For Dru (@fortheloveofaussiegrit), thank you for completely and utterly brainrotting me with this moment 🙏

Can we just step back and take a moment to appreciate the fact that we now have the smallest, tiniest, most insignificant inkling of an idea as to what might happen in TWP?

And that after New Year we will have more small, tiny, insignificant inklings as to what we might get to see?

CC has us all in web woven by her novel universe. I love her.

But gratitude and all aside, it's TWP CrAckPOt ThEorY TImE (by yours truly)!!

I have some pretty random theories and headcanons that I will be randomly spouting around now and for the next couple of days.

Theory #1: Kit gets gold wings.

Hear me out, why not? He's not just any old part faerie, he's the descendant of the First Heir! Also, Clary had a dream in CoLS of two people standing together beside a lake, one with white hair and black wings and the other with gold hair and gold wings. At the time, it was assumed that those two people were Sebastian and Jace, but the pieces are falling together! ASH HAS WHITE HAIR AND BLACK WINGS, can you not tell how excited I am?

Theory #2: The disappearance that Kit and Ty have to investigate is Livvy's.

I mean, does anyone reading this post have other ideas? It would make sense, since Dru would be sucked into Faerie danger, and even if she wasn't, she couldn't really help Ty because she can't even see Livvy. And if we assume that Dru is in Faerie, Kit is literally the only one Ty could go to, since nobody else knows (except for Magnus and Ragnor, who I think would either be too busy or simply refuse to help, thinking that if Livvy had finally truly died, then it would be lucky that the world got off without having to pay for it). Ty would, obviously, try to find Livvy on his own, but the thought that only Kit could help him would be nagging at him the entire time. So either he finally plucks up the courage to ask Kit, or they just bump into each other on their own. Either way, they team up together, very begrudgingly on Kit's part, because he'll be all ice and "I hate you" on Ty. Then, Kit's faerie magic spurts out again in a moment of danger, or in a fight scene where they're outnumbered, and Ty, aside being amazed, interrogates Kit heavily, and when Kit is finally worn off, he tells Ty angrily about his heritage and how if Faerie knew of it, the entire lands would be after him. And even though the thought gives me immense pain, I think that eventually, it's how Jessa dies, and Kit blames himself for it, and added to how he has to take care of Mina and live for her, he absolutely refuses to help Ty any longer. But then, when danger strikes again, his faerie magic comes out in full, Kit gets himself severely injured. And THIS happens:

"Well, it's a bit ironic, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

"All that effort to convince you I wasn't in love with you, and here I am, dying in your arms."

[Teaser #6] Link below.

I just realised I gave an entire rant about it, I'll stop now.

Theory #3: What can transpire between Dru, Jaime and Ash.

And I don't mean this just romantically. Dru getting involved in Faerie finally connects the dots, since Ash literally lives there, and Jaime disappeared there. Their storylines probably merge somewhere around TLKoF and they have their own adventures. Also, headcanon; you know how in TDA, Jaime was all distant when he found out that Dru was 13 and not 16, like he'd thought? And how he literally left, like, the next day? So, what I'm thinking is that he was already beginning to crush on Dru, and he was disappointed, not because she hid her age, but because they wouldn't be possible. Okay, okay, I know Jaime said that Dru was like his sister, but that if you go to that scene, you'll find he's speaking after a moment of being silent, perhaps drinking in the situation. I think he says that because he's trying to convince himself that whatever he likes about Dru is just friendly, and nothing more. Now, I know that people don't have the kindest opinions about DruxJaime, because Dru was just a child when they met, but if you really think about it, 13's really not that young, and Dru was really mature for her age. And this 3-year gap is nothing compared to what Lucie and Jesse had going on. Girl meets a 17-year-old-looking boy when she was 6 years old. Can you believe the age gap that I'm too lazy to calculate? So yes, DruxJaime is plausible, it can and will happen, although Dru will obviously end up with Ash. And if CC pulls an open end to Jaime's character like she did to Matthew, I will literally cry. I really dislike open ends, because it fills me with so many questions! I hate not knowing what happens next! I really want Jaime to either end up with Anush or go poly with Thais, which I know is just wishful thinking at this point. Any character will do, CC! Please and thank you!

Okay, I just read this entire thing over, and my self-critic says; this is not a post, this is me ranting. My writing is literally all over the place. I feel like I wrote too much. But I think I got it all out for now. This was fun.

Today's SOBH: let's chat yall

AKJS:DLJK:LKSJDF:KLJSFDLJLSKJDSLKJDSKLJSDLSDJLSLKJFLKSJDFLKSJFLKSJDFLKJSDFLJSLFJLKSJFLKSJFLKSJFLSJFLK

I AM SOBBING ON THE FLOOR RIGHT NOW I AM NOT OK

DEAR GOD I CANT DO THIS WHYYYYY

ok im trying to compile my thoughts as best i can but that's not gonna work so well so prepare for a very long, unhinged rant

first of all, livvy. seeing this update from livvy's perspective ripped my heart out of my chest and crushed it. i am already having all the feels. Hearing livvy describe kit being all grown up, it being a reminder that she will always stay the same....

I quit. im done. this hurts too much aksjf;jks;jfljslkfjlsfj

second, ty's reaction. my poor baby, he was so shockeddd

"I heard Ty take a breath like he never has before. Like he was gasping for air, like he’d been sucker-punched and he was trying to breathe and trying to breathe and he couldn’t."

kit may have fallen first, but ty fell harder for sure. this boy....he cares so much about kit that seeing him after everything that has happened causes him almost physical pain. he wants him back so much, but he doesnt understand why. or why kit has iced him out.

(sidenote: ty telling him that he's cleaning the gun wrong made me sob and laugh at the same time, because of course he would do that and i love him for it)

third thing:

KIT MY BABY WHAT THE HELL I GET YOURE HURT AND EVERYTHING AND I FEEL FOR YOU BUT YOUVE JUST HURT TY SO MUCH AND HES SO CONFUSED AND THIS ISNT HELPING YOU AT ALL

COMMUNICATE. I DARE YOU. TY CANT READ MINDS YOU IDIOT. HE DOESNT KNOW YOURE HURTING TOO. FOR ALL HE KNOWS, YOU HATE HIM

I LOVE YOU KIT, BUT DRU IS RIGHT YOU SUCK AT COMMUNICATION

“How long do you think it will take you to forgive me?”

“I don’t know,” he said.

“But not now,” Ty said in the smallest voice.

“No,” Kit said. “Not now.”

i just wanna hug them so bad oh my fucking god

THAT WAS PHYSICALLY PAINFUL TO READ JESUS CHRIST AND IT STILL HURTS. TYYYYYY POOR BABY

fourth thing: livvy noticing how hurt kit is too, but ty not seeing that

something tells me that livvy isnt going to tell ty about that, so as not to get his hopes up, meaning twp is going to be a long ride for them to get to the point where they actually communicate 👀😭

"Julian, I don’t know what to do. Ty misses Kit more than he thought he could miss someone. He misses him as much now as he did the day he left. He loves him the same. I think he always will and it scares me.

Kit is used to not needing people, but Ty needs people. He is afraid to need people but that is only because he needs them so much. He is not going to stop needing Kit. I don’t know if Kit will always need Ty. But Ty will always need him."

DONT SAY THAT LIVVY. KIT NEEDS TY TOO HE IS JUST SO FUCKING STUBBORN A:KJSDFLJSLFJLSDJFLSJFLKJS

no but i have to applaud cassie for this, because holy shit, this update managed to wreck me within the first paragraph. The overall tone, livvy's perspective and voice throughout the whole thing, the descriptions of our two lil baby idiots-----

I AM FEELING ALL THE FEELS AND I AM SO EXCITED FOR THEM TO FINALLY TALK IT OVER FOR REAL NEXT TIME

let me know what y'all's thoughts are!!! Id love to have a discussion about yalls theories and overall thoughts :D

The Wicked Powers Theories

The Wicked Powers has recently been getting me excited WAY too much - which says a lot about how weird I am since Cassie hasn’t even started on it yet (LOL).

aND, so, I kind of thought it’d be nice to jot down some predictions and theories on how the series might go and maybe some thoughts on THE SHIPS (that really do be the real TEA).

So.Here we go.And do let me know about any thoughts you have on this topic as well - I read anything about TWP like a crazed creature these days istg.

1)The POV has already been envisioned to be from Ty, Dru and Kit. I absolutely love this settlement since they are all very intriguing characters. Ty is an interesting person and his actions are always unpredictable, so we might enjoy this one. And,I believe he is at The Scholomance while the story progresses, followed by Livvy (Ghost Livvy, I mean).It’s still unclear what Livvy’s situation is, so I can’t wait to know more about that - it’s bound to be something unexpected. And, as for Dru, it’s kinda obvious. We all know that WE HAVE A LOVE TRIANGLE COMING UP. But, other than that, we also know she attends The Academy and finally starts to makes some friends and even has that really close Italian (..or was it Spanish???) Shadowhunter friend who’s her age and Cassie also revealed that the two are really tight indeed. And I will be honing in on the Love Triangle soon - I told you I’ll be trying to spill whatever tea I’m guessing at.  And, as for the last character WE HAVE KIT! OMFG YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE OLDER BROTHER KIT.LIKE GOSH DARN IT HE IS SO ADORABLE AND MINA IS SO EFFING CUTE I CAN’T EVEN-                          AND KIT’S TRAINING WITH JEM AND HE IS GOING TO BE A WELL-TRAINED SHADOWHUNTER IN TWP, SO YAYYYY!! And, I absolutely CANNOT wait for MinaXKit interactions, they are the cutest siblings ever and I absolutely know that Mina grows up to be sarcastic. I can’t wait for the possible sarcastic arguments between Kit and 4-year old Mina. YOU THINK I FORGOT ABOUT KITxTY? NOPE.THE REAL SHET’S COMING UP.

2)Now,we know that the storyline is going to have something to do with that Faerie Heirloom that was from the Rosales Family. And, Cassie also said it was going to be kind of an Arthurian Legend-ish story. If you don’t know the Arthurian Legend, I suggest you read on it. I’m not sure if Cassie meant the characters and LOVE Aspect of it or the LEGEND aspect of it as in the stuff about Excalibur and all. But, for now we’ll view it in both and examine it, shall we?

King Arthur's reign ends after his wife and best knight have an affair.

This is the drama in the legend.But, there are no relationships with the MCs yet. So idk. I’m clueless. Like, maybe Dru has a relationship?? Okay I’m clutching at practically nothingness so don’t judge me. :/

So,it’s obviously something to do with the LEGEND.

I am afraid I cannot say too much about it, since I have never read too deeply about it. But, here’s some of the basics:

-He managed to pull out Excalibur from the rock it was stuck in.

-He wielded Excalibur for the people and not for his own self-interest.

-He gets help from a wizard named Merlin.

-The peeps go on a quest.

And I have this reference from a website..I’ll hit u with the link as well, if you’d like to read more on it like I did

Arthurian legend, the body of stories and medieval romances, known as the matter of Britain, centring on the legendary king Arthur. Medieval writers, especially the French, variously treated stories of Arthur’s birth, the adventures of his knights, and the adulterous love between his knight Sir Lancelot and his queen, Guinevere. This last situation and the quest for the Holy Grail (the vessel used by Christ at the Last Supper and given to Joseph of Arimathea) brought about the dissolution of the knightly fellowship, the death of Arthur, and the destruction of his kingdom.

(I’ve linked it with the text above.)

So,now I thought this was interesting- the destruction part. After all, it’s something I’m expecting about the Shadowhunters. Will the Clave maybe be destroyed? Or maybe Faerie will be destroyed? So,there were three things that brought on this uh Destruction.FIRST, his wife and his best buddy were going behind his back and doing them lovey-dovey stuff. And they all go on some quest to retrieve something important to them. So, this sounds like something plausible to be the plot of TWP. Maybe the Heirloom’s missing? And who goes on the quest though? Maybe they venture through Faerie? BLAH MY HEAD HURTS SOME THINGS ARE BETTER TO BE SURPRISED WITH ;)

-----I kinda scrolled back up while writing about Janus down there and remembered CLARY MIGHT BE TAKEN HOSTAGE LIKE YESS AND THEY GO FIND HER MAYBE?

3)We will defo see Christina, Mark and Kieran at some point- no worries, Emma and Julian too. Happy Couples! XD

4)So,then we can look forward to Dru and Jaime’s interactions. I am absolutely excited for this the most, as a shipper of the two. If you remember, we saw Jaime ignoring her for a while back there at the end of QOAAD and then he says “See ya at the Academy soon ig”. I really do hope they meet and hang out as friends, at least. I am excited to see what kind of trope it’s gonna be tho. Like, do they ignore each other and remain awkward until they start the adventure stuff in the book where they eventually have to talk to each other after years or smth. Or, maybe they’re really good friends rn. But, what I’ll warn y’all shippers is that they might not end up together, and could wind up as brother-sister-ish kind of best buddies. Which is equally cute a relationship imo. It’s a really sweet thing to be, really. I lowkey hope Cassie spins something beautiful for their relationship like a sibling-like best friends kind of thing. But, I feel like they might have feelings for each other in secret. Or maybe they date. Or maybe they suppress their secret-feelings for the sake of friendship later on in the book and end up having that really sweet friendship I was talking about.There are SO many options and that is precisely why I am so freaking excited.

5)JAIME ROCIO ROSALES.       Like, I have this gut feeling that he might end up being my fave male protagonist character in TSC. He’s got it ALL. Like, the sense of humour, the looks, the bubbly yet brooding personality, the quirks and OFC THE FRICKING NAME ITSELF IS CUTE AF LIKE BRUH I CANNOT WAIT TO READ ABOUT HIM.I have so much to say about Jaime but I’d rather we let ourselves simply wait for the crumbs Cassie might give us or maybe reread all his parts in TDA like I do everyday or just wait for the book to come out rather than simp for someone we know nothing about yet....

6)Ash Morgenstern.         He’s a cute lil bean.        That was random and untrue lmao. He’s not a ‘lil bean’. He’s totally badass with dem wings and all, but we know he’s soft inside for Janus and ofc Dru, I believe. I find him the most intriguing character, honestly. I would love to know what goes through his head. He’s actually, like, the one character in TSC that I don’t have all figured out. He gon surprise us all for sure tho. He is awesome. That’s all I have to say for now. And he looks up to Janus which is SO GODDAMN SWEET AHHHH. And THE WINGS I CANNOT WAIT TO READ MORE ABOUT THE WINGS IT SOUNDED SO BADASS ISTG I LITERALLY CANNOT WAIT GOSH DARN IT. But he really do be a cute lil bean lowkey tho.

