Clary cursed under her breath when she noticed what time it was, causing her to hurry up with the current task at hand, which was to make sure that she left no evidence behind at all before she left the place she was currently at. She crouched down beside the body that was lying at her feet as she removed her stele from her weapons belt before she went on to hastily draw a particular rune that she had now grown so accustom to using recently onto the nearest exposed flesh of the victim, and barely had a chance to cover her face to attempt to not get a waft of the horrendous smell that came with this next part when the body began to disintegrate right in front of her.

She then rose up to her feet as she uncovered her face, wrinkling her nose with pure disgust showing upon her features before she reached out to retrieve the item she had been sent here to collect in the first place, tucking it into the mini backpack she brought with her so her hands would be free to use in case she ran into trouble. After she placed the backpack on she rushed over towards the back room where she tried to clean herself up as she best as she could, but after she gave a quick glance at her phone once again, she realized it was already after midnight, making her curse once again before she grasped her ring between two fingers, twisting it with such ease as she shut her eyes briefly until she felt the soles of her boots come into contact with different ground.

She opened her eyes warily as she took in her current surroundings, seeing that she was now standing outside of her family manor, but that didn't stop her from making sure to scan the area around her more thoroughly for any signs of anyone keeping lookout around the estate, and once she was sure that no one was in sight, she broke out into a jog towards the vast amounts of trees that surrounded the estate, hoping that the one she came to meet was still waiting for her.

That thought caused a mischievous grin to appear upon her lips as she couldn't help but think of all the many great things that would surely come if she managed to recruit this particular individual for the greatest event in history that was already happening.

~~

Jace's gaze landed on Clary as soon as she came into view, making him feel a surge of happiness course through his entire being, because he was finally going to be reunited with the one person that he felt so connected to in this entire world. That thought had him rushing over towards her in order to grasp her by her waist, pulling her flush against him as he smiled down at her before leaning down to place a gentle kiss upon her lips, and proceeded to murmur against them. "I was starting to think that you stood me up." He noted with a teasing lilt to his tone.

Clary gripped onto the front of his shirt to keep him in place when she noticed that he was pulling away, which allowed her to give him a tender kiss in return before she pulled back and peered up at him through her lashes with an apologetic smile upon her face. "I'm sorry, Jace. I was on my way to meet with you, but something came up, and I lost track of time. Do you forgive me?" She batted her eyelashes as she jutted out her lip into a pout, whilst attempting to not break her composure when she felt rather ridiculous right now.

The corner of his mouth lifted into a slightly amused smirk as he went on to rest the palm of his hand against her cheek with the pure intention of replying to her, but the only thing that stopped him from doing so was when he felt something dewy come in contact with the flesh of his hand, making him remove his hand from her face entirely. His brows furrowed as he turned his hand around to look at it, but when he immediately figured out what the substance was that was now coated onto his skin, he couldn't help but feel a rush of panic flow through him. "Are you hurt, Clary?" He inquired in an anxious manner before he started to look her over completely from head to toe.

Clary was beyond confused as to why he was freaking out up until she went on to wipe the part of her face that Jace had just touched, and it was then that she realized that she hadn't cleaned herself up well enough as she had hoped. That mere revelation caused her to curse under her breath once again before she batted his hand away when he was fretting over her wellbeing too much, which allowed her to use the sleeve of her shirt to wipe her face clean, and gave her a moment to compose herself so she could speak to him calmly. "I swear that I'm alright, Jace. It's not my blood." She inwardly winced when she realized that she just messed up, but it was far too late for her to take back what was just said.

Jace blinked in disbelief upon hearing and seeing how calm and collected she seemed to be after what he just found out, but it wasn't until he heard her last words that made him go completely still. "What did you just say?"

Clary nearly rolled her eyes in response to feeling so annoyed in this moment with how he was being right now that it nearly made her completely break character. She drew in a deep breath to calm herself before she spoke in the same calm and collected manner as before. "I just told you that it wasn't my blood. I'm not hurt in any way. Now can you stop ruining the mood by being so overly protective. You're starting to remind me of…" She barely caught herself in time before she said Jonathan's name aloud, which made her inwardly wince once again because that was too close of a call.

"Then whose blood is it, Clary?" It wasn't until he really looked at her properly that he noticed something. It was just a subtle change, but it was enough for him to see that something wasn't right.

Clary refrained from sighing when it seemed that Jace wasn't going to drop the issue, so against her better judgement, she decided she would just say the truth, and see how he would react. "Before I came here I had to make sure that I didn't leave any loose ends. But if it makes you feel any better, I can say for a fact that it wasn't anyone that would be missed." She pursed her lips as another thought came to her mind, which made the corner of her mouth lift up into a slight smirk. "Now that I think about it… I actually think I did her a favor."

