The December morning touched the unguarded windows in an eerie glow. The sky was clothed in a deep blue, dawn slowly creeping up to mark the start of a new day.
Jocelyn glanced around to determine what had awoken her, or rather what had broken her reverie for she hadn't slept; instead she had lay there alone in bed, never quite allowing herself to leave that limbo place that came between sleep and consciousness.
Recently her slumbers had been hinged with nightmares, nightmares that usually involved Jonathan, her son who had been poisoned as a baby, a poison which burned away all his goodness and left in its wake a rotting mind with black eyes and a black soul. Clary, her beautiful and brave daughter also featured occasionally in her nightmares, at first they would be peaceful, and more like dreams. They would all be together; Jocelyn, Luke, Clary and sometimes even Simon, at the lake house, lying on the remains of a picnic by the glistening water of the lake. They would all be marvelling at the elegant ripples of the water's surface, laughing together happily until the ripples would grow wilder, lifting up into the air, moving fiercely in revolving circles towards the beach. As the tornado reached the sand it would falter, crumple back into the lake leaving nothing but gentle waves, and a figure of a boy. The boy's hair would blend into the golden sun behind him, his whole body glowing except for the black pits where his eyes should be. Suddenly her family would desert her, take hands with Jonathan and she would die of loneliness right there amongst the leftover sandwiches.
She shuddered at the memory and lifted herself out of bed. She moved slowly and noiselessly, despite being alone in the bedroom Jocelyn was reluctant to interrupt the stillness of the morning with a creaking floorboard.
She tiptoed over to the dressing table, perched herself onto the chair and gazed into the mirror at her reflection. She could see only the faint outline of her head and so reached over to illuminate her witchstone which cast dim shadows across the angles of her face. This close up she noticed wrinkles that hadn't been there months before and bags under her eyes which gave away her sleepless nights.
Jocelyn reached for her Stele and traced a small, light rune just behind her ear which made the wrinkles and freckles slowly fade away. There she thought, I look ten years younger already.
After showering and drying her hair, she noticed how the sky had brightened and, almost as if on cue, her alarm clock buzzed the harsh ringing sound she had learned to despise. Then, without fail, Clary came bounding into her mother's room with none of the common courtesy of knocking she was taught growing up. She was bursting with excitement, her red curls bobbing up and down as she bounced around the room, a smile as bright as the sun plastered across her face. Today was the day she would become Jocelyn Graymark.
Her daughter knelt beside her chair, her expression suddenly grave, "Are you nervous?" she asked honestly.
Jocelyn said without hesitation, "I am in love with Luke, I want to spend the rest of my life with him. There are no second thoughts."
She stroked Clary's hair, tousling the soft curls which resembled her own so closely.
"Good, then let's start making you look like a dashing wolf's bride."
"Ah but not without reinforcements" chanted Isabelle as she strolled into Jocelyn's bedroom with Maia, Aline and Helen at her feet armed with make-up and hair supplies.
"Teenagers" Jocelyn muttered, though a smile was growing across her face.
Luke was waiting patiently in his place at the makeshift altar.
They had decided to steer away from a traditional Shadowhunter wedding where the bride would wear gold and the couple would carve each other with runes. They had also rejected the typical Church wedding which mundane's tended to favour, mainly because half of the invited guests would not get past the threshold of a holy building. Rather, they had opted for an outdoors wedding, with Magnus' wedding gift being that he would cast an invisible dome over the venue to keep the guests from freezing to death.
Luke glanced up then and noticed how the sky seemed to shimmer, the clouds beyond a blur and the grey sky muted out, replaced by a sparkling silver sky which shed delicate flakes of snow onto the guests below, covering every surface in a tranquil carpet of white.
Luke was reminded then of how white symbolises death in the eyes of Shadowhunters, his thoughts went to Amatis and how he wished she could be there, but she is he remembered, in spirit and in memory.
Luke was dressed in a black tuxedo, a white shirt tucked into neatly ironed trousers and a black bowtie to finish the outfit. He was clean shaven save for a dusting of stubble which was always associated with wolves, a part of him he was not ashamed of.
Somewhere around him came the sound of gentle piano playing which drifted through the crowd of guests as they stood to welcome the bride.
The music seemed to quieten however when he saw Jocelyn, all his surroundings seemed to vanish and it was just him and her.
She was not wearing a conventional wedding dress but rather a beautiful elegant white silk dress which hugged her every curve as it fell in waves to the floor, held up by two thin spaghetti straps which hung loosely against her collarbone. Her black runes shone from her pale skin hidden only slightly behind the cascading red curls which from this distance looked like burning fire illuminating her like a torch. Her dress seemed to shimmer and glow as she moved and he knew when he saw her that he would never see anything more beautiful again.
She stood beside him at the altar, their gazes locking and he felt a sudden urge to kiss her, and he lifted her chin gently and pressed his lips to hers.
Clary was the only bridesmaid, which made her the maid of honour she supposed.
Clary herself was wearing a mint green dress which fell all the way to the floor in a silky material not too different from that of her mothers. The dress was low cut at the front and back, she felt exposed especially considering her hair was plaited and wound into a bun.
