The Calm Before the Storm
Disclaimer: The characters in this story belong to Cassandra Clare and not to me.
Author's Note: This story takes place after COLS. If you haven't read the last book in the series and you don't want to read spoilers, then please don't read any further.
Simon was walking back to his apartment after meeting with his sister Rebecca. She had texted him, saying that she had wanted to meet him for lunch that day and he had been happy to oblige. After he had told her about being a vampire, he had been relieved that she had not pushed him away and said that she still loved him. However, a small part of him had still feared that maybe she would change her mind and become unable to bear the sight of him. Today's meeting had put that worry to rest as Rebecca acted much the same way she always had around her little brother.
Unfortunately, while Simon's worries had been eased, Rebecca's worries had increased. Simon had made the decision while they were out to lunch that he would tell Rebecca everything that had been going on. And he meant everything. This turned their little lunch outing into an all afternoon affair and eventually they were forced to vacate their little table in the small Italian cafe that Rebecca liked and continue their conversation on the streets. Rebecca had plenty of questions for him, which he tried to answer truthfully without causing her a great deal of anxiety. He wasn't sure if he had entirely succeeded or not.
When he had brought her up to speed on everything that had happened in the recent days, including his most recent battle in Ireland against the Dark Shadowhunters, she had looked a little sick. She had stopped then and brought him into a fierce hug. Simon could only hold her back, wondering if she was bothered by the lack of a heart beat as she leaned against him.
Once they broke apart again, Rebecca looked into his eyes and asked, "But it's over now, isn't it? You're not going to be in any more danger, right?"
Simon sighed. How he wished that could be true. "That fight is over, yes." Simon's answer was reluctant. He could see the pleading in his sister's eyes and he wished he could be more reassuring, but he also refused to lie to her. "But Sebastian's body was never found. And you know what they say, if you don't see a body, then the person isn't dead."
"But he was dead," Rebecca remarked with a shrug, "and you saw his body then. Maybe he's a special case where if you don't see his body, he won't come back."
Simon had to smile at that. "That would be nice, but I doubt Sebastian would do us all the favor of dropping dead off screen somewhere." Simon's expression turned serious. "No, he's going to come back, the same way most movie villains do. And when he does, all of us are in for a fight."
"And you're going to help fight him?"
"Of course." Simon's voice held no hesitation. "Clary and Isabelle are going to fight him and I'm not going to let them do it alone."
Rebecca's eyebrow raised. "Who's Isabelle?" She asked with interest.
If Simon could have flushed, he would have. It was one of the few times he was happy that he was a vampire. "She's a shadowhunter. And a friend. A shadowhunter friend."
Rebecca's incredulous expression didn't change, so Simon quickly spluttered, "But don't worry because we beat back Sebastian pretty badly. I don't think he'll strike back any time soon."
"But he will. You're sure of that?" Simon nodded and Rebecca sighed. "I'd like to tell you to stay out of it Simon, but I know you won't. You've always been stubborn where Clary's concerned. All I can do is hope that you stay safe. Will you try and do that for me?"
"I'm not planning on dying, if that's what you mean. Well, dying again, I should say."
His sister's brown eyes were still full of worry, but she nodded and accepted his choice. "Then, I have one more piece of advice to give you, Simon. Enjoy this time of peace before the next battle. Spend some time with Clary and this Isabelle girl you mentioned."
Simon was, once again, glad he couldn't blush when Isabelle's name was mentioned. "I will. I just got some new comic books for Clary that we can read together at Luke's house."
"And Isabelle?" His sister pressed, clearly not wanting to let this one go. She grinned at her little brother's clear discomfort on the matter and said, "It sounds like shadowhunters don't get out much. Maybe you can take her to a club or a party?"
Simon snorted. "Most shadowhunters aren't Isabelle. She's probably been to more parties in one year than I've been to in my whole life. And not just any parties. Downworlder parties with faeries, werewolves, vampires and who knows what else."
"Then, maybe you should invite her to do something she's never done before. Something more- what's the word—mundane."
"Like what?" Simon tried not to sound too interested, but he really did want his sister's suggestion on impressing Isabelle.
"Well, if it were me, I might try to think of something she's never done before. Maybe try to teach her something new or useful."
"I could always teach her dungeon and dragons." Simon thought aloud. When his sister snorted, Simon frowned at her. "Hey, I'll have you know that she liked Star Wars just fine."
"I'm glad she's not opposed to the nerdier side of life," Rebecca said, with a wry smile, "but she'd probably like to do something different as well. Something that would give her time to get to know you and isn't just something you would do with your guy friends or Clary."
"Oh." He hadn't thought of that. His mind started working to find something different that Isabelle might be interested in when his sister stopped walking. He realized they were close to the train station that Rebecca was going to use to get home.
"I see your mind is on other things right now, so I won't keep you any longer." She stretched out her arms and Simon hugged her one last time. He tried not to notice the pulsing vein in her throat or the smell of her blood. He obviously hadn't eaten anything at the Italian Cafe and he was starting to get hungry again. She broke away from him and he saw that she was giving him the best smile she could, though she still looked uneasy.
