Disclaimer: I do not own the Mortal Instruments series, nor any of the characters. The Mortal Instruments is owned by Cassandra Clare, I merely do this to entertain.
"...I've been having these nightmares….recurring nightmares." She took a deep breath, her voice was shaking. "You see, they're about you and Sebastian, and it's just"-another breath-"He starts to torture you in front of me, and then he threatens me, and at first I thought it was just one or two nightmares, but then it grew into a daily thing, and then he started appearing out of no where whether I'm awake or not, and then my head starts to hurt, and then he starts to talk to me, and-"
"Clary," interrupted Jace. She hadn't realized that she'd been rambling. "Clary, it's fine." She shook her head softly.
"No, that's just the thing. It's not fine. Jace, I don't think you understand; he starts threatening you."
His chuckle was deep and rumbled through his chest. "Sebastian? I can take care of him fine." His face turned serious, and he lifted a hand to brush a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "You, I'm not so sure."
Clary frowned at him,"I can take care of myself, Jace." He nodded quickly.
"Of course you can, but what if he catches you off guard, or when I'm not there...that's what scares me the most." He looked into her eyes, gold meeting emerald. "Clary," he hesitated,"Are you going to tell anyone else about this? We could go to the Silent Brothers, or maybe Maryse. We could even train more, teach you some ways to kill someone single-handedly…." He trailed off, his fingers absentmindedly drawing little circles on the inside of her palms.
"Maybe we could just train some more, I don't want the others to know," she said softly. Jace nodded. "Jace," she whispered,"You know that you don't have to help me with this if you don't want to. I know that I can be quite bothersome, and I don't want you to feel obligated like you'd have to help me all of the time." After a moment, she added," Are you sure that I'm worth the effort?"
Jace's eyes shot at her, bewildered. "Clary, what are you talking about? We've been through everything together, and now I'm looking at you," he said, "and you're asking me if I care about you. You're asking me if I love you or not? As if I could stop loving you. As if I would want to give up the thing that makes me stronger than anything else ever has. I never dared give much of myself to anyone before – bits of myself to the Lightwoods, to Isabelle and Alec, but it took years to do it – but, Clary, since the first time I saw you, I have belonged to you completely. I still do. If you want me," his hand reached out to cup her cheek,"Do you want me?"
She shook her head, 'No', and she watched as his expression was crestfallen. Clary smirked and playfully slapped her palm against his cheek lightly. "Relax, Lover boy, there's no chance of you getting rid of me any time soon."
The corner of Jace's mouth pulled upward, and she could tell that he was trying not to grin. "By the Angel, Clary. I pour my heart out to you and then you reject me? Have you no shame?"
She smiled crookedly. "None." She looked at him skeptically, "Did you really mean that?"
"Every word," he whispered hoarsely. He tried to stifle a yawn, but she noticed.
Chuckling, she leaned back onto the bed, Jace in tow. They collapsed onto the mattress next to each other, but not touching. His hands lay on either side of him, his arms at his sides. He seemed barely to be breathing; she wasn't sure that she was breathing herself. She slid her own hand across the bedsheet, just far enough that their fingers touched-so lightly that she would have probably hardly been aware of it had she been touching anyone else but Jace; as it was, the nerve endings in her fingertips pricked softly, as if she were holding them over a low flame.
Clary felt him tense beside her and then relax. Jace had shut his eyes, and his lashes cast fine shadows against the curve of his cheekbones. His mouth curled into a smile as if he sensed her watching him, and she wondered how he would look in the morning, with his hair messed and sleep circles under his eyes. Despite everything, the thought gave her a jolt of happiness. She laced her fingers through his. "Good night," she whispered. He squeezed her hand in reply. With their hands clasped like children in a fairy tale, and though her mind was racing with thoughts, she fell asleep beside him in the dark, a smile playing on her lips as well.
