A/N: First of all, we need to say a special thanks to alybee for being our first reviewer! We were so happy to get some feedback on this plot concept.
This is a long one, it needed to be to set the stage for what we have coming next for you!
As always, thanks to our Beta sosayscrystal…she rocks! (even if she does keep our books a little longer than necessary…lol lol)
DISCLAIMER: We wish we were Steph Meyer or Cassie Clare but we aren't and we own nothing but the crazy ideas in this story!
CHAPTER 3
Edward POV
We both jumped in the air, simultaneous, and as we smashed into each other, shockwaves rippled across the ground. I went charging, grabbing Jacob and crushing his shoulder against the tree with a thunderous crack. Jacob huffed and readjusted himself and came at me with jaws snapping and bit down on my arm causing my jacket and shirt to rip open and expose my torn flesh, blood trickling down my arm.
"An arm for an arm," Jacob thought, chuckling in his mind.
I growled, bearing my teeth staring at Jacob. I was about to charge when a sudden flash went across my mind. I heard a faint voice say "Edward!" A voice I hadn't heard in a very long time. Bella, my Bella, she had called my name. Was I imagining things? Was that really her? I really didn't have time to question myself, Jacob came at me, but with my supernatural speed I was able to move out of the way just in time as he smashed into the tombstone beside me, crushing it into tiny pieces. Jacob shook his head back and forth.
"Stupid dog," I yelled, causing Jacob to howl in frustration while regaining his footing.
"I thought we were here to fight," I said cockily running up to him, grabbing him by the scruff of his neck and tossing him against a nearby tombstone. His back leg came crashing down on a broken piece of stone, snapping it with a loud crunch.
With a flash another message came to me, "Edward, please stop!" I could sense the urgency in Bella's voice. "You are better than this."
Had I lost my mind? I wondered. Bella was dead. How could I hear her voice so clearly, as if she was standing in front of me? But it definitely was my Bella's sweet voice. Looking around scanning the area I didn't see anyone but…
Smack! Jacob caught me off guard and grappled me to the ground. He stood on top of me. His jaws opened and a growl rose up from deep inside himself, his hot breath just inches away from my neck. If I moved an inch he would snap my neck. I stayed still, focusing on his mind, estimating his next move. Jacob cocked his head up staring at the side bushes.
Ha, this was my only chance. With Jacob distracted, I grabbed him by the neck and flung him off of me.
"Edward, do this for me!" Bella voice flashed, begging me to stop.
The ground started to vibrate and from a distance, I heard a strange sound, almost like horses galloping across a racetrack. As the sound and vibration got closer and closer and finally figured out what it was. The wolves were descending.
Now standing in front of us were six wolves. I had forgotten that the pack was telepathically connected when in wolf form. They knew, right from the beginning, what was happening and they came to help Jacob. Listening to their minds, their arguing and shouting was making it hard for me to read what their next thoughts were going to be. But I could make out Sam's voice, as he was the loudest and fiercest.
"Jacob, what do you think you're doing?" Sam mind shouted. "We have a treaty to protect!"
"Sam," Jacob's mind growled, "Edward started it!" Jacob was howling in protest as he was edging his way over to me, taunting me, wanting to finish what we started.
Sam, now looking first in my direction then back to Jacob said, "Just because the leech deserves it, doesn't mean it's right, now stand down, that's an order."
Looking at the pack, Sam told Leah, Quil and Seth to take Jacob to Emily's. He ordered Paul and Embry to stay with him.
With a whine, Jacob lowered his head, panting heavily; he limped over to the others. Jacob shot a glace in my direction, not saying anything but still the message was clear that this wasn't over. They leaped into the bush making their way to Emily's.
"And you Leech, I know you can hear me, we are not done here," he said to me, as he and the other remaining wolves vanished behind the bush, and reappeared in human form. Sam approached me, studying me with a hard look.
