A/N: Well, this is my newest story. Not Vampire Academy, for once. I read Clockwork Angel when I was away in New Hampshire, and I was inspired to write this. I thought it would be cool for the MI characters to meet the ID characters, especially since some of them are their family members. Mmmm, I love Jace and Will :) who's with me ? ;) And yeah, I know that I'm stupid :P I really shouldn't have started yet another story since I have such problems updating the ones I have . . . But don't shoot me! I'll do my best :)
Ahhhh, Kyle Massey didn't win on Dancing with the Stars :'( I'm so sad right now . . . He deserved to win!
Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, I don't own The Mortal Instruments or The Infernal Devices. Both belong to the brilliant Cassandra Clare. I wish I owned Jace, Will, and Jem :'(
Present, Let Me Introduce You To The Past
Chapter One: The Portal
Brooklyn, New York, 2007
What had been a seemingly pleasant and normal day had just taken a turn for the worst. Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, Alec and Magnus had gone out for dinner, and were strolling casually through the lamplit park. The sun had set an hour before, and although they knew that they should go home, they didn't. And that was their mistake.
Clary and Jace held hands, and were trailing behind the others. They murmured quiet and constant "I love you's" to one another, as they walked with their heads bent close to eachother. That was when they noticed the horde of Shax demons sneaking up behind the rest of the group.
Terror coursed through Clary, making her freeze. Jace, however, sprung into action.
"GUYS! LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!" he screeched, pulling a seraph blade from his belt. He turned to Clary. "Clary, I need you to make a portal. We have to get away from here, because there are too many of them."
Feeling numb, she nodded and pulled her stele from her belt loop. She watched as Jace murmured "Ariel." The blade lit up like a star and he ran forward to help the others with the demons, and she walked over to a thick tree. She pressed the tip of the stele to it, and began to draw the portal rune. Her hand moved swiftly, almost as if it had a mind of it's own. She didn't have to think about it; it came naturally.
When she finished, she called out to the others. "Guys, it's ready! Come ON!"
Simon and Isabelle darted away from the demons, running to get to Clary. Magnus followed, and Jace and Alec took a few more down before fleeing as well.
When they were all gathered, Clary spoke. "Everyone hold on to eachother. Do not let go. Do you understand?"
Everyone nodded, and grabbed on to eachother. Clary held Jace for dear life, and thought of somewhere to go. Somewhere safe. Somewhere none of the demons can find us, she thought. With that, the group stepped into the portal and was flung through the black nothingness.
London, England, 1878
Tessa sat at the dinner table, directly across from Will. She glared at him, and he glared back, while Jem glanced hopelessly between them. Charlotte, Henry and Jessamine were clueless as to what had transpired between Tessa and Will, so they didn't notice that anything was particularly amiss.
"Tessa, have you read any good books recently?" Jem asked, trying to start a conversation.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I have." Her tone was clipped, and she continued to glare at Will. "Would you like to know what it's about?"
"Of course." Jem replied happily, pleased that he got her talking.
"Well, it's about a young girl who found herself caring about someone who didn't deserve it. He was a cruel, sadistic twit. But, lucky for her, his friend was quite charming and kind, and he put the twit in his place."
Jem groaned and slapped his hand to his forehead, muttering to himself. Tessa couldn't distinguish his exact words, but it was something about "wishing we'd stop with all of the animosity and get along."
Just then, there was a deep rumbling sound, and something appeared on the wall. Tessa hadn't the slightest idea as to what it was, but the Shadowhunters all let out a small gasp.
"Is that . . ." Jessamine began.
"A portal. Yes, it's a portal." Henry finished, looking confused.
At that moment, a heap of bodies tumbled out of the so-called portal, and landed with an audible thump on the floor. There was a chorus of moans, and they sat up.
