I am so sorry this took so long this is a very important year for me academic wise and I really haven't had a chance to write but this is a way longer chapter then last time just like I promised so yeay. On bigger news I'm pretty sure I live under a rock because I just found out the other day that they sacked the second TMI movie for a series I mean big news in the world of TMI and I only found out a few days ago. Also I'm going to start disclaiming I know it's really annoying but apparently I could get into some serious trouble because I use so much material from the book so here it is.
Disclaimer: Any and all quotes, references and characters from The Mortal Instruments City of Bones belong to the amazing Cassandra Clare who was kind enough to invent this whole new world for us anything that does not appear in the book belongs to yours truly.
Now please enjoy.
Clary's POV
Please still be there. Please, Clary hoped as she made her way to the back entrance of the coffee shop. She was so confused, shouldn't she be hoping that he wasn't there, just a figment of her imagination which, she had to admit, had been a little overactive lately. So why was she fearing, no, dreading the fact that he might have disappeared in the alley shadows like a ghost. As she burst through the doors she found him there slouched against the wall punching buttons on the Sensor he had just taken out of his pocket. She felt a wave of relief pass through her, which only made her more confused, why was she feeling like this she shouldn't want to see him there she should be terrified that he was. So why was she so relieved to have him there. He looked over to her as the door to the coffee shop had fallen shut behind her.
"Your friend's poetry is terrible," he said, his hair shining like a coppery gold crown in the dimming light.
"Yeah I know, believe it or not that was one of his better pieces," Clary said moving closer to stand next to him.
"Honestly? It sounds like he ate a dictionary and started spitting out words at random."
"Would you mind telling him that, because no one we know has the heart to," she said staring at him inquiringly.
But he was silent, with his arms crossed over his chest. He was wearing the rough textured Shadowhunter gear he had on the other day only cleaner and less torn. She had to admit it fit him rather well.
"You do know that eavesdropping is considered rude, right?" she said changing the topic not liking where her mind was wandering while lazily moving to sit on a discarded wooden box. "Isn't stalking a crime to? I could have you arrested for following me."
"Who said I was following you? Besides what are you going to tell them? That invisible people are bothering you?" He asked smugly. Damn she hadn't thought of that. "I don't think the police are going to arrest someone they can't see little girl."
"My name isn't little girl," she said through her teeth. "It's Clary."
"I know, like the herb clary sage. Did you know people believed that if you ate the seeds it would allow you to see the Fair Folk?" he asked looking at her expectantly. Shit, Clary thought as she stared blankly at him.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Just remember you know nothing and he can't prove otherwise, she thought to herself.
"OK, fine let's try something else. Have you had dealings with demons, little girl? Walked with warlocks, talked with the Night Children? Have you-"
"My name is not 'little girl'," Clary interrupted. "And I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Sure you don't," he said obviously not convinced. Fine he can believe what he wants he can't prove anything, she tried to calm the panic that was slowly rising inside her.
"You think you're better. That's why you were laughing at us," She accused swiftly.
"I was laughing because declarations of love amuse me, especially when unrequited," he said. "And because Hodge thought you might be dangerous, but if you are, you certainly don't know it." Hodge? Why did that name sound so familiar?
"Dangerous? Me? You were the one who killed that guy last night not me," she said defensively holding her hands up in the universal don't-shoot-the-messenger sign, trying to figure out where she had heard that name before.
"True, even though you had enough opportunities to."
"Look I don't know what you think you saw the other night, I was just defending myself," she said. "Who's Hodge?" she asked giving up the search.
"He's my tutor," Jace said. Gee thanks for the clarification, she thought sarcastically. "Let me see your right hand."
"What? Why?" She asked.
"I just want to see something," he said innocently.
"If I show you my hand, will you leave me alone?"
"Certainly," Jace said his voice edged with amusement.
She thrust out her hand toward him exposing the vulnerable flesh of the inside of her arm. She watched as he turned over her arm studying it intently. She felt like she was showing him her bare chest instead of just simply her hand. Pull yourself together Clary; he's just looking at your hand no need to get all panicked, she thought.
"Nothing," he stared turning her hand over again. "How strange, you're not left handed are you?"
"No, why do you ask?" So he was looking for marks, well he wasn't going to find any there.
"Are you honestly going to insult my intelligence by playing dumb?" he asked.
