CHAPTER THREE

Magnus had really outdone himself, Tessa thought in bewilderment.

The New York Institute was done up beautifully. Round tables sat all around, pink—and sparkly, of course—tablecloths atop them. Silver vases, each with a single white rose, was placed in the middle of them. At the back of the room was a long buffet-like table that was adorned with the same setup as the smaller ones, and a large crystal punch bowl sat in the middle.

There were so many people, but that wasn't what surprised her. It was the fact that she knew everyone that shocked her. She didn't realize before then how many people her little girl would have to call family.

Perhaps she did not know them well, that was true. She had never really talked to the Lightwood girl, though Magnus had told her that Simon Lovelace had proposed and they were well on their way to their wedding, so she was soon to be a Lovelace girl. Tessa made a note to congratulate her when she got the chance.

But everyone else—Magnus, Catarina, Jocelyn, Luke, Emma, Julian, the Blackthorn twins—Livvy and Ty—, and the younger two Dru and Tavvy, along with Clary, Alec, Max and Rafael, Maryse, Robert, Jace—Jace.

She had talked to him briefly at Shadowhunter Academy. He had confronted her and won her heart over, even if he did not know it. It was not difficult. With his beautiful face like Will's and Jamie's eyes, he was like a breath of the past, warm and familiar, but fresh.

She felt Jem squeeze her hand in comfort and saw him swallow. She wondered if he was as bombarded as she was the sight that lay in front of them.

The Institutes had mostly the same layout, especially the larger ones, and the New York Institute and the London Institute's ballrooms were eerily similar. Everything from the eighteenth-century chandelier to the mahogany trim that had been installed in every major Institute of each continent during the 1740 renovation act was the same and had Tessa not known that they were in fact, in New York City, she would've sworn they were in London again.

"Tessa!" Magnus noticed her. He stuck his arms out and did an extravagant bow. "Does the Lady approve?"

"She does," Tessa spoke through the giggle that escaped her throat. "In fact, she's very impressed. How on earth did you get everyone to look so well put together?"

"Never fret my Dear," Magnus exclaimed, throwing a single finger into the air. "By the night's end, they shall all be naked and the punch will have been laced."

"Don't be ridiculous, Magnus." Jace came up from behind him. His blonde curls were more tamed than usual, probably per Clary's demand, and he looked more grown up and mature than the last time she had seen him. "The punch has already been laced."

Though he was a Herondale, Tessa mused, and it seemed that their minds never aged with their bodies, at least in her experience. No matter how old Will might have been, he always acted like the same wild-haired, blue-eyed boy she had first met.

"So not safe for my consumption then?" Tessa questioned lightly. What a Herondale thing to do, she mused, then berated herself. It was her hardest task—not comparing every descendant she met of someone she had known to those people. Isabelle to Cecily, Clary to Henry and Charlotte, Jace to Will and James.

"Don't worry," Jace waved her concerns off, motioning to the corner where a large and equally beautiful punch bowl sat on a small table beside a chocolate fountain and an array of fruit. "There are safe drinks that way, and you'll probably get them all to yourself. Except for Izzy, of course."

Tessa wondered if Isabelle didn't drink, which she found strange. The Lightwoods, Cecily too, even though then a lady was not supposed to consume alcoholic beverages then, had always been rather fond of their fermented drinks.

"Tessa," Alec came up, running at a slow jog. He immediately went in for a hug, his back arching awkwardly as her belly created a barrier. Tessa had always liked Alec, though she had no idea where his disposition came from. As far as Lightwoods and their wives' families—the Herondales, the Truebloods, and the rest—Alec was nothing like any of them. The closest thing she could compare him to was Gideon, though he looked like Cecily.

Regardless, she had always been fond of him. He had made Magnus happy and taken in a warlock child to call his own, an admirable trait for a shadowhunter.

"It's good to see you," he said, pulling back and smiling. He shook Jem's hand and congratulated him before turning back to Tessa. "I hope you like everything. Magnus has been going crazy for the past month about everything." He broke off into a grin and looked at Magnus. "Just know that we didn't get one of those 'couple gifts'. The present he got you is from him, not us. I got something else for our 'we present'. Just thought I'd get that out there."

Magnus had been holding a silent grin the whole time, not speaking up as to what his boyfriend was on about. At Jem's withering look though, he let a minuscule detail slip. "I just figured that little Elizabeth was going to be getting plenty—I still got her something, but I spent the majority of my present budget on something for the expecting parents." Everyone looked warily at him, except for Alec, who looked tremendously amused, that was until Magnus let another detail slip. "Alec loves it, so I have no doubt that—"'

Alec let out a small shout of horror and pulled a proud Magnus away by the arm, out of sight and earshot of the remaining crowd.