7)Kit and Ty LOL. I have no words really. But lemme tell you how it might go. There is definitely going to be some kind of reunion. AND THEN THAT’S WHERE IT GETS CUTE. They could either be awkward and we know what tension that gets us-perhaps some whisperings of My Watson...(?  ;) and maybe they go all sad and brooding with dem looks later OR, they could be the sweetie-pies they were before and be happy and all HIII BUDDDYYYY MISSED YAAA LESS GO BE DETECTIVES YAY BURN IT UP MAH BUDDY!! Either way it’s going to be cute af and we know it . TRUST IN CASSIE Y’ALL.I trust Cassie to let this ship sail the seven seas and seven more like it deserves.

8)Ash and Dru So, Ash has a strange lil fixation on Dru and I believe he even thought she was ‘pretty’ or something. It was definitely a good adjective, but I think he said ‘pretty’. idk but we know he likes her. and I can imagine a nice relationship. I can picture them with her hair flying in the wind and they meet for the first time or smth. IHNI WHAT IM SAYING. But, there will be DRAMA. They are going to be real cute with each other YOU CAN BET ON THAT.And, by cute I do not necessarily mean ‘Oh, you have the loveliest eyes’ or some shet like that. I have a feeling it’s going to be a case of ‘Well,that’s not weird or anything YOU WEIRDO - NO U - NO U - NO U’ However this relationship is going to go, I know that it’ll be a sweet one.And, for all you shippers of these two, I have no assurances that HE IS THE ONE or anything but he is definitely a candidate. Jaime is going to be some competition I can tell. So, idk. It depends on the Jaime x Dru ship to decide things for Ash x Dru ship imo, since it might be a no-brainer if the two have feelings for each other- I mean,Jaime is an actually perfect love interest in TSC, while Ash is strong potential Best-Friend material, so it’s ONLY if Jaime and Dru don’t like each other that way that Ash could make it as a love interest. So, if y’all wanna find out what’s in it for you guys, ask Cassie maybe about how the Jaime x Dru ship might go, the next time u wanna ask her ;)

9)Tavvy and maybe the kid Helen and Aline might have had We were getting hints of another baby, so HERE WE GO.Tavvy might have a playmate. :D. YAYYYYYYYYYY

10)Janus  I’m honestly worried about him. He is a worrisome character. I hate empathising with the antagonist, personally. AAAAHHHH . I hope we see some character development in him. I really don’t want to see him as an antagonist in the story. He’s sweet and feels cheated, but he should realise that it ain’t Jace’s fault but SEBASTIAN’S fault. I would like for him to make amends with Jace :( And, also, he might get the story started in TWP tho idk. But, seriously tho, when he went home in that short story and Ash asked, “I thought you were gone forever?” or something of that sort and he shook his head sadly and Ash went soft for him. Like, that fricking broke my heart. I love this relationship tho. And, i hope Clary and him can be good friends. But, I feel like he might end up dying to save her or smth and make us all cry . T_T

11)WHAT TF IS GOING ON WITH THE SHADOWHUNTER POLITICS RN THO?HOW AND WHERE ARE THEY ALL SURVIVING TOGETHER WHAT IS THEIR SYSTEM AND STUFF THIS IS NOT A POINT WITH POTENTIAL THEORIES COZ HONESTLY I WANT TO BE SURPRISED BUT I THINK THEY MIGHT ALL JUST BE IN HIDING AND THEN IN TWP THEY MIGHT HAVE TO COME OUT FOR A QUEST OR SMTH AND WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THE SHADOWHUNTERS AT THE CLIMAX OF THIS WHOLE SERIES??? IT IS THE END OF TSC SO IM SCARED AND KINDA SAD TOO :(((((((

12)Thule We might learn more about the Thule world and maybe they restore it or maybe the Quest is in Thule. idk. we don’t know much, but Thule will most probably be explored a lot. Cassie wouldn’t have opened up Thule for no reason.

13)Zara and Emma  Showdown? Befriend e/o ? What’s in store for these two? If it’s a showdown we get to see CORTANA YAY I AM OBSESSED WITH CORTANA NOW BECAUSE OF CORDELIA AND HER OBSESSION GOSH DARN IT WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO ME

14)BIG WAR I see a huge war coming I just know it. It’s a climax so there MUST be a big war and so I cannot wait! Feel like there’s gonna be some deaths as well. Lowkey feel like Jia might die. I can feel it. :(

15)The best-friend shadowhunter of Dru is a nice thing to look forward to! I can’t wait to read about the two! And I love the fact that Dru is finally exposed to new people. And, for anyone who’s confused as to how she goes to the Academy, in QOAAD she only said she’ll have some maturity done AFTER some years .  Those years are over and she at the Academy now hecc yeah I BELIEVE THE BFF IS CALLED THAI AND SHE’S FROM THE SPANISH INSTITUTE CORRECT ME IF IM WRONG???

16)Magnus Bane He is literally everywhere. He gon be here too. No worries for all the Magnus Bane stans. He’ll make it here without a doubt!  Good for you :).  and the entire community of shadowhunters they literally always need him  17)THE MAIN MAIN PLOT THE SHADOWHUNTERS SHOWDOWN IS OBVIOUSLY GOING TO ALSO BE RELATED TO THE PRINCES OF HELL COMING TOGETHER AND I AM TOO SCARED TO LOOK TOO INTO IT BUT WE KNOW SHIZ COMING GNJODIFPEDWEFHUGBJ VM

18)THIS IS KINDA RANDOM BUT I CAN’T WAIT FOR THE SELF-ESTEEM GROWTH IN DRU LIKE PLEASE SHE QUEEN MWAH

First

YOU LISTENED TO ENNEGRAM OMG YESYESYESYES

But like ive had people ask so im gonna ask (sorry if this is rude)

The ennegram us the name of the album, which is based on a pshycology theory

So its not just the songs! If you already knew ignore me pls!

So I always thought Ty was a five

Im biased on kit I WANT him to be a 4 cause i relate to him and im a 4

DRU HAS 6 ENERGY AND ITS UNEXPECTED BUT I HAVE MY REASONS

But 6w7

Ty a 5w4 in my head

EMMA IS AN EIGHT JUST LIKE ALASTAIR AND I LOVE IT

Cristina feels like a 2

Mark like a 7

And the res i'll do when I have braincells!

I did already know that the songs were based on the psychological theory.

Sooooo I have a feeling we're gonna fight about this because I disagree with most of what you said 😳😂 except for that Ty is a five because he is. And Mark is a seven I agree.

But I dont really see Emma as an eight, more of a three. The Achiever. The Success-Oriented, Pragmatic Type: Adaptive, Excelling, Driven, and Image-Conscious. She's INCREDIBLY driven and adaptive and pragmatic. We see this especially with solving her parents murder. As for image conscious. She's the one whose worried about what people will think about her and Julian where Julian just wants them to be together. Also she wants to be seen as "the next Jace Herondale."

As for Kit....listen....I know he doesnt neccesarily meet all the criteria, but I think of him as an eight. I listened to the eight song and I instantly thought of him. Because it's about learning to let people in.

"Here I am, pry me open

What do you want to know?

I'm just a kid who grew up scared enough

To hold the door shut

And bury my innocence

But here's a map, here's a shovel

Here's my Achilles' heel

I'm all in, palms out

I'm at your mercy now and I'm ready to begin

I am strong, I am strong, I am strong enough to let you in."

You can't tell me that doesn't make you think of Kit.

Cristina I guess I could see as a two but I see her as more of a nine honestly. The Peacemaker. The Easygoing, Self-Effacing Type: Receptive, Reassuring, Agreeable, and Complacent. It makes sense. Also the nine song makes me think of her.

Dru I guess I could see as a six or a seven. Honestly I wasnt really sure about her.

I'm still making my list so we can compare notes after.

Btw I hope this doesn't sound too harsh lol sometimes I struggle with tone 😊

Let’s talk about The First Heir

I got a lot of asks about the matter, so while I don’t have a concrete theory, sometimes summarizing what we do know helps.

*

One of you asked for a list of people who knows about Kit’s heritage, and I actually think that’s a pretty good place to start with!

Knows for sure:

Jem & Tessa, duh

Magnus

Catarina

Ragnor

Emma

Julian

Barnabas Hale

Probably knows:

Alec - not because of Magnus, actually... he was there when Jem and Tessa heard it from the faerie in The Land I Lost

So was Lily Chen

Jace - we know they will have a familial relationship, and it’s pretty weird to keep him out if Alec already knows.

If Jace knows, and Alec knows, Clary will know.

Hypatia Vex “That’s a lie,” he said. “My father is Johnny Rook.” “And your mother?” said the deep voice of Shade, behind them. A crowd had gathered behind him, too; they couldn’t run that way. “I don’t know,” said Kit, between his teeth. To his surprise, Hypatia raised her eyebrows, as if she knew something he didn’t. (Lord of Shadows)

Mother Hawthorn - We can debate on whether or not she actually followed the line up until Kit, but she knows the gist

The prime suspect to spill the beans is Barnabas, right? He hates Kit in particular. Warlocks have patience, so I’m inclined to believe he will wait up until the best moment, where the truth will be most harmful.

Hypatia is a mystery… we know she doesn’t like shadowhunters (a subject on which COG will probably elaborate) but she’s an ambitious woman who basically wants what’s best for her people. She’ll align herself with Shadowhunters if it’s necessary, but will she also betray them if it is?

Mother Hawthorn is no friend to Shadowhunters and we remember too well how cruel she can be. She cared about Auraline, but not about her decadents. In the very end, where will she align herself?

Lily made me worried for a while because of the Janus favor thing, here’s a theory about it. But I read somewhere that Cassie said Lily probably blocked it out of her memory from lack giving a shit.

I honestly believe none of the rest will tell - not to their families and not to their friends. Emma and Julian probably know everything - they did see Kit using his magic, and we know that they went to visit the Carstairs in Devon. But for the sake of this issue, I don’t think Ty, Dru, or any of the Blackthorns will learn about Kit’s ancestry from Jules or Emma. It would be problematic if Emma would have told Christina, because of her relationship with Kieran, and even though we know both Emma and Christina could keep a secret, I don’t think Emma would risk it - it’s not her secret to tell.

*

Will Ty figure it out before all hell brakes lose?

One of the more burning questions are - did Ty see Kit making the horses disappear? He was on a tree, yes.. but he hit one of the riders with his slingshot - which means he was looking.

In GOTSM, Ty is still hurt. He won’t talk about Kit, and he won’t talk to Kit. When Livvy asked him to write him, he didn't say "I don't want to".. he said, "He won't answer". Which means he's still sure Kit is mad at him, and him staying away is respecting Kit's decision. But Ty is the sort of person that can channel his emotions into actions, into goals, like with Livvy’s death. I find it hard to believe he would refrain from such a mystery for long. At some point, he will probably channel his pain into a relentless chase after the truth. He needs rules, he needs a plan, and he needs a purpose.

Ty is definitely a proud person… that, and the fact that discussing his detachment from Kit would result in questions he doesn’t want to answer - probably means he won’t go asking Emma and Julian about Kit. So who will he ask?

The obvious answer is Ragnor, of course. He sees him all the time at school, he already knows about Livvy, and he’s an extremely old and powerful warlock. But, he won’t ever tell. He’s far too loyal to his friends, and he stands to gain from claiming he’s the one that tricked the riders ;)

The second obvious option is Barnabas. Ty was the one who noticed Hale’s weird remark (“We tolerated you because the Shadowhunters hadn’t found you yet. But now they have and it’s a hop, skip, and a jump until you find out who you really are—” “What’s that supposed to mean?” said Ty.) But will it do him any good to ask? As we know, he hates Blackthorns… and if he knew Ty was searching for that information, he could use it against him.

I did a little reading about faerie magic and warlock magic.. and I actually disagree with one of the anon’s assumptions. I don’t think Kit’s magic “screams” faerie... But when it comes to him seeing through glamour - that’s a clue alright. The Codex specifically says that fairies are considered the masters of glamour magic. It’s not an easy connection to make, but Ty is, as we know - more than capable of getting there.

Ty didn’t know that Kit’s mother was the lost Herondale. Now he has her necklace, which means he knows both of Kit’s parents had shadowhunter blood… but apparently not only. That’s a lead - one parent is a Herondale, one’s origin is unknown. One of them, at least, had more than Shadowhunter blood.

Honestly? I don’t know if Ty will come up with something significant before TWP… because we won’t be there to read about it ;) but I’m almost certain he will try.

*

Who, how and why?

The two we know for a fact that are looking at Kit’s existence are The Seelie Queen and Janus.

The main problem, when it comes to the queen, is the fact that Kit is a Shadowhunter. If it was any other way, I don’t think she would have seen him as such a potential threat… not that she knows who and what he is at the moment. Julian thought she’s not into harming Shadowhunters just for the sake of it, but the end of TDA suggests differently - she wanted the parabatai bonds to be severed so she can weaken the Nephilim. Kit, being the descendant of the first heir and a Shadowhunter is like a spit in the face of everything she and The Unseelie King tried to accomplish with their union - all of that power could be harnessed by the wrong hands.

When it comes to Janus - I am more than sure that the fact that Kit looks like Jace will not be in his favor. I said it a while back - Janus will probably look at Kit and see the past he had, and the future that was stolen from him. The similarity between them will probably be even more pronounced in TWP - and it would be like looking at a broken, twisted mirror. By the time TWP comes, Janus will be even more ruthless - because now he has someone to love. Not just the memory of loving Clary, or even the distance stalking and occasional smooching in some alley. Its Ash - he’s everything to him. He put all of the shattered pieces of his heart in Ash’s hands, and that would clean away every remnant of guilt or empathy that was left in him.

I’m kinda scared just from thinking about it.

👀

“What are you doing here?” a voice demanded a short while later when he was still pacing across the cemetery, thinking he should’ve just gone to the pub.

Spike stopped dead in his tracks at the voice. Shit. The Slayer. Tingles raced down his spine and that sense of dread that being near a Slayer inspired in all demons filled him.

“Here, piss off, Slayer,” Spike growled. “Can’t a bloke just eat some dinner in peace.”

“You eat people… so… no!” Buffy said. “Not on my watch.”

Spike growled at her, seeing she was clutching a stake.

“Take-out food,” he showed her, lifting the bag he clutched.

“Liebe Paketes?” Buffy asked, her expression changing from angry and fierce to excited.

“Err… yeah,” Spike frowned at her.

“Good choice,” she praised, lowering the stake and tucking it into the waistband of her short skirt before crossing the distance between them. “They’re delicious. You’re sharing.”

“Am not,” Spike protested, yanking the bag out of her reach when she tried to grab it.

