"Let's go through this one more time." Inquisitor Penhallow flipped through her clip board one more time. "You say that the body just showed up on the front porch."

By the Angel, Jace wanted to rip his hair out of his head. Grace's funeral wasn't even over before Aline grabbed him and pulled him inside, asking questions about the "incident". He knew it was her job and all, but he wanted to slap her because of her lack of patience. It wasn't like he could fight her, sadly, and he had let her pull him into the house, while Clary glared at her in her beautiful white dress. She still hated Aline, even if she knew the girl wasn't even interested in men. Her jealousy always made Jace laugh, but this was no time to joke.

Aline hadn't changed much throughout the years. Her Asian heritage was still the most distinguished features on her face, and she kept her black hair long and in a braid down her back. Unlike the other women in dresses, she was in a white suit, ready for business. How she even got the job as the Inquisitor still blew his mind, even after the years. Alec was always shunned for his sexuality, but Aline somehow got one of the strongest jobs in the Shadowhunting world? What the hell is that? Oh, yeah, her family connections..

Ugh, he hated politics. "How many times do I have to tell you the same story? The doorbell rang, and the body was there. No one had heard from Grace in years, and I can't tell you much other than it was most likely caused by Leviathan."

"Here we go again," Aline sighed as she grabbed her cup of coffee. They were sitting in the drawing room, mainly for the private discussion, facing each other across the table. "I get that you've had this obsession with Leviathan lately–"

"The Clave gave me that assignment," Jace interjected. "I never really cared about the damn demon until my in-laws were suddenly kidnapped. I'm not sorry that all I care about is finding my family."

Aline ignored him, looking back to her clipboard. "What of the boy? Chase."

"He's an ass," was all that Jace had to say about him. Even though their conversation earlier warmed the kid up to Jace a little, it didn't give him much in the prospect of being with Emily. There was still a trust issue. Chase always seemed to be hiding something, but Jace couldn't be sure about that. And Emily sure as hell wasn't going to side with her father on this, so going to her was pointless. This was just a big mess…

Aline wrote something on the clipboard, being the old fashioned woman she is. There were plenty of ways in the day and age to record information, faster ways, but she just stuck with the pen and paper. "Sounds like someone else I know. And where was he today while his mother was being cremated? He didn't want to give her a proper funeral?"

"The cremation was easier and took less time to set up."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Because I don't know the answer to that question," Jace shot back as he leaned forward a bit. "I couldn't tell you why Chase wasn't at his mother's funeral, so why don't we just skip the part where you try to get pointless information and ask me what you really care about?"

The reaction out of Aline was exactly what he wanted. Every Inquisitor had the same look when they got angry, frustrated, or felt their authority was being overruled. Aline's lips pulled together in a tight line. Her grip on the pen tightened. But she tried her best to keep calm. "Jace, we both know that this is protocol. I'm not asking these to waste your time."

Likely story. "Look, I've told you everything already. Leviathan and Lilith are working together, and we have reason to believe that Agramon is with them as well. Other than that, we don't know shit."

"Then you're not doing your job, are you?" Her voice reeked of challenge, and Jace felt like strangling her. "As head of the Institute, it's your job to keep your section safe, and you're failing at that. Miserably, I might add."

Yes, the need to strangle her was growing with every second, but Jace knew he couldn't do anything about it. In a way, she was right, although he had a ton of evidence that he had yet to share with her. He couldn't tell her everything though! If she found out that Chase was working with Leviathan at one point, now lived in the Institute, and might still be planning things, it wouldn't be something that would get the Inquisitor on his good side. She was already upset about a warlock living here, and a werewolf that used to.

"I'm doing the best I can," Jace informed her. His voice had dropped, turning soft. "Aline, all I'm asking for is help from the Clave when we need it. After everything we've been through, I know that you can at least get a couple extra hands around here."

The change in heart shocked Aline to say the least. After Jace's malice vanished, he slowly watched as Aline's disappeared too. She pushed the clipboard aside, looking down at her perfectly manicured hands. "Jace, that was years ago, and you know that I just get information and punish those who break the law. The Consul and the Clave are the one that controls everything, where people go, what they do. You know I want to help, as I always have, but there's really nothing I can do."

"The Consul is your father!" Jace practically screamed out. "You can't ask for one favor? He was a good friend to Luke, to my parents. He should want to help!"