Carlisle and the rest of the family arrived just as Sam and I were two inches away from each other faces.
Carlisle immediately took charge by suggesting that everyone take a minute and calm down. Once everyone seemed to be cooled off, he tried to get to the bottom of what had been taking place before he arrived. "Could somebody please explain what is going on?"
Sam turned to Carlisle said stated "It's simple, Edward is a menace and he must leave before the treaty is broken."
"Edward is going through a tough time right now, I'm sure there is a good reason for his behavior." Carlisle said just before turning in my direction.
I always respected Carlisle and his views on our family life. He was full of compassion and always looked for the best in everyone. But since Bella's death, I was suffocating in a deep hole of self loathing, not sure how to get out. I had changed and now it was affecting my family.
"Yah, Edward why don't you tell your daddy dearest what really happened tonight. I'm sure they are all dying to know that their precious Edward isn't as perfect as they think." - Paul said sarcastically.
I shot over to Paul so that they were facing each other. "Why don't I show you how perfect I am?" I said grinning, showing just the tip of my razor sharp fangs.
Paul started to growl; I knew what was going to happen. He was about to leap into a phase, but Sam stepped into his path and grabbed his shoulder, sternly ordering him to stop.
"See Carlisle, Edward is a risk, he cannot be trusted. Either he leaves or we break the treaty and we hunt you all down!!" Sam exclaimed.
Listening to my family's thoughts was overwhelming. Each one of them was willing to break the treaty and declare war against the wolves for me. I couldn't believe how selfish I'd been. How could I have let myself get so caught up in rage?
"I'm sorry but last time I checked, we didn't follow orders from Mutts!" Emmett's deep voice bellowed. "Our family sticks together!"
I knew if I didn't say something soon all hell would break loose. The tension surrounding both groups was too intense.
"Carlisle, I'm leaving." I shouted. "I need to leave; staying here is only changing who I am. I will not be the cause for this family to go to war. I will get out of Forks and rebalance myself. This will be good for everyone."
"Where will you go son?" Esme asked
"I will go to Italy, to work with the Volturi, and figure out what is happening over there. They could use someone with my ability to track this hunter," I said.
"Sam, I want to make a compromise," Carlisle suggested. "Edward will leave tonight, like you had asked but there is a catch…Edward will be allowed to come back and visit his family when he feels he can control himself."
With that said, an agreement was made. I would leave tonight for Italy. But I could still see the worry in my family faces; all except Alice. She was in a trance, having another vision.
"Carlisle, I've seen it, Edward is safe in Italy," Alice's said putting her hand his shoulder.
Alice shot me a quick glance, looking at me with a puzzled look, almost like she was holding something back. Did she know something? Was I going to do something? But she too quickly returned her attention to Carlisle so that no one else noticed.
___________________________________________________________________________________
CLARY POV
I blinked at him a few times before his admission finally started to sink in. A Shadowhunter? What was he doing in New York? How had he known who I was? Was he there on official business or was this a vacation for him? I frowned, studying him. I wondered if he knew Jace and the others, would he stay at the Institute? I noticed that his grin was starting to spread and realized that I had been stupidly staring at him.
"You're a what?" I squeaked out. He shot me a look that could only be interpreted as condescending before replying.
"A Shadowhunter, you know one of the Nephilium, fighter of demons, protector of all things mundane. This is ringing a bell right?" He chuckled at the look on my face.
"Of course it is, I'm just surprised that's all," I said, not wanting to sound too naïve. I could feel Simon's eyes on us, so carefully I withdrew my wrist from Sebastian's hold and gave Simon's hand a reassuring squeeze. Sebastian turned his amused gaze to Simon, studying him, taking in his pale complexion. I started to panic when I saw that Simon was slightly baring his fangs and I hoped that Sebastian didn't notice. I knew the moment he realized that he was a vampire. His expression changed and he turned back to me and raised his eyebrows. I couldn't explain it, but I felt a strong connection with him, it was like something deep inside me recognized him. I had the annoying urge to explain Simon's situation.
