Hi my dears. Welcome to the Chapter of 8. Today we are going to have a bit more Sizzy, as I feel like being nice to someone, a tiny bit of Malec, some Lightwood sibling stuff, Jace coming home and Clary finding about Maia and what later ensues. Enjoy, review, and continue loving the Mortal Instruments. Also, check out my new fic Broken Future. Tell me what you think!? Disclaimer; unfortunately, only the plot belongs to me, otherwise Malec would NEVER have broken up.

The rain had started to fall outside just after Izzy had phoned Alec - by the Angel that had been an awkward conversation - and had been getting steadily worse all afternoon. By the time the bell rang through the hallways, signifying the end of the school day, it was hammering on the windows in icy sheets as if it mean to break them. Isabelle groaned inwardly as she began to shove her books back into her bag. Why did it have to rain now? Why couldn't the high forces of Heaven waited a couple more hours before they decided to issue the pathetic fallacy of her brother?

She swung her bag over her shoulder, rising up from the hard plastic chair and stretching out her arms as the room slowly began to empty. She shook her head and scraped the chair back away from the desk, sliding out away from it and beginning to make her way towards the classroom door. Why? Just why? Her hair was going to be totally ruined. Then she got out of her shallow state of mind and began to swear, earning her a hard glance from Miss Trueblood as the teacher stalked out of the room before her. All the things in her bag were going to be ruined - it wasn't waterproof.

She filed out of the room last, since her seat was right at the back in the corner furthest from the door, and she sometimes took a while to get herself organised after a lesson - resulting in her being late a lot of the time. She was so absorbed in her own thoughts of how badly the ink in her books was going to run that she walked straight into someone, nearly falling backwards on the impact. She began to mutter apologies and raised her head to look at whoever it was that she had surely just pissed off. When she saw his face, she jumped back, startled. It was Simon. And he didn't look angry at all.

"Hey sugar. How are you?" Izzy smiled at him, allowing her hand to loop with his as he swung her around.

"I'm all the better for seeing you." She reached up and pecked him lightly on the cheek. He smiled, and swinging their hands between their bodies that pair began to walk towards the exit down the increasingly empty corridor. Izzy began to wonder whether Alec was giving her a lift home tonight after th little escapade he had pulled - if she couldn't get a lift, she would die. Probably literally, from hypothermia.

"Are you sure you are okay?" Simon asked, seeing the look on her face as they got to the double doors leading out to the car park. Izzy nodded.

"Just hoping I'm not going to get too soaked, that's all."

"You will not feel the rain at all my dear, for I have an umbrella!" Simon opened it up and dragged her outside after him, the clear plastic object shielding from the onslaught the heavens had decided to dish out. Izzy thanked him as they began to make their way to the pickup, which was thankfully there. Izzy could see two figures inside it, one unmistakably Alec, the other one looking like he could be Magnus. Izzy sighed as she drew up closer. When she was just outside the door, she kissed Simon hard on the mouth and then drew away, opening her door.

"Thanks for walking me out."

"No problem. See you tomorrow, Isabelle." She slid into the car next to Magnus and quickly shut the door so that no rain could get in. She watched wistfully as her boyfriend walked out of sight, and then turned to face Alec as he started up the engine. He looked awful, eyes puffed up, dark rings surrounding them, his hair tousled. She decided not to press that matter, but was curious about why Magnus was there. Luckily, Alec answered this before she had the chance to open her mouth.

"I said we'd drop Magnus off. I can't let him walk back in this." Isabelle turned to face Magnus instead, who inclined his head to her. She had heard about him from Alec a little that morning, and he seemed like a good one. She inclined her head towards Magnus, mirroring the action.

Clary quickly rambled off her address and a word of thanks to the cab driver and hopped onto the uncomfortable plastic covered seat. She was relieved that she had managed to catch a cab from the hospital at this time in the afternoon - she knew from experience that they very rarely picked up people from the building at two o'clock, especially when they didn't look like a recently discharged patient. Luckily, the guy who was taking her home must have seen how frantic she looked and decided to pull over for her.

The rest of the journey was reasonably uneventful and Clary only hoped that she would get home soon - she needed to get back before Luke or she would have some serious explaining to do, as she never had stuff on after school, and on the rare occasion that she was going to be late back she would tell him before she left in the morning, and if she had little warning, call or text him. When the cab finally drew up outside her house, she yanked the door open, and throwing the fee at the driver with a hurried thanks ran towards he house. She pulled open the front door and saw that Simon was just pulling off his coat, having clearly only just arrived back from school.

