Hello!

Alright, so I will try and make this quick...

Basically, I have a proposal for you all (will you marry me? not really).

For those of you loyal readers, any questions, constructive criticism, etc. that you think can make this story better...

I want it.

Alright, with that, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own TMI or its characters.

I just give them another couple to ship.

Because between Sizzy not being a couple yet, Malec being broken up, and Clace currently at a distance, what's a fangirl to do?

When I finally got inside the Institute, throwing my boots, my jacket, and a whole bunch of sharp objects into my room, I immediately walked to Ethan's room, where I could hear two people arguing from inside.

I pressed my ear against the door, and I caught part of the conversation.

"…I don't mind if you do. I was just curious," Ethan was saying.

"Well it's none of your business, kid, so loosen up," Another voice, Liam's, replied.

"It's my sister, you bet your ass it's my business!" Ethan exclaimed, and my curiosity spiked at the mention of someone who could only be me.

"Ethan, I'm not telling you anything."

"So you don't love my sister?" Ethan asked skeptically, and I felt my heart stop. I hadn't ever said those three crucial words to Liam before, and he hadn't either.

Liam paused. "I never said that," He sighed finally, and I figured that was my cue to interrupt.

I knocked on the door, and their voices instantly stopped.

"Who is it?" Ethan called, and I rolled my eyes.

"Pizza Hut, who the hell did you think?" I laughed, opening the door and poking my head inside. The two were sitting on the bed, holding pieces of cloth and seraph blades, and I knew they must have been polishing them.

"Worst Pizza Hut employee I've ever met," Ethan muttered, and I glared at him, while Liam was staring at my arm with a worried expression.

"What happened?" He asked, motioning towards the faded iratze on my arm, "I thought you were just with Jace and Magnus?"

The mention of the warlock stung, and I ignored it. "I was, but there was a demon attack over at Luke's house, and we were called in to help. It's fine."

"Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, my respect for Magnus disintegrated, but other than that it was quite uneventful."

Ethan raised an eyebrow at this. "Did Magnus do a strip tease again?"

I paled at this. One party, and I couldn't look at Magnus the same way ever again. "How did you know about that?"

He shrugged. "Pete told me stories."

I groaned at the idea of my little brother and the werewolf interacting.

"Wait, who's Pete?" Liam asked, and I ignored him.

"So what happened with Magnus?" Ethan continued impatiently, and I cringed.

"Let's just say he brought up something I don't like to remember in a very rude way," I amended, and the looks on their faces immediately changed into anger.

"Where is he now?" Liam asked at the same time Ethan said, "We will beat him up for you."

I rolled my eyes at the protective gestures. "Don't worry about it, I already snapped at him." I assured them, and they relaxed slightly. I packed quite a punch.

"So why did you need the healing rune?" Ethan asked, worried again.

"I cracked my head."

Ethan started laughing, and I glared at him, smacking his arm.

"So wait a minute, who's Pete?" Liam interrupted, still on the same subject. I rolled my eyes.

"My old werewolf lover," I winked at him, and his tanned Australian skin paled considerably.

"Excuse me?"

"No he isn't, you moron, he's my friend."

"Oh," Liam sighed in relief, "That's good."

"But I did have a werewolf lover at one point, just not Pete." I added, and Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"Are you trying to give Liam a brain hemorrhage?" He asked, and I shrugged.

"I wasn't deliberately planning on it, but I wouldn't be completely unprepared if he did."

"Can we end this subject?" Liam asked quickly, shivering.

"Yes. Goodnight, Ethan." I said, pulling Liam towards the door.

"Hey, hey, hey, separate rooms, people! Liam Darkstrider, you keep your filthy Aussie hands off of her or I swear by the Angel-"

"Ethan, go to bed."

"Fine."

When we got back to my room, I immediately took a quick shower, changing into my pajamas and brushing my teeth before walking back into the room.

Liam was staring up at the ceiling, and I jumped up next to him, following his gaze.

"I spy with my little eye… white paint." I announced, and he rolled his eyes.

"I was thinking, not spying."

"If you were imagining me naked, I will castrate you with a spoon."

Liam winced. "That sounds painful."

"I imagine it would be."

"No, for once I was not imagining you naked," He replied.

"Well then what were you thinking about?" I asked, and he glanced at me. By the Angel, he was far too handsome for me. I don't care what Jace chose to believe, between the handsome green eyes and the wavy brown hair, Liam was absolutely gorgeous. Even more so than Jace.

"I'm worried about this whole situation with Valentine," He said, and though it sounded like a perfectly reasonable explanation, the way he said it made it sound… like a lie.

"Okay," I said quietly, and he didn't seem to believe I believed him, but he didn't say anything to prove otherwise.

"Well, I for one am tired," He announced, and I nodded in agreement.

