Ember silently walked down the sidewalks at Central Park, her black velvet flats silently brushing against the hard pavement with every step she took. She shivered, even though she was heavily clothed in her thick black coat and leggings. Her wavy black hair spilled over her shoulders and flew back with the winter breeze. She felt her heartbeat accelerate as she turned around the corner of the pavement and saw the familiar bench by the lamppost.
A shadowy masculine figure was leaning against the bench. His silver hair shone white with the lamp light, and his sharp and angular features morphed into something eerily beautiful and ethereal in the mixture of darkness, silvery moonlight, and man-made light. He lifted his face as soon as he heard Ember turn the corner, and Ember broke into a sprint, desperate to hold the silver-haired boy in her arms.
Jonathan.
Jonathan moved towards Ember so fast that she only saw a blur through her ordinary eyes, and they met halfway to each other. He picked Ember up as she clung to him like a baby to its mother, and before she knew it, their lips met. It felt as if fire spread through Ember's entire body as their mouths danced together, warming her better and faster than any hot drink or warm fire, yet just as torturous as both. Jonathan set her down, and Ember reached up and pressed her forehead against his. His onyx gaze burned into her brown-eyed one. The corners of his lips quirked up.
"You came."
"You called," said Ember, and Jonathan touched the ring on her finger lightly. "How could I not come?" She saw a flicker of worry pass through Jonathan's eyes. It passed just as quickly as it came, and Ember almost thought she imagined it. Almost...but she knew Jonathan. She then noticed that his jaw was clenched and his posture was rigid. His black eyes flickered back and forth to the darkness and the shadows in it, as if he expected someone or something to jump out of the shadows and hurt them. His hand was enclosed around the hilt of one of his seraph blades.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing," he answered impassively. "Come on. We're going for coffee." He placed his hand on the small of her back, an intimate gesture that didn't go unnoticed by Ember, who felt her cheeks warm in response as Jonathan led her out of the vast park.
"Hey." She stopped right before the park's exit and stuck her hands into her coat's pockets. Her exhaled breath turned into a white cloud in the dangerously low temperatures.
"I know you. I know when something's bothering you. What is it?"
Jonathan ignored her question and kept on walking. "It's nothing, Ember." He pressed his lips to the side of her neck in a featherlight kiss that made her skin tingle deliciously. "By the Angel, you're freezing." He unwound a navy blue scarf from his throat and wound it around Ember's neck. She inhaled the smoky, spicy scent that belonged to Jonathan, and Jonathan alone.
"Now I know you really need the coffee," he said with a boyish grin, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Let's go."
"I'm not one to turn down coffee, J, but I will do it if you're going through something."
Jonathan didn't stop walking. "Don't worry about it."
Ember finally pulled back from him. "Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern, don't tell me it's nothing. You're keeping something from me and it's eating at you, I can see it. Tell me the tru- mmf!"
He placed his lips on hers to silence her. She felt her lips mold against his on their own accord, and Ember felt his heartbeat thump wildly against his heaving chest under her fingertips. He pulled away from the kiss and brushed his thumb lightly over her plump, red lower lip. His lips quirked up into a smirk as he heard Ember's breath hitch, but his black eyes showed no emotion.
"An effective way to get you quiet without a Quietude rune, don't you think?"
"Jon." Ember's voice came out as nothing more than a breathy whisper. "I need to know what's bothering you. Please."
Jonathan tore himself away from Ember and let out an almost inhuman scream. Ember felt the hairs on her arms and neck rise. Goosebumps erupted on her skin. She felt her heart crack in her chest as Jonathan began to beat his hands raw against the concrete. Then he went silent.
She looked around. No one was around to see.
Ember took a step towards him. Then another. And another- until she kneeled next to him. Jonathan stared ahead blankly. Teardrops silently fell down his cheeks. Ember brushed them away, and Jonathan caught her hands in his bloodied ones. He stared at her wet fingertips, a bewildered expression on his pale face.
"What are you doing to me, Ember?" he whispered.
"Me? Nothing."
"You're wrong." Jonathan shook his head. "I grew up in Idris, the Shadowhunter homeland. My mother left me when I was a baby. When I was about five or six, my father took me deep into some isolated fields. They were full of tall grasses and flowers of every color. You and my sister would've loved to paint them. I asked my father about her- my mother. He said that she left because something was wrong with me. He said I was a monster, and that it was my fault she had left." He chuckled bitterly. "I asked him if he could fix me, and he said no. He said that no one would ever love me, and that only he could ever love a monster. I remember going to bed that night and crying until I thought no more tears could come out. I never cried again...until today. You're doing things to me, Ember, whether you believe it or not. You're unlocking things inside of me. You're making me feel things I never thought I was capable of feeling, and- and I don't know what to make of it."