The first person that Tessa noticed was a girl with bright, flaming-red hair. It was a tangled mess around her face, which was spattered with freckles, and she reached a hand up to rub her cheek. Her other hand, Tessa saw, was wrapped in the hand of a blond boy. Tessa's first thoughts of him were that he was beautiful; his hair was golden, as were his eyes. He was dressed impeccably, although his clothes were wrinkled and slightly torn now. They were also unfamiliar. The next face she saw shocked her; it was the face of a very strange looking Magnus Bane, with shimmering glitter all over him and his strange clothes. He sat beside a boy that slightly resembled Will, with his black hair and deep blue eyes. There was a tall, beautiful girl beside him, and their resemblance was very noticeable with their similar dark looks. Her skin was ivory, and it meshed well with her dark hair and eyes. Beside her was a pale boy with dark brown hair and hazel eyes, and he looked as if he was in terrible pain.
The dark haired girl shot up. "Simon! Oh God, we need to get you out of here!" She turned to us. "This is an institute, isn't it?" When Charlotte nodded, all of the color drained from the dark haired girl's face. She reached down and pulled the pale boy up, and directed him to the nearest window. "Simon, you have to jump out, okay?"
The pale boy, known as Simon, moaned and nodded. The dark haired girl opened the window as wide as she could, and eased him through it. Tessa heard the thud as he hit the ground.
"Whatever is the matter with him?" Jessamine asked.
"He's a vampire. He can't be in here." the dark haired girl replied, looking quite shaken up.
"A vampire? Who, might I ask, are you people?" Charlotte asked.
The blond haired boy was the one who answered. "I'm Jace Wayland, this is Clarissa Morgenstern," he pointed to the red haired girl, who glared at him. "Fray. Clarissa Fray. Or just Clary. This," he pointed to the dark haired boy, "is Alec Lightwood. That," he pointed to the dark haired girl, "is Alec's sister, Isabelle Lightwood. The boy who just jumped out the window was Simon Lewis, and this is-"
"Magnus Bane." Tessa said.
Jace looked puzzled. "How do you know his name?"
It wasn't Tessa, but Magnus who answered. "Because we're in the past. London, 1878 to be exact. The girl who you just spoke with is Tessa Gray. Beside her is Jessamine Lovelace. Across from her is William Herondale. Beside him is James Carstairs. And on Tessa's other side is Charlotte. Across from her is her husband, Henry."
"Herondale?" Jace asked, incredulous.
"Yes, Herondale." Will said, speaking for the first time. "What is it to you, Mr. Wayland?"
Jace looked as if he was about to faint. Clarissa reached out to steady him, and answered Will for him. "Even though he goes by the last name Wayland, his true last name is Herondale. Son of Stephen and Celine Herondale. In other words, your great-grandson."
Everyone froze. Will's great-grandson? Tessa thought. That must also mean that the dark haired siblings, Alec and Isabelle, are Gabriel's great-grandchildren, and Benedict's great-great-grandchildren!
Everyone was silent for a few moments, until Magnus spoke. "Well Clary, how on earth did you end up sending us here? To the past?"
"I don't know." Clary replied. "I just thought of somewhere safe, and somewhere that the Shax demons wouldn't find us. I guess that must be here."
"You were attacked?" Charlotte asked, her face suddenly concerned.
Alec nodded. "A hoarde of Shax demons ambushed us while we were walking through the park back in Brooklyn. Clary is . . . special, and so she has the ability to create new runes. She created a portal that transported is here, to the past."
Henry's eyes brightened, and his facial expression turned eager. "She can create new runes? But . . . how is it possible?"
Jace sighed, and began to tell the story. "When Clary and I were still in our mothers' wombs, Clary's father Valentine," he spat the word, "fed them Angel blood. It gave Clary and I special abilities, and hers is creating new runes."
"What, might I ask, is yours, Mr. Wayland?" Tessa asked, burning with curiosity.
"Well, I can run faster and jump higher than a normal Shadowhunter normally could." Jace replied.
"It seems to me like Miss Fray's ability is far greater than yours, Jace." Will commented, earning a smack from Jem and a burning glare from Tessa.
