Clary POV
"Clary… Clary!" A muffled shout rings through my brain but is quickly silenced by the searing pain burning my body. I feel like I am on fire. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I am starting to panic, I can't feel anything other than the pain.
"Clary calm down, it's Izzy. I need you to breath, in and out. There is something happening and we have no clue what it is. Magnus is going to help you open your eyes now, don't panic. He is trying to talk away the majority of the pain."
My eyelids slowly peel open and the light blinds me for a second. The white light dims and I can make out two faces. Izzy and Magnus. Alec, Jace and Jon are nowhere to be seen. The pain in my body dulls. I feel a warm trickle down the sides of my neck and then down my face, my vision goes red. I inhale quickly, which was a mistake as when I do I inhale the blood and it sticks to my throat like it is tar. I cough and cough and cough, splattering the white sheets with spots of crimson. Izzy sobs and stifles a scream. I can't stop coughing, my throat is being plastered with a thick tar-like substance which is increasing in thickness. It becomes so thick I am not able to breathe, I start to choke and gasp for air.
"Clary! Hold on!" Izzy screams at my state. She leans me forward and leans me over and rubs my back in the attempt to loosen the blockage in my throat. It works and I can feel it moving up my throat. Wait it is moving. Something living is in my throat. I cough and splutter and the liquid that is coming out of my mouth as I am coughing is turning darker and darker before it is black.
"What is going on! Magnus!" Izzy screams patting my back and throwing a worried look at Magnus, who is panting, his magic is drained. He can't do anything now. As the thing moves slowly up my throat, a film of red on my eyes starts to get lighter and the pain begins to fade. Jace, Jon and Alec rush into the room both wild-eyed when their gaze lands on me coughing up a black fluid which is getting thicker and thicker. "What are you doing we need to get what's blocking her throat out! Pat her back she can't breathe! She's turning blue!" Izzy is crying, tears pouring down her face. Jace and Alec do what Izzy is doing. Jonathan stands stunned in the doorway, his face as white as a sheet. No oxygen is getting into my body and I start to feel very faint. I gag as the thing moves up my throat. I am so close, I can hear Izzy sobbing as I choke once more as a vast amount of thick black sludge comes out of my mouth followed by a huge black looking slug. A demon. A demon has been in my throat causing this sudden illness and pain. I collapse back onto the bed, breathing heavily, taking in as much oxygen as I can whilst Izzy gasps at the demon that has come out of my throat. The red from my eyes disappears and the pain is reduced to a dull throb, the sides of my head and neck are drenched in blood. My chin is covered in the black slime mixed with blood from my nose.
Magnus speaks some foreign demonic language to the slug, it sounds harsh and like trash. The demo speaks back in a fiery tone. I go limp and concentrate on my breathing. The conversation continues until it is ended suddenly with a high pitched screech.
"What was it saying?" Izzy breathes heavily.
"It was saying she is the key to unlocking the secret. All she need to do is seek of the answers and she will find them. And that we will all bow down…"
"To what?" Jace urges.
"Well, you killed it before it could tell me. The real question is how did the demon get into Clary here" Magnus stutters from breathlessness.
"I need to clean Clary, she has demon ichor all over her" Izzy says.
"I'll carry her, Alec stay here with Magnus so he can gain some strength from you" Jace's voice rings through my ears. I feel two strong arms pick me up bridal style. I feel myself being carried out of the room, I am struggling to keep myself conscious.
I suddenly feel water flow over my hair and hands gently washing the blood and ichor away. The layer of grime from the painful few hours are being washed away like nothing happened. I lean back onto the chest behind me, unable to keep myself upright. My eyes wander upwards to find a mop of dripping golden hair and long dark tangles beside it. Izzy and Jace. Izzy is rummaging through my shampoos, conditioners and body wash before she disappears. Jace skims my cheekbone with his fingers, gently rubbing away any ichor or blood.
"You really scared me. I was terrified that is was going to lose you. You mean the world to me already and it has only been a short time I have known you, but I think I love you, Clary Morgenstern."
"You..you love me?" I splutter through the water.
"Well, you are my girlfriend" he chuckles lightly.
"Girlfriend?" The water drips from Jace's chin and onto my forehead.
"Yes and I'm your boyfriend" He takes one of my hands in his and with the other gently wipes away the dirt. He kisses my forehead lightly and Izzy waltzes in with an array of coloured bottles. She hands one to Jace and tells him to rub it in my hair while she washes my arms.
When I am as clean as I was before, Jace leaves to get me some clothes while Izzy helps me get dry and when Jace delivers the clothes he waits outside. Izzy helps me get changed into dry clothes before calling Jace in to carry me to bed.
"I am going to see how Alec is" Izzy leaves the room and shuts the door quietly behind her. I pull the covers up to my chin.
