A mere few minutes later, the group has split up and Jace, Clary and I have grouped together beside a side door of the old factory. Jace, having since given Clary her necklace back after swiping it from Alec's lockbox and drawing a rune that allows us to see through glamours, I see a group of Shadowhunters turning the corner, Alec at the head.

"Alec? What's he doing here?" Clary whispers, "Oh no."

Jace, activating his own rune, spots the same on comers, "Damn it. Lydia must have sent him."

"Lydia?" Clary echoes

"Our bitchy cousin" I hiss, "And...Alec's future wife. Don't ask."

It's clear from the look on her face she wants to ask more but she also notices the look on my face and decides better of it.

"Just say the word" Clary assures Jace, "We'll call the whole thing off."

"We can't" I speak up, my eyes glued to Alec, "There's no turning back now. This is important. Not just for Izzy or Meliorn. This is to do with the Clave and Downworlders. We can't let the Clave divide them like this, it's not right. I don't want Simon to have to live like that."

"Have you ever considered a leadership career?" Jace asks and I widen my eyes, surprised

"No..."

"You should" Jace smiles, "You're a natural. Now, whatever happens, follow my lead. And here-"

Jace passes me a seraph blade, "You should really get used to bringing these along with you, so I don't have to keep giving you my spares."

"Noted" I chuckle, taking the blade from him

The sound of low, menacing growls from the wolves spur us into action and we duck inside the factory, melting into the shadows.

It doesn't take long for Alec to arrive inside the factory with only Meliorn for company. Using his stele, Alec waves at along a side wall and one of the walls closest to Jace collapses, revealing the entrance to the City of Bones.

I feel my head split open and resist the urge to cry in pain. Having been warned by Jace, I was positioned furthest from the opening but after the wall crumbled, my uneasiness had doubled tenfold.

Alec, grabbing Meliorn, moves quickly for the entrance and I take my chance, stepping out form the shadows, Clary following behind me.

"Alec"

He turns to me quickly, his hand tight around Meliorn's arm. Choosing to ignore us, he turns back around but is confronted with Jace, standing directly in front of the City's entrance.

"You told me you were taking Clary back to the Institute" Alec accuses Jace, "You lied to me."

"I did what needed to be done."

"Alec" I repeat, moving to stand in front of him. My headache worsens but the lack of blood spurs me on. My back to the City entrance, I feel the poisonous lure of the runic magic behind me like a roaring fire and i know, somehow, that if I fall back...I'm as good as dead, "The Clave has gone too far. You need to see that. Please...let Meliorn go."

"What are you doing?" Alec hisses, his eyes darting nervously from the entrance to me, "Being too close to this place almost killed you last time.

"I'm willing to risk my life to keep you and the Clave from making this mistake. No peace can be made from dividing the Shadow World"

"I have my orders." Alec rebuts but his voice is wavering and his eyes keep flitting from me to the entrance and back again

"You are your damn orders" Clary seethes, "Who cares about orders?"

"See? That's how little you know about being a Shadowhunter" Alec growls, full malice behind his words

"Don't take that tone with her" I warn him, feeling the haze bubbling behind the backs of my eyes like a sickening poison

"Why? Because I might set the sleeper loose?"

"Exactly. The bond is...fragile at the moment."

"You were born mundane. Neither of you could possibly understand-"

"It's you that doesn't understand, Alec" Jace interrupts, "Not this time."

Alec's face solidifies into a hard determined mask and I act instinctively. As Alec moves to continue into the City, I push him with the full force of my body, knocking him to the ground. I fall after him but land lightly, keeping him pinned.

"Jace, Clary, take Meliorn and go" I instruct and when they hesitate I scream, "Now!"

I hear their footsteps retreating but keep my focus on Alec. I wasn't in sleeper mode and it was tough to keep him down.

"Alec, stop. What is with you?!" I snap, my arms aching with the pain of holding him down, "First, you go all Lieutenant Lightwood and now, what, you're getting married to some random woman you barely know? We both know what this is about."

