A/N: I do not own Mortal Instruments, or the names of its characters. I do however own my characters as are written in this story, and this story itself. Thank you for reading! Please enjoy.

Chapter 3

"… the calm before the storm."

During the following weeks, the children and the Prince stealthily avoided each other. The dawning after the incident between Clary and Jace, and Maryse's recount of her horrific past, a guard had been sent in place of the Prince to escort the children to their meals and around the plantation-castle and grounds. While the children settled into the routine of their new life, Jace continued training as though his new house mates did not even exist, as though nothing at all had changed. A semblance of relative normalcy returned to the plantation, but to young and intuitive Simon, it was as the calm before the storm.

"Mother," an impatient and exasperated little boy's voice sounded from within the Prince's closet, where he was rummaging for his armour for his daily sparring with his father's guards. "I do not have time to waste hanging out with two, insignificant, Shadowhunter . . . brats," he spat out disdainfully, as he yanked a wayward steel-tipped boot from under a pile of boyhood debris.

"Jace . . ." Maryse's voice was soothing, "they have been here for weeks and you haven't so much as conversed with either one of them . . . I just thought it would be nice if . . ."

"And why should I?" he cut her off rudely, "They are of no consequence to me whatsoever." Regarding his mother with eyes clouded over with mulishness and love, he reiterated, "I have more important, pressing matters at hand that need to be seen to immediately."

"Such as?" Maryse asked pointedly, her eyes clouded over with frustration and her own love for the boy before her.

"Such as training with my father," Jace said just as pointedly.

"And afterward?"

"Sleeping," he grounded out. Taking in her disappointment, Jace felt something almost imperceptible shift within him. Eyes cast down he heaved an exaggerated sigh, as though agreeing to spend time with the children was the worst condemnation that he could ever be faced with, as though it were the biggest sacrifice he would ever have to make. "After that I have more training . . . and Father only allows me an hour to myself every day. It's my own time when I can do whatever I want. I'll see how I feel later about spending some of it . . . very little of it . . . with those stu . . . with those children."

Bracing himself against the warmth of his mother's heartfelt embrace, he pulled away quickly, heaving his armour under one small, muscular arm and said, "I have to go now."

"Goodbye, love. Enjoy your day," Maryse's smile flashed before she added, "and thank you for spending time with the children."

Jace nodded briefly towards her before vacating his room.

Jace tried to remember his mother's glowing face when he half-agreed to seek out the children during his one free hour in the day, and he grimaced. He may not have solemnly vowed, but he could not shake feeling compelled to follow through with it. He knew his mother would do anything for him and even though he was aware that his father would say it should not matter, he felt that he had to. Ease was never a priority for him. He had been taught to revel in challenge, and could never let his uneasiness over being with two small children get the best of him ... ever.

"Ah well . . . if you must . . . you must," he muttered to himself, scuffing the floor with his boot, and wandering down an immense hallway, away from the training rooms to find the children.

They did not happen to be together that day. Jace had breathed a sigh of palpable relief when he had discovered Simon alone in their room, sound asleep. He thought about telling his mother that he had put in a valiant effort, but he was not one for embracing cowardice, so he headed outside to see if he could find Clary on the grounds.

Clary was the one of the two children of which he was the most wary . . . and curious. He thought her common, and therefore found it irksome when she carried herself with such an air of superiority, especially in his presence.

Nevertheless, he admired the spirit of any who would stand up to the Prince of Lasan without so much as blinking an eye in fear. And he had promised to keep an eye on her, after all. His interest in her, however, was only anything really when compared to his regard for his younger cousin, whom he cared nothing for at all.

Clary was off in the gully northeast of the plantation-castle tending to a very big secret. She had been working on it ever since she had sworn to Maryse that she would be kind to the Prince. Later that day, she had gone walking alone in the gully, wondering how she would keep that promise to her guardian.

She lighted upon the idea that it would make more sense to do one, very big, very good deed, and then limit her future interactions to the Prince to neutral, unless the situation warranted something more. The very next day she had happened across that very big, very good deed, and had spent the last six weeks preparing it for Jace, all the while trying to stave off her misgivings about handing such a gift over to someone so decided on indifference and cruelty at such a young age.

She had wanted to keep her find for herself, and for Simon, but once the idea crossed her mind to give it to the Prince, she could not let it go. She thought that today would be a good day to show her amity towards him by turning over her keepsake, so with one last look at her discovery she wandered off towards the plantation-castle in search of Jace.

