City of Runes

An Uneventful Night

I know the #JustWriteIt Fanfic is about an hour and thirty minutes late, but better late then never, right? Comment and vote if you like it!

____________________

The New York Institute doors loomed above Clary as she tilted her head upward, the gothic towers spiraling into the sky. Somehow, this place had become a second home to her, just like Luke's house had when she was growing up. In fact, she spent more time here than any other place. She was constantly training, reading about demons, hanging out with Jace, or just doing something to keep herself occupied since she didn't have school to absorb her time. The only drawback was all the work Jace forced Clary to complete alongside hours of physical training, and if she didn't memorize every minor demon's anatomy by tomorrow, she had an extra hour of conditioning.

Pushing her thoughts out of the way, Clary nudged open one of the doors, and peeked inside to find the nave empty as she had expected, the oak pews softly illuminated by a combination of witchlight and candles. She wondered absentmindedly if a mundane would be fooled into thinking the Institute was simply a church. If she hadn't know any better, surely she would have been deceived by the Shadowhunter's charade. As she made her way down the aisle and to the elevator, the bittersweet smell of incense filled her nose, reminding her of all the times she never went to church.

It took an eternity--or at least in her mind it did--for Clary to reach the elevator. So many thoughts were swirling around in her head. What if Jace didn't like what she was wearing? What if she tripped and face planted the floor? What if Izzy made her look like the walking dead? What if--

Clary was so preoccupied with thoughts of her upcoming date that she didn't see Simon until she ran straight into him, her forehead colliding with his nose.

"Ow," Simon said, reaching for his nose and rubbing it with his thumb and index finger. "What was that for, Fray?" He leaned back on the elevator doors nonchalantly, only to stumble when they began to close. Clary noticed he was wearing a gray t-shirt with a D&D reference that said "crit happens" and a pair of uncharacteristic shorts that looked like they might be Alec's. He gave her a weary smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, making Clary's heart ache. Once he came to the Institute, she had hoped for some normalcy between her and Simon, but she knew he still had hardly an idea of who he was, much less who she was. It was silly to think she had expected anything else.

"I was just distracted," she muttered, struggling for conversation that wouldn't make him uncomfortable. She motioned awkwardly to his athletic attire. "So... how's training going?"

Simon let out a puff of air that disturbed the hair on his forehead. "Jace is kicking my butt," he said. Clary giggled, knowing the truth behind those few words. Jace was constantly kicking her butt as well, and he always looked good doing it. Clary opened her mouth to empathize, but Simon beat her to it. "No, literally. We were on the training beams this morning, and he snuck up behind me, knocking me off with one of his lightning fast ninja kicks." Simon made a hacking motion with his hands meant to look like a karate move, though in reality, Clary thought he looked like a masseuse trying to chop an onion.

Clary covered her mouth while trying not to laugh, but she knew she concealed it poorly by the expression of mock hurt Simon gave her, inducing yet another fit of laughter Clary didn't even bother to hide. Eventually Simon joined in too, and somehow they both ended up rolling on the floor, crying. Nothing in particular had been that hilarious, yet they couldn't stop; whenever they tried to, it simply resulted in them laughing even harder.

As Clary looked at SImon in between fits of giggles, she realized the tension she had seen in him earlier was gone now, and his eyes were so clear and vivid compared to the foggy, confused face he often wore, looking as if he were constantly trying to remember where he left his car keys. Finally being able to sober herself, Clary wrapped Simon in a tight embrace. At first he froze, his arms pressed to his sides at awkward angles, but he gradually softened and returned the hug.