3. Do my step
Clary and Sebastian
Clary took a sip from her mug of hot chocolate, and winced when the hot liquid burned her tongue. Hot chocolate had always been her favourite drink, since she was a toddler. Sebastian had always preferred tea, and now only drank coffee, and she wondered idly where did her family go wrong with him.
Sometimes she would remember of her mother, and Sebastian, just spending their Sunday mornings sitting not too far from Lake Lynn, where the vegetation was still alive and colourful, eating homemade cookies and hot chocolate. Those were moments that happened rarely and that Clary conserved in the deepest part of her heart, never forgetting.
Valentine, whom she loved, had never been too much into Clary’s life. He had left when she was barely two, and had come back a week before his mother had sent them away.
Thinking about her parents hurt. It was painful and even after all this time, it made her want to curl up in bed and wait for everything to be over. She had been angry at first: she had been three and her mother had thrown her in a portal and never came back for her. She had felt betrayed.
She had promised . She remembered thinking, the first nights at Magnus’ house. She lied to us.
Sebastian was all she had ever had left from her family, and she had clung on him like a life saver. He was her brother and he would have never betrayed her. She loved him.
Then came Tessa Gray, with her own tragic back story, and Ragnor Fell, with his snarky comments and pure heart. They had tried, at different times, to rope Sebastian and Clary out of Magnus’ house, but despite their mother’s advice of going to Ragnor, they had stayed. Magnus had never let them down, whilst that was the first thing Ragnor ever did to them.
Now she could think about them without being angry. After leaving Idris, Magnus had sent messages to all his acquaintances, trying to find out what had happened after the two of them had escaped. The story was almost simple.
By the time people had noticed that something was wrong, the Morgenstern household had been empty, except from a former member of the circle that laid dead on the floor. To the world, and to the entire population of shadowhunters, there were no Morgenstern survivors.
Tessa Gray had insisted for the situation to remain such, since she said that she knew personally what the Clave would do to uphold the Law. “The Law is hard, but it’s the Law.” She had mimicked, sounding scornful.
Because of that, to everyone at school, they were Clary and Sebastian Fray (from Ragnor F-ell and Tessa G-ray).
Clary pulled out of her memories as she heard the sound of her brother training in the room that Magnus had set up especially for them. She put down her mug and his cup of coffee on a tray and proceeded to go down the stairs.
She found Sebastian standing over a punching bag, attacking it repeatedly without a pause. He moved fast, faster than Clary knew she could ever achieve. His shirt lay on the floor, and he was sweating. Meaning he had probably been up for a while, with the intention of fighting the punching bag.
“What did it ever do to you?” she mused, as she put down the tray on the corner of the floor. Sebastian didn’t spare her a glance, as he threw the bag off its hinges with a violent blow.
Clary whistled and stood up. “How about you fight someone your own size?” she asked, getting ready.
The boy cleaned the sweat off his forehead and stared her down. “You are hardly my size. You are hardly anyone’s size.” He told her, and she grinned.
“Afraid of fighting someone who could actually take you?” she asked, and the blond rolled his eyes, but got ready.
If anyone had thought that Sebastian would go easy on her because she was his sister, he had been misled. He actually went harder on her than he probably would have done with anyone else. He blocked every single one of her hits, not bothering to attack her at first.
When she made to kick him in the stomach, he grabbed her leg and flipped it, making her fall hard on her knees. She was immediately up again, her attacks increasing in violence and rapidity.
She wasn’t as fast as he was, and probably would never be, but she was fast. One of her hits stuck home, the elbow sending a small wave of pain in his ribs. She dived again for his shoulder, and he easily threw her over, sending her to crash on the wall. She bounced right back at him, not giving him a chance to take a breath.
Sebastian loved training with Clary. She didn’t allow him to treat her like a friend on the training matt, and she would kick his ass if he tried to go too easy on her. She was restless, and fought until she just couldn’t take it anymore, collapsing on the floor. She also was a cheating little shit.
Sebastian sent her back on the floor, and she dropped, laying face down and catching her breath. He knew better than to approach. Last time he did, she had thrown him off balance by biting his leg, because Clary did not know what fair fight meant. It would probably save her in a battle, but unlike Magnus and Raphael, he was not amused.