"Well you certainly keep interesting company don't you, pretty girl?" The urge to explain vanished at his tone and was replaced with a burst of anger.
"Simon is my best friend and this is a Downworlder bar, in case you didn't notice," I replied indignantly. Sebastian took a step closer to me which had Simon tensing beside me.
"Best friends with a vampire huh? I knew there was something about you," he said quietly so only I could hear. He lifted a hand and tucked a curl of my hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering on my cheek. He opened his mouth to say something when—SLAM he seemed to fly from my side and was suddenly pressed up against the bar, an arm across his throat. It was Jace. He had materialized from nowhere and was now glaring at Sebastian. Alec hovered behind him, taking in the scene with a mixture of amusement and impatience.
"Keep your hands off her," Jace said in a hard voice. I was appalled and embarrassed all at once. I started towards Jace to pull him off Sebastian when I was stopped dead in my tracks. Sebastian had moved faster than lightening and had switched positions with Jace. Instead of appearing menacing as Jace had, his movements seemed almost lazy as he applied pressure on the arm at Jace's throat and leaned close to his face.
"Now not that I don't appreciate impressive movements like the one you just made, but do you want to explain why you've interrupted the lovely time I was having with the lady here?" Sebastian's tone was mocking, and Jace responded in like.
"Lovely time?" Jace echoed. "I wouldn't call groping a stranger a lovely time. And as far as impressive, trust me you're about to see much better movements from me." Before he'd even finished saying those words, he was moving. With a flick of his wrist, he had Sebastian's arm off his throat and was swinging his other arm up in a fist to deliver what was sure to be a stinging blow to Sebastian's face. Sebastian was ready for him though, and had already anticipated what his maneuver would be. He dodged and twisted so fast that Jace's fist met with nothing but air and in seconds the lines were drawn. Somehow, Sebastian, Simon and I had ended up standing across from Alec and a very, very angry looking Jace. I took a moment to be impressed with my own ability to recognize both of the Shadowhunter fighting skills that they had used before turning my attention back to the escalating situation.
"Uh Clary? We're attracting a lot of attention," Simon pointed out, gesturing around the bar. I looked around, and sure enough there were several pairs of eyes, as well as a few single eyes that I consciously chose to ignore, turned in our direction. Simon and I shared a look and words passed between us silently, deciding that he would take the first crack at diffusing the fight and I would be Plan B. He stepped between Jace and Sebastian, his intention to fend off any more attempts at violence. I caught Jace's incredulous look and knew that I was going to have to step in.
"Jace stop please, there's no point to any of this," I said, staring into his golden eyes. Jace huffed out his breath.
"Clary, he had his hands all over you. I--" Jace was cut off as Sebastian interrupted, waving his hand back and forth.
"Wait a minute, wait a minute, Jace and Clary? The Jace and Clary? I've heard stories about the two of you in Idris. Actually not just about the two of you, but about all of you and the way you faced down that Greater Demon and squared off with Valentine on his ship. Of course I should have guessed." He turned to face me. "You're Clary, impulsive and fiery haired," his description made me blush as he continued on. "You're Alec," he said pointing his finger at Alec. "Which means that your sister Isabelle must be around here somewhere, as the stories say that the three of you don't travel far from each other," his slightly bitter tone at his last comment contradicted the smile he had in place.
"Yes, well now that you've reminded all of us of our names, do you mind explaining who you are? And what you're doing in New York?" Jace retorted with a cocky shrug of his shoulders.
"Clary and I were doing just that before you happened along. My name is Sebastian, and as I'm sure you've guessed by now, I'm a Shadowhunter the same as you. I'm in New York to see to a few things with some friends," he explained. I didn't know why, but I felt there was a certain evasiveness in his answer. Jace must have agreed with me as I noticed his head was tilted slightly to the side as he studied Sebastian.
