A New Beginning

Chapter 16 Mornings

I woke up to bright sunlight streaming into my room through the window. I groaned and rolled over, blocking out the sun with my pillow.

"Get up, sleepy head," Isabelle called from the bathroom.

"Noooo," I moaned tiredly.

"C'mon," she prompted and yanked the covers off of me. It was an ice bath.

"Cold! Give them back!" I whined pathetically.

Izzy just laughed at me and went downstairs, leaving me to wake up on my own. I stretched, yawned, and sat up. I swung my legs over the side of my twin size bed, an identical one freshly made across the room.

I stood up and rubbed my bare feet against the lush white carpeting. I threw on jeans and a sweatshirt and stumbled downstairs for breakfast.

I entered the kitchen and slumped into a chair at the table. Helen set a mug of hot coffee in front of me. I perked right up at that, which made everyone laugh.

"Someone likes coffee," Emma joked.

"It warms my soul," I answered, still only partially awake.

Julian spluttered his hot chocolate. He choked on his laughter. "What?"

I glared at him, taking a long, slow sip. "It. Warms. My. Soul."

He snickered behind his hands, "It's black like your soul, too."

Ha ha ha. I ran over responses in my head. I ended up with, "I won't deny it," which I said with the most mysterious voice I could manage.

Julian rolled his eyes in amusement. I'm apparently very amusing.

I sipped my warm, bitter drink while staring out the windows at the trees. Helen had made toast for the twins. Izzy had been put in charge of coffee and hot cocoa, which left me, Emma, and Julian with the dishes later.

We would be up to our elbows in bubbles, and Emma and Julian would start flicking water at each other. I enjoyed the term, "flirt-fighting" to describe their relentless, yet harmless teasing and bickering. I was pulled out of my thoughts by the conversation still taking place. I should worry about the dishes when it's time to do the dishes.

"Helen," Julian asked. "What are we going to do today?"

She snapped her fingers suddenly. "I forgot to tell you guys. Some Clave members are coming over later to ask you some questions."

Emma immediately took issue with this. "What do they think? We did it? By the angel!"

Helen soothed, "No, they're just going to ask what happened. It won't be too hard, and I'll be right there the whole time. Okay?"

Emma crossed her arms, but assented. The rest of us nodded in agreement, though I still had my reservations about sharing the events of that day with others. Sebastian and Mark and Mr. Blackthorn... Everything was horrible to remember.

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A knock on the front door echoed throughout the entire house. Julian went to let the Clave members in, while the rest of us gathered on the living room couch for questioning.

Julian came back in and sat next to Emma, flanked by three Clave members, one man and two women. The taller woman had blonde hair and dark, menacing eyes. She seemed to be the leader of the group.

"My name is Edna Shorttail. These are my assistants, Ms. Cindy Cleanglass and Mr. Roger Grandlight." Those of us on the couch simultaneously nodded in acknowledgement of these rather important people. "We're here to ask you Shadowhunters a few questions."

She surveyed us carefully. "Clarissa Morgenstern, or Fairchild, whichever you wish to be-"

In a spirt of audacity, I interrupted her. "Fairchild, thank you."

Edna glared at me for a moment before moving forward in her speech. "Anyhow, why were you and Ms. Isabelle Lightwood residing at the Los Angeles Institute?"

I thought out my response first. "I- We were there for personal reasons. I was having relationship problems with a Shadowhunter in New York, so Isabelle accompanied me to LA for some time away."

"I," Edna stated with an air of superiority, "would hardly call six months 'some time away'."

"I apologize if I misspoke. We were in LA for six months, that is correct." I saw no point in lying to this woman.

"Good for now. Isabelle Lightwood, tell me the exact details of Sebastian's entrance," Edna ordered in that powerful, commanding voice.

Izzy furrowed her eyebrows. "I wasn't there when Sebastian broke in. I don't know."

The impatient woman scoffed again. "Well who does?"