'Freaking decisions' Clary remembered while waking up, she barely had opened her eyes and the first thing she could think about was "Fuck, I'm getting married". She had two days more to decide what to do and although she wasn't sure about accepting, what her mother had said left her worried. Jocelyn thought that Clary wasn't pleased with her life style, that has a mother she wasn't giving her daughter all the things she wanted and needed, Clary had never complained about the life she had, in fact, she was really happy, but now she could only feel guilty for making her mother think something like that and for being afraid of completing the promise that her loved grandpa had done, and she didn't blame him for anything either. Granville, as her mother had said, always wanted the best for Clary, and that was all that could be said about him. She got up with the last of strength she had and got ready for her first day in Advanced Art Class.

When she went down, her mother and Luke were already eating breakfast, Jocelyn had a little sad expression but Luke held his best poker face. She tried to smile to them.

"Hey, Honey. How did you sleep?" Her mother asked; Clary sat next to her.

"Very well, mom, I just… wanted to apologize" she answered, Jocelyn rubbed her hair.

"You didn't do anything wrong, dear" she assured her.

"In fact, we would have been worried if you had reacted in a different way" Luke laughed.

"No, I mean that I was far too rude with you both. I know this isn't anyone's fault, and I shouldn't have exploded the way I did. I'm sorry" she said and Jocelyn smiled.

"It's ok, dear. Don't worry, you don't have to do anything you don't want to do, we understand." Her mother said and stood up to give Clary her breakfast.

"It's your decision, pumpkin" Luke said and for a moment Clary froze. "Pumpkin" only Simon called her like that to bother her, he didn't know about the whole marriage thing, he would go crazy, she was sure about that. But, whatever she decided to do, she had to tell him, she needed him by her side.

"No way, Now I have to tell this to…" she was about to say when the doorbell rang.

"I'll go" Luke said. Clary took out her cell phone willing to tell Simon what she knew so she could get some help while choosing what to do.

'Good morning! Ok, before you call me to yell at me, I need you to be completely open-minded and remember that I'm your best friend since we were inside our mothers. Well, you see, I'm kind of committed to…' she began to write when Luke returned to the table holding a little letter.

"Oh, hell no! I haven't said yes yet and they're already sending wedding invitations?" Clary protested in advance.

"It's not an invitation. In fact, the palace didn't send this." Luke answered.

"What is it then? " Jocelyn asked.

"It's from your brother" he announced, and they both looked at him with their eyes wide opened.

"What does it say?" The head of the house immediately wanted to know.

"Wait a second, Jocie! It's for Clary." He replied and Clary took the letter from his hand and opened it as fast as she could, avoiding cutting herself with the paper though.

It said:

Dear sister:

How are you doing, Angel of Idris? You don't have an idea of how much I miss you, little brat. I feel kind of lonely when you're not around, but I am in denial and I won't come back, that's surely what mom would say, and she's completely right, I'm not coming back for now. Well, I'll tell you that France is fascinating, full of culture and beauty, and I haven't even told you about the little French girls, Mon Dieu! They're lovely and very talented! On a week I'm going to go to Germany, they asked me to do a little work, and so I'm going to the Nazi Nest! (I really hope you're the only one who reads this). Mother told me about your little problem about a year ago, and now that you have not much time before turning 18, I think it's time for you to choose. I know better than anyone that you've never enjoyed the idea of being a dumb and over-protected princess, even when we were little and we played that we were some kind of warriors called "nephilims", the name that Becky invented, do you remember? When I proclaimed myself Jonathan Shadowhunter, the founder of Idris? Remember how we used to laugh at his strange last name? I'm sure you do, you didn't want to be the silly damsel in distress! You wanted to be the hero too! But, Clary, this marriage will mean a lot more than just becoming a jewel of the crown, you'll have the power to change your country and make it a better place for your people. So, if you're asking me if I think you should do this, let me tell you the answer: Yes, I think you should. You know I'm not in love about the idea of my little sister getting married to a very blonde and whimsical crown prince, but if that means that you get to turn into the hero of your own story, I would be more than glad if you accepted. Don't let them change you, redhead, if you want to be the princess, you have all the right to be it, but be that silly princess knowing and being sure about the kind of person you are and where you come from, I'm pretty sure that you'll look gorgeous on Idris' stamps. So, don't forget to write, I absolutely adore reading the crap that you write to me every month. I've talked to dad, he's in Holland right now, and he says that he isn't coming back to Idris either, but I don't see why we should be worried about that. Anyway, I'm very proud of you, and I respect any way you decide to take, I just hope that I helped you somehow.

