London, 1878
Charlotte watched her husband from the corner of the room with a mixture of amusement and affection. In true form, Henry was covered in soot from head to toe, his oil covered shirtsleeves were rolled excitedly behind his elbows as he was completely distracted by his new gadget.
Whenever Charlotte would ask Henry what its purpose was, he would merely shake his head of copper curls and declare that it was a surprise. This worried Charlotte a great deal, for her husband's inventions tended to be hit and miss, but more so the latter.
Because of this, Charlotte had taken to watching her husband as he worked. She hoped that she would take notice if he were doing something absurd, but Charlotte had no clue as to what she witnessed. It was like trying to decipher an unknown language.
Henry had managed to keep explosions to a minimum in her presence. Perhaps it was the thought of her safety and that of their unborn child, that inspired him to work more effectively. At that thought, a smile split her lips as her hand dropped to her belly where Henry's greatest invention was growing. Henry would be a wonderful father, she just knew it.
"I've got it!" Henry's voice shattered their silence and startled Charlotte out of her musings.
"What exactly have you gotten, Henry?" Charlotte questioned a little breathlessly.
He opened his mouth to answer, but just then a rapid ticking filled the air around them. In unison, the couple turned their bodies toward Henry's device, which was the source of the noise.
"Henry?" Charlotte called, her voice full of dread. She knew all too well that this would not end well.
No sooner had the name fallen from her lips when two things happened at once. The most noticeable thing to Charlotte was a powerful light that exploded from Henry's invention. It was too bright and painted over her vision. It seemed to be spreading throughout the room and covering every inch it could find.
The most noticeable thing to the house was rumbling that began to shake the institute. The floors, the walls, and the ceiling all began to rattle dangerously. Between the shaking and the light, it seemed to make her paralyzed to the spot. She wanted to scream in frustration.
"Lottie!" Henry called. "Are you alright?"
"No more surprises Henry. What in the world have you created?" Charlotte yelled.
Henry had opened his mouth to answer his wife, but just then, there was an earth shaking thump. With that interruption, they vanished from the spot. They no longer stood in London, 1878.
"Go home, Cecily!" Will shouted to his younger sister.
She no longer flinched from the cruelty in voice, instead she narrowed her very similar eyes at him. "You first," Cecily countered.
"You are the most stubborn fool that I have ever had the displeasure of meeting," he growled in frustration.
"How ironic? I was just thinking the same of you, William."
Will threw his sister a look as she used his full name.
"When are you going to grow up Cecy?"
Without allowing her time to respond, Will stomped out of the room. His frustration burned into anger as he stormed down the hall. His emotions distracted him so much that he did not see Tessa, who, in return, did not see him. Her face was bent towards her open book, her mind completely enraptured in the fiction , as the two collided.
The force of Will's body sent her book flying, upon impact, as Tessa toppled backwards toward the floor.
Before her back could touch the wood, Will caught her with a swift cradling of his arms.
"Tessa! By the Angel, I did not see you. Are you alright?"
He had stood them up properly but his arms were still around her and their faces were close enough to kiss. It was the first time he'd spoken to Tessa willingly since her engagement to Jem. It was the first time they had been so close and it most certainly the first time they had touched.
Will had lost his mask of indifference as his mind was filled with fear of hurting Tessa. But time was passing quickly, although it felt like an eternity to Will, and he was regaining his composure. He swallowed loudly as he released Tessa and looked away from her wide, doe eyes.
"Yes and thank you for catching me," Tessa answered weakly.
"Reflexes," William shrugged.
"Of course," she said quickly.
"Have you seen Jem?"
Tessa bit her lip and Will wondered why the mention of her fiance made her so uncomfortable.
"He's left to get his yin fen."
"Say no more." He did not want to speak of his parabatai's illness no more than she did.
"Lovely," Tessa muttered as she went to retrieve her book. "I've lost my place."
Will flickered his gaze to the book in her hands and felt his heart hammer in his chest as he read its title. It was the book he'd given her.
"A Tale of Two Cities ," he read aloud.
He watched in shock as a blush colored her cheeks.
He opened his mouth, though he knew not what to say, when a rumble began to shake through the walls and the floor.
"What exactly is Henry creating," Tessa asked over the noise of their shaking home.
Will met her eyes and saw the terror she hid inside them. He could not blame her for her fear. If Henry could set himself on fire and not realize it, he could certainly blow up a building!
Just then, the rumbling grew impressively. The walls trembled violently and the floor boards felt as though they were soon to be uprooted.
"Will!" His sister had called from behind them. He could not see her but he knew she was close.
"Cecily!" Will called back. Her scream ripped through the noise and Will took hold of Tessa's hand as he led them towards his sister. He had just caught sight of his younger sibling when a blistering light erupted from beneath them and stole his vision.
There was a thump so loud that Will felt it shake his bones.
"Damn you, Henry!" Will swore and it was the last thing he said before they all disappeared.
... ...
It was by mere chance that Gideon discovered Bridget and Sophie hauling groceries from the carriage. Sophie's eyes had landed on his though she quickly looked away. Disappointment stabbed through him but he shook the feeling away.
"Allow me to help," he called when he was close.
"Oh we couldn't possibly-" Sophie started to say.
"Here," Bridget grunted as she piled bags into Gideon's arms.
"Bridget!" Sophie scolded.
"Let's not waste time arguing when the end result will be the same. Mr. Lightwood here is not the kind of man to walk away while two pretty women are doing heavy lifting.
Sophie looked as though she would continue to argue but in that moment, there was a dome of unnatural light that cloaked the institute.
"By the Angel," Gideon cried in awe.
Just as suddenly as the light appeared, it was gone. Groceries forgotten, the trio bolted inside their home.
"Charlotte! Tessa! Henry!" Sophie called down the halls but there was no answer.
They split up to search for their fellow housemates, but to no avail. They were not in their rooms, nor the kitchen. The weapons room was empty just the same as the library. They checked Charlotte's study and the basement and every room in between. No one was there.
"I found no trace of them," Gideon announced when he met Sophie and Bridget in the foyer. Their shoulders slumped in defeat. Where in the world could they have gone?
The sound of the door opening and closing caused them to twist their bodies toward the sound.
In unison, they ran to the entrance. "Charlotte?" Sophie called just before they rounded the corner.
"No. Just me. Where is everyone?" Jem asked.
A/N : Just an idea. Let me know if I should keep it up. R/R!