Chapter 30: Life Goes On

Hello everyone, and welcome back to another chapter! Another massive thank you to everyone who has been reviewing this story. Let me know of anything you want to see in the story, and I'd be more than happy to work it in! Hope you enjoy...

Jace had kept his promise for the new few months. He worked hard everyday to make sure he was doing just as much, if not more than Clary for the kids. He didn't even think about work, and vowed to himself that the moment he did start thinking about work again, he'd tell Clary straight away and get her real opinion on everything.

Maybe it was because they were back in sync, or maybe Jamie was just an easier baby and they had gotten so used to the twins, but they really seemed to have everything under control. Luke had left a few days after Jace came home, but only after Clary had promised she was okay, and Jace had promised he was going to try harder.

Raphael and Phoebe would come over regularly to have play dates. Everyone noticed, except maybe Jace who had a special sweet spot for the twins, that the two oldest children seemed to stick to themselves. They would rarely interact with Jamie even when it was just the three of them, but they would try to get away when the other kids came over. Clary had noticed that Ella in particular seemed to want to avoid others, and that Teddy seemed easily persuaded.

She knew that the twins might grow out of it - Jace told her she was just exaggerating the situation. But Clary couldn't help but feel that Jamie may end up being a very lonely child, and that was something she definitely didn't want. It was for this reason, and that she loved her children very much, that she told Jace she wanted to have one more. He'd agreed straight away - slough suggested that maybe they wait a little while. He almost seemed eager to prove himself.

The first piece of work that Jace had to attend was the press tour for Hercules. Because Jace was the main character, and they had their young kids at home, they'd negotiated that Jace would do all of the travelling press, and that Clary would only participate in L.A.

This meant the bulk of interviews were being done in L.A., and that Jace primarily had to travel for premiers. He was going to be away for a week, in which he would attend premieres in London, Athens, New York and then finally in L.A.

They had their last day of interviews in L.A. before Jace was leaving, and Clary and Jace were sitting in the room they'd spent the last two weeks in waiting for the next interviewers to arrive.

"You know," Clary says, "I was thinking about last time we were in this situation."

"Oh yeah," Jace says, grinning.

"We weren't even dating yet," Clary says.

"Uhh," Jace says dramatically, "yes we were."

"Not for most of it," Clary says, "and even when we were it was this massive secret. It's just been so different - last time the questions were about our separate lives and what we were going to do in the future. Now they're about our marriage and congratulating us on our kids and just… crazy stuff."

"Yeah well," Jace says, standing as the new interviewer comes into the room, "a lot can happen in a few years."

It was lucky, Clary thought, that everyone in her band was so good with kids. Jace was currently away on the press tour, but when he got back Clary was going to start recording her next album. They had a couple weeks to record it, but Clary still wanted to be as prepared as possible when the time came. And for her, that meant bringing her kids into the office while they all got ready.

Clary knew that she could call on Diana if she needed the help, but she found that she didn't need to while everyone else was around. They were always patient if Clary had to handle something. Emma and Julian were so in love with James that she barely had to look after him, and Teddy and Ella were easily able to entertain themselves in the playroom that her and Jace had set up.

It meant that, a week later when Clary was recording and Jace had begun writing a new movie, it was very easy for the whole family to spend the working day at the office. About a week into recording Magnus came in to see their progress and begin working out a schedule with them all.

It was important for Clary to have options for Jace and the kids to travel with them, and for the schedule to be well spaced out so she had time to spend with them all. She decided this also had to apply for Jem, Tessa, and Mina, and Jem was clearly appreciative of it. She also told Magnus that she would do press in the lead up to the tour, but that she didn't want to do any during the actual tour. This meant no meet and greets or open sound checks as well; she wanted the time spent off stage to be with her family.

Jace agreed to this plan - he thought a bit of travelling could do them all good, and he would still be able to write on the road whenever it was convenient for him. And Clary could tell he meant it. It was the first time they seemed able to make a big decision about either of their work without getting into a massive fight or lying to each other, and Clary knew that last time had been a real wake up call for them both.

