He should have known better than to leave her alone with him, but he had convinced himself that Jonathan wouldn't hurt his own sister. He was wrong, of course. The fight seemed brutal, and with each passing second he could feel every blow Jonathan took. He wasn't worried about Jonathan though, it was clear to anyone who would win this fight, and Jace couldn't bear to think about what Jonathan might do to her. He quickly made his way back to the apartment, not wasting any time to take in the lovely afternoon. They were in a foreign place yet again. This time, Paris, all thanks to Valentine's magical apartment.

As he entered the apartment he heard glass shattering from the floor above. Taking the stairs three at a time he rushed towards the sound of fighting. He entered the room to find them. Clary was pressed against the wall, Jonathan's grip tight around her neck. Jace's stomach dropped, and he sprung forward, yanking Jonathan away from Clary, and onto the ground. Clary dropped back to the floor, gasping for air. Jace quickly grabbed her and cupped her face between his hands, his eyes searching hers frantically.

"Clary are you okay?" He asked, his concern evident.

She coughed and nodded. "I'm fine."

Jace turned to face Jonathan "What the hell was that?" he asked.

Jonathan was not pleased by Jace's interruption, his black eyes blazing with rage. "Clary should know better than to be picking fights with me, especially since we all know she won't win them." He sneered at her, eyes challenging.

"Go to hell."

Jace hoped that that would have been the end of it, but apparently Jonathan wasn't in the mood to be insulted by his little sister. He lunged for her, ready to finish what he had started before Jace had showed up.

Jace, anticipating this, moved between the two, using his body to shield Clary's smaller frame. He held Jonathan away with one arm, and placed the other on the wall, ensuring that Clary stayed behind him. She buried her face into his shoulder, trying to catch her breath.

"Jonathan stop. This has gone on long enough." Jace said, trying to calm the other boy.

The rage in Jonathan's eyes slowly dissipated as he realized there was no way to get to his sister without going through Jace.

"Fine then, leave, both of you." the pale-haired boy said with disgust. Jace didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed Clary's hand and pulled her out of the room. They walked down the long hallway in silence, stopping outside of his bedroom.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked again.

"I'm fine, Jace. It's just a couple of cuts and bruises."

Jace opened the door and motioned for her to go in. He gently pulled her to sit with him on the bed, taking the stele out of his belt. Brushing the hair off of her shoulder, he traced the iratze on her neck, his other hand cupping her cheek to steady her. "He was right you know." he said quietly.

"What?" she exclaimed, her tone defensive.

"You can't just go around starting fights with him. He knows you would never kill him if it meant killing me too."

"He wouldn't kill me either. He's obsessed with me." she said bitterly.

"I don't want to take that chance, Clary." His eyes bore into hers, and she felt as if she were drowning in his golden irises. She nodded and got up, turning to leave, but his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. "No, don't go. I need to make sure you're safe tonight."

She turned and moved back over to him. Even sitting he was only an inch shorter than her. She leaned down and connected their lips, kissing him softly. He moved his hands to her waist and pulled her closer to him. Pulling away, he rested his forehead on hers. "I love you." he breathed. She felt her heart swell in her chest as she stared into his eyes and saw how much he meant it.

"I love you too" she said, her voice joyful.

Jace leaned up and pressed a kiss to her temple, before standing and walking over to the dresser. He grabbed a pair of sweatpants and threw a soft t-shirt at her, before disappearing into the bathroom.

Clary quickly changed and crawled into Jace's warm bed, her body aching from the fight. By the time Jace stepped out of the bathroom she was already half asleep, fighting to keep her eyes open. Jace turned off the light and climbed in beside her. She rested her head on his chest, directly above his heart, sighing in contentment as he wrapped his arm protectively around her. He traced small circles onto her side, his touch light and soothing. Their legs were tangled together, her shorter ones wrapped around his. Jace looked up to the ceiling as he felt her breathing even out, and allowed himself to finally relax. The large moon illuminated his room, casting shadows everywhere. As he felt himself start to drift off he pulled Clary closer to him, resting his chin on her head. She made a small noise in her sleep and scrunched her face together adorably. With a small smile on his face Jace closed his eyes and let sleep take him.