Jace's eyes narrowed. "It's actually very useful, and it's helped me a lot in the past." Jace looked at Clarissa. "And she prefers Clary, not Clarissa or Miss Fray. Dumbass . . ."
Clary's hand whipped up and connected with Jace's cheek extremely fast. He gave her a shocked look, and touched his fingertips to his red cheeks. Alec, Isabelle and Magnus began laughing, while Clary glared at Jace.
"What am I missing? What's so funny?" Simon called from outside the window. Until that moment, everyone had forgotten that he was even outside.
"Oh, Clary slapped Jace." Isabelle replied, clutching her stomach.
"Woo! Go Clary!" Simon cheered.
"I'm inclined to agree with the vampire." Will said, and Clary turned her glare on him.
"He has a name, you know. Simon." she said darkly.
Will raised his hands in surrender. "My apologies, Miss Fray."
Clary was puzzled. Why had he called her Miss Fray? Oh, she thought. Right. We're in the 1800s. Of course that that's how you would talk to someone.
Her expression softed. "It's alright, Mr. Herondale. Please, just call me Clary. I really do prefer it."
"Alright then, Clary. Call me Will." Will turned to Alec and Isabelle. "Just a warning for you two, your great-grandfather is a twit."
Jem looked appalled. "William Herondale, don't be so rude to our guests!"
Isabelle spoke. "No, Mr. Carstairs, it's okay. We've been told how much of an idiot great-gradfather Gabriel was."
"Okay then, Miss Lightwood. Call me Jem please, everyone else does."
"If you call me Isabelle." She turned to everyone in the room. "You can call all of us by our first names. We'd really all prefer it, since we're not used to the whole 'formal' thing."
"Yes," said Will. "It rather seems as if the lot of you haven't the slightest manners."
Isabelle then made a motion with her hand that was unfamiliar to Tessa and the others. She raised her hand, palm down, to reach under her chin. She then swept her arm forward, and let it fall to her side.
"Am I supposed to know what that meant?" Will asked, clearly puzzled.
"It means fu-" Alec's hand flew over to cover Isabelle's mouth.
"-nny." Alec finished, recieving a glare from Isabelle. She bit down, hard, on Alec's fingers, and he yelped in pain as blood welled on them.
"IZZY! NOT COOL!" he yelled, clutching his fingers. Isabelle stuck her tongue out at him, and he rolled his eyes. Tessa waved Clary over.
Once Clary stood beside Tessa, she motioned for her to lean down. "Do they always act like this?" Tessa asked, her voice a whisper that was slightly difficult to hear over the squabbling of Isabelle and Alec.
"Usually. It's just the way they are . . ." Clary spoke fondly of Isabelle and Alec, and it was clear to Tessa that she loved them as if they were her own siblings. Which made Tessa wonder if Clary had any siblings.
"Clary, do you have any brothers or sisters?" Tessa asked.
Clary's expression darkened, and Tessa immediately regretted asking the question. "You don't have to answer that, if you don't want to." Tessa said quickly.
Clary's voice was cold. "Jonathan was another one of Valentine's experiments. Only, unlike Jace and I, demon blood was used on him. Jonathan was a coldhearted murderer, and he almost killed Jace. But it was Jace who killed him, which surprised Valentine."
Tessa gulped. "And what-what became of Valentine?"
"Raziel killed him."
"Raziel, as in, the angel that created your race?"
"Yes, he created the Nephilim. If you don't mind me asking, what are you?"
Tessa smiled. "I'm a warlock of sorts. I'm unlike any other warlock; I can fully transform myself into someone else if I hold on to one of their possesions."
Clary's expression was dumbfounded. "So, you're telling me that if I gave you something of mine, you could turn yourself into me?"
Tessa nodded. "Would you like me to demonstrate?"
Clary nodded eagerly, and pulled Tessa into the other room. "We have to try and trick Jace." she murmured.
