A/N: Hey guys! Love you all. I have gotten an amazing response to this story, and it makes me feel so good. I haven't gotten review like this since it's all political, which makes me super excited. I loved it's all political, but it is honestly the most poorly written story I wrote. Lol. I would love if this one could pass it in all of its stats, but that will be very hard.

Clary ran her brush through her hair, trying to disconnect the curls that had clumped together. Her hair was filled with sand and sweat, tangling it even more than it already was. She groaned loudly, raking her fingers through the thick of it. She felt so gross. She had been here for over a week, and she had no idea how these people stayed clean. They had sponges and bowls of water, but they could any do so much. She needed a nice long soak with a harsh scrubbing brush to get all the dirt off.

Isabelle brought in a fresh bowl of water for her to rinse up, which she was mildly thankful for. She scrubbed her body with a sponge, feeling the caked-on sand begin to wash away. She wanted a proper bath, but she knew that it wasn't possible. She squeezed the sponge out, seeing the water slowly turn into a beige color. She wrinkled her nose, feeling slightly disgusted. That came off of her body. She had to be a lot grosser then she thought she was. The tan on her skin must be hiding all of the dirt.

Clary heard rustling behind her, making her whip her head around to see Jace. He paused in the door looking her up and down, as he shifted slightly. She held her breast, feeling glad that she was turned away from him. "Sorry, I didn't mean to walk in on you." He murmured, walking over to his belongings

"It's alright." She whispered, pulling on her top quickly. "I feel really gross." She muttered, sitting on their bed.

"We don't really have any baths here." He hummed, as strode over to his desk, shifting through his papers.

"You should change that." She laid on her back, staring at the roof.

"We don't have enough water to do that." He chuckled softly, plucking up a piece of paper.

"How do you even get water?" She questioned, cocking her head to the side.

"There is an underground spring here. It's how the trees are able to grow." He explained, tucking the paper into his waist band. "I'll see you at dinner." He drifted towards the door.

"Yep," she inhaled a small breath, as he slipped out the door.

OoOoO

Clary headed out of her tent after she braided her hair. Her skin was feeling a little better, but there was lingering sand stuffed in random creases around her body. She met Isabelle in the middle of the camp like she normally did, but Isabelle seemed more distracted than usual.

"Everything alright?" Clary asked.

"Of course, I just have a few tasks I need to take care of today. Do you think you could spend the day with Imogen? She wanted to know if you could take care of her today." Isabelle wondered, beginning to head towards a tent neat by.

"Sure, I wouldn't mind." She shrugged, lifting the flap of the tent. Imogen smiled, pushing herself into a standing position. "Hi, Imogen." She smiled, as Isabelle hurried out of the tent.

"Hello, granddaughter." She hummed, holding onto Clary's arm. "Let's go for a walk." She stated, leading her outside. "Now, how have you been doing?" She smiled, pulling her close to him.

"I've been doing well." She spoke softly, taking a deep breath.

"Really?" She rose an eyebrow, as if she didn't believe her.

"It could be worse. I just feel really awkward and out of place, but I'm living. I've hardly seen Jace. He comes to bed after I fall asleep and wakes up before me." She explained, sighing softly. "He still wakes me up when he comes home so we can make an heir, but other than that we don't really have any interaction." She grumbled, knowing that she shouldn't care. Neither of them wanted to get married in the first place. It doesn't surprise her that he avoids her because she does the same thing in the light of day.

"Oh, you silly girl, Jace doesn't matter. Your happiness here is not dependent on your husband. You need to bond with the people around you. That's why you are assisting in chores. They need to know that you are trying to connect." Imogen smirked, tugging her in a different direction.

"I am trying." Clary exclaimed, scoffing slightly.

"You're not. I see you. I might not get out of my tent much, but I do notice you. You sit a little off to the side, and you don't speak to any of them. It's quite off putting." She teased, squeezing her arm with a chuckle.

Clary felt her face heat up at the statement. Did she really act like that? Her stomach churned, feeling overwhelming awkward about every interact she has had since she arrived here. She didn't know what to talk to anyone about. She was so different from them, and she had no idea what to talk about. They didn't really know how to talk to her either.

"You'll be alright." Imogen encouraged quietly, patting her arm.

"I don't know what to do here. I wasn't made for this." She shook her head, running her hand through her hair.

