Clary whirled, slicing off the demon's head in one clean swipe.
"Not bad," said Jace, grinning even as he battled a Shax demon, his seraph blade glinting in the moonlight.
They were both soaked to the skin; rain was pouring down, making it difficult to see where the demons were coming from, but Jace and Clary were Shadowhunters. They could manage. There were now only two demons left; the Shax that Jace was fighting, and a Behemoth that was attempting to evade Clary.
Clary was currently climbing up the fire escape of a building on one side of the alleyway they were in, in an attempt to pursue it. As she neared the top of the fire escape, Jace delivered the killing blow to the Shax and instantly turned, searching for Clary. She was determinedly climbing onto the roof of the building, where the Behemoth was.
Clary hoisted herself onto the roof and ran at the demon, her fiery hair hanging around her face, the colour still clearly visible even in the pouring rain.
The Behemoth snarled and lunged back at Clary. She dodged the attack, but was forced to take a few steps back, getting dangerously close to the edge of the roof.
Jace began climbing the fire escape, not wanting to miss out on all the action. He glanced up, and a body tumbled off the edge of the roof, falling, smashing onto the concrete ground. But it wasn't the demon.
It was Clary.
For a few seconds, Jace was paralysed. Then he came to his senses. He raced down the fire escape and ran to Clary. Jace didn't care about the Behemoth. He was fairly sure it had run off, but he didn't bother chasing it. All he could see was the small, crumpled figure on the ground, blood pooling around her and mixing in with the rain that was relentlessly pelting down.
"Clary. Clary please, please be alive," Jace whispered, his voice choked with tears. "Please,"
The fall from the roof wasn't too far, only two storeys. An iratze could fix Clary's broken bones in five minutes, Jace wasn't worried about those- he was worried about the huge gash running from Clary's collarbone all the way down to her hip, her skin as torn as her clothes, where the demon had ripped into her with its claws. The wound was gushing blood, and Jace could see the life draining from her every second. He fumbled for his stele, tracing an iratze onto her shoulder, close to the beginning of her wound. Healing runes wouldn't be enough, though. He saw her eyelids flutter, and his heart leapt. Clary was dying, but she wasn't dead yet.
The demon poison would begin to take effect soon, so Jace knew he needed to get Clary to Magnus, and fast. He also needed to get them both out of the rain. Jace gingerly lifted Clary up and carried her under a small alcove. She seemed to become even paler. Jace placed her down gently and immediately called Alec, who he knew was at Magnus's. Alec picked up on the third ring.
"Jace, now's not really a good time- "
"Alec, I don't care. Clary's dying, and if Magnus doesn't get to her soon…" Jace shook his head, banishing the thought. He wouldn't let Clary die.
"Where are you?" said Alec
"I don't know, somewhere around Taki's, we went past it on the way here. We're down an alleyway behind a pasta place,"
"We'll find you," Alec said firmly. He hung up.
Jace immediately went back to Clary.
" It's going to be okay, I promise," He grabbed her hand. "I'm not going to let you die, Clary,"
Jace suddenly felt extremely tired, as though his bones were made of lead. He vaguely remembered getting injured in the fight, too. The demon poison was probably beginning to take effect. Jace slumped next to Clary, just as Alec and Magnus appeared. He was still holding her hand as he began to hallucinate, an effect of the demon poison.
Jace was wandering through the Seelie Court. He heard a noise and immediately stopped, turning in a full circle, he hand reaching instinctively for his seraph blade. It wasn't there. He was unarmed.
"Jace," it was Clary's voice.
She was lying on the ground, a few metres away, her eyes closed, writhing, as if she were in great pain.
"Clary!" Jace called. She didn't open her eyes. He tried to run to her, but it was as if invisible bonds were holding him back. He yelled, and suddenly he was falling; falling down, down, into darkness.
"Jace!" it was Clary again, thought Jace wasn't hallucinating this time. He was in the infirmary in the Institute, and lying on the next bed over from his was Clary. He sat up, and felt a dull throb of pain, in his side, where he'd been attacked by the Shax demon. He ignored it.
"Jace!" Clary called again. They were alone in the infirmary, as far as Jace could tell. It was dark; The witchight was glowing, but only dully. Jace guessed it was in the early hours of the morning. Everyone was probably asleep, including Clary.
She was tossing and turning, calling out to Jace. She was tangled in the bed sheets, sweat mingled with tears running down her face. Jace's heart ached. He hurled himself out of bed and climbed into hers, smoothing the sheets over them both.
"Jace? Is that really you?" Clary's voice sounded weak, fragile.
"Yes, it's me," he answered. " I'm here,"
Clary sat up and turned to face him, tears silently pouring down her face.
"I thought you were dead. I was having dreams that you were. They felt so real,"
Jace squeezed her hand. " They were hallucinations, brought on by the demon poison that entered your system when the demon attacked you. They weren't real,"
She smiled weakly at him. "I'm glad you're here," she said.
Jace leaned forward, and suddenly they were kissing, his strong, scarred hands tangled in her hair, her hands exploring his back, his shoulders, his hips. She pulled him down beside her, breaking off the kiss. She rested her forehead against his.
"I love you, Jace,"
"I love you too, Clary," he whispered.
They fell into a dreamless sleep.