A/N In 9th grade, we were required to write a vocab story every week using the new vocabulary that we received every Monday. I wrote quite a few about the Mortal Instruments, and my friends all suggested that I post them on fanfiction, so here goes. This particular one-shot occurs sometime in City of Bones. The 10 words we were required to use are underlined, and their meanings are provided at the bottom. As always, please review, whether you liked it, loved it (:D), or (hopefully not) hated it. :)

Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare owns the Mortal Instruments series, the ideas, and the characters. I only own the actions and words that were not explicitly described in the books.

The Sandwich

A tale of deceit and treachery.

"You didn't have to do that, you know," Clary said as the Institute's elevator creaked around them. "I mean, making up lies about his sister? Simon looked like he was about to explode. Just wait until he finds out you were lying -"

"I was lying?" Jace queried, an all-too-innocent expression on his face. "What about you, telling him that you had Tisch classes the night that St. Javier's had a dance, and he asked you to go with him? And you came here instead? That's deceitful, fictitious, heartbreaking treachery." He rattled off each description of the magnitude of her betrayal with the appropriate solemnity, Clary thought, of one that was attending the funeral of an individual that he secretly loathed.

"It is not," Clary protested, ignoring the flush of heat in her cheeks.

"You're right," Jace agreed magnanimously. "It's just plain devious. You were probably just trying to get me to ask you instead -" He broke off as the elevator came to a noisy halt, wrenching open the golden doors and allowing her to exit first.

"Why - why in the world would I want you to ask me?" Clary spluttered, trying to sound convincing. Jace waggled his eyebrows at her as they walked to the kitchen. Blushing again, she decided to go back to the original, much safer, topic. "Well, regardless, it's not like you're the very soul of veracity, anyways, so you're being a bit of a hypocrite," she said as she opened the kitchen door.

"I am not a hypocrite," Jace declared indignantly, rummaging through the refrigerator. "See, my tormented inner self -" Clary struggled not to roll her eyes; any explanation from Jace included at least one mention of his tormented inner self, as well as an aria of praise for his 'naturally stunning' outer self – "is full of everything that an exceptionally-above-average angst-ridden teenage boy is. So, naturally, I am mendacious; I am deceptive; I am a reputable master of all forms of duplicity – by the Angel, what is this?" He broke off, horrified, gingerly clutching a glutinous mass of noodles, ketchup, and peanut butter that had been nesting menacingly in the fridge.

"Isabelle," they both groaned simultaneously. Jace discarded the quivering hunk of whatever-it-was into the garbage, shuddering.

"Anyways," he continued, "If I'm truly that guileful on the inside, but overtly masqueraded myself to be – what did you call it? – the 'very soul of veracity' on the outside; now, that would truly be hypocritical, wouldn't it?"

Clary sighed, ready to just let the subject drop – as she was prone to do after any verbal onslaught from Jace – when he added, a trifle maliciously, "And Simon the Rat is just so gullible, anyways."

"He is not!" Clary felt that she was at least obligated to protest when her best friend was insulted behind his back – even though what Jace was saying was probably true.

"Yes, he is," Jace drawled, having successfully located two sandwiches – without cucumber – for himself and Clary. "I told him once that 'If you say 'orange' in a British accent, it sounds like gullible'. And the little rat straightened up from his hunch – you know how he has an appalling posture in comparison to -" he waved a hand at himself loftily, "magnificent me, and repeated, 'Orange. Orange. Orange.' What do you call that?" Jace gestured at her with the hand holding the sandwich, with an expression as if saying, Well, obviously. Gullible!

Clary smiled widely at him. "A sandwich."

The words and their meanings:

Devious (adj) - meant to trick; departed from accepted course

Duplicity (n) - deliberate deception

Fictitious (adj) - false; fake; imaginary

Guile (n) - sly intelligence; craftiness

Gullible (adj) - easily fooled

Hypocritical (adj) - saying one thing, doing another

Masquerade (v,n) - to disguise oneself; a disguise

Overt (adj) - open and observable

Reputable (adj) - having a good reputation

Veracity (n) - truthfulness or accuracy

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