Avery has had a rough life. Parents are dead, ex-boyfriend is MIA, and dealing with the perils that come with being a shadowhunter only further upset her world. The only constant she has in her life is Alec. He's always there for her, even when she...
Avery slowly woke up from her slumber to sunlight streaming from her partially opened curtains. Avery nestled her head into Johnny's shoulder. "You awake?" He asked, turning his head to see Avery looking up at him. She nodded, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. "What time is it? Have... have you been awake the entire time?" Avery asked, crossing her legs and facing Johnny. He looked down at his phone, squinting at the bright light. "Um, 8:17, and yeah, I've been awake the whole time. You snore and drool, by the way." Johnny told her, and Avery playfully hit his shoulder while Johnny snickered in response. The laughter died down, and Johnny looked intently at Avery. "You feeling any better?" He asked, and Avery shrugged in response. Johnny narrowed his eyebrows together. Avery stood up, and lifted her shirt up just enough so Johnny could see the dark purple bruise still on her side. He sighed, looking at Avery with hurt in his eyes. He gestured around his neck. "The one 'round you neck looks just as bad." Johnny told her. Avery nodded, and let her shirt fall back down. "It doesn't hurt as much to breathe anymore. That's good, I guess." Avery replied. "Honestly Avery, you look like shit. You need to get some rest." Johnny stood up, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Johnny I'm feeling better, I promise. I need to get ready for the day." She told him, and turned to walk to her closet. Johnny reached for her wrist, stopping Avery. "Please Avery, I can tell you're exhausted." Johnny pleaded with Avery. She looked down at her wrist, then back up at Johnny. She smiled meekly. "Those werewolf senses are good. Thank you, Johnny, but I've gotta get ready." She told him. Johnny sighed in frustration. Avery wrapped her arms around Johnny, resting her head against his chest. Johnny hugged Avery. "Please take care of yourself Avery." Johnny told her as they both pulled away. "I'll call you later." Avery told him. She went to open her bedroom door for Johnny, but when she turned around she saw the curtains blowing in the wind. Avery chuckled slightly, and closed her window. Avery walked into her bathroom and quickly washed her face and applied some mascara and concealer under her eyes to hide her dark circles. Avery went to her closet and put on this outfit:
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Avery adjusted her scarf to cover the bruises around her neck. Avery looked at herself in the mirror, and she sighed, having to agree with Johnny. She looked incredibly tired, even with the concealer and mascara she had applied to try and make herself appear more awake. Avery took out her French braids, and shook out the subtle waves in her hair. She pulled the top half of her hair into a bun on her head, and let the bottom half of her hair cascade down her back. Avery yawned, and groaned as she remembered the amount of paperwork she needed to complete today. Avery walked over to her bedroom door and pulled on her knee high black heeled boots, and walked into the hallway. She walked down the hallway, and turned into the empty kitchen. "Strange..." Avery muttered. Jace was usually sitting at the island eating a bowl of oatmeal, while Isabelle was trying to bake some elaborate breakfast and Lucy was fanning the flames from the stovetop. Avery looked at the kitchen table, and remembered when her and Alec would sit and eat their breakfast in content silence. "He's not dead yet, stop thinking like he is." Avery muttered to herself as she grabbed a coffee mug and a green tea bag from the cabinet. Avery walked over to the kettle on the stove, filled it up with water, and placed it on high. Within a few minutes, the water was boiling, and Avery poured it into her coffee mug. She stood at the island, watching her tea steep. Avery had a nagging feeling the whole morning that she had something important to do, but she couldn't remember what. Avery looked up at the clock, and cursed herself. She realized that she was supposed to have a video call with the Idris institute at 8:45, and it was 8:40. Avery grabbed her mug, and and ran as fast as she could to the conference room. She flung the door opened, and saw Jace and Izzy sitting at the round table. "We were wondering when you were going to show up." Jace told Avery as she set her tea down on the table. She glared at Jace. "Someone should have gotten me sooner." She snapped, quickly rummaging through the stack of progress reports on the table. Jace and Isabelle looked at each other, both concerned for their friend. Avery found the progress report she was looking for, and began to look through it. "Damn it!" She cursed, letting the paper fall to the table as she began to pace back and forth across the room. "Avery, use your words. What the hell has got you so worked up?" Jace asked, standing up and blocking Avery's path. She clenched her jaw, frustrated with the situation. "I had an entire stack of paperwork I needed to finish before this meeting and it's not done yet and now I'm gonna get my ass handed to me on a silver platter because I haven't gotten anything done and-" Jace held his hand up to silence Avery, who raised her eyebrow at him. "You've done the best you can, and that's what you're going to tell the head of the Idris Institute. They know what's been going on here, and they can't possibly expect everything to be done right now." Jace told Avery, calming her nerves. Isabelle sheepishly approaches the two, a timid grin on her face. "Actually... well um... the thing is..." she started, unable to finish her sentence. "Isabelle, finish you're sentence." Jace told her with a slight chuckle. Izzy took a deep breath, and was about to resume talking before a computerized beep was heard. "Looks like we're about to start." Avery said, pulling away from Jace and walking to her spot at the head of the