It didn't take Jace long to get what she was telling him, but when he did he took a step back from her, shaking his head as if to help clear his mind before he flashed her a startled look. "I don't know who I am even talking to right now. Because the girl that I love wouldn't harm an innocent person. And I know damn well that the person that is standing right in front of me isn't the same person that left me that letter."

Clary's brow raised up in a confused manner in response to his last words, but after a moment she recalled what he was referring to, and against all odds she elicited a laugh. "You see that's where you are wrong. I'm still the same girl that you fell in love with. You knew of my past even before we cross paths, and I'm sure you've heard various rumors about what I've done to get where I am today. And with all that being said, I'm left confused as to why you believe that I've somehow changed all of the sudden."

Jace shook his head in disbelief as he felt as if he were speaking to a complete stranger, and he couldn't deny the ache that formed within the confines of his chest when he witnessed how cold she was being in this moment. "You just proved the point that I've been trying to get you to understand. You don't care at all about anything. You acted as if the life that you admitted to just taking was nothing. And now I feel so foolish, because I just fell for your lies that even led me to coming out to see you in the first place."

Clary rolled her eyes to the heavens when he brought up her latest victim once again, which only made a flash of pure disgust pass along her features for a mere second before she managed to compose herself. "If you knew who that woman was, I bet you would've been grateful that I didn't allow her to live another day and continue on with what she was doing for a living." She closed the space between them, lifting her hand up to place against his cheek as she forced a subtle smile upon her lips. "And as for the caring part of your speech… You're actually wrong. There is still one thing that I care so deeply about. And that's you, Jace. I tried my best to forget you, but something kept pulling me back to you, and I know deep down that if you actually gave me a chance to even give you a glimpse of what I am trying to do that there would be a good chance that you would join me."

Jace was torn in this moment as he shuddered slightly under her touch, wanting to believe that she was telling the truth, but there was still some part of him that had doubts, and assumed that she was lying. But even with the feeling of doubt, he couldn't stop himself from placing his hand over hers as he stared into her verdant hues. "It's not too late for you stop now before you do something that you won't be able to come back from. Your father and Jonathan are both gone. You can finally move forward and actually be able to make your own decisions and live your life as you want to. And I will help you every step of the way if you allow me to. So will you please come back home with me?" He knew that by allowing himself to be so vulnerable in this moment in front of her that there could be a chance that she would turn down his offer, which would crush him entirely, but he also knew that it would have been worth it because he would know that he did everything in his power to help her. It was that way of thinking that made him grasp her hand even tighter as if he was savoring this moment as if it were their very last one together.

Clary didn't have a chance to even say anything to Jace when all of the sudden she whirled around, her gaze landing immediately onto a particular part of the forest that was right behind them, but as soon as she heard rustling coming from behind her, which made her whirl around to face Jace in time to grasp his free hand to grab his attention, whilst she couldn't help but notice that there was a dagger in his other hand. "There's no need for that. Put it away."

Jace reluctantly pulled his hand away from hers, whilst keeping his grip on his dagger as his gaze narrowed in on the spot that he noticed he saw some sign of movement from. "Clary, get behind me."

Clary ignored Jace altogether as she turned her back on him again, shaking her head as a look of amusement flashed along her features. "You might as well come out now."

"It's such a shame that our favorite angel boy is still much too soft to join us." Jonathan retorted with slight amusement as he stepped out from where he once had been veiled by the trees.

Nothing could have prepared Jace when he witnessed Jonathan stepping out to face both himself and Clary. It felt like minutes had gone by as he tried to convince himself that he was hallucinating, but when Jonathan had gotten even closer, Jace lost it. A tinge of red clouded his vision as a sudden flare of rage coursed through his entire body, and within a moment he jumped into action and charged towards Jonathan.

"Jonathan!" Clary called out to warn him, but in the end her warning was useless, because Jonathan managed to dodge Jace's attack and was now closer to her. Clary let out the breath she had been holding before she broke out into a sprint and put herself in front of Jonathan, and proceeded to retrieve her seraph blade from her weapons belt. "Don't come any closer, Jace."

"Get away from him!" Jace roared as his eyes narrowed in slits as he glared in Jonathan's direction, tightening his grip on the hilt of his dagger as possible scenarios of how he could get Clary away from Jonathan flitted through his mind.

Clary snorted in response to Jace's request as she refrained from rolling her eyes to the heavens. "I'd rather not risk the chance of myself suffering from another injury tonight, because you've just made it clear that you intend on harming my brother again. I thought we were past all of that, Jace."

