Shadowhunters: Like You Never Knew Them

Chapter Six

This will be short, but I hope you enjoy this ...

Tessa Herondale was making her way down the Institute, it had been five months since she had married William Herondale and she was still picking her books that she had read from the library, with a four month belly; she rubbed it.

"Oh, I wish you were a boy, little one," she was murmuring down the hallway. "Me and your father would like that very much ... and if you are a little girl, auntie Cecy would dress you up in flimsy dresses; and we need not that, hmmm?" She smiled as she imagined her child getting dressed up by Cecily, boy or girl, she would get her hands on them. "Between you and me, dear, I hope you are two." She saw the doors to the library and sighed with relief, years of walking here and there in the Institute were good to her memory, not to her physical tiredness. You live forever, yet it doesn't gift you supernatural untiredness. She shook her head. Oh, well. She opened the doors and instantly geard dark murmurs and slight curses. Her nood darkened and her inner warrior kicked.

You wouldn't think it to look at her, but she's quite skilled with a
variety of weapons, our Charlotte." Tessa blinked in " surprise. "You don't mean-Charlotte doesn't fight, does she? Not the way you and Henry do."

"Certainly she does. Why wouldn't she?"

"Because she's a woman," Tessa said.

"So was Boadicea."

"Who?"

"'So the Queen Boadicea, standing loftily charioted. Brandishing in her hand a dart and rolling glances
lioness-like-'" Will broke off at Tessa's look of incomprehension, and grinned. "Nothing? If you were English, you'd know. Remind me to find a book about her for you. Regardless, she was a powerful warrior queen. When she was finally defeated, she took poison rather than let herself be captured by the Romans. She was braver than any man. I like to think Charlotte is much in the same mold, if somewhat smaller."

"But she can't be any good at it, can she? I mean, women don't have those sort of feelings."

"What kind of feelings are those?"

"Bloodlust, I suppose," Tessa said after a moment.

"Fierceness. Warrior feelings."

Tessa remembered the memory with longing and smiled. Fierceness. Warrior feelings. Yes, she got out a dagget that she held from her ankle and pulled it out. The murmurs were coming from behind the library ... once she got close enough, she could make words:

"...will go to the bloody Silent City...no, I didn't do it on purpose, Lightworm."

Tessa straightened up at that. Will? She stalked past the History section and gazed into a pair of glaring green eyes and amused ones, yet they held worry.

"William Herondale," she demanded. "What, by the Angel, are you doing here with Gabriel and ... and ..."

Hello, Tessa.

"James?" She breathed. It had been long since she last saw him. "I mean-Brother Zacharia." She smiled, and offered him a grand bow. "What brings you here?" Tessa could swear her life she'd heard Brother Zacharia make a sigh that said 'The Herondale'. She looked at Will. "Who brings you here?" Will scratched the back of his head.

"It was an accident, Tess."

"It was not!" Gabriel Lightwood exclaimed: his arm was in a cast.

"Oh, Will..." Tessa put her hands up to her face. "Why did you?"

"To see James Carstairs, that's why-"

James is gone, Gabriel, surely Will didn't mean to break your arm. For the second time.

"I..." Will looked pained. Too long without his best friend and it was like he was gone along with James. "It really was an accident."

"We know," Tessa said, eyeing Brother Zacharia with a smile, if he could smile back, Angel, he'd be grinning or laughing. "Now, let's usher Brother Zacharia to the door; Gabriel may stay here and recover from his ... injury." Tessa linked arms with Will and walked very close to Brother Zacharia.

Did you really break it on purpose, William?

It only took Tessa a moment to botice that Will was smirking, she hit his arm.

"I'm sorry! I did try to hurt him, but it wasn't like that ... Cecily is pregnant." Tessa raised her eyebrows, and even Brother Zacharia stopped walking. "Do I tried to test him, I asked 'how would you properly show your child to twist an arm?'"

And he did it wrong?

"You wager on it, Jem," Will grinned. "So I tried to show him, but, as always, he had a sloppy way to everything, and he slipped under my grip. So did his bone."

You are a real case, Herondale.

Will looked up at Zacharia-he always had-and smiled sadly.

"May I ..." Will stamered, spreading his arms. "I know I can't, Jem, but ... for the sake of old times?" After a moment, Brother Zacharia circled his arms around Will. Tessa watched in wonder. After seeing this, they stepped away and Zacharia looked at Tessa.

I will see you again, Tessa. You needn't be crying.

Tessa hadn't known she had been.

"Good bye, Jem," she whispered. "I love you. We love you." Zacharia hummed in their minds, something happy, kind of like ... a laughter.

I never stopped loving you both. And...Tessa?

She looked up.

Make sure Will doesn't break any more arms, he can always see me in the Silent City.

"But," Will started. "That is not allowed-"

You'll get caught a weekened or two, William. Maybe I'll suggest you spend the night in there, so you can learn a lesson or a few about goof behavior.

All you could hear in the hallways were the laughter of three people, who were once so close; and now they were one.

Go on, cry. Its alright to.

You liked this?? I did!

-Skyler_Dawn💌