Simon's self control was playing havoc with his good intentions. His girlfriend wasn't alone in her desires, but Simon didn't want their relationship to be solely based on sex again, and he thought that this was the best way to ensure that. Or was he just being silly? If he asked Izzy, he knew what her answer would be.

"Silly," Izzy would say quickly with a nod. "Very silly."

If Simon talked to his other friends about it, he was sure he'd get similar results, though for very different reasons.

"If you both want to, what's the point of waiting?" Clary would say with an easy smile while she was trying to paint something. Simon could picture her with a paint brush behind her ear, not really paying him any attention.

"Just have sex with your girlfriend already, and stop beating around the bush," Jace would say, rolling his eyes. "And stop talking to me about it, geesh."

"I thought I was the crazy sentimental one around here," Jordan would tease him. "Don't go stealing my line."

It was December now, and Izzy and him had made things official in October which meant that Isabelle Lightwood had been celibate for over two months. Maybe that was why Simon wanted to wait this second time around, to prove that Izzy cared more for him than sex. It was a strange notion, and even he knew it was stupid. Jace had been just as much of a player as Izzy when he'd started dating Clary, and yet she hadn't put him through any tests. Simon couldn't help but feel like that was different, though since it hadn't been Clace's second time around after a friends with benefits arrangement. Then again, there was always the possibility that Simon was just worried he'd be horrible at it now that they were really dating. Then again, maybe he was just overthinking this...

And now was definitely not the time to be overthinking anything other than what was right in front of him. Simon was sitting at a desk in the gymnasium, staring blankly at this exam paper with a pencil in his right hand. There was a clock ticking on the wall, marking the seconds of time he no longer had to complete this test.

With a slight shake of his head, Simon got his mind to focus again. There were questions that needed answers, and he knew the answers if his stupid brain would just stop thinking about sex and start thinking about making a round pencil mark on the right dot. Read questions, think of answer, mark the dot, repeat. Over and over again, and then he'd be on a plane to meet Izzy's parents for the first time. And now he was freaking out about that and not at all thinking about question forty-two. Or maybe that was because 42 was the answer to the universe and everything.

Simon had to resist the urge to bang his head down on the desk. What was his issue today? Geez, it was like his mind wouldn't sit still.

Time moves the same whether you want it to or not, and before long the test supervisors were calling that time was up, and everyone was to hand in their exams. Simon walked up, not sure if he'd been totally there for the whole test, but glad it was over all the same. Collecting his things from where he'd left them by the door before the start of the exam, Simon checked his phone. He smiled as he saw how many messages were from his girlfriend.

'Are you done yet? I'm so excited!'

'Exams never feel this long when I'm taking them.'

'I should probably not be texting you but of well!'

'Okay, you have got to be almost done by now.'

'We still have to finish packing and get to the airport and you aren't allowed to suggest we take the bus.'

Simon quickly typed that he was out of the exam and on this way. He knew many people would have been annoyed by Izzy's neediness, but for some reason, Simon loved it. He wasn't sure if that was because he'd craved her exclusive interest for so long, or if it had something to do with the alof independent nature of his one and only other girlfriend. Of course, Clary wasn't alof with Jace like she'd been with him, but that was besides the point. It was a wonderful feeling to be wanted, and it was new to him.

Simon walked into his apartment - as always grateful he lived so close to campus. He knew Clary and Jace were going to Joyce and Lucke's this year, with Celine joining them there.

Simon knew Jordan wasn't going home for the holidays as he wasn't on great terms with his family. Rather than let him spend Christmas alone in his empty apartment, Paige had invited Jordan to Christmas with her family. Simon felt very much in the middle of Jordan and Maia these days. He liked Paige well enough, and Jordan seemed happier with her than he'd been alone, but Simon hadn't known Jordan when he'd been with Maia so he couldn't compare the two. There was a certain discomfort with being friend with exes. He knew Maia was hurting since Jordan made things official with Paige, but he also knew that Maia had hurt Jordan before, and very firmly said many times she didn't want him back, so Simon was having a hard time understanding Maia's problem, even if he had witnessed the emotions. Maia thought she hid things better than she actually did. She was rather a lot like Izzy in that way, though it was one of the only things they had in common as far as Simon was concerned.