Love you crazily, Clary ¡Don't you ever forget that!

From: Your older and sexy brother, Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern.

PD: you don't know how much I hate sharing my name with that freaking prince.

Pd 2: Remember: Those who you miss every day are the people who you truly love. But those who are with you every day in any way they can, they are the people who truly love you.

Clary was smiling insanely; she loved and missed her brother so much. Jonathan had fought with her mother a little when she decided to marry Luke after Valentine left, he said that it didn't felt like a family anymore as his father wasn't around and his grandfather died and he decided to leave the house and go live with him, finally when he got tired of Valentine's attitude, he decided to live on his own. He first went to England, and for three years he had been traveling around Europe and in one occasion he went to Brazil, Clary was absolutely jealous that he could travel so much while she was stuck in her house, without any chance to see the outside world. She almost shed a tear while thinking about her childhood memories with him, Simon and Becky, she remembered the time when her brother gave her the nickname of "Angel of Idris", they were in the center of Alicante looking at St. Raziel's statue, and Jonathan said that Clary looked very much like the angel, she was as pretty and glorious as the angel himself. Nobody but her knew that Jonathan wrote letters to her, she didn't know what her parents would say and it was cute to have a little secret with her brother; she would have to write back soon, either to invite him to the wedding or looking for comfort because her mother would be disappointed if she said no.

"And…?" Jocelyn asked when she was sure that Clary had finished reading the letter.

"He also wants me to marry Mr. I sleep on a bed made of gold" she answered keeping the letter in her backpack, she'll have to explain all that to Simon and it would help to have some evidence.

"Ok, the question is, Do you want to?" her stepfather asked.

"Hey, I still have one day to think this through, don't pressure me" she begged.

"Alright, honey. Take all the time that you need" her mother said and Clary started eating her food when she remembered she had an unsent text message waiting for her. She deleted what she had written; she would need far for help, and all thanks to her "dear" brother's words.

'Tell the gang to meet us at the Java Jones at 4; I've got news for them'

After a while her phone sounded with his answer.

'You're freaking me out, Midget. But ok, I love your surprises'.

When she went out of her house, Simon was already waiting for her. She went down the stairs.

"You took your time" he said, and she scowled at him.

"It has been like a madhouse in there" she said as they crossed the street and began to walk to the bus stop.

"Why? Your mother's pregnant?" He squealed; she hit him softly in return.

"No, you, dumbass! I don't even know if she still can have kids! It's far worse" she answered.

"Clary, quit it with the drama, I'm hyperventilating!" He protested.

"Ok, ok. But this isn't something easy to say…"she sat on the little bench.

"I don't give a damn; If you can't talk, just draw it then, you're a painter for some reason!" He said desperate sitting next to her.

"Do you think I'll waste my talent drawing something to explain this stupidity? No way!" She said trying to calm him down.

"Just spit it up, Clarissa!" He insisted.

"Fine! Somebody woke up with the wrong foot today… Ok, Simon; I need you to be very comprehensible…" she began; Simon was "starting" to get worried.

"When haven't I been comprehensible?" he asked a little hurt.

"In fourth grade! When I told you that I liked Toby McKenzie, remember?" She complained.

"That kid looked like a raccoon, Clary! I would have been a terrible best friend if I hadn't told you that your taste was awful!" He defended himself, changing the theme for a second"Oh, you little slut! You're distracting me" He said when he discovered Clary's intentions.

"Yes I am…" she confessed.

"Fairchild, just say it! I'm not going to bite you!" He assured her.

"Alright, Simon, I… kind of have a fiancée…" she said nervously, Simon looked at her confused.

"What? Someone proposed to you?" He asked laughing.

"No, jerk! I wasn't even asked to marry him, it turns out that since I was born I have been committed to someone I've only seen on TV!" She said, Simon couldn't stop laughing

"So, you're going to marry Brad Pitt?" He mocked her.

"Stop laughing, Lewis! It's not funny, I mean it" She protested, furious because he didn't understand the seriousness of her situation.

"I can't, I just I can´t believe this… but if your joke means so much to you, ok; who's the lucky one, pumpkin? " He asked trying to control his laughter.