Before anyone could comment on Sebastian's explanations, there was an explosion of light all around us. Tiny glittering lights were flashing, and suddenly I could feel the room tilting and swirling. It was as though we were all trapped in an amusement park ride, the movements giving me that slightly nauseous feeling that always gave me such a thrill. Florescent spot lights appeared and began pinpointing different spots on the dance floor. Following them, I was surprised to see that the place was even more packed than it had been when we arrived and the anticipation of the crowd was infectious. Isabelle materialized beside me, bouncing up and down with glee.
"It's starting, it's starting!" she exclaimed.
"What's starting?" I asked, smiling back at her. She winked at me and grabbed my hand to pull me closer to the crowd. I watched mesmerized as the crowd parted to make a circle in the middle of the floor. There was a booming sound and I looked up just in time to see a spray of fireworks raining down all around us. I wasn't surprised at all when the floor started to shake and move and there was a blinding flash of white light. Magnus Bane shot up, riding a magnificent Unicorn, gray smoke swirling all around them, stopping only when they was levitating a few feet off the floor. His long green cloak floated behind him and his dark brown hair was sticking up in tufts everywhere. He was the High Warlock of Brooklyn and he looked every bit the part.
"Welcome, welcome my friends!" he called out, gesturing wildly with his arms. "We hope you've all enjoyed the entertainment of our one and only Marek, the Reptilian Bartender this evening!" Heads turned toward the bar as Marek grinned and shot his long tongue out in an artful display of circular motions before using it to snap up a pair of glasses to balance on the end and pour fiery liquid into each. Magnus nodded approvingly before moving on. "But now we are moving on to the main event, the spectacular spectacle, the mesmerizing talents of some very dear, dear friends of mine." Magnus's voice seemed to boom out louder and louder as he spoke, and at the end of his speech he made a grand show of leaping in the air into a somersault as he dismounted from the Unicorn, landing gracefully on his feet in the center of the ring of people surrounding him.
He raised his arms high above his head, sparks flying from the end of his fingertips. I watched the scene entranced; it was as though Magnus really was the Ring Leader of a circus; everything and everyone around him was captivated by his movements.
As soon as the sparks touched the ceiling they swirled apart, making what seemed to look like a large door. I had a brief moment to wonder if Magnus was opening a portal before 3 large cages began lowering themselves down into the bar... I squinted my eyes, I could just make out the outline of 3 men inside each cage, each spinning around and around and wearing what looked like pink, glittering loin cloths and nothing else. Blushing, I realized who the men were. Neil Patrick Harris, Wentworth Miller and Marc Jacobs were dancing inside cages. I chuckled to myself, wondering why I was surprised. Magnus was openly gay and of course this would be the type of entertainment that he would choose. I doubted that it was actually the actor's themselves that were performing for us, it was more likely that he had conjured the image of them up for his enjoyment.
Glancing behind me, I snuck a look at Alec. His eyes were wide as he watched the display, and a slow grin spread across his face. He caught me looking at him and then shot a sideways look at Jace, his grin disappearing. He looked embarrassed at being caught enjoying the show. I had found out a few months ago that Alec was gay, but it wasn't a topic that we discussed, especially since I had my suspicions that he had a great deal more than brotherly affection for Jace.
Sebastian's arm appeared around my shoulders and he drew me close to his side. I looked up at him and our eyes locked again. His other hand rose up to twirl a lock of my hair around his finger.
"New York certainly has some captivating attractions, now doesn't it?" he said to me and I had the distinct feeling that he was talking about more than the entertainment.
