WARNING: THIS CHAPTER MIGHT CONTAIN SHORT TRIGGERING CONTENT ABOUT SELF HARM TOWARDS THE END OF THE FIRST PARAGRAPH.
Alec's hand never let go of Myrcella's as they welcomed the guests and the party was now at a full force. Myrcella recognized some of the Shadowhunters from the Institute but the rest of the Lightwoods, Jace, Simon and her sister were still missing. Myrcella felt her phone buzz in her pocket, for which she was so thankful for, and saw it was the same caller. She guessed he would take the hint that she was busy after the fourth time she ignored his calls.
"I'll be back in a second." Myrcella pecked Alec on the cheek before rushing out to the terrace for some privacy. "What, Raphael? I'm busy if you couldn't tell." The half warlock snapped unintentionally.
"It's...it's urgent. Can you meet me?" Raphael asked making Myrcella's stomach turn. He had never called her like this before and the thought it would be something drastic but at the same time she looked inside and saw Alec standing there alone with a smile plastered on his face.
"Can it wait?" She asked, smiling when her eyes locked with Alec's.
"No. Please, I'm already near your building." The vampire pleaded making Myrcella huff. She agreed and hung up, rushing back inside. She knew she couldn't tell Alec that Raphael was downstairs waiting for her as that would open up a whole series of questions she wasn't ready to answer yet. Instead, she smoothly avoided Alec, hiding behind the guests not being seeing and called the elevator.
"Raphael!" She whispered as the turned the corner of the street. "Raphael!" She called again when she didn't see him anywhere.
"You came." His voice came from behind, making her jump.
"You said it was urgent." She retorted as she turned to face him. He had a different glint in his eyes, one that she hadn't seen in a long time.
"It was urgent. I had to see you." He took a suggestive step towards her as she took one back. He gave her a questioning look but quickly dismissed it as he continued walking towards the half warlock. "You know, I saved Isabelle from a couple of rogue night children for you." He stated as Myrcella's back hit the building.
"Thank you for that." Myrcella breathed out, extremely uncomfortable by the position she was in. "Was she looking for yin fen?" She asked trying to understand what happened.
"Yes but she couldn't find any." He replied making Myrcella's shoulders sag in relief. "Though she got something better. She reminded me of you." Raphael added, Myrcella's relief disappearing.
"Raphael, you were supposed to tell her no." The half warlock stated furrowing her eyebrows.
"But how could I? When I know that Nephilim blood is something else..." He dawdled out, licking his lips. "Though hers was just a mellow martini compared to yours." He leaned down to inhale right next to her neck, he took a step back and exhaled as if it was the best thing ever. Before Myrcella could say anything, her phone buzzed in her hand.
'Where are you?'
She read the text from Alec and knew she had to go back up to the party before he got suspicious.
"I have to go but Raphael this isn't you. I thought we were past this." Myrcella argued, hoping Raphael would give the act up but she received a chuckle instead.
"If I remember correctly Myrcella, you were the one that got us back on this track again. If anything it's your fault." He shot back, pointing a finger at her. Myrcella looked down in guilt, knowing he was right but she had sweated it out just as Magnus had taught her.
"Please, Raphael. Don't drag Izzy into this." She pleaded putting a hand on his arm. "You can talk to Magnus again. He can help you." She suggested, as he was the one that saved them from themselves before.
"And why should I listen to you?" The vampire asked as he cocked his head to the side.
"Because I'm your friend and I-" The younger girl got cut off before she could say anything else with a menacing laugh.
"I don't think we were ever friends Myrcella. Do you see the pattern here? You always come to me when you need me and I always heed your wishes...Well not anymore." Raphael concluded, his words forming a tight knot in Myrcella's throat, burning each time she took a breath.
"Raphael..." She opened her mouth but the vampire was long gone. Myrcella bit her lip, trying to figure out what to do but her phone buzzed again, reminding her of the party so the half warlock rushed back inside thinking one night couldn't hurt as Izzy would be joining them as well. She sneakily got in the penthouse and blended in as if she had never left.
"Sis!" Clary called out with a smile, pulling her sister in for a short hug.
"Hey!" Myrcella put on a smile as well. "Simon, the tie is a bit excessive but other than that you two look great." She complimented the new couple.
