City of Secrets

Chapter 3: The Angel Do So To Me

"Absolutely not." Ember felt Maryse's stern, scrutinizing eyes fall on her. A stained glass piece showing the angel Raziel rising out of Lake Lyn was placed behind Maryse's desk. The sunlight that poured in through the stained glass tinted Ember's skin in golden and light blue hues. She felt insignificant and small in the huge room. Even though Jocelyn and Clary were by her side, they made no match for Maryse Lightwood's fierce glare, not to mention Maryse's small advantage in that she was the tallest person in the room.

"Maryse..." Ember felt Jocelyn lean forward against the back of the chair she was currently sitting in.

"I said no, Jocelyn." Maryse's tone was final.

"Why not?" Ember asked.

Maryse swerved to face Ember. "You were involved with one of the most dangerous people known to history, a person who endangered both the Shadow World and mundane world alike, and you still ask that question? You mundanes are as useless as you are dense."

Ember felt her cheeks flush in anger. She felt exactly like she did one day in middle school when she was called to the principal's office in the middle of a test- as if she wanted to shrink back in her chair and fold in on herself until she completely disappeared, but she resisted and stood her ground, her dark eyes hardening with determination. She chuckled bitterly. "You Nephilim claim to protect humankind, and yet you despise us. I swear to you, I am not lying," Ember insisted.

"How can I know that for sure, little mundane?" Maryse asked in return.

"We offered you the solution in the most straightforward way possible," Ember replied. "Maybe it's not mundanes who are the most dense of creatures under the heavens."

"Enough." Maryse's tone was razor sharp, and this time, Ember bit down on her tongue to refrain herself from saying something worse that she would definitely regret later.

"Look-" Ember said quietly, "I'm sorry. I know you have no reason to trust me, but if you think I'm lying, why haven't you reported me to the Clave already? If you honestly think I'm lying, there would already be a Silent Brother here ready to take me to the Silent City, or a warlock to erase my memories. I would probably even be dead by now. I see none of the three scenarios happening, and that's because some part of you, as little as it may be, does believe me."

Ember took a deep breath and raised herself from the chair. "Mrs. Lightwood, I swear by the Angel, I do not mean any harm to you, your children, the Institute, the Clave, or any part of the Downworld. Like I said, my only wish since I learned more of this world is to be part of it, not watching on the sidelines. I may not be a Shadowhunter. My promises may not mean much to you, but I was raised an honorable girl, and I will stick to everything I say and will accept the repercussions, no matter how difficult."

"Spoken like a true Shadowhunter," Maryse said. She turned away from Ember and paced around the room, the colors of the stained glass window spilling over her wrinkleless light gray business suit.

Ember bit down on her lip nervously once Maryse turned away. Jocelyn sent her an encouraging smile, and Clary looked at the glass piece of the Angel with a faraway look in her eyes.

After one or two minutes of pacing behind her desk, Maryse finally took a seat back in her chair. She looked at Ember with blue eyes she now realized were so similar to her son's.

"You have two choices," Maryse enunciated. "You can walk away and I can call Magnus Bane to retract your memories and block your Sight."

Ember heard Jocelyn gasp behind her. "Maryse, no!"

Maryse held up her hand. "Or, I can send an application to the Clave regarding your situation and your wish of Ascending."

Clary sprang out of her chair, her flame red hair flying wildly with the speed of her motions. "You can't!" she shouted. "If you erase her memories, what happened to me will happen to her. She'll come back anyway, and if you tell the Clave, they'll kill her and the baby."