Clary P.O.V
"Clary, Clary where are you?" Jocelyn's voice filled the air and Clary looked toward the door of her bedroom where her mother now stood. "I looked in here earlier, you weren't here, where were you?" she smiled softly and folded her hands together. Without waiting for a response she continued. "There is a Council meeting up at the Gard and all adult Shadowhunters have to attend. Your father made arrangements for you and Sebastian to stay with the Lightwood's. Also, we need to head to New York to sort some things out with the Institute there. Maryse will come with us of course, but Robert has agreed to stay behind and watch you and your brother."
Clary groaned inwardly. She did not have anything against the Lightwoods but her brother did, her brother hated them. She wasn't sure exactly why, but she knew that he did. Whenever he was near them he would glare instead of look. He speaks to them with rudeness and cruelty. And had made countless horrid remarks to Alec being gay, all of which had ended with he and Alec's younger brother, Jace, fighting. Sebastian would almost always lose therefore making him hate Jace because he was better. The only Lightwood he showed no interest in was Isabelle.
"Mom, are you sure that's a wise idea? You did see what happened the last time we were with the Lightwoods. Sebastian will not stay there, you and dad know that."
Jocelyn sighed. "Of course we know that, but your father thinks that it is just a male rivalry. And besides, you will be there to tame him. We expect that you will watch for your brother?" Jocelyn inclined her head and Clary gave a small nod. She hated being her brother's keeper especially when she didn't always feel comfortable around him. It always seemed like he wanted something more.
"Good, the Council meeting is in a short while so pack some things for your stay in the City. Clothes for about three days maybe four, we will be waiting in the courtyard for you Clary." Jocelyn left the room just as Clary pulled a black duffel bag out from under her bed. She packed some clothes into it and took a spare change of gear; she packed some extra weapons as well. Some of them had been gifts from her parents and her brother. Attaching the weapons belt to her waist, she made sure that all her weapons were securely attached before throwing in her sketchbook and some pencils.
Walking through the Morgenstern manor, she realised just how plain and elegant it was. There were antique furnishings and paintings passed on through the generations and there were paintings of the Angel Raziel rising from Lake Lyn, carrying the Mortal Instruments, just like there was in every Shadowhunter house or manor. Her father kept the decorations to a minimum but the manor was undeniably beautiful with its archways and the library and the stairwells.
Joining Jocelyn and Valentine at the door, Sebastian smiled when he saw Clary. "Are you ready little sister?" he asked her. She nodded and tried to hide the shiver that ran through her when he placed a hand on her back. Her brother never seemed right to her, never like a brother, it was always as if there was something more he wanted. It scared her.
There was a carriage at the bottom of the drive, the walk toward it was brisk and the members of the Morgenstern family all got into it. As the carriage pulled away from the manor, Valentine spoke. "Sebastian, you will not fight with Jace this time. Do you hear me? I forbid you to fight that boy. You are to show him respect; otherwise you will bring shame to the name Morgenstern. Listen to your sister, or I will punish you."
Sebastian seemed to wince a little when Valentine said the last sentence but Clary knew that Valentine had not seen it. "If that boy provokes me, it is his own fault," was all he said.
"That boy broke your nose!" Valentine shouted. "You will not harm the Lightwood!" Sebastian glared at his father and his father held his stare just as icily. "Why are we staying with the Lightwoods?" Sebastian demanded, leaning forward. "Why can I not stay in the manor with Clary? We are not children anymore; I can look after my little sister!"
Valentine's eyes blazed and Clary prayed that her father wouldn't change his mind. Being alone in the manor with Sebastian scared her more than anything else in the world. She never wanted to be alone with her brother. "Sebastian the decision has been made. YOU WILL NOT CHALLENGE ME ON THIS," Valentine said the last sentence with such a force Clary was positive the carriage shook. Thankfully, Sebastian did not retort, he turned his gaze to Clary. She held it steadily until they arrived at the Lightwood house in Alicante.
Maryse and Robert Lightwood stood outside their family house and Clary could guess their children were inside. Sebastian tensed but said nothing. Clary prayed to the Angel that nothing bad would happen. They all got out of the carriage and approached them. Valentine stood a little more forward than the rest of them. "Maryse, Robert, I appreciate you looking after my children," he said. He was standing next to Sebastian and their hair was identical, Clary herself looked more like her mother and was glad about it.
