Chapter Seven: The School Aquarium

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"What is it?" Clary replied to Will. She was peeking through the doors of the classroom, noticing that they too were flooded. She saw something a little strange though: the water in the room was half its height. It made Clary suspect if that's where the water was coming in from. But before she could say a word, she saw Tessa's dark figure get plucked up off her feet.

Next thing she knew, Clary also was lifted out of the water. Something was put over Clary's head and her mouth was restricted, her low cries muffled. Her hands were being bonded behind her head as she thrashed to get out of the person's grip. Her head banged into something hard and she suddenly felt sleepy. Clary slowly closed her emerald eyes against her will. She must have been dreaming already, because she could have sworn she heard someone calling her name.

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Jace, Jonathan and Will dragged their numb bodies down the hall. The water had risen almost to their hips. They made their way through the dark tunnel they knew as their school. Jace heard some swishing on his left.

He didn't see it coming when someone jumped on top of him, making him swallow a mouth full of liquid. They plunged under the dark river's water. Jace heard Jonathan call out his name while he found the person's grip and tried to rip it off his shirt. The hand was taken off abruptly and Jace exploded out from under, breathing in all the air he could manage. Jace could barely tell who was who, but he knew it was Jonathan that saved him.

Jonathan jabbed his fist into the guy's face, making him stagger back a few steps. The person stood still for a moment and suddenly dropped straight into the dark river. Jonathan backed away cautiously, willing his eyes to find the invader. Jace regained balance and saw something rising from Jonathan's left. He tried to get to him, being restricted from agility because of the flooding. Jonathan picked up on Jace's movements and caught the person's fist from his left. He yanked it all the way down, flipping the guy into the air and plunging into the water.

Will had also been attacked, someone choking him from behind. He pulled at the person's arm, but wasn't able to break through the metal grip. He whipped his head back, banging into the guy's nose. When the grip loosened a bit, he elbowed him in the ribs and kicked him across the face. Will heard the splash when the person fell into the water.

They waited for any sign of another person, but none came. The three students dragged the sore ambushers through the water. They themselves felt like collapsing as they finally made it to the stairwell, where the flood had already reached the fourth step. Jace and Will threw the two guys on the break section floor of the stairs. Jace yanked off their masks and was able to see their faces very slightly. One appeared to have black hair and green eyes. The other had black hair and blue eyes. And they both wore blue bandanas on their head. Jace recognized their dress code to be from Pisces High. "Hey, dumbass." Jace nudged the half-conscious guy on the forehead. "Were you the ones who flooded our school?"

The green eyed one scowled at them, blood dripping from his lower lip. "You just assumed it was us?" He smiled as blood mixed with water trickled down to his chin. "Why we certainly have not. We were just hopelessly stranded outside in the storm and tried to get to any shelter we could find-"

"Cut the crap, Pisces brat!" Jace seized the boy's shirt and hoisted him up. His grip tightened, nearly starting to choke him. "Where's your leader? Where're the girls we were with when you came?" He narrowed his eyes. "And where are the other students who are missing in this building?"

The other one laughed darkly. "You're not gonna get anything out of us, Mortada's Wayland." Jace frowned at him. If he knew his name, their clan must be pretty high in terms of ranking.

Will crouched down and turned his head, like an owl. "Is that so?" He said quietly. He thrust his hand to the boy's hair and pulled it up. Jace also did the same with the other boy and pulled him up the steps.

When they had reached the top step, the lighting had brightened a little. Jonathan stuck out his arm, restricting Jace and Will from getting by. Jace impatiently said, "Jonathan, what's the hold up?"

He bent down and placed his hand on the floor. "Look closely," He replied. He pointed in front, "there's a puddle of water here," His finger shifted to right, closer to the classrooms, "but there's no trace of it leading down this hall." It made sense to Jace, since Clary claimed to have seen someone standing by the puddle. A sudden coldness went through himself for some reason.

"So that means, they're either on another floor, or used one of the other flights of stairs." Jace concluded and smiled at their hostage. He squirmed around in annoyance.

