AN: Hi everyone, thank you so much for the reviews and alerts! hope you like chapter 3 :)

Disclaimer: Sadly enough, I don't own the Mortal Instruments series. It's all Cassandra Clare's.


Jace pulled the hoodie over his head and hung it on the doorknob. A big mirror hang above the sink and he turned to look at himself. His hair was dry but still sticking against his head, smears of dirt streaked his cheeks. What had he been doing? Fighting…something? Jace stared at the white scars that covered his chest and frowned. Something was… off. Something nagged at his memory and his fingers traced one of the silver swirls on the side of his stomach. Jace pressed his palms against his eyes and groaned. It seemed as if everything was locked up in a box in the back of his mind, and he just didn't have the key.

He calmed down while he waited for warm water and by time he stood in the shower, he was determined to find out how his memory loss worked. The water was hot and he let it burn his scalp and cascade down his back while tried to think. He knew one thing for certain: not everything was locked away. He knew certain things, and maybe if he went on from there, he'd figure more things out. He'd known that his parents were dead. He tried to think about his family, where he lived, but he just found fog. Okay, so maybe he had to start somewhere else.

His scars. Those gave him mixed feelings. They were familiar, he knew them, and he knew others didn't have them. Or something like that. Not just others but… others. God, this was frustrating. There was something about the one on his side, though. It was… new. Finally! Maybe he was getting somewhere. So the scar was new, how did it get there? He closed his eyes. Blood. He'd been bleeding. His left hand clenched and he imagined a familiar weight in it, smooth and cold. His… Dammit! What was the word? Jace sighed and clenched his jaw. He wouldn't give up until he remembered the right word. It took some time, but after thinking hard and imagining the slight burn on his skin which he knew was part of it, he succeeded. Stele.

His stele! Jace realized his eyes were still closed, and opened them, blinking away the water. He frowned when he found himself leaning against the wall of the shower cabin, not even under the spray of the showerhead. His fingers were trembling and he was a little dizzy. Surprised that remembering had drained him like this, he finished showering and got dressed. When he entered the room he'd slept in, he found pancakes on the nightstand. A pile of them, syrup dripping down the side. His stomach clenched and for the first time he realized just how hungry he was. He slowly sat down and reached for the plate. They were hot and smelled delicious, by the time Clary knocked on his door, he'd finished about half of them.


"Can I come in?" Clary asked from behind the door.

"Sure," she heard, and by the sound of his voice, she guessed he was eating his dinner.

When she entered the room she found Jace on the edge of his bed, his hair wet and wavy, his face clean and so handsome. Clary looked away, why did looking at him make her blush?

"Thanks." He said after swallowing a bite. "They're amazing."

Clary sat down next to him and smiled. "Glad you like them. Do you need anything else?"

Jace shook his head and reached over to set the plate back on the nightstand. He leaned back against the wall and let his head fall back.

Clary stared at him, hoping that he couldn't peek out from under his lashes and watch her being rude. His skin seemed pale against the black of the hoodie and his hands were lying in his lap. "Your hands are shaking!" She said, and touched them without thinking. His fingers twitched when she did, but he didn't pull away.

"I know." He sighed. "I've been trying to remember things."

"Did you?" Clary asked curiously.

Jace shook his head. "Not really. Just confused myself even more."

They sat in silence for a while, but then Clary gathered her courage and asked him something she hadn't been able to stop thinking about. "Jace?"

He opened his eyes a little and turned his head to look at her.

"I was just wondering… The symbol, and those lines, on your skin… what are they?" Her gaze slipped down to his chest and she looked away, embarrassed.

Jace's eyes widened and then he frowned. "You saw that?"

"I- well, you shirt was wet… You were so cold, I thought it was better to get it off you." Clary stuttered.

"I don't care about the shirt." Jace shook his head and leaned towards her. "What exactly did you see?" He was looking at her intensely, and he didn't seem to realize it, but his hands were gripping hers tightly.

Clary was startled, and annoyed at herself. She should've just kept her mouth shut. She wanted to look away, but his gaze didn't let her go. "Just lines, or scars, or something. And some sort of tattoo. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"You're not supposed to see that." Jace mumbled, as if talking to himself. "At least I thought–" He stopped talking and pressed his lips together.

Clary didn't know what to do. Jace wasn't even paying attention to her, but his hands were still holding hers tightly and shook so hard it made her shake as well. He must be trying to remember, Clary thought, thinking about what he said earlier. His lips were moving now, but he didn't make a sound. He closed his eyes and she could see him struggle. This couldn't be good for him.

"Jace." Clary said, trying to get his attention. He didn't seem to hear it. "Jace!"

His head shot up and he opened his eyes. He stared at her for a moment, dazed, and then looked down at their hands. He pulled his back immediately, and Clary rubbed her red fingers.

"You shouldn't do that to yourself."

Jace rubbed in his eyes and sighed. "Not knowing anything is worse."

