Herondales, Man (Jace and Clary's Daughter)

011

*Cecily Herondale*

"Cece," Someone shook me. "Cece get up, we have to leave now." I groaned, turning over. Mom just sighed and said something to Dad, giving up on me.

"Up you come, Cece," Dad shouted, picking me up.

"Alright, alright, I'm up." I groaned, stretching out my toes to reach the floor but Dad held me like a rag-doll and I couldn't touch the floor.

"I have to carry you anyway, actually," Dad said casually. "But we have to roll up the mattress."

A blue firecracker flew past my nose and the mattress went off like a shotgun. Dad moved me to sit on his hip (something he tended to do subconsciously) and shifted away from Magnus, who wore the same outfit he had on yesterday. "Done," Magnus said simply.

"What a way to wake up in the morning," I said, exercising my jaw to pop my ears. I glanced back at where the bed was before and now it was a neat stack of blankets and the plastic mattress - now deflated.

"Warning next time, please," Mom said, massaging her forehead. "It's four in the morning."

"Yes, which means you owe me for staying up all night to do this for you." Magnus said, pointing a glittery fingernail at the three of us.

"You didn't have to," Dad pointed out.

"But I did."

Dad was about to retort but Mom interrupted him; "Thank you, Magnus."

"You're welcome," Magnus said. His cat eyes flickered from Mom to Dad and I, he looked almost sympathetic. "Best be going, Biscuit, before they amp-up the wards again. Oh, Cece?" I nodded to him, "I expect that the next time we're all together you'll put Rafe back in his place?" Then he walked through the Portal and was gone.

"Why does everyone want me to whoop Rafe so bad?" I exclaimed, twisting to face my Dad.

"I'm sure you've noticed that Rafe has a bit of an ego." Dad shrugged. I couldn't help but snort. "Alec and Magnus have been waiting for someone to say something to him - like all teenagers, he doesn't listen to his parents."

"Go figure," Mom grinned, "It's the Herondale who's expected to fix it."

I hardly noticed that Dad was walking closer and closer to the Portal while Mom had the blankets and mattress in her arms - they must have already brought our bags through. But it didn't matter then because all of the sudden Dad pressed my nose to his shoulder and stepped through the Portal.

I screamed.

It was like going on the Dr. Doom Fear Fall at Universal Studios or almost crashing in a plane - both of which I'd experienced in my life. There was no ground and I couldn't see anything but the white of Dad's t-shirt. I've always hated heights, which included cliffs and being at the top of buildings. Dad's grip tightened on me, I thought I heard him say something but I couldn't tell you want it was.

Then, seconds later, Dad stumbled on solid ground and I stopped my screaming. I clutched my Dad tighter than I ever had before and tried not to cry. How pathetic, I thought, but I couldn't help it.

"A little warning next time," I managed weakly.

"You never did like heights, I'm sorry," Dad said, putting me down, not letting me out of the hug. Mom stumbled out of the Portal seconds behind us, rushing over to where we stood.

"Cece, I could hear you scream from the other side of the Portal," Mom said sadly, smoothing back my hair. "Maybe it would have been better if we had taken plane -"

"That was honestly better than plane." I said. "If we took a plane I'd probably have an insane panic attack."

*

Walking through the Manor (which was honestly more of a castle), I couldn't help but oggle at everything. The walls were like the inside of a church with tapestries here and there of Nephilim history. Everything was powered by witchlight, sometimes boxes were in the halls (they haven't showed me my room yet) but most times they were in rooms.

The library was possibly the best place in the entire Manor. It had high ceilings and books upon books upon books. It honestly looked like the City of Bones movie Institute's library. But the entire first floor of the Manor was very modern; it was like the higher you went up, the older it got.

"What do you think?" Mom asked, but judging by the smile on her face and awe-struck look on mine, she knew my answer.

"Woah," Was all I could end up saying.

"When we first moved in we ended up having to use the buddy system - we got lost almost daily." Dad said, his hand still on my shoulder, guiding me around. "Magnus had to make us a map."

"I can see why," I said, pivoting to look up at the gigantic diamond chandelier. "This place is enormous!"

"Your father lost you twice in this house," Mom said, "And didn't think to use a Tracking Rune to find you so he and Alec spent three hours trying to find you, one time. Apparently, you fell asleep behind the couch in the library." I laughed.

"No," Dad said, drawling out the word to imply that he was about to correct Mom. "She climbed on one of the lower shelves and fell asleep there. And the library was Alec's portion of the house to check. It was his fault that we didn't find her before."

Mom rolled her eyes; "Mmhmm, sure." I hid my laughter behind my hand and bit my lip. CLACE moments were the moments I waited for in the Mortal Intruments and over the past month, I've had to keep reminding myself that now I wouldn't have to go flipping through pages to find them.

"Uh oh," Dad muttered, studying me with intense gold eyes - the same gold eyes I had. "I know that look. You're either itching to read or draw - am I right?"

"Both," I grinned. "But I really want to see the rest of this place."

Mom got a slightly mischievous smile and nodded to the stairs that came together above the door to the library. "How about your floor?"

"'Floor'?" I repeated, my eyes widening.

"Only children get spoiled," Dad said simply.

I jogged ahead of them, up the stairs and wondered how I managed to miss a whole floor while on this tour of home. Glancing back, I saw my parents hand in hand, smiling up at me as I bounced on the balls of my feet, biting my bottom lip in anticipation. "I'm going to get lost if you don't hurry up!" I told them, getting more and more excited by the moments' passing.

Dad and Mom led me up to the the top floor. Five stories up. It looked almost like an attic with all open space and open windows.

"This is one of the reasons why we didn't come for you six months ago," Mom told me as Dad pushed open a window that looked onto the forest that was still within reach of the wards. "We knocked out a couple walls, build shelves -"

My face split into an even wider grin. "This is the best room ever." I tell them, noting how a few of the shelves are occupied with books that weren't mine.

"I should hope so," Mom said, putting her arms around my shoulders in a tight hug. "Nothing less for my daughter."

"I think that's what I said when I told you that she needed her own floor," Dad mused, joining our group hug.

"And you were right, for once," Mom said snarkily.

"Dad's been right a few more times than that," I said, looking up at her.

"Oh yeah?" Mom asked.

"City of Ashes; page 430." I said, remembering it with ease. "Or, I guess it was technically 413."

"I'm looking that up," Mom tells me. "Your father isn't right often."

"Sure I am," Dad said proudly. "I'm always right."