Aline sighed, dropping her head to her hands. "Jace, it isn't that easy. The Consul has more duties than to those that he cares about. And if he started going on hunches and guesses since you have no leading information on the subject, he could be stripped of his title. Until you get a location, maybe even more evidence, there isn't anything my family can do."

All the fight in Jace faded, and he slumped back in his seat, gripping his hair in frustration. Nothing was working out, at all, and he thought that maybe Aline could help a little bit. That plan crashed and burned quickly. He should've known better. Even though Aline used to help family more than care about the Clave, she couldn't do that anymore. She had duties, and there was no way she would go against those duties, dishonor her father, and Jace knew that.

But sometimes he wished that the Aline he knew would come out and help. During the war, she was more about loyalty to her friendships than anything that had to do with the Clave. Now, it seemed like the law was all that she cared about, but the Inquisitor position does that to people. That's why there was no way in hell any of his family would ever take up that position. Of course, he could easily give her some information, but Chase refused to give the location of the meeting place exactly. And Jace had a feeling that it was for good reason. At least, that's what he hoped.

"I really am sorry, Jace," Aline said. Her eyes were sincere as Jace looked down at her. "I wish there was something I could do. I couldn't imagine being in your position, but you have to understand that there isn't much that can be done."

He merely nodded, dropping his head to the table. "I know."

"You still hate Aline, don't you?" Isabelle mused as she and Clary hopped into the elevator. The funeral was finally over, and Michael said that he could finish up; dealing with the ashes while Magnus created the portal to send the other Shadowhunters back to Idris.

"I don't hate her," she mumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. Her white dress was short with spaghetti straps, and it made Clary's pale skin appear a shade darker, which was still snow white compared to Isabelle's. "I just hate the idea of him being alone with her."

"Why?"

"Because last time they were alone, in a room, by themselves, I walked in on a make-out fest that I wasn't a fan of."

Isabelle rolled her eyes. She still couldn't believe that Clary held onto that for so many years. It had been so long in the past, and she knew that Jace loved her. There was no point in constantly being angry about it, considering Aline was about as straight as a circle, but Clary did anyway. "That was so long ago that I barely even remember it. Are you going to hate every girl that ever kissed Jace? Because that's going to be quite a few females around this area."

The elevator clicked and the doors swung open to the living room. "I can, and I will," Clary answered as she stepped out, heading for the stairs.

Isabelle followed, her heels clicking on the floor. "You're just being stubborn again."

Her parabatia actually laughed. "And that surprises you?" Clary winked at her, and then just kept walking. Isabelle shook her head and followed the most stubborn woman in the world through the Institute, not even sure where she was going. But when Clary stopped in the middle of the hall, peaking into a room on the right, it finally clicked what was going on.

"Are you kidding me?" Isabelle whispered angrily as she peaked around Clary. Luckily, because of the heels, Isabelle easily towered over Clary more than usual and looked in the drawing room, finding Jace and Aline talking at the table. "You're seriously spying on them?"

Clary shrugged. "Well, it's either them, or we go find the lovebirds. Angel knows what they're up to."

That was an even worse idea in Isabelle's eyes. She still has yet to have a conversation with Chase after… She couldn't believe that she did that. The rage that she felt when Conan came back with the picture was something that she couldn't control, and she almost killed her "son" because of it. Clary tried to tell her later on that it was okay, that Chase understood, but Isabelle didn't buy it. She's the one that knew Chase, the one who had lived with him for four years, not Clary. The red head wouldn't actually know how Chase was feeling, even if she tried to understand.

But Isabelle had a pretty good idea. If anything, he'd wish that she'd drop dead, and Isabelle didn't blame him. What she did was unthinkable, and she was probably a monster in his eyes. After all the times that she stood by his side, most of the time against Jace and Emily, after all the arguments that she had with Jace about saying that her son was a good kid should've made her think twice about actually wrapping her whip around his throat and pulling. But it didn't. Chase never gave her a reason to hurt him, and he was only doing what he had to. Maybe Simon's disappearance was hurting her more than she could handle.

She shook her head, trying to get her thoughts together. One thing was for sure though. "I doubt Chase would want to see me right now."

"You don't know that," Clary said as she pulled the drawing room door shut with a click. Her expression turned to a stern, parental one as she gazed up at Isabelle. "And we're going to see him and work all this out."

