The Dark Ones

Chapter Three

"I didn't even realize..." I replied quickly, suddenly aware of a dull aching within them.

"Give it here," he told me, reaching for my wrists. He pulled them both toward him gently. He pulled out his stele and proceeded to draw an iratze onto my forearm. The tingling sensation caused any grogginess in my head to dissipate and I watched as my small wounds began to sew themselves back together, leaving only a bit of blood to show that they had ever been there in the first place. "I can get that too."

He stood up from the place that he was sitting on the bed beside me, going into the bathroom. When he came back out, he was holding a wet paper towel. He sat down beside me again and I reached to take them from him but he pulled them out of my reach.

"No, I can do it. You're the guest." He asserted, taking my hand again and wiping the blood away. He was careful, as if he was trying not to hurt me.

I looked up at him and realized that with the sun casting its golden rays onto him, his eyes looked like a golden brown instead of black. When he met my gaze, the light was no longer shining onto them and they returned to their darker color. I averted my gaze in hopes that he wouldn't notice that I had been staring a few moments before.

"Oh, I didn't realize you were finished." I met his gaze again, smiling slightly, "thank you."

"No problem, Clary." A grin formed on his lips. "You going to be alright on your own?"

"I'll manage," I said in the most playful tone that I could muster up. "Thanks again, Noah. I can't express to you how thankful I am that you guys took me in at all."

"You don't need to thank me, it breaks up the monotony." he said, standing up, "oh, it's six by the way. We're rolling out breakfast in an hour."

"Thank the Angel," I replied. "I ate with Simon at like five yesterday."

"Simon?" Noah inquired.

"A friend I have back home." I say, feeling almost somber at the thought at first. After a second, everything registered in my brain. "Oh my God, Simon! Isabelle must have told him-"

"Hey, calm down. Isabelle?" Noah asked, and I shook my head. I stood up, rushing over to the pants I had shrugged off the night before and pulling the pockets inside out in search of my phone. "Do you need a phone?"

When I got to the back pocket on my jeans, I felt an oblong object that I immediately identified as my phone. I pulled it out, taking only a quick moment to tell Noah, "I'm fine" before clicking the home button. "Shoot, it's dead." I stated as soon as I saw the charging symbol show up.

"Here," he told me, pulling his phone out of his back pocket and handing it to me. When he handed it to me, for a brief moment I took in his appearance again.

"You're in gear," I noted, and he glanced down at himself.

"I brought some in for you this morning. It's on the nightstand." He told me, motioning to it. When I didn't shift my gaze, a look of amusement took over his face, "are you going to point out the fact that I look extremely attractive?"

"You boys are all the same." I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't help but smile at his joke. "I'm changing, then I'll call Simon." I made my way over to the nightstand, grabbing the clothes and holding them against my chest so that nothing would fall.

"Need help with anything?" I looked over at him and watched as he seemed to realize what he said that in response to. He opened his mouth to correct himself but I interrupted him.

"I can get dressed on my own," I said, and when i smiled he returned it. I looked at him, slightly grateful at the shift of his attitude from our first encounter. "So I'll see you in a little bit." I told him, and he nodded.