Ember took Jonathan in her arms. Her head rested directly above his heart. "I love you." She heard his heart skip a beat and his breath catch in his lungs. "Your father was wrong, and you don't have to say it back yet. You don't have to say it at all. I just needed you to know." She looked up, and Jonathan was looking down at her in wonder. His black eyes were wide and conflicted. They focused and unfocused on her, as if he were fighting a war with himself inside his head.
He finally got up and cleared his throat. He held a hand towards Ember, which she took. She didn't even care that it was sticky and wet with his blackish blood, and Jonathan helped her up. "Forget the coffee. I'll walk you home."
He walked ahead of her and waited at the end of the street, and Ember broke into a jog to catch up.
Ember set down her graphite drawing pencils on the table next to her bed. Her fingers drifted down the rough paper of her sketchbook. Jonathan's coal black eyes looked back at her. It would've been impossible for someone to tell apart the pupil from the iris, but not for Ember. She had spent months looking into those eyes. They reminded her of an abyss, black and bottomless, and she was the one falling deep down into them, never coming back up for air. The only thing separating the pupil from the iris was a silver ring around the pupils. His lips were lifted in a small smile, his face amused and indifferent at the same time. His white-blond hair was slightly mussed with an invisible breeze.
Ember was sitting down on her bed at the infirmary of the New York Institute, her knees drawn up, sketchbook in her lap. After Magnus gave her the okay and said that her baby was safe and healthy, she and the others said good-bye and left for the Institute. Ember had marched right up to the infirmary and had stayed there for the next two hours.
She pushed the sketchbook off to the side and reached up and turned off the lamp next to her bed. The room was immediately engulfed in silvery moonlight that streamed in through the windows. The gray kitten that had previously been napping on the corner of Ember's bed now crawled onto her sketchbook and curled up on top of it.
Ember sighed and let her right hand lay gently on her belly, where a baby bump was already beginning to show. Ember smiled and gently caressed her bump. "Don't worry in there," she whispered. "Everything's gonna be alright, you'll see. I won't let anything happen to you."
The door of the infirmary creaked open, and Ember pushed herself upright. Clary walked into the room. Her footsteps echoed in the otherwise empty infirmary. Ember swung her legs over the bed and stood up.
"Clary..." Clary held her hand up.
"I'm here to apologize. I should have told you about what happened when we, when I-" She blinked a couple of times and restarted. "What happened to officially end the Dark War. I'm sorry. I should have told you, and I don't blame you if you hate me. I mean...I killed my own brother." Clary leaned against the wall and laughed bitterly. "Some sister I am, huh?"
"Oh Clary." Ember took Clary into her arms. "The weight of an entire world literally rested on your shoulders. I should be the one apologizing. I completely overreacted. I understand why you did it. You did what you had to do to protect everyone."
She heard Clary draw in a shaky breath. "Thanks, Ember. I see why my brother loved you."
"Pardon me?" Ember lifted her head, and she found Clary looking at her with shining eyes.
"You are the complete opposite of him. He was darkness. He was broken. You are light and goodness. You bring out the best in everyone, and you're easy to like. You even got Alec to like you. That's not an easy accomplishment. It took me months to even get him to look at me without scowling." Ember laughed, and Clary wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt and smiled. "Grab your things. I'm showing you to your room."
"My- my room?" Ember grabbed her bags and the sketchbook with the sleeping kitten.
"I have a feeling that you'll be staying with us for a good amount of time, so I talked with Alec and Izzy's mom when we came back. She gave me permission to give you a room." Clary left the infirmary, and Ember followed. They passed a great number of halls and an even greater number of doors that all looked the same to her.
"You'll learn to tell them apart eventually," said Clary. "Trust me. I was the new girl at the Institute once, too. Being Valentine's daughter didn't help either. People either didn't trust me or were afraid of me, or both, so when Jace or Izzy weren't with me, I would spend hours trying to find whatever place I was looking for."
Ember scratched a place behind the kitten's ears, and the kitten purred contently while he slept. "You may be Valentine's daughter, but I'm Valentine's dead son's girlfriend. Besides, Jonathan was more his father's son. You're definitely your mother's daughter."
