The Kiss

Chapter 1

7:30 am

"Shit, was it really that late," Julian thought as he looked at his clock again. He had been up till about four o'clock last night awaiting Emma's late arrival, albeit expected. Her appearances inside the institute were limited to mandatory sessions with Diana, educational in nature, along with her ever reliable presence in the training room. Although, even her permanence there had been revoked, it's reliability fading each day.

However because she was gone during the day, her presence at night, sneaking back to her room, evading Julian's questions, and protesting his concerns, left that much more of an impression on the institute's inhabitants, primarily Julian. Once he had made sure she was in bed, all that was left was his thoughts. He had known he needed the rest, but his mind would not stop reeling inside his skull. Sometimes he wondered if Emma knew how much her absence set him on edge. First, she had somehow managed to sneak out of the Institute. When she found the time, he had no clue; probably when he had been making sure that Dru and Tavvy were in their room. Drusilla had her own room, of course, but she insisted on staying with their youngest sibling, Octavian. Tavvy.

He had left the library for all of 5 minutes, and when he had come back, her place in the windowsill was empty. He knew where she had gone, but he checked her room despite himself. Her various knives and Cortana, her sword, were missing from their usual place against the wall. He knew that Emma could protect herself just fine, but what really bothered him was that she didn't want him to come with her. He didn't know what was wrong with her. He knew she had always missed them, her parents. But this sudden need to throw herself into unnecessary conflict was unnerving to him, would be to anyone, even if they weren't parabatai.

When she had showed up at his door last night with blood pooling down her back, he couldn't help but wonder what she thought was going to happen. Emma was good in combat, but she knew they were better together. He didn't understand why she wouldn't just let him come if it was killing demons she was after. Although the times he had refused to stay home, she hadn't taken him to the spots in the city where the more monstrous creatures were. They had gone to the beach, encountered a few like the one that got a bit of her shoulder. The trips had been peaceful, by Shadowhunter standards.

He swung his long legs over the side of the bed and set his feet on the cool oak of his room, that had been his all his life. The decor came and went as he did. He really needed to manage the mess a bit more. Paint stained clothes lay scattered about his feet. He got up, walked over to his dresser, pulled his gear out of the bottom drawer and headed over the the bathroom across the hall.

He pulled the shower curtain back and turned the handle so hot water began to flow. He was covered in paint, which reminded him of last night again. Emma had left at about 3:15, after practically bombarding him about the painting in the corner. She was persistent; he knew there would be more questions about that particular canvas this morning. Usually, he was extremely willing to share his paintings with her, which he didn't do with many other people as a rule. People did after all have eyes and opinions and he couldn't expect them not to use them mercilessly. His art was a part of him, only he kept a detailed model of all his thoughts in the open. If he showed them to too many other eyes, they wouldn't be what he saw.

Emma was different, of course she was, he thought as he reached for the shampoo. She did have the whole angelic bond thing going for her. But even before that had happened, when they were kids, she had always worked extremely hard. Yet no one envied her because she saw the opportunity in everyone. When you trained against Emma she had you convinced of your own talent and skill. Her fear and curiosity were emotions she showed when she wasn't thinking about proving anything. That was beautiful.