"I'm so glad I caught you before you left," Clary called as she appeared from down the hall. "Jace and I are flying out first thing tomorrow." Simon's glasses had fogged over from walking inside after the chilly outdoor air, so he didn't see her coming. A large amount of red hair was flung in the face as his best friend threw herself at him for a hug.

"Merry Christmas to you too," Simon chuckled, unable to pull away.

"If you weren't so clueless," Jace's voice was coming from outside of Simon's range of vision. "I'd be worried."

"No you wouldn't," Clary giggled, turning around to hit her boyfriend in the shoulder.

"Ow," was Jace's only reply. Smiling, Simon moved past them both and towards his room where there was a pre-packed duffle bag. In it were some clothes, a tooth brush, his phone charger, and not much else. Simon had bought small gifts for a few people, but what do you buy people who have everything? Until he'd actually started dating Izzy, Simon hadn't thought twice about her family's fortune, but now Simon was seriously considering having a long and meaningful conversation with Magnus about it. After all, Magnus had been in a relationship with Alec for two years now. Simon felt like this made him an expert on the Lightwoods, and trying to figure out how to circumnavigate being the broke one without feeling like a super mooch.

As he'd said goodbye to Jordan before his last exam, Simon went out the door with only another wave to Clace, then he heading for his girlfriend's place. Izzy, it seemed, had quite a few more bags to pack, and so they were catching the cab from her apartment for the sake of not dragging her suitcases to his. It was a crisp walk, snow crunching beneath his feet. There were some aspects of winter that Simon rather loved, and crunchy snow was one of them.

When he walked in the door, Izzy was there waiting for him. She looked upset. "What's wrong?" Simon asked.

"Oh Simon," Izzy said a little too dramatically. "We are already running late, and I haven't even finished packing!"

"Let's just take what you have," Simon suggested. "Better to buy a toothbrush when you get there than miss a plane."

She was smiling a little too deviously at him, grinning in such a way that Simon almost wasn't surprised by the next thing she said.

"Just kidding," Izzy giggled. "We have an hour before we have to leave, and I'm all done packing!" She pointed to the hallway, and Simon walked over to see that she'd hidden two suitcases there.

"You sneak," Simon laughed.

"A whole hour Simon," Izzy continued in that same voice. Simon narrowed his eyes, but then she leaned closer, pressing herself against him. "What ever shall we do for an hour?"

"That won't make us late for the airport," Simon said, guessing what she was implying, though he hadn't made this decision yet. She leaned up to kiss him, and as Simon held her, his brain turned off, wondering if maybe the decision was going to be made for him by his own lack of self control.

Then suddenly Izzy was pulling him by the hand towards the couch. "An hour is plenty of time to watch another episode of Poldark!" she exclaimed as she moved to quickly set things up. "We are gonna meet Demelza in this episode and she's awesome."

"You like her, but not Elizabeth?" Simon checked, trying to keep her emotions about this show straight.

"Yes," Izzy said. "Demelza is totally the right person for Ross. I never understood why he liked Elizabeth in the first place."

"We are only on episode two," Simon reminded her.

"Yes, but I've read the books, and watched the show series from the 1970s," Izzy explained with great enthusiasm. Her fangirling was quite endearing, her passion for the show changed her demeanor.

"You're cute," Simon told her.

"I know," Izzy giggled as she opened the box and selected an episode.

"When did DVDs get so retro?" Simon chuckled as he watched his girlfriend put the small disc in the drive before returning to sit on the couch with him.

"When Netflix took over the world," Izzy giggled. They were snuggled up on the couch, Izzy's head resting on his shoulder and a blanket over them both as they watched the episode.

