Midnight texting

[californias]

The Midnight Texting Meme It's the middle of the night and you're trying to catch some z's — or brooding alone in the alleys, as one does — when your phone dings and suddenly a stranger or a friend is texting you. What could they possibly want at this hour? Is it important? Stupid? Are they drunk or maybe just needy? Do they need help hiding a body??? Pick up your phone and find out! Rules: ● Post with your character's name and canon on the subject line, indicate preferences as needed ● Tag others ● Have fun!

Comments

[distractly]

Don't think I can't tell by now when somethings getting to you.

I didn't want to say anything during the briefing, you know how Alec gets with distractions.

[ignis]

I appreciate it. I'll be okay, I promise. A lot just happened in a short amount of time.

[ it's not like he's under the impression he can fool her, not isabelle. no doubt she was there when alec's mark vanished. he's just still reeling from it all, trying to get a grasp on how to handle it on his own. worrying everyone else isn't going to do anyone any favors. ]

[distractly]

I don't take promises lightly, you know. And indicating you will be okay is just further assurance that you aren't.

( she won't push him to talk, it hasn't inherently been the lightwood way to lay on another's shoulder and get everything out. she gets it. the yin fen, everything that'd happened at the citadel— it would've done her good, to talk about it. there were few people she trusted as much as jace. )

C'mon, humor me a little.

[ignis]

[ it takes him a moment to respond, not because he doesn't want to open up, but because he isn't sure what to say, what he should say. not that 'should' has ever stopped him from doing something. ]

I died, Izzy. Things just feel... off.

[distractly]

I'm sorry.

( it's difficult for her, waiting in limbo beside another she'd grown up with as he struggles with something that, in essence, no one can take away. )

I wasn't trying to be insensitive. I just wish I knew more of what had happened. It's hard, thinking the worst and then not understanding how you've come back. Trying to reason with all of it.

[ignis]

You're the farthest thing from insensitive, trust me.

[ and then there's another lapse in his responses as he runs a hand through his hair, lets out a breath. he'd told clary he didn't want to tell alec what had really happened, that it was better left unsaid. he wants to protect him, wants to protect isabelle. ]

I would never forgive myself if I put you in a bad position just because I couldn't hold it together.

[distractly]

Jace, you don't need to worry about me. Not right now.

( she knows it's a high feat-- asking him to be selfish, just this once. to worry more for his own well being than what another may or may not be able to carry. izzy doesn't know the extent of what he's been through, what happened in idris before she and alec had portaled through. )

You know you can trust me, right? If you're in some kind of trouble you don't have to do this alone.

[ignis]

If I tell you, I need you to promise to keep it between us. No one else can know.

[ which means continuing to keep it from alec. it's not how jace wants to go about this, it's not how he should. more than the how, it's the consequences that are bringing him to his knees — literally. if he keeps it up, it's going to be harder to conceal, especially if it happens during a fight and they're depending on him.

but if he can shake it, turn a blind eye to it for now, he can solve that himself. clary doesn't even know. as far as perspective goes, it's easier to focus on how it happened, now. ]

[distractly]

If that's what you need, then I won't talk to him.

( he doesn't need to say her brothers name in order for her to understand, and while the question raises whether or not he's confided in clary, it's not entirely her place to intrude. her concern was with him, and there'd never been a time throughout their lives where they couldn't depend on each other.

there will always be a small part of her that pangs with regret, for not letting him in with the yin fen. for him finding out the way he did; so impersonal, shrugged off as if it hadn't been as dire as it was. )

We can meet somewhere?

( the institute hasn't always been known for it's comforts, though it could provide a certain level of privacy. )

[ignis]

[ it kills jace, hiding this from alec. he knows what he put him through when he died, knows that nothing about it was easy and keeping him in the dark doesn't help with that a bit. all it does is put more distance between them. he has to tell himself it won't get out of hand, that it's just something small. a side effect, nothing else.

he can fix this. maybe telling isabelle is a step in the right direction, something to ease the tension between them. maybe it's okay to lean on her, just a little. ]

My room or yours?

[distractly]

( izzy knows better than anyone how alec can be with situations such a this, how often he's suffocatingly woven between duty as head of the institute, and remaining objective towards his family. if he knew the extent of jace's suffering, it'd only further tug him away from where his obligations lie otherwise. he wasn't one to intrude, however, and while it wounded her to think of him remaining in the dark, at least he didn't quite know he was there.

there's still a faint russet bloom on the carpet where she'd found max at the foot of her bed, stomach curling in on itself at the sight. )

I'll come to yours.

[ignis]

I'll be here.

[ guilt and all. the institute is as good as they're going to get for privacy, at least. anywhere outside of it and they run the risk of prying eyes and eavesdroppers. the last thing this needs is more attention. while the time of night means nothing, he doesn't think anyone will interrupt them. that has to count for something.

perched on the edge of his bed, he has to believe that. it takes a monumental internal pep talk to keep him from making up an excuse to get out of this, to keep izzy in the dark for her own sake, too. ]

[distractly]

( she knew jace as well as she did her blood, could see it in the glaze of his hues at the hunter's moon, everyone seeming to spin about his bruised axis. clary knows better, that izzy is sure of-- and if she isn't already, it won't take long to notice he isn't himself.

she's dressed in something comfortable, a pair of shorts and a rather loose fitting, cropped hoodie to tend to the crisp temperatures of the institute at night. it'd taken everything she had to keep him from preying an eye to her addiction, and in a sense, he was letting her in to a darker nook of his own. it wouldn't go unappreciated.

a few minutes, and there's a light rap at his door to warn of her entrance before it's quietly opened, leaning against the entry with as much heart as she can muster to the slight curve of pink lips. )

[ignis]

[ clary could have asked for anything and she asked for him — he's not delusional enough to think she hasn't picked up on the differences in him, in how much distance he's suddenly forcibly jammed between them. she'll ask and she'll push until she's out of breath from trying, he knows, and he'll shut down, close himself off in a way that hurts both of them.

it's a familiar song and dance.

he's in the middle of a breath when izzy knocks, wringing his hands with his elbows braced on his knees. looking up once she enters, there's a twitch of one corner of his mouth to reciprocate her efforts. ]

Hey. [ righting his posture, he huffs something of a distant cousin of chuckle, all air and little pleasure, and gestures to the space on the bed next to him. ] Come in? You might actually manage to make me nervous if you just stand there. Crazy, I know.

[distractly]

( characteristic smirk waits upon his lips, but she's able to clearly see the way he withers beneath, the demons perched there on the round of his shoulders and begging to keep his mouth sewn shut. it causes the slightest furrow to her brow; izzy has never been one to cast pity, however compassion has always laced itself so meticulously about her sternum.

seeing him like this bruises her, makes her reach for slender write wrist out of habit, bringing her back to when she was most vulnerable. he holds that same look. the fear, perhaps a bit of guilt, and the subtlety of her smile fades ever more.

a moment, and she's pressing off the frame, a warmth emanating her figure as she narrows the distance to sit beside him. ) I can see you better than you think, hermano. Wouldn't be the first time I've witnessed it.