We sat there in silence, and just as I may have fallen asleep, Liam interrupted me. "Rose?"

"You know, for someone who just said they were tired, darling, you do bring up quite a few conversations."

"Rose, what Magnus said… what did he say?"

I sighed. "Basically, he told me that we were not friends, that I had just come looking for his help back when I was attacked, which I had, but I had always thought we were friends."

Liam thought over this. "Was he upset about something?"

"I think he may have been. He seems to be having relationship problems with my darling brother."

"Well then he probably didn't mean it, you know."

"Maybe, but even if he didn't it was still a pretty low blow."

Liam sighed, stroking my hair absentmindedly. "I'm sure Magnus didn't mean to hurt your feelings," He murmured, and I groaned.

"Don't say that. It makes me sound all girly and emotional."

"Well then what shall I say, Ms. Manly and Impassive?"

"Hmm, maybe something along the lines of, 'Magnus is a moron and I will happily bitch-slap him for you'."

"Well, then that is what I say."

I laughed quietly, and I drifted off to sleep in Liam's arms.

When Liam and I barged Luke's house, leaving Ethan at home with the promise that Luke's house was uneventful, we found everyone sitting around with a blessed mug in each of their hands, causing me to perk up.

"Coffee?" Liam asked eagerly, sensing my reaction.

"I'll get you both some," Clary sighed, heaving herself up off the sofa.

"Put milk and sugar in it, all that jazz! I hate the bitterness!" I called, and Luke was looking at me in disbelief.

"Then how do you drink coffee?"

I grinned at him. "I make it just as sweet as I am."

Magnus snorted. "Must not have that much sugar in it."

I turned to glare at him, and Liam grabbed my arm, remembering what I had told him. Magnus, realizing what he had said, paled instantly, and he shut up.

Looking around the room after Clary handed me a mug of coffee, I noticed that Maia was also here, sitting in the corner of the sofa, looking uncomfortable.

I walked towards her, towing Liam by the hand, and flopped us down next to her, where she raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"Here to make another werewolf comment?"

I shrugged. "No, I'm fresh out. You can try Liam here, though. He's much nicer, too."

She smiled slightly, but before she could comment the door banged open, revealing Jace and Alec, especially identifiable by their black clothing.

I noticed Magnus rip a towel off of his head, and I resisted the urge to bust out laughing.

I succeeded, surprisingly.

The second Maia saw the two Shadowhunters, she stood up, stalking into the kitchen.

Jace's eyes set on me. "Lovely, you brought the Australian."

I glared at him. "He's a Shadowhunter, Jace, and one with a name, too."

"One that I could not care less to hear."

"Of course you couldn't, you ungrateful jackass."

"Oh, here we go with the name calling. It's far too early in the morning for this, Rose."

"Oh it's never too early for me to take that there lamp on that table and shove it-"

"Doughnuts! I brought doughnuts!" Alec interrupted quickly, and everyone smiled at him gratefully before I could finish my sentence.

I jumped up, grabbing two doughnuts, one of which I handed to Liam, who just rolled his eyes at my previous antics.

"So what were we supposed to be talking about?" Clary asked, and Jace shrugged.

"Well for starters, I think Magnus was going to yell at me."

"You bet your balls, he was." I muttered, and Liam coughed, a sure sign that he was about to laugh.

As the two started arguing, I drained my coffee cup, as Liam watched me in disbelief.

"I heard somewhere that caffeine was a drug, and I'm pretty sure you have an addiction." He pointed out, and I shrugged.

"Coffee is good for Shadowhunters. Clears the brain."

"Hell, if that's the case then let me at it," He muttered, and I rolled my eyes as he took a large swig from the mug before him.

"There's one thing I don't get," Luke was saying, and I glanced up.

"Only one? Are you sure?" I asked, and he rolled his eyes, but continued, "The three of you went out after me when I didn't come back to the house." He glanced from Clary, to Jace, and back to me.

"Four of us," Clary said. "Simon came with."

This didn't seem to please Luke any. "Fine. The four of you. There were three demons, but Clary says you only killed one of them. So what happened?"

"Well, all I know is, I was bleeding out next to the water, and the things ran off." I spoke up, and Liam winced at my choice of words.

"But why would it do that?" Alec inquired. "Three of them, four of you-maybe it felt outnumbered?"

"Not to sound rude, but there were only two experienced Shadowhunters, and they were Jace and Rose. An untrained Shadowhunter and a scared vampire…" Magnus trailed off, and I ignored the look he gave me.

"I think it might have been me," Clary spoke up. "I think maybe I scared it off."

I shared a glance with Liam. "Clary, I don't think-"

"I don't mean I scared it off because I'm so terrifying," Clary said. "I think it was this." She raised her hand, revealing a Mark that I had never seen before.