"You guys are back!" Someone shouted from their classroom. It was Jem who had called out. The rest of class 1-A came rushing over to them in concern. "We were supposed to meet here half an hour ago!"

"Say, why are you guys soaking wet?" Simon tugged at Jace's white shirt. "And did you lose your jacket again? Didn't I tell you to-" His hand brushed over something smooth. He jumped backwards when he realized Jace was holding another guy by the cuff of his jacket. "Who the hell is that?!" The other students scooted closer and squinted to see the guy he was holding.

Will fixed his damp hair. "Um, well…"

Isabelle and the girls scooted to the front. "Hey, where's Clary and Tessa?" They asked nervously, scared as to what they might say. Jace caught his breath for a second. He didn't want to explain it, but he had no choice.

"The reason why we were late is because we ran into some trouble." Jace stated.

Magnus turned his hand in a beckoning motion. "Trouble…?"

Jace nodded. "When we got down to the ground floor, we found out it was flooded with rainwater." The girls looked around and chattered anxiously. "We were checking for anyone who was possibly still down there when we were attacked by Pisces students." The guys started yelling and complaining about them.

Alec folded his arms. "There were rumors about how the Pisces only ambush other clans on stormy days. I guess they decided to mess with us."

"We're not sure, but they're most likely the reason for the flooding and power outage." Jonathan went on. "But we do know that they captured Clary and Tessa."

The Infernelas' hearts raced. Isabelle put her hands to her head and scrunched up her hair. "Why?" She whispered to herself.

"Which is why we need your help." Jace said to the students. The girls and boys nodded their heads at each other, looking like a bloodthirsty team. "Same groups and same floors." He added as an afterthought, "Also, we're going to need to borrow a light source…"

After an exchange of resources, the school split up once again. Jace, Jonathan and Will headed back down the slippery stairs. They were shocked to step foot in liquid so quickly. Once they reached the floor, the water was up to their chests, making their breathing heavier. Will said, "We should head right this time." Jace was also reminded of the shivering feeling of the coldness as they made their way towards the west wing. They swam through the river and noticed that it was strangely silent. The storm must have subsided, so the flooding should be halted.

The boys followed the illuminated brightness coming from Simon's pocket flashlight he'd given to Jace. They were grateful for its wider span than their phones. As they got further into the hallway, they noticed a change in the surroundings. The water was warmer and darker than before. Jace thought he was imagining things when a scent smacked him, right in the face. Blood. He was certain of it, used to the smell as if it were his cologne. And by the startled looks on Jonathan and Will's faces, he knew they realized it too.

The Mortada's picked up their pace and swam forth. It wasn't long before the warmness eased. Jace circled around and swam to where the water felt the warmest. He stopped in front of the computer room. Will reached for the knob as Jace swatted his hand away. He ran his sneakers over the bottom of the door to find it completely concealed. The room must be nearly clear of any flooding. If they were to open the door now, the water could get to the wires and cause total execution. Jace muttered, "Well played, Pisces High, well played." He crackled his knuckles and smiled. "Nonetheless, I have a job to do."

He pulled his left fist back and jammed it hard into the wooden door. "Are you insane, Jace? You'll break your own fingers before making a dent." Will exclaimed, but Jonathan just chuckled. Jace could easily kick the door down, but the water would restrict him from gaining enough speed. So he relied on his fists. He struck the wood continuously with both hands. Hang in there. Jace shouted as he struck the door with his elbow. It punctured the door jaggedly, pieces of wood falling out to the other side. He cracked his back and took a few steps back. Jace pulled his left arm back as far as he could and charged at the door. Aiming for as high as he could, he jumped and punched the door. The top of the door crashed onto the dry floor on the other side.

Jonathan smiled. "That's Jace Wayland for you." He positioned his hands for the boost. Jace used Jonathan's shoulder and hand to hop over to the other side. When he got through, Will boosted Jonathan over and he pulled him along. This room had their usual lights on, nearly blinding them. They noticed Jace standing still, a surprising thing they wouldn't have expected. They glanced over to where he was staring at and were also frozen.

It was Clary and Tessa standing on top of tables. Or at least, the boys thought it was them. No, it couldn't have been, but it was.