Isabelle protested all the way there, but what Clary wants, Clary gets. No words changed Clary's mind as she drug her friend up the stairs to the third floor. Bedrooms lined the hall and everyone's room was silent, including Chase's when they came up to it. The door was propped open, and Isabelle gasped when she looked inside.

The room was destroyed, like a tornado came through after an earthquake hit. The window was broken with shattered glass on the floor of the carpet, but wasn't too bad looking. The mirror by the bathroom door had been shattered, spider webbing the glass. Other miscellaneous objects covered the floor; some still in one piece while others were broken, but that wasn't what actually caught the pair's attention.

On the bed, covered up to the waist in sheets, were Chase and Emily. Emily's tank top was still on and it wasn't like they were actually doing anything, so at least Isabelle didn't have to deal with an angry Clary. They were dead asleep as Chase wrapped Emily in his arms, pulling her back to his front and letting her head rest on his arm. His face was buried in her hair, blowing some of past her ear as he breathed deeply. And if Isabelle didn't know and better, she could've sworn that it looked like Emily was smiling in her sleep.

Isabelle couldn't help herself. She let an "Awwww" slip past her lips as she leaned against the door frame. They were cute together, whether Clary wanted to accept that fact or not.

To Izzy's surprise, Clary chuckled at the scene before her, stepping up next to Isabelle. "We should've known that this would happen eventually."

After the fights and arguments that Emily and Chase had, how were we even supposed to know that? Isabelle thought. She didn't say that though, just admired the fact that they were finally getting along. "Are you okay with this?"

Clary bit her lip and thought for a moment. Her eyes stayed glued to her daughter lying in bed with a guy as she spoke. "Chase has done a lot of bad things, but regardless of that, he's a good kid. He never once laid a hand on Emily, even after all the times that she's beaten the crap out of him and left him to suffer. And he only did what he had to do for his family, so I don't blame him for what's happened."

A gust of air left Isabelle's mouth as she finally exhaled. "Good. I didn't want you hating my son."

"That's Jace's job," Clary corrected. "And that's never going to change. I know he's a good kid, but Jace refuses to accept it. The only thing that bothers me is throughout all this, I've never quite seen Emily so confused."

Isabelle knew exactly what that meant. Everyone in the Institute could see that she was having an internal struggle about something. Whether it was Chase, Conan, or Jonathan/Agramon, it was eating her alive. "I think she'll make it through. She is a Herondale after all."

"That she is," Clary said with a brilliant smile. With a sigh, Clary grabbed Isabelle's hand, pulling her out of the open doorway and back into the hall. "How long do you think Jace will be in there with Aline?"

Isabelle smiled at the jealous tone. "Just long enough to get his point across. Come on, you can wait in your room until he's finally done."

There was a grunt, a pained moan and Isabelle turned in confusion, only to find Clary leaning against the wall, grabbing her lower abdomen with a grimaced look. She glanced down, before looking back up to Isabelle. "Izzy?"

"Yeah?"

"Go get Magnus. I have a feeling something is seriously wrong."

Jace had never felt so relieved when the elevator finally closed with Aline inside. Yes, she had been helpful and even kind to his family over the years, but having her around was uneasy, considering Clary's brother killed Aline's cousin. That created just a tad bit of tension between the families, whether either of the women wanted to actually accept that fact or not.

Slowly, step by step, he walked towards the couch and collapsed on top of it like a teenager. He had never been so exhausted in his life. With the funeral, the missing people, all the extra training he'd been doing with Emily, and all the arguing between everyone in the Institute, he wanted nothing more than to just crawl in a hole for an hour, just to get his bearings. Today alone was brutal enough. That doesn't even count the long conversation with Aline, which only made his nerves on edge. He didn't care if it wasn't her job, but she should've been able to tell that he seriously needed help, even though he never actually said those words. But she was adamant about her decision, and there was nothing Jace could do about it.

"Something got you down, Dad?" Jace shook his head, ignoring Michael and kept his head buried in the pillowed as he lied on his stomach. "Really? Because you looked like you're dead. And dead is about as down as you can get."

Leave it to Michael to say something like that after a funeral. He really was Jace's son, making him smile as he slowly pushed himself up. "I just wish I had a break sometimes."

