Chapter Two
Calling Clary to make a portal would've been the easier option, but Isabelle needed the plane ride to think. Plus neither she nor her son had ever flown before. So with a simple glamour to obscure her Marks they left the Chicago Institute after a brief round of goodbyes to the other Shadowhunters. Gabriel had not been averse to moving to New York. He was always a loner in Chicago, it broke Izzy's heart. He had been silent on the taxi ride to the airport and not until they were sitting on the plane did he say anything.
"As long as my room is not near Roshan's I will be okay."
Isabelle let out a sigh. Maybe if she and Jace's kids had grown up together they would get along.
When their plane began to circle for a landing at LaGuardia Izzy's fingers began to twitch and her foot set a rapid pace. She had thought about it all night and the entire flight. Who was she going to call when she got there?
As Isabelle glimpsed the large rectangle or green in the middle of Manhattan she knew her answer.
While the aircraft taxied she called Simon.
"Izzy?" Simon said with pure astonishment.
"Hi." Hi. Hi? After thirteen years all she could say was hi? Chicago really had taken her spunk away. Or maybe it was something else and it was just easy to blame it on Chicago.
"Umm… how are you?" Isabelle was glad to note his awkwardness hadn't faded.
"Never mind that, we can play catch up later. We're at LaGuardia. Come and get us?"
"We? Who is we?"
"My son Gabriel and I." Isabelle answered with conviction.
"Alright, I can be there in ten."
"Um unless Magnus has transported all traffic in The City to Uzbekistan, then it will take you much longer to get here."
"Vampire. Super-speed and all. It's awfully convenient sometimes."
"Oh yeah, sorry." Isabelle mentally chided herself, you are thirty-one years old Isabelle, stop acting like a child.
"I'll see you then, I'll be outside the baggage claim." And he hung up.
A rush of memories flooded her mind. Isabelle had been struggling to deal with the death of her brother. How it was her fault for not having listened to him, how she should have been there to protect him. She still fought with it so many years later. What kind of Shadowhunter would he be today? Simon had been her rock through the couple years after. He had helped her and comforted her. He had saved her from herself. After Simon found her on the bathroom floor crying and holding a wooden soldier so tight it had splintered into her hand, he held her all night long on that bathroom floor. He had cleaned up the blood and taken the toy with him. The next night she found it sitting on her pillow in pristine condition, the same toy soldier her son held in his hand now.
"Who was that mom?" Gabe asked for the third time.
"Just-oh, um- an old friend that will be picking us up from the airport." Isabelle spluttered.
Gabe was slightly unnerved by his mother's flustered attitude. She had always been so strong, she had not even cried when his father has been killed.
Gabe clung to his mother's hand as the exited the plane and made their way to the baggage claim. He nearly ran into her when she abruptly stopped.
Simon had not aged a day. Of course she knew he wouldn't have, but it was strange to see him completely unchanged, hell she had even seen that t-shirt before. His hair was still that dark curly brown that matched the shade of his eyes that visibly darkened when they found Isabelle's.
Isabelle looked older. She had grown into her height. Her chest was notably larger, Simon could tell even through her black trench coat. Simon's eyes could see the lattice of scars across her hands, along with a faded strength rune on the inside of her left knee that became visible when a gust of wind blew in from the revolving doors.
Simon next noticed the little boy standing behind her legs. He looked like Max, but Simon knew better. He thought of how hard it must be to look at him every day when the resemblance to her dead brother was so accurate.
When Isabelle moved forward again it was at a fast pace and with purpose. When she reached Simon she whispered quickly so that Gabe wouldn't hear her, he was too busy looking at the advertisements for ComicCon anyway.
"Walk us to the institute, and then meet me at Taki's at nine."
"Alright." Simon answered still in a daze.
As Isabelle turned to grab her and her son's bags he caught the vanilla sent of her perfume. At least something had stayed the same.