Clary was barefoot and in her white tank top, which was splattered in red. She picked up some guy by his hair and punched him across the face. He fell against the computers and turned over in pain. The tall guy they had seen before was watching her intently beside the table. "Hey Stringbean, why don't you get up here so I can knock a few inches off your head?!" Clary shouted and kicked another guy in the face.

Jace and the others began running to help, but Tessa crossed their path and smiled. "Don't worry about this one, this is Clary's fight." They noticed that she also looked more barbaric than usual and covered in red. She waved and punched an unfortunate boy who attempted a surprise attack.

"My God…" Will said in astonishment as the guy fell to the ground with a thud.

Meanwhile, Clary and Stringbean were fuming at each other on the long table. They yelled and clashed into each other. Clary's head seemed to have barged into his stomach, knocking him down on the table. She pinned him down and drilled her furious fists into his face. She cut parts of his skin open, busting his mouth. Blood spilled onto her hands. She hopped off his chest and yanked him down from the table by this hair. "Ouch! Let me go, you little tomboy." Clary pulled his blue bandana off and swiftly tied it over his mouth.

"Sorry, captain. You're my prisoner now." He tried to get up, but Clary stomped her foot onto his back and pressed him to the floor. She beamed and looked at the scenery, the Pisces moaning, Tessa stepping around the bodies, the Mortadas staring at them…

The Mortadas staring at them. Since when did they get here? Clary went red and search around the bodies for her uniform. When she caught sight of it, she sprung off of Stringbean, making him yell out in pain. Clary slipped it over her tank top and walked over to Jace, Jonathan, Will and Tessa. "Hello there, boys. No need to get your hands dirty here, I think they've learned their lesson." She tilted her head towards the cramping students.

Jace cleared his throat and nodded. "I guess so. I have to admit, I didn't think you had that in you, Pres."

Clary smiled and handed over Jace's jacket. "Oh, and thanks for letting me use this." It was still soaking wet as he took it from her hands.

Jace also gave a little grin at her, but felt like something was still off. His head bobbed up. "Oh," He took the damp part of this jacket and rubbed the minor cut under her right eye. He tried to keep his hand from shaking as he cleaned away the blood from her face. Clary's cheeks were rosy pink as she bit her lip. Jace pulled back and felt something strange in his chest. He shook it off and stepped away from Clary, who was still standing there frozen.

Jonathan came from behind Clary. She hadn't even seen him walk around her. He handed over her clean shoes. "Congrats on your win, Pres." Clary laughed and slipped on her shoes.

She put her sore hands on her hips and smiled at the group. "You know, after all this, we're gonna be in so much trouble."

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"You students are in so much trouble!" Mr. Matsumura yelled at Class 1-A. They were sitting in their seats as he and two secretaries gave lectures and scolding. "Three computers broken, a smashed open door and a five-foot flood?! Not to mention, another engagement in a fight!"

Simon whined. "Mr. Matsumura, they're the ones who cut off most of the power lines-"

"No excuses." A secretary cut him off firmly. "This is a week's worth of cleaning and half my salary for repairing damages. This will not be simply overlooked! Until everything is back the way it should be, Class 1-A will stay an extra two hours after school, repenting on their actions." That statement even got the girls worked up. For once, the whole class was arguing about one thing.

"In addition, Clarissa Fray, I am very disappointed in your lack of leadership. As punishment, you will sort out all of the papers for Mr. Matsumura's lesson plans." Clary's jaw dropped. That would take days to complete! The secretary dumped stacks of paper onto her desk. "So get to it." She said viciously as she and the other lady marched out of the room. Her classmates gave sympathetic looks as she clicked her ballpoint pen and hit her head multiple times on her desk.

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Hey people! Again, suuuuper sorry if there are any grammar mistakes and whatnot. I know I haven't updated in forever and I thought it was mean to leave you hanging on that cliff. But I hope you liked it! I'm getting tired soooo…yeah. Review and follow! Thanks so much if you already done so! Multiple reviews are very appreciated :) Your da best!

~Beanie Wayland