Chapter 4: A disaster in the Waiting
I am so sorry for the long wait. I had a bit of bother at one point where i couldn't seem to keep going, but thankfully i managed to find the will to continue! Yayy! Hope you aren't too disappointed with this chapter, but please review and tell me what you think!
"Hurry up and get out here!" I stared at myself in the long mirror, blocking out Jonathan's yells from outside the door. Unfortunately for me, i had overestimated the length of the dress, which wasn't knee length as i had originally thought, but crawled halfway up my thigh! I groaned loudly; this could not be happening, especially not now with Jonathan waiting outside and Valentine sitting who-knows-where probably with a massive smirk on his face! Small red jewels were imbedded in the halter neck, something i hadn't noticed on first inspection.
"What's taking you so goddamn long?! If you don't come out then I'm coming in to get you, if you're dressed or not."
After searching frantically through the wardrobe for some kind of footwear for ten minutes, i had finally found a safe pair of kitten heels, coloured red like the dress with a reasonably low heel so as i wouldn't trip up over my own feet and embarrass myself. That would have been a given. The overall result wasn't too bad i guess, but the dress still gave me shivers.
I had had a well-needed quick shower before getting ready, trying to purge all of the blood from my hair and skin and keep calm in the process.
Although i was ready when it turned five o'clock, i couldn't seem to tear myself away from the mirror, transfixed by the sight, seeing something entirely different than what was normal. The red made my hair seem darker, my eyes a brighter emerald green, and my skin a shade paler. Despite my previous misgivings about the boys' fashion sense, i could tell that they knew what they were doing.
Outside, Jonathan hammered furiously on the door. "Are you ready yet?!" More assaults on the door. "That's it, I'm coming in and dragging you out there, 'cause I'm not getting in trouble for you!" I listened to him flinging his body weight against the door for a few minutes, cursing. An idea slowly formed in my head and i walked over to the door to carry it out. I had locked the door when i was getting changed, so i think its about time i unlocked it.
I waited until i heard him step back, getting ready to barge into the door again, and quickly flicked the lock, stepping aside as he fell through the door full force.
The look of complete shock on his face was priceless! He tumbled to the ground heavily, the first ungraceful movement i had seen him do yet. He let out a string of curses, some in different languages, as he plucked himself from the ground.
He glared at me, his eyes turning disbelieving as he caught sight of me. "So you were ready?!" He shouted accusingly. "Why the hell were you making me wait so long?!" I didn't give him the energy it took to even answer, instead walking past him without a second glance.
"Hey!" I ignored him. "Hey, i'm talking to you!" He grabbed at my arm and in a sudden fit of rage, my demon self took over, swallowing my eyes in a never-ending darkness. I caught his hand on my arm and twisted, pulling it off of my arm in the process. His eyes flashed coldly at me as i glared at him.
"Try anything like that again and i'll break your arm," i said flatly. After a moment of split silence, his face cracked into a massive grin, transforming his face from the scowling terror into... Well, it was Jonathan, what did i expect? If anything, it certainly wasn't that.
He laughed icily before clearing my confusion. "So you're the demon girl?" I grinned back at him menacingly.
"You betcha. Did you not hear your dad or were you too busy thinking about poor little you having to cope with a girl in the house because let's face it," i gestured around me, "this place is a shithole." His eyes narrowed at my blunt choice of words.
"How are you not always like this?" I was caught off guard by his question, not thinking that he would have noticed in the time he had seen me.
"Erm... It's just habit, i guess. I wasn't hidden away like you were, i still had to socialise so i had to figure out a way to control it. And i did. The only problem with it is that when i slip up, I'm a lot stronger than i normally am and i can't control my demon instincts." He scowled thoughtfully.
"What would happen if you were like this all the time?" He quizzed.
"I wouldn't be anywhere near as strong as i am otherwise, because the demon in me would be getting used up and wouldn't be allowed to build up. If i went on one of my rages, and you were in the firing line, i could kill you and you wouldn't be able to stop me, because i'd be stronger than you." Explaining all of this, i turned on my heel and stalked off, still angry with him for grabbing me. He jogged along to catch up, probably more out of curiosity than anything.
"So that's why you do it? To be stronger?" His voice grated on the last of my nerves and i spun around, my fist swinging at his chest.