Jem cleared his throat, his expression uncomfortable. "So, um, do we just sit anywhere or are there assigned seats or—"

Jace let out a whoop of laughter and hit Jem on the shoulder in one of those manly gestures that Tessa could never quite understand and always thought a bit barbaric. It mimicked something that Will might have done had he been there.

"Sit wherever you like, then," Jace grinned. "Though I would advise against opening Magnus's gift until you two are at home. You should've seen what he got me—well me and Clary—for my birthday. She was so mortified when I opened it." His eyes were dreamy when he recalled the memory as if it were the fond recollections of a most romantic evening. Tessa could only imagine, and then she wished she hadn't.

"Oh Jace, leave her alone," a dark-haired girl, who Tessa recognized as Isabelle berated him. "Come on," she waved Jem and Tessa to follow her, which both did without question. Tessa looked over at Jem to see his cheeks were a dark red. "You guys obviously got the best table," Isabelle continued, escorting them to a small table that sat in the middle of the floor. It looked like all the rest, but instead of one white rose in the vase, there was a whole bouquet. Tessa couldn't help but notice the way Isabelle's hand seemed to rest on her stomach, and Jace's comment about her and Isabelle being the only ones who would drink the non-spiked beverages came back to her mind.

The sound of a spoon hitting a champagne glass interrupted her thoughts.

"Attention, attention everyone," Magnus called out. He was standing on one of the tables and Alec was underneath him looking disapproving. The room slowed to a quiet halt. "Our guests of honor are here and it's time to begin to celebrate. I ask that you refrain from getting wasted until presents have been opened and cake has been eaten. After which you may do whatever you like, as long as the table cloths stay clean. It's real satin and if you puke on one, you will buy it."

Tessa giggled at Magnus's speech, for it was such a Magnus thing to say, and she saw Jem smile. The color in his cheeks had died down to a cool pink and he seemed more at ease.

The events that followed were a blur. Cake was passed out, and Magnus informed them that there were still two whole tiers left for them to take home. Presents were opened and thank yous were given. Clary got them a handmade and decorated scrapbook with empty places that could be filled with pictures. Jace got a large box of diapers, and had taken the time to write out a saying on each with multicolored sharpies, things like 'Caution: Open in a well-ventilated area', and 'Warning: May cause nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting'. Isabelle gave a few sets of clothes, all of which Tessa fell in love with. Simon had a large array of onesies with funny quotes that made all the women in the group giggle and Isabelle shake her head. Emma got them miniature shadowhunter gear and a wooden sword that Tessa thought looked an awful lot like Cortana. Julien and Alec, the practical ones it seemed, had bought them diapers, infant soap, baby towels, teething rings, socks, bottles and other necessities. Magnus gave them flamboyant outfits covered in sparkles and a few toys to go along. They had stuck to Jace's advice and asked Isabelle if she would sit Magnus's gift for them aside.

Before long, the gifts were over and it was declared it was time for games.

"Tessa, what is that?" Jem whispered to her as they stared at the wall where a funny looking pink thing was plastered. It looked like a crude form of pin the tail. On the side, it read, 'PIN THE SPERM ON THE EGG,' and then in bubbly letters, 'WIN A PRIZE IF YOU FERTILIZE.' Tessa realized in horror that the pink thing was meant to represent ovaries. Inside of them was a smiley face inside an egg shape.

Tessa's hand flew over her mouth in an attempt to hide her mortified giggle.

"Tessa?" Jem asked.

"And this game here is for the gentlemen," Magnus voiced, holding up a long white thing with another smiley face on its—what Tessa supposed to be its face. "Except for Alec and myself, of course. No fertilization going on there." Alec just turned red and shook his head at his boyfriend. "So who wants to go first?" Magnus held out the sperm pin.

"What's this supposed to be, papa?" a little dark haired shadowhunter child asked. Rafael reached out for the plush sperm pin.

"Nothing you need to worry about, Raf," Magnus quickly snatched the pin back, looking disheveled.

Jace stepped forward. "Obviously, the father gets to go first," he took the pin and held it out to Jem, a smirk on his lips. "We've got to see if your game's that good or if it was just a lucky shot."

Jem turned beet red and started to protest, but it seemed Jace was having none of that and in the end, Jem was forced to accept the pin.

Magnus came up behind him and tied a blindfold over his eyes, securing it at the back of his head and handing him the pin. He and Jace then took him and spun him around several times before letting him go.

Tessa stood amused and slightly bewildered. It was such an ordinary thing for people to do—play baby shower games and joke and jest. She and Jem were far from normal, as were the shadowhunters at the New York Institute. They were shadowhunters after all. It surprised her that they even knew how to plan a normal baby shower, much less execute it.

"You can thank Simon for that," Magnus whispered to her. Tessa looked over her shoulder at him. He smiled like a Cheshire. "Apparently, he's seen his mom and sister plan baby showers before and picked up a few ideas. Isabelle helped set it up to."

