Hey guys it's Caity! I'm a HE-UGE procrastinator (Lily won't let forget it too!) but I hope you enjoy. 8D I don't own anything!
Clary stared at him in shock, her mouth hanging slightly open and her emerald eyes as wide as the moon. Jace still stood frozen in the same position but his eyes had lost their smile. He slowly lowered his arms to his sides in a way that they lay beside his black clad body in a purposeful way. On anyone else, this would've looked like he was giving up but with Jace? With Jace, It was just a challenge.
"Jace," He shivered at the sound of his name in her surprised voice.
"I'd prefer a room with a view," Jace pushed past her and into the entryway taking a deep breath and scanning the room. His golden hair stood in contrast with his pale skin and it took Clary a moment to catch her breath. It hadn't been that long since she had seen it, had it?
"Jace, what happened?" Clary asked, shoving in front of him and stopping his advancing steps with her elbow. He glanced down in surprise and that gave Clary the chance she needed to wedge herself in front of him using her full weight to restrain him.
Jace was about to reply when a call came from the living room. It was Jocelyn asking who was at the door this time. Clary glanced in alarm at Jace but he only had the mischievous smirk on his face that told her all she needed to know. She pushed herself into her elbow as Jace tried to get around her iron arm. Jocelyn called out again and Clary, huffing from the exercise of trying to keep Jace away called out a quick "No one," that was barely audible even to her own ears.
"Oh, How quickly you dispel my presence," Jace called out loudly. His voice echoed throughout the downstairs rooms and Clary knew it was more for her mother and Luke then a response to her question. She pushed harder into Jace's chest but he didn't even flinch. As Luke stepped into the entryway, Jace easily slipped under Clary's arm and went to stand in front of her. Clary huffed dangerously and restrained herself from kicking Jace in the shin. She watched as he reached out a hand to shake the Downworlder's own. Luke carefully controlled his face but Clary could still catch that hint of surprise in his clear blue eyes. She groaned internally. Jace always seemed to do this.
"You mean Clary hasn't told you yet?" Jace asked his voice pleasant but with a hidden edge of amusement inside of it. Luke raised one of his eyebrows at Clary and answered with a slow and drawn out negative. His flannel shirt was covered in small woodchips and compared to the young man beside him he could have been at least 50.
"I'm moving in with you!" Jace repeated the action as well as the words just as Jocelyn walked through the door. She stood back in surprise her hand moving to her throat. Her red hair was pulled up at the top of her head in a messy bun and her emerald eyes were as green as Clary's. Jace couldn't help but note that Clary's own eyes held just a touch more innocence and… curiosity. Jace smiled proudly at his girl then his smiled disappeared when he realized those emerald eyes were narrowing in a glare of suspicion. This would be interesting.
"Jace, what happened?" Luke sighed, his wariness showing on his tanned face. His blue jean eyes showed all the anxiety and exasperation of years yet also kindness and readiness to listen. Untrusting, Jace turned to his only refuge: His wit.
"If I do remember correctly, Luke said I was welcome to stay with you anytime," Jace said while lifting his finger into the air. Luke looked taken aback. He seemed to want to deny it but knew doing so would be lying and a part of him didn't want to deny anything anymore. It was still an open thing as long as Jace did not abuse it. It felt almost like betrayal to have his words come back to him like this. Clary glowered at Jace openly but he didn't seem to notice or he just ignored it.
"Under the circumstances-" Luke began until Clary interrupted.
"That you weren't being an idiot!"
Jocelyn looked taken aback at her daughter but Clary was still fuming at this beautiful young man standing in front of her. Clary crossed her arms fiercely which only earned her a smug look from Jace. His eyes held something else there, but Clary turned away, not meeting them.
"Please," Jace whispered, his voice changing from the usual mocking tone to one that made Clary turn to look at him. He wasn't looking at her though; he was just looking at her mother. Clary knew what he was doing and silently laughed at him. Of course he'd already thought this out.
"I just can't take it anymore, the bickering and fighting," He continued looking up through his lashes at Jocelyn.
