I held my breath, underwater at Lake Lyn. My lungs felt tight due to the lack of oxygen that was going to them, my eyes burning as I kept them forced open, looking around in the water.

My hair was all over the place, but that was something I couldn't focus on right now.

Memories of Jace saving me flashed my mind, but this time I was alone.

There was no Jace to save me from drowning.

My arms and legs moved around quickly as I tried to swim upward but I only made myself go deeper with every attempt.

I coughed when the lake water poured into my body when I couldn't hold my breath anymore, as I tried harder to get to the surface, "No- no- no!"

"Hey, hey, hey!" Jace's voice snaps me into reality, pulling me away from the nightmare I was having, "Wake up- it's okay."

I jolt up, tearing my blanket off my body, revealing the sweats and t shirt crop top I wore, a sheet of sweat on my body, my eyes wide in alert, my breathing heavy.

"Hey- hey-" Jace's hands were on my arms, my eyes finally shifting to him, "It was just a bad dream."

He stood at the side of my bed, leaning to hold my arms to get my attention, his hair a mess, shirtless and barefoot.

"Jace-" My breathing calmed, my heart rate accelerating, "What- what are you doing here?"

"I, uh, heard you screaming." Jace lets go of my arms and stands straight, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah." I force myself with all the strength I had to not look at his shirtless body, looking down at my hands, "I, uh- I was back at Lake Lyn- underwater. I was drowning."

Jace's eyes linger with mine, as he grabbed my hand, squeezing it in comfort, "Well, you're all right now."

I sigh, looking down at our hands, "Everything that happened back at the lake, I- I can't get it out of my head."

Jace exhales deeply, shrugging, "It's not exactly top on my vacation list, either."

"My brother's alive." I used our linked hands to pull him onto my bed so he was sitting in front of me, "Somewhere out there, Jonathan exists."

"I know." Jace's thumb caressed my hand, "It's a lot to process."

"Jace." I sigh deeply, "He was a child."

"With demon blood." Jace adds in, "Don't forget that."

"And no one but Valentine to teach him the difference between right and wrong." My eyes were locked with his, "If it would've been Jocelyn or even my mother, maybe he would've turned out different. If he's out there, I want to find him."

Jace gives me a reassuring nod, "We will."

"Hey- will you stay with me for the rest of the night?" I asked, holding his hand between both of mine, "I don't think I can fall back asleep after that."

"Yeah- yeah, of course." Jace nods slowly, as I scoot over as he got up, pulling the blanket up so he can slip in.

He does so, pulling me into him, my head leaning on his chest, his arms wrapped around me.

Silence fell between us, as I held onto him tighter, fading away into thought.

"Wait, Jace-" I looked at him, slowly sitting up, "Maybe we can track him."

Jace's eyebrows furrow, "What?"

"I'll be right back." I slip out of bed and practically run out of my room.

I quietly walk over to Clary's room, slowly opening the door. Light from the hallway peaked through and shined on her back as I silently grabbed the box with the initials JC on them.

I leave the room, closing the door behind me before rushing back into mine, closing the door, my back against it, my eyes landing on Jace who sat on my bed.

Jace's eyes fell onto it, "Did you just steal that from Clary's room?-"

"I borrowed it." I corrected him, walking over to him and sitting by him, "Do you remember this?"

Jace nods slightly, "Yeah."

"Jocelyn's keepsakes from when Jonathan was a baby." I held the box, "I mean, we thought they were yours but they're Jonathan's."

Jace realizes where I'm getting at, "We can use what's inside to track him."

I nod quickly and pull it open, only to see absolutely nothing in it, "Looks like somebody beat us to it."

-

Jace pats Max's back as we walked into Alec's office as he was walking out, Alec looking between us, "Any sign of Jonathan?"

"No." Jace shook his head, holding the box, "We tracked the box itself, But it was a dead end."

We both looked back, noticing Max listening in on us. The minute Max sees us, he walks away.