The red haired looked up at him with a smile on her face. “Feel better?” she asked him, and despite himself he smiled back. “So, why did you decide to let your rage fall on that poor punching bag?”
Instead of answering, he showed her his wrists. Both of them. His two naked wrists. Her eyes widened, as she unconsciously touched her silver bracelet. “Where is your bracelet?” she asked, stepping closer to him.
Sebastian kicked the punching bag on the floor. “At the club, when I was fighting the demons. It fell on the floor, and then those others attacked and I just…” he ran a hand through his blond hair. “I went back there this morning, but it wasn’t there.”
Clary put a hand on his shoulder. “They have it. They must have it. We’ll look for them and take it.” She said, as if it was the most natural and easy thing in the world. He smiled at her, thankful. Only she could know how much that bracelet meant to him. She smiled back, and then, in one fluid movement, sent him down on the matt. She laughed and stepped back. “Constant vigilance!” she preached, reaching out to grab her hot chocolate mug.
He rolled his eyes, crouching next to her and grabbing his own coffee. “Thanks.” He said, looking at his own coffee. She just smiled at him, and sipped her own drink.
“Simon left the stele from that guy here.” She said, after a moment of thought. “We can track them down.”
Sebastian looked sceptical. “What makes you think they live together?” he asked, and she shrugged.
“Best chance we have at the moment.” The boy couldn’t help but agree.
“I’ll go and get the stele from Magnus and then we’ll go.” He announced, and Clary watched him leave, walking away with confidence and less anger than before. She shook her head.
Right. Getting past Magnus first.
Clary walked back upstairs to her room. Up until she was 7 she and Sebastian had shared a room. Afterwards, for reasons she did not want to contemplate, Magnus had offered her a bigger one for herself. She quickly stripped of her clothes and jumped under the shower.
She wasn’t afraid of the three shadowhunters from the day before. She was actually curios. Tessa Gray had been the closest thing to a shadowhunter she had ever met. She had grown with Downworlders: warlocks, vampires and werewolves. She had even attended a couple of Fey parties with the Warlocks, and despite their cold behaviour towards Mundanes and Shadowhunters alike, their disdain had turned in something akin acceptance towards her and her brother.
The fact that she was 98% sure that Sebastian had slept with the sister of the Seelie queen certainly seemed to help. She heard the sound of her phone ringing snapped her out of her thoughts, but by the time she had come out of the room, the phone had stopped ringing.
She saw Simon’s missed called, but she chose to get changed first and then called him back. She was surprised when the call went to voicemail, but before she could call him back she heard the familiar voice of Magnus, calling her from his bedroom.
She pulled her still a little wet hair in a ponytail and grabbed a pair of shoes as she made her way to Magnus’ bedroom.
The warlock was sitting on his bed, a stele in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. Clary recognised the cup that she and Sebastian had brought for him as a joke. It was simple, with the words “If bitter, wear glitter” written in rainbow colours. Magnus proudly used it every day.
Sebastian was also standing there, his hair damp and a new navy shirt on him he had ditched his sweatpants for a pair of tight black jeans and was currently scowling at the warlock.
Magnus looked at her, already ready to leave and his frown deepened. “You are not serious about this.” He pleaded, but Clary held her ground.
“It’s important. He needs that bracelet back.” She announced, folding her arms around her chest. Magnus shook his head, although he was already crumbling. He had never had much self-control when it came to the two Morgenstern.
Magnus sipped his tea. “What if I get you another one? Identical?” he asked, and he immediately regretted it. Sebastian’s face assumed a dangerous shade of red. Surprisingly it was Clary who answered.
“You don’t get it. We need that one.” She said, voice stern, and Magnus threw his hands up in sign of peace.
“You can choose to help us.” Started Sebastian, throwing him a look.
“Or we’ll find them by ourselves.” Finished off Clary, and Magnus glared at them both.
“Okay. I’ll help.” Sighed the warlock in the end.
Sebastian nodded, as if that was what he expected. Knowing him, it probably was. “Let Clary put a tracing rune…” he started, but Magnus rolled his eyes.
“As if. I know where they are.” He put down his cup and looked dramatically out of the window. “We are going to the New York Institute.”
Jonathan Shadowhunter, the first Shadowhunter to walk on Earth, died in unknown circumstances after an attack per hand of demons.
