Disclaimer: My name isn't Cassandra Clare. I don't own the Mortal Instruments or the Infernal Devices. I don't own the characters. I am just borrowing them.

Chapter 1

Jace shifted uncomfortably in the tight suit Maryse made him put on. He was hunched over in one of the large sofas in the library. He tugged at the collar, which was choking him a little. He didn't think it necessary that they'd have to dress up for the clave meeting in Idris. He chuckled at the thought of everyone, bloodied and marked, fighting together in Idris a few months ago. His smile vanished when he pictured Clary's face when she thought he was dead. Even before they knew they weren't brother and sister, before they found out Valentine played them for fools, he vowed he would protect her, no matter the cost. The pain he caused her then was something he didn't ever want to do again. To love is to destroy. Valentine's words echoed in his mind. He shook his head to clear his thoughts of that evil bastard. But it didn't matter anymore. Valentine was dead. Just like him, his words were ghosts haunting Jace. Is it wrong that I loved him, he thought. Clary was his blood, but she despised everything about the man. She was raised as an ignorant mundane. Jace, on the other hand, had to suffer through ten years of rigorous training and hard lessons.

He was pulled from his thoughts as Alec slumped next to him. He noticed Alec was dressed in the same suit he was. The sleeves were small on him, so Alec was tugging on his shirt.

"I swear, we never had to wear these before," he grumbled. Jace looked how Alec felt.

"Maryse feels we need to show our support to Jia as she takes the Consul position. I think she wants to be on Jia's good side this time. Finally have someone good running the Clave." Jace looked at Alec. His parabatai hadn't moved at all. Jace felt bad. Alec had just broken up with Magnus a few weeks ago. He could only imagine what he was going through. Jace had never felt more sad than the time he thought Clary was his sister. It was during those weeks he realized he truly loved her. He knew Alec loved Magnus just as much.

He was about to stand up to find Maryse when Isabelle walked through the doors of the library. She was dressed in her usual "Isabelle" outfit. A short blue dress and black heels. She crossed the room in a few graceful strides and sat on the arm of the chair by her brother.

Jace chuckled as his adoptive sister joined them. "I see your mother hasn't gotten a hold of you," he said. "She'll freak when she sees what you're wearing."

Isabelle just flicked her long, black hair over her shoulder. "You're just jealous I have a better fashion sense than you."

"Please, any piece of clothing I own has the privilege of being so close to my stunning beauty."

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "Seventeen years. One of these days you'll need to grow up."

Before he could counter her comment with some remarks dealing with witches and wrinkles, Clary and Simon walked into the library, followed by Maryse and, he felt himself cringe, Magnus.

When he saw Clary, his heart warmed. She was in an outfit that covered a little more skin than Isabelle. Her perfect red hair fell around her shoulders. He longed to run his fingers through her hair, pulling out the knots and straightening it in his fingers. She meets his eyes and she smiled. God, he thought, you're beautiful.

As she made her way to sit on his lap, Simon moved to stand with Isabelle, who wrapped her arms around his waist in a hug. Jace saw Alec and Magnus standing apart, both looking anywhere but at each other. Maryse had strode past them and was rummaging around at her desk. Months ago, he would have said Hodge's desk. But their beloved tudor died by Sebastian's hands in Idris. At least he died doing the right thing.

Maryse seemed to have found what she was looking for. She held up a scrap of paper and handed it to Magnus.

"These are the lists of contacts in case anything happens to…" she trailed off. "Just if anything happens. The council meeting shouldn't last too long, so be prepared to receive us sometime tomorrow."

She looked around at all of them crowded in the library. She was caught off guard by Isabelle's choice of dress, but she didn't say anything. "Maryse I can handle it. I will open the portal tomorrow at four. You are sure to count on me," Magnus said evenly. His eyes flicked to Alec, who was staring furiously at his shoes, and nodded to Maryse. Magnus then walked to a bare wall and began drawing symbols to create the portal.

Maryse turned to all the shadowhunters in the room. "Everyone ready?" she asked. There were a few grunts of yes.

Clary was sitting on Jace's lap and playing with his hair. After the battle at The Seventh Sacred Site, Jace pulsed with heavenly fire trapped in his body. At first, no one was able to touch him long, or else burned by his skin. Now, although the fire was still trapped inside him, his skin no longer burned. Most of the side effects had faded, though, when Jace was angry, he still pulsed and glowed.

He leaned in to kiss her. Their lips met, and for a moment, they were alone in the library. She pulled back and smiled. "What did I do to deserve this?" she asked.

He grinned ear to ear. "Have incredibly good taste in men."

"You nervous about the Clave meeting tonight?" Her brow furrowed as she leaned in closer to him.

"Since we didn't do anything wrong this time, and the meeting is really about discussing the whole Se-Jonathan situation, not really. It's just a waste of time, in my opinion," Jace grumbled.

"I don't know what more we can do. If we haven't been able to track Jonathan yet, I doubt anything's changed," Clary said. Jonathan was Clary's older brother, a shadowhunter with more demon blood in him than a warlock. Acted as ruthless as a demon. He had kidnapped Jace and bound them together. He was Jonathan's accomplice, helping him create a new race of dark shadowhunters. That was, until Clary had stabbed him with an angel blade, Michael's sword. He owed her his life, and he was going to stand by her until the end.

"You don't know what could happen when people sit around a table spitting ideas around for weeks," Jace commented.

She rolled her eyes and stood up, dragging him along. Simon, Isabelle, Alec, and Maryse stood around Magnus as he opened the portal. Blue sparks flew as air blew past them. Magnus turned and nodded at Maryse. "It's ready."

She nodded back and turned to Alec. "Go first. Let Jia know we made it fine." Alec obeyed his mother and slowly walked into the swirling vortex. He hesitated at the last moment, but continued forward. As Alec entered the portal, Magnus felt a pang of sadness, and memories started swimming into his vision. He pictured Will, ranting about books and his distaste for ducks. He thought of Jem and the illness that ruined his life. He thought of Charlotte and Henry expecting their first child, of Jessamine wishing to live like a mundane. And finally, he thought of Tessa and the many losses she experienced.

After Will died, he had been there to comfort Tessa in her grief. The first one is always the hardest. He was over seven hundred years old. His memory, though sluggish sometimes, was still there. He had been lost the few centuries on his own. But, as time passed, he hardened his heart. Until London. He changed during those years. Without the shadowhunters of the London Institute, he wouldn't be the man he was today.

His thoughts snapped back to the present. Alec was all the way through the portal and disappeared. He hoped his wandering thoughts didn't interfere with the portal. For Alec's sake. Then Isabelle went, followed by Simon, Clary, Jace, and finally Maryse.

Before Maryse walked through, she turned back to face Magnus. "Thank you for this Magnus. It feels good to leave the Institute somewhat protected." She then turned and disappeared into the portal. The vortex pulsed one more time before sputtering out and fading completely.

A/N: I hope you are enjoying this story. I am not that good at writing them, but I love these two book series, so I wanted to create a story just for them. Please review so I can add more chapters. Even if you didn't like it, reviews can help me a lot!