"So- Valentine sent Duncan to steal a pair of baby booties?" Alec had his hands folded behind his back.

"Someone did." Jace set the box down, "Someone who wanted to circumvent us from tracking Jonathan."

"And now we have no leads on either of them." I added in, "We've got nothing."

"Actually, we have less than nothing." Alec admits, confusion crossing our features at his words, "There's something you should know."

"The Clave doesn't have the Soul Sword." Alec confesses, "They never did."

I blinked in disbelief, "So- the Clave has been lying this entire time?"

Jace remarks, "Wouldn't be the first time."

"The Clave is trying to prevent an uprising." Alec said, "If the Downworld finds out that we don't have the Soul Sword, there would be total chaos."

"But- the sword's been deactivated." I reminded them, "It can't be used on Downworlders, right?"

"Not in the way Valentine used it before." Alec told me, "But- it's still a Mortal Instrument."

Jace inhales sharply at the thought, "If you combine it with the other two Mortal Instruments the cup and the mirror he could use it to raise the Angel Raziel."

My eyebrows furrowed, "Wait- I thought that was just legend."

Alec raises an eyebrow at me, "Well, the legends are true."

"Sweet- sweet, memories." I shook my head slightly, crossing my arms as I teased quietly, earning a small smile from Jace.

"The Angel will grant him one wish." Alec continued, sighing deeply, "Anything he wants."

That's when I realize what that meant, "The end of the Downworld."

-

Dot had shown up at the Institute and told us that she was afraid that something terrible had happened to Elliot Nourse, and she was afraid she might be next.

She had shown us a mark on her wrist, and soon we were all walking down the hall, Alec and Clary joining Dot, Jace and I.

"After Elliot opened his own shop we lost touch." Clary said, her arms crossed, "But when I was little, Elliot was one of my mom's best friends."

Dot nodded as we walked into Alec's office, "He introduced me to Jocelyn."

"And now you're concerned he's in trouble?" Alec asked, standing straight.

Clary nods, "The mark on Dot's arm is part of a protection spell."

"It's a sigil." Dot went in depth, "It only transfers to another warlock if something terrible has happened."

Alec's hands were behind his back, "Whatever he's guarding must be pretty important."

I rocked back and forth on my feet, slipping my hands into my back pockets, "It's the Mortal Mirror."

Jace blinks, "Jocelyn had it?"

I nod slowly, "Yeah- that was my reaction too."

"I know it's crazy." Clary speaks up, "The Mirror and the Cup. I guess my mom knew Elliot would do anything to keep it safe. As a warlock, he could protect it better than anyone, right? So, she entrusted him with its location."

Dot added in, "And Elliot entrusted it to me."

Alec looked at her, "So- you know the current location of the Mortal Mirror?"

"Sort of." Dot said, pointing at her wrist, "These lines coordinate to specific Ley lines in the city. I can figure it out, but it'll take some time."

"We have maps of all the Ley lines." Alec nods, "We can help you."

"And we can protect you from Jonathan and Valentine." Jace assures her, "With those marks on your wrist, it's only a matter of time before they come after you."

"Jace and I will go to Elliot's shop." I cross my arms and looked at Dot, "See what happened- you'll be safe here."

Dot places a hand on my shoulder, "Be careful."

"I'll be fine." I assured her as well, "Jace'll be with me."

-

I walked into Elliot's shop with Jace, looking around, my eyes scanning every inch of the room, noticing all the shattered glass and broken things.

Then, I noticed Elliot on the ground; dead.

I gasped, rushing over to Elliot, crouching in front of him, my eyes raking over all his injuries.

"You see these marks?" Jace points out, looking around, "A demon was here."

"He was tortured- but this isn't murder." Jace looked at Elliot, "He killed himself."

"What?" I don't even glance at him, closing Elliot's eyes, "How can you tell?"

"The blood from his eyes, I've seen it before." Jace mentioned, "It's a warlock incantation. It's basically their version of a cyanide capsule."

When I don't reply, he sighs deeply, "I'm sorry."

