“ | Don’t remain silent about what you want, or you may never get it. | ” |
– Dru's advice to Kieran, Queen of Air and Darkness |
Drusilla Blackthorn is a Shadowhunter from the Blackthorn family who lives at the Los Angeles Institute.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Drusilla was born to Andrew and Eleanor Blackthorn in 1999. Drusilla is the sixth of seven children and thus has five older siblings: Helen, Mark, Jules, Livvy, and Ty, and one younger brother, Tavvy.
Dark War[]
When Sebastian Morgenstern and his army of Endarkened invaded the Los Angeles Institute, she was at the nursery with Tavvy. Frightened by the noise and fire coming from outside, she got hold of a sword and determinedly protected him until Emma Carstairs came to get them. By the foyer, Emma stayed and let Dru carry Tavvy and go to the office ahead of her. They got there in time and were Portaled into Alicante.
After the raid, Dru and Tavvy were both very uncomfortable and had nightmares. Despite only being eight, Dru was also interrogated with the Mortal Sword, a tool used to painfully compel the truth out of a person. She and her siblings suffered through a lot during the Dark War, made worse by the loss of Andrew, who was Endarkened and killed afterwards, Mark, who joined the Wild Hunt, and Helen, who was exiled to Wrangel Island. Eventually, the family was sent back to the Institute, where they were to be raised by their uncle, Arthur.[2] Diana Wrayburn soon arrived and became their tutor.[3]
Cold Peace[]
At one point, Dru became obsessed with detectives, much like her older brother Ty—unlike him, however, Dru got over the phase. She read Nancy Drew books Emma got from a junk shop, citing them as good adventure stories that were nice to read about because it didn't have any demons.[4]
In 2012, the Blackthorns visited their great-aunt Marjorie in England. During their stay there, Marjorie told her that if she wasn't "such a butterball," she would be pretty and boys would do whatever she wanted. Emma was horrified to hear about this and told her that she was truly beautiful, regardless of her shape.[3]
The Guardian[]
The family returned to L.A. in August, after about two months with their aunt. Upon their arrival, they were introduced to Cristina Rosales, who was staying at the Institute for her travel year.
When the Blackthorns began their investigations on the Guardian, Dru helped with Livvy and Ty through research within the Institute. She was often left to take care of Tavvy or to keep him from hearing the gory details of their missions. When Cristina's ex Diego arrived at the Institute, Dru developed a crush on him.
Dru was at the beach with Tavvy when the others realized that their trusted High Warlock Malcolm Fade was the Guardian, so when Malcolm arrived telling her that she was needed by Julian at the Institute, and to leave Tavvy with him, she trusted him and ran off, accepting a letter from Malcolm meant for Julian. When she arrived, Dru and the others realized that Malcolm now had the Blackthorn he needed to sacrifice for his ritual. Dru broke down and wept when she realized what she had unwittingly done.
Dru protested when the possibility of her staying at the Institute while they went after Malcolm to rescue Tavvy came up, and Julian—acknowledging that Dru was the same age as him and Emma when they fought during the Dark War—agreed to let her come, so long as she stayed behind them and stuck close to the others. There, they found Diana, and together, they all confronted Malcolm and interrupted the ritual, saving Tavvy.
When Diana was incapacitated during the battle, Dru rushed to her in an attempt to help her and ended up killing an undead Follower—her first ever kill. When Malcolm went for Ty and Livvy in an attempt to get a new sacrifice, Dru got in his way. Malcolm turned his attention to her and used his magic to knock her off her feet. Emma drew him away, allowing Dru to escape.[3]
A few weeks after the battle, Malcolm appeared at the Institute with a horde of sea demons, having partially resurrected himself with a spell from the Black Volume of the Dead. He threatened the residents and the visiting Centurions, telling them to provide him with Blackthorn blood once again and gave them a deadline before leaving and setting the demons upon them. Dru, on Arthur and Diana's orders, Portaled to the London Institute with her siblings during the battle, leaving the Centurions to face the demons.[5]
London refuge[]
While in London, Dru became frustrated about being left behind to babysit Tavvy, feeling dismissed and neglected in terms of being a Shadowhunter. Brooding in the parlor, she was shocked to find a boy, who she later recognized from Cristina's stories as Jaime Rosales, hiding. Jaime went on to tell Dru that he needed to see Cristina but couldn't be seen just yet. Pleased that someone trusted her enough to confide in her, Dru hid him in her room and brought food up to him. She enjoyed keeping him a secret from her siblings as it made her feel important, and needed by Jaime. The two bonded, and Dru soon became attracted to Jaime, appreciating how he interacted with her. Dru, however, realized that this may be because Jaime thought they were around the same age—sixteen—and was unable to bring herself to correct him and tell him that she was only thirteen.