Clary snorted. "So I've been told." They came to a stop in front of a door with the angelic power rune carved onto the knob. The door next to it was open, and Ember caught a glimpse of an easel and shining wet paint.
"This is your room. My room is right next to yours," Clary said to answer what Ember already presumed. She pushed the door open, and Ember stepped in after Clary.
It wasn't anything too extravagant, but also not too simple. The room had a queen-sized bed with a cherrywood bed frame. A matching vanity was placed directly in front of the bed. The walls were painted a creamy white color, or maybe it was an extremely faded yellow. Either way, Ember reminded herself to ask Maryse if she could redecorate the room to her liking.
To the left of the bed was an average-sized closet and a body length mirror with a detailed silver framework. Two windows were placed on the right side of the room. Faded pink lace drapes covered them. At the far right corner of the room was another door where a bathroom was concealed. Ember heard a muted thud come from Clary's room along with a few colorful words in a male voice.
"Right...Our rooms are interconnected through the bathroom, so just knock before you go in, please," Clary said.
"Sure thing."
"Well I'll leave you to get settled in." She backed away slowly to the doorway. "Oh, I almost forgot. Maryse said that the Clave immediately ordered a meeting in Idris concerning your...situation. We Portal to Alicante tomorrow thirty minutes before nine, so try to get some sleep. We'll be sitting in the front row for moral support, of course."
Ember felt herself smile. "Thanks, Clary."
Right before Clary disappeared, Ember stopped her. "Clary?"
Her fiery red hair reappeared in an instant. "Yeah?"
"If you and Jace are gonna get it on, can you please keep it down? I have to sleep for two now. Oh, and don't forget to use protection!" Clary's porcelain face flamed, and Ember grinned. "Goodnight, Clary!"
****
The door slammed shut in Clary's face, and she felt her mouth hang wide open. Her cheeks felt like furnaces, and she was sure they were the same red color as her hair. She turned around and back into her room, where she found Jace crouching over a puddle of something shiny and blue.
"Jace!"
Jace whirled around, a sponge in his hand, which was now dyed in blue paint. His hair was specked also with the blue substance. Much to Clary's relief, the canvas next to the mess was unharmed. "I'm so sorry. It was an accident, I swear! I turned off the lights to surprise you, and-"
"Hold on." Clary took a roll of paper towels and began to wipe paint off the floor. "You turned off the lights to scare me? What kind of boyfriend does that?" she demanded sarcastically.
Jace's eyes narrowed. "Ah, I see what you're doing here, Miss Fairchild."
"Do you now?" she said absentmindedly.
"Absolutely," Jace said. "You're trying to pull the guilt card on me so I'll have to clean all this mess by myself."
"You made the mess," Clary pointed out as she dumped paper towels in a garbage can. "You clean the mess. Everybody knows that."
Jace muttered under his breath and looked down at his ruined shirt. "This was my favorite shirt," he grumbled. He pulled the shirt over his head and into the trash can. He got onto his knees and scrubbed the floor rigorously with the sponge. Clary couldn't help but stop cleaning and stare at the way Jace's muscles rippled under his golden skin, the way his golden hair fell attractively over his eyes, the sweep of his set jaw, the way his amber eyes were determined and focused on the job- the list was endless.
She felt her heart begin to thump wildly. She thought she would've gotten used to it by now, having Jace as her boyfriend, but she found that the longer they spent time together, the harder she fell.
"Ah, ah, ah. Eyes on the paint, Fray." Jace's voice was amused, even knowing.
"I believe the saying is 'eyes on the prize', Jace."
"Is it?" said Jace. "I can never remember mundie sayings." The corners of his lips lifted up in a secretive smile.
"What's so funny?"
Jace went to the bathroom and rinsed the sponge. "What is the prize if we manage to get all this gunk off the floor?"
"You get to dodge Maryse's wrath," Clary replied.
"Oh please." Jace came back and wiped the last of the paint. "Maryse loves me. I do, however, wish to choose a prize."
Clary got off her knees and went to wash her hands in the bathroom. She scrubbed and scrubbed until all the paint was washed out. She took a towel, some panties, and a fresh pair of kitten-covered pajamas. "Fine. Go ahead. I'm going to shower."
When she looked in the mirror, she gasped. Jace's steady golden eyes burned into her green gaze so intensely that she was reminded of the heavenly fire that once resided inside him. His eyes smoldered, and he placed his paint-covered hands on her small hips. He leaned in so closely that Clary could felt his warm his breath on her skin. Goosebumps erupted on her skin, and she shivered.