Simon liked the show, but more than that, he liked Izzy's enthusiasm for it. It was great to see her so animated. When it ended, Izzy packed up the DVDs into her carry on bag before they gathered up their luggage and headed out the door.

Going through security, waiting, then getting on the plane passed easily enough. Izzy had brought a book; Simon hadn't been surprised to see the word Poldark on the cover. Simon had also brought something to read, but he didn't feel like reading. Instead he indulged his crazy mind, and let it wonder as he hadn't been able to do during his exam.

It was technically too early in their relationship to 'meet the parents', but as the timing had worked out that Christmas had been right around the corner when they finally figured their shit out, this was what was happening. Simon had to admit that when he looked back on his life so far, most of it was crazy acts of chance. If that elevator hadn't lost power, if that car hadn't run him over, or if any other number of strange random events hadn't happened, he wouldn't be here now, meeting his girlfriend's parents. Of course, Simon had done this 'meet the parent thing before', but he didn't count meeting Jocelyn and Luke, since they've known him since he was an infant. His experience with Clary didn't at all feel like it had prepared him for today.

Izzy didn't seemed too impressed with the view through the window, saying she'd seen it a thousand times, but Simon loved gazing down at the small world. From this height, all the houses, roads, and cars looked like toy models; and it made all your problems feel small.

Simon hadn't really gotten his thoughts all together even by the time the plane started to land. Izzy had said her family was meeting them at the airport, and Simon was picturing Izzy's father looking down with a disapproving glare, or maybe her mother eyeing him up and down as if gauging his worth.

What actually happened when they landed was definitely not what Simon had expected. Izzy ran forward almost at once, and found herself wrapped in her brother's arms.

"I know I just saw you like last week, but Christmas visits count differently," Izzy said into Alec's shoulder.

"I need him alive," Magnus chuckled. "As in breathing." After that, Izzy let go of her brother who looked very grateful to be once again taking in oxygen.

"I thought your parents were coming to meet us," Simon said, still a little surprised to be greeted by Magnus and Alec.

"Robert is busy at the office until Christmas day itself," Magnus explained. "And Maryse is in full baking mode."

"Your mom bakes?" Simon asked Izzy.

"Only at Christmas!" Izzy exclaimed, before challenging her brother to a race. The two of them ran off, huge grins on their faces, leaving Magnus and Simon to walk along behind pulling the luggage.

"What have we gotten ourselves into?" Simon said, staring blankly.

"Oh it's far too late for me, my friend," Magnus chuckled. "But you could get out. Run, and I'll cover you."

Simon knew Magnus was joking, but he couldn't help entertaining the idea for a second. Simon had known Isabelle for over a year now, even if they'd only become a couple recently, and never once in that year had he seen her so carefree. Of course, Simon shouldn't assume this was because of him. He hadn't known Izzy when she was with her family at Christmas before now, and it was quite possible that she was just a huge Christmas dork, but all the same, he couldn't shake the feeling like he was at least partly responsible for the happy-go-lucky energy coming from her now.

"Nah," Simon chuckled. "I have a feeling once a Lightwood snags you, you're pretty much on their hook forever."

"Don't I know it," Magnus laughed.

When they reached the car, it turned out that Izzy had won the race with her brother, though if it went down the way Alec said it did, Izzy had cheated. Simon decided it was best to side with his girlfriend in this matter, for his own safety. With the two siblings still squabbling, the four of them got into the car as Magnus drove them onto the highway. Before getting into the car, Simon took a moment to appreciate it. He wasn't sure if it was Alec's car that Magnus was driving, or if this beautiful sleek black sports car was some kind of family vehicle. But if Simon had thought the family car a bit extravagant, he forgot all about it as they reached the house.

"I remember when I had the exact same look on my face," Magnus chuckled as Simon stared blankly forward at his girlfriend's mansion. "And Alec had us picked up by a limo too. Just be glad we volunteered to come get you today."

