virago|c.g.|

xv

Clary woke up as the sun began shining in her room, surprising her as she realized she had slept enough to do so. During the night, she had been awakened with nightmares, but she found herself grateful that they had stopped after the first three that had awoken her to allow her some form of rest. Throwing back the covers, exposing her legs to the cooler air, her eyes glanced over the skin of them to see the small white scars dotting her deep colored skin. She clenched her jaw, hating that she was ashamed of such things because of the new life she had found, a life in a place that was hellbent on recreating the memories of the past.
Standing up, she was quick to grab a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, changing before shrugging on the hoodie she had worn yesterday. As Clary finished getting ready, her eyes landed on the weapons she hadn't turned in yesterday due to the loss of Noah and the questioning that took place. She was quick to grab them, knowing it would be better to do so rather than get caught keeping hold of them. However, Clary decided to keep her switchblade with her, taking only the gun and sword to turn in.

As she made her way towards the door leading out her room, she found herself looking into the mirror by the door, her eyes catching glimpse of the scar that was embedded on her face. As she reached up to touch it, she could almost feel the blade belonging to her Second Commander slicing into her as it did when creating it. She almost forgot about the deep scar, surprised at how living the white picket fences lie that Alexandria for so little time caused her to forget the hardships she had endured even for a moment.

In Solaris, she had never been afraid of her scar being visible, instead being praised for it. But Alexandria wasn't Solaris. Putting up her hood, she walked out of her room and down the stairs, ready to walk out the front door until she heard movement in the kitchen. "Clary? Why are you in a rush?" Turning around, Clary saw Maggie looking towards hers. "I need to go take back the weapons, I don't want to get in trouble—" Maggie waved off the excuse, shaking her head. "That can wait. Join me for breakfast." Clary thought for a moment before shaking her head. "I'm not hungry." As Clary made her way towards the door, she was surprised to see a hand rest on the doorknob, preventing her from leaving. Clary looked up to see Maggie looking at her with kind eyes, a soft smile on her face as she led the young girl away from the door. Clary was surprised when Maggie pushed back the hood and pushed the girl's hair that had covered the scar behind her ear to put it in full display. "There, I couldn't see your face. Now, come eat—" Clary shook her head once more. "I'm not—" Clary went silent seeing the pleading look behind the woman's gaze. "Please, Clary, I could use the company." The girl clenched her jaw, surprised at the sadness in the woman's gaze. "Glenn left earlier and it's just me, but I'm hoping it can be me and you." Seeing the sincerity behind the woman's eyes, Clary nodded softly.

Clary allowed the woman to lead her towards the island in the kitchen, the girl taking a seat as Maggie stood in front of her across the counter. Maggie plated some of the food she had made before pushing it towards the girl, Clary taking it gratefully before eating slowly. "Why do you cover up?" Clary's head shot up towards Maggie, surprised to see the curiosity in her gaze. "What?" Clary questioned softly, wondering if she had heard wrong. As Maggie settled, she looked back to the girl. "Your face, with your hood and your hair. You didn't do that last night." Clary stopped eating, looking to Maggie before shrugging her shoulders softly. She felt like a child doing so but in reality, she was unsure of whether she was protecting herself from the stares or others from the gruesome view. "I don't have to hide at night, the darkness can hide it." Maggie's eyebrows furrowed in question. "It?" Clary nodded. "My scar. It's not really the best thing to look at, especially in a place like this." Maggie's eyes softened, seeing the girl almost ashamed of the scar she had. "Did you always cover it up? Back in Solaris I mean." Maggie asked inquisitively, not knowing what to expect. Clary shook her head, eating a bit more before continuing to speak. "When it first happened I did, only to keep it clean. After it was mostly healed I showed it off." Seeing Maggie's surprised look, she continued. "Solaris was a place where warriors were made, a place where if you didn't have a scar you'd be stared at. The scar on my arm gave me only so much credit, until I got this one. That's when people, even those that didn't see me as fit for Commander, respected me."