Hey guys, sorry this is late. I've been quite busy lately. Unfortunately my lovely friend who has been helping me edit this is away so I'm the only one who has checked it. I am not always good at picking out errors, especially in my own writing (because I know what I meant and whatnot), so please forgive me if you find any! Feel free to tell me also.

Thanks!


Chapter 8

The next morning, Elizabeth woke up still in the chair by the fire in the parlour. It took her a moment, but when she realized where she was and what time it was, she jumped up, muttering a stream of curses. She could have sworn she heard someone laughing quietly, but there was no one in the room and no one in the hall when she opened the door to hurry to her room to change.

Once she had changed, Elizabeth joined the others for breakfast. All of the others were seated except for Wes and Felix, who were not in the room. She took a seat between William and James, who raised his eyebrows at her over his teacup. She made a face at him, took a slice of bread, and began to spread it with butter.

"I am guessing the Clair-Étoiles will be here around noon," Felix began, looking around the table. "I do hope Wes joins us soon."

"No need to wait, I am here" Wes announced, striding into the room and swiftly taking a seat. He looked as if he had only waken minutes ago. His hair was tousled he still looked tired.

"Very good," Charles nodded. He was restless, Elizabeth noticed. Tapping his fingers, constantly checking the time. Elizabeth fought a smile. Charles was more anxious than need be. It was not as if the Consul or the Inquisitor was coming. Charles opened his mouth to say something, but just then Felix walked in. Elizabeth was surprised to see him dressed very nicely, waistcoat and all.

"I suggest you get this cleaned up soon," he stated, gesturing to the breakfast table. "Sébastien often over estimates his arrival time. I expect they will be here within the hour."

Upon hearing that, Charles jumped up and began to haul things to the kitchen, calling for the kitchen staff to come help. Elizabeth sighed, managing to grab a muffin before they were taken away.

"The rest of you, go prepare yourselves." Felix turned away, his stance wide and his hands resting in fists on his hips. "I cannot have you looking a mess for when they arrive." With that, those still sitting sprung into action. Wes had hurried back upstairs, followed soon by Haden. James was already completely dressed and ready, so he simply moved into the parlour where he would be out of the way. Elizabeth called Mary to help her lace the back of her dress and, once in her room, began to comb through her hair. Approximately half an hour later, the bell of the Institute rang causing Elizabeth to jump slightly. She quickly made her way down to join the others in the parlour where it was agreed they would greet the Clair-Êtoiles.

Elizabeth was the last to come to the parlour. There were varying degrees of restlessness between the others. Felix was completely at ease, sprawled out in a chair and Charles was pacing quietly behind the couch on which Catherine sat stiff and alert. Wes and Haden were both standing off to the side looking somewhat anxious, and James sat in a chair reading a book. Elizabeth elected to sit in the chair opposite James where she would be least likely to engage in a quarrel.

No sooner had she sat down than Mary came through the doors to announce their guests. "I present Monsieur and Madame Clair-Étoile," Mary said in her loudest voice, which was still only barely above normal talking volume. As she turned to bring them in, everyone in the parlour rose and turned to the door.

The man who walked through the door was not what Elizabeth had expected. He was taller than Felix and had broad shoulders and thick, muscular limbs. His black overcoat looked almost grey next to his shining ebony hair that came down to just below his ears and brushed the back of his neck. Deep-set brown eyes dominated his face along with an almost emotionless expression. The woman who followed him was nothing like her husband. She was incredibly slender with long, spidery arms, and her pale blonde hair looked nearly white. Had it not been curled up in a bun, it would have hung in perfectly straight sheets to the small of her back. Her eyes were a pale blue that seemed almost colorless, in the right light.

Felix stepped forward, a wide grin on his face. "Sébastien, so good to see you again!" he exclaimed, holding out his hand.

Breaking into a grin, Sébastien shook it, saying in a deep voice, "It is good to see you too, brother." His accent was thick, but easy enough to understand. "You know my wife, Véronique," he said, gesturing to the woman. She stepped forward with a slight curtsey, holding out her hand to Felix who took it and kissed it.

Sébastien then turned his attention to the rest of the room. "My, Felix, you have quite a full house," he observed, looking around at the seven other Shadowhunters. "Are you going to introduce us?" he asked with an amused half smile.

"Of course, of course!" Felix then turned to Charles, Catherine, and William, introducing them as the next to take over the Institute. He moved on to Haden, identifying him as Charles' nephew, then to Elizabeth and James, and finally to Wes. He did not mention the fact that Wes was the Consul's son, however, Sébastien seemed to come to that conclusion himself, for a look of recognition and possibly amusement crossed his face.

