Chapter 2  "Golden Angels"

Protectively, I raised a hand in front of my face. The sun was shining in my eyes through the window, and I couldn't see a thing. The light colored the room into a deep orange. How long did I sleep? A relieved sigh escaped my lips when I recognized Magnus's guestroom.

Next to me sat Jocelyn who stroked my check in a calming matter while she tried to get the blanket off me. I probably got entangled in it while I had tried to escape Jonathan. The thought of Jonathan made me shiver. The dream had been strange. The Jonathan I knew had mixed with the new Jonathan I had come to know the day before yesterday. It didn't make any sense ... but which dream ever did? Annoyed, I pushed the memory of my demonic brother aside and dedicated myself to my worried mother. "Mom", I began and avoided any eye contact with her. "What's the matter?"

Once again, she stroked through my red hair, probably to assure herself that I was truly awake. Somehow, she really was paranoid. "Magnus is back", she said without hiding the upcoming hope in her voice. "Valentine didn't find any clues yet. But it won't take too long until he'll find someone who's willing to talk, Magnus is sure of that. The Shadow World fears Valentine. They'd do anything to avoid a conflict with him. Magnus suggests finding shelter in the New York Institute. The Clave has to know about Valentine. You could probably continue your training and we'd always be connected to Alicante." Her face was calm, and a light smile played on her lips.

The possibility to meet other Shadowhunters, the first time ever, made me nervous. All of them would know my name. They would hate me. They had to hate me because of my father. Still, my mother's decision surprised me. I had expected to start a new life hidden among the mundanes. Not to give up my identity as a Shadowhunter somehow relieved me. I couldn't imagine a life without seraph blades, my training and the fixed purpose of my life. "Is this a done deal?"

Jocelyn shook her head. "Of course not, I wanted to hear your opinion beforehand." She would never keep something from me, I knew that. She trusted me and wanted to hear my thoughts. I nodded and agreed. "Yes, I believe that we'd be safer in the Institute for now. But do you think that they'll just welcome us with open arms? What if they sell us to Valentine for a deal? Or what if they just kill us?" I recognized how hysteric my voice sounded, as if I was a silly teenager instead of an eighteen year old Shadowhunter.

"You don't know the Shadowhunters, but I do. We won't be perfectly safe because the head of the Institute will of course report our attendance to the Clave and sooner or later they will interrogate us about everything. Valentine is their biggest enemy and we are his family, they won't welcome us with open arms but there are laws. We are Shadowhunters and the law says that a Shadowhunter can find shelter in an Institute all the time. We aren't the Clave's enemy but if we go there, we'll have to be honest with them." She gave me a warm smile and stood up from the bed. „Don't worry, I know the heads of the Institute. Maryse and Robert Lightwood, I told you about them yesterday." Out of the corner of her eye Jocelyn observed me concerned. She saw how I suddenly got paler. "They are good people", she added, and I knew that she thought of Valentine.

She had left him, him and her son. She had loved him, still did, but he was a monster now. She had done it without hesitation. I wouldn't have been able to leave my child behind, no matter if a monster or not. It didn't make her a bad mother, but it made her stronger and braver than I could ever be. "I'm certain they are."

"Okay", said Jocelyn and gave me a serious look from her eyes. She looked sad and exhausted. "We'll leave today. But before we leave, I have to tell you something." And suddenly she was the one avoiding eye contact. „Magnus has news from Idris. The Clave hasn't confirmed it yet but there has been an attack on the Institute in Paris. Jonathan and Valentine have been involved in it."

oOo

Magnus had called us a cab, he accompanied us to the street and wished us well. He had said we could reach out to him at every time if we needed any help. Jocelyn was very grateful, while I just tried not to smile at him because he stood on the sidewalk dressed in nothing but a neon-green pajama.

"Goodbye Magnus", I said and swallowed the fear that danced in the back of my mind. A fear impregnated by my father. I didn't want him to still control my life. "Thank you for your help. I wish we could've started on better terms. I want to be different than ..." I didn't even know what I wanted anymore. I knew nothing. Nothing but lies.

Magnus gave me a small but kind smile. "It's not too late to turn your fate, little Nephilim", he said and raised his hand as if to touch my shoulder but thinking better of it. "You're young. You have a lifetime to learn, to do right what your father did wrong."

As I opened my mouth to thank him, I heard a strange noise behind me. It sounded like when some sort of gum moved over stone. A yellow car had pulled over on the sidewalk two meters away from us. I knew how cars looked like, but I'd never seen one somewhere else than in books. Still, I had a totally different picture of a car in mind. Instead of one color this one was yellow and there were adds glued on the sides where the doors were. On its roof there was a sign with a number written on it.

"It's time", Jocelyn who stood next to me said. Together we stared at the cab. We said goodbye to Magnus and then got in.

Until now I'd never thought it possible to change my domicile three times within 24 hours. Now it had become reality and it didn't feel good at all. During the ride, my mother and I barely exchanged any words. Both of us looked curiously out of the windows and watched the nightlife of Brooklyn. At first, we didn't see many mundanes at all, only a few here and there. And then we suddenly were on a huge bridge. In the darkness of the night the bridge glowed due to thousands of small lightbulbs. Around us there was water, flowing and sparkling waters. But the highlight was the city we drove towards. It looked like a peninsula surrounded by water and graced by great skyscrapers which flashed in an orange tone due to the setting sun. Almost as beautiful as Alicante. Almost.