When Jaime thought the time was right, he had Dru fetch Cristina so they could meet. She was disappointed and sad when Cristina came back to her afterwards and told her that Jaime was gone, though she promised to keep Dru informed of what happened to him.
Back in her room, Dru was surprised to find Jaime's duffel bag still under her bed. Inside, she found a glowing object and, after touching it, found herself in a strange underground room, not realizing that she was in Unseelie territory. After exploring a bit, Dru came across a boy called Ash who mistook her for someone sent to help him. Before she could learn anything else, she was brought back to her room in the Institute.
After Malcolm finally succeeded in bringing Annabel Blackthorn back from the dead, and Julian had reached an agreement with her, they all went to Idris with Kieran so that they may testify against the Cohort and the Unseelie Court. The meeting turned horrific, however, when Annabel went mad and killed Livia.[5]
Livia's Watch[]
Dru grieved the sudden loss of her sister and sought out Emma and Julian for comfort, but because the two had to stay behind in Alicante after Livvy's funeral, Helen tried to reach out to her. Dru did not immediately feel comfortable with Helen and kept her at arm's length. Instead, she continued to look after Tavvy and tried to get closer to Kit and Ty.
Kieran arrived at the Institute a few days after their return, and he informed them that Emma and Julian had been sent on a suicide mission to Faerie by Horace Dearborn. Dru cried and worried immensely for them, and for Mark who was going after them, feeling as if everyone she loved was leaving her. While watching Tavvy play by the beach on the day the rescue team was leaving for Faerie, she spotted Jaime and accompanied him to the Institute. When Dru told them that Jaime had stayed with her in London, Mark threatened him and pointed out that she was only thirteen, surprising Jaime, who was unable to answer when she asked him privately afterwards if they were still friends. After Jaime and the others left, Dru finally found comfort in her sister Helen.
Meanwhile, in the world where Julian and Emma were trapped in, Julian drew a portrait of her which he took with him on a trip, "for luck". He accidentally left the photo behind with his jacket, which was found by Ash Morgenstern, the boy she'd seen when she touched the Eternidad. Ash recognized her and kept the sketch.
Back in their world, Dru, upon learning that Kit knew how to pick locks, she asked him to teach her and he agreed. Dru was pleased when Ty and Kit later asked her to help them on a "secret mission". Posing as Vanessa Ashdown, she was able to successfully trick the Shadow Market owner Barnabas Hale.
Unlike most of the others, Dru noticed that Ty was more devastated about Livvy's death than he was letting on. She and Kit discussed it, and Kit told her to try to remind Ty that he still had another sister who was alive, inviting her to tag along with them one night. When she guessed that they were secretly trying to contact Livvy's ghost, he lied by agreeing. At the beach, Dru witnessed Ty's reaction to finding out that they had "failed".
When Dru was sent to Alicante with Tavvy, Magnus and Alec's kids, and Maryse Lightwood, Dru secretly planned to get the wrongfully imprisoned Jia, Jaime and Diego, and their friends, from the Gard. She snuck out of the house they were staying at one night and got them out by picking the lock.
Despite her desire to join in the battle that broke out against the Cohort, Dru understood that she needed to stay behind to look after Tavvy. When Julian and Emma turned into gigantic true Nephilim, however, Tavvy insisted on going to help stop them. Dru activated her Familias rune and reunited with her siblings; though many of their allies tried to stop them from getting close, fearing for their lives, they managed to reach them with help from their friends. After getting close enough, they got the pair to listen and successfully managed to let them transform back to themselves before the heavenly fire could kill them.
