Alec was aware of the sensation of falling, and then he hit the ground. Hard. He was also aware he was on top of something.
"Ouch!" Jace was struggling under Alec. "You landed on me!"
"Sorry," Alec said. He quickly got to his feet and helped Jace up. Magnus appeared just behind them, and the portal closed.
"How is it," Jace said as he regained his balance. "That every time you go through a portal, your hair stays exactly the same?"
Magnus reached up and touched his hair and smiled proudly. "Hair gel," he answered. "Now, where are we? " He surveyed his surroundings. Nothing had changed, except that the group was now outside of a different apartment building instead of in Magnus's study. Magnus glanced at his watch-like device. He frowned. "Uh oh," he said.
Alec was beginning to get nervous. "What do you mean "uh oh"?"
Magnus bit his lip and glanced up at Alec. "Bad news. This is not 1917."
"You think?" Jace said and gestured at the cars rushing by. "I don't suppose you know what year we are in, do you?"
Magnus looked down at his shoes and muttered something unintelligible.
"What was that?" Jace was tapping his feet on the pavement.
"2017," Magnus said louder. Jace's eyes widened and he said nothing. Alec was now increasingly worried. "Well, do you know where we are?" He asked.
Magnus looked up at him, like he was really looking at him, for the first time. "I believe," Magnus said. "That we are outside my apartment." A grin lit up his face. "Who's up for paying me a visit?"
Jace thought about it for a minute. "I'm up for it. Alec?" He turned to Alec.
Alec nodded, and the group headed for the door. The buzzer still had the name BANE written beside it. Alec started to push it, but Jace held up his hand. Jace reached into his pocket and pulled out his stele, and drew an opening rune on the door. The door opened instantly, and the trio filed inside. Jace did the same to the door that led inside the apartment, and Magnus was the first one in, followed by Jace. Alec was left outside the door to guard. Why is it always me? Alec thought.
Jace walked into the apartment after Magnus. The living room was white with matching furniture, but the furniture had red swirls mixed in. It was very simple, considering Magnus's party-boy lifestyle. They both stood looking around when a girl walked into the room. She had pink headphones on her head and she didn't seem to notice the strangers immediately. She wore a faux fur vest with a white long-sleeved shirt under it, shorts, black leggings, and boots that matched the vest. She had blond hair that reached her shoulders. She was dancing along with the music coming from the headphones. She plopped down on the couch and glanced up at Magnus.
"Hey, Magnus," she said. "Have you finally come out of that room to acknowledge me?" she giggled. Then she did a double take. She looked Jace straight in the eyes, and he noticed her eyes were very green. She got up and stood face to face with him. The next thing he knew, she had him pinned to the ground and was sitting on top of him.
"Who are you?" she demanded. She glanced up at Magnus, who was in a state of shock. "Who is he?" She turned back to Jace.
Alec ran in the door. "I heard yelling. Is everything-"he cut off when he saw Jace pinned to the floor. A girl was on top of him, apparently interrogating him. "Hey, get off of him!" Alec said. The girl looked up and went pale. Her striking green eyes were sad.
"Alec?" she whispered. She was then overthrown by Jace and was thrown to the ground, this time Jace was on top of her. "Jace?" she asked him. Now she looked confused. Jace cocked his head and looked at her.
Magnus was still standing there, but he seemed to have recovered from his shock. "How do you know our names?" he demanded.
"Tia?" a voice drifted through the hall. "I heard yelling. Is everything alright?" A man followed the voice. He was immediately familiar to Alec. He was wearing jeans and a plain brown v-neck t-shirt. He caught sight of the scene before him. "Oh, dear," he whispered.
The girl, Tia, who was still under Jace, craned her neck to look at the man. She said, "Hi, Magnus."
I know, I know, cliff-hanger. Things will get better in the next chapter... sort of. You'll see in a day or two. In the meantime, favorite, review, follow! Constructive criticism is acceptable!