When we passed the bridge there were people everywhere. Mundanes with different hair- and skincolors. Most of them looked busy but some just seemed to stroll around. On some streets I was able to catch a glimpse of the Down World. Vampires and werewolves seemed to like New York as well. I wanted to take a closer look at the city if there was a chance.

Slowly we drove through the streets of Manhattan, and I spotted the Institute which was a huge and majestic but ancient building. So conspicuous and pretentious but still invisible for the eyes of mundanes. I wasn't a mundane but a Shadowhunter and able to see the truth behind the squillion of glamour.

When our cab halted some meters away from the Institute we quickly got out, took our bags and waited until it drove away. Then we turned our backs to the busy street and walked towards the tall doors of the Institute. Jocelyn raised her right hand to the wooden doors and murmured something under her breath. A second later they flew open.

We entered the Institute and came to a halt in a large hall that looked like a nave, furnished with wooden benches which were precisely arranged next to each other. I raised my head to survey the hall and was astonished by the view of its high ceiling and lots of mural paintings. Golden candlestands were glowing on both sides and the floor was made of polished marble. But something else was more striking: There were runes everywhere. Carved in the marble, painted on the walls and ceiling, and even engraved on the benches.

And on the bench closest to us sat a woman who now stood up as she recognized us and slowly walked towards us. She had long voluminous black hair, cold blue eyes and observed us with a rather dissatisfied expression. She must be Maryse Lightwood, I thought and followed my mother.

"Jocelyn", said Maryse and her voice seemed cold and distant. "It's been too long but you haven't changed a bit." She sounded torn and I could hear the silent reproach in her words. Maryse didn't wear the usual Shadowhunter gear but a black gown which was reserved for Nephilim with a higher assignment. Being the head of an Institute seemed to be such a higher assignment. One was still able to fight perfectly well in it. At her belt Maryse carried a silver dagger.

Jocelyn kept a straight face. "All of us have changed, haven't we? We haven't seen us in a very long time, and I wasn't sure if you were going to grant my request."

Maryse's voice was calm and clear as she remarked: "The law left me no other choice. If I'm being honest, this doesn't sit well with me, I can't trust you. But you're here now and we'll see how things will develop." Curiously her eyes moved to me. "This has to be your daughter."

I nodded and grimaced. Without a doubt, she was too curious to get to know the Morgenstern daughter. It sickened me. Why did she have to compare me to my parents? Why was she looking for similarities between me and Valentine? I know she was.

For a brief moment my mother frowned. "Yes, this is Clary. I heard you have a daughter too?"

"I can only guess who told you that", Maryse said, the blood had left her face. "But it's true, my daughter Isabelle has to be in Clary's age." It seemed as if she disliked the thought of us knowing about her private life. I could only imagine that she would increase the safety arrangements afterwards. No one was allowed to show weakness right now. Everyone could be my father's spy.

"I suppose that you haven't informed the other Institute's residents about us, have you?" It's better this way, I thought. They will hate us anyway.

"You're right", Maryse admitted. "I haven't told them yet. I just don't know how to explain it to them. You must understand that most of them are very young and probably out of sorts with your family. In the children's and teenagers' heads Valentine is a cold-blooded murderer, and justifiably so." I had the feeling that Maryse tried to test us with her words. She wanted to see our reactions. But my face could have been akin to an icescape.

For a long time silence dominated while Maryse examined us and pondered if she was able to trust us. It felt like a silent interrogation, but I resisted the attempt to give a frustrated groan. It wouldn't have been a clever idea and wasn't quite polite anyway. After all, I didn't want to put us in a worse light than we already were.  

"You look tired", Maryse eventually said with a determined expression in her eyes. It seemed as if she had made a decision. "I will show you your rooms." She raised her arm and pointed to a golden escalator on our left. 

Silent as a shadow I followed my mother. I wanted to draw as little attention to me as possible. How I learned in the escalator, the Institute had five floors although I was quite certain that not all of them were in use. When the door opened again, the escalator had come to a stand on the second level. Maryse entered a long corridor and I stared at the ceiling, entranced, while I followed Maryse. There were endless mural paintings on the ceiling, paintings of large angels with golden eyes and blonde hair in wonderful white gowns and a pair of great gorgeous wings that looked as if one was able to touch them. I couldn't keep my eyes away. Three angels were in the foreground but dozens in the background. Although there were so many of them, their facial features differed from one another and still one was able to see similarities between them. As if all of them were relatives. The background was baby-blue and framed by clouds and a heavenly gate that glowed in the sunlight.

Maryse noticed my interest. "Do you recognize them?", she asked me with a gentler voice.

I shook my head in sorrow, but it seemed as if I knew them from somewhere. My view fell on a smaller angel in the background. His mouth was pressed together in an awaiting matter. He seemed absolutely familiar to me. It felt as if his name was on my lips, but I wasn't able to say it out loud. "Only the archangels."

"Yes, in the foreground we have the three archangels Raziel, Michael and Gabriel. In the background you can see Ithuriel, Israfil, Mikail and some other angels. Some legends say that Ithuriel also counted to the archangels but they're just legends." Ithuriel. It was the name I was looking for.

For the first time since I had entered the Institute, I smiled. Maryse saw it and smiled back uncertainly. We followed her through the corridor and passed another large door. The next corridor wasn't as long as the one before but branched away several times. "The rooms are in this section. I'll show you your room first, Clary. Your mother will be lodged in a nearby corridor because only teenagers and children are lodged in this area." She shrugged her shoulders and opened a door, then she threw a little key in my direction.

Before my mother disappeared behind a corner with Maryse, she waved and wished me a good night.

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I'd love to hear your opinion about this chapter! Do you like the length of the chapters? :)