Nico made a mental note to never go through with a plan until he finished said plan because now he was just standing there, fighting the urge to shift from foot to foot or fall back into the cot due to exhaustion. Yes, it had all gone perfectly in his head, but now he had no idea where to go from here. He fought off the urge to blush and hide under the covers, to cringe away from the stares the Shadowhunters (and Magnus) were giving him.

Nico shifted his weight from both feet to his uninjured leg and let his posture relax, almost forcefully. This was awful, he hated this type of situation. This was worse than dealing with the Romans because while they would kill him on sight for being a Greek demigod, they at least knew who and what he was. But he couldn't tell the Shadowhunter any of that. Now he had to get creative. They couldn't know about the gods, they couldn't know about demigods, but now he had to work with them to catch a murderer that was actually after him.

Just another average Tuesday...

Nico huffed in irritation, hiding his embarrassment with it, "Things have gotten dicey. Normally I'd just handle my job on my own, but now he's hunting me as well," Nico admitted, his tone flat with disdain. He sat back down on the springy bed, twisting his healing leg in discomfort.

"How are you sure that he's after you?" Jace demanded, still standing but a few feet away from Nico's cot.

"He came after me. He knew my name and clearly knew what I was capable of. He also knew when and where I'd show up," Nico listed. he hadn't even known he would be in some forclosedd cafe until a few hours ago.

"But why?" Alec spoke, gazes shifting between each person in the conversation. Jace had backed off relaxing his own posture, but his gaze was still locked onto Nico.

Nico shrugged, "There are lots of reasons why, but I'm more worried about how. It's not like I make myself easy to find," he complained.

How Valentine had found him was actually his biggest concern. There were so many different 'why's that existed for a demigod like Nico, he could care less, but he knew he was damn hard to find, so either this Valentine had some godly help, or had a supernatural tac for finding people. It could be both. Whoever wanted him had access to hellhounds, his location, and plenty of other information about him, including the fact that Nico had trouble getting away from Hellhounds since they were one of the few monsters who could shadow travel. Now it was a question of old enemy or new enemy?

"We'll need to continue this discussion in the morning. It's well past four in the morning and none of us are clear-headed enough to unpack everything tonight," Maryse announced.

Nico eyed her carefully, wanting to protest but the exhaustion seeping into every part of his being, demanding rest, was becoming overwhelming, not counting emotional exhaustion from the high tensions. Nico caught her glace and huffed.

"I'll stick around, I'll be here when the sun rises. Don't worry." Nico said, settling himself in the cot to make it clear he wasn't leaving, "but I want the stuff you all took from me last time back."

"That can be arranged," Maryse nodded, looking pleased with his reaction.

Slowly but surely, everyone filed out the room, muttering amongst themselves, sending Nico glances every now and again before they were out of his sight, except Magnus, he stayed right where he'd been during the entire "conflict".

Nico glanced over him, unsure of why Mangus remained, "Do you still need something?" Nico decided to ask. He was tired, and keeping up this act any longer was getting harder and harder.

"Are you alright?"

Nico started, confused by the unexpected question. "I'll be healed up by morning, if that's what you're worried about," Nico said, meeting Magnus's cat-like eyes.

"It's not. Why would someone be after a 14-year old kid? How does a teenager who hasn't even hit puberty yet become a Reaper? I know there's more to this story." Magnus stated, but there was obvious concern in his eyes. It confused Nico more than anything else, but he was tired of the questions.

"There's always more to the story, Magnus. And I guess the trouble just likes to find me, huh?" Nico chuckled though it lacked any actual humor, exhaustion sputtering out his common sense.

"Always is." Magnus agreed, looking more sad than irritated with his answer.

Nico gave in before Magnus was out the door too, collapsing into the thin, uncomfortable sheets so hard the spring mattress creaked from the strain, and then he was out cold, closer to death than he'd like to be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maryse was apparently lying about 'turning in for the night', not that Magnus was surprised, Shadowhunters always did like to work through the night, as did he. Magnus found them arguing, rather loudly which had inadvertently aided his search, in the library. Magnus could hear the shouting long before he even entered the large doors that separated off the library from the rest of the Institute.

"He's just a boy! I won't let him get involved with Valentine!" Maryse argued.