Alec put down his book, wincing at the way his sister spoke. She was so loud, and she was doing it to irk him right now, since Jace was not paying her any attention. If he had known that breaking up with Meliorn would have caused that in her, he would have never told her about him cheating on her.
“Izzy, can you please lower it?” he asked, and the girl turned to him.
“Well, I’m sorry that me devoting my precious time to retrieve your precious stele is somewhat interfering with your lazy doing nothing. I won’t bother next time.” She said, and Jace, the bastard, snorted.
Alec turned his frustration at him. “Have you found anything on that bracelet?” he asked.
Jace had been studying the bracelet since the day before, when he had gone home and compared it with his own. The two bracelets were identical, except for one small detail. One had the letters S.H. engraved, while the other had the letters V.M. on it.
Jace had gotten that bracelet along with all the rest of the stuff that his father had left him before dying, and it looked the same as the one from the blond boy. The words on the outside, sent a little thrill in him. If I cannot reach Heaven, I will raise Hell.
Jace made a frustrated noise. “It doesn’t work.” He explained. “Something is locking it, and I can’t access anything. It’s like the bracelet doesn’t belong to anyone at all.” He complained.
The blond was curios of course. He had lived in Idris until he was 9 with his father, Stephen Herondale. They had lived in reclusion, since Stephen had left his place in the Circle after the death of his beloved second wife.
The sound of someone knocking at the door made them look up. Isabelle rolled her eyes. “I told Hodge that we didn’t need him today…” she muttered.
Her brother glowered at her. “Come in!” he called, pulling down his book.
And then he nearly jumped away when the door opened and someone walked in. It was clear it wasn’t Hodge.
Hodge wasn’t blond. Or had red hair. And he wasn’t Asian. The trio at the door clearly was.
The man from the party, the one that had stared at him appreciatively and then stole his bow and arrows, lit up at seeing him. “Alec! I’m so glad-“
“Magnus.” Interrupted him the girl, looking at him exasperated. The Asian pouted, as the blond walked forward. Jace had already reached for a seraph blade, hand itching to use it.
The blond regarded Jace with a scrutinizing look, before his eyes caught the bracelet. He grinned at Jace, his smile cold and terrible. “I think you have something that belongs to me.”
“And you have something that belongs to us.” Said Isabelle, fierce as she stepped forward and stood next to Jace. Alec followed suit, flanking his parabatai.
The red haired one narrowed her eyes at them. “We don’t need your stele, Shadowhunter.” She said, and Magnus winced.
He put a hand on her shoulder, warning clear in his eyes. “No, Clary. You are also a Shadowhunter.” He reminded her, and she scowled.
“Better hope I’m different from this stealing bunch of …” she made a rude gesture with her hand, and Magnus took great delight in staring at the ceiling, as he cursed Ragnor Fell in all the languages he knew.
Clary and Sebastian, although Shadowhunters, had grown up with Downworlders. They had seen the way other shadowhunters treated people like Magnus or Raphael, and were not for it.
The blond- Jace- whistled. “Well, this one has a sharp tongue.” He said almost admiringly.
Clary glared. “Want to see what other sharp things I’ve got?” she asked, and Alec saw how much strength it took Izzy not to laugh at this.
The blond boy tilted his head to the side. “We have merely came here to lay a bargain.” He said, formally, and the Asian looked at him suspicious. But the boy’s face was completely blank.
Jace looked amused. “And what makes you think that I’m going to make a deal with you?”
Sebastian smiled. “Because I’m a gentleman, but I only ask things once.” He told him, the smile fixed on his face.
Magnus fixed him and Clary with a stern look. “That’s not what we agreed.” He turned to Jace, his amiable expression dropping to something more adult. “We have your stele, Shadowhunter. We are going to give it back in return of the bracelet.” He said, but Jace didn’t even look at him.
“But it looks like… this bracelet is very important to you. Surely we could make a bargain that’s more even?” he asked again, and Clary’s eyes flashed a warning at her brother.
Sebastian’s face didn’t change. “And what would be more valuable than an arm who could potentially save your Parabatai’s life in battle?” he asked, sounding genuinely curios.
Alec stiffened and Jace’s face showed anger for a second. Sebastian was seriously testing everything he could. Then Jace smirked. “It looks to me like you don’t really want to walk away from this as easily as your friend Warlock seem to want.”
