Disclaimer: I DO NOT own the Mortal Instruments nor any of the characters besides my own made up ones! All rights go to Cassandra Clare, her publishers, and the other rightful owners!

Chapter 1: Clary's POV

"Clarissa!" My father's deep voice echoes through the manor and I jerk out of my drawing state. I was drawing a picture out of the Codex, trying to imitate the majesticness of the Mortal Sword. But alas, the grand beauty and fear-inducing aura is not one that can be duplicated.

"Clarissa!" Dad's voice is louder and more urgent this time. I grab a knife off the weapons wall in my art studio and strap it into the torso-sheath that's wrapped around my waist. I exit my studio, heading to Dad's study, where he most likely is. I was correct with the guess of him being in the study.

Sitting in front of my father's grand mahogany desk are Stephen and Céline Herondale. Next to them are Maryse and Robert Lightwood, with their son, Alexander, to the right of Maryse.

I cast my father a quizzical look as he beckons me over. He pulls me down so he can whisper in my ear. He says, "Go grab Jonathan and Sebastian as well as your mother. Isabelle and Max Lightwood are with your mother and Jace is with the twins. Tell them to come too."

I nod and exit quickly. My brain is whirling with guesses as to why my father gathered the three highest-ranking families in the Circle. I'm so deep into my thoughts that I almost run straight into Mom and the other Lightwood children.

Isabelle Lightwood, one of the prettiest girls I have ever seen, is weirdly chatting animatedly with Mom. They are two totally different personalities, and to find them this happy in a conversation with the other shocks me. Today's full of surprises, I think wryly.

Max sees me and manages to stop them before we run straight into each other.

"Clarissa, where have you been?" Mom asks.

"I was chasing a hippo down to the Gard," I respond sarcastically. Isabelle and Max snicker. "I was drawing, Mom. But anywho, Dad wants you, Isabelle, and Max to head to the study."

Mom tilts her head to the side, frowning. "Whatever for?"

I shrug. "He didn't say. But he also told me to get the boys, so if I have any chance of getting back by midnight, I better go now."

Mom and the Lightwoods head to the study while I go to the training room. Whenever the Herondales are here, Jonathan, Sebastian, and Jace train. I rarely join them, since I despise the arrogant golden-haired pig.

I climb the steps to the training room and open the door. Not even two seconds later, a knife whizzes past and sticks itself not even two inches from my head. I look around the room to find Jace and Jonathan rolling on the floor with laughter and Sebastian with his head in his hands, bright red.

I roll my eyes. "Get your lazy asses off the floor, Dad wants you all in his office," I say. The two boys don't hear me so I grab two knives off the wall and embed them into the floor right next to each boy. I yell this time, "Get your lazy asses off the floor, Dad wants to see you all in his office!" I send Sebastian a sympathetic glance and exit with a flourish.

Returning to the study, I find Dad, Robert, Alec, and Stephen all in a serious discussion. Max is reading a book next to his sister, who is partaking in a conversation with Maryse, Céline, and Mom. Dad gestures for me to join him.

"Clarissa, we need you to create a rune," he says.

I feel the men's gazes burning holes in me when I reply. "What for?"

"We need a rune that will close the gates to and from hell dimensions." His voice is lazy and expectant, as if he already knows that there is a rune for that. This is a huge order, one I don't think I'll be able to fill.

"When?" Maybe I'll be able to create a rune if I have enough time.

Dad arranges his face to look thoughtful. Stephen surprises me by interrupting. "Within a week would be best. Don't you agree, boys?"

Alec and Robert nod, with Dad joining in the end. "A week will do. Can you do it, Clarissa?"

"It might take a bit longer, since this is probably one of the biggest ones," I respond.

Mr. Lightwood shakes his head in understanding. "Of course, this is not an everyday rune-" He's cut off by the dramatic entrance of Jace and my brothers.

"We are here, good people! Your saviors have arrived!" Jace throws his arms up.

I roll my eyes. "I don't see Jesus anywhere," I respond snarkily. Sebastian and Jonathan chuckle while Jace glares.

"No one asked for your opinion, princess," he spits.

"It wasn't an opinion. It was a fact," I retort. Jace continues to glare and then looks abruptly away. I tilt my head to the side in confusion.

