"I am catastrophically in love with you." Elise | She/her | Bi | 23 | Slytherin Multifandom, mostly TSC and Hadestown. I dedicate myself to music and being a general nerd
To anyone wondering, the order in which to read tsc (at least according to me and my best friend) is as follows:
City of Bones
City of Ashes
City of Glass
Clockwork Angel
City of Fallen Angels
Red Scrolls of Magic
Clockwork Prince
City of Lost Souls
Clockwork Princess
The Bane Chronicles
Shadowhunters Codex (kinda optional. Can also read before Bane Chronicles. A fun informative read tho)
City of Heavenly Fire
Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy
The Lost Book of the White
Lady Midnight
Lord of Shadows
Queen of Air and Darkness
Ghosts of the Shadow Market
Chain of Gold
Chain of Iron
I wrote out this list partially for myself (I’m currently rereading the whole thing lol) but also for anyone else who wants to reread them or anyone new to tsc. It’s not in timeline order but everything makes more sense this way (especially the last 3 books of tmi mixing with tid). I’ll probably continue to update it as more stuff comes out. Hope it’s helpful!
The second installment of what has become a very long, drawn out project. Cheers.
They surveyed the destruction, the lot of them at a loss. They’d picked up readings of high magic concentration in the area, knew that something unusual had occurred, and feared that Michael Hale may be doing something catastrophic.
Mason had gone with the investigation team, along with Therabie Everlight, the high sorceress herself. The plan had been simple: observe from a distance, see if they could attempt to figure out anything about what he was attempting to accomplish, and go back home.
They hadn’t expected Michael’s home to be leveled.
“Who could’ve done this?” Therabie asked quietly, concern clear in her voice. Whatever could be worse than Michael Hale, Mason certainly didn’t want to be on its bad side.
“Orders?” He asked, eyes trained on the ruin.
Therabie gestured for the group to move forward, and they did.
The place had been obliterated, only a few sections of wall left standing, so much dust clouding the air that Mason could barely see in front of him.
But he heard a voice. Quiet, shaking, small.
He followed the sound, finding a child. A little girl. She had her arms wrapped around her knees and was rocking back and forth, staring into the distance as she quietly cried, “I’m sorry,” on repeat.
Mason fell to his knees, reaching out to the girl.
Her head didn’t move, though her eyes cut to him instantly. Upon closer inspection, he was struck by how familiar she looked.
She looked like her father.
Mason hesitated. They’d heard of her, Michael’s precious daughter, his gleaming jewel. His Emerald.
She was frozen now, staring at him. Tears still cut through the dust on her face even as her expression shifted.
He spoke softly, as gently as he could.
“You are Emerald Hale, yes?”
The girl continued to stare at him, unable to hide the tremble in her hands.
He was aware of movement behind him and looked back to see that Therabie had found them. She knelt as he had, and Emerald’s eyes cut to her for a moment before locking back on Mason.
“Hey, it’s okay. We’re not gonna hurt you,” he said carefully.
Therabie stared at the girl with a distraught expression, “Gods, she’s just a child.”
Emerald was still frozen, though he could see the tears welling in her eyes, threatening to spill.
He stood, backing away, tugging Therabie’s sleeve as he did. She moved as well, stepping back to join him, far enough away for them to have a semi-private conversation, though still within Emerald’s line of sight.
“What do we do with her?” Mason asked.
Therabie ran a hand over her face, “I- gods, Mason. I don’t know. She’s… dangerous. She could be a threat to all of Cathran. And she’s just… a child.”
Mason shook his head, looking at the girl, who sat still, watching them, a fresh coating of tears on her cheeks.
She was terrified.
“Therabie, I really… I don’t think she’s trying to hurt anyone. I mean- she’s just sitting there. We obviously can’t just leave her here.”
“No, we can’t. But, can we trust her not to hurt anyone? Can we trust her not to destroy our entire country?”
Mason shrugged. “She’s a kid, Therabie. I’ll take responsibility for her. She’s my niece, after all.”
He didn’t like admitting his relation to his brother. He generally tried not to acknowledge the fact that he’d ever known Michael at all.
But this girl was his blood, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that she needed help.
“Mason.”
“Please, Therabie. She’s just a little girl.”
Therabie watched her for a moment, but Mason could already see that she was relenting. Finally, she nodded.
