He sighed and stared up at the marble sky, running a hand through his fair hair, closing his green eyes, hoping to block the entire world out, if only for a moment, or maybe forever and a day. Either way, he didn't care. Well, not entirely.
He saw a pair of milk chocolate brown eyes, decorated with flecks of gold, a white cap half covering them, with beautiful brown curls spilling down the sides, porcelain white skin...and rock hard scones underneath a bed.
Gideon shook his head, and tried to clear the disconcerting thoughts from his mind, which, he only succeeded in doing so partially.
Gideon turned his mind backwards, back to the recollection, and smiled softly.
He half closed his eyes, and walked through the winding London streets, the sound of the mundanes shouting their wares in cockney accents. That seemed so recognisable and familiar to him on one hand, and on the other, purely an alien chatter.
He walked towards the markets, where he saw two, small, mundane children, putting letters into a dark red postbox.
They were well fed, well kept children, in nice little coats, and who must have been their older sister watching them carefully, a grin on her face, only a couple of meters away, in a cherry red gown, brocade lace veil covering her head to the tip of her nose, stitched to a headband, almost invisible against the colour of her hair, which, was a dark, rich brown.
She looked barely older than Miss Herondale, disposing the tall, wildly free sculpture that made up Miss Herondale's construction.
The smallest girl, of the latter, who couldn't quite reach, to put the letter into the slot, causing her younger sister to giggle madly, putting her small hands over her rose button mouth, the giggles still pouring like the endless winter rain that soaked London.
Gideon smiled, he felt as though he was doing an awful lot of smiling today, for the turn of advents that had tortured him and Gabriel endlessly for the horrific ten days. He walked over to the child, lifted her up onto his hip, so that she could reach the slot. She put through the letter, and said a polite "Thank-you." smiling at him.
He put her gently down onto the ground, where the two immediately ran over to their sister, tugging at her skirts, as she swung them up onto her hips so they could tell her of the advent that had just happened.
Gideon noticed that she was thrown peculiar looks by the crowd, some whispering and shaking their heads, others talking loud and disapprovingly.
"Did he now?" The girl said in mock astonishment, as though it was the greatest news she had ever heard, and as though she had not at all witnessed it with her own eyes. "Ah, me good lasses, well, wasn't he a love?" She said, chuckling, kissing the small ones cheek, tickling the other on the back of the neck, causing more laughing.
"Excuse me matey! I'd like a word please, now?" She called over to Gideon, beckoning sharply.
Shit, now that is what happens when your too busy thinking of Sophie, leading to forget applying a glamour rune, Gideon inwardly cursing himself. Giving up the hope of been ignorant to her calls, and swiftly swept over to the woman with all Nephilim grace.
"Thank-you, Mr, -"
"Lightwood," Gideon supplied. "Gideon Lightwood."
The girl smiled. "Why thank-you for helping Charisma Mr Lightwood, but, if you are not in a hurry, could you please help me? It's my carriage. A wheel has performed a rather peculiar stunt, and I can't fix it. And, I do need to get my girls home soon, I'm taking them to the opera later, but, as the situation now, and as for later this evening, I can't exactly move location with a stubborn carriage." She said quickly, taking a deep breath when she was done, her dark eyes hopeful.
"Yes, of course Ma'am. May I have your permission to ask where your driver is? Surely he would be able to sought out a problem as such as this?"
"It is not he...it's a she Mr Lightwood, in fact, I drive the carriage. Much to the disapproval of many I have had the unfortunate displeasure passing. You would think that they thought I was the devil for driving a carriage. But then, it is rather much expected, is it not? Especially as I'm a woman, with two small children to look after."
Gideon looked at the girl, unblinkingly, thoroughly surprised.
"Er, may I ask your name?" he asked, with respect glinting in his voice.
She smiled wider. "Sophie," she said. Gideon stopped. He didn't know which twisted itself into a knot first.
His senses or his heart.
"Sophie Ciere, Mr Lightwood."
They turned a street corner, where Gideon met a handsome, topless coach, with polished leather seats, and two impeccable black mares, snorting patiently
"I suppose you would like me to unattach the horses from the coach Mr Lightwood?" asked Sophie, head tilting her head upwards to meet Gideon's face.
"I'll just see to the trouble, and, if it is necessary, yes of course, Soph- Miss Ciere." Gideon replied, inwardly throttling himself for the perfunctory blunder.
*
"Miss Ciere, it seems your left and right back wheels are rubbing on the spine underneath the seats and bonnet." Gideon said, a frown line appearing between his eyebrows. "However, I think it could still last you of a period of time. I need to give you wheels a kick though, with your permission?"
"Of course Mr Lightwood." Sophie said, grinning. "On three I'll kick one wheel, you kick the other."
Gideon's eyes widened and his eyebrows disappeared into his hairline at Sophie's suggestion. "Miss Ciere, you can't be seriously suggesting that I will allow you to possibly cause yourself bodily harm, on something I can simply do my- self."
"I've got a stone block cut to size in the tip of my boot, in case I ever need it, and, I little bit of shoe polish doesn't go astray in a circumstance such as this Mr Lightwood. Now, this is purely something I have agreed too. Now can we please fix my coach so I can get the children home before it starts to rain please Mr Lightwood?" Sophie said briskly. "Now, on 3, 2, and 1-!"
The two kicked the wheels with a deafening bang, causing the whole coach to tremble violently, coming to a stop a moment later.
"Sophie, I think it's all good now." Said Charisma, from one of the horses backs, where Sophie had sat her.
Another deafening bang sounded the air, this time, now as quite as satisfactory as the previous bang.
When the horses, nearby strangers and animals discontinued to sound an infernal noise, Sophie's hands clapped to her pale cheeks, her eyes wide open, her eyebrows almost disappearing, at the sight of three wooden wheels rolling down the street, and the coach on its side, a splintered spine shattered, waving splinters in the air, that could very easily partially impale you.
"Well, bugger me." Whispered Sophie, scratching the back of her neck.
