The Welcome Feast

It is our choices that show us what we truly are, far more than out abilities.

-Albus Dumbledore

The sky grew darker and the train was slowing down. At least, that was what Jace thought. He nudged Clary, who had been carefully reading a book for one of their classes and she glanced out. The country had become wild and dark, and all she saw were trees and bushes and unruly hillsides. Hermione must have seen what they were looking at too, because she rose up and pulled down her pack.

"We'll be arriving soon. I suggest you put your robes on," she said. Ron rose awkwardly and gestured Jace out while the three girls changed. While the boys changed, Hermione inspected Clary one last time, and she smiled, straightening her robe. "You'll love it here, I promise."

Clary thought she sounded a little desperate, as if she wanted to believe it herself, but she just nodded her head in return and joined the boys in their compartment. As always, Clary thought bitterly, it didn't really matter what Jace wore, he always looked handsome; and now was no exception, the red and gold of Gryffindor only made his hair and eyes gleam more yellow.

Ron looked around as the train came to a stop. "Where's Harry?" he wondered. "You don't still think him and Neville are with that Slughorn, do you?"

Jace glanced up. "We should look for him. I'm sure no one wants the famous Harry Potter to go missing." He had meant it lightly, but there was no mistaking the nervous look Ron and Hermione shared.

"We haven't got time," said Hermione anxiously. "Ron and I have to be inside…"

"Take Clary, and I'll catch up," Jace said suddenly. Clary noticed that he pocketed his stele, and when the others raised their eyebrows, he said, "Trust me. It's a single train, how long can it take to check?"

"Jace," Clary said, a warning note, but he merely smiled his usual crooked smile, kissed her swiftly, and then slipped out the door. "I really hate when he does that," she said to no one in particular.

Jace set off at once, listening carefully for Harry's voice. A few people turned about to stare at him, clearly, in a school their size, new faces were noticeable, but Jace hardly cared. He twisted and turned through the crowded halls with ease, came to one end, and then turned about for the other. He was beginning to wonder if Harry had gotten off and he was wasting time when he saw a group of figures leaving the train. They were dressed in silver and green, and a few of them had the same look as the boy who had taunted Clary in the robe shop. A little of their conversation drifted over to him.

"…think Malfoy's lying, Pansy?"

"He sounded serious," said the girl. "And besides, his father was working for Him. I mean, if you believe the Prophet."

"Still, it's a bit far-fetched. Wonder what's taking him so long…"

Jace didn't need to hear anymore. He recalled Harry preoccupation with Malfoy and waited for the group to leave before hurrying the way they had come. He came to a compartment with the curtain drawn over the window. Smoothly, he removed his stele and drew a choice rune on the door. He was unsurprised to see Malfoy and Harry, though Harry was lying on the floor and looked as if he was frozen there. His hand moved to the door knob, but at that moment, the Malfoy boy brought his foot down on Harry's nose, effectively breaking it.

A usual anger flared up in Jace at the sight of someone he counted a friend being hurt, and he threw the door open. Malfoy jumped back, wand raised, but Jace had already thrown the stele, and it sailed through the air with haunting precision to lodge itself in wall to the right of Malfoy's head. Malfoy flicked his wand, Jace ducked, dodged the stunning spell, and launched himself at Malfoy. His speed clearly startled the other boy who raised his wand higher still, frantically thinking of a spell.

Jace caught his wrist and jerked it aside. "Not the smartest thing to do, but I'm beginning to think nothing you do is really that smart." Desperate, Malfoy tried to punch Jace; Jace merely dodged, caught his other free hand, and twisted him around against the wall. "And yet, you prove me wrong again," he sneered. He kneed Malfoy rather painfully in the back and tossed him aside.

Malfoy didn't stick around to try his hand again; he fled from the room, his feet pounding on the train floor as he rushed to catch up with his friends. Jace yanked the stele out of the wall and admired it before tucking it back in his robe. Harry was still motionless on the floor, and Jace, after staring a moment, pulled out his wand dubiously and prodded Harry with it, thinking of the spell Hermione had mentioned earlier that month. As if on command, Harry sprang to life.

"Bloody hell," he said, wiping the blood off his nose. "Is that how all you fight?"

Jace pulled Harry up. "Not really. You all right? Your nose is broken."

Harry collected his cloak and shrugged. "I'll get someone to fix it once we're at the castle. How did you find me?" Harry asked as they left the compartment and the train. The platform was mostly empty, just a few stragglers behind, and Harry managed to flag down the last carriage. Jace paused a moment to look at the strange, skeletal creatures pulling the carriages, but Harry shrugged, saying, "They're harmless." And then climbed in.