Clary's mother immediately held a sympathetic look on her face. Her eyes were hidden under furrowed eyebrows and, although her eyes were dry, she looked like she might begin crying. At that moment Jocelyn looked nothing like her bitter daughter. She looked compassionate and loving while Clary just looked like she was going to punch Jace in the kisser.
When Jocelyn opened her mouth to speak, Clary had guessed what was coming and turned and stormed up the stairs. Her small feet barely made a noise on the carpet and she couldn't help but steal a glance back at the scene. Luke was the only one looking after her, an understanding look in his face. Clary turned into her bedroom. Jace is going to pay kept playing over and over in her mind.
"Good morning beautiful," A voice cut into Clary's dreamy reverie, a too familiar voice. She could not remember what she was dreaming of, though she knew it was not good. It was one of 'those' dreams. Slowly, she rolled over before suddenly a thought popped into her mind. Whose voice could blend into her dreams so well? Could make it seem like she was still sleeping?
She bolted upright in bed, her yellow sheets falling into pools on her lap. She heard a low chuckle and turned to glare at the person she knew it was from. Jace. His golden hair blended with the dull morning light that filtered through her window. Unconsciously she shuddered, when would she be able to stop that? Then she remembered that she was angry.
"What are you doing in my bed?" Clary raged, her anger working back up to full force. Her hands clenched to fists at her sides and she could feel her fingers making tiny dents in her palms. Jace still stared at her nonchalantly, his lazy demeanor reminding her of a tomcat. Laidback yet ready to pounce at any time. Pure anger wound through her veins boiling her blood and words shot out of her like bullets.
"How long have you been here?" Her voice pounded out in choppy sentences, her words cold. Jace didn't seem affected by her iciness. It only seemed to make him smile broader.
"Fully clothed?" He drawled.
"What!" Clary exclaimed, immediately looking down at the rest of his body. Luckily he wore a pair of sweatpants. When Clary looked back up it was in a glare as hot as her cheeks.
Bitterly, her pale hands reached out and pushed him off of her small bed. He went willingly, almost gracefully to the ground with a big grin on his face. Clary scowled. Jace couldn't help but notice that when she glowered her cheeks flamed even brighter then her hair. Her blue tank top strap was nearly falling off of her shoulder revealing the Angel scar to him once again. He looked away, the happiness leaving his face for once. Clary raised both eyebrows, almost forgetting her anger and when he turned back, his face was full of life again.
Clary noticed that his face was changed since the first time Clary met him. The lines were etched harder into his features and there was a certain something in his eyes that made her know everything he'd been through. Then there were the newer scars of battle that were strewn across his body. The newest one was right above his heart. Clary quivered at the memory that would never leave her mind.
"Jace, get out." She murmured. She reached across her body to retrieve one of the pale pillows that littered her bed. She gripped the silk material in her ashen hands for only a moment before the pillow was flying towards Jace's conceited head. As she knew he would, he caught it with an easy grace. In seconds, Jace was on his feet.
"Of course," Jace grinned that one grin that made her knees melt. Fortunately, she was perched on the wide bed and any giving out of the knees would take her nowhere.
Clary watched as Jace turned around and ambled out of the room. Had he gotten taller? She wondered as he was about to pass under the doorframe. She abruptly remembered what he held in his pianist's hands.
"Jace, give me back my pillow!" She hollered, pushing the sheets out of her way and throwing her slender body off the side of the bed. Jace turned around, his legendary smirk still in place.
"Oh? But it was a token of your appreciation." He faked surprise.
"Jace," Her voice was full of malice and ware. As he was Jace, that only made his leer wider. Clary extended a small hand forward, curling her fingers once in towards her palms as an invitation. Jace looked down pretending to be horrified at her notion.
"Clarissa, didn't your parents teach you manners? Once a gift is given you can't take it back," To make his point he hugged the pillow into his chest as if it were about to disappear. She gave him a dirty look and once again made the motion. He glanced briefly down at her hand then back up at her face before turning and marching pointedly to his room, pillow in hand. Clary groaned but didn't bother to retrieve her linen. She shuffled mournfully into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.
