AN:: Hey guys! This is my first published fanfic so please forgive me if this starts out really good and suddenly sucks. Also, I'm really new to this sight (publishing wise) and I'm still figuring out how to work some of the stuff on here, so please forgive me if you get an alert on an update and it's something stupid like spelling/grammar corrections, section separators, author's notes, (basically anything that isn't a new chapter). I'm SO glad you guys seem to like this one so far. I'll try my best to update regularly. I think I'm done talking for now, thanks for reading, I love you guys and hope you enjoy!
Once upon a time there was a young girl named Clary. She had bright red hair and magnificent green eyes. Clary was small for her age and people often assumed that she was about two years younger than she really was. And even after people learned that she was nine, not seven, they still continued to treat her like she was five. It often annoyed Clary to the point of almost being rude. Her mom told her that other people didn't know better, her father usually laughed good naturedly at her and told her to use it to her full advantage.
But because Clary looked so young and was smarter than most kids her age, Clary often played by herself as other kids her age usually didn't really let her play with them.
One day, while walking in the woods in her backyard, Clarythought she heard someone crying. Deciding to further investigate, Clary followed the noise until she came across its source. A boy about her age with golden blonde hair, curled up beneath a tree. He was hugging his knees and had his head buried in his arms. At furthered examination, she notice that his shirt and pants were torn, like he had just gotten beat-up.
"Are you okay?" asked Clary concerned. She was worried that one of his injuries might be serious. The golden haired boy's head shot up and he stared at Clary, almost as if he didn't know what to make of her. As Clary was able to now school the boy's face and features the first thing clary noticed, was that the boy had startling golden colored eyes. The second thing Clary noticed was he had been beaten up, or in a fight or something. He was beginning to get a black eye, his lip was swollen and several other bruises were beginning to form on his face, neck and upper chest that wasn't covered by his shirt.
"Who are you?" the boy demanded, his voice shaky partly from crying and partly, Clary noticed reading the expression in his eyes, from fear. This made Clary confused. Why would this boy be afraid of her? She didn't think that she was threatening in any way.
"I'm Clarissa, but you can call me Clary." She replied back, careful to sound friendly. Whatever this boy was scared of she wanted to eliminate it fast, then maybe she could figure out what had happened.
"Okay Clary, well then go on and play tea party with your dolls or something." The boy replied back sort of rudely, but Clary could tell that there was still fear in the boy's eyes.
"Actually, I'm nine, not five." Clary said, trying not to sound rude herself. Being unfriendly to him was not going to help anything.
"Then why don't you go and play with your friends then?" he said, still trying to keep the same tone of voice as last time, but this time it sounded more like he was inquiring.
"I don't really have any friends." Said Clary softly, sort-of embarrassed. The boy's face visibly softened. Something that looked like a mix between empathy and pity.
"Fine, Clary" he said uncertainly. "I guess you can stay. But only if you promise not to tell anyone, not even your parents or friends or anyone, about me. Deal?"
"My lips are sealed." Promised Clary, wondering why he seemed do concerned about anyone finding out about him, because he had even forbid her from telling her parents. The boy nodded at her and Clary plopped down underneath the tree beside him.
"What are you doing here?" asked Clary, trying to get a little more information. "And what's your name? I'm not sure if I caught that yet."
"My name's Jonathan, but you can call me Jace. And I usually come out here to think about stuff." The 'and cry' was added silently.
"Jace," Clary asked cautiously. "What happened to you? I mean, it looks like you got beat up or something."
She could see Jace stiffen as he replied, almost rudely, that Clary was slightly taken back, "What happened to me is none of your concern." And Clary instantly dropped the subject.
Jace, sensing that he had slightly offended Clary, tried to change the subject. "So what are you doing here?" he asked.
"Oh, I live here." Replied Clary happily. Maybe if Jace knew more about her he would trust her more. "These woods are part of my backyard. Well at least up until that fence somewhere back then. My dad showed me around our property one day and-" but Clary never got to finish because Jace's head snapped so fast to look at Clary she was surprised that he didn't get whiplash. His eyes were full of concern, worry and fear.
"Y-you mean that I'm on your property right n-now?" Jace asked, his voice shaky, his eyes looking wildly around as if at any moment someone would jump out and grab him. Clary confused at Jace's reaction slowly nodded her head. Unfortunately this just made Jace freak out even more. "I'm sorry. I half to go." Jace said hurriedly. "I-I didn't know that when I jumped the fence that I was intruding on someone else's property." Clary was about to say that he wasn't intruding when Jace finely stood up to go.
