Emma Cordelia Carstairs stared at her reflection in the floor length mirror, trying to get the angle of her hat just right. It was a dark blue thing; Julian would have called it Navy or Cobalt or Twilight or something else pretty, but to her, dark blue was sufficient in it's diversity. Emma missed Julian. A statement of fact that she couldn't ignore or deny. He had only been gone two days. Another statement of fact that she could neither ignore or deny. Yet why did she feel so hollow and empty, like one of those skeletons she regularly came across in the desert ? Why did she feel like every cell and every ounce of marrow had been sucked out of her with a curly straw? Yes, Julian was her parabati and yes, they had a deep emotional connection that couldn't be severed, but she had never, ever, not even when her parents died, had Emma felt so alone. Giving up with the hat, Emma tossed it and herself on to her bed, looking up at the ceiling. Then a knock came from the door. Although the Blackthorns we're gone- except from Arthur, but he doesn't count - Emma still had somebody to spend time with, and even she surprised herself by how quickly they had become friends with the Mexican angel.
Cristina Mendoza Rosales was a year older than Emma and was experiencing one of the priviliges that come from that age : The Travel Year. At the age of 18, when a Shadowhunter is recognized as an adult and no longer a child, they usually take a year off and travel to another Institute, to see how they operate and other such things. Cristina had come all the way from Mexico to Los Angeles, but Emma wasn't definite on all the details. She knew Cristina had had a boyfriend, known as Perfect Diego, and that he had had a brother, Jamie, who Cristina had wanted as a parabati. She knew that Cristina was addicted to coffee and that she believed in the Angel Raziel and had a thing for floral prints and cardigans, but that was pretty much it. Oh, and, she was great at doing hair. But despite all of this, Emma and Cristina had become inseperable, and Emma was pretty sure she would end up kidnapping Cristina at the end of her year because she couldn't live without her, and her hair skills.
" It's open," Emma called to the door. The squeak of hinges alerted her to Cristina's presense, otherwise she probably wouldn't have been able to hear her; she crept with such grace it reminded Emma of those cats that Ty liked to study in those weekend-long animal programmes. Cristina sat on the end of the bed, careful not to move one of Emma's legs since she was spread out on the bed like a starfish. Cristina picked up the hat, brushing imaginary lint from the brim, and said in a cool and casual tone, " You miss Julian." What also surprised Emma was the fact that although Cristina's natural language was Spanish, she was probably better at speaking English than she was, and the fact that she could read her like an open book, a lake reflecting all it's secrets to the surface. To be honest, it was a little creepy sometimes.
" Correct, Miss Rosales. Here, have a broken earring as a token of your achievement."
Emma picked up a random earring from her jewelry box, whilst still on the bed. Cristina only laughed at her. To someone else, they would have seen the remark as pretty and cruel and sarcastic, but Cristina saw through all of that, could see that Emma was hurting, and trying desperately to hide it. When had Emma ever stopped hurting ? When would she ever start healing ? The answer was plain and simple, but the act itself was not : Get revenge for her parents' murder. Emma examined the earring in the light from the window, watched as it refracted off of the cheap,clear plastic diamond. She handed it to Cristina. " Here, as a token of my undying affection and awe at your brilliance. And the fact that you can plait hair, let alone my hair, is an achievement that the whole world should recognize."
"It's shiny," Cristina replied .
"Indeed," Emma said, extricating herself from the pillows and scooting on to the end of the bed, her head against Cristina's shoulder.
"Julian wouldn't want this," Cristina said gently.
"Julian wouldn't want to sit and watch Titanic, but that doesn't mean that I don't watch it ", Emma replied curtly.
"It's not like he's gone forever," Cristina countered
"He hasn't gone to the Moon, but I still feel all empty and shallow inside. I miss him so much it hurts," Emma said, hand over her parabati rune. Cristina stood from the bed and picked up the hat from the nightstand.
"Come on Emma, let's have some fun. You know,it's a thing, that people do, or so I've heard. Strange isn't it ?"
"Completely alien," Emma replied with a laugh, standing as well, allowing Cristina to straighten the tangles of her hair and get the angle of the brim just right.
Emma examined herself in the mirror: Black and White striped T-shirt, black shorts and black boots. Both her and Cristina had applied make-up onto the runes covering their arms. She almost looked like a normal seventeen years old, apart from the fact that she still had scars that neither time or concealer could erase. Most she had inflicted herself, internally and externally. Shaking the cobwebs of negativity out of her head, Emma turned her head to Cristina and gave her a mischievous grin. "Shall we ?"
The sound of Emma and Cristina running down the stairs reverberated through the Institute, causing Diana Wrayburn to become curious. Common sense ignored, Diana left her office and came to the landing where Cristina and Emma stood, half way down the stairs. "Girls," Diana said in a serious tone, "What are you doing ?"
The two turned to each other, whispering like schoolgirls. It made Diana feel good, for reasons she couldn't identify, that Emma was doing okay. Diana knew how precious the Blackthorns were to her, especially Julian. She had already list so much so young, something Diana had no trouble in relating to. " We we're planning on just going shopping, having a girl day, is that okay? You could come, if you want to," Emma replied. For a moment, Diana was happy that she had been invited to join them, than a wave of guilt crashed into her. They didn't know her, not really. How could she say yes?
"Thanks, but I have some paperwork that needs doing, errands to run. Maybe another time? Remember, don't stay up too late, don't talk to strangers or take anything from them. Oh and girls, try to have fun ?"
Emma grinned at her. "We will," they chorused and pounded down the stairs and out the door.
Author's Note : Really sorry I haven't updated, I have had loads of test and revision and just ugh ! ( Huff of annoyance ) Anyway, what did you think of this? To be honest, I got the idea for her outfit from what Taylor wears in her video for 22, and it flowed into the story nicely. I will try to obviously post more over the holidays, so I can guarantee more to come ! In regards to Diana, I won't write about what her secret is, in case anyone hasn't read Lord of Shadows. Trust me, I hate it when people spoil books for me, but I don't mind spoiling them for myself. Anyway thank you so much for reading ! As always, if you have any questions suggestions or just want to talk about writing, please don't hesitate to let me know! Thank you so much, I will see you later ! Enjoy your evening !
With lots of love, Tempe