"I am going to get changed and I will come back" Jace walks to the door, opens it and leaves me alone. I stare at the ceiling listening to my heart beat. Why did Jon not touch me? Why wouldn't he help? I wonder if he will still be here tomorrow. The lights in my room are off and the pale moon beams seep through the cracks in my curtains. They cast a silver glow in my room, illuminating the shadows of furniture. My door opens slowly and a golden stream of light fall into my room. A dark silhouette slides in and silently shuts the door behind them. The figure creeps over to the bed and I can tell by the silent movements it is Jace. He pulls back the cover and quickly gets in. I can immediately feel his warmth as soon as he gets in. He is only wearing his pyjama bottoms. I snuggle closer to his warm chest. He pulls me closer to him and let myself relax into the shapes and curves of his body. I let myself be lulled to sleep by the sound of him breathing.
When I wake up, my body is racked with aches. My muscles are stiff like they have been dumped with cement during the night, my head is pounding like someone is trying to bury an icepick in my skull. I roll over but a sleeping Jace blocks my way. Shadows dance across the bones in his face making them look sharper and more defined. He opens one eye slowly, the golden disc gazes back at me before shutting. He rolls over, eyes still closed and grabs something from the bedside table. He rolls back over and takes my arm and turns it over, so the underside is facing upwards. In his hand is a stele, which he uses to draw an iratze before putting the stele nuder the pillow. Keeping his eyes shut the whole time.
"How did you know?" I whisper.
"I have been doing one every few hours, you grow restless if I don't" He mumbles sleepily.
I snuggle closer to his warm body and he wraps two arms around me and nudges his head in-between my shoulder and neck.
"You're growing soft mister Herondale" I whisper into his hair. He chuckles lightly sending ripples of movement through his body.
"I am not and you know it" His voice goes deadly serious for a moment, straight after I hear him smile. "It's your fault".
"How is it my fault?" I laugh quietly and the sound makes my head thud a little harder so I stop abruptly.
"Because you are so intoxicating" Jace is staring up at the ceiling, every so often his eyes flick to me and then back to the ceiling. I smile and sit up. A bit too fast because my head suddenly goes light and my vision blackens. I get pushed down onto my bed by a strong hand.
"You seriously are stupid Clary Morgenstern," Jace says sternly. I frown and sit back up again swatting away his attempts to push me down. My skin crawls and I feel as if something is not quite right, my eyes shoot to the door as a scream is let out. Izzy.
I take off running down the corridor, Jace quick on my tail. I ignore the banging in my head and the pain all over my body. I run to the origin of the scream. I run into the library to find Izzy and Jonathan backed into a corner.
"What's wrong?!" I pant, strands of my hair is sticking to my clammy forehead. I suddenly don't feel well. I can feel the fever bubbling up inside me like water in a kettle. I shake off the cold sweats and look across the room to the two in the corner. Jace looks as bewildered as I am. Izzy points to the floor in front of the fireplace. I edge closer, my head spinning from the movement that is taking place. I peer over the sofa to look at the wooden floor. In a circle of blood is a head, a head of what seems a faerie.
"Well, how did this get here?" Jace goes over to examine the head further.
"How should I know Jace, I came in here to show Jonathan the library and saw the poor fellow just staring at me." Izzy puts her hands on her hips and scowls at Jace as if his question is completely irrelevant. They are arguing now, their voices become muffled and I can hear my heart beat in my ears, taking over any other noise that is surrounding me. No one seems to notice as all three of them are arguing. I grab the edge of the sofa to stabilise myself and gently lower myself to the ground. My heart is racing and racing as if it is a matter of life or death. My eyes go blurry and everything around me softens and becomes lighter and brighter. Like I am in a dream. The colours around me are more intense and overwhelming. I can feel the beads of sweat drip down my face. I rub my clammy hands on my t-shirt and focus on the grains of the wood on the floor. In an attempts to stabilise my vision and other senses. My attempts don't work. I see a cloudy figure squat right in my face, they snap their fingers in front of my face angrily. Jace. He is always like this after an argument, despondent and irritated. I hear a muffled 'humph' come from him as he picks me up and leans me against his chest. I grab his t-shirt in my fist and curl it around my fist, trying to ground myself to reality instead of the hallucinations I am currently in. I hear giggles of children playing, adults arguing, the clashes and scraps of metal against metal, the slams of a knife into wood. All the sounds of a working, thriving Institute. But is it really? Behind all the expected, is there any unexpected? Any corruption or deceit? Is it as really pure as the stories say? I slip into a hallucination as everything goes black.
Sorry about the late update and for how short it is, I have just been really busy. I hope you enjoyed this chapter please review it or message me as I would love to know your opinions on it so far. Thank you :)