At a small gathering held at the Penhallows' home in Alicante after Julian and Emma recovered, Dru eavesdropped on Magnus and Ty's conversation and found out that Ty had tried to resurrect Livvy. Dru briefly resented Kit, who did not stop by to say goodbye before leaving with Jem and Tessa, for lying to her after all. Dru confronted Ty then, still missing Livvy herself, asked Ty to teach her how to see Livvy. Dru agreed to keep it a secret, forming a new bond between the siblings.
Dru also somewhat reestablished her friendship with Jaime, suggesting that they might someday meet again at the new Shadowhunter Academy, though Dru felt that he was beginning to treat her like a child.[6]
Personality and traits[]
Drusilla is quite shy and often feels self-conscious about her body. She is often bitter about being left out of supposed adult business, tired of being dismissed and treated like a child.
Physical description[]
Dru has the Blackthorns' signature dark brown hair and blue-green eyes.
As a child, she was already compact, expected to grow to be curvy, unlike her mostly lanky siblings. At thirteen, she is quite tall for her age—nearly the same height as Cristina, despite being five years younger than her. Her body went through puberty early, showing off her curves to the point where Dru, at thirteen, has been mistaken for seventeen or eighteen years old by mundane boys. This has made her very self-conscious about her body because unlike most Shadowhunters who are wiry or muscular, she is round-bodied and doesn't fit into the gear designed for girls in her age group. She often wears her hair in two braids.[3][5]
According to Helen, she strongly resembled her mother, Eleanor Blackthorn.
Appearances[]
- City of Lost Souls (alluded to)
- City of Heavenly Fire (first appearance)
- Bitter of Tongue
- The Fiery Trial
- Lady Midnight
- Lord of Shadows
- Queen of Air and Darkness
- The Lost World
- Secrets of Blackthorn Hall
- The Last King of Faerie (will appear)
Gallery[]
- See more here
Etymology[]
Following the family tradition of Greek, and Latin, names, Andrew named her Drusilla after Caligula's sister.[7]
Trivia[]
- Dru is very competitive.[2]
- Dru is an avid reader,[8][9][10] and she likes horror movies,[11] especially any with the words "blood," "terror," or "prom" in it. In fact, her room has books about serial killers and slasher films scattered across the floor; the walls are black, and vintage horror posters cover the windows.[3]
- One of her favorite bad movies is The Deadly Bees, and she even bought a pair of gold bee earrings so she could wear them while watching the death-by-stinger scenes.[6]
- Dru likes tea but, because caffeine keeps her up, prefers it decaffeinated and prepared with milk and honey.[6]
- Though she does not remember, her soul attended Tessa Gray and Jem Carstairs's dream wedding along with her siblings and Emma. She even briefly got to see her lost brother, Mark.[12]
- Dru will be attending the Shadowhunter Academy-In-Exile,[14] where she is roommates with Thais Pedroso.[15]
- Due to the trauma in her life, she starts having panic attacks, but doesn't tell anyone.[14]
References[]
- ↑ "Dru is on the short side — five five maybe." Cassandra Clare on Tumblr
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 City of Heavenly Fire
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Lady Midnight
- ↑ An Illustrated History of Notable Shadowhunters & Denizens of Downworld
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Lord of Shadows
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Queen of Air and Darkness
- ↑ The Blackthorns' Roman names — Cassandra Clare on Tumblr
- ↑ "No, Dru is the reader." Cassandra Clare on Twitter
- ↑ "She's a bookworm." Cassandra Clare on Twitter
- ↑ "Dru is the big reader." Cassandra Clare on Twitter
- ↑ "She likes horror movies." Cassandra Clare on Twitter
- ↑ In Dreams Begin, a The Lost Book of the White extra
- ↑ Cassandra Clare at BookCon - Fangirlish on Twitter
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "She’s at Shadowhunter Academy ... she has anxiety and panic attacks that she keeps to herself." Cassandra Clare on Tumblr
- ↑ Secrets of Blackthorn Hall: Emma to Dru