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Maia walks down the corridor with a spring in her steps and echoes of howls beneath her heels. The Institute welcomes the weekly meeting of the Downworld Council in shades of witchlight and marble and she trails shadows along the wall as she joins Raphael, Meliorn, Magnus and Isabelle in the meeting room she’s come to call theirs.
They get together a lot for Downworld matters ever since Alec delegated public relations to his sister. Isabelle got many ties with various downworlders — as well as a wardrobe to match every occasion — and Maia’s to admit… the shadowhuntress works well with them.
Isabelle understands the hierarchy of vampire clans and the dynamics of a werewolf pack. She talks riddles much like the fey and most of all, she knows the borders of everyone’s territory like the back of her hand. That’s without mentioning the fierceness and the brains that define Isabelle, who sometimes makes Maia hyperventilate because the other woman is so well-rounded, it’s unfair.
“Alright, let’s get started since we’re all here,” Isabelle claps her hands as she ushers them in.
Maia finds her usual seat at the round table and nods at Magnus to her right. Meliorn sits on the other side of the warlock, then Isabelle and finally Raphael between the two women, all of them in shades of black because it seems the Downworld has at least one thing in common, a muted color palette when it comes to fashion.
“I’ve got Neuroscience 101 in 45 minutes so let’s keep it short and sweet,” Isabelle adds, “The Clave is a pain in the ass, what’s new, nothing to report on my end other than the new patrol schedule with daylight savings time.”
Maia bites back a smile at that. Her own marine biology class ended a couple minutes ago. She listened to the end of her lecture with her headphones on the way to the Institute. Much like Isabelle, she took to remote learning when the Downworld took over her world.
They’re set to get their respective degrees in a few years and while it sometimes feels pointless — Maia leads a werewolf pack and Isabelle basically runs the Institute at this point — it feels good to focus on something to do for herself and Maia reckons it’s important to have something to look forward outside of Downworld politics.
“The Seelie and Unseelie Courts are stable at this time,” Meliorn pipes in with a slow nod.
Isabelle makes a note on her tablet and turns expectantly to Raphael.
“My people reported recurring disturbances with a rogue vampire I’d like to locate and contain before they overstay their welcome,” the vampire turned mundane says.
“Alright, do you guys need assistance?”
“Mostly keeping an eye out for them and someone to go with Lily when she apprehends them perhaps.”
“I’ll ask for volunteers to be on standby,” Maia suggests, “that way the shadowhunters on patrol won’t necessarily have to deviate from their route.”
“Do you need transportation by portal? I could request some younglings for practice,” Magnus adds, grinning.
“Sounds like a plan,” Isabelle nods, typing away on her tablet to fill the information away.
They move on to the next updates and soon, it’s a wrap. Isabelle forwards her notes to everyone and looks up with a sparkle of mischief in her doe eyes. She leans back against her chair, all lascivious curves and skin tight top, the fabric merging with the black lines of the runes tattooed on her skin as she levels the Downworld Council with a knowing look.
That’s the one thing Maia can’t figure out about the other woman, how she can be so… magnetic. Maia was always more of a cutie than a hottie and sometimes she understands how Simon could hesitate between the two of them when Isabelle is all of that and Maia is all of something else.
“So, is anyone up for drinks in say, 2 hours?”
Magnus cheers even as Meliorn declines and Raphael surprises Maia by agreeing. She doesn’t bother answering, knowing they’ll soon catch up with her at the Hunter’s Moon anyway. It gives her a chance to debrief with her pack before Isabelle and Magnus rock up to the counter and chat her ear off for the rest of the night.
Maia can’t say that she minds as she hides a smile behind her curls.
Back at the bar, Maia straightens the shelves holding most of her liquor while Justine and Bat tidy up the rest of the room, setting chairs down and checking everything and everyone is in order for patrons to drink, play billiards or throw darts throughout the evening. It’s their usual song and dance, a good time to catch up too as it demands little brain power but good music to unwind before a long shift.
“Justine, I’m setting you up with Lily to beat some rogue vampire to a pulp, is that alright with you?”