"There you are! I was freaking out without you." Alec put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to his side. "Clary. Simon." He greeted the two with a nod and started walking towards the bar with Myrcella. He picked up two glasses and handed one to the girl who chugged the champagne like it was a small shot.
"Yup. Definitely needed that." She cringed as the alcohol burned her throat.
"My mom just texted to say they're downstairs." Alec stated as he read the text, his words making Myrcella chug another glass.
"Okay, I'm ready now." She fixed her hair and hoped she looked presentable enough. Magnus was waiting by the door as well with a drink in his hand.
"Max!" Alec excitedly called out to his brother as he opened the door to the penthouse. "Mother." He somewhat coldly greeted Maryse as she followed in suite with a bottle in her hand.
"I heard you like to drink." She held out the bottle to Magnus with a forced smile. Magnus and Myrcella shared a look of disbelief before Magnus pulled himself together and smiled. Myrcella had realized Maryse hadn't even looked in her direction and this action didn't go unnoticed by Alec, whose grip on her shoulder tightened each passing second.
"Welcome, Maryse. Max, this is your night." Magnus opened his arms with a smile and Max looked around with wonder in his eyes.
"Magnus and Myrcella worked nonstop to make it perfect." Alec said looking at his mother.
"Myrcella." Maryse turned to face the girl who wished she could stop looking at her like that. Myrcella opted to nod with a smile instead of opening her mouth. "You two have exotic taste, don't you?" The older woman pointed out looking at the dancers.
"Oh, the Spanish theme is in honor of you and your husband." Magnus replied, seeing how uncomfortable the half warlock was.
"Really? How so?" Maryse scoffed, raising an eyebrow.
"Alec told us that Robert proposed to you in Barcelona." Myrcella found her voice and replied with a smile, trying to get on the woman's good side.
"We wanted to celebrate a joyous memory. Especially since he couldn't be here." The high warlock added, pointing out they only had good intentions.
"How sweet that Alec feels comfortable sharing our personal family stories with you." Maryse replied offended as if Alec had done something despicable. "Especially considering your...disparate backgrounds." She addressed the last part to Myrcella.
"Mother!" Alec called out with wide eyes not believing she would say something like that.
"What? I'm just saying what it is. She's been raised by a warlock not a Shadowhunter." Maryse defended herself but her words cut deep for the half warlock.
"Well, I'm sorry that my father is a homicidal maniac and I had to grow up in hiding, away from my mother and sister." Myrcella snapped, trying to regulate her breathing so she wouldn't do something drastic in front of the woman. Mentioning her mother seemed to stop the older woman to reply.
"How about a drink? Sangria for the lady, a Roy Rogers for the guest of honor." Magnus tried to diffuse the tension as he held out his arms with a smile. They nodded and Alec kept a firm hand on Myrcella's arm, angry at his mother and trying to reassure the girl.
"If you'll excuse me, I need a drink as well." Myrcella stated with a forced smile, Alec gave her an apologetic look and let her go. Her head started to pound and the crowd was getting too much for her. On her way to the bar, the half warlock heard her sister talking to Magnus about how Simon was making out with Maia earlier. Hearing that snapped something inside the girl and she rushed off to find the vampire. "You!" She gritted her teeth when she saw Simon leaning against a wall. She quickly grabbed his collar and slammed him into the wall with all her might.
"Myrcella! Whoa, what's going on?" He asked flabbergasted. He put up his hands in surrender with wide eyes, not knowing why the girl was so mad at him.
"How dare you hurt my sister?" She asked him, her eyes flashing emerald for a second. Simon knew something was up with the girl and that he had to get out of her grasp without angering her further. But before he could defend himself, Myrcella's head snapped back.
"Help!" She heard a small voice whimper out and she let go of Simon at once. She saw a short figure rush by and followed it towards the library. "Help!" It called out again but the figure rushed by her again. She saw it going towards her room.
"Hello?" Myrcella called out holding out one of her daggers. Instead of a reply, she heard soft whimpers coming from her bathroom. She slowly opened the door to see a small girl curled up in a corner, her shoulders going up and down from crying. Myrcella slowly leaned down to see what was the problem.
"You...you promised." She said in a whisper. The voice seemed familiar but Myrcella couldn't put a finger on it.