"Prince Jonathan Herondale" she answered, and that just made him laugh even more after the half of a second he took to try to take it in.

"What?! You're going to marry Prince Goldilocks?! Shut up!" He answered making her even angrier.

"It's no joke, Simon!" She screamed finally silencing his nervous giggles.

"No, this isn't funny at all, alright Clary. You don't have to lie to me! What's that you need to tell me so badly?" He asked, this time saying it for real

"That's it" she answered, crossing her arms to her chest.

"Have you been smoking pot or something else and didn't mind to share with me?" He asked.

"¡No, for Raziel's sake! It's true, my grandfather committed me to the prince when we were little; King Marcus even gave us his family ring" she said excepting Simon to react to the truth.

"You can't be talking seriously, who on earth would do something like that?!" And this time it was Simon who exploded, they had to be friends, it had been destiny that joined them together; they were so alike, and most times enjoyed it, this time though...

"Surprise, my grandpa! You remember that old man I used to love more than I loved my life? Well, he is the cause of my misery!" She responded being both sad and angry, and also confused to add spice to the mess mix…

"But, what the heck? So you have to do it and end of the story? It's your life we're talking about, Clary! You cannot just throw everything away!" Mr. Obvious pointed out and she sighed in distress.

"I know! That's the only thing I've thought for the past 10 hours, even in my sleep!"

"Wait, you can't do this! You're 17 for God's sake! What about the college experiences we always talked about? You know! When we get drunk and you end up kissing Helen for accident or what about our graduation? Our band's first concert, I want you to be there! The first painting you'll ever sell, I want to be there for you! This is our dream, Clary! How can they ask you to marry someone you don't even know?" He cried, now understanding the whys to her weird, uneasy attitude.

"I haven't decided anything yet, Simon. I've got two more days…" she tried to explain, but he didn't let her finish.

"Oh, so you can make your choice, right? Great!" he seemed relieved, big mistake.

"It isn't really my choice! And if it was, you're not helping! Like at all!" she told him, at the verge of losing her head.

"Oh, please! Screw any help you can get! You know what you have to do!"

"And… what exactly is that?" what part of being clueless wasn't he getting?

"Do you even have to ask? Say no! You don't need to marry him! You have your whole life in front of you! You don't need a freaking palace full of people who act like zombies and love the kings because they have to! You don't have to be forced to love him!" he had a point.

"Well, actually, everyone except from you, of course. They want me to do it" she confessed.

"Oh, so now you're going to start listening to others? This is exactly what took you to this situation! You cannot let others live your life for you, it's ridiculous! You have to do what you want to and that's it!" he made it seem so simple, surely because he wasn't the bride to be in that situation.

"That's the thing! I've always done every single thing I wanted not caring about what would happen or how would it hurt the people I love! I'm supposed to grow up, Simon. They know what's best for me…"

"Are you even listening to yourself? Growing up doesn't mean that you have to let your parents treat you like a puppet! It means that you get to make your own decisions! Part of maturing is making mistakes and learning from them, but this isn't just another tinny mistake! This is huge!" ok, he was losing it as well. What a great idea from her, asking advice from someone as hysterical as herself!

"Ok, I know! And you're doing the exact same thing right now! You're trying to make me hesitate and chose what you think it's best! You see?" she was now becoming frustrated.

"So, you're saying you want to do it?" he stated in shock.

"Of course not, but…" she was really regretting telling Simon before she had anyone else's opinion.

"You know what? Fine! Do whatever pleases you! Besides, why should you listen to me? I'm just your annoying geek friend…" he decided to end the conversation for the better. And she thanked him on the inside, buy, was it going to be much more difficult than she'd thought it would be.

"This is insulting, prince!" said Stephen for like the hundred time that morning. Jace rolled his eyes.

"I don't understand why should this be taken so serious… it was practically a prank, father!" He assured the king. Her mother could barely see him, she was ashamed.

"A prank, really? You know that you already have a fiancée! You can't just ask any girl to marry you!" he yelled; they had gotten absolutely, insanely angry when "someone" told them that Jace accidentally proposed to Aline. Not that they ever did anything but to yell at him, for anything…

"I just thought that…" he began to say; but as a good father, you never let your son finish even one sentence when you're berating him.

"That's the problem, Jonathan! You "just thought"! You shouldn't have thought anything! We've told you who you are to marry, and that's not open for a bargain!" he reminded him and put his foot down to it.