"If you knew Magnus better, you would not be surprised at all," I replied with a laugh. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jace throw us an angry look and then storm off, his long strides indicating that he was furious. I pulled out of Sebastian's grasp, feeling guilty. Simon came over and grabbed my hand then, dragging me off to the dance floor with Isabelle not far behind us. The music was different than what we were used to hearing at Pandemonium, but I was still able to keep up with the beat. Watching Simon, I realized that gone were his days of bouncing up and down to the music. Ever since he had been changed into a vampire, he had acquired a newfound grace which was paying off for him now as he and Isabelle were bumping and grinding all over the dance floor. Laughing and smiling, it felt good to let loose and enjoy this time with my friends. This kind of mindless fun was familiar to me, it took me back to a time where things were less complicated, a time when my biggest worry was how I was going to avoid poetry readings at Java Jones. Sebastian joined us, surprising me with his smooth moves. He caught my hand and twirled me in a circle, stopping me when I was pressed close to him.
"How will I find you again after tonight?" he asked me, spinning away from him. Puzzled, I raised my eyebrows. "Why do you need to see me, do you need help with something while you're here?" I asked, we never really had got a straight answer from him about his business in New York.
He smiled at me. "I don't need any help, but I very much would like to see more of you. I find you very interesting, Clary."
I didn't have any idea what he was talking about. "Won't you be staying at the Institute while you're here?" He smirked. "I'm not sure that would be such a wise idea, Clary," his eyes drifted across the room to where I was sure he was looking at Jace.
"But you're a Shadowhunter, the Clave has to offer sanctuary to you," I argued. Performing a trio of quick circles, he was back at my side.
"I have a feeling that Jace will be very motivated to find a way around that." There was a hard look in his eyes that vanished quickly as he looked back down at me. There seemed to be an underlying anger in his words, but I brushed it off, there was no reason for him to have those sorts of feelings towards Jace, or any of the Lightwoods for that matter, he didn't know them.
"You're worrying for nothing," I replied and offered him a smile as I made my way through the crowd back towards Simon and Isabelle, who were laughing and giggling, watching Magnus feed drinks to a flustered looking Wentworth Miller. A flutter of wings tickled my shoulder and I instinctively turned, in time to see the beautiful kelpie girl from earlier making her way across the dance floor to one of the privacy sections. I started turn away when I noticed a familiar blond head in front of her. Jace. She was following Jace to one of the private corners of the bar. Before I knew what I was doing, I was moving, bobbing and weaving through the crowd to keep them in my sight. A few feet ahead of me, I saw the girl give a toss of her head and then disappear behind one of the tapestries, snapping it shut behind her. I hesitated for only a moment before I continued on towards them.
Stopping near the opening, I took a deep breath. I could hear Jace's low murmuring voice, and feminine giggles that had me clenching my teeth. I raised a shaking hand and drew the tapestry back. I had to blink a few times to bring the scene before me into clear view. Jace was once again sprawled in a recliner, but this time he wasn't alone. The girl was seated atop him, her legs straddling his waist. His arms were tight around her, and their lips were locked together in a passionate embrace. His hands ran slowly up and down her back, and her hands travelled up to tangle in his hair. Exactly as I had imagined doing myself over and over again. Kissing. He was kissing another girl. I felt as though my heart was caught in a vice and being slowly and painfully squeezed. My legs turned to Jell-O and I was in serious jeopardy of having them give out on me. Several mental images hit me all at once, Jace sitting behind me at the Java Jones, smirking as I realized I was the only one that could see him, the first time he kissed me in the hallway outside my room at the Institute, riding a flying motorcycle with him over the streets of New York as he shouted to me to hold on as we rushed towards the ground at a neck-breaking pace. I let out the breath I had been holding, ending in a small gasp. Jace, having ears like a cat, heard me and broke off the kiss. Our eyes locked, his showing surprise. Turning, I started to stumble away as quickly as I could on my Jell-O filled legs.
