Attention to Details
The group of eight maneuvered their way through the NYPD parking lot. Isabelle's necklace kept pulsing, alerting them to demons nearby. Riley kept looking around, trying to find any sign of a demon. She bumped into what appeared to be a harmless old woman.
"Oh, I am so sorry." she apologized.
The old woman was revealed to be a demon and growled at Riley, who backed away slowly, somewhat frozen with fear. "Grandma." Jace said, casually. The old woman turned around and Jace ran his Seraph blade through her sternum, turning her to ash.
"What the hell?" Riley gasped.
"Language." Jace scolded. "Not in front of Grandma."
"How did it find us?" Ailiz asked.
Jace shrugged, helping Riley to her feet. "I don't know, but she brought friends."
"How can you tell?" Riley questioned, as she followed Jace and the others through the parking lot.
"It's like seeing through a glamour." Jace answered. "You just got to pay attention to the details."
"But I can't see anything." Riley admitted.
"Behind us." Isabelle warned.
"I still can't see them." Riley threw out, stopping suddenly as she saw one cop's eyes. "Okay, there's too many people."
"I don't say this often, but I agree with Riley." Alec added.
"We gotta get out of here." Ailiz voted.
"Hey, this way!" Diana informed, leading them near a tunnel entrance.
Riley pulled out her Stele, turning to Jace "What's the Unlock rune again?" she panted.
Jace kicked the door down, smiling triumphantly. "Open sesame." he answered. "Go."
Alec, Maksim, and Kirill stayed by the entrance, readying their weapons. "Hey, what are you doing?" Jace asked, directing the question at Alec.
"Holding them off." Kirill answered.
"Take Riley back to the Institute." Alec ordered.
"No, if you're staying, I'm staying." Jace rebuked. "We fight together."
"Don't be stupid." Alec replied.
"If the demons get the Cup, we're all dead." Maksim reminded.
"I'm not leaving anyone behind." Jace told them.
"You don't have a choice." Alec pointed out.
Ailiz rolled her eyes. "I know you guys are having a moment, okay?" she cleared her throat. "But we really have to go."
"Don't worry." Isabelle assured. "It's not like this is the first time Alec has saved Riley's life."
"I doubt it'd be the last." Diana added.
"Go." Alec ordered, drawing back his bow.
They did as instructed and ran ahead. Riley stopped and leaned against the wall, catching her breath. "Hold on." she halted, panting. "I'm sorry, Jace."
"It's okay." Jace replied. "We can take a breather."
Diana and Isabelle exchanged glances. "Izzy and I will scout ahead." she informed, walking off. Ailiz walked a few paces ahead, giving Jace and Riley some privacy.
No, it's not that." Riley sighed. "I'm sorry for all the trouble I've put you through."
Jace chuckled. "You don't have to apologize to me, Riley." he reminded.
"Unfortunately, you can't stop me." Riley rebuked, chuckling.
Jace nodded. "Well, yeah, I'm starting to see that." he noted.
"Just," Riley sighed. "I've been so focused on trying to find my mom and sister, I don't think I realized how much you've actually done for me." she looked up. "So, thank you."
"Riley, I'm a Shadowhunter." Jace reminded. "It's kinda my job."
"Your job?" Riley repeated.
"Yeah." Ailiz agreed.
"Oh, you'd do this for anybody?" Riley questioned, as they walked down the tunnel.
"Maybe not Simon." Jace admitted.
Ailiz and Riley chuckled. "I think he'd say the same thing about you." Riley noted.
"You know, you're not too bad yourself." Ailiz told her.
"Me?" Riley questioned.
"Yeah." Jace and Ailiz agreed in unison. "You've kicked some pretty serious ass since we saved you." Ailiz added. "And you looked great doing it."
"Thanks, I think." Riley replied.
"Guys." Diana called. "It's still pulsing."
"Again?" Ailiz questioned.
"Getting close." Isabelle noted.
"Let's spread out." Jace orderd, pulling out his Seraph blade.
Ailiz unsheathed her katana and Isabelle readied her electrum whip. "Izzy, where is it?" Jace asked.
"I don't know." Isabelle answered. "It's like they're right here, but I don't see them."
Suddenly, a small demon dropped from the ceiling, which Jace caught. He threw it toward the opposite wall and slashed it with his Seraph blade, turning it to ash. Riley gasped and ran up to him, "Jace, are you hurt?" she asked, checking for visible injuries.
"I'll live." Jace assured.
"What are those things?" Riley questioned.
"Shax demons." Ailiz answered, standing by Riley's side. "They're like the bloodhounds of the Shadow World. They've been tracking us."
"So what do we do?" Riley asked.
"The Institute's only a couple of blocks from here." Diana informed.
"We can't lose them, but they won't be able to track us if we split up." Jace added.
"But, I don't-" Riley stammered.
"Riley, you'll be fine." Isabelle assured.
"We'll draw them away." Diana added.
"No matter what happens, just keep running." Jace told her, meeting her eyes.
Ailiz sniffed the air, and her eyes glowed. "They're coming." she snarled.
Riley clung to Jace's arm. "Jace, I-" she stammered.
"Run, Riley!" he ordered, killing another demon that came right at him.
Riley backed away and ran down another corridor. A Shax demon dropped from the ceiling and nearly landed on her, but Ailiz ran her katana right through it, killing it. She let out a snarl before killing more that came her way.