The bathroom was one of her favorite places in the house, strangely enough. The walls were painted a dim aqua color and the windows were tined to look a kind of misty white. The counters had tiny flecks of silver on them that matched the sink and the shower. A fan hung from the high ceiling, sending a cool breeze through the sharp room. Clary turned behind her to lock the door; glad she, at least, had some kind of privacy now. She used her feet to take off her white socks and stepped onto the navy bath mat hurriedly to avoid the cold marble floor. A shower would wake her up…
"I know you know where your brother is, and I would find it best for you to tell me," Maryse's sharp voice cut into any thoughts of the two teenagers sitting side by side on one of the Institute's benches. Brother and sister, Alec and Isabelle Lightwood both wore matching expressions of anger and worry. The air was tense and the silence coming from the two adolescents wasn't helping.
"Alec, Jace and you are parabatai so I know he'd tell you…" Maryse trailed off leaving Alec to finish the sentence. Her oldest son gulped yet didn't say a word. His only reaction was to glance out the window questioningly and a little bit accusingly. Alec quickly looked back down at his pale hands that were lined with runes both old and new.
"Isabelle, you spoke to Jace…" Isabelle's mother's voice had lost the iron wall that usually held out all emotion. Desperation leaked into it's fluid melody. Isabelle closed her eyes, imagining Jace's determination to go out fighting. The look on his face when she'd dealt out her low blow. She didn't know where he'd go though. Where he'd go and stay there… away from his family. Her eyes joined her brothers; downcast and filled with anxiety for their sibling.
"If I may?" Alec's head snapped up at the familiar voice of his boyfriend. He couldn't help the small smile that always found his face at the glitter and glam that was his lover. Magnus's eyes found his and Alec's smile disappeared at the wink he gave him. What was the warlock up to now?
"Warlock, we are in the middle of a family crisis here," Maryse spoke through her teeth. Her voice was steely with anger. Magnus didn't even flinch. Instead, he smiled. Isabelle glanced at her brother as if to say, 'You're dating the guy who thinks he can stand up to our mother? I'm starting to think you're as psychotic as Jace.'
"Oh, I know. Remember I was the one pretending to be your son? Yes, I think I did a spectacular job indeed," He threw his last words at Alec, "At any rate, I also might have some ideas as to where your child may be hiding."
"You… You know where Jace is?" Maryse stuttered in disbelief. Isabelle flinched, she hadn't seen her mother this upset since Max. New anger towards Jace reverberated through her bones.
"Now, now, I never said that," Magnus's eyes seemed to glow at this point.
"No games, Warlock, if you ever expect to see my son again you better tell me where his brother is."
"Mom!" Alec's voice was appalled. He stood up from the bench hurriedly and stalked over to where his boyfriend stood.
"Alexander, Move away from that demon at this instant," Maryse's voice came out in a low growl that reminded Alec that she could and would remove him with force. Yet he couldn't find the strength to move. He stood pointedly beside Magnus and challenged his mother in a way he never had and never thought he would. Silently.
"Alexander Lightwood, You will stay right here," Maryse spat at her son. Pointing a steady hand towards where Isabelle was looking on with disbelief and some pride. Magnus moved behind Alec to leave the room.
"Where are you going, Warlock?"
"I am not your child, I am not under your orders and I really don't like you so I am leaving," Magnus shrugged as if it made no difference that this woman probably held thirteen different knives in various places on her body. He just seemed exasperated.
"I'll grab my coat," Alec spoke still looking at his mother. He felt many things. Nauseated, sick, guilty yet also powerful. He turned to follow Magnus out of the room before Isabelle's voice rang out behind him. He turned around in surprise and embarrassment at her obvious suggestion.
"Has anyone tried calling him?"
Jace was still chuckling when he walked into the guest room turned his room. It was tastefully painted a dark grey that suited him fine. The modest amount of possessions he owned was placed in appropriate places around the room. Everything was neat and orderly spare his cell phone and jacket which were thrown on the bed. As if by magic the familiar chiming began to emit from his phone. Jace flipped it open as he brought it to his ear.
"Hello?" He drawled.
"Jonathan Christopher Ligh-" Isabelle's angry voice began.
Jace flipped the phone shut and was about to toss it back onto the bed when it began it's chiming again. This time even the ringing sounded angry. Jace repeated his motions warily.
"Hello?" He asked again, his voice holding a bit more anger.