"Si, I'm sorry I wasn't back earlier, it took ages to hail a can and the traffic was awful..." Simon just shook his head and pulled her into a hug.

"I really don't care, Clarissa, as long as Luke doesn't find out and out are okay." Simon noticed how Clary winced at the name and swore.

"Shit Clary, I'm sorry, I should have thought..." Simon's panic was quickly cut off by sound of Clary's ringtone. She grabbed it out of her pocket and pressed the answer button, not bothering to check who was calling. Simon crossed his arms an ploughed off, knowing that Clary could end up spending hours on the phone.

"Hello, who is this?" She asked. She didn't really have the time for a long chat with someone like Alone today, who was really only a passing hello sort of acquaintance.

"Clary, it's Jordan." Clary felt herself freeze up, and when she responded it was through gritted teeth.

"You have two seconds before I hang up." She was not in the mood. She hated the guy for what he had done to Maia, she had made that perfectly obvious, and now he was ringing her up. Why? To rub salt into the wound and ask Maia's best mate out? Clary hoped not.

"Clary, it's Maia, she..." Jordan's voice cracked. Clary said the next word in a low growl - he had no right to sound broken.

"She what?" She heard Jordan breathe in deeply.

"Clary...She...She tried to...She tried to commit suicide." He finally managed to stutter. Clary felt the phone drop from her ear, and heard it smash against the floor as her muscles spawned in shock. Maia had tried to kill herself. She could be dying right now. Clary should have been there for her more today. Focussing on her rather than a boy she barely knew. Now she was dying. Dying. Clary sank to the floor, sobs raking her body in silent spasms, her face buried in her arms, her back pressed against the wall in vague hope that it would support her.

Simon ran into the hallway after he smashing sound, and gasped when he saw the state his sister was in. He rushed over, crouching in front of her, staring as her ravaged green eyes raised up to meet his gaze.

"Clary, what happened? What is it? Clary? Clary?!"

Isabelle ran into the main hallway, kicking her shoes off and not really caring where they landed. A yellow glow hung in the room from the lamp lit chandeliers, and the high ceiling made it feel like the entrance to a church. She sighed, swinging her hair over her shoulder - a habit she had obtained when she was little - and began to walk up the spiral staircase leading to the upper floors of the grand house that her family lived in. The rich mahogany was gnarled with age and slippery with polish, and most people would have fallen flat on their faces had they tried to climb it at speed, by Isabelle had had years of practice and hopped up the tower-like staircase with ease. She reached the first landing of the never ending staircase and leapt onto a corridor, spinning around in circles on the points of her feet as she made her way to her room, giggling like a giddy schoolgirl who had just received her first Valentine's Day card. She had dated a lot before, but never had someone treated her like Simon did - like she was the most special person in the world, that she and not just her body was treasure. He was such a gentleman, actually caring for her and cherishing every moment spent with her instead of just being in it to be close to Izzy, to take advantage of her and then let her end it. Before, Isabelle hadn't minded that, had enjoyed it in fact, but now that she was experiencing how perfect things could be for her, she never wanted to go back. She was so happy it was unbelievable.

She twirled into her bedroom, kicking open the slab of a door open and spinning inside. The hinges should have groaned with rust and age, but instead the door swung open silently and with ease, the sign of regular oiling. There were many benefits to having high flying businesspeople as parents, and the massive house and doors were two of them. There were also major disadvantages, such as the fact that they were hardly ever at home and Alec had had to look after Izzy and practically raise little Max for years now. Izzy bit her lip. Their parents had gone away n this morning for about a month, and so it was back in to the usual routine. Max was the most difficult aspect of their parents being away constantly, but he was always dropped off and picked up by a school friends mom, so that wasn't really too much of an issue. But it still would have been nice to have her mom to talk to occasionally. Especially now, because she was damn concerned with Alec and she had no idea what to do, despite the fact that she was sure she would have to do something about the whole situation. It seemed too serious to simply ignore or leave be.

