Clary hated rainy days.
She had met Simon at Taki's for lunch when it wasn't raining yet. By the time they had finished, the sky was gray. Simon had offered Clary his jacket, he couldn't be bothered by the rain anyway. It's not like he could catch a cold or something.
She opened the front door to Luke's apartment – her apartment – and heard her mother's voice from the kitchen.
"I'm home!" Clary called.
She went to her room and removed Simon's wet jacket: her t-shirt underneath was soaked too and her hair was dripping water.
She'd call Jace later: all she needed now was a cold shower.
"Clary," she heard her mother calling as soon as she was finished. "Clary, come here."
Clary dropped her phone: Jace would have to wait. She went to see what her mother wanted.
Jocelyn was standing over the counter. With her was a woman in her twenties. She was tall, with a good posture and long brown hair.
"Clary," her mother repeated. "I want you to meet Tessa Gray."
"Hi," Clary just said, offering Tessa a smile.
"It's Herondale, actually. Tessa Herondale."
"What? You're a Herondale? But I thought… So you're Jace's what? Cousin or something?"
"I'm his great great grandmother actually."
"I'm sorry, you look like you're like twenty…"
"I'm immortal."
"But… Herondales are Shadowhunters. How can you…?"
"I wasn't born a Herondale. I married one."
"So, pardon my asking, but what are you?"
"It's complicated. Most people call me a warlock. Let's just say my father was a demon and my mother was a Shadowhunter. An unmarked one."
"Who was it?"
"My father? An eidolon demon."
"No, who did you marry?"
Tessa took a quick breath before replying, "William Herondale."
"I know him! His name was written in that book, A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens!"
Tessa's eyes brightened. "Does Jace have that book?" she asked, excited.
Clary felt almost sorry for this girl she barely knew. "Unfortunately no. It was destroyed along with Sebastian's apartment just last week… I'm sorry. Did that book mean a lot to you?"
"Yes," Tessa said "it did."
"I'm really sorry," Clary repeated.
After a minute Tessa recovered her composure and spoke again. "It doesn't matter. That book was more than a hundred years old. I wonder why Stephen… never mind" she shook her head and she looked at Clary, then at Jocelyn.
"I can't believe it's only been… how long?"
"Sixteen years," said Jocelyn in a low tone.
"Since what?" Clary asked.
"Since I last saw you," Tessa replied. "You were just an infant then. We… played together. I remember you laughing and pulling the tail of Magnus's cat."
"Tessa has been the first person – apart from the mundane nurse at the hospital and Luke, of course – to hold you, Clary. The first stranger I willingly gave you to."
"And, by the Angel – the way you smiled at me! I hadn't held a baby in my arms in decades, it felt like my children all over again. Your mother said that you were not very comfortable with strangers, but you came to me. You came to me! For years I had been scorned by Shadowhunters –"
"But you married a Nephilim," Clary noted.
"Will became Head of the London Institute and thus the leader of the Enclave, so as long as I was by his side no one in England could say a single word against me. But after Will died… I had to go. I didn't belong with them. I'm not a Shadowhunter, not truly. So I left them – left my children, but they had already children of their own by then – because I couldn't just stand there, never aging and watch all my beloved ones die."
"Where did you go?" Clary asked.
"Magnus helped me. He took me to New York, the city I was born in, but I wasn't comfortable with staying much time in a place, so I travelled, mostly. I thought that mine and Will's line was finished when Stephen was killed and his father died of shock… I kept an eye on the Blackthorns of the Los Angeles institute, my daughter's descendants."
"I've met Helen," Clary said. "She seems nice."
"She is. But you can imagine how relieved I was when Magnus told me that the Herondale line was not finished after all," Tessa said.
"You mean Jace?"
"I do. For months I had been yearning to see him. But it was never the right time. But the events have forced me here now. In New York, once again. Jocelyn told me you two know each other… can you take me to him?"
Clary smiled. So much for calling him, she was going to visit him straight away. Things had been a little awkward between them in the last days, with Jace not knowing how to handle the heavenly fire and all.
"Of course, we can leave now if you want. I'll take you to him personally, you don't have to meet the other members of the Institute, I know his room. He's my –" boyfriend, she was starting to say, but then thought better of it. Her mother was standing there and she didn't want to start an argument right now. So she settled for "We're very close."
Everything was black. Jace couldn't see anything but darkness. Then Clary appeared out of nowhere. She was laughing. Jace wanted to run to her, but found he couldn't. His legs wouldn't move, he was stuck where he was. He called out for her, but she didn't seem to hear him. She was still laughing. Suddenly, another figure appeared next to her. He got closer and closer to Clary, until they were laughing together and Clary's hands were tangled in Sebastian's blond-white hair and he was kissing her with such vehemence that he swept her off her feet and she was clinging to him. Jace screamed, he screamed until his lungs hurt. When Clary and Sebastian turned towards Jace, they were still laughing. Jace noted something else, beside Clary's and Sebastian's joint hands in their regal stride. Clary's eyes were different. They were not that bright green that he had come to love, where he could see her soul reflected. They were pitch black.
