Ember ↠ Paul Lahote ✓

06

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐒
born to make history.

"HELLO THERE!" A voice says as soon as Clary steps into the Cullen kitchen behind Bella. "You must be Clary, the sister."

A woman with long, bronze hair and kind, golden eyes approaches Clary, pulling her into a gentle hug.

Clary, being who she is, pushes her away with her eyes narrowed. She folds her arms over her chest, standing stiffly.

The woman frowns in response, but doesn't comment on it as she introduces herself, "I'm Esme."

"Oh, you're the mother," Clary says, looking over Esme's shoulder at Emmett, the boy who looks like he eats boulders, and Rosalie, the beauty queen.

Emmett offers her a friendly smile, while Rosalie glares at both sisters. She hates the fact that there are two humans in her house, inhabiting the same space she is.

A pixie-looking girl moves across the branch coming through the window, dropping to her feet lightly and smiling at the redhead. Clary remembers her name being Alice. "Hey, Clary."

Jasper, the blond boy from her Biology class, follows behind his girlfriend, his eyes widening slightly at the sight of Clary.

He can still feel her ever-present rage. If anything, it seems to have doubled, something he didn't think was possible.

Edward then enters the room, immediately moving towards Bella, who lights up at the arrival of her boyfriend.

The two share a kiss, making Clary glance away with something akin to pain flashing in her eyes.

Clary thinks about her boyfriend, the one she accidentally killed when she was fifteen, about two years ago.

She had been completely in love with him, thought they would be together forever, get married, and have children.

She was devastated when she killed him—still is. She isn't over his death and doesn't think she ever will be.

"Clary?"

Clary turns to Bella, a bored look slipping onto her face as she realises she let her guard down for a moment too long. "What?"

Jasper senses her sadness washing away and that usual white-hot anger quickly coming back full force, making him frown at the redhead.

"I'm home," announces a handsome man with blond hair as he walks into the room, his smile catching Clary off guard. "Oh. You must be the infamous Clary Swa—"

Clary promptly cuts him off, "Saltzman. Clary Saltzman. I'm not a Swan, nor will I ever be, so don't call me by that name." She's firm about it when she says this, making sure everyone hears, even Bella.

She and Bella may have had a moment where she talked about her feelings, but that doesn't mean they're sisters now, or even friends. She'll never see Bella like that.

"I'm sorry," Carlisle apologises, glancing over at Bella's hurt expression. "It's just that..."

"Bella's my half-sister, not that I even think of as much," Clary says truthfully, not even holding back for the sake of Bella's feelings. "I haven't seen her nor Charlie since I was four. I have a father and sisters back home now—I don't need her."

Bella has tears in her eyes, but she doesn't let them fall. She understands where Clary's coming from, so she says nothing.

After a moment of silence, Clary quirks an eyebrow. "Where's the food?"

"I actually like you," Rosalie states with a twitch of her lip, surprising everyone in the room. She can see herself in the fiery redhead. "Even though you're a human, I think we're going to be great friends."

"I don't need friends," Clary says in response, making Rosalie's face harden. "I have all I need back home, and I don't need anyone else." She looks away from the blonde bombshell. "So, where's the food?"

Esme, regardless of disliking what the girl is saying, can't help but notice how broken she truly is, so she doesn't take much of it to heart.

Instead, she shows the girl to the table with food set atop it. "Right this way, sweetheart."

As Clary sits down, Esme fills her plate, as do her family, even though they don't eat.

They have to play human for Clary's sake. She doesn't know about them, and they don't know about her.

The redhead digs into her food, not paying attention to anyone else until she gets to her second heaping of food.

Her eyes finally flicker up to see only she and Bella are actually eating, and the Cullens are merely pushing the food around their plates.

"Aren't you going to eat your own food?" Clary asks, raising an eyebrow.

"We were just surprised how fast you ate your food," says Esme, coming to the rescue and speaking for the rest of her family.

Clary smirks. "I just love food." She then devours the remaining food on her plate, finishing in minutes and burping in satisfaction.

Emmett is the first to break the silence after her burp. "God! You're amazing!" He booms, his smile wide and rather cute.

Much to her chagrin, Clary's lips turn up, something the others see but don't comment on.

They know she's just a sensitive girl beneath the anger and sarcastic replies. They also know she's trying to distance herself from people in order not to get hurt or hurt others herself.

During the rest of her stay at the Cullens, Clary can't help but notice how uncomfortable they are and how they haven't eaten a single bite of their food.

She doesn't question it further, but she's aware something's up and decides to find out anything and everything she can about them and what they clearly are.

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LATER THAT NIGHT, Clary is in her room on her bed with her laptop out in front of her. Bella and Charlie have long since gone to sleep.

She's typing away, searching restlessly for a piece of information about the Cullens, but there's nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Despite this, Clary doesn't give up. She never will—she'll search until she finds the answer and satiates her suspicions and curiosity, even if it takes all night.