"There's only so many places you could have been, and I remembered you complaining about Malfoy, so I looked for him." Jace leaned forward to get a look around him, wondering if there would be any way of telling the Lightwoods where he was. All he saw was a dark, dirt road, flanked on both sides by trees. "Where's the school?"

"You'll see it in a moment," Harry said, still admiring Jace's swift action that very nearly saved him. "We'll go around a bend and-" Harry broke off as Hogwarts castle came into view, perched on a mountain side before the flat, black lake.

Jace drew in a sharp breath. The castle looked like it had been pulled out of some old story, its many turrets and towers stretching up against the star speckled sky. Before it, he saw a smooth black lake, and a fleet of tiny ships sailing across lazily. All around him were snow capped mountains and he was reminded of the secrecy of Idris, but somehow, this was different; certainly, the castle was hidden from Mundane eyes, but that was all. There were no barriers that separated this world from the one around it, no sense of protection; it was just one ancient castle, glorious in its indifference.

How could the Clave miss this? he wondered. "How often do people get lost in there?" Jace joked.

"It's not too bad after the first few weeks. I mean, it's a pain with the people in the paintings moving, and the doors aren't always doors, and some staircases lead different places on different days, but you'll have us to help, so you won't get lost." Harry thought a moment. "And watch out for Peeves."

Jace raised one eyebrow in question but didn't have time to answer as their carriage came to a sudden stop and Harry threw the door open. They both landed lightly and joined the crowd thronging up toward the large, open double doors. As before, a number of heads turned in their direction, mostly to stare at Harry who was covered in his own blood, but he just pushed past them and into the entrance hall. Jace followed him, searching for the familiar red head of Clary, but she must have been in the great hall, because Jace didn't see her. They both pushed their way into the hall and Jace checked on the spot.

It was a vast room that seemed to glow with golden light. Large leaded windows looked out on the dark grounds, and Jace strained to catch sight of the stars, usually hidden in New York. He saw small lights winking back at him and his eyes traveled up the windows, now searching for the moon, until he noticed the ceiling. For a moment, he thought there was no ceiling and the hall simply opened up to the heavens, but he narrowed his gaze and spotted, as thought cunningly disguised, the beams and rafters of the room. He also saw the thousands of candles that floated in midair, dappling the students below with their light.

"There they are," said Harry, pointing, and Jace saw Ron, Hermione, and Clary seated at a noisy, crowded table. They passed through the press of students and down the line until they joined the others. Harry took a seat between Ron and Hermione and Jace sat beside Clary.

"Harry, what happened?" Hermione said at once, flicking her wand and siphoning the blood of his robes. She flicked it again and his nose popped back into place with an unpleasant sound. "What took you so long?"

"Malfoy," Harry said gruffly, and nodded at Jace. "But Jace found me. It's alright."

"We wondered if you'd been hurt," said Clary across Jace, but she didn't bother to listen to the response. She'd noticed that many people were staring at her, whispering behind their hands, and she flushed and looked down. "People are staring at us," she said mulishly to Jace.

He was still glancing around, avoiding eye contact with anyone else. He noticed the head table, and Dumbledore, who seemed to sense his gaze and looked toward him. Jace looked away quickly, eyeing another teacher at the head table, whose black, greasy hair fell in his face.

"Who's the looker there?" Jace asked and Harry and Ron both snorted.

"That's Snape," Harry said darkly. "He's the Potions Master, and head of Slytherin House."

"He hates Harry," added Ron, mostly for Harry's benefit.

"You think all those years making potions and he might be able to mix up a shampoo for himself," Jace commented wryly.

A burst of loud laughter drew his attention. Two boys had just sat opposite them, Ginny holding the hands of one. "Hey, Harry, Ron, Hermione. Good summer?"

"Hello, Dean," Harry said, since Ron looked like he'd suddenly swallowed a bug. "Nothing to complain about. Yours?"

"Same, I guess," he shrugged and then his eyes wandered to Jace and Clary. "Ginny mentioned some new students. I didn't know Hogwarts did that."

Clary caught the look on Ginny's face. "We're from the United States."

"Brilliant," said the other boy, and he smiled a bit broader at Clary than necessary. "I'm Seamus, by the way. We were both a bit worried you'd be from a country that didn't speak English. Back in our fourth year, there was a group from a school in France."

Clary shrugged. "I only speak English, but I think Jace can speak…" She looked at him curiously. "A lot."

