Chapter 7- Mirrors

Disclaimer: SOME of the dialogue in this chapter, all characters (but Grace and Philip), the main story line and settings belong to the amazing Cassandra Clare. Grace, Philip and my own story plot belong to me. The Infernal Devices do not belong to me.

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'It's 4 o'clock in the morning, you just got home
Tell me baby, where'd you go?'

- Greatest Mistake, Ben Haenow

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-*-*-*-*- Grace -*-*-*-*-

The vampire tossed Grace into the side of the ring with a roar, making the crowd cheer as she cried out in pain. This was her third fight of the night, and she had already faced down two werewolves.

It had been three days since she had left Philip's apartment. Three days since the Consul had threatened to take her down. And every night, she was back here, fighting to keep Jem's supply of yin fen going.

Running out of Philip's apartment maybe hadn't been her best idea, but she was so scared. Yanluo was whispering in the back of her mind and she was terrified that Philip was going to be the next victim. It was reminding her of her nightmare, when Philip was cursed by Yanluo. She couldn't let that happen to him. She wouldn't.

"Oh and what a move by Mr Stone there," Slewford yelled. "I'm not sure how much more Miss Blackthorn can take."

He was right there. Grace had taken blow after blow tonight but also dished out some of her own punishment. But it was starting to wear her down. She was pretty beat up to say the least. Her nose and lip was bleeding and bruises covered her body, including a nasty black eye. She had to finish this now or die trying.

Grace pushed herself up from the floor, wiping the blood from her mouth with her sleeve.

"You want more, Shadowhunter?" the vampire screamed at her. Grace gave him a grim smirk. She ran at him, leaping off the side of the ring and jumping onto the vampire. He tried to yank her off him but she drew her dagger and stabbed him through the heart. He spluttered and collapsed.

She knew he wasn't dead. You had to burn a vampire first but she had already agreed with Slewford that a killing blow will do.

The crowd booed and hissed her as she limped out of the ring, holding her ribs which had been shattered. Slewford glared at her but threw three packets of yin fen at her. "Go," he told her and she did, stumbling out the door as Slewford started another fight.

She burst through the door, slipping the packets into her pocket.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" a voice suddenly said from the darkness. Grace whipped her head up, finding Philip standing in the alley way in front of her. He was wearing a long, dark coat with the collar turned up to meet the rim of his hat, hiding as much of his face.

"I could ask you the same question," she replied. He came towards her and grabbed her arm, dragging her into the shadows to hide them. He gave her the once over, his eyes lingering on the bruises and injuries.

"Why are you so beat up?" he asked, his green eyes flashing. She shook her head, ripping herself away from him. It hurt to touch him, so she couldn't be near.

"You tell me why you are here first."

"I heard rumours of a Shadowhunter named Blackthorn was hanging around here," he said. "Obviously, it wasn't me so I maybe thought the Magister was trying to draw me out. I decided to check it out." Philip hesitated. "I was also meant to meet a friend here at the same time. He's supposed to have information on why there has been more demonic activity in London. I'm trying to find a way to help you, Grace."

He raised an eyebrow at her, obviously waiting for her to tell her side of the story. She let out a frustrated sigh.

"I'm here because of yin fen," she said quietly. "Slewford is the only person left in London who is still supplying yin fen, and the only way for me to get it is to fight for it like everyone else does."

"You gave my name to him, didn't you?" he said. "It's you fighting here."

"You don't seem angry," she observed.

"When it comes to you, being angry never helps anything. You're too stubborn for that," he sighed. "Does Jem know about this?"

"Yes, obviously my brother knows all about this Downworld club that I attend," she said sarcastically. "Of course he doesn't know about this! What do you take me for?"

"So you're lying to him?" he said in disbelief. "Grace, you never lie to him! What's going on?"

"He's run out of yin fen, Philip!" Grace yelled, suddenly unable to control herself anymore. "He's run out because the Magister has bought it all up to blackmail us! And this is the only way I can save him!"