"He's dangerous! By the Angel, he held a blade to my throat! A sword he summoned from the shadows! He fought off Valentine while injured!" Jace countered.

"He's being targeted by Valentine, Jace. We can't just kick him out." This time it was Clary.

"Technically speaking, we have no idea how old he is..." Simon added, his voice at a normal volume.

"I don't like it either, but we're probably definitely going to need his help! We were teens too when we got involved in the war with Valentine!" Clary exclaimed.

"And that never should have happened! He needs to stay here where we can keep an eye on him!" Maryse continued.

"Until he escapes again?! We have bigger problems right now! Yes, I don't think he should help us, but we shouldn't just lock him up!" Ah, Isabelle this time.

Magnus decided that was enough bickering for 4 in the morning and opened the doors with his signature flourish, letting his presence silence the room until he could visually figure out what was going on. Jace and Maryse's shouting match happened across the table, with Clary on another side of the wooden desk, Simon confidently behind her. Isabelle hung back a bit but stood opposite Clary. Alec, oh his poor Alec, seemed so confused about what was going on, unable to figure out how to solve their current internal scuffle. Shadowhunters were always so much more complicated to deal with than vampires, werewolves, and even demons.

With his entrance, the room fell uncannily silent.

"Stop shouting, it's too early for this, or you're going to give my poor boyfriend an aneurysm." Magnus complained.

"Magnus, you're a good judge of character. What do you think?" Clary pleaded.

"Think about what, exactly?" Magnus had a vague idea what they were arguing about, but he wanted the exact wording of the question he was being asked.

"Should Nico be allowed to help?" Maryse began.

"And where should he be locked up?" Jace finished.

"There's also a minor debate about how to hold Nico actually is." Simon added helpfully.

Magnus sighed, "Well, I can tell you he's an actual 14-year old," Magnus began, "But I can't argue about the fact that he is dangerous. He's used magic, if it even is magic, that I've never seen before, but are powerful and dark in nature, but that might just come with the title of 'Reaper'."

"You don't actually believe that, do you?" Jace scoffed.

"Of course I do," Magnus said definitely, "He exorcised the dead, sent them back, whatever, that sword of his is also something unique, which I'm sure you figured out since you've not only fought him back in the theater but just had it pointed at your throat."

Magnus sighed, the night catching up to him. "Yes, he's dangerous, and yes, his help will be needed to catch Valentine. If Nico is a Reaper, then Valentine isn't really the Nephilium's jurisdiction, it's his. Also, locking someone up isn't a good way to get them to reliably help you."

Magnus turned to Clary, "I'm also curious why you're taking his side?"

Clary suddenly seemed nervous as eyes turned to her, a mix of curiosity and concern.

"I've been having dreams again," she admitted cautiously.

"Since when?" Jace asked, his attitude flipping like a coin from protectiveness to concern.

"A few weeks ago? Since before Nico showed up. Not long after the murders started actually," Clary said.

"And?" Magnus prodded. He knew about Clary's dreams, he also knew better than to completely ignore them.

"There are a few different ones... but I can barely make sense of what they mean. Like I don't have all the pieces. They're not cryptic, I just can't make sense of them," Clary explained.

"Maybe we can figure them out together?" Simon asked, going closer to Clary in an attempt to comfort her.

"Alright... one was a girl painting in a cave, she looked a lot like me. Then there was a Latino boy and another girl in a white dress on the back of what looked like a giant bronze dragon. Then there was one with Nico, except he had these massive black wings, and we were in a field of these white flowers. And the final one... I think it was about Valentine. He was talking to this massive black pit," Clary listed.

Magnus did his part and tried to put the pieces together, as he could also see the Shadowhunters doing within their own heads.

"Describe the flowers, Clary." Magnus asked, trying to make connections.

Clary scrunched her face in thought, "Well... they were white, small, grew on stalks... and they kinda looked like lilies?" she tried, before sighing in defeat. Luckily Magnus already an idea about what these flowers could be.

He took out his own phone and quickly looked up an image before showing it to Clary, "Is this your card?" He asked, a smirk on his face when he saw her face light up in recognition.

"Yeah! But what type of flower is it?"

"It's an asphodel, a rare mourning flower. And you said you were in a field of them?" Magnus asked, already knowing the answer.

Jace deadpanned, "That's a little on the nose, don't you think?"