"Do I know you?" Myrcella carefully asked as she was now on her knees trying to see the girl's face but her hair was covering it as she kept her head between her legs.
"You promised!" The girl now yelled, holding her head up. Myrcella felt as if she was hit by a car. Suddenly, the girl's demeanor changed and now she had blood coming out of her mouth, her eyes had lost all of its color.
"Aurora?! But you-you died. I saw it. I-" Myrcella fell back in shock, her voice trembling. The half warlock couldn't form any sentences as tears pooled in her eyes. Myrcella watched as Aurora's body collapse like before, she scurried back trying to get away from the blood pouring out the little girl's chest as she let out a sob.
"You know you could have saved her." A voice said from behind, Myrcella not recognizing the voice at first. When she turned back to see who it was, another sob left the girls lips.
"Mo-mom?" She chocked out, seeing her mother standing at the door with a sad smile. She looked just like she had imagined her awake except one thing; her chest had a gaping hole, where her heart should have been.
"You did this you know?" Jocelyn replied calmly, pointing to her chest.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do it. Valentine, he-he made me." Myrcella cried out, gathering her knees to her chest. Jocelyn crouched to her eye level with a smile. She gently wiped a tear from Myrcella's cheek.
"Don't try to find any excuses, sweetheart. You are the monster your father created. How many more people have to get hurt before you do something about it?" She asked softly, still a smile plastered on her face.
"I don't- I don't understand...I don't know what I can do." Myrcella said biting her lip to stop her sobs.
"Think about Clary, Alec, Magnus. How long will it take before you kill them as well? I think you know what you have to do." Jocelyn held the hand that still had the dagger in. Something clicked in Myrcella and she nodded in understanding. "I'll see you soon honey. You can do it." Her mother concluded with a kiss to the top of the girl's head. No more sobbing, Myrcella dragged her dagger across her wrist, drawing blood. She finally knew what she had to do.
"She's here!" Izzy called out as she opened the door to the bathroom. "Oh my-Myrcella stop!" Izzy yelled as she watched the girl, cutting her arm with a dagger, her eyes glazed over.
"I have to do this. I'm a monster. I'm sorry." Myrcella kept saying over and over again, not even realizing Izzy was there.
"Myrcella, stop." Izzy held the girls hand and tried to tear the dagger from her fingers. "You'll thank me later." The younger girl muttered and slapped Myrcella across the face with all her might. Izzy grabbed the girl's arm and drew the amissio rune to slow her blood loss and speed up the natural blood replacement.
"Izzy?" Myrcella groggily asked as her senses came back to her. Her eyes grew wide when she realized what she had done. "What happened?" She asked as she started to get up.
"I have no idea but everyone's acting strange." Izzy replied looking at all the blood. "If you'll let me." Izzy wrapped and arm around the girl's waist to keep her standing and traced her stele over the girl's iratze rune to close the cuts.
"Thank you." Myrcella thanked the dark haired girl and frowned seeing all the blood that was covering her hands and most of her legs. It looked worse than it was. "We should check with the others." She mumbled before rushing out to the living room to avoid any questions on what happened. She saw Magnus, Maryse and Jace in the living room and rushed towards them. "Where's Alec and Clary?" She questioned announcing her arrival. Eyes turned to her in shock seeing her state.
"Myrcella!" Magnus and Jace exclaimed at the same time seeing the blood.
"Alec, no!" She heard Clary yell from the terrace so the girl rushed out, ignoring the protests coming from the others. What she saw almost stopped the half warlock's heart. Alec was on the ledge with Clary holding out her hand, calling him back. The couple locked eyes for a second and Alec frowned.
"I'm sorry." He said and let himself fall back.
"No!" Myrcella let out a heart wrenching cry and ran to the edge, jumping down after him without a thought. She quickly blasted Alec with a sedating spell so he didn't freak out.
"Myrcella!" She heard her sister's cry but all she had in mind was catching up to Alec in time. She pushed herself further with magic and managed to wrap her arms around the raven haired Shadowhunter. With one hand wrapped around Alec, Myrcella held out her other hand and opened up a Portal beneath them before they reached the ground. The couple crashed onto the terrace, Myrcella holding her hand behind his head so he didn't hit it. Myrcella's whole body shook as she clung onto Alec. The others called out to them but Myrcella didn't hear what they were saying. The pounding in her head increased and she soon fell into darkness.
