Alec has to fight with his instincts to not raise the bow again, but as much as the tension in his shoulders and up his spine ratchets up the closer Jacob gets until he looks about as stiff as a statue and like he might crack a tooth if he clenches his jaw any harder, he doesn't seem afraid. Wary, yes. Stressed as fuck, absolutely. He's never been this close to a shifter this massive before, and aside from that, unlike most Shadowhunters he's more lethal at range, not in close quarters.
But also the shifter could be exactly what he needs to complete his mission here, since by himself he has not managed it so far. Putting aside that it's practically blasphemy as a Nephilim to seek help from a non-holy creature in the field, Alec is more pragmatic than others of his kind. The important thing is stopping the demon, and if his guess is correct, then the shifters haven't been able to do that even though the huge tracks across the forest floor (which now make a lot more sense) mark this as their home turf. They, he assumes, because unlike werewolves, shifters don't tend to be solitary creatures.
He doesn't go glancing around looking for others to confirm his theory, because instinct will not let him move his eyes off the snarling one in front of him, but now that he recognizes what he's dealing with, a new plan begins to form in his mind. He still has his speed and strength runes active if Jacob decides to lunge, but he doesn't want the risk of a fight when the threat that he's pretty certain they're both hunting is still out there.
He exhales through his nose, pointing his arrow the rest of the way to the ground and slowly letting the drawstring go lax from where he'd been holding it taut and ready to fire. It's a gamble, but he figures he needs to start somewhere, and there's something about the look in the shifter's human-like eyes that makes him think talking won't be a completely fruitless endeavor. "If you want the demon out of your territory, I'm the best chance you've got."
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But also the shifter could be exactly what he needs to complete his mission here, since by himself he has not managed it so far. Putting aside that it's practically blasphemy as a Nephilim to seek help from a non-holy creature in the field, Alec is more pragmatic than others of his kind. The important thing is stopping the demon, and if his guess is correct, then the shifters haven't been able to do that even though the huge tracks across the forest floor (which now make a lot more sense) mark this as their home turf. They, he assumes, because unlike werewolves, shifters don't tend to be solitary creatures.
He doesn't go glancing around looking for others to confirm his theory, because instinct will not let him move his eyes off the snarling one in front of him, but now that he recognizes what he's dealing with, a new plan begins to form in his mind. He still has his speed and strength runes active if Jacob decides to lunge, but he doesn't want the risk of a fight when the threat that he's pretty certain they're both hunting is still out there.
He exhales through his nose, pointing his arrow the rest of the way to the ground and slowly letting the drawstring go lax from where he'd been holding it taut and ready to fire. It's a gamble, but he figures he needs to start somewhere, and there's something about the look in the shifter's human-like eyes that makes him think talking won't be a completely fruitless endeavor. "If you want the demon out of your territory, I'm the best chance you've got."