Clary woke up in her own bed. For a moment, she was disoriented, unsure where she was. The room looked different somehow; she realized it was the addition of a golden-haired boy, sitting on a chair by her bedside.

"Hey," she whispered, her voice groggy.

Jace had been dozing, his eyes closed. At the sound of her voice, his eyes opened, alert, and full of a concerned happiness. "Hey," he murmured back. "How are you feeling?"

She considered the question. Nothing felt broken, or damaged. "Fine," she said. "What happened?"

Jace's smile slipped for a moment. "That monster must have managed to cut you with his demon blade. Magnus arrived almost as soon as you passed out, managed to stop the infection. The magic would have turned you into one of those lion demons, but he reversed it. Then you slept for three days."

Clary yawned. "I feel like I've been asleep for years," she confessed, moving comfortably in the sheets.

Jace put a hand on her arm. "Clary," he said, his voice low, "you almost died. And, you saved my life." His face was close to hers, his eyes intense.

"You're welcome," she said chirpily. She reached her face up to his and kissed his lips. "Where is everyone?" A though struck her. "Everyone is okay, right?"

Jace chuckled. "Yeah, calm down. Everyone's fine. Maryse got a knock on the head, but she's up and about, and Magnus knitted up everyone else's cuts and bruises. You were the one we were worried about." He shifted onto the bed to sit next to her, running a hand lightly through her hair. "Two of the lions got away. The women who were with you. Luke and your mom are with Isabelle and Alec, hunting them down."

Clary put a hand on his thigh, her fingers moving thoughtfully across his leg. "So... no one's home?"

Jace grinned. "No..." He shook his head. "You're incredible. You've been awake five seconds!"

Clary shrugged. "We don't get enough alone time! And besides... last time, we were interrupted by a homicidal cat."

Jace rolled his eyes. "I'm glad you're so ready to joke about it."

She wondered what she was wearing. "What am I wearing?" she asked.

"I don't know..." Jace lifted the sheet and looked underneath. "Um... not much."

Clary raised an eyebrow. "Not much? It doesn't feel like I'm wearing anything."

He grinned. "That's what I meant." His fingers traced her jaw, his palm warm against her cheek. "Nothing is not much."

Clary pressed herself closer to him through the sheets. "I think, then, kind sir, you have me at an advantage." She fluttered her eyelashes, feeling warm and crazily happy.

Jace smirked. "I always have you at an advantage, Miss Frey."

She pouted. "Well, I don't like it."

He laughed. "What can I do to make you happier?"

She picked at the hem of his shirt. "If you weren't wearing so many clothes, that might be nice," she said teasingly.

He pulled off his shirt. She was caught off-balance by the suddenness. Despite her teasing tone, she felt her breath catch, as always, at the sight of his golden skin.

His voice was throatier now. "Anything else I can do?"

She glanced up at him, seeing her own playful desire mirrored in his eyes. "Yeah," she said softly. "And I think you can guess what it is."

The last lion was crouched, bleeding from a wound on her shoulder, in front of Luke and Alec. Jocelyn was bending over Isabelle, who was swearing fluently, trying not to look at the gash in her leg. The other lion was dead at her feet.

"What's your name," Luke asked, standing over the cowering woman.

"Leah," she replied, trembling.

Luke ran a hand through his hair, and sighed. Alec glanced at him. "The law is clear," he said warningly.

Luke glared at the young Shadowhunter. "Do you set no store in circumstances? Are you such a blind follower of the Clave's precious law that you would kill a defenceless woman?"

Alec bristled, but turned away. "The law is hard," he started.

Luke cut him off. "I know your mantra, Alec." His voice was tired now, less aggressive. He looked down at Leah. "Leonidas is dead," he said curtly.

She nodded. "I felt it. And I saw it."

He glanced at her companion, still in animal form, lying beside Isabelle, whose leg had been bandaged by Jocelyn. "Are you still in his thrall?"

Leah shook her head. "No." She shivered, and glanced up at Luke imploringly. "No, I'm free of him now. We fought you because we were afraid... but if you let me go, I'll never hurt anyone again! He made us do it, we couldn't disobey him. We had no choice."

Alec scoffed. "There's always a choice."

She stared at him coldly. "That monster made me murder children, and ensnare innocents for him to add to his twisted pride. Believe me, if I could have chosen any other path, I would have. The thrall was impossible to resist."

Luke put a hand on Alec's shoulder. "Wolf Alpha's have a similar, but lesser power. A pack leader's orders are difficult, physically difficult for a wolf to disobey."

Leah shuddered. "This was far stronger."

Alec shrugged. "It makes no difference. She attacked the Nephilim, kidnapped a Shadowhunter, participated in illegal, arcane rites. The law is merciless on this point."

Luke sighed. Jocelyn walked over, keeping an eye on an angry, limping Isabelle. The tall dark haired Shadowhunter glared at her brother. "Alec, stop being such a hard-ass."

He looked at her coolly. "Are you saying we should let her go? That's in violation of every oath we've ever sworn, Iz."

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "We're demon hunters, Alec. She's not a demon, she's a victim. She can't help what she was turned into by that monster. He's dead, and she's free of him." She glanced down at Leah. "You understand that this would be a one-time offer. If we let you go, and you ever violate a Clave law again, there would be no second chance."

Leah nodded. "Of course."

Jocelyn leaned, exhausted, against Luke, who put an arm around her shoulders. "Alec, she can't make any more of them without the blade." Robert had returned the Blade of Belial to the institute, before it would be passed on to the Silent Brothers for study and safe-keeping. "She's harmless."

Alec looked at them, pained. "Do you think I want to kill her?" He asked, a note of desperation in his voice. "I'm not heartless. But the law is the law!"

Luke nodded. "So... take your sister home, Alec. She's wounded. Bring her home. We'll deal with this."

Alec shook his head, hesitant. "I can't do that," he said. "This is a Shadowhunter matter."

Jocelyn smiled at him. "I'm a Shadowhunter."

"And I'm on the Council," Luke added. "Just go, Alec. We're not asking you to break the law. Just let us deal with this, our way."

Isabelle took her brother's hand. "Please," she said.

Alec glanced down at Leah, then sighed. "Okay," he said, finally. "But this didn't happen."

He helped Isabelle away, back out to where their car was waiting. Jocelyn glanced at Luke. "You wanted to deal with this for yourself," she said, "now you get to."

Luke smiled, and bent down to out a hand on Leah's arm. She flinched away, then stopped, and looked at him. "You can go," he said softly. "You're not to blame for what you were forced to do. Go and live your life."

For a second, Leah stared at him blankly, disbelieving. Then, she nodded, a slight movement of her head, and stumbled to her feet, and slowly walked away. They watched her go, arm in arm, until she disappeared into the shadows.

"Thank you," Luke said, and kissed his wife.

Jocelyn smiled. "You're welcome. Let's go home and see what those kids are up to."