The Mortal Instruments: City of Tainted Blood (Book 2) (ON HOLD)

Chapter 11: Pride and Sensibility

" You learned to run from what you feel, and thats why you have nightmares. To deny is to invite madness. To accept is to control."

-Megan Chance, The Spiritualist

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Vivid, colorful dreams filled Clary's slumber. Fire of a million colors flowed like ribbons across an empty plain, twisting and twirling with each other as if participating in an intricately detailed dance. She watched the fire dance and converge with each other, occasionally witnessing a silent firework as two colors clashed.

She dreamt of a field of golden flowers, so beautiful it hurt to stare at but it hurt more to look away. The sweetest sound filled her ears, a low chorus of tinkling yet glorious voices. She only awoke when the prism colored fire wrapped around her, feeling deliciously comforting against her skin.

As she peeled her eyes open, she felt a certain dwindling euphoria that was quickly mixed with dissapointment as she found herself in a standard Institute bedroom and not in the field of flowers. She was slumped in a Victorian high backed chair, a patch quilt she did not recall pulling on herself half lying on her and half on the ground. She lifted her head and winced as the muscles her sore neck flexed and moved.

She looked around, her mind foggy as her brain and body slowly restarted. When her eyes skimmed over the empty bed beside her, her memories of this early morning flooded into her mind, sending her into a frenzy. She shot out of her seat, her heart pounding as she looked around wildly.

She remembered after Jace had finally stopped screaming and had fallen unconscious, Alec, who Josephine had ran to call, had hauled Jace over his shoulder and disposed of his parabatai into bed. She had been vehement when she requested to sleep in the chair beside Jace's bed so she would here if anything happened or if Jace woke up.

Now, she whirled around when she heard the a door click open and felt her mouth dry up.

Jace was stepping out from out the bathroom and was gloriously shirtless with several droplets of water scattered across his body. Her eyes landed on the jagged white scar that was visible across the spot where his heart was and she found it a painful yet adored imperfection, a reminder of what had happened in the Burrow when Jace had been under Sebastian's control.

Runes curled around his body like artwork against a canvas and she stared at the way his muscles moved and flexed as he ran a white towel through his damp, dark gold curls. His eyes were cast downwards and he looked incredibly distracted, a crease forming in between his eyebrows. His jeans hung low around his hips, revealing the outline of his boxers and the prominent V that dipped into his trousers.

Her pain and gut wrenching fear she had for him when he had been consumed in the Heavenly Fire returned, making her heart stutter painfully against her ribs.

Inhaling sharply, Clary crossed the room, flung her arms around a very surprised Jace, pulled him down towards her and kissed him.

And the thought of whatever horrid morning breath she may have never crossed her mind.

His body stiffened from the sudden contact as it always did whenever unprepared, prepared to fight her off if she were an attacker. He hummed in pleasant surprise and appreciation as he realized who she was, relaxing against her and wrapping his arms around her soft waist. He splayed his hands on her back where they slowly and langourously travelled to her thighs, hooking them there and lifting her so he wouldn't have to bend.

Clary let out a surprised squeal when the ground dissappeared and she quickly wrapped her legs around Jace before leaning into another kiss, letting all her worry and love and ache for him show as she kissed him hard on the mouth.