Bat snorts at that and Maia winks at him. They both know Justine could never work up the nerve to walk up to Lily, despite the longing looks she always sends the vampire’s way. It’s time to nudge her in the right direction and Maia grins when the other woman throws her a dark look but doesn’t protest. Vampires always think they’re so powerful and will get away without a scratch, but Lily and Justine are sure to bond over a fight with some rogue downworlder and then, the rest is up to them.
“Check in with Magnus at some point tonight, he’ll set you up with another warlock to have a portal on speed dial.”
“Sure.”
Justine tucks her thumbs in the holes of her flannel shirt and busies herself wiping a table that doesn’t need cleaning. Maia leaves her to it. Despite her emo looks, Justine isn’t the brooding type, she’s just a private person and there is no need to push her too far outside of her comfort zone.
“Huh, that must be the dude that looks straight out of an Anne Rice novel, saw him lurking around Pandemonium last night,” Glenn grunts from his usual spot at the counter, near the faucets of beer.
He calls it sampling all three kegs before opening, but Maia privately refers to it as alcoholism.
“Got into a fight with him over some werewolf twink,” he adds.
“And you didn’t think of mentioning it before because…?”
“I forgot you had a meeting tonight.”
Gleen shrugs and Maia bites the inside of her cheek as she decides the next course of action. The other werewolf wears camo and leather like a war veteran but she knows for a fact that he never enrolled, if his issues with authority didn’t give it away already.
“Anyone we know? The werewolf?”
“Just passing through with his pack, there are only three of them, it’s no big deal.”
“For fuck’s sake Glenn! You know you’re supposed to tell me these things. Just shoot me a text, who cares when the next Downworld Council meeting is, I’ll decide whether it’s worth mentioning then, not you.”
“Don’t get your knickers in a twist, they’re probably gone by now.”
Glenn swallows a pint of beer in one gulp and stands, leaving the dirty glass on the counter as he pushes the door, settling the sign hanging on open as he steps out. The first patrons filter in a moment later and Maia swallows the urge to howl and chase after the other werewolf as she rinses the glass and wipes it clean, wishing she was wringing Glenn’s neck instead.
“Bat, check out Pandemonium tonight in case they’re still hanging around. I’ll tell Magnus and Isabelle to keep an eye out for three wolves when they get here,” she says through gritted teeth while there is a lull at the bar.
She doesn’t wait for Bat’s nod to disappear in the back to make a quick call to Simon, informing the vampire of this new development.
“Well, I was going to call you actually,” Simon says awkwardly.
At first, she thinks it’s his usual unease when talking to her, it never faded after the break up, but Simon soon proves her wrong.
“Raphael ran into them on his way back for the Downworld Council,” a breath. “He’s in the hospital.”
“Shit.”
“Catarina says it’s just the usual procedure for bikers but I’m on my way to Beth Israel as we speak.”
“I’ll meet you there.”
Maia jumps over the counter when she comes back into the main room and tosses her kitchen towel to Justine as she heads out.
“Take over for me, I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”
To their credit, neither Bat nor Justine question her as she disappears outside.
Maia meets Isabelle in the entry hall of the hospital and the receptionist directs them to Raphael easily enough. Isabelle doesn’t look shaken per se — she rarely does — but there is a dazed look in her eyes that tips Maia off, probably because she feels the same.
“Hey,” she whispers, sliding up to the shadowhuntress.
Raphael used to be the invulnerable kind of vampire others could only dream of being. He’s cunning but careful, cool-headed but fierce and even now, he still runs the vampire clan with an iron fist in a velvet glove.
She knows Raphael would never put himself in a situation where he could get hurt, specifically now. She never thought he might end up in a wrong time, wrong place kind of thing.
“Hi,” Isabelle replies in a whisper, brushing their shoulders together like a werewolf would.
That’s the thing about Isabelle, Maia muses as she tangles their fingers together and squeezes the other woman’s hand. She’s polyglot, cross-cultural and able to switch her codes with every inter-species interaction, putting everyone at ease because they get to be themselves around her.