Tessa made a note to thank Isabelle and Simon later. She found that even though she didn't know him very well, she liked Simon. He had an amusing personality and didn't care if everyone knew that he knew how to plan a baby shower.

A series of awws and so closes brought her back to the party. Jem had stuck the sperm pin a few inches away from the egg. He didn't seem to care much and appeared glad to get away from all the attention.

"That was both humiliating and amusing," he told her as he took her hand and kissed her on the cheek.

"My turn!" Jace announced gleefully, snatching the sperm pin away from Magnus.

Jem shook his head ruefully at the boy's shenanigans, and Tessa wondered if he compared Jace to Will as much as she did. Wanting to avoid bringing up a topic that she knew would make them both wistful, she only sat quietly and watched as the blonde Herondale pondered where to stick the pin.

To their surprise, he stuck it directly on the egg.

"Oh, you cheated," Isabelle complained, snatching the pin out of the wall and handing it over to Simon who accepted it with a wary look, one that wanted to deny but knew better in the face of his fiancé. "There's no way you just knew the exact spot to put it."

Jace just rolled his eyes. "I always know where to put it," he said, handing the blindfold over to Simon. "Just ask Clary—ow! Clary!"

The red head girl pointed her finger at him. "You've been making rude innuendos all night. I'm tired of it."

"You're just mad cause I'm the best fertilizer," he countered bravely, then took a step back.

Tessa and Jem watched on with growing amusement as the couple bantered back and forth, that was until Isabelle decided to step in.

"Obviously, Jem's the best fertilizer," she said reasonably.

The blush that had spread over his cheeks earlier now came back full force as he stuttered out something that wasn't quite words.

"Okay fine," Jace agreed. "But I'm the second-best fertilizer at least. And you know what that means for you Clary," he poked her in the stomach.

Clary slapped his hand. "Oh, stop it Jace. If you keep acting like this and you won't the chance to fertilize anything for a long time."

Their banter continued before Magnus deemed it was time to play more games.

They played the normal baby shower games. Clary was extraordinarily bad at them. She had dropped the sack of potatoes that was supposed to be the baby, scaled the milk, and put the diaper on the doll backward. To everyone's surprise, when it came to the skill games such as changing diapers blindfolded and identifying different types of baby food, nearly every one of them was won by either Julian or Emma. Everyone else was shocked at the development and laughed, saying they knew where to drop their kids off at, but Tessa knew, and she knew Jem knew too—they had learned all those things first hand, very young, not out of want, but need.

Jem had told her how guilty he had felt about not being there for Emma, especially when he knew what she went through, having lost his own parents at the same age. Tessa felt a sense of responsibility towards the Blackthorns too. This was like a stab of guilt through both of them.

By the end of the night, everyone was worn down and tired, but happy in a way that shadowhunters usually weren't. The sat with the chairs all pulled away from the tables in an odd circle, while some sat on the floor. Jace was leaned back against a wall and Clary was cradled in his lap. Simon was sitting cross-legged and Isabelle had her head in his lap. Julian was leaned up against a wall as well, and Emma had her feet propped up on his thighs. Most of the older adults were in chairs though.

They sat talking about silly things and the future. Jace and Clary offered both her and Jem a place in the New York Institute if they ever wanted back in the shadowhunter world, and Emma demanded that they stay at the Los Angeles Institute at least a little so she could spend time with the newest Carstairs. Jem had agreed whole-heartedly to both the request and the demand, but not before sharing a look with Tessa to confirm that she wanted it as well. Even if she had not of wanted to stay at either Institute, which she did, the plead in his silver-flacked eyes would have won her over.

"So, do you guys think you're going to have another one after Ellie?" Emma asked, sipping her drink. They had, of course, talked about the baby, it was her baby shower after all, and at the beginning of the party she was Elizabeth, but by now she was being referred to as Ellie by everyone.

"I think I would," Tessa smiled. "If Jem wants to, of course."

"I certainly won't object," he smiled, rubbing his thumb over the back of their clasped hands.

Alec laughed softly, his eyes resting on a spot in the corner. "It might be time to start heading home," he said, pointing to the area where they had left the younger kids to play.

Rafael was curled up on his side, and Max was using his brother's calf as a pillow. Livvy sat over them asleep, her head resting in the palm of her hand and Tavvy leaned up against her arm, his cheek smashing adorably against her shoulder. Ty, who had gone with Livvy when she went to watch the kids, was sitting cross-legged, a book in his lap. He didn't appear to notice that everyone was staring at him, too engrossed in whatever he was reading.

His dark head, bent down between the crease of a book, reminded Tessa of her own boys. Her Will and James, who this boy shared blood with. But he did not have her Will's blue eyes, nor Jamie's golden ones, but hers, gray and stormy.

