*****Alec's POV*****

The second it settled around his neck —sliding down to land nestled above his collarbone— the world faded to black. Light died without a single chance to fight. Alec struggled to breathe as the heat which resided in most all living things seemed to die out in him. Left with only a bitter cold, it was all he could do to keep standing. A word, no, name spilled out of his mouth as a strangled gasp.

"Magnus!"

But no sound left him, air taken from him just as the light was. He wheezed as a strange laughter pierced his ears. A brief flicker of someone appeared. The gaze of this being that had once been kind and awe inspiring sent chills up his spine. Feeling evaded him as this figure pressed close in what remained of his vision. A quiet whisper carried to his ears. In that moment, it felt as though he was having it proven first hand the last thing you retained before you died was your hearing.

"Sleep foolish prince. I'll take it from here."

Then his consciousness was gone entirely; Alec knew no more of the dragon, no, person before him.

*****Magnus's POV*****

There were some things in life that were impossible to prepare for.

And as Magnus watched the light fade out from those lovely blue eyes he had grown to treasure, he realized this was one of those things. Horror pulsed in his veins with a cold intensity as Alec let out a strangled noise of pain. Mouth flapping open, blue eyes landed on him momentarily as the prince mouthed out a silent word. Magnus knew it to be his name, had memorized what Alec looked like when saying it.

"Alexander!" He shouted back, his voice actually having volume to it.

But Alec could not hear him. The dragon staggered in place as his body swayed. A silent cry left Alec as he hunkered down. Folding in on himself, the dragon came off as smaller in that moment. Dark light poured from the collar. It was in a sick resonance with the rapid glow of the many v-line marks down Alec's throat reaching to his chest. Magnus was frozen in place as he watched the events happening. The only person moving at this point was Asmodeus. He hardly registered his Father's laughter, nor did he recognize how the king came to stand beside him. It was not until a hand landed on his shoulder that Magnus flinched forward.

A heavy breathing filled the air. Alec's heavy breathing came off a strained wheezing. The dragon's tail moved like a slippery vine amidst the clean cut grass. Small bits of gravel popped up from the ground as scales caught on it.

"Marvelous, just marvelous!" Asmodeus cried in jubilation.

Magnus whirled on his Father, the effort made difficult by how hard it was to detract his attention from Alec. "Father . . . what's going on?" The question hardly surmised all the racing thoughts in his head, but it was all his mouth came up with.

The hand on his shoulder squeezed him tighter, fingernails jabbing at the fabric of his shirt. Belatedly, Magnus realized the smell of said clothes was less than optimal. There was no time for cleaning with all the events going on. Spare changes of clothes were in equally bad condition. The muddy smell hardly bothered him at this point. Being a Hunter, dirt and muck was part of the job description.

"Heh. I must applaud you, my son. I'll admit I had my doubts, but it turns out I had nothing to worry about after all." The grip on his shoulder tightened.

Magnus shoved him off, his breath quickening with a shuddering gasp. "What is going on!?" There was an urge to rush over to Alec and get to him —to help in some way— but there was another instinct flaring. It told him the action would do no good. So he forced down the need like the bitter medicine it was.

"Well it's simple son. We're finally going to take down dragon kind once and for all," Asmodeus paused then, a dark laughter making the corners of his eyes crinkle. Magnus felt a wave of nausea seeing that look. He knew what it resulted in, how ugly the outcome was. "and with the very dragon who is supposed to rule it all. Ah the irony."

*****Clary's POV*****

There was no difficulty finding home, not when she knew the place by heart. But the closer Clary got to the small two story shack the more the feeling of a foreign entity pulsed within. An overwhelming chill ran through her veins. This place. It doesn't feel like home anymore. Why? The realization hit with the speed a dragon diving with full speed over a mountaintop.

Jace must have sensed her unease, his warmth enveloping her in a comforting hug. His scent was a steady musk of wilderness. She took relief in the pine and dew smell. His breath as he whispered in her ear had her shuddering for other reasons. "Is something wrong Clary?"

He was in his human form again, as was Izzy. Clary looked up at him with a small smile. It was all she could offer while her heart upped its pace in her chest. "I-it's nothing. I'm fine."

Simon, her friend for basically her entire life, was more than capable of seeing through her lies. As was Jace and Izzy apparently, if their frowns were anything to go by.

"Clary . . ." Simon trailed off.

She winced internally at the worry in his tone.

"You can tell us anything." Izzy reassured.

Jace nodded, her gaze meeting his. The brilliant gold of his gaze matched with the shine of the sun. It had not set yet, though it was on the way to doing so. Orange painted the sky like watercolors on a canvas. This mixed with the softness of a pale pink, the ever present wisps of white from the clouds. "You can trust us."

"I know. I, I guess the best way I can explain it is . . ." How do I explain this weird feeling. In the end, one word came to mind.

" . . . This place feels different to you now. Right?"