“Thank you,” Mason said sincerely before approaching Emerald once again.
The girls eyes followed him, tracking his movements, as he knelt, slightly closer this time.
“Emerald, I want to help you, please.”
She didn’t react.
“I’m Mason. Mason Hale,”
At this, her eyes widened, and she shrank back.
Terror, clear as day, colored her previously blank expression.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not…” he sighed. “I don’t think you’re like your father, are you?”
She continued to stare, her entire body tense.
He tried again, treading carefully, “Emerald, do you want to hurt people?”
Finally, after a moment, she gave him a miniscule shake of her head.
He breathed, feeling a sense of triumph at getting somewhere, even if it wasn’t far.
“I don’t want to hurt people, either. I- I know you must be scared, and that’s okay. But I want to take care of you,”
She remained frozen, though some of the tension had relaxed slightly.
“Emerald, I want to take you somewhere safe. Somewhere your father can’t get to you. Come with me, please,” and he held out a hand.
She was still for another long moment. Then, slowly, timidly…
So… kinda disappeared from tumblr for a number of years but I’ve been working on a random creative writing… thing. Just for fun. It’s not really any good but I just thought I’d post it. Kinda just scene by scene.
Anyway if anyone finds this and likes it, cool. If not, that’s cool too.
Father was gone. Off to handle “a situation,” as he’d called it. Emerald sat in her room, enjoying a rare moment of peace. She held the small blade father had given her on her fourth birthday, studying it. She’d already learned every facet of the weapon. How to hold it, how it was balanced. At only eight years old.
She knew how to kill a man.
It had been her life for as long as she could remember. Training, every day, to be dangerous. She remembered father cradling her in his arms, a rare moment of what almost felt like love. “You are my greatest achievement, Emerald,” he’d said. “You are my weapon against the enemy.”
It was in her blood, literally. Father hadn’t married for love, this she knew. He’d married Mother because she came from a powerful bloodline, like his. And together, they made a child of power the likes of which the world may have never seen before.
Now she just stared at the sharp metal, turning it so the light reflected off it at different angles.
A loud noise startled her out of her reverie, followed by yelling.
Mother.
Emerald was on her feet in an instant, flying out the door and to the living room, where mother stood, red faced, screaming at ten-year-old Onyx.
“You are an abomination. A mistake. I am forced to clothe and feed and care for this thing that is not my child.”
Onyx had tears streaming down his face as he backed away, hands raised. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Please-“
Mother snarled, “Your father isn’t here to protect you now, little boy.” And she raised a hand, eyes trained on Onyx. She looked, hungry. Hateful.
Absolutely deranged.
Emerald rushed forward, shrieking for Mother to stop. Mother didn’t even seem to notice her as her hand produced a ball of living shadow.
Onyx sobbed, holding a hand behind him. Trying to ward Emerald off.
Trying to protect her, even now.
Mother launched the dark swirling mass at him, cackling as it made contact.
Time slowed down as Emerald screamed.
Onyx collapsed, agony wracking his body, his cry of pain cutting out every other thing in Emerald’s mind.
Emerald’s vision clouded with rage, fear, anguish.
She was aware that she’d fallen to her knees. Distantly, she heard Mother screaming as Onyx fell silent.
And then the roaring in her ears drowned everything else out.
She had no idea how long she’d stayed like that, on her knees and screaming. She only knew that once she opened her eyes the world was wrong. Their once grand house was… gone. Dust and plaster clouded the air, and Emerald choked on it as she looked around in desperation.
Onyx was gone, without a trace, and Emerald prayed with every fiber of her being that he’d gotten away somehow.
And Mother. She lay on the ground, unmoving, face frozen in an expression of shock as her eyes stared blankly at the sky.
“M-mother?” Emerald’s voice was small, desperate. She crawled forward, scraping her hands and knees on the debris as she reached for Mother’s head, cradling it in her arms.
“Mother, I- I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean-“ The tears had started to fall, choked sobs interrupting her words as she rocked back and forth.
I have been playing Baldur’s Gate 3 for three weeks straight now, and I just have to say that if you haven’t played this game, you are doing something wrong. It is currently my entire personality.
“Silent brothers don’t belong at weddings” my ass. The groom was named after you and calls you “Uncle Jem”. Get your bitch ass inside and sit next your parabatai where you belong.