Sometimes, Maia wonders when, and with whom, Isabelle gets to be herself too.
“Did you miss the end of your lecture?” she asks, rather than what’s truly on her mind.
“Yeah, can’t say it’s the first time though.”
“Well, you’re smart and you work hard, I know you’ll catch up as soon as you get the chance and ace your exams.”
Isabelle shoots her a surprised glance but squeezes her hand back in thanks, confident.
They find the vampire-turned-mundane pale but mostly fine after a motorbike crash or a run-in with werewolves. Simon hovers around the bed like an anxious mother hen but Catarina shakes her head comfortingly when all eyes turn to her before moving on to her next patient.
“He’ll be fine, it’s just a few scratches.”
“You should see my bike,” Raphael says with a pained smile.
“Glenn told Maia about the new pack in town just now,” Simon mutters. “Any chance this wasn’t just a traffic accident but something more sinister?”
“Definitely,” Maia sighs. “Glenn already had a fight with the rogue vampire over one of the werewolves yesterday at Pandemonium. It would be one hell of a coincidence that they keep running into peoples and places related to the Downworld Council and making trouble without further motives.”
“Ok, so what do we know about them?” Isabelle asks.
“There are three of them,” Maia says.
“One caucasian, big guy, it’s their leader, potentially an alpha. The other two ride together, a man and a woman,” Raphael adds.
“Who caused the accident?” Simon asks.
“The other two, I think.”
“Not their leader?” Maia confirms, suddenly suspicious.
“I mean, he didn’t seem to mind,” Raphael rolls his eyes. “He definitely looked delighted, like it was a good surprise. I just don’t think it was his idea.”
“And the other two?” Maia asks, frowning. “Glenn called the werewolf from Pandemonium a twink so it probably wasn’t their leader he was fighting over. They might have played a part in this as well.”
“They looked freaked out,” Raphael admits.
“Let’s assume they’re causing trouble on purpose for now. We can clarify later whether they’re genuine or if not, what their reasons are, but I have my doubts,” Isabelle decides.
“Agreed.”
Maia nods. The bright lights from the hospital and the sounds filtering through the corridors are starting to give her a headache so she takes the end of the conversation as her cue to return to the Hunter’s Moon, not surprised when Isabelle doesn’t follow.
Seems like drinks are off the table for now.
Later that week, Maia heads towards the docks, Lily and Isabelle in tow. Lily and Justine’s encounter with the rogue vampire was successful earlier in the evening. They apprehended the guy and got intel to track down the werewolf pack. A snap of Magnus’ fingers allowed for quick transportation by portal and they debrief the operation as they circle the area.
Well, Maia also tries to figure out whether Lily and Justine managed to talk to each other, but she suspects Isabelle would very much like to know too.
“Justine can be very persuasive when she wants to,” Lily coos, flashing her fangs in the glow of a street light much like Maia knows her werewolf friend tends to do when flirting.
“And she often wants to,” Maia replies, grinning.
“You two make a good team, since he told you everything,” Isabelle adds.
“We do, don’t we?” Lily sighs before turning serious once again. “The guy thought there were two rival packs in New York and wanted nothing to do with angry werewolves.”
“Smart,” Isabelle comments, snapping her tongue in time with her high heels.
“Justine thinks he was onto something though, he nearly pissed himself when he told us about the alpha of the other pack — the boy they were fighting over called for help — and the rogue said Glenn must know him because he didn’t stick around after the fight.”
“So the alpha is settling scores with Glenn?” Maia asks, somber. “Why did Raphael get caught in the crossfire then?”
“That’s the thing, Raphael thinks the boy caused the accident to get our attention.”
“Maybe the alpha is aiming for Glenn and used the boy as bait, but the boy realized Glenn isn’t the alpha and this could get ugly really quick if they start a pack war. Getting a mundane involved is a sure way to have the shadowhunters on their case and stop their alpha before it’s too late,” Isabelle reasons.
“Fucking Glenn”, Maia mutters.
