Hi! First time writing a fic for TMI :) I find that this pairing is just so... Angsty. This pairing needs more love ):
Anyway, I'm trying to be accurate so I used excerpts from the actual novel WHICH I DO NOT OWN (but wish to) and changed bits of it to Jace's perspective. So I hope you like it :) I'd say I wrote about 50% of it and the other half is from CoG.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own any of the characters or major ideas. Everything belongs to the lovely Cassandra Clare.
1. Sebastian
The first Jace saw Sebastian, he felt he was pulled in by the dark eyes that stared at him. At first, he thought it was just his imagination, but as minutes passed, he felt those eyes follow him everywhere. Every time he glanced at the black haired boy, he would catch him staring intently, as if he were prey to a predator. He shivered under the gaze of the dark haired boy. He had never experienced anything like that except by his father. He wanted to get as far away as possible, far from those eyes. He had done so the first time; he had run up to the room that he and Alec shared and hid. This time, he couldn't. He was stuck accompanying Simon into the living room where everyone was. Including Sebastian.
"Is that the vampire?" Aline looked Simon up and down as if she were taking his
measurements. "I've never really been this close to a vampire before—not one I wasn't planning to kill, at least." She cocked her head to the side. "He's cute, for a Downworlder."
"You'll have to forgive her; she has the face of an angel and the manners of a Moloch demon," said Sebastian, getting to his feet. He held his hand out to Simon. "I'm Sebastian. Sebastian Verlac. And this is my cousin, Aline Penhallow. Aline—"
"I don't shake hands with Downworlders," Aline said, shrinking back against the couch cushions. "They don't have souls, you know. Vampires." Sebastian's smile disappeared.
"Aline—"
"It's true. That's why they can't see themselves in mirrors, or go in the sun." Simon stepped backward, into the patch of sunlight in front of the window. His shadow was cast, long and dark, across the floor, almost reaching Jace's feet. Aline took a sharp breath but said nothing. It was Sebastian who spoke, looking at Simon with curious black eyes.
"So it's true. The Lightwoods said, but I didn't think—"
"That we were telling the truth?" Jace said, speaking for the first time since they'd come downstairs. "We wouldn't lie about something like this. Simon's…unique." Jace felt Sebastian's heavy gaze on him again. The others continued talking but all Jace could do was fidget as the dark haired boy smirked. He felt his pulse speed up as Sebastian licked his lips.
"Jace, you brought the vampire here, so you're in charge of him. Don't let him go outside." Jace flushed as he saw Alec look at him with a quizzical look. He quickly calmed himself and avoided Sebastian's gaze.
"That's what you brought me down here to tell me? Don't let the vampire go outside? I wouldn't have done that anyway." Jace slid onto the couch beside Aline so that she separated the two boys. "You'd better hurry up to the Gard and back. God knows what depravity we might get up to here without your guidance." Alec gazed at Jace with calm superiority.
"Try to hold it together. I'll be back in half an hour." He vanished through an archway that led to a long corridor; somewhere in the distance, a door clicked shut.
"You shouldn't bait him," Isabelle said, shooting Jace a severe look. "They did leave him in charge." Aline, Jace noticed, was sitting very close to him, their shoulders touching, even
though there was plenty of room around them on the couch. He shifted away from her, as the pillows on the couch deflated under him, he saw Simon staring at the two of them. As Aline spouted some nonsense about Alec and cats, he was thankful that she acted as a barrier from the taller boy sitting on her other side. Truth be told, Jace had not only been nervous, but scared. The thought of having Sebastian approach him with whatever thoughts was terrifying.
"What's the Gard?" Simon asked. Jace looked at him. Somewhere along the way, his hand was placed atop Aline's where it rested on her thigh. "Sit down," he said, jerking his head toward an armchair. "Or did you plan to hover in the corner like a bat?" Simon looked incredulous at the joke as he sat down.
"The Gard is the official meeting place of the Clave," Sebastian said. "It's where the Law is made, and where the Consul and Inquisitor reside. Only adult Shadowhunters are allowed onto its grounds when the Clave is in session."
"In session?" Simon asked. "You mean—not because of me?" Sebastian laughed. The laugh seemed to ring in Jace's ears, as though it wasn't aimed towards Simon.
"No. Because of Valentine and the Mortal Instruments. That's why everyone's here. To discuss what Valentine's going to do next." Jace said nothing, but at the sound of Valentine's name, his face tightened. Valentine. That was a name he wanted to forget. The very mention of his father made Jace want to vomit. Luckily, no one saw his face flush as he swallowed a gag.
"Well, he'll go after the Mirror," Simon said. "The third of the Mortal Instruments, right? Is it here in Idris? Is that why everyone's here?" There was a short silence before Isabelle answered. "The thing about the Mirror is that no one knows where it is. In fact, no one knows what it is."
"It's a mirror," Simon said. "You know—reflective, glass. I'm just assuming."
"What Isabelle means," said Sebastian kindly, "is that nobody knows anything about the Mirror. There are multiple mentions of it in Shadowhunter histories, but no specifics about where it is, what it looks like, or, most important, what it does."
"We assume Valentine wants it," said Isabelle, "but that doesn't help much, since no one's got a clue where it is. The Silent Brothers might have had an idea, but Valentine killed them all. There won't be more for at least a little while."