Clary had to keep herself from gasping. Jace was starting to walk away, well more like a limp that he was trying to hide, and he seemed to be trying not to gasp in pain or cry about it. He also seemed to be clutching his ribs and was cradling his left hand.
Clary couldn't help herself. She had to say something, but she remembered how Jace had reacted earlier. "Wait!" called Clary, although she didn't really know what she was going to say. Jace turned enough to look back at her and Clary noticed that he gave a violent wince, she could see he was holding back tears. "Will I see you again? I mean you'll come back right? Or maybe we could meet by the fence?"
Jace took a deep shaky breath and his eyes seemed to sadden, as if what he were about to tell Clary would hurt him. "No Clary I won't come back and we can't meet at the fence. We'll probably won't ever see each other again, so Clary please don't follow me. And don't tell your parents about me either, like you promised. J-just do yourself some good and forget about me, okay Clary" by this time Jace had a tear running down his cheek and Clary wanted to cry too ,but that wouldn't help so she just nodded her head and watched Jace limp out of sight.
What was probably seconds felt like eons to Clary as she just stood there, not knowing what to do. She really wanted to follow Jace, or even run home to tell her parents about the boy she found in the woods, but she had promised Jace she wouldn't. And then he told her to forget about her, like he never existed, like she had never seen or heard him. And as Clary's thoughts ran on her confusion and sadness turned to anger. Jace had seemed scared about Clary running off and telling her parents. Like he didn't want the person who had hurt him to get caught. And then he had left, and Clary knew it was out of fear, when he had found out he was on someone else's property. And his reaction wasn't like a 'I half to go or I'll be in trouble, but my parents will understand' reaction, it was a 'I need to go because if 'they' find out I'll be beat again' reaction.
Clary suddenly connected the pieces. Jace was probably getting beaten by his dad or possibly his mother's boyfriend or something like that. She remembered some news articles on abused children she had read, because she was bored, and remembered that it had said children often beat from a young age, especially by an authority figure such as a father, often tried to hide it because of the idolization that the father (usually, maybe an uncle or even a mother) could do nothing wrong. Thus the child often blamed themselves for the beatings as if they deserved them and also tried to protect the guardian.
That's probably what Jace was doing. Trying to protect his father because he thought that he deserved the beatings. Clary felt outraged that a parent could treat a child that way. She also felt pity on Jace that he felt that way towards his father.
Clary felt awful. She had no idea what she was going to do. The article had also said that by the time the child recognized that the beatings were not their fault it was often too late. Clary wanted to help Jace, but he had told her not to tell anyone. And he had forbidden her not to follow him. Confused what she was going to do, Clary turned around and started to make her way home.
Jace slowly limped up the hill, his ankle hurt from where he had sprained form tripping over a tree root. Usually he was more careful after Sebastian beat him but this time Sebastian had been particularly rough and Jace had wanted to get away from him as fast as possible. Jace was also sure Sebastian had fractured a few of his ribs when he had kicked Jace. That would also be a first. Along with the broken wrist he had received when Sebastian had twisted his hand. There had been a sort of a crunching sound and Sebastian got a very pleased look on his face. Jace had cried some then, only encouraging Sebastian to continue.
Jace had yet to figure out if not crying was worth it. It seemed like Sebastian's goal to make Jace cry, but yet when Jace finally did cry it just seemed to encourage Sebastian to make it worse, ending in a vicious cycle. Usually Father would step in before it escalated to bad. And Sebastian usually went easier on Jace when Father was home, so he could fake it off as 'boys being boys'. It was much worse when Father wasn't around. Sebastian would beat Jace until he was unconscious and then lock him in the cellar. There Jace was hardly fed and often beaten.
Jace also found that unfortunately the less time he spent with Father the less Sebastian beat him. It seemed like Sebastian was jealous of any attention Jace received from their Father, and he would take it out in his beatings on Jace. Often, when Father went out on business, Jace and Sebastian were left alone, with Sebastian is charge. There was no one else, no house maid or anyone, just the two boys. Both had been homeschooled by their Father since they were old enough. Bedside's Clary the only other people Jace had ever seen was Sebastian and his father.
For some reason Father had kept them both isolated for all of their lives. Jace guessed that had happened when She left. Sebastian's mom and Father's ex-wife. Jace was adopted shortly after. Jace had often asked what had happened to her of Father never replied.
