Silverbow [The Shadowhunter Chronicles]

La Belle Dame sans Merci

"I saw pale kings and princes too,
Pale warriors, death-pale were they all;
They cried–'La Belle Dame sans Merci
Hath thee in thrall!'"
–La Belle Dame sans Merci, by John Keats

New York, 2008

The apartment was packed and Niya had a hard time navigating through the rooms. If it weren't for the Shadowhunters sprinkled in with the downworlders, it would have felt like any New Orleans party she'd ever been to. Finally she located Magnus, his bright blue silk tuxedo jacket made him stand out, even among the other fabulously dressed New Yorkers.

He turned his cat eyes on her as she drew closer, and grinned. "There's my favorite future-Shadowhunter." Niya let him hug her before tugging him out onto the balcony. She looked left and right before settling down. "What has you so jumpy?"

"You have to help me hide from Maryse Lightwood," Niya begged. "I haven't seen her since, well, since I dated her son." She quickly corrected herself, "Fake dated, I mean."

Magnus laughed. "Yes, Alec told me all about that. I have to admit I was a little shocked, I thought Niya Reynaud only dated downworlders."

Niya shot him a look. "I do. I was helping out a friend." Magnus raised an eyebrow. "No one ever said I was against the concept of Shadowhunter friends. I was just waiting for the right Shadowhunter friends. The Rosewains were assholes." She made a quick cross on her chest. The Rosewains had been entirely wiped out during the Dark War. "I mean, um, may the angel watch over them, or whatever."

Magnus held up two hands. "Hey, don't censor yourself on my account. The Rosewains were assholes." He shook his head. "I honestly can't believe you're going to ascend. You, of all people."

"Ugh, I don't even want to think about it. All those bratty Shadowhunter teens? Jace was bad enough at that age, I can't even imagine dozens of them." Magnus smiled and conjured her up a drink. Niya squared her shoulders, and took a long sip. "But, it's okay. I'll get through it, and when I do there will be one more Shadowhunter looking out for the Downworld."

Magnus ruffled her hair. "That's my voodoo doll." Niya rolled her eyes at the old nickname, but she couldn't fight back her smile entirely. The past year had been hell for everyone in the Shadow World, and it was nice to pretend for a moment that nothing had changed. "Has Madame Bones finally calmed down?"

Niya groaned, remembering how upset Auntie had gotten when Niya had announced her plans to Ascend. "Oh believe me, I was walking out the door and she was still ranting about how corrupt the Clave was and how I was making a terrible mistake. But it's better than throwing the good dishes at anyone who even mentioned the S word."

"You know, she called me. She thought I was the one person who could talk some sense into you," Magnus said. "I told her to suck it up and let you go."

"No, you did not." Niya raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"Of course I didn't, Madame Bones is terrifying." They both giggled. Auntie usually had that effect on people.

Niya's eyes drifted toward the skyline, and her expression darkened. "You know, Maman Brigitte warned me," Niya said, her voice so low Magnus had to lean in to hear her. "She said a boy would open the gates to the demon realm. She said he'd be worse than anyone I'd fought before."

"You couldn't have known about Sebastian, no one could have known."

Niya shrugged. "I know." She took another long sip from her glass. "But it was also a wakeup call. I owed Maman Brigitte a favor, and it was time for her to collect. When Jace called and told me the Academy was reopening, I knew that was what she'd meant."