"Like I told you before I have no idea what you are talking about," she said seriously. "Nothing," he stared turning her hand over again. "How strange, you're not left handed are
Jace's POV
"You do know that eavesdropping is considered rude, right?" she said changing the topic while lazily moving to sit on a discarded wooden box. "Isn't stalking a crime to? I could have you arrested for following me."
Ha and what are the police going to do about me, he thought just imagining the scenario.
"Who said I was following you? Besides what are you going to tell them? That invisible people are bothering you?" He asked smugly watching as her face scrunched up at the thought of telling the police exactly that. "I don't think the police are going to arrest someone they can't see little girl."
"My name isn't little girl," she said through her teeth, looked like he hit a sensitive spot. Who would have thought she would be that sensitive about the subject. "It's Clary."
"I know, like the herb clary sage." He said thinking to himself what a pretty = if unusual- name she had. "Did you know people believed that if you ate the seeds it would allow you to see the Fair Folk?" he asked looking at her expectantly. Come on we both know, you know what I'm talking about, he thought as he stared at her blank expression.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Jace wasn't convinced, he might not entirely know what happened the other night but one thing was certain, she was part of the shadow world and she knew something.
So he decided to take the best course of action. "OK, fine let's try something else." The straight forward one. "Have you had dealings with demons, little girl? Walked with warlocks, talked with the Night Children? Have you-"
"My name is not 'little girl'," she cut him off; he was just getting to the good part. "And I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Sure you don't," he had to admit he was getting a little frustrated, did she honestly think he was that stupid. Well it took brains to be an actual danger and if she was going to act dumb se might as well be retarded if she thought he was going to buy it.
"You think you're better," what the hell was she on about? "That's why you were laughing at us," huh, where the only words Jace could think of. Was she honestly going to bring that up now? Well of course he laughed, who wouldn't, but definitely not for the reasons she thought, well maybe when it came to the leech.
"I was laughing because declarations of love amuse me, especially when unrequited," he said. "And because Hodge thought you might be dangerous, but if you are, you certainly don't know it."
"Dangerous? Me? You were the one who killed that guy the other night not me," she said defensively. Well that is what I do for a living and you know that but you insist on feigning ignorance. And we both know you could have, that demon was outmatched yet you refused to kill the scum of the earth, Jace thought to himself.
"True, even though you had enough opportunities to." He said crossing his arms.
"Look I don't know what you think you saw the other night, I was just defending myself," she said. "Who's Hodge?" she asked, why do you want to know?
"He's my tutor," Jace said, like he was going to give her the satisfaction of a real answer, wat did she think he was an asshat. An idea occurred to him suddenly and he wondered to himself why he hadn't thought of it sooner. "Let me see your right hand."
"What? Why?" She asked.
"I just want to see something," he said innocently.
"If I show you my hand, will you leave me alone?" If it helps you sleep at night.
"Certainly," Jace said his voice edged with amusement at his little white lie.
She exposed the vulnerable flesh of the inside of her arm; Jace couldn't help but study the patterns the freckles made on her arm. Come on Jace focus, he chastised himself. He started turning over her arm looking for any tell-tale signs of any permanent marks whatsoever, most Shadowhunter children got a permanent mark on their dominant hand to help them with one or other skill, but as he turned her hand over for the fourth time he still couldn't find anything.
"Nothing," he stared turning her hand over again. "How strange, you're not left handed are you?"
"No, why do you ask?" He was getting really tired of her innocence act, and it was starting to piss him off.
"Are you honestly going to insult my intelligence by playing dumb?" he asked.
"Like I told you before I have no idea what you're talking about," she said seriously, looks like I'm not the only one tired of your act, huh. She gave him a look that could kill, pulled back her arm and crossed it over her chest.
It was getting late in anyway. "Come on I we want to make it back to the Institute before nightfall we have to leave now."
"We? I thought you were going to leave me alone."
"I lied," he said not even bothering to feel ashamed. "Hodge said he wanted to talk to you, so obviously it falls to me to bring you to him."
"Yeah, what if I don't want to talk to him, huh?"
"Well that's your problem; as far as I'm concerned you can come either willingly or unwillingly."
"Are you threatening to kidnap me?" She asked incredulously.
"Well that's a rather strong term, but if you see it that way; the yes," Jace said.
Clary's POV
"Yeah well you might find . . .," Her phone interrupted her right in the middle of her snappy comeback.
"You can go ahead and answer that if you like," Jace said generously.