"No it is not why i do it!" I punctuated each word with a punch at his chest, too annoyed to care that he wasn't reacting. I stopped to look at him directly. "Do you think i like being like this? Like not feeling, not even fitting in because of what i am! I do it because it doesn't make it so bad, and even though I know that no matter what measures i go to i will always end up right back at square one, its worth it for the little time that i do get. Yes, it does make me stronger but it doesn't exactly help when i can't aim it at anyone in particular. And even when i do block it out I'm still stronger than the others, which sucks! I can't train properly without hurting someone by accident, and do you know just how much bother i have got in because of it?!" I paused for breath, emotions overcoming my words. "I ended up killing around twenty, maybe even thirty Shadowhunters before i left home, and they were all there to arrest me for being a monster." I was breathing heavily by the end of my speech, and Jonathan looked shocked beyond words. I hated him, hated him for his ignorance, his petty hate, his stinking attitude, everything! I started walking again, storming off in the direction of the dining room and leaving him standing there.
"Would you be able to teach me?" The voice was so quiet that i normally wouldn't have heard it, and even though i did, i couldn't believe what i was hearing. Jonathan, control himself?! Ha, that was the most unnatural thing i had ever heard.
"No, stop asking such ridiculous questions and follow me. Your father will be wondering where we are by now." I kept my voice sharp as i mulled over what he had said. Could he have meant it? And if he did, why would he want to know? Was he like me, and didn't like this existence, separate from the rest of the world. Or, in the more likely case, did he think that it would make him stronger.
I kept my head up high as i strolled as casually as i could manage to in high heels to my chair, which sat opposite from Jonathan thankfully, and was on Valentine's right hand side. He walked in behind me silently, and took his seat on Valentine's left. The table was a rich brown, masculine in taste but still somehow stylish. China was set out precisely on its designated spot, and not a speck of dust could be seen for a mile! This was so different here from what i was used to at home, the loud raucous laughing still echoing in my ears at the memory. And the food! A wide array of colours adorned the plates, beckoning you towards them. We sat there in an uncomfortable quiet, and Valentine, who was already seated, looked at us both curiously. He was dressed in yet another suit (gawd, how many suits did this man OWN?!), and his face was kept forcibly straight at our hostile expressions.
"So you have finally decided to show your faces..." A calculating look spread over his face, "what took you so long?" My face heated up violently at the insinuations behind the question, and i cursed myself silently for the lack of control i seemed to be showing lately. Across the table, Jonathan kept as cool as ever, a slight frown puckering his brow. Of course, i wouldn't expect anything less, even after only knowing him for a short amount of time, i had a feeling he was always annoyed about something or other.
"Well, father, she wouldn't come out her room, so i had to go in and get her." He rolled his eyes for dramatic effect, and it got the reaction he wanted, although not quite how he imagined it turning out.
"You went in her room?!" A brief startled look flitted across Valentine's face at his son's actions. "While she could have been getting changed?!" Jonathan's frown deepened at his father's words, being not what he had expected.
"She was going to make us late, it wasn't my fault that she was taking ages!" His words of protest fell upon deaf ears as Valentine turned towards me.
"I am truly sorry for my son's behaviour, i thought i had taught him better." His face had been wiped clean of all emotion again, but his voice held a slight tint of irritation to it. Seems like Jonathan might be getting it tonight! Might as well help it on a bit, right?
"Why i should hope so! His manners were astounding, he almost kicked down my door!" I let my acting skills take over, my face falling into an easy pout and one hand pulling my long curled hair over my shoulder. I watched in satisfaction at the result; Valentine turned towards Jonathan with a scowl, anger clear in the black depths of his eyes, and Jonathan threw a furious look in my direction. I couldn't help but give him a sly wink when Valentine wasn't looking; this was payback for the dress.
Just as the master's rant began to start, a loud ring vibrated through the house, signalling the arrival of a guest. He scraped back his chair with an audible sigh, cursing as he left the room. Bugger, i was in trouble now.
I kept a wary eye on Jonathan as i stood up and walked towards the fireplace with the plan of turning it on. I went to kneel down and out of the corner of my eye i saw a flash of silver whizzing towards me. Acting out of instinct, my body twisted out of the way, leaving the fork indented into the carved wood where my head once was.
"You tried to kill me... With a FORK?!" A small laugh escaped me, bubbling up uncontrollably. A low growl rumbled from deep in Jonathan's chest, warning me.
"Not kill, just... Incapacitate." He said it almost innocently, if such a word could be used to describe him, and for a moment i was struck senseless at how different he seemed when he was actually trying to seem normal. An evil glint sparked in his eye and i ducked just on time to see the table knife wobbling precariously in the new hole in the fireplace. Distracted as i was, i didn't notice something flying towards me, eventually stopping when it splatted onto my nose. Mashed potato dripped down my face, leaving trails in its wake and falling into my hair. I stood there for a minute, shocked speechless, until i got a hold of myself and put on my best glare.
