OKAY UPDATE I ACCIDENTLY POSTED A CHAPTER FROM MY OTHER STORY FOR CHAPTER SIX SO IF YOU READ THAT OOPS IM SORRY THIS IS THE ACTUALY CHAPTER 6. SORRY LOVE YOU.
Guess who?
Okay, it's pretty obvious it's me.
So I'm back! I've been working a lot on my other story lately, but I thought I kinda owed ya'll an update so I hope you guys like it! Not a lot of plot development, just a filler chapter for now! And also, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! You think we could hit 150?! GO READERS GO! Lol.
Ya'll ready?
LEGGO.
I huff in effort, watching as the dagger flew out of my hand and hit the target. It buried itself into the ring right outside of the bulls eye. I sigh angrily and throw another, watching it land even farther away from the bulls eye. What was wrong with me today?
The hairs on the back of my neck prickle as I sense Jace entering the room. I don't turn around, and just throw another one, praying it landed in the center. It hit right above it. I hear Jace chuckle behind me.
"Well your aim is perfect." He says sarcastically. I turn and glare at him, long enough to notice his training gear.
"What are you doing here?" I say, annoyed. He was obviously coming to train, but I felt like being testy. Things had been tense between us for the last week, ever since he kissed me. The air was constantly charged with a sexual tension; one I found myself aching to satisfy.
"To train, Clarissa; what else?" he comments snidely. I glare at him angrily, stalking towards him until I'm right in front of him. I stand up on my tiptoes and thrust my finger into his chest.
"My name is Clary, not Clarissa, not princess, Clary. Can you understand that or not, your highness?" I hiss, glaring up into his amused golden eyes. Okay, perhaps that was a little uncalled for, but I wasn't it the mood. First of all, I hadn't been accurate at training for the past hour, which really annoyed me. Also, every time I looked at Jace, my body felt the need to do unspeakable things to him. Those two emotions together? Not a joyful combination.
He smirks and pushes my finger away. "Okay then Clary." He says simply, putting his hands up. I narrow my eyes suspiciously. Was this a trick? No seduction, no lusty stare, no passionate wall kissing, not even an angry shout? I couldn't help but feel a tiny bit disappointed at his benevolent attitude today.
After eyeing him for a moment, I concede and lower myself back onto my feet and walk away. I position myself in front of the target and pick up the remaining dagger. Taking a breath, I position the dagger and bite my lip in concentration. Finally, I let the dagger fly. It hits the dead center, and I smile in gratification. Suddenly, Jace starts clapping dramatically.
I sigh and turn to look at him. "What now?"
He shrugs. "Nothing. It just took you long enough to actually hit the center. By the time it took for you to pull your hand back, a demon would have ripped off your arm." He states. I bite back a nasty response.
"Daggers aren't my strong suit." I grind it in between ground teeth. I walk and yank them out of the target and hang them against the wall.
"Well then what is?" He questions. I bite my lip and look towards the long, bamboo staffs hanging on the wall. Memories of fighting my brother, him hitting me mercilessly with one during training flash into my mind. But it had worked, considering how quick I was with a Bo staff now. I grab two staffs, giving the one in my right hand an experimental twirl. The staff felt natural in my hand, like it always had. Shadowhunter's didn't traditionally use staffs, but Valentine insisted in Jonathon and I being trained in every way of killing or inflicting pain. It was strange, but I guess today it came in handy.
Jace gives me a bemused look as he catches the staff I throw to him. "Bo staff?" He asks cynically. I give him a smug, swing the staff around my body.
"What's wrong, find something you aren't amazing at?" I tease, bouncing back and forth on my feet in preparation. He looks up from his inspection of the wood to give me a lazy smirk.
"Sweetheart, I'll change my name before I find something I'm not amazing at." He leans back on a leg, gripping his Bo staff with two hands. I absentmindedly note that he's left handed. The rest of my mind is working at full speed, calculating areas where he didn't have guarded or he wouldn't expect an attack. I see him doing the same thing, until he narrows his eyes at my hips. He straightens up immediately, dropping his Bo staff. "You don't have any gear on."
I straighten up also in annoyance. "I'll be fine Jace." I say, exasperated. I was desperate to win, to prove I was just as good of a Shadowhunter as he was. Jace rolls his eyes and grabs my hand leading me out of the training room. I pull on my arm in protest, but it doesn't break his iron grip. I wave meekly at a maid who saw Jace dragging me off and almost dropped her towels in surprise. She probably thought we were headed off to do- certain things. He finally lets me go once we get to the bedroom, and I back away.
