City of Bones: Twisted Fate

Chapter 3

Clary's POV

A flash of golden hair. Scarred skin. A seductive smile. Blades, knives, swords, arrows and bows. My father laughing, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as he did. Sebastian screaming in pain before smiling wickedly. Me lunging forward into a pair of arms and holding tight. Golden eyes. Blue eyes. Black eyes. Cat eyes. I scream as they are ripped from my arms...

I woke with a start clutching my sheets and pressing my lips together, attempting to smother the screams that erupted from my throat.

The images weren't nearly as disturbing as some of my other nightmares but the pain that went through me as Sebastian trembled on the floor...and when an unknown person was ripped from my arms the loss was too great and I woke.

I sat up against my headboard gathering the sheets of my bed into a ball and screaming into it as loud as I could. Soon the only noise my hoarse throat could conjure up was a strange high pitched and rough hacking noise.

I finally stopped the murder on my vocal cords and swallowed wincing at the pain. I slowly sank back into my usual sleeping position and shut my eyes willing my body to rest.

Ten minutes later I was wrapped in a blanket opening my door to head over to the kitchen. I drank a glass of water making me clutch my throat as the cool irritated but soothed my swollen throat. I gabbed my stele off the counter where I had left it and drew an iratze on my neck.

I quietly headed back to my bed and lay down. I couldn't force the sleepiness that still lingered in my body to take over so, finally, I gave up and left my room again. I soundlessly made my way down the hall to Sebastian's room.

I contemplated on wether or not to knock but gave up and just pushed the door open. His room was a mess around him with books and weapons thrown carelessly everywhere. The walls were black but lightened with photos of the three of us framed in white and colorful maps of the world.

His face wasn't peaceful like I had once drawn it, but stretched tight with fear and panic. His left hand twitched over and over again like he was moving a weapon, and before I could see the pain on his face I had seen in my dream, I woke him.

I had my hand over his mouth when his eyes flew open and it took him a second to stop thrashing and realize it was just me.

I took a few steps back to give him some room to shake off the bad dream and compose himself.

"What the hell are you doing?!" he whisper-yelled at me and I looked down at my feet. I studied the chipped dark plum nail polish on my stubby toenails until he sighed.

"I couldn't sleep." I finally said looking back up. He wore a grey t-shirt and faded black sweatpants for which I was glad because sometimes he likes sleeping naked, which I find disturbing, but he finds freeing.

"C'mere." he mumbled his voice still slow and tainted with sleep. I quickly curled up next to him on the bed and he wrapped an arm around me using the other to rub his face.

"Thanks for waking me. I was about to stab you while Valentine took mom." he shuddered and I held onto him tight, like a small girl holding onto her teddy bear.

"Are you looking forward to tomorrow?" I finally break the silence."You know, to meeting our new best friend, Hodge?" I asked and he snorted turning off his little lamp that I thought was so cute.

"Absolutely. I would love to meet another person brain washed by Valentine into thinking that they are doing a good thing by betraying the Clave and 'changing the face of the Shadowhunting world'." His voice slipped into a deeper tone, mocking our father. I repressed a shudder. He sounded just like him.

"Not to mention that he's been cursed into never leaving the Institute as punishment for being involved in the Circle." I laughed at his sardonic tone and breathed in the smell of his laundry detergent off of his cotton shirt.

"Yeah, I'm not so psyched either. This guy sounds creepy." I sighed finally being able to relax.

"Well, it won't be that bad. We'll finally have a place to train that doesn't have a girl who smells like dirty socks." he sighed and I snorted remembering Marissa, the girl who was always all over Sebastian and smelled like his week old socks.

"Aw, don't be mean. Marissa had some potential. She was probably good with dogs." I laughed and he chuckled into my hair before shushing me.

"Sleep, we have a very big and exciting day tomorrow!" I smacked his chest and finally closed my eyes and sunk into the mercifully black nothingness of unconsciousness.