"This isn't the way to do it, Grace!" he said, keeping his voice controlled but strained. "You can't be in contact with Downworlders, let alone making deals with one of the oldest and most cunning vampires since De Quincey was killed! The Clave will kill you! Jem wouldn't want you to do this! He would want-"

"I don't care what he would want me to do!" Grace shouted. Philip took a step back.

"Grace," he said, holding out his hands. "Calm down. Your eyes are red." She ignored him, throwing her arms around as she ranted.

"I can't just sit by and do nothing!" she cried. Her hands were shaking and she could feel her palms heating. "Everybody is telling me to just accept that this will be the end of him but I can't accept that! I won't accept it! What do they expect me to do? I can't just watch him die!" Philip took hold of her arms and held her still no matter how hard she struggled.

"Let me go, Philip!" she shouted. "Let me go!"

"No, Grace," he said. "I'm not letting you do this to yourself. I refuse to let you punish yourself." She struggled some more but eventually she just broke down, sobbing into Philip's chest. His arms circled her as he held her tightly against him, stroking her hair.

"It's all right," he murmured. "It's going to be fine. I promise you." She wasn't sure how long they stayed there for, but it was long enough for it to start to rain. It fell around them, pattering on the cobblestones and gurgling down gutters. The freezing water help her calm down and the steady beat of Philip's heart in her ear gave her something to focus on.

"I'm sorry for yelling," she mumbled. "I just...I just don't know what to do." He was silent for a minute before speaking.

"I know what your brother means to you," he said quietly. "But please, Grace, don't make things worse by hurting yourself. I know these people; they will kill you eventually. I saw what losing you temporarily did to him. I don't want to see what it would do to him if he lost you forever."

"But I'm going to lose him forever," she sobbed.

"You might," he said. "But I'll do everything I can to stop it from happening." She squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. "All right. Now promise me that you won't ever come back here, Grace."

"I can't promise that," she said.

"Please, Grace," he begged her. "I'll get the yin fen you need some other way. It may take a while longer but I'll get it. But if you spend another minute fighting for it, they will kill you. Their patience will run thin. Promise me, Grace. Please." She hesitated. She had done enough lying recently to last a lifetime. But she had to get that yin fen.

"I promise," she lied, knowing that she had probably just made things so much worse but she had to. There was no way around it.

"Come on," Philip whispered. "I'm taking you back to the Institute."

***

Philip took her just to the end of the road the Institute lay on. "I can't go much further otherwise they'll see me with you," he said. "Try to get yourself cleaned up."

"You're not going to tell them, are you?" Grace asked. He looked down the street, the moon reflecting off his black hair. It almost made it look silver.

"No," he said. "It is your decision if you want to, which I suggest you do." She cast her eyes down to the pavement. Philip cupped her cheek with his hand, kissing her forehead lightly.

"I love you," he whispered before swiftly turning away and walking back down the street. Grace took a deep breath and limped her way back home.

-*-*-*-*- Jem -*-*-*-*-

With the door open behind him for light, Jem sat alone on the cold, stone steps of the Institute, an old woollen blanket thrown around his thin shoulders. He knew he should probably been in bed. The lack of yin fen had made his body weak, so wasting extra energy on trying to keep warm might seem like a stupid decision to anyone else. In fact, Will would be furious if he knew he was out here in the cold, but what he didn't know wouldn't harm him. Besides, he was too busy training Cecily and trying to get her to go home.

When the Silent Brothers had visited him, they had told him that he didn't have long left. Although the news didn't shock him or send him into despair, he did feel a certain amount of sadness. For him, leaving the world wasn't the scary part, it was what he left behind that terrified him beyond belief.

Right now though, he was waiting for Grace to come home.

The arguments they had after the battle with the worm and at breakfast a few days ago were repeating over and over in his mind. Maybe he should have been more tactical when he told her about his decision about the yin fen. He was always planning to tell her, but not at the moment she found out. But maybe he should have anticipated it. After all, she was his sister, and he knew her better than he knew himself. It was stupid to think that she would just willingly accept her decision.