"Of course, I just hope there will be not fighting this time. We do wish that our children will get along. They are upstairs in the attic room if you wish to speak with them," Maryse Lightwood said with ease. Robert stayed quiet and Clary realised that out of the two of them, Maryse was the one who did the talking. Clary gave a grateful smile toward them, but Sebastian just scowled, something that Alec did more often than nought. Valentine looked at him sternly and then ushered them inside the house without another word. Glancing back, Clary saw her parents muttering to one another before all four adults began to make their way to the Gard leaving the carriage in front of the house. Oh Heaven help them.
"Clarissa," Sebastian came close to her and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Moving away from him, she began to climb the stairs to the attic rooms. "Come on, Sebastian. We should go say hello."
"I am not going anywhere near them," Sebastian spat. "I will not be watched over by Alec Lightwood and all that he is!"
Clary stormed back down the few stairs she had climbed and stood in front of her brother. "You will not say that about him!" Sebastian took every opportunity to tease Alec about him being gay and his relationship with the warlock Magnus Bane. It made her hate him for it. Sebastian frowned. "Why do you care what I say about him? He is an unnatural Shadowhunter it is wrong!"
Clary was about to say something when someone chuckled from behind, she turned and saw Jace Lightwood leaning against the wall at the bottom of the stairwell, she hadn't even heard him walk down them. "The only thing unnatural in this house is you, Morgenstern."
Sebastian growled and made as if to go over to Jace, but Clary stopped him by blocking his path. "Sebastian! Leave him alone!" Sebastian stared at her with fury and Jace chuckled again. "Letting your sister protect you? Can't you take care of yourself?"
Clary whirled on Jace, "Shut up! Both of you shut up! Can you not just be in the same room with one another and pretend that the other isn't there? By the Angel, you are both the same age and you are acting like spoilt children!"
Both boys stared at her, Jace with amusement and Sebastian with rage. He spun on his heel and stormed out of the house, Clary ran out after him but Sebastian was already so far ahead, she wouldn't catch him.
She felt something at her back and turned to see Jace looking over her shoulder. "Pity," he said. "I was so looking forward to spending time with him," he smiled and then looked at Clary his eyes thoughtful. "Are you going to run after your brother? Try and convince him to come back?"
"Do you have to be an ass all the time?" she asked, and then to answer his question said, "No, I'm not going after my brother. I know where he'll go; our father will deal with him."
Jace raised his eyebrows, "Well then, I suppose you should come with me to see Alec and Isabelle then."
Alec P.O.V
"Did you know the Morgenstern's were coming to stay?" Izzy was lying on Alec's bed her chin propped up on her hands. Alec knew she cared little for the boy, Sebastian, but had a small liking to the girl, Clary. If he was willing to admit it, he liked her too. And he knew Jace did.
"Yes, mom told me. I wonder if Sebastian and Jace will fight again. Last time Sebastian's nose was broken. Supposedly Valentine had to use three iratzes on him…" Isabelle grinned and flicked her black hair away from her face. "I hate him; he thinks his last name make's him God."
Alec laughed just as Jace came through the door with Clary; he waited to see the white hair of Sebastian but was surprised when he did not. Jace came over and sat next to Alec on Jace's bed whilst Clary sat in an armchair by the door, she pulled her knees to her chest and Alec felt a pang of sympathy toward her.
"Where's your brother?" it was Isabelle of course and the question didn't seem to surprise Clary. She rested her chin on her knees and looked to the floor. "Sebastian doesn't feel comfortable staying here. He… I think his pride is wounded that our father didn't trust him enough to take care of him and me."
Jace opened his mouth to say something but Clary spoke, cutting him off. "Before Jace came and got us, he made a comment about you Alec," Alec looked up in surprise and saw Jace's eyes burning. He looked to Clary. "What did he say?"
"He said… he said that you're relationship with Magnus was unnatural. I wanted to apologise for it, I know it didn't come from my mouth but I feel responsible for him so I am sorry," everyone in the room was silent. Isabelle was looking at Clary intently and Jace had a small smile on his face. Alec could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks.
Alec was used to people making comments about his relationship with Magnus and he had grown to not care about it. But he was surprised that Clary was apologising for her brother's hatred. He hadn't expected that. "Thank you," Alec murmured. "It isn't your fault," Jace said. Clary blushed a little, "I feel responsible for my brother; he is my blood and all. I just wish he wasn't so much like our father."