Jonathan let out a half-hearted laugh as he placed his hand onto Clary's shoulder, pulling her towards himself until her back was pressed against his chest, feeling satisfied a moment later when he felt her relax as soon as they were touching. "Well that wasn't the greeting that I had been expecting."

"Get your hands off of Clary, and step away from her." Jace retorted through clenched teeth as he was studying Jonathan's demeanor, and waited for the right time to make his next move.

A sly smirk displayed upon Jonathan's lips as he went on to slide the hand that was resting on Clary's shoulder down along her arm in a slow manner until he reached her hand, and gently took away her weapon. He noticed the change in Jace's face as soon as that action was done, which only amused Jonathan even more, but he wasn't done messing with him just yet. He went on to lean down to place a kiss against the top of Clary's head before he went on to ignore Jace's presence as his attention was now solely upon Clary. "You had me worried when you didn't arrive back home."

Clary tilted her face back for just a moment to look at Jonathan, flashing him a semi apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Jon. I didn't mean to worry you."

Jace's blood was boiling by this point as he had no choice but to watch Jonathan continue to touch Clary directly in his face, but soon his rage was long forgotten and replaced with shock when he witnessed Clary staying completely calm as Jonathan took away her weapon. It wasn't that action alone that shocked Jace. It was the fact that it was now so clear to him as to why Clary seemed so different to him. It was as if she was perfectly in sync with Jonathan, and every time he would move just a tiny fraction, she would follow him, and when he spoke her eyes appeared to be glazed over as if she were being influenced by him somehow. And now that she was looking up at him, Jace could clearly see a strong look of devotion upon her features that was now making him sick to his stomach. He reluctantly tore has gaze away from Clary in order to glare in Jonathan's direction once again, gritting his teeth as he went on to speak with such animosity laced in his tone. "What have you done to her?"

Jonathan murmured something under his breath for only Clary to hear before he waited for her to oblige by his request before he brought his attention back onto Jace. "I'm not quite sure as to what you're asking. Would you care to elaborate a bit more for me?"

"You know damn well what I am referring to. You're just too much of an ass to actually give me a straight answer. So, I guess I will have to repeat myself. What have you done to Clary?" Jace's patience was wearing thin by this point, and it was taking all of his willpower to not try and attempt to get Clary away from Jonathan right this second.

Jonathan feigned innocence as he shrugged his shoulder in a neutral manner as he made sure that Clary was completely hidden behind him before he ignited the blade he had taken from her a moment ago. "I still am having a hard time understanding what you are so persistent with repeating over and over, because Clary is the same as she has always been."

Jace was growing tired of playing this game with Jonathan, and was so close to losing his composure, but as he forced himself to recall back to the subtle signs he had seen in Clary, he couldn't help but recall back to the night they had just spent with one another. And it was that memory that caused him to suck in a breath when he remembered something that he had gotten a glimpse of during their coital act. "It's that mark, isn't it?" Jace spat as he took a step forward.

Jonathan went completely still upon hearing Jace's words, and couldn't help but wonder how he could possibly know about the mark. But there was only one way he could think of, and that mere thought caused him to whirl around to face Clary. "You were with him last night weren't you?" He was seething by this point, because he knew deep down that it was true, but he needed to hear the answer from her.

Clary nearly flinched in response to how much animosity was laced in Jonathan's tone as he towered over her, but instead of standing her ground as she normally would have done, she kept her head bowed as she looked down at the ground. "Yes, I was. I don't know what came over me last night when I left you. I felt like something was pulling me towards something, and by the time I figured out where I was going, it was too late."

Jonathan shut his eyes briefly as he took a deep breath to calm himself, because he had been so close to going ballistic when he found out it had been Jace that Clary had spent the night with, and to top it off he still had the marks to prove it. But when he was about to finally say something, he barely had time to move aside, pulling Clary with him when something slashed at his side.

Jace stopped mid attack when he had the full intention of striking out at Jonathan again when he heard Clary cry out at the same time that Jonathan had hissed in pain. It was then that he noticed Clary had placed her hand against her side and when she removed her hand it was coated in crimson liquid, making him almost drop his dagger, because he thought he had harmed her instead of Jonathan. "Clary, I didn't mean to." He choked out as a look of anguish flashed along his features.

Clary ignored Jace as she went over to check on Jonathan, swatting his hand away to be able to lift his shirt up, but even though she knew that his injury would be the same as hers, she still wanted to check, and once she was satisfied with what she saw, she turned to face Jace. "If you hurt one of us the other is inflicted as well. Now can you see why I didn't want you to attack Jonathan earlier?"