"Did it work?" Clary asked.

His lips pressed together and he looked away.

"I'm sorry." Clary pushed herself off the bed. "You don't need to tell me anything. You know where to find me." She turned to leave, but he caught her wrist and gently pulled on it.

"Wait." He said, hesitating.

Clary turned around, trying not to show how happy she was about staying.

"I do want to talk. I just… I can't tell you everything. I just can't."

Of course he couldn't, she thought, he barely remembered anything. She sat down again, much closer to him this time and trying to subtle about that. She waited for him to say something and stared at her hands in her lap.

"You saw a symbol?" Jace asked.

It took Clary a second to realize he was still talking about the scars she'd seen. "Yes, it was black, but fading a bit. The others were more silvery." She explained.

Jace laughed a little. "You really studied them, huh?"

Clary felt heat rise up to her face and wished she would just stop blushing all the time.

"Well, this means I have a problem." Jace said slowly. "Either I'm wrong, or you're weird."

Clary gave him a confused look and waited for him to explain. Even though he wasn't making sense, she liked that he was talking so freely. He didn't seem as guarded anymore.

Jace pulled the hem of his shirt up and traced a few of the silver lines that covered his skin. "Where did you see the mark?" He asked, without looking up at her.

Clary stared at the side of his stomach. "It's gone." She said quietly. She leaned towards him, to make sense of what she was seeing, but nothing changed. The black swirl was gone, a subtle, silver one in its place. Clary reached out without thinking and touched it. "It was right there." She said, pulling away.

Jace was grinning. "I knew it!" He pulled his shirt back down and looked up at her, studying her face.

"What is it?" she asked, confused.

"Does the word stele mean anything to you?" He asked, sounding hopeful.

Clary raised her eyebrows. "Never heard of it."

He pursed his lips thoughtfully. "Damn. I thought I was finally getting somewhere. See, I remember some things, but without the rest, everything's just weird and nothing makes sense."

Clary was thinking he'd stopped making sense from the moment he started talking, and didn't really know what to say to him. "Then just… wait until you can explain better." She said, almost making it a question. Maybe he wouldn't want to tell her anything.

He nodded. "You already know too much anyway." He said.

"What?" Clary frowned.

Jace shook his head and stood up. "I'd like to go outside for a bit, maybe I just need some fresh air."

"Okay. Do you need a jacket? It's still freezing."

"Nah." He shrugged and left the room. He turned around in the doorway and raised an eyebrow. "Are you coming or what?"

"Oh. Yes, of course." Clary quickly followed behind him and grabbed her jacket and hat on the way out.

It was beautiful outside, but Clary wasn't looking at the crystallized grass or the trees covered in snow, she kept sneaking worried glances at Jace. She didn't think going outside was a great idea after almost freezing to death the day before, but Jace didn't seem to mind the cold. He was breathing in the chilly air as if he'd been locked up for months and grinned at Clary's unsteadiness on the iced over boardwalk.

Clary had been studying the ground in front of her, walking very slowly which annoyed Jace to no end, just to make sure she didn't fall, but it didn't help. Her foot hit a metal grid, slipped and Clary lost her balance. She yelped and reached out to grab Jace's hand, but failed. She anticipated feeling her body hit the snow and closed her eyes, but he caught her. He held one arm behind her shoulders and one under her knees, sweeping her up before she could hit the ground. Clary gasped, clutching at the fabric of his hoodie. "Whoa…um, thanks."

He grinned and put her down. "I don't know if it's even possible, but you should be more careful." He teased. He grabbed her hand and walked on.

Clary tried to keep up with him, but it was hard to concentrate while feeling his hand around hers.

After a few minutes, they'd left the houses behind and had reached a more deserted part of town. Clary felt a shiver run down her spine and looked around. It was getting dark, though it was still early, and Clary clutched Jace's hand a bit tighter.

"Do you feel that?" She asked silently. "There's something… off."

"I know." Jace whispered back.

Clary realized he'd gone very quiet and was glancing around suspiciously.

When they were about to pass a narrow ally on their left, Jace froze. He let go of her hand and slowly pulled her back by her shoulders. Clary was too surprised, and definitely too scared, to say something. When they were standing in the middle of the road, facing the ally, she could feel his breath in her neck.

"Don't scream, just stay here, okay?" He whispered in her ear.

Clary nodded, her eyes wide.

Jace stepped around her and approached the ally stealthily. Clary saw something move in the shadows and her breath caught in her throat. What was it? A grey shape was moving closer to Jace, it wasn't a human, but it definitely wasn't an animal either. It was a… a monster. Clary pressed her fist against her teeth to keep quiet and stared at the thing approaching Jace. It had four long, spidery legs and was as tall as Jace. Clary couldn't quite see the head, but she heard it hiss and whimpered a little. She was going to die.


AN: So, what did you think about the chapter? Do you like where this is going? Like, love, hate? Please review! Thank you all so much for reading :)