“C’mon, Spike,” Buffy rolled her eyes. “You want to sit around and eat alone in a dark cemetery.”

“Vampire, pet,” he reminded her. “Kind of what I do.”

“Not tonight,” she argued, pouncing at him and colliding with his chest before she lunged to grab the bag when he lowered his arms in surprise, planning to shove her away.

She snatched the bag of take-out from him and danced away with it.

“Oi!” Spike protested.

“Look, I worked up an appetite slaying a few fledges back there,” Buffy said. “You can share your dinner and tell me what you’re doing here, or I can dust you and eat them all myself. Your choice.”

“As if you could dust me?” Spike scoffed. “You and me, pet. Evenly matched, and you know it.”

“Nope,” she shook her head. “I’m better.”

“Bollocks, you are!” Spike replied.

“I am,” Buffy told him, cock-sure.

She opened the bags of take-out, ripping into the box of parcels he’d bought and helping herself to two of them.

“Prove it,” Spike growled, lunging at her in return and snatching the food back from her.

“Eating,” she said, taking a big bite. “After. We’ll fight. It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, because you’re scared to die,” Spike told her, snatching one of the parcels for himself and biting into it, glaring at her.

“Pfft! Not when I’m fighting you, I’m not,” she taunted, before sitting down on one of the long concrete coffin-markers and turning to lean against the headstone, snatching the bag of take-out from him again and putting it in her lap.

“Keep telling yourself that, Slayer,” Spike told her, sitting down on the grave-marker as well. “Bloody hell, these are tasty.”

“Right?” Buffy asked, digging into the bag for more and handing him some, too. “I’m pretty sure there’s something in them making them addictive. And a pretty small part of me is concerned that they’re laced with something to send people’s libido’s haywire, but they’re really good.”

“What was that about libido?” Spike said, pausing in the process of stuffing a fifth parcel into him mouth.

“Huh?” Buffy grunted, looking over at him, her cheeks comically chipmunked because she’d stuffed a parcel in each one. “Oh. I have a theory that eating them might be making people act whacky. Like, the Mayor and the Police Chief are hooking up and supposedly in love. And my Mom was saying that Giles was a lovely lay. And I’m pretty sure I caught Willow perving on Faith earlier today. But I could just be being paranoid because these things are so addictive. There was a candy incident, and it’s left me edgy.”

“Candy incident?” Spike prompted.

“A sorcerer Giles used to be friends with put something in these candy bars and distributed them as boxes of Candy to support the High School band. All the adults who ate it reverted to their rebellious teenage selves. It was really bad. My Mum slept with Giles. So gross.”

“What’s that got to do with libido?” Spike wanted to know, reaching for more food like he’d been possessed.

“Well, it made me paranoid. These are so good, you know? And everyone likes them. And weird things have been happening. Like the Mayor and the Police Chief. And Mom and Giles. And Willow perving on Faith.”

“If your Mom and Giles previously shagged, it’s not that weird,” Spike pointed out. “And there’s been tension between the Mayor and the Chief for years, according to Trick. And I’d put good money on Red being into the ladies. Nothing weird about any of that.”

“You think?” Buffy frowned, looking puzzled. “Maybe I am just being paranoid. Mom said I was a conspiracy theorist.”

“Among other, less pleasant things,” Spike told her snidely.

“Oh, eat me, Spike,” Buffy growled.

He went into game-face and lunged closer, his shoulder pressing to hers and trapping her against the headstone.

“Anytime, pet,” he said, leaning close enough to scrape his fangs over the exposed skin of her neck.

“Hey!” Buffy said, yanking her stake from her waistband and threatening him with it.

Spike growled at her.

“Ready for that fight, Slayer?” he asked.

“Still eating,” she said, shoving him away from her.

“You can be dessert,” he said, reaching into her lap for more Liebe Pakete.

“In your dreams, Spike,” Buffy rolled her eyes.

“Most of them, yeah,” he agreed, smirking.

“Gross,” she said, turning to look at him.

“Not really,” Spike said, leaning over and dragging a finger against the droplet of blood that had appeared on her neck where he’d scraped her with his fangs. He brought it to his mouth and groaned at the taste. “Mmm. Thought so. Delicious.”

“Why are you still in Sunnydale?” Buffy asked, shaking her head and eating more of the parcels as though he hadn’t just told her she was delicious. “I thought your plan was to find Dru, tie her up, and torture her until she liked you again.”

“Couldn’t find her,” Spike shrugged his shoulders. “Heard she’d come back here, looking for me.”

“Did she?” Buffy asked. “If I find her, I’m dusting her.”

“Not if I kill you first, pet,” Spike said.

“You’ll be dust before the sun rises,” Buffy said, sighing when she reached into the bag for more Liebe Pakete, and found it was empty. “And the food is gone.”

“Then we fight,” Spike smirked, rising to his feet.

“Digest first,” Buffy complained.

“Can’t put it off forever, love,” Spike said, looking amused, still in game-face.

“Fine,” she sighed, also getting to her feet. “But when you’re a big pile of dust, I reserve the right to hurl on the ashes.”

“Nice imagery, Slayer,” Spike rolled his eyes, pacing a few steps away and rolling his shoulders, gearing up to fight her.

“Thanks for dinner,” Buffy offered, taking him off guard with her politeness when he turned.

She flew at him immediately, launching into the air and landing a solid punch on his jaw that sent him reeling back. Spike growled furiously, and then it was on. And bloody hell, it was glorious. He’d watched her fight enough times to see a few of her moves coming well before she started them, and he took pleasure in countering every single one, drawing snarls of frustration from her when she couldn’t incapacitate him enough to stake him.

“That all you got, baby?” Spike asked when she roundhouse kicked him in the head and knocked him into a gravestone.

“You’re going to die,” Buffy told him, her anger evident in those flashing green eyes.

“Already did,” Spike sneered, using the headstone for the right leverage to launch himself into the air and land a hard punch on her jaw in return, knocking her backward.

She lost her balance, toppling backward to land heavily on the raised concrete slab marking a coffin, her stake skittering out of her grip as she tried to right herself. Spike was on her in a flash. Diving between her legs when she tried to kick him, his hands finding her wrists and pinning her  to the slab. She bucked under him, writhing furiously, and the effects of the fight and the drop of her blood he’d tasted had him hard.

“You… Spike!” Buffy cried out, evidently disgusted when she felt what she was writhing against as he pinned her.

“You love it, baby,” Spike told her, leering into her face. “Vampire senses, pet. I can smell how wet you are for me.”

Buffy screeched, though in denial or fury, he couldn’t be sure. Spike didn’t care which, to be honest. He just lunged for her throat. She twisted, evading the bite enough to keep his fangs out of her carotid, but not out of her flesh. He bit into her shoulder where it met her neck, his fangs sliding in easy and Buffy writhed under him when he retracted them, beginning to suck her blood with relish.

“No!” Buffy protested, writhing again, her wrists twisting in his hold.

She headbutted him with what little leverage she could get whilst pinned under him, but Spike wasn’t budging. Buffy locked her legs around his waist, using them to pull him off her with surprising strength and skill and Spike growled into her face when she practically crushed him with those rock-hard thighs of hers.

“Look at you trying to fight it, baby,” Spike smirked into her face, knowing the effect of his bite had begun fizzing through her. She was fighting the euphoria it induced, trying to throw him off, but he could smell how much she wanted him.

“Get off me,” Buffy snarled, and Spike grinned before leaning back in, intent on getting more of her blood.

She squeezed him tighter with her thighs until he was sure something must’ve ruptured. Pulling back, he released one of her wrists, slugging her hard across the face. Buffy grunted, but her hand knotted in his hair, yanking it so hard several strands came free before she headbutted him again, forcing him to the side and off her. She rolled with him, straddling him atop the concrete slab now, and Spike blinked at the feel of all her heat pressing intimately against the raging boner inside his jeans.

When her hands darted under her shirt to withdraw a second stake, Spike’s arms came up, instinctively blocking her when she drew her hands over her head, preparing to bury the stake through his chest with enough force, she’d probably penetrate the bloody concrete beneath his back.

“Come on, Slayer,” he growled at her, stopping the blow before she could stake him in the heart. “You’ve got to do better than that.”

He bucked beneath her, seizing her arms and flinging her off him over his head, flipping her onto the ground before he leapt to his feet and went after her. The scent of her blood was strong where she’d cracked her head against a gravestone on the landing, and the puncture wounds on her neck from his bite were leaking more of her precious blood down her chest to coat her cleavage. She looked pissed, her eyes glinting with cold fury, her expression wrought with hatred, and Spike’s dick twitched painfully with how badly he wanted to lick every drop of blood from the valley between her breasts.

Fuck, maybe she’d been right about the food messing with people’s libidos. It hadn’t been that long since he’d had Slayer blood, no matter the aphrodisiac it was. And a good fight always got his blood pumping and got him going for it, but not like this. This felt like an almost crippling need.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Buffy hissed at him angrily when he trailed his eyes over her hungrily, drinking in her glory.

It took him a minute to realise she’d hissed it in Ancient Vampiric, rather than English, and Spike paused, tipping his head and breathing in deeply through his nose.

“You alright there, Slayer?” he asked, frowning when he noted that her sweet sunshine scent seemed thicker and yet altered. More demonic.

“I’m fine,” she hissed in the same ancient language, her green eyes seeming to brighten until they almost glowed the way his own did when he was in game-face.

“You want me, baby?” he asked, scenting the air again and breathing in the musky, sweet scent of her desire.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she spat, lunging at him once more, swiping at him with the stake.

They fell back to fighting, hard blows coming fast and thick, raining down on resilient skin and bone as they battered each other, traversing the boneyard in their fury as they fought on and on. He’d been right. They were evenly matched. He’d known, of course. The few times he’d fought alongside her against Angelus’s spies and Kenny’s goons had showed him that. They were of a similar build thanks to his average height, and they both enjoyed the fight. Compared with other he’d fought, like Angelus and most demons, the fight with Buffy was about the fight. Death was a goal, to be sure, but it wasn’t a pressing one. Inevitable, but there was no rush in getting there.

Other demons were all about the blood, the violence, the sickening crack of bones beneath heavy blows and the screams of pain from their victims. For them, the fight was supposed to be quick to incapacitate in order to savour the meal without the violence, or only about the violence for the sake of bloodshed and death. It was about the food, or it was about the torture, but Spike himself had always preferred the artistry of it all. The gloriousness of the movements. The poetry of motion.  

This Slayer fought that way; his way. She could’ve staked him any number of times instead of kicking him, or punching him, or throwing him across a headstone. He could’ve done the same. The licks he’d stolen of blood beaded upon her skin were evidence enough that he could’ve bitten her again as many times as he wanted. Hell, he had bitten her several times already, though never quick enough or incapacitated enough to drain her dry before she was back with blows of her own, but the euphoria was tainting her scent now too. She was moving faster, hitting harder, infused with a strength he hadn’t seen from her before, but god was it good.

“Urngh!” she groaned when Spike caught her by the neck when she lunged at him, her legs still swinging, the momentum letting her try to kick him before forcing her to wrap them around him again when he charged against the side of a mausoleum, still holding her by the throat.

He knocked the stake from her hand again, sending it sailing away into the darkness, and Buffy clawed at his shoulders. They were both practically feral with something dark and dangerous and heady that he didn’t think he’d ever experienced before that moment, and Spike didn’t know if he wanted to drain her dry, or hard-fuck her right through the stone at her back.

“What now, baby?” he asked when she wrapped her hands around his throat in return, even though unlike her, he didn’t need oxygen to live.

“Now, you die,” she answered, still speaking that ancient language and making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

“Don’t think so,” Spike said before lunging despite her grip on his throat and sinking his fangs into her jugular once more.

She moaned loudly in his ear, and Spike flushed with triumph when her grip on his own neck loosened as she tilted her head, surrendering her neck to his bite this time. Her legs were wrapped tight around his hips, her ankles locked against the small of his back and her skirt was riding up. Leaning into the space between them, the heat of her twat practically branded him right through the denim of his jeans and he drank deep of her blood before licking the wound closed to work his way down her chest, licking her skin clean of the blood she’d shed.

“Oh, god, Spike,” she whispered in English, her hands leaving his throat to slide around and tangle into the hair at his nape, clinging to him desperately while she began to roll her hips needily.

“Want to eat you up, pet,” Spike told her, drunk on her blood and the desire pumping through him alongside the adrenaline of the fight.

Kit flew out of the Portal like he had run as fast as he could into it, nearly barrelling over Dru who had been standing close in anticipation for his arrival. The other Blackthorns were in the library too, as was Diana, Emma, Cristina and Aline, waiting patiently for the Carstairs. Helen had invited the Carstairs to dinner, and at Kit’s request she had also invited Jace and Clary. It wasn’t an unusual event, the Carstairs went to the institute once a month to visit the Blackthorns, and Kit went even more frequently to see his friends or join in with training Dru and Tavvy. “Kit!” Dru squeaked, grabbing his arms until he’d steadied himself, just in time for Tessa and Jem to come through with their daughter’s hands clasped between them. “Hello everyone,” Helen greeted them with her soft spoken voice. Kit ignored them, his eyes were scanning the room for his boyfriend (not that anybody else knew that), but he couldn’t see him. “Where’s Ty?” He demanded and after a stern look from Tessa he apologised and said hello. Dru gave Kit a sideways look and gestured up the stairs of the library. “Ty went that way a couple of hours ago with his book, we haven’t seen him since.” She said, sounding unworried. Kit grinned at her, he knew where Ty had gone and after excusing himself as politely he could he ran up the stairs and out of view. Ty was curled up in a crevice of the library where he could see everything, but unless you knew exactly where to look, you couldn’t see him. Ty was reading Sherlock; the book so battered and read that Kit reminded himself to buy Ty a new one, even though he knew the tall dark haired boy wouldn’t get rid of his copy. “Hey Sherlock,” Kit said softly to not surprise Ty, but Ty just held up his hand and his eyes scanned the page. After a few, excruciatingly long moments in Kit’s opinion, Ty looked up and smiled brilliantly at Kit. His heart seemed to melt like it always did when Ty smiled at him like that and he dropped to his knees in front of Ty. 