Jace tossed his weapon aside, keeping his now empty hands out in front of him so she could see that he was now unarmed as he went on to take a few hesitant steps towards her before he finally came to a stop and held out one hand for her to take. "I'm so sorry that I didn't heed your warning. You know that I would never want to hurt you intentionally. It's not too late for you to leave here with me. I promise that I will do everything I can to sever the mark and separate you from him. Can't you see that he's basically controlling you with it?"

Jonathan felt himself go completely still when he saw a look flash along Clary's features so quickly that he couldn't decipher what she was feeling in this moment, but soon that was the last of his worries, because in the next moment, he barely had the chance to take hold of her hand when she was about to take a step towards Jace, causing a wave of anger to flood through his entire being as his burning gaze was now set upon Jace. "Are you actually going to believe anything this imbecile is saying, Clarissa?"

Clary blinked at Jace before she shook her head as if that simple act would be enough to rid her mind of everything that Jace had just said to her before she gritted her teeth and directed her gaze upon him, hating that he even made her begin to doubt her brother. "How dare you accuse Jonathan of controlling me. The only one here that is showing any signs of controlling anyone is you. I can see now that you are so desperately trying to make me turn my back against my own blood. I am willing to put that aside just this once if you will sever all ties with the Clave right now, and allow us to show you how we are going to rebuild this world for the better. So, now it is up to you, Jace. Will you stand with us or will you force me to fight against you when the time comes?"

It pained Jace to say what he did aloud, but she gave him no choice. He felt his throat constrict as he held her steady gaze, clenching his hands into fists as he willed himself to stay centered. "If you're asking me to turn my own back on my family, and go against everything I have been taught since birth then I guess you never really knew me at all. Goodbye, Clary." Jace didn't give her chance to say anything, and instead he turned his back on her, forcing himself to walk away from the one person that he felt so connected to, but the only thing that was keeping him sane in this moment was the promise he was still going to keep somehow.

An array of emotions hit Clary all at once as she watched Jace walking further away, but just as he was about to vanish from her sight altogether, she pulled her hand out of Jonathan's grasp as she strode forward until she stopped just shy of the spot where Jace's dagger was. "You will regret not taking my offer!" She bellowed with such ferocity, waiting until he vanished out of sight completely before she bent down to retrieve the weapon, gripping it so tightly in her grasp.

Jonathan stalked over towards Clary, turning her around to face him with the sole purpose of demanding why she was even wasting time on Jace in the first place, but the only thing that stopped him from doing so was when he noticed that her verdant hues were glistening ever so slightly, causing his chest to constrict as he cupped his hands around her face. "Just say the words, and I will gladly kill him for you."

Clary looked up at Jonathan through the traitorous tears that had formed out of nowhere as a malicious smirk suddenly appeared upon her lips. "No, I will do it myself."

~~

Clary averted her gaze away from the crowd that was gathered in front of her in order to glimpse over at Jonathan, whom was in the middle of giving his speech to the ones that had been carefully selected to join their cause.

She couldn't help but admire the way the moonlight was shining down upon him, allowing her to marvel over his entire form that was covered in the scarlet clothing that was specifically chosen for tonight's festivities. She was dressed in the same color as him, but she knew that she didn't pull this look off as well as he did, and in this moment she wasn't bothered by that at all.

Instead she was completely taken aback by her brother's words, which sent a shiver down her spine against her own will as she couldn't help but feel the power that came with his chosen words, and just as she thought she couldn't be even more blown away by his current actions, she was caught off guard as she watched him step over towards the pentagram that had been neatly drawn in front of him. She watched with complete astonishment upon her features as she witnessed him cutting into his palm as he began to chant in another language before he allowed his now dripping palm to hover from above the Infernal Cup for a few moments before he proceeded to pour his blood over the center of the pentagram. Startled gasps began to fill the area as everyone watched a figure emerge from the flames that had come as soon as Jonathan spoke his final words.

Lilith accepted the cup from her son with one hand while she brought the wrist of her free hand towards her mouth, using her teeth to tear at her skin before she filled the cup with her blood before she held it out towards her son with a cunning smirk. "Give my blood to your army to begin their transformation, and as they grow stronger, so shall you and I. And soon we shall rule the world together." She rejoiced as she went on to place her hand against his cheek.

Jonathan leaned into her touch, placing his hand above hers with a smirk of his own upon his lips. "Don't forget that, my beloved sister will be just as strong as us. All too soon the three of us will be nearly unstoppable as we finally bring my dream to life."

Lilith fought back the urge to grimace when her son brought up Clary, and instead nodded her head in agreement as she pulled her hand away from his face. "Of course, my child. Today will mark the first day of your reign. Do not let anything get in your way. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Mother." He replied in a neutral manner before he watched her step back into the center of the pentagram and disappear from out of thin air.