The sound of glass crunching makes me jump up and Jace reach for his seraph blade, but we both ease up when we notice that it's only Sebastian."

"Sebastian?" I blink, walking over by the two, "What are you doing here?"

"I, uh I saw the alert at the Institute." Sebastian stammered, "Is everything under control?"

"We're still not 100 percent sure what happened." Jace told him, as I looked around the room, "There was a demon presence here, but something doesn't add up."

I then notice the dead flowers on the side of the room, sitting in their vase. I slowly walked over to them, eyeing them.

"Jonathan." I whispered, touching the blackness of the petals, "Jace- this was Jonathan."

"How do you know that?" Jace questions.

"The flowers." I slowly looked away from them and looked back at Jace, "Before Valentine got me on his ship- Jocelyn shared a memory from when Jonathan was a baby."

"He'd done the exact same thing- she was picking flowers and his eyes went black- the flowers just- they had the same result." I went in depth, turning to face him, "And that grey demon ichor, that's how Valentine described the aftermath of Jonathan's childhood kills."

"Jace-" I scoff slightly to myself, "Jonathan was here."

Sebastian clears his throat, "Sorry, who's, uh- who's Jonathan?"

"My brother." I answered him, looking down at my feet.

"He must be after the Mortal Mirror." Jace looks around, "If he comes after it again, I'm gonna have to deal with him."

I blink, looking up at him, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Jace's eyes lock with mine, "It means I'm gonna do anything in my power to protect the mirror."

I stepped closer, "You'll kill him?"

"If that's what it takes, yeah." Jace nodded, seriousness in his face.

"You don't even know if Jonathan's doing this on his own." I argued, "He could be under Valentine's influence."

"Yeah, Zee's got a point." Sebastian joins in, "I mean, what if Valentine's forcing him to do his bidding?"

"Yeah, okay, look." Jace doesn't even glance at Sebastian, "I know exactly what it's like to be manipulated by Valentine- probably better than anyone."

"You know, Zee, you read those journals." Jace gestures to Elliot, "Jonathan Morgenstern is a demon-blooded monster who is responsible for the death of your friend- an innocent warlock."

My voice went quiet, "But, don't you remember what Valentine made you do?"

Jace's expression twists in annoyance, "I don't have demon blood."

"We all once thought you did!" I burst defensively, "And regardless, I stood by you, no matter what type of blood we all thought you had."

This makes Jace go quiet.

"Just think about it, Jace." My voice went soft again, "Valentine has manipulated us both- what if Jonathan is just his latest victim?"

"We don't have any facts." I was stern, "And until we do, no one is getting killed, okay?"

Sebastian nods, clearing his throat again, making me realize that he was still there, "Yeah, I suppose the, uh the priority right now should be finding that mirror."

-

Jace's eyes scanned the screen on the monitor we stood in front of, "So- you've narrowed it down to these three locations."

"Yes." Dot nods, gesturing toward the red circles, "Here- here and here."

"Wait a minute- that's the park we used to go to when we were little, remember, Zee?" Clary nudges me and points at a circle, "Mom, you and I used to go there when we were kids."

"Yeah." I recalled the memories, staring at the monitor, "She'd pack a picnic, watch us sketch and color for hours."

"It was our place." Clary wraps an arm around me, rubbing my arm, "She hid it somewhere we'd remember just in case."

"Well, that saves us the trouble of looking around at the other two places," I nod slowly, "It's gotta be there."

"All right." Jace nods, "We leave in five."

I nodded, walking away from them, down the hall and into my room.

The door closed behind me, looking through my closet, grabbing out one of my leather jackets, placing it on my bed.

I walked to the door, swinging it open, my eyes landing on Sebastian, who was about to knock.

Sebastian's fist down, as he looked slightly surprised, "Uh, hi."

"Hey, Sebastian." I greeted him quietly, spinning around, walking back to my bed, "I'm sorry, I'm just heading out on a mission- but, I have a few minutes."