Jem agreed that the schedule looked very family friendly, and Tessa was keen to be able to travel to lots of places she hadn't been before. Emma and Jules were easy - they were happy if they were with each other, and they didn't have any real commitments they had to work a schedule around. This included, Julian told them all, barely able to contain his excitement, any boyfriends, as Emma had recently broken up with Cameron Ashdown. Clary was sure she saw Emma blush as he said this, but she quickly picked Jamie up so that he covered her face.

George was very similar to how Kit had always been - everything seemed to be able music and having fun. He was more than happy to leave any responsibilities he might have behind and go and perform music to crowds screaming back at him.

Although, now that Clary thought about it, Kit and Livvy had been dating for well over a year now - Kit's longest relationship by some time. And Jules was happy to report that they seemed very happy together. Kit had told Clary about the threats Julian had made if he ever hurt Livvy. Clary was glad that he hadn't needed to deliver on any of these yet.

With everything sorted out, Clary was confident in realising her first single about a month after they finished recording. It had been a busy month, filled with filming music videos, and doing photo shoots for the album cover and rehearsing for the tour, but their hard work definitely paid off. Her song went straight to number one, as did the single she realised after that.

One of the songs on the album - the last one to be written and almost wasn't included on the album, had a voice memo of Jace speaking French in it. It had been a goal of Clary's to be able to sing and write music in French, and Jace was slowly teaching her. They had been sitting in their backyard, and Clary was softly strumming on her guitar, trying to figure out a nice melody to go with the lyrics Jace had just helped her write, when Jace had said, "you are so beautiful. More beautiful than the birds, the bees and the butterflies. I could stay here all day my love, my Clary," in French. She had ended up including the melody she had written with different lyrics on the album, but the song felt incomplete without Jace talking softly at the end, with Clary's gentle guitar and the waves crashing quietly in the distance. She had ended up calling the song 'Papillons,' and despite not being a single, it still received a lot of attention during the press tour.

The tour lasted six months and was very successful. Every show was sold out, and Jace travelled with her and their kids for pretty much the whole thing. He'd stayed home for the first few weeks while Clary got back into the swing of performing, and as she figured out the logistics of tour with three young children, but once they got into the swing of it, it was easy.

Clary had been overwhelmed by the response of everyone on tour. They were all so supportive, and it was crazy to think that all of those people were there for her - not for Simon or Kit or Alec, like so many people had told her in the past.

Because she was less known in many of the countries they travelled to than she was in America, they were able to have relatively normal days as a family. Especially when they stopped at smaller towns on their way through them - a few people would recognise them, but they could largely spend the whole day unbothered.

Clary wondered if this was what her life could have been like. If she had turned down the record deal, like she told Jon she wanted to do, is this how she would've been able to spend her days? Slowly strolling through towns with her amazing husband and beautiful kids? But no, she told herself. This isn't how life would have been. She wouldn't have been able to afford to travel like this. And she never would have met Jace, and thus couldn't have married him or had their kids. When she thought about it all, it seemed worth it to give up her privacy for everything else.

"You still want one more?" Clary asks Jace on their first night back in L.A. They were laying in bed. Jace had been reading a book, and Clary had been letting her mind wander.

"One more what?" Jace asked, looking away from his book and softly running his fingers through Clary's hair.

"One more kid," Clary explained. Despite being older now, the twins seemed more determined than ever to stay away from James. He was fine when he was playing with Clary or Jace, but she could see how he could quickly become lonely.

Jace looked out their window towards the ocean, before nodding. "Yeah, of course I do. But…"

"What is it?" Clary asks, resting her head on her hands so that she was able to get a batter look at him.

"It's just that… I really like the script that I've been writing - and it's pretty much done. I was thinking maybe that maybe I could make this movie first. Just so I can be completely committed to everything that happens.

Clary smiles at him, "of course," Clary tells him, laying back down with her head on her pillow, "we've got nothing but time." And for the first time that Clary's could remember, she really did have nothing but time.

I know that one was a bit of a filler chapter... sorry! But I just wanted to pass some time so that the kids can start growing up, because I eventually want to shift the focus of the story onto them (I might do it in a new story?) Let me know what you think, and let me know if there is anything you want to see! I hope you're all happy and healthy, and I'll see you at the next one :)