"What the hell Jace?!" I practically yell, my face as red as my hair. He shrugs impassively and motions towards the bathroom.
"You need gear. I could crush one of your ribs with one of those sticks when you're just in a fucking tank top. Do you have any sense of safety?" His voice is starting to rise, growing a little agitated. I narrow my eyes and glare at him.
"So you dragged me back here like a child because you wanted me to get my gear? What was wrong with asking me to go get it?" I yell, anger and humiliation flooding through me. I didn't need him treating me like some child, for Angel's sake. He rolls his eyes in exasperation.
"You're getting mad because I took you back to get your gear? Maybe I was just actually being concerned for you? I knew there was no way you would admit you need protection because you're so fucking full of it Clary!" He was shouting, and I could see he was letting go of all of this pent up anger from the past weeks. I stay still, listening. "You act like a damn princess all the time and we barely talk! And when we do, you're purposely agitating me or getting annoyed at me! And I'm a little fed up with trying to reason with you! So yeah, I dragged you back here to get your gear, and I would have thrown you over my shoulder if I had too, because I knew you wouldn't get it by yourself so some stupid reason Angel knows I don't know." He huffs out in frustration, and his hand shoots up. I remember black eyes, Valentine hurting me in his favorite way; backhanding me across the face.
I flinch, turning my face to the side, already feeling the burning pain on my cheek that wouldn't fade for three days. But it didn't come.
Slowly, I open my eyes and turn my face enough to see Jace. The hand that I thought was going to hit me was frozen, in the action of pulling at his hair. He was pulling his hair. He wasn't going to hit me. I let out a gasp, panting air into my lungs as I get over the terror. It had been two years. He wasn't here. He couldn't hurt me.
"Clary..." Jace whispers, shocked. His golden eyes are wide as he stares at me, his hand still in his hair. My eyes are frantic as I look around, suddenly feeling claustrophobic.
"I need to get out of here." I gasp out, and my eyes zero in on the door. I take off running, not caring that I was in a tank top and drawstring pants. I needed air. I needed to get away from Jace.
My hair falling from its ponytail, I spin corners and run down corridors, not finding it in myself to stop for so long. Finally, when I can't see past the tears and my bare feet are tired from slapping against the marble, I fall into a shadowy nook next to a secluded statue. I gasp for air, trying to breathe through the sobs wracking through my chest. I hadn't had a panic attack in so long. So long. But here I was, on my knees trying to calm my breathing, but to no avail. Why had I run away? Why did I flinch? I had sparred with Jace before, and with Jonathon who didn't care at all about hurting me. So why had I flinched that one time? And why was I now lost in a castle, crying underneath a statue?
My endless questions are washed away as I curl into a ball, rocking back and forth. I let my tears flow as I bury my face into my knees, trying to muffle my sobs. I didn't need Helen or Maia finding me, dragging me back to Jace. I couldn't face him like this, a crying wreck of a girl. I felt 13 again, huddled next to my bed as Valentine screamed about how worthless I was, how I was just a reminder of the bitch who dared leave him. I used to fight back, argue for Mom's sake, how she couldn't help it that she was dead. But I stopped when I realize it only made the pain worse.
Another sob, this one louder, broke through my chest. I stuff my fist in my mouth in an attempt to muffle my cries. I shake with suppressed sobs, squeezing my eyes shut to keep more tears from slipping out. My sobs were slowly quieting when I heard soft footsteps, and a tentave. "Ma'am?"
It wasn't Jace, or Helen or Maia. It was a male voice, deep but shy. I take my head out of my knees and I look up, where a boy stands in the middle of pool of soft lantern light. I hadn't noticed, but it had gotten dark while I sat under the statue. The boy was tall, topped with a head of dark brown hair. Crooked glasses were perched on his long nose, teetering dangerously. I recognize him as the boy who had brought in my bag on my first day here. He seemed to still have that awkward air, his eyes firmly fixed on my shoulder.
