Leanna
Marlow led her through the Institute, stopping occasionally to explain the significance behind some painting Leanna couldn't care less about. It wasn't as if she already knew the tale of Jonathan Shadowhunter, or the Accords, or any other basic history lessons. But she kept quiet, she figured Marlow wouldn't stop no matter how much she wanted her to.
"I think Scarlett and Lily are in the training room," she said, taking a break from her newly inspired rant about the Cold Peace. Leanna could almost see the steam coming from her ears when she launched into that tirade. It was near bliss when she had stopped.
"You think? Shouldn't you know?" Leanna asked.
"Well, I don't exactly keep tabs on everyone, and this place is rather big, in case you missed that," she replied smartly, not quite concealing her smirk.
"How many people are there to keep track of anyways?" She asked, wanting nothing more than wipe the smugness off Marlow's face.
"Let's see, there's me, Rose, Scarlett, Lily, Mae, and Iris. Oh, and Emilio, but you won't see him all that often," she said, counting off each person on her fingers. She gave no indication that she liked or disliked her fellow shadowhunters, but Leanna could guess, if any of them were sane, they didn't like her.
"And who's the Head of the Institute?" She said, forcing herself to keep up with Marlow's surprisingly fast pace. The Clave hadn't told her anything about the shadowhunters in Boston, and she hadn't bothered to ask either. That was a decision she was sorely regretting.
"Octavia, our tutor," she said, unaffected by the bombardment of questions. They were getting close to the training room now, Leanna could hear the clanging of swords, along with the occasional thump and laugh. Why shadowhunters laughed while getting their asses kicked had always been a mystery to her.
Before she could ask anything more, specially about the ass kicking laughter, Marlow waved her into a large room that made the entry hall look like a cottage. The walls were pristine and blindingly white, bare except for the dozens of weapon racks lined up against them. The floor was covered in plush, black mats, perfect for falling. And in the center of it all were two blurs Leanna assumed to be girls, one short and one tall, sparring. And giggling. Great.
"Scarlett, Lils!" Marlow shouted, causing the pair to drop their fight and look over curiously. They looked almost like sisters, but there were still small differences that made Leanna second guess. They too were, of course, drop dead gorgeous. The shorter one was breathing heavily, but grinning, her probably once neat bun falling lopsided. She seemed nicer than Marlow, or at least more tolerable. The taller one had a similar demeanor, all easy smiles and relaxed shoulders. Her hair was the same shade of silky brown as her companion, but was loose, falling perfectly at her shoulders. And unlike Marlow, neither had darkness under their eyes, just some smudged mascara.
"You're Leanna, right? The girl from the Academy?" The taller one asked, walking, no, bouncing over and extending her hand. Leanna took it politely, but let go briskly. The girl didn't seemed fazed in the least, as if she hardly noticed at all.
"Yeah, that'd be me," Leanna said with a nonchalant shrug. "Girl from the Academy, at your service."
"It's nice to meet you!" She replied, giving another smile. "I'm Scarlett, and this is--"
"Lily," the shorter girl interrupted. "I'm her parabatai."
Scarlett and Lily exchanged a glance Leanna couldn't interpret and then looked at Marlow, whom Leanna had completely forgotten about.
