around her waist. He felt her take in a breath but she did not move his arm away. James was aware of every part of his body and was suddenly very tired. Before he could stop himself he fell asleep to the sound of Cordelia's soft breaths and the feeling her stomach rising and falling against his arm.