The girl flopped onto her bed in defeat. Why did the world have to make her upset and worried again when she had been ecstatic just moments before? She stared around the room. The walls were covered in gold glittering swirls that she had painted on herself (despite the fact that she had done this months ago her parents still hadn't noticed, and so no one had told her off), the vanity table was overflowing with makeup of all varieties, and all manner of rhinestones and sequins spilled across the bedspread and pillows. It was very Izzy, but her parents barely knew that. They didn't know their teenage daughter at all. In their mind she was still a ten year old who followed her big brother around like a sheep and marvelled at her tiny one. That was how much they knew her. God how the times had changed.

Isabelle needed a distraction, anything to cheer her up and just make her forget the world. She reached over to where her iPod was still jammed in its dock and put the music on the highest volume so that it blared out of the speakers, filling at least the first floor if not the entirety of the mansion with the Cab. The girl flipped up off of the bed with ease and danced around on the polished wooden floor, spinning her worries away into the flying tones. The music was so loud that Izzy remained oblivious to the door creaking open when Alec walked in from locking away the cat, the way it slammed shut behind him, and the crash of cutlery as one of the drawers in kitchen was ripped open. She was too immersed in the song to hear Alec pace up the stairs, barge into his room just behind him and lean against the door, breathing hard. She had no idea what happened next to her brother. If she had known, she certainly wouldn't have been smiling.

Jace rushed around his room, as fast as he could with only one functioning leg, gathering up his favourite possessions, his wash things, and all the clothes he could fit into the large green duffel bag. He was leaving. He couldn't stand another night in this house. Not after what his father had done. His only issue was where to go. He couldn't go to the Lightwoods' house, he had fucked up with Alec earlier and he had no idea how to fix the damage he had slashed into his best friend. He couldn't just wind up at Clary's house - he doubted her parents even knew who he was, and he had only met the girl once - maybe twice, if you counted her staying with him in hospital as a meeting. He could only think of one option, and that was mad. But it was the only option he could think of.

Stuffing his most precious items - the Herondale necklace that both Celine and his biological mother Amatis had worn, photographs of his family and the Lightwoods and his worn antique version of 'A Tale Of Two Cities' - into his duffel, Jace stared out of the window. There was the spot he had first kissed Clary on, like there was no tomorrow, like he had wanted to for what felt like forever but had been in reality merely weeks. The path he had run up, terrified of what the awful act may go on to do to the girl. The door he had leant against, sobbing, realising what is father meant - to love is do destroy. The hallway where he had been brutally attacked by his own father, where he had screamed for him to stop as he had broken his ankle and decorated his entire body with painful cuts and ugly bruises. The deep navy blue tiled floor that he had lain upon unconscious as his father had walked out indifferently and abandoned him for weeks, not caring what damage he may have done. There was still blood on the floor downstairs - Jace had shuddered on his way in.

When he had finally crammed the duffel to the brim and pulled the zip to - not without a lot of difficulty - he hoisted it up onto his shoulder along with his school bag filled with all of his equipment and began to make his way painstakingly downstairs. It was very difficult on crutches, not as difficult as it had been for Jace to ascend, but it still took a good few minutes. Jace swung himself forward down the hall, past the crusted blood that was lying there, and out of the door. He shut the white slab behind him, locking the door and shoving his keys down the drain just outside - he never wanted to see them again. He hobbled down the path slowly and deliberately, not looking back for even a second.

Alec had felt oddly calm before, but now he was just a real mess. He felt totally and utterly destroyed. His breathing was getting faster and faster, the blood running to his face as he tried to control himself. That wasn't the only place the blood was running. Several trickles were making their way down his arm, covering his wrist and concealing there. His left hand was still clenched from when he had done it, the knife still gripped in the whitening knuckles of his right. Alec unclenched his fists, letting the blade drop to the floor, and pushed his head into his hands, wishing all of his emotional pain would just leave him alone. He sat there silently screaming until it was all too much and he just wanted to speak to someone. He picked up his phone and quickly dialled the only person he could think of. Luckily he picked up straight away.

"Why hello Alexander." Magnus said playfully, "How may I be of assistance?" He sounded pleased, and Alec was scared to ruin his happy mood. But it needed to be done.

"Hi, Magnus, can I... can I come over please?" Alec hated how he sounded so pathetic.

"Shit Alec, what's happened?!" Magnus's voice rose an octave, the panic clear in it.

"Please, Magnus, I'll explain everything but I just need to see you, please..."

"Of course, my address is on my Facebook, you have that right?" Alec nodded as he confirmed this, even though he was on the phone. It was one of his weird habits.