"Oh, sure." Sebastian nods and only takes a step into my room, standing in the doorway, "I actually I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

I slip my leather jacket on, "I'm fine."

"Look, I saw how upset you were today." Sebastian slowly trails off, "I'm really sorry about your friend."

I open and close my mouth, not knowing what to say.

I pull my hair from underneath my leather jacket and look at him, "I keep losing the people that I care about- I mean, at this point it's just so consistent. I don't know- I guess- at one point- it should stop right? It has to stop."

"And you're worried that, um- now Jonathan's back, that it that it's not going to?" Sebastian asks.

"I don't know." I shrug, slipping my hands into my jackets, walking over to him, "I mean, Jace thinks that he's a lost cause- and I haven't even gotten Clary's opinion on it yet."

"So-" Sebastian's eyes scan my face for any decipherable emotion, "What do you think?"

"I mean, I understand he has demon blood, I know what he's capable of, but- but, he's my brother." I slightly rock back and forth on my feet, "God, that's stupid, right? I'm sorry-"

"Oh, no- no!" Sebastian quickly shook his head, and for some reason my words hit him hard, "God, it's not stupid at all!"

"Valentine raised him his entire life- and we all know the type of man my father is." I inhale sharply, "I mean- I know it's a long shot considering the only person who taught him right from wrong with Valentine hit- if there's any humanity left in him, shouldn't we at least try to save him?"

Something flashes in Sebastian's eyes as he stared at me, his voice soft, "I think so."

I don't reply, and look away.

Suddenly, Sebastian's hands grab my face and his lips were pressed into mine.

My eyes instantly went wide, as I pushed him back, taking a few steps back myself, "Sebastian-"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Sebastian apologizes right away, "That was stupid-"

"I'm with Jace-" I blurt out, running a hand through my hair, and what looked like anger flashed in his eyes when I said that, "It's okay- you didn't know-"

"No, no, look, I- I get it." Sebastian stopped me from going any further, "I just want you to know that I will I'll always be there for you, Zee- whatever you need."

-

I stood behind Dot, next to Jace when we came out the other side of the portal, my eyes scanning our surroundings.

The mark on Dot's wrist glowed blue, as she lead the way, Jace and I following her.

"You know, Zee, what I said earlier, about Jonathan-" Jace began to say.

I looked at him, "If you're about to apologize-"

Jace shook his head and looked at him, "I'm not apologizing."

I stopped walking, "Jace!"

"What?" Jace stopped as well, looking at me with slight wide eyes, "I said I wasn't going to."

"Jonathan's my brother." I scoff, shaking my head, "I mean- if this were Alec, or Izzy- and you were in my position- how could you even stand there and say that to me? Wouldn't you want to give them a chance?"

Jace exhales deeply, "Well, It's not okay? It's Jonathan, and Jonathan is dangerous-"

"He is also my family!" I shot back, "You're not killing him!"

Jace stepped closer, "I will if I have to!"

"Over my dead body." I stepped closer as well, my voice falling dangerously low.

"By the Angel-" Jace huffed dramatically and threw his head back, "Why did I have to fall in love with someone who's more stubborn than I am?"

"I don't know, you tell me." I crossed my arms, raising my voice lightly.

"Zee, I care about you." Jace looked down at me, his voice now low and soothing, as he took a more calmer approach to this conversation, "Look, if you're ever in any danger, I'm gonna do whatever it takes to keep you safe. If that means Jonathan has to die, so be it."

I didn't know how to reply to this.

"Zee!" Dot's voice turned our attention towards her, "The Ley Line intersection's close."

I sigh deeply, turning away from Jace and jogging over to Dot, who lead up both up the steps and toward the statue.

Her back was facing us, "It's here."

I watched her, "Do you see something?"

Dot used her magic, speaking out a spell as what looked like a gold dent appeared in the air, as she reached into it and pulled out a small mirror.

She turned towards us, holding it in her hand, as I slowly took a few steps towards her, "That's it, isn't it?"