"He must be in his room. I'll go get him," Clary told Tessa as she entered Jace's ever-neat room.
He was sprawled on his bed – shirtless – and he was shaking. "Jace!"
She sat on his bed and began stroking his hair. "Jace," she whispered in his ear. "It's okay, you're dreaming. Wake up."
He opened his eyes. They were dark gold. "Clary," he whispered and flung himself at her. "Are you real?" he asked.
She wrapped him in her arms. "I'm real. Were you having a nightmare? You were shaking."
She felt him nod.
"I'm here now."
Suddenly, she didn't quite know how, he was kissing her. His mouth was hard on hers, urging her to open her lips, his tongue sliding into them. Clary was going to get lost in him, but then remembered…
"Jace – Jace, stop," she said reluctantly.
"What? You don't want me to kiss you?" his expression was a mix of hurt and disbelief.
"Of course I do, it's just… there's someone outside the door."
Jace sent Clary a quizzical look. She sighed.
"Get dressed. I'm going to introduce you to her."
"Her? Who is she, Clary?"
"You'll see," she smiled.
Clary waited for him to put a white shirt on – she wouldn't miss a chance to stare at his abs – and straightened her own t-shirt before going out to get Tessa.
Tessa was right where Clary had left her five minutes earlier, she didn't seem to have moved at all, except for a little, knowing smile playing on her lips. Clary couldn't help but think that Tessa had listened to their quick exchange, and blushed.
"You can come in now," she said shyly.
Tessa nodded and followed her inside Jace's room.
Jace turned and wondered who on earth this twenty-year-old girl that Clary had brought to him could be and what she had to do with any of them.
"Jace," Clary started. "This is –"
"Hello, Jace. My name is Tessa Herondale. You might want to sit down."
Tessa recounted her story. Jace listened patiently. Clary had asked Tessa if she wanted her to leave, but Jace had told her to stay and patted the spot next to him on the bed for Clary to sit beside him. At one point – Clary did not remember if it was when Tessa was telling them of Will and Jem being parabatai, or of Charlotte and Henry running the London Institute – Jace had taken her hand and squeezed it. He had not let go yet.
"And here you are. I can understand if you don't feel any attachment to the Herondales, but now at least you know the story of your family."
Jace had not spoken yet, which was unusual since he had always a ready answer for everything.
Tessa showed them an old black-and-white photo. "You resemble the Herondales so much. You've lost Will's combination of blue eyes and black hair, but you have his exact same expression," she pointed at Will in the picture, then looked at Jace. "And your eyes… they're James's. My son," she pointed at a younger boy in the picture, but they obviously couldn't see the color of his eyes. "I hadn't seen those eyes in a century."
Clary could tell that Tessa was trying hard not to cry.
"Jace," Clary whispered gently. "You should say something."
He looked at her like he was drinking in the fact that she was there and swallowed.
"You've given me… a lot to think about," he said to Tessa.
"Don't think about that now. Tell me about you. Tell me who you are."
Not knowing where to start, Jace gently took the old picture from Tessa's fingers and said. "I think Alec looks like Will more than I do. He has black hair and deep blue eyes."
Clary nodded.
"Who's Alec?" Tessa asked.
"Alexander Lightwood. My parabatai."
"Oh, yes. Magnus has mentioned him. He must be a descendant of Will's sister then. Cecily married Gabriel Lightwood."
"I can't tell you much about myself. I don't even know who I am. I thought I was another person for years, I thought my father was dead… turns out he was alive, only he wasn't my father at all," Jace said eyeing Tessa cautiously.
Clary remembered him telling her the same thing once: I don't know who I am, he had said. I look at myself in the mirror and I see Stephen Herondale, but I act like a Lightwood and talk like my father—like Valentine. So I see who I am in your eyes, and I try to be that person, because you have faith in that person and I think faith might be enough to make me what you want.
"Tell me who you want to be then. Tell me about Alec, tell me about Clary, tell me everything that's happened since you two met. I know bits of your story, Jace. But I'd like to hear it from you."
"Well," Jace started. "The first thing you must know is that I'm not the same person I was before I met her." He looked at Clary. "She made me better."
Tessa smiled.
Jace talked and talked, Clary mostly stayed silent, because she loved the sound of his voice. Tessa asked questions, made comments and listened fascinated by the stories Jace was telling her. Once he was done, Tessa looked at the two's intertwined hands and simply said:
"You two have my blessing, if it means anything."
Clary and Jace replied simultaneously: "Thank you," she said.
"We really appreciate it," said Jace. "I only wish Jocelyn would give hers too."
"Pardon? Jocelyn doesn't… approve of your relationship?"
"She doesn't – want us to be together."
"But how could she? No one looking at you could doubt your love."
AN: hello! Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.
I apologize for possible grammar mistakes, but you see, English is not my first language.
Review please? *puppy face*