That thorny path, those stormy skies,

Have drawn our spirits nearer;

And rendered us, by sorrow's ties,

Each to the other dearer.

BERNARD BARTON, Not Ours the Vows

12:00 a.m

Clary's feet squeaked on the shiny, ceramic floor as she sprinted through the halls. God, please don't get me arrested for B&E...help thy neighbor? The slow footsteps of the security guard were drawing closer and closer and she frantically searched for an unlocked classroom, her papers creasing at the tight grip of her fingers. She whipped around to see the golden shine of the flashlight. Here's goes the end of my educational career...

The Previous Week

"What's another one...Clary Fray?" Clary snapped up to meet the teacher's burning glance. Her mind had been idly wandering out the window to the busy pedestrians below and now she's going to pay for her lack of attention.

"I'm sorry I...didn't hear the question." She muttered as she avoided the teacher's gaze. There was a dramatic sigh.

"Aline would you please tell Clary one of the emotions that the character had to overcome?" Aline shot Clary an apologetic smile.

"Sorrow I suppose." She said.

"Why do you think that is such a powerful, all consuming emotion as described in this chapter?"

"Maybe because...Sorrow is universal. It feels like that to everyone, any person on Earth has to have felt as sad and as desperate at one point in their lives."

"Okay, where do you see such sorrow, even now in your own lives." Hands shot up as the teacher chuckled. "Write them down please." Clary glanced at her piece of paper, her mind going blank. Sorrow...sorrow...sorrow...She was only 16, when had she ever felt sorrow? Sure, she's felt sad but to feel sorrow...Her mind couldn't seem to stray, the legerity from the last few seconds flew out of her mind now that it was buzzing. Sorrow...sorrow...sorrow...

The words were still echoing in Clary's mind as she walked down the hallways. Sorrow...sorrow...sorrow...How was there so much and she didn't even notice? How deeply was she really seeing the world? Her hand drifted to her locker and methodically started twisting the knob. Clary never knew her father; he died when she was young. Was that considered an act that provoked sorrow? She wasn't sure, she had never really felt anything for him, her feelings towards a father figure hadn't even begun to develop. She sighed as she slammed her locker shut. She was getting sad even thinking about it.

Sadness can be cured with a smile, cheer someone up when they are down.

Sorrow exists everywhere, how exactly could Clary fix the majority of the world who was surrounded by sadness? Clary sighed as she leaned back in her chair, leaving her bottled water and sandwich untouched. She scanned the cafeteria, looking at all of her classmates, tired, run down. School, life had brought them down with their own weights and sadness swept in. It didn't have to be the entire world...maybe it could be just her world.

"So I was doing your mom-"

"Simon!" She exclaimed, grabbing his arm as the idea swept into her mind.

"Whoa, I was just kidding, I mean not that your mom's not attractive. I mean for a woman of her age-"

"How spotless is your record?" Simon's mouth open and shut silently as he starred at her, wondering what her next crazy plan was.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

It took a week to make all of the signs. They were small, post it notes, flyers, each one containing a vibrant mix of colors as words, beautiful words swept across the page hoping to push away the sorrow. The easy part was over now the hard part- getting in. Clary hoped it to be a surprise. Admittedly it would be odd for her to be walking around the school during lunch posting signs on people's lockers. So here she was, running through the hallways desperately looking for an escape.

It seemed to easy a few hours ago. Just pick the lock (you wouldn't believe how fragile the lock is), stick the posters, run and hopefully don't get expelled from school. How the heck was she supposed to know that the security guard was on duty for tonight? The footsteps were coming closer and closer. Clary closed her eyes and took a breath, already imagining the disappointment in her mother's eyes.

"Clary?" She heard a voice exclaimed incredulously. Clary opened her eyes to find Luke standing in front of her, his flashlight illuminating the small area.

"Luke? What are you doing here?"

"Your mom got worried and sent me to check for you. The lock was broken." He said, his voice, dry. "Now would you please explain to me why you're lurking around the school in the middle of the night?"

"I-you- you're going to think I'm insane." Clary sighed. Luke raised an eyebrow.

"Try me." So she told him everything, about the list, about her acts of kindness and about how she had to break in to do this. She wasn't sure about Jace yet so she left him out of it. Luke nodded slowly.

"You're right, it is insane." Clary sighed, defeated. There went her act of kindness. "But the best ideas are." Clary looked up at him, incredulous. He was actually approving this? But that wasn't the most shocking part. The most shocking part was when he grabbed half the stack.

"Let's hurry up." He said, "We only have about an hour before the security guard comes back from coffee."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Imogene rubbed her eyes as she entered school. After nine years of teaching here, she had lost it. She lost the passion, the vitality of young people chipped away by stress, by her failing marriage, by missing homework...She sighed as she pulled open the doors to Alicante High. She was instantly confused as to the flurry of activity fluttering around. Seniors this awake at 7:30? That was unheard of! She weaved her way through traffic, glancing at all of the papers in the student's hand. She closed the door to her classroom, muffling the sounds of excitement. Her eyes were instantly drawn to the paper left on her desk. Golden colored the page with red and orange appearing in wisps around the words.

"Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength."

She held the paper, the colors creasing underneath her fingers. She had never really considered herself strong. She was quiet, soft spoken, she left her upper house classes coerce her into no homework for a week for God's sake! But as she thought about the shambles of her life and her job, she wondered why she hadn't given up yet. She wondered how long if it would for anyone else to give up? Her fists clenched. No, she wasn't going to give up. If she was holding on for this long, she was going to do it for a bit longer. Her class filed in laughing and talking. Imogene did something she hand never done before. Slam! The textbook hit the desk as the class went quiet.

"Open your books to page 175, we're going to learn today."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Clary smiled at the exclamations of surprise and confusion. She watched smiles spread over the faces of her classmates.

"We did a pretty good thing Fray." Simon said as he stood next to her, watching. She smiled and nodded.

"Yea...we did." Out of the corner of her eyes she almost thought she saw a golden flash disappear out the door with a fluttering white paper in his hands.