"Take care of yourself, Simon. Promise me we'll see each other one last time before the fighting starts, okay?"
"I promise and don't worry, I'll let you know if anything happens."
Rebecca gave him a little wave and walked towards the train station to get home. Simon watched her until she was out of sight and then started walking to his apartment. He was halfway there, still thinking about what his sister said about Isabelle.
She's right. I've got to enjoy the time I have before the next big battle starts. Simon watched as several cars drove past him on the road, clearly going faster than the speed limit. But what would Izzy like doing? I've invited her to cafes before, but that was when I was dating her at the same time as Maia. That probably isn't a good move. Then, what should I—
Simon cursed as a speeding truck drove through a street puddle and sprayed him with the dirty water. He glared down at his now soggy blue jeans and hoped that Jordan wasn't planning on doing any laundry that night. His eyes moved back to the departing truck and he shook his clenched fist at it in imitation of the cartoons he'd seen as a child. Then, he stopped abruptly and smiled. Lowering his hand, he walked quickly back towards his apartment. He had an idea.
As luck would have it, Jordan was out on a date with Maia. Simon found a note scrawled on the kitchen table saying they probably wouldn't be back until late at night, so he had the apartment to himself. He quickly changed out of his clothes and threw together a load of laundry. He took a small packet of animal blood out of the refrigerator and gulped it down before he returned to his bedroom to pick up his cell phone. Just as he was about to open it and call Isabelle, the phone started to vibrate on its own. Simon jumped a little in surprise and then relaxed as he looked at the name on the small screen. He smiled widely. It was Isabelle.
Answering the phone quickly, Simon's voice was enthusiastic as he said, "Hey, Izzy. I was just about to call you."
There was a pause on the other end of the line. Simon realized that she probably hadn't expected him to say that and was suddenly a bit self-conscious about his sudden declaration.
"You were?" Isabelle's voice sounded curious, along with something else he couldn't identify. Embarrassment? Uncertainty? Happiness? He couldn't tell.
"Yeah," Simon tried to make his voice sound normal in spite of the jitters in his stomach, "but it can wait if you have something important you wanted to talk about."
"Oh, no, not really." Her response was hurried as if she didn't want to be questioned about her reason for calling him. "I just wanted to see how you were. We haven't really talked since Ireland."
"I'm fine." Simon answered and then there was a long pause. He knew this was the part where he told her his idea, but now he couldn't bring himself to do it. The silence was stretching to uncomfortable lengths, so finally he asked the first question on his mind. "So, how's Jace?" It really wasn't what he wanted to say, but he couldn't think of anything else.
"You want to talk about Jace?" Isabelle sounded both miffed and incredulous.
"Well, not for long. Just, how's he doing? He did get stabbed through the chest with a sword."
"He's fine." There was a pause and he could feel Isabelle grinning through the phone. "Are you sure you don't have a crush on him?"
"No." Simon's voice was dead pan.
"Really?" Her voice was teasing. "Because if you do, I'd be totally okay with you coming over and giving my brother a kiss. Provided I get to watch, that is."
Simon smiled and shook his head. "I'm afraid that particular fantasy is going to have to remain a dream. Besides, I don't want to think about what Clary would do to me if I kissed Jace."
"After everything you've done for her recently, she should be worshiping you." Isabelle's voice had turned flat and Simon realized she probably didn't want to talk about Clary, who was Simon's ex. He swallowed, deciding now was the time to get to the point.
"Listen, Isabelle, the reason I wanted to call you was because we hadn't seen each other in a while. Well, we have, but that was for summoning demons and angels and fighting battles. Nothing normal."
"So...?" She clearly wanted him to get to the point.
"So, I was thinking about how Magnus had to drive us all up to Luke's or how I had to drive you guys when you needed to face the greater demon. It'd be a lot easier for you guys if one of you knew how to drive, right? That way you wouldn't have to rely on vampires, warlocks, werewolves or even my mother to drive you places. "
"You want to teach me how to drive?" Isabelle sounded genuinely surprised. He couldn't tell if it was good surprised or bad surprised, but it definitely wasn't what she had expected.
"Yeah, I think it would be good for you to learn and I'd be willing to teach you. So, are you interested?"
Isabelle seemed to consider it. "Well," she started to say, but then Simon heard a door open in the background and she stopped talking.
"Iz, are you still—"
"Hang on!" Isabelle interrupted and Simon waited patiently as he heard her talking to someone else in the room. He heard a door close and her voice came back on the line. "Sorry, Simon, but I have to go now. My mom's calling a meeting and she said it can't wait. I'll call you later, okay? Bye."
Simon tried to say something, but the phone clicked and all he heard was the buzzing of static. Cursing the bad timing, Simon closed his cell phone and tried not to feel too disappointed. Then, he shrugged. She had said she would call him back. He would just have to wait.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. This one was a little short, but I think the next few chapters should be longer. Also, this is just supposed to be a fun little story. There will be some serious moments in it, but it's mostly supposed to be more lighthearted. Please leave a review if you have time.