And now, she was furious with him, more furious than he had ever seen her. He was worried about her, more worried about her than himself. Never had they ever had a fight this big, and he wasn't sure if he had tried to resolve it. She had clearly rebuffed his efforts at the breakfast argument, but maybe he hadn't tried hard enough because he preferred to be distracted by her rather than focus on his own end.

Clang!

Jem jerked his head up to see the Institute gates closing. Grace was walking slowly towards him. No, not walking, limping towards him. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him, her lips parting in surprise. Jem took the moment to examine her.

Black and blue bruises trailed along her jaw and cheek bones as if she had been hit multiple times. She had a black eye as well as a nose bleed and a swollen lip. Not to mention that she was holding her ribs on her right side. 

Jem sighed, his hand going to his forehead. He didn't say anything; he didn't have to. Her dark eyes found the floor, avoiding him at all costs.

"I didn't think you'd be up," was all she said.

"Did you really think that I wouldn't wait for you?" he asked her, raising an eyebrow. "This is the fourth night in a row that you've gone missing, Gracey. I'd expect this sort of behaviour from Will, but you? Did you really think that I could sleep without knowing if you were safe or not?" She shrugged.

"I guess I should have expected that," she replied. She went into her pocket and pulled out three small packets, tossing it to him. He caught them in surprise, laying them out on his lap.

"Where did you get this from?" he asked her suspiciously. "I thought it was all gone."

"Philip knew a mundane with sight on Oxford Street that still had some yin fen," she said, not moving from her spot on the cobblestones. "That was all he had though." Jem didn't believe that for a second. He could tell when she was lying.

"I see," he murmured. "And how did you...?" He gestured to her injuries. She shrugged again.

"Negotiations got slightly aggressive," she said. Again, he didn't believe her, but he didn't want to risk her getting angry again. This was as civil as they had been to each other in days, he couldn't risk it falling apart again. 

"Are you still angry at me?" he asked her, leaning with his elbows on his knees. Again, she didn't meet his gaze. "I'm so sorry, Gracey," Jem whispered. "I realise now that I should have talked to you first before making my decision. But it is my life after all. It's what I want, but I apologise all the same." She sighed and came over to him, easing herself down on the step, their shoulders touching.

"I'm also sorry for not listening to you," he continued. "You told me you thought Yanluo was stirring but I did nothing to help you. Some brother I've become."

"You are an amazing brother," she murmured. "You just didn't want to think that Yanluo could take me away from you again. I understand that. And I'm sorry too. I know that it's your life, but I got so scared and angry that it all just...exploded. I could have controlled it, but I didn't want to. I wanted to show that it was not all right for you to do that behind my back. I was wrong though about not controlling it."

"I'm sorry," he said again. "But as I said before, there is more to life than not dying. I want to experience that before..." He trailed off.

"I understand," she said softly. "I really do."

"How about we make a deal?" Jem said. "We promise not to keep anything from each other anymore. We'll tell each other everything, but only when we are ready." He watched her, waiting to see if she'd tell him where she'd really been during the past few nights. She only stared at her hands.

"That sounds like a pretty good deal," she said. She smiled a rare smile. One smile from her made everything seem brighter. He lived for moments like this.

Jem wrapped the blanket around her shoulders, and they both looked up at the stars on a surprisingly clear night. Grace's head rested on his shoulder as he drew iratzes on her hand as quickly as he could, knowing her difficulty with runes.

Jem could almost believe that they were back in Shanghai, sneaking out from their bedrooms and climbing the Institute roof to star gaze like they used to do.

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Hiya peeps!

So, what do we think of this one??? We had some more Phace! And a real Jem and Grace moment at the end for you there so I hope you enjoyed it.

But Grace is still lying to Jem AND Philip now... Any predictions for what's going to happen???

Vote and comment as always please!

Love y'all

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