"All of them?" Simon demanded in surprise. "I thought he only killed the ones in New York."
"The Bone City isn't really in New York," Isabelle said. "It's like—remember the entrance to the Seelie Court, in Central Park? Just because the entrance was there doesn't mean the Court itself is under the park. It's the same with the Bone City. There are various entrances, but the City itself—" Isabelle broke off as Aline shushed her with a quick gesture. Jace avoided Simon's gaze as they all remained silent. It wasn't that he didn't trust the vampire, but it was more that the others didn't. Back on the boat, he was ready to give Simon his life, he even saved him from the Foresaken in the park. Other Shadowhunters would disagree with him but, in a way, Jace really did trust Simon. Aline was the first one to break the silence.
Fixing her dark gaze on Simon, she said, "So—what's it like, being a vampire?"
"Aline!" Isabelle looked appalled. "You can't just go around asking people what it's like to be a
vampire."
"I don't see why," Aline said. "He hasn't been a vampire that long, has he? So he must remember what it was like being a person." She turned back to Simon. "Does blood still taste like blood to you? Or does it taste like something else now, like orange juice or something? Because I would think the taste of blood would—"
"It tastes like chicken," Simon said.
"Really?" Aline looked astonished as Jace muffled a snort.
"He's making fun of you, Aline," said Sebastian, "as well he should. I apologize for my cousin again, Simon. Those of us who were brought up outside Idris tend to have a little more familiarity with Downworlders."
"But weren't you brought up in Idris?" Isabelle asked. "I thought your parents—"
"Isabelle," Jace interrupted, but it was already too late; Sebastian's expression darkened. It was the same expression Jace had months ago, before he found out that his real parents were still alive. The lump he had gotten in his throat every time he thought his parents were gone. Sebastian must have felt the same.
"My parents are dead," he said. "A demon nest near Calais—it's all right, it was a long time ago." He waved away Isabelle's protestation of sympathy. "My aunt—Aline's father's sister—brought me up at the Institute in Paris."
"So you speak French?" Isabelle sighed. "I wish I spoke another language. But Hodge never thought we needed to learn anything but ancient Greek and Latin, and nobody speaks those."
"I also speak Russian and Italian. And some Romanian," Sebastian said with a modest smile. "I could teach you some phrases—"
"Romanian? That's impressive," said Jace. "Not many people speak it." He was genuinely interested in that aspect of Sebastian. They must have shared the joy of traveling and languages.
"Do you?" Sebastian asked with interest. To the others, his question may have sounded sincere, but to Jace, all he could hear was the hint of seduction.
"Not really," Jace said with a smile that answered the invitation. "My Romanian is pretty much limited to useful phrases like, 'Are these snakes poisonous?' and 'But you look much too young to be a police officer.'" Sebastian didn't smile. There was something about his expression that made Jace shiver in a way that wanted to understand what laid behind the dark eyes that stared at him predatorily. It was mild—everything about him was calm—but Jace had the sense that the mildness hid something beneath it that belied his outward tranquility. He started to fidget again under the heavy gaze.
"I do like traveling," he said, his eyes on Jace. "But it's good to be back, isn't it?" Jace paused in the act of playing with Aline's fingers.
"What do you mean?" He raised a brow.
"Just that there's nowhere else quite like Idris, however much we Nephilim might make homes for ourselves elsewhere. Don't you agree?"
"Why are you asking me?" Jace's look was icy. He didn't want to remember all those times back at the Wayland mansion with his father. All the horrible and good memories.
Sebastian shrugged. "Well, you lived here as a child, didn't you? And it's been years since you've been back. Or did I get that wrong?"
"You didn't get it wrong," Isabelle said impatiently. "Jace likes to pretend that everyone isn't talking about him, even when he knows they are."
"They certainly are." Though Jace was glaring at him, Sebastian seemed unruffled. It was rare to find someone who didn't react to his taunts. "These days in Idris it's all anyone talks about. You, the Mortal Instruments, your father, your sister—"
"Clarissa was supposed to come with you, wasn't she?" Aline said. "I was looking forward to meeting her. What happened?" Though Jace's expression didn't change, he drew his hand back from Aline's, curling it into a fist.
"She didn't want to leave New York. Her mother's ill in the hospital."
"It's weird," Isabelle said. "I really thought she wanted to come."
"She did," said Simon. "In fact—" Jace bounded off the couch onto his feet.
"Come to think of it, I have something I need to discuss with Simon. In private." He jerked his head toward the double doors at the far end of the room, his eyes glittering a challenge. "Come on, vampire," he threatened. "Let's talk." Jace looked back once more before leaving and caught Sebastian glaring darkly at the two near the doorway. He was leaning forward on his knees, his hands tightly clenched together. Jace wanted to leave as quickly as possible. He was nervous again and didn't want the others to see. Especially not the man causing it.
So how did you like it? Please Review! I'd like to know if I should continue this or not, since I have other fics to work on too.
Hope fully everyone reading this enjoyed since I really enjoyed writing this one :)
Step brotherly angst is so passionate :P Anyway, please review! I'd like to know your thoughts :3
-Hyphier