"Sometimes the most complicated assumption isn't always the right one. The Fields of Asphodel seem to be tied to Nico in some way. Or at least the idea of them, a land of the dead" Magnus said, seeing recognition flash across each face in the room.

"But what about the other dreams?" Simon asked. "That last one seemed to be pretty important."

"It doesn't really help us if we don't know who he was talking with, other than the fact he isn't working alone." Jace said. "Any number of demons could be talking through an ominous dark pit."

"Maybe Nico might know something we don't?" Isabelle offered, gaining attention.

"What? He says he's a Reaper, and now we're pretty sure that he linked to some 'land of the dead', so why wouldn't he knew something we don't?" she defended herself.

"I guess this will have to continue in the morning then," Maryse sighed, "But I'm holding firm to the decision that he shouldn't be involved in any dangerous combat. He's too young."

"I don't think we really get a choice in the matter, he said so himself, didn't he?" Jace sighed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lou Ellen Blackwater went through her bag once more, making sure she had everything for her self-appointed quest. The Hecate cabin was always empty this time of day, even emptier in the Fall. She wouldn't be bothered or even noticed for a few hours.

Maria's funeral was tomorrow, and Lou also knew that her half-siblings had been keeping a close eye on her, to make sure she wasn't going to do anything rash, which was exactly what she was doing right now. She stuffed her bag full of "tricks", small things she would need to pull off some of the more powerful things she could do as a daughter of Hecate. She was going to need them to go after Maria's killer after all.

Lou knew that the 'Shadowhunters' had told her to stay out of it, but yet again, she was a demigod and it just didn't work like that. She wouldn't let someone else fight her battles, especially a personal one like this. She slung her bag, a stuffed satchel full of just about everything she could think of from odd brews to containers of ambrosia to daggers made of a small variety of metals. Lou glanced around the cabin once more, making sure nothing was out of order then headed out.

Lou glanced around the camp, taking note of the orange hue that painted it, the sound of chatter from the dining pavilion and the glisten of the setting sun over Long Island Sound and the lake within Camp, but she turned away and headed off towards the only place she had left to visit.

Rachel was waiting for her in her cave, adding to the numerous paintings already decorating the walls. Some were just that, paintings, but there were a few Lou knew came from visions from the Oracle. Her eyes paused momentarily on one of Nico, large black wings arching from his back, a violin peached delicately under his chin and skeletal warriors rising from underneath him. The paint on it was still drying.

"Rachel? I'm here to see you," Lou called out, wandering deeper into the cave.

Lou found Rachel hunched over a table full of art supplies, sketching away with charcoal pencils that stained her hands black with every scratch. She didn't seem to notice Lou was even there. She took a glance at the drawing, it was a girl who looked strikingly like Rachel herself, but wielded a glowing blade and wore black clothing that was more similar to armor than actual clothes, black marking also decorated her visible skin.

"Rachel?" Lou went to grasp her shoulder, only for Rachel to snap towards her.

Rachel's eyes glowed the tell-tale green, she wasn't speaking to Rachel right now, but the Oracle of Delphi. Breathlessly, it began to recite its next prediction, voices layered on top of one another.

"A trampled flower,

A hunted secret

Death's chosen

is who must keep it.

A fallen foe,

A primal's pride

drives a hunt

in terror's stride.

Rachel slumped back into her chair, rubbing her temples irratly, and finally seemed to realize Lou was there.

"Hi Lou... did... Did I say something?" She asked, confused and disoriented.

Lou shook her head, "Just some odd weather predictions, nothing special." Rachel looked unsure.

"Honest," Lou swore, despite it being a blatant lie. "Just stopped by to tell you it's dinner time."

Rachel glanced over at a clock that he somehow been mounted to the cave's walls, and her eyes widened in realization, "Thanks Lou!"

"Be sure to wash up first your covered in charcoal," Lou snickered, but didn't miss the look Rachel gave to her hands and sketchbook, she didn't remember doing any of it.

"Ok, see you in the pavilion!" Rachel ran deeper into the cave to wash up and Lou walked out.

She sent on glce back over the camp, letting out a long sigh. She had her bag, and now she had her prophecy to go with it. She had everything for a quest now destined to fail.

Lou left the camp, vanishing into the Mist just outside of the bounds of safety.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~