"Tavora?"
"Jace, sorry, I didn't mean to-" I break off as Jace wraps me in a bone-crushing hug. "Jace," I whisper, "Jace!" Then he releases me.
"Sorry. I just haven't seen you in so long, I've missed you." I cross my arms over my chest and glare at him. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Suddenly, the redhead butts in.
"And who are you?"
"Ah, Clary, can I talk to Tavora in private for a few minutes?" Jace says, "We have some catching up to do." Clary gives me a dirty look and stalks out of the room. Jace looks me up and down. "By God, you've grown. Given that the last time we saw each other, we were, oh I don't even remember how old we were! Seriously, what are you looking at me like that?!" I sigh.
"Jace, we were seven. We went for a ride on our horse, and you blindfolded me, you told me you had a surprise for me. Some surprise. You dumped me at Ragnor Fell's house, and he sent me through a Portal, and I wound up in Pennsylvania. It's been 10 years, Jace. 10 years. I heard that you died. You, Jonathan, and Father. The news spread like wildfire. I fell awful, but I was glad Jonathan was dead. he hurt me all the time. I researched our family for a long time. I discovered that we were Herondales. Jonathan, he was a Morgenstern. Valentine's son. And you Jace, I heard you were dating Clarissa Morgenstern. His daughter. I don't need any more confirmation than what I walked in on a few minutes ago. Just tell me, Jace, where have you been?" he is silent for a few moments.
"Here. I've been here for a long time. The Lightwood's adopted me. Took me in. Gave me a home, a family. It was never complete, though. You were always missing. I never told anyone about you, I figured you would find me. I looked for you. God knows, I looked for you. Tavvy, I'm so sorry." His eyes shine in the dim light. "I never should have tricked you like that. But you needed to get out of there." Tears slowly drip down his face. "Tavvy, please forgive me. I'm so sorry." He walks forward and wraps me in another hug. I let my tears flow freely, now. Within a few minutes, the shoulder of his shirt is soaked. "I love you, Tavvy. I love you so much."
"I love you too, Jace." I release him and wipe my face. I look in his mirror, I don't look too bad.
"Well," says Jace, "I should take you around and introduce you to everyone." I nod.
"Alright." So we walk out into the hallway and to the elevator.
"Hmm." Jace murmurs.
"What?"
"I don't know where Clary went. Probably down to supper. Here we are. The dining hall. Let's go." We walk in and all eyes are on us. The boy I ran into, the pretty one, drops his fork onto his plate.
"Jace, who is-"
"Alec, this is Tavora. My sister." Alec's mouth gapes open.
"Sister? How?"
"It's a rather long story, one I would not like to get into now. Anyways, Tavvy, this is Alec. My Parabatai." Alec smiles at me.
"If you're anything like Jace, Lord help us all." Jace clears his throat.
"Thank you, Alec." He gestures to the girl sitting beside Alec. "Tavvy, this is Isabelle, Alec's sister. Izzy, this is Tavora." She nods a greeting and continues eating. Alec, however, keeps looking at me with those big, blue eyes. He really is gorgeous. He's tall, lean and muscular. Jace's eyes flicker between us and he clears his throat. "Alec, can I talk to you for a moment?"
"Sure."
"Tav, you should eat." He says to me. I respond,
"Actually, I think I'm going to go to bed. I've had a long day, and I'm not very hungry. Er, which room should I take?" Just then, Isabelle pipes up.
"I'll show you."
"Okay, thanks." She leads me into the hallway and upstairs.
"You can take this one, here. My room is down the hall, Jace's is across from mine, and Alec's is across from yours. Okay?"
"Okay. Thank you."
"Any time." With that, she walked down to her room and never came back out. I walk into my room and shut the door. I click on the light. It's a nice little space, it looks like Jace's. I grab a towel and fresh clothes and hop in the shower. As I'm drying off, I hear a knock at the door. I wrap the towel around myself and open the door. Alec's standing in the doorway, his face the color of a tomato.
"S-sorry, Tavora. I didn't realize-I'll come back later."
"Wait!" I grab his arm. "You don't have to go. Just, wait here for a few minutes. I'll be right back." I dart back into my room, throw on my clothes, throw my hair into a messy bun, and go back into the hallway. "So, what's up?" Alec's face is still bright red.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to go up to the garden with me. It's always so pretty this time of night." I smile and say,
"Sure." He holds his arm out like a perfect gentleman, and I take it like a perfect lady. When we get to the garden, it seems as if we have stepped into a different world. The flowers are gorgeous, and the smell! I have never smelled anything so lovely in my life! I close my eyes and breathe in the scent of the garden.
"I brought some snacks." Alec says.
"Like a picnic?"
"Of sorts." He says with a grin. "And I know the perfect spot, too. Come here." He takes my hand and leads me to the back of the garden. He lays out a blanket, and sets some of the food down. It really is the perfect spot. A great view of the city.
"Wow, this is incredible. Absolutely incredible. I love it!" He smiles down at me and plops down on the blanket. He pats the spot next to him. I grin and sit down next to him. He hands me an apple, and takes one for himself. We eat in silence for a few minutes. When we finish our apples, he says,
"What do you want to talk about?" I have to think about that one for a few minutes.
"Tell me about Jace. About when he first came here. I missed 10 years of his life, I just want to know what those years were like." I lay back on the blanket and listen to Alec tell story after story of Jace. Stories of he and Jace battling demons, stories of Jace and Clary, story after story. Pretty soon, my eyelids fall shut and everything goes dark.
. . .
After I finish another story of battling demons, I look over to Tavora and see that she's asleep. She looks so young when she's sleeping. Her face looks softer, less angular. Not many people can achieve the look of such peace. Definitely Jace's sister. Careful not to wake her, I scoop her up in my arms and carry her down to her room and gently lay her on her bed. I lay a blanket over her small body, and whisper,
"Goodnight."
YOU ARE READING
City of Dying Embers (A Mortal Instruments story)
Teen FictionA Mortal Instruments Story