Sebastian often told him, among other auctions, when he was beating Jace that it was his fault that his mother had left and that She had taken Her with her. Jace could only assume that She had been pregnant with a girl when she left. But Sebastian also accused Jace of stealing his father from him, so Jace wasn't sure if that resource was actually reliable. Plus, Jace hadn't been adopted until after the whole thing, so Sebastian had to be wrong about that. Right?
Anyway Jace's mind slowly traced back to Clary. Her beautiful green eyes and bright red hair. Jace guessed that she was pretty enough. And she had seemed nice too. And honest. Jace just hoped that she wouldn't tell her parents about him. Then they would assume that Father was the one beating him, he would get arrested, and then Jace would be left with Sebastian. And that would not be good. And yet Jace slightly hoped that maybe if the police came they would see that it was Sebastian and not Father. But that was too farfetched, besides they would blame Father for letting it all happen and he would be taken away and Jace would be all alone in the world, because he highly doubted that She would want him.
But Jace couldn't help but remember Clary's face when she had asked him if she would see him again. It was full of sorrow and pity. She had wanted to help Jace so badly. And he had told her to forget about him. It looked like it had hurt Clary as much as it had hurt Jace. Everything in Clary's expression when Jace had told her to forget about him was pained. Clearly she had wanted to help him.
'But that won't matter.' Jace thought to himself. 'Clary will forget about me soon enough. Then she'll go to school, make real friends, fall in love and, and never give a single thought about you again.' Jace froze. No that shouldn't bother him. Clary shouldn't bother him that bad. And yet Jace could help but think longingly of seeing her again. Maybe it was just to see another human besides Sebastian of Father or maybe he really did like her. Jace couldn't tell.
The whole trek back to the house Jace sort of lost thought in, not really paying attention to anything. It was when he heard a cold sneer that Jace realized that he had made it back home.
"Well, well. Look what finally came crawling back."
Jace didn't look up from the ground. "Hello, Sebastian. Is Father still home?" if Father was home Sebastian usually restrained himself from beating Jace more than once a day.
"Nope." Replied Sebastian, with a cruel smile fixed on his face. "You just missed him. He left for work. And he left me in charge."
Jace sighed. Just his luck. Usually if Jace caught Father early enough he could sometimes convince him not to leave. But of course Father had left before Jace got back, and he had also left Sebastian in charge. 'Well,' thought Jace. 'Best get this over with.' Maybe if he was luck Sebastian would knock him unconscious after the first couple blows. Then he would just through Jace into the cellar until Father got back or Sebastian got bored and came down to beat him again. Either way Jace usually wasn't bothered down there.
Jace's lack of resistance made Sebastian give a nasty smile, as he dragged Jace into the house and began to beat him.
Later that evening at the dinner table, Clary's parents noticed that she was much more quiet than usual. "Clary," asked her mom, Jocelyn. "Is there something wrong? You seem awfully quiet."
Clary looked up in surprise. She hadn't noticed she had been acting weird, nor had she expected her parents to notice it. "Nothing," she said, then she looked at her father. "Well I was just thinking, Dad, remember when you showed me around the property that day? Well, how far is it to the fence?"
"Someone's a little curious" said her father Luke. "But yes I do remember, maybe 2 miles off. Why?"
"Just a little curiosity." Clary said idly, pushing the food around her plate.
"Clary, you didn't do anything did you?" her mother asked suspiciously.
Clary quickly shook her head. "No, well if you're asking if I jumped the fence then, no."
Clary's mother still eyed her suspiciously and was about to question her again when, her father interrupted. "For goodness sakes Jocelyn. Do you really think that Clary would really hop the fence? I mean, I took her back there one time and the fence is a good six feet tall."
Clary's mother sighed. "I well it's just that, she's always by herself. Sometimes it worries me what she might be up to without company."
"Don't be ridiculous Jocelyn. She's probably made plenty friend with the deer and the birds." Her father said, smiling. "Really, you know Clary. She's a good girl. I highly doubt that she's plotting to run away or something."
"You're right Luke." She said shaking her head, with a small smile. "I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I'm just slightly worried about what Clary could be doing all by herself."
"Clary will make plenty of friends on her own time" her father said reassuringly. "Won't you Clary?"
Clary nodded her head, but all she could think about was Jace and if he was okay or not. And whether his father was beating him right know or maybe if he was in his room crying. It took all of her strength to smile as she thought of the boy curled up in a corner as someone he was supposed to trust hut him.
Later that evening in her room Clary decided that she would check the spot where she met Jace, and the fence. And if she didn't see him in a week then she would hop the fence (somehow) and go looking for him. Or at least try.