“You kill me every damn time Tiberius Blackthorn.” He said in a soft voice and Ty rolled his eyes, but his smile didn’t leave his face. He reached out and put his fingers gently on Kit’s pulse point on his neck. “You’re still alive Christopher Herondale.” He said and Kit leaned up a little. “Kiss please?” He asked and Ty nodded, angling his head. Kit pressed his lips to Ty’s and Ty’s hand slid to the back of his neck. Kit’s heart sped up and his stomach warmed gloriously at the touch, like his body would never get used to Ty’s lips on his or his fingers gently pulling on his hair when they kissed. When Kit pulled away, Ty gently ran his lips across Kit’s cheekbones, although Kit knew it was because Ty liked the feeling and not because he knew it gave Kit pleasant goosebumps. Kit could see the assembly below in the library and realised with a start that Jace and Clary had arrived while he had been distracted by Ty. “We should go back downstairs.” He said, half resignedly even though he did want to see Jace. Ty hummed against Kit’s cheek and he felt the vibration along his skin. He pulled back and Ty let Kit help him to his feet. “Are we going to tell them about us tonight?” Ty asked. He always asked, every time they had a family dinner. Kit always said no. He wasn’t scared of what would happen, he knew in theory everyone would be okay with it. Tessa and Jem were so full of love, two of the Blackthorns were in same sex relationships (or polyamorous relationships) and Jace’s parabatai was married to a man… but Kit didn’t feel right about making an announcement about his relationship. Ty and he had been in a relationship since they were nearly eighteen, a few month after their reunion from Kit’s move to Devon, and that had been nearly a year ago. “Maybe.” Kit responded, but he didn’t think so. The two of them descended the stairs with their hands together, and at the point just before they would come into view where he would normally let Ty’s hand go, Ty squeezed tightly. Kit didn’t let go, his cheeks flooding with heat. Their arrival back on the main floor of the library didn’t go unnoticed, and if anyone saw that the two boys had been holding hands then nobody said anything. Kit let go to hug Jace and Clary who was near enough glowing with happiness and Kit knew that look. Tessa had had it when she was pregnant. He went to ask them about it, eyes wide, but Jace slapped his hand over Kit’s mouth. “If you are about to ask what I think you’re about to ask I wouldn’t okay?” He said, but he was grinning. Kit grinned under Jace’s hand and nodded. “Congratulations.” He whispered and Clary winked at him. “Dinner is ready!” Aline said, her voice commanding attention from the room as it always did. Ty fell into step beside Kit as usual, and after taking a deep breath, Kit took Ty’s hand. He glanced up and saw Ty’s wide eyes, but neither of them said anything. Kit sat between Ty and Jace at the large dining room table in the barely used dining room, and the flood of voices that was so common here washed over him. Ty, who was used to it only in part, had sweat beading on his temples. Kit pulled the spare headphones he carried in his pocket out and handed them to Ty, but he shook his head. Although Kit was worried about Ty, his attention kept getting dragged into conversations around the table. He found out what was happening in New York, the Faerie lands, and what was happening with Dru and Tavvy’s training. Diana apologised for Gwyn’s absence twice even though everyone had assured it was okay. It wasn’t until after dessert and everyone retired to the library again that Kit could give Ty his absolute full attention. He drew Ty a little away from the group where everyone was curled up in couples, or seated alone, drinking tea or coffee, so that they were close enough to hear and be heard if they wanted to, but Ty also had his space. Space that is, except from Kit who seemed to be the only person who could invade Ty’s personal space unasked, although Kit did often ask. Kit and Ty were facing each other on the floor, knees touching, holding hands against the floor behind their legs so that nobody else could see. The only downside was that they had to lean forward to hide their hands. Ty was within kissing distance, and his beautiful grey eyes were downcast, he looked sleepy. Kit raised Ty’s chin gently with his index finger and Ty’s eyes flickered to his, then down to Kit’s lips. “You ready for bed Ty?” He asked softly, saying his name because Ty had told Kit once that he liked the way Kit’s lips looked when he said his name. Ty shook his head and leaned a little bit closer. Kit’s heart was in his throat, and as a loud eruption of laughter from the others rose, Kit drew Ty even closer and kissed him. It wasn’t a light kiss, Kit felt Ty’s teeth scratch his bottom lip and they had to shake their hands free ungracefully before Kit could put his hands on Ty’s legs and Ty could put his hands behind Kit’s neck, but it was kissing nonetheless. Kit’s eyes were shut tight, and Ty’s hair was brushing his cheekbones, and Kit felt the world fall away until it was just them. Although, Kit realised with a start, that it hadn’t actually fallen away, everyone else had just gone extremely quiet. Kit’s eyes flew open and he pulled back, leaving Ty a little bit pink faced and his hands falling to Kit’s shoulders. Everyone was staring at them with open mouths. Everyone except Dru who was grinning and pointing at Mark. “I told you!” She jeered, “I told you they were dating!” “You knew?” Ty asked, but he sounded curious and not at all accusatory. “I saw you two kissing on the back steps.” She said, looking extremely proud of herself. “Which time?” Ty asked and Kit groaned, covering his face with his hands. This made Jace laugh and when he peeked through his fingers he saw Cristina, Emma and Clary were all covering their mouths or actively trying not to laugh. His eyes flicked to Tessa and Jem who didn’t even look surprised, they smiled warmly at him and Tessa mouthed ‘we love you.’ Kit felt a weight drop off his shoulders, but it wasn’t completely gone yet. He looked at Helen who looked startled, Aline was drinking wine and looking up at the ceiling like it was her who had been caught doing something she shouldn’t have been doing in front of the entire family. Tavvy and young Cordelia were looking around in confusion, but when Kit met Tavvy’s eyes he smiled. Mark was watching Ty with curious eyes, but Julian was looking at Kit with a very intense stare. “What?” Kit asked weakly. He noticed nobody except Ty and Dru had spoken and he didn’t know what to do. Ty’s fingers laced with Kit’s, but Kit couldn’t look away from Julian. “If you hurt him, I will kill you.” Julian said calmly. Kit swallowed drily and nodded slowly. “You could beat him Kit.” Ty said, “With your faery power.” This made those who had been trying not to laugh lose their cool and the room filled with giggles, breaking the tension that Kit had been feeling. “If I hurt you Ty, I’d let him kill me.” Kit said honestly and after a moment of his studious gaze Ty nodded. “I believe you.” He said and kissed Kit’s cheek softly.

When it was time to retire, Tavvy and Cordelia already asleep, all the adults seemed to want to make a point of telling both Ty and Kit that they were proud. The two boys stood together awkwardly in the hallway as everyone passed them, smiled, and said a kind word. “I always thought of you as a brother.” Dru announced and Kit felt his face heat up. “We aren’t married Dru.” He mumbled. Ty, who had moved behind Kit like he was using the boy as a human shield between him and his family’s emotions, rested his chin on Kit’s shoulder. “Not yet.” He said, no doubt in his voice that they would be married one day. Kit blushed more and this only made Dru laugh as she guided a still half asleep Tavvy down the hallway. Last was Jem and Tessa who didn’t even glance down at Ty’s loose grip on Kit’s waist or react to Ty who had tucked his face against Kit’s neck. “He’s tired,” He said anyway, in case they were wondering. “We are too,” Jem said, repositioning Cordelia who was asleep on his shoulder. “You knew didn’t you?” Kit asked and Jem smiled. “We knew you loved someone, a Blackthorn, and it wasn’t hard to work out which one.” Tessa said. “We just hadn’t realised it was a mutual thing.” Jem added. Kit smiled and turned his face to kiss Ty’s hair. “It is, I’m pretty lucky.” He said and they smiled. “You sure are son.” Jem agreed. Tessa kissed his forehead and Jem ruffled his hair and then they too were disappearing to the room they would be in for the night. “That went well.” Ty observed, straightening up. Kit hummed in agreement and then turned to look up a his boyfriend. “Ready for sleep?” He asked and Ty shook his head. “No, but I am ready for bed.” He said and Kit let him lead him to Ty’s bedroom, closing the door securely behind them.

Thank you so much for the request!! I hope you like it! It is 1am and I am so sorry if I made any silly typos @rachfic222

Kitty QOAAD Theory

OK, so, here’s my brilliant fan theory about Kitty (Kit Herondale x Ty Blackthorn) in Queen of Air and Darkness.

SPOILERS FOR QUEEN OF AIR AND DARKNESS AHEAD!

OK, so, in Chapter 29 (Tempt The Waters), just before the big battle with the Cohort and Prince Oban, there are four scenes: one where Mark, Kieran and Cristina meet up and profess their love for each other, one where Kit and Ty try to raise Livvy, one where Dru goes to free Jaime and Diego from prison in the Gard (I think), and one where Emma goes to destroy the first parabatai rune with the Thule version of Maellartach.

In the scene with Mark, Kieran and Cristina, at the end, it says:

‘”I love you,” Cristina said to both of them, and they said it back to her at the same time, their voices mingling so she was not sure who spoke first or last.

“I love you.”

“I love you.”

“I love you.”’

Then, when Dru goes to the Gard and starts picking the lock, it says:

‘Livvy would have never hesitated, Dru knew. She would have hurried forward, desperate to right any injustice she saw. She would never have held back. She would never have hesitated.

Livvy, this is for you, my sister.

I love you. I love you. I love you.’

At the end of the chapter, when Julian comes and stops Emma from cutting the parabatai rune, it says:

‘She wanted to reach out to Julian, to touch his hands, to tell him she was grateful. She wanted to say more, say the words they were forbidden to say, but she didn’t - just looked at him silently and thought them, wondering if anyone had thought these words before in the Silent City. If they had thought them like this: with equal hope and despair.

I love you. I love you. I love you.’

 Now, in the scene with Ty and Kit, which is between the Kierarktina scene and the scene with Dru, we get a heart-wrenching lovely scene in which Kit does this after he tells Ty not to raise Livvy, and Ty says he can’t live without her:

‘”Yes, you can,” Kit whispered. “You can. You think this will make your family stronger, but it will destroy them if you bring her back. You think you can’t surprise without Livvy, but you can. We will go through it together.” Kit’s face was cold; he realised he was crying. “I love you, Ty. I love you.”’

Now, isn’t that lovely?

However, something I noticed was that in all the other scenes, there were three ‘I love you’s, but in the one with Ty and Kit, there were only two. My theory is that there were three ‘I love you’s, it’s just that the third one was what Ty thought, and we don’t actually ever (I think) read anything from his perspective.

However!

At the end of the section with Ty and Kit, there are three ‘I love you’s, like in Dru’s scene, but these are still thought from Kit’s perspective and, at this point, he’s already professed his love for Ty. If we count all the sets of ‘I love you’s, there are five (Kierarktina, Dru’s, Jemma’s, Kit’s two, and the three at the end of Kit’s perspective), and all but one are a group of three, which makes me think that they all were a group of three, it’s just that we didn’t hear Ty’s one because he was so cut up about Kit betraying him at the last minute.

So that’s that. It’s probably not right, but it’s just something I noticed and couldn’t help but wonder if it was intentional.

It’s almost time for Queen and I just wanted to share the theories I have. This is going to be long, so I’ll divide it into paragraphs. I also have a somewhat wild theory about Annabel and the Unseelie King that I kind of hope is true, which is probably not the case (who knows though). 

Ash as Sebastian Morgenstern & the Seelie Queen's son

When the theory first came up, I was rolling my eyes because, really? ANOTHER Morgenstern? But with all the information we have at this point, what else would he be? I think the question we should ask ourselves is less “Is Ash a Morgenstern?” and more “Is he the weapon Clary and Jace were looking for and if so, why?” 

I think he is, but I doubt he’s evil. Not only would that be too predictable to have another evil Morgenstern, but he’s also introduced in a way that sets him up to be Dru’s love interest for TWP. I believe he’s either a total cinnamon roll (which would be so ironic and amazing) or a morally ambiguous character. 

But why could he be a weapon? Even if he were evil, that wouldn’t automatically make him a weapon. He could be one in the traditional sense that he can do something special. It’s not unlikely, considering he’s the son of one of the most powerful faeries alive and a demon-blooded Shadowhunter. But it could also be in the sense that as the Seelie Queen’s son, having him under your control means having power over her, which is probably why the Unseelie King has him.  

What I don’t see, however, is Clary and Jace trying to kidnap a child to have power over the Seelie Queen. But the mission came from the Clave and they would definitely do something like that and maybe Clary and Jace don’t know the true reason or they do and are trying to save Ash. Especially if he truly has special powers, they would want to prevent him from using them for evil. 

Also, one of my theories is that the Seelie Queen won’t survive or at least won’t stay a queen in QoAaD (more on that later), so I don’t think he’ll go back to her or maybe he does but not as a prince. I definitely don’t think he’ll stay in the Unseelie Court. But will he be with the Shadowhunters (as he could be trained as one, like Mark and Helen) or stay in Faerie? I have a lot of theories about Faerie (again, more on that later), so it’s difficult to guess what might happen. There are a lot of possible outcomes when it comes to Ash, he has the potential to be a villain, a love interest, a friend, an ally, or something in between.

The Unseelie Queen

I believe Annabel either is or will be the Unseelie Queen. This is the last book in a trilogy and yet the Unseelie Queen was never mentioned before, except for a drawing in the Shadowhunter Codex. Would Cassie introduce an important character in the last book of a series? I don’t think so. Also, I’ve read on here a while ago (but sadly don’t remember who made that post) that apparently Queen of Air and Darkness is another name for the Unseelie Queen in folklore, which I googled to check if it’s true and it did come up, though it doesn’t seem that common. And the Queen of Air and Darkness has, according to Cassie, already been introduced. Which makes it quite obvious to me that the Queen of Air and Darkness has to be Annabel, which should mean that Annabel has to be the Unseelie Queen.

And this is how we come to my somewhat wild theory: I think that maybe things are completely different than we think and Annabel has been evil all along and was always, even before her death, in league with the Unseelie King! 

I know, I know, but hear me out: Annabel could have met the Unseelie King through Malcolm, which means they could’ve fallen in love. Maybe they even got married, and the Unseelie Queen depicted in the Shadowhunter Codex is actually Annabel Blackthorn! Perhaps that’s why nobody has ever mentioned or seen the Unseelie Queen, at least not ever since Annabel’s death: because for centuries, she was dead.

How did I come up with that? There’s a scene in LoS that I can’t find a reasonable explanation for unless the Unseelie King loves Annabel: Annabel tells the Riders of Mannan that she knows the Unseelie King’s true name. Now, it could’ve been a bluff, but the Riders are ancient beings, so I doubt they’d be easy to trick. Which is why I think she wasn’t bluffing and they knew, maybe they recognised her and knew she was in league with the Unseelie King, so they left because they thought whatever she was doing was a ploy in favour of the fae. Besides, Cassie never reveals such things randomly. If a character says they know the Unseelie King’s name, it’s likely that they do and that we will eventually hear it too.

So how would Annabel, a Shadowhunter, know it? I assume the only people that ever knew the King’s true name would be close family members (maybe only his parents) or considering how deeply faeries love, someone he genuinely loves and trusts. I also assume that as soon as he feels like someone who knows his name is posing a threat, the King would make sure they’re killed. Which means the only way Annabel could know the Unseelie King’s name would be if someone told her. Who would tell her, she’s a random Shadowhunter! Unless the Unseelie King told her himself because he truly loves her.   