"I choose you."
"You already have me," Clary said breathlessly. The blood in her veins sizzled with want. She looked in the mirror again. Her red hair was splayed around her like a fiery halo, her green eyes dark and hooded. She turned around and pressed Jace up against the wall.
Jace, who was caught off guard, stumbled back, but regained his balance. Clary launched herself at him. Their mouths connected and teeth clashed against teeth with fervent passion. Clothes were discarded piece by piece until there was nothing but skin between them.
"Mind if I join you for that shower?" Jace asked. A wicked gleam shone in his eyes that made Clary want to do things she shouldn't.
"You're already here," she said murmured, and ran her fingers down Jace's beautifully scarred skin. He shuddered under her touch. She stared at the scar on his chest from the sword Glorious. "Might as well save the money."
Jace picked up Clary and carried her to the bathtub, and they stood as bare as Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden in the beginning of time. Their lips touched, and water fell in silky rivulets down their skin.
****
Clary groaned as golden sunlight streamed in through the windows. She looked at the clock on her bedside table. It was 8:02 in the morning. Strangely, Jace was still sleeping next to her. He was always the first to wake up.
She got up and went to the bathroom, where she brushed her teeth and washed her face. She yawned and went back to her room, grabbing her hairbrush from her vanity on the way. She gently pulled the brush through her tangled curls, and memories from the previous night filled her mind. She felt her cheeks redden.
"Thinking about last night?" Jace had woken up and was already changed in new, clean clothes. Any evidence of the previous night was erased. His hair was neat and brushed, his clothes unruffled, his eyes bright- the perfect image of an innocent boy every mother would love.
"That's completely irrelevant to what I'm thinking about, Jace," she protested.
"Right." Jace toyed with one of her paintbrushes and pretended to paint runes onto his skin.
"Jace?" Clary wriggled out of her pajamas and into a sleeveless gold dress. The Marks on her arms contrasted dramatically with the pale coloring of her skin.
Jace set down the paintbrush. "Yes?"
"Do you think the Clave will accept Ember?"
"This is the Clave we're talking about, Clary. My guess is that they'll either lock her up in the Silent City or kill her." He looked at Clary. His eyes widened and he looked awestruck. "Is that what you're going to wear?"
Clary slammed the hairbrush back onto her vanity. "Forget my clothes, Jace! This is a life or death situation! Ember could be killed right now or she can train and die when she drinks from the Cup later!"
Jace's expression turned serious once more. "You know the Clave trusts the Lightwoods, and since we ended a war, they'll repay that. They usually do. It's why William Herondale was able to marry a warlock. Ember has a fifty-fifty chance of living, but there's no way to know for sure if they let her Ascend. The Clave is full of surprises. I don't know what to tell you."
"She's all that's left of my brother," Clary whispered.
"How do we know that that's a good thing, Clary? Sebastian wasn't exactly anyone's favorite person," Jace said.
"And yet Ember learned to love him," she said fiercely. "My mom and I couldn't. I bet Valentine didn't even love him, but Ember did- does."
"Clary." Jace's voice was soft. "You're blaming yourself for something you shouldn't."
Clary grabbed her stele to comfort herself. "No, Jace. Sebastian was right. Maybe if I would've loved him and shown him what real love was, he would've changed, and none of this wouldn't happened."
"If you would've done that, we would all be in Edom and the world would be destroyed, Clary." Jace walked over to Clary and held her in his arms. She dropped her stele and grabbed two fistfuls of his shirt. She bit down on her lip as her vision began to blur with tears.
"He haunts me, Jace," she whispered tearfully. "I go to sleep and dream of my brother with green eyes. I wake up screaming in the night for him. I look in the mirror and I see his eyes in mine and my mom's. I can't ignore the fact that I killed what would have been."
"You simply saw the ghost of something that could have been," Jace said. "What happened had to happen. We both know Sebastian wanted you as more than a sister. He wouldn't conform himself with sisterly love. He would want more."
"I know," Clary whispered. "I know." With a deep breath and one of Jace's kisses, she pulled away from Jace and put a smile on her face. "So your great-great-great something married a warlock?"
Jace nodded. "Tessa Gray. She's my great-great-great-great grandma. Something like that. It's a lot of greats."
Clary picked up her stele. "I was meaning to ask...how did you get changed in such little time? I wasn't even gone for ten minutes!"