Seamus looked at Jace, who was watching him with bright eyes, and held out his hand. "You're Jace?"

"Jace Lightwood," he said stiffly, but the other boy smiled again, and Jace realized he was not only being polite, but rather friendly, especially given he didn't know Jace at all. He wondered if this was just on principle since Jace was a Gryffindor. "I'm from New York."

"Nice to have you in Gryffindor then," he said, and then held out his hand to Clary. "Didn't catch your name."

"Clary," she said, "Clary…Black."

"Black?" Dean asked, looking around at Harry. "Not like Sirius Black? He's been all over the papers."

"Yep," said Harry, not wanting to delve very deep into Clary and Jace's presence here. "He's looking after them while they're here."

"Step siblings?" Dean asked, but Ginny quickly drew his attention away by whispering something to him.

"Yeah," said Harry, winking at Jace.

"Suppose that makes you her brother," Seamus said, giving him a winning smile and Harry chuckled suddenly. "Best tell all the guys to be careful around this one."

Ron seemed to have found his voice, but he sounded choked. "Well, brothers do have to look out for their sisters."

Ginny shot him a nasty look, and pulled Dead away. Seamus chuckled, nodded at them, and then headed off down the table.

Ron was furious. "I can't believe she's dating him. He's a git…"

Harry and Hermione managed to avoid conversation by the arrival of the incoming first years and the Sorting Hat. Clary, curious about the ceremony, watched while Professor McGonagall placed the Hat on the stool and read out the names of the students. One by one they were Sorted into their houses, and Clary, feeling she might as well do the thing properly, clapped politely along with the rest of the school. As those students went to their seats and Professor McGonagall took the Hat away, and the feast began.

The plates before them were suddenly full of food and Clary had to blink once before she realized it was not just some crazy illusion but actual food. She glanced at Jace to see how he was taking it, and she saw his face carefully blank. He clearly hadn't been expecting the food to materialize out of thin air. However, Hermione, Ron, and Harry, were helping themselves to dinner, so she cautiously spooned potatoes onto her plate.

They ate for a while, Clary and Jace kept quiet while the room around them burst into noise. Clary felt as if she had been transported back to her high school cafeteria, but every now and then, she would look up, see a ghost, or the ceiling, or listen to the talk of the students, and would feel like her stomach dropped out of her. Jace began by picking his food suspiciously, but after tasting it, helped himself to more. He'd never lived in a place with so many people so close together, and it was slightly disconcerting; with a pang of regret, he realized he missed quiet dinner with Isabelle and Alec. He tried to listen to the conversation, just to feel a little more even-footed with the students, but they were talking about things Jace had no interest in: summer vacation, Quidditch, new classes, the latest news on the war. Jace had never lived among children, at least not in the sense that his fellow students were. They were allowed to be careless and frivolous, shadowhunters were not. Obstinately, he poked his food and wished it would taste bad so he could complain. Unfortunately, the food remained defiant and delicious.

Harry was busy filling in the others on the bragging conversation he'd overheard from Malfoy. Hermione still seemed doubtful but Ron was shaking his head in agreement.

"Do you really think Voldemort wants an underage wizard? Harry, what exactly can Malfoy do to help him?" she asked quietly. "He was probably just bragging to impress everyone."

"I don't think people brag about joining up with You-Know-Who," said Ron. "Bit big-headed, don't you think?"

Hermione rolled her eyes just in time for Hagrid to enter the hall and have Clary tweak her sleeve.

"Who's that?" Clary asked, staring at the huge, bearded man.

"That's just Hagrid," she said indifferently. "He's a good friend of ours, actually. He's in the Order, too. I'm sure he'll want to meet you two."

"Why's he so big?" Jace asked bluntly.

Hermione leaned closer so no one could hear. "He's part giant. It's not really a bad thing, but some people are distrustful of giants, so he doesn't talk about it much. But he's a really great person, and he's a professor here, too. Care of Magical Creatures."

Jace nodded thoughtfully. He knew what it was like to have a distasteful family member. On that thought, he turned suddenly to Clary. "Why did you introduce yourself as Black?" Harry glanced over, curious himself.

"Well, what if people knew who Valentine is? I'm sure anyone who studies history will hear his name at least once." Hermione nodded in agreement. "I just figured it'd be safer not to mention anything about shadowhunters."

"Why not Fray or Fairchild?" he pressed.

Clary flinched away from the name. It was her mother's name, and the thought of her mother was almost too painful to bear. It was easier in some ways to just push all that aside for now and focus solely on the situation at hand. "Well, he did adopt us, so I thought it might be better to go with the disguise."