"Jace, you better not-"
Jace slammed the device shut again but kept it in his hand waiting. The chimes started again. Taking a deep breath Jace answered his cellphone.
"Isabelle, It's not like you to become redundant," He began. He lengthened the words in the way he knew Isabelle hated. It made him sound indifferent and lazy. He could practically see her knuckles turning white on the phone.
"It's not Isabelle," Alec's steely tone answered him. Jace wasn't all too surprised, though he had expected something a bit more original from his adoptive sister then just passing the phone to her brother. Alec's voice sounded angry and defensive so Jace knew the conversation wouldn't be good. He could not explain why he didn't hang up the phone then. Maybe it was because he knew it was all in lost efforts.
"Why hello there Alexander!" Jace worked to make his voice cheery.
"Jace."
"Mm?" Jace knew he was being evil. It was just too easy to remember everything that annoyed his siblings and use it to his advantage. He may not be part demon but that didn't mean he had to be good.
"Mom wants to talk to you," Alec said.
Jace waited patiently by the phone while maneuvering his free hand to pull off the used T-shirt he wore. It was quite difficult he had to admit. His hand kept repeatedly getting caught on the thin fabric and he had to start over. He found himself getting frustrated even before he had talked to the one person he had run away from. He grunted away from the phone until he was interrupted by an angry voice.
"Jace Lightwood! You are in so much trouble, young man," Maryse Lightwood's voice contained the amounts of acid only a Nephilim could produce. Jace knew he was on a suicide mission for interrupting but he couldn't help but ask his adoptive mother to hold on and placing the phone on speaker, he put it on his bed. He was now free to do as he pleased with his shirt.
"You have the nerve to ask me to 'hold on a second?" Maryse barked on the other line. Jace rolled his amber eyes at the phone. She briefly heard his adoptive mother asking her children why he wasn't responding. Then chuckled when Alec suggested he had followed through on his threat to throw the phone out the window. Overreacting much, Jace thought. This was not the first time he hadn't come back at night after going off to demon hunt. If anything it was less dangerous on the streets now that Valentine was taken care of. She was getting angry over nothing. He was Jace Herondale and he could do whatever he damn well pleased. On a whim's move, he spoke his last thought into the phone in a more intricate way.
"My darling Maryse," He was already hitting low with the way he was going, "Though I understand you may be worried about everything, you have no reason to be. I have made my decision and I am perfectly suited to do whatever I damn well want to. Say hi to the kids for me."
"JONATHAN CHRIS-" She was interrupted but not by Jace this time.
Clary stepped from the shower reluctantly, already craving the warmth it had brought. The marble stung her feet as they landed; she took the pain in stride, gripping a towel. Her long red hair had turned to dark locks that fell in wet clumps over her small face. As she looked in the mirror at her face she heard ringing coming from the other room. She paused trying to think what it could be. It wasn't the house phone of her phone. Her parents rooms were downstairs so… Jace. She hurriedly ran to her room throwing on the first things she saw on the floor. Jean shorts and a T-Shirt with her hair in a pony was how she ended up.
Clary slowly opened her door but had to pause when she lost the sound. In the silence she heard steady chatter coming from the guest room. No, Jace's room. She cautiously stepped out into the hallway, feeling the hardwood floors against her feet. Water dripped down her back staining her black shirt darker. As she stepped towards the door her heartbeat sped up. It was only when she had her hand extended to open the door did she straighten up in silliness. This was her house. How did Jace always make her feel that she had to sneak around?
To prove a point to herself she flung the door open and walked in while saying in a nonchalant voice that didn't match her mood at all.
"Are you talking to yourself again Jace?"
She was proud to see Jace whirl around his eyes open in shock and panic. Clary couldn't help but notice that he was shirtless. His tanned skin marked to perfection. She saw the scarred line where Valentine had stabbed him. She saw it as if it had fluorescent street signs pointing at is and screaming, 'LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!' She raised her hand to her mouth just as a bitter voice escaped the phone.
"Is that Clarissa?" A harsh female voice demanded.