"Hello girl," Jace said snidely as Clary walked obliviously by him, on her way back to the plantation-castle. His mother had insisted he spend time with them but he drew the line at being civil. Incensed at being so obviously caught off guard, Clary concealed her start by narrowing her emerald eyes at Jace in warning before issuing her equally unpleasant response of "Hello boy."

The two stared each other down, before simultaneously coming to the conclusion that looking at the other was just a pointless waste of their time and looked away. Jace did not feel like telling her why he was there and Clary was having third and fourth thoughts about why she should have to part with her treasure for a certifiable brat like Jace. Maryse's face flashed before both their eyes.

"I'm here to hang out," Jace admitted reluctantly. Clary's shock was visible on her face before she schooled her expression to neutral bearing and nodded.

"Come with me then," she invited before turning around and walking through the path that she had just come from, heading back towards the north-eastern gully.

Jace followed the small girl hesitantly through the trees.

Approaching a clearing, Clary looked back to make sure that he was still behind her. Stepping aside, she allowed him entry into the thicket, before walking over to gently touch the coarse pearl-grey of the creature's coat. Light fingers combed carelessly through thick fur, the touch soft, meant to still the startled form, to soothe the hostile snarl. Her hand, a delicate, tiny thing, reached up a mere fraction of its towering leg.

The three prongs of a bony trident, eight feet in length, raptorial as a chela, emerged from its flattened forehead, lowered and primed for the attack. Spanning the width of the copse, massive, membranous wings webbed between three talons and limbs and dusted with smoky, silvery down, flared and rattled a warning. Three tails, a gigantic fur-coated fan, spread and held erect from one end of the small clearing to the other, lashed around its body in frenzied, disconcerted directions, in reaction to the stranger.

Standing before them, an arresting eleven foot, eight hundred pound frame of muscle magnified by aggravation, the beast, who was once unwell due to infected muscle tissue from a nasty and inexplicable gash on the underside of its stomach, was finally well enough to become restless in the confinement of the tiny space between the trees in which Clary had discovered it dwelling and had cared for it.

The upheaval of the ground by the pacing of its massive paws confirmed what she had been suspecting for days now. Yet, unsure of how to handle an animal so much larger than herself, and not wanting to let on to anyone that she could not deal with the situation, she had put it off for as long as possible. It had to be moved.

Heavy, powerful, lupine eyes, hard with aggression, flicked warily towards the intruder, tempered only by the affection felt for the small child stroking its paw. The air around them crackled, surcharged with confusion and barely leashed chaos. Clary felt dismayed at the distrust she felt directed towards her, and wondered if her good deed wasn't truly just a bad idea. The thought that her very first friend on this foreign sphere believed that she had betrayed it in some, small way almost broke her heart. Now neither Jace nor the creature seemed to remember that she stood between them, and she could do nothing but watch as they sized each other up.

It was the first time Jace had seen one outside of a book, and it was the first time the creature had faced a human other than Clary. Jace cast a suspicious glance at her for an explanation before returning his eyes to the animal's.

"Been taking care of him for weeks now," she explained, "Fairly sure it's a him, but I don't know what he is, where he came from or how he got injured in the first place. Found him here and he had that when I did," she said pointing to the healed gash on the underside of the animal. "He's for you … from me," she added when Jace glanced at her again for clarification.

He almost choked, but covered it well with a cough to clear his throat. He did not know what to say. The creature before him awed him, yet he felt a constriction in his mind at the idea of thanking anyone for anything. His unease slipped back in, a familiar friend that did not seem to have really left at all.

"He's a lucen." He looked at Clary then, tense and perturbed. "That was … decent of you," he proffered, trying not to ruin the gift, disappoint his mother, himself, and for some strange reason the little girl before him. "… I'm supposed to say thank …"

"No need for all of that," Clary said, dismissing the matter with a wave of her hand, "… Be yourself." She paused before reaching out that hand to offer another amicable gesture. Jace paused before reaching out to grasp it briefly. "Just decide who you want yourself to be, that's all."

Jace momentarily contemplated this novel concept before storing it away to examine in detail later.

"Meanwhile," Clary continued, "help me find a way to move this guy, will you? This space has become too small for him now that he's better. We need to find a bigger, more suitable place to keep him … Are you going to keep him though?" It suddenly dawned on her that he might not like her good deed even though he appeared to appreciate her doing it.

The quick nod of affirmation he sent her way was all that was needed to lay her concern to rest.

"Good stuff," she said flippantly, while exhaling a small sigh of relief. Her good deed had come off without a hitch.

"Of course as heir to the throne of Lasan, he would have been mine anyway," Jace boasted, tossing her a mean, teasing little smirk intended to make her glower, which, of course, it did.

A/N: Review please! Thank you ^_^