The room went silent.

"Have you ever seen that before?" Liam asked, and I shook my head.

"I'm not sure what it is, or what it means," Clary said, lowering her arm. "But it doesn't come from the Gray Book."

"But Clary, all runes come from the Gray Book," I protested.

"Not this one," Clary argued firmly. "I saw it in a dream."

I blinked at her, shocked. She didn't sound sarcastic… "Is that an insult, Fray? Because I only had one cup of caffeine today, sweetheart, I don't have time for games." Liam covered my mouth with his hand, looking at me in surprise.

"I'm not playing any games, Rose. Don't you remember when we were in the Seelie Court-"

Jace cringed, and so did I. Liam looked at me in concern, but I shook my head. Don't want that memory.

Clary argued, and the idea of creating new runes slowly sunk into my mind. It sounded reasonable, especially when I thought of the time we had gone to the Silent City, and she had carved a rune into the door, one that didn't have the effects of any reasonable Opening rune.

"Maybe it's possible," I murmured, and I glanced at Liam, who had moved his hand to where it was resting on my shoulder. He shrugged, unsure.

"Rose?" Clary asked, and I turned to her.

"Go get your sketchbook. Let's test this out." I suggested, and Jace shot me a warning look. I just shrugged, earning me a glare.

When Clary walked back in the room, we had all stood up, me standing by Alec's side with Liam hovering behind me, and I silently appreciated the space Alec had put between himself and Magnus.

There was only so much of that warlock I could handle before the weapons came out.

Only so much.

"What do you want me to do?" Clary asked, and Jace snorted from his seat on the piano bench.

"What do you think?" He asked, and I smacked him upside the head, none too gently. He growled slightly, rubbing the back of his head in pain.

"Just try doing what you've done before," I instructed, "Draw a rune that comes to mind."

"I can't just do it on command like that. Not without an idea." She admitted, and I frowned.

"Idea?"

Clary nodded. "I mean, I don't even know what runes already exist. I need to know a meaning, a word, before I can draw a rune for it."

"How about fearless?" Jace offered quietly, and I glanced at him in surprise.

Clary, surprisingly, turned to look at me, and I shrugged in response. "There aren't any runes to take away fears. I guess it's worth a shot."

Clary sat down at the dining room table, taking a pencil, and started to draw, her hand flowing across the page in a bold design I couldn't keep up with.

"Do you think she can do it?" Liam whispered, and Alec glanced up at me, wondering about my answer.

I thought for a second. "Absolutely," I murmured confidently, and Liam grinned.

Clary suddenly ripped the paper from her notebook, holding it up triumphantly. "There," She smiled, and I leaned in to look at it.

"Cool," Alec commented, and I nodded encouragingly.

Jace got to his feet and crossed the room, taking the sheet of paper out of her hand. "But does it work?"

"Well, it's not like she made it to look pretty, Jace."

Jace sighed. "I understand that, Rosie, but if it has no effect, then what are we to do?"

"Are you volunteering to try it out, Shadowhunter Barbie?"

"Coming from the girl with the purple hair."

"Ladies, ladies, back to your corners," Magnus ordered lazily, and I shot a glare at him that made the High Warlock wince.

"I'll volunteer, though," Jace grinned, holding up a stele, "Who wants to do me?"

I grimaced. "I can promise you, it's not me."

"No," Luke protested. "Jace, you already behave as if you've never heard the word 'fear.' I fail to see how we're going to be able to tell the difference if it does work on you."

I choked back a laugh, and Jace glared at me.

"Try it on me," Alec suggested unexpectedly. "I could do with some fearlessness." He started to slide off his jacket, and I grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"Wait, what if something happens?" I asked worriedly, going into sister mode.

Jace placed a hand over his chest, feigning hurt. "Why weren't you worried about me?"

"Because you're a pain in my ass," I snapped, "I wouldn't mind seeing a rune backfire on you."

Alec moved me aside, walking up to Jace. "Mark my arm," He ordered, and Jace looked down at his stele.

Jace traced a black Mark between two existing runes on Alec's arm, and when it was done, I had to say, it looked pretty badass.

I observed Alec's face worriedly, trying to detect a change. "Do you feel any different?"

He shook his head. "Not really."

They started discussing possible phobias, but a minute later the doorbell rang, and everyone looked up, surprised.

Luke crossed the room, swinging the door open, and what was there made everyone stiffen in surprise.

I groaned. "Oh crap."

So, that isn't a cliffy, because every reader knows who's at the door.

Like I said, read and review!

Oh, and Australians?

I love you. You guys are by far my favorite.

I've always loved Australia.

So if you're Australian (and not creeped out by my fascination with sexy Australian men *cough* Hemsworth brothers *cough*) let me know!

See you later!

- EasyIsTheDescent