CHAPTER (1)
We're What?
My friends and I all sit around the giant tree in my back yard. Katie to my left and Jessica to my right. Katlin swinging in the tree above us. Then toppling out and falling on us. We all begin laughing. "Let me try that again," Katlin says. She climbs to the top again and hangs upside down. When she slips again I run and catch her. Katie on the other hand begins texting her brother. "Oh no," Katie says. I sit down next to her. "What's going on?" I ask her. "Conner. He's saw something at home. Wants me to check it out." She gets up and head for the sidewalk. We all follow her. We get on our bikes and head to the Ridenour's. Casey outside on his phone and the police outside with the sirens blaring. We speed up and go up the hill. When we finally reach the house I see a strange creature on the roof. I start screaming and pointing at the roof. Katie, Jessica, and Katlin notice it too and begin screaming. "What are you screaming at?" Casey yells at us. A truck drives by and then backs up toward us. The window rolls down and a boy the age of 16 stares at us. "Come on mundane. You and your friends." He points to the trunk and we jump in. "Wait!" Katie yells. "What about my brothers?" "They'll be fine," he says. With a flash of light we're in a garage painted in black. We jump out of the truck. "Who are you?" Katie asks. "I'm Kaleb. Shadowhunter," the boy with the black hair and brown eyes answers. Two more boys come out of the shadows. One with blond hair and blue eyes, and one with black hair and hazel eyes. The one with black hair and hazel eyes I recognize from school. Damion Roush. One of the biggest troublemakers. He glares at me and flashes a grin to Katie. Jessica stares in amazement. "I'm hearing voices." Kaleb steps out and pats her head. "There there mundane. You'll realize soon." Katlin glares at Kaleb. "Don't touch her." Kaleb backs off. "How come we can see you and Jessica can't?" I ask. "You're not mundane's," Kaleb says. "What's a mundane?" Katlin asks. "Someone from the human world," Damion replies. The boy with the blond hair grins at Jessica twists her hair between his fingers. "Colton! That's enough," Kaleb says. Damion stalks around the room staring at each one of us. "I'll have to tell Hodge about this. He won't be too happy you've brought these mundane's here." Jessica stares at us. "Where are we?" she asks. "In Idris. A land of the Nephilin and Downworlders," Colton says with a grin. "Isn't Nephilin like part angel part human or something?" I ask. "Yes," Kaleb says. "But we're not part angel," I reply. "We don't know that for sure. We'll have to talk to Hodge and the Silent Brothers about this," Kaleb says with a wink. "Who's that?" Katlin asks. "You'll have to wait and find out," Damion says.
Kaleb and Colton throw us into the truck and with a snap of their fingers we're in a strange place with strange symbols on the walls. Kaleb helps us out of the truck and lead us to a gate. A man with his lips sown together stares at us. What is it this time Shadowhunters of New York? I tense up at the voice running through my head. "We have brought these mundane's here to see if they are Shadowhunters," Kaleb replies. "His name is Jeremiah," Colton whispers to us. Very well. I suppose we could see if they are. Jeremiah looks directly at me. His black cloak covering all of his body except his face. I now know why they are called the Silent Brothers. I look over to Kaleb and he nods. Come mundane. You and your companions. Katlin jumps ahead of me. "What are you waiting for? There's a dark tunnel that needs to be explored!" She follows Jeremiah and I slowly follow her. Kaleb beside me, Katie and Colton behind me. I look around staring at the dark marks on the walls again. "Those are called Runes. Look," Kaleb rolls up his sleeve and the same mark on the wall is on his arm. "What do they do?" I ask. "They protect us, heal us, and help us. They're called Marks for short," he replies. I nod and watch Katlin smiling asking Jeremiah questions. Enough! I will have the High Warlock of Brooklyn make you be silenced for the rest of your days. Katlin turns around and stares at me. She mouths the word "oops" and turns around again. We finally reach a room with three giant tables in the center. Each of you mundane's sit on one of the tables. We all stare in amazement at the door as Jeremiah stares at it and a massive collection of locks form on the door. "Why did you lock the door?" Katie asks. Silence! Jeremiah walks to me and grabs my wrists. He closes his eyes and he begins asking questions in my mind. Hard for me to answer a lot of them. When he asks the last question he opens his eyes and nods. He repeats the process to both Katie and Katlin. I lay down on the table and begin to think. Then I realize something. Jessica. She's not with us. Oh well, she couldn't see them anyway. Damion is probably taking care of her. He's the only one she can see. Katie looks at me in horror as Jeremiah asks her the questions. Meanwhile across the room Kaleb and Colton sit and watch our every movement. Kaleb's eyes fall on mine and I turn away. Just as I begin to sit up a bunch of teenagers burst through the locked up door. Three boys and two girls. They register in my mind from a book I once read. "Jace maybe this isn't a good time," the girl with the red hair says. The one I am assuming that is Jace speaks up. "Clary I'm sure he has time." Then I remember. The Mortal Instruments. I look at them all. Jace. With his gold eyes and blond hair. Simon. With his brown hair and glasses. Alec. With his black hair and bow. Izzy. With her golden whip. Clary. With her red hair. Katie must realize too because her eyes grow huge. Jace looks at us. "Who are you?" Hannah, I want to say but I can't. Simon walks toward me with a smile. "Well aren't you cute." Alec glares at all of us. I always knew Shadowhunters were real. Why are you here? "Magnus is looking for something. He needed to talk to you," Izzy says. Simon looks at me. "Aren't you a vampire?" I ask. "How'd you know?" Simon replies. "Lucky guess." I say. At that moment his fangs slide from their stealth's. "You guessed right." I smile at him. "Gross!" Katie yells from across the room. Kaleb gets up and shoves Simon to the side. "You are not talking to vampires!" "Why can't I? You're not the boss of me," I say. Kaleb gives me a hurt look and heads toward the door. I get up and run after him but Jace stops me. "Shadowhunter. Can't you tell he likes you?" I nod. "Well don't flirt with the vampire! It hurts his feelings!" Jace yells at me. I shove past him and run after Kaleb through the gate.