"That's not happening anytime soon," Michael answered as he walked over, taking the spot by Jace on the couch. He handed his father the cup of coffee in his hands, and Jace took it happily. "Dad, can I talk to you about something?"

His tone was serious, and Jace glanced over at him. He really did resemble Jace more than Emily. His daughter looked like Clary, but Michael, other than the shorter hair, was the spitting image of Jace when he was younger, except a little bit bigger, which was hard to do. "Go for it, son."

Michael took a deep breath, looking down at his shoes. "I talked to Brother Matthew about this today, and I've thrown the idea by Magnus too, but I don't think that being a Silent Brother is the best thing for me right now."

"You don't want to be a Silent Brother anymore?"

"That's not what I'm saying. But Dad, I'm fifteen. I think I have plenty of time to live, to decide on it, and right now I just want to be a normal Shadowhunter."

It made sense, but Jace was still shocked. Michael had wanted to be a Silent Brother his whole life. As for the normal part… "You're my son. There's no way in hell that you will ever be normal. But you know that I'm okay with whatever you want to do with your abilities."

"Good, cause I want to come with you guys when you go after Lilith."

Jace jerked back at that, frowning deeply. Michael had never, ever asked to join a fight. In fact, he was completely content with watching others battle while he'd heal and repair the damage. But he was begin completely serious, and that made Jace nervous. "Son, you don't–"

"Have the training?" he finished, arching an eyebrow. "I know, but I don't want you guys leaving without me, when I know that there's a chance that you might not come back."

The moment of silence was exactly what Jace needed to think about what Michael just said. He took a moment to breathe, staring at his son incredulously. Emily was the one of his two kids that he'd expect to have this conversation with. She just had that kind of attitude, and looked at everything in a bad way. But Michael always was positive, smiling, and just happy in general.

"Where is this coming from?" Jace asked.

Michael sighed, falling back against the couch, defeated. "Dad, I've realized for a while now that you and Mom aren't exactly invincible. Emily refuses to believe it, but I know that one day, you're not going to come home. I just don't want to be sitting here, waiting for you. I'd rather be fighting by your side when it happens."

"That's not happening anytime soon," Jace said with conviction.

"That's not really up to you to decide," Michael shot back. It hurt, knowing that he had so little faith in Jace. "And the Silent Brothers are warriors too, so it only makes sense for me to get some training in as well, in case I still become one."

For once in his life, Jace was rendered speechless. It astonished him now different Michael and Emily were, and how they reacted differently to everything. Whenever Jace finally thought he had a hang on his kids, understood them, they'd pull this kind of crap. Emily would suddenly befriend the jackass that she's hated for years, and Michael's dream suddenly changes overnight. Not to mention everything else he had to keep up with.

Clary was the only steady thing in his life at this point. Even though she'd have other things to do, he still got to wrap her in his arms every night. He knew that she had other obligations at times, but her love for him never changed, and the same went for him. If it wasn't for her, sometimes he thinks that he'd go crazy. Especially with Emily and Chase nowadays.

"Dad, you know that I–"

"JACE!"

They both looked up to see Isabelle running down the stairs to the living room. She jumped the last five steps gracefully, considering she was in high heels, and came to a stop. Her eyes were wide, her dress wrinkled. "Jace, hurry up and get up to your room."

If it was any other time, he would've come up with some sarcastic retort. But her facial expression didn't give him any reason to think that this was a joke of any kind. "Why?"

"If Magnus and I are right along with symptoms that your wife is showing, you are about to have a very significant change in the family."

What did that mean? What change in family? There couldn't have been something wrong with Clary, could there? Was she hurt? Was she okay? Jace didn't have time to think about it and tried to rush to the stairs, but Michael had jumped to his feet. Jace stopped before running into his son. He wanted to ask what he was doing, but never got the words out.

At that moment, Michael said the most insane thing that Jace had ever heard all day. And considering the events, it would be pretty hard to beat it. But this... this was huge.

"I knew it! My mom is pregnant!"

It was amazing how things could change. Emily didn't just think about what had sparked between her and Chase, how they only felt comfortable around each other, but she thought about change in general. So many things had shifted in her life for the past week, going from one thing to another.

For starters, Conan acted like he hated her now. She had tried to call him twice while Chase was asleep, and he refused to pick up, to answer. He used to always be there, answering whenever she called. The steady rock he used to be now felt like the wind. Maybe he would be there, maybe he wouldn't. She didn't really know anymore.