As Riley ran down the corridor, panting, chittering from the Shax demons came from behind her. She skidded to a halt when she reached a dea end. "Damnit." she cursed, spinning on her heels, seeing three small figures approaching her. "Crap." she muttered.
The Shax demons screeched as they stalked toward Riley. She pressed herself against the wall, whimpering. In a fit of panic, she reached into her satchel and pulled out the Ace of Cups card, which started glowing. She reached in and pulled the Mortal Cup out of the swirling portal. The demons screeched. "Get back!" Riley ordered, holding out the Cup like a weapon or barrier. "I said, get back!"
The demons retreated into the darkness and Riley sighed in relief. She looked at the glowing Cup in her hands and smiled. She ran back down the corridor, putting the Cup back in the card, pocketing them in her satchel. Once she reached the main junction, she stopped. "Jace!" she called, looking around. "Jace?" she gulped.
"Riley." Jace's voice called from behind her. "Hey."
Riley turned around and sighed, noticing a bruise on his cheek. "Oh, you're hurt." she gasped.
"I'll be all right." Jace assured. "You okay?"
"Yeah." she nodded. "I'm fine. Barely, but-"
"What happened?" Jace asked.
"One of the Shax demons cornered me." Riley informed. "But I got the Cup. I don't know, my instincts just kicked in and I could do it." she chckled. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'll be a Shadowhunter after all."
Jace smiled, "Riley, you're amazing. I always knew you could do it." he praised. "Now give me the Cup and let's go."
Riley scoffed. "Give you the Cup?" she repeated.
Jace nodded. "Yes." he confirmed. "Only until we get back to the Institute. It's the only way I can keep you safe." he reached down and caressed her cheek. "I'll die before I let anything happen to you."
Riley closed her eyes and felt a chill in the air. She pulled away and put on a smile, "Yeah, you're totally right." she agreed. A second later, she whipped out a Seraph dagger and plunged it into his stomach.
Jace grunted when the dagger pierced him. "Riley." he rasped, breathing heavily.
Riley took notice of the pained expression, "Jace, no." she muttered. "Oh, my God! Jace!" she gasped. He began gasping, before revealing himself as a demon. Riley twisted the dagger and pulled it out, and the shapeshifter disintegrated to ash.
"Riley!" Ailiz called, running up to her with Luke right behind her.
Jace made his way out of the tunnels, and neared the Institute. "Riley!" he called. "Hey Riley, where are you?" he ran through the doors, finding Maksim and Kirill cleaning their personal weapons. "Hey, have you guys seen Riley?" Jace asked them.
"No." they both answered. "Thought she was with you." Maksim added.
"I'm sure she's fine." Kirill assured. "Ailiz isn't back yet either, she's probably with Riley."
Jace went to one of the surveillance screens and tried to locate Riley. "These tunnels are swarming with Shax demons." he informed another Shadowhunter helping him. "If she's down there, it's only a matter of time before they find her. We need to make sure that doesn't happen." he walked around a table, standing in the middle of the lobby. "All right, listen up. I want this entire Institute on high alert. I don't care what anybody else says, I'll take full responsibility. Right now, Riley is the only thing that matters."
Just as he said that, Ailiz and Riley ran into the lobby. "Jace!" Riley called, running down the stairs, and right into his arms.
"Riley." Jace sighed, wrapping his arms around her, relieved she was alive.
Riley pulled away, a smile on her face. "Jace, I did it." she giggled. "I got the Cup."
Jace shook his head. "I don't care about the Cup." he told her. "When I came out of the tunnels, I didn't see you. I was worried something might have happened-"
"There was a demon." Riley cut him off. "A Shapeshifter. It looked just like you." she looked up into his eyes.
"You all right?" Jace asked, genuinely concerned.
"Yeah." she answered. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"And the demon?" Jace pressed.
Riley smiled, "I sent him straight back to hell." she told him.
"How'd you know it wasn't me?" Jace wondered.
Riley shrugged. "I just knew." she answered.
Jace chuckled. "Really? Kind of a risk, wasn't it?" he guessed.
"Well, this may come as a surprise, but I actually do listen to some of the things you tell me." Riley chuckled, meeting his eyes. "You just have to pay attention to the details."
"Yeah, well, like I told you that night I saved you." Jace reminded. "You're a Shadowhunter, just like the rest of us."
Riley leaned up and planted her lips over Jace's, wrapping her arms around his neck. Jace kissed back, wrapping one arm around her back while the other hand rested on the back of her head. Their noses brushed against one another's as they kissed, expressing the feelings they've felt since they first met.
Ailiz leaned against the railing, shaking her head. "Really Wayland?" she scoffed. "In the lobby?"
Hildegard ran up to her sister and her jaw dropped when she saw the kiss. "Damn." she muttered.
Maksim looked away, shaking his head. Kirill couldn't look away. "Please tell me I'm dreaming."
Alec walked away; Isabelle and Diana watched. "We all knew this was going to happen." Isabelle sighed.
Diana nodded. "There has been something between them since day one."
Riley and Jace pulled away, their noses brushing against one another's, and their foreheads touching. They looked into eachother's eyes, knowing there was something there they couldn't hide anymore.
A/N: And there ya have it guys, the Rilace kiss. What's in store for Jace and Riley next? We shall see. Review please!