"Oh, do we? Okay...let's pretend you know exactly how my mind works for a second." Alec snarks, "Why doesn't the all knowing Camille Fairchild tell me how I am feeling?"

"It's about me!" I shout, struggling, "It's about your feelings! How you feel about your parents and their betrayal. It's about the fact that you're in lo-"

Alec suddenly pushes me off of him with stupendous strength and I stumble backwards, teetering on the edge of the invisible barrier separating me from the City. I catch my balance in time but feel the sweat begin to pool on the back of my neck...it was like being right next to a blazing fire.

"Come with me" I whisper pleadingly and Alec's eyes meet mine, full of confusion and anger and longing, "We can't fight Valentine the right way. The way that your sister and parabatai believe is right, the way I believe is right. We will go nowhere with this division of the Downworlders and Shadowhunters. I know you know that...you're just turning to blatant obedience because you think that's what you're supposed to do, because you're confused about how and why you feel the way you do."

Alec stays silent, his eyes on the floor.

"I know you're understanding me. I know it. I've already tried to persuade you not to marry Lydia, to understand your parents decision but you won't listen and I know that now but it's not too late, Alec, it's not. I'm begging you...Please, Alec, do what's right. Not for me, or Jace, or Izzy but for you. Come with me."

Alec's eyes lift from the floor, a harshness in them I'd never seen before, a rage and coldness that was hot to the touch yet bitingly cold at the same time.

"No"

The single, barely whispered word rings like a gong through the room, reverberating in my ears. I drop my head, tears threatening to spill from my eyes as his single refusing word surrounds all my thoughts.

My legs feel numbed as I leave the factory, the splitting pain in my head easing the further i go but the one in my heart spurs on with each step.

I feel like I've lost something.

"I hate to break up this reunion, Izzy" Jace's voice echoes as I exit the factory, the metal door clanging dully behind me, "But we have to go."

"You're in good hands" Izzy assures Meliorn and I look up just in time to see Izzy kiss him, passionately and meaningfully. A hello and a goodbye all at the same time.

My heart throbs just a smidgeon more.

We all watch as Izzy gracefully flits from Meliorn's side, somehow managing to glide in her sky-high heels.

"Isabelle told me it was your idea to rally the Downworlders. That you spearheaded my rescue." Meliorn speaks and it takes me a minute to realise he's talking to me

"Hm? Oh...yeah, um, don't give me too much credit for that." I dismiss, the hole in my heart aching painfully the longer I stand, the longer the time passes, "Isabelle made this happen. I just...we just...helped."

"She's being modest" Jace grunts and I can tell Alec's absence is taking it's toll on him too, "You may not be a Shadowhunter in the sense of the word but...you're a natural born leader. You rallied the Downworlder's with a superior skill for leadership I've never seen before. You may not be a Shadowhunter but it's clear you fit in this world. No matter what you think."

"I've been surprised by more than one Shadowhunter tonight" Meliorn admits, looking at me again, "You risked everything to unite us."

"Right after you tried to sell them out" Jace points out

"Not my finest moment" Meliorn concedes, "Which is why I'm offering you a gift...for your sacrifice."

"But I didn't sacrifice anything. It's technically not my world to meddle in, I was basically dealing cards I didn't even have"

"I disagree" Meliorn ponders, "I believe that what Jace says is true. Shadowhunter you may not be but you belong here. So, if you're ready..."

"I can help you find your father."

************

I know that some things don't match up with the original story but it's not really supposed to technically haha

As for the next episode, I plan on sending Cami through the portal to the alternate dimension, not Clary so it might screw with the timeline and plot a bit but it's beginning to get to the tricky parts where I'm changing the story in big ways rather than small. I hope this is still easy to follow and enjoyable (or i might send Clary in too and this is all for no reason, meh, we'll see)

I seem to keep gravitating towards the OG story but I'm working on breaking that habit. The point of this book is to follow Cami not Clary and track Alemi's relationship, not Clace's.

((At the moment I'm in the process of editing this book before starting book 2 so if you see ~ next to a chapter, ignore it cause it's just me keeping my place for editing))

Please comment your thoughts!

Happy Reading!