The Shadress (MCD x Reader)

Ch. 29- Caught in the Middle

Getting ever closer to Zane's finale.

My reflection in the pristine silver of my kitchen sink taunts me as I dry heave once more. I glare at the woman staring back at me. There isn't any indication as to why this sudden bout of sickness has hit me. I felt perfectly fine – dare I say normal – last night when I went to bed.

Sleeping is its own can of worms, as I don't even remember falling asleep, nor does it feel like I got any. To make things even worse, I woke up late, which did not go unnoticed.

"Are you sure you're fine?" The sounds of the door shutting and Jace's voice alert me to his presence.

I stand straight, taking a big whiff of the coffee lingering in the air. It settles my stomach enough for me to speak. "Yes. I must have a stomach bug or something. Besides, the mornings are always the worst when I'm ill because of the daylight cycle."

He concedes at this. Jace is all too familiar with the inherent weakness the daylight cycle brings to both of us. I remember at least nine different occasions when he got sick as a child. He was always so whiny about it.

Or... I thought he conceded. "Except, your behavior has been weird since we got back from... well, you know," Jace censors the moment he was talking about.

Everyone's been doing that lately, and I'm beginning to find the behavior annoying. "It could be the lingering excitement from Irene being back. My mind hasn't really acclimated to her presence again." The annoyance sneaks into my tone, making it clipped and snarky. I turn around to give him a small glare.

"Nice try," he snarks back and crosses his arms. "I know you've been acting mostly normal. Aaron said that your change in attitude only occurred a day or so before you were kidnapped." Jace looks like the cat who got the cream.

I ignore his silent command to tell him the truth. "Why have you been talking to Aaron?"

His smirk drops, and he sighs. "We have found a camaraderie of sorts after some brief discussions about Zane."

"Informative." I roll my eyes.

"Whatever. Just because you are my older sister doesn't mean that you need to know everything about what I do." He rolls his eyes at me, and it gives me the urge to slap him... maybe worse.

Regardless, I take the opportunity he has so kindly laid out for me. "That applies to you as well. You don't need to know everything about my life just because you are my brother."

Jace sighs. I think I see one of his eyes twitch. But he smirks as he responds anyway, "Delightful try. I will find out what is going on eventually. It's your choice to prolong the discovery." I reach to find something to throw at him, but the front door swings open and shut almost as soon as he's done speaking.

That stupid, ungrateful, little... I take a deep breath and sigh. "There are better things to focus on today," I mutter.

I turn to the pot on the stove. Coffee isn't what I usually go for, more often than not preferring tea, but for some reason, it's helping me feel less ill currently. I pour myself a cup, appreciating the warmth as I take a sip.

I go over my mental checklist to ensure I'm ready, confirming that other than the illness currently plaguing me, I have everything I need, and I am ready to go.

Jace and I agreed that a visit to the library with the others could be beneficial. The information that can be found within the space – given that it's all information ever – can be helpful to our preparations for any events that might occur in the coming days. But I have hope that nothing drastic is actually going to happen.