"Nope!" Jace called though it was obvious it was. He threw down his hand to stop the call just as Clary turned to stalk back into the hallway. She didn't know what she was thinking; she was just angry. It seemed that anger was as familiar an emotion as fear nowadays. Not now… everything's fine now, a voice spoke into Clary's head. It was then that evoked the terror.
It only took Jace a moment to catch up to her, only a moment to turn her to face him. She stared at him. She had no more inhibitions; she was allowed now to savor his every feature. To enjoy the way he looked at her. She was allowed to like that his eyes lit up whenever she walked into the room. The way he always seemed to be itching to hold her in his arms. Then why didn't he? She couldn't help but thinking. She spoke only to break the silence.
"Jace, What happened?"
He looked at her for a moment, and then turned his eyes blank like he had just put his wall back up. She sighed but continued to wait for his answer. As if under pressure, one of his hands came up and ran through his silky blonde hair. Clary watched in mild interest as this happened. It wasn't until he spoke that she tuned back into the outside world.
"I ran away," He said.
"What do you mean you ran away?" She whispered, her eyes wide.
"Usually described with a long stick and a red spotted hanky…"
Clary said his name in warning.
"They were coddling me," He complained, throwing his hands up in the air and giving her a glare. She crossed her arms across her chest and matched his look with one of her own. I should have known that he was doing something idiotic. It was purely Jace.
"Then tell them to stop!" She exclaimed in frustration.
Jace made a low comment under his breath that caused an eye roll from Clary. From their positions on beside the stairs it would look like they were just chatting but just by walking into the room you could sense the tension and bitterness that was between them. Jace was looking at Clary blankly though his expression was too empty. Anybody who saw it could tell it caused him effort to keep it up. Clary must have realized this for she felt the need to say exactly what she was thinking out loud.
"You're not brave enough to stand up to your own mother? Demons yes but mothers? Hell no!" She snapped.
"You know what?" Jace had that evil glint in his eyes, Clary sucked in a breath. "I think I'll just put my location on my voicemail."
Clary relaxed, letting her slim arms fall to her side. A smile took the place of the angry expression, relief clearly visible in her eyes. She followed Jace back into his room where he punched in buttons on his phone. Clary let herself sink onto his bed, and watch his fluid movements. Every few buttons he would glance at her smirk then look back down at his phone. After about the fifth time she looked away, just the time that Jace pulled his speaker to his mouth. The next words caused Clary to scramble up off the bed and onto her feet.
"You've reached… one moment Clary… Jace's phone. I'm currently not available… mmm… I know Clary darling," He made a few noises into the phone before continuing, "At the moment so leave a message - Clary put your shirt back on."
The whole time he recorded the message he was staring at her, grinning devilishly at her furious expression. He snapped his phone shut at the end and they just looked at each other. It reminded Clary of one of those country movies she had once watched with Simon. She highly doubted Jace was about to pull out a gun and tell her that he'd slept with her wife but you never knew with Jace. It was an odd mix, their expressions. Jace's read amusement, expectance and evilness while Clary just looked angry and embarrassed.
Looking at them was like looking at a yin and yang.
"Jonathan Christopher Lightwood,"
"Yes, Clary darling?"
"You better start running,"
"Alright."
And they were off.
A peculiar sight the pair were, Magnus and Alec that is. Alec was bent over his coffee silently, bags under his blue eyes and his hair messy and uneven. Magnus was dressed in a contraption of glitter and sparkles. He rested his head against the seat and just observed his boyfriend.
"Could you track him?" Alec brightened a little at the new idea. A small bit of hope leaked into his pupils, just the tiniest bit though Magnus knew it would crush him with the force of a hundred speeding trains if the world wished it.
"I suppose," Magnus murmured, not really paying attention.
Alec glanced up at this, looking at his lover for the first time since they'd entered Taki's. He looked confused, thin eyebrows furrowed against the bags under his eyes. Though Magnus might try to hide his hesitation, Alec had been the only one in 300 years - literally - to be able to see what he truly felt. Shifting his weight to put his chin in his hand, Magnus looked into the Shadowhunter's eyes. That's where they stayed for a good piece of time, dueling silently until Alec looked away. Disappointed, Magnus drew his hand back and glared at him. Alec wasn't paying attention though; his eyes were on something outside of the window.