"I-" Simon started, but didn't know what to say as he took in the elegant fountain surrounded by a road that was clearly only meant to drop people off since there was nowhere to park. It was December, so the water was frozen, but that didn't stop it from being beautiful. The snow was so expertly shoved that Simon could tell that the road itself was made of bricks rather than pavement. Once you got past the grounds, there was the building itself. The front entrance was centered on the circular road, and stood out from the rest. On either side, there were old beautiful brick walls with sophisticated windows and flower boxes under them, currently full of snow.

"You should see it in the summer," Magnus leaned over to whisper in Simon's ear. "The gardener's name is Joe, and he's really quite a fun guy. He even laughs at my puns!"

"They have a gardener?" Simon asked.

"A full time gardener," Magnus corrected. Simon felt like a fish out of water as he walked up to the front steps.

As the doors were opened, and the two siblings walked in as if they owned the place - which of course they kinda did - Simon moved slower, taking in the circular patterns and elegant centerpiece in the middle of the room defining the entrance hall. The two grand staircases that went up on either side leading to the same landing had dark wooden railings, but everything else in the room was bright - mostly white - with shades of gold. Light entered the room through windows on either side, windows that went up two stories. In fact, the whole room was clearly two stores high. On top of all this, the place was beautifully decorated for Christmas. While back home with his mother and sister, Simon was used to a mix of nice store bought decorations, and strange things they'd made as kids that his mother wouldn't let go of. All the decorations here were the perfect store bought kind, symmetrical rows of holly ran along the railing, and wreaths on almost every door.

"Stop gaping," Izzy said, pulling on his arm. "I want you to meet mom!"

Simon looked to Magnus who smiled at him in a teasing sort of way. Taking this as a good sign, Simon allowed his girlfriend to drag him off. Simon could barely take note of the changing Christmas decorations as Izzy guided him who knows where. When Izzy eventually came to a stop, they were in a kitchen, but it was a rather larger and grander kitchen than Simon had ever before found himself in. These were the kinda kitchens you saw on that food channel his mother made him watch sometimes. There were two ovens up at chest height in the walls with the stove top on the island across from the ovens. The appliances were all beautiful stainless steel with marble countertops. The cabinets were bright like the colour scheme for the rest of the house. What Simon noticed first however, was the woman standing at the island, flour on her apron, and a rolling pin in her hand. The woman had long dark hair, much like Isabelle's, and a round, kind face. Simon could easily guess who this was, even before Izzy confirmed it.

"Mom!" Izzy called to her. "This is Simon."

"Ah yes," Maryse said, looking up from her pastry dough to see him. "The Simon I've heard so much about."

"Yep!" Izzy chirped.

"Do you know how to bake Simon?" Maryse asked.

"Umm," Simon said, unsure what the correct answer is.

"Yes he does," Izzy said. "Or we can teach him." Then, Izzy and him went to get aprons before returning to assist Maryse. They talked idly as they rolled and shaped the dough. Simon was surprised how good Izzy was at this. He'd never seen her do anything but order take out before.

"It's never a bad thing to know how to do something," Maryse explained. "As long as you know you are worth more than that one skill."

"I know mom," Izzy sighed as if she'd heard this a million times before. She must have noticed Simon's confusion, because Izzy turned to him and added, "Mom doesn't want me to end up a homemaker."

"Only a homemaker," Maryse corrected. "You can do anything you set your mind to, sweetheart."

"Blah blah blah," Izzy continued.

"For example," Maryse grinned. "If you set your mind to spending less money, you could probably figure it out just fine." Izzy gave her mother a look, to which Maryse's only response was laughter.

Simon was surprised how comfortable the atmosphere was as they put the perfectly flaky pastry in the oven, and Maryse announced they were making meringue cookies next. It wasn't until Izzy ran off to get something they needed and he was alone with Maryse that anything changed.