Her red hair contrasted the green colour of the dress perfectly which is why she chose it, she wanted to illuminate her hair colour, the thing that made her most recognisable as her mother's daughter because today, she was the proudest daughter alive.
She looked past the altar to the guests, seated on rows and rows of golden chairs. She recognised most of the people, many were Shadowhunters Clary had seen before but never been introduced to. The front two rows however Clary acknowledged with a friendly smile, she saw Maryse seated beside her husband, both wearing a matching ensemble of red and cream. Isabelle and Alec were seated next to Maryse, a clear distance placed between them and their father. Maia and Jordan sat amongst other members of Luke's pack and even Jia Penhallow had made the effort to dress up and make an appearance despite the ever growing problems the Clave had to deal with.
Her gaze then shifted to Jace who was staring at her intently. She couldn't help blushing as his stare seemed to travel up and down her body in appreciation. She had seen him in a suit only once, at the engagement party but that suit looked nothing compared to this one, he looked breathtaking. It was jet black, striking against the white of the snow but it suited him, illuminated the colour of his hair which had been gelled at the top leaving the back free to be tossed by the wind. He was wearing a grey waistcoat and a matching bow tie which sparkled in the same way Jocelyn's dress seemed to gleam, as if a million nano sized stars were winking at her from every direction.
She gave him a small wave and he bowed his head in reply, always the gentlemen she thought.
Beside him, stood Simon. Both of them were groomsmen, sharing the roles the best man would usually carry out and both were dressed in the same attire.
Simon looked handsome but in a different way, he usually wore baggy t-shirts and jeans but the suit seemed to hug Simon's new muscles, making them stand out in ways they hadn't ever before. Isabelle seemed to agree as she had been stealing glances at Simon all morning.
Clary shifted her attention back to the ceremony where Luke was just beginning his vows.
"My Jocelyn" he began, his voice wavering slightly as he spoke.
"I have been waiting years for this day, once I believed it would never come and I was heartbroken. You were missing from my life until I found you again, I was in awe of your renewed strength and still to this day admire your ever-growing ferocity.
Through sunshine or rain I will be there for you, I will run from one end of the earth to the other on all fours if you need me to.
I want you to know that I will always protect you, I will never desert you and I will love you every second of every day."
With that he slipped the ring onto her finger, and glanced back up at her expectantly.
She was welling up and didn't even wait for her cue before she began speaking.
"I have always needed you Luke, you have been the one constant in my life and a few weeks ago when I thought I had lost you, my heart shattered.
I didn't know until then what life would be like without you, you and Clary mean the world to me and without you two, I am nothing.
Our family will cross many hurdles in the coming months, but we will cross them together.
I want to say thank you for your patience, for waiting for me to see what was always right in front of me.
Thank you for being a father to Clary and for, well for everything else, like unclogging the shower when my hair blocks the drain."
She laughed through the tears which were now spilling down her face, "I love you and cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with you."
She pushed the ring onto Luke's finger and kissed him gently on the mouth.
The ceremony ended with a roar of applause, the whole procession rushing up to wish the newlyweds good luck. Clary was about to push through the crowd towards Jace when she felt warm, callused fingers brush the back of her neck.
She turned to see her boyfriend gazing down at her, a seductive smile plastered across his face. He grasped her hand and pulled her towards a nearby collection of trees which sheltered them from the snow which was coming down in buckets now from the sky.
The wedding venue was situated in the middle of a vast garden which lay just on the outskirts of New York City. Protective charms placed on the area by Magnus ensured no wandering mundanes would come across the celebrations.
Clary and Jace ducked under the low hanging branches to conceal themselves fully, guided only by the small pockets of light streaming through gaps in the leaves. The space was small and Clary was fully aware of the proximity of her body and Jace's, he was pressing her up against the tree, his arms on either side of her head. He moved his hand down to move her hair away from her ear and whispered quietly, "You look beautiful Clarissa Fray".
"You don't look too bad yourself" she replied with amusement, though her cheeks were reddening every second she was this close to him. She had a sudden urge to touch him, to run her hands through his hair, to kiss him. She brought her hands to his waist to steady herself then leaned forward slightly and pressed her lips to his. It was a soft, tender kiss which deepened as his mouth opened against hers. She bit down gently on his lower lip and he groaned pushing himself even closer to her. His hands moved from the tree to the back of her neck and then to the skin of her back. Clary tensed as she felt his cold hands against her exposed body, then remembered that this was her Jace, not the previous Jace whose touch had always resembled something unfamiliar. She wanted this Jace, every time she was with him in this way her thoughts were filled with a burning desire to take things that one step further. She wrapped one leg around him and he lifted her off the ground so her other leg could follow suit. Her dress was riding up and his hands held her bare thighs with an unwavering strength. She pushed off Jace's suit jacket and with her toes untucked his shirt from his trousers. She broke away then, their heavy breaths the only sound she could hear. Her gaze never left his as she slowly undid the buttons of his waistcoat and then went to his shirt. He stopped her, placing his hands over hers.
"Clary no, I won't be able to stop myself" he said, his voice husky, he wanted her as much as she wanted him.
"So don't" She whispered.