"There's just one thing; I'd still be wearing this dress."
"It's okay, we'll just say that you took me to get changed into one of your dresses. I'll stand and watch from somewhere that he can't see me."
Tessa nodded. "Hand me something of yours."
Clary reached into her purse and pulled out her sketchpad. She placed it lightly into Tessa's outstretched hand, and Tessa clasped it tightly, closing her eyes.
Clary watched with amazement and wonder as Tessa's features shifted into her own. Her brown hair turned fiery red and curly, the shape of her face changed, freckles dotting her cheeks. When Tessa opened her eyes, they were no longer grey, but an emerald green that Clary recognized as her own.
"Amazing . . ." Clary breathed, looking Tessa up and down.
Tessa stared into the mirror, the face of Clary staring back at her. "Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?" she asked.
Clary was taken aback. Of course Jace told her that she was beautiful, but she never really believed him. But maybe she really was beautiful . . .
"Well, Jace has, but he's supposed to . . . being my boyfriend and everything."
"Well, you are. And you should know that."
"Thank you, Tess. It means a lot to me."
Hearing the nickname 'Tess' brought back memories of the first time that Will had called her that. Her eyes filled with tears that threatened to spill.
Clary, seeing the tears, wondered what was wrong. "Tessa, are you alright? Did I say something wrong?"
Tessa shook her head. "No, it's just that Will is the only one who ever calls me Tess. He and I aren't on the best terms at the moment." Her voice turned bitter at the end, recalling his words to her in the attic. And, try hard as she may to repress it, she recalled the kiss they shared moments before those words. Her heart tightened as she thought about it.
"Oh! Tessa, I'm so sorry! I won't call you that if you don't want me to." Clary said, reaching to give the other girl a hug. Tessa accepted it gladly, happy for any sort of affection.
"No, you can call me that if you want to. I really don't mind, it's just that you caught me off guard." She paused, looking cautiously at Clary. "Clary, please tell me that Jace isn't at all like Will. Please tell me that he's good to you. I wouldn't be able to stand it if it ran in his family."
"Well, he can be sarcastic and rude, but I know that he's truly an amazing person. If you only knew what the two of us went through . . ." She trailed off, remembering the time when she thought that she and Jace were brother and sister. It wasn't a time she cared to remember. "Maybe I'll tell you about it sometime, but I have no time for it now."
"Sure, Clary. Now, let's get to tricking Jace!" Tessa said enthusiastically. Clary nodded, and motioned for Tessa to go back to the dining room. Tessa smoothed the skirt of her dress, took a deep breath, and walked into the dining room. Clary ducked around the corner, keeping an eye on Tessa.
When Tessa entered the dining room, she was met by the knowing looks of Will, Jem, Jessamine, Charlotte and Henry. They knew that it was her, not Clary. But Isabelle, Jace and Alec had no idea. Magnus looked as if he had a hunch it was her, but he said nothing.
Jace walked over and wrapped his arms around Tessa's waist. "I like the dress, Clary. Did you borrow it from Tessa?"
Tell him yes. Tessa heard Clary say in her mind. "Yes, she did. Does it suit me?" Tessa stuggled to keep her tone casual, to speak as Clary did.
"Mmm, yeah. You look beautiful, as always."
"Clary, I love that dress! It's so pretty on you!" Isabelle squealed, clapping her hands with excitement.
Call her Izzy. "Thank you, Izzy. I love it too!"
"You do look quite dashing, Clary." Will said, smirking.
"Hey gramps, you're not allowed to think of my girlfriend like that. It's kinda creepy." Jace said, his tone joking.
"Well young Jace, I happen to be the same age as you are at the moment. So really, it isn't that creepy at all." Will retaliated.
"Well, still. Gramps, this might be a little too heated for your dear old eyes. You might wanna look away." Jace said, just as he began to lean in to kiss Tessa.