"I mean no disrespect," Maryse began. "But I must inquire." And Simon thought this was it, the moment he'd been waiting for.

Rationally, he knew that Izzy's parents were aware she'd been with plenty of guys before him, but somehow Simon was waiting for that threatening parent lecture to the new boyfriend of their daughter. In fiction, this moment always seemed to be there, whether his sister made him sit through a rom-com, or he watched something with actual plot. Clary's parents had hardly bothered, but Simon had always thought that was simply because they had known him so long already.

"I know Izzy's never been one to… how shall I put this… settle down," Maryse continued. "Until you, and I just wanted to know what your side of this is. Why did you agree to a relationship with her?"

This was not the way Simon had pictured this conversation. Something more along the lines of 'What are your intentions with my daughter', or something like that, but this almost sounded like Maryse was trying to discourage him from dating Izzy.

"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but that almost sounds like you're against Izzy… um… settling down," Simon said cautiously

"Hardly," Maryse replied. "No. The thing is that I know you two used to have a different kind of relationship, even if I can guess that it was her idea."

"Yeah," Simon said, not sure where she was going with this.

"The trouble is that Izzy has been hurt before," Maryse explained. "And I never want her to be hurt again."

"She said she didn't tell anyone about Kris," Simon blurted, stupidly.

"Ah, so that was his name," Maryse smiled. "And no, she never said a word, but a mother knows when her child has a broken heart, even if the reason is clouded."

"I see," Simon stated. He wasn't sure what to say. Technically he'd just betrayed Izzy's trust by blabbing about Kris to her mother, but it wasn't like Izzy had told him never to tell, and besides, this was Izzy's mom after all.

"So forgive me for asking, but why did you switch from being casual to being a couple?" Maryse asked again.

"I like her," Simon said awkwardly after a moment's silent thought. "A lot, and just casual wasn't enough, but she'd told me not to fall for her, so I didn't think I had another choice."

"I see," Maryse said with a smile as she returned to beating her egg whites. The noise from the blender started up again making it impossible to talk. Simon just hoped he'd given the right answer.

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

Woot this is the first time I've ever uploaded a themed chapter at the same time as that day in real life. It's kinda cool. ^_^
Also thanks SO MUCH! I'm at 349 follows! Only ONE more to go! Who wants to be my 350th follow?

And before you all hate on me for making Izzy cook just know that the reason Mayrse wouldn't let Izzy be a domestic was because of the sexium within the traditional Shadowhunter culture. Mayrse didn't want Izzy to be put in the domestic box. At least that's what I got when I really looked into why Izzy is so bad at cooking in the books. In the context of this AU to me if felt like Izzy would help her mother at Christmas. These Lightwoods have a full time Chef all year except at Christmas so this is probably the only time Izzy would cook anyway. I'm allowed to change it up right?

Ilovfood's Review:
just curious when will there be a clary pov chapter

My Reply:
The next Clary chapter will be after the Tessa one that's after this chapter. I started writing it a few night ago. Usually I plan which pov is next by checking which pov hasn't been added for the longest amount of time. Those timelines I uploaded show the organic structure of my chapters and you might be able to gauge how my system works if you have closer look. :) It depends what the plot needs to pov to be but also on which has been the longest since it's been used.

Sneak Peek Chapter 112

"So how are you this fine afternoon?" Magnus asked.

"Oh, just waiting for someone to come home," Tessa sighed.

"Have your boys abandoned you?" Magnus asked, a smile in his voice.

"Not intentionally," Tessa said. "Jem's at a routine doctor's appointment, and Will is fighting fires."

"I'm a horrible friend who has totally forgotten why Jem has routine doctor's appointments," Magnus admitted.

"Hemochromatosis," Tessa said automatically.

"Right, yes because I am totally going to remember how to say that," Magnus replied, awkwardly.

"You don't have to remember it," Tessa said. "Just know that it sucks."

"Noted," Magnus replied.

Next Chapter goes up tomorrow on Christmas Day!