"You are making excuses." The older woman said a matter of fact like. Clary gulped thickly, knowing anything else out of her mouth would be an excuse, but sometimes, all someone can have is an excuse. She thought it was a pretty valid one. "You need to try harder." Imogen stopped in place. She put her hand down, sitting onto a bench. "You act like you are alone, but you're not." She said sternly, crossing her arms.

"I'll try harder." Clary whispered, not really knowing where to start.

OoOoO

Clary legs felt stiff when she finally made it to dinner from walking around the town over four times. It didn't help that she had also been training the last few days. She wasn't used to exerting her body in such a manner. She really wanted to soak in a hot tub to loosen up her sore muscles, but that obviously wasn't an option. She sat down next to her husband, who was talking with his father.

He still had that paper that he grabbed this morning in his waist band, she wondered of it's importance. She carefully reached for it. If she wasn't careful, he would catch her in the act of stealing from him. He didn't notice that it was gone, so she quickly opened it, skimming over the contents. It was just information on food rations.

She wondered if it was important at all. He carried it all day.

"I think you dropped this." She tapped his shoulder, holding the folded paper out to him.

"Oh, thanks, this is essential." He put it back in his pants, quickly going back to his conversation with his father.

"Right." She muttered, turning her eyes to the crowd. "I'm going to bed." She sighed, pushing herself to her feet.

"I'll be in later." He said over his shoulder, not giving her any attention.

She fell on her back, stretching her limbs over her head. She couldn't help but think about her conversation with Imogen. She had no idea how to get to know people better because she had nothing in common with them. She needed to start a real conversation with them, but she had no idea what to talk about. She groaned softly, thinking about anything that she could talk about.

She determined the only way she could start a conversation, is to just start talking about herself. There are huge differences between the two of them, but everything about her life might be new to them. She could tell stories about her life, and start from there.

She got up to her feet, yanking off her leathers, as she slipped her robe on. She adjusted her hair as Jace stepped into the tent. "You're awake." He said, sounding surprised.

"Yeah, I was thinking." She shrugged her shoulders, sitting on their bed.

"About what?" He questioned, shucking his leather pants off.

"Adjusting." She kept her eyes away from his body, as she scooted back against the blankets.

"You still don't want to look at me." He muttered softly, climbing on the bed. She nodded softly, assuming her usual position. "Alright." He sighed, moving over her.

OoOoO

Clary made her way to the place that repaired the men's clothes. Isabelle smiled up at her, patting the spot next to her. Clary sat down, picking up a pair of ripped pants. She was giving herself an internal pep talk as the women spoke around her. During her internal ramblings she made the mistake of not listening to what they were talking about.

"You know what we should do? We should throw another feast soon. It has been at least a month since your marriage, and moral has really been down." A woman said to Clary, as she threaded a bone needle through leather.

"Another feast?" Clary was taken by surprise. "Why has moral been down?" She furrowed her brow curiously, as she worked to pay more attention.

"A lot of people have been getting sick this year. I don't really know why, but I thought it would be something fun." She shrugged, pursing her lips slightly.

"I feel like we have feast every night though. I can't really tell the difference between your typical dinners and feast." Clary explained, trying to understand them better.

"Our dinners are much more low key. Only the women dance if they want, while the rest of us are exhausted from our day. For our feast, we spend all day preparing food, get painted in traditional markings, and everyone is up on their feet enjoying their night." Another lady explained to her with a lay smile across her face. "What are feast like for you?" She cocked her head to the side, asking curiously.

"We get dressed up in billowing ballgowns, while we dance to classical music, and eat rare delicacies." The women made an odd face at her, as she described their balls. Clary shifted awkwardly, thinking back to all of her experiences in that awful ballroom. "Honestly, they are really boring." She laughed softly, making the rest of the girls snicker. "Everyone has an alternate agenda and were incredibly fake." She shook her head, realizing that the parties here had the potential to be carefree.

"I'm glad we don't have those." The first woman smiled at her. "Do you think you could talk to Jace about having another feast?" She asked, looking hopefully at her.

"I guess I can." Clary agreed, feeling a little surprised someone was requesting something from her. "What's your name by the way?" she cleared her throat, feeling a little embarrassed to that she didn't know it.

"Kaelie." She smiled, threading her needle again.

OoOoO

"Jace," Clary called out, weaving around masses of bodies. He was a hard man to find during the day. She finally caught up with him, panting with breath from the running.