He didn't waste a moment after her exit before he turned to face the crowd, raising the Infernal Cup into the air. "Now it is time for you all to come forward to drink from the Infernal Cup, and embrace the new beginning of your lives. Are you all with me?"

A chorus of cheers erupted throughout the entire area as one by one, people came forward and drank from the Infernal Cup. Jonathan watched as the effects of Lilith's offering went into play immediately, and as soon as the very last person had taken a drink from the cup, he turned around to face Clary, and extended his hand out towards her. "Come forward and take your rightful place at my side, my beloved one."

Clary strode forward with her head held up high, keeping her gaze solely on Jonathan as she went on to place her hand in his. A mirthful grin settled upon her lips when she felt him place a chaste-like kiss upon the back of her hand before he let go of her hand and went on to wrap his arm around her shoulder, pulling her against him as he looked out towards the crowd of people that were bowed in front of them. "Rise up, and pay your respects to your Queen!"

Clary felt an unfamiliar surge of emotion flow through her as everyone cheered for her as her verdant hues skimmed along the many faces, noticing the same look of devotion that was mirrored on each one of their faces, but soon her attention was upon Jonathan when she felt his lips move to hover by her ear, making her shiver involuntarily as she felt the warmth of his breath caress her skin.

"This is only a little taste of what's to come now that you are ruling by my side. And I promise it will only get even better after today." He murmured in a husky tone before he directed his attention back towards his loyal subjects, knowing it was time to enact the next step of his plan.

~~

Jace was in the process of making sure that he had packed his bag properly when all of the sudden his head snapped up in response to hearing a knock at his door. He cursed under his breath as he went on to close his bag before he quickly slid it under the bed just in time before the door was thrown open. He rose back up to his feet, turning around to face none other than the one that had been such a pain in the ass recently. He suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh as he went on to speaking in a slightly annoyed manner. "You do know that you're supposed to wait for an answer before you barge into a room right? What if I had been naked?"

Isabelle wrinkled her nose in disgust as she tried her best not to get a visual of what her brother had so kindly placed into her mind, which also made her shiver involuntarily before she managed to focus on the real reason she had barged into his room for. She shrugged her shoulder as if she was unfazed by his words before she went on to brush past him in order to take a seat on his bed, waiting for him to turn around to meet her gaze. "It was a risk I was willing to take since you have everyone so worried about you. That should also tell you that I care about you so much since I was willing to put my vision at risk just to check on my brother." The corner of her mouth lifted up slightly into an amused simper as she watched a rather comical expression flash across Jace's features for a brief moment before he veiled his emotions entirely as he had been doing for the past few weeks.

Jace released a low sigh as he went on to lean back against the wall, trying his best no to react to her last statement, because he even knew that his behavior recently was slightly out of the ordinary, but he had been so sure that he had been keeping his emotions under wraps but now it was so clear that he was wrong. "I can assure you that I am fine. Now can you please get off of my bed and leave?"

Isabelle had been studying his features and stance so closely that it wasn't hard for her to realize that he was slightly tense. That mere revelation made her quirk her brow in a quizzical manner as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Why do you want me to leave so badly?"

Jace pinched the bridge of his nose as he released a groan, feeling a headache about to make its appearance soon. "I am not in the mood for one of your games, Izzy. Get out now."

That had been the final straw for Isabelle, making her get up onto her feet in a flash before she strode over to Jace, proceeding to prod his chest with her index finger as she glared daggers at him. "Don't even catch an attitude with me right now. Especially when I came here with the sole purpose of easing your mind with some new information about the person you've been pining over for weeks. But if that's not an interest to you then I guess I will just leave." She didn't give him a chance to answer her, and instead she purposely turned around and took a few step towards the door, knowing that he would take the bait.

Jace had gone completely still when he caught on to who she was speaking about, and before he realized what he was doing, he had already reached out to grasp Isabelle's arm. "What did you hear about Clary?"

Isabelle tried her best not to appear to be so smug when she now had his full attention, and instead she turned around to look at him. "If you'd so kindly let go of my arm, I will happily go on to bring in our guest that is waiting right outside your door, so you can hear this information from the main source. Is that alright with you?"

Jace removed his hold on her arm, feeling slightly ashamed that he allowed his feelings to get the best of him, which is why he shut his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before he gave her a subtle nod in answer to her question, because he didn't trust himself to speak aloud right now.

Isabelle gave him a moment to center himself once again before she opened the door and beckoned someone inside the room and went on to stand beside the young girl. "Jace, this is Emma Carstairs."