“But Malcolm and Annabel were in love!”, I hear you say. Well, we know Malcolm loved Annabel but who’s to say she truly loved him? She did kill him when he resurrected her and yes, it was explained by her being angry and mad and suffering all these years, so her love turned into hate, but even so it would’ve been a lot easier to kill him if she truly didn’t care for him at all. She could’ve pretended to be in love with him because the Unseelie King needed the Black Volume of the Dead and she needed Malcolm to steal it. 

“But why didn’t the Unseelie King save Annabel if he loved her?”, you may argue. If I understood correctly, Malcolm and Annabel weren’t held at the same place. I assume the Unseelie King either couldn’t find Annabel or his magic couldn’t save her. After all, Downworlders are often held and brought to different places because Shadowhunters don’t want to “taint” their special places with their “Downworlder filth”, which was likely even more the case in the 19th century. So, the Unseelie King saved Malcolm instead and tried to use him to find Annabel. I’m not sure when and how he found out about her death but if he loved her, he probably wanted her resurrected. But if he didn’t know how to raise Annabel from the dead or couldn’t do it himself, he would’ve needed someone he could trust to want her back as much as he does—Malcolm Fade.

And now you may say, “Okay, but wasn’t the Unseelie King after the Black Volume and not Annabel?” Hm, if the Unseelie King was after the Black Volume alone, he wouldn’t have needed Annabel and therefore why would he let Malcolm even attempt to resurrect her? Especially once he died and it fell in the water, he could’ve easily retrieved it. Why allow him to keep it and resurrect some random Shadowhunter? Unless said Shadowhunter was important to the Unseelie King too. Maybe he even used his magic to help Malcolm put himself together to complete the ritual. 

Now, I’m not sure what I believe Annabel’s motives were after being resurrected. Maybe she was still in love with the Unseelie King and everything she did was in partnership with him. Maybe she was genuinely mad at the King, so she hid the Black Volume not just from the Shadowhunters but also from him, hurt that he let her suffer for so long. Maybe she was angry with him at first but later started working with him, either before or after the mess that was the last scene of LoS. 

Possibility One: Annabel took the Black Volume and went right to the Unseelie King with it upon being resurrected. I find it interesting that she was communicating with faeries. Why would faeries talk to a Shadowhunter? Why would a former Shadowhunter talk to faeries? Would she not stay away from Shadowhunters, warlocks AND faeries considering they were the ones that caused her suffering? I couldn’t figure out whether piskies are Seelie or Unseelie but if they are both and especially if they are Unseelie, the interactions would make a lot of sense. And considering they sent Julian and Emma to a place where a demon was waiting for them, it makes you think about her/their true motives … Yes, later Annabel saved them from the Riders of Mannan and went along with them to Idris but perhaps they wanted to stop the Cohort or there was another ploy going on, possibly to do with the Blight or something we don’t know about yet, so she went along and it was the plan all along that she acted all mad. Or they planned to do something, but she went genuinely mad, triggered by the Cohort. It would explain how the Unseelie King knew Annabel was in Idris and saved her. 

Possibility Two: Annabel was furious with both Malcolm and the Shadowhunters AND the Unseelie King and wanted to hide from the world. When there was a chance of redemption, she, knowing the Unseelie King wouldn’t give up on her and everyone would keep hunting for her since she had the Black Volume, tried to get it to finally be left alone and be accepted back into Shadowhunter society and live out her life in peace. Her threats to the Unseelie King were genuine in that case and she genuinely went mad too. The Unseelie King spirited her away out of love in this scenario as well and I think they made amends after that. Or he’s now mad his Queen acted against him. 

Either way, Annabel ends up back with the Unseelie King as his Queen. If this admittedly wild theory is correct, I assume the first version of it is more likely and Annabel always acted in collaboration with the Unseelie King. Cassie also said there’s a reason Annabel’s runes aren’t on the cover and her finger isn’t missing. Maybe by wearing the Unseelie crown (again?), she changes physically? I mean, we don’t know much about faerie magic, but we do know objects often hold certain powers, like Gwyn’s cloak for example. 

Cassie described Annabel as a villain. Unless my theory is correct, she hasn’t been one so far. Sure, she killed Livvy, but that was because she went mad. It wasn’t really a villainous action. Besides, I’m certain she either is or will be the Unseelie Queen. And if she’s just mad, how will that happen? The King manipulating her? It’s not impossible but what would he have to gain with her as the Unseelie Queen? That would certainly give her power. Would he really give a mad Shadowhunter power? I don’t think so. Besides, I kind of like the idea of Annabel being in league with the Unseelie King, it would be an amazing plot twist and let everything shine in a new light while still making sense and making it even more plausible to have her be the Unseelie Queen aka Queen of Air and Darkness aka the ultimate villain. 

Ty, necromancy & why Kitty is doomed

I definitely think Ty is going to attempt to resurrect Livvy and I definitely think it’s going to somehow put him in a situation that by the end of Queen will separate him from Kit. Unless they truly start out as a couple in TWP (which would be awesome too, but Cassie is all about angst, so unlikely), they have to be separated somehow. It’s clear they’re attracted to each other, there’s no way over the course of three years they won’t start dating unless something happens in Queen that changes things. Maybe Ty has to go on the run from the Clave because of his attempted necromancy, maybe Kit has to go on the run because he’s still hunted for being the descendant of the First Heir, or maybe Kit tries to stop Ty and they end up fighting and separating that way. I worry about the latter coming true because we’ve seen snippets that hint at Kit sabotaging Ty’s attempts. If they loved each other but were physically separated, I could live with that more than a Kitty fallout. 

I don't think Livvy will be back completely, probably shortly as a ghost. So far, all necromancy in the books had horrible consequences and I think except for Jace, nobody stayed alive (Annabel still is but she surely won’t survive Queen). The books are basically teaching us that the dead should stay dead and if they don't, there's a price to pay. Cassie can't use the same Jace plot again with Livvy and I don't think she'll make her death even more painful by necromancy turning Livvy into a monster or zombie of some sort. I think it'll just be a way for the Blackthorns or just Ty to get closure and speak to Livvy one last time. Or maybe for Livvy to finish what she attempted to say when she died. Bringing her back completely would be way too easy and take away the pain her death caused. 

Off-topic, but the only thing I don't like about Cassie's books is all the necromancy and dead characters turning out to not be dead after all because it makes death less of a final thing. You never know if a bad or good character may end up returning a few chapters or books later and that's something I hate. Cassie has been using this kind of thing as a plot device way too often already. I love Livvy and her death broke my heart, but can’t she just stay dead? We know she does come back in some way, maybe temporarily, but ugh, it’s so boring at this point. Jace and Sebastian were actually dead and resurrected, Malcolm was sort of resurrected for a short while, Annabel was resurrected, Jesse might be resurrected in TLH, Shade is most likely a character we thought was dead (more on that later), several dead characters appeared as ghosts and one of them is still sort of around by guarding the London Institute. It’s a little too much dead characters coming back and if it’s just to have a bittersweet moment of goodbye. Challenge for Cassie in TWP: no necromancy, no character thought dead returns, no new ghosts appearing. Can she do it? I’m not getting my hopes up. 

Kierarktina aka Hot Faerie Threesome 

I wasn't convinced this would be a thing at first but re-reading the first scenes with all three of them in Lady Midnight there are hints already with Cristina feeling desire when she sees Kieran and Mark kiss. And that continues throughout LoS and the snippets we’ve been getting from Queen. With every other author I'd call it teasing but Cassie has never done things like that and always delivered when it comes to hints at representation, so I can't imagine her teasing a threeway relationship like that and not making it canon. I worry it may only last for a short while though and one of them dies, but I really hope not. I just have this feeling it’ll be canon and I really hope I’m right.

Shade as Ragnor Fell 

There are only two green warlocks that we know of and Cassie has confirmed we’ve already met Shade. The fact alone that he calls himself Shade makes it obvious to me that he isn't John Shade because how stupid would that be? It also makes no sense that he would appear and especially not that he'd help Shadowhunters because he fucking hated them. Ragnor, on the other hand, makes a lot of sense. 

I think it was in "Son of Dawn", where Ragnor is one of the warlocks Jem asks for information about the Lost Herondale, it links Ragnor to the current plot in TDA. I even came up with a theory as to how and why he could've faked his death without Magnus knowing (we know Magnus doesn’t know because he literally thinks and talks about his grief for Ragnor with Catarina). 

Remember how Jem was attacked in "A Deeper Love" by faeries for knowing too much? If Ragnor truly had information, it would make him a target too. Which is why I think, Ragnor may have been hiding in Idris and eventually the fey were too close and he knew he had to do something drastic. He probably didn't want to endanger his friends or asked only one of them to help him (Raphael?), so he made himself appear dead somehow, even to a warlock like Magnus. He made sure he could still get the information about the cure for Jocelyn out there, knowing one of his warlock friends would eventually check on him, so he passed the information on via enchanted message.  When the fey arrived, they found him already “dead” and left. Then Sebastian arrived, found him “dead” as well and claimed it was him (making it even easier for Ragnor to hide from the faeries because they would believe Sebastian had killed him). Why would Sebastian lie about it? Easy, he didn’t want to admit to his father or anyone that he’d been too late and Ragnor was already dead. Literally why wouldn't Sebastian lie? Or Sebastian was actually WITH the faeries that wanted Ragnor dead since they did have an alliance later on. In that case they would’ve collectively decided Sebastian would take the blame (or glory depending on who you ask), so they would not raise any suspicion to Jem. Though in this case I wonder who they suspected to be Ragnor’s actual killer. 

Parabatai bond resolved 

I think all bonds will break. What else could change the Shadow World forever? A law could always be changed back but we know if the parabatai bonds are broken, they’re going to stay broken. And it is a thing that makes Shadowhunters stronger, so it’s likely it’ll change the dynamics. 

After the snippet with Julian worrying about Emma’s marks, a lot of people are worried Emma will be stripped of her runes, but it was already said that she couldn’t live not being a Shadowhunter. So, unless she’s going to die, I don’t think it’ll happen and I have a feeling she won’t die. It’s also too obvious. I don’t think Cassie would’ve shared a snippet like that if Emma was going to be deruned. 

I think maybe it isn’t Julian but Emma who breaks the parabatai bonds (there’s a moment where she wonders if the bond could be evil, maybe she finds out that’s the case and decides to break all the bonds because of it) and maybe that’s the scene where Julian finds out. Though it does strike me as odd that he says “marks”. Maybe by breaking the parabatai bonds, something happens to runes in general or because Emma is the one, something happens to her? Or the scene has nothing to do with that and her marks change because of the curse that her loving Julian puts on them. 

Cristina as the Seelie Queen 

I’m leaning even more towards this after reading Cassie’s answer about the Seelie Queen narrating the epilogue. It’s the series finale, it’s not going to end in a cliff hanger, even if as Cassie has said not all fates are great, the story has to be complete. If we think of TMI, the ending was a true ending without any sort of cliff hanger, the main characters were all safe and okay. But there were still the fates of the TDA characters that weren’t great and hinted at more story to come (with Helen in exile, Mark in the Wild Hunt, Emma and Julian in love but on the path of becoming parabatai, etc.). Which is how I think TDA will end too. How does the epilogue being narrated by the Seelie Queen fit into that? 

And I’ve actually been thinking about Cristina as the Seelie Queen before because all her interest in and ties to faeries have to have a deeper meaning than her being in a love triangle with two faeries. Cristina hasn’t been in a significant plot outside of her love triangle so far but she’s a main character and she knows enough about Faerie to survive there. So what if she snatches the Queen’s crown and by default becomes the Seelie Queen? Makes me wonder how the faeries are going to react when a Shadowhunter seizes the position of their queen but do they have a choice but to follow her? As I said earlier, certain faerie objects tend to give people powers, so there might not be anything the fey could do but try and trick Cristina back. Or maybe they come to like and appreciate her as their queen because she doesn’t act like an entitled Shadowhunter but actually tries to live by their rules and their ways (without compromising her own morals of course). It could also mean the epilogue takes place in the Seelie Court and may be some celebration held by Cristina, maybe even her crowning ceremony (my friend suggested that btw). 

Kieran as the Unseelie King 

Now ever since that revelation about Kit being the descendant of the Unseelie King AND Seelie Queen, I’ve been doubting whether Kieran would actually end up as the Unseelie King but since Cassie said that Kit’s heritage will affect him more in TWP, I doubt he’s going to become the Unseelie King or King of all Faeries in QoAaD. That would mean he’d start out as a powerful King when TWP starts, which is an unlikely position for a protagonist. 

So either the Unseelie King simply stays in power or it’s Kieran who replaces him. We know how much he was liked in the Unseelie Court, so he probably would have enough support for it to work. And he has no place to go at the moment, so unless Cassie plans on killing him, which I still worry about, but I also assume she’ll make the hot faerie threesome canon, he pretty much has to become the Unseelie King. He can’t stay with the Shadowhunters, but he’d face execution in Faerie if the Unseelie King stayed in power. Well, I guess if Cristina becomes the Seelie Queen, Kieran would live with her in the Seelie Court and be safe there … 

Connecting this theory with Cristina being the Seelie Queen and Kierarktina being canon (or even just Kiertina), they might end up reuniting the Courts. There was a snippet in which it happens, so maybe it’s not Kieran and Cristina that are reuniting them, unless that snippet somehow is closer to the end of QoAaD. Either way, it would be cool having Kieran as the Unseelie King, Cristina as the Seelie Queen, Mark as, well, Mark—living together and loving each other and ruling over all of Faerie. It would also make them conveniently absent in TWP. But maybe this is would be too good to be true. 

