Magnus glanced at Jem, laying unresponsive under the bedclothes, face as calm and serene as if he was sleeping. As if he was not about to partake in a blood ceremony. As though his life was not being decided. As if, Magnus thought, he wasn't dying. Then he shifted his gaze to Sebastian, staring unconcernedly up at the high ceiling, looking equally as unworried as the unconscious Jem. The warlock had to admit that, at least: Sebastian was brave. Magnus was immortal too, but he was not entirely sure he would give that up for a practical stranger. But he supposed it was different for demons. Magnus's gaze shifted to Will. He tried to remind himself that Will had been conditioned into a certain thought pattern all his life. But he couldn't help being slightly disappointed in the shadowhunter's reaction to Ciel's admission about Sebastian. He supposed Will was far less to blame than whoever had written the narrow-minded Clave laws, but still. Sebastian had saved their lives countless times; was Will forgetting that? Magnus felt a level of sympathy for Sebastian. As a warlock, and part demon himself through no choice of his own, he felt entitled to dislike demons on principle. However, this was different. Sebastian was – not quite human, nor quite a soul – certainly a being before Magnus. He moved and breathed and spoke. Just like Magnus. And, whether for some ulterior motive or not, he was conscientious in his care of Ciel. Fundamentally, the two of them weren't all that different...

"Magnus."

He looked up at Catarina's voice, tugged from his thoughts, and turned his focus on the ceremony.

Will could see nothing, having closed his eyes at Magnus's request. However, he could hear well enough what was being said.

"We are going to begin, if that is alright." Magnus explained.

"Very good." Sebastian replied.

There was a shuffling of paper, the sound of footsteps. Then, Will drew in a breath as Magnus began speaking in a language the shadowhunter didn't understand. However, whilst the words held no meaning to Will's ears, what was happening was obvious: Magnus was summoning Sebastian in his true demonic form. Whilst Will had seen more than a few demons in his life, the idea of seeing Sebastian in his true form made Will uneasy. He squeezed his eyes firmly shut.

Then, all of a sudden, Magnus's voice rose to a crescendo in the lilting, haunting tongue he spoke in and Will knew somehow that the candles had gone out. He felt the room drain of not only light, but also heat. Beside him, Ciel shivered. Then Magnus fell silent. There was a moment of silence, in which all that could be heard was the heave of breaths.

"Will, Ciel," Magnus said, sounding somewhat tired. "You boys can open your eyes."

It took Ciel a moment to bring himself to do so. Slowly, he opened on eye, then the other, and caught his breath. Blinking crimson, slit-pupilled eyes, Sebastian hung in the air, seeming unharmed though his chest rose and fell under his shirt and waistcoat.

"Are you alright?" Catarina checked, businesslike.

Sebastian nodded silently, red eyes illuminating the darkness. Catarina clicked and the candles lit once again. She reached behind her, wiped down the blade of a knife, and handed it to Magnus. They were going to take his blood. Ciel's breath caught painfully in his dry throat and felt a sudden pressure on his hand. He looked down to the fingers gripping his and traced his gaze up to Will's white face, eyes locked on Jem. Ciel left his hand in Will's. It didn't matter, he told himself. He was just comforting Will. Being a proper host. As Magnus took the blade handle, though, Ciel felt his grip tighten on Will's.

Catarina, carefully removing Sebastian's waistcoat, took the blade briefly from Magnus and slashed a slit down the back of the butler's shirt. She handed the weapon back to her friend and picked up the glass on the table behind her. She pressed the rim firmly but cautiously against the pale skin of his spine and nodded to Magnus, who neatly lined the point of the blade parallel to the glass, over Sebastian's chest. He raised the knife slowly, held it there steadily, then forced it down firmly, sheathing the weapon in smooth, pale skin.

Ciel yanked his hand back from Will's grip. His palms were slick with sweat and, unable to tear his eyes back, he was vaguely aware his hands – and his legs; his whole body – was shaking. Freezing though he was, he paid no attention as the blanket fell from his tense shoulders and to a heap on the floor.

Somewhere, in the back of his mind, the memory of his own torture – disturbingly like this – was playing at ten times the actual speed. In his brain, a ten year old Ciel cried and screamed as a blade plunged into his heart, two words pouring from his mouth over and over and over: "Kill them." But he couldn't save Sebastian, not like Sebastian saved him. All he could do was watch and, as much as he wanted to look away, his eyes on the blade deep in his butler's chest.

Cleanly, Magnus yanked the blade out from Sebastian's chest. Sebastian's back arched at the motion and as it straightened back out, red eyes pressed closed, blood began to drip from the wound into the glass Catarina held against Sebastian's spine. Ciel's eyes went to the crimson liquid and his head felt light. He averted his gaze quickly, gulping breaths, and let his line of sight fall on Sebastian. Beside him, Catarina was working swiftly. She handed Magnus the glass, filled with a considerable amount of blood, and swiftly pressed a cloth to the wound instead.