Jace was momentarily confused when he had witnessed the young girl walking into his room, until he realized that she was one of the few that had been instructed to tell their story about one of the many recent attacks that had been done to several different Institutes. It also didn't go unnoticed by him that Emma seemed to appear mildly uncomfortable, which made him try and relax as well as go on to place what he hoped to be a friendly smile upon his lips. "Hello, Emma. It's very nice to finally meet you properly. I'm—"

"You're, Jace Herondale." Emma blurted out before she felt her cheeks burn ever so slightly in response to feeling embarrassed by her outburst, but she couldn't help it when she was currently so starstruck since she was in the presence of one of the best Shadowhunters she had heard so much about throughout her own training.

Jace had to try his best to not react to his real name being said aloud for the very first time, and instead he focused on Isabelle when she signaled for him to focus back on the matter at hand, which made him act on instinct as he went on to close the gap between them and crouched down in front of Emma. "My sister has informed me that you have something to tell me about Clary Morgenstern. Is that correct?"

Emma felt herself relax a bit when she felt Isabelle give her shoulder a light squeeze to give her the subtle push she needed to go on to say what she needed to. She drew in a deep breath before she averted her gaze over in Jace's direction, feeling herself relax furthermore when she noticed that he was smiling at her in a kind manner. "The other day during the emergency meeting, I didn't entirely relay everything that happened. And what I didn't mention was that when Clary was given the order to kill me, it seemed as though she was fighting with her own self about going through with the order. Just as she was readying herself to do what she needed to, she managed to stop in time and she let me go through the portal instead." Emma gave Jace a moment to process what she had just said before she was going to give the last piece of information that she had about that incident that occurred.

Jace inhaled sharply as he tried to wrap his head around what was just said, because he couldn't believe that this subtle knowledge was going to be enough to help give him the strength to go through with what he was planning to do. "Is there anything else that I should know that happened after that, Emma?" He inquired with a slight tinge of urgency in his tone.

Emma gave him a subtle nod in answer as she bit down on her lip in a nervous manner before she forced herself to replay the events that happened back in her mind one last time to make sure she had all the details before she relayed what happened. "I was so shocked that she had let me go that I couldn't make myself move, and go through the portal like everyone else did. But I'm actually thankful that I didn't or else I wouldn't have witnessed that she killed two of her own people that saw her let me go, and afterwards she went back to the one that I think was the leader and when he asked about what happened to me, she told him that I managed to escape through the portal. He didn't even think to question her over the two men that she had killed. He acted as if they were just nothing. He didn't even care to think that they had a family before he forced them to join his army." Emma looked down at her feet in a hasty manner when she was on the verge of tears, but those tears were from the rage that was now coursing through her as she pictured the one person who split the one family she had left apart.

Jace couldn't believe that Clary had actually allowed Emma to leave. Here he had thought that his one true love was gone forever, but now that spark of hope that he once had was back. It took him a moment to realize that Emma was upset, but when he did notice, he gently lifted her chin up in order to meet her gaze. "I promise that I will punish the one that is responsible for all of this. And I also want you to know that I am forever grateful to you for telling me this. If you ever need someone to talk to or even want help with training, I'd be more than happy to help. Okay?"

Emma sniffed softly as the corner of her mouth lifted up into a hint of smile in response to hearing his offer. "I will definitely take you up on that offer. Thank you."

"No, thank you, Emma. You just made my day." He smiled at her before he gently took hold of her hand and placed a kiss against the back of it.

Isabelle had been trying her hardest not to break out into tears, but the way that Jace was being towards Emma was just too much that she had to tear her gaze away for a moment to collect herself. It had felt like so long that she had seen Jace like this, and after she was sure that she could speak without her voice wavering, she peered down at Emma as she gave her shoulder a gentle nudge. "As much as I'd love for you to stay, I think your friend is probably getting worried about you."

It took Emma a moment to catch onto what Isabelle was saying, but when she realized whom she was referring to, her eyes widened in alarm ever so slightly. "By the angel!" She was already almost halfway out of the door before she realized she was being rude, making her pause in the doorway in order to look over at the Lightwood siblings. "It was very lovely meeting you both. Bye!" She waved at them before she turned on her heel and made her way towards where she left her best friend.

Jace rose up to his feet, and reluctantly looked over at Isabelle, and it was then he noticed that she wasn't looking as smug as she had been a few moments ago. Instead she looked like she was going to be on the verge of tears, which made him frown. "What's wrong, Izzy?"

Isabelle wiped her face in a hasty manner before she forced herself to look over at Jace. "It's nothing. I'm fine."

Jace shook his head as he released a sigh before he went on to pull her into a gentle embrace, rubbing her back to help calm her down. "No, you're not fine. Now tell your favorite brother what is wrong."