Death predictions 

(Probably) Won't die: the TMI main characters, Jem and Tessa, and the confirmed TWP characters (if Cassie plans on killing main characters from other series, it’s going to happen in TWP, not TDA); Diana (she's the only trans character, Cassie won't kill her); Helen and Aline (she won’t kill them as they just came back and are the only f/f couple); Tavvy (he almost died in LM already, it would mean yet another Blackthorn dies and it would be Max 2.0, way too predictable), Emma (I genuinely don't think she'll die, it's a gut feeling) 

(Probably) Will die: Diego (I'm sure of this, he’s just the kind of character that is destined to die and after a certain snippet, I assume he’s the one that’s going to be executed); Annabel (I just don't see a version where she comes out of this alive)   

On the fence about it: Jia (because of the scene where Jace nominates Alec for Consul but maybe she just steps down voluntarily, after all, Cassie has killed so many Consuls already), Julian (I used to believe he would die, possibly executed for breaking the parabatai bonds but now I’m leaning more toward Emma breaking them and Diego being executed and it just seems more and more unlikely he’ll die but who knows); Mark, Cristina or Kieran (I do believe Kierarktina will be canon but it might be short lived and I really wouldn’t rule out that one of them dies but I’m certain at least two of them will live and I’m hoping they all survive); Cameron (he’s not very liked and since he was behind a plot point, it could lead to his death because that would mean he’s more involved than we thought he was); Zara or Horace (I think it’s likely only one of them dies, I’m leaning toward Zara because having a bigot as the Inquisitor for TWP would certainly make it harder for everyone, especially if he’s getting even worse out of grief and Zara could die because she’s just not that good of a Shadowhunter and way too horrible to continue doing what she does); Gwyn (I don’t really think Cassie will kill the love interest of the only trans character but she doesn’t reveal information that Gwyn’s power is in his cloak for no reason and it makes me believe that at the very least he won’t stay the leader of the Wild Hunt for much longer), the Seelie Queen and/or the Unseelie King (I feel like at least one of them will die if not both and if they both live, I think at least one of them will lose their position as monarch) 

And that’s it! Did anyone actually read this? I don’t even care, I just needed to write down my thoughts and after spending so much time doing it, I really felt like it would be a waste not to post them. 

Topics I just need to touch on from Lord of Shadows (MAJOR SPOILER ALERT)

Emma and Julian

- I’m really glad their friendship went back to normal after some time. The distance between them was unlike them at all and I hated it. I know it was necessary because they both had to process how things had changed between them, but that doesn’t mean I liked reading it.

- Okay so I think the curse is seriously coming into play here. Cassie never outwardly says that the curse is already occurring, but she drops multiple hints throughout the book. For one, all of a sudden, Emma and Julian can communicate telepathically. I don’t know but I’m pretty sure that’s not supposed to happen. Also, um, they caught a STONE building on fire?! Stone? All-powerful runes? Ring a bell?????

- During the church scene and many, many other scenes, there’s so much sexual tension between Emma and Julian. Literally. I think there’s more in LOS than LM because at this point they’ve had sex and seen that intimate side of each other. At this point, they both have privately acknowledged that they are in love with the other. I think that plays a huge role in their relationship and how it has evolved since Lady Midnight.

- That huge fight that they had when they were staying at Malcolm’s cottage literally broke me. I was on the verge of crying while reading that. I’m just glad that it didn’t take long for them to make up.

- Their conversation about the Shadowhunter family mottos BAHAHAHAHA

- This is their second sex scene and honestly I loved it so much. It was so perfect. I almost burst into tears crying when Emma admitted to Julian that she’d been lying about her relationship with Mark.

- Emma still hasn’t told Julian that she loves him and I keep wondering if this is an important detail that will be used in QoAaD. Am I the only one who noticed this?

Diana Wrayburn

- It’s not like I hated Diana in Lady Midnight, I just didn’t know her very well and didn’t see the depth of her character. Once I read her backstory, I grew to love her. She is such a strong person and honestly I just want to be her best friend.

- Diana and Gwyn? Um, can you say hella cute couple?

- Once Cassie told us that there would be a transgender character reveal in Lord of Shadows, I knew from the start that it would be Diana. In Lady Midnight, it talks about how she has lots of secrets and a dark past. We knew that she’d been through a lot, so it wasn’t a huge surprise for me, but still a monumental moment in the book nonetheless. 

- Summed up into four words, I can say “I love Diana Wrayburn!”

Kit Herondale

- From the moment we found out in Lady Midnight that Kit is the Lost Herondale, I knew that he would be an interesting character to read about. I was not disappointed.

- It’s truly heartwarming to watch Kit grow from a person who is denying himself as a Shadowhunter and the culture of the Shadowhunters to fully embracing it and finding a home with the Blackthorns. That scene where they’re fighting the Seven Riders and Ethna (or whatever her name is) is about to kill him and he’s all like “I’m Christopher Herondale.” I just loved that and I almost cried. 

- At this point, I still don’t really know where his relationship with Ty will lead. I know for sure it will be either a romantic relationship or a parabatai relationship, and I’m perfectly fine with whichever. For me, it’s hard to tell right now. Cassie has a habit of pulling large plot twists on us, and I don’t know what to think. All I do know is that I like Kit and Ty as friend or lovers. I think they compliment each other very well and are so cute. (The Sherlock and Watson comparisons?! Cute af!)

Julian Blackthorn

- I’m honestly so scared for Julian and I have two main theories for him. Neither of them are happy. He’s either going to literally go off the deep end and go full evil and be really bad or he’s not going to survive to the end of the series. Like I said, I don’t really like either option.

- Julian’s hidden ruthlessness is touched upon several times in LOS like in LM. This is NOT coincidental and Cassie is foreshadowing. His ruthless nature and his undying will to protect those he loves will play a major role in the plot of QoAaD, I’m sure.

- I don’t even want to think about how Livvy’s death will affect his family, but especially Julian. He’d devoted his life, time, and heart to protecting his family and doing whatever it takes to keep them alive and safe. He’s failed to do that. Because of Livvy’s death, he will blame himself and I feel like it will really push him over the edge. 

- There is this undeniable dark Julian that we all know exists. Few of us actually acknowledge that this is a part of Julian because we don’t want to imagine our baby Julian like that. Our baby Julian, who has been in love with Emma for god knows how long. Our baby Julian who ran an Institute when he was twelve, killed his own father, who became parabatai with Emma even when he knew he was in love with her because he didn’t want to lose her. Jules, Julian, who paints her in secret, who hides his feelings for her. He is an incredibly selfless person and I feel like that it could seriously be his downfall and weakness ironically.

- Basically, I think that tough times are in the forecast for Julian Blackthorn. :(

Five Main Character Deaths

- Jon Cartwright: I was really surprised about his death and didn’t see it coming. I was just a lil sad but overall it wasn’t that bad. I will miss him though. I hope Marisol will be okay.

- Arthur Blackthorn: I was also very surprised about this death. In Lady Midnight, Arthur is written as this insane, depressed, and sad individual. We don’t like him because he was supposed to run the Institute, not Julian. In the last few pages of his life, he was completely lucid and actively gave up his life to save the younger Blackthorns. I was very taken aback and thought it was very honorable. It instantly redeemed his character for me. I was sad to see him go.

- Malcolm Fade: I never really believed he was dead tbh. I actually laughed when he truly died. Literally, this dude spends 200+ years dedicating his life to bringing a girl back from the dead, and when he does she just kills him?!?! I died it was actually really funny. I realize how sick that sounds and I’m sorry but it was so funny.

- Robert Lightwood: Never did I think a character from another series would be killed off. I set myself up for sadness when I assumed that. I was very sad when Robert died; not only was he Emma and Julian’s only hope to fix things between them, but he was also just mending his relationship with his children and it broke my heart when Alec was calling for his dad. I can’t remember exactly, the last few pages of LOS were a blur of tears and emotions and words and I’m pretty sure I started crying when Alec was calling “Dad, please, dad.”

- Livvy Blackthorn: Oh my god. Oh my god. Livvy’s death caught me by complete surprise and it crushed me. Livvy had so much ahead of her. She’d found out that Julian had been the one that had taken care of all of the younger Blackthorns since the Dark War, and she’d wanted to be like him. She’d kissed Julian on the forehead. It was so cute and it warmed my heart. SHE NEVER GOT TO RUN AN INSTITUTE. All Livvy wanted was for her family to be together and when Helen and Mark finally came back and everyone was together, she died. She never got to see her family reunite, and I think that’s the saddest part. I truly will miss Livvy. And when the clock rang? Oh my god, I was a hot mess. There are dried tears on the last two pages of LOS. I cried myself to sleep that night when I finished it.

Side note on Livvy’s death: maybe this is a grieving me just searching for a way to bring Livvy back but there was a quote in either Lady Midnight or Lord of Shadows (I think its LOS) and one of the characters (I think a faerie or something) is like “Oh, how foolish of u to regard death as something so final.” Will this tie into Livvy’s death? WILL LIVVY COME BACK?

Characters I Literally Cannot Deal With

- Jaime Rosales (taking advantage of Dru like wtf)

- Annabel Blackthorn (she fucking killed Livvy and Robert ugh)

- Zara Dearborn (I don’t really need to explain this, do I?)

- The Cohort (see above)

Characters I Didn’t Pay Much Attention to Before but Now I Like Them

- Mark Blackthorn (sweet bby oml)

- Kieran (ur not as bad as I thought, pal)

- Diana Wrayburn (I explained above. Never hated her or anything, just didn’t know her)

- Gwyn ap Nudd (PROTECT THIS ACTUAL TEDDY BEAR OML)

- Dru Blackthorn (don’t make her babysit plz)

- Ty and Livvy (I have a twin and I wish he was like Ty lol)

Emma Carstairs 

- hot mess of angst and emotions throughout the book (as expected) 

- Julian Blackthorn Julian Blackthorn Julian Blackthorn Julian Blackthorn

- She slayed one of the Seven Riders like holy crap girl ur a legend

- She and Julian had sex again. Have I talked about this? Yes. It was amazing. I loved it. I enjoyed every second of it.

- I love how whenever someone does anything mean or says something bad about the Blackthorns, Emma freaking goes apeshit on them

- When Emma made Diego stand in the antpile.... OH MY GOD I LOVE THIS GIRL

- She’s so sassy and I love her sass. Did I mention I love her sass. 

Further comments

- WHAT THE FUCK IS THE DEAL WITH CORTANA BREAKING THE MORTAL SWORD. WHAT THE FUCK. I NEED ANSWERS.

- will Emma and Julian seriously ever get rid of the parabatai bond

- how will Livvy’s death affect her family

- when will Mark, Cristina, and Kieran have their eventual threesome I need to know

- how the fuck is Bridget still alive

- ALL OF THE TID REFERENCES WHILE THEY WERE IN LONDON AHHHH MY HEART

- what is happening to the warlocks oh my god don’t touch my Tessa and don’t touch my Magnus

- is Ragnor alive or nah

- what is the history of the Black Volume

- Clary better not die or I fucking s2g

Lady Midnight booktalk

Oh, boy I have no idea where to start and I don't know what to say for the no-spoiler section except that this book was amazing and that you should all go read it. ( You have to read The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Device, and The Shadowhunter Academy before you read Lady Midnight but I think you already knew that and if you have never read any of this I don't know how you can survive they are the best books.) So anyway now I am starting with the spoilers so if you haven't read it yet, read go it and come back to discuss it here with me.

SPOILER ALERT

Ok so this book like any other Cassie book, broke me. I was hysterically crying at one point, I couldn't take it anymore and this moment was when the faerie delegation came and said that Mark has broken the law and he should get 20 lashes for that. The moment they said it I knew Julian was going to take those I just knew that he would step in for his brother and I was like NOOOOO JULIAN MY BABY DON’T DO ANYTHING I KNOW YOU LOVE YOUR BROTHER AND YOU ARE KIND AND EVERYTHING BUT DON’T THAKE THE LASHES I DON’T WANT YOU TO GET HURT. But of course he didn’t listen and I immediately started crying and then when Emma felt his pain oh.... it was so sad and I was so mad at Mark ant Kieran. And when Emma went over to Julian and drew the sleeping rune on him and said “Sleep my love”  I was crying even more and then when Emma took the lashes I was still crying that scene really got to me. Cassie always knows how to make me cry. And then I stopped crying for a while but of course, Emma has to have a dream with her parents where her father plays Jem’s violin and of course, her father has to mention Jem and there you go I was crying again because every time there is something that has to do with Jem I cry. Oh and please how could I forget to mention the scene at the Parabatai party where some Parabatais are holding a speech and Jem’s runs out of the room and Tessa runs after him. Does Cassie want to kill me??? And of course, the end where Jem appears with Tessa to pick up Kit and then Jem talks with Emma, again I was crying. Jem’s makes me cry every time that boy has my heart and my soul forever. Ah, and that I mentioned Kit, first of all I don't like him and second of all I don't like the idea with the lost Herondale, I think I also mentioned this before but it is not like I don't like the Herondales I love them, Will has also stolen my heart and don't get me started on Jace, I love them both so much and this is the reason why I don't want another Herondale in the story, it’s because I love Will and Jace too much and I am very territorial and I want them to be the only Herondales but who knows maybe I will get to like Kit. Alright now back to Julian, I freaking love him I felt in love with him from the first moments and that is why it broke my heart when he got the lashes and when he suffered because Emma got the rest of the lashes and when Emma said those horrible things at the end of the book so that she can protect him. He suffered so much in his life and know he is going to suffer even more. I mean this boy has practically 4 children since he is 12 years old and besides that, he is running a flipping Institute. I know that it is not his uncle’s fault that he is the way he is but I am still mad at him and at Diana, how can you let that poor boy have so many responsibilities can someone please help him??? And what is the matter with Diana anyway why did she come to the Institute if she is not even there most of the time what is she hiding? But back to Julian, it breaks my heart to see him so hurt and I am so scared to see how he is going to react on that whole Mark and Emma thing it will destroy him. (I was crying at that part too when Emma told him she doesn't love him and that she and Mark... oh...). I finished the book last night at 4 a.m please imagine how I felt, I felt like I was going crazy. After I finished the book I had to watch polandbanansbooks video on this book because I love her and her videos and I always watch her book talks. And she said something that really scared me, that I didn't even realize until she said it. She said that Julian risks to go a really dark path because he already has this darkness in him and that everything can go very dark for him after he sees Emma with Mark and everything. And I think she is right I am afraid that Julian is not going to be ok and I don't want that for him because I love him. I am very curious about what is going to happen in Lord of Shadows I can’t wait to start it. And what is going to happen between Julian and Emma how can we break the Parabatai bound, I intuited that Parabatai are not allowed to fall in love with each other because then they are going to be too powerful and I was right and I have now some theories of how the bound is going to break but I just want Julian and Emma to be together they have to find a way to break the bound and be together. AHH and Mark:” Emma why pretend?”, yes Emma why pretend???, I was so mad oh boy and I still am...like how dare you Mark how dare you? I am also afraid Christina is going to be heartbroken when she sees the Mark and Emma thing and I don't want her to be heartbroken ether I like her and I don't want her friendship with Emma to get destroyed by that story because let's be serious she does not love Diego anymore she is in love with Mark and I ship her with Mark and she is not going to react well on the Mark and Emma thing. Have I mentioned that I don't like Kirean, whel I don’t like him and I want him to stay away from Mark and Christina. And I also wanted to say that I love Livvy, I love the way she is and how she loves her twin brother. Ah and Tavvy is so sweet, I love him too. I have just realized that I haven't spoken about Malcolm so let's say I wasn't surprised that he was the murderer (I got spoilered back when I was reading City of Heavenly Fire that he is the murderer) but anyway I found the story very interesting, I mean like how the murderers where committed and this whole mystery, I always love a good murder mystery. And I must say I somehow feel sorry for him because he lost the love of his life and I totally understand why he wants to bring her back but that doesn't justify what he has done and what he did is definitely wrong. And like Christine from polandbananasbooks said he may be still alive, he is a warlock after all. And now that Annabel is alive I think there are two possibilities, one is that she wants revenge and blood because of what her family has done to her or two that she is actually a nice lovely person. But I think the first option is more likely. I am not sure if I said everything I wanted but I think I said everything, oh no wait I forgot to say that I love Emma and that she reminds me of Jace. I love her jokes and the way she is. And I was so excited when I heard that Clary and Jace run now the New York Institute and that Simon and Izzy got engaged ah... that is so lovely even though somewhere in my brain I still picture them as 16 years old and it is a little weird to see them so grown up. And of course omg how could I forget that so, I also read that Cassie is planning to publish two more series one with Tessa’s and Will’s children and the other one with Ty, Dru and the rest, I think the one with Ty it's named The Wicked Powers and I have read that this is going to be her last Shadowhunter series and that in that book the Shadowhunter World is going to change forever. AND I AM AFRAID. What does that mean? Are they all gonna die? I don't want this all to be over, this thought is scaring me so much. What is going to happen??? I AM SCARED!!! And I am afraid I won't be able to read this series because of that, I don't want all to end and change. I also think that I won't be able to read the series with Tessa’s children because it is going to hurt me so much. But until all those books come out I still have to finish this amazing series and as I said I am excited to continue to read because I love it. If you are still reading this endless post, thank you you are amazing!!! Please discuss this book with me, write some comments with your thoughts I can’t wait to see what you are thinking but please no spoiler on Lord of Shadows and Queen of Air and Darkness.