Jace perceived the pain in Clary's voice and didn't press her further. After a short while, the food vanished and Dumbledore stood, his hands spread before him.

"To our new students, welcome, to our old students, welcome back! Another year full of magical education awaits you." Dumbledore beamed upon the assembled students, his eyes managing to find Jace and Clary in crowd.

"What happened to his hand?" Hermione asked sharply, and they all looked.

"It was like that earlier this summer," Harry said softly, aware that other people were trying to listen in.

"It looks like it died," said Ron, frowning.

"Or cursed," said Jace ruminatively. "He was wearing gloves when we saw him, or I would have asked."

"I would like to introduce our new Potions Master, Professor Slughorn."

"Potions?" Ron said sharply. "Harry, I thought you said he was the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor?"

"I thought he was," Harry said blinkly, staring at Dumbledore. "Then who-"

"And, have the pleasure of announcing that Professor Snape has agreed to take up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor." Dumbledore's words were met with a mixture of confused stares and furious outrage.

"No!" Harry said, not bothering with who heard him. "They can't let him teach. He's practically a Death Eater himself."

"Harry!" Hermione said loudly.

"I don't care," Harry said childishly. "He's a git. The only thing good that will come out of this is that he won't be here next year."

"What do you mean?" Jace asked.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts job is jinxed," Ron said, nodding in agreement with Harry. "No one lasted more than a year. A few have died."

"Something to hope for," Harry said darkly, and Hermione swatted at him and then tried to turn the conversation back to Dumbledore's hand while the headmaster continued to speak.

"…I can not emphasize strongly enough how dangerous the present situation is, and how much care each of us at Hogwarts must take to remain safe."

"It certainly looks cursed," she mused. "But I don't know what could have done that. Or what could have been so powerful he couldn't heal it himself."

"Maybe he was in a fight with Death Eaters," Ron ventured.

"Oh, come on, Ron. No Death Eater has that big of a death wish," Harry said, smirking.

"Then maybe it has something to do with what he needs to teach you," Hermione said. "Maybe he was injured."

"By Voldemort, you mean?" Harry asked sardonically. "I think it'd be in the papers if Dumbledore and Voldemort dueled."

"I'm just saying-"

"Right," Dumbledore said, clapping his hands together. "Off to bed, pip pip!"

The dismissal was followed by the scraping of chairs, and Harry nodded to Jace and Clary to follow them, while Ron and Hermione found the first years and led the way. They took many turns and twists, and Clary noted that the figures in the paintings moved just as the one of Mrs. Black had, and she wondered if there was a way she could get her drawings to move. When they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Harry said, "Tapeworm," and the portrait swung forward.

Clary and Jace were both immediately impressed by the proportions of the room, the comfortable looking armchairs, and the fire blazing in the hearth. Many students made room for them as Harry entered, and they entertained quite a lot of stares and whispers. Hermione and Ron joined them swiftly.

"Everyone wants to know who you two are," Ron said at once. "Might want to keep the shadowhunter business quiet as long as you can, mind, Malfoy knows, so it might be all over the school soon."

Clary felt eyes on the back of her head and the hairs on her neck prickled uncomfortably. "Well, what are we supposed to do?"

"Ignore it," said Hermione. "Ginny told Dean and Seamus you're exchange students, so just stick to that story as long as you can. The professors know, of course, but they're not likely to gossip."

Again, Clary felt as if she had been tossed back into Mundane high school. She took Jace's hand tightly in her own. "I think I'd take a demon over curious teenager any day," she said, to the general laughter of everyone around her.

They stayed up late that night, taking prime seats by the fire and relaxing in its flickering glow. A number of people came forward, wanting to stare at Harry and curious for a look at the new students. Clary noted dourly that not a few girls came up to introduce themselves to Jace, and he made a point of telling Dean that he was dating Clary with the hope it would get around. Clary doubted it would matter, but Jace noted wryly that a few of the boys who were eyeing Clary glowered in his direction.

Slowly the crowd petered off and soon it was just the sixth and seventh years left. Harry turned the talk to his upcoming lessons with Dumbledore, and Ron wondered what he'd be learning and if it would be useful in a duel. Hermione vanished for a few minutes only to return with her knitting, which she set to at once. Clary, though, was feeling anxious and couldn't calm down; after a time, she went and found parchment and some pencils to draw with.