"You did not just fling mashed potato at my face!" I growled at him and stalked towards him, with every intention of ripping off his head. He grinned widely, the obnoxious brat, and stepped backwards as i advanced, walking lightly on his feet. My high heels clicked furiously against the wooden flooring, and still the dress stuck to me. Just another thing to add to my list of nightmares.
Jonathan backed up against a wall, cornering himself stupidly and changing from defensive to the offence in rapid succession. I turned around and grabbed a fork off the table, spinning and slamming it into the wall beside his head. He didn't flinch, remaining entirely stoic the whole time. This was so frustrating! I flung one of the knives at his head, making sure that he had to dodge it to escape, and held in my hand what would be his fate. Baked beans.
I swung my hand out towards him, feinting the throw as he predictably ducked and then straightened up; at the last minute when he stood back up, i stepped forward and rammed the beans into his face, mashing it into his eyebrows and cheeks. The result was hilarious; the sauce hung on his cheeks like a blush while the beans themselves were threaded into his blonde eyebrows and lashes; one was currently sliding down his nose. I smirked triumphantly at him, his face just as shocked as mine was when he did the same to me. His mouth opened as if to say something, and then closed when he seemed to think better of it. This happened several times until he clamped his mouth shut at my words.
"You look like a guppy, make sure you don't catch flies in that mouth of yours, or in your case, beans." His eyes narrowed dangerously, darkening to a shade of midnight that no one could ever hope to capture in a painting, and i grinned, turning back towards my seat. The room still remained almost spotless, if it weren't for the cutlery imbedded in the walls at seemingly random intervals.
A pair of hands wrapped themselves around my midriff, and i twisted away out of their grip, flinging a fist towards them as i spun. It connected with something hard and unwielding; Jonathan's hand curved around mine, trapping it. I swung my free left hand towards him, and he caught it. My mind blew into overdrive, panicking slightly at the thought of being beaten. In a last resort, my foot flew out, catching him squarely between the legs. The effect was instant. He dropped to the ground, still holding onto my hands somehow, nails biting into the back of them. Caught by surprise at being dragged down with him, i fell forward, landing on top of him. I could hear Jonathan muttering curses under his breath quickly, not stopping for air.
A slow, loud clapping rang through the room, and i scrambled to my feet to see Valentine standing at the door, arms crossed over his chest. I was painfully conscious of the state i was in, hair flying, dress slightly rumpled with the neckline falling too low for comfort. I realised vaguely just how bad it looked, with Jonathan lying on the floor at my feet. Shit.
"This isn't how it looks-" Valentine held up a long, pale hand for silence and i shut my mouth, probably the only clever thing i had done since i got here.
"Get up, Jonathan." His voice echoed coldly to where we stood, and Jonathan got slowly to his feet, being careful not to move too suddenly as to set off the pain again. A quiet shame spread over me at the sight of him like that; i regretted kicking him, even though he had deserved it. Now what did that say about me, I wondered. I was part demon, but i could still somehow feel remorse for my actions.
I was brought out of my reverie as a tall, dark-haired man walked through the door to stand beside Valentine. I looked back and forth between them, wondering why he had been let in. He wouldn't have survived this long if he had snuck in. Jonathan was doing the same, sizing the stranger up as he contemplated the pros and cons of attacking him. Just then, Valentine spoke, gesturing towards us.
"This is my son, Jonathan. I'm sure you have heard of him." Jonathan glared at him, making the stranger twitch nervously.
"But the boy, Jace they call him, what-"
"He is not my son. I may have raised him and led him to believe this but he is not of my flesh and blood." I watched Jonathan's expression as Valentine was talking grow cold at the mention of someone else, someone pretending to be him. Before he could object however, Valentine moved on.
"And this is a new addition to our family, Trixy Abendstern." I started at the use of the word family, not expecting to be called one of them; another thing i was surprised at was that i didn't remember ever mentioning my name to them, so how?...
I watched with distaste as the stranger's eyes looked me up and down, paying special attention to my legs and breast area. Men.
"That would be my new 'sister' that you're checking out, so i'd appreciate it if you removed your eyes from her person, before i remove them for you." Seems like i wasn't the only one that had noticed, but i was surprised at the strained undertone in Jonathan's voice and his reaction. I chanced a glance at his face, trying to read him. He gave nothing away, his face blank and devoid of emotion.
The stranger drew his eyes away hastily, looking back towards Valentine with a fake smile. All the while, Valentine had been watching everyone, with that same calculating look that i hated. He smiled tightly at us all, his eyes lingering slightly on me.
"This is Malachi. He is the Clave's Consul."