Jace smirked and lifted an eyebrow. "Angel's gift, remember?"
"Ah. True."
A knock was heard from the bathroom door.
"Clary?" It was Ember's soft voice.
"Yeah, come in, Ember."
Ember stepped in through the door. "I don't mean to intrude, but I'm pretty sure you christened that bathtub last night with your...deeds, so..."
Clary reddened, and Jace had a satisfied smirk on his lips.
"I cleaned it. You can use it."
Ember nodded. "Um, okay. Thanks." She turned around and closed the door behind her.
"I see why Jonathan chose her," said Jace thoughtfully.
"Do tell." Clary did her bed and turned to Jace.
"Well, she's beautiful first of all." Clary threw an icy glare in his direction, and Jace laughed. "She's witty, intelligent, compassionate- she's just...well...good."
"I guess opposites do attract, then," Clary said. She grabbed her stele and drew a pattern across the skin in the crook of her elbow.
"Is that a new one?" Jace asked.
"Um, yeah," Clary answered.
"What does it do?"
Clary studied the lines of the Mark. "I'm almost positive it works. It came to me last night and I drew it to see if it would do anything. After last night it completely disappeared. It's a birth control rune, I think."
Jace's cheeks turned slightly pink for once. "Handy. The Clave will get a kick out of that one."
"I don't know if I want to show it yet. I want to see if it fully works. I guess I'll know in a month." She tucked the stele away in her pocket and rised. "I'm hungry. Let's go eat."
Jace was suddenly pale, and Clary was tempted to snicker. "What about Ember?"
Clary stepped out of her room. "I'll come back in twenty minutes. She still has to get ready."
"Okay," Jace responded, and they walked to the dining room together.
****
Ember stepped out of the tub and dried herself off. She raided the dresser for something formal and appropriate to wear and stumbled across a flame colored dress that reached her knees. The fabric was light and moved along with her movements. She was reminded of an actual flame. The color complimented her tan skin and brown eyes beautifully. She picked gold sandals to go along with the dress and clasped both the Morgenstern ring and her grandmother's rose necklace around her neck. She brushed her hair and applied two dollops of mousse. Her curls were instantly tamed, and she let her hair loose. It now reached her waist in thick black curls, and for once she was grateful for them.
Ember left her room and knocked on Clary's door. When no one answered, she opened it. The lights were out and no one was inside. Sighing, Ember spun on her heel and walked into a hallway that she thought Clary had led her through the previous night. She walked down the empty corridor, stopping occasionally to study the paintings and statues of angels and Nephilim genealogies. She took a series of twists and turns, and she was sure she walked into the same hallway at least two times.
Ember kicked the wall in frustration and immediately regretted it. Sandals were not good for kicking walls. She leaned back against one of the many doors amd cradled her foot in her lap. She stayed there for about 20 minutes, looking up attentively into the face of Raziel's stone face.
"Why would you choose me?" she asked. "I'm nothing special." The statue looked on at her impassively, and Ember hugged her knees to her chest.
The door next to her crashed open, and a boy with black hair and beautiful blue eyes stumbled out.
"Alec!" Ember stood up in lightning speed and smoothed down her flame-colored dress.
Alec raised an eyebrow, something Ember found that many Shadowhunters did. "Flame?"
"Yes, yes, I know," Ember said. "Flame for the birth of a Nephilim and to wash away our sins."
"Jonathan taught you everything, didn't he?" he questioned. "You're lost, aren't you? Come on, I'm going to the kitchen myself."
Ember was silent as she walked alongside Alec. "He taught me what I needed to know."
"Huh?"
"To answer your question," Ember replied. "What you asked earlier."
"Oh." Alec nodded, and they were spared from awkward silence when they reached the kitchen not even ten seconds after. Ember's stomach growled as she the delicious smell of cooking eggs, bacon, and pancakes reached her nostrils.
Jace was standing by the stove. Isabelle's apron covered his clothing, and Clary looked adoringly at her boyfriend. He set a full plate in front of her, another for Alec, one for himself, and lastly, one for Ember. He was preparing a plate for Isabelle when Ember caught Clary trying to get her attention. Clary pointed to the scrambled eggs on her plate and then to Ember's plate.
"You want them?" Ember asked, and began to push the plate in Clary's direction.
No, Clary mouthed. Do you want them?
Ember's stomach growled louder in response, and she nodded. Clary slid the eggs onto Ember's plate, and Ember took back her plate. Jace slid into the chair next to Clary and planted a kiss on the side of her head.