She sat straight then and Alec realised what she had done; she had spoken her thoughts aloud. Alec had always thought that Clary would be devoted to her brother, that she loved him. Now though, he wasn't so sure. "At least the white haired bastard left, he had the decency to do that," Jace looked to Clary who gave a small laugh. Jace's eyes danced as he watched Clary. "What's funny?" he asked not unkindly.
"White haired bastard, I've never heard anyone call him that before," she composed herself as Isabelle sniggered. "Wait until our father learns of what he's done, he'll go crazy,"
"I heard a rumour about your dad once," Jace said absently, Isabelle flashed Alec a warning look. "I was up at the Gard and I heard someone say that Valentine had kept an Angel in his cellar some years ago, had tortured the Angel and broke its wings. Is it true?"
Alec thought Clary would be offended by the question, she was not. Instead, she laughed at it. "No, it isn't. It's just a rumour that was started because people didn't like my father when he opposed to the Accords. My father is not that cruel. And not that bad." Jace's eyes flashed again and Alec knew that he didn't believe her, maybe she thought it was a lie, Alec didn't know.
Jace P.O.V
Jace watched Clary as she spoke with Isabelle and Alec across the room, he didn't know what they were talking about. He couldn't seem to stop looking at Clary, he had seen her before but now he saw her differently… her fiery hair was loose by her shoulders, the curls framing her pale face. Her green eyes shone like emeralds and the clothes she was wearing were that of a typical Shadowhunter in gear. But he realised that he was thinking of her in a way he hadn't before, he had known that Clary was pretty but now she seemed to be more than 'pretty' she was beautiful.
"You make your feelings blatantly obvious you know," Alec said in his ear. Jace turned to look at him and grinned, "I have no idea what you are talking about? I am simply looking at our guest."
"Yeah, right, is she any different to the other girls you've dated?" the question wasn't cruel but Jace had to supress a wince. It was true he had dated a lot of girls, mostly leaving them broken-hearted according to Alec and Isabelle. But as he watched Clary, he wanted her in a way he didn't know how to describe. He had never been particularly close with the Morgenstern girl but he had never not-liked her. She was brave and smart and a good Shadowhunter.
"Jace, are you listening?" Alec's voice interrupted his thoughts and he turned to look at his friend. "What?"
Alec sighed, "I asked you what you thought about Clary, and I can tell Isabelle likes her."
After a moment's hesitation, he gave his answer, "I think that she's something."
Clary P.O.V
Clary sat in the armchair speaking to Isabelle for what felt like hours, and when Clary finally had to go to the bathroom she realised it had been hours. She instantly felt guilty for not checking on Sebastian, she should have gone after him, convinced him to stay despite his problems with the Lightwoods. When she came out of the bathroom she found Jace waiting out in the hall, he startled when he saw her and she was surprised.
"I thought it was Isabelle in there," he said, Clary noticed that he stood against the wall with grace and elegance something she had never had much of. She had been jealous of Isabelle with her hair and her curves and the way she made boys swoon. Now she realised that it was silly, she couldn't change how she looked and that was final.
"Well, the bathroom's free now," she said. Clary tried to walk past him but he stopped her. "You didn't have to apologise to Alec. It wasn't your fault, it was your brothers. You don't have to own up to his mistakes, you aren't his keeper," as soon as he had said the last word, Jace let go of her arm and walked into the bathroom. Leaving her standing there staring at the door, wondering why he had even say it.
It was only when it started to get dark did Clary feel as if she really needed to check on Sebastian, the Lightwoods had returned now and her parents had left but neither knew that Sebastian wasn't actually in the house. The Lightwoods believed that Sebastian was asleep in the room they had lent him and her parents had believed the same thing, surprisingly.
She sat in her bedroom drawing the Morgenstern manor, she had drawn it many times before but she could think of nothing else. There was a knock on her door and Isabelle came in, her black hair in a French braid. "Hey, mom says I should check on you. She's quite nervous you know, about looking after you."
She strode across the room and sat beside Clary on the bed, she took the sketchbook from her hands she looked at the drawing and then started flicking through the book, and saw the drawings of Clary's parents, her brother, the view of Alicante from up high, the Lightwoods and Jace. Isabelle set the book down when she was done. "You're good," she said. Clary gave her a small smile and took the book back into her hands. Her father had said that she had inherited her talent of drawing from her mother. Clary was about to say something when Isabelle opened her mouth.
"Do you like your brother?" Clary's head snapped up and she stared at Isabelle, the question was so forward that she had been caught off guard. "What?"
"Do you like your brother?" Isabelle repeated. After several moments, Clary gave her answer. "My brother… is hard to like. He does not bond well with others."
"But I asked if you liked him," Isabelle said.
Clary swallowed, "Of course I like him he's my brother,"
"Why do you defend him?"
"Because my parents will not, my mom tries but my dad says that he needs to learn how to deal with things. I once heard him say that Sebastian was not the son he had wanted, that he was too violent. I had always thought there was something demonic about my brother, he is very harsh."
"He isn't harsh to you,"
"I don't know why that is. I don't always feel as if he views me as a sister. If I am perfectly honest I am sometimes scared of him." Clary didn't know why she was telling Isabelle these things, but she did, and she didn't feel uncomfortable doing it.
"I hear the Morgenstern manor is one of the finest here in Alicante," Clary looked up to see Jace by the door and blushed. How much had he heard?
Still blushing, Clary put away her sketch pad. "What time is it?" she asked. Isabelle looked to Jace, "Sometime in the evening, I'm not sure," she said. Jace shrugged.
Clary sighed and got off of the bed, "I should go back to the manor for my brother, he'll be grumbling that I didn't go with him. I'll be coming back of course, tell your mother not to worry," Clary walked toward the door trying to edge past Jace but he wouldn't move. "I'll go with you," he said. "I want to see Morgenstern Manor anyway."
"Jace, I don't think that's wise -"
"Clary, I can take care of myself. You're brother does not frighten me," Jace spoke with confidence and Clary shrank back. He frightens me, she thought. "All right, come with me. But please do not break my brother's nose."
Jace P.O.V
Jace followed Clary out of the Lightwood house and his eyebrows rose as she swore. She turned to face him, "My parents have the carriage," she said. "We have to walk at it's in the heart of the countryside. It'll take hours!"
He grinned. "Well then, it'll be a great opportunity for you to stretch your legs after sitting around all day," Jace watched as Clary fixed him with a steady glare. She pointed at him with her right index finger. "Do not, and I mean do not engage my brother in a fight when we get to the manor. I will not be the one explaining your silly rivalry to my father or Maryse."
Jace had to supress a laugh. It was funny to see her like this but he knew that she was serious. "I swear on the Angel that if your white haired bastard of a brother does not provoke me or lay one finger on me I will not harm him. If he does however, well then the bastard's for it."
Clary sniggered as he said bastard and he thought back to earlier when she had laughed, how her emerald eyes had shone. "Come on," she was saying now. "We better go; it is already dark, we need to hurry."
For a while the walk to the manor was silent and then Jace spoke, "You said before, about your brother, that you were scared of him. Are you?"
Jace watched her closely as she came up with an answer. "N-no, I was only exaggerating. Of course I'm not afraid of my brother. Isabelle isn't afraid of Alec," Clary said, Jace turned back to the path they were walking.
"That's because Isabelle loves her brother. She looks at him with the brother-sister affection and annoyance. You don't look at your brother like that; you look at him with fear and disliking. I don't see love in your eyes when you look at your brother."
"Why do you care what I feel for my brother?" she demanded. Jace looked at her, with raised eyebrows. "It isn't any of your business, besides,"
"I didn't say it was my business. I was just pointing out that you don't look at your brother the way a sister should,"
Clary whirled on him and slapped his right cheek. His hand flew to it, not in pain but in surprise. His eyes were large, his pupils blown wide. "What the hell was that for?!" he demanded, straightening, he took his hand away from his cheek.
"Stop commenting about my relationship with my brother," she demanded. Clary looked up at the sky and groaned. "This was a pointless journey, it's took dark to continue walking, let's just go back and if you are still so determined to see the manor in the morning then we will come back,"
Without giving Jace a chance to speak, Clary turned and started walking back toward the City, Jace followed, silently, behind.
Hello!
I hope you like my new story, I just want to clarify that in this story, Jace is a Lightwood.
This is one of my favourite Clace creations and I hope you guys like it, sorry if you don't.
candygirl180