"Yes," Tessa agreed, smiling softly at the scene. "It probably is. Thank you all," she said sincerely, looking around at everyone. "I enjoyed myself tonight. It has been a while since I've had so much fun and good company."

"That goes for me as well," Jem said.

Everyone burst into action, giving hugs and well wishings. All of them helped load the presents and remainders of the cake into Jem and Tessa's new sedan, which Jem had done copious amounts of research on to find the safest vehicle.

Before, they hadn't had a car. They portaled where they wanted to go and walked to go sightseeing, the way they used to when they were young and Jem showed her London. They didn't have a need for a car until now when they were planning on settling down somewhere. They had stopped traveling as much as they used to, and Tessa knew that soon, they would have to cease their travels altogether. Jem had expressed his concern that their daughter might be born in a far-off land with no running water, and they had agreed that they would find somewhere before she was due.

They sat now, hands clasped over the console of the sedan, tired but happy smiles etched into their faces that Tessa felt would last forever.

"That was nice," Tessa said.

"It was," he agreed. "But sometimes I can't help but see the past in them. Not that I dislike that," he added quickly, "I am glad to know that or child—perhaps our children," he added bashfully, "will have a family of people who care about them."

Tessa took his hand and kissed the back of it, feeling the scars that ran over beneath her lips.

"Hey!" a loud voice and knock against the glass of the window pulled them out of their comfortable reverie.

Tessa looked out but saw no one. Then a small hand banged again, low on the window.

Tessa opened the door slowly as to not hit the child that was banging on her window. She was surprised to find Octavian Blackthorn at her feet, tired looking, but a determined look in his blue-green, Blackthorn eyes.

"Yes, Octavian?" she asked gently, kneeling eye level to him. He wasn't very tall, and he was too slight for his age, but Tessa could look at his ancestors and siblings and know he would be tall and built well one day.

"I forgot my present for you guys in the car today," he told her excitedly. She noticed a square object under his arm, badly wrapped in Christmas paper. "So I'll just give it to you now." He pushed the gift into her hands. "Open it." He rocked back on his heels.

Tessa smiled gently at the boy's eagerness and handled his gift like it was made of precious metal. It felt heavy and familiar in her hands. A book, she realized. Go figure. That was a Blackthorn gift.

Her fingers were nimble as she began to carefully unwrap it, taking care not to lose stray pieces in the wind to be spread over the city. When it was undone, she stared down at a hardbacked, dark covered book. It was then that she realized it had felt familiar for more reasons than just the fact that it was a book.

Tessa's hand ran over the cover in wonder.

The book had been made in 1891, but Tessa remembered when it was brand new, when the smell of binding glue and fresh leather still hung to it, and Lucie, at four years old, but a master of wooing her father into getting her what she wanted, had become the proud owner of the book. Her favorite book, full of stories of brave shadowhunters and tragic tales. Will would read her one every night, and James as well, as he had come to love the contents of the book as much as his little sister.

"Aunt Marjorie gave it to me when we went to see her," Octavian said, seeing Tessa's face and looking uncomfortable. "I liked it a lot and I thought that Ellie might, too."

Tessa opened the book. On the back of the first page was a faded scrawl of worlds—'Lucie Herondale'. Written below that in considerably more terrible handwriting, was 'and papa'.

Tessa remembered when she had come home, proudly holding the book, too big for her to properly carry, so she cradled it to her chest and wrapped both arms around it.

Will had sat her down at the library table and took her chubby hand in his calloused, scarred one, showing her again the right way to hold a pen, and together the two wrote her name in shaky script. Lucie had gone back later and added her father's name—which at four years old was only papa—because it was their book.

Tessa hugged Octavian tight, taking the little boy by surprise, but he melted into it slowly and hugged her back, the book pressed awkwardly in between them.

"Thank you, Octavian," Tessa whispered in his ear.

"You're welcome," he said.

When she let him go he gave her a quick smile before darting off as his brother called him in the distance.

"Bye, Tessa,' he said over his shoulder, running back to his siblings.

Tessa stayed on the ground, kneeling in the gravel until Jem came around and touched her shoulder lightly.

"Tessa?" Tessa looked up at her husband, the father of her child, and the man she loved. "Tessa," he said, kneeling beside her and running his hand over her shoulder and down her back soothingly. "I think if Lucie were still here, she would have wanted her younger sister to have it."

Tessa let out a sob and buried her head against Jem's arm. He wrapped her in an embrace, holding her to him and rocking gently, knowing well that one day she would be cradling the remnants of their past together and he would not be there to comfort her.


UP NEXT: The pushing of a miniature shadowhunter out of a vagina. *Clears throat* *snickers* The birth of Elizabeth Carstairs. Unless you guys want to see something else first. But after her birth things will start to go pretty fast.