Wild Warriors: A Shadowhunters Fanfic

7. Folk Fairer than I

That night, Jace and I were too tired to do anything but sleep, despite what Alec had shouted at us half-playfully. Jace pulled me along behind him towards his room where we pulled off our clothes and slid inside the covers.
The warmth of Jace's body juxtaposed with the cold sheets in such a way that sent shivers down my spine. Jace wrapped a strong, tattooed arm around me and pulled me closer into his bare chest. His arm laid gently between my breasts with his hand on my shoulder and my fingers wound through his. I pressed a few soft kisses onto his fingers before settling back and closing my eyes.
I could feel Jace's heartbeat through my back and I allowed the steady thumping to be the lullaby that brought me to sleep.

———

One week later

When I woke, Jace was gone. For half an instant I was confused and more than a little disappointed but I soon heard the soft melody of a piano from down the hall.
I relaxed, pulling the sheets closer around me. Every once in a while, when the urge hit, Jace would sit at the grand piano a few rooms away and play whatever piece first came to mind.
The last week had been strangely calm in the way of missions. Alec was running the Institute impeccably and so far there hadn't been any further noise from the Downworld. We were taking advantage of this rare break in our work.
Some days Jace would sit at the piano all day and play the likes of Beethoven and Mozart and Tchaikovsky but I had never heard this piece before. It was a simple array of calm, serene notes with a fluttering of two notes somewhere in the melody.
I wasn't very musically inclined, nor was I very awake, so my only thoughts on the noise was how pleasant it sounded.

For about an hour I drifted in and out of a doze, accompanied by Jace's skillful playing. When I heard the music finally stop, I was somewhat disappointed. I wished he played more often.
A few moments later I heard a soft rap on the closed door. Assuming it was Jace, I kept my eyes closed and didn't stir from the bed. But as I was wondering why Jace would knock on his own door- he never did, even when he knew I was in bed- the door creaked open.

I pulled my legs under the covers in half a second and curled them tightly under me. Bolting upright, I held the sheet around me with a fist at my neck.
The door opened all the way, sending a beam of yellow light widening upon the dark hard wood floor. Someone took a small step inside, revealing a tall, powerful form whom I recognized to be someone I hadn't seen in quite a few days.
Sebastian.

I let out a sound that revealed both my confusion and my wariness of having him so close to me while I was naked.
"Sebastian!" I hissed in a whisper. "What are you doing?"
"Cara? Oh-" Sebastian seemed caught entirely off his guard at seeing me. I didn't know why, it wasn't as thought the boy was blind and didn't know Jace and I were in a relationship. "I'm sorry, I didn't know-"
"It's fine," I rushed out. "What do you need?"
"I was just looking for Jace. He isn't here, I gather?"
"No." I nodded down the hall where the soft piano notes had started drifting from once again.
"Ah." If it weren't so dark, I would probably have seen the blush on Sebastian's cheekbones. After apologizing again, he shut the door behind him and left to follow the music. When the music stopped again just a few moments later, I assumed Sebastian had found Jace.

I laid back down and tried to close my eyes but no part of me needed nor wanted to go back to sleep. So I swung my legs over the side of the bed and slid to the floor, letting the sheet fall off me. I shivered as the cool air touched me and I hurried to the dresser where I had a drawer of clothes near the bottom. Jace had a similar drawer in my dresser. I pulled some clothes out and dressed before combing my hair and pulling it up in a bun.
My phone screen told me it was just after nine in the morning. Before I left Jace's room, I pulled the curtains back and let the early morning sun stream into the meticulously neat room. With my shoes and stele in hand, I slipped out into the hallway and started my search for breakfast.