Sliding down the wall to peek at the pier around the corner, she finds the three werewolves as expected, motorbikes parked near a container. Apparently they make a living out of vintage bikes, picking them apart and repairing antiques to sell to the highest buyers.
Maia sizes up the tallest of them, a muscular man with a mullet and covered in tribal tattoos more than clothes, except for a white helmet. Werewolves tend to run warm, but this is just showing off, she muses as she glances at the other two.
They must be brother and sister, she decides upon catching sight of their ebony skin and delicate cheekbones. She wears her hair short, slicked back and shiny, while he keeps his own long, in a low ponytail. Both with leather boots, blue denim and an aviator jacket, she even suspects they’re twins.
They flinch when the alpha swivels around, opening the visor of his helmet to sniff the air and Maia doesn’t humiliate herself by pretending he can’t smell her. The wind isn’t in her favor, so she steps out with her shoulders drawn back and a curl of hair falling over her eyes.
Isabelle follows, her whip dragging behind her and Lily leans casually against the wall, deceptively still.
“If Glenn thinks I’ll be gentle because he sent me dolls, he should see what I did to my sister’s toys when I was just a wee boy,” the alpha drawls, green eyes flashing.
“Cute,” Isabelle replies with a smile. “You used to play with dolls. I do love my men with a tad of feminine energy.”
“Oh, so that’s why you dated Simon,” Maia shoots back, surprised when Lily follows up.
“You two should just date girls already.”
The vampire shrugs and Isabelle and Maia glance at her in askance.
“Levi, Nova, get rid of them,” the alpha barks.
The twins leap off the container in tandem, slithering up to the three women.
It’s over quickly, neither of them is much of a fighter, while Lily and Maia subdue their respective opponent with ease and Isabelle catches them with her whip to keep them still while the alphas get to have a proper face off. Maia hates the posturing, but she plays her part well as she stands between the twins and their leader.
“Let me guess, Glenn turned you during a fist fight at a bar, you two moved on easily enough because white men with anger issues rarely face the consequences of their actions and you turned these two just because you could? Runaways from abusive parents, I bet.”
“What-” the three werewolves chorus.
“Same old same old,” she shrugs. “I know privilege when I see it.”
“She’s good,” Levi pipes up from behind her.
“Like it’s hard to be better than Seth,” Nova replies and Maia can hear her rolling her eyes.
“So, Seth. I’m the alpha here.”
The other alpha sputters and Maia is thankful for the helmet fending off most of it as she bounces on the balls of her feet. She doesn’t know if she’s eager for a battle or to get it over with. There is nothing for her to fight for, she doesn’t necessarily need or want to expand her pack, but the twins decided they want to part ways with Seth and he doesn’t seem like the kind of guy to just let them go.
Maia hates that so many downworlders fall prey to people like him though.
She can’t help but notice how most of her people are often marginalized, or come from some kind of minority. They’re victims of more crimes, from bar fights and sexual assault to darker schemes and the system doesn’t look out for them as much as it does for white and white-passing people.
Seth will always get over it, and turn new people in his wake, using them for his own gain.
He should be stopped.
She flashes forward with this thought, hitting him in the gut because she doesn’t waste time on pointless violence. He keels over and she wraps clawed hands around his neck to cut off his airway until he falls limp at her knees. Kicking him off her, Maia turns to Isabelle with a dark look.
“I trust there are empty cells waiting at the Institute and a proper trial at the hand of Lydia Branwell so that he can pay for his crimes?”
“That can be arranged,” Isabelle nods and there is the hint of a feral smile dancing at the corner of her blood red lips.
She releases Nova and Levi, trading contact details so that justice can be made. When it’s all said and done, Lily disappears in the shadows of the docks and Maia glances at the waxing moon hanging over her head, thoughtful. It’s just another night in New York City.
“Have you ever dated girls before?” she asks Isabelle.
“No, actually,” the shadowhuntress replies after a beat.
“Me neither.”
“Wanna try?”
“Yes,” Maia grins, “actually.”