Kaleb and I sit on the top of the gate. How we got up here I have no idea. Magnus Bane magically appears through the gate and looks at us. "Um. What are you doing?" he asks. "None of your business warlock," Kaleb says. His arm slides around me just as Magnus forms a heart with blue sparks in the air. "Bane!" Kaleb yells. "Quit!" Magnus laughs and disappears inside. I look at our surroundings. Tall dark trees with a full moon above us. A pack of wolfs stalk around the gate. Two I recognize from the book. Luke and Maia. But another looks familiar. The wolf looks up at me. "Hannah?" the wolf asks. I know that voice. Noah. A friend from school. Before my eyes Noah turns into a human again and smiles at me. I look at his damaged outfit remembering that outfit from last week. Kaleb's arm tightens around me. I stare into his eyes. "Just a friend," I whisper. The wolfs turn into their human forms. Then I recognize another. John. "Hey Hannah!" he yells up at me. "Hey dude!" I yell back. "Back off Downworlders!" Kaleb yells at them. "Hey they're friends," I whisper. He stares at me in disbelief. I cup his cheek. "They're not doing anything." He smiles back at me. "Ok," he replies. I feel strange knowing that two of my friends are wolfs and two of my friends are Shadowhunters. What's next? Jessica's going to be turned into a vampire? My phone starts ringing. "As long as I've got my suit and tie…." Kaleb grins. "Oops," I say as I answer it. "Hello?" I ask. "Hannah! Where are you!? It's almost midnight!" my mom yells at me. "Tell her you're at a friends for the rest of the week," Kaleb says in a low whisper. I nod and finish the call. "She wants me back in a week," I say. "We better head to the Institute for the night. It's getting late and the gangs will be out soon," Kaleb says.
"This is so cool!" Katie yelps with excitement while looking around, "I thought I'd never get to see this place!" We head toward the library and find Hodge standing in the doorway. "Shadowhunters, and vampire. Glad to see you back," Hodge says. "I thought Hodge was dead," I whisper to Kaleb. "He was. The vampires helped us raise him," he replies. I nod. "Come on. I'll show you where you'll be sleeping," he says. He takes me down several hallways, through a room with a giant grand piano and harp, and finally to a room with giant Runes on the walls. He points to the bed in the middle of the room. I run my hand over the sheets. Smooth like silk. Kaleb grabs a pillow and a blanket off the bed and makes a little area beside the it. "I'll be sleeping here," he says pointing to the ground. "Ok. Is there any pajama's I can borrow?" I ask. "Clary might have some. I go ask," he replies then walking out the door. I think about moving Kaleb's stuff to the bottom of the bed but, I'll ask him before I do it. Instead I walk around the room looking at each rune on the wall. I open a door reviling a bathroom with a shower. More Runes on the walls in there. I walk back into the main part of the room. A giant blade on the dresser. I pick it up and it glows in my hands. Kaleb opens the door and I set the blade down. He holds a long black nightgown. "Found something. It's from Izzy," he says. He hands me the nightgown and go in the bathroom and change. After I change I put my hair in a braid and go back into the place where the bed is. Kaleb is already asleep on the floor, curled up in a ball. I don't want to wake him up but it seems he already is. Well not entirely. He looks up at me sleepily and smiles. "Looks like it fits," he says. I nod. When I walk over to the bed Kaleb falls asleep again. I crawl into bed and pull the covers up over me.