Clary, I do believe that it might be the right time to reveal yourself! Tessa sent, her inner voice panicky.
I think you're right. Clary thought, just before popping into the dining room. "Okay, I think that this is going a little too far." she said, resting her hands on her hips.
The looks of shock on the faces of Alec, Isabelle, and most of all Jace were priceless. Jace's head whipped back and forth between the two Clarys, a bewildered look plain on his face.
"Tess, you can change back now. I think we're scaring them." Clary suggested. Tessa nodded, and released the connection to Clary. She felt herself returning to her own body, and was grateful for it. It was quite disorienting to find oneself in another's body.
Jace stepped away from Tessa, a look of horror on his face. "What. The. Hell. Was. That?"
"I'm a shapeshifter," Tessa explained. "If I'm given something that belongs to another person, I can transform into them. Once I turn into them, I can go back and do it again as many times as needed. For example, watch this." Tessa groped for the inner tunnel leading to Camille, so that she could demonstrate. She felt her body reforming itself, and opened her eyes to faces filled with wonder.
"Who is that?" Isabelle asked. "Whoever she is, she's beautiful."
Tessa opened her mouth to speak, but Magnus had beaten her to it. "That, my friend, is Lady Camille Belcourt. My ex-girlfriend, who also happens to be a vampire."
Isabelle moved to high-five Magnus, who returned it with a grin. "Nice one, Magnus! You really do know how to pick 'em!"
"Yes, he does have great taste." Alec said, moving closer to Magnus. Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec, hugging him tightly.
"Well, this has all been interesting, but we should probably be getting back to New York, in our own time. Clary, do you mind?" Jace said, who had long since moved back to stand with Clary.
"Sure. But we'll have to go in the yard, since Simon can't come in here."
"Aww Clary, can't we just leave him?" Jace whined, although it was clear to everyone that he was joking.
"No. Come on, let's go."
"Clary, would you mind if we watched you create the portal?" Henry asked.
"Not at all. Now, how do we get out to the yard?" Clary asked, looking around.
"Follow me." Charlotte said. She proceeded to lead the group through a narrow hallway, and they walked out a door to the yard.
"Are we leaving yet? I feel like a dog that has to be kept in the yard." Simon complained, moving to stand beside Clary.
"Yes Mr. Whiney-pants." Clary made her way over to the wall, and she pulled out her stele. She pressed it to the stone wall and began to carve the portal rune. A gaping hole opened up, and gasps were heard from all around. "Where should I visualize us going?"
"Central Park." Simon replied.
With a nod, Clary stepped forward into the portal. Only, instead of passing through it, she slammed right into it. The force of the impact sent her backwards, and she landed on the grass.
"Clary! Oh God, are you okay?" Jace asked frantically. He knelt down beside her, wrapping his arms around her so that she was resting on his legs.
Clary moaned, clutching her forehead. "Ouch."
Alec walked over to the portal. He reached a hand out experimentally, and found that the portal was solid.
"Well," said Magnus, "it seems as if we're stuck here for a while."
How was it? Good, bad, meh? Let me know what you thought of it in a review. Let's see . . . 5? Is that asking too much? I hope not ;) Until next time :)
Oh and anyone who reads my other stories, no, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth. I'm just busy, and I've had this done for a few days now. It's just that mine and Natalee's science fair project demands a lot of my time, not counting all of the other schoolwork . . . whoever invented homework is definitely the stupidest person. EVER. Honestly, GIVE US A FREAKING BREAK! Oh, and don't even get me started on Mr. Nadeau and Mrs. Ingalls Garey! I hate both of them, Nadeau (who my friends and I call the angry Oompa Loompa behind his back XD) treats us all like we're stupid and unable to do simple freaking math, and Mrs. IG is seriously messed in the head. For the whole first half of the semester, we worked on verbs. VERBS. Ugh, and now we have like no time to do our french speeches (which is another time-consuming thing). Grr . . . school is dumb.
Anyways, REVIEW! :D