"But I didn't even get a chance to meet her! How could I have known? I wasn't trying to be rude, father!" Jace defended himself.

"Well, you were rude, honey. This is totally embarrassing… both for us and your fiancée" his mother said when she could finally talk.

"Mother, I'm sure you understand how difficult this is for me…"

"Don't you try to make your mother shelter you! You're going to be 18 tomorrow, Jonathan! You have to behave like a man and not only that but as the future king of Idris! " His father replied enraged; Jace knew all that but he could help of feeling hurt and frankly lost.

"How do you want me to behave like a man when I've barely had time to behave as a boy? How do you expect me to grow up when I haven´t lived my childhood yet?" Jace accused him. Sometimes the palace felt more like a prison, with much jewels, but still a prison. And neither was the first time that he tried to make them see how alone he was.

"Don't change the topic, mister! You know that what you did was wrong!"

"Stephen, that's enough!" His mother said "Jonathan, you go prepare for school." She ordered standing up in front of his father. Jace was trying not to be to affected by the injustice, he got out from his father's office but stood next the door to listen what they were saying.

"Dear, try to calm down, he's just a boy…" Celine started, always the same conversation.

"What are you exactly doing, Celine? The kid needs to learn about responsibility! He's not just any other boy" Stephen reminded her.

"I know! But, he's right; we, his position and life have taken away his youth, how can you ask him to think about marriage as a responsibility?"

"It was my responsibility too! And you don't see me crying because of it!"

"Were you sure you wanted it before you married me?"

"That doesn't matter…"

"It does, the same way you felt when your father announced our marriage is what your son is feeling right now, try to understand him, Stephen. He can't be not worried or scared about this"

"I'm not saying that! I'm asking him to be brave and do what he has to!"

"And I'm sure he will, but you have to give him time. This is a delicate matter, and as a mother… I feel really sad that he doesn't get to marry someone he loves, I feel heartbroken and disappointed. But I do understand that this is something he has to do and you… you have to understand that this is difficult for him, alright?"

"I'll understand when he dares to grow up!" And that was enough for Jace to walk away to his room.

"So, what did your parents say about your little love confession?" Jordan asked Jace sitting next to him on their every day table.

"My father tried to cut my head off" he answered.

"I told you it was a bad idea to date Aline in the first place, I love my cousin but she's weird!" Sebastian said and Jace gave him with a death glare.

"Yeah, I still can accept the fact that she said no, you're the prince! Who in the world wouldn't want to marry you?" Jordan said.

"The same girl who I'm going to have to marry to…" he confessed, his friends stared with curiosity.

"So, you already met Mrs. Nobody?" Sebastian asked winking.

"No, Mother gave me a picture…" he replied, running his hands through his hair to try to relax.

"And how do you know that she isn't one of your crazy fans?" Jordan had to ask.

"Because she's the girl who shamelessly yelled to me yesterday, I wouldn't forget her face! I have to remember my personal list of people to be beheaded …" the Prince complained, while Jordan tried to control his laughter.

"Whoa, so you're having couple issues even before saying "I do"!" Sebastian mocked him, high fiving his friend.

"Seriously, man! That little girl could have eaten you if she wanted to! She hates you badly!" Jordan reminded him in glee.

"You couldn't have chosen a better "Mrs. Nobody" to marry you. No wait! You actually didn't choose her!" Sebastian followed Jordan's laughter. Jace was far too angry and confused to answer to his idiot friends; he preferred to suffer in silence.

Clary was heading to the Java Jones, without Simon of course, when the tragedy happened. She was at the Academy door when she saw a lot of blonde curls rushing to her.

"You!" Jace trapped her against the wall. "You're the one who's ruining my life!".

"Excuse me? If I remember well, I'm not the one who forced you to marry me! It was your freaking, stupid grandfather!" She confronted him and intended to free herself from his arms.

"Don't you dare to talk about my grandfather! I swear by Raziel that if you try to even get close to me, you'll regret it! " He threatened her. Clary was irate and absolutely clueless and she knew she just wanted to punch him on the face! But having him so close and full of emotion… made her feel a little strange.

"Well, surprise, smarty pants! If we get married I'm going to get very close to you" she reminded him.

"You're a nightmare… I hate you!" He said and at last let go of her, he walked away without looking back.

"You're not the only one, honey" She responded, loud enough to make sure he'd listen.