Clary leaned back against Jace's legs and began to trace the interior of the great hall. She closed her eyes, thinking of the four long tables, the invisible ceiling, the floating candles, and the many students. It was certainly the most interesting place she had ever visited. As she worked, it grew later and later, and her body started relax little by little. When the last of the students wandered off to bed, it finally hit Clary.

You're at a magical school to learn witchcraft. She straightened up, blinking at her own surprise. I'm going to be a witch. Clary looked down at her drawing and realized she had drawn herself and Jace quite clearly at one of the tables. She smiled despite herself.

"Well, I'm for bed," Harry finally said, stretching. Ron nodded, joining him. "You coming, Jace?"

"I think I'll stay up a little later," he hedged, glancing around the room. In truth, he just wanted a little time away from other people, and was tired of spending all his time with Harry and Ron. "I'll be up soon."

"Don't stay up too late," Hermione warned. "It's an early start tomorrow."

"We'll be fine," Clary shrugged. "There's actually a rune to make us more awake if we need it."

"That's completely unfair," Ron said simply. "I have to struggle to stay awake through classes and you just mark yourselves up and you're good to go. I'm starting to think I'd rather be a shadowhunter."

Jace smirked. "You come to me when you think you're ready for it."

"On second thought," said Ron, returning the smirk, "I'd rather keep the magic. Can't say I particularly enjoy the all black look. Bit dour, if you know what I mean. People might think I'm weird."

Clary snorted and Jace made a rude gesture that Harry laughed at. Once they had left, Jace leaned down, wrapped his arms around Clary, and pulled her up onto his lap. He kissed her hair once then lifted her chin up so he could kiss her firmly on the mouth. Her lips tasted like pumpkin.

"So, what do you think of Hogwarts?" Clary asked, trying to keep a serious conversation but failing as he began kissing her neck. "Nice food. Good classmates?"

"I can do without the stupid talking paintings," Jace commented, biting down on the tender skin at the junction between neck and shoulder.

"Someone's just being bitter I think," Clary teased. "Admit it, you like it."

Jace paused in kissing her, toying with the collar of her shirt. "Maybe. I can't help feeling like I'm…doing something wrong."

Clary turned to face him. Jace was rarely so candid, and she was surprised to see his face dark with thought. "You've done nothing wrong, Jace."

"Haven't I? I left my family, my duty, and I came here to hide. I'm learning magic, Clary, and that's not something shadowhunters are meant to do. I'm breaking the law."

"You didn't hide," Clary said sternly, and she forced Jace to look her in the eye. "You came here to protect your family. There's nothing wrong with wanting to protect the people you love."

Jace looked at her unwillingly. "Valentine always said-"

"I don't give a damn what Valentine said, Jace," Clary said passionately. "He was wrong. Everything he did and said was wrong. You're not a bad person for not fighting."

Jace sighed heavily, resting his head against Clary's. "Valentine hid," he said softly. "He ran away."

"He ran away because he was scared," Clary said dismissively. "You came here because you were brave. Don't you understand that, Jace? There is a difference, and it's important, and I'm not going to let you think you've done something wrong when you've been saving lives." When Jace didn't respond, Clary pinched his arm. "Jace."

He smiled haplessly at her. "I really don't know what I'd do without you, Clary."

She gestured around. "I'm starting to understand these people, and I think they're on to something, Jace. And I've noticed that not a lot of them are fearless, brilliant warriors. I mean, look at Harry's friend Neville. Did he seem like the type of kid to throw himself in the path of the most dangerous wizard of all time?" She laughed. "He went with them because it was the right thing to do."

"It's different for them," Jace said tonelessly.

"No, it's not." Jace cupped his face in her hands and smiled at him sadly. "They fight for the people they love, and somehow, it gives them the strength they need to win. Sometimes, I think the shadowhunters need that."

Jace eyed her closely. "I love you," he murmured softly. When Clary froze, her placed his hands on her wrists and pulled her hands down to hold them in his lap. "I do. From the moment I saw you, I loved you, and I thought you were the bravest person I knew. And now, I know you're the bravest person I know." He looked down. "I don't think I could have come here without you."

Clary stared at her hands, trying to think of something to say that would make Jace understand just how much she cared for him. Something that would make him realize there was nothing to be ashamed of by loving someone. "I'd go anywhere you went," she said, curling her hands around his. "I'd follow you anywhere, no matter where you wanted to go. I won't you leave."

She watched Jace's shoulders relax and knew she'd said the right thing. "Thank you," he said, and then kissed her, slowly and deeply. Kissed her completely, kissed her until he knew she was there and she was his and she didn't care what he thought of himself. Because she loved him.