A Broken Future

Chapter Nine: An Heir to The Throne

Clary awoke the next morning in her mother and Luke's room. In the chair next to the bed was Jace, sleeping peacefully. The others must have gone back to their bedrooms; Alec and Magnus to theirs, and Jocelyn and Luke to the one he had first been given, but never used. He preferred to stay with his fiancé.
As she sat up gingerly, trying not to aggravate her aching middle, Jace stirred slightly. Clary paused, not wanting to wake him, then slid off the bed and quietly padded down the hall.
When she opened the door to her and Sebastian's bedroom she saw that he was still sleeping soundly.
Clary went over to her dresser soundlessly, grabbing one of her many dresses, and going to the bathroom. She let the door click shut behind her and slipped off her pajamas, pulling on the pale green dress and zipping the back. She turned around, stopping when she saw herself in the mirror.
Though the gradual sharpening of her cheekbones and hollowing of her temples from lack of appetite was unnoticeable to her, it was there. Her hair had gone from having a bronze sheen on its fire to being a dull, limp red. She looked pale, with dark smudges under her eyes as marks of sleepless nights. Her nervous habit of chewing her nails had worn them down as far as they could go. It wasn't usually how you thought of pregnant women- the rounded face, maternal 'glow', usually happy disposition from the anticipation of a child. Then again, she wasn't the average pregnant woman- she was barely a woman at all.
She put a hand to her stomach. Was she imagining a small bump there? There's a baby in there, she thought to herself, hardly believing it. How could she be a mother? She was so young, so unprepared. And her brother was the father, a thought that made her cringe.
But you're my brother.
Foolish laws of DNA, what can't be mixed with what. They don't apply to us, Clary. Hypocritical really, considering. We're already experiments.
Technically, she knew her brother was right. But morally it felt so wrong.
There was a knock on the door that made Clary jump, yanking her out of her thoughts.
"Can I come in?" Sebastian asked. By the tone of his voice she could almost believe he was a normal human being.
"Um... Sure," Clary responded, only slightly bewildered that he had asked instead of just barging in.
He cracked open the door, slipping his ice-capped head in before opening the door wider. He looked slightly worried, a sight that startled her even further.
He stepped into the room, looking Clary up and down. But it was not hungrily; he was checking to see if she bore any visible injuries.
"Are you feeling better?" He asked.
Slightly dazed by his question, Clary stared at him dumbly for a moment before answering. "Uh... ya, I mean, yes, I'm feeling better."
"Good," Sebastian said, then fell silent. Clary stood there awkwardly, but Sebastian did not. If she had not known better she would have said he looked at her with, almost, loving concern.
It was then Clary realized she had to tell him exactly what was going on. She had not contemplated what his reaction might be, if it would anger him or not. But before she could, Clary blurted out; "I'm pregnant."
Now it was Sebastian's turn to stare at her, looking dumbfounded. He opened his mouth to speak, them closed it, and opened it again.
"You're... Pregnant?" He asked, pale eyebrows reaching for his salty-white hairline.
Clary nodded, suddenly fearful of what this response meant. Was he upset? Angry? Or just simply shocked?
Suddenly his mouth stretched into a huge smile, and he pulled her toward him. Clary immediately tensed, but all he meant to do was press his lips to hers.
She had never thought Sebastian could be romantic, or that he wanted to. But his kiss, though it sickened her, spoke of love. Whatever kind of twisted version of love he believed in.
Eventually he pulled away, still holding her, his smile beaming down at Clary. She continued to look at him like something from another planet.
"Wait, you're... Happy about this?" She asked in bewilderment. Sebastian's grin persevered.
"Of course! We are king and queen; we live and reign side by side like any ruling couple. And Clary, if it's a son, we shall have an heir to the throne!"
"But I thought you said we would be immortal in this dimension," Clary wondered aloud. "We wouldn't need an heir."
"Of course we are immortal, but when I grow tired of governing, we must have somebody to take over. Wouldn't it be nice to have more leisure time together?"
It was true that Sebastian did spend a great portion of his day doing who-knows-what with the Endarkened, but that didn't mean Clary wanted more time with him. She didn't argue this out loud though; she didn't want to risk angering him when he was so obviously delighted.
"I had hoped this would happen, but not nearly his soon. This is wonderful!" He exclaimed, pressing another kiss to her lips. He broke away, sauntering out of the bathroom with an uncharacteristic gaiety.
This happy Sebastian was beginning to scare Clary more than the angry one.