"Finished your eggs already?"
"Uh, yeah," Clary said a little queasily. "They were delicious."
Jace took a glance at Ember's plate and then back to Clary's. He dug into his pancakes. "You're a horrible liar. Has anyone ever told you that?"
Clary jolted. "What?"
"You should've just told me that you didn't like eggs. It's not a big deal."
"She didn't want to her your feelings, Jace, considering you have any," Ember said, and finished the remaining eggs on her plate.
"Love makes us liars," Ember and Clary said in unison. Clary's face went ashen, and Ember felt her heart grow heavy at the thought of her dead love.
"Good morning, beautiful people!" Isabelle crashed in through the door and kissed Alec on the cheek before taking her seat next to him. "Why is it so quiet in here?"
Maryse Lightwood walked in just then, her authoritative aura stronger than ever. Her suit was a black today, and her long black hair was wound into a tight bun on her head.
"It's time," she said in a firm tone. Everyone from the table rose, and Maryse looked at Ember directly. "Follow me." With Jace and Clary om one side of her and Alec and Isabelle on the other, Ember walked out of the kitchen with as much dignity and poise as she could summon. Many Shadowhunters stopped and stared. Whispers erupted around her.
"Look at her."
"Sebastian Morgenstern's last pawn."
"Even in his death he mocks us."
"A mundane, too...what a disgrace."
Ember felt her blood boil and began to turn around to confront the Shadowhunter, but Maryse took her by the elbow.
"No. If the Clave allows you to Ascend, these people will be your new family. They will fight alongside you. You may even marry one of them. If you wish to earn their respect and not be known only for being Jonathan Morgenstern's girlfriend, then do not be an idiot and don't do what you're about to do. Think, Ember."
Ember nodded, and she felt her anger slowly recede. "Thank you, Mrs. Lightwood."
Magnus Bane and Jocelyn appeared in the room out of nowhere. Today Magnus was dressed in a fine white linen shirt. He had a hot pink blazer over the shirt and his long legs were covered in galaxy print pants. His feet were clad in spiky neon pink boots. His hair was spikier than usual, and Ember was afraid that if he shook his head even with the slightest movement, glitter would pour out in every direction. His gold-green cat eyes were smudged with black eyeliner.
"Good day, Nephilim," he greeted gaily. The other Shadowhunters grunted in response.
"Magnus," Maryse greeted formally. "Thank you for coming."
"My dear Maryse, you look well. However, I regret to inform you that we both know I didn't come for you." He glanced towards Alec, who looked more alive than he usually did. Magnus flashed him a megawatt smile, almost as bright as his neon shoes. Then he looked at Ember.
"Ember has made quite an impression on me." When he saw Maryse's apologetic expression, he waved it away. "Oh don't worry. All good things, all good things. If it were any other mundane, I wouldn't have bothered."
He looked at Alec once again. "Well, perhaps, but Ember is a special one. I'm confident the Clave will see that." He sent Ember an encouraging smile, and Ember felt her self-confidence lift.
"Ready?"
Ember nodded, and Magnus with a few flowing movements of his hands, a Portal appeared.
Maryse walked towards the Portal. Before she stepped in, she looked back at Ember. There was an almost invisible trace of affection. "May the Angel help you, Ember Valenza." She disappeared through the Portal. Alec, Isabelle, and Jace went in after her. Jocelyn hesitated, and then rushed back and hugged Clary and Ember.
"Be brave, Ember," she whispered, and then walked into the Portal.
Clary and Ember were the last ones. Clary offered a hand to Ember.
"Take my hand. I know what Alicante looks like. I'll take us there. Whatever you do, just don't let go."
Ember took her hand, and Clary led her through the Portal.
It felt as if she were being pushed through water, except it wasn't the least bit wet. Ember felt her grip begin to loosen, and Clary's fingers tightened on her hand. Suddenly, in a blink of an eye, the feeling was gone, and they were dropped into a place full of different shades of green, gold, and silver. Huge towers made of what looked like translucent crystal stabbed the sky.
The demon towers, Jonathan's voice whispered inside her head.
"The City of Glass," Ember murmured, and dropped her hand from Clary's. She saw Clary close her eyes and tilt her head towards the sky as a breeze blew. Her hair whipped back in the wind, making it seem more like real flames than ever. When she opened her eyes, they were a bright green, brighter than Ember had ever seen them.
"Welcome to Alicante, Ember."