"Okay Alec, I'll see you in a bit." Alec hung up, then flicked onto Facebook. He never normally went on the site, preferring not to be forced into conversations with random people he barely knew, but by some stroke of luck he had been checking his account when Magnus had sent him a friend request last night. He flicked onto the other boy's profile and found out that he lived in the penthouse apartment in a converted warehouse just a few blocks away. It was close enough that he could walk.

Alec shrugged on his black leather jacket, swiped up his keys and began to make his way downstairs. He had just gotten out of the door and was slouching along the still brightly sunlit path when he saw his little brother Max run towards him. Crap. He had forgotten that the nine year old got home at that time. The boy jumped into Alec's arms and he swung him around, wincing at the pressure on his right arm but carrying on regardless. He set Max down and ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Hey Max!"

"Hi Alec! I've made a card for Mom in art class look!" Alec cursed as Max brought out a brightly colored piece of paper to show him. Max didn't know Maryse and Robert were away.

"Max sweetie, Mom and Dad went away again this morning. I'm sorry." Max looked crestfallen.

"I'm sure she'll love it when she gets back though." The smile returned to the kids face, and he gave his big brother another hug before running inside and shouting for Izzy. Alec himself managed a small grin - Max always had that effect on people - before running off around the corner towards Magnus's apartment. He needed to sort this out, if not for himself then for Max - he was pretty much his brother's father. And Magnus would be able to help him.

Jace made his way along the road towards Magnus's apartment building. He had found the address on the boy's Twitter account - he had had a choice of various social networking sites to find the information - and had caught a taxi to a nearby street as soon as he had left his home - no, former home. He was never going back there. He had had enough of his father's shot. That hadn't been the first time he had been abused. It had just been the worst. The final straw. The eye opener for Jace, that he shouldn't have to put up with it. That he could get away. Well he was escaping finally, after months of torture. He just hoped Magnus would let him stay.

Jace had finally decided on going to Magnus for help because he seemed the most likely to help. None of the jocks at school would let Jace stay without a ridiculous number of questions, and he didn't trust them besides. There was no way the Lightwoods would let him stay. And he wouldn't be able to stay at Clary's. Izzy had probably turned Simon and therefore Clary against him now, as well as the fact that she barely knew him. Magnus seemed to Jace like the sort of person who would give refuge to those in need, mainly because he had been in that situation but there had been no one. Jace didn't know for sure, but he could read people very well, and to him Magnus was open book. He could only hope that he had translated him correctly.

Jace had reached the old warehouse. The light was vanishing from the sky, and an illumination from the penthouse - where Magnus lived - drew his attention. The entire wall seemed to be made up of floor to ceiling windows looking out over the city. The view must be breathtakingly from up there. Blotting out the light were two figures, lit up by blue spotlights glaring up the windows. One was obviously Magnus - the shimmer in his hair and the bright clothing made that obvious. Jace's heart froze when he saw the other. Someone he would recognize anywhere. That he knew so well that they were practically brothers. Someone who he had treated attrociously today when he had just been trying to help. Because he cared. Someone who had cared for Jace. Only now that he had lost that did the realisation set in that that had been invaluable.

Jace watched the pair. They seemed to be engaged in a desperate conversation, Magnus grabbing Alec's shoulders and Alec running his hands rapidly through his hair, looking broken. Suddenly, Alec drew his left sleeve back. Even from this distance across the street Jace could make out the dark red encasing his wrist and laddering his arm. He didn't need the sight of Magnus jumping back, hands over his mouth in shock, to confirm his worst fears. Alec had... had done that to himself. He was getting bad again. He was getting much worse than he had ever been, even in the lowest points last time. And Jace wasn't there for him at all, to help him get through it, to just support him. Hell, this was all his fault. He had done this.

The realisation was what finally broke Jace. He dropped down in the street, falling to the floor ignoring all of the pain shooting up his ankle and engulfing his body like a crashing wave. He deserved it. He deserved it all for what he had done to his best friend. His bloody best friend. Jace broke down, sobbing desperately into his bag. He couldn't cope. He had messed up completely in his life, with Clary and his father and Alec. And now he was facing the devastating consequences. This punishment was more than he could bear.

Max ran into Izzy's room, causing her to look up in surprise. She had turned down the music, and was sat on her bed doing her maths when her little brother jumped into her arms. She didn't care if her was crinkling her homework. He was way more important to her than any amount of lousy school work. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight embrace whilst he squirmed and giggled.