"Enough!" Dad booms. Jace's head whips to look at Valentine with his golden curls swinging around his head. Dad takes a deep breath. "There are some important things we need to talk about, so I don't need your bickering." He pointedly looks at me and Jace.

Mom goes to stand behind Dad. Isabelle moves to her brother's chair while Max melts into the shadows. Maryse and Céline take their places while I join my brothers. Jace goes to his father.

This how it always looks when we meet with the Lightwoods and Herondales. However, the ambiance is usually less tense than it is now. The parents are glancing at their children nervously, which seems very suspicious.

Dad takes another breath. "As you all know, the Circle needs to continue," he begins. We all nod. "In order for that to happen, there needs to be grandchildren."

My gaze grows intense as I realize what he's saying. All the other kids look confused, even Alec. "You want us to marry each other," I say.

Dad raises an eyebrow at my directness. "I was going to soften it, but yes. We need you to marry each other."

A sick feeling settles in my stomach. My hands start to shake.

"Who with who?" Jonathan demands. He embraces me from behind, being the great big brother I know he is.

Stephen responds, "Jonathan is with Isabelle. Alec and Sebastian have other suitors. And then Jace is with Clarissa."

My knees start to give out. "I-I'm going to marry...Jace?" My voice is shaking.

Every kid except for Max is scowling. It's clear that no one is happy about this decision.

Isabelle shoots her father a murderous glare. "And I'm going to marry Jonathan?" Her voice is bitter.

Reluctantly, Robert nods. Isabelle shoots up from her chair and storms out. Alec goes to follow her but I stop him.

"I know what she's going through. I'll get her," I whisper. Alec looks pained but sits back down.

I trail Isabelle all through the house. She eventually shoots into a room and locks it with a rune. I use a secret creation of mine and the door swings open.

Isabelle is lying on her stomach on a bed in a guest room. Her body is being racked with sobs. Her cries are loud and pronounced.

I gently close the door. She doesn't seem to hear me, so I approach her like you would a wild cat. I sit down on the bed and she stops crying. I rub her back and whisper soothing things into her ear.

Finally, Isabelle sits up. Her eyes are bloodshot, her face is blotchy, and her makeup is smeared. In other words, she's a trainwreck.

"What do you want?" she spits.

I take my hand off her. "I just wanted to make sure that you didn't jump out of a window."

She shoots me a dirty look. "Well, now that you mention it, I might just do that."

I jump up and stop her from standing. "I'm here to help you."

Isabelle scowls. "You can't help me. You don't know what I'm going through. I'm marrying your brother. You feel partial to him. You think Jonathan is the greatest boy ever." Isabelle flops onto her back.

I shake my head violently. "I can help you. I know Jonathan, and I know that he isn't the greatest boy ever. He's like Jace: Satan's true advocate. I'm here to help you survive."

Isabelle raises an eyebrow. "Liar."

I mirror her. "Why would I lie? You and I are going through the same thing, except with different people. You get Jonathan and I get Jace. We both lose."

"Jace is not annoying. Ok, he is. But you get used to it."

"Yeah, and that's what Jonathan's like." I pause and take a deep breath. "Look, Isabelle, we can help each other. You know Jace, I know Jonathan. We can help each other survive, only if you listen to me." I sit down next to her and look her in the eye.

Isabelle pauses for a long time and then sighs. "I guess I need all the help I can get right now."

"And you can get advice just from watching the two. Sebastian's the exact opposite of Jonathan: sweet, gentle, defensive. Seb will help you, also. He knows exactly how Jonathan is: rude, mostly gruff, and offensive. And you should also know that when a person hurts somebody Jon loves, he takes much more action than Sebastian. If you get Jonathan to love you, your life will be great."

Isabelle's lip quivered. "What if I don't love him back?"

I smile and shake my head. "Once you get through the tough exterior, Jon's as sweet as can be. The only difference between the twins is their mental wall levels. Jon's walls are tough and mostly unbreakable. Seb's basically aren't even existent. So if you eventually get through Jon's walls, you'll find that you can't stop loving him."

Isabelle sat up, her eyes a little less wet. "Can we talk about this in your room? I don't feel safe here."

I hesitate. My room is my private area. Seb and Jon are rarely let in there. The only person that goes in on a daily basis is my mother.

I stand up and hold out my hand. "I have a better place."

Author's Note:

I hope you guys like the story! Comment if you want to or just move on because you don't care!

-AgentLadd