Lord of Shadows Review & Analysis! SPOILERS AHEAD, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

On another note about spoilers, I get that seeking out spoilers as well as snippets, are a product of waiting so long for the next book… but I don’t know that I will treat them the same way going into QOAAD because I almost felt, while reading, that I had read 35% of the book already! I can’t promise that I won’t seek out spoilers or snippets, but I do hope that less are released over the next two years (I know that sounds ridiculous, but I would prefer a surprise!) With Regards to Individual Characters: • Emma: a feminist badass, growing into being the best shadowhunter of her time but not there yet. Her sarcasm and skill has improved since LM, and I literally laughed out loud during her POV’s and while reading her quotes. The scene with her and Diego and the fire ants= pure gold. Her scene with Manuel and calling out the cohort for being fascists= pure gold. • Julian: a sweetheart and I want to cry thinking about how much he has been through. I know “Dark Julian” has been referenced several times throughout the fandom but I really didn’t see too much of a change until- actually- the steamy scene with Emma where he demands that she calls him only Julian. Very sexy, very dark too. • Cristina: deserves better and I am dying for more of her POV’s. I am always amazed by her class and maturity. • Diego: not perfect. I am mad at him. • Kit: surprisingly likeable. I am so glad they included POV’s with him and Jace!! • Livia: underrated as hell, so sweet, so caring, so selfless, her charm and sarcasm= gold. • Ty: I AM SO GLAD WE ARE FINALLY STARTING TO SEE T Y B L A C K T H O R N AND HIS TRUE SELF-A M E N. • Dru- her crush on Jaime is fitting for a first crush and I’m glad he gave her the confidence to speak up. I want to hug her literally all the time. • Tavvy- irrelevant but cute. SHIPS: • I surprisingly loved Mark and Emma’s dynamic. Their relationship reminded me of a mundane high school sweetheart kind of relationship, because you can tell they absolutely care about each other, I just don’t see them as anything more than a bromance. I will however agree with the sentiment, "maybe in another life" because maybe, in another series, in another world, they would have been perfect for each other. • Kieran/Mark/Cristina: I find it significant that no choices were made in terms of canon relationships, which I interpret as a canon friendship because if any of them were going to be romantically involved, a decision would be made by now. I enjoy the friendship they have, I surprisingly forgave Kieran, but I do not expect any of the Blackthorns or Emma to forgive him also. His actions in QOAAD will definitely define how I feel about him going forward. • JEMMA: You all know I am 100% a Jemma shipper, but this time around I was glad that their relationship did not overshadow the rest of the book. I liked how private their relationship was, which is a funny word to use because people become more privy to it in LOS and because it was extremely private in LM, but the fact that they were literally in a different part of their country on their own made me all happy. • I am also glad that I got the B&N copy with the extra scene, which I waited to read because it is right after the ending of the book and I did not want to read anything after finishing LOS, lol. • Kitty: No canon romantic relationship yet, still very cute scenes… Ill talk about this in theories. • Kit/Livia: I am glad that Livvy’s first kiss was Kit, and not some random boy who won’t treasure the memory or look back and think “oh she was sweet, it’s a shame what happened to her”. Kit will always treasure the fact that he was Livia’s first kiss, and will cherish the friendship he had with her. It was platonic, but still special. I know people on tumblr were upset with this but I hope by the end of the book they understood. PROFOUND THINGS IN LOS • Lets talk about the fact that Emma Carstairs literally doesn’t cry….. but she cried over Julian literally 400 times in Lord of Shadows. If that doesn’t show you how much she literally loves that boy idk what will. • CLARY SHIPS JEMMA. During their conversation Clary literally says “who I pictured you with [not Mark or Cameron] doesn’t make sense….” This goes back to my question to CC about whether or not Simon knows about Jules and Emma, since he noticed something off during the parabatai ceremony. She responded “he knows something, he just doesn’t know what he knows”. I think the same applies to Clary, maybe she has even had premonitions about it, and that is so so significant. #jemmaisendgame • Kit and Livia and Ty’s friendship: so sweet and pure and is literally the reason why Kit decides to stay. How will Ty and Kit function without their third musketeer? • DRU & JAIME: Thank you Jaime for giving Dru the confidence to confront her family over her role as a Shadowhunter… but the witchlight you left behind that literally portals to another dimension: WTF? WHO IS ASH????? That scene is messed up because it is so short and therefore, subconsciously everyone looks over it because of how chaotic everything else is. I can’t help but feel like this is going to play a MASSIVE role in QOAAD. • Diana & Gwyn: Thank you CC for trans representation and a beautiful story. The fact that Gwyn accepts her wholeheartedly made my chest ache, and I hope that no one will use it against her please please please. • Jules & Emma’s Decision to tell the Inquisitor: Not sure why they did this tbh, but now that Robert is dead, what are their options??? Did he mark it down somewhere? Will they become so irrational that they consider the Seelie Queen’s offer? Livia’s Death • Months ago I received an anon message from someone about Livvy, which literally said that they felt something was going to happen to her and I completely dismissed it…. Thinking we haven’t seen enough of her storyline yet and it was too soon. I AM SO SORRY, and it’s literally all I have been thinking about for days. • Livia was so so selfless, down to her core, the last moments of her life were spent trying to save the people she loves. • I discussed with a mutual that the fact that Annabel did it was both cruel and also extremely fitting. • When you think about it, Livvy was the 21st century version of Annabel. From their appearance, which was remarkably similar, to the way that they treated outsiders taking refuge in their family (Livvy with Kit, Annabel with Malcolm) down to their deaths, both innocents killed trying to protect the ones they love. • The fact that the Mortal Sword shattered to me symbolized the end of the truth and trust within the Clave. • The amount of guilt that each character will carry following these deaths is heartbreaking… • i sincerely hope her death is not tossed to the side, discussed for 150 pages then only mentioned 4-5 times after that because she deserved better, the entire Blackthorn family did, and peace was completely ripped away from them Which brings me to my first theory: I believe there was a reason that Jessamine was introduced to TDA, not only to highlight Kit’s Herondale-ness, but also as a foreshadowing of another character who is not at peace, feels that there is unfinished business, and a group of people needing to be protected: Livia. Because it was made clear in the book that necromancy and raising the dead is forbidden, and because QOAAD takes place a week later, Livvy’s chances of being raised are very very very slim. I sincerely believe that she will come back, but not to life. It would be fitting of her to come back as a ghost (not at first but definitely later in the story) and for her to protect her family, and give Kit and Ty the OK to do whatever they want to do (whether its be a couple or become parabatai, or go to the Scholomance) More theories: • Though I predict a dark Julian, I do not predict a dark/irredeemable Julian, who digs himself into such a big hole that he can’t climb out of it. Remember he has two anchors: his family, and Emma… • The Rosales brothers, especially with their plans to overthrow the Cohort and fool Zara are going to play a massive role in QOAAD. • I think that Jemma are going to have to confide in Jem and Tessa, and they will end up helping Jules and Emma with the parabatai curse. I am also sure they will play a big role in the next book. • Unpopular Opinion: I do not think Clary will die. I know she thinks she will, but CC did say QOAAD is lighter (in regards to themes) than LOS, and I just do not think it would be a lighter book if Clary, a significant character, dies. I think she will become close to death, and people will become concerned, then she will tell Jace of her fears and say yes to his proposal. However, I could very well be wrong!! •i do predict the Cohort being in power for a short amount of time….. because they represent members of our society, I do not think they will be shut down so easily because that’s not realistic. Despite this, hope and love always win. I trust that this will remain true in the next book. • I do predict the end of the Cold Peace, it was never ever a good idea and no one likes it. • I predict that Drusilla will be a hero, now that her older sister has passed away and she has finally decided to step up as a Shadowhunter, I do not doubt that the role she plays will be significant, it just seems to be a reasonable underdog story. • Kitty: parabatai or lovers? An important decision, because Kit does reference his thoughts about being parabatai with Ty, and Ty finally says yes to being parabatai with Livvy. I think it’s a possible “that’s what Livvy would have wanted” trope, but I could also be wrong and think its about as equal of a chance of them becoming lovers. • Who will the new head of the LA Institute be? I sincerely doubt it will go to someone the Blackthorns do not know or trust. They have had so much taken from them, the Institute does not deserve to go next. Possibly Cristina? Will Jules or Emma be of age? Jem or Tessa following the end of the Cold Peace? We have to see! • ASH… I am just frustrated that we do not know more about him… I don’t even have a theory I just needed an excuse to talk about him again. Questions and Theories from my mutuals!!!!! • Anonymous: Its 3 am and I am literally just crying on my bed because of the book. ​ >> Relatable!! I cried hours after I finished because I was so sad. The ending really got me! • Anonymous: Do you think Jaime and Dru are endgame? She is 13 and hes like 17 but he thinks she’s 16. Idk, they seem to have a nice friendship but not a romantic relationship in my opinion.. ​ >> Agreed! I honestly think CC included this first crush idea as a way of introducing Dru’s further character development, not necessarily to introduce them as a couple… But also think about Cecily and Gabriel!!! They were about the same ages at the time, even though that was a different time period… anything is possible, but I do not ship them romantically! • VirginaNewman: I loved LOS, however I was indeed disappointed that Helen + Aline make a debut in the LAST chapter! ​ >> I definitely thought Helen and Aline would play a larger role in LOS, they were barely mentioned, barely had any scenes… I was disappointed by their small role too, but I am interested to see how hard they fight to stay in the next book. Ps- the scene where Aline basically tells Zara to shut her fucking mouth is GOLD. • Betweenshadesoftessagray- Since Robert’s dead, its going to be a race to get that spot, with probably Zara’s father trying to become Inquisior. And since Robert was the one who could help Emma and Julian with the exile thing, they really don’t know what to do with it. I think the powers will continue to grow, and since I think the main battle of QOAAd is going to be a battle where the warlocks and nephilim cannot use their runes/warlock magic, maybe their parabatai magic will still work and that’s how they win. I have already stated that I think there is going to be a battle in QOAAD without being able to use rune magic and the warlocks not being able to use their magic, but this didn’t fit in my other ask I just realized something that made my theory more solid: in the beginning, Zara says she went to Hungary because they were claiming their weapons were not working and she said it was incompetence, so the blight is already spreading not only in Idris but everywhere else. ​ >> This is such a well thought out theory and I wish I could give a formal response but I definitely need to go back, reread, and analyze this… I didn’t even realize the significance of Shadowhunters and warlocks including Magnus losing their powers!! Wow! Is this because of the Black Volume? I definitely think Emma and Julian’s parabatai/love powers will play a huge role in QOAAD and maybe even save the day during this second Dark War. Maybe that’s how they will become heros, their bond will be broken as a reward or something and everyone can live happier ever after? AHH! • Share your theories and thoughts in the comments below or inbox me (not on Anon so I can respond privately!!!)

Lord of Shadows Review - SPOILERS

Lord of Shadows. FUCK THIS BOOK.

That’s what I said out loud to myself as I finished the final page. What a ride.

What an incredible journey from start to finish. Cassandra Clare is one of those rare creators who just gets better and better with each release. Her writing is top class and it frightens me to think about where she will be in five or six books time.

The basic story of the book is follows. Annabel Blackthorn is bought back to life by Malcolm Fade, who didn’t die in Lady Midnight like we thought, he sacrifices Arthur (RIP) to do this and so he nobly died in place of his family, good for you Arthur.

Annabel has the black book which the Seelie Queen wants for some “unknown” reason, she tasks Julian with getting it for her, and she promises him that she knows a way to break the Parabatai bond so he and Emma can be together. Julian then has to arrange the players into place, have Kieran testify that the Unseelie King is plotting against the Nephilim, and that the Queen has agreed to help them if she gets the book and the Cold Peace is broken. Seems straightforward enough right? Wrong.

Enter my now most hated fictional character of all time, as I like to call her, Zara FUCKING Dearborn, that bitch. She is a racist, big-headed, lying bigot and I can’t wait for her to die.

Zara as well as a group of others make up the Centurions, an elite force of Shadowhunters who study at the academy, they’re supposed to be the best and most skilled for their age, unfortunately, Zara is a big fat liar and makes up all the stories of her heroics, she’s basically a female Gilderoy Lockhart, she gets her Centurion minions to back her up on all her claims. And together with her cronies and her father they make up a group called The Cohort, basically the Nazi’s of the Nephilim world, who want to see a return to Downworlders being treated like crap, and branded with signs, and put on a register, so at this point Zara and her father are like Hitler and Voldemort teaming up together (shivers).

To escape the threat of Malcolm the Blackthorns portal to London (yay), and stay in the institute there, until the very end when they must go to Idris and present Annabel and Kieran to give evidence against Zara and the Unseelie King.