"Hey mister. How was school today?" Max drew back and stared at her with grey eyes the mirror of her own (why had Alec had to get the sapphire orbs?) that seemed way too serious to belong to a nine year old. It hurt Isabelle that Max had had to grow up so fast and had had his siblings as parents instead of his Mom and Dad.

"It was great! I made a card for Mom in art, but I want you to have it instead because I think you deserve it more because you are the bestest sister ever and you take great care of me!"

"Not as great as Alec." But she took the card he held out to her anyway. It said 'Best Mom ever' and had a drawing of Maryse - although it could have been mistaken for Isabelle they looked so similar - hugging a little Max. It made Izzy want to cry, because Maryse had never been that loving towards the youngest Lightwood because she had never had the time. No, correction, she had never made the time. What sort of shiy mother doesn't even make an effort to bond with her nine year old son? Izzy didn't let this show on her face though - instead she just beamed at her little brother.

"Thanks Max, this is great! And so sweet too! I can tell that your future girlfriends will be very well treated!" Max giggled again. Izzy was always joking about Max's lucky future girlfriends, and he always found it hilarious - he was lucky to be oblivious of relationships. Although at the moment Isabelle felt positively ecstatic that she wasn't.

"Tell you what, why don't we order a pizza? You go downstairs and pick, I'll just go get Alec." Max nodded, hopped off of the bed and turned around in the door.

"Thanks Iz! But I think Alec went out..." He shrugged and she heard his footsteps thundering along corridor and down the stairs - he, like Izzy, had perfected the art of rushing on the highly polished wooden floors. How odd that Alec had gone out. He normally just shut himself up in his room all evening. She decided to check his room to try and gather any clues to where he had gone. She padded down the hallway as softly as a cat, quietly opening Alec's door and carefully peering inside. She had to stuff her fist in her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

On his way up to the house Alec had passed a pizza delivery guy, so it was only partially a surprise when he wandered into the kitchen to find Izzy dividing a meat feast onto three plates with the practised precision of a girl with siblings who sometimes - okay a lot of the time - had to help hold down the fort. Max was sitting at the table, hilegs swinging backwards and forwards under it with a child-like carelessness. Of course his actions were child-like. He was still a kid.

He looked up as Alec walked in, and his eyes lit up noticeably when he saw his brother. Alec loved that about Max. He was so loving and loyal that he would always be happy and feel safe in the presence of those whom he held most dear, no matter what they did. He was forgiving and caring, and had an innocence that certainly wasn't that of a child but more of a saint. He was a truly extraordinary little boy and Alec loved him with all his shattered heart.

He slid in next to Max just as Isabelle finished serving up. His younger sister slid them their plates before grabbing her own and plunking herself down opposite Max and digging into a slice of the pizza. The boys followed suite and the siblings sat like that for a few minutes just eating until Izzy striked up a conversation.

"So Alec, what did you do today whilst you were bunking off?" She sounded gleeful. Max looked stunned.

"You skived Alec?" Alec nodded his head.

"Yes and it was very bad of me so we don't tell Dad, the?" Max looked confused.

"But you're basically my Dad!" Alec swallowed hard, but continued.

"Well, I went to a bar with Magnus, the he fell in a pond and we got chased by about a million angry geese." Izzy giggled at the geese, but Max's intrigue was growing.

"Alec, who is Magnus?" Izzy began to gather the plates and load them into the sink.

"He's my new friend Max." The boy smiled, still curious.

"What is he like?"

"He wears glitter and he is very colourful and very nice." Max looked about to say something more, but at that point Izzy reappeared and clutched the back of her seat.

"Max, why don't you go and watch TV? Alec and I will be through in a mo." The boy nodded and hurried off. Izzy waited until the kitchen door had clicked shut behind him before gesturing at Alec to follow her to the counter. He stood up and obliged, watching with growing horror as Izzy pulled a cloth away from an object it had been covering. It was his knife, still bloody.

"Explain, Alexander Gideon Lightwood." Alec dropped to his knees on the hard tiled floor and put his head in his hands.

This chapter is extra long to make up for the fact that I haven't updated in ages. Do you think I should do more long ones less often, or shorter ones more frequently? Review and tell me! If I get to 15 reviews I will update tomorrow, even if it isn't as long a chapter as this! Tell me what you think, is the plot okay, is there anything you want to see?

Thanks for reading!

Lu xxx