"I suppose youre storing up all that charm now?" Tessa inquired. "Wouldnt want to waste any of it on us?"
"Thats it exactly. " Will sounded pleased. "And it isnt Charlotte the Starkweathers cant stand, Jem. Its her father. "
"Sins of the fathers," said Jem. "Theyre not inclined to like any Fairchild, or anyone associated with one. Charlotte wouldnt even let Henry come up-"
"That is because every time one lets Henry out of the house on his own, one risks an international incident," said Will. "But yes, to answer your unasked question, I do understand the trust Charlotte has placed in us, and I do intend to behave myself. I dont want to see that squinty-eyed Benedict Lightwood and his hideous sons in charge of the Institute any more than anyone else does. "
"Theyre not hideous," said Tessa.
Will blinked at her. "What?"
"Gideon and Gabriel," said Tessa. "Theyre really quite good-looking, not hideous at all. "
"I spoke," said Will in sepulchral tones, "of the pitch-black inner depths of their souls. "
Tessa snorted. "And what color do you suppose the inner depths of your soul are, Will Herondale?"
"Mauve," said Will.
Tessa looked over at Jem for help, but he only smiled. "Perhaps we should discuss strategy," he said. "Starkweather hates Charlotte but knows that she sent us. So how to worm our way into his good graces?"
"Tessa can utilize her feminine wiles," said Will. "Charlotte said he enjoys a pretty face. "
"How did Charlotte explain my presence?" Tessa inquired, realizing belatedly that she should have asked this earlier.
"She didnt real y; she just gave our names. She was quite curt," said Will.
"I think it fal s to us to concoct a plausible story. "
"We cant say Im a Shadowhunter; hel know immediately that Im not. No Marks. "
"And no warlock mark. Hel think shes a mundane," said Jem. "She could Change, but . . . "
Will eyed her speculatively. Though Tessa knew it meant nothing-worse than nothing, real y-she still felt his gaze on her like the brush of a finger across the back of her neck, making her shiver. She forced herself to return his look stonily. "Perhaps we could say shes a mad maiden aunt who insists on chaperoning us everywhere. "
"My aunt or yours?" Jem inquired.
"Yes, she doesnt really look like either of us, does she? Perhaps shes a girl whos fal en madly in love with me and persists in following me wherever I go. "
"My talent is shape-shifting, Will, not acting," said Tessa, and at that, Jem laughed out loud. Will glared at him.
"She had the better of you there, Will," he said. "It does happen sometimes, doesnt it? Perhaps I should introduce Tessa as my fiancee. We can tell mad old Aloysius that her Ascension is underway. "
"Ascension?" Tessa remembered nothing of the term from the Codex.
Jem said, "When a Shadowhunter wishes to marry a mundane-"
"But I thought that was forbidden?" Tessa asked, as the train slid into a tunnel. It was dark suddenly in their compartment, though she had the feeling nevertheless that Will was looking at her, that shivering sense that his gaze was on her somehow.
"It is. Unless the Mortal Cup is used to turn that mundane into a Shadowhunter. It is not a common result, but it does happen. If the Shadowhunter in question applies to the Clave for an Ascension for their partner, the Clave is required to consider it for at least three months.
Meanwhile, the mundane embarks on a course of study to learn about Shadowhunter culture-"
Jems voice was drowned out by the train whistle as the locomotive emerged from the tunnel. Tessa looked at Will, but he was staring fixedly out the window, not looking at her at all. She must have imagined it.
"Its not a bad idea, I suppose," said Tessa. "I do know rather a lot; Ive finished nearly all of the Codex. "
"It would seem reasonable that I brought you with me," said Jem. "As a possible Ascender, you might want to learn about Institutes other than the one in London. " He turned to Will. "What do you think?"
"It seems as fine an idea as any. " Will was still looking out the window; the countryside had grown less green, more stark. There were no vil ages visible, only long swathes of gray-green grass and outcroppings of black rock.
"How many Institutes are there, other than the one in London?" Tessa asked.
Jem ticked them off on his hands. "In Britain? London, York, one in Cornwal -near Tintagel-one in Cardiff, and one in Edinburgh. Theyre all smal er, though, and report to the London Institute, which in turn reports to Idris. "
"Gideon Lightwood said he was at the Institute in Madrid. What on earth was he doing there?"
"Faffing about, most likely," said Will.
"Once we finish our training, at eighteen," said Jem, as if Will hadnt spoken, "were encouraged to travel, to spend time at other Institutes, to experience something of Shadowhunter culture in new places. There are always different techniques, local tricks to be learned. Gideon was away for only a few months. If Benedict called him back so soon, he must think that his acquisition of the Institute is assured. " Jem looked troubled.
"But hes wrong," Tessa said firmly, and when the troubled look didnt leave Jems gray eyes, she cast about for something to change the subject.
"Where is the Institute in New York?"
"We havent memorized all their addresses, Tessa. " There was something in Will s voice, a dangerous undercurrent. Jem looked at him narrowly, and said: "Is everything all right?"
Will took his hat off and laid it on the seat next to him. He looked at them both steadily for a moment, his gaze level. He was beautiful to look at as always, Tessa thought, but there seemed something gray about him, almost faded. For someone who so often seemed to burn very brightly, that light in him seemed exhausted now, as if he had been rol ing a rock up a hil like Sisyphus. "Too much to drink last night," he said final y.
Really, why do you bother, Will? Dont you realize we both know youre lying? Tessa almost said, but one look at Jem stopped her. His gaze as he regarded Will was worried-very worried indeed, though Tessa knew he did not believe Will about the drinking, any more than she did. But, "Well," was all he said, lightly, "if only there were a Rune of Sobriety. "