Simon wandered the halls of the Institute for a while. Geez, this place sure is big. Magnus had somehow been able to create a loophole so that he could actually enter the building without being blocked by some invisible barrier. Sighing, he descended upon the weapons room, seeing Isabelle sitting on a wooden stool, sharpening her assortment of weapons strewed out on the table in front of her. Her snake bracelet wound up her left arm, the silver shining brightly against the reflected sunlight streaming in through the window.
He involuntarily winced, but recovered rather quickly. Simon could see the ruby necklace winking at Isabelle's throat. He coughed once, and she looked up and smiled, gesturing for him to sit, and he leaned on the corner of the table, watching her delicately wipe off the dried blood on a Seraph blade. Simon could smell the foul demon blood, and he screwed his face up at the odor. "So," he said, trying to get rid of the awkward silence,"...What do you want to do today?" Gosh, he was horrible at conversations. It was a miracle that Isabelle noticed him, let alone go out with him.
She leaned back, peering up at him with an amused expression. "I need new clothes," she stated. He groaned, and her smile grew into a grin. "Come on, it's not like anyone else is going to go with me. Clary is too busy doing who knows what with Jace, and Magnus is far too busy with Alec, probably doing the exact same thing that Clary and Jace are doing." Isabelle batted her eyes.
"Great," he grunted, "I'm your boyfriend, yet I'm your last choice."
"When we're done, we can go back to your place to watch anime or something."
He raised his eyebrows. "Assuming that we get back this year." Isabelle's eyes widened and he quickly amended, "You know what? I think I'm in the mood for shopping today, let's go." She giggled and got up, shoving several daggers into various places of her clothing. Simon didn't understand how a knife wedged between the heel of your foot and your high-heeled shoe was comfortable, but he didn't complain. "Protection is better than no protection at all," is what his mom always said. Of course, she was giving him the sex talk, but it had the same meaning.
Simon sighed heavily, "Alright, let's get this overwith. Off to the mall we go." Isabelle walked up and frowned at him.
"Simon," she scolded, "Where's the jolly spirit?" Isabelle used both of her thumbs to draw up the corners of his mouth. He stared back at her, the upper half of his face; unamused and bored, and the lower half of his face; forcibly smiling, were unmatched. She giggled and leaned up to peck his cheek, and grabbed his hand to lead him out of the room, Simon shaking his head the whole way.
"Oomph!" Clary was thrown down onto the cushioned blue matt in the training room. Jace had swept his feet out from under her. Again. She groaned and leaned up on her elbows, glaring at him. "I know I'm supposed to be defending myself, but can't you find some other way to knock me down besides kicking my feet out from under me? Bruises are already littering the lower half of my body." Sure enough, there were bruises on her freckled legs, exposed due to her sweat pants, rolled up barely past the knee. Jace looked down at her raising an eyebrow, barely breaking a sweat, whereas she was drenched in it. "I'm not really the kind of person who would excel at gym.," she continued, "I'm more the artistic type."
"What," he chuckled," Are you going to draw your enemies to death?"
"Yes," she said matter-of-factly, "I can, seeing as I can create new runes."
Jace snorted at her, "Like they'd let you. 'Oh, Sweet demon o' mine , if you would be ever so kind as to not maul me to death while i draw a particular symbol on you, a symbol that would end your life.'"
Clary scowled at him. "You done mocking me yet?"
"Not quite, why?"
She jumped up and tried to swipe at his face, but he easily blocked her with his palm. "You're going to have to do better than that." She narrowed her eyes and brought up her knee to his family jewels, and his eyes widened as he jumped back. "Hey, watch it. I might not be able to produce beautiful Jace juniors because of you." He wiped his forehead and pretended to look at a watch, though his wrist was bare.
"Okay, that should be it for today." He eyed her legs, "Pretty sure you're going to be sore tomorrow, better ease up for now." Jace turned around, and Clary seized the opportunity to jump his back. Unfortunately, he sidestepped at the last second and caught her before she face-planted into the wooden door. She sighed and hung her head in defeat.
"Damn it," she muttered.