"Clary, are you alright?" He looked at her oddly before scanning his eyes over a desert crop.

"Yes, I was wondering if we could have another feast." She questioned, inhaling a deep breath.

"No, we don't have the time or the occasion." He stated quickly, beginning to walk in another direction.

"What if I could find an occasion then could we have one?" She felt like she was running to keep up with Jace's stride.

"If you can find a decent occasion then we can have a feast." He agreed, stopping in his tracks. "Now, I have some work to do. I'll see you tonight." He kissed her cheek half-heartedly before walking in another direction.

OoOoO

Occasion. Occasion. Occasion. What occasion qualified a feast? They were having a new moon soon. Would that qualify as an occasion? She shook her head at herself, knowing that her husband would never go for that.

"Jace said we need an event for the feast." Clary plopped down next to Isabelle, sighing heavily.

"How about a wedding!" Isabelle suggested, turning her gave across the town. "Those two over there." She gestured to a young blonde girl with a dark-haired boy. "They have been together since they were children, and she helped raise his brothers and sisters after their parents were taken by sun fever. They have been wanting to tie the knot for a while." She explained with a faint smile. "I'll take care of it. You just tell Jace there is going to be a wedding next week for one of his distant cousins." She got to her feet, running over to the couple.

Clary smiled widely, knowing that she was actually able to do something. She got to her feet, feeling successful for the first time since she arrived. She still hadn't been able to find any useful information to send to her brother. It wasn't for a lack of trying because Clary constantly went through Jace's desk, trying to find anything of importance. The only information she really learned was that they were worried about some rations, but she didn't know why that would cause any concern. Her brother gave them the same amount that he does every year.

At least she was going to be able to bring up moral for these people.

OoOoO

A week had gone by, and the time for the feast ad arrived. Clary had volunteered to help prepare Emma for her wedding. She had lost her family when she was a child, so there was no one else to help get her ready. Isabelle had given her a pad of marks that needed to be on Emma skin before the ceremony.

"Wait a second? They didn't wax all the hair off your body?" Clary raised her eyebrows, noticing the light fuzz on her legs.

"Umm… No." The younger girl snickered, looking over her body.

"I will strangle those women. They ripped out all my leg hair out! I thought everyone had to do that before their wedding." She ranted, groaning loudly.

"I'm sorry." Emma snickered at her, as she lightened her leather top.

"It isn't your fault." She pulled, grabbing a small bowl of paint. "I just- ugh! Do you see how patchy my leg hair is growing in?" She pointed out to her legs, feeling overwhelming frustrated. "This is your day, not mine. I need to calm down. This isn't that big of a deal. I'm fine." She muttered, shaking her head. "How are you doing?" She asked, beginning to paint intricate markings on her torso.

"Nervous." She laughed shakily, as she watched Clary. "I'm about to get four kids." She let out a small breath, as she shook her head.

"Four kids?" Clary furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Yeah, Julian has four siblings that are all younger than us, and now I am going to be their mother." She explained, running her hand through her hair.

"I can see why you'd be nervous. I am terrified to become a mother." She snickered, twirling her brush along her skin.

"You are?" She asked, sounding a little shocked.

"Yes," Clary nodded, getting to her feet.

"Why?"

"Because if I have a baby, then that means this is will always be my home and the door way back to the protection of stone walls and warm baths will be closed and locked behind me." She whispered, gulping thickly. She felt guilty at the words tumbling from her mouth, but she knew they were true. She never imaged speaking them to anyone let alone to a young girl on the morning of her wedding.

"You really hate it here?" She furrowed her brow, speaking softly to her.

"I don't hate it. I just don't belong." She breathed, shaking her head. "Sorry to be such a downer." She ran her fingers through her hair, adjusting Emma's locks. "I will adjust. I just need time, and you will adjust too. I'm sure you will be an amazing mother." She grinned widely, squeezing her hand lightly.

"Thank you, Clary." Her lip curled up slightly, looking over herself.

"It was no problem." She assured her with a smile.

OoOoO

Emma and Julian's ceremony was very similar to her own. There was some sort of mystical feeling their weddings, making her grin faintly. The way Julian looked down at Emma made her jealous. Jace never looked at her with a fraction of the affection that was in Julian's gaze, and Clary wondered if he ever would.

Her smile faltered when she realized her thoughts. Why did she even care? She avoided him just as much as he avoided her, and she never looked at him like that either. She never looked at him as if he was her world. They communicated when they had to, so that was that.

