Chain of Gold
- Even though he's now supposed to be acting as Brother Zachariah, Jem is clearly still involved in Will and Tessa's lives, to the extent that their children call him Uncle Jem instead of Brother Zachariah.
- His speech to James is one of the sweetest moments in the book:
Jem: There is very little brightness and warmth in the world for me. There are only four flames, in the whole world, that burn fiercely enough for me to feel something like the person I was. Your mother, your father, Lucie, and you. You love, and tremble, and burn. Do not let those who cannot see the truth tell you who you are. You are the flame that cannot be put out. You are the star that cannot be lost. You are who you have always been, and that is enough and more than enough. Anyone who looks at you and sees darkness is blind. - One day when they were younger, Cordelia and Lucie were picking flowers in a field when the ground gave way, and Lucie nearly fell over the edge of a cliff. She could have been seriously hurt, but Cordelia grabbed her arm and held on for hours until help arrived. Since they'd been picking daisies, this lead to Cordelia's nickname.
- James' first scene in the book has him leaping off of a roof to get at a demon that's attacking Matthew. Their entire relationship serves as a CMOH, especially in the moments where it parallels that between James' father Will, and his namesake, Jem Carstairs.
- The scene between the two of them on Blackfriars' Bridge, culminating in this line:
James: Tell me Matthew. Tell me the name of the shadow that is always hanging over you. I can become a shadow. I could fight it for you. - The box full of expensive dresses that Cordelia receives is not from James, but rather Anna Lightwood, who understands how important it is to feel comfortable in your own skin.
Chain of Iron
- Though James and Matthew's relationship is threaded through with tension in this book, it's clear that they care deeply about each other. Just look at Matthew's reaction any time James slips into the shadow realm.
- What Alastair tells Cordelia just after the wedding:''Agar oun ba to mehraboon nabood, bargard khooneh va motmaen bash man kari mikonam ke az ghalat kardene khodesh pashimoon besheh.'' If he ever hurts you, come home, and I will make him regret it." It was Alastair's way of telling her he would miss her.
- Alastair's refusal to take up Cortana, the Legendary Weapon of the Carstairs family. Though he used to dream of wielding the sword himself, he insists that Cordelia is the rightful bearer. Even Matthew has to admit that it was a kind gesture.
Chain of Thorns
- Even though he went to Cornwall to protect Lucie, he expresses concern the moment he realizes that something is wrong with James as well. When James spills most of the secrets that he's been keeping for the last two books, Will doesn't get angry, he only says that he understands why James kept things secret, but he wishes that his son had told him, so that he could have helped.
- James' dream of playing chess with Cordelia is rather sweet, before it turns into a nightmare. He even imagines himself telling her Kheili khoshgeli, the first words he learned in Persian, in a Call-Back to a scene between his mother and Uncle Jem in the previous series.
- It takes Will about an hour to go from slamming Jesse into a wall and threatening him with a knife to calling him "son" and participating in an elaborate and dubiously legal scheme to bring him back to the Institute and, effectively, into the family.
- The conversation between James and Jem in Cornwall is very sweet — Jem confesses that he has difficulty wrestling with the anger he feels towards Grace on his nephew's behalf, and James tells him that it's a relief to hear that there's someone in the Silent City who's still connected enough to their humanity to see the people involved in these crimes as people with feelings and lives and families.
- The scene between Alastair and Cordelia when she returns from Paris is very sweet:Alastair: Look, you need not discuss your feelings about James, Matthew, or whatever other harem of men you may have acquired, with me. I merely want to know if you're all right.Cordelia: No, you want to know if either of them has done something awful to me, so you can share them around, shouting.Alastair: I could want both.
- The way that Christopher and Thomas manage the fight between Matthew and James: Christopher visits James to check on him, and Thomas does the same for Matthew. It becomes even sweeter when the conversation between Thomas and Matthew leads to the former's coming out.
- It's also worth noting that despite his animosity towards Alastair, Matthew is polite and supportive in regards to Thomas' feelings, as soon as they've established that Alastair hasn't done anything to hurt him.
- The souls of dead Shadowhunters appearing at Lucie and Cordelia's parabatai ceremony as a way of thanking Lucie for using her ability to command the dead to turn the tide of battle against Belial's forces multiple times.