Myrcella slowly opened her eyes as someone gently shook her. She lifted her head up to see Alec was the one gently shaking her. They were surrounded by Clary, Jace, Maryse, Simon and Magnus. No one knew what to say as they were still shaken up by the events. Myrcella noticed they were all looking at her wrist, it still being bloodied up. She didn't know how to explain what happened because she wasn't sure herself. She realized Magnus had his spell book in his hands but before she could say something the book vanished.
"Someone has taken my spell book." Magnus stated with wide eyes. Alec put out a hand to pull up Myrcella and she smiled at the gesture. Without a warning, Magnus put his hands up in a huff.
"You're putting your wards up?" Clary questioned, not understanding the importance.
"Nobody leaves until I get it back." Magnus angrily marched in, the rest following him back inside. Instead of waiting for Magnus to magically scan everyone, she went to Magnus' room, not daring to step foot in hers after what happened and walked into his bathroom to wash the blood off her arm. When she went back out Max and Maryse were already gone. She went to Alec's side, his arm wrapping around her arm as she put her head to his shoulder. Clary soon joined her sister and put a comforting hand to her shoulder. Myrcella weakly smiled at the two, grateful she had them and grateful for them not bringing up what happened. They waited until Magnus scanned everyone and they were finally alone.
"Looks like we're the only warlocks here." Magnus spoke up, frustrated from not finding the culprit.
"Magnus, what happens if we don't find your spell book?" Clary questioned why it seemed like a big deal.
"That's not an option you want to explore. That book can undo every spell I've ever cast. From the elementary to the complex. In new and old languages..." Magnus replied, slowing down at the end as he figured something out. "Champenois... It's an old French dialect." He added his eyes wide and Myrcella knew who he was hinting at.
"La chatte rouge." She said knowing it was weird that the cat tried to get close to her when the others were afraid.
"The red haired cat." Magnus translated her sentence and put his wards back up. With that he set off to the bedroom he last saw the cat in, others once again following him in.
"What cat?" Alec asked Myrcella not quite caught up with the situation. Myrcella motioned for him to be quiet as Magnus pointed at the bed. Jace nodded, sawing the movement under the duvet and swiftly picked it up to reveal the aforementioned cat under. The cat aggressively yowled before jumping off the bed to run off. Magnus blasted it with a spell and the cat turned into none other than Iris Rouse.
"Duratus!" Iris blasted them with a spell but Magnus and Myrcella were quick enough to stop it from hitting them while the others froze in their steps.
"I hate party crashers." Magnus angrily stated and blasted Iris back, slamming her into the library, breaking a few shelves along the way.
Iris managed to get up and ran towards the door panting. Myrcella shut the door with a flick of her wrist and Magnus rained hell on her with magic blasts. Iris suddenly turned around and aimed a blast towards Magnus. Myrcella jumped in front of her best friend and put a shield up, blasting Iris back successfully. Magnus took his chance and put the warlock in a binding spell, tightening it as he walked towards her.
"You haven't changed one bit since the last time I saw you crawling from the ruins of La Bastille. Old French spells. Your favorite." The high warlock said annoyance laced in his tone. He slowly lifted Iris from the ground making the warlock grunt in pain. "Where are my counterspells?" He asked putting more pressure around her.
"Valentine!" Iris yelled out in pain making Myrcella's blood boil that she was working for him. "He has Madzie too. If I don't go back, I don't know what he'll do to her." She tried to explain her reasons but Magnus didn't care. Her best friend could have died today because of her.
"What does Valentine want with the counterspells?" Myrcella asked her eyes burning with rage.
"I don't know." Iris replied and Magnus, not satisfied with the answer, squeezed the warlock even further with his magic causing her to pant. "I don't know!" She yelled out in pain. "All...all he said was that I had to get them for him. And I wasn't to harm Clary, or he'd make Madzie suffer. He also...he wanted me to make sure you suffered the most." She confessed looking at Myrcella at the last part. Magnus almost lost it when he found out she did something else to Myrcella but he held himself back to get answers. "Magnus, please. I'm all Madzie has. Have mercy." She begged with pleading eyes which meant nothing to the two warlocks.