table in front of the monitor. "Avery before we start I really need to tell you something." Isabelle started, walking up to Avery and holding onto her arm. "Izzy we can't keep them waiting any longer than we already have. Accept the video call." Avery shrugged Isabelle's hand off her arm, and stood in anticipation. Izzy hung her head as she walked over to the monitor. Avery watched on the screen as the mouse moved to click the "Accept" button. A few seconds later, Robert and Maryse Lightwood appeared on the screen in front of her. Avery clenched her fists behind her back because she couldn't let her face give any emotions away. Avery was at a loss for words when she felt Jace stand next to her. "Robert, Maryse. We weren't expecting you." Jace commented, flashing them a charismatic smile. Robert grinned ever so slightly, but Maryse's face remained stone cold. "The transfer of ownership happened a few days ago. We had trusted Isabelle to tell you, but it's obvious you were unaware." Maryse replied, looking at her daughter who broke eye contact and started to shuffle through the papers in front of her. Avery looked over at Jace, and gestured slightly for him to sit down. Jace nodded, and sat back down in his seat beside Avery. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience. As you know things have been hectic these past few weeks." Avery put on a different demeanor to try and fake confidence in front of Maryse. Avery could see Maryse's fists clench, and she took a breath in to reply before Robert put his hand on his wife's shoulder. "Which is precisely why we've scheduled this meeting today. Just tell us about the events that have transpired." Robert said calmly, gesturing for Avery to continue talking. Avery took a deep breath, and started to tell Robert and Maryse what had happened. She started with the night she was attacked in the mall. Avery told them about finding Lucy, and how the mission at the nightclub went wrong. Avery left out when she had been jumped by the circle member. She didn't want to relive that moment, and she knew it would only make her situation worse. Avery sighed when she finished, looking at both Izzy and Jace to be sure they wouldn't speak up. She returned her attention to the screen, where Robert and Maryse were whispering to themselves. Finally, Maryse spoke up. "How is Alec doing?" She asked, her voice shaking ever so slightly. Avery was taken aback at Maryse showing an emotion other than anger. Avery looked at Jace, biting her lower lip slightly. Avery looked back at Robert and Maryse. "His condition has improved since the initial attack, but... he just hasn't woken up." Avery lowered her gaze, choking back tears. The room fell silent for what felt like forever before Maryse spoke. "We will be at the New York Institute tomorrow morning. It's obvious that things have gone downhill since you have taken over, Avery." Maryse spat out. Avery was taken aback slightly by Maryse's comments, but she knew that Maryse was just as worried as she was. "I expect you to be completely caught up on paperwork by tomorrow morning. You'll find new files in your email to complete." Maryse finished, turning around and walking away from the screen. Robert reached out to Maryse, but let his hand fall when she was out of reach. He turned back to the video chat. "I.. apologize for her behavior. We will see you tomorrow." Robert concluded softly. He reached offscreen, and the video call was ended. Avery's gaze remained on the screen. "I'm so sorry Avery. I tried to tell you..." Izzy stood up and walked next to her. Avery held her hand up, indicating for Izzy to stop talking. "I, it's... you're fine." Avery sighed, completely defeated. Avery turned to face Jace, and Izzy walked next to him. Avery was about to speak when she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. Avery groaned and pulled it out, answering the phone. "Hello?" She asked, her annoyance clear in her tone of voice. "Whose got a stick shoved up your ass?" Derek asked, on the receiving end of the phone. "Derek, I'm sorry. What did you need?" She asked, trying to use a more polite tone. "I wanted to let you know that your car is ready, and Johnny is already on his way to walk you here. He should be there any minute" Derek told her. Avery sighed, nodding her head. "Alright. I'll see you there. Bye Derek." Avery muttered, hanging up the phone. Avery ran her hands through her hair, pacing slightly. She turned to Jace and Izzy, wiping her face with her hands. "Can you two help me with the paperwork please? Fill it out and leave it on my desk for me to sign. Jace, print out whatever it is that Maryse wants done and do the same. I've gotta go take care of that." Avery stammered out, clearly flustered. Jace reached out, placing his hand on her shoulder to steady her. "Do whatever you need to do, we've got you. What do you want Lucy to do? We can get her for you." Jace spoke gently to avoid stressing Avery out even further. "Um... okay um, have her start cleaning the Institute, organizing the weapons inventory. This place is a mess, and I don't want to be in more trouble than I already am." Avery sighed into her hands. Jace nodded in response. "You do what you need to do Avery." Izzy told her. Avery nodded, pulling away from the group. Avery felt her phone buzz once again, and she looked down to see a text from Johnny. "I gotta go." She trailed off, turning around and leaving the room. Izzy and Jace looked at each other as she left. "Well, lets get to it." Jace concluded, walking off towards Avery's office. Isabelle sighed, and followed Jace, her head hanging low.
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OMG WHAT AN UPDATE AFTER LIKE A YEAR AND A HALF!?!?! Guys honestly I've missed writing this story. I've been in a bad place for a long time, and I've only just gotten out of it. My personal life went south for a while, and it really sucked. BUT, here's an update that's taken a few months to come together. I'm hoping to have more updates in the future. I hope y'all can forgive me for being absent for so long, and I hope y'all enjoy!
