The Scarlet Letter

Chapter Two

A/N: I'm sorry this chapter took a while to come out! I fully intend to continue this story, I'm just struggling to find the time and motivation to put the ideas I have down onto paper. No matter how long it takes, I do wish to continue as I'm quite excited about the idea!

Disclaimer: I don't own Shadowhunters or The Mortal Instruments.

Chapter Two

"What's this?"

Isabelle grinned, the glitter on her eyelids sparkling under the overhead light. There was a low rumble outside the door that escalated every couple of minutes. "It's The Scarlet Letter."

Alec took the little red pendant off his sister and held it in his palm. "What?" he frowned.

"Have you never heard of Hester Prynne and The Scarlet Letter?" Isabelle asked. "It's basically the entire basis of The Letter's theme."

Alec awkwardly pinned the badge to his jacket. "Keep in mind that I know nothing about anything right now. I don't know anything about the business, let alone what it's themes are based on."

His sister sighed and reached between them to fix his collar. She was wrapped up in a fluffy pink nightgown and Alec had a feeling she wasn't wearing much beneath it. He knew that this was the sort of thing to expect from a performer at The Scarlet Letter but that didn't change the fact that Isabelle was his sister and the thought of her being near naked was about as comfortable to him as trying to pierce his eyeball with a needle.

"In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is forced to wear a scarlet 'A' on her dress as a punishment for adultery," Isabelle explained. "The 'A' standing for adulteress."

"So . . . why am I wearing it?" Alec was confused and partially alarmed by his sister's justification for giving him a scarlet letter. What was she insinuating?

"It's the gimmick," Isabelle chuckled. She seemed to have become obsessed with straightening Alec out, for she was now trying to smooth the wrinkles out of his jacket. "Wearing the letter means that you're like a VIP. You get access to the front row; first drinks are free; backstage access; freebies; etcetera."

"But it still means adulteress?"

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "It can mean 'Alec' if you're going to be a whinge about it . . ."

Alec batted Isabelle's hands off his jacket, despite her complaints about him looking like a hobo. "So, what do you have to do to be graced with the 'Alec' pin?" he asked to silence her insistence that he looked like he'd been dragged through a hedge backwards.

"It's a very selective club," Isabelle teased, moving to her dressing table and tidying up the makeup that was strewn everywhere. "You're the fourth member."

"Only four?"

"Mmhm. It's mainly made up of The Letter's main investors: Miss Belcourt; Mr Santiago; and Miss Seelie," Isabelle answered. She shrugged. "We don't trust many people with the honour of it. It would be too easily abused, especially in an establishment like this."

Alec watched Isabelle clean up her table with only mild interest. There was so much makeup strewn all over the desk he couldn't begin to imagine what everything was for. He quite liked that Isabelle could do her own makeup, though. She was very talented with it and she knew what she suited; no makeup artist would be able to recreate what Isabelle was capable of.

Despite this, it got Alec thinking. Did all the performers sort their own makeup and costume? He'd spent most of the afternoon with Isabelle and most of her preparation process consisted of picking her outfit and doing her hair and makeup. Could The Scarlet Letter not afford artists? It was sort of odd, considering the popularity of the Letter's shows and that there were already three investors putting money into the business. Not to mention that their parents were apparently out meeting another possible investor that night.