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Magnus looked up, his gold-green eyes glinting through his fingers "How old are you?" he dehteen," said Jordan, looking slightly frightened

Alec's age, thought Sirin He didn't really find Alec and Magnus's drama funny, but it was hard not to feel a certain bitter anus's size-despite being tall, Magnus was slender to the point of skinniness-but Jordan was clearly afraid of hilance with Clary, but she was staring off toward the front door, her face gone suddenly bone white Dropping her napkin onto the table, she ot to her feet, practically fleeing the table

Magnus threw his hands up "Well, if there's going to be ahis scarf around his neck He vanished into the crowd, presu for Alec

Siain She had her back to the her curly hair back "Don't even think about it," Siot up He pointed at Jordan "You stay here"

"And do what?" Jordan demanded

"Whatever Praetor Lupus do in this situation Meditate Contemplate your Jedi powers Whatever I'll be back in five minutes, and you better still be here"

Jordan leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest in a clearlyattention He turned andClary She was a speck of red and gold aht hair

He caught up to her by one of the light-wrapped pillars, and put a hand on her shoulder She turned with a startled exclamation, eyes wide, hand raised as if to fend him off She relaxed when she saho it was "You scaredon? What are you so freaked out about?"

"I" She lowered her hand with a shrug; despite her forced look of casual dis in her neck like a haured," Simon said "But"

"But?"

"You look really frightened" He wasn't sure why he'd said it exactly, or what he was hoping she'd say back She bit her lip, the way she always did when she was nervous Her gaze for a moment was far away; it was a look fas he'd always loved about Clary was how easily caught up in her iination she was, how easily she could wall herself away in illusory worlds of curses and princes and destiny and ic Once he had been able to do the sainary worlds all thefictional Now that the real and the ied for the past, for the nor, like vision or silence, you didn't realize was precious until you lost it

"He's having a hard time," she said in a low voice "I'm scared for him"

"I know," Siured out what's wrong with hiht He's just having a hard ti to terms with some of the Valentine stuff You know" Si Clary, who hardly ever hid anything fro bad dreams," she said "He orried that there was some demon involvement-"

"Demon involvement?" Si bad dreams-he'd said as much-but Jace had never mentioned demons

"Well, apparently there are kinds of deh your dreaht it up at all, "but I' Everyone has bad dreams sometioing to see how he is I'll co past him, toward the doors that led onto the terrace; he stood back with a nod and let her go, watching her as she moved off into the crowd

She looked so srade when he'd walked her to the front door of her house and watched her go up the stairs, tiny and deterainst her knee as she went He felt his heart, which no longer beat, contract, and he wondered if there was anything in the world as painful as not being able to protect the people you loved

"You look sick," said a voice at his elbow Husky, fa about what a horrible person you are?"

Siainst the pillar behind hihts wound around her neck, and her face was flushed with chane and the warmth of the room

"Or maybe I should say," she went on, "what a horrible vampire you are Except thata va a vampire," Si a boyfriend, too"

She smiled crookedly "Bat says I shouldn't be so hard on you," she said "He says guys do stupid things when girls are involved Especially geeky ones who previously haven't had much luck omen"

"It's like he can see into my soul"

Maia shook her head "It's hard to stayon it" She turned away

"Maia," Simon said His head had started to ache, and he felt a little dizzy If he didn't talk to her now, though, he never would "Please Wait"

She turned back and looked at hily

"I'm sorry about what I did," he said "I know I said that before, but I really dohi

He sed past the pain in his head "Maybe Bat's right," he said "But I think there's more to it than that I wanted to be with you because-and this is going to sound so selfish-you made me feel normal Like the person I was before"

"I'm a olf, Simon Not exactly nor over his words a little "You're genuine and real-one of the realest people I've ever known You wanted to come over and play Halo You wanted to talk about co and just do nors And you treated hter' or 'va but Simon"

"That's all friend stuff," Maia said She was leaning against the pillar again, her eyes glinting softly as she spoke "Not girlfriend stuff"

Simon just looked at her His headache pulsed like a heartbeat

"And then you co Jordan with you What were you thinking?"