And then something had sparked between her and Chase, something she didn't understand. Even as she looked at him from her spot by the window, she couldn't help but admire him in a way she couldn't before. He was beautiful, the way his hair fell over his eyes as she slept. Every curve of his muscle fit perfectly with him. Every rune, every scar, every curve of his mouth was something that sparked a feeling inside her when she thought about it. Although nothing really happened between them, other than a bit of kissing before he finally went to sleep, she couldn't deny the fact that she wanted it to. With Conan, she always wanted it just as a distraction. With Chase, she seemed to want it on general principle.

And on top of the love triangle that she couldn't understand, everything else in her life had falling to the shits. Her family was falling apart, and things only seemed to get worse and worse as the days went on. She just wanted to Friday to get here. Before he passed out, Chase had told her a bit about his dealings with the devil. Granted, she was sworn to secrecy not to say a word to anyone other than her father, who apparently knew everything now. But after Friday, everyone would either be dead, or alive, no in between. That was frightening, and yet she just wanted it to be over with.

She just wanted her life to be normal again.

"JACE!"

But nothing could stay calm for long, especially in this Institute.

Emily glanced towards the open door to the hallway, hearing Isabelle's voice pierce through the hallways like a knife through butter. What could have gone wrong now? Chase stirred in his sleep, burying his head in the pillow in the most adorable way possible. Although all she wanted was to jump back in bed with him and curl up against him, she didn't and slowly made her way to the door, dodging teh bit of glass that he had scattered across the carpet. She shoved her phone in her pocket before closing it behind her.

The hallway was empty enough, quiet after Isabelle's screech. Emily looked left and right, but there wasn't any sign of life. So she just shrugged, walking towards the stairs until she heard voices. She followed the sound, until she came up to the door of her parent's room.

Magnus was there, talking with concern and amusement in his voice at the same time. "Clary, Isabelle is getting him right now. It'll be fine, I promise."

"Fine? With everything going on, this is the last thing that we need!" Her mother sounded frantic.

"I know, but you need to just calm down until I can make sure that this is really happening."

Emily shook her head, confusion setting in. What the hell are they talking about? She reached for the handle, just as figures started popping up from the stairs. Isabelle was running towards her, eyes wide with excitement. She didn't even say a word as Emily stepped aside watching as Isabelle burst through the bedroom doors.

Michael and Jace didn't look so excited. In fact, Michael was struggling as Jace leaned against him. She had never seen her father so pale, looking so sick and shocked that he couldn't even walk. She immediately rushed to his side, grabbing his other arm and throwing it over her shoulder.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked.

Michael sighed. "Dad passed out."

"What?"

"Is he coming?" It was Clary. Emily glanced at Michael, begging for an answer but he just shook his head and together, they pulled Jace into the room as the color finally started to return to his angelic features.

She and Michael dropped Jace in the doorway, letting him lean against the frame instead as he stared at Clary. Emily's mother was positioned on the bed, lying flat as Magnus hovered over her. His hands glowed a green color, concentration etched in his features as he focused on her. Isabelle was by her side, sitting in the chair at the head of the bed, clearly more excited than anyone else in the room.

"What's going on?" Emily asked.

As if Clary hadn't noticed them, her eyes widened when they settled on Jace. "Honey, what happened?"

"I – uh–" Jace stuttering was a sight to see, considering Emily had never actually seen it happen before. He was finally back to his normal color, but still wobbled on his feet as he moved towards the bed, kneeling down by it. "Is it true?"

"Would someone tell me what the hell is happening?" Emily asked as she raised her hands in exasperation.

Magnus pulled back at that point. His hands stopped glowing as he smiled down at Clary, Jace, then to Isabelle, and then to the children in the doorway. Then he said one word, one word that made Jace fall back, fainting again. It made Isabelle squeal and clap with delight. It made Michael wrap his arm around Emily, pulling her in for a proud hug. And Clary, Clary beamed like fireworks on the Fourth of July.

"Clary, Jace, you're having twins."

WOOO! More Herondales will be running around in about nine months. Will it be boys, girls, or both? I don't know yet. but how with this work with Lilith at large? You'll have to keep reading to find out. REVIEW! I want you all to know I take every review into account, literally. When you all want a certain event, character, or whatnot to be in the story, I try my best to make it fit. So REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!