That’s when things turn to shit.

The Cohort arrive and start heckling Annabel, she is given the Mortal Sword so they know she is telling the truth when she reveals Zara is a big phoney. Annabel then goes nuts and kills some people, which I will discuss more later.

Throughout all of this we have Emma and Jules trying to not feel anything for each other, Emma pretends to date Mark so Julian will stop loving her, of course this fails and they end up seeking help from Magnus Bane and the Inquisitor.

We see some older characters appear, Clary confides in Emma that she is having dreams of herself dying, and that she turned down a proposal from Jace because she thinks it will be harder for him if they are married when she dies. Hmm. Her and Jace then go on a secret mission to the Faerie world, we’re not sure what that mission is yet, but I have a pretty good guess.

Now to talk about the individual characters.

Emma, I feel doesn’t get a whole lot of progression in this book, aka she’s still an awesome badass, she manages to kill one of the seven warrior Faeries (I forget what they’re called) which is said to be near impossible, though I feel that has more to do with Cortana than it does Emma, but we will see.

Julian, this guy scares me, he is the perfect liar, I think Kit mentions that Jules would be great as a con-artist, he perfectly slots puzzle pieces into place, he’s a genius, I wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of him, he’d do anything for his family and for Emma, I will be very interested to see how his arc continues in the next book after what happens at the end of this one.

Mark, sweet, sweet Mark, he pretended to date Emma just so he could curl up on her floor and talk and not feel so alone, someone hug this guy! I feel like him, Kieran and Cristina are headed for a throuple situation, they all seem to gel so well, and I still love how he speaks to people, its hilarious.

Cristina, still a  great character, very caring, and I’d love to see more of her with Jamie and their long friendship with the Fae.

The Twins, Ty is my favorite character in this trilogy HANDS DOWN, he is written SO well, Cassandra has definitely done her research on Autism, I used to know a boy at school who also had it and he acted almost the exact same way, the sensations, the music, its scarily accurate. Livvy, my heart broke, I thought we were headed into a Harry, Ron and Hermione type friendship, sweet, fierce Livvy, rest in peace up in heaven with your parents and uncle.

Dru, this is who I actually thought was going to die, she seemed to be getting neglected right up until she meets Jamie, who is keeping the Seelie Queen’s secret child well….a secret, for reasons unknown, clearly Sebastian is the boy’s father, I won’t go into detail about my big theory surrounding the queen, the boy, Sebastian and Clary’s death as I’ve already made a post about my theories regarding that, but if Cassandra pulls this off, there will be some very upset fans.

I won’t really talk about Tavvy, he doesn’t do much except play with Alec and Magnus’ kids and throw tantrums, he’s seven, I forgive him for that.

Kit goes through so much growth in this book, he is so likeable, he’s our “way in”, the normal one who we can relate to because he grew up in the human world, believing himself to be a mundane. The Herondale is strong in this one, sarcastic, handsome, and grows very close with the twins, he’s going to become Ty’s rock now Livvy is gone, I still can’t work out if they’re going to become lovers (the gay is strong in the Blackthorn family) or just Parabatai.

Diana, “No way” I said out loud when her origin was revealed, she used to be a man, I certainly didn’t see that coming, what a revelation! I really felt for her when she poured her heart out to Gwyn (who is actually a big softie), that’s been her big secret this whole time, I’m sure that bitch Zara will find out and reveal all at some point but Diana is strong, she’ll get through it.

 I’d like to point out how seamless it is that the situation Malcolm and Annabel faced with the clave, is almost the same situation as the one Julian and Emma are facing, a forbidden love ruled as wrong by the law. Interesting the parallels we can draw from this. I almost feel like sometimes I’m reading about Incest, because the Parabatai relationship seems to be like siblings, strong, reliable and unconditional, it almost feels wrong reading about it, but its not like Cassandra Clare hasn’t touched on this subject before.

Also, Robert Lightwood was the other big death of the book, Annabel kills him as well as Livvy, she could have just dropped the sword and called it a day, but nope, she has to go bananas, thanks for breaking my heart Annabel, you bitch.

  My predictions for the next book. Julian will go batshit crazy on a quest for vengeance, and Emma will be the only one who will help him through that.

Mark, Kieran and Cristina will grow closer and we will learn even more about Cristina’s close ties to the Faerie world.

The Queen will get the book, kill Clary and resurrect Sebastian using her blood. I know his body was burnt but I think there will be a twist, she’ll create a new body or use the child to host his soul.  I detailed this theory more in a previous post, so check out the full details if you’re interested.

I’m pretty sure this ending will lead into a new trilogy, one where we get points of view from all the present characters, the Blackthorns/Carstairs clan as well as the Herondale/Lightwood clan.

Also I think Simon and Isabelle will appear, as they’re really the only two from the original series not to appear in the Dark Artifices yet.

 Stunning book, such a shame we have to wait until 2019 to see what happens next!

5/5.

Spike Analysis - Season 4

Alrighty, here we go with season 4 of Buffy. I know I said that I was going to do one post per significant episode for Spike, but his character development in season 4 is so damn choppy. His parts in any given episode are small, but put them together and you’ve got a lot to work with. So, that’s what we’re gonna do. From the top!

We see Spike initially in “The Harsh Light of Day.” This is the episode that ends up crossing over with Angel (one of the episodes this season, anyway). Basically, Dru has dumped Spike again and he’s back in Sunnydale with Harmony. He’s looking for the Gem of Amara which will make him invincible. Why does he want to be invincible? Well, I’ve got a theory (that it’s a demon. A dancing demon… Sorry). Spike for sure wanted to be invincible so that Buffy wouldn’t kick his ass the next time he tried to kill her—that worked well, huh?—but I think he also wanted it for personal reasons. You know how Angel always talks about how he wishes he could go out into the sun and be “a real boy” or whatever? I think, subconsciously, Spike wanted that, too. Also, one of the main things with Spike this episode is his new relationship with Harmony. The whole thing is super abusive on his part, and all that is, is Spike wanting to take out his anger for women on someone. It’s a horrible thing to do, but how much can you really blame the poor sod? The dude had to turn into a blood-sucking creature of the night to escape the shame of rejection from Cecily. The only other thing with this episode is that Spike totally gets his ass kicked by Buffy when he tries to kill her on the UC Sunnydale campus. He loses the Gem, which gets taken to Angel, which he then goes after. I’m not going to go over that episode of Angel because all it is, is normal Spike stuff. No development.

Okay, next up to discuss is “The Initiative.” This is where The Initiative kidnaps Spike and sticks that behavior chip in his head. There’s not a whole lot to talk about by way of character development until the scene with Willow in her dorm room. Spike went there to kill Buffy, right, but he settled for Willow instead. Willow and Spike are always great together because, even if he’s trying to kill her, they’re always really sweet to each other. I don’t if that’s because Spike identifies with her or what. That would make sense in this scene because Spike has just been dumped by Dru, and Oz has just left Willow. It could also be because, at Willow and Spike’s cores, they’re just big ‘ol softies. Anyway, back to the scene. So, Spike figures out here that he can’t kill, bite, or hurt Willow. Which is super embarrassing for him. It’s not hard to miss the metaphor pointing to impotence here. The show plays up the sensual/sexual aspect of being a vampire quite a bit. I mean, it makes sense considering the drinking of blood most likely provides the same euphoric effect that sex does, not to mention, they’re both primal acts. Willow comforts him until she realizes she’s insane and hits him over the head with a lamp.

Follow me to “Pangs” for some more Spike-chip developments. So, I’m gonna paraphrase here what James Marsters said in the DVD featurette about Spike on the Season 4 DVDs. Basically, the fun part about being a vampire (unless you’ve got a soul) is getting to kill and terrorize people. You can steal anything you want, kill anyone you want, and you’ve got no repercussions to deal with. However, now Spike can’t do that. Not only won’t he get a job, but he really can’t because he doesn’t exist to the world as a real person. He can’t kill people to eat them or to rob them, so there’s no way for him to get blood. Harmony’s given up on him and the only people he knows in town are the damn Scoobies. So… he’s fucked. This is the first of a few episodes of Spike living with Giles. Season 4 is kind of rubik's cube of confusion for Spike as a character because… where does he fit? You can see the various different scenarios the writers try to put Spike in to make him work within the Scoobies. This episode, for example, is the bit where they try and make Spike into Cordelia. He gets ties up and has to listen to the Scoobies discuss what to do about this Native American spirit that is trying to kill all of them (because they don’t want to hurt him since… well, since America has hurt enough Native Americans for several lifetimes). For Spike, the solution is very simple: all that shit happened a long time ago, and you need to kill him before he kills you. Don’t be dumb. Which sort of establishes Spike as an intelligent and observant character, and that’s something that gets used and abused for the rest of the show. It also tells us that, if they have to, the Scoobies and Spike can stand to be around each other.

Moving right along to “Something Blue.” I’ve not got a lot to say here. This episode is pretty much Buffy and Spike making disgusting smooching noises and Giles not being okay with it. The only thing I would say towards Spike’s development is that it’s the first of two seeds planted this season that end up growing toward Spike falling in love with Buffy in the following season.

The next significant episode this season is “Doomed.” Spike finally figures out that he can hurt/kill demons. This is, of course, after he tries to kill himself in Xander’s basement. When he, Willow, and Xander are walking out of the museum, Spike attempts to make Willow and Xander feel like inferior pieces of shit on the grounds that they’re just weighing Buffy down. You can see in that scene that Spike is happy to be able to cause someone some pain somehow, which seems to be fine for him in that moment. But the real kicker is when he realizes he can still kill—it just has to be demons. And, shockingly enough, that’s good enough for him. This sort of backs up something that he and Angel talk about in Angel’s 5th season: that Spike just wanted kill while Angel was in it for the evil. All of this leads to him, in the next season, believing that he doesn’t want to kill people anymore (that was his reasoning when he was trying to tell Buffy he loved her) and then to him actually not wanting to kill people anymore when he gets his soul. So, this episode is huge for Spike, and we see the results from it carry all the way to the end of the chip’s storyline.

“A New Man” and “The I in Team” I’m going to sort of glom together because basically what these two episodes do is begin the mutually beneficial relationship between Spike and the Scoobies (I do a thing for you, you pay me money. You do a thing for me, I may do another thing for you later… but only for money). Of course, we know this relationship keeps going in one form or another at least through season 5. I’m not so sure about season 6 because I don’t remember hearing him ask for money in that season. However, that’s the only way he could afford to buy blood unless, for some reason, the Scoobies decided to give him money to buy blood regardless because of his help after Buffy died. Maybe he got paid for babysitting Dawn. I dunno.

Okay, moving on. “Who Are You” is the second episode this season with Faith. Faith is already in Buffy’s body by this episode. The scene with Faith and Spike in the Bronze is the second seed that blossoms into Spike falling for Buffy. Yes, it is Faith in Buffy’s body teasing Spike and getting him all hot and heavy… but Spike doesn’t know this. He legit thinks Buffy is fucking with him right now. And you can totally tell that Spike would be down. I feel like this is an epiphany for him, like “Holy shit… she’s fucking hot.” You know? And then he says, “You and me are gonna have a confrontation.” Like, that’s such a formal way to tell her that he’s going to kick her ass? It’s like Spike was rehearsing what to say in his head, trying to make it sound menacing but cool and collected at the same time, and it just came out strange because he was so flustered. It’s one of my favorite moments from this season, for real.

I haven’t got a lot left to say about season 4. I mean, “The Yoko Factor” is a pretty good example of Spike being a very observant character. And it also tells us that Spike doesn’t give two shits about the lives of the Scoobies unless it benefits him. Like, he doesn’t give a fuck if Willow is gay or if Xander feels inferior or if Giles feels unwanted. He’s just uses it to further his own desires, which is classic Spike. I guess, with his deal with Adam, you get to see a different side of Spike in that Spike has never really been below someone before, at least not in the sense of working for them. So, that’s quite strange. And by the end of the season, the Scoobies have gotten used to Spike being around, even though they know he’ll still do shitty things if he can. Overall, other than the chip, Spike doesn’t have a lot going on in season 4. But, next up we’re working on season 5, and oh, boy. I’m pretty pumped. It’s gonna be a good time.

Hope you enjoyed the rambles!          

Just finished Lord of Shadows, and so far The Dark Artifices has been my favorite out of the Shadowhunters universe. That being said, OMG the roller coaster of evil that is the most recent book cuts right through me. After my outrage and crying “nooooooooooooo!”, I’ve come up with some theories how things are going to pan out in the next book. Spoilers ahead under the cut

Okay folks, I’m pretty sure Julian is going to use the Black Book to bring Livvy back from the dead. In Lady Midnight, it was foreshadowed that Julian would be willing to go this far to save the ones he loves. Livvy is even the one that asked Julian if he would be willing to do it if it meant bringing Emma back. Julian didn’t say it out loud, but he confirmed within himself, that yes, he would go that far. Through Lord of Shadows, it’s hammered in that Annabelle is completely as she was. A mortal Shadowhunter, So Livvy will also return unchanged. Here’s my thoughts:

Julian is going to abscond with Livvy’s body, so they can’t turn her into shadowhunter ash. Bit difficult to bring back from the dead that way-- and he’s going to stash her somewhere. The Seelie Court, perhaps.

He already has a Blackthorn in his sights to use (Annabelle) and she also has the book-- so two birds one stone. He has a slew of murders he can use for the Hand of Glory-- Zara and her goons. They even have their murdering hand marked for convenience-- the Voyance Mark is always placed on the dominant hand. I’m curious if their blood being spilled will also work for the need for Shadowhunter blood because multi-purpose would be nice.

Simply because the Unseelie King has the book will be enough to get the aid of the Seelie Queen. Though she’ll probably add something about saving the boy that Dru saw (which I’m damn near positive is the Queen’s son.) Since Julian already knows that the Queen has some way to use the book for the spell she needs, he will push to make sure that same someone help with the spell he now needs.

I think Julian will be able to manipulate Emma into helping as well because a) he’s going to do it with or without her, except with her he has less of a chance of dying and b) he’s not going to make murders (or at least tell Emma that)-- he’s going to use people who are already murderers. Ty will be on board because it’s Livvy (that and drowning in guilt for bringing Annabelle to them in the first place.) The need for vengeance and the thread of hope to bring Livvy back will be all that’s required to get the rest of the Blackthorns on board, as well as Kit.

This plot I think will fit in with the ruthless brand of desperation and crazy that Julian is in at the moment. He’d do anything to bring Livvy back and the answer is pretty much staring him in the face. How much he reveals at first, I have no idea, but with the set up from Lady Midnight and now Lord of Shadows, it just feels the only logical conclusion.