Trapped in History

33

"Why are you stopping me?" Gabriel questioned lowly, his voice venomous. He was frustrated. Looking at the two, they looked as though they were about ready to kill each other. How could Gideon just watch this and not be concerned? Gideon did not say anything, just kept a vice grip on his arm so that he did not do something stupid like try and rush in there. Gabriel himself could admit that it would be more trouble than it was worth, but a part of him was concerned. How long had this been going on? Furthermore, why was his brother not at least trying to stop it? He was just staring at them as though nothing was going to happen, but he could not possibly know that. Sparring like this...this was dangerous, and these were two teenagers. Barely even old enough to begin sparring and here they were acting as though they had done it their whole lives. The wounds though, the scars. It would not surprise me if they had done it their whole lives, or at least a good majority of it. The thought fluttered through Gabriel's head, and he relaxed.

Perhaps that was why Gideon was not intervening, perhaps there was another reason that he was not privy to. All that he knew, was that if anyone would be able to spar as young as these Shadowhunters, somewhat breaking protocol by doing so, it would be these two who had clearly been through something none of them could even begin to understand. At the end of the day, they had no idea how young these boys started, and they had no reason to not let them spar however it was that they felt necessary. To be honest, these boys were at least as good as some of the best of them, and that was almost terrifying to witness. What sort of person would hone such skills so young? Yes, Shadowhunters were soldiers to an extent, but they spent a vast majority of their childhood learning these sorts of things and being...well...children. Just because they were Shadowhunter children did not mean that they were soldiers from the moment they could walk and handle a stick. It would seem, though, that these boys were entirely different to the status quo. It was scary to see how effortless their fighting was.

Both were extremely good, as well. They did not hesitate, clashing blow after blow after blow together as they sparred. There was no sense of friendly play, no sort of...delay, no these boys, had they not known better, were fighting for their lives, as though if one mistake would cost them everything. The ability to be able to spar like that was something Gabriel had not seen before among Shadowhunters. Not just that, but the way they anticipated each other was almost uncanny. It was as though they could read the others thoughts-and wasn't that a rather disturbing thought-as they seemed to slice around each other like water, never truly injuring, and never truly harming. It was not until Alec stepped just a tad too late, that Jace seemed to pounce, and the other's sword was knocked to the ground, and Alec's throat was pinned by the edge of a sword. The dark haired boy lifted his hands up, shaking his head with a smile. Honestly, the whole thing was such an unnerving sight to witness. For a moment, Gabriel was scared-and he could tell his brother was as well by the way Gideon tensed-that Jace would not put down his sword. He did, though, withdrawing it and placing it at his hips before giving Alec a smile.

"You did well," Alec said, his breath heaving slightly. Jace gave the other a smile, there was a certain light in his eyes that Gabriel had not seen since he came into the institute. Perhaps that was why they had sparred. He did not know the others well enough to say, but he did know sparring could help with releasing emotions, particularly pent up ones, but that only made this sparring session even more dangerous. He was not sure whether he should congratulate them, or scold them severely. though he doubted him doing or saying anything would truly make any difference. The two were horrifically stubborn, and tight lipped.

"You need to work on your footwork still."

"It was one step!" Alec countered. "I merely stepped too narrowly, and it was once!" Jace flicked his hair from his eyes, head tilted to gaze at Alec.

"Still,"

"That is entirely unfair!" Alec huffed, rolling his eyes fondly. "You know I am better at archery than you are anyways." Jace narrowed his eyes.

"Only narrowly, and you know that!"

"Just like how I only stepped narrowly rather than wide, you mean?" Alec retorted. Gabriel got ready to intervene, but Jace merely flicked Alec's shoulder, letting himself lean against the older shadowhunter heavily.

"Thank you," He whispered softly, though in the echo of the room it was still easily heard. "I needed that."

"I know, I have been telling you that you need to spar for ages. Not to mention I doubt daddy dearest gave you the most opportune moments to do so."

"Not really," Jace admitted, grimacing, his eyes darkening. Alec noted, and quickly subverted the topic slightly.

"Hey, you are still the only one I trust to have my back."

"What about Itzy?"

"Oh you know she likes to go off track, Jace, don't play with me." Alec shoved Jace good naturedly whilst the latter laughed. Gabriel and Gideon felt their eyes transfixed to the sight. They had not seen Jace laugh once. Not genuinely, and while they could not really keep track with what the two Asylum seekers were saying, it was obvious that Jace felt way more relaxed than he had since the day they met. It was...well Gabriel hated to say anything untoward, after all Jace was a man, but his laugh really made him quite beautiful, relaxed and calmed it was definitely a sight to see. It was painfully obvious, anyways, and Gabriel was sure that Gideon would agree.

"You finished sparring?" Gideon asked, finally releasing Gabriel and drawing both Alec and Jace's attention. Gabriel watched how they instantly drew their guard up, Jace stepping slightly in front of Alec, who watched them carefully.

"Was it wrong?" Jace questioned, his tone bordering on disrespectful. It was obvious that Jace had issues with...well everyone, but particularly authority. He knew Gideon could come across a bit...authoritarian at times as well. He pat Gideon's shoulder, leaving the other to stop trying to respond.

"No," He said himself, reassuring them quickly. "Of course not, that was what the room was meant for, after all, if you want to spar here is the best place to do it, and you can use it anytime you want we are not going to stop you." He saw Alec and Jace slightly relax at that, and congratulated himself on managing to be the one to do it. "You both were...astounding, from what we saw of your sparring. If it is no trouble to you, perhaps a bit later we could spar each other in teams?" He offered. He saw how Jace in particular, lit up drastically.

"Alec? What do you think?"

"It can't hurt." Alec said with a slight shrug of one shoulder. Jace jumped a little in place.

"Perfect!"

"We will get a bit more on the details of it later, perhaps at dinner, for now I must steal my brother," Gabriel said, waving to the two, and dragging Gideon out of the room.