The Owl

The Owl
Biographical Information
Kind:	Demon
Residence:	Edom New York City, USA (briefly)
Affiliation, Fate
Allegiance:	Lilith
Status:	Banished
Physical Description
Distinct feature/s:	Owl-like features

“	Whatever you need, my Queen.	”
–The Owl, A Window Into an Empty Room

The Owl was an intelligent demon and a loyal servant of Lilith.

History

Sometime in 2016, Lilith had this owl possess Jace Herondale—a recently-resurrected Shadowhunter who was left vulnerable to demonic influence—and use his body as a vessel. The demon was only able to take over Jace during his sleeping moments because his love for Clary Fairchild overpowered the Owl's love for Lilith.

Despite only having control over him at certain times of day, he was able to begin gathering disciples for Lilith with Jace's body, and was later able to use his access to the New York Institute to carry out another order from Lilith. The fact that he was possessing Jace also made him practically undetectable to the Shadowhunters who had began to hunt for him, which even included the real Jace for a time.

The Owl did not simply possess and take over Jace; as with all of Lilith's possessor demons, it lived, spoke, and faithfully followed Lilith's orders as if it was Jace and had access to his memories and emotions in the past. When Lilith was able to make Jace fall out of love with Clary, the Owl became fully in control, with Jace's consciousness imprisoned in a form of mental cage.

After the Owl collected the final disciple, Lilith sent them—as in Jace and the Owl—to Idris to retrieve Valentine's flesh. While digging up the grave at the Cemetery, he was captured by Jace's friends in a powerful cage, and chained with equally powerful shackles so that they could invade his mind to reach Jace. Lilith arrived and took him back before they could succeed.

“	Careful. He's still in here. [...] Your boy is crying, you know. He's begging me... begging me not to do this.	”
–The Owl taunting Alec Lightwood, Erchomai

After retrieving Valentine's flesh and Clary, he rejoined Lilith. He was later dispatched by Lilith to handle the intruders that threatened to stop her ritual. He jumped down from the top of a building and faced off against Jace's parabatai Alec Lightwood and taunted him about Jace's pleas in his mind. He impaled Alec with an arrow, but the warlock Magnus Bane arrived to stop him. Magnus had obtained enough power and used it on him to release Jace from his mental prison. Jace and the Owl fought for control of his body. Jace won and the Owl's essence was expelled from his body through his mouth in the form of black blood, and the blood sizzled, leaving no physical trace of the Owl demon.

Personality

The Owl was blindly loyal to his Queen, Lilith. It was intelligent, able to decide and act of its own accord. It knew somewhat how to blend in among humans and was capable of interacting with them. The Owl was also sadistic and cruel.

Abilities

• Demonic physiology: As with most fighting demons, the Owl had supernatural strength and agility as well as magic. He was also sometimes empowered by Lilith herself, given demonic energy through a kiss.
• Demonic Magic: Like all Demons, Lilith's Owl had access to particularly strong Magic that he could use for a variety of effects such as:
  • Telekinesis: During the fight with Alec Lightwood he stopped an arrow in mid-air by raising his hand.
  • Possession: The Owl was capable of passing on demons into humans—particularly vulnerable mundanes—to possess them.
  • Exorcism: The Owl was also capable of removing the Demon (whos possessing) from mundanes by chanting in another language.

Appearances

Season Three appearances: 9/22
On Infernal Ground: Appears	The Powers That Be: Appears on a screen only	What Lies Beneath: Appears	Thy Soul Instructed: Appears	Stronger Than Heaven: Appears in a different form
A Window Into an...: Appears in a different form	Salt in the Wound: Appears in a different form	A Heart of Darkness: Appears in a different form	Familia Ante Omnia: Appears in a different form	Erchomai: Appears
Lost Souls: Mentioned only	Original Sin: Absent	Beati Bellicosi: Absent	A Kiss From a Rose: Absent	To the Night Children: Absent
Stay With Me: Mentioned only	Heavenly Fire: Absent	The Beast Within: Absent	Aku Cinta Kamu: Absent	City of Glass: Mentioned only

Alliance: Absent

All Good Things...: Absent

Trivia

The skull of an owl at the Church of Talto.

• In Hebrew-language texts, the term Lilith (translated as "night creatures" or "screech owl"). The Burney Relief terracotta depicting a woman flanked by owls was, and still is by some, believed to be Lilith. Lilith is also associated with owls, due to a reference to a Lilith among a list of wilderness birds and animals in Isaiah, in later Jewish literature.