Simon's question caught her off guard. She stared at him with wide eyes. Her friend stared at her with no judgement, an understanding in the depths of those irises that came with the closeness of a long standing relationship. Wind whistled around them, kicking up scattered leaves. It was a wonder to see the change in seasons, the crisp reds and browns and oranges from the trees like fallen petals of a dying flower.

"How did you know?"

Simon scuffed his shoe in the dirt. "Cause I feel the same. After everything we've went through, I guess it feels like this place is different now. Or maybe it's that we're different now."

Clary considered this. Just how much had they changed during their trip to the dragon kingdom? It was hard to be entirely sure. But she knew the change was immense, no matter what it's measure was.

"I think you're right."

And with that in mind, the four of them went inside the small shack.

****Izzy's POV****

Neither Jace nor herself had been in a human home like this before. And so, it was understandable how the two of them drank in their surroundings. The walls inside were covered in some sort of paint, though it did little to mask the faint whiff of clay. Are all human homes like this? Asking Clary and Simon this seemed out of place with their serious expressions. We need to focus on why we're here, how we're going to support Clary and Simon.

Jace, however, did not have the same reservations.

"Why so this place smell so dusty?"

She resisted the urge to facepalm. Really Jace? Really?!

Clary took it with stride, her fingers running up and down the bumpy wall. "It's not dust. It's clay. Mom and I are both artists, so you'll be smelling a lot of that and paint here, even if the walls weren't made of it too."

"Are all human homes made of clay?" Izzy asked, encouraged enough by Clary's response to voice her own musings.

Simon shook his head. The male seemed far more at ease in the small space than he was in the caves from before. He's used to it. This place makes him feel safe. She didn't know what to think of that, or if she even wanted to. There was a rankling feeling tearing at her core. A part of her understood what it was; the other part wished to be ignorant.

"Nah. It depends on the person's income and preference. That, and where they live can factor in too. Like, if you lived somewhere with a really bad dry season you wouldn't want to have a wooden house. One of my Mom's friends actually had one down in a Southern city and she—"

"Boring." Jace intoned. "Talk about something that's actually interesting."

Isabelle resisted the urge to slap him. Jace, you idiot.

Simon seemed equally unenthused, and Clary seemed none the more impressed.

"It doesn't seem like they're home." Clary ended up saying.

Simon frowned at that, attention drawn back from Jace. "Yeah, now that you mention it, they must be out."

Izzy hummed. "Do you know where they might have gone off to?" If they could not accomplish the reason they were here in the first place then what was the point in coming? Got to support Clary. She'll get no closure like this though.

The two friends standing side by side. Simon was a silent wave of unwavering support as he put his arm around Clary's shoulders and squeezed gently. The redhead responded by burying her face into his shoulder, sighing as if pained. "Don't know. There's a lot of places they like to go. There's the studio, the market, or they might have gone to a Tavern . . ." She trailed off.

Jace frowned. "At that rate it might just be better for us to wait for them here."

"Wait for them . . ." Izzy looked to Simon. "Would that be okay?" It almost felt out of place to ask, but she still did, out of politeness to Clary's family.

"I don't see why it wouldn't be." Simon assured.

Clary pulled away from Simon then, eyes downcast. "Luke might freak out though. He doesn't like surprises, not with how Mom is. And as he should recognize you two are dragons—"

"Not just us two." Jace cut in. He pointed at her with a winning smile. "You're a dragon too Clary, don't go forgetting you're one of us now."

Ah. Sometimes you do manage to say the right things Jace.

And indeed, the little smile Clary gave in response was enough of a sign that was the right thing to say in that moment. "Yes. I am a dragon, and so is Luke and Mom."

Something clicked in her brain. "Wait, if Jocelyn and Luke really are both dragons, and if they really did run away from home, then could they be . . . ?"

"The dragons from the old tale? Yeah, I think so." Jace affirmed for her.

Clary and Simon shot them confused looks. "What do you mean old tale?"

"Maryse used to tell a story about two dragons who fled from the valley. They certainly fit the description of the story." Izzy explained, her fingers toying with the hem of her shirt. We're all clothes this itchy or was she just that unused to wearing them? Probably a bit of both.

"That's assuming the story is true." Simon pointed out.

"Oh. Haven't you heard Simon: all the stories are true." A new voice spoke up.

And all of them whirled around to find who had joined them in the room.

Clary gasped. "Luke!?"

****NO POV****

A few days prior . . .

The dragon prince sat in front of the king, his expression resolute.

The king stared back at him, with an equal resolve.

"You came here for a reason."

It was not a question, not that the prince ever thought it would be.

Both of them knew why he was here.

"Father . . . I have to know. Need to know."

"Need to know what? Be specific son." The king was stalling, the patterns on his chest glowing softly.

"I need to know the truth Dad. How did Magnus's mother die?"

********

A/N: So we are heading down the angst train! Yay! Haha jk, but in all seriousness, expect some major plot in the upcoming chapters. I'll be trying to update at a more regular schedule, just haven't figured out what said schedule will be yet. I'll post in on my page when I figure it out. Hope y'all enjoyed and don't forget to vote and comment cause that fuels me to update faster! Till next time!