"I am pleased to meet you all," Sébastien began, stepping forward. "Thank you for allowing my family to journey to London and stay with you here at the Institute. It brings me some peace to know that something is being done to recover my Sorelli." At the mention of his daughter, his face was a mix of emotions: pain, loss, worry, sadness, hope, determination. Even Véronique, who had not said a word and stood emotionless the whole time, seemed to sag a bit. It then made Elizabeth wonder if she was so bony because worry had eaten away at her physically.

"We will do everything we can to find her," Charles promised, coming forward. He then told Sébastien and Véronique about the ball he had planned for the next evening. Sébastien was quite enthusiastic about the plan, and Véronique, though not quite as excited as her husband, expressed that it was a good idea.

Charles seemed to glow at their praise, becoming rather animated and enthusiastic himself. When Felix suggested he and Catherine show the Clair-Étoiles to their room, Charles led them from the room with an extra spring in his step. Felix then dismissed James, Haden, Wes, and Elizabeth who all dispersed without a word to one another.

The rest of the day passed in a blur and soon it was the afternoon of the ball. Catherine, Elizabeth, and Madame Clair-Étoile had retreaded soon after luncheon to prepare for the evening. It was times such as these when Elizabeth greatly envied men. It took maybe an hour for them to prepare when it took women most of the afternoon. Elizabeth hardly had the patience for it.

Her hair had been tied in wet cloth all night and now fell in gold ringlets around her face. Mary's skilled hands quickly piled half of it on top of her head, leaving the rest cascading down her back. She pulled a few curls from the front so they hung down and framed her face. As a final touch, Mary added tiny white flowers in strategic places on top of her head.

Once her hair was finished, Mary helped Elizabeth into her dress. Elizabeth liked this one in particular because it was relatively simple; there was minimal lace and ruffles and ribbons. It was completely white, which was indeed odd considering that white usually signified mourning, however, Elizabeth assumed that at a party, people would not be so focused on the significance of color.

Mary left to assist Catherine, leaving Elizabeth to herself for a few moments. She stood in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection. She was amazed at how much older she looked with her hair done up and her dress on. Turning away, she pulled on her gloves then went to go pick out a necklace. As she sifted through the loose chains and stray pendants -she never did pay much attention to jewelry -she paused when she came across a seashell. It was from a necklace her oldest brother Peter had given her on her eighth birthday. It was one of the only things she had from him, so she never threw it out, even when she had stopped wearing it.

She turned it over in her fingers feeling the smooth coolness of the shell. It was white with veins of pale gold, so she decided to find a chain and wear it. Once around her neck, it rested just below her collar bone. She touched it lightly with a finger and then turned as a knock came at the door. It was Mary telling her the others were ready to meet in the parlour and to come as soon as possible. Elizabeth agreed and then quickly made her way down to the parlour.


Haden had been sitting in the parlour waiting for close to ten minutes. For a while he had been the only one, but the others slowly began to trickle in. Sébastien and Felix came together, talking quietly, then Charles followed by Wes. Catherine and Véronique entered and then they were only waiting for Elizabeth. Her hurried footsteps were soon heard in the hall, and she pushed through the doors.

"I apologize to have kept you all waiting," she said, sounding a bit flustered. Haden was, for a moment, surprised by her appearance. He wasn't sure what he expected, but it was not this. With her hair curled and styled, Elizabeth looked completely different from the girl who had run with him in the rain or whose temper resulted in unladylike shouting.

Felix acknowledged her and then called the room to attention. "Tonight our primary focus is extracting any information we can about the goings-on of the Downworlders. Do not make it obvious that you are gathering information however if they become suspicious, make it clear that we are not interested in starting an argument between the Downworld and the Nephilim."

All those in the room agreed, and then began to file out in groups to where the carriages waited out in front of the Institute. The Clair-Étoiles and Felix took one of the Institute's. They left earlier than the others so that they might be at the ball to greet guests. About half an hour later, however, the Gaelands left in a second carriage, and Wes, James, and Elizabeth followed in the third. William had been left behind with Mary, so there was plenty of room for Charles, Catherine and Haden in their carriage. Haden couldn't help wondering if Elizabeth and Wes would manage the ride to the ball without attempting to harm one another.

The ball was being held in the great ballroom near St. Paul's Cathedral. It was a massive building with greek style architecture; marble columns supporting a triangle of elaborate carvings. If one looked closely, the carvings depicted the scene of the angel Raziel rising out of the Lake. The carriages stopped in front of the building, and Haden followed his aunt and uncle out. Light poured through the open doorway, illuminating their path. His hands in his pockets, Haden stared at the building while he waited for the others, a shadow against the brilliance that waited inside.