"There there," Jace said, propping her up on her feet, "I've killed more demons than anyone else my age, nothing to be ashamed of."
"Show off."
The cloaked figure walked down the long hallway, ignoring the cries and desperate pleas of the imprisoned. He was dragging a young werewolf behind him, trying his best to keep him from slipping out of his grasp as the boy started to squirm and scream. The man sighed and thumped him on the head with his fist, and the boy immediately passed out. Hoisting him up, he carried him on his shoulder and carried on forward. He brushed forward and yanked open a door, pulling it shut forcefully. He walked into the middle of the room, and another person stepped out of the shadows to meet him.
"Eli, what a pleasant surprise." Sebastian's voice was similar to smooth honey. His fair blond hair looked more white than ever, the moonlight drifting through into the room. Eli nodded in recognition. "I see you've brought another one?"
Eli nodded, placing the boy the floor none too carefully. the werewolf moaned and shifted, scrunching up his face, but did not wake out of his unconscious state. His attention shifted back up to the fair-haired boy, his blond locks brighter than ever from the moonlight streaming through the large windows. "Now, where's my end of the deal?" Eli asked gruffly. Sebastian chuckled, his eyes darkening.
"You must really not know me then. I don't give a deal," he leaned closer, his gaze menacing, "I get what I want." Sebastian's hand shot out from his sides and were around his throat. Eli's hands scrambled, trying to pry his cold hands off of him, but he found no such luck. He just squeezed harder, and after a moment of pointless struggle, his eyes rolled back into his head. Sebastian just scoffed and muttered, "Weak," before kicking the lifeless body to the side.
He then grabbed a syringe full of a thick black liquid- demon blood - and stuck it into the werewolf boy sprawled on the ground before him. The boy whimpered, and his eyes shot open, black and lifeless. He swiftly sat up, deftly standing up fully to stare at Sebastian with an unfocused gaze. Sebastian's smile was cold and twisted, like announcing one's love to another before stabbing them in the back with a knife. He grabbed the boy by the collar and lead him outside to another cellar, one that was already crowded; he was going to have to find more places to store his little creations.
"In you go," was all he said, before shoving the boy onto the floor. Sebastian left without another glance behind him,a smirk playing at his lips.
I've got you now, Clary. You and your little shadowhunter friends are powerless against my merciless army.
Jace was showing Clary some different defense moves in the training room when they heard a loud crash; a thud and glass breaking. They looked at each other nervously, and Jace tossed her a Seraph blade. She whispered its name and watched as he did the same to another.
"Stay up here, I'm going down there to see what it is," he whispered.
"Do you really think I'm going to stay up here?"
Jace's face was serious, as was his tone, "I mean it Clary." She blew a strand of hair out of her face, but nodded reluctantly. She watched as he grabbed his stele from his pocket and drew several runes on himself, and slipped out of the door. Clary grabbed her stele from her pocket and started to draw some on herself as well. When she was done, she ran to the window and peered downward. She gasped and jumped away from the window.
Outside, the ground was littered with demons, which was impossible because it was still daylight outside. Yet, there were literally hundreds of them surrounding the Institute. Clary heard a cry of surprise, and her heart jolted. Jace was down there. Everyone was down there. She raced to the door and threw it open, taking the stairs two at a time. Her mind was racing with thoughts, praying to herself that everyone was alright. When she reached the end of the staircase, the scene unfolded before her.
Isabelle was busy slicing at a demon with her whip, Simon pouncing another. Alec was stabbing a demon from behind, while Magnus was shooting blue sparks everywhere. She noticed that Maryse and Robert were back to back, lashing out at any creatures who approached. Clary finally spotted Jace, and saw that he was busy fending three demons at once. Hurrying over, she stabbed one straight in the chest and immediately set to work on the other. Jace's eyes widened at her arrival, but most of his attention shifted back to the thing that was trying to rip head off.
"Clary," he yelled through clenched teeth over the noise, "By the Angel Clary, what are you doing here? I thought I told you to stay upstairs."