"Did you just see that?" Alec stuttered, pointing a shaking hand out the window.
"Hallucinating again, biscuit?" Magnus said.
Alec was now acting quite peculiar, having turned to sit on his knees, he had his nose practically pressed up against the glass. Sighing, the warlock whirled his fingers in the air pleasantly until he was looking back into the familiar eyes. Alec, unbeknownst to the decrease in time had just looked up from their battle. Magnus turned wearily to look out the window.
One thing you must understand about being an eight hundred year old warlock is it takes a lot to make you laugh. What was happening outside at that moment practically had Magnus' eyes watering in laughter.
Jace had just run into view, holding something plainly metallic in the air and glancing behind him furtively. His hair was mussed and his shirt didn't match his pants but he looked like he had a reason. The reason came in the form of a fiery red head that had just appeared looking lethal and cursing at Jace. Jace's expression of excitement vanished, and quick as a whip he was off again with Clary sprinting after him.
Turning back towards the now stunned Alec, Magnus put out a hand towards the Shadowhunter. Alec, still staring at out the window in shock, leaned forward and took it in his. Though his eyes were still cast upon Jace, his heart belonged to Magnus.
"Jace Lightwood, where are you?" Clary rasped.
She stood in a dank and wet alleyway between the side of Taki's and an old souvenir shop. Water continuously dripped in time with her heart, quickly yet surely. The run had felt superb. She didn't know she could run that fast. Yet Jace was still lost to her, having turned into this narrow beam and then cascaded out of sight. Sighing she turned to walk out of the alleyway.
"Clary," Jace murmured. Just in the way he said her name she felt the anger evaporate from her.
"Jace," She responded, her knees barely holding her slim body up. For a moment, gold met green, and that was all. A moment can't last forever though but this was close enough.
Their lips collided then, matching like puzzle to each other. Ferocious, Desperate and perfect they matched, everything in that one kiss. Clary's hands seemed to wound involuntarily into his golden hair, his arms wrapping tightly around her back. They were both attempting to pull each other closer. Jace, his arms cradled around the one person he cared for most in this world, felt right for the first time since that night in Idris. It was when they both pulled back for air that he whispered her name again, wanting to convey all his love in her name for all of his heart would be residing in her.
"I love you," She whispered, her voice hoarse with yearning. A kiss.
"I know," He chuckled. Another kiss.
A vibration. A groan. Clary didn't want him to answer it, didn't want him to be thinking of nothing else. She began to pull away reluctantly before yanked back by the collar of her T-shirt. Her eyes were wide just long enough to see something silver soar through the air behind Jace, and crash into the wall. Laughing she let herself lose herself in her angel again.
His lips then found the one place on her neck that made her gasp as a shudder coursed through her body. Chuckling still, Jace brought his lips to her ear.
"The phone deserved it," He muttered.
Laughing Clary pulled his lips back to hers.
"Of course he'd be with Clary," Isabelle said on the other end of Alec's phone. After he had witnessed the scene in front of Taki's, he had phoned his sister. Alec glanced out of the window again, mumbling a response before snapping the phone shut. Magnus was now laughing to himself once again as the scene continued in front of them.
Jace waltzed by completely at ease. This might have been normal if not for Clary who was slung over his shoulder in a fireman's hold and did not look all too happy about it. Alec groaned, putting his head in his hands.
Jace slid into the entryway, almost losing his balanced at the overly polished floors. Glancing down at the hardwood he studied his reflection. His hair was in disarray and he was shirtless, he noted this fact in surprise. The doorbell rang and he wondered where Clary's parents were for half a second before he, with a sigh, walked slowly towards the door. When he flipped the lock and opened the door he caught his breath.
"Hello Jace," She whispered.
The door was slammed shut.
"Clary! It's for you!" Jace hollered, hurrying up the stairs again and meeting Clary in the hallway, "And it's a bit of a situation."
Clary glanced back up at Jace in confusion as she landed with a thud in the entryway.
"I thought you reserved that word for urgent things," She reminded him, pulling the door open breezily. The door was soon shut once more and Clary had her back pressed against it.
"Isabelle plus anger plus whip equals a situation," Jace hissed.
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