"Clary!" I heard him call behind me, but I didn't stop. More images were coming to me now, Jace standing in front of me as we faced down the Greater Demon at Madame Dorothea's, the way he whispered my name as I freed him from the cell in the City of Bones, and the way he looked at me when my mother said the word "brother," to us only a few weeks before. Brother. He was my brother and it was time that I faced it. A hand gripped my shoulder and spun me around. Jace. My unstable legs couldn't handle such a quick action, and I would have fallen to the ground if he hadn't caught me by the tops of my arms and steadied me.
"What's wrong with you?" he blurted out, his gold eyes glaring into mine. What was wrong with me? What was wrong with him? I still had some pride left, however, so I plastered a smile on my face and shrugged.
"Wrong? Nothing's wrong. I wasn't aware that this was the sort of place that things like the show you were putting on happened behind curtains," I hoped my voice didn't shake as I said those words. Jace frowned.
"I was putting on a show? What about you? Letting a stranger paw you is appropriate behavior?" he shot back, spreading his arms wide.
"Paw me?" I squeaked out, my anger rising. "He was not pawing me, we were dancing, you asshat." His eyebrows shot up at that and I knew that I had succeeded in making him even angrier.
"Asshat? I'm the asshat? This guy appears out of nowhere and picks a fight with me and I'm the asshat. Perfect." I didn't say anything, just continued to glare. After a minute, he sighed. "Look, there's no point in arguing. But I'll be damned if my little sister is going to be acting like that in front of me. You're a Shadowhunter now and…" I tuned out the rest of his words. All I kept hearing over and over was little sister, little sister. That's all that I would ever be to him now. Just his little sister. My throat started to close and I fought hard to keep the tears back.
"You're right Jace, thanks for clearing all this up. I'm sorry for ruining your evening." I rushed the words out and then turned on my heel and sped away, without waiting for a reply.
I felt as though my world was crashing down around me and I wished desperately for the floor to open up and swallow me whole. Brother and sister, brother and sister. I felt like such a fool for displaying all my emotions the way that I did. I was breathing in rapid breaths and I knew that I needed to escape. I was barely paying attention to where I was going, elbowing my way through the crowd. I started to veer off towards the bathroom for a few minutes of privacy, but I spotted Alec, Simon and Isabelle near the entrance. I wanted to avoid explaining myself to them, so I changed course and headed to the stairs instead. I dashed up to the second level, finding a quiet corner to lose myself.
I drew my stele from my pocket, twirling it idly in my fingers. I watched the crowd below with disinterest. Just a few minutes ago I had been part of that crowd, laughing and enjoying life. I watched Simon and Isabelle and Alec dancing together, their smiles lighting up their faces. Magnus was in his element holding court off to the side, allowing a few people at a time inside the cages with the dancers. Every now and then he would appear at a different cage and enjoy a few minutes of dancing himself before returning to the crowd to mingle and be the center of attention. Jace, well Jace was Jace. I picked him out of the crowd easily, he was with the girl again, his arm slung around her shoulder. His smile may have seemed forced, but they fit together well and he was making no effort to stop her from pressing herself more possessively against him. Everyone had a place here, but me. I felt as though I had no purpose here. Suddenly, the sketch that I had drawn earlier appeared in my mind. I thought about it for a few minutes, trying to figure out where the place was that I had drawn. The answer came to me in a flash and I knew what I had to do.
I gripped my stele in my hand, and cast a quick look around as I began to work. I imagine the door and began to draw the Portal rune that I had learned. I cleared my mind and let the images slide in, concentrating until my hand was moving and the rune was complete. Simple yet complicated. The lines glowed a faint white and I knew that it was ready. I began focusing on bringing the sketch back to my mind, I needed to focus intently on it if the Portal was going to work.
I felt a click inside me and I knew I was successful. Just as I started to step forward, I heard noise behind me. Turning, I caught a glimpse of Sebastian's face and heard him shout, "Clary no!"
I smiled softly and stepped forward into the Portal, allowing the blackness to surround me.
A/N: Please review! This was a tough one for us and we would love to know what everyone thinks!!
Ari and B