She stared at him incredulously for a second, "Did you really think that I was going to sit around once I noticed that a hundred demons were crowded outside the Institute?!" A Ravenor demon jumped at her, and Jace slashed at it with his Seraph blade, only inches above her head. She gulped and turned her attention back to killing the damned things. When she turned around, she spotted a flash of bright pale yellow lurking at the top of the staircase. Frowning, her eyes widened as she recognized Sebastian, overlooking the scene of bloodshed.
When he spotted her, his eyes grew partially larger in shock, but he recovered quickly. Grinning madly, he winked at her, and nausea rolled over her, making Clary suddenly have the urge to throw up. She closed her eyes for a moment, but when she opened them, she found that she was no longer in the midst of the demonic war. Instead, she was back in the training room, Sebastian standing across the room, creating a wide berth between them.
Instinctively, she made a beeline for the door, but was shoved back as he suddenly appeared by her side. She landed on her back, her head thudding hard against the wooden floor, causing her to groan. Sebastian crouched down, and brought down a hand to stroke some hair from her face. She immediately cringed away from his touch, causing the corner of his mouth to turn down. When he tried to bring another hand up, she screamed. "Don't touch me!"
He sighed, and he started to feel around his pocket until he found a stele. Producing it, he pinned both of her arms over her head, placing his knees over her legs, and drew an immobilizing rune on the inside of her arm. It created a brief stinging sensation before subsiding, and soon her limbs felt like they were filled with lead; unable to move. Struggled she did, but it was no use. Sebastian smiled sadly down at her, almost sympathetic. "My apologies Clary, but you'd might understand that I can't carry you flailing and kicking and resisting me all the way back."
It took her some effort, but she managed to move her mouth, and her speech was slurred and heavy, "T-Take me where?"
He leaned in closer, his breath tickling at the nape of her neck. "I'd like to keep that a surprise." Clary heard a loud thump, and a someone cursed outside the room. The door flung open, and in walked Jace, bloodied, tattered, and sweating like hell, being held by two other men she didn't recognize at her side. One of them was bald, with a nasty cut on the side of his face. The other had dark black hair, a little on the pudgy side. Her breath caught in her throat, and his head shot up to look at her. When he saw how Sebastian was positioned on top of her, he lunged at him, only to be restrained by the two men.
Sebastian got off of Clary, brushing some imaginary dirt off of his pants. "Well then, now that we're all gathered." He nodded at the men, and they shoved Jace forward. They stopped at the wall before them, and Sebastian hauled Clary up and held her in his arms. She glared at him, but he pretended not to notice. He set her down, and took out a knife. Before she could react, he slashed at her arm, where the rune was. Blood came running down, and Jace shouted out.
A sudden pain erupted, and she winced as more blood came streaming out of her wound. "I'm sorry Clary, I wasn't thinking before I drew that rune on you. If you would be ever so kind to draw a Portal for us?"
Clary looked at him incredulously, "And why, pray tell, would you think I'd do that for you?"
He chuckled darkly at her, gesturing to Jace. "You wouldn't want your little knight in shining armor to get hurt, now would you?" He snapped his fingers, and the one with the scar stepped back, only to punch Jace in the face. She screamed as he continued to brutalize him, over and over again. She drew the line when they threw him on the floor and repeatedly kicked him in the stomach. He screwed his face up in pain. Clary whipped around to a smirking Sebastian.
"Okay, okay, I'll do it! Just stop hurting him!" He nodded and the man stopped, Jace drooped in the men's arms groaning. Her breath shaking, she grabbed the stele that Sebastian offered her, hastily drawing a Portal rune on the wall. It suddenly flared to life, and was soon ready. She heard Jace cry out one more time, and something hit the back of her head.
Darkness shrouded her vision, and like before, she fell into unconsciousness with Sebastian's voice in her head. "Finally…"
Hey there. Sorry for the majorly crappy chapter, but I just wanted to get this overwith and posted…..so….yep. Please review.