The Found Herondale

Chapter 21

Chapter 21 
Raleigh's POV

I had been with Antony and Cordelia while they went back to the hospital.

Antony whispered to me what he remembered from Chain of Gold while James had intercepted Cordelia and had shown her the letter.
Somehow, the two of us miraculously got an invitation to the Devils Tavern with them.

"Why Antony and I?" I ask Cordelia as the two of us are the last to climb the stairs.
Cordelia smiles.
"The reason I chose the two of you is because you both are very intelligent, good fighters, but I think you know more than you care to admit. You seem as if you are best friends with Will Herondale as well."

I nod.
"Will and I are very close, for reasons I would admit but I would have to get to know you better first. I'm sorry for the evasiveness."

"That's alright. May I ask, you aren't doing anything inappropriate with Mr Herondale?"
I choke on my own spit.
"By the angel- no- He loves Tessa only."

Cordelia nods.
"Alright, I apologise. I wanted to make sure."

We reach the room.
It is exactly how Cassandra Clare described it.
Books are everywhere, with games in the corner, a laboratory for Christopher, a sofa that is in front of a nice fireplace. 

"I don't remember this being here," Antony whispers into my ear as he wraps an arm around my waist.
"We never went upstairs," I whisper back.

Thomas sits on the couch, looking better than before.
Christopher is messing at his work table, while the rest of the Merry Thieves and Lucie surround the couch.

"A pyxis?" Thomas echoes.
I freeze.
"They were mostly destroyed after the Clockwork War," Antony says.

James looks curious, because Antony cut him off.
I chuckle under my breath.

He puts his reading spectacles on and I see Cordelia look away.
She is definitely crushing on James.

Antony pokes me in the side to make me look back up.

"The Mandikhor is difficult to kill," James says. "But once it is the smaller demons disappear."
"So someone hired Gast to help raise a Mandikhor and trap it in a pyxis," Lucie says. "But when he returned to his flat with the demon, they ambushed and killed him- and set the creature free-" 

Antony's hand tightens on my waist.
Addison could be hiding out there.

The rest of them start talking about how to capture the demon.
I want to tell them how Henry kept one hidden, how I secretly told him to just in case, but it would ruin the storyline.

"Wait," Antony says. "What about the Ruelle?"
Cordelia's eyes brighten.
"Yes, Antony is correct, I remember seeing a pyxis there."

"Hypatia does not like Shadowhunters," James replies with a warning tone, making me snort.
I cover it up with a very false sounding cough.

"We could rob the Hell Ruelle," Thomas suggests.
"And wear masks," Lucie adds eagerly. "Like highwaymen."

"Only a fool would rob Hypatia Vex," Matthew says. 
He's indicating that he's a fool, but I won't say that aloud.

"I think Christopher is right," Cordelia speaks up after hearing his comment.
"We should ask Hypatia."

Christopher looked stunned and gratified in equal measure.
"We should?"

"Well, not us," I say. "It is true that she doesn't like Shadowhunters. But there is one she likes very much."

***

"Daisy, Raleigh, darlings, I'm delighted to see you," Anna declared. "Though it is entirely bad form to appear unannounced at teatime. There simply won't be enough cake for everybody. The girls will have cake and the boys nothing. There is no other fair way to do it."

"That is unjust desserts," James retorts.

"The world is unjust, my love," Anna tells him.
She sat on the arm of a chair that Christopher was sitting in.

"Of course I'd offer you cake dear cousin," Anna says as she strokes Thomas's hair. 
He gives her a tired look.
"I think in this case, assistance would be better than cake."

"By all means, tell me whats going on."

James and Anna go back and forth, he explains what is going on.

"I hope this leads us to Addison," I whisper.
Antony nods.
"Ashton needs this, but I think the others are speaking to Jesse and Jessamine."

I nod.

"And so," James finished. "We thought, perhaps at the Hell Ruelle-"

Anna raised an eyebrow.
"Ah, yes, about that. Let me be perfectly clear: You want me to seduce a warlock in order to procure a outmoded box that houses a demon?"
She surveyed the room.
"Why in Raziel's name haven't you told anyone else about it?"

"Because we cannot," Lucie says stiffly. "We have sworn a vow to protect the source that our guesses are based on. You must simply trust us, Anna."

Anna threw her hands up.
"All right."

James smirks.

Anna grabs Cordelia's and I's arms, leading us up a couple of steps and into her bedchamber.
It was very ordinary.
I carefully close the door behind us.

"What's this?" Cordelia asks as Anna holds up cloth in front of her.

She does the same thing to me.

"Gold or saffron would do wonders with your skin, Daisy. and you, Leigh, the dark blue would accentuate your eyes. Or a red."
Anna puts those down and holds up a black memorandum book.

I didn't even see her retrieve it. 

She strides out and we follow.
"This," She announces. "will hold the answers to all of our questions."

The occupants of the parlour look up.
Lucie, Matthew and Christopher were squabbling over cake- but Thomas had a piece safely secured in his lap.

Cordelia sank into the sofa beside Lucie.
Antony sits on the ground, and pulls me into his lap. 

James looks over at us, his gold eyes flaring slightly and then he looks at Anna.

"Let us hope this pyxis could help the others," Cordelia says. "It could help Ariadne."
The blue of Anna's eyes darken.
"Well, we will have to go tomorrow. The Ruelle isn't set up every night."

"We cannot all go," Thomas adds. "I bet a gaggle of us would be suspicious."

"It makes sense for me to go," Matthew says.
"I should go as well," James says. "It is possible my shadow power may be useful."

Antony nods.
"I can assist James, I have a few abilities that would be helpful in this scenario."

Everyone looks at him.
As if the ears hadn't given it away already.

"Are you half-fae?" Matthew asks.
"If I was," Antony replies. "Would you give me crap for it?"
"No, I wouldn't."

"Then yes, I am. Both my dads are somewhat fae, and my mom is full Shadowhunter."

The 1900s kids blink for a second, as if processing what he said.
He winks at Anna and mouths 'polyamoury' to her and she continues her speech.

She smiled her slow, scotch and honey smile.
"And Cordelia with Raleigh, of course. Beautiful girls are always a distraction, and we will need to be very distracting indeed."

All the boys glance at Cordelia and I.

Lucie and Thomas add their thoughts about the upcoming Enclave meeting.
They want to have Lucie spy on the meeting, and espionage will be involved.

I give a smile, and Antony pulls me closer to him, putting his chin on top of my head.
Tomorrow is going to be very exciting.