Against all odds, Isabelle found herself laughing as she returned his hug. "Don't you dare tell Alec that you know that you're my favorite brother." She noted with a teasing lilt to her words, and was rewarded with the vibration that came with Jace's silent laughter as she rested her face against his chest.

"Well, I can't make any promises, because now I'm curious to see what Alec's reaction will be when I tell him." Jace replied in a joking manner.

"My reaction to what?" Alec inquired from the doorway with furrowed brows as he witnessed his siblings having a little moment without him, which should have bothered him slightly, but today it didn't. It actually soothed him to see the old Jace back for even a brief moment.

Isabelle turned her head in Alec's direction as she shrugged in a nonchalant manner. "Oh, just the fact that Jace was planning to leave without telling anyone."

"What!?" Alec retorted in disbelief as he looked back and forth between his siblings, trying to figure out just exactly what was going on.

Jace went completely still upon hearing her words. "How in the hell did you know that I was planning to leave?"

Isabelle snorted as she pulled away from Jace, giving him a knowing look before she turned on her heel and started to saunter her way out of the room. "Don't you both know by now that I always know everything. And now that, that is settled with, let's be on our merry way before we are late."

"Late for what?" Alec and Jace inquired in unision.

"I took it upon myself to organize a meeting at Magnus's place. He's providing us with the transportation of course. Now hurry up ladies! Or else you guys are going to be the ones to explain to Magnus on why we were late. And I bet that won't be a pretty conversation to have." Isabelle had to choke back a laugh when she heard both of her brothers all but break out into a jog from just behind her, but what made it even more amusing to her was when she couldn't help but hear them both whispering back and forth about how she always knew of the things that they always failed to keep a secret from her.

It was this normal sibling moment between them all that was keeping her from breaking down once again. It killed her to see Jace so upset for so long that she finally had enough and she had decided it was time for her to take matters into her own hands. Because she couldn't bare the thought of losing Clary. Especially when she had once thought of her as family. And if she had to be completely honest with herself, she was even surprised that it had taken her this long to finally take charge and show everyone that she wasn't just concerned with her looks or loved to just defy her parents authority whenever she wanted to. She was just as strong as any other Shadowhunter, and right now in this moment she was prepared to go through with something that not even the adults dared to even think about doing. It was time for a change, and she would gladly take whatever consequences that would surely come with this act of treason if it meant that she could save Clary, and put a stop to all of this madness before it was too late. She was fighting for her family and friends, just as she knew that Jonathan thought he was doing for his sister, but the only difference was for the fact that she knew at the end of the day, good always triumphs over evil.

~~

"What have you summoned me for?" Jonathan inquired as he continued to make his way fully into the room, his gaze landing almost immediately onto Lilith, watching as she turned around to face him.

Lilith resisted the urge to react to his attitude, and instead forced herself to speak in a cordial manner. "My son, I have asked you to meet me for the sole purpose of discussing a matter that has come to my attention recently."

Jonathan arched a brow in a quizzical manner as he now stood right in front of her. "And what matter would that be? It must be something important since you called to me, whilst I was in the middle of something."

"Yes, the matter is quite serious. Or else I would not have bothered to call upon you at such an hour. It has come to my attention that your sister allowed someone to escape during the last attack. Is that correct?" Lilith studied his face so closely, wanting to see his reaction to her words, but it proved to be useless, because she had trained him so well that she couldn't tell what he was thinking in this moment, which irked her.

Jonathan went completely still as soon as he heard his sister's name, causing him to immediately go into protective mode, and what made matters worse was the fact that he was so sure that Lilith would never find out about this situation. He hadn't been pleased when he found out that Clary disobeyed his direct order from various witnesses, but in the end he chose to continue to protect her. And the first step of going through with that promise was to make sure there were no witnesses, but now it was clear that he hadn't been as thorough as he had thought. "Whoever disclosed that information misunderstood what happened. Clary followed every order that was given to her, and when the time came to go after that little brat who dared to harm me, she did just that even though she was harmed in the process as well. But none of us expected for the Clave to create a portal so soon that allowed that brat and her comrades to escape. Are you satisfied now with knowing the full truth from your own son? Or do you still wish to find another reason to question Clary's loyalty as you've been so kind to do since the very beginning?" He was fuming by the time he finished speaking as his hands were clenched so tightly at his sides as he thought of the many ways that he would torture the person who had gone behind his back in order to disclose this information to Lilith.