Sebastian winked. “You caught me.” Then his smile dropped. “Also, please don’t say Warlock in the same way someone would say cockroach. I find it offensive.”
Jace ignored the last remark. “What do you propose would make a sensitive bargain, then?” he asked.
“A fight. Me against you. If I win- you will give me back my bracelet, and we’ll depart as if we’ve never met before.” He looked at his sister, who nodded her assent. “And if I lose, you can have your stele back and do whatever the hell you want with us.”
“That sounded weirdly sexual and it’s making me uncomfortable.” Said Magnus, airily. He looked at Sebastian. “Are you sure you want to do this?” he then turned to Clary. “Are you really going to let him do this?”
Clary shrugged, crossing her hands on her chest and sitting back on the floor. “I’m just a poor innocent-” Magnus snorted and she glared “innocent baby. I can’t change his mind.”
The other trio was talking quietly among each other, the dark haired one looking not so subtly like he was about to throw a fit. The blond just reassured him calmly while the girl barely even listened. Her gaze was on them, as if she was evaluating a very important brand of meat.
“What’s your name?” she asked Clary, moving closer to her.
Clary looked at Magnus, and the Warlock smiled wickedly. “Her name is Clary, Clary Fray.”
She regarded Magnus as if she was debating whether to kill him with her gaze or ask him politely to stop interrupting her hitting up a pretty girl. The result wasn’t friendly, and Clary looked immediately ready to fight her. Instead, she put an arm around Magnus’ shoulder, hating the way they treated him because he was a Downworlder. She grinned at her brother, blanking out Isabelle completely. “May the force be with you!” she called.
Sebastian tried to scowl, but he ended up smiling at her. “I will never watch a movie with you and Simon again. I don’t want to get this silly references.”
Jace threw a seraph blade at him, and Sebastian caught it with ease, frowning. He looked at the arm like someone would look at a plate of spinach after they ordered a pizza. He had never used it before.
“You ready?” asked the impertinent Shadowhunter, and Sebastian looked at him almost bored.
“What exactly is the point of this question?” he asked back, and held up the sword.
Jace attacked. He was fast, really fast, but again, not fast enough. He striked up to Sebastian, trying to hit him with the sword but the boy was gone.
Alec and Isabelle were gaping. Never had they met a Shadowhunter who was faster than Jace, and from Jace’s face, neither had he. Sebastian didn’t brag. He looked at Jace with a look full obstinate decision, waiting for the other boy to attack.
Jace did, more ferociously this time, and let out a small cry of victory when he finally got the seraph blade out of the boy’s arm. But Sebastian looked relieved and purposeful at this, as he held up his fists.
It took minutes. Sebastian avoided every single hit from Jace with no sweat and then threw him on the floor, pinning him down. He didn’t crack a smile, and held him down with a blank expression on his face. “I won.” He said flatly, as he moved off him and stretched out his hand. He picked up his bracelet from the floor.
“Sebastian.” Said Magnus, sharply, ignoring the way Alec and Izzy were looking at him. As if he was Raziel descended on Earth. Beautiful and terrifying.
The blond boy finally gave some sort of response. He rolled his eyes, and then threw Alec’s stele at him. “We don’t need this.” He said. Still, Jace said nothing, looking at him with a quizzical look. He wasn’t used to strangers winning against him.
Magnus walked up to Alec and gave him a charming smile. “If you ever need me” he stage whispered. “Here is my number. Don’t hesitate to call me.” He winked, and Alec started blushing and stuttering. Jace frowned at him.
Then, before Clary and the rest could leave, the door opened, and a man walked in.
Sebastian was a blur. He took out his sword, Phosphorus, and held it to the man’s throat blazing hot anger in his face. His sister was next to him, her lips curled in a snarl as she held her own sword, looking at the man with hatred that Magnus had never taught possible for the girl to have.
“Clary! Sebastian!” bellowed Magnus, moving towards them. “What in the name of Lilith are you doing?” he asked.
“This is Hodge Starkweather.” Growled Sebastian, and Magnus looked alarmed.
Magnus knew. They had told him everything about what happened that day in their house.
Sebastian spoke anyway. “This is the man who killed my father.”