quick as lightning

27. Once again missing

"Alec." Piper smiled through her kiss, leaning against the wall as he repeatedly kissed her, her lips going numb. "Alec let me get changed." She gently pushed him off of her. "And you need to talk to your parents."

Alec looked towards the hub where Mayrse and Robert focused on work. "Okay." He agreed and she smiled, slipping from his grip before she spotted Clary and Jace talking with Simon.

"Hey, whats this I hear about the book of the white?" I asked and Clary's brows shot up.

"Wow, never going to get used to you having heightened senses." Clary ribbed her arm. "Or That were not actually twins."

"Hey." Piper took her sisters hand. "We will always be sisters, I will never stop calling you my sister." Jace coughed. "But anyway, this book of white?"

"It's the book that can wake Jocelyn, Camille has it. And Camille is in the hotel." Jace explained and I ran a hand through my red hair that reached my lower back.

"Simon could you set up a meeting with Raphael?" I inquired and he smiled at me with a nod.

"Yeah, ill work on it." He hugged Clary and I kissed his cheek before he left.

I heard my name being spoken and shuttered. "Mayrse?" I whispered looking to the hub where the eldest lightwood talked to his parents.

"Can you hear what they're saying?" Jace asked and I shrugged.

"Snippets, I'm not really paying attention though." I shrugged, before leaning on Clary's shoulder.

"Canceling the wedding is one thing, kissing Diana Michealson, is another. Her family is practically cursed, after valentine hunted her down 18 years ago and nearly succeeded in killing her along with her family." Robert put a hand on his wife's shoulder, a silent call for her to lay off.

Piper smiled to Clary and Jace. "Give me one second, I need to go find lydia and thank her for what she has given me." I smiled, Jace gave a nod and a tight lipped smile and Clary rubber my arm.

I turned and started walking towards Roberts office where the girl probably was packing to head home. "Hey, I thought you were changing?" Alec caught up to her, falling in step.

"Yeah, I got distracted..Clary told me about the white book. I thought I should thank lydia for how heroic she was:" I sighed, gathering as much of the gold fabric so I could walk easier.

"I agree, it just happened so fast. I don't regret it at all I just think we should." Alec thought for a moment and Piper smiled understanding.

"Slow it down? I agree. How about we start with something simple?" The red head offered as they neared the door.

"Piper Michaelson, would you like to go on a date with me? Drinks?" He offered and I chuckled.

"I would love to." I opened the door and saw lydia knocked out on the floor, "Lydia!" I ran in and knelt beside her, Alec running to her other side. He took out his stele and ran it over her healing rune while I checked her pulse.

It was light but it was still there. "Hodge." She muttered and my eyes looked up to meet Alec, making sure he heard it too. Hodge has been like family to him and the trainer had previously helped Piper with her back swing.

"Alright, come on." I pulled her up and took her arm over my shoulder, half dragging her to the hub.

"I'll go get Magnus". Alec jogged off and Piper raised her hand to the knocked out girl and she glared in the air, laying mid-air on her back.

"Alright then." Now that she weighed nothing I steered her out the door and lay her on the table of one of the many meeting rooms.

Magnus re-appeared my shoulder and took over as Alec and I joined Clary, Izzy, and Jace infront of the screens.

"Maybe Hodge was attacked too." Izzy offered and I sighed, placing my hands on the back of her chair.

"I highly doubt that, the only thing Lydia mutters after being attacked and he cup stolen, Hodge." I sighed and Jace shook his head.

"And we treated him like family" the tape clearly showed the man knocking her out and taking the cup.

"Well first of all how did he get connection to the outside world?" Alec asked, Clary thinking back.

"Who's he talking to?" I wondered, seeing his lips moving and Hodge looking into the corner.

"I bet I could guess who." Jace growled, Clary shaking her head in annoyance.

"Valentine."

"The question is how did Hodge get the ring? There must have been someone in between." I mentioned, pointing out how he didn't have the ring tell a certain point in time. "When I first met him there was no ring."

"It would have had to be a inside man." Alec built off my idea, looking from myself to Jace.

"An ex circle member?" Jace suggested getting a look from Izzy and Alec.

"Aka, my parents, I trust them, they wouldn't do that." Izzy shook her head, refusing to believe that.

"I agree with Izzy." I sides and got a eye roll from Jace, seriously, I understand this is hard but I just found out I'm some royal. Life's rough buddy.

"Your saying that because she's your future Parabatai." Jace crosses his arms. "Of course you would side with her."

"She's agreeing because it's the truth." Alec put In and I sighed, taking a shallow breath from my tight dress before putting my hands between the two.

" 'she' is right here, and I agree with Izzy because Mayrse and Robert are good people, with good intentions. It could have been some messenger." I crossed my arms, and Clary's eyes twitched like it did when she pieces thoughts together.

"What about the foresaken attack?" The blonde with curly long hair suggested and Izzy winded the tape back to then.

"We killed them, and plus there was never a ring that I saw." Alec rubbed his jaw as Izzy zoomed in on Hodge attacking the foresaken, he slipped a ring from the pocket and placed it on his own finger.

"Piper was right, he was just the messenger." Alec noted and I chuckled.

"Who are you kidding, I'm always right." I then turned to Izzy as she stood. "But I wasn't right about this damn dress." She laughed as everyone went in different directions. "No I'm serious! The woman literally just sewed me up in this."

I was still barefoot as I made my way into my room attempting to undo the hundreds of tiny buttons in the back. "Lightwood you get in here and cut me out of this damned dress." I shouted, banging on the wall which separates Izzy's room from my own.

"I'm busy, get Clary." Isabelle shouted back and I scowled, thanks Parabatai.

"Why are there's so many buttons?" Alec asked, leaning in the doorway. He had on a black T-shirt and dark jeans, and a quiver over his trademark leather jacket.

"Because they like to provide torture along with being squeezed to death." I grinned trying to use a dagger to cut it with my arm bent at odd angle.

"Are you going to ask for help, or should I continue to watch you struggle from afar?" He asked and I shot him a glare. Then in horror I held the ends of some of my hair. He snorted a laugh and I looked at him in horror.

"I can do it." I went back to my buttons before he sighed, taking he dagger from me and in a swift move cutting down the back of the dress. I heard the fabric ripping and buttons popping off and chuckled. "I thought I said I could do it." I turned to face him and he smirked, holding the knife back to me, Handle first.

"Now where's the fun in that?" My mouth dropped open, who knew that golden boy could flirt like a champ. "Don't act so surprised, there's a lot you don't know." He walked to the doorway glancing back. "Yet."

Full marks for that, way to keep a girl on Her toes