"Bandages." She said shortly and Magnus moved quickly, handing her the supplies and taking the cloth from her, holding it whilst she bound the gash on Sebastian's back with a practised, expert speed.

"You look after Sebastian and I will deal with Jem." Catarina announced to Magnus, who nodded and beckoned over Ciel.

Ciel took one shaky step and stopped, the room spinning. He closed his eyes, gasping in air, and felt a hand on his shoulder. Magnus took Ciel's wrist gently and pulled him over, guiding him around the circle of candles carefully. Magnus put a hand against Ciel's back, pressing softly, comforting.

"Could you hold this?" Magnus asked quietly, handing Ciel the red-stained cloth. The boy nodded, and Magnus worked, talking non-stop to Ciel, the boy's vice-like grip on the blood-stained rag loosening at the warlock's calm. "Alright, Ciel. So I think we ought to move Sebastian out and give Catarina some space to work. Is there anywhere it would be better he rest?"

"He has a bedchamber in the servants' quarters." Ciel said, unable to make his voice clear. He did not really think he had enough breath to speak particularly loudly. "But it is probably best we don't bypass the other servants. He can stay in one of the guest bedrooms."

He walked helplessly alongside Magnus, who let the floating, unresponsive Sebastian down the halls. At the door next to Ciel's own, the boy stopped and pushed open the door. Magnus lowered his hand and Sebastian collapsed gently onto the large bed in the dark room.

"I ought to go and help Catarina." Magnus said. "Are you two alright? I'll be back to check Sebastian's bandages in a little while. I'll be down the hall if you need me."

Ciel nodded. "Thank you, Magnus."

The warlock returned the gesture and departed. Ciel hovered in the doorway, watching Sebastian for a couple of minutes; his closed eyes, the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest.

"Sebastian," he said quietly, after an age of silence, his voice strained and tight. "Are you alright?"

Without opening his eyes, or moving at all, Sebastian replied: "Yes, my Lord."

As the others left, Will followed Catarina over to where Jem laid. She pulled out a small hinged box and opened it, revealing a strange instrument in two pieces that Will did not recognise.

"What is that?" he asked.

"A syringe." Catarina said, fitting the long sharp needle into place. "Could you wet a cloth, Will?"

He did so silently, and Catarina glanced over.

"Now just clean a small section on the side of Jem's neck." The warlock instructed. "That is where we'll inject the blood. Understood?"

"Yes." Will said quietly.

A knock on the door pulled the attention of them both, and they turned to see Magnus enter, unaccompanied.

"Might there be anything I can do to help?" he asked.

"How much of this blood do you think we ought to use?" Catarina questioned in response. Will tried hard not to be concerned by this.

"Half the syringe." Magnus answered. "I am still somewhat hesitant to give him too much."

Catarina nodded and proceeded to carefully trickle a small amount of Sebastian's blood into the little syringe vial. She fitted the top and turned to Magnus.

"Hold Jem still." She said.

Kneeling down by the bed, Magnus brushed back Jem's silver hair with gentle fingers and Will sat back on his heels, knotting his fingers into the cloth in his hand, the tiny amount of water soaked into the cloth in his hands. Softly, Magnus turned Jem's head to the side, the boy's cheek resting against the cool pillow. Will took Jem's hand, holding on tightly to his parabatai, barely breathing.

"Will?" Magnus said, looking at the shadowhunter.

"Do it. Now. Please." Will said shortly, breathing through his teeth and Catarina placed the syringe to Jem's neck, pressing down slowly.

Will clutched Jem's hand hard as Catarina removed the needle. Magnus wiped away the tiny bead of blood that had blossomed at the puncture mark on Jem's neck and stood up to help Catarina tidy her supplies, and give Will and Jem some privacy.

"Jem," Will whispered. "Jem, please."

Behind his eyelids, there was a movement, and Jem's eyes slowly opened. At first his gaze was unfocused, then it fell on Will sharply. His irises, Will noted, had darkened significantly from silver to a shimmering deep grey.

"Jem!" Will gasped, relieved. "You- you're alright. I..."

Will stopped sharply as Jem's pupils dilated and he went white, grabbing Will's hand crushingly hard, pressing his lips together, breathing hard through his nose.

"Jem, what is it?"

"My...my runes." Jem gasped, and pushed his sleeve.

Will took Jem's arm and his mouth dropped open as he rubbed a finger over the soundless rune on Jem's forearm and it came away black on his finger like coal dust. Jem, shaking all over, gave a yell of agony and fear. Will's heart broke at the pained, terrified sound. What in the Angel's name was this? Will's mind raced, horrified, as Jem's runes disappeared, burning Jem's skin and turning to powder-like ash.