"And then I said… you're really cute but I rather brunettes, especially brunettes who don't wear that cheap and garish colored lipstick. " Helen was telling them about other of her many conquers when Clary got to the table. They were sitting in this order: Kirk, Eric, Maia, Helen and at the end was Simon. She decided to seat in between her girlfriends and not next to Simon like she usually did.

"You bitch! Did she hit you?" her only other female friend asked laughing.

"She tried but… twenty shots of tequila don't help when you're trying to give your ex a lesson, I left her on the floor!" the blonde presumed and then she turned to Clary.

"Whoa, you look like hell!" Eric said and she just smiled at him.

"Is it that bad, Clary? Do you have cancer or something?" Maia asked worried taking her hand in hers.

"It's worse than that…" Simon assured her, Maia could have had a heart attack in any moment if it hadn't been for the need to know what was going on exactly.

"Spit it!" Kirk told her , Clary took a deep breath and made the story shorter.

"Ok. You see, my grandfather had a really good friend when he was young; they were so close that they even promised to make their grandchildren marry to each other. Well, it turns out that my grandpa's friend was King Marcus, his grandson is Prince Jonathan, and so… I have decided to marry him…" she explained without hesitating, preparing herself for the bomb to explode. Yet, once again, they simply burst out laughing.

"By the angel! That was some really funny crap, Clary!" Maia consented breathlessly.

"You didn't tell me you were going to accept it…" Simon whispered so only she could hear him.

"Rushed decision, I thought it would be better to end with my misery without giving many turns to it" she answered, and with that little sentence the joking stopped.

"Wait, so you mean it?" Helen begged for clarification.

"Were you paying attention?" She wanted to know.

"Have you gone crazy? That guy is a jerk!" Eric began, giving everyone the green light to start talking at the same time.

"You cannot do this, Clary"

"Are you insane, Clary?"

"Holy shit, Clary! You marry no one unless you're having his child!"

"What the heck, Kirk? That's the only thing that bothers you?" Maia asked, still they were used to his senseless comments.

"I just said what I first thought of you did…" Kirk answered shrugging.

"Well, stop it! I didn't come here so you could also tell me what I have to do or not! I came here because I wanted you to know that this is what I'm going to do!" the redhead was fed up with people trying to tell her what to do with her life, ironically. Yes, it was an obligation for her, but if her grandfather and mother were so convinced about it, there must've been a reason… she somehow owed to Granville.

"Fuck it…" Simon had no more patience or endurance, it was simply more than he could take, stood up and left.

"We're not trying to tell you what to do; we're giving you an advice. Since when are you in love with Jonathan? Why do you even think of accepting?" Helen knew Clary and that just didn't sound like something she would do.

"It's not because I'm in love with him, guys! It's because I've realized it's better for me and my family, I got a call from the Queen Mother today and she said that she would be glad help my parents, my brother and anyone who needed it! I could even do something to help you guys out as well. This isn't because I want to waste my life, it's because I want to protect those who I love. Now, if you could just be good friends and support me with this difficult matter I would be really happy" she ended the discussion and gave them time to process it.

"I think… it could be fun, Clary…" Kirk was the first to cheer her up. The good thing about the goofy friend, she smiled to him as to say thank you.

"Yeah, if you see it that way, it would be interesting to be friends with a funny and crazy princess. Eric agreed.

"You both are drinking far too much…" Maia wasn't as flexible about the idea as them yet.

"It's ok, I guess. We love you… and that won't change just because of a stupid arrangement… I think that you're very brave for doing this" Helen said putting her arm over her shoulders.

"Thank you all, it really means so much to me that I'll have you all to go through this. And Maia… you'll be my bridesmaid…" she announced giggling at her grimace.

"Don't count on that, pumpkin!" Maia was forced to grin.

"But… could you ever get to be ok with it? With some time, you know…" Clary hoped, they were all so important for her. She'd take care of Simon later, he usually didn't stay mad at her for long, but first things first.

"Of course, girl. You're my friend, I don't care if you throw your life away to take care of those who are dear to you, I think that's the coolest thing you'll ever do" she answered and Clary stood up to give them all a hug.

"All the pain won't be so bad if you have a friend by your side, and trust me… I'll make Simon understand" Helen assured her, cracking her knuckles.

"I'll leave it to your talented hands and strong screaming lungs" They laughed with her "So… Someone else is hearing wedding bells?"

To be continued…

Dreamer.