I sniffle, wiping at my nose. "Hello. I guess you're not used to seeing queens crying under statues." I try to joke. I see his lip twitch, as if he wanted to smile, but couldn't. I sigh, my shoulders sagging. "Please, I feel less like royalty than I have in my entire life. Please don't treat me like I'm your superior, because I most definitely am not." I state, gazing at him imploringly. I couldn't stand feeling more alone than I already was. HE clears his throat lightly and he finally looks me in the eye. I offer him an encouraging smile. "I'm Clarissa, but I prefer Clary. What's your name?"
A pause. "Simon." His voice was shy and uncertain. I nod in satisfaction, managing a weak smile.
"Hello Simon." I greet him. He nods and smiles slightly. He had a nice smile. I hold up my hand, gazing at him. He hesitates, than grabs it and hauls me to my feet. I steady myself, feeling dizzy and tired after so much running and crying. "So Simon, is there any chance I could convince you to walk with me?" He bites his lip and asks cautiously.
"As your servant?"
"As my friend. I could use some of those." I gaze imploringly at him, begging im to drop the manners that had been drilled into him for so long. I knew how hard it was for a maid, who had been taught to never overstep there boundaries, to see their 'superior' as an equal. It had taken years at the Morgenstern castle.
Simon drops his head and nods shyly, a small smile on his face. I grin as much as I can as the last drains of panic and woe left me. "Thank you." I say, relief evident in my voice. I turn down a random corridor and Simon walks next to me, not saying anything. I attempt to start a conversation.
"So, Simon, how did you come to work for Jace?" He tells me about his family, how they had worked for the Herondales for generations. I nod along, supplying comments on everything. While he was nervous and reserved at first, I managed to get him to loosen up the tiniest bit. By the end, I got him to laugh at an absurd joke I made. I grin in satisfaction at the accomplishment. I was starting to like Simon.
He speaks up as we turn onto a corridor which was lighted with witchlight. "Did you want to freshen up before you go back to your room? These rooms are all guestrooms, which have bathrooms and are empty, as far as I know." I bite my lip at the mention of returning.
"The thing is Simon," I say. "I honestly don't think I can face him tonight. I just need a night for myself. Do you think it would be okay if I was to spend the night in one of these rooms?"
"You're the queen, of course you could. Would you like me to tell your handmaids to bring you a change of clothes for the morning?" He asks politely. I nod gratefully and open the room closest to me. The inside is pretty large, with dark paneled wood. A queen bed is sat in the corner, along with a nightstand, dresser, and wardrobe. Another door leads to what I presume to be the bathroom.
"I think this will be perfect for the night, thank you so much Simon. And thank you for the walk, and being my friend." He smiles, and hesitates for a moment.
"Good night… Clary." He says, his voice wavering when he spoke my name. I grin at him encouragingly. That was the first time he had said my name all night long.
"Good night Simon." I murmur, slowly closing the oak door. I take a deep breath and walk into the bathroom, which was simple white. I quickly scrub my face raw of the tear stains, using the soap and refreshments materials provided. I tie up my hair and turn off all the lights, slipping into the incredibly soft bed. I sigh at the thought of having to face the shocked and angry Jace that was guaranteed to be waiting for me once I woke up, if not sooner. Hopefully Helen and Maia would tell him I would be spending the night somewhere else. I let myself let go of all the frightening images of my past and the humiliation I faced today and slowly drift off into a peaceful sleep, where there was no one who could ever hurt me.
Okay this is so short I'm cringing you guys have no idea how much I hate this oh god it isn't even 3k kill me now Gah. But I have to, because first I really wanted to update for you guys plus so much happened in this chapter that I didn't want to add so much more that it felt like I was fast forwarding through the entire story! So sorry guys!
Also, I am currently looking to start Beta'ing some stories! I really would love to help some stories, especially if descriptive writing or writing longer chapters isn't your strong suit, because I'm good at that so please, PM me!
Again, because this is so short I'll try to update this story at the earliest opportunity but this school week is very busy for me because I recently won a writing contest ( hey look, maybe I actually can write lol) and I got a couple of projects so please don't be waiting for one in the next 2 or 3 days! I make no promises! But I can assure you this story will be updated next out of all three of my fics. Wait, isn't that a promise? Okay, so I guess I do make promises. And lie. Oops.
Sorry again, but hey ya'll got some Simon! And I promise some Sizzy, because who doesn't love them?!
Love ya'll! (btw no I'm not from Texas or something, I'm from So Cal, so why do I say ya'll? Probably my hick neighbors. Wait, I don't have hick neighbors…
See you soon…*MUAH!*-Madeline