Lilith bristled as soon as she felt the intensity of her son's anger hit her out of nowhere, and in that moment she was able to sense that both his powers and strength were still gradually increasing with every new member of his army. That mere revelation was almost enough to make her smirk, but the only reason she did not, was the fact that she was not able to feel the full effect of his strength, because there was one particular person that was in her way. And that was Clary. She had been nothing but a nuisance during this time that should have been glorious, and today had been the final straw for Lilith. She knew that she needed to get her out of the way, but that meant that she needed to show her son that Clary couldn't be trusted. And now in this moment, Lilith realized that was going to difficult to do, but she was not going to give up just yet. Especially now that her ultimate goal was within her reach. That mere thought was enough for her to look forward to as she pulled herself out of her thoughts before she reached out in a tentative manner to place her hand against Jonathan's shoulder, willing him to meet her gaze. "There's no need to get worked up, my son. If you say that I shouldn't doubt your sister's true intentions then I will not. I am only looking out for your future. And I would hate it if you allowed yourself to become distracted when your dream is just within your grasp."

Jonathan drew in a deep breath to help calm himself before he moved out from under her grasp as he forced himself to hold her gaze. "I would apologize for how I just behaved, but I don't regret it. You of all people should know that when it comes to Clary, I will always protect her no matter what. And the next person that even speaks ill of her once again will have to suffer through the consequences that come with that action. Even if that person is you. Do I make myself clear?"

Lilith gritted her teeth as she felt herself growing tired of this same argument that they seemed to have on a regular basis, which made her finally snap. "Can't you see that she has changed you! You would have never dared to threaten your own mother, but yet here you stand defending her as always. No matter how many times I have proved to you that she isn't fit to rule beside you! You need to accept that, and let her go. It's the only way that you will be able to succeed!"

Jonathan's eyes narrowed into slits as his fingers itched to wrap themselves around the nearest weapon, but the only reason he had not acted upon his instincts was for the fact that Lilith was the only one besides Clary that he viewed as family. "If it were true that she allowed the girl to escape, what would you have me do? She is my sister, and I will always protect her no matter what. You know that to be true by now."

Lilith released a sigh as she stepped forward and placed her hand against his cheek, willing him to meet her steady gaze. "Your devotion to your family is one of the things I admire about you, but it is also a great weakness of yours. And now that we are so close to taking this world as our own, I cannot allow you to put it all at risk for one puny girl. I have given you many chances to make sure she holds up her end, but every time you seem to fail. So now I will give you only one last chance to make this all right. You will either have your sister drink from the Infernal Cup to ensure that her freewill is entirely gone for good or you will end her. I will grant you a few days to make your final decision, but if you do not give me your final answer by then, I will be forced to make the decision for you."

Jonathan didn't have a chance to react to her ultimatum, because she vanished out of sight within the very next moment.

~~

Jonathan was in the process of pacing around his room, trying to keep himself from destroying anything in his path, because he knew that if he harmed himself during the process that he would inflict that pain onto Clary. As he thought of her, his eyes slid shut as he concentrated on sensing her through their subtle bond, and within a moment he was able to tell that she appeared to be in a very deep slumber. That knowledge alone only proved even more that he couldn't stupidly throw a fit, and risk the chance of awakening her. But it was so difficult for him to calm down. Especially after his confrontation with Lilith.

He didn't know how to feel after he realized that the one person that he had viewed as his parent had actually manipulated him after all these years. It wasn't until his very last moments with Lilith that he sensed her thirst for power. And the only person that was standing in her way as she slowly made her way back to her former superior self wasn't just Clary. It was also himself as well.

He didn't know how he could have been so blind all of these years. Lilith had been using him for her own selfish needs. She had come to him when he was weak and craved to be loved as any other child wants. And throughout his childhood, she fed his hatred towards Valentine until he finally had the opportunity to rid himself of him altogether.

And it was after that unmerciful act that Lilith had convinced him to help bring her back in order to have her walk the Earth once again. He had thought nothing of it up until now. It was clear as day that had been used, but he'd be damned if he would allow her to succeed. And there was only one thing he knew he had to do, but he didn't know if he had the strength to do it.

But he did know just where he could find the strength he so desperately needed, and that mere thought was what led him to Clary's room. As soon as the door slid shut behind him, he crossed the room and carefully climbed into bed beside her. And as if on cue, Clary made a soft noise before she shifted on the bed and instinctively curled up against him. That subtle act caused his chest to ache as he went on to wrap an arm around her, drawing her closer to him before he leaned down to place a kiss against the top of her head.

"You are the only one person left in this entire world that understands me. And it is now that I need your help so desperately, because I know what I have to do, but I don't think I have the strength to go through with it." He murmured in a rough tone, and for the very first time in his life, he allowed himself to give into his sorrows.

A/N: I am very sorry for the long wait. I've been very preoccupied with school lately, but now my schedule is better and I have time to finally finish this story. I believe that there will be only two more chapters. The final one will be an epilogue, and I hope that you all will enjoy how this story finally ends.