"After everything you've done?" Magnus scoffed at her request.
"Release them." Myrcella ordered pointing to the room her friends were in. "Release them now, Iris or so help me you will wish you were at Valentine's mercy instead of mine." The half warlock lifted her hand up which was covered in flames, her eyes shining emerald. Iris slowly lifted her hand up to undo her spell. The five of them rushed out to see what was going on as Myrcella lowered her hand, extinguishing the flame.
"Clary Fairchild...you made a blood oath. Find Madzie." Iris called out to Clary, knowing the Shadowhunter was her only choice now. Magnus walked up to Iris and did something first without telling anyone, which seemed like he was pulling something from her head. Then, he opened up a portal and pushed her through it.
"She's the Clave's problem now. Don't worry, she won't remember Myrcella being a half warlock." Magnus stated knowing Iris deserved what she got. The duo quickly explained what Iris had said before and it all got confusing to everyone.
"Okay, what is Valentine up to anyway?" Alec asked crossing his arms and if Myrcella wasn't too shaken up, she would have made a snide remark on how he was probably sacrificing a newborn baby or something.
"I don't know." Clary lied horribly, looking at Jace. Myrcella knew from the lunch that she was hiding something.
"It's too dangerous." Jace whispered, shaking his head in denial.
"Jace, they're our family. They need to know." Clary argued, reaching out to hold her sister's hand.
"Know what?" Izzy asked raising an eyebrow. Myrcella's stomach became uneasy, knowing what's coming would be very unpleasant.
"The Angel Ithuriel. Valentine was going to use him to activate the Soul Sword. He needs someone with pure angel blood to activate it." Clary confessed, telling them about Valentine's plan.
"Well, that doesn't sound good." Simon pointed out the obvious as he always did.
"It's not. With the Soul Sword activated, Valentine could decimate the entire Downworld." Jace explained them the real power of the Sword as Clary gave a squeeze to her sister's hand. All heads quickly turned to Simon, Magnus and Myrcella but Myrcella couldn't take her eyes away from Magnus. She couldn't bear losing him. "The angel showed us a vision of a demon who could destroy the Sword. If we could find that demon, we could stop Valentine. But I've looked at every source and couldn't find anything." Jace further explained what the angel had shown them. Myrcella got an idea but she opted to keep it to herself.
"How did you two save the angel?" Myrcella questioned, confused about the angel part as she didn't even know Valentine had an angel in captivity. She didn't even know that it was possible.
"With runes the angel gave to me." Clary admitted, Alec's eyebrows shooting up as he hadn't heard about it before.
"New runes, Magnus. Ones no one has ever seen before." Jace crossed his arms, addressing the high warlock hoping he would have some answers.
"Why did he choose you?" Izzy asked Clary, sounding somewhat agitated that the angel would contact her.
"I have no idea." The girl replied, confused as everyone else, if not more.
"I might." Magnus held out a finger to draw attention to himself. "Years ago, a Silent Brother told me about a special connection the original Shadowhunters had with the Angel Raziel. That they could communicate from afar through visions... because they were created from his blood." He concluded, everything finally making sense.
"Are you saying that-" Alec spoke up but Myrcella cut him off.
"Valentine experimented on Clary too. Except with angel blood." The half warlock explained giving a squeeze to her sister's hand. "Clary, you have pure angel blood." Myrcella stated, knowing now her sister was in more danger than she was before.
"That's why Valentine wants Clary unharmed. Clary can activate the Soul Sword." Jace pointed out their worst fear and Myrcella felt dizzy knowing if the word got out, every single Downworlder would be coming after her sister to kill her so Valentine wouldn't be able to activate the Soul Sword. The words hung in the air as no one knew what to say. Alec, however knew exactly what he had to do after he was alone with Myrcella, knowing if anything went south and activated the Sword, he could lose Myrcella for good.
I'd like to dedicate this chapter to @NikkiP3 and @Mech-x4fan for their lovely comments on almost each chapter. Your comments help me keep going so thank you!
Author's note: Well this is a long chapter. It may have some mistakes in it but I'm too tired to check it now and wanted to post it today. I'm going to edit all the chapters once I'm done with it anyways.
What were your thoughts on this chapter? Comment, vote, let me know :)
-Love, Ally