It stopped then started immediately afterward. Clary felt a cold chill go down her spine, something was wrong, something was very wrong. Her mom was by nature overprotective, when Clary went out she would call frequently but usually if Clary didn't pick up immediately she would just call later, no matter what the circumstances were Jocelyn Fray never ever changed that habit, unless something was very wrong and she needed Clary to know.
She answered the phone the moment that revelation hit; it was on its third set of rings.
"Mom, what's going on?" Clary asked panicked.
"Clary, listen to me, don't come home go to Luke's," her alarm only spiked, her mother sounded panicked.
"What's there mom," a horrible thought occurred to Clary then. "Mom, who's there?"
Clary's fears were confirmed with her mother's silence. "Mom how many are there?"
"Only two but they have Raveners here as well." Clary's only thought at the moment was no, no she can't lose her mother now, not today, please don't let it be today. "Listen to me Clary you have to find and protect the cup. You have to keep it from Valentine at all costs."
Clary could feel hot tears running down her face and was too far gone to care. "But I don't know where it is, I have no idea where to even start looking mom. You never told me anything about its location." She could feel herself panicking, losing all sense of rationality.
"I did, O Clary I did," She said with so much passion and love in her voice it brought another wave of pain over Clary at the thought of losing her mother today. "Its whereabouts are hidden somewhere in your memories Clary you just have to remember it."
There was a heavy crash in the background then a dull thud in succession. Clary's one thought became a scream; she was struggling to control herself. Her mother's voice was eerily calm as she said: "I love you, Clary."
Then the phone went dead and Clary's control snapped.
Jace's POV
Jace was speechless as he watched the phone transaction. Alert as he watched Clary's posture slowly stiffen with fear. Her face was paling slowly with every word she heard over the phone.
Jace could see in her eyes that she wasn't seeing the dirty alley anymore, she was trapped in her own head and only receding farther the longer she was on the phone. Something bad was happening on the other end and it scared her.
"What's there mom," she asked frantically, her face got even paler as something occurred to her "Mom, who's there?" she asked quietly, which only alarmed Jace even more. Who could possibly be worse than a demon? One name came to mind and along with it a horrible memory that he immediately beat down in the hope that it would be too afraid to resurface. She had started crying and Jace was shocked to discover that image. He had a strange urge to comfort her, which he suppressed.
"But I don't know where it is, I have no idea where to even start looking mom. You never told me anything about its location." Clary sounded panicked the calm demeanour she had earlier was now completely gone, and even though he hadn't known her all that long it was disconcerting.
She looked utterly pained for a moment then jumped unconsciously at something she heard on the other end.
"Mom!" she shrieked into the phone.
"Clary?" He moved closer. "What's going on?"
She ignored him completely trying to dial a number on the phone.
Jace could hear the loud double tone from the phone, her hands started to shake as she tried to redial the number; it slipped and crashed into the pavement. He could see the long crack across the screen. She got onto her knees to get it but it was useless now. She said something angrily under her breath and threw the phone back down.
He couldn't take it anymore he hauled her to her feet and kept a tight grip on her arms. "Stop it, now tell me what happened."
"I . . . I . . . I have to go home, I have to save her, not today not today," she mumbled panicked beyond her wits. "I need your Sensor," she said grabbing the black metal oblong from his shirt pocket. "I need to go, I have to save her."
"Tell me what happened first," she was desperately trying to yank her wrist out of his grasp, but he knew he had an incredibly strong grasp. "I can help you."
Her eyes flashed with rage, she lashed out at him before he had a chance to move away, before he knew it she was gone running down the street absolutely frantic with panic.
For a moment he was very pissed off, that's what he gets for trying to help. But he couldn't just let her fight whatever caused her so much distress on her own. She was too far gone to follow. But a thought occurred to him as he looked down at the remnants of her phone; taking out his stele he picked it up and placed a tracking rune on it. Closing his eyes he faced the direction she ran in.
Clary's POV
At the end of the street she turned around expecting to see Jace hot on her trail but there was no sign of him. Good, she thought spinning on her heel and running for home.
She was going home; she wasn't going to give her mother up without a fight.
See I said I was going to give you guys longer chapters. I've always wondered what was going through Jace's head when Clary was on the phone with her mom I hope I did it justice or not please let me know and again I am so very sorry for taking so long school was honestly hectic and I didn't really get a chance to write luckily this is one of the longest vacations of the year and next year so hopefully I'll make some progress and just to ease a few minds out there no Angels Aura is far from finished so please keep reading. Thank you so much for your support
Love Light