Dot nods slowly, as I stared at the mirror in her hands, "Well- that was a hell of a lot easier to find then the Mortal Cup."

"Okay, let's go-" Before Jace could finish his sentence, he grunts and is thrown back, hitting the ground.

I spun to face him, my eyes widening when there stood a demon, but not like any I had seen before.

He looked human, but his flesh was burnt.

Dot instantly handed the Mortal Mirror to me, using her magic against the demon, only for it to throw her to the side, her crying out in pain, as it stepped closer to me.

I took a step back, my eyes glued to what stood in front of me.

Then, I heard Jace's shout, "Zee, run!"

"No, I won't leave you." I replied back, standing completely still, and no matter how upset I was with Jace, I wouldn't leave him alone in this situation.

The demon disappeared from in front of me and stood hovering over Jace, a sword to his neck.

I ran, hopping off the higher platform and onto the grass, crying out, "No!"

The demon pauses, and looked back at me, Jace's eyes glued to me as well.

Then, it all clicked in my head.

"You're Jonathan, aren't you?" I took a step closer, my voice cracking from screaming earlier, "You're my brother."

"You don't want to hurt me, right? We're blood." I stepped even closer, "If you hurt Jace, that's exactly what you'll be doing."

"This is what you came for, isn't it?" I held up the Mortal Mirror, "You can take this and go."

"Or you can come with us- we can help you." I suggested, unwilling small tears filling my eyes, "Whatever Valentine's told you, it's lies."

"Whatever happened in the past, whatever you've done, it doesn't matter to me." I could see I was getting through to him, "I believe that you can be good- despite what's happened. I know you can be good. All you have to do is try."

Jonathan stares at me, frozen in his spot.

My voice came out weak, "Please."

Suddenly, a blast sent Jonathan flying back and hitting the ground, Dot stood next to me.

"Wait, what're you doing?" My eyes went wide, "I'm getting through to him!-"

Dot opens a portal behind us, "Take the Mirror and go, Zee!"

I shook my head, "No, if I leave- he's going to go off the rails and kill you-"

Dot watched Jonathan, keeping the portal open, "It's the only way to protect the mirror, go!"

"No- not with you- not without Jonathan!" I protested, "We can help him, okay? We can-"

Then, Jace had ran towards me and picked me up, as I let out a small shriek as he ran into the portal, "Jace, no!"

-

"If I had known Dot was gonna do that, I would've never left without her." I sigh deeply, holding the mirror in my hand as Jace and I stood in the training room after just getting back.

"She knew what she was doing." Jace crosses his arms, "Because of her, Valentine can't raise the Angel- we are finally one step ahead of him."

I don't reply, staring at the Mirror in my hands.

"I'm sorry." Jace breaks the silence.

I huff, "I'm not even going to ask what you're sorry about-"

"About Jonathan." Jace's answer surprised me, "Listen- you have a good heart. You always see the good in people when I don't. I saw how upset you were when we left Jonathan- so I'm sorry."

I stare at him for a moment, before wrapping my arms around his middle, leaning my head against his chest, "It's okay. I'm just worried about Dot."

"Hey- she survived Valentine." Jace held me, rubbing my back, "She'll survive this."

I sigh deeply, slipping away from him, opening the mirror in my hand, looking into the glass.

My eyes squint when I don't see my eye, but I see my dream, as if I was reliving it all over again.

The drowning and not being able to breath, having no rescuer or way to swim up to the shore. Except this time two swords were coming right for me.

I shut the mirror instantly, not wanting to see the end of that.

Jace notices my expression, "Hey, you okay?"

"I saw- my dream- in the mirror." I looked up at him, "I was back at the lake, drowning, and except this time there were these two swords coming at me."

"Jace- I don't think these aren't dreams." I looked away in thought, "They're visions- I think it's some kind of message."

authors note:

they fight like a married couple, they're literally endgame

but, omg this book hit 5k-

a good and fresh sebastian gif cause I couldn't find a good jace one

vote and comment loadsss