Their marriage was pronounced, allowing for an uproar of cheers. Clary clapped her fingers along with everyone else, smiling at the new couple. Emma was crying happy tears, as she held onto her new husband.

Drums started pounding while the young couple was lifted into the air. Clary ignored her previous thoughts, allowing herself to enjoy tonight. She found herself bobbing with the music as the crowd began to dance. Out of nowhere, Isabelle appeared with a wide smile. "Jace," She bowed her head faintly, taking hold of Clary's hands. "Come dance with me." She smiled, dragging her away from the outskirts of the group. "Come on," she encouraged. "Let go." She spoke softly, releasing her hands.

Clary decided that just for tonight. She was going to let go. She was going to let the things that made her stiff and uncomfortable fade into the background, while she enjoyed the evening. Her body no longer moved of her own will, but of the music's. She let her hips move more than she had in her life, even when her abdomen begged her to stop. She could feel the soreness get worse, but she didn't really care.

Somehow a wine glass had gotten into Clary's hand, and she downed it quickly before skipping back into the loop. Isabelle spun her in a circle, as they giggled violently with one another. They moved their feet quickly, stomping to the music and the sounds around them.

After a long while Clary found herself being tugged back to her tent by a very masculine hand. "Jace," She hummed, jumping onto his back.

"What are you doing?" He chuckled, adjusting her on his back.

"Catching a free ride." She snickered, burrowing her face against his neck.

OoOoO

Clary grunted awake when Jace crawled out of bed. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, as her headache set in. She sighed heavily, realizing that she had fallen asleep naked. She groaned softly, holding the blankets to her chest, falling back against the mattress.

"Hungover?" Jace chuckled, fastening his pants.

"A little. I've had worse." She muttered, touching her hand to her brow. "Can you have someone bring in hot water for my tea?" She asked, burrowing into he covers.

"Of course, I'll see you later." He ducked out of the tent, leaving her alone.

Someone brought her some water, and she reached over to put in her tea leaves. She downed it quickly because of the horrible taste before settling back against the bed. She just needed a few more hours of sleep.

"Clary," Isabelle peaked her head inside.

"Yes?" Clary poked her head out of the covers, seeing how haggard she looked.

"Can we just lie in bed today?" She whimpered, stepping in the tent.

"I'm alright with that." She agreed, rubbing her eyes. She reached for her robe, pulling it on under the covers.

"I can't walk back to my tent. I'm sleeping in here." She climbed under the covers next to her, completely collapsing.

"Fine." Clary snickered quietly. "You got so drunk last night." She teased, hitting her friend lightly.

"You drank a lot too." Isabelle squinted her eyes at her friend, looking a little angry at her friend.

"Not as much as you. You look like you can't go out in the sun. I just have a mild headache." She giggled, snuggling under the blankets.

"Screw you." She muttered, burying her face in her pillow. "Tell me a story." She whined.

"What kind of story?" She laughed, shaking her head.

"A story about you when you were kid." She sighed softly, taking a deep breath.

"Ummm…" She hummed, trying to think of something decent. "On my 7th birthday, before my mother died and before I hated my brother. He snuck into my room in the middle of the night, shaking me awake. He wanted to show me something special for my birthday, so I followed him. We walked down so many different hallways that were filled with the most beautiful art I had even seen. I had never even been down these halls before, so I had no idea where we were going. I was mystified and excited. Jonathan steered me into another room and it was filled with so many different kinds of flowers. I gasped loudly, completely in awe about the whole experience. He took my hand, dragging me to a specific part of the gardens. He told me to stare at a bush and wait. After 10 minutes, these buds began to bloom. They almost glowed. It was the best birthday present I ever had." She smiled faintly at the memory, turning her eyes back to her friend.

Isabelle was fast asleep, which she figured was the goal of her story. Clary rolled onto her back as she let her eyes close. She sighed softly, letting a comfortable sleep settle over her.

A/N: Ahhh I love this story so much. Thanks for reading.

I love hearing from you all. I want to get 20 reviews for this chapter because I think you guys can do it. I won't hold anything against you guys if I don't get that many, but I might die of excitement and have to post another chapter this week because I am weak. I hate waiting so much, but I don't want to pass my beta it is such a hard dilemma. If I pass what is finished y'all might have to wait for a while. :)

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