Author's Note- To those who are invested in my other stories, I'm sorry it's taken so long and will update as soon as possible. It's just a matter of typing it out. This story is one I formed in my head after reading the City of Falling Angels.
Hermione-
I lay my head down on Clary's bed. She sits beside me and I watch her while she thinks. She understands me. We both found out that we are something entirely different than what we thought we were. The things our parents told us didn't exist. We are both part Muggle, though her people call them mundanes, and part something wonderful. We don't really belong anywhere because we belong everywhere. To many that statement would never make sense, but she understands.
She is old, and I am not. We may be the same age, but that doesn't really matter. What matters is the war. During the war Ron and I realized that wizards are not the only ones protecting Muggles, that there was more than just us, and we reached out to the Shadowhunters. It was Clary who made them decide to come to our aid.
After the war ended I was named representative to the Clave. Many thought it would be Harry, but he just wanted to live quietly and to only have to be himself and not a hero or a celebrity. So I took the job.
I officially work for the Ministry, but I am their diplomat and so I get to do things like this.
"Were you surprised when you met Magnus, Hermione, or did you already know about the warlocks?" Clary asks.
I try not to speak because, in my opinion, warlocks and sorceresses give witches and wizards a bad reputation with Muggles because they deal with demons and spirits, but I know that they are well respected here.
"I knew of warlocks, but I didn't know that they were still around. I thought they were…. you know, gone," I say.
"What was the war like for you?" she asks.
"Dreadful. So many dead, too many dead. Many people knew the wizards who were Death Eaters. It was hard, mostly because it was too easy to kill them," I reply.
Clary looks away. We're both so alike and we both know what it is to lose people. We both know that no matter the outcome, you can never win a war.
"It was the same with the Endarkened," she whispers.
I nod.
"Do you want to know the truth, Clary? There was a woman I met, even more complicated than I am, and more hated, and more loved. Her name is Tessa. I learned from her and I fought beside her. She taught me that I could save Harry or I could stay with my parents and hide. I had to choose. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do, obliviating my parents," I say.
"Obliviating?" she asks, horrified.
I remember that to Muggles, obliviate is to kill or destroy. She must think the very worst. I try to think of how to explain to her what I mean. And then I remember what they use for spells.
"It's like… a forgetfulness rune, if there was to be one," I explain.
She touches my shoulder, a small act of comfort.
"It was the only way to keep them both safe and happy. I couldn't stay, I was a wanted person. They would've killed them to get to me, but if they had no connection to me, they'd be safe," I say quietly.
We are quiet for a moment.
"It's hard to belong to two worlds. My best friend, my dear Simon, I had to let him go and let him forget about me to save a lot of people. To save him. I was selfish, and I got his humanity taken away and I needed to give it back. I don't think I'll ever really get over it, because he isn't dead and he's better off without me, but it still hurts and I still miss him," Clary says.
"I understand. I understand completely. My parents are still alive, and the war is over. It'd be safe to go back to them, but they don't know me. I don't have anywhere to be but here," I admit.
Clary smiles at me reassuringly. After I moved to the Institute, she was the first person to welcome me. She helped me understand American slang words and she gave me American money to help me blend. She taught me how to fight like a Shadowhunter. I don't ever want to be weak like I was when Bellatrix tortured me again. I don't want dropping my wand or having my wand broken to be the end of me. I'm a survivor. And when I go back to England and see Ron again, when the aftermath is a little more after and we're all done grieving, I want to be strong. I want to make sure this never happens again.
I want to be an Auror like Harry to make sure that there is never another Voldemort, or maybe I'll start a wizard orphanage so the little boy that was Tom Marvolo Riddle gets all the love and proper morals he should have.
"Where else would you want to be?" she smiles.
I smile right back.
Clary-
I smile at Hermione as she sits peacefully on my bed. I was glad when she came to stay, to help me focus on something other than the emptiness I felt after Simon left. She's smarter than me. It's funny, when Jace met her he said that he didn't think he'd